THE QUESTIONABLE FOOD choices John Quincy Adams Middle School served the next afternoon were interesting, to say the least.

As a trio; Riley, and Maya decided to go for Sloppy Joe over the Chicken Pot Pie, even if both were rather unappetizing, it seemed like the better option in their opinion.

Whilst they went to sit down at a table, Kat notices Lucas walking into the lunchroom, roaming around for a place to sit.

She smirks from a distance. "Well, well, would you look at that? New boy is looking for a seat. I wonder who will be the nice person to let his obnoxious self sit by them."

But as she looks away, Kat watches Riley scoot over a seat, letting one be open between them.

She gasps as her eyes go wide in disbelief. "Riley Matthews! What are you even doing?!"

The brunette shrugged. "I'm being nice."

"No! No being nice!" Kat whispered, vehement about this.

A whimsical grin plays at the edges of Riley's lips. "Oh, why not, honey? I like being nice, you're the one who doesn't like the new boy."

"Because look at him! I mean, what is there to like? For all we know, he could be a weird, annoying, self-centered boy, and—he's right behind me, isn't he?"

Riley's face brightens, which answers her question. And to her demise, as Kat turns a shoulder, there he was; lunch plate in hand, and an amused look on his face.

Kat greets him with a snarl, "Hi cowboy, here to rain on my parade? Because I'm quite sure that you standing next to me already is."

Lucas grins. "No, but I wouldn't mind that idea now that I'm thinking about it." He asks then, "But do you think I could sit with you guys?"

She spits out a chuckle. Was he really asking this of her, even after she so clearly made it obvious that she didn't want him here? Boy, was he in for a rude awakening.

"Well see, country boy, the problem with that is-"

She's cut off suddenly as Farkle rushes in and slides into the seat. "Ladies!"

"Farkle!" the trio responded.

Swinging back to Lucas, Kat served a cunning smile back at him. "The seat is taken, sorry." Even if she knew she wasn't sorry at all.

The Texan gives her a funny face like yesterday before walking away from their table.

Kat sighs in relief before turning to Farkle. "I've probably never said this to you in my life, but it's time like this where I thank higher beings that you exist, Farkle."

That sentence alone prompts the boy to smirk. "I'm flattered, Katherine."

She pats his shoulder. "I know. You're pretty obvious, buddy."

Farkle beamed. "Well anyhow, I had an interesting lunch line dilemma today." He draws a glance at Maya. "Sloppy Joe," then to Riley. "-Or chicken pot pie?" then back to Maya. "Or sloppy joe," back to Riley, "-Or chicken pot pie?"

Kat shakes her head at him as Maya inquired, "Is that all you got?"

"That's it! Same time tomorrow!" Farkle replied before rushing out of the seat.

As he leaves, Riley abruptly grabs Kat and pushes her to the seat beside her. "Riles-"

"Nope! You listen to me, woman," Riley shuts her up, leaving Kat to scowl. "You know I love you, but you need to give others a chance."

"But why should I when I already have you two with me?" Kat frowns sarcastically.

But even with her sarcasm, the two knew she was being truthful. They were each other's girls, after all. "Awwww."

Maya voices her opinion then, "Well I also think Riley's right, sweetie-pie. Although I'm also contempt with just you two, maybe you being here is the universe's way of allowing you to let people in. Like for example, a certain guy who you might've fell into the lap of..."

Knowing what Maya was hinting at, Kat shook her head. "I highly doubt that."

"You highly doubt what?" Lucas suddenly says, finally taking the empty seat next to Kat.

It hits her then that she just got played—and distracted, especially by two of the people she loved, and boy was Katherine pissed.

She sends daggers their way before turning to him. "Highly doubt that I'm ever going to tolerate your presence appearing randomly in my world anytime soon, Lone Star."

He hums at her annoyance. "You really don't like me, don't you?"

"Did I not make it that obvious?" she questioned, growing a grin.

"Why is that?" he questioned, and it drove Kat's face to sag the slightest bit. "I don't think I've done anything to make you hate me. So why?"

Unknowingly, Kat stood silent for a moment. She didn't know why she was hesitating with her response, but here she was, letting her stare linger into his curious one.

"Not yet," she responded, almost in a whisper. Like she didn't want to say it out loud.

Those two simple words left Lucas more perplexed than he expected himself to be.

But before he could ask what she meant, Cory suddenly appears at their table. "How ya doing, Kitty-Kat?" the godfather asks obnoxiously.

Oh wow...so the universe does hate me. She thought.

Kat laughs at her demise. "And here we go," she grumbled. "So, what are you doing here, Mr. Matthews? Here to catch us up on class, or how to appear at your students' sides at the worst times? Because I think you're already doing a good job on the second one."

He continued to grin like he wasn't doing anything wrong. Which in his head, he wasn't. "I'm just doing what your father would've wanted me to do, sweetie." Something she knew was a lie, knowing this was mainly his personal doings and not on behalf of his best friend.

"Yeah, because I'm soo going to believe that coming from a man-child who is also, coincidentally my overbearing godfather," Kat snarled.

Cory shook his head. "Look, I'm just gonna talk to Mr. Friar about geography." He swayed his attention to Lucas. "You know, I've been to a lot of places. Never been to Texas, though. What part of Texas is the closest to Mexico?"

"That'd be El Paso, sir," Lucas answered.

"Great! Let's go right now!" Cory exclaimed, before dragging Lucas's chair away and out of the room, leaving the boy to wave goodbye.

Kat watches this and shook her head.

God, this is going to be a really—really long day. She thought.

"And suddenly—I don't feel hungry anymore," Kat mumbled as she stood up and left the table.

"Neither do I," Riley insisted, as she and Maya followed her. "So, did you do the homework, Maya? I know Kat did."

"No, I didn't do the homework. The question on everybody's kiwi lips is, did you do the homework?" Maya asked while they handed their plates to the lunch lady to throw away.

"No, I'm one of the founding members of the Homework Rebellion. You think I did my homework?"

"I think you did mine, too."

"I did. I did, and I really liked it."

Maya lets out a sigh. "Riley, don't save me, alright? Be like Kat. She doesn't stop me."

And she was right. Part of it was because Katherine loved her, but she also wasn't one to be courageous and confident enough and go against the rules. That was Kim's thing after all, not hers.

Farkle walks up to them again with a plate of two desserts in hand. "Oh. You got two desserts?" Maya examined.

"Angel's food cake..." Riley trailed off.

"And Devil's food cake. Let me guess who's who."

"Hey, Farkle's just hungry. Not everything is about you two," Farkle disputed and walked away again, driving their eyes to roll.

⤵︎

OKAY, KATHERINE WAS actively wishing that Lucas wouldn't come back to history for obvious reasons. But knowing her odds, she shouldn't have been surprised to watch him walk right through those doors and sit in his seat behind Maya.

Kat slightly clenched her teeth. "And would you look at what the cat dragged in?"

Becoming a usual thing now, Lucas playfully grinned at her. "You're never gonna get to me, red. You know that, right?"

"Well, you know what they say, mongoose; Never say never," she smirked.

His grin widens. "You're insufferable."

She hums a smile. "I know."

Cory starts class then, before the two can bicker on any longer, "Okay! So, today we're gonna find out if anybody here believes in something so strongly, they'd fight for it." He turns to the blonde. "Maya."

"Yes, sir."

"Present your homework."

"Can't do that, sir."

"Why not?"

"Didn't do my homework, sir."

"Why not?"

"That's what I'm fighting against, sir," she replied, leaving Cory's face to twist instantly.

Farkle found himself sighing. "Oh, this could go on for a while." He ends up putting a sleeping mask on as he laid his legs on his desk. "Farkle Farkle Farkle Farkle. Farkle Farkle Farkle Farkle," he repeats with little snores.

Riley peers back to her dad. "I didn't do my homework, either."

"Oh, really?" Cory challenged.

"Yeah. We're the same, now." She motions to Maya. "I don't believe in homework."

"Well, guess what, Riley? That doesn't make you the same as Maya at all."

Suddenly, the blonde one raises her hand. "I have something to say."

Cory's eyes widen. He's both stunned but intrigued by this, for obvious reasons. "Wow, I don't know what to do, I've never seen this before. The floor's yours, Ms. Hart."

She stood up and instructed firmly, "Get up, Farkle," pulling on his sleeping mask, only to let it go and watch it hit his face. "You're gonna wanna be awake for this."

Farkle hectically woke up and brought himself to his feet. "Is it our honeymoon?" he asks in a single breath.

A line appears between Kat's brows. "Honeymoon?"

"Let me live, darling!"

Maya tsks out with a chuckle. "You missed the honeymoon. Now it's time to hand in our essays."

"Oh! Farkle goes first, Farkle always goes first!" And without another word, the boy is rushing out of the classroom to grab his project.

"Alright, everybody who did their homework, put it on your desk," Maya advised her classmates with authority.

Cory grew wary of where this was going. "Careful there, Ms. Hart," he warns, hoping his words would halt her from doing anything she might regret.

Then again, Cory also knew better. She probably wouldn't listen either way.

Kat opened up her folder and grabbed her paper. She wrote about her family, and how although she might be a shy person, she would do anything for her family, and she believes in them so much.

As Maya grabbed her paper, Kat yawns and rubs her eyes as a tired haze hits her abruptly.

"Hey." Cory's slightly worried voice forces Kat to glance at him. "You alright?"

She nods stiffly. "Didn't really get much sleep last night. I guess I'm becoming a little tired again. Sorry."

Cory shook his head. "It's fine." He wasn't going to get mad over something she couldn't control. That was just another thing he knew better about.

Farkle soon comes back with his project in his hands. It's large and there are sparklers around it that were flickering in its flames. "The branding of Atlanta led to the end of the Civil War, and of peace. I believe that peace is worth fighting for."

Maya suddenly grabs a sparkler off of his project.

"Hey, that's a pivotal part of my diorama!"

Maya takes another with the same hand.

"And there goes, Virginia."

She saunters back to her desk and stands on-top of her chair. "The burning of the homework led to the end of the Homework Rebellion because—well—there was no more homework."

But right as Maya was going to burn the homework with the sparklers, Cory rushes in to snatch the papers from her. "Alright, alright. That's far enough, Maya. I get it."

Still, the girl persisted. She raised her sparklers in the air and chanted," No homework, more freedom!" until, without warning, the flame from the sparklers touches the sprinklers, setting the fire alarm off.

Before they knew it, the entire room begins to rain piercing cold water all around them, causing everybody to scream.

"Okay, so those work!" Maya shouted, pointing to the sprinklers.

Farkle becomes all frantic again. "Is this all part of your presentation, or is this actually going on?" he profusely questions in pure panic.

Their classmates start to flee the classroom immediately, leaving only Farkle, Maya, Riley, Kat, and Lucas.

Kat rushed out of her seat and was already shivering due to how cold the water was.

And in noticing this, Lucas darted to her side and held his jacket over them both. "Why didn't you stop your friend, red?" he exclaimed over the noise.

"Why do you even care, cowboy?! You know I don't really like you at all!" Kat yelled back, still shivering from the cold water chaos around them.

"But that doesn't mean I don't know that you're better than that, Kat!" Lucas asserted.

She veers her gaze to him as he looked around everywhere else but her. Part of Katherine was glad he didn't notice her stare, while the other was too busy being perplexed about why he said that.

But that doesn't mean I don't know that you're better than that, Kat?

What a thing to say to someone you hardly know. Let alone, someone you've already grown to dislike.

Then again, maybe he did know something that she didn't.

Maybe she was better than that.

Maybe, just maybe.

On the other hand, Farkle mindlessly bolts to the front of the room to climb onto Cory's shoulders, which confused the hell out of his own teacher.

"Ms. Hart, you have detention. The principal will determine if it goes farther than that," Cory advised as Maya got down from her chair. "Ms. Matthews, Mrs. Decker please leave."

"I deserve detention, too!" Riley exclaimed.

As well, Katherine wasn't fond of the current circumstances either. "And I-I'm not leaving without my friends," she advised, moving out of Lucas's shelter of a jacket.

"No, you don't. You didn't do anything. And because you didn't do anything, your best friend is in very big trouble," Cory replied to his daughter. "Also, you're freezing Kat, go, please," he pleaded. "Alright Farkle, you can get down now."

"Well, you're actually quite comfortable, sir," Farkle admitted.

"Thank you...Get off!" Cory begged.

"Farkle isn't going anywhere!"

⤵︎

AFTER ALL THE RUCKUS had passed, the trio were now in the hallway by their lockers, still soaking wet, and bearing disdainful looks on their faces.

Today proved to be substantially worse than yesterday, which Kat couldn't believe was true. It was only her second day of seventh grade. What was the universe thinking of in doing this to her?

Well, she was about to find that out.

The trio watch Cory leaves his classroom with Farkle still glued around his shoulders. "Down, Farkle," he instructed.

The student obeys instantly and gets back on his two feet to stand beside his teacher.

"You're looking at us pretty hard there, Mr. Matthews," Maya spoke up first, still uneasy about all her doings today, and the look he had on his face.

"I just wanna stand by my girl," Riley insisted.

"You missed the moment to stand by your girl. You were so busy trying to be her, Riley, you forgot the best thing you can do for her is be you," her father replied.

It was clear to say that he was disappointed. They didn't blame him for it, but the silence wrapped around them left them in anticipation of what he was going to do next.

"Riley, take Farkle for a walk," Cory ordered.

"Can I come?" Kat asks pleadingly, very much tired from the day she was having.

He shook his head. "No, I need to talk to you too."

In a trice, Maya's expression hardens at him. "What do you mean? She did nothing wrong, Matthews. Why are you going to yell at her?" She wasn't going to let him yell at her for something that wasn't in her hands. That wasn't right, and of all people to deserve punishment at this moment, she knew Kat was the last out of them to get it.

"I'm not going to yell at her, Maya," he assured, while also feeling warm inside watching her stand up for Kat.

Eventually, Riley ends up walking away with Farkle by her side, leaving the three behind and alone in the hallway.

"Listen. For as long as I can remember, it's always been Riley, Maya, and Kat. You three have been friends since—ever," Cory began. "Now, I always believed a friend helps another friend out of trouble, not into it.

The hallway stood silent until Maya spoke the only two words she could think of at that moment. "I'm sorry."

"I am too, because you go too far. Do you understand me?" He didn't mean to sound mean to the girl, especially since she was an important person to Riley and Kat, but in this setting, he had to act accordingly.

As for Kat, she wasn't aware of the breath she was holding in watching Maya get yelled at.

Conflicts of any sort always made her super tense, and watching this drove her heartbeat to fasten. They were the main reason she hardly ever had friends nowadays; because oftentimes, they left when conflicts emerged.

Obviously, Kat would try to fight to mend her friendships when it came down to it. But her old friends almost never fought for it back. Most were too stubborn to put in the effort to try, and that was the downfall of everything.

Maya's gaze plummets to the ground, not wanting to meet her teacher's disappointed stare yet. If Cory was trying to make her feel guilty, he surely did the job, and he did it well.

But the roles would be reversed as she admits reluctantly, "I have nobody at home who helps me with my homework."

Cory's face falters, and without letting him say anything more, Maya walks away, leaving him and Katherine in a hurt silence.

Kat knew of Maya's situation, and Cory did too. But something she grew to be good at growing up was looking at both sides of a situation, and noticing the faults before anyone else did.

Especially this one, which was why she also couldn't blame her Uncle for being mad after all. He had a point. It's just—at what cost?

Knowing Maya's situation might've also been a factor in why she and Maya got along so well growing up. The only difference was that the reason Kat's mom wasn't around was because she did something very bad in the past. Meanwhile, Maya's dad just left without saying a word to her and her mother.

Both situations sucked, but it gave them something to bond about to this day.

"Kat," the sound of her name brought her attention back to her uncle.

She whipped her head to him and sighed. "Did I do something wrong?"

He shook his head. "No, of course not. I just wanted to talk to you about adjusting to this school."

Just from that, Katherine knew right then and there where this conversation was going, and she already was dreading it.

Her eyes to drop to the floor. "I-I'm fine, Mr. Matthews. If that's what you wanted to know."

"I don't think you are."

Of course, she wasn't.

She had never moved in her entire life, and especially now, being the new girl in middle school was already difficult to begin with.

"Look, you're a good person, Kat. An amazing one, in fact. But your dad's been telling me you've still been distancing yourself from people—even him and Kim sometimes, and he's worried about you because of that."

If she were honest, Kat really hated that she does that; distance herself from people, push away those who wanted to be her friend, or just wanted to know her. She just couldn't allow herself to ruin any more friendships. Especially the one she had with Riley and Maya. They were too important for her to lose. She's already dealt with too much loss of friends in her life anyway. It had to stop. It had to stop somehow, right?

"I know you're scared of friendships and the conflicts that the future might have for them, but you can't go living life in fear of them."

He was right. He always was a majority of the time, which utterly annoyed her during those occasions. But even with his current pressing efforts, part of him knew it wasn't enough to stop her stubborn mind from thinking otherwise.

"You have to keep trying, even if trying gets tiring," Cory advised, being honest. "Because you never know. Maybe one more try can lead you to the thing you want the most."

Friends.

That's what Kat wanted, and Cory knew that.

He also knew that she'd make that correlation herself without him having to say it out loud. She was intelligent enough to do so.

The only problem? It wasn't going to be that easy to convince a twelve-year-old named Katherine Decker that she deserved to have friends. At the end of the day, the decision on whether to listen to him was in the palm of her own hands. She just didn't know which to pick.

She looked at him one last time before bringing herself to walk away as well, leaving Cory fully alone in the hallway.

⤵︎

TOPANGA AND AUGGIE MATTHEWS were at their kitchen table right now. They were playing this little board game Auggie got from school today. Well, until they hear a knock on their front door.

"Coming!" the mother yelled and dashed to the door. She opens it to see Kim and Kat Decker at the other side. "Oh! My god-children! Hi!"

Kim grins immediately while Kat frowns. "Hi, Auntie Topanga," the younger sister greeted, her voice diminished of any enthusiasm.

"Oh no. What's gotten Kitty-Kat sad today?" Topanga's concerned eyes flash to Kim. "Did her favorite brownies or edible cookie dough run out at the supermarket? Because I've spent the past year trying to recreate it for her and her only, and I think I've gotten it down."

Kim's grin broadens at her aunt. "As much as that would be an easier problem to handle, this one's way more complex to solve."

As the Decker siblings went inside to sit at the table, Auggie asked, "What could be more complex than spending a year almost getting sick from trying to make you your favorite edible cookie dough?"

Kat threw him a hardened look. "Life—Auggie."

He looks up in ponderation before nodding. "Good point."

Topanga chortles as she sat back by her son, patting his shoulder. "Anyway—what's the problem, Kitty-Kat? Something happened?"

Kat sighs. "Everything happened, actually." She quickly grabs a hold of Topanga's hands, startling her at first. "Please, tell me you have good advice on how to let yourself have friends and how to stop being so shy because if I keep doing this thing I've got going on, I'm going to be stuck being a lonely loser! And I don't want to be a loser, okay!"

But when Topanga doesn't answer her immediately, Kat spirals. "O-or are you telling me I am meant for that life? The loser type of life...I-I never thought of it like that." Her grip on Topanga seizes as Kat darts to her sister. "What if I'm meant to be a loser? What if that's why my friends leave me? What if I can't change that?! What if I-"

Stopping her, Kim brought her hand to Kat's mouth then, halting her of her words. Kat sighs into her mouth. "Sorry," she mumbled out.

Topanga frowned as Kim tore her hand away. "Oh sweetheart, you're not a loser."

"But what if I am?!" Kat lets her head fall back for a second. "I mean, I'm nothing but an anxious, lonely, and weird ball of chaos in this world!"

Auggie points out, "That's still technically something."

"Oh, don't get all technical with me, smaller child."

A shiver rushes down his spine as he bolts behind his mom. "Mommy...Kitty-Kat is actually becoming a cat and I don't like it."

He was joking, obviously, but Topanga still took his words to heart. "Oh, Auggie it's okay." She peers back to Kat. "Sweetie, you're not a loser, okay? You wanna know why?"

Her shoulders sink. "Why?"

Topanga takes her niece's hands into her own. "Because I know you, Katherine. You're not a loser. You're not even close to being one."

But even with her assuring words, Kat still frowned. "I'm just scared to let people in sometimes. I mean, why would anyone want to be friends with shy ole me? Why would anyone ever want to be friends with someone as weird and awkward as me?" Her eyes flickered and fell to the table. "I just think I'm just afraid of—losing people, I guess."

"Well, don't be."

"That's super easy for you to say!" Kat yelps out, removing Topanga's hands from her own. "Y-you're perfect! Why would anyone want to lose you?!"

The aunt steals a glance at Kim, who shrugs. "I mean, the girls got a point. You're Topanga Matthews, for god's sake. Why the hell would anyone want to lose someone as perfect as you?"

And although her words were meant well, Topanga still couldn't believe their assumptions. "I'm not perfect—both of you."

"But you are, mommy," Auggie smiled.

"Yeah to you—always," Topanga reciprocated his smile. Drawing back to the girls, she sought to know, "But guys, do you think I got to where I am because I was all perfect?"

The Decker siblings share a look at each other. "Yeah, you don't want either of us to answer that truthfully," Kim shook her head.

"Well, I wasn't," she deadpanned, before shifting to Kat again. "You wanna know something weird? I—was a weird kid when I was your age."

"Yup, she sure was," Cory spoke from inside the hallway.

Already, Kat groans at his voice. "Oh, please go away you!"

Not listening, he steps out into the living room. "I was just telling the truth," he insisted, sitting in his seat at the table.

"Yeah, well, I don't need any more truths from you right now, mister."

Cory chortles at her attitude. "Well, here's one anyway, Kitty-Kat; so what if you're weird? Or maybe even a loser? You're still the amazing girl we all love, and nothing will change that."

She frowns then as she glanced at her godparents. "You guys really think I'm amazing?"

"Of course they do." Kim bumps her shoulder. "Not only because they are our second set of parents, but because you are."

"I mean look at you, Kat," Topanga began. "You've always been good enough to be someone's friend. And any friend you make should appreciate that and should stay because of it, even when things get hard. If they don't? Well, that's their loss in losing someone as great as you are."

Cory plants a hand on his wife's shoulder. "She's right. Don't think that people leave because you're not good enough or because you're too shy for them either. Because you are good enough for people to stay. I mean look at us," he motions to the people at the table with her, "We're right here, Kat. We've always been here."

"That's right. And if anything, embrace your weirdness—it's the most beautiful part about you, Kitty-Kat."

Hearing this from the people she always looked up to in life was something Kat didn't think would make her this emotional, but it did. They were her family, blood or not. Their words always mattered to her.

The corners of her lips quirked up as her heart filled with hope. "Okay. I'll try again." She bit her lip before speaking more. "Try to make friends again and—and embrace my weirdness or whatever..."

"And when you don't feel awesome, just remember you have us now. And we aren't going anywhere."

Kat breaks into a weak smile. "Promise?"

"Always," Cory and Topanga returned the gesture.

She peered at the little boy across from her and threw him a childish smirk. "You too, Auggie?"

"Always, Kitty-Kat."

Then last but not least; her loving sister beside her. "You too?"

Kim bumps her shoulder again. "I'm your older sister. I'm obligated by blood to always be by your side, no matter what."

And with that reply, Kat brought her head to rest on Kim's shoulder once more, with another smile twinkling her lips.

This was nice—peaceful, even for Katherine.

Missing her dad, Riley, and Maya, she was surrounded by the people she most loved in this world. It just felt right to be here with them, sitting in such a gentle silence.

Well, until abruptly, the front door opens.

"Where is he?" Riley inquired as soon as she strode inside the apartment with Maya.

Everybody but Cory points to him, leaving him puzzled about what was going on.

"There is no way I'll let you break up my friendship with Maya."

"Woah!" Kim fumbled out a gasp. "You were going to break their friendship?! What kind of monster are you?!" directing her concerned, and cruel words to her uncle.

Before Cory got the chance to argue, Kat included along, "Yeah, you bad, bad man. How dare you?"

Cory swats his hand at them as he looks back at his daughter. "Is that what you think I want, Riley?"

"No," she shook her head. "What you said you really want is for me to make the world my own. And you want me to do my homework. Well, I'm doing it right now. Here's what I think is worth fighting for. This is one of my best friends. She's gonna get me into trouble, and I'm certain that either me or Kat will get us out of it. And this time around, I did because here we are. Look at us, Dad. We're right here. My Civil War is over, Dad. I won." She stands there for a bit, taking in her own words. "What happens now?"

"Life—happens, Riley," Auggie commented.

Katherine chuckles at the irony of his words. "That's what I'm talking about," she whispered, giving Auggie a high-five.

⤵︎

LATER THAT SAME DAY, Katherine was now back in her bedroom after finishing dinner, which was way better than the lunch she didn't even have at school.

Her mind was still fresh of thoughts about today and the promises that came along with it.

The promise being that she was going to try this year. To try to let herself have friends again, and to get out of her comfort zone. To embrace her weirdness, and to not let her shyness get in the way of it. Katherine Decker was determined to let herself try to hope for the best with both her promises, even if promises weren't her strong suit.

Right as she was about to grab her books and binder from her school bag, an knock on her bay window stops her.

Darting her sights there, she sees Riley and Maya waving for her outside.

"Let us in, Decker," Maya instructed with a smirk.

Though puzzled by their presence, Kat strolled to her window and slid it up for them. "What are you guys doing here?"

As they crawl inside, Riley points to her, then to the seat of the bay window. "You—sit."

Kat's eyebrows shot up in surprise, but she complied and took a seat, observing as Riley settled to her left, and Maya on her right.

Riley spoke first, "Look, my dad told us about how you're going to try and make more friends and embrace your weirdness-"

"So, he thought we were the right people to help you do both of those glorious things," Maya finished Riley's sentence, grinning from ear to ear.

"So—here we are now."

Kat pouts at them both. "Oh, you guys don't need to do that, you know?" Because as much as she loved them both, she didn't want them to do this for her out of obligation from what her uncle wanted.

They proved her wrong, however.

"Oh, but we want to, sweetie-pie," Maya insisted.

Riley grabs onto the Decker's hand before continuing, "Kat, you've been our sister for years. And now since you're here with us, permanently, we can finally be stuck by each other's side as we've always wanted to be." She tightens her grip. "Me and Maya have always wanted that with you since ever. And now—we know you want it as well."

Kat could feel tears wanting to puddle her eyes now. Of course, for good reasoning. Especially when that reasoning was because her best friends shared the same desire to get closer to her and wanting to help her out, too. It overwhelmed her in the best way possible.

"You two have always been my sisters, anyway," Kat assured, seizing Maya's hand into hers to complete the chain. "And I wouldn't want anyone else to help me take on the crazy world besides you guys so, let's do it."

The blondie's grin increases in size. "Let's take on the world together—as three."

"Together as three! That's the spirit!" Riley exclaims before raising her and Kat's hands in the air, leaving Kat to raise her and Maya's up too.

From that moment on, Katherine had a feeling that this was the first of many good things that life had stored for her. She was hopeful—ready for more to come, even if she had to deal with some of the bad that had to come along with it. She didn't want to worry too much about it, because in the end—she knew it would all be worth it in the long run. Especially since she had her two best friends, and her forever family now, who were willing to stick with her through it.

And honestly, that's all Katherine Decker could've asked for in this life.

⤵︎

RETURNING BACK TO the subway station, the Matthew's family, along with Kat, Maya, Lucas, and Farkle, were accompanying Riley on her first true day into the world.

After adding money to Riley's subway pass, Cory walked back to his family's side. "Friends, family, and all you other subterranean mole people. We're here today to celebrate Riley being Riley. Now, some may call this a New York City Subway pass." He turns to his daughter. "But you, Riley, can consider this a ticket to the world."

"You think I'm ready?" she questioned with some reluctance.

"You showed us you are," Topanga ensured.

Cory takes his daughter's hand and assures, "Riley, I've already met the world. It's your turn."

Giving her dad one last look, Riley smiled before taking the card from him.

"Welcome to the world, sista," Kat announced sweetly, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.

Meanwhile, Lucas ventures away from them for a bit, noticing something from a distance. "Hey, this isn't so different from Texas. Look, there's a pony," he points straight ahead.

Farkle's forehead puckered, looking in the direction Lucas was staring at. "That's a rat," he corrected, which left Lucas' face to falter. Two random girls suddenly come around by them. "Ladies."

"Farkle," they both smirked and walked elsewhere.

Back to the girl trio, they strolled away from the family's side as Maya inquired, "So, where do you guys wanna go?"

"Don't know. Big world," Riley replied.

"Really, really big world," Kat emphasized.

Maya raised a brow. "Ours now?"

"Yeah, but my dad did say I have to be home by five," Riley advised.

The blondie shook her head. "Don't worry. He wrote you a note," she assured, snatching a yellow note from her back pocket to hand over to Riley.

They unitedly chuckle at each other before boarding onto the subway together, taking on the world for the first time together—together as three. <3

lani's talking!

their friendship means the world to me y'all don't even uNDERSTAND.

my besties since ever 🤞🏼

anyways, I don't really have much to say besides thank you for the votes and support you guys have already given this story. i appreciate it sm :)

i'll see you all next chapter, byyeee <33