Firsts
They still haven't kissed.
It's been two months since Riley and Maya bumped into each other in the kitchen of Topanga's, and they have. Not. Kissed. Riley thinks she might explode.
Maya's been the perfect gentleman, insisting on getting to know every detail about Riley - and, in turn, Riley has found out every detail about Maya.
Except, of course, how her lips taste. How they feel when she presses them onto hers. Shit, the only reason Riley knows where Maya's words are is because she remembers the way Maya touched them when she said them aloud.
But Riley is impatient.
She tries to be patient, she doesn't want to rush anything - she knows Maya's father is absent even though he was her mother's soulmate, so it's hard for Maya to believe that every soulmate pair will last. She knows that the careful way Maya is crafting their relationship means she wants them to last, which means the world to Riley, honestly, it does. But... Riley is impatient. That's honestly all it comes down to. She wants to know everything about Maya too, she wants this to last and be beautiful, but she also wants all the things that haven't happened yet.
That's probably why, two months and fourteen days ( Riley has them marked on her calendar ) since they met, when the two girls are changing in Riley's room before they go out to dinner - Riley's parents are gone for the night, and Maya has convinced her, somehow, to let her take her on a date - Riley peeks.
She'd say she didn't mean to, except that she definitely does.
Maya is mid motion, scooping the hair off her neck, and Riley spots it - the words. They're scrawled in tiny, neat handwriting along Maya's shoulder-blade, aligned right and broken up by line like a poem. Riley gasps quietly, and wanders across the room to Maya, letting her fingers fall on the letters.
"Honey." Maya says, but not like she's objecting, more like she's.... accepting it. Riley can barely allow her fingers to touch the skin - it seems like marble, or porcelain, maybe, something beautiful in a museum that would be roped off with a DO NOT TOUCH sign. "It's beautiful." Riley murmurs, and Maya chuckles. "It's a little piece of you, honey. Of course it's beautiful."
Between Riley's little sneak peek and her touching Maya's back, somehow, Maya managed to put on a bra. When she turns around, taking Riley's hand from her skin, she swiftly pulls a shirt over her head - it has cutouts along the back that, for the first time, put Maya's words in full view. Riley grins. "Peaches..."
"I showed you mine. Now you show me yours. That's how it works, isn't it?" Maya asks, her voice quiet and her smile small. "Depends." Riley teases. "Can you guess where they are?"
Maya knows everything about Riley. She knows that her words are wrapped around her ankle. But, nonetheless, her smile becomes a smirk and she touches two fingers to Riley's neck. "Well, it isn't here." She reaches her fingers to Riley's arm. "Or here."
Riley is beginning to grin herself, and she takes Maya's hand in hers. "Do you need some help?"
"Maybe we can find them together." Maya says thoughtfully, pressing her fingers against Riley's hip, then the small of her back. "No. Nope."
Riley hums softly and moves their hands to her thigh. "Are we getting closer, soulmate word detector?"
"We're getting warmer," Maya confirms, and there's heat rising in both their cheeks - Maya quickly moves to reach for Riley's calf and huffs. "I can't reach it."
"Do you need some more help?" Riley asks, and Maya nods, pitifully waving her hand toward Riley's feet.
With a burst of courage, Riley pushes Maya onto the bed, rolling over with open arms beside her. "Was that helpful?" She asks innocently, and Maya bites her lip. "Depends on your definition of helpful."
"Well, are you going to take my help?" Riley asks, still sprawled out beside Maya. Maya turns pink and pushes herself on top of Riley, raising an eyebrow. "You little minx. I'll take your help." Maya chuckles, scooting down to Riley's ankles instead of taking the bait. She finds the words and goes still, mumbling, "Oh."
"You alright down there?"
"I just... I never thought about how it would be my words, you know? My words, marking your body forever. My words that you grew up staring down at, wondering when some handsome guy was gonna come along and then... you got me." Her voice goes soft on the last few words, and Riley's heart aches. "Maya, come here." she says, sitting up and tapping the bed beside her. Maya obliges, and immediately, Riley takes her face with both hands, pressing a kiss to Maya's lips. When Riley pulls back, Maya makes a soft noise of confusion. "What was that for?"
"Maya Penelope Hart, if you ever think that you are a letdown for me, I want you to come find me so I can knock some sense into you."
"But - "
"Maya. That was the first time I got to kiss you - do you really think I'd kiss you if I didn't want to? No. I wasn't waiting for some handsome guy, peaches. I was waiting for you. You're right there on my ankle if you ever forget it."
Maya grins and kisses Riley again, leaning her forehead against Riley's when they break apart.
"What was that for?" Riley parrots, and Maya's eyes are full of light.
"No one's ever gotten to kiss me before."