(Sep 5, 2014) "Because this is what I believe - that second chances are stronger than secrets. You can let secrets go. But a second chance? You don't let that pass you by."
Daisy Whitney wrote that in her book When You Were Here. I not only made a choice but also learned about the importance of second chances that day too. When he showed up. Yes, I knew Lucas Friar. We were friends in Texas. Until my friend and I screwed it up. Luckily, I was about to get a second chance at a friendship.

(Song ~ How to Save a Life - The Fray)

~~~~~

In the year that had gone by, he hadn't changed. At least on the outside. Yes, while he looked exactly the same, he had a whole different aura to him. He looked calmer... there wasn't that same challenging, fiery look in his eyes. We stayed silent, examining each other. Then we both started talking.

"I'm so, so sorry."
"I shouldn't have blamed you."

"Wait, what?" I asked, confused.

"I shouldn't have blamed the two of you." He said again.

"Yes, you had every right to blame us. If it wasn't for him, then none of this would've happened, and I should've just ignored those people," I protested, almost wanting him to be mad at me.

"He feels bad, you know. He misses you. Y'all were close." Lucas said, looking up at me.

"It's his fault. He was my best friend. I trusted him." I said, crossing my arms. "Anyway... what are you doing in New York?"

"Dunno... I'm working on starting over. My dad got a new job, and I figured this was my chance." He paused before looking down. "I've thought about that day so many times. Replayed what happened over and over. I chose to beat up Alex Hayes. You didn't make that choice. Zay didn't."

I thought about his words for a moment before blurting out. "They don't know about my mom."

He looked at me, confused. "How? I see how you are with Riley and Maya. How could they not know?"

"I told them it was cancer. My dad hasn't told anyone anything. I couldn't tell them. They would never talk to me again. Mr. and Mrs. Matthews were best friends with my mom. I'd lose my whole second family."

"It wasn't your fault Makenzie. You have to realize that."

I shook my head. "It was. Lucas, just... please don't tell them."

"Alright..." He sighed. "That's for you to tell, not me. I'm here for you though, remember that." I nodded and he smiled. "Alright then. I'm gonna get to class. See you later, sis."

I smiled. In Texas, we used to call each other. "I'm glad you're back, bro." He nodded smiling and started to walk out. "By the way, Friar. You hurt her I hurt you." I threatened, referring to Riley.

"Ay-ay Captain."

~<3~

We were sitting in the cafeteria, watching Lucas look around. "Aww, look at him looking for a place to fit in," Maya said smiling.

"You think he'll sit with us?" Riley asked happily. I slid a chair next to Riley. Then, Farkle came and sat in the chair.

"Ladies." He said. We groaned in unison. "Farkle."

"Interesting lunch line dilemma." He looked at Maya. " Sloppy joe," He looked at me. "Tacos" He looked at Riley." or chicken pot pie? Or sloppy joe, or Tacos, or chicken pot pie? "

"It's that all you got?" I asked, sighing.

"That's it! Same time tomorrow!" He says before leaving.

We glanced over, to see Lucas looking for a seat. "There he is! Invite him to sit down!" Maya said, nudging Riley. Riley moved to the seat next to Maya and me.

"With words?" Riley asked, shocked. I sighed, then have Riley a pat on the back. "You're ready for this, Riles!"

"What do I say?" Riley asked, clearly confused. Maya, thinking. "Hey, Lucas. Looking for somebody special?" She suggested, grinning.

"I can't say that!" Riley replied indignantly.

"Hey, Lucas. Looking for somebody?" I suggested.

"Too forward."

"Hey, Lucas." Maya tried.

"Like we're on a first-name basis?"

I went for something simple. "Hey."

"Hey." Riley tried.

"Hey back," Lucas said as he sat down next to Riley. Riley paused.

"Hi. You're sitting here." She started awkwardly. Lucas looked worried for a second, "Is that okay?"

Riley gave him a thumbs up and smiled. "Can you excuse me for just one sec?" She asked, before turning to Maya and me, and we excitedly screamed at the same time.

Cory walked up to us, staring at Lucas. "How ya doing?" He asked casually, although he was probably exploding inside.

Riley sighed. "Dad, you have a choice here. You can either understand that this is just a boy talking to me in the cafeteria..."

"I'm gonna do whatever you say next," Cory said, causing me to grin.

"But this is so innocent!" Riley protested.

"Honey, fathers don't see anything as innocent. We see it as...what's the opposite of innocent?"

Maya and I raised our hands. "Right here!" We said in unison.

Riley looked at her dad urgently. "Please don't embarrass me."

"I'm just gonna talk to Mr. Friar about geography." He turned 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?" He asked slyly.

Lucas looked at him nervously. "That'd be El Paso, sir."

I grinned. "Here comes funny," I said.

"Great! Let's go right now!" Cory exclaimed, before dragging Lucas's chair away from our table. Lucas waved to Riley, smiling, and waved back.

We left the table, and Riley casually said. "So, did you guys do the homework?

"No, I didn't do the homework." Maya shook her head, and I gave a thumbs down.

"The question on everybody's kiwi lips is, did you do the homework?" I added, grinning.

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

"I think you did ours, too." Maya and I said in unison.

"I did. I did and I really liked it." Riley said, smiling.

Maya shook her head. "Riley, don't save us."

Riley looked at her in disbelief. "What?"

"Let us ... be us." I finished, struggling for words. Farkle walked by with his dessert tray. "Oh. You got three desserts?"

"Angel's food cake..."

"Devil's food cake."

"And marble cake. Let me guess who's who." We each said the cake that represented us, with me finishing.

"Hey, Farkle's just hungry. Not everything is about you." At least Farkle will never change.

~~~~~

"Next time you're faced with a choice, do the right thing. It hurts everyone less in the long run." Wendelin Van Draanen said, and she couldn't have been more right. Maya and I were about to make a choice that was gonna change us because we didn't do the right thing... We went too far.

~~~~~

"Hi, I'm glad you're back," Riley told Lucas as we walk into history class. Lucas smiled and responded with a "Hi. Me too."

Mr. Matthews walked up to Riley and Lucas. "Hi. Apparently, you have a better sense of direction," he gestured to Riley, "than I anticipated."

Riley turned back, putting her hands on her head. I snickered, and Mr. Matthews gave Lucas the "I'm watching you" signal.

"You are a really good-looking guy." Mr. Matthews stated, before turning back to the rest of us. "Okay. So, today we're gonna find out if anybody here believes in something so strongly, they'd fight for it." He turned to us. "Maya, Makenzie."

"Yes, sir." We both said in unison.

"Present your homework." I just shrugged.

"Can't do that, sir." Cory sighed, staring at us. us

"Why not?"

Maya replied for the both of us this time. "Didn't do our homework, sir."

Cory stared at us in confusion. "Why not?"

"That's what we're fighting against, sir," I said confidently. Farkle looked at the three of us. "Oh, this could go on for a while." He said while he put on a sleep mask. " Farkle Farkle Farkle Farkle. Farkle Farkle Farkle Farkle."

I was staring at him, grinning when Riley proudly said. "I didn't do my homework, either."

Cory raised his eyebrows. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. We're the same, now. I don't believe in homework." I scoffed, looking between my best friend and me.

"Guess what, Riley? That doesn't make you the same as Maya and Makenzie at all." I nodded, as Maya rose her hand, and lifted mine in the air.

"We have something to say." She said proudly.

Cory just stared. "Wow, I don't know what to do, I've never seen this before."

"I say you give us a chance!" I suggested.

"The floor's yours, Ms. Hart, Ms. Huxton."

Maya and I stood up and shook Farkle. "Get up, Farkle." Maya started as I pulled off his sleeping mask. "You're gonna wanna be awake for this."

Farkle stood up. "Is it our honeymoon?"

"No, you missed that," I said, patting him on the back. "Now it's time to hand in our essays."

"Oh! Farkle goes first, Farkle always goes first!" He said excitedly, leaving the room. Yeah, we knew that was going to happen.

Maya looked around the room. "Alright, everybody who did their homework, put it on your desk." I started collecting papers from around the room.

Cory frowned. "Careful there, Ms. Hart, Ms. Huxton.

Riley looked at us doubtfully. " Are you sure about this?" She asked us.

"We got this," Maya said, smiling.

I nodded, "We know what we're doing." I told her.

"Okay."

Farkle entered the room with an extravagant project and said to us. "The branding of Atlanta led to the end of the Civil War, and of peace. I believe that peace is worth fighting for."

Maya took a sparkler off of his project and Farkle said to her, " Hey, that's a pivotal part of my diorama!" I took one. "And there goes Virginia."

Maya smiled, then, in the same tone as Farkle, she said. "The burning of the homework led to the end of the Homework Rebellion,"

"Because there was no more homework," I added.

We both stood on our chairs when Cory came over and took the homework from me. "Alright, alright. That's far enough, girls. I get it." That's when we should've stopped. But nooooo, we had to cross the line.

"No homework, more freedom!" We chanted. Then, all of a sudden, the fire from the sparkler touched the smoke alarm, causing the sprinklers to go off. "Okay, so those work," I said nervously.

(Sep 5)"My friends and family are my support system. They tell me what I need to hear, not what I want to hear and they are there for me in the good and bad times. Without them I have no idea where I would be and I know that their love for me is what's keeping my head above the water." said singer Kelley Clarkson. She was right. We need our friends and family's support to make it through life. So that when you do make mistakes, you have help fixing them.

~~~~~

We stood in the hallway. Riley and Farkle watched us sympathetically.

Maya glanced at Cory. "You're looking at us pretty hard there, Mr. Matthews."

Riley cleared her throat, trying to stand up for us. "I just wanna stand by my girls."

"You missed the moment to stand by your girls. You were so busy trying to be them, Riley, you forgot the best thing you can do for them is be you. Riley, take Farkle for a walk."

Riley glanced at us before leaving with Farkle. "Listen. For as long as I can remember, it's always been Riley, Kenzie, and Maya. Now, I've always believed a friend helps another friend out of trouble, not into it.

"We're sorry." Maya and I mumbled.

"I am too because you two went too far. Do you understand me?"

Maya sighed. "I have nobody at home who helps me with my homework." She said before running off.

Cory turned to me. "Look Kenz, I'm sorry about your mom, I really am. But, that doesn't give you an excuse to act out."

I stared at the floor. "I can't do it. I have trouble with schoolwork. I have trouble remembering what you say... even if I take notes. So, I have trouble doing my homework. My dad... he doesn't have time for me. He told me he would help with it since I wasn't sure what to do, but he never did. He's just... dealing with everything. I'm sorry that I let you down..."

Then, without waiting for an answer, I walked away.

~<3~

Maya, Riley, and I were standing in the subway, Maya and I deep in thought. "Riles?" Maya asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah?"

"If we can't hang out with each other as much anymore..." Maya started slowly. I realized what she was trying to say.

"Don't worry about it." I finished for her.

"Wait, why would..."

"He's going to make you end our friendship." Maya and I said together, and a tear rolled down my cheek. The Matthews family were the only people there for me... And I was gonna lose them.

"He said that?" Riley said, obviously angry.

"He's really upset with us," Maya said.

"He loves you two."

I managed to say something. "I don't think so anymore. I just want you to know that I get it, it wouldn't be your fault."

The lady from yesterday started clapping. "Bee-you-ti-ful! You three little bumblebees got a sweet thing going, but where's your hunk?" She paused, and I shrugged.

"I think he went home," I told her, before turning back to the girls.

"You ain't got no hunk, you ain't got no story!"

"I haven't been a good friend," I said slowly.

"Me neither." Maya agreed.

"You're my best friends."

The lady turned to us. "She's your best friend. Best friends are important. I have a best friend. I'm not talking to her right now."

"We went too far." I start.

"And I don't think that's gonna stop. We're bad for you." Maya finished. Another tear rolled down my cheek. Yes, I know, I'm emotional.

"He said that?"

Maya and I looked at each other sadly. "He will."

The subway stopped. "This is your stop."

"Don't be us."

"You don't go as far as us."

"No." Riley protested. We lead her off the subway. "No!"

"No! Do not push her off this train." The lady yelled. Riley turned to leave. "You do not push your best friend off the train."

"We're dealing with something here!" I told her before turning back.

The door closed, when I saw Riley mouth something. She turned around and opened the doors of the subway.

"Ooh, she's back! That little girl pushed those doors open with the power of love!" The lady yelled. Seriously, what is so interesting about our lives?

"You two are not allowed to abandon our friendship. I would never do that."

"Riley, we're pushing you away because we're not good for you anymore."

"Only I decide that. You know why?"

"Why?"

"Because if this is my world now, the first two people I want in it is you guys."

Maya and I groaned. "You're gonna save us, aren't you?" We asked in sync.

"I am."

~<3~

"Where is he?" Riley yelled, walking through the door. Auggie and Topanga pointed at Cory.

"There is no way I'll let you break up my friendship with Maya and Kenzie," Riley said firmly,

"Is that what you think I want, Riley?" Mr. Matthews said, looking at Maya and me.

"No. 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. These are my best friends. They're gonna get me into trouble, and I'm gonna get us out of it. And I did because here we are. Look at us, Dad. We're right here. My Civil War is over, Dad. I won. What happens now?"

~<3~

We stood in the subway station. Riley, Maya, Mr. and Mrs. Matthews, Auggie, Farkle, Lucas, and I.

"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 turned to Riley, "But you, Riley, can consider this a ticket to the world.

Riley smiled. "You think I'm ready?"

Topanga smiled. "You showed us you are."

"Riley," Her dad starts, "I've already met the world. It's your turn."

Riley smiled and took the card. Lucas looked at Farkle. "Hey, this isn't so different from Texas. Look, there's a pony."

"That's a rat." Two girls walked by. "Ladies."

"Farkle." They giggled back.

"How does everyone know you!" I exclaimed.

Maya and Riley got onto the subway, but Mr. Matthews stopped me. "Makenzie... if you ever need help studying, come to us. We're here for you."

I nodded. "Thanks, Mr. Matthews." Then, with a smile on my face, I walked onto the subway.

Maya turned to us. "So, where do you wanna go?" Riley smiled. "Don't know."

I smiled even bigger. "Big world."

"Ours now?"

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

Maya grinned. "Don't worry."

"He wrote you a note."

Yes, life is different. But, I trust Lucas with my secret. And, as long as I keep Riley and Maya by my side, we can do anything. We can take on the world.