MAYA LAID ON her back, submerged in pillows and blankets, her phone held just above her face. Texting a stranger without ever meeting them in real life isn't so complicated as she thought it would be, it's hard to judge the person based off of nothing. With still a slight bit of hesitation, she continues to follow the conversation with caution.

Riley had ran down stairs to gather some snacks for the afternoon, leaving Maya alone, consumed within her thoughts. Earlier this morning during class, she managed to create a masterpiece based off this strangers social media account and she was immediately worried the second she hit post. It made her feel uneasy, she hasn't stopped thinking about why she's even texting this guy in the first place and hasn't blocked him yet. He could be anyone.

     He can't be all that bad, she thought. After speaking to him for the majority of the day, he doesn't seem to be a terrible person, but as she came to her conclusion, she can't judge him so quickly. "Do you want tortilla chips and salsa?" Riley's voice echoed off of the walls from downstairs.

Less than two seconds after she spoke, from down the hallway, Riley's little brother, Auggie, jumped from his bed and head straight for the stairs, flying past Riley's bedroom where Maya lay questioning her every text message. "I want some!" He shouted which made the blonde crack a smile.

     "That sounds great!" Maya yelled from her position on the bed. As she aimlessly scrolled through Instagram, a notification popped up at the top of her screen. It was him. The mystery man. TexasFriar. Who in the world could he be and how is it that he randomly stumbled upon her exact account. "Oh boy." She mumbled under her breath.

Her heart began to race with curiosity, what could he have possibly messaged her now and will he ever take a hint to leave her alone? But she realized that she hasn't done much to leave him alone either.

Drumming her fingers on the back of her cell phone, she pondered, wondering whether or not she should open this strangers direct message all together. Maybe she took things too far? Maybe she should have blocked him in the first place? She struggles to come together with an answer. She struggles with it for so long that Riley soon appears within the doorway carrying a large bowl of tortilla chips with melted cheese on top and salsa for dipping.

"Who 'ya texting? Your eyes are glued to that screen." She teased as she flopped onto the bed beside her best friend. Riley places the large bowl in between them, she crosses her legs and snags the first chip she gets her hands on.

Placing her phone down and reaching into the bowl, Maya lifted an eyebrow, "The Guy."

"The guy who commented on your picture?" Riley crunched down onto a chip while stretching over Maya to her bedside table in search of her laptop.

She giggled as Maya lifted herself up on her elbows, bumping her hips into Riley's stomach which made it harder for her to grab her laptop on the other side. Riley swatted the back of her hand in Maya's direction, getting her to stop momentarily. "Bingo." Maya retrieved her phone and unlocked it unintentionally.

"Why haven't you blocked him yet? Is he bothering you again?" Riley questioned, chopping down on another piece of their after school snack. After a long, tiring day of dealing with annoying teenagers and unnecessary assignments, Riley's bedroom was the two best friends' favourite place to be and to relax. Normally Maya stays over for dinner with the Matthew's because her mom usually takes later night shifts to be able to provide for her.

Maya shrugged her shoulders and rolled onto her back, "I'm not sure." She took a deep breath in, and released it dramatically, "He doesn't seem like a bad guy. Not all people on the internet are assholes." She takes a deep breath and opens the text, which simply reads 'hello?'.

"I suppose you're right." She stated, glancing out her bedroom window to see the wind pushing leaves around the fire escape rapidly. "But you know to block him if he starts getting really creepy."

"He won't stop calling me beautiful." Maya uncomfortably bites at her bottom lip, staring at her and the strangers previous conversations.

Riley scoots over closer to her best friend, indicating for Maya to roll back over to her stomach. When she didn't, Riley hopped on Maya's back and began running her fingers through her best friend's hair with the determination to execute a cute French braid. "Well, you most definitely are beautiful, Maya, so don't deny it. But where does he live? How did he find your account?"

Maya attempted to shrug her shoulders, but when she realized she couldn't, she just sighed, "I have absolutely no idea. His handle is Texas Friar, so he's most likely from Texas, I suppose."

"Is he cute?" Riley peered over her best friends shoulder to see what she could see. Maya clicks onto his profile and they begin inspecting it thoroughly like Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. "He's really cute." Maya rolled her eyes, "That's why you painted a horse today!" Riley accidentally shouted in her ear.

"Yes, now get off of my back before you break my spine!" She shouted right back at her, aggressive but playfully throwing her sideways so she could sit upright and have Riley finish the braid properly. "No stranger is going to call me beautiful and get away with it."

Riley continues to tie each strand of Maya's hair together, "Are you going to tell your mom about it?"

"Hell no! I'll get grounded for two weeks and have to block the poor guy." Maya reaches for the bowl of chips and keeps them in her free hand, snacking on them every now and then between sentences. "If he does live in Texas though, he's thousands of miles away from here."

"You could still give him a chance, he's super cute, Maya." Riley leans over to her bedside table once again and snatches a countless ponytail to finally tie off Maya's braid. "Just look at him!" She scrolls through his profile and taps to enlarge one with him standing with his friends, showcasing a heart-stopping smile. "He's drop dead gorgeous!"

     Maya rolls her eyes a second time, "He is cute, I've got to admit, but it's not like it means anything. He's in Texas, Riley! Even if he's not a total creep, I'll never meet him."

     "Never say never." The brunette chuckles, hopping off of her bed and strolling to her vanity across the room. "You could still flirt with him maybe? See if anything happens."

     Maya twiddles her thumbs together, a partial silence fills the room as she stares down at her phone. "I wouldn't want to start-" she corrects herself, "I couldn't allow myself to put in effort for nothing to come out of it."

     Riley's expression falls and she understands what her friend is getting at, "Makes sense." She hands Maya her handheld mirror which allows her to see if Riley did a good job or not.

     "I'm going to continue talking to him though." Maya says as she opens up her friends laptop, unlocking it with the password that only she, Riley, and Topanga know, she starts towards the browser and brings up the Tumblr login screen. "If anything abnormal happens, he's getting cut off."

     Riley repositions her mirror before heading back to her spot on the comfy bed. "Sounds good, I'll block him too, just give me a heads up," she then looks towards the computer screen and notices where Maya has ended up, "I thought we were going to catch up on Riverdale?"

     "Oh, hell no! You know how much I hate that show." The blonde speaks up, entering her email and password, she shoots Riley some stank eye as her account loads up.

     "But you still watch it with me!" Riley crosses her arms and returns the stank right back at her. "So ha."

     Maya lets out a dramatic sigh, "It's so horribly written that it makes my head hurt. And the acting, oh please. I've seen better acting on Sesame Street."

     Riley's eyes surprisingly open wider than normal, "Excuse me, what did you say?" She leans closer towards her best friend, "Don't you dare criticize any of their acting skills, thanks? Especially not Cole Sprouse's because I'm pretty sure you grew up watching Suite Life with me and it we all know it was comedy gold."

     The best friend scrunched up her nose and grabbed one of the countless throw pillows Riley keeps on her bed and places it upon her head, "In case you haven't noticed,"

     "Stop!!"

     "I'm weird. I'm a weirdo. I don't fit in. And I don't want to fit in." Maya put on her best impression of the Sprouse twin, "Have you ever seen me without this stupid hat on? That's weird?" She finishes, reaches for the pillow and biffs it towards her best friend, "What's weird is the fact that they even thought that was decent enough to put in the script!"

     By now, Riley is laying on her back, supporting her stomach and laughing her little heart out. "Stop it!"

     "It's true, Riley, I can't stand that show." Maya pats down her baby hairs that stood on edge and lets out a laugh as well.

     "That show is televised genius and is totally packed with drama from beginning to end," she chews at a chip, "so your opinion is invalid. Maya Hart is officially cancelled."

AUTHOR'S NOTE
I realize the gif at the very beginning of this page is in Maya's bedroom, but we're just going to ignore that because Maya is just so gorgeous that it's hard not to include it. Let's also not be butt hurt about Riverdale, I'm only joking, don't come at me. I hope you're enjoying this redo for the millionth time! You guys are amazing!

© PRINCECARLGRIMES 2016