a/n: here we are at the last chapter, after a looooong hiatus. thank you for sticking with me as I take years and years to update. 3

The Matthews' phone ringing off the hook startled the whole living room with it's sharp trill. Mrs. Matthews shuffled over to answer it, just before the last ring finished. She listened intently to whoever was on the other end and Riley and I sat on the couch awaiting whatever news was being relayed to her. I had been released from the hospital yesterday after finishing up the police report and getting the 'ok' from my doctor. They still hadn't found my mother, so I had gone home, under special police-sanctioned circumstances, with the Matthews. Since then I had been anxiously waiting to hear about my mother.

Mrs. Matthews let out what sounded like a sigh of relief and I sat up straight, wondering if it mant what I hoped it meant. No matter what my mother had said to me in the past, no matter the fact that she was the reason Mike was in our lives in the first place, she was still my only family. I loved her and I was so afraid that I might never get to see her, hug her, laugh with her again.

As Topanga hung up the phone, I took a deep breath, preparing myself in case it wasn't the news I had been waiting for. She came over to the couch and knelt by me, Riley grabbing hold of my hand tightly as her mother whispered, "They found her Maya. She's alive"

An unexplainable wave of emotion flew over me and I found myself crying tears of relief into the worn cotton of Riley's t-shirt. All of the pent up anger and fear diminished, not gone completely, but fading into the background for a blissful moment. All of the worry and love that I had held in my mother's absence melted away as I knew she was safe. Riley stroked my hair and I felt her own tear slide into the soft waves of my hair as she too let out the stress she had been carrying for me.

As soon as I got myself to a point where I appeared to be together, I asked in a shaky voice, "Where was she?"

"They found her curled up in the supply closet in the back room of the diner. The restaurant was closed while the owners were on vacation so no one found her until this morning." Topanga's own voice was beginning to shake too as the emotions of the mother-daughter separation began to sink in. She gave me a final tap on the knee and stood to tend to her own tears.

As she left I turned back to Riley. Her slightly puffy pink eyes met my ow equally disastrous pair and for a moment we both let out a small laugh at how ridiculously pathetic we looked. Then, she reached and pulled me into a tight hug.

"I'm just so glad everything's okay now Maya," she whispered into my shoulder.

The sentimentality made my tears come back in a new wave, settling into the shoulder of her shirt as I held onto my best friend for dear life.

"I-I am too. This part, at least, is over." I pulled back to look at her, taking her hand as I finished, "But it's not really over. Riles, I just… need you to know that I still have a lot to deal with, and having you and Farkle and Ranger Rick there with me will help, but all of that pain will still be there. And… it will take me awhile to be the old Maya again."

I saw more tears falling from Riley's eyes, causing her cheeks to glisten as she replied, "I know. I mean, obviously, I can't really know, but I know that you need to heal, and of course I'll be there for you. We all will. And i just want you to know that I don't need you to be exactly who you were. That's impossible. All I need… All any of us need… is for you to be here, being the best Maya that you can be. That will always be enough for me."

If I was crying before, it was nothing compared to absolute downpour I was experiencing now. My heart felt like it was going to explode and I had never loved and appreciated my best friend more than I had in this moment. It was all I could do to hug her once more and hold on as tight as I could. In that moment, I knew that things would be alright. Not immediately and not all at once; it would be a slow and rocky climb to being ok again, but eventually I would survive.

In all the hubbub of the previous week, I had almost forgotten about the dance. But with Riley's help, I had managed to finish my red and gold ensemble and we had planned the dance to be the best it could be.

Now, I stood in Riley's bedroom in front of her mirror, next to the mattress I'd been sleeping on since my mom was recovering. The red v-neck dress was beautiful, cut short mid-thigh with long sleeves that covered my weaknesses. The shining gold earrings, made to look like feathers, and the matching bracelet went perfectly with my strappy golden heels and clutch. I smiled a little at my reflection, the bouncing blonde half-updo that Riley has twisted my hair into looked really nice, and the minimal makeup I had applied–no foundation or concealer for once–deepened the color of my eyes.

Behind me I could see Riley's flowing pink dress, covered in chiffon blossoms, bouncing around the room as she gathered her own accessories. By the time I turned around, her brunette waves were adorned with a pink floral crown and everything matched that shade, right down to the classic low heels she wore.

"You look beautiful," we said in sync, before giggling at our own ridiculousness. We smiled at one another and reached out a hand to hold as we stood in comfortable silence, basking in our friendship.

Soon after, the doorbell rang and we knew it was Lucas and Farkle, come to escort us to our masterpiece of a dance. We smiled radiantly at Mr. and Mrs. Matthews on our way to the door, and they locked arms with a sad twinkle in their eyes as they waved us goodbye. Mr. Matthews got in his rightful fatherly threat as the two of us rolled our eyes (although Lucas and Farkle did not have quite the same reaction), and we shut the door behind us.

With the parents out of the way, we paused in the hall as the boys looked at our outfits.

"You look-"

"Amazing," Lucas said to Riley, taking her hands and touching his nose to hers.

"Thank you, kind sir," she responded with her bubbly, genuine smile.

"Perfect," Farkle breathed out, his eyes never leaving mine. "Absolutely perfect."

I grasped his hand and squeezed it, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to come. "Thank you. For everything."

And with that, the four of us walked downstairs and into the streets of New York, ready to take on our dance, and beyond that, a world that just might be ok after all.

a/n: and with that my friends, this whirlwind fic comes to a close. I'd like to thank you all for reading and reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this story :)