A/N I've got no excuses for the long absence. Sorry folks. Sometimes real life needs to come first. Especially when you're a mother.
Let's take another look on how possible season 3 can start. Ha. You're gonna hate me. Just a warning ahead.
Spoilers/Timeline – up to the season 2 finale
Maya Bishop thought life couldn't surprise her anymore. After everything she'd seen and been through there was little that could happen to make her wonder. And yet she somehow, and she still didn't know how exactly that happened, developed some kind of affection for Jack Gibson. Universe had a weird sense of humor apparently.
Well to her utter surprise it seemed to be working just great between them so far. She refused to analyze it. She just went with it, enjoyed it and tried not to screw up something that could make her happy.
Then they had to take the trip down to L.A. and she witnessed a wildfire. Not many firefighters have the honor in their lives. Not those that live in Seattle for example. It shook her world and turned it upside down. Knowing that just by jolly coincidence they made it out alive she had to admit that she had the wildfires in dear respect.
But then Nicole appeared. And she was not Nicole. She was Nikki. Dean's Nikki. And she stood there frozen to the spot and there was a warning bell ringing in her head that her world was about to be torn apart once more. And this time she was not ready for it and what was even worse, she didn't know how to battle it.
Miller asked them if they wanted to cancel the brunch but they both said no. They said they were okay. That they could do this. That happened in the past stayed in the past. But it was awkward. So damn awkward. Not the fact that they looked like damn Beverly Hills 90210 or even the fact that it was bad enough that Gibson used to date Andy before. But the silence that stretched over them was deafening. When Gibson started to talk about something and Miller joined him, she participated and soon and slowly they actually made it to the point of some adult conversation over brunch.
But Maya couldn't shake down the fact that woman that broke her heart just when she needed her the most in that point of her life was now making Miller so happy. Was she about to do the same to him? Throw him overboard? Or was this different as it was different with Gibson for her? And was it even her place to say something?
The argument she had with Nicole before Nicole broke up with her was … monstrous. And she pushed past her limits in training then. She needed to redirect her focus and energy someplace else. In retrospective she could tell that they were not supposed to be, that it wouldn't work and that it was not one-sided but still. It was just so damn weird.
After two hours she couldn't go on anymore and was happy the brunch was over. Nicole left as she had to go to work and Miller and Gibson didn't really know how to act when she was gone. And Maya couldn't stand the pressure anymore. So she excused herself and left as well. She walked home and knew she desperately needed to talk to Andy. She needed her best friend.
When she finally arrived home she realized that talking was the last thing she wanted to do. So she opened the door ready to face her room-mate. She needed to anchor her life again after this morning and knew that with Andy she could that just that.
She wasn't ready to find her sitting on the kitchen floor staring into empty space. Something happened and it wasn't good. And Maya's world wouldn't stop spinning huh?
She walked over to her friend and sat down opposite her.
"Hey." Maya said.
"Hey. You're back. How was your brunch?"
"I don't want to talk about it."
"Okay."
"What happened to you?"
"I don't want to talk about it either."
"Okay."
And so they both sat there on the floor and despite everything the presence of each other helped them to calm down a bit.
"Are you tired?"
"No. Yes. I don't know." Maya replied.
"Hungry?"
"I just had brunch." Maya pointed out.
"It's almost noon." Andy said then and Maya had to look at the clock on the wall to realize that they had to be sitting there on the floor for much longer that she had usually thought.
"Wow. I didn't even notice."
"Me neither. But I'm hungry."
"Any preferences?"
"I could use a pizza." Andy said after a moment.
"Oh yes. And ice cream." Maya beamed up at her.
"French fries." Andy added. "A lot of them."
"Cheesecake." Maya continued and they looked much happier.
"You call Luigi to get the pizza and ice-cream."
"And you call Rossie." Maya named a diner over the corner where they had the best cheesecake and fries they could get around there.
Soon the food was delivered and they sat down around the coffee table in the living room to have a feast. They both changed into comfortable clothes and pulled up their hair into messy buns. They just didn't feel like doing anything. They just wanted to have the food to cheer up their moods.
They haven't said a word.
"You still don't want to talk about it?" Andy asked Maya.
"You're curious." Maya replied and added "And you? Do you want to talk about it?"
"We're good." Andy said then and both smiled. Yeah being best friends was a good thing.
Before they could properly enjoy the food there was a knock on the door. They both lost colour from their faces, each expecting somebody else behind the door and both dreading it.
Maya noticed how totally horrified Andy looked and so just she called "It's open!". Vic walked in, closed the door and watched her friends on the floor around the table.
"Hey Vic."
"Hey. Wow."
"Wow what?"
"Junk food. The good kind."
"And?"
"I know why I need junk food but why you?" Vic said and taking off her jacket she sat down to them.
"We're not talking about it." Andy said.
"Take a fork and dig in." Maya added. Vic didn't complain.
Once the food was mostly gone they sat there, drinking coffee and they were just resting in comfortable silence.
"Why did you come anyway?"
"I thought we're not talking about our horrible mornings." Vic replied with a grin. Andy threw a pillow at her.
"Montgomery has been arrested. For the bar fight. The guy's pressing charges." Vic told them and it totally got their attention.
"What? How? When?" They asked in unison.
"We got to my place and … I finally slept in my own bed." Vic said and both Maya and Andy looked sad and compassionate.
"Montgomery was there with me. We ordered food and I fell asleep."
"And?"
"And then I hear somebody banging on my door so I open up and there's this policeman informing me they're taking him into custody and that Travis asked them to wake me up and tell me so I wouldn't worry."
"You're kidding."
"I didn't know what to say."
"I wouldn't know either."
"He told me to get him a lawyer and took him away."
Vic told them and sipped her coffee. They were all shocked and wondering about what to do.
"We need to call someone."
"I already have. I called Sullivan. I thought he could know about someone." As she said his name Andy felt something in her chest squeeze the air out of her lungs. She was unable to talk.
"What did he say?"
"He didn't pick up. I thought he could be asleep too so I called your dad." She told Andy but didn't notice the shadow in her eyes. Maya did though.
"He said he would put things into motion and in half an hour Sullivan called and told me he would take care of it."
"I can't believe it."
"Yeah, me neither. That idiot. Getting into a bar fight!" And Vic was really mad.
"They guys said that Heffington was being an ass." Maya pointed out.
"And so he had to beat him? Since when is Montgomery the guy to beat the crap out of somebody?"
"Maybe since it's his best friend who just lost her fiancée that's being insulted." Andy said and they both looked at her.
"What? Me? He didn't tell me." Vic replied.
"I know it from Ryan. He talked to him back then. Heffington was being an ass. Montgomery was drunk and wanted to defend you."
"He's an idiot!" Vic said furiously. But she looked touched.
"You're his best friend."
"Damn it."
And so they all moved and sat next to each other on the couch. Each lost in her own thoughts. Each one hurting, tired and confused. They all together strong but separately vulnerable.
Vic was close to tears but refused to let them fall. She looked at her friends and couldn't but wonder what happened to them this morning so they looked as bad as she did.
"Your turn girls. Come on. Tell me."
Andy had her eyes closed and was deep in thought. Maya noticed and despite her inner battle she reached over and took her hand in hers. Vic didn't say anything anymore and just watched them.
"I met Nikki today." Maya said in the end.
"She's nice isn't she?" Vic replied.
"She's my ex." Maya told her and part of her silently enjoyed the pure shock on her friends' face.
"You're kidding."
"Nope. My ex Nicole."
"Now I understand why you needed the junk food. Miller's dating your ex. Oh damn girl. I thought my life was messy but this is pretty heavy load too."
"Tell me about it. We made it through two agonizing hours of double brunch date."
Vic replied and looked at Andy. She fell asleep. She showed Maya and she just moved to make her more room on the couch and covered her with a blanket. They walked to the kitchen then.
"Did she tell you anything?"
"Nothing. She was already home when I got here. Upset."
"Do you think it's because of Ryan?" Vic asked but Maya didn't have an answer.
"Yeah me neither."
"Something had to happen when we left the Station this morning."
"Something with her dad?"
"No, he sounded okay when I called him." Vic said. "Maybe something with Sullivan? But they were on good terms recently, right?"
"Yeah, they were." Maya replied. She didn't offer anything else as she was already thinking about possible reasons. What could have possibly happened between Andy and Sullivan that would make her look this down?
"I'll go. Sullivan promised to call once he knows something."
"Okay. Let me know."
"Yeah, I'll let you all know. See you tomorrow?"
"Sure." Maya replied and Vic left. Maya closed the door and could only wonder. She had a few theories but given the state of mind Andy was in she didn't like any of those. All meant troubles and future changes at Station 19. So yet again her life was surely about to change. But this time she worried more about her best friend.
A/N what do you think about first chapter? I am not sure when I will post again as I'm leaving for a couple of days. This is sort of an intro. We'll continue as usually with all the characters and flashbacks and all. Just imagine this as the first scene before the intro hits us. What do you think?