#gmw classroom

[skyeeuphixia]

𝚐𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚐𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛 // 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜

gallagher siblings x sister oc (claudia)

summary: in which claudia forgives this chapter is inspired by the girl meets world episode: girl meets the Forgiveness Project original gmw characters have had their names changed except cory and topanga

for context: claudia is the middle gallagher child, being older than debbie and younger than ian, in this she is 15 years old, ian is 16 and debbie is 12. this takes place just over a year after monica attempted to take liam. ══════════════════

warnings: family issues, swearing, Monica word count: 6.6k

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Claudia Gallagher. 

The odd Gallagher out you could say. 

Her long, curly hair was a shade blonder than her older brother Lip's, and she possessed a unique sense of style, constantly experimenting with different clothing choices as she didn't like to limit herself to one style. 

Unlike her more outspoken siblings, Claudia preferred to keep to herself, often remaining silent about her own struggles with her family. Her older siblings, Fiona, Lip, and Ian saw both positives and negatives in her reserved nature. On the one hand, they had one less person's problems to deal with but on the other hand, they never knew what problems were going through that forever racing mind of hers. 

The exception to Claudia's quiet demeanour was her relationship with Lip, her closest sibling. Although hesitant to burden him with her own issues while he was already grappling with his own challenges, she still confided in him more than anyone else. However, her reserved nature didn't extend to her school life.

What they didn't know, is that Claudia had an amazing teacher. Mr. Matthews.  He was the father of her best friend of 11 years and had become somewhat of a support system for the girl, so she had known him before he even began teaching her. As a history teacher, Mr Matthews possessed a remarkable ability to intertwine life lessons with historical events. Claudia and her close group of friends would often solve their own problems by applying the wisdom gained from his captivating lessons.

For the longest time, Mr Matthews had always been right in Claudia's eyes. However, there came a moment when his guidance proved to be wrong. 

It was a rare occasion when Claudia found herself questioning the advice of her beloved teacher, realizing that even the most knowledgeable mentors can occasionally make mistakes.

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Claudia entered her favourite class of the day, accompanied by her close friends Jayden, Emily, Matt, and Noah. Their History teacher, Mr Matthews, leaned against the front of his desk, lacking his usual enthusiastic greeting for the students.

The classroom fell into silence as the students took their seats, eagerly anticipating what they would be learning that day. Their attention was drawn to the blackboard, where bold white letters spelt out a single word: "FORGIVENESS."

Once the class had settled down, Mr Matthews began to speak, pacing the front of the class, "Throughout history, nations have resorted to war to resolve their conflicts. While we often discuss said wars in this class, today I want to focus on peace and forgiveness, and how we can achieve them."

"Every once in a while, I come up with a good idea," Mr Matthews smiled, his excitement resembling that of a young child eager to share their playtime adventures with you.

"What could it possibly be that I haven't thought of before?" Matt, the resident 'nerd' of the class announced slightly smug. 

"Matt, I forgive you," Mr Matthews unexpectedly declared, catching the student off guard.

"What did I do?" Matt questioned, perplexed by the sudden forgiveness.

"I forgive you too," Jayden said, a sour tone lacing his voice, as he stared at Matt intensely. 

"What did I do?!" Matt raises his voice, completely baffled by these statements of forgiveness, that were, as far as he was aware, coming from nowhere.

"Oh you know," Jayden retorted, turning back to face Mr. Matthews. 

"I feel much better!" Mr. Matthews states smiling at the class, "How do you feel, Matt?" 

"I apologize for everything I've ever done, and for every time I've hurt you. But seriously, what did I do?" Matt pleaded, desperate for an explanation.

Ignoring the question, Mr Matthews addressed the entire class once again, "Everyone, let me introduce you to this week's assignment: the forgiveness project. Our personal histories extend beyond our own actions. True growth comes from repairing our mistakes and choosing to forgive those who have wronged us."

"Hmm, count us in," Emily declared, a bright smile adorning her face. "What do we need to do?"

"Everyone, look at the paper on your desk, take out a pen and start writing," Mr Matthews begins explaining, moving to his desk and pulling out a stack of red envelopes, "This is not your laptop or cellphone, you have unlimited characters here, as many words as you want, so use them." 

He distributed a stack of envelopes to the front desks, ensuring they could be passed down the rows. Claudia took one envelope and handed the rest to Noah, stretching her arm above her head. As she stared at the envelope, she contemplated whom she should write to. There were many people she could forgive, including her family members.

Fiona for grounding her after Carl broke a window and blamed it on her. 

Lip for flaking on her for Karen Jackson on a few occasions.

Ian, for spilling milk all over her English assignment worth 25% of her final grade.

Debbie for stealing her dolls and losing them.

Carl for finding the dolls and burning them. 

Frank for, well everything. 

And, then there was Mo-

"The impact of this will last longer than six seconds," Mr Matthews continued, "And I can guarantee that the impact will never disappear, so go ahead. Write. Express emotions. This is going to be one of the most important things you do in your life, you're about to forgive someone,"

"What's this got to do with history Matthews?" Claudia inquires, leaning casually forward on her desk, her interest piqued.

"It's got everything to do with history, Miss Gallagher. You're being given the chance to change it." Mr Matthews replied, his eyes filled with purpose, knowing that she of all people would benefit the most from said lesson.

"Like when I forgave Rory for biting off the face of my favourite bunny teddy, Babbit," Emily announced sincerely. 

Mr Matthews looked at her with a puzzled expression, "Honey, that was not forgiveness."

"Why not?"

"Because you're not over it!" Mr Matthews accused.

"This is the first thing I'm faced with every day!" Emily says angrily, pulling a raggedy old rabbit teddy, whose face had been completely torn off, the fluff protruding from its face. 

The rest of the class glanced at Emily and her rabbit briefly, then quickly moved on. This dynamic within the class might have seemed peculiar to outsiders, but it was a familiar occurrence. Claudia, Emily, Noah, Matt, and Jayden had developed a bond with Mr Matthews that allowed them to seek his guidance and openly express themselves during class. While the other students might not have engaged in the same way, they, too, had their own connections with other teachers.

Nevertheless, Mr Matthews remained the favourite teacher of their group.

"Moving on, is there anyone in your life that you want to forgive?" Mr Matthews asked, "Go ahead. Change your history," 

The entire class began writing fervently, pouring their emotions onto paper, except for Claudia. In truth, she had already forgiven everyone on her list, even Frank. There was only one person who lingered in her mind, but could she truly find it in her heart to forgive them? Not to mention, her family had deliberately kept her away from this individual for years. The last time they had shown up, Lip had whisked her away to Emily's house to ensure they avoided each other. It had been over four years, and if her older siblings had their way, it would remain that way for the rest of her life.

"Dear Rory, the murderer..." Emily began, distaste for her 6-year-old brother lacing her voice. 

Mr. Matthews notices Claudia's distant look, as her hand hovers slightly above the paper in front of her, "Claudia, no one in your life that you want to forgive?"

"No," Claudia shrugs nonchalantly, shrugging her arms, and then clapping her hands together slightly.

Noah glanced up from his own paper, looking at the back of Claudia's head. He leaned forward slightly and whispered, "Now might be the right time, don't you think?"

"You and your siblings seem to be in a good place now. You're strong, Claudie. Don't you want to forgive someday? Why not now?" Emily encouraged her best friend, her face displaying a mix of sympathy and support.

Claudia smiled sweetly at her best friend before turning her attention to the piece of paper in front of her. She began writing, a faint chuckle escaping her lips. Emily wore a satisfied smile, clasping her hands together.

Claudia, however, stopped writing rather quickly. Passing the note to her best friend, not bothering to look at her. Emily took the note happily, somehow believing that Claudia had let out 15 years of emotion in a few words.

"Ahem. Emily. Butt out." She read aloud, her voice devoid of emotion. "I am dead serious. Butt your butt out." Claudia smiled sarcastically as her best friend turned to face her.

"I forgive you," Emily deadpanned. 

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Claudia and Emily sat together in the back corner of the Alibi, the familiar hang-out spot for their group of friends when they weren't at school or each other's houses. Despite Kev's initial reluctance to have kids or teenagers in the bar, he had made an exception for the Gallaghers and their close friends. Having met Claudia's group a few times, Kev trusted them completely, especially Emily and Matt, who showed a lot of responsibility.

They watched as V and Kevin attempted to train Fiona and Lip to be good servers. Kev had offered them part-time jobs to help support the family, but it wasn't going smoothly. Fiona had already exchanged heated words with multiple customers for being too demanding or ungrateful, and Lip had come close to getting into a physical altercation over a payment dispute. Even V, known for her feisty nature, couldn't believe their behaviour.

But it was making for an entertaining afternoon for the younger Gallagher siblings and the two best friends. Emily and Claudia sat laughing together, watching the scene at the bar as Lip, Kev and Veronica, even Emily's mother (Topanga, who had shown up to help serve) all held back Fiona, who is attempting to pour a beer over some man's head. 

"See, I love your family!" Emily exclaimed, gesturing toward the scene. "Sure, you guys have your differences and struggles, but you're all so close. I don't know how you do it."

Claudia admitted with a hint of uncertainty, "In all honesty, neither do I. But hey, I love your family too. That's why I'm over at your place more than half the time."

They continued their conversation, listing the reasons why they cherished each other's families. Claudia expressed her desire to have Mr and Mrs Matthews as her parents, while Emily shared her appreciation for the Gallaghers as her honorary siblings. Their banter filled the air with lightheartedness, momentarily overshadowing the tension building at the bar. 

Suddenly, the entire Alibi fell into an eerie silence, followed by the sound of glass shattering on the floor. Claudia and Emily's attention shifted towards the entrance, where everyone's gaze had fixated. Standing there was a middle-aged woman, with curly blond hair messier than Claudia's, who looked better than Claudia had expected. However, she had never anticipated this individual would show up at all.

"You're gonna want to watch what happens next very carefully," Claudia murmured to her best friend. 

"What do you me-" Emily began to ask, but before she could finish, the shouting erupted, drowning out their conversation.

Every single Gallagher in the room, aside from Frank and Liam (who weren't there, not to mention Liam's only 4, he wouldn't have much to say) and Claudia unleashed their anger and frustration upon the woman. Some remained rooted in place, while others moved to surround her. The cacophony of voices made it difficult to make out the exact words being exchanged, but the intensity of their anger was unmistakable.

"Oh my gosh!" Emily says lightly, realisation hitting her like a ton of bricks, "Is that her?! Is she her? Did you do it? Did you do the assignment?"

"I wrote something and mailed it. Please say it was a good move," Claudia looked at her friend with a small amount of hope, only to be met with her friend's distressed face.

"It was a bad move!" She cried.

"What but you encouraged this?! Why is it a bad move?!"

"Tried it with Rory, doesn't work! They don't apologize. Forgiveness is for jerks!" Emily explained, her voice tinged with frustration.

"Well, I'm glad you told me in time Em!" Realizing the gravity of the situation, Claudia shifted her attention back to the unfolding scene. Fiona, Lip, and the others were completely engrossed in the confrontation, their emotions running high. Even Topanga, who had joined them, struggled to make sense of the chaos.

"What on earth is going on?! Is this what you do for like your one-millionth customer or something?" Topanga shouted, her confusion evident.

"No," V and Kev shouted in unison, their voices barely audible above the heated exchange.

"Ma'am, how are you okay with this?" Topanga asked the woman, who was just standing there taking all the yelling and insults.

"I was kind of expecting it actually," The lady admitted, she had a naturally strained and shaking voice, which made her sound like she was on the brink of crying even if she wasn't.

Topanga turned to the owners who seemed to be yelling the quietest out of the group, "Kevin, Veronica, who is this woman?" 

But she receives no answers as the yelling continues.

"Stop it!" Fiona yells, halting all movements and silencing the entire bar. 

No one speaks as the Gallaghers all look at one another to find the culprit that invited Monica before they all realise that Monica was staring just beyond them.  They all turn to face behind them slightly, only for Claudia to pass by them hesitantly, standing in front of Monica, the two of them staring at each other intensely. 

"Hi, Claudia," Monica greeted her softly.

"Hi, Mom." 

A heavy silence enveloped the bar as the Gallagher family and Emily watched their interaction, stunned by Claudia's unexpected decision to invite Monica back into their lives. The realization that Claudia had taken such a bold step left them bewildered, as they had always shielded her from the pain Monica had caused in the past. As a kid, she was always the one that got disappointed the most, upset the most, hurt the most. Never in a million years did they expect her to invite the woman back.

The silence was interrupted by Emily joining her best friend's side, "Hi, I'm Emily. I've heard a lot about you," she announced, slight hesitance in her voice. 

"Hi Emily, You a good friend of Clauds?" Monica asked, making Claudia cringe slightly at both the question and the nickname. 

Emily? A good friend? It never once occurred to Claudia that she wouldn't know who Emily was. If you knew Claudia, you knew Emily. 

Emily scoffed slightly, looking at Monica with a 'Are you fucking joking?' look, "I'm sorry and please don't take this the wrong way, but what?!"

"Emily is my best friend," Claudia stated, disappointment evident in her voice, "But you wouldn't know much about her...or me." 

Monica smiled a genuine smile at Emily, "Thank you, for being Claudia's best friend."

"It's easy, because Claudia's great, she's the best person that I know," She said honestly. 

"In that case, I'm happy that she found you," 

Emily leaned into her friend slightly, making it look like she was going to whisper something, but keeping the same volume when talking to her, meaning that Monica and the Gallaghers could all hear what she had to say, "I was picturing a monster. She doesn't seem like a monster. She seems more like Frosty the Snow Guy," 

Fiona stepped forward slightly, her face void of emotion, Her question cut through the tension like a knife. "What are you doing here, Monica?"

"I uh...was invited," She said hesitantly, holding out a red envelope.

"What?" Fiona asks, her arms going completely limp and her face now taking on an expression of utter disappointment. 

The realization of her father's involvement sank in, and Emily interjected, attempting to diffuse the situation and deter any negative feelings towards Claudia. "This is all my dad's fault!"

"Your father had an idea?" Topanga groaned.

"Uh-huh,"  

"Oh god," 

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Monica stepped back into the Alibi after using the bathroom, anyone who wasn't a Gallagher or Kev, V, Topanga and Emily had now been kicked out, and the tension hung heavy in the air, with everyone either sitting down or leaning against the bar, waiting for what would happen next.

Monica smiled awkwardly before making her way to the door, residing that her presence had done enough and she should probably leave, but before she gets halfway across the room Ian interrupts her. 

"You said you were going out for a walk and would be back in an hour," Ian announced, his voice tinged with bitterness. "You're four years late."

Monica tried to defend herself, her voice tinged with a hint of regret. "Well, I did come back about two years ago!"

"Funny, that was just for 24 hours, and you tried to steal Liam," Fiona scoffed, her voice filled with resentment.

Monica's shoulders dropped slightly, but instead of creating, she put on a happy face and turned to Claudia, who was once again sitting with Emily, "I was really happy to get a letter from you, Clauds. And that you've got a friend like Emily there,"

"This girl here has been more of a mother to me than you," Claudia said, putting her hand in Emily's.

Emily playfully pulled Claudia closer, leaning on her shoulder and dramatically stroking her hair. "Yeah, Fiona, Lip, and I raised her since she was a pup!"

Monica's face faltered momentarily, but she quickly recovered, trying to salvage the situation. "Well, I can tell you all did an incredible job."

"So...you left," Claudia stated, looking at her mother, "Why weren't we good enough?"

"No," Fiona starts, pointing at her sister, "No, no, no, Claudie, this isn't about us, or you, and what we did, it's about her, and what she's done," 

"Yeah! Claudie that really wasn't it," Monica agrees, looking hopefully at her oldest, who just rolls her eyes and moves away. 

Emily, feeling the tension, stood up awkwardly. "You know what? This is a family problem, and I should probably be anywhere but here." She attempted to walk away, but Claudia quickly grabbed her and pulled her back into her seat.

"Nope, you're staying with me, you are my family. Oh, that reminds me, how that family you were planning on starting?"

"Fine..." Monica says hesitantly, "It's fine,"

Topanga moves to sit by the two girls "Emily, do you care to explain to me what your fathers 'brilliant' idea is here?"

"Our assignment was to forgive somebody," Emily explained.

"What does that have to do with-"

"It changes our history,"

"Oh...that's pretty good," Topanga smiles slightly. 

"So, Claudie wrote to her, and she showed up," 

"To forgive her?" Fiona asked, her tone laced with scepticism as she scrutinized her sister.

"Yeah, that was the assignment, Fi. I've never failed an assignment before," Claudia murmured, her conflicted feelings evident. "But I haven't decided if I'm gonna pass or fail this one yet."

"Well, whichever you decide, sweetie, thank you so much for reaching out to me," Monica tells her, her words filled with a mix of gratitude and underlying pain.

Emily, who had been quietly observing the exchange, spoke up. "You know, this would be a lot easier for me if she were a monster," she said, addressing Claudia. She glanced at her best friend for a moment before standing up and approaching her mother.

"Do you remember that night when some guys were going around shooting stuff from their car, a few streets from ours? I was five, and I thought the sound was so loud that the world was breaking in half," Claudia began, her voice carrying a mixture of vulnerability and accusation.

"Why bring this up?" Monica asked, everyone else, except for one, was equally confused. But claudia ignored the question. 

"I was under my covers crying and you came flying into the room, and peeked under the covers and decided to make it a game, we were in New York and we were setting off fireworks across the city, and you said the occasional flashes were the lights from the fireworks," 

Debbie, curious about her older sister's fondness for fireworks, asked, "Is this why you like fireworks so much, Claudie?" 

"You managed to make that entire night an adventure until it stopped. I woke up the next morning and it was a sunny day. Don't you remember?"

"No Clauds, I don't," Monica admitted. 

"Because that never happened. The shooting happened. You didn't," 

"So how come you like fireworks so much Claudie," Carl asks. 

Claudia chuckled slightly, a bittersweet sound escaping her lips. She moved closer to the individual leaning against the bar. "Lip, it was Lip who came in. He made it New York, and I wasn't scared at all," she revealed, looking at her older brother with a mix of appreciation and pain.

Lip, his voice tinged with vulnerability, confessed, "The greatest performance of my life. I was terrified. I was only seven myself, but my little sister needed someone, and you weren't there, Monica,"

Emily, her voice filled with curiosity, asked the question that had lingered in the room. "Where were you?"

Monica's admission held a hint of resignation. "I probably wasn't home," she confessed, her voice heavy with regret.

"How could you not be home?" Emily asked, but Claudia answered for her, going back to stand by Emily. 

"Because kids, bite rabbit teddy's faces off. Friends ruin movies, and mothers leave. Sometimes you can let go and other times you can't" Claudia looks at her mom for a second before looking back at Emily, "Your dad was wrong this time, Em." 

With those words hanging in the air, Claudia turned away and walked out of the Alibi, without bothering to look back. Fiona looks over to Lip, who was looking at the door desperately, "Lip," Fiona gets his attention and then nods to the door.

Lip nodded back, understanding Fiona's silent cue, and swiftly took off after his sister. The room fell into a heavy silence as the door swung shut behind them, leaving Monica standing amidst the weight of her past choices.

The remaining Gallaghers exchanged glances with one another, their emotions evident on their faces. Fiona turned her attention to Monica, disappointment written all over her face, "Now what Monica? Where do you go from here?" 

Monica contemplated for a moment, her gaze meeting Fionas, "I don't have all the answers for you Fiona, it's too late for all of you here, but Clauds reached out for a reason," 

The room fell into contemplative silence as the remaining Gallagher family members processed Monica's words. Their sister wanted to forgive. Something they themselves couldn't bring themselves to do. 

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"Are you fucking kidding me?" Lip says, catching up with Claudia quickly and matching her pace as she continues to walk. Frustration is evident in his voice as he confronts her, "Inviting Monica back, intending to forgive her?! What were you thinking?"

Claudia's steps falter slightly, her face flushed with a mix of guilt and defiance. She turns to face Lip, her voice filled with equal parts frustration and vulnerability, "I don't know, Lip. We needed to forgive someone, and I couldn't think of anyone but Monica. You've always told me how unreliable she is. I didn't expect even an answer back, let alone for her to show up!"

Lip shakes his head, his tone laced with exasperation, "And what were you planning to do if she did, which evidently, is what occurred?"

"I don't know, Lip! Okay, I don't! I wasn't thinking, I had no plan. All I saw was an assignment, and everyone else seemed to think it would be a good idea," Claudia replies, her voice tinged with frustration and regret.

Lip's anger softens momentarily as he looks at his younger sister, his expression a mix of concern and disappointment, "Claudia, all our lives, Fiona, Ian, and I have tried to protect you from being exposed to her, from being disappointed or hurt again. Why ruin all that?"

Losing some of her defensiveness, Claudia's voice wavers "Lip, I've told you, I don't know. I have no excuses."

As they reached their house, Claudia immediately made her way up to her room, slamming her door. Her room was originally the room that is now Debbie's, but after Debbie was born she didn't want to share with a baby, she wanted to share with Lip. But neither Lip nor Ian were willing to move rooms, and at the time, there was no room in their bedroom, and Fiona was not giving up her room. However, just by Ian's bed was a door to a small walk-in closet, that the boys used to store toys and clothes, somehow a 9-year-old Fiona and 5-year-old Lip managed to clear out the storage and pull the then 3-year-old's, toddler bed into the room, as well as somehow fit most of the rest of her stuff. 

Ever since then, it was her room. Even if the bed took up all of it. 

Claudia sat on her bed, her knees up to her chest, her blanket pulled above her head. She didn't know how long she was sitting there before she heard her door open.

Lip sighed, his anger subsiding as he realized the weight of his words on Claudia. He understood that his reaction had been fueled by years of protecting his younger sister from their mother's absence. Seeing Monica again had ignited a torrent of emotions he hadn't anticipated.

The door shut and she assumed he left and she remained still until she felt her bed dip and sensed Lip's presence beside her. The blanket was lifted, inviting Lip under its shelter, and soon they were huddled together.

"Claudia, I'm sorry," Lip said, his voice softer now. "I was too harsh. It's just seeing Monica again, it stirred up a lot of anger in all of us. And the fact that you were the one who invited her here... it hurt, Claudie. We've spent so much of our lives trying to shield you from her, to protect you from disappointment and pain. I just don't understand why you would want to risk that?"

"Lip, I've told you already—I don't know. I didn't have a plan. I'm sorry I wasted all your efforts," 

Lip shook his head gently. "No, Claudia, it's not about wasted efforts. You're fifteen, and you have the right to make your own decisions. But what we need from you is to communicate with us, to let us know what's going on in your head. We'll always be there to warn you about the risks, but we also want you to trust us enough to share your thoughts and feelings. And you know what? I believe you'll pass your assignment, maybe not in the way you expect, but you will. I've had Mr Matthews as a teacher, he has a plan for you with this,"

Claudia didn't fully grasp Lip's words at that moment, but she trusted him more than anyone. She found solace in his presence, knowing that she wasn't alone.

══════

"How's the forgiveness project going?" Mr Matthews asked hesitantly. It was the next day, and they were back in their history class. Being close with the group of friends that sat at the front of the class, he had heard about what happened at the Alibi and also knew that not a single person had passed the assignment yet.

"You're killing us, Matthews!" Claudia called out, her frustration still lingering from yesterday's mess.  She spent the rest of the evening in her room with Lip, avoiding a conversation with Fiona, knowing her disappointment would be worse than Lip's. 

"I gotta say, Matthews, I don't know what you were thinking," Emily chimed in.

"You think forgiveness leads to peace?" Noah starts, already clearly frustrated.

"It leads to war in a movie theatre," Jayden continued. 

Last night Noah, Jayden and Matt had gone to the movies together, Matt had promised he wouldn't predict and spoil the movie, but that hadn't happened, he managed to predict the entire movie in the first 10 minutes and spoiled it not just for his friends but the entire movie theatre. 

"Well, I'm sure some of you had better experiences!" Mr Matthews said hopefully but was only met with everyone shaking their heads.

"Forgiveness doesn't work, Dad!" Emily complained, "I forgave Rory, and he didn't thank me," 

"Emily did you really forgive Rory?"

"No!" 

Mr Matthews rolled his eyes and sighed slightly before turning his attention to the girl sitting at the desk to the left of his daughter, "Claudia, did you forgive your mother?" 

"No," Claudia answered softly. 

"And we didn't forgive, Matt. Ow," Matt says, Jayden swiftly hitting him in the back of his head with a paper ball for predicting again, this time being able to predict what they were going to say. 

Mr Matthews sighed, realizing that forgiveness was proving to be more challenging than he had anticipated. However, he couldn't resist seizing the teaching opportunity. A small smile formed on his face.

"Well it sounds to me like forgiveness is harder than it looks," Mr Matthews smiles, he secretly loves it when the kids don't understand the weight of what he's teaching, so he can prove the value of what he's teaching. 

"I tried," Claudia defended herself, "I think I made myself clear, want to hear it?" 

"If you're alright with it," Mr Matthews shrugs, inviting her to share.

Claudia retrieved the draft of the letter she had written to her mother. It had been rewritten to look neater, but the words remained the same. She hesitated for a moment before reading aloud, "In school, I'm learning about forgiveness. What you did makes me have a lot of angry feelings. I don't want to be angry anymore. Why did you leave us? Did I do something? Make me understand what I did. Your daughter, Claudia."

Everyone stayed silent, they all knew about the Gallaghers, but Claudia was never one to talk about her family openly. Noah, moved by her vulnerability, reached forwards to squeeze her shoulder in comfort, letting her know he was there for her. 

"Did she help you understand?" Mr Matthews asked her softly.

"No,"

"Why not?" 

"I mean...I guess I never gave her the opportunity to explain herself,"  Claudia admits, "But it's too late now, my siblings scared her off."

Mr Matthews sighed before turning his attention back to his daughter, "Emily, why did Rory bite your rabbit's face off?" 

"I don't know," She states.

"Why not?"

"I never asked him," Emily realized. 

"Noah, Jayden?" 

The two boys turn to their movie-spoiling friend, "Why do you spoil movies for us, Matt?" Noah asks. 

"Because you're good at whatever you do, and you're good-looking," Matt explained, "Jay is the class clown. I guess I just want to show off what I can do. All I have is my mind, and I want to show that off."

"Damn...we gotta get better minds dude," Jayden said to Noah. 

"Yeah we do," Noah replied, turning back to the front to face Mr Matthews. 

"You all do," Mr Matthews interjected, determined to make his point. "Better minds understand that to be able to forgive someone, you need to understand them first. The other person needs to feel heard."

"Why can't you just admit that you are wrong about this one Mr Matthews!" Claudia called out, growing more and more frustrated with his persistence.

"Because forgiveness is one of our finest qualities as human beings, Claudia," Mr Matthews asserted, pointing at her emphatically. Then, he turned to address the entire class again, his tone unwavering. "You have to understand each other before you can even begin to understand what happens next. Go out and understand each other, and see what happens. Your assignment hasn't even begun until you do."

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Yet another day had passed and Emily, Noah and Claudia were sat together in the Alibi. Like days prior, the Gallaghers once again were all there, along with Kev and V, however, Topanga Matthews and Cory Matthews joined them today.

Emily sat with Rory pulled close to her chest, sat on her lap. The young boy looked bored out of his mind, clearly not interested in teenage conversations, but Emily didn't seem keen to get rid of him anytime soon, which was rather amusing to Claudia and Noah. 

"Forgiveness does work, guys," Emily states matter-of-factly, "You just have to do it right," 

Rory squirmed in Emily's lap, eager to join his friends. "Can I go and play with my friends now?" he complained.

"No! All you have to do is listen to the other person," Emily continued, making the other two teenagers chuckle at the sibling's antics. 

"Can I at least go to the bathroom, Emily?!" 

"Quiet I'm talking!" Emily said in a condescendingly sweet tone, tapping the 6-year-old on his nose. 

Claudia scoffed a little before speaking, "Emily, Rory is there every day, my mother couldn't leave fast enough. I mean she's probably halfway home now. Forgiveness just doesn't work for all of us," 

Claudia didn't notice as she was saying it, but Mr Matthews was sitting at the bar behind her, listening and watching her intently. But before he had the chance to say anything to her...

Monica walked into the bar. Red envelope in hand. 

Everyone in the bar turned to face the women, who simply held her hands up in surrender, "I'm not here to cause problems, so please don't yell at me," 

Claudia stood up, astonished. "I thought you left," she said, her voice filled with genuine surprise.

"I did," Monica admitted, "I did sweetie, I was in the car and on the way back, but then this caught my eye again and you told me that you didn't want to be angry any more. Listen I know how important Claudia is to every single one of you and I thank you for that, but I just need to borrow her for like 2 minutes, if it's okay" she asks desperately. 

Claudia looks over at her older sister, not saying anything, but clearly asking her for permission to go. Although Fiona wished she could whisk her sister away, and pretend that all the bad things in the world, she knew she couldn't keep her from these things anymore.

So she nodded. 

Claudia turned around and began walking toward the door to let herself and Monica talk privately. But before Claudia could put her hand on the door, Monica stopped her and opened it for her, a small gesture of care and consideration.

The two of them stepped outside and just stood looking at one another, not knowing what to say to each other. 

"This wasn't your fault Clauds," Monica reassured, "I swear this was all me, baby. I couldn't provide you with the comfort you needed during a shooting. And I was no good to you on sunny days either. I blew the money that Fiona earned instead of providing food to everyone, and, when you start to recognise that you're not good for people, you start not showing up, and then you don't show up enough times and that turns into leaving." 

"You've stuck around your new family for a while, longer than any of the periods you spent with us. Did you and Roberta get the kid you wanted?" Claudia says, holding back a few tears.

Monica hesitated for a moment before replying, "We're in the adoption process."

"You're there for your new family then? What are they doing that I didn't do?" Claudia asked, her voice tinged with a mix of longing and frustration.

"You never did anything, Claudia. You were just a little girl. I was who I was. And there was nothing you did or could have possibly done," Monica declared, her voice filled with remorse, "I just- I wasn't ready for you, or anyone. But honey I've changed. These people believe that I can be someone and that I'm capable. They know what I was like, but choose to believe in who I am now."

Claudia's voice wavered, "Who are you?"

"I found a job!" Monica beamed with pride, "And I've managed to keep it. I want to tell you that I'm grateful for what you wrote. And I am so sorry for everything I did. I'm so happy you're okay,"

Claudia scoffs slightly, trying not to let the tears flow, "You found a job?" 

"I did baby," Smiling at her daughter in hope, but it quickly dropped at her next statement. 

"Your job was to stay Monica," Claudia stated firmly, "Listen, thank you for telling me your side, my teacher thinks I should forgive you and that it will bring me peace. Usually he's right about these things, but I can't see how he's right this time. And I can't forgive you. Do you really think I didn't have it in me to let you grow? My own mother? All of us would have loved to see you grow. I'm happy I wrote to you and heard what you had to say. And I hope you can feel some happiness in the knowledge that it makes me feel better knowing that everything you did has nothing to do with me. I always believed it was my fault. But it's not. I didn't do anything," 

Monica and Claudia stared at each other, their hearts breaking with the weight of their shared pain. Claudia's tears flowed freely, while Monica's frustration began to show. She had hoped that at least one of her children would forgive her, and now she realized how wrong she was.

Claudia sniffled and put her hands in her pockets, torn between her emotions and her desire to protect herself. She glanced between her mother and the door to the Alibi. "I'm sorry I wasn't there. You turned out great," Monica managed to say through her tears.

"Wow," Claudia whispered. 

"What?"

"I've been angry for so long. But I'm not angry anymore," Claudia realized, her voice filled with a mix of relief and pain. "Thank you for coming. I hope you get home safe."

With those final words, Claudia turned away, walking back into the Alibi, leaving Monica standing alone outside.

Claudia entered the Alibi, openly crying now, and began walking up to her teacher. Lip joined her side and hugged her close, the rest of the Gallaghers looked on, their expressions filled with sadness and empathy for their sister and best friend.

"I'm sorry," she choked out, "but I failed. I know you wanted me to forgive her but I can't bring myself to. I couldn't. You were wrong this time Mr Matthews."

"Claudia, I never expected you to forgive your mother," Cory admitted sincerely, "That kind of forgiveness, doesn't come easily. But life is a very long time, and maybe one day you'll get there, but I never expected that from you now,"

Claudia's voice quivered as she asked, desperate for answers, "Then what did you want from me?"

Cory looked at Claudia with a tender gaze, understanding the depth of her pain. "Claudia... did you forgive yourself?"

The point of the forgiveness project suddenly smacked Claudia in the face. This was never about forgiving Monica, it was about realising that it was never her fault. 

That sentence broke her as she started to openly sob, moving towards the man that she considered her father figure and hugging him. Mr Matthews held her tightly and let her sob into him, the rest of the Gallaghers also silently crying. 

It had finally happened.

Claudia Gallagher had forgiven herself. 

══════ (fin)

[gmwrabbithole]

Darby Shadow Character Theory (cont.)

@bmgmw made a fantastic about Darby being a shadow character for Maya in the pilot, aka manifestation of how Maya is actually feeling on the inside. Read it here: https://www.tumblr.com/bmgmw/133516397629/darby-in-the-pilot

I was rewatching girl meets world when I noticed that this continues in Girl Meets Sneak Attack & Girl Meets Friendship. I'm using the GMW timeline that @theowldetective and @emmying made rather than the airing order, so in this case the episode/story order is...

Girl Meets World 

Girl Meets Boy 

Girl Meets the Truth 

Girl Meets Sneak Attack 

Girl Meets Brother 

Girl Meets Father 

Girl Meets Crazy Hat 

Girl Meets World: Of Terror

Girl Meets Friendship

Darby in Girl Meets Sneak Attack

While Missy is flirting with Lucas, we get shots of Darby observing the encounter and looking longingly at Lucas (interestingly in the same exact way as she does in the pilot).

2. Right after Missy boops Lucas on the nose, Darby looks straight up HORRIFIED. Darby starts glaring at Missy.

3. Afterwards, when Riley is trying boop Lucas on the nose, Darby looks like she is experiencing second hand embarrassment.

Darby in Girl Meets Friendship

Darby (along with almost everyone else) instantly takes notice of Lucas when he walks in the classroom.

2. In this scene, Maya is teasing Lucas about missing Texas. At this point, Darby is already looking longingly at Lucas.

3. But when Lucas flirts back?!?! Darby straight up swoons.

[dacutiehart]

color palette meme » maya hart + millennial pink

[ccgg112]

GMW Rewatch: Girl Meets World (pt 1)

Hi y'all! These are basically my reactions as I rewatch GMW. Time to see if I still remember all the Easter Eggs in the show! I'll be pointing them out as we go along ;)

-aww young Maya and Riley are so cute!!

This makes me so sad. Riley never got the chance to make it HER OWN world (Please Michael Jacobs it's never too late to make a season 4). She's still living in her Father's world by the end of the show.

Feeny callback!!!

Ahem, Riley is wearing kiwi lipgloss (Shawn & Angela parallels anyone? We'll get back to this in S2)

Two things here:

1) “Hi, I’m Maya. You’re really cute. We should hang out sometime. You make me happy. You don’t pay enough attention to me. This isn’t working out. It’s you, not me. We can still be friends. Not really.”

Maya just basically summarized how her and Lucas's relationship plays out in the later seasons.

2) Notice the LONG LASTING poster in the background of Maya and Lucas (hint hint). There's also a 2 Months Only poster in the background

Hmm interesting. When Riley is with Lucas, the LONG LASTING poster is blocked, and instead we can only see the "2 months only" poster.

When Riley ends up in Lucas's lap for the second time, the LONG LASTING poster is once again blocked.

Next scene, classroom scene. Farkle declares his love for both Riley AND Maya. He's loved them equally since the first grade. Riley = Sun, Maya = Night (a mystery to Farkle)

Credit to @bmgmw & @theowldetective for pointing this out! The blonde girl to the right might be a shadow character of Maya. A shadow character is a minor character in the the background who reflects the feelings of a main character. As soon as Lucas walks in, blonde girl is SHOOK. She can't take her eyes off him.

When Lucas sits down, Blonde Girl is still gaping at him. This is a very interesting reaction, esp since the rest of the extras aren't showing nearly as much emotion. Seems like this has to be intentional

Also, more early Rilucas!

Ahhh and so it begins (the theme of perception vs reality). We're introduced to the show with the assumption that Riley = Cory, Topanga = Lucas, and Shawn = Maya. We'll see later that this isn't exactly true, and that's something Riley and Cory need to discover.

Running out of space for pictures, so check out part two: https://ccgg112.tumblr.com/post/677019605724725248/gmw-rewatch-girl-meets-world-pt-2

[moonys-bf]

Why is GMW so stupid elaborate :)

i would like to preface this by saying that boy meets world (predecessor to gmw) is an absolutely amazing show and i love it more than words can express

why it sucks:

obviously there are the issues that everyone discusses like the ableist episode, the weirdly misinformed communist episode

everyone in it is so incredibly self centered. riley made a woman's funeral about her and her friends and cory literally only talks to four people when he teaches. they're all constantly like "what about me :(" like you're not the center of everything so shut the fuck up :D he also makes every single lesson centered around them and i can guarantee that nobody else in that classroom is learning Shit

cory's teaching methods. i can also guarantee that those four people are not learning Shit. yeah, they're learning life lessons, but there's no actual history being taught and they're literally all gonna fail for the rest of high school b!c they only know whatever twisted moral cory comes up with

riley's too naive to be realistic. this one doesn't even need much explaining. she's always just so optimistic and always tries to fix everything and she thinks she knows the best for everyone in multiple scenarios involving maya and her family, lucas and his stuff, it's so fucking annoying. she meddles even when people ask them not to and it always turns out okay in the end because it's a fucking tv show but if anyone did this in real life they'd lose all their friends

the writing is cringy enough said

there's literally an episode where riley and her family tries to push their religion on everyone else. they literally use air to try to prove god is real and to each their own but they get so intense about it and the moral of the story is "yeah you don't have to believe in god but you need to listen to people who do and eventually change your beliefs"

the love triangle is FUCKING DUMB

the only character that has any sense sometimes is zay

there is only One (1) poc main/prominent character in the entire show and that's zay and he doesn't show up until late. believe it or not danielle fishel is full white

there's one scene where cory tells maya she's privileged and she's like "i get it i'll never complain again" like yes she's privileged in many ways but not so much financially when she can't afford a lot of things like warm clothes and he basically says she's a part of the 1%

all in all i see what they're trying to do but it's just so poorly executed and i can't believe the creators of bmw made a show like this

[ft-nostalgia]

Girl Meets The New Teacher:

I actually would've LOVED to see Cory Matthews become a high school principal and FUCK Disney for robbing me of that gift.

I really like how none of the kids moved when Yancy told them to leave the classroom (twice). It was only when Harper told them to leave that literally ANY of them moved. Lucas even kind of gives Yancy a bit of a look, like "Who exactly do you think you're talking to?" And honestly? I actually think this is one of the more realistic scenes in GMW. I know a lot of it is stylized and satirical, but this resonated with me. If you had one teacher who actually cared about you and teaching you valuable lessons, you'd want to stick up for them when someone is OBVIOUSLY violating the lessons they're teaching you. These are kids who don't stand for that kind of shit and I love them.

[batjokezlovineverything]

do you do smutty GMW work? i was thinking Cory Matthews x reader. How ever long is up to you. I prefer him trying to quietly finger you in the classroom before the school opens.

It depends on the age we're going for - if it's underage, I don't know how I feel about it - while I am underage and wouldn't mind it - it can definitely be an issue to others. privately message me about the information. if the reader is 18+, then I don't have a problem. Just message me! We can work something out :))) Even if it's just me writing it to you in a message. Don't worry, I don't judge.

[gueststeachingmaterials]

In this room, we find out how history relates to your present. And how you can’t get by on the successes of your past.

Cory Matthews [Girl Meets World 3.02 “Girl Meets High School: Part 2″]

[imaginarybird]

madelinecoffee replied to your post: 5 favorites on GMW?

YES ASHLEIGH YES, the missed potential of Harper is unreal

I will be forever bitter that MJ didn't turn her into a Turner-like figure and have her take over the bulk of the classroom work and let Cory act as a damn parent instead.

[amylillian22]

Favorite Couple – Brett Talbot Imagine

Requested by Anon: Could you write a Brett imagine where him and the reader have a relation like maya and lucas of gmw,like her is always calling him names and making fun of him, and he likes her but he doesn't knowshe likes him too and he thinks she doesn't like him back because all that stuff, so the packdecide set them up together in a date and they confess their feelings? just a lots of fluff.

Word Count: 1,650

Author’s Note: Okay, I really struggled coming up with an idea for this. I changed things about and decided to have the cast of GMW be the pack since we don’t know Brett’s pack at Devenford Prep. I hope you like it.

[My Teen Wolf Master List]

"And one more thing before I end our morning announcements," the principal spoke through the intercom. "If you purchased a yearbook, they will be distributed sometime during this period. If you bought a yearbook and didn't receive it during your homeroom period, please see our yearbook teacher, Mr. Rod, in room 108. That is all. Have a great day students!"

"Brett?" Mrs. Cruz called out. "Can you please help me with the box?" 

"Sure thing, ma'am," Brett got up from his desk and effortlessly lifted the heavy box beside Mrs. Cruz desk. Our English teacher looked at him in disbelief as if he lifted a big box filled with yearbooks like he's picking up a feather. If she only knew about his werewolf strength.

"Please come up and get your yearbook when I call your name," Mrs. Cruz instructed.

When Brett sat back in his desk next to mine, I looked over to the other desk next to me and saw Sabrina repeatedly drumming her fingers on her desk as she bit her nails on her other hand. I furrowed my eyebrows, as her chemosignals were reeking with anxiety. "Sabrina, are you okay?"

"No," her leg began to bounce up and down. "I'm scared to see what our class voted me as. What if they labeled me as most likely to fail after high school? Or ‘geekiest nerd’? Is that even the proper way to say it?" She asked, starting to doubt herself.

I sighed. "Sabrina, you are one of the smartest girls in our class. Hell, you're in the Top 10 percent of our class! There is no way you'll fail after high school."

"And if anyone calls you a nerd, tell me and I'll kick their ass," Brett added.

"See? We have your back. Don't let what our classmates label you as, define you. You're an amazing person." 

"I got your back." Brett smiled at Sabrina before he looked back at me, "if someone calls you a geek or a nerd, you're on your own," he teased as he ruffled my hair.

I slapped his hand away from my hair before I rolled my eyes at him. "Like I need you to come to my rescue. I can defend myself."

"You two are so cute," Sabrina giggled. "When are you two finally going to get together?”

I tried not to react to her question. It's a question we often get, I know I did. The truth is Brett is my best friend, and I'm in love with him, but he never showed any interest in me other than a best friend. So I kept my feelings to myself.

"We're just best friends, Sabrina," I said as I noticed Brett shifting uncomfortably in his desk from the corner of my eye.

"Well, would you look at that!" Peyton exclaimed from the back of the classroom, grabbing everyone's attention. "This year's favorite couple is Brett and Y/N." My eyes widened as my heart dropped. 

Why would our classmates vote us Favorite Couple if we're not a couple? I thought to myself.

"That's impossible," I stood up quickly from my seat and rushed to Peyton's desk. I yanked the yearbook out of his hands, completely ignoring his "hey!" remark and looked at the page. Sure enough, on the bottom right side of the page was a heart shaped photo of Brett and I facing each other with huge smiles on our faces. I had just hugged him for making the winning goal on his last lacrosse game. We did look like a couple in the photo. Anyone who didn't know would assume we were. Maybe that's why people always asked us if we're together.

My eyes drifted up and noticed the picture above ours. Corey had his arm around Rowen's shoulder as they smiled for the camera. They were labeled as the ‘Class Favorite Best Friends’. My jaw dropped. "How in the world did they get Favorite Best Friends and we didn't?!"

"Oh relax, Y/N," Brett said from across the room. "So what if we're labeled as favorite couple. Don't let that define who you are," he mocked my words back to me.

"Oooohhhh," I shuddered and curled my hand into a fist, trying not to let him get the best of me. "So not the point!"

"Y/N? Brett?" Mrs. Cruz called out. "Why don't you two take it outside and not argue in my classroom." 

"Sure thing, Mrs. Cruz," Brett walked over, grabbed my wrist and pulled me out of the class. While walking out, with my werewolf hearing, I overheard a kid in our classroom whisper to his friend, "Mrs. Cruz practically gave them a free pass to feel each other up in the janitor's closet." Brett held me back from beating the kid's ass and gently pushed me out of the classroom.

"What the hell is your problem?" Brett asked once we stepped outside into the courtyard.

"Nothing," I yanked my wrist out of his hand. "It's just annoying."

"What is?" He furrowed his eyebrows. "People thinking and asking us if we're a couple?"

"Yes!"

"Why?!" His voice rose to match mine. 

"Because we're not together!"

"Would it be such a bad thing if we were?" His words paralyzed me. In the four years we've known each other, we never talked about this. We never showed an interest in liking each other more than best friends. I made sure to keep my feelings to myself.

"Yes." I finally answered.

"Why?" The tone in voice sounded sad, almost as if I broke his heart, but that wasn't possible. He wasn't in love with me like I was with him.

I wrapped my arms around myself and looked away from him as tears brimmed in my eyes. Brett stepped closer until he stood in front of me. He lifted my chin up, making me look directly into his eyes, which were begging for some answers.

I let out a shaky breath. "Because I don't want to lose you, Brett."

He shook his head, completely disagreeing with me. "You're not going to lose me." 

"Yes I am. There's so many ways I can lose you, Brett. If we give this a shot and it doesn't work out, I'll lose my best friend. If we do work out, I could lose you against the supernatural world. They'll all know we're together and the next supernatural villain that waltzes into town could easily kidnap one of us as bait or kill one of us knowing how much it would kill the other..." I trailed as my tears finally made their escape.

"Y/N..." Brett trailed as he brushed away the tears with the pad of his thumbs. "Can you be honest with the next question I'm about to ask you?" I swallowed hard before nodded my head. "Do you love me?"

"Of course I do."

"No, not as a best friend, as something more," he whispered as his face came closer to mine.

I bit my lip before answering, "yes."

Brett's lips meshed against mine and everything we've been holding back was put into that kiss, making up for lost time. Brett's arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me to his chest. I sunk into the kiss as I wrapped my arms around his neck. My head was spinning up in the clouds, butterflies had escaped from the pit of my stomach, and an electric tingle made its way down my spine to my toes.

My lungs were begging for air but I didn't care. Nothing was better than my lips on Brett's. It was as if they fit perfectly together like a puzzle.

Brett pulled back, pressing his forehead against mine as his lips ghosted over mine. His warm breath fanned over mine, making me crave his lips on mine again. "Y/N?" He whispered.

"Yeah?" I whispered back.

"I love you, too, more than a best friend," he smirked. My lips formed a huge smile. I slid my hand behind the crook of his neck and pulled him in for another kiss. Our kiss was cut short when we heard a round of applause and some cheering. We pulled away and turned around to see members of our pack walking towards us with smiles and smirks on their faces.

"I told you our plan would work," Peyton smiled.

"Wait a minute, what plan?" Brett asked.

"We set this up," Rowen answered. "We all knew how you two felt about each other and we decided to do something about it."

"You guys planned this? The whole yearbook thing?" I asked, both surprised and confused at the same time.

"Of course," Corey smiled cheeky.

"We told everyone to vote you guys as favorite couple," Peyton added, as if he had threatened our classmates if they didn't.

"It wasn't surprising to find everyone agreeing to it," Sabrina smiled.

"Oh my gosh! What if this didn't work out? What if your plan had backfired? Don't you know you shouldn't play with people's emotions?" My anger began to rise.

"Easy, babe," Brett whispered softly as he placed his hand on my shoulder. His new nickname for me, and the tingle Brett's fingers sent through my body, easily calmed me down.

"Calm down," Corey said. "Ten years from now when we all come back for our reunion, you'll be married and have little wolves running around."

"And you'll be thanking us for this exact moment," Peyton added.

"They have a point, babe," Brett wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me to his chest, my back against his chest. "Who knows how much longer we would have kept our feelings from each other."

"Exactly! Besides, we all knew this was going to work," Sabrina said.

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"You two have been best friends since freshmen year. We've all seen you two grow up together. There's nothing more romantic than falling in love with your best friend," Rowen smiled.

Brett turned me around and looked into my eyes as he cupped my cheek. "What do you say? Wanna give this a shot?"

"Okay," I smiled as I leaned forward to kiss him again. "There's no one I’d rather take a chance with than with my best friend."

[avasilvugh]

Okay I've been meaning to ask this for forever and I know you're not really in the gmw fandom anymore, but how would you sort the gmw kids into the hogwarts houses?

HELLO IM LATE TO ANSWERING LIKE ALWAYS BUT HERE ARE MY THOUGHTS

RILEY: HUFFLEPUFF

this is a girl that truly sees the best in everyone and the best in the world like??  idk if she could really be in any other house.  i think that maybe in some warped universe, she could potentially be in slytherin but i think that slytherin requires slightly more ruthlessness.  while riley can be unyielding and occasionally a bit mean spirited, i think that’s just a result of her influences??  if that makes sense

like.  of course she has a little ruthlessness.  of course she can be cunning.  of course she can be a bit of a jerk sometimes.  that’s the result of her being her parents’ child.  but i usually adhere to the school of thought that your house represents what you value most and i think riley values kindness above all?  

MAYA: SLYTHERIN

im always p split down the middle when it comes to maya’s sorting because i really think she could be ravenclaw or slytherin, like when she starts to really come into her own, she truly does enjoy learning things??  just for the sake of knowing them???  but at the same time, she is so fiercely loyal to her friends and, more so, riley and i really cite gm true maya as one of the best examples of this like??  she probably would have thrown down with those girls if they’d even insinuated any actual threats to riley.

i usually err on the side of slytherin because it’s my house and im partial to it.  THAT SAID i truly think maya belongs in slytherin because i think she really values loyalty above all.  different than hufflepuff loyalty to a belief or system, slytherin loyalty is a person to person basis in my opinion and she values people that stay

FARKLE: SLYTHERIN

when given an ounce of power, he runs with it.  boy’s a slyth, through and through

LUCAS: GRYFFINDOR

a) he rode a fucking bull just to like.  prove a point

b) zay and farkle were so worried about his reaction to finding out that riley was being bullied, they tied him to a bar???

c) boy is headstrong as HELL

ZAY: HUFFLEPUFF

zay is also one that i am p split on.  like??  he could easily be gryffindor as well, i think, because he’s usually the one that steps to people and lucas is usually the one that follows behind him and backs him up and that level of like.  blind courage is gryffindor as fuck.  

THAT SAID he also would fight anyone for his grandma’s cookies and held it against riley when she violated the unspoken rule that no one messes w/ his grandma’s cookies and i think that speaks to a belief system that he is devoted to

SMACKLE: RAVENCLAW

while farkle is more prone to dictator-ish tendencies, smackle truly values knowledge for the sake of knowledge.  like??  my daughter is a ravenclaw, she would be in the classroom fighting every professor because their muggle studies textbook is out of date and she would have her own research, w/ multiple sources, all cited correctly

[in-it-for-the-anime]

How “Girl Meets World” Helped My Best Friend & I Through Our Trauma

My best friend, who we’ll call F, has been my best friend since second grade. She and I discovered the Disney channel shows Girl Meets World & Best Friends Whenever, and decided that we could relate to the two main characters. I was Cyd/Riley, and she was Shelby/Maya.

To begin the story, though, we’ll have to start before GMW existed. In fourth grade, I met this girl, who we’ll call B. She became my best friend since F and I weren’t in the same class. I was too young to realize this at the time, but B didn’t have a very good home life. My mother realized this and tried to alert the school of it, but they never did anything.  Anyway, B would always come over to my house and do things with me.  We were inseparable. In fifth grade though, everything changed. We transitioned to middle school, and B became the popular kid. One of my so-called friends, K, began bullying me, and isolated me from B. I felt so alone and hurt from it that I tried to isolate myself from everyone. But guess who stuck by my side? F. She tried her hardest to make me feel better.

Finally, I confronted K and B with the help of a guidance counselor.  K got mad at me after that, but B sincerely got bad. She wrote me an apology note and even got me gifts. But despite our reconciliation, I still wasn’t close friends with her. The first half of sixth grade passed. B was there for a while, but suddenly she disappeared. I didn’t know where she went. Eventually one day one our other friends brought me and F into the girls’ bathroom to tell us what had happened: B had tried to commit suicide.

I was devastated. What was even harder for me was when she came back from treatment. Her group of girls were waiting for her in the girls’ bathroom. I hugged her and told her that I loved her I loved her. We went down to the cafeteria for lunch. She didn’t eat anything, even when I offered her my Oreos. I started having lunch in a teacher’s classroom from then on, avoiding seeing B and the deep cuts on her arms that were covered in gauze. I was glad when B went back to treatment, because she needed it. She was diagnosed with anorexia. I remember kids making a sign to put on her locker saying they missed her and wanted her to fight it. It took everything I had to go up and sign that poster.

Fast forward two years later. B came back to school, but that was fine because I had switched to a private school. I refused to make friends because I didn’t want to be there, and frustration and overwhelming amounts of schoolwork drove me to self harm for a good three months, but that’s not really an important part of this story. I did karate, and I found out that B was also doing karate. Her class was right before mine, so I ended up hiding in the bathroom to avoid seeing her and then I’d cry in the shower when I got home every night. Eventually I stopped doing karate because it was too much.

After a year at my new school, I began to like it. I made friends, but I didn’t have a ton because I wasn’t very good at socializing. Throughout my five years there, I struggled with being underweight and anxiety, but that’s not necessarily a part of the story. In tenth grade, F, who was still my best friend, revealed to me that she, similarly to B, was not having a good home life. Her mother became an alcoholic and was violent towards her father. Her brother threatened their mother when she got mad and threw a glass bottle at them, shattering it. “I wish I knew what happened to my mother. I wish I knew what made her like this,” F told me. Her mother had also become a drug addict, and this caused F a lot of pain. So she turned to self-harming.

It hurt to see now two of my friends going through self harm (I know I did it once, but I don’t really count that).  Her boyfriend, who I’ll call Farkle, because he’s a lot like him, was a huge support through it. Luckily, F, her brother, and her father moved out of their house and in with their grandparents. F started going through counseling and recovered, much to my relief and happiness. It was around that time (I’m pretty sure) that we started watching Girl Meets World.

It became our favorite show. I loved the discussions and lessons in the show, I loved the way it made me think about things. It made me realize things and I felt like I was learning something. F and I saw ourselves in Maya and Riley and their friendship. “I can relate to Maya because she comes from a broken home,” F said.  I could relate to Riley because she was insecure and cared about Maya like I did with F.

F said that the episode that helped her the most was “Girl Meets Forgiveness.” It inspired her to forgive her mother, who she met in counseling and talked to for the first time in a year. “I was terrified,” she said. “But I did it. After watching that episode, I realized that my mother’s stroke wasn’t her fault. But that’s the only reason I forgave her.” I was glad that that episode helped her, even though Maya didn’t forgive her father in that episode, F forgave her mother. She’ll occasionally text her mother now and then.

Senior year hit me hard. I was terrified of applying to college, but I did it. Also, there was a new teacher who was young, he was 23, and everyone immediately liked him. Like F, I found out that he had experienced domestic violence in his house when he was young but had semi- made up with his father. He had gone to Harvard so he was really smart. He was also black, the first teacher of color I ever had. He knew how to keep us engaged in class. A lot of kids, including me, went to him for advice. Let’s call him Mr. H.

The private school I went to was a Christian school, but was open to all religions. We were required to take a religion course. This year, our religion course was more or less a philosophy course. And to be completely honest, it reminded me of the GMW discussions and the lessons taught in Mr. Matthew’s classroom. Let’s call my religion teacher Mr. 2H.

Well, in Mr. 2H’s class one day, we watched a video on how to deal with the loss of a loved one.  All I could think of was B, even though she was very much alive. I expected the feeling to pass, but it stayed with me. It weighed me down for months. It was so bad I even had a nightmare. In school, surrounded by kids I felt isolated from, I felt like B was inside me, making it hard to breathe, like her ghost was possessing me and wanted to get out of my body.

One day after school I asked to meet with Mr. H. I told him what was eating at me, and I cried in front of him. He tried to talk it out with me. From then on, I went to him for a lot of things, mostly about how I felt trapped by B. B followed me on Instagram, and I felt like that was something that would happen on a TV show to add more drama. Honestly the whole situation felt like an adult version of Girl Meets World. I told Mr. 2H what happened, too. He suggested that I felt guilty for not helping B, and I realized that he was right. “If you need to talk, my door is always open,” he assured me. “I hope you can get past this guilt. It’ll take time, but it will pass.”

One thing I learned about Mr. H was that he had grown up on Boy Meets World. I told him about Girl Meets World & that F and I identified with Riley and Maya. “Why?” he asked. “She dealt with things with her mother,” I answered. “She came from a similar background as Maya.” I told Mr. H that if I was Riley, then he was Mr. Matthews, since I always came to him for advice. My belief was further solidified when he gave a talk on love and told us about how his mother had ovarian cancer when he was in high school. He accepted his role as Mr. Matthews.  I didn’t really have a character assignment for Mr. 2H yet.

I really opened up that year. I wrote a poem for my Creative Writing class about B, and that helped relieve a lot of the weight off my shoulders. My classmates supported me, and it was honestly the best feeling in the world. Mr. H and Mr. 2H and my Creative Writing teacher were all very proud of me. And F, despite the fact she was still at my old school.

A little bit more than halfway into the school year, I found out some terrible news: Mr. H had been fired. He had (supposedly) been in a relationship with a student, but no one knows the truth. It hurt. A lot. I felt so betrayed. We got a new teacher to replace him. The first few weeks of Mr. H being gone, I felt lost. Like before, when I was dealing with repressed emotions from B’s situation, I turned to my fantasies. I daydreamed about the Hetalia characters, mainly Germany and Prussia, and how’d they’d react if I was Germany’s girlfriend and what they’d do to help me about my situation. I liked to think about America inviting B over to his house so I could talk to her and how our conversation would go. I imagined that F and I had time travel powers like Cyd and Shelby from Best Friends Whenever, and me begging her to let us go back in time so I could be there for B, and her saying no, that you can’t move backwards to go forwards. This time, I pictured telling Prussia about Mr. H’s betrayal and what he’d say to me. It was really stupid, I know, but it helped me cope.

I finally realized that Mr. H wasn’t Mr. Matthews, but he was Shawn Hunter- he came from a broken family and made mistakes. I was on the phone with F telling her about it when that fact suddenly hit me. “Omigod, you’re right,” she said.

As the year went on, I recovered from the shock of Mr. H. I spent a lot of time with Mr. 2H, though. I told him about GMW but he never heard of it (he’d never watched BMW either) but that was okay. Towards the end of the year, we had to write senior speeches. I made the decision to put everything out there- all my struggles with B, with F, my anxiety, my own self-harm, my weight issues. I wasn’t going to leave anything left unsaid. I read my speech in front of the entire religion class. It left some people in tears, though I don’t know why. I got a lot of hugs. One girl named S was related to the teacher who I went to everyday for lunch in sixth grade to avoid seeing B. S cried when I mentioned that and threw her arms around me. I got hugs from a lot of people.

That weekend, F slept over and we watched Girl Meets Forgiveness. I wanted to see the episode that helped my best friend come to terms with her mother. What I didn’t expect was to be able to relate to it myself. The things Maya’s dad said, like, “It wasn’t your fault. You didn’t do anything. There’s nothing you could have done”, really struck me as I thought of what happened six years ago with B. But I nearly burst into tears as Mr. Matthews asked, “Maya, did you forgive yourself?” Seeing Maya hug him and start to sob made me realize that I had finally let go of most of the guilt that still hung onto me. It was what I needed to hear. At school I told Mr. 2H about the episode that had helped me forgive myself. He was proud of me for finally letting go. Mr. 2H came to my graduation party, even though it was like 45 minutes from his house, just to see me. He got to meet F. Even though I didn’t have Mr. H anymore, I was glad that I still had managed to find someone to support me.

Girl Meets World was a big part of my life. My yearbook quote was from the show: “That’s the secret of life.  People change people.” Even though Mr. H didn’t turn out to be who I thought he was, I still appreciate the life lessons he taught me. He made me feel valid that I could call witnessing B’s pain traumatic for me. He helped me realize that I shouldn’t try to repress things anymore. Now that I graduated, I have a character assignment for Mr. 2H: Mr. Feeny.  I told F and she totally agrees. She and I already have Mr. Feeny, Shawn, Riley, Maya, Farkle, and our friend E is Smackle. We might have our Lucas, but I’m not sure yet.  Hopefully in college next year, I’ll find my Mr. Matthews. Girl Meets World might be over, but me, F, and our friends are ready to take on our own world.

[ddproductionsw77]

The Electronic Configuration of Hate and Love

Fandom: Girl Meets World

Pairing(s): Riarkle (enemies to hinting at romance?)

Characters: Riley Matthews, Farkle Minkus, Maya Hart

Prompt from riarklespirfire: Funny story actually… I kinda lost the prompt, lolz, but it was along the lines of ’We hate each other but now we’re project partners so I guess we’ll just have to not kill each other’, AU (obviously)

Author’s Note: So, I am still taking Riarkle/GMW prompts for short stories if you like this one… I honestly did not plan for this to get so long and crazy, I just loved writing this version of Riley and Farkle. It just got to the point where I had to end it somewhere, so I did. However, if you really want, I am thinking a part 2 might be in the future. Let me know if anyone would want/read that…

“Well, it appears the sun has risen once again on our blessed Abigail Adams, my young chemists. Good morning and welcome back from your last Spring Break!”

Riley Matthews felt the familiar sharp stab of a bony elbow her side and turned to her best friend with an exaggerated look, eyebrows raised in questioning.

Maya Hart, beautiful, blonde, and bold, quirked one of her own dainty eyebrows and muttered, “Is he for real?”

Dropping her expression to an endearing smile, Riley rolled her eyes and pointed to the front with her pencil, “Pay attention.”

“-Last project of your high school chemistry careers.” Mr. Hudson was introducing, to be met with a round of cheers from the chunk of Senior class residing at their desks.

Waving, the elder man silenced the crowd, “Please, hold your applause until the end. Now, this last project obviously has to be something to stick in your minds and motivate you all to pursue chemistry in college!”

“Neeever gonna happen,” Maya mumbled for only Riley, resting her chin on her palm and leaning forward.

The brunette bit back a smile and shook her head.

Mr. Hudson continued, “So, I’m gonna let you blow something up.”

Again, the class erupted into cheers and even Maya sat up straight, a smirk playing at her lips.

“Yes, yes! You and a partner will be designing, creating, and lastly igniting your own fireworks.” The teacher barely managed to call across the room of giddy students.

Instinctually, Riley and Maya knotted their arms together. No one around them even glanced over to ask for a team up. Riley Matthews and Maya Hart were only ever not partners when they were forced to go without. It went without saying that this project would be no exception.

…Until Mr. Hudson spoke next.

“Now, everyone get up and sit in alphabetical order by the last name. Whoever you end up next to, you will be spending the rest of the school year with.”

Riley’s heart stuttered, her smile sliding from her face.

No, no, no! Please, God, no!

Maya whirled around to look at her, wide-eyed as everyone else began to move around the classroom. She knew exactly why her best friend was still sitting on her original stool, frozen. She knew and yet she still looked slightly…amused?

Traitor!

“Ms. Matthews?”

Swallowing, Riley turned to see Mr. Hudson standing beside her (well, she guessed, not anymore) desk.

“Yes?” She squeaked out.

“Is there a problem?”

“…No?”

“Ah, good! Then, I think you’ll find your new seat is over there.” He pointed to a desk a few rows behind Riley. Slowly, the girl turned on her stool to follow the path of his finger.

There, exactly two tables back and one to the left sat a desk with only one boy currently occupying it.

The boy was sitting up, his posture as rigid and awkward as Riley imagined her own was at that moment, and he was fidgeting with the pencil in his hands, whirling it around his long digits expertly.

Farkle fucking Minkus.

His lighter brown hair was styled up in that annoyingly attractive spiked-up way that made it incredibly easy to get a good look at those electric blue eyes. Electric blue eyes that were currently boring back at Riley, cold and calculating and so damn intense.

God, does he always have to look like he’s plotting my murder?

Turning back to Mr. Hudson, Riley opened her mouth.

“Nuh-uh, Ms. Matthews. Your partner is your partner, now get moving.” The chemistry teacher grinned and passed her the stack of books that had been sitting before her. He gestured for her to move along.

Pouting at Maya as she passed, Riley ducked her head and trudged back to the table two back and one to the left. She slammed her books on to the desk and dramatically threw herself down onto the stool.

There was a long, long silence and then…

“Impressive display of maturity, Matthews. I’m in awe, truly.”

Narrowing her eyes, Riley spun on the boy and pointed at him, angrily. “Listen here, you don’t talk to me. You don’t look at me. You don’t breathe on me. Do that and we might actually get a decent grade.”

Quirking an eyebrow and otherwise remaining expressionless, “And followed up by a completely rational reaction, not at all excessive. Color me surprised.”

“Shut up, Minkus.” Riley hissed, turning back to the front as Mr. Hudson began to go on about the project.

The hatred between Riley Matthews and Farkle Minkus began on the very first day of Freshman year.

Riley, bright and shiny with sunlight sown under her skin, had strolled in through the double doors of Abigail Adams High School with high-in-the-sky, apple-pie hopes. She’d been the top student at John Quincy Adams Middle School and had been working on her valedictorian speech since her 351st ‘A’.

It was her beginning, the true start of her path to excellence and Ivy League.

Farkle, darker and more empirical with some dents and scratches in his packaging, stumbled through the doors of Abigail Adams because an upperclassman had rammed into him. He’d been bullied and beaten in elementary school, transferring to Einstein Academy the second his parents said he could. He had excelled there, top marks and every teacher’s favorite, and he was ready to keep the momentum going through high school.

Princeton, as his father constantly reminded him, was calling.

Riley hated Farkle from the moment she heard him cursing under his breath in latin while fumbling with his locker combination.

Farkle hated Riley from the moment he watched her recite Pi to the 28th digit when she’d only been asked for the basic 3.14.

The only thing the two seemed able to agree upon was that Abigail Adams was definitely not big enough for the both of them.

The bell rang, sharp and shrill, and Riley wasn’t sure if she had ever heard anything as sweet as that sound. It had only been a week since Farkle Minkus had been assigned as her partner and she’d already wanted to kill him more times than she could count.

Shooting to her feet, she scowled and ignored Farkle as he opened his mouth to speak.

Once to the door, Riley took comfort in Maya’s waiting presence.

“Are you okay?” The blonde asked, tugging at the lapels of her combat jacket. There was something in her tone that made Riley shot her a questioning look like she found the brunette’s suffering funny.

“Oh, I’m great, Peaches!” Riley grinned painfully, forcing her cheeks to remain locked. “Why on Earth wouldn’t I be? Because Farkle said that he should take charge on our project because we aren’t ‘writing fanfiction about rainbows and butterflies’ so my expertise aren’t required?”

“Ouch.” Maya frowned.

Riley scoffed, wrenching her locker open, “Or maybe because he turned our work packet in after doing it all alone and without letting me see it?”

“Admittedly unnecessary.”

“Oh, oh! Maybe you think I’m not fine because Farkle insisted on checking my work on balancing our chemical equation for gunpowder and, fuck him by the way, actually found one tiny, little mistake?!” Riley’s voice rose and she slammed her locker back shut, crossing her arms tightly over her chest.

Puckering her lips, Maya eyes widened at her best friend, Riley Matthews, cursing aloud and glanced around to see that the outburst had called the attention of some of their peers.

“Move along, ya stalkers, nothing to see here!” She snapped at two passing freshmen, who immediately cowered away and raced off. She turned back to Riley to speak, only to be interrupted by a third party coming to stand a few feet from them.

Farkle stood with his shoulders slouched, hands shoved in his pockets. Riley noticed his shirt was hanging a little haphazardly and his hair was messier than it'd been just before in the chemistry lab. Meeting those cold, blue eyes, she found them looking worn and tired.

Seriously?! What’s the matter with him now?

“Minkus.”

“Matthews.”

“Can I help you?” Riley asked after Farkle didn’t continue.

He groaned and closed his eyes, leaning his head back, “Help is such a strong word.” Looking back down at her, he pulled a folded packet of papers from his pocket and held it out before him. The previously mentioned work packet. Huh.

“Hudson said that the point of having a partner is working with them and not against them, whatever that means.” Farkle shrugged.

Riley smirked, “So, he could tell that you didn’t let me work on it?”

Farkle just stared at her in response and she was once again struck by how exhausted he looked like he was too tired to even be annoyed by her as usual.

“Well, what do you want me to do about it?” She asked, glancing over at Maya. The blonde was watching the chemistry partners back-and-forth as if they were a tennis match.

“We have to redo it.” He sighed and noticed Riley’s drawn eyebrows, “Like together. It’s due first thing tomorrow, the start of class.”

“Wait, what?!” Riley exclaimed, dropping her arms, “But that means-“

“Meeting up after school, yeah, I know.”  Farkle shoved the packet back into his pocket and twitchily tugged at his hair. So that’s how it was suddenly all messy… “Believe me, I’m about as excited as you, Matthews.”

Rolling her eye because the whole situation was his fault, Riley grabbed Maya’s arm and pushed past the boy. She threw over her shoulder, “Whatever. Be at Topanga’s at 5!”

“So, your mom owns this place, right?”

Riley glanced up from her chemistry textbook to see Farkle inspecting the little cafe. They’d been working for about an hour already in near silence, having created a rotation system where they completed the work and then exchanged it for the other’s approval. It was actually working quite nicely, and now Minkus had to go and talk.

Following his gaze, Riley’s chocolate eyes took in the familiar atmosphere of her second home. The scent of coffee and fresh croissants hung in the air, filling her nostrils and heart with nostalgia.

Tapping her pencil against the coil of her notebook, she nodded and returned to working, “My family, yeah.” Scrunching up her face, she amended, “Co-own.”

“It’s nice.”

Riley froze, wondering if she’d heard right. Farkle Minkus had never complimented anything about Riley. Never once in the four years that they had known of the other’s existence. And sure he hadn’t said she was pretty or smart or anything but he’d still said something nice about something dear to her.

Weird.

“Uh,” Riley slowly meet his eyes, which were now zeroed in on her, “Thank you.”

“I thought your mom was a lawyer? And your dad’s a history teacher. Where does entrepreneurship come into all that?” Farkle asked.

She shifted and blushed, recalling her mother’s attire on the day they had bought half of the cafe and bakery. A small laugh slipped past her lips as she shook her head, “Actually, it was going to go out of business and my mom has this freakish moral compass so she couldn’t let it go down. And it’s Auggie’s favorite.”

“Your little brother?” Farkle nodded, looking down at his hands fiddling on the table before him.

Confused, Riley nodded, “Yeah. How did you-“

Farkle cut her off, shifting in his booth, “Scientists observe.”

“Sort of comes off like stalking.” She quipped without thinking. Oddly, she hadn’t actually meant it as an insult, just a joke, like she’d tease Maya.

And then something even odder happened.

Farkle laughed.

And not like a breezy, cool-guy chuckle either but a real honker, reminiscent of a car alarm.

It was silent for a moment before Riley burst into her own full out, gut busting laughter, bending over the table with tears forming in her eyes.

“Was,” She gasped between giggles, “that your laugh?!”

The lingering smile that had befallen the boy’s lip instantly slipped away and he slunk down into the booth, glaring at the table, “Shut up, Matthews.”

Rolling her eyes, Riley half-hearted tried to smother her bubbly laughter, “Oh, don’t pout! It was actually kind of cute.” She shrugged, not realizing what she’d said at first.

Once the words did register in her head and she noticed Farkle freeze across from her, however, she viscously backpedaled with a horrified expression, “Not cute! I mean,” She let out a squeaky attempt at a scoff, “I obviously didn’t mean that you were- I was just-“

Riley forced her mouth shut, her cheeks burning as she looked anywhere but at Farkle Minkus.

Her stomach twisted when after several long, long minutes of returned silence and work, she glanced up to see Farkle looking once again at his fidgeting hands, the corners of his mouth curved into the smallest of smiles.

Oh fuck…

Weeks passed and following the evening at Topanga’s, Riley found that Farkle Minkus wasn’t quite as unbearable as she’d always thought.

Nope, that’s not the problem with him anymore… She thought, looking up as the boy in question whirled into the chemistry classroom. Like her, he always seemed to prefer arriving long before the bell rang. Her heart hammered as he approached, head down and eyes on his feet, and she smiled to herself as she looked back at her notebook.

In fact, Riley’s new problem with Farkle Minkus was, ironically, just how very, very bearable she was coming to find him.

Sure, she still wanted to throttle him a few times a class period and, yeah okay, she would still never, ever admit aloud that he was probably, maybe, just a little smarter than her but… something had definitely shifted in the last month she’d now been his partner.

Farkle’s usual remarks that once made her blood boil now made Riley bite back smiles, as she slowly began to realize that most of the time the boy wasn’t being intentionally rude, just incredibly socially inept, which was honestly so endearing.

The effort he had begun putting toward their partnership was another thing to draw her in, and while she figured he was probably just committed to a good grade there was a part of her that liked to think maybe he just trusted her opinion more.

And it didn’t really help how damn adorable he was.

Seriously, Riley had always known that Farkle Minkus was objectively attractive; it had once made her even more infuriated with him. It was just different now. Now, she didn’t feel the need to talk herself out of finding him attractive, to talk herself out of ‘observing’ him.

Observing him just a scientist would, of course, She reasoned. Taking notes on all his nervous ticks because goddamn the boy could just not sit still. Listing alphabetically the names of the important people in his life that he so very rarely mentioned: Jennifer, Lucas, Smackle, Stuart, Zay. Cataloging into a mental database every expression, every curve of a lip or quirk of an eyebrow.

“Matthews.”

Riley pulled herself from her thoughts and turned to give Farkle a nod in greeting, “Minkus.”

“Your weekend?”

“Good. Yours?”

“The usual.”

This was another new routine for the pair. They now actually asked each other, in their own way, about each other’s lives, weekends, and days. Riley relished the small interaction as it not only made her feel like just maybe her endearment was possibly mutual, but it was also teasing enough about Farkle’s life to satisfy her mounting curiosity.

Farkle’s cell phone, set face up on the table between them, buzzed and the screen lit up with a text.

From Jennifer Bassett Minkus: You are not the center of my universe, Farkle.

A pause and then a second buzz and text.

From Jennifer Bassett Minkus: Call your father or get over it.

The boy, who’d been busy hanging up his jacket and backpack on the back of his stool, dropped the bag to the floor and scrambled to grab the cell phone. Shoving it hastily into his pocket, he cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck.

Another nervous tick. Riley noted before what she'd just seen really registered. Her eyebrows drew together as Farkle silently took his seat and kept his head bent.

Jennifer Bassett Minkus, Riley knew from the limited data she had, was Farkle’s mother. Riley had seen the tall, gorgeous, intimidating blonde a few times over the years, walking next to her son in the hall at teacher conferences or whispering on her cell phone in the back row at debates. She’d seemed okay, even if a little terrifying.

Still, her words, seared into Riley’s brain in Helvetica font, seems so harsh. She couldn’t imagine ever having her own mother or father speak to her so brutally.

Thinking for a long moment, Riley swallowed hard and turned to Farkle before she could talk herself out of her next action, “Is everything okay, Farkle?”

His pencil paused mid-word and his eye flickered over to her before he pressed on, “It’s rude to look at other people’s texts.”

“Scientists observe.” Riley countered with an echo of the boy’s own previous statement and kept her gaze and voice steady.

That made him stop his writing.

Farkle remained bent over his paper for a moment before spinning himself around to come face-to-face with the pretty brunette. Like, really, really face-to-face. Like, with how close he was and how those intense, magnetic, electric blue eyes seemed to be taking in every inch of her face, Riley struggled to remember her original question or even the fact that she was current in chemistry and supposed to be copying the notes from the board.

But who would ever be able to think with someone looking at them like that? Like she was a nearly complete theorem that would unravel the mysteries of the stars. Like she was a riddle that he, for whatever reason, was positively desperate to solve.

Swallowing hard, Farkle looked away after a second, after an eternity, and yet Riley still felt completely out of sorts. She blinked several times and, like her partner, returned to copying notes.

“Topanga’s at 5.”

Riley didn’t acknowledge Farkle’s words. Somehow she knew she didn’t have to. He already knew she’d come.

Riley rushed into Topanga’s twenty minutes late and feeling incredibly guilty. Her father always had to stay after school on Wednesdays for bus duty, but this Wednesday her mother also had to work late unexpectedly and had needed her to keep an eye on Auggie until one of them could get home.

She’d practically run from the apartment the moment her father walked in. It wasn’t like she had Farkle’s number to explain and she was worried that he’d give up on waiting for her.

But there he was, sitting at their usual booth, and of course fiddling with his hands.

Riley flung herself down across from him, an apology already on her lips, “Farkle, I am-“

“Matthews.”

“-SO sorry! I swear I didn’t-“

“Matthews.”

“-Mean to leave you waiting. It’s just-“

“Matthews!” Farkle snapped, expression exaggerated and a little bemused.

Riley slammed her mouth shut, a light blush spreading across her face. Looking at the table, her stomach dropped. Farkle’s chemistry book and notebook were open and resting on the surface, obviously being actively utilized. “Oh no! I forgot my stuff!”

“Huh?” Farkle looked confused for a moment before he followed her gaze, “Um, actually, I just had these out while I was waiting, you know, for you.” He shrugged without meeting her eye and reached out to slam the textbook shut.

“Oh.”

Riley blushed more and worried at her lower lip, becoming very interested in her cuticles.

So, Farkle didn’t want to meet for their project… she hadn’t let herself really hope that he just wanted to spend time with her, just wanted to maybe talk to her. But now it seemed the logical conclusion and Riley tried to always be logical.

She waited for Farkle to begin, only he didn’t. He remained silent, slouching in his seat, and rubbing the back of his neck.

Apprehension began to creep into the girl’s bones. She’d never been alone with Farkle Minkus for any reason other than school work and she didn’t really know what to expect. Was this just how he was socially? He had friends, right?

Yeah, Lucas Friar and Zay Babineaux. They’re one mix-match threesome, but they are definitely friends.

Well, then maybe Farkle just didn’t want to talk after all. So, why ask her here? Why wait for her when she didn’t come on time?

Why?

Oh god, what if she’d been imagining his increasing kindness? What if he hadn’t changed his mind about her after all? What if he hadn’t changed his mind but had realized she’d changed her’s? What if he was now just messing with her, laughing at her?

Taking a deep breath, the girl made herself sit up as a display of completely false confidence and narrowed her eyes at the genius across from her, “Look, Minkus, if you just asked me here to mess with me-“

“Mess with you?” Farkle echoed, his head snapping up at an alarming speed, eyes wide.

Riley raised her eyebrows at him skeptically and gestured around them.

He shook his head, quickly, “For once, Matthews, I am honestly not trying to mess with you.”

Looking at him long and hard, Riley sighed and relaxed back into her seat. “So, what are you trying to do, then?”

“Talk to you, obviously.” He stated like she was stupid for not already knowing. She did not appreciate the tone.

“Then talk.”

“Well, shit, Matthews, why didn’t I think of that? They certainly aren’t joking about you being the second in our class.” Farkle snapped, his eyes cold in a way Riley had honestly forgotten they could be. Her chest tightened as his words and gaze cutting into her.

“Oh, yeah, I am so out of here!” She frantically slid out of the booth and started toward the door only to feel a hand grasp her arm, firm but gentle. She didn’t have to, but she followed the limb back up to the boy it belonged to, not saying a word.

Farkle, who always seemed to shy away, who always seemed so indecisive down to the way he couldn’t pick one position to keep his body in, who infuriated and yet enthralled her, stared at her with steady and certain eyes.

“Wait, I shouldn’t have said that,” He paused and let her arm go, “It was wrong.”

Drawing herself up, Riley nodded, “It was.” Then she stepped back and slipped back into the booth across from him, “But I’m going to let it go and give you another chance.”

Farkle laughed but it wasn’t the cute, real laugh Riley had heard that one evening in this same spot. This was hallowed and humorless. She wasn’t a fan. “Why? It’s not like I’ve ever really given you a reason to be nice to me.”

“I don’t believe that kindness should require a reason,” Riley said, simply.

Coming from anyone, anyone, else the statement would have sounded like complete bullshit. But this was Riley Matthews and Farkle had hated her from afar long enough to know that she really was just that idealistic. It was absolutely puzzling to him.

“You might want to start the talking, though. Wouldn’t want to waste my generosity.”

He found himself flickering his gaze back up to Riley without thinking. She was doodling with her finger on the table, a teasing and genuine smile playing on her lips.

So what? She’s nice, that’s great but it doesn’t mean she’ll ever understand. Go ahead, pour your heart out, cry her a river, it won’t change a damn thing.

Farkle looked back down at his hands and sighed, tugging at his hair. “So, my parents aren’t really home a lot…”

And no, he didn’t pour his heart out or cry a river, but he did talk.

He shared with Riley Matthews things that very few people knew, things Farkle had previously only chosen to willingly share with Lucas and Zay and over time Smackle. 

He explained how business kept his father away nearly constantly, how his mother took this as permission to never be around either because the money they had obviously needed spending, and how it was really better that way because it was never good when they were both home.

When he finished, he fished his phone from his pocket and flipped it over and over in his hands. “So, that was the text you saw. The academic honor awards for the senior class are next week and when I brought it up, my mom reminded me that I am not…”

“-The center of her universe.” Riley finished, her voice wavering slightly. She shook her head, “She shouldn’t have said that. That ceremony is where they introduce you as valedictorian before graduation and I’m sure you’ve earned more awards than just that this year. You worked hard and you deserve it, she should acknowledge that!”

Quirking an eyebrow, Farkle gave Riley a look, “Matthews, did you just say that I deserve valedictorian?”

A grin broke out across the girl’s face and she shook her head, giggling and not even bothering to try and cover up her obvious affection, “Shut up, Minkus.”

“Hey, Matthews?”

“Hmm?”

“Thanks, you’re actually not the worst person to talk to.”

“And you’re actually not the worst person to listen to.”

OKAY WOW, this turned into a total monster!!! I did not mean for this to get so intense and long and crazy. I have decided that I’m going to end this here, with this little hint of something hanging in the air between our favorite duo. However, I am thinking of a 2nd part if people are interested? Maybe actually explore this version of Riley and Farkle becoming real friends… maybe more? Would anyone like that?

[witter-potter]

top 6 gmw episodes? top 6 gmw scenes? top 6 rucas scenes? but if the last 2 overlap too much you can just do one of them asflasfhlj

AHHH NOSHIN TYSM 

top six episodes: 

girl meets rileytown!!! 

girl meets secret of life 

girl meets new world 

girl meets flaws 

girl meets ski lodge pt 2 

girl meets jexica 

top six gmw scenes (i’ll make this non rucas scenes ajfkadf): 

riley standing up to her bully (rileytown)

the rilaya bay window scene (pluto) 

the lucas/smackle/farkle scene !!! (sweet sixteen) 

the entire hecking final classroom scene (secret of life) 

the zay and lucas rooftop convo (legacy) altho any scenes with my sons is a win in my eyes

the riley/farkle scene outside topanga’s (texas part 3) 

top six rucas scenes: 

the texas part 1 scene!!! it’s angsty as heck but i love it!!!! 

the jellybean scene!!! 

library convo!!!!!! 

the knicks rant!!!! 

the goodbye scene!!!!! 

‘to me you’re a princess’!!!!! 

[theowldetective]

Do you remember the BMW episode with everyone grew up not knowing each other. The episode was the one where Rachel walked out of the classroom all mad at everyone. Due to nobody running after her, it affected everyones future relationships with each other. some of the relationships were non existent. Well, in that same episode, Eric writes a book called "People Change People"(HA!) and the only words in the book are "Lose a friend. Lose another friend. lose yourself. Lucas Friar Season 4?

You mean The War/Seven the Hard Way?

Sure do, those are two of my favorite BMW episodes and I actually think they’re a key pair of episodes in terms of getting what’s up with GMW. I think a lot of what happens in the new kids’ story happens because the new kids aren’t going to get splintered the way the OG crew did in the “bad future”…and also in “IRL” continuity as well by the time GMW rolled around (albeit not as bad as in 7THW).

Gravity.

http://theowldetective.tumblr.com/post/152263830561/should-riarkle-shippers-be-concerned-about-the

And yeah, if we get a proper S4 I kinda think Lucas is gonna majorly overcompensate AWAY from the Mr. Perfect Secure Hero façade he’s been wearing again since Ski Lodge ish. He’s based so much of his NYC identity on Riley’s idealized conception of him, and I think losing that—Riley is rapidly outgrowing her childhood infatuation with Lucas IMO—is really gonna mess with him. Wouldn’t be surprised if he kinda floats away from the group a bit, even.

[27emailsicantsend]

GMW Episode 1 Brain Dump

I was recently going over a save GMW post about how meta Episode 1 is. I also know that the writers have said that there are hidden messages from episodes we STILL haven’t caught yet. So I am just going to give you my entire analysis of episode one. This is presuming episode one is one of the most important, if not THE most important episode, to the entire series. Some of these theories may feel far fetched and some may seem straight on. Some of these theories are ones I have heard of from other people whereas some are my own. This will be an entire recollection of my thoughts regarding GMW episode one. Are you ready? Let’s go.

The first scene starts off with Maya and Riley trying to sneak out onto the subway, only to be caught by Cory and Topanga. Cory gives a short speech about what he wants more than anything, is for Riley to make the world hers. Fast forward to GMGoodbye, the very end scene, when Cory is outside and discovers the world is his. He knows his purpose in the world. He is married and knows where he wants to go with his life. Riley is still in 9th grade. She isn’t decided on who she will marry, what she will do with her life, and where she wants to settle down and start her life. I believe the phrase, “make the world yours” implicates a certain amount of maturity that comes only in adulthood. You may not know everything about your life, but you have some major life questions answered so you can focus on the smaller parts of life with greater detail. You can truly make the world yours and what you want it to be, because you are at a point in your life that you have already discovered a lot of what it has to offer (marriage, career path, ect.). Even though this post is a brain dump of episode one, I feel like a lot of this episode foreshadowed where MJ wanted to go with the show, but it was cut off dramatically too soon.

The next scene shows Riley and Maya on the subway. Maya says, “Oh, yeah? Well let’s see how cool you can be when you look at him”. Talking about Lucas, implying she finds him attractive. For those of you who think Maya didn’t like Lucas from day one, think again. It’s more of a “Mr. BOING” crush than anything, because she doesn’t know Lucas at all, but she definitely thinks he’s attractive. However, she gives him over to Riley. She even says, “You’re really cute”. This is something that always gets me. I think this is a huge part in Maya stepping back. She is giving Lucas to Riley here because she wants what is best for Riley.

Now watch closely when she is talking about her and Lucas dating. If you listen closely, there is major foreshadowing as to what their relationship is going to be. They try to be friends post SL2 but they are not the same. No joking, no banter. They can’t be just friends, not really. Because they don’t know how. They only know how to flirt. The only reason they were awkward was because of Riley and the triangle so they felt wrong for dating. I think once Riley realizes she needs to be with Farkle and they get together, then Lucaya can happen and normally too. There are also some posters above each girl’s head when they go to talk to Lucas. Above Maya is “long lasting” and Riley is “two months only” (some may argue that Riley’s head does fall under the long-lasting sign, but it covers up the words. There had to have been multiple takes and for not one to show the words speaks volumes to me because when Maya is by Lucas the 2 months only is covered up as well). Did anyone try to get a timeline for how long post-ski lodge to Good-Bye was? Because if there is anyway to look at it, I am generally assuming their relationship was about 2 months. (Ski Lodge is November-ish, notice the leaf colors, and the GMACM is obviously in December, followed very shortly by GMGoodbye. Coincidence? I think not).

Also, take note of Lucas’ face when Maya leaves. He looks confused and a little upset. I think he was just as excited to have an attractive girl hit on him, but upset to see her leave. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t excited about Riley falling on his lap, but I think if Maya would have stopped after, “we should hang out sometime”, I think Lucas wouldn’t of opposed because he was attracted to Maya too. Not full on liking each other, but there is definite attraction there without both having to say it.

The next scene is Riley and Maya in Mr. Matthews class. We see them take their seats. I know seating is a big deal and in the first episode only Riley and Maya have switched spots. After that (until season 3) they switch. I seriously have no idea why this is, any suggestions or theories my fellow Tumblr’s?

After this, Farkle explains that he loves both Riley and Maya. Then he says, “Some may say the great mystery of the universe is who ends up as Mrs. Farkle”. I never caught this until now but there is some meta underneath this line. Farkle is the genius. He is the one who wants to solve everything in the universe through science whereas Riley is taking on the universe and discovering how to make it her own. I think that when Riley is “Mrs. Farkle” she will have discovered how to make the world her own (mostly, implying the first scene from earlier) and Farkle will solve the universe’s greatest question, through head and heart. He loves both girls equally, even with them being so different, because he loves them equally in different ways. (Loves Maya as a friend just as equally as he loves Riley as in deep, non-platonic love).

Riley then asks Cory who she is, and Cory says, “you’re just like me”. Then Riley says, “oh yeah? Would you do this? No homework, more freedom!” The writers are breaking BMW assumptions from episode one. Showing Riley does not want to be like her dad, she wants to be her own person. (Obviously neglecting the fact that this entire episode is dedicated to Riley trying to be like Maya).

Farkle then goes, “My education or my women? My education or my women? My education or my women? It's happening again, sir!” This introduced Farkle not understanding how to choose between head and heart. He then passes out. Farkle cannot physically understand how to mesh love and logic together which causes his body to comedically collapse in this episode. But it speaks volumes about how torn Farkle is understanding that in order to be happy and have success, he needs to have both.

Small side tangent about the next scene: Riley admits that she is trying to be like Maya. I have noticed that in every episode, aside from Ski Lodge, with one of the girls trying to be someone else, they know exactly what they are doing. They go full-throttle into being the other person. Ski Lodge is the only freaking episode where Maya is confused and doesn’t understand that people think she is trying to become Riley or has become Riley. She wasn’t making an effort to become someone else. “I’ve always been me, Riley!” If she was trying to be Riley, she would have made it known, like in Yearbook.

After this is the lunchroom scene, where Lucas tries to sit down and Farkle sits in between Riley and Maya with the lunch line dilemma of sloppy joe or chicken pot pie. Notice that Farkle has both on his tray, sits in between Maya and Riley, and says both foods the same way. He is torn. He hasn’t figured out that he loves one girl over the other yet and it will take him time to realize this. (A couple seasons worth I might add). But when Lucas sits down, what’s on his tray? Sloppy Joe... the same as Miss Maya Hart... eh hem. I mean, Hunter.

The next classroom scene is Cory asking the class if they believe in something so strongly they are willing to fight for it. This isn’t much, but I thought it was a nice cheeky reference for us to remember as we are fighting Disney to get GMW back. Do we believe in it strongly enough? Then let’s fight for it!

Riley then says she doesn’t believe in homework so she is Maya. Then Cory says, “Guess what, Riley? That doesn’t make you the same as Maya, at all”. Just because they do something that is similar doesn’t make them the same! Riley has values in this episode because she gets rid of them it makes her a worse person, not misunderstood. Maya changes her lifestyle and gets better grades and matures, that makes her a better person, but doesn’t mean she is quirky and different like Riley. These two mesh well, but aren’t each other.

Sidenote: Farkle climbing all over Mr. Matthews still cracks me up to this day! hahaha

Maya tells Mr. Matthews that she goes to far because she has no one at home who helps her with her homework. That’s why she lashed out. Maybe this can explain more to her character and other charcters than we think. There is more than what we see on the surface. There is reasoning behind all actions. Don’t think MJ makes these characters the way they are with no reasoning. They have things to change and grow, they have depth, and they are real. It makes me wonder about Lucas being a bad boy back in Texas. Why was he that way and what made him change? He is not a stale character like I have seen him become accused of so many times. There is more to him than meets the eye and we won’t know what that story is unless we get more GMW.

And oh boy, the next Subway scene. First off, the “new long lasting” poster has been replaced with a map, which makes me have even more reason to believe that poster was not coincidental. Also, I know so many of you say this show is about ships, but remember the lady from Sister, Sister who was in this episode and in demolition? Maya tries to tell Riley that Cory is going to end the friendship and the lady asks, “where’s your hunk?” Riley tries to tell her that the most important relationship is friendship and the lady responds with, “You ain’t got no hunk, you ain’t got no story”. Friendship is important and it is the basis to the show, but relationships can evolve from friendships and can help tell an important story. It was a funny line, but a lot can be taken from it.

Last random side note: The two girls at the end that Farkle said, “Ladies!” to are both brunettes. I’m hoping that’s some foreshadowing. ;)

Ok, wow. If you got to this part, congratulations! I am sorry if there are typo’s because it is just a brain dump... but seriously watch this episode closely next time. There was so much more I wanted to say but didn’t know how to word it so this is the best you got from me. Again, not everything I noticed is from me noticing it first personally. Things like the posters and sloppy joe vs chicken pot pie were other theories from other people (that I can’t remember exactly where I got it from. YouTube, I think?)

Let me know your theories and if you have any more suggestions for GMW brain dumps for me. I am considering a Sweet Sixteen/Goodbye one so let me know if that is something you want. Also, I am always up for asks so feel free to ask me anything!

Thanks!

~iloveboyz27