I've had this idea stewing in my head for some time now, and despite how hard I've tried to shake it, it continues to plague my daily thoughts. So I thought I'd finally give in and attempt to write this story. First off, I feel I must say that I'm 28 years-old and absolutely LOVE GMW. That being said, I think it's important to point out a FEW prominent details..

-This story is rated M for a reason. Though the characters are completely derived from the television show, they exist in the universe I've created for them. In this universe they are all 22 years-old. This means they do things that standard 22 years-old probably do. If this bothers you, feel free to sit this one out.

So I guess technically I only had one prominent detail to point out. Lol. I have a long-term plan for this story, but I'm very sporadic with my writing because I have a full-time job that requires a lot of my attention, so just know that I'm not one of those writers that has a schedule all mapped out for updating. I must shamelessly say though, the more people that love it and review, the faster I find the motivation to ditch sleep and stay up writing so I can crank out the next chapter. Just saying. Without further ado, please enjoy!

Chapter 1: Rain

Riley Matthews believed in the power of many things. She believed that coffee was a magical drug designed to tap into the most energetic bone in your body and stimulate the parts of you that often went unused. She believed that dancing in the rain, could fully heal any type of pain. She believed that all types of people equally deserved all types of love. And she fully believed that when something was wrong, you talked about it with the people you trusted and loved.

But Lucas wasn't talking. They had been sitting outside of her mother's café, on a beautiful April day, for an hour now and he had spent that time immersed in his notes. So she read, and she hummed, and she pretended not to notice the dark cloud that was hanging over his handsome head, until she couldn't take it anymore. Apparently Riley Matthews had never believed in patience.

"Okay, I've tried to maintain my silence on the matter, because I know how much you hate it when I overstep, but seriously Lucas?!" Her hands automatically slammed the book shut that was sitting in front of her, as he glanced up in surprise at her outburst.

"What?!" Lucas said innocently, with a pen dangling precariously out of his mouth, and a puzzled look on his face. Riley had to resist the urge to hurl an object at his head, a reaction that primarily was caused by having Maya Hart as a best friend. Maya tended to solve things with her fists first.

"Don't what me!" She reached across the small table to yank the pen out of his mouth, and almost spilled his coffee over in the process. Lucas laughed openly and caught it easily with his free hand. Being friends with Riley since the seventh grade taught him many things, first and foremost, how to sharpen your reflexes due to her clumsy nature.

"Well, those girls have now looked over here so frequently, that I'm convinced that their composing a very detailed sketch of you. In fact I think that the one on the end, is seriously thinking about coming over here and asking you to pose nude." Riley expertly turned Lucas's head in the direction of his admirers, and pointed out the ginger who was currently winking at him while her friends egged her on.

"The waitress refuses to come within five feet of you. And even animals, who you share a kinship with, are avoiding you." Lucas snorted at that and gave her a look. One that clearly stated he wasn't amused by her tendency to over embellish. "I'm serious man that dog just walked up the stairs because it didn't want to walk past you. And it had tiny legs."

Lucas sighed and shut the binder that was in front of him. He knew once Riley got started, any hopes he had of avoiding this conversation were futile. Plus he had been stewing in this mood for quite some time now, and he didn't like the kind of person it was turning him into. He was desperate to shake it, and thought that opening up to someone might be the key to snapping him out of this funk.

The truth was, the police academy was a lot harder than he ever thought it would be. Lucas Friar wasn't an idiot. He knew that physically it would be draining, and academically it would be challenging, but he wasn't prepared for the emotional ramifications that probably took its toll the most dramatically on him. He thought he had thick skin. Words didn't carry any weight, until suddenly they did.

Her hand is warm and reassuring, when it grabs his across the small space that separates them. Her gaze is troubled by his demeanor, but understanding and open. She's been his best friend for as long as he cares to remember; there isn't a single memory of his that isn't tied to her. He's rotated around her axis, basking in her sun, always consistently there. Encouraged by her support, balanced out by her love, and forever inspired because of her positivity.

"Please..talk to me." She whispers softly. And he wants to break. To let down the walls that he's so carefully constructed. But he's still him, and she's still her and their friendship was molded by this routine of push and pull, and give and take.

"There's nothing to talk about Riley, I'm fine." He pulls his hand out of her grasp, and runs both through his cropped hair. She knows he's lying. It's evident in the way he won't look at her. He keeps his eyes glued to the ground, and his voice steady with conviction. But she doesn't budge.

"You are not fine Lucas. And you know I won't quit until I figure out what's wrong. So save yourself the time and headache, and just tell me what's going on." He can feel her heated gaze on him, and he knows his resistance is only stoking the flames. He never means to be this person, but it's easier to slip back into old habits, especially when they've been so deeply embedded in you for so long.

"It's not a big deal. But the academy is just a lot harder then I originally thought it was going to be." He tells her this to placate her, and it does for a moment. Relief crosses her features briefly, and then it's quickly replaced by worry. Lucas wants to take his thumb and smooth out the crease that's formed between her eyebrows, and so he does. The gesture makes her smile and she catches his wrist before it falls.

"Harder how?" She prods, and gently kisses the small space of skin that separates his thumb from his index finger. Riley knows all the right buttons to push to get the answers she craves, and Lucas knows that deep down he doesn't stand a chance against her.

"Our training officers are just plain mean. And believe me, I know it's intentional. I know they do this to make sure that we are tough enough. But it just bothers me more than I thought it would." His voice is lower than she wishes it would be, and she has to strain to hear him. But he's talking and that's what's important. She scoots her chair around the table until she's sitting directly in front of him, and the sound it makes, earns her a scathing look from Lucas's fan club.

"Well..what do they say?" She asks.

Lucas hesitates at first. He sighs, in a way that initially makes her think he's exasperated but she later realizes could be out of exhaustion. He glances off to his right, and scratches the back of his neck before he clears his throat to answer.

"They are trained observers Riles. So they easily can pinpoint your biggest insecurity and kind of tear you down from there." She's shocked at this admission. Aside from Maya, Lucas has always been the most confident one in the group. Riley was drawn to him in the beginning because of his strong sense of self. He never wavered in his identity, and that kind of stability was something that Riley was envious of. Trusting her with this now was full exposure in his eyes.

"Okay so they tear you down. Then come to me Lucas. I will build you back up." Their knees are slightly touching, and he wants to laugh because even still at twenty two, her feet don't touch the ground. She grabs both of his hands, and he wills himself to look away. Not because he's afraid that there will be judgment in her eyes, but because he knows there will be nothing but love.

"Look at me." And he does.

"You are Lucas Friar. Remember when we hiked Breakneck Ridge? You carried Farkle all the way down, after he twisted his ankle by tripping over his own foot and didn't complain once. Or what about Maya's eighteenth birthday? We threw that crazy party, because her mom and Uncle Shawn went out of town, and she found Oliver Hudson, who she had a casual thing with, in the closet with Missy Bradford. You punched him square in the face and told him to leave, and even though I don't condone violence, it was the first time Maya smiled all night. What about when we got drunk off my parents wine coolers for the first time with everyone, right after Zay's grandma died? And he told us all about how peach cobbler will never be the same. You got the recipe from his mom, and tried your hardest to bake it and even though it probably didn't taste the same, I don't think I ever saw him hug you harder. You named the stray cat that sits outside your window, and you pretend like you don't care about it, but yet I always see food and water sitting outside. You call your mom and dad every Thursday night, at exactly the same time because you don't want to interrupt dinner or Jeopardy. I've never seen you walk past a homeless person, and not give them something. Sometimes it's the jacket off your back, or the dinner you just bought." She pauses for a moment and Lucas smiles because he knows she's tearing up. A small drop of moisture escapes out of the corner of her eye, and he gently wipes it away. He tucks a piece of unruly hair behind her ear, and kisses her cheek.

Words do carry weight. Because the ones she's saying are everything to him.

"You are the best person I know. And if you ever doubt that, I'll be here. Waiting to remind you." She whispers, and everything feels like it's going to be okay. Leave it to the light to snuff out the darkness. His beautiful Riley, always keeping the demons at bay, and chasing away his worries. Choosing to focus on his strengths, spinning his weaknesses, and so in tune with emotion. Always reassuring him when he's vulnerable, and placing his needs before her own.

And at that moment, it starts to rain. Out of the blue, the sunshine disperses, and the clouds open up and start pouring, and Riley laughs and keeps saying how perfect it is, because rain always heals everything. She abandons her chair and stands in the middle of the uncovered patio with her arms outstretched. The fabric of her floral sundress clings to her, and her boots glisten with moisture and her hair sticks to her back and reaches her waist. And Lucas knows, in that moment, that someday they'll stop hiding behind this best friend charade and actually talk about what they mean to each other. She squeals with delight when Gavin Degraw's "Best I Ever Had" floats out through the speakers Topanga installed on a whim. Everyone has sought out shelter inside, and she's yelling at him to come and join her, but he wants to commit this vision to memory before it comes to an end.

Riley is spinning around in circles, and wades knee-deep in the water around her as she stomps in and out of puddles. And Lucas can't stop looking at her. She shrieks with that infectious laughter, and he wants to hold onto that sound, because it reminds him of a simpler time when nothing else mattered but each other.

The vibration of his phone snaps him out of his stroll down memory lane, and he flinches at the disruption. He almost hits "ignore" until he glances down at his caller ID. Topanga Matthews. A knot forms in the pit of his stomach, because he knows she'd never call him unless it was an emergency and she needed to reach Riley. He glances one last time in his best friend's direction, and then answers hesitantly.

"Lucas. Are you with Riley?" Topanga asks breathlessly. He can hear the panic in her voice, and because she's not making an attempt to conceal it, Lucas knows it's so much worse than he thought.

He wants to preserve this very moment. To enter a dimension where nothing bad could ever touch or taint this her. Because Riley is sunshine and rainbows, and stability and comfort, and everything that's wholesome and pure left in this meager world, and if that's compromised than what is really left that's worth living for? If he can't protect the one person that means the most to him, than how can he ever expect to protect a whole city?

She's looking at him now. Her aura has shifted and her light has dimmed. Her momentary joy is replaced with worry. And the crease between her eyebrows has returned. But even still, all he hears are two words.

"Cory's dead."

Sorry for the cliffhanger guys! But I promise that everything will be explained in detail in the following chapter. That is, if you guys are interested enough for me to continue. Let me know what you think and as always please comment and review! :) Also, sidenote, all the characters you know and love, will appear at some point in this story. If you have any questions, because I know at the moment, everything seems very vague and confusing, feel free to ask and thank you! :)