It was the cocktail reception thrown for the first year theatre majors at NYU. In addition to her summer in the city, living with Noah, she'd had three days of orientation and was a mere two more from beginning classes. Noah had told her he was tired, and let her go along to meet up with Andrew, who she'd met in the summer advanced theatre program.

She was at a fancy restaurant, sipping some fruity drink a professor had allowed her to order, while he was back at their apartment, chugging beer after beer. Imagining her among all those proper theatre patrons and actors and professors who were clearly more important and classy than him. Then he started pacing around the living room. Who the fuck does she think she is? If she thinks I'm gonna spend the next 50 years sitting at home while she goes to these fuckin' theatre functions, she's got another damn thing coming. He grabbed his keys and wallet and stomped out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him.

A loud but muffled argument caught her attention from her place by the bar next to Andrew. After a moment, she realized why she'd recognized the voice when she saw her boyfriend stalking over to her. "Noah, what on earth are you doing here?" He pointed to Andrew. "This guy, here? He's the one you want. He's the fuckin' theatre nerd that's gonna be your knight in bright fuckin' shiny armor. It isn't gonna be me, babe. It's never gonna be me."

Her eyes were filling with tears and she tried to lead him out of the room, hoping to avoid making a scene. "Wh-what are you talking about? Where is this coming from, Noah?" He shook his head, his fists clenched at his side. "Just had a fuckin' realization that we're done. I'm getting the hell out of this stupid city. Don't give a shit about Broadway or Times Square or Central Park or any of that crap. That's your thing, and I'm fuckin' over it." With that, he turned around and stormed out of the restaurant. She took one last look at his retreating form before turning to bury her face in Andrew's shoulder while he tried to comfort her.

When she got home an hour later, all of his things were gone and he was already on a train back to Ohio.

She anxiously got out of her car in front of the old auto shop. She was so glad Ben had left that morning ("I've gotta get some stuff done at home, but you should stay. You said you hadn't been back in five years!") If he'd still been in town, she definitely wouldn't have had the chutzpah to do this. To be here. To come see him.

He'd been praying all day that she'd show up. He was talking to Burt when he saw her walk through the garage door, and he immediately felt his palms start to sweat. She looks even more beautiful than last night. She bit her lower lip as she approached him and he muttered a quick apology to Burt as he slipped past him and met Rachel in the middle of the shop.

She smiled weakly at him. "Hi Noah." She looked down at the grease on the floor and he sighed. "Hey, Rach. Uh, I'm really glad you came."

Nodding, she looked back into his eyes. Dammit, why does he still have to look so good? "Right, well, I figured it must be important. Do you want to get out of here, or something?" He ran a hand along his head and nodded slowly. "Y-yeah, we should get out of here. There's a coffeehouse across the street."

She smoothed her hands over her jean-clad thighs and turned to walk across the street, assuming he'd follow. (Of course he would, but he needed to keep a suitable distance so he could admire the view. She never used to wear jeans.)

Once inside, he ordered his coffee (black) and turned to her. "Still drinking that hazelnut shit?" She laughed and nodded before letting him order her coffee for her. They grabbed their drinks and he ushered her to a small table in a secluded corner. She sat down, chewing her thumbnail as he looked down at the tabletop.

"What did you want me to meet you for, Noah? I… I'm only in town for a few days, and I have a lot to do." He nodded. "I know, Rach, I'm only here a few days too, before I head back to LA."

Her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "You're… living in Los Angeles? Doing what, exactly?" He rolled his eyes, smirking. "I'm actually just getting ready to finish architecture school. It's a five year program, and I had a little… detour." He stared down into his cup of coffee, knowing what was coming next.

Her eyes were blazing. "You know, that have architecture schools in New York. Jobs in architecture, too. And New York also happens to have a girl you claimed to love." She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away from him to take a few deep, calming breaths.

"Fuck, Rach. What do you want me to say? I was a damn fool. I acted like an idiot, said some really shitty things, and fucked everything up. There was no way I could've fixed it."

"You could've come back, dammit!" She clamped a hand over her mouth as soon as she realized how loud she'd yelled.

He closed his eyes and took a breath. "I know, Rachel. I know how badly I ruined things between us, but—" She cut him off, shaking her head. "No, Noah, you don't know how badly you ruined things. I gave you everything, for almost three years. Three years, Noah! And you threw it away, all because of some screwed up idea you had in your head that I was going to leave you, or that I was too good for you. How could you have thought that, even for a second?" She rested her elbows on the table and dropped her head into her hands, taking a deep breath and willing herself not to cry.

Swallowing hard, he took in her words. All those damn words. "Rach, listen. I do know how much I fucked up. Trust me, I've spent the last five years killing myself over it. But you didn't come after me either, and you know me. You know I refuse to put myself where I'm not wanted." Her brow furrowed slightly as she looked up at him.

"You just… you said something insightful." He laughed lightly, nodding. "Yeah Rach, I do that sometimes. I've grown up a lot since we last saw each other. And look, I know I lost any chance of ever getting you back, but I was just thinking maybe…" He took a deep breath. "I'm moving back to New York when I graduate. And fuck, it'd be really nice to have a friend. And by a friend, I mean you. It'd be nice to have you."

She inhaled sharply, her eyes locked with his. "Noah, we… we can't just go back to the way things used to be. I've got a… Ben…." He rolled his eyes. "That guy is a total schmuck. He's like a fucking carbon copy of me. C'mon, you don't need imitation when you've got the real thing." Smirking, he flexed his biceps at her and grinned when she rolled her eyes.

He reached over to take her hand loosely in his and she bit her lip as she stared down at the connection, his flesh burning into her just as it had the night before, and five years before that. "Rach, c'mon, just tell me you want this as badly as I do." She looked up at him, her eyes swimming with confusion and frustration. "Noah, don't act like everything is going to be alright. It's just… it's just not. You broke my heart, okay?"

She gently pulled her hand from his and stood up. "Thank you for the coffee, Noah. I think I'd better be going." She picked up her cup and straightened her jacket. "When we're both in the same city, we'll see what the fates have in store for us." With that, she turned on her heel to weave her way through the tables toward the door. He stood up and called after her, "You'll find I'm an expert at manipulating fate, Rach!"