The study group stepped out of the bar, emotionally drained, physically exhausted and deeply sad. The day had been more trying than any of them had imagined. The grief associated with Pierce's funeral was expected but none of them could have predicted the lie detector question marathon and then hours of drinking together.

But they came to terms with the fact that Pierce really was gone. That wasn't there biggest issue anymore.

Now it was trying to accept what they all knew would be a more heart-wrenching loss: Troy was leaving Greendale.

It was hitting each of them differently. Annie knew that Abed was probably struggling to even acknowledge Troy's decision right now and she knew she needed to be there for Abed, but right now ... right now Annie felt like she was being torn in two. Although she'd once had a crush on Troy, he had become her brother from another mother, her partner in crime, her roommate, her protector, her best friend.

And he was leaving.

Annie had lost her family once before. Shunned by her mother, ignored by her father. Cut off from relatives because of her addiction and her choice to go to rehab.

She felt like it was happening again. Pierce had become a father-figure to Annie. Well, a weird older neighbor or uncle figure. She had barely processed his death and then she found out Troy was leaving.

Who would be next? she wondered to herself as she slumped in her car behind the steering wheel. Although she had been at the bar with the group for hours, she'd only nursed one beer and knew that she could drive safely. Now it was just a matter of turning the key and getting into gear.

But what's the point? she thought with a shake of her head.

It was just a matter of time before the others left and her surrogate family disappeared as effectively as her birth family. Maybe Abed would move to Los Angeles and really get into the movie business. Maybe Britta would decide to join the Peace Corps and take off somewhere around the world. Maybe Shirley and Andre would get back together again and move somewhere for a new beginning.

And Jeff ... Annie couldn't even think about it. She considered the study group as a whole as her family, but Jeff wasn't a family member. He was still her first love, the first man to truly challenge her intellectually while also awakening a passionate side she didn't even know existed.

If she lost Jeff suddenly like had happened with Pierce and Troy, that would be a nearly impossible blow to recover from.

Annie decided that she needed to be prepared to lose Jeff ... or to simply give him up entirely.

She didn't realize where she was driving until was parking in the lot in front of Jeff's building. Nervous but still determined, Annie went into the building and up to Jeff's floor. She resolutely knocked on his door before she could talk herself out of it.

Jeff was just starting to head to his bedroom for the night when there was a knock on his door. He briefly considered ignoring it - he never knew when Dean Pelton would make an unwelcome visit - but the curious side of him couldn't just walk away.

"Annie?" Jeff asked as he opened his door and she brushed past him without a word. She looked flustered and more upset than she had earlier in the day. "Are you OK?"

Annie shook her head and started pacing back and forth in Jeff's living room.

"Troy is leaving," she said, almost as though she was just talking to herself. Jeff was about to reply but she continued. "Troy is leaving and Pierce is dead. Our group is breaking up and any one of us could be the next to leave."

She finally stopped pacing and stared up at Jeff, her round, deep blue eyes filled with pain.

Jeff nodded his head and sighed. "I know exactly what you're feeling-"

"No, you don't!" Annie yelled. "You've never lost everyone! You've always had your mother and most other people you didn't even lose you tossed them away!"

Jeff flinched but didn't argue, knowing there was more to come.

"I've lost my entire family. I lost my entire rehab group. Now Pierce is dead and Troy is leaving!" Annie yelled and she angrily swiped away a tear as it slid down onto her cheek.

"Annie-"

"I can't lose you, Jeff," she interrupted him. "I can't have you in my life one day and then just gone the next day."

"I'm not-"

"You hide from your feelings and you hide from me," Annie continued as though he hadn't tried speaking. "I need to know when to expect you to leave so I can prepare for it."

Jeff suddenly felt like she'd kicked him in the chest, knocking his breath out. "I ... I'm not going to leave you."

Annie snorted derisively and turned away from him. "Everyone leaves, Jeff," she said quietly and sadly.

Jeff stepped toward her and gently put his hands on her shoulders. "I have no plans to leave you, Annie," he told her as sincerely as he could.

"Jeff, every time you turn away from what you feel toward me, what I feel toward you, you leave me just a little bit more," she told him as she met his gaze again. "So, either tell me how long I can really expect you to leave or ..."

"Or ... what?" Jeff asked when she didn't continue.

"Or let me go," she told him as her eyes filled with tears. "Let me fade out and move on. Let me leave you."

Jeff could barely breath. He stared down at her tried to think of what to say. What he could possibly offer her that would fix this.

"What if ... what if we try it?" he asked, swallowing thickly.

"What?" Annie shook her head and looked away.

"I mean it," Jeff said, gently taking her chin in hand and guiding her back toward him. "What if I stop running and you stop hiding and we try this?"

Annie closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "Jeff-"

"No, I really mean it," Jeff insisted. "You're my favorite person in the whole world and I hate being alone. I don't want to toss you aside and I never want to see you leave. Please, don't give up. Let's try this."

Annie opened her eyes, meeting Jeff's gaze, searching for any uncertainty from him. Hoping that he could show his feelings more clearly than his words could illustrate them, Jeff leaned down and kissed her.

It wasn't like the debate kiss, impulsive and hungry. It wasn't like their kiss after the transfer dance, either.

This was a slow, deep kiss as Jeff tried to convey everything he'd been feeling for the past four years into a single moment. Annie hesitated but when Jeff slowly rubbed his thumb against her jaw, she sighed and kissed him back.

He was pulling her back in, she knew it but she felt like it had to happen. They had to try this now or they never would. Troy would leave and Annie would hide and Jeff would keep denying feeling anything at all. They'd drift apart and when it was over and done, they'd both be gone.

But trying it now opened the possibility of a different future. It gave Annie hope, so she kissed him back and as she put in everything she'd been feeling for years, the kiss deepened and grew more passionate.

Then Annie pulled away, meeting Jeff's eyes once more. Without saying a word, she took his hand in hers and led him to his bedroom.

Once Jeff closed the door behind him, Annie took her shirt off while her gaze never strayed from his. Jeff responded by removing his own shirt.

That slowly undressed in front of each other without touching, without speaking. When she was naked, Annie stepped forward and took Jeff's hand again, backing up toward his bed. He followed her without a thought, knowing deep down that he'd follow her off a bridge if it meant never leaving her.

When they laid down on the bed together and Annie wrapped her legs around Jeff's waist, reaching down to guide him to her core, he paused.

"Are you-" he started to ask, but Annie reached up one hand and placed a finger against his lips, shushing him quietly. Without another word, Jeff pressed into her and Annie arched toward him, urging him deeper.

It took a few minutes to find a rhythm that worked for them both but then they started moving together, the room filling with the sounds of their heavy breathing as they took and gave pleasure. Jeff kept his eyes open as much as he could, staring down into Annie's eyes, unable to look away as she stared back up at him.

As her body tightened around him and she bit her lower lip, Jeff buried his head in the crook of her neck, clutching her hips tightly as they found their release together.

For a moment, they stayed together like that, each shaking from the power of their release, holding on to each other as their breathing slowed.

Then Jeff met Annie's eyes again and she finally smiled at him.

"What happens now?" he asked ...