The moment was straight out of a movie—Jim pulling up to the curb in his blue pathfinder, Jenna standing there with a baby on her hip and a suitcase in her hand. Of course, Becky and Cal hovering over one shoulder and Dawn and Ogie over the other kind of detracted from the image—maybe they appeared as the dramatic, overly worried parents?

Jim killed the engine and got out of the car. He was still walking with a definite limp, but as he traversed to Jenna, his smile and energy made it barely noticeable. He plucked Lulu off of Jenna's side and spun her around in the air for a moment, letting out a huff of air as she landed on his hip.

"Be careful, Jim! I don't want you hurting yourself. Or dropping my baby!" Jenna scolded him as she opened the hatch on the pathfinder and settled her suitcase inside.

"Did the truck leave on time?" Jenna asked as she shut the door, trying to remain brusque to put off the good byes.

"Yup. They fit everything in easy—I told you we didn't need the next size up. I dropped the keys off with the realtor as well. It's all taken care of. Only thing left on my list was to get you!" Jim smiled at her and leaned in gently for a quick kiss. Jenna couldn't help the blissful smile that crossed her cheeks as he pulled away. They had managed to do this entire move in under a week, and somehow she still wasn't stressed. How did he do that to her? Life just seemed so easy with him by her side.

Jenna turned away and faced her friends. Time for the hard part. Before she'd said a word or given a single hug, she felt her chin begin to wobble, that awful thickness taking hold in her throat.

Cal was first. He leaned in for a hug and patted her back gruffly a few times before pulling away. "I thought you ought to have this," he held out a cylinder of white fabric—Jenna recognized it as her apron from the diner. "I know it's not much, but you shouldn't forget your roots. We'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, Cal," Jenna replied, smiling at him and pulling him in for one last hug.

Next was Ogie. He wrapped his arms tightly around Jenna and squeezed with more force than she thought he could fit into his wiry little frame.

"Well Ms. Jenna, it has been a downright pleasure to have you. Thank you for making this one,"—he pointed at Dawn—"give me a chance, and thank you for baking at our wedding, and thank you for bringing lovely little Lulu into our lives. We are immensely grateful to you. Now, I know you said no gifts, but I did get you a little something," he held out a tissue wrapped package.

"Ogie, you shouldn't have!" Jenna scolded him with a smile. She hated getting gifts.

"Ms. Jenna, you won't be disappointed with this, I promise you! It lists all the best historic sights in Philadelphia for you to go visit, including some revolutionary war re-enactments you can watch and send me pictures from, if you'd like," Ogie smiled bashfully and Jenna couldn't help but laugh with him. When he and Dawn had heard that she was going to be moving to Philadelphia—Jim's best offer was from the teaching hospital at the University of Pennsylvania—their faces had lit up, the historical relevance of the place completely captivating them. Jenna half hoped it would help launch them to join her in the next few years—if she could, she would bring them all with her now.

"I'll make sure to check off a few every month Ogie," Jenna smiled at him and gracefully took the tissue-wrapped book. Maybe she could see what all the fuss was about with their costumes and re-enactments and historical docu-dramas.

Jenna felt her stomach sink as Dawn and Becky approached. Without a word, the three of them leaned in for a group hug, holding each other tightly. Jenna felt tears that weren't her own splash on her shirt from her friends. Good to know she wasn't the only one crying. Jenna could hear the awkward shuffling of the men behind them and smiled to herself. She had to admit, it was hard to understand the bond that the three of them had with each other.

It was Dawn who pulled away first, struggling for breath smothered in Jenna's and Becky's chests.

"Ok," she whispered through choked sobs. "We bought our tickets already—we'll be there in ten weeks. Don't you go forgetting us before then!"

"How could I?" Jenna asked.

"She won't," Becky said to Dawn. "Or at least, she better not!" She guffawed and patted Jenna on the back sharply. Jenna winced, but smiled at her friends. Ten weeks, and then they'd be there, and everything would be ok. It was all going to be ok. She'd just miss them. A lot.

They all fussed over getting Lulu into her car seat—while Jenna had specified no gifts for herself, no such rule had been made for Lulu, and they showered her with stuffed toys and books and pajamas and outfits. Lulu adored the attention, smiling and giggling and gripping any fingers that came in range. Jenna smiled too from the front seat, watching her friends shower her baby girl with attention and love. The thought of raising her baby without them still hurt her heart.

As she and Jim pulled away, Jenna frantically wiped at her tear-stained cheeks. She leaned out the window and waved at them, standing there on the curb in front of Dawn and Ogie's house, waving back at her. As Jim turned the corner, Jenna vaguely saw a form standing on the curb, ragged and dirty, holding a bottle in one hand and impassively watching them pass. Earl. Jenna looked at him with wide eyes, taking in his wretched face, covered in a scruffy beard. Immediately she sobered, tears forgotten.

Sure, it was terrifying to leave. Facing the unknown and without her friends by her side, that hurt. But Jenna had no doubts about the future she was signing up for with Jim. She wouldn't be alone or isolated or abused, no matter what happened in Philly. That itself was enough for her to know that she was making the right decision. And her baby—her precious little Lulu—would be safe and loved, no matter what. Jim made her feel safe. And that was nice.

"I got you a gift too," Jim said quietly. "I know you said not to, but I couldn't help it, and I haven't purchased it yet, so you can still say no if you decide it's not right for you, or anything like that,"

Jenna choked out a laugh, shaken from her thoughts and looking around the car. "Ok, where is it?" she asked.

"Open the glove box," Jim pointed, keeping his eyes on the road.

Jenna complied, reaching in and pulling out the only thing it could be: a manila envelope with a green bow stuck on the front.

"Sorry, it didn't really lend itself to wrapping," Jim smiled self-consciously. "Go ahead and open it though, tell me what you think."

Jenna undid the little metal piece holding the envelope closed. Inside was a sheaf of papers—mostly photos. Jenna shuffled through them, not fully comprehending at first. The first was of an empty storefront, seemingly abandoned. The place where the previous businesses sign had been was discolored. Then more photos of the inside; a big concrete industrial space, big bay windows at the front, concrete walls delineating a kitchen space from the storefront.

"I don't understand," Jenna murmured, flipping through the pictures. It was beginning to dawn on her, but she couldn't let herself believe it.

"It's right on Independence Mall, down in historic Philly, close to the house. Right by all the touristy places, so you can get a lot of business just from foot traffic. There's also a daycare literally right across the street—once business picks up and Lulu gets older, I checked it out and it's got fantastic ratings, if that's where you wanted her to go. They do pre-K too, so it would be a nice continuity for her. And I know, this is me presuming a lot, so I haven't paid or committed or anything, but I was thinking what better gift than to get you started? My freshmen year roommate became a retail designer, and I reached out and he offered me a nice friends and family discount if you wanted to use him to help design the space. His name is Mark and he's this sweet guy, him and his husband live in West Philly, so they're close to the shop, and he does business down there all the time. It's a prime location; the previous owner was embezzling funds or something and that's the only reason it's available. I managed to put a little hold on it so you could get a chance to look before committing, if you'd like. I feel like I'm rambling now and you haven't said anything so I'm going to stop."

Jim kept glancing between Jenna and the road as she continued silently flipping through the pages. It had always just been a dream. Some sort of wish to keep her mind occupied while sweating in the confined diner kitchen. So many nights she'd spent writing up recipes and doodling logos. It had all been innocent fun—designed to busy her mind, distract her from the painful realities of life. It hadn't ever even seemed like a possibility. And here it was, splayed on her lap, a guarantee if she wanted to reach out and take it. It seemed like too much. She continued flipping through the photos, over and over again, until a fat teardrop splashed on the laminated page.

"Jim," she whispered.

"Jenna?" he whispered back, curious. What would she say? What could she say?

"I can't—" she began.

"Shh. Nonsense. It's a gift—nothing more. The first year. It's a rental, obviously. That way, if you get a loan, you just need to ask for business capital, not rent money as well. It's just helping. My gift to you, for allowing me to be a part of your life. And Lulu's. Please take it."

"I just—" Jenna began and then choked off, tears clouding her vision. The kindness of it all was just too much.

They drove like that for a while, Jim keeping his eyes on the road, letting Jenna have her moment. At some point, she managed a guttural "Thank you," and that was all the confirmation Jim needed. He continued driving in silence, a smile wide across his face, heading towards their future.


Hi everybody! Thank you so much to those of you who followed this story and favorited and reviewed; this one was hard for me to write, and your feedback really helped me see it through.

Writing for adults (like real grown up adults with children and jobs and baggage) has been really, really hard for me. I would not yet consider myself one of those so-called 'grown-ups', so writing them didn't come as fluidly to me as teens did in the other fic I have uploaded here. I want to thank those of you (again) who stayed with me through some sketchy character development and overly-angsty life crises. I appreciate you massively. There's one last chapter/epilogue coming for you guys from Jenna and Jim, then I'll be moving on to my next ventures: a sequel to the Dear Evan Hansen fic I have uploaded here, and a story that's been brewing in my mind after I saw Mean Girls in previews on Broadway.

One last thank you to all the Broadway fans out there that have created a fanfiction community here online. I can think of no better way to indulge some of our curiosities and fantasies about our favorite shows, and I'm forever grateful to those of you who read, write, or give feedback on some of the awesome art that makes it's way to this corner of the internet. May we never stop creating!

Signing off- AlyssssaB