One day Rachel and Lucy sat against a tree in the park that they went to almost every day after school. Rachel had learned Lucy loved the outdoors. Even though it was December snow had yet to fall and the weather still wasn't too cold to be out for a little bit.

"I'm so insecure." Lucy admitted. After all they had been through, she knew that Rachel already knew this but she felt the need to talk about it. Every other time they had talked about it had been forced out of her. Like on Halloween when she couldn't contain it so she exploded. She didn't want any more explosions. She wanted one final discussion about it and then maybe she would be ready to move on and stop thinking about it constantly. Maybe she could live her life and be at peace.

Rachel had known this about the girl but took it as a good sign that she was talking about it. "Why?" The brunette asked as she scooted closer to the other girl so their sides were touching. In response to the question Lucy looked at her with wide-eyed disbelief. "Look at me." She practically whispered as her eyes fell from Rachel's face to the ground.

"I am." Rachel said and grabbed the girl's hand.

"I'm fat. I have zits. I hate my nose. I know you've said all those nice things about me but I'm stating facts here." Lucy kept her eyes on the ground while she said this and Rachel intertwined their fingers. She felt bad that the other girl was hurting but not talking about it wouldn't make it better. As the Fabrays had proven not talking about it made it worse.

"You forgot something." Rachel said and Lucy looked at her surprised. "You're beautiful."

"I'm not." Lucy responded with conviction and this time she looked right into Rachel's eyes.

"You are." Rachel counterpointed holding Lucy's gaze.

"I'm not and I still can't believe it when you say it." The other girl repeated. They had a stare down while Rachel tried to think of way to get through to Lucy. Finally she said, "I think you're beautiful," much more shyly than she had been talking before. "And you can't tell me what I think is wrong because it's my opinion and therefore it has to be right." She finished matter-of-factly.

Lucy practically snorted at this. "So if it was your opinion that the reason the sky is blue is because aliens colored it in with magic marker I would have to say you're right because opinions can't be wrong."

"If I believed it then it would be right for me no matter what anyone else said. You're beautiful. I think this. I know this. I believe this. It's true for me."

"What's so beautiful about me?" Lucy asked challengingly.

"Your eyes. They hold so much emotion and when you smile, like really smile, they light up. Also they're a pretty color. Your mouth and the way when you're really into a book it starts mouthing the words. Your hands. They feel like they fit perfectly in mine." At this last statement Rachel squeezed the hand she was holding. "Your voice and how content I feel when you read to me. Your bravery about coming out even if it was just to me. How caring you are and the way you went to my dance class even though you were nervous and didn't really want to but you did for me. Your heart and how much love there is inside of you despite how little you've been shown." As she had been talking her and Lucy's heads had gotten closer and closer. Lucy had tears in her eyes. Rachel tilted her head and leaned in and Lucy said, "Rachel," in a tone that stopped the brunette.

"What?" Rachel asked not pulling back.

"I've never kissed anyone before." Lucy admitted.

"Me neither." With that admission a look passed between the girls and they pressed their lips together. It was soft and chaste and innocent. It was everything a first kiss should be and it sent tingles ricocheting through each girls' body.

Lucy had been pushing around her peas on her plate lost in her head when the gruff voice of her father startled her from her thoughts of Rachel and their kiss. "Lucy," He said abruptly. She looked up at him wide-eyed like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Yes sir." She answered.

"You've been hanging around that new girl…" He tried to think of her name and looked to his wife for help but she simply shrugged just as lost as he was.

"Rachel." Frannie supplied and Lucy looked at her surprised and unsure why her sister knew that when she hadn't talked to any members of her family about Rachel. When her parents asked she just said she was going over a friend's house but she provided no details and they hadn't asked her for any.

"How did you…"

"Graham's brother Alistair is a grade below you and goes to the same school." Frannie said as if Lucy should already know this, which she did but it slipped her mind because she never thought she would be the topic of conversation between any of them.

"Right Rachel," Her father continued, "You've been hanging around her a lot lately and I don't think you should be."

"Why?" It came out before Lucy could stop herself. It was the first time she had ever questioned her father out loud.

"Number one because I said so," as he said this Russell Fabray pinned Lucy with a look so severely intense her eyes fell to the table and she had to fight the urge to run to her room and hide from it. "And number two she comes from a despicable family life. I can't have her mingling with a member of family. Do you know what it would look like if the congregation found out my daughter was friends with a girl with two faggots for parents?" He spit the word faggots out as if it was the most detestable thing a person could be and Lucy flinched when she heard it. This time she didn't need to ask how he had found this out. Frannie told him. Lucy couldn't think of anything to say. She knew she couldn't fight back but she also couldn't accept it.

"May I be excused?" She asked.

"I think that would be best." Mr. Fabray said. "And leave your cellphone with me."

Lucy took it out of her pocket and dropped it on the table. She managed to hold back her tears until she made it to her room. She flopped facedown onto her bed and held onto a pillow as sobs wracked through her body. Moments later there was a knock on her door. Before she could say anything Frannie entered her room and sat at the edge of her bed.

"I'm sorry."

"No you're not." Lucy answered as she sat up to look at her sister with a tearstained face.

"I didn't think he was going to ban you from seeing her." Frannie tried to explain.

"Then why bother telling him at all? What did you expect to accomplish?" Lucy said the anger towards her father and her mother and her sister all boiling over now.

"I didn't expect to accomplish anything. I just thought he should know." Frannie said starting to get angry now herself her voice rising in volume.

"Bullshit, Frannie. There's always something more with you. You never just do anything." Frannie opened her mouth but Lucy cut her off before she could speak again. "I had one friend. One friend my whole life and you take her away. Well I'm not going to let you."

"Girls, what's all that noise?" Mrs. Fabray called as she and Mr. Fabray came walking down the hallway.

"No one's going to take her away." Lucy said as she ran out into the hallway. She collided into her parents and kept going, running out the front door and all the way to Rachel's house. She collapsed into a heaving, out of breath, crying mess when she made it to the front porch. She stayed like that for a while willing herself to calm down. She repeated over and over again in her head that Rachel was right there on the other side of the door and that she would be able to see her whenever she wanted. Rachel wanted to see her. They would make this work. No one was going to be able to force them apart.

When she composed herself as best as she could, she knocked on the front door and was met by an equally teary faced looking Rachel. Confused Lucy opened her mouth to ask why but before she could Rachel pulled her into a tight hug. As Lucy felt the tiny girl shaking in her arms she began to cry again too and soon the effort of simply standing there became too much so they sank to the floor together.

"I'm leaving." Rachel said once silence had settled over them. She still had her arms around Lucy and her head buried in the crook of the girl's neck.

"Leaving? What do you mean?" Lucy asked in disbelief.

"My dad's job. He got transferred to Washington."

"How…how long?"

"We're leaving as soon as winter break starts."

"But that's in a couple days."

"I know."

"How long will you be gone?"

"I don't know." They sat in silence for a few minutes clinging to each other. "Why were you crying?" Rachel finally asked just now realizing Lucy hadn't known about the news.

"It doesn't matter." She answered fresh tears streaking her face.

Just then they heard a pounding on the front door. Both girls turned their heads to look at the door but neither made a move to get up. Lucy had a queasy feeling in her stomach and was sure she knew who it was. Unconsciously she tightened her grip on Rachel. On the third round of the violent "BANG, BANG, BANG" Leroy Berry barged over to the door and whipped it open.

"Can I help you?" He asked perturbed. He didn't know what this was but he knew he didn't need it, particularly at this moment. He didn't need an angry man standing on his doorstep. He was upset enough. He didn't want to pack up his life and move his family across the country. He didn't like hearing his daughter cry for hours because she had to leave her life in Lima, had to leave Lucy, her first real friend and what Leroy could see as a relationship developing into more than friends. It broke his heart. It broke Hiram's heart, which just broke his own even more. He was under enough stress. He didn't need anymore but as soon as he whipped open that door a stocky blonde man nearly barreled him over in his haste to get in the house.

"No you most certainly cannot help me." He said and stopped moving the moment he caught sight of his daughter. He took in the scene, his daughter on the floor hair and face all a mess and she was holding onto a petite brunette girl who Russell realized was Rachel. He walked closer and hovered over them casting a shadow on the two girls.

"Lucy, we are leaving right now." He said through clenched teeth.

Leroy wasn't sure why the man was so upset. Maybe Lucy lied about coming here. He didn't know but he sighed and decided he would try to reason with the man.

"Look we're leaving in a few days. My husband and I thought Lucy could stay the night so the girls could spend a little more time together before we left."

Russell Fabray turned around and wore a look so fierce that Leroy's guard went flying back up and his hands balled into fists at his side ready to fight if needed.

"You and your husband," Russell spat with venom, "are perverts and shouldn't be allowed around children." He turned back and grabbed Lucy yanking her up by the arm as Rachel was unceremoniously pulled up too still clinging to Lucy's other one.

When they were standing Russell gave Lucy's arm a pull to try and get Rachel to let go but the girl wouldn't. His eyes flashed with rage and he pulled again more violently. Leroy sprung into action and grabbed his daughter's waist and disengaged her from the situation not wanting either of the girls to be hurt. If that man hurt his baby all Leroy would be able to think of would be murder. He held on to Rachel as she pushed against his arms trying to break free. New tears flowed down her face. Lucy kept her head turned and her eyes on Rachel even as they blurred with tears as her father dragged her out the front door. "Rachel." She yelled.

"Lucy," was the final broken whisper she heard from the brunette as her father finally made it out of the house.