It was cold in Brooklyn, the icy flakes of snow gathered on Lily's shoulders as she stepped out of the car. She was still debating whether this was right, whether she should show up unexpected and practically come undone in front of Rufus. She blinked away more tears as she assured herself that it was the right thing to do. She had to tell him the truth.

She still had her key to the loft, Rufus never asked for it back. She stepped up to the large metal door, juggling her bag, Rufus' scarf and her set of keys and attempted to open the door silently so not to wake anyone. Like everything else she did, she failed, the door creaking loudly, breaking the eerie silence of the night. Her heels clacked on the concrete floor as she tried to navigate herself blindly around the room. She tried to find a light switch when a loose thread on her pants snagged on something she could only guess as the lounge, which sent her flying forward. Arms flailing, she shrieked in fright. Suddenly two warm hands wrapped themselves around her wrists, stopping her fall. For a moment she was confused, but just as quickly a velvety voice washed over her, soothing her.

'Lil, I should have known you were still as unpredictable as ever. I would have left the light on otherwise'. A gravelly giggle rang out in the still pitch black room as Lily steadied herself, Rufus' hands still gripping her tightly. She got to her feet, her heart beating so heavy she wondered if Rufus could hear it. Before she could control her emotions, she burst into tears, collapsing into Rufus. Rufus' knees buckled under the sudden weight, but didn't manage to lose his balance. Lily was suddenly very warm; the cold almost completely disappeared in Rufus' comforting arms. In one swift gesture, Lily was lifted up in Rufus' arms and felt Rufus slump onto a nearby couch, herself still cradled in his arms. She spared a giggle at how well Rufus could navigate himself in such darkness, and buried herself deeper into Rufus' arms. It felt so right there, so peaceful. For a moment Lily had forgotten all about the scarf still scrunched in her hand, and just listened to the breathing of the two of them, the stillness so powerful she felt she could drown in it. Her eyes had formed a glaze from the tears around them, suddenly making her eyes very heavy. Rufus' warming breathing steadied and he didn't say a word as Lily drifted off to sleep.

She didn't know how long it was before Rufus shifted on the lounge, her mind speeding into reality. It was still night, but the beginnings of tomorrow were starting to appear. She turned to Rufus, her eyes channelled to the darkness. She could only make out a slight outline of his face and his eyes as she began to speak.

'Rufus, I thi-'she stopped mid sentence as Rufus pulled his hand into view, his scarf in hand. A pang in her stomach made her double over, a reaction far worse than what she'd expected. Rufus released his grip as she went into a sitting position, her head between her knees. Hands pulled her hair behind her ears, and warm breath tickled her jaw line.

'Lil, I know you might find this hard to believe, but...nothing happened. You know me'.

His voice never raised above a whisper. She sat up and turned to Rufus, her big brown eyes bore into Rufus'. She cupped his head in her hands and brought his face up so they were looking eye to eye.

'I know Rufus, just, there's something I need to tell you. I don't want you to be angry. I just can't live with all the little untruth's surrounding us. I...it's just...going to be hard to say this'. Her voice cracked on the last word, tears welling up in her eyes. She didn't brush them away, but she snatched her eyes away, looking down. Rufus' arms slid smoothly around her and forced her against him in embrace. With that gesture, she threw her arms around him, bursting into tears.

'Oh Rufus, I'm so sorry. I should never have lied to you. But I'm...scared' She formed the sentence around choking gasps.

Rufus suddenly got very worried. Scenario's circled around his head as he tried to calm Lily's increasingly loud sobs which sent jolts through her body. Just the sound of her in pain made him want to scream.

'Rufus, it's not my mother who's sick' she sobbed.

'It's...me'.