"The One" – Part 4

Summary and additional notes in part 1.

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This is not related to my Degrassi timeline fics. (See my Author's Profile for details!)

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Degrassi!

-oOo-

Fiona felt awful. Her head was swimming and she didn't know what to do! She and Adam were supposed to grab coffee and catch up for an hour or two. Instead they ordered scones, then sandwiches, and finally desserts as they kept on talking. Until he mentioned her name at the end, she had forgotten about Beth! What kind of person forgets their live-in lover? Worse, what kind of person has coffee with an Ex and doesn't want to leave?

She sighed and looked out the window. This was bad. Really bad. She had met Beth four years ago through mutual friends. They clicked but at the time she was dating another girl. When that relationship ended, she and Beth remained friends for almost a year before she fell for her. It turned out Beth had been into her the whole time!

Beth was an amazing person. She was kind and loving. A great friend. She had a number of varied interests and causes she dedicated her time to. They had their ups and downs, but their relationship was a happy one. She felt terrible for losing sight of that.

When Fiona reached her apartment her mind was made up. She knew what she had to do.

"There you are!" Gretchen smiled at her. She was one of their roommates. "Beth was expecting you back awhile ago."

"Here I am," Fiona smiled nervously. "Where is Beth?"

"Where else? She's in the Den!" Gretchen laughed. "And I'm heading out. Tami isn't here so you two can whoop it up if you want!"

"Right," Fiona responded.

"See you later!" Gretchen said as she left.

Fiona closed the front door and proceeded towards the Den. Every step felt heavier than the last, but there was no avoiding this. When she reached the doorway, she spotted Beth inside working on a clay model. Her girlfriend looked up and smiled.

"Wow, I thought you had gotten kidnapped or something," Beth teased. She walked over to Fiona and gave her a quick kiss. She studied her for a moment, sensing something was off. "Is something wrong?"

Fiona looked down at her feet.

"Babe?"

Fiona took a deep breath. "I think we should break up," she said in a shaky voice.

Beth looked at her stunned. "What?"

Fiona met her eyes. They looked at each other for a long while.

"Why?" Beth felt like she got the air knocked out of her.

"I… I don't want to be with you anymore," Fiona told her bluntly. She winced at her choice of words. She was usually articulate but that skill was lost to her at the moment.

Beth closed her eyes for a long moment. "Why are you saying this? What changed from this morning to now?"

Fiona swallowed. She felt completely shitty but she thought the alternative was worst. Why stay with someone once you realized they weren't the right person for you? She didn't want to string Beth along. And she wasn't going to cheat. This was a screwed up situation, but she felt honesty was the right way to go about it.

"I have feelings for someone else," she slowly admitted.

Beth blinked back tears. "Who?"

"It doesn't matter," Fiona responded.

"Like hell it doesn't! If it wasn't for this girl you wouldn't be breaking up with me, would you?" Beth pushed back.

"It doesn't involve a girl," Fiona informed her.

Beth blinked. "You're leaving me for a guy?" Sure she claimed to be 'pansexual' but her last three relationships had been with women. Beth was genuinely surprised.

"No," Fiona said quickly. "It doesn't have anything to do with him… Not really. I just don't think we have a future–"

"How do you date someone for two years, live with them, and then have the gall to say you don't see a future?" Beth exploded at her.

Fiona looked away. "I'm sorry."

"No you're not! If you were then you wouldn't do this!" Beth cried. Her heart was breaking.

"I am! I never meant to hurt you," Fiona said honestly. "All of this has blindsided me too… After so many years, I thought what Adam and I had was over and done with. I didn't realize it, but I don't think I ever stopped loving him."

Tears were spilling down her cheeks as well.

"You can't just walk in and say it's over! We could try counseling. You don't just give up," Beth reasoned.

"I know how I feel about him. I can't explain it, but it would just be going through the motions," Fiona said delicately.

"So that's it?" Beth said bitterly. "Two years and you're just going to throw it away? For some guy?"

Fiona sighed. He wasn't just some guy. She couldn't put it into the words but she knew Adam was the one for her. She felt it through and through. She hated this moment, seeing the hurt in Beth's eyes and knowing that she was the cause of so much pain, but she still believed it was kinder to end things now than to draw it out.

"I'm sorry," Fiona said quietly and turned around.

"Where are you going?" Beth asked.

"To my parents'. I'll come back for my stuff tomorrow," she stated.

.

tbc

A/N: Whoa. That was sudden. Did anyone see that coming? I guess it's a good thing that Fiona's in tune with her feelings, but it seems like she might be putting the cart before the horse...

In the next chapter we'll see Mama Coyne… Btw, I'm doubling posting later tonight :D

Review! You know you want to!