A/N: Hello everyone who is still reading this story! Which I'm sure is not very many of you, because of my neglect to this piece of writing. Buuuuut! I'm here with the last chapter/epilogue. Enjoy. :)

End of Summer

XX

Sugar glanced at the rack of Chanel dresses for the third time, hoping to find one she'd like. School started back up in a week, so she'd been doing major shopping recently. Sugar Motta never wore any of the last season trends again.

Debating whether or not she should buy a lavender scoop neck, she set the garment down and sighed despondently. This was not the same. Her shopping trips most always included her besties: Brittany, Santana, Tina, Mercedes, Rachel, and Quinn. They had the tradition of getting two giant dressing rooms to try on their clothes and dance around. Not to mention, their annual fro-yo run that was mandatory after they were finished shopping.

The memories brought tears to the small girls' eyes. The summer was up. And she was going to miss her friends so badly.

"You all packed, bro?" Sam asked, his tone quiet.

The other boy nodded, ruffling his mohawk. Today he would be leaving for California to take off with his pool cleaning business. The time had finally come for him to say goodbye to one of his very best friends. He'd made the rounds telling the other boys goodbye, now it was Sam's turn. Puck knew this would be hard for the both of them.

"California is a really big state."

"Yep. It'll take me awhile to learn the ropes," Puck answered, fighting back tears.

"Yep," the blonde murmured, biting his lip.

"Dude…I'm gonna miss you."

"Puck, you're like my brother. I'm gonna miss you, too," Sam responded as they hugged one another.

Patting the boy's back, the brunette ended their embrace. It was time for him to leave, no matter how difficult it would be.

"Well, Evans," Puck started, sniffing, "I guess this is goodbye for now."

"I guess so."

The duo slowly ambled to his over-packed truck, the taller of the two climbing inside the vehicle.

"I'll see ya later, ok?"

"Ok," Sam said, his eyes clouding with tears, "I'll see ya later."

Finn enveloped Rachel's hands in his own as they stood in front of the train station. This was the moment that had been haunting them all summer. Saying goodbye. They had just had a very teary departure with their friends, and now it was time for them to leave one another.

The tiny brunette shook her head, beginning to sob.

"I'm gonna miss you so bad."

He wrapped her in his arms, hugging tightly, and cried into her shoulder. No matter how much he wanted her to stay, he knew she had to go. He was not going to hold her back from her dreams.

Cupping her face, he spoke, "I love you my star. Always remember that."

"Can we just check one more school?"

The blonde gave her girlfriend a sad look.

"San, no one is going to accept me if I haven't even finished high school. I know there's like early admission or something-"

"And you can get that! We just have to get them to see you dance," the Latina replied, her expression hopeful.

Brittany closed the laptop in front of Santana, setting it on the table. Grasping her hand, she met the girl's large, brown eyes.

"I know you want me to go to New York with you. And I really want to, too. But right now, I have to finish school. It's my chance for me to do better than I did last year. I guess Lima's just not done with me."

"But Britt I don't have to go-"

"Yes, you do. Santana, you can't stay in Lima. New York is totally more your speed," the tall girl smiled as she spoke, "Besides, think about. By the time I get to New York, you'll have made it big and I can start my dance career. It will be fantastic."

The raven-haired girl caressed her girlfriend's cheek, tears stinging her eyes. She wants to ask 'what if that doesn't happen?' But she objects to it. She will do everything in her power to make it happen.

"Okay, Britt. That sounds amazing."

Quinn closed the trunk of her blue Corola, then proceeded to hold onto it for balance. Their time was up. The summer was very much almost over. So here she was, her car loaded with her belongings, and her boyfriend in her house retrieving some last few items. Leaving Sam was what she had been dreading wholeheartedly for the longest now.

But we can still video chat and call each other…I mean that was our plan…

She pushed the thought away, for she knew in her heart that it would not be the same as sharing a warm embrace with him or feeling his lips against her own.

Sam had to finish Senior year at McKinley and Yale was calling her name. They each had their own place to be, and unfortunately it wasn't with each other. However, part of her had hope for them. Hope that burned with a passion, and she knew no matter where she was or what she was doing she would always remember Sam Evans. Well how could she ever forget her first love?

He exited the house, one, heavy box in hands. Walking it to the car, he placed it in it's correct spot. Quinn ambled his way, biting her lip to keep from crying. He took her hands in his own, making sure he committed their soft texture to memory so he wouldn't forget them. Meeting her teary, hazel orbs, another feature he ached to remember forever, he began to speak.

"That's all of it," he said, gently running his thumb over her knuckles.

"Yeah," she murmured quietly, squeezing his hands.

Tucking a piece of golden hair behind her ear, he held her cheek.

"I love you, Quinn Fabray."

Covering her mouth, she let the tears coat her cheeks.

"I love you, too."

The boy enveloped her in arms, holding onto her for dear life. His eyes grew wet as his heart welled inside his chest.

I have to let her go.

They knew this was the right thing for both of them. Except now in the moment of departure it felt the opposite. Yet, the couple had individually thought long and hard about this. What would Quinn do if she would stay in Lima? That wasn't even an option for Sam. He knew how much shit she had went through in that town, and how she had been waiting to leave it for the longest. She needed to go to New Haven more than anything, and he wanted purely what was best for her. And if he went with her? He couldn't, that wasn't where he belonged. He needed to finish high school in Lima.

"I love you always," Quinn said, wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater.

Her boyfriend nodded, biting back tears. Sam sniffed and held himself together for his next statement.

Taking her face in his hands, he spoke, "I love you so much, okay? And listen to me, you are going to go to Yale and do great things. A-And you are going to live you're life and be your amazing self. As much as I hate not being with you, I'm gonna have to move on. Because you have so much more of your life to live and our love is only a few of the chapters of your story. We'll see each other again, I'm sure of it. The speech I gave to you in the astronomy when I gave you your promise ring still rings true. But for now fate has to do it's thing and we'll later find out what it has in store for us. And as much as I want to hear your voice everyday, I can't stand in your way. You're gonna be busy, and I'm gonna be busy. I would never want to hurt you. Ever. So I'm not going to chance it. A-And if you ever come back here to Lima to visit, and have a boyfriend I will try to be okay with that. I'll of course have to scope him out, make sure he won't hurt you in any way. Then he'll be good to go. But as of now, I'm just praying that you won't forget me."

Sobbing into her hands, she nodded.

"That won't happen. Sam, I will never forget you. I love you so much," she cried, wrapping her arms around him so tightly.

It was finally time for Quinn to leave.

Walking her to the driver's side, he opened the door for her. Just like a gentleman.

His actions sparked many of memories from their romance, and she mustered all her strength to keep from throwing herself on the ground and weeping.

How am I going to make it through this?

Sam helped her into the car, double checking to make sure she had everything. He knew she was in no mood to drive to airport, even if it was only fifteen minutes away. But he was certain that if he drove her, he wouldn't want to let her go.

So he kissed her goodbye, squeezed her hand, and watched her drive away.

A/N: So there it is! I believe I need to address a few things. First, I am aware that the endings were not very happy-ending-like, but I thought they all fit very well. In real life we don't always get those 'happy endings,' so I think it also made the story more realistic. Second, I know Finn and Rachel's part was quite short. Honestly, it was difficult for me to write theirs, especially since the year anniversary of Cory's death was last month. I apologize, it was just tough for me. Lastly, I hope I have satisfied the people who have read this story since the start, especially fabrevans4life since she contacted me on Twitter and then motivated me to finish this story. In my opinion, my writing has vastly improved since the beginning of this story, but I still love this piece and hope I did it justice. So thank you and I love you. Mwah! :)