Root's hair fell in front of her face and she pushed it behind her ear. The grass tickled her stomach as her shirt rode up. Next to her, Sameen laid on her back, eyes closed, her hair scattered around her. Her softball game had ended almost an hour ago, but she still smelled like sweet and clay and that strong, comforting smell that was just her.

The wind blew across the back of Root's bare legs and she shivered. It was cool for July and she wished she'd worn her leather jacket to the game. Sameen slapped her leg when a mosquito landed on her. Across the park, a father and his son walked onto the empty baseball diamond. Root glanced down at her book, squinting in the dying light.

"'If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth."

"Oh god," Sameen groaned, her eyes still closed, "just stop. I already hate this. Can't you just tell Grace to give us a pass?"

Root laughed and tossed the book away. "I don't think she'd go for that. I'll try, though."

Scratching her nose, Sameen sat up. She blinked into the setting sun, her mouth opening in a yawn. Things were getting better between them and Root was content to just lay in the park for the rest of the night, looking at Sameen in the moonlight and thinking about the upcoming school year. Catcher in the Rye was their last book to read and then they were all set.

"We should do more SAT prep this weekend," Sameen said, pulling her knees to her chest and hugging her legs. "I know we've been scoring pretty high, but more practice never hurt."

Root nodded and rolled onto her back, bumping into Sameen's side. She grinned up at Sameen and wiggled her eyebrows. "We could make it a game."

Sameen raised an eyebrow and rested her chin on her knees. "A game?"

"Yeah," Root said, pushing herself up, "for every right answer…you give me a kiss."

"What if I get a right answer?"

Root rolled her eyes. "You give me a kiss. I said that!"

Sameen bumped their shoulders together, scoffing. "This is a trick. What do I get out of it?"

"You get to kiss me." Throwing her arms around Sameen's shoulders, Root pressed a kiss to her cheek. "That should be reward enough."

Grumbling, Sameen released her legs and wrapped them around Root's waist. Tangled together, they lost their balance and fell backwards into the grass. Root laughed and tried to push her hair out of her face, but Sameen kept messing it up. They wrestled together on the ground, Root trying to get the upper hand and failing.

She kept her eyes on Sameen's face as they played, her eyes tearing up with laughter. Sameen's loose hair made it almost impossible to see anything at all, but Root kept catching glimpse of the orange sunset's light on Sameen's tanned skin. She felt lighter than she had in months. Sameen's teeth were bared in a growl, her fingers painfully tangling in Root's hair.

"Mercy!" Root barked between laughs. She stopped struggling and just flopped to the ground. Sameen crashed down on top of her. "I give up."

Pushing herself to her knees, Sameen flipped her head back, her hair flying through the air and out of her face. Gently, Root rested her hands on Sameen's thighs, feeling her firm legs. Above her, Sameen looked like a goddess set against the sunset.

Sameen crossed her arms and stared down, her face mostly in shadow. "Every time you get a right answer, you get a kiss. Every time I get a right answer, you do a sit-up."

Root pouted. "A sit-up? That's not sexy."

Sameen hummed. She leaned down, using a finger to push hair away from Root's ear, and dragged her lips over Root's cheek. "Once you're done doing push-ups, you'll be pretty sweaty. It's my job to lick you clean again."

Sameen's breath was hot against Root's neck, her voice the only thing Root could hear. Her eyes unfocused at the thought of Sameen licking her clean. Root licked her lips, trying to slow her heart rate. Just as she was starting to succeed, Sameen started kissing her neck. Her tongue pressed to Root's pulse point, her jugular artery, and Root started to sweat.

Her phone rang loudly, making them both jump. Sameen scowled and slid to the side, moving off of Root. Disoriented, Root sat up and pulled her phone out of her back pocket. She stared down at the screen.

"It's Claire," she mumbled, confused. "Why is Claire calling me?"

Sameen just shrugged and looked away, scratching her arm. Sliding her thumb across the screen, Root took the call. She put it on speaker phone.

"Hello?"

"It's Claire. Listen, are you guys coming to the bar or what?"

Root frowned. "What? I think you called the wrong person."

"This is Root, right? Is Shaw there?"

Sameen leaned forward, her eyebrows raised. "Yes?"

"Your whole team is at Grand Prize celebrating the victory! I know you babies can't drink, but you can eat!"

Root put her phone on her knee and signed to Sameen. 'Want to go? I'm hungry and it's getting dark.'

Nodding, Sameen picked up Root's phone. "We'll be there soon. Text us the address."

"See ya soon, losers."

The phone beeped as the call ended and Root chuckled. "Wow, I haven't talked to her in months."

"She's so weird," Sameen muttered as she climbed to her feet. "What is she even doing in Houston?"

"Who knows?"

Root reached up and let Sameen pull her to her feet. She snuck a quick kiss and headed for the parking lot. They'd had some really good food since they got to Houston. She did miss Mrs. Reese's cooking a little bit, but Bishop couldn't really compete. Root would be sad to go back.

Sameen groaned loudly next to her. "I'm going to eat a huge fucking steak."

"When do you eat anything else?" Root joked. "You're a steak monster."

"Is that a monster who eats a lot of steak?" Sameen asked. "Or a monster that's made of steak? I'm fine with the description either way. It's true."

Root just shook her head and jumped behind Sameen. She wrapped her arms around Sameen's shoulders from behind, tip-toeing awkwardly so she didn't step on Sameen's heels.

"Come on, My Steak Monster, let's get you some steak."

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Root looked around at the crowds, grinning as the noise overwhelmed her ear. It was her first Pride and she couldn't stop staring at everything going on. They'd gone to Dallas to stay with the Reese-Carter-Morgans and go to the parade. Beside her, Sameen was eating a large chili-cheese dog, her alien sunglasses covering her eyes.

The past couple of weeks had been amazing. They'd gotten ice cream every night since their fight, and walked around the city with Bear. Sameen had built a small, wooden organizer for Root's computer pieces and Root had drawn a star chart for her – the sky above Bishop on the day they became friends.

A couple of nights ago, they'd stayed up until 2:00, just talking and eating pizza. It felt like old times and if they'd been close enough, they probably would have gone to the hill and named constellations. Root ran her eyes over Sameen's strong arms and smiled. Maybe Sameen would pick her up later.

Sameen noticed Root watching her and turned her head.

"What?" she asked, her mouth full. "Is there something on my face?"

Root just bent down and kissed her cheek, laughing as Sameen jerked away. Sameen glared at her as they stopped in front of a bus stop. Joss had just texted her and said they were only a couple blocks away. Sameen shoved the last of the hot dog in her mouth, dropping down onto the bench.

"It's too hot for this," Sameen complained, wiping her forehead. "Whose idea was it to have a parade in Texas in the middle of July?"

"Almost all Pride parades are in June or July," Root answered. She stood on her tip-toes to look over the crowd as a float full of men in leather rolled by. "I should have worn my leather jacket."

She felt a tug at her back pocket and Root looked down at Sameen. When they were looking at the list of events for the weekend, and trying to coordinate with John and the girls, Root had suggested getting matching shirts. Sameen had teased her for it, but when they were getting ready to drive to Dallas, Sameen pulled out the shirts they were wearing now. Root's was the lesbian flag and said "The Brains" and Sameen's was the bi flag and said "The Brawns."

"What are you doing?" Root asked, poking Sameen's hand.

Sameen shrugged, squinting up against the sun. "Just holding on. You look like you're about to leap over the barricade and join the parade."

Root smiled sheepishly. "I'm just excited."

"That's fine," Sameen chuckled. "Just don't disappear."

Turning fully, Root sat on Sameen's lap, straddling her thighs. The metal bus stop bench dug into her knees, but she ignored it and wrapped her arms around Sameen's shoulders.

"Root!" Sameen hissed, half-heartedly trying to push Root away. "We're in public!"

Root pressed a kiss to Sameen's lips, smiling when she felt warm hands settle on her hips. Pulling away, she grinned. "Everyone here is gay, Sameen. Everyone is here to show off their partners and kiss strangers."

Sameen leaned back against the bus stop structure, her hands on Root's bare thighs. "Where the hell is John? I thought they were close."

"Root!" Zoe's voice called. "Get off her! What if your girlfriend sees?"

Sliding off Sameen's lap, Root laughed. She jogged over to the group and threw her arms around Zoe.

"Hello! I missed you!" Root pulled away and hugged Joss. "You guys look good."

"'I'm not gay…'" Sameen said behind her. Root turned around to see her pulling John's shirt taut to read it. "…'But my girlfriends are.' That's funny. Did you girlfriends make you wear that?"

John punched Sameen in the arm. "Did your girlfriend make you wear yours?"

Sameen growled and jumped up, wrapping her arms around John's head and trapping him in a headlock. They started to fight and Root just turned back to the girls.

"How has your summer been?" Root asked, the sun hot on her dark hair. "I'm sorry we didn't visit before now."

"I know you guys have been working through some things," Joss shrugged. "We're doing well! We've had to work on somethings of our own this summer. You learn a lot when there are no distractions."

Root nodded and crossed her arms. "Yeah."

They turned to look at John and Sameen. They were on the ground, Sameen's legs wrapped around John's chest holding him in place. He struggled against her headlock, his face turning red. Root rolled her eyes and turned back to the girls.

"How's your apartment?" she asked. "Thanks for letting us crash tonight."

Joss took Zoe's hand in her own, smiling. "It's not a problem! We miss you girls and I know John does, too."

"It's a nice apartment!" Zoe grinned. "I convinced my dad it was necessary for college, so he's paying for it."

Root laughed. "That's so amazing! I bet I can do the same to Harold next year."

"Oh, so easily," Joss said, nodding. Her eyes slid to John and Sameen were still wrestling on the sidewalk. "John has definitely missed Shaw."

Root looked at them and sighed.

"Stop that. You were just complaining about how hot you were!"

Sameen tightened her grip. "Admit defeat!"

"I surrender!" John choked out. "Get off!"

Releasing her grip, Sameen rolled to her feet. She dusted herself off and grinned at Root.

"This is fun! What next?"

They wandered further down the sidewalk, looking at all the people around them. Root had never seen so many rainbows in her life and she wondered if there were places that were this gay all the time. They'd looked up other Prides, to see how they should dress, and almost every major city had one. One day, Root and Sameen would go to every of them.

Zoe and Joss stopped at a booth selling penis-shaped things and Root and Sameen kept walking. Hooking her elbow through Sameen's arm, Root dragged her over to the barricade to watch the parade. This close to the crowd and the floats, Root couldn't hear anything, so she turned to Sameen and tapped her on the shoulder.

Sameen leaned on the metal fence keeping the crowd out of the streets and turned to look at her. Her mouth moved, but Root couldn't hear what she was saying.

'I can't hear at all,' Root signed. 'What did you say?'

Sliding her arms off the railing, Sameen smiled. 'I said don't jump over the barricade.'

'I won't!' Root grinned. A large float drifted by, several rainbow balloon arches stretched over the top. 'This is fun! It's so gay!'

'We should do this every summer,' Sameen signed. She reached out and took Root's hand in her own.

Root watched Sameen watch the parade, her eyes never leaving Sameen's face. Sameen looked so grown up. Her hair had darkened over the years, now almost jet black instead of just dark brown. Root dropped her eyes to Sameen's arms. There was a small scar on Sameen's arms and Root realized she didn't know where it came from.

Sameen's eyes widened and she pointed into the parade with her free hand. Root followed her finger and laughed. Coming towards them was a group of women on motorcycles that Root instantly recognized. She shook Sameen's shoulder to get her attention.

'Dykes on Bikes!' she signed excitedly. 'They're so cool!'

Sameen grinned at her and turned to watch, leaning against the railing again. The butch women rode towards them, the rumble of their motorcycles adding to the cacophony. Root's head started to hurt, but she tried to ignore it.

Everything was perfect today. She was with Sameen, who loved her, and her friends, who understood her. Root was happy and looking forward to the future. She watched the motorcycles ride by and grinned. Maybe she could buy a motorcycle when she turned eighteen.

Sameen would probably love riding on a motorcycle. The image of Sameen, hair pulled back and wearing leather pants, formed in Root's mind and her eyes glazed over. She'd sit behind her and wrap her arms around Sameen's waist, pushing herself as close as possible. Sameen's muscular back would push against her chest, hot in the Texas sun.

Someone shook Root's shoulder, snapping her out of her daze. Sameen was staring at her, looking concerned.

'Are you ok?' Sameen asked her.

Root nodded and wiped her forehead. 'Yeah, sorry. I was thinking about you on a motorcycle.'

Smirking, Sameen bumped their shoulders together. 'I could get one. Do you think I would look cool?'

'You'd look hot as hell,' Root laughed.

She noticed Zoe waving at them and pulled Sameen out of the crowd. Zoe was holding a couple of penis-shaped lollipops and grinned at them as they walked up. She held a purple one out to Sameen.

"Here you go," Zoe said, waiting for Sameen to take it. When she didn't, Zoe pouted. "Come on, you still like penises, right?"

Sameen frowned, but took the lollipop. "I've never…touched one before."

Root's heart fluttered and she realized she hadn't known that. It was nice to know that Tomas hadn't gotten his dirty, grimy, man hands all over Sameen, but she couldn't help feeling surprised. Sameen was hers and hers alone and she'd never gotten bored.

Sameen glanced at Root and put the lollipop in her mouth. "Don't read into this," she grumbled, her words slurred by the candy. "I'm sure you're thinking unsanitary things."

"Gross," Root laughed, wrinkling her nose. "I'm not thinking about putting that in other places, I promise."

Joss leaned into Root's good ear. "You know, there are some…interesting shops here in Dallas. Zoe and I could take you. Help you pick some things out."

Root looked at her, eyes wide. "Sex stuff?"

"Yes, Root," Joss rolled her eyes, "sex stuff."

John groaned loudly, his lollipop already halfway gone. "Can we not talk about sex and my sister in the same sentence? Please?"

Sameen kicked him in the shin. "I had to listen to both you and your girlfriends talk about sex for so long. You can deal with this, Idiot."

"Why are you so mean?" John grumbled, stepping away from her. "You need to let off some steam."

Root stepped to Sameen, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and pressing her chest against her arm. She waited until Sameen pulled the lollipop out of her mouth before ducking down and licking it. Beside her, Sameen gasped.

Root raised her head again, meeting John's eyes as she carefully wiped her lips with her finger.

"Don't worry, John. She's been letting off steam."

John just winced and shook his head. He put his lollipop back in his mouth and helplessly turned to Zoe and Joss for help.

Zoe patted his arm, looking around the parade. Root smiled down at Sameen and stuck her tongue out.

"Is it purple?"

Sameen rolled her eyes. "You licked it once. Your tongue is normal."

"Oh!" Zoe gasped, waving her arm above her head. She turned to grin at the group. "I just saw someone I know! He's really cool. Come on!"

Zoe led them into the crowd and Root reached down to take Sameen's hand, so they wouldn't get separated. She glanced back at Sameen and laughed at the scowl on her face as she ate her lollipop. The parade was nice, but as she walked through the crowd with her girlfriend, Root thought that this might be what Pride was about – just being happy with the people you love, and Root was really, really happy.

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Root jumped, her fingers brushing the underside of an awning. Dallas was a beautiful city and at night, the streetlights made it look magical. Across the street, some boys yelled at them. Root turned, angry, but saw they were carrying a rainbow flag and happily called back.

"Happy Pride!" One of them called.

Sameen raised the flag tied to her wrist. "Happy Pride!"

Root laughed and hooked her arm through Sameen's. It had been a crazy weekend. Somehow, Root had ended up covered head to toe in glitter and she still wasn't sure what she would say to her office when she went back to her internship on Monday. Sameen had avoided the glitter, but her face was smeared with different colored paint.

Sameen turned around to walk backwards down the sidewalk. "I was thinking-"

"Don't hurt yourself!" Root grinned. They were almost delirious with exhaustion and excitement. "You're so small! A big thought could hurt you!"

"Rude," Sameen muttered. She almost tripped, righting herself at the last minute. "I was thinking that we should get extra buttery popcorn. I know John and the girls are on that health kick, but we're young and already healthy, right? We deserve the most buttery popcorn that exists."

"'Most buttery?' I don't think that's right."

"Oh, fuck off," Sameen growled. She leapt forward and wrapped her arms around Root's waist. "If you loved me, you'd let me eat terrible food."

Root rolled her eyes, pulling her head back. "That's not fair."

"Please?" Sameen pouted, her lower lip jutting out. "I'll owe you one."

"Fine!" Root relented. "We can buy artery-clogging popcorn."

She realized they were in front of the market and pushed Sameen off, reaching for the door. They'd been watching movies at the Reese-Carter-Morgan's apartment and run out of snacks. Root had offered to buy more since they were letting them stay there for the weekend.

A gust of cold air blew Root's hair back as she walked into the store. It was bigger than she expected, but smaller than a normal grocery store. The tiles were a shiny white under the fluorescents. Sameen immediately disappeared to find popcorn and Root wandered into the first aisle, just browsing.

She'd walked into the cereal aisle. Root looked over the brands, stopping in front of the Honey Nut Cheerios. They reminded her of her mother. Well, they reminded her of how she used to live with her mother. Root had bought Honey Nut Cheerios every other week to hide under her bed and eat before she left for school.

She tried to think of the last time she'd had them and she couldn't remember. Before she could decide if that made her happy or sad, someone bumped into her and her chest slammed into the shelves.

"I'm so sorry," a familiar voice said behind her. "Are you alright?"

Root nodded as she turned around. Looking at the man who had bumped into her, Root's stomach clenched painfully. Her father had gone gray since she last saw him almost four years ago. He was clean-shaven and well-dressed, his navy suit fitting him well. Root crossed her arms across her stomach.

Her father frowned. "Sam?" he asked, sounding unsure. "Is that you?"

Root winced at her name; no one called her that anymore. "Hi, dad."

"Wow," he ran a hand over his hair, his wedding ring glinting in the light. "You look so grown up."

"It's been a few years," she muttered. Standing with her father in a grocery store made her feel like a child again and she hated it. "How are you?"

He shrugged. "Good. And you? Your mother?"

"Mom's in jail," Root answered. She dropped her arms, determined not to look weak. "I'm good."

"Jail?" He looked surprised. "How- Why- No one told me. Where are you living now? Are you going to college in Dallas?"

Root laughed humorlessly and rubbed her forehead. Her father didn't even know what grade she was in. Root shouldn't be surprised; he'd never really been attentive.

"I'm going into my senior year of high school, so no, I'm not going to college here. I still live in Bishop. Harold and Grace adopted me."

"Harold Finch?" Her father asked. He scoffed. "The teacher? That's…Why didn't anyone tell me about your mother? Why is she in jail?"

"Well, we have no legal attachment, so I don't think anyone is required to tell you anything." Root shifted her weight, her boot squeaking on the waxed tile. "She, uh, I went away last summer and she trashed the house. When I came back, she tired to kill me. I'm deaf in my right ear now."

Her father stared at her from across the aisle, his mouth open. Looking him over, Root was underwhelmed. As a child, he seemed so amazing. He taught her how to code and fostered her love of space. Seeing him now, he just looked like a man. Root sighed.

"It's not a big deal. I'm pretty much over it. We don't have to reconnect or anything. I'm just here to buy some snacks."

His mouth clicked shut. "You came all the way to Dallas for snacks?"

"No," Root said slowly, her eyebrows raised. How was this man her father? "I'm here for Pride. I'm staying with some friends and we ran out of snacks."

"Pride," he repeated. He looked her over and took in the glitter. His mouth moved as he read her shirt. "If you're 'the brains', is someone else 'the brawn?' Do you have a, a girlfriend?"

Root thought about how he might not be ok with Sameen. He might dislike her like her mother did. Sameen wasn't white and she was dating their daughter. Should Root lie?

"Babe, I found this super buttery popcorn for 79 cents, so I'm going to get it." Sameen came around a corner and headed towards them, still looking at the box of popcorn. "They also had this healthy shit on sale, though, so I figured we'd get both for…Oh."

Sameen looked between Root and her father and Root wondered if she could see a resemblance. Sameen's face dropped into its neutral mask. Quickly closing the remaining distance, Sameen stopped next to her.

"Are you ok?" Sameen asked softly. Her hands clenched into fists around the boxes. "You want me to get rid of him?"

Root shook her head, smiling. "It's ok. We were almost done."

Her father looked between the two of them and smiled. "I'm glad you have someone, Sam. I'm sorry for the way things turned out."

"'The way things turned out?' You mean, your decisions?" Root glared at him. The hum of the fluorescents finally registered in her ear. She held a hand up. "I don't want to fight with you. I'm tired of fighting all the time."

Sameen looked at her, face impassive. After a moment, her father nodded.

"Ok. Well, I hope that you're happy and you have a good life."

"Yeah," Root nodded. Her stomach clenched again. "You, too."

Her father looked at her again before walking away. He disappeared around the corner and Root let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She smiled at Sameen, laughing dryly.

"What are the odds?"

Sameen shrugged. "Pretty low. Dallas isn't a small city. Maybe it's fate?"

"Fate?" Root shook her head. "I didn't think you believed in fate."

"I don't," Sameen confirmed. "I just assumed that you do."

Root cupped Sameen's face in her hands, looking into her eyes. "I believe in you, Sameen Shaw. Also, aliens."

"Also, aliens," Sameen repeated, pushing herself up onto her toes. She kissed Root softly. "I'm basically an alien."

"You are." Root kissed her again. "My alien."

"Enough," Sameen snorted, stepping away. "Let's buy this and get back to the apartment. They're going to start the Bruce Lee marathon without us."

Root followed her as she started to the checkout counter. "You should punch people more. I miss that."

Sameen laughed and dropped the boxes onto the counter. "Your dad can't be too far. Want me to pick a fight?"

"No…" Root sighed and leaned against the counter next to Sameen. She scratched her nose. "Let's move somewhere remote after college. Like…New Mexico. I'll work for the Very Large Array and you can work as a cool surgeon."

The change was loud on the counter as Sameen paid. She pushed her hair over her shoulder. "Okay. They have good food out there."

Root grinned. She wasn't sure if Sameen was joking or not, but it didn't matter. They'd still be together when Sameen was done with Med School and they could decide then. It was nice to talk about the future. Even though her father reminded Root of the past, he also reminded her that there was more to life than Bishop and Texas. There was so much out there.

Maybe Root would just disappear like her father did. She could just leave Bishop and go somewhere else. Sameen could drive them clear across the country. They could sell RBG and take a bus or a plane. One day, Root thought to herself. They could do a roadtrip every year for the rest of their lives if they wanted to.

"Ready?" Sameen asked her, a plastic bag held loosely in her hand.

Root nodded and smiled. "I love you."

Sameen rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I love you, too. Come on, I'm starving."

Laughing, Root followed her out the door and into the warm, night air.