Disclaimer: I don't own anything!!!

A/N: I'm terribly, terribly sorry for such a long delay between chapters. My semester is almost over, and pretty soon I will have a lot of time off, so I'll be able work on this fic. I hope you understand! Now, here's the long awaited Chapter 42--Enjoy! It's long!

It was raining as Lizzy stared out the window of the taxi that had been carrying herself and her parents through the dark streets of New York City.

It had been raining when they had left Liverpool, too.

Martha Feeny had been unable to follow them to the airport, but she had stood outside her home under an umbrella to say goodbye before they departed. She'd kissed Lizzy's cheeks, then held her granddaughter close while the eighteen-year-old tried to remember the scent of her grandmother's perfume. She memorized every line on the old woman's face; every smile she'd been given by her had been carefully locked away in Lizzy's memory for safe keeping.

"Don't be a stranger, dear," Martha had said. "You're always welcome back."

And Lizzy knew that she would be back eventually. Liverpool was like a third home, and the proof of that was in her blood. She would never be a stranger there. After all, she half-belonged to the country, in her opinion.

The halls of their apartment building were dark as well, and filled with a deafening silence while Lucy, Jude, and Lizzy carried their luggage up to their apartment. Walking into their warm, dry, home, they weren't met with the loud group of their family members, which they had expected. It was very early in the morning, and they figured no one would have the energy to stay awake and greet them. However, their arrival didn't go totally unnoticed--there was a banner bearing the words 'Welcome Home' hung across the kitchen doorway, and a couple of messages were left on their answering machine. Finding their apartment empty and peacefully quiet was somewhat of a relief though, as much as they loved the family. Jude, Lucy, and Lizzy were extremely tired from their long trip, and wanted nothing more to retire to bed, not having to worry about anything until later that morning.

Well, it just so happened that the three of them skipped over morning and woke up sometime in the early afternoon instead. Luckily, the family held off for awhile, probably figuring that they would sleep in after getting in so early. Lucy took Lizzy to get her pictures developed to show to her aunts, uncles, and cousins, and about an hour or so after they returned home, everyone started showing up.

"Lizzy," Lucy called down the hall, in the direction of her daughter's bedroom, "Aunt Val and Uncle Max and the kids are here."

"Okay," Lizzy replied, flipping through said pictures herself, "be there in a minute."

She continued to glance at the photos, taking out the ones she really didn't want, which were namely the ones of her and Brian. There weren't many, but nevertheless, she felt inclined to rip them up and forget about them. Brian wasn't someone she wished to remember, as opposed to Pam and Stu; especially since she had the unfortunate pleasure of finding out what he'd really wanted from her.

Taking the pictures and her sketchbook with her, Lizzy went into the living room, where she found her parents sitting with Valerie, Max, Michelle, and little Max. She greeted each of them with a hug, and plopped into a chair closest to her aunt and uncle in order to show them the various photographs and drawings. While she was pulling the pictures out, Max tugged on the sleeve of her shirt, causing her to look up.

Smirking, he asked, "So, what'd you bring me back, squirt?"

Valerie heard this, and smacked her husband in the arm. "Hon, you're worse than the kids…"

"Well, obviously," Max replied matter-of-factly, "they only inherited half of my brilliance."

Valerie held back a snort. "Is that what you call it, dear?" Max fought the urge to make a rude comment, and took the stack of pictures that Lizzy was holding out to him. Lizzy smiled, realizing how much she'd actually missed the little banter between her Uncle Max and Aunt Valerie. It wasn't fighting--it was childish comments thrown back and forth that obviously showed the two of them flirting with each other, even through their marriage. Hearing how much of a womanizer her uncle was, Lizzy would've never believed that he had settled down. But, Valerie was a perfect match for him. Her sarcasm and sense of humor rivaled his, and it was apparent that she loved Max very much, otherwise she wouldn't be able to tolerate him. Their trust and confidence around each other was strong, especially because they were so comfortable making fun of one another without much of a problem.

These little bouts of teasing were entertaining for Lizzy to watch, too, whenever they came up.

Lizzy spent the next few hours with her family as they all arrived, passing around the pictures and sketches, telling stories, and handing out the little knickknacks they had brought back from Liverpool. The little gifts had been picked out by Lizzy, and were mostly for the kids, whereas Jude and Lucy chose something else for each adult couple. Everyone began leaving just shy of dinnertime, letting the three of them relax some more. They were still plenty tired, but it was nice to visit with everyone after being away for two weeks.

"Oh, Lizzy," Jude said from the kitchen, where he was attempting to help Lucy with dinner, "The Harrisons called while you were out with yer mum getting the pictures. They said something about you comin' to Florida…"

Lizzy, who had been sitting in the living room, immediately turned around and leaned over the back of the couch to face her parents. She was grinning. "Really?"

"Yeah," Lucy affirmed. "You can call them back now if you want. Dinner won't be ready for a little bit. Tell them you'll be free that weekend--they said they wanted you to come down the weekend two weeks before school starts."

"Awesome!" Lizzy shouted, scrambling up from the couch. She went in her room to use her own phone, because she knew she wouldn't be able to hear with all of the noise coming from the kitchen, as her father continued his efforts to assist in cooking their meal. Sitting on her bed, she picked up the phone and dialed the familiar number of the Harrisons' house. As she waited for them to pick up, she wrapped and unwrapped the phone cord around her finger, a smile still plastered on her face. She couldn't wait to visit Florida, even if it was only for a weekend. She'd get the chance to catch up with the Harrisons, maybe visit the beach, and of course, hang out with Paul--which was clearly the most exciting part of the trip. She'd written to him and talked to him over the phone since graduation, but nothing would compare to seeing him face-to-face again, and spending time with him like they did before she left.

Mrs. Harrison finally answered the phone after a couple of rings. "Lizzy!"

The teenager was slightly confused. "How'd you know it was me?"

"Mother's intuition."

She laughed. "Of course," Lizzy said. "My parents said you called earlier, about spending a weekend in Florida."

"Yes! Are you free? We miss you and we want to hear all about your trip to Liverpool!" Mrs. Harrison responded. Lizzy could tell that she was beaming on the other end.

"I'm free. I can't wait…"

"Oh, me either. Don't worry about anything, Lizzy, Charlie and I are taking care of the expenses, okay? I'm so happy you can come!" It was interesting to hear Mrs. Harrison in such an eager state, yet it was comforting to know that she still had a connection with her former adoptive parents and that she could talk to Mrs. Harrison so easily. "And, you're probably dying to see Paul, right?"

"Yeah, I'm going to call him soon to tell him I'm coming."

"Great! Mr. Harrison's not here right now to talk to you, but we'll see you in a few weeks…I'll let you go, I bet you're still tired from your trip. I love you, Lizzy!"

"Love you, too. Tell Mr. Harrison I said hi."

"I will. Bye!"

"Bye."

Lizzy hung up, shaking her head. It was still a little strange to get used to the chipper mood that Mrs. Harrison was in when they talked, but she was grateful to have patched up their once tense relationship. The eighteen-year-old stood and poked her head out into the hallway.

"Mom, is it all right if I call Paul?"

"That's fine--we're having dinner troubles anyway…we might have to order out."

"Luce, I said I was sorry!" Lizzy heard Jude shout. She rolled her eyes, wondering why her mother had actually let her father help with the cooking. He tried baking cookies one time before, and that ended in disaster, so why would this be any different? Lizzy figured her mother would no longer let him anywhere near the kitchen after this fiasco--and she didn't even know what they were trying to make in the first place. She could now smell burnt food of some sort, though, which was never a good sign…

The teenager retreated to her bedroom again, plopping unceremoniously onto the bed, anxious to talk to her best friend. She was ecstatic to tell him that she was visiting for a weekend fairly soon, so they could make plans beforehand. What she really wanted to talk about, though, was how much she missed him. And not only him, but truthfully, being with him in a relationship. For the entire plane ride back to New York, Lizzy had thought over her brief…thing (it wasn't so much of a relationship, but there were some feelings there until he turned out to be a jerk) with Brian, and it made her realize that she missed the two of them as a couple, not just best friends.

Every time she had kissed Brian, there was always some apprehension. Now, Lizzy knew why. She had been hesitant toward Brian's actions that whole time they were sort of together because deep down, she still felt something for Paul. And she hadn't been able to admit that to herself until she actually thought it through during the plane ride.

She was willing to have that long-distance relationship with Paul, she suddenly decided. She was definitely and wholeheartedly willing to make it work if it meant that she and Paul could have what they had had before.

Why does distance make us wise? She thought.

She loved him, and it took going across the Pond and almost being taken advantage of by another guy to comprehend that Paul was the only person on this planet that she wanted to be with. They were completely perfect for each other, and always had been, no matter the distance. She didn't want to be friends, she wanted to be more. It had worked so well, and she wanted that back.

Would Paul be willing to do that? From the sound of things in his letters, it seemed like he missed her just as much. Could they pick things up from where they left off when she visited Florida in a couple of weeks?

God, she hoped so.

Her hand trembling with impatience, she dialed the number of Paul's house and waited for him to pick up.

Clarabella sat on Paul's couch, flipping absentmindedly through the channels on the TV in a desperate search for something to watch. She knew the search would be unsuccessful, since this was the sole reason why her boyfriend had left to rent them a movie. There wasn't a blessed thing on. Hopefully, Paul would come back with a good movie; maybe he would compromise on a chick flick, just for her. She couldn't wait to make a large bowl of popcorn and curl up on the couch with him. They'd originally planned to go to the park and spend the day outside, but the plan backfired when it started raining two hours ago. It hadn't stopped since, so they had to come up with a new agenda. Personally, Clara preferred this--she was never an outdoorsy sort of person, anyway.

The blond settled on some crappy made-for-TV movie, not exactly paying attention, since it was almost halfway over. That was when the phone suddenly rang on the beside her, making the young girl jump. She glared indignantly at it, letting it ring. She was unsure whether or not to pick it up. She figured it wasn't her place to go answering other people's phones, and chose to ignore it. Then, the answering machine clicked on.

"Hey, Paul," A female's voice began, piquing Clara's attention, "It's Lizzy."

Lizzy? The name sounded familiar to her…wasn't that Paul's supposed "friend"? Clara was skeptical about the true nature of their relationship to this day, and this message on Paul's answering machine made her suspicions about this girl increase.

"Just wanted to let you know I'm home…When you get this, call me back…I really think we should talk--"

Clara cut off the message, grabbing the phone. She was curious about this girl. She figured it wouldn't hurt, if she played dumb and just took a message from her. Paul could call her back once their movie was over.

"Hello?"

"Uh…hi? Is Paul there?"

"No, he's not. Who is this?"

"Lizzy…"

"Oh…right, you're Paul's friend."

"Umm, yeah," Lizzy confirmed. Clara noted how confused this girl sounded, and she also detected a little bit of disappointment in her tone of voice. This made Clara question their relationship further. "Can you…uh, tell Paul I called?"

"Sure thing," Clara said pleasantly. "He ran to the store to get us a movie, so he should be back soon."

"Thanks." Lizzy answered quietly.

"No problem," The blond told her, smiling. "Bye."

Clara hung up the phone before she could hear Lizzy mutter a goodbye in response. She smirked, knowing full well that that girl was jealous. Best friends my ass, she thought. Either they had been together at one point, or this chick was very territorial and picky about who her best friend dated. Clara hoped it was the latter; she didn't feel like dealing with a jealous ex-girlfriend. Then again, having a defensive and overprotective female best friend on her hands wasn't any good, either.

Paul waltzed into the apartment about ten minutes later, carrying their movie. She smiled at him, deciding she would let it go--she wouldn't let that chick ruin her relationship with Paul. She hoped that whatever was in their past together would stay in the past.

She grinned at her boyfriend, patting the space beside her on the couch, inviting him to sit. "Hey, babe," she greeted, "Glad you're back."

Lizzy set the phone in its receiver, moving slowly. She didn't quite know what to make of that particular call. Who the hell was that…that girl answering Paul's house phone? She sounded young, maybe even her own age. It couldn't have been a family member, like a cousin or something, because Lizzy had met Paul's entire family. There weren't many relatives, and any female cousin he did have, they were way too young to be answering his phone. Lizzy never picked up Paul's house phone, and she had been his best friend since they were in preschool. She practically lived there.

Who was this girl?

The teenager felt jealousy bubbling up inside of her, and she knew she shouldn't feel that way. She just couldn't help it.

She didn't truly know if Paul was dating that girl or not. Even if he was, she shouldn't be envious, right? Paul was single as soon as she had stepped onto that plane, so he was allowed to date other girls, like she was allowed to see Brian. They'd parted as friends, like they had agreed upon.

But Lizzy couldn't fight off the overwhelming disappointment she felt, too.

That was the problem, really. She'd expected Paul to be single, so that she could tell him how she was coming to Florida for a weekend and that she wanted to get back together. She was going to tell him how wrong she was--that they could make their long-distance relationship work, because she missed being with him.

Because she missed being his.

If Paul was dating this girl, it looked like that wasn't going to happen. He'd moved on, and no matter how many times Lizzy tried to tell herself that that was okay, it really wasn't. It hurt, a lot. Because now that she wanted him back…she understood that she wanted something she could no longer have.

And that just wasn't fucking fair.

When the phone rang about twenty minutes later, Lizzy didn't want to answer it. She knew who it was, and she didn't want to talk to him, didn't want him to hear the upset tone in her voice.

Nevertheless, her mother shouted to her, "Paul's on the phone, Lizzy!"

She couldn't turn it down then. "Okay!" she replied, reluctantly seizing the phone, "I got it!" With a sigh, she put the phone up to her ear and tried to hide the sadness she was currently feeling. "Hey, Paul."

"Hey, Miss Lizzy…it's good to hear from you. How was Liverpool?"

"Fabulous, of course," she stated. "But I'll get to tell you all about it when I visit Florida in a couple of weeks."

There was a pause before the news sunk in. "Really? No way…"

"Yes, way," Lizzy mocked. "I'm coming down there to stay with the Harrisons for a weekend."

"Wow…Lizzy, that's…great," Paul said, shocked. "It'll be nice to finally see you."

"Yeah."

The enthusiasm faded from Lizzy voice at her last response, and an awkward silence filled either end of the phone. She could tell there was reluctance in Paul's voice, like he wasn't allowing himself to become genuinely excited. That hurt, too, because Lizzy's knew why. He knew things would be awkward when she came to Florida…because she would be there.

Why were things so uncomfortable between them? Lizzy never remembered all of this awkwardness in their phone conversations before…it was disconcerting to find that she couldn't talk easily with her best friend.

Then, it dawned on her. She was probably still at his house.

Lizzy was curious about her, and she wanted to know the truth. She wasn't afraid to ask straight out, so she did. "Paul…who was that girl who answered the phone earlier?"

There was another pause. Shit, Lizzy thought, closing her eyes and dreading the answer now, this can't be good. Not at all.

"Her name's Clarabella," he declared carefully, "She's my, uh, girlfriend."

Lizzy's heart sank. She knew it was true, but hearing it right from Paul's mouth shoved the knife deeper into her heart.

She tried to cover it up--she really and truly tried. But it didn't seem to be working, and she figured Paul could tell she was attempting to act nonchalant about it.

"Oh…she seems…nice."

Nice wasn't her first choice in adjectives to describe this girl, but…it wasn't as if she could say what she wanted to aloud.

"She is."

"I guess I'll get to meet her when I come to Florida, huh?"

Paul didn't exactly say much in reply to that, but he made an effort to laugh it off.

"Well, I'll see you in a couple weeks…I miss you. Goodbye, Paulie."

"Bye, Miss Lizzy."

Heaving another sigh, Lizzy placed the phone in its receiver a little more aggressively than she intended to, and sat back on her bed, hugging a pillow to her chest. Usually, after talking to Paul, she felt happy. This time, she felt like shit. She stared out the window, where the sun was beginning to set. It seemed like that couldn't even lift her spirits.

"You don't realize how much I need you

Love you all the time and never leave you

Please come on back to me

I'm lonely as can be

I need you

Said you had a thing or two to tell me

How was I to know you would upset me

I didn't realize

As I looked in you eyes

You told me…"

Lizzy clutched the pillow tighter to her, struggling to keep the tears in. She could feel the burning in her eyes and at the back of her throat, but she didn't want to give into it.

"…Oh, yes you told me

You don't want my lovin' anymore

That's when it hurt me

And feeling like this

I just can't go on anymore

Please remember how I feel about you

I could never really live without you

So come on back and see

Just what you mean to me

I need you."

She couldn't take it anymore. She let the tears come, flowing down her cheeks and onto her arms that were wrapped around the pillow. She didn't make any effort to wipe them away or stop herself. Her heart was broken, and all she really wanted to do was to let her emotions out.

"Oh, yes you told me

You don't want my lovin' anymore

That's when it hurt me

And feeling like this

I just can't go on anymore

Please remember how I feel about you

I could never really live without you

So come on back and see

Just what you mean to me

I need you

I need you

I need you…"

A/N: I felt horrible writing that, but you knew it was going to happen sooner or later, right?

I'm dedicating this chapter to George Harrison, since today is the anniversary of his death. He was truly a great musician, and I know he'll always be missed…If you noticed, I even used a song he wrote at the end of the chapter…

Also, here's a bit of trivia that's actually not Beatles related: there's a line from RENT in this chapter. Points go to whoever can catch it--it should be pretty obvious if you're a RENT fan. I also added it in there because it fit well with Lizzy's situation. If you know RENT, you'll get the similarities…

Please review! It's always appreciated!