Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize from Across the Universe or the Beatles!

A/N: Please blame stupid writer's block and apparent lack of inspiration for my absence, plus my chaotic life. I'm sorry, guys! I'm trying, I really am; I know how much you enjoy this fic! I'm also aware that this chapter is short, but hopefully the next chapter will be much longer. I can't say for sure how many chapters are left until the end, but I think there may be just one or two more. We are nearing the conclusion…

P.S. – Tomorrow is 9/9/09! Go out and buy Beatles Rock Band and the re-mastered collection of Beatles CDs!!! I have never been so excited for a game in my entire life; I cannot wait to play! I'm done spazzing, I swear. The title of this update doesn't have really anything to do with what it's about, it's just an obvious reference to tomorrow's date.

Please read and review! It's always appreciated!

Confusion clouded both Lizzy's and Paul's minds after they went their separate ways again. Not a word was spoken between them in regards to the dance, because neither one was especially eager to bring it up. And when one of them didn't mention it, the other didn't want to be the one to have to do it. In other words, they were at a sort of stalemate.

Lizzy figured asking Paul about their past relationship while he was already with Clara had been a terrible mistake, especially when she'd been right there. Maybe it hadn't been the best time to bring it up after all. Maybe some things were left unsaid—except the apology she owed him, which continued to weigh her down. Maybe…just maybe, it was time to move on.

She could apologize to Paul for her selfishness sometime in the future once she felt the time was right to finally have that discussion. For now, she had to finally come to terms with and accept the fact that she forever had Paul's friendship. Nothing would ever change that. He no longer held her heart; therefore, she couldn't go on holding onto his. They only shared the mutual love of two best friends…and that would be enough for her. She could slowly, but surely, learn to live with that, even if a tiny part of her continued to feel a little more. Like they said, one never truly forgot their first love.

Lizzy had finally come to this realization while she was getting her belongings ready for her first semester of college. She'd been quite upset for some time after returning to New York. She hadn't even picked up her sketchbook for several days. But now, going through her new art supplies and notebooks for her classes, she had made up her mind. College was going to be a fresh chapter in her life. She would be experiencing brand new things and relationships, so why not start everything off with a clean slate? Paul would always be there as her closest friend, but it was time to let go of the past and open up to new relationships. Or, if she chose to, avoid romantic relationships for awhile until she got the hang of college. She could never be sure what would happen, but she knew she had to keep living her life. Dwelling on this would hinder that. Lizzy was steadily preparing herself for whatever the future had in store for her, and she couldn't be more excited. For the first time in awhile, she felt good about all of this—and happy.

The same couldn't be said for Paul. In actuality, as he sat at his kitchen table glancing over the list of his college courses, he was quite miserable. Clara was coming over in about a half hour so they could do some last minute supply shopping together. The two of them were going to attend the local community college, and had managed to get into two of the same classes. Clara was majoring in Nursing, while Paul had declared himself "undecided" until further notice.

However, the word "undecided" didn't just describe his major at the moment. Ever since Lizzy left, she had been on his mind a lot. More than she was typically, which was weird, considering he liked Clara very much. Their relationship was stable, and he could honestly say that he and Clara were genuinely happy. He enjoyed spending time with her and getting to know everything he could about her as their connection grew.

But lately, Lizzy had been invading his thoughts. Her last question had kept him up, his mind racing whenever it wasn't preoccupied with something else. If everything around him was silent, or if he was alone, he'd always find himself going back to that damned question and what his mind had shouted at him immediately after she'd asked it.

"Do you ever think about us…together…again?"

'All the time.' It was the truth. He'd occasionally come across a picture of himself and Lizzy together, or he'd have a random memory smack him the face out of nowhere, and he thought about it. About them; about their romantic relationship and how strong it had been before Lizzy had to move to the city. Maybe it wasn't anything. Maybe he was simply reminiscing. Whatever it was, it kept bothering him to no end. He always felt guilty for pondering these types of things when he knew he had Clara and cared about her greatly. But, they always seemed to creep into his consciousness. Or, unconsciousness, for that matter. He'd dreamed about Lizzy a few times since they'd separated again. It was wrong, he knew. They had gone back to being best friends. It had hurt, but he'd found Clara…and it felt like everything was okay again. He was aware that this needed to stop before it most likely ruined the relationship he had now. He hadn't told Clara that he and Lizzy had been more than friends at one point, but he figured it wasn't important for her to know. Paul had no real reason for not telling her, and he had no idea why he didn't, he just didn't think it was necessary.

Paul had let go of the feelings he had for Lizzy once he and Clara started dating. Now, after seeing her again for the first time in awhile, he was having his doubts. They were still nagging at him somewhat, causing him to feel completely conflicted. That was never a good position for a guy to be in. Was this normal? He still cared about Lizzy; perhaps he was confusing the friendship kind of love for real love? He couldn't exactly tell.

Walking into the kitchen, Paul's mother slid into the chair opposite her son. She could easily see that Paul was in a funky mood. Being a woman and a mother, she hadn't been blind o the predicament Paul had been wrestling with.

"Paulie," she said quietly, "Remember…they always say you never forget your first love. It's okay to feel confused, but do what you feel is right. It's whatever you want, not what Clara might want or what Lizzy wants. Your best bet is to follow your heart."

Paul sighed heavily. "I wish it was that easy."

His mind wasn't the only part of him that was confused—his heart was, too.

Paul's mother reached across the table and patted his hand reassuringly.

"Give it some time," she advised, "You'll figure it out soon enough. You have school to worry about now."

And she was right, as all mothers usually were. For the time being, Paul had to put this issue on the backburner and focus on his studies; more specifically, on what he intended to do with his life, career-wise. He was still undecided; he hoped at least that would change.

Above her head, the leaves on the trees had turned from bright green to varying shades of red, orange, yellow, and brown. The foliage was a noticeable sign that they were in the thick of the fall season. There was a slight chill in the air, but the sky was still a vibrant blue with patches of white clouds dotting its expanse. Lizzy didn't mind the weather at all; she enjoyed watching the change in seasons.

Walking across her college campus, Lizzy had a heavily loaded backpack full of her essentials needed for her classes. In her right hand, she carried her art portfolio, which wasn't nearly as full of work as it would be at the end of the year. She was trying to get her General Education classes out of the way, so she didn't have many classes for her major right now. Despite the annoyance she felt at having to take such courses, Lizzy was adjusting to college life with ease. She'd already survived nearly two months, and after the first couple weeks, she was able to get around campus without the use of a map. Plus, she had made some friends within her major at orientation, and was making friends in her other classes. She'd fallen into a diverse group of people, but everyone pretty much got along great with each other. Between writing a few papers and other homework, she'd hung out with a bunch of her friends already.

At the moment, Lizzy was heading home after sitting through an afternoon of lectures and a drawing class. She didn't have a car yet, so she usually took the bus half the way, and walked the rest. The routine didn't bother her much, but she hated to think how horrible it would be to walk during the winter, which was rapidly approaching. Hopefully, she would have a car by that time. Pausing to adjust her backpack, Lizzy then zipped up her sweatshirt and continued down the long and winding sidewalk that would lead to one of the exits of the campus.

That's when she heard someone shouting her name.

"Lizzy!" the person yelled, "Wait up!"

Lizzy turned around and laughed when she spotted a familiar face running toward her, nearly tripping over his own feet. He was clad in jeans, a T-shirt promoting a band Lizzy hadn't heard of, and a black leather motorcycle jacket. He was also wearing her hat—well, her hat that her father had given to her—on his head, chunks of his auburn hair poking out beneath it. He reached her, completely out breath and panting to take in air. Given his exterior, one would expect him to be tough guy, but he was actually quite a goof ball and somewhat sensitive.

Still giggling, Lizzy asked, "Are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah," he replied, breathing heavily, "I'm…great."

"What am I going to do with you, Lenny?" she asked, rolling her eyes in a playful manner.

"Hey, I just sprinted my ass all the way across campus for you," Lennon, more commonly known as Lenny, pointed out. He tugged the hat off his head, revealing a mess of short, reddish-brown hair that went well with his hazel eyes. Brushing off some invisible dust, he placed it on top of Lizzy's head, deliberately pulling it down over her eyes. She laughed and swatted his hand away, fixing the hat so it sat properly on her head. "You left it in the lecture hall, genius."

"Well, sorry…" Lizzy countered, matching his cynicism with a smirk.

"You shouldn't forget things that, you know, usually reside on the top of your head," Lenny said matter-of-factly, as he and Lizzy started walking together, "So, the real question here is…what am I going to do with you?"

"Absolutely nothing,"

He raised an eyebrow. "Hmm," he answered with mock-thoughtfulness, "I'm not so sure about that. I will find a way to get back at you. It'll take some evil plotting, but I'm gonna come up with something…just you wait and see. You better watch your back, little girl."

"Oh, I'm so scared, Lenny," Lizzy told him with equally fake enthusiasm.

"You should be," he said. "You never know…" Lennon stopped and let Lizzy keep walking before he ran up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, then tickled her sides. She let out a slightly surprised yelp, followed by a fit of giggles. "See?"

"Okay, all right," Lizzy said, her laughter slowly ceasing as his fingers stopped tickling her, "I get it! You are evil."

"It's all a part of my charm,"

"Is that what you call it?"

Lennon smirked and poked Lizzy in the arm before ending their sarcastic banter for the time being. He tugged on Lizzy's art portfolio.

"Here, let me take that,"

Lizzy handed him the portfolio case. "Thanks."

"No problem," he replied. "So, do you need a ride home? And don't give me that 'It's no big deal, my place is out of your way' shit again. I've been offering to take you to school and drop you off since the beginning of the semester, and you've still refused. I hate to see you take the bus and walk, Liz. You know how many creeps and assholes there are in this city?"

"I'm aware. I just feel bad—"

"Well, don't, because you shouldn't. Let me take you home,"

"Fine,"

"Will you carpool with me? It would make a hell of a lot more sense,"

"If you let me pay for gas,"

Lennon smirked. "You're impossible," he stated. "Typically, when you're in a relationship, things like that are, well, complimentary."

"I know," Lizzy said. "But I would feel better if you at least let me chip in once and awhile."

Lennon shook his head, giving up. There was no point in arguing with her, he realized. "If it makes you happy, then go for it."

"Thank you," Lizzy replied sweetly. They walked the rest of the way to the parking lot where Lennon had parked his car, and once everyone and everything was inside, they took off toward Lizzy's apartment building, weaving through the heavy New York City traffic. As they sat at an impossibly long red light, Lizzy played with the strawberry pendant she always wore and stared out the window. "So, what are you doing for Thanksgiving?"

"Heading over to Jersey," he explained. "We're spending the weekend with family there. You know, the usual dysfunctional family gathering thing."

"Sounds like fun,"

"Oh yeah, it'll be a blast," Lennon chuckled cynically. "How 'bout you? It's your first Thanksgiving with your folks, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Lizzy said, smiling, "Which means I'll be able to experience this dysfunctional family get-together you spoke so fondly of. Plus, a friend of mine is coming in from out of town."

"Ah, a Florida friend?"

"You guessed it," Lizzy confirmed. "I was going to invite you, but since you're going to Jersey, I guess dinner at my place will have to wait. I know how much you love it."

"Hey. It's not your dad I have to worry about," Lenny pointed out, "He likes me, for some odd reason. It's your uncle I have to watch out for."

"That's Uncle Max for you," she grinned, as they pulled in front of the door to the apartment building. Lennon was about to get out and grab her things from the backseat, but Lizzy, stubborn as she was, beat him to it. "Thanks for the ride."

"It's no problem, really,"

Lizzy leaned in to give him a kiss before exiting the car. "Have a good Thanksgiving. Call me before you leave for New Jersey?"

"Of course," Lenny promised. "Have a nice holiday. Enjoy the dysfunctional…fun."

"I will," Lizzy said. "Should be interesting…"

Lizzy didn't even know the half of it.