A Story

1

She was sitting in the Pennsylvania Theatre, swinging her legs under the auditorium chairs. She pushed her glasses up from falling off the bridge of her nose. After being left at the house by her parents and their vacation, she had been forced to find something to occupy her time for a week. Although she was only fifteen, she took the family car to the theatre, carefully avoiding catching the eye of a prudent police officer. Her black dress was a tad bit loose on her, but she loved the way the bright flowers contrasted with the murky black background of the garment.

She had chosen the theatre of all places to go to, simply because it was where she felt the most comfortable. To her surprise though, they were playing the musical Wicked. 'Why didn't I know about this?' She thought. Her black Keds patted against the ground as she swung her legs, each time, the tip of her foot kissed the tile flooring. She leaned back in her chair, waiting for the show to start. It really was a gorgeous theatre. Arched ceilings and tiled floors, and a fabulous performing stage. To her right, the main room, still full of people even though the show was about to start. To her left was an emergency exit and the stairs, leading to the balcony seating above. She watched the people scuttle about like beetles from her seat. Finally, the lights dimmed once, twice, and came back up, acting as the signal for the shows beginning. She sighed inwardly, just wanting to watch the show already. The crowd cascaded in, crashing over the seats and finally settling down into them, the shifting creating steady ripples. The inroductionary music arose from the orchestra pit, and the crowd grew silent. She sat forward slightly in her seat. She loved anything theatre. She had even been in some of her high school plays. All of them, to be exact.

Actually, she loved anything in the arts.

The cast started to pour out onto the stage, and one by one began to sing. The show coasted along smoothly, although she was broken from her daze-like state of mind when one of the cast members began singing. He had this sort of voice that snapped her back into reality and slapped her across the face. She sat up a bit straighter, craning to get a better look.

He was talented, by her standards. He had stage presence and a really remarkable voice. She couldn't take her eyes off him for the entire show, just wanting to drink in his voice and retain it. As the curtains finally closed, she just had to go and meet him, tell him what a fantastic show he put on. She brushed her dress down, pulled her light sweater off the arm of the chair, and pushed her bangs back, letting her nervous habits get the best of her. She stepped out into the crowd of people, and realized that she could barely see. At only five foot two, she didn't stand much of a chance in this crowd.

She rode the crowds current over to the wall, and inched across, trying to stay out of people's way, as well as look for that man. Eventually, she made her way towards the doors that, she was sure, led to the hallway, which would take her to the dressing rooms. She saw that faintly familiar black hair and she smiled triumphantly to herself. She inched forward a bit more and saw him, as he was shrugging his coat over his shoulders, waving goodbye to a couple cast members.

"Bye guys! See you tomorrow!" He called.

She drew her courage to her, creating a cushion, and tentatively walked to him, shifting her sweater on her arm. She realized that he was much taller in person than on the stage. He towered above her at, she estimated, close to six-four. Slightly intimidated, she looked up at him.

"Um, hi.. I'd just like to say that.. You put on a really great show." She said numbly. 'God, you are such an idiot' she said inwardly. 'You sounded practically retarded. You screwed up.'

He smiled back. She was so- different looking. He wasn't used to younger people, seeing as he was one of the youngest in the cast. At twenty-two, he was the second youngest.. However, she was pretty young. And she was- little. She didn't even reach his shoulder. He sized her up, comparing her to the women in his cast. She wore these tortoise brown glasses that were square-ish, that he had to admit he liked. She had this hair color that absolutely had to be natural, but was one of the most unnaturally natural colors he had seen. Sort of a dark-honey-ish color, or color unnamed, with highlights of flax blonde; it was done up in a bun, but he could tell that it was very curly. It shined under the light. They had the same eyes, a forest green, although hers had a hazel ring surrounding the pupils. Another thing that he noticed was that she was pretty pale, the only bits of color coming from her cheeks, rosy from the cold air. Not much of a chest, either. But, something about her just- he couldn't put his finger on it. She was actually cute. There were the categories cute, beautiful, and hot, to him. She didn't fall into 'hot', for obvious reasons. She could fit into 'beautiful', he guessed, but it didn't quite fit. Not traditional enough. But 'cute' was a perfect fit for her. And he liked that.

"Thanks," he said warmly, snapping out of his thought process. She smiled up back at him.

"Yeah, um.. I'm Lee, Lee Jones." She said, extending a hand.

"Adam Lambert." He said back, shaking her hand. Her hand was small, he saw, fitting inside of his.

They dropped hands and looked at each other, smiling awkwardly.

"Well, yeah… I just wanted to say that you sang really well. You were fantastic, really." Said Lee. She shifted her feet.

"Oh! Oh, thanks!" Said Adam, unused to people telling him these sorts of things. "Yeah, so you're into theatre, then?"

He could see her face visibly lighten.

"Yeah, really into it." She said brightly. "I was in our school productions this year and really loved it. I don't know, something about the stage…"

"It's just fantastic." Adam finished.

"Exactly!"

"So, it is just acting or are you into more?"

Lee hesitated. The thing about her singing was that she was more of a closet singer than anything. She usually only sang in the shower or softly over her keyboard when no one was around. The only time that she actually did sing at a volume was when no one was home.

"I-" Was she going to tell him? "No.. No it's just acting." She said.

Adam saw that there was something she wasn't telling him, but he left it. He had only just met this girl.

"That's pretty awesome. Maybe I'll be seeing you somewhere." He said.

Lee laughed lightly. "I hope so. It was nice talking to you." She said, turning to go.

"See ya." He said with a light air to his voice.

"See ya." She answered back.

They waved and turned from each other. She had left him smiling, and he left it on his face as he headed towards his car.

Lee tossed her black sweater on over her dress, and adjusted it over her slight shoulders. She was almost lightheaded, and turned to the water fountain beside the door for a last-minute drink. Two men walked by her, one non-chalantly looked around her to see if she had anyone with her. She didn't. He turned to his friend, exchanging a knowing glance. They had done this before, and this would go over like last time. Simple clockwork.

Adam started the car, and edged it out of the tight space. 'Damn it' He thought to himself. Someone had wedged their truck into one-and-a-quarter parking spaces, one quarter of that being his. He slowly backed out of the tight space, trying to avoid dealing damage to the other car. 'Now wouldn't that be a crying shame.' He thought sarcastically. At last, he was able to make a turn out of the area, and he felt his muscles uncoil in relief. He drove on.

Lee pulled her sweater up again, walking with brisk steps to her car. 'Well.. Not my car.' She thought. It was her dads that she had borrowed. 'The brakes are so touchy.' She thought. She dug into her pocket to find the pair of keys. The two men split up, one going around the side of her car, waiting like a jaguar to be satisfied. The second one walked up lightly behind her, and tapped her shoulder. Lee jumped and spun around, stepping back against the car.

"Oh! S-Sorry, you surprised me." She said nervously. The man raised his hands up in apology.

"Sorry about that, miss." He said. He was of medium height, slightly balding in one spot, Lee noticed.

"Did you need something?" She asked, feeling very anxious.

"Actually-" he grabbed her sweater-clad arm and pulled her to him. "There is something you can do for us, girlie." He said.

Lee's heart sunk into her entrails, she felt cold all over. It was hard to think with a dense cloud of panic over her mind. She cried out and thrashed in his arms.

"Michael!" The man holding her called softly.

Michael came over and silenced her with his hand. He was tall and gangly, with long, thick brown hair.

Lee kicked him as hard as she could between the legs, and elbowed the man holding her as Michael fell to the ground.

"James! Get her!" Michael yelled.

Lee ran blindly away, through other cars and jumped over shrubs between the parking lines.

'Where is everyone?' She thought. She could hear the labored breathing of James right behind her, 'I must have got him in the lung.' She thought. She leaped another shrub group, and heard James land not far behind her. She kept running, hoping for someone to approach their car.

Adam drove around the bend, and through one of the parking lanes, looking for the exit.

'God, they always put it in the most obscure places…' He thought irritably. He looked left for the exit, but only saw rows of half-empty parking spaces. Something hit his car hard, and he jumped in his seat, whirling around to see what could have possibly hit him. He saw- Lee? Lee's hands were on the passenger side of his car-hood, steadying her shaking body. Adam began to open the driver's door when another man ran to Lee and pulled her off the ground and into his arms. Adam, shocked, paused for a moment, and then bolted out the side of his car and into the street.

"Hey!" He yelled after the two. He caught up to James and pulled him back forcefully. "What the hell are you doing?" Adam seethed.

James looked up at him, realizing that this man had at least four inches on him, and dropped Lee, running back in the direction he had come from. Lee hit the ground hard, knocking the breath out of her. She coughed, trying to draw some much-needed breath in. Adam dropped to one knee, picking her up off the ground and sitting her up, trying to get her to breathe normally. She steadied herself, and stood up slowly, leaning on Adam for support.

"Thanks.." She said dazed.

"Rough night?" Asked Adam.

She looked up at him, and laughed.

"I think we should go back inside." He said. She nodded exhaustedly. She climbed into his car without hesitation, and they drove though the lot back, to the theatre. The crowd had simmered down to only a handful of people. They made their way into the theatre, and Adam pulled up two chairs backstage. He disappeared for another moment and brought out a glass of water, handing it to her. She smiled, gratefully accepting it.

"Do you want me to take you home?" Asked Adam softly.

She smiled, shaking her head. "No, I don't think it'll do any good. No one's there anyways." She said frankly.

"What, you mean your parents just left you to do whatever?"

Lee nodded.

His brow creased. "For how long?"

She sipped her water. "For about a week." She stated.

He let out a breath. Lee pulled her sweater off, placing it in her lap. She pulled at the newly formed holes in the arms, regretting wearing it tonight. It was one of her favorite sweaters. "I'm sorry I lied to you." She said.

Adam didn't quite understand. "What do you mean?" He asked.

Lee felt the queasiness settle in, just like she felt when she was onstage. "Well, I'm not just into acting. I actually really like everything in the arts… Singing, playing instruments, drawing, but not dance. Definitely not dance." She said, laughing.

Adam laughed once. "Wow.. Why didn't you tell me?" He asked.

Lee shrugged. "I dunno, I guess, well, I thought that you would be like 'Oh, she's just a kid, she doesn't know what she's talking about' or something like that.." She said sheepishly.

Adam laughed again. "No. No I wouldn't do that." He said smiling. "So, if you really are a singer, then why don't you show me?"

Lee felt her stomach drop out again. "Sh-Show you? Um…"

"Oh come on!" Adam chided. "It'll be fun!"

He took her hand and pulled her towards the theatre. He walked into the house, leaving her up on stage. "Just- do what you do." He said from the house.

Lee twisted her glass of water repeatedly in her hands, eventually setting it down onto the ground.

'The only way you're ever going to get good at performing is on stage is to perform on stage' Lee told herself. She laughed lightly, shaking out her hands. "Ok… Alright. Let's do this." Adam laughed along with her. She took a breath in. She figured that she should probably do a Broadway song, under the circumstances.

She opened her mouth and started singing. Adam sat shocked. Her voice was completely different from what he expected it to be. It was surprisingly mature, and clear. It was so clear. She had a slight smile as she was singing that he simply smiled along with her just because he felt like he wanted to join in. She had big hand motions that molded perfectly with the big stage. Despite her size, she had immense stage presence, and he had a sneaking suspicion that if he really got to know her, she would be a lot louder and more outgoing than she was acting right now. 'This must be her shy side' He thought sarcastically, seeing as she wasn't all that shy at all.

The ending note came out clear as water, and she counted out the seconds to hold it, until she finally let it fall, and the theatre felt oh so quiet again.

Adam stood up and clapped, a grin plastered across his face. Lee smiled nervously, bowing slightly, laughing once.

"That was fantastic!" Said Adam, clapping her on the shoulder.

"Th-Thanks." She said, in a fog.

"Really great." Said Adam.

Lee smiled. They stood like that for a moment.

"Sooo…" She said, trying to break the silence.

Adam laughed. "Um… yeah.."

The looked at each other. Lee broke out into a grin, unable to contain herself.

"What?" Asked Adam.

"Oh, nothing." Said Lee. She was smitten with him. Although she had just met him, she felt like old friends. She cringed inwardly at the cliché. "So." She started again.

"You know what?" Said Adam. She turned to him.

"What?" She asked, curious about this sudden epiphany he had.

"You would be perfect for one of the play parts." He said blatantly.

Lee looked surprised. "W-What? Um, ok… Why would you think that?" She asked, bewildered.

"Look at you!" He gestured to her with his hands. "You're perfect. Elphaba's role was practically made for you!"

"But, I'm only fifteen here… I mean, I don't really think that that would, you know, work out.." She trailed off. Sure, it would be fabulous if she could, 'But let's get real here.' She told herself. 'Mom and Dad would never let you do it.' She was unsure whether or not her parents actually loved her. They never came around the house, always at fancy to-dos and soirées.. Yet they persisted in controlling her life when convenient. 'Yeah.. They would never.'

Adam saw her face fall. "But, if your parents signed, then you would be fine!"

"But they won't!" She said, exasperated. "Trust me, Adam. I would die to have that job but my parents… The wouldn't be so keen on the idea of it all."

Adam breathed out once. "Well, it wouldn't hurt to at least talk to out manager. Maybe you and your parents could work something out."

Lee smiled tiredly. "I hope so." She said, half-heartedly.

"Hey, come on." Adam said. He pulled her into an embrace. "You're gonna figure a way out, if you really want it."

Lee's heart was pounding uncontrollably. She couldn't focus on what he was saying, all she could feel was this euphoric fuzz in her head.

"Uh huh.." She said absentmindedly.

Adam held Lee to him, feeling the way her chest molded with the concave space between his stomach and ribs, the way her shoulders felt beneath his arms. He could throw her onto the floor right now and ravish her. No one would hear them- the idea of it made him feel sick to his stomach. He let her go, seeing the slight rose color to her cheeks. He mentally smirked.

'He was thinking what was he thinking jeez I hope nothing about me wait yes I do want it to be about me think about me Adam think about me think about me-' Her thoughts clouded her head, making it hard to focus.

"Um, ok, I think I might need to go home now.. I have to put dinner on." She smiled, trying to cover up her anxiety.

"Ok, do you want me to drive you?" Adam saw the hesitation in her. 'Say yes.' He thought.

"Um, no, no thanks. I have to get my dad's car back and make dinner so- I'll see you around!" She waved, and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Adam called. "Hold on, I need your phone number. I have to tell you about what time you can see out stage manager."

Lee smiled, feeling warm with the idea. "Ok." She punched her phone number into his phone. "There." She said, handing it back to him.

"Thanks." He said, smiling softly.

They looked at each other for a moment.

"Ok, see ya!" Lee said suddenly and walked briskly off, face pinking. The blast of cool winter air hit her square in the face as she opened the theatre doors, making her eyes burn. She shifted her sweater onto her shoulders. On the road, she thought of what she could possibly say to her parents to get them to even consider it. 'I don't even know…' She thought desperately.

Adam poured the rest of the water down the bathroom sink and set the glass on the counter. It was a wild night. 'Kidnapping and performances.. This is bogus.' He thought. He wanted to see her again. Badly. He breathed out again. He gathered up his things and exited the theatre.

2

Lee laid in bed, alone in the house, staring up at the ceiling and thinking. She was in disbelief that she could fall for someone so hard and fast. She wasn't the type to even want to like someone, she was practically the most non-sexual person she had even come across. The first romantic experience she ever had was at a friend's party. They were playing spin-the-bottle. She didn't want to play, but they insisted that she take part. So, she played along, hoping that no one would land on her. Eventually, she was forced to spin, so, holding her breath, she reluctantly spun the bottle, landing on a guy she recognized from her English class.

They crossed the circle, and she just stood there, looking up at a face that she wasn't attracted to. He pulled her in and kissed her harshly, holding her head in his hands. She tried pulling back, but he had a strong hold. When she finally was released, she rigidly went back to her seat, watching the boy's friends elbow him in congratulations.

Then she remembered the only boyfriend she had ever had. She felt herself grow numb, trying to shake the memory out of her head.

Lee frowned, wishing that her first kiss could have been something a bit more- real, or romantic, like in those sappy movies when the reunite in the rain and have tears and their hair's all wet.. She had no idea if things actually happened like that, but she could only hope. She wished she had never had that boyfriend, either.

Adam thought back to all the past girlfriends he had had, thinking about how he felt with each one. He couldn't remember at all, which probably meant that they weren't the same. He leant his head back on his couch arm, not watching the television screen in front of him. He thought of their time together again. He picked up his phone, unaware of what he was doing, and dialed in the number that she had given him. By the time he realized that he had called her, a voice on the other side answered.

"Hello?" Lee sat up in her bed, unsure of who could possibly be calling her at- she checked the clock- eleven o'clock at night. "Who is this?" She asked. She had just about had it with all these wrong numbers she was getting.

"Lee?" Adam asked.

"Oh, Adam… Um, hi.. Is there something I can do for you?" She was fully awake now, leaning against her headboard.

"Well, I-" 'What did you call her for?' He asked himself angrily. "I was wondering if you'd like to talk about the part over coffee tomorrow." He was surprised. It just sprung right out of his mouth.

"Oh, um, ok!" Said Lee. "How about at the Starbucks on 5th street at 10 am?" She asked, tentatively.

"Yeah, see you then." He hung up. Adam leaned back against the couch, still surprised. 'I think my mind has a mind of its own..' He thought.

Lee woke up at eight that morning, unable to sleep. She was so excited she could hardly bear the wait. She flung her hair into a messy bun and pulled on a pair of men's jeans and a plain black shirt. She grabbed a yellow sweater that was slung over the back of her desk chair. She darted out the door, closing it gently, trying not to call attention to the fact that she was leaving. Not wanting to risk the possibility of being pulled over, she walked the mile to Starbucks. The cool winter air blew across her face, knocking pieces of hair out of her bun, which she quickly righted. When she reached the Starbucks, she spotted Adam's silver BMW, which she oh-so-fondly remembered running into.

He was waiting at a table for two on the far left side of the café. They waved in greeting and she sat across from him. She felt ecstatic to see him again.

They got up to order coffee. "Um, lets see… I'll have the- peppermint mocha." Lee said, still deciding on whether or not that was actually what she wanted.

"House coffee, please." Adam said. Lee dug into her pocket to find her wallet, but Adam had already swept out his card and paid for both.

"Oh- you don't have to do that!" Lee said fretfully. She couldn't remember the last time someone had paid for her.

"No, really its fine." Adam said with a laugh.

They took their seats at the table, "So, Lee." He said. Lee wrapped her hands around the cup, trying to absorb its warmth into her still-chilled bones.

"Yeah?" She answered back, taking a sip.

"I talked to David- the stage manager. He said that he'd love to see you, and that it would be alright to come by the theatre today at twelve to talk to him. Are you in?"

Lee was shocked. He had actually gone and done it, getting her an audition.. Which she wanted terribly. 'Well, it's just an audition… Mom and dad cant be mad at you for that.. They let you do the school plays, so why not this one? Its just bigger and you get paid, you could offer them a split.. Well, that might be bribing-'

"Lee? Are you in?"

"Oh! Oh, sorry, um- yeah. I'd love to." She took a sip of the coffee. She was really doing this thing… They stalled for about an hour and a half, just talking. Adam filled her in on what she had to do to audition, and that they would work out the legal details later. Well, that only killed about fifteen minutes, they realized, so they just began talking. Lee told him about her family, and how she and her parents never quite fit together they way they should.

After an hour, Adam knew practically everything there was to know about her. She liked reading, didn't like contacts, that's why she wore glasses, didn't really know most of her family, her favorite color was black "Because it has every color in it", her favorite month is winter, she liked drawing, and animals, and wanted to work as a bartender; she didn't have any religious beliefs, because she said it's easier for her to keep an open mind. She was a vegetarian, but loved chicken nuggets, "although I cant eat them anymore…" She said regretfully.

Adam laughed. "Wow… So this is the autobiography of Lee Jones." He said jokingly.

She laughed and nodded. "What about you?" She asked, realizing she had spent almost an hour telling him about herself.

"I'll tell you in the car, cause we've got to get going."

"Ok."

They rose, taking their coffee with them. In the car, Lee learned that he grew up Jewish, that he liked the color red, and hated wearing shoes. His favorite animal was a dog, since his childhood pet was a chocolate lab. He ate anything and everything, his favorite food was lasagna, he had gotten into theatre through a friend in high school, and had loved it ever since. He wasn't really into sports, but if he had to pick one it would be baseball. He liked art, "Although I'm absolutely no good at it, and he wished he was left handed.

"Believe me, being left handed sucks. You smear everything, which is a hassle. After testing, your entire hand is covered in pencil graphite."

Adam raised his eyebrows. "You're left handed?"

"I didn't mention that?"

"No.."

"Oh… Well, I am." She said with a laugh. They pulled up to the theatre, Lee's watch read 11:50. "Ok.. We've still got about 10 minutes or so.."

Adam opened the door and the two of them walked in. "Ok, well, I don't think he'll care if you're a bit early. I'll wait out here for you."

"Ok." She said nervously, turning to walk into the stage room.

"Hey," Adam called. He came up to her and hugged her. "Good luck." He said into her ear.

She felt that same buzzing euphoric sensation that she had felt the time before. "Oh, thanks." She said faintly.

She smiled and walked into the room dizzily.

"Oh, there you are!" Said a man. He walked to her and shook her hand. He was about six feet tall, with a balding head of hair, along with a soft face and gut. "Its so nice to meet you, I've heard so much." He said enthusiastically.

Lee just smiled and nodded, trying to recapture her grip on the real world. "Thank you so much for letting me audition." Said Lee.

"Not at all." Said David. "So, you want to get started?" He asked.

"Oh, sure." She said, feeling the cold anxiety creep up from her gut, like it always did. She walked up the stage stairs in a cloud of apprehension.

"Alright, so just go ahead and do your thing." David said, interested in how this would turn out. He wasn't exactly sure on where he stood on the matter of possibly hiring an underage kid to play one of the main roles, but he did believe in talent over seniority, so if she was really as good as Adam said she was… Well, then he'd see.

Lee stood on stage, thinking how she could possibly mentally prepare for this. Her heart was almost beating out of her chest. She took four deep breaths, and started performing.

David was surprised to hear that voice coming out of someone who was so- young. The tone was completely different, it was like an entirely different person. And it was shockingly clear, unlike the gravely voice that the current Elphaba had. He wasn't really sure if Elphaba should have a clear voice though… However, this girl was clearly talented, she had all of the correct facial expressions, and her stage presence was fantastic for someone so small- He just had to have her. She really was a great fit for the part.

"Ok, that's good, thanks Lee." He said.

Lee's heart dropped. 'Oh no… That means..' he had asked her to stop singing, but.. She had thought that she was doing ok. Adam said that she was talented, and she had believed him… Does that mean he was lying? But she had trusted him… This was too embarrassing. 'You really screwed up this time, moron' her inner voice told her.

"Lee, that was great!" Said David with a grin plastered across his face.

'Wait… what?'

"We'd love to have you, need you, in fact. Will you consider replacing the existing Elphaba?"

'But- I thought…'

"Oh, s-sure. Yeah, I'd love to! Thanks so much!" She didn't even care anymore. She had actually gotten a part in a legitimate Broadway play! She couldn't believe it. She walked out of the theatre on cloud nine.

Right away, Adam could tell that she had gotten in. he laughed and hugged her again. "Congratulations!"

She was still shaking slightly from being up on the stage.

"Thank you… Thanks for doing this, really." She said.

Rubbed her shoulder once. "No problem." He could feel the slight tremor running through her. He could feel her small breasts pushing into his stomach, and her rabbit-like heartbeat. He realized that he liked her a lot more than he knew consciously. Gathering up all his willpower, he released her. She smiled lightly, her pale face tinted with a rose pink around the cheeks.

The next day was amazing. All day long, nothing but singing and dancing. The dancing part was difficult, but the singing part, she thought, was a blast. She never wanted to leave. She met the cast members as the introduced themselves. She was the youngest person on cast, but oddly enough they weren't patronizing at all. There was Adam, who played Fiyero; Mary, who played Glinda; Grace, who played Nessa; Joel, who played the wizard; Alex, who played Doctor Dillomond; and Eliza, who played Morrible. They were all a bit thrown to see someone who was so young be playing one of the bigger roles, but eventually came to accept it. Lee was told the old Elphaba was looking for a way out, and was relieved to be quitting, making her feel easier about taking the role from someone else.

After an hour of warm-ups and introductions, it was finally time to run the play. They had another performance in two weeks, giving Lee just enough time to learn her lines, but for now just carried around the playbook. They decided to run the very first act, giving Lee time to adjust her new settings.

Lee sat back stage, reading through the playbook. Having seen the play only the night before last, she remembered that Fiyero and Elphaba were supposed to be in love. She turned slightly red at the thought. Lee remembered all the scenes that Elphaba and Fiyero were supposed to kiss or hold hands or do something along those lines.. And that one song- what was it called again? "As Long as You're Mine", it had Lee on the rocks. She had already come to terms with the fact that she really did like Adam, but, having to kiss with him on stage.. It reminded her of her first kiss, and- she just didn't want to go through that again.

"Alright guys, we're starting in five minutes!" David called. "Get your act together!"

'Five minutes.. Ok, I can do this.' Lee thought. There was a cold feeling right below her heart. Terror. She was well aware that she was romantically-shy, but- she just wanted to kiss him for the first time and for it to be real. She got up off her chair, placing her playbook on top, and walked out into the hallway to find Adam. Lee glanced into each practice room window, trying desperately to find him. 'There's so much I want to tell him… And only five minutes.. Where is he?'

She brushed her bangs out of her face as she looked into another room. Empty. She turned to walk on down the hallway, when he came around the bend. "Adam!" She called, relieved.

"Lee!" He called back jokingly, unsure of why she had called out his name. "You need something?"

"I just wanted to say that-" She looked up at his face. Was she really able to say this? She couldn't even handle a boy her age, what would she do with a full-grown man.? That's right, he was a man. And she was a girl, a little girl..

"I-…" He was a legal adult.. And she couldn't even drive on her own yet- or at least wasn't supposed to. Even if he did, through some miracle, love her back, it would never work out. Or at least she would have to wait three years for them to legally go out together in public as a couple. But that was only out in public, what about at home? Home, her parents. 'Oh man, I completely forgot about that..' She thought. Her parents would kill her slowly for even considering dating a man seven years older. But what did she care? She only had two years left with them and then she was off to college, where she would be absolutely free-

"Lee?" Adam asked, concerned. She had completely coasted off, staring blankly at him. "Hey, Lee." He said, taking her shoulders and leaning down.

Without thinking, she leaned forward and kissed him, just like that. He froze up, shocked. This wasn't even legal, was it? Is this even allowed? 'Who cares.' He pulled her into him and held her tightly, holding the back of her head. Both of her arms linked around his neck, and she stood up on her toes to reach him. She could feel the small pinpricks of unshaved facial hair, and the rough texture of his hair as she ran a hand through it.

She was shocked. Her first kiss was terrible, and forced, but this was- so nice. She pushed herself farther into him, trying to get as close as possible. He tightened his grip on her, not wanting to let her go, careful not to hurt her. They broke for air, and she could barely breathe. She wished she could freeze time right on this moment and just stare. All she could see was his face looking down at her. He kissed her again, pushing her into the wall. She pulled him closer. She felt like she was on pins and needles, like the smallest error would break this whole moment like a wall of glass.

They broke apart again. "I love you." Lee whispered.

"Love you too.." Adam said, kissing her.

He reached a hand up the back of her shirt, putting a hand on her bare back, feeling the texture of her small spine. She arched her back, feeling the warm sensation of his hand. Her head was spinning like a top. She was on top of the world at this moment, but at the same time she was terrified. Deathly terrified. This was a brand new thing to her, and she trusted Adam fully, but she was just- afraid. She guessed it was part of her romantically-shy personality coming out again. She still couldn't believe that she had kissed him. It was the last thing she ever expected herself to do.

He kissed her neck softly, and froze, her heart skipping a beat as he brushed over one area. He kissed it again, putting pressure, and she almost melted into butter. He kept at it, the pressure growing stronger each time. She cried out softly, pulling him closer, shaking slightly. He finally pulled away, slightly labored breathing. She looked up at him in amazement. He smirked slightly, seeing the red spot he had left on the side of her neck. They linked hands.

"Only three days…" Lee thought aloud.

"Well, three days is enough to know." Adam said matter-of-factly.

Lee smiled slightly, looking at his shirt. He tousled her hair.

"He-ey" she said playfully.

They smiled at each other.

"Alright! Cast on set please!" David called.

"Oh, that's us!" Lee said jovially.

"Wait wait wait." Adam said, pulling her back by her arm. He pulled her into a dressing room. He pointed her to the mirror, and she blushed, seeing the red mark on the side of her neck.

"O-Oh.." She said.

"Here." He pulled out a tin of foundation, finding a color that would match her fair skin. He quickly covered it up, leaving a seamless disguise.

"Thanks." She said, gratefully.

He kissed her quickly, leading them out of the dressing room. She picked up her playbook on the way to the stage, walking on thin air through the crowd, standing next to Adam.

"Alright. So we'll run through the play until Act 1 and then we'll take a thirty minute break, ok?"The cast agreed with this idea.

Lee tried her best to keep up with the rest of the cast, finding it enjoyable. When they came to the ballroom scene, Fiyero and Elphaba were supposed to dance together, and David was choreographing their dance.

"Ok, so, one more time: step, two, three, step, step, step, one two, and repeat. Lee, you've got that?"

She nodded her head, understanding none of it.

"Just follow my feet." Adam whispered in her ear.

"'K" She said faintly, barely able to breathe from being to close to him.

She was able to follow his movements as long as he whispered what was next to her. After a short time, they were able to do it like clock work, leaving David satisfied.

"Alright, that's good guys."

They headed off, waiting for their next cue. They waited backstage with the rest of the cast, and Lee got to know them better. She had grown to like the girl who played Nessa, Grace, she was genuinely kind to her. Another person she liked was Matt, who played Boq, the munchkin that Nessa was in love with. He was absolutely hysterical. He was one of the funniest people she had ever met. Adam was good friends with him, and had introduced her to him.

However, through the rush of new people, there was one specific person that she didn't care for at all. It was Mary, the girl who played Glinda. Apparently, from what Grace told her, Mary and Adam had dated for a while, but they broke up because Adam couldn't bear to be around her anymore. Lee didn't like the way Mary looked at her, that sort of disdainful, uppity look that just sent her into a rage. She hated working with her, the arrogant way that she would carry herself and speak her lines. From the rest of the cast, they described Mary's self view as "God's gift to the world". Lee could see how the cast got that idea.

Adam tried to distance himself from her as often as he could, but seeing as he had to act with her.. The rest of Act 1 flew on by, and after the song "Defying Gravity", everyone was ready to break for lunch. Lee walked alongside Adam, a bit closer than she had dared before. She carried her bag lunch in her left hand, letting her right hand brush against Adams. It was agonizing, not being able to hold his hand, or really show any sort of emotion towards each other, except for casual friendship.

Adam glanced down at her, and she met his gaze. She flashed a quick smile, and he returned it. They entered the eating room, sitting at the table the cast had set up, on different sides. Lee sat next to Mary, seeing the salad and flavored water that sat in front of her. 'Great. A diet queen.' Thought Lee. Lee was pretty thin, compared to most, a healthy size. More like the thinner side of average, a size two. She weighed about a hundred pounds, she guessed. Mary was, although Lee hated to admit it, beautiful. The word stung like ice. She was tall, at least five eight, with a full chest and long legs. Sort of like an Amazon woman. Lee looked at herself self-consciously, taking a sip of peach mango tea. Adam watched her talk with the cast, liking her more and more. He knew that his intuition was right, she really was loud, somewhat of a chatter-box. And she was funny, surprisingly. She succeeded in making most everyone at the table laugh at her antics and jokes.

Adam glanced nervously at Mary, seeing the way she was looking at Lee. He didn't like it. Mary spun her water bottle round and round in her hands, studying the way Lee was talking with the cast. The way that she glanced back and forth between Lee and Adam, it was like she knew that they- 'No. No, that's impossible. No one had been around, no one had been in the hallways.. Right? No one was there.. Right?' He began to grow anxious. 'Right. No one was there.' He didn't believe it.

"Hey, Lee, the whole cast is going out to get drinks after this practice, you in?" Matt asked. "I mean, you don't have to drink, just- get gingerale or something… Yeah… So?"

Lee was flattered that they were already letting her into the social circle.

"Uh, sure! Thanks!" She said, grinning.

The lunch was more or less a rollercoaster ride, between Mary glaring down Lee, to Lee showing her true colors in the crowd.

"Ok, ten minutes until we start act two, so go ahead and clean up, and lets get back to work." David picked up his trash and deposited it, leaving the room to prepare. The rest of the cast did the same, and little by little dissipated. Mary was the last one to leave, besides Adam and Lee. She discreetly glanced back at the pair before closing the door. Adam looked at Lee nervously. She looked flustered.

"Why was she staring at me like that, the whole lunch I could feel her eyes on the back of my head!"

Adam shook his head. "I don't know… I think she knows something, or at least suspects something."

Lee nodded, throwing her trash into the bin. "Well, I wish she would just leave us alone.."

Adam laughed once. "You and me both." He put an arm around her, hugging her lightly.

"God, this is- really, really frustrating." Lee frowned. Adam took his arm off of her.

"I-I'm sorry, I-"

"No! No, no, not you! Not you." She said, rushed. "No, it's that- I mean- we're not even allowed to act like we like each other out in public! Its ridiculous! I mean, there are seventy year old guys walking around with women in their twenties, but I can't walk around with you!" She breathed out sharply. "I just, I wish we didn't have to hide it." She said tiredly.

Adam walked to her and held her tightly. She could barely breathe again, as she felt the chilling sensation fall over her. She buried her face into his chest. He felt the edges of her glasses against him, and rubbed her shoulders.

"Hey, we'll work it out." He said comfortingly.

She leaned her head against his chest. "Yeah.." She breathed.

He felt her heart beating fast against his stomach, and he held her tighter. He loved the way he made her heart beat, and how just being near him left her out of breath. He liked the fact that she was small, and that she was young. It was odd, but he loved it. He wanted to make her shiver, to blush, to cry out his name-

"Adam?" Lee asked, snapping him back into reality.

"Y-Yeah?" He asked, the thoughts still lingering.

"What are you thinking?" She asked, curious as to why he was staring off into space so.

"Oh, nothing." He said briskly. "Hey, we should get ready." He pulled to two of them out of the room and into the hallway. They stepped apart, Lee headed in another direction, trying not to seem conspicuous.

Lee sat behind the stage, reading through the playbook until David called for the cast to get onto the stage. She planned how far away she would stand from Adam, holding her playbook to her. It was terrible, but necessary cautions had to be taken, since Mary seemed suspicious.

Lee walked down the hallway, trying to look nonchalant. Mary entered the hallway in front of her, approaching her in a way that made Lee's stomach churn.

"Oh, hey, Lee." Said Mary.

Lee smiled nervously. "Uh, hi, Mary. What's up?" She asked tentatively.

"Eh, nothing much. But hey, I heard that you and Adam were working together on that song. How's that going?"

Lee saw a glint in her eye, and wondered whether or not she had seen them in there, or before during the break.

"Oh, pretty good, thanks… Why?"

Mary gave a mocking smile. "Well, I was just making sure that you weren't giving Adam too much trouble. Try not to hinder him." She said, brushing past Lee.

Lee turned, furious. "I-"

"Ok. Top of act two, scene one, lets get going people." David chirped.

Lee pulled up every bit of willpower she had accumulated in her lifetime and walked away. She walked to the stage and tried to flush all the fury out of her mind. She couldn't.

Act two flew along with few hitches, and, before Lee even realized, it was time for "As Long as You're Mine." She grew nervous, feeling the same cold sweat break out, the feeling it the pit of her ribs.

They heeded David's instructions, kissing each other on key, following the correct pitch and such. Lee felt like she was in a state of vertigo. She desperately tried to keep up with the song, trying to handle kissing him and singing out and singing on key- it was exhausting, but oh-so worth it.

She reached the end of the song, feeling the cloud slowly drift away as she sat back, pulling away from Adam. They sat on the floor, opposite of each other, looking up at David.

"Really great work guys, I think that'll do for now. Although, Lee, I think you might be a little hesitant to kiss Adam, is that right?"

Lee blushed, freezing for a second. 'What should I say I have to say something oh jeez I cant let them find out about us he'd get in trouble I don't want to get in trouble either I guess I should-'

"Ah," She laughed nervously. "Yeah, I guess so.."

She glanced to her left, seeing Mary smirk cruelly.

David smiled. "Well, don't be, he wont bite!" David laughed once. "Why don't you guys go and practice in the other rooms while we work on the rest of the scenes?"

Adam nodded, extending a hand to Lee as he got up. She took it, helping herself up, brushing the dust off of her blue jeans. She shot Mary a discreet look. They walked down the hallway, into one of the practice rooms. Lee pulled a chair into the center and sat down, emotionally exhausted. She worked on breathing slowly, trying to calm herself down enough to think clearly. She was so flustered that she didn't realize Adam pulling a chair up across from her.

She opened her eyes and jumped a little, seeing Adam randomly appear in front of her. "Oh! Sorry.. You surprised me."

Adam breathed out. "Ok, Lee, tell me honestly. Do I make you uncomfortable?"

She sat up. "No! Of course not! You don't make me uncomfortable at all!"

Adam stood up, leaning over her, putting his hands of either arm of the chair, caging her in. "What about now?"

Lee felt her heartbeat pick up pace, like it always did. The feeling of falling hit her, and she grew dizzy.

"I…" She said.

He stood up, sitting across from her once more. "Why? What am I doing that's bothering you, Lee? Tell me so I can fix it!"

She could see him growing agitated, and she felt awful. The real reason that she was so uncomfortable was because of her old boyfriend, but she had never told anyone about it… The memory hurt.

"It's not anything you're doing, Adam. Believe me." She reassuringly smiled at him. "Its my fault. I'm just not really…" How could she put this in a way that wouldn't bring up the old boyfriend? "Used to having someone treat me like this… I guess you could call me 'romantically-shy.'" She said, laughing once.

Adam frowned. "Why is that?" He had realized that she seemed a little hesitant when they were together, but he had always just thought that it was something he was doing wrong.

Lee hurriedly thought of a way to dodge the question without lying to him, she couldn't bring herself to lie to him. She came up with nothing. There was no way for her to remain truthful, and to satisfy his curiosity.

"Ok… So, a year ago, I was a freshman in high school." She hated this memory so much, she felt her blood rise, and she could feel the sinking feeling she always felt when thinking back on it. "I had this friend, his name was Jackson." She pushed the name out. "And, we had been friends for a while, and he seemed like a really nice person and all, most of the time. See, sometimes he would get a bit temperamental and sort of lash out at people, but, you know, I didn't really think anything of it at the time.

"And, after a while, he asked me out, and, of course, I said yes, because I thought that he was alright. That's when things began to go downhill." She swallowed, trying to fight the feeling coming over her. "He began losing his temper more and more, and I was the only person around, and so he took it all out on me, and at first it was just words but later on he just got angrier and angrier and I said "Jackson, stop!" but he just kept on getting angrier and he lashed out and-" Her words ran together, and she stopped, putting a hand on her face, trying to regain herself.

Adam sat, horrified. He took her hand, silently willing her to finish the story. She squeezed his hand back. She opened her eyes, taking her hand away. "But no matter how many times he hit me, or kissed me to hard, I couldn't bring myself to keep away from him. Like, the day after he would break out into this enraged stage, he would go back to regular, charming Jackson, and I would always come running back to this guy.. I guess because I didn't have very many people to turn to.

"Well, one day, he invited me over, saying 'Hey, come one over Lee, I have to show you something.'"

Adam felt his stomach drop, knowing where this was going to end.

"And I said, 'Sure! Be right over.' So, I walked the two miles to his house, and when I got in, he jumped me."

Adam felt her grip tighten on his hand, he put a reassuring hand over theirs.

"And he was almost your size, so I really didn't stand much of a chance. He pushed me down, and the craziest thing happened. I realized how much I hated this guy. And I told him that, right to his face, and he got up, and he have me this." She drew her hand out of Adams, using it to pull up her left sleeve, exposing a peachy puckered line running for about two inches on the inside of her arm. Adam touched it, then suddenly drew her onto his lap, into an embrace. He remained silent, waiting for her to finish.

"And, after he gave me that little memento, he tried to finish what he started, but- you know how you hear those stories? About the mother who lifted up the car to save her baby? How the increase in adrenaline can give you momentary strength? Well, I'm pretty sure that's what happened. I thought about how much I hated him, and how I was not going to have my first time with this guy, and I somehow managed to wrestle him off of me, and I split for the door, and I never went back."

She hugged him tightly, feeling a few tears slip out. She breathed in, reassuring herself that Adam was different, and that he wouldn't hurt her. Adam held her securely, furious at the same time.

"I swear, Lee, I'm different. Id never hurt you."

She smiled, resting her head against his neck. "I believe you. And I really do love you, its just- hard for me to get so close or to kiss anyone after that. I'm really sorry.. But I trust you." She finished, kissing his cheek, fighting her mind for control, pushing the dizzying feelings back enough to regain some hold on her mind. Adam ran a hand over her sweater-clad back, rubbing it soothingly. They sat like that for a while, having unspoken conversations. She sat, legs draped over one of his, just thinking.

"Why didn't you tell anyone about what he was doing to you?" Adam asked softly.

"I was afraid of what he would do if he found out that I told someone, and because I guess I was sort of ashamed that I let him do those things…" She trailed off, trying to fight back the backed up emotions that had accumulated over the years.

Adam felt her tense up, he held her closer. "It's ok." He said.

She couldn't help it, it was like the Hoover Dam breaking. Tears just came flooding out on their own accord. She hugged his neck and cried softly. Adam hurt, seeing her like this. He found it almost funny, since they had only known each other for three days. He knew that the only thing to do at this point was to let her tears run their course, but it was hard.

After a while, Lee couldn't feel anymore tears breaking through. She wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her sweater, blinking away any lingering tears. She sat back, looking at Adam. She laughed softly, wiping under her eyes.

"I'm sorry… I don't know what happened.." She said.

Adam looked back at her, studying her teary face, he smiled back.

"It's fine." He said "I don't suppose you'd want to start practicing the song now, would you?"

Lee laughed once. "Oh, completely forgot. Yes, please." She hopped off Adams lap onto the floor, feeling her legs wobble once underneath her. She steadied herself against the chair. The two of them practiced for the next twenty minutes until they had it down cold. Lee was pleased to notice that she was less dazed when she was close to Adam. Only the cliché warm-fuzzy feeling. They showed David at the end of the day, getting his approval on the piece.

"Ready to go with the cast?" Lee asked.

"Yeah- oh, hey, I'll be right back" Adam called to Lee. "I've got to pick up my jacket from the dressing room."

"Ok." She called back, sitting down in the hallway.

Mary walked down the hall the same way as earlier, with that coy hip swish and uninterested look on her face. Lee groaned inwardly.

"Well, Lee, why are you sitting on the ground?" Mary asked, mock-concernedly.

"I'm waiting for Adam to get his coat se we can go catch up with the rest of the cast." Lee said blankly.

"Oooh, ok. So, you're catching a ride with Adam? Are you two close?"

"Yeah. And I don't have a ride."

Mary nodded, lips pursed. "Gotcha."

Lee looked up at her, waiting for her to continue. 'Maybe I took her words the wrong way today' She thought. 'Maybe she didn't even mean to be-'

"I don't understand why he likes you so much." Mary said suddenly.

'Never mind…' Thought Lee. 'Wait, how does she know-'

"I mean, you're pretty pathetic." She stated.

Lee felt her face heat up. "And what's that supposed to mean?" She jumped up, facing Mary. She realized Mary was taller than she had thought.

Mary stared down at her. "I think you know. Stay away from him tonight, because we're not done yet." She spat

"Oh really?" Lee hissed. "Well you can shove-"

"Lee? Mary?" Adam came out of the dressing room, shrugging the coat over his shoulders. "What's going on?" He was surprised to see them face to face, or rather face to chest, glaring daggers at each other. Adam saw the bad blood between them, and stepped in next to Lee.

Lee looked up at Mary, taking a rigid step back to Adam. Mary watched her with a triumphant look on her face.

"Keep her under control, Adam. She need a muzzle, that one does."

"Who the hell do you think-"

Adam pulled Lee back, just as she was about to lunge. Mary stepped back a bit, smiling.

"Jeez, calm down, Lee."

Adam looked at Mary angrily. "I think you should go now, Mary. We'll catch you later."

"Ok, bye Adam." She smiled and walked away.

Lee was almost shaking with emotion, Adam could feel her trying to bottle it. He rubbed her arms, still holding her back.

"Easy, easy." He said, trying to calm her down.

"I'm sorry… Lee muttered, watching Mary walk out the door, silently willing a car to crash into her.

3

They pulled into the bar, Lee read the neon-lit title. "Moonwalkers Bar and Pub" it read. 'Hm.' Lee thought, not really paying much attention. They walked in, and Lee immediately felt a wave of smell wash over her. She wasn't sure if you could get drunk off the scent of alcohol, but she was starting to think that you could.

She couldn't see over the heads of the patrons, so she let Adam do the searching. She followed close to him, and saw him wave. They burst free from the crowd, joining the cast. They sat at the bar, Adam and Lee managed to find seats apart from each other. Lee sat in the center, Adam sat towards the left end.

Lee drank water the whole night, feeling a bit dizzy from the smell of alcohol.

She was surprised at the good time she had. She wasn't really expecting much out of the night, but, to her amusement, had a better time than she did with her own friends.

To Lee's dismay, it turned out that Moonwalkers was not just a bar but also a karaoke bar. Lee raised her eyebrows when she heard this.

"So… Is that tonight then?" She asked, assuming the cast would want to go on the active night. Matt just grinned as they asked for a volunteer to start them off.

Lee sighed, smiling. "Just- awesome." She said jokingly.

"Me!" Shouted Matt.

He sang some sort of rock and roll song that Lee had heard once on the radio. They applauded him, the men hollering out random "Yeah Matt"s or "Go boy"s. One by one, the cast eventually got up onto the stage for their moment of glory.

Sometime during the fifth performer, Mary made her way in. She waved to everyone, the cast welcoming her presence. Turns out, she was nice to everyone else on the cast.

"Alright, next up!" Called the emcee.

"I got one!" Matt yelled. Adam and Matt lifted Lee off the ground in unison, deaf to her cries of "Put me down!"

"Alright! Get on up here!" The man yelled. They put her onto the stage. She looked back at them, shooting them a mock-angry look.

"What do you want to do?" Asked the man.

Lee shrugged, having not really planned to get up here.

"I'll get something good." He said, leaving.

Lee looked at the crowd. She felt her stomach flip over.

'No, I'm going to be doing this for an even bigger crowd… I have to get used to this.' She thought firmly.

The music started playing, and she, to her relief, knew the song.

'House of the Rising Sun. Classic.' She thought. She blew through the beginning of the song, having sung it tons of times- in the shower, of course. The crowd complicated things, but she was pretty sure she would be able to get through it.

She started on the chorus, when she spotted Mary approaching Adam. She kept on singing, keeping an eye on her. She watched her flirt with him, and she was absolutely furious. How dare she? She giggled at something that didn't seem to be funny, brushing her hair out of her face, looking at him with big eyes. She wished the song would just end already.

The final verse came, and Lee was ready to get off of this stage. She saw Mary move in to kiss Adam. He leaned back, putting an arm in between them. She finished the song, jumping off the stage. The crowd screamed, but she didn't hear. She was quickly replaced by Grace. She stormed over to the two, standing in between Adam and Mary. In stilettos, Mary stood at least as tall of Adam. She didn't care.

"Mary, what the hell were you doing?" She asked, furious.

"Great song, you." She said. "And what was I doing? What are you doing? You're getting in the middle of things that shouldn't be meddled with." Mary said, moving to push her aside.

Adam stepped in, trying to break the fight up.

"Guys- Girls, sorry. Mary, please, just go." She turned away, giving Lee a snide look.

"Alrightie. You two behave." She said with a sly smile. She clicked off to the bar to join the rest of the cast to watch Grace.

Adam held Lee back, as she tried to go after her.

"Lee, please. Come on, lets go."

Lee slouched down in her seat in Adams car, exhausted, both emotionally and physically. 'Today was crazy.' She thought.

"So, you want to tell me what happened with Mary earlier today… And then what happened back there?" Adam asked calmly.

"Mary was just being- awful, and she just lashed out for no reason! I was sitting there, minding my own business, when- boom!- she was there, harping on me cause you and I are close. She was all 'oh, Adam and I aren't done yet, so stay out of it, you're pathetic, blah blah blah. And then tonight…'"

Lee seethed in silence. Adam ran has hands over his face, not wanting to accept that Mary was going to pose a problem for the two of them, even after what happened.

"Christ.." He said softly. "Ok, Lee, just stay away from her. She's not worth it. Just, stay away from her." He repeated.

She nodded silently. They sat there for a moment. The nearing end of winter break crossed her mind, and how she'd have to return to school soon. She put it out of her mind for now, not wanting to think about it. Sure, she had friends at school, but she regardless of certain people at the theater, she felt so much happier out of school than in, that she just wanted to stay in this Christmas break forever.

"Alright, Lee, where am I driving to?" Adam asked, starting the car up.

"Um, let me punch it in.." She said, taking his GPS into her hands. She the location into the search bar, pulling up the right one. "Ok, here." She said, placing it onto the dashboard. The ride home was filled to the brim with chatter and singing along to the radio. He pulled up to the end of her driveway, just as the song "Dream On" came on by Aerosmith. Lee cried out.

"Man! The best songs always come on when you're at your destination!" She exclaimed. Adam laughed, agreeing with her.

"Why don't I meet you at the Starbucks tomorrow then?" He asked.

"Perfect. I'd better get out of this car soon before my parents see…"

Adam pulled her face to his, kissing her quickly. She stiffened, then kissed back.

"See you tomorrow." He said quietly.

"See you.." She said, getting out of the car. She watched it drive away, sadly. She wanted to be in the car, going where he was going. She wanted to walk with him during the day, and lay beside him at night. She wanted to-

"Lee! What are you doing in the driveway?" Her mother called, slightly aggravated.

"I- Just getting the paper, mom!" She called back, picking up the newspaper that lay at the end of the driveway.

Her mother shut the front door. Lee swung the paper by her side as she walked in the door. She walked up the stairs to her room, laying down in her futon-like bed.

She checked her bed-side-table clock, it read eight o'clock. She wished her parents had asked why she was home so late, where she had been, whether or not she wanted dinner. She heard the door alarm chime, "We're going out, Lee! Be back soon." The door shut.

No goodbye, no "Love you". Lee turned over on her side, breathing out.

Lee got up and fixed something to eat, a grilled cheese. She stripped out of her day clothes while she waited for her food to cool off. She picked up her black Reebok shorts off the ground, when she caught her reflection in the mirror. She stopped, looking at the stranger in her under-garments. She shivered from the cool temperature of the room. Pale, short, that was her body in her eyes. The small gap between her thighs, the veins on the tops of her hands, the small rise of her chest, all of these things characterized her, and she wished she could share them, but was held back by her fear of intimacy. She huffed, angry at herself for being so cowardly, for letting Adam down like she did that day. She pulled the shorts and tank top on over her small body. He grabbed a white cable knit thick sweater from her closet to keep warm. She sat at the table by herself, eating the grilled cheese in silence. She picked up her blue jeans off the ground when she was done, pulling the white papers David had given her out of the pocket. "Parent or Legal Guardian Signature" The text below the line said. It was so easy, all she had to do was get one of her parents to sign on this line, and she was free to perform with the cast wherever they went. She had heard talk of going to Sacramento California next.

Adam pulled into the hotel's driveway, letting one of the valets take his car. He fell into the hotel bed, taking in the way it pressed the stiffness out of his spine. He climbed into the shower, thinking about everything. David had told him the day he recommended Lee that she would have to have parent permission to perform onstage, and the performance was next week. He had a sinking feeling that told him that her parents wouldn't be too enthusiastic about the idea, or, for the matter, that she had fallen into a relationship with a twenty-two year old man.

He smiled to himself, imagining her parents reactions when they would eventually tell them. Adam lay in bed that night, considering the possibilities of what he could say to her parents to let her stay.

4

The day blew by so fast that Lee could barely hold onto one before it was overlapped by the next one. The incidents with Mary continued to get worse, escalating from just small jibes and snaky looks, to actual confrontations. Two days before the performance, things came to a bit of a climax. It happened in one of the practice rooms.

"Alright guys, thirty minute break." Lee turned to leave, going to meet Adam as they planned. "Oh, Lee, wait, do you think that Mary and you could work on 'Defying Gravity'? I think it would do you guys some good to work together, get some chemistry going."

Lee's face fell.

"Oh, um, sure, David. We'll be right on it."

Mary smiled "Of course, I'd love to. Come on then, Lee."

Lee bit her tongue, holding back a rude comment. She swallowed her pride and let Mary lead the way to the practice room. Adam watched the two leave, feeling that things were going to get ugly. He went after them.

"Oh, wait, Mary, do you think I could borrow Lee for just a second?" He asked, trying to seem inconspicuous.

Mary's smiling face faltered for just a second. "Of course." She stood, while Lee gratefully ran to Adam. They walked down the hallway, heading around one of the corners. He turned to her.

"Ok, Lee, I know that this is going to be torture, but please please try to keep from fighting, even if Mary is being the complete bitch that she tends to be."

Lee smiled slightly. "Yeah, no problem." He leant down, kissing her. She hesitated, then kissed back. Mary peered around the corner, holding back a small gasp, seeing the two kissing. She drew back, tip-toeing back to the practice room, trying to hold back a devious grin when Lee came back in.

"So, what did Adam have to say?" She asked.

Lee felt on edge. "I- he wanted to know where I put the car keys." She said hurriedly.

Mary nodded. "Car keys. Gotcha."

Lee turned to her, noticing a different tone to her voice. Mary knew something.

"Well, you want to get started, Lee?"

"Yeah…" Lee wasn't convinced by Mary's façade, she knew something.

'I'll save this tidbit for later.' Mary thought to herself.

They days continued to blur together, and before Lee even realized, it was the day before the performance. She began to panic, realizing that she still needed to get her parents signature on the slip. Lee rode home with Adam that night, and he pulled up to her driveway. What shocked her the most was that her parents never questioned her absences during the day, and the strange car that dropped her off at night. When she asked what they were doing during the day, they told her that they had been going out to a certain politicians soirees lately. She didn't ask anymore. Adam leant in to kiss her goodbye when she stopped him.

"Wait, hold on, Adam, I still don't have my parents signature yet on that paper… I need you to help explain… please?" She looked at him with a face that he couldn't say no to.

"Ok, ok, I'll do it. Come on, then." He said with a smile. They got out of the car, walking to the door.

Her mother opened the door, looking alarmed to see a strange man with her daughter. Adam flashed her a reassuring smile, in which her mother just glared. The smile fell slowly from his face.

"Lee, who is this?"

"Oh, mom, this is Adam, from that theatre camp I'm in."

Her mother looked at her strangely. "Theatre camp?"

"Oh, yeah, I've been going to a theatre camp lately and this is Adam, one of the counselors."

Adam had to suppress a smile, Lee was telling this story seamlessly. He felt proud. He only wish he actually knew the story that she was telling. He was relieved he didn't have to explain about their relationship and how she had been in practices with a legitimate Broadway play.

He extended a hand to her mother, which she shook tentatively.

"Come on in.." She said, slightly confused.

Adam and Lee sat awkwardly at the opposite end as her mother stared the two of them down.

"So, you're saying that you need a parent to sign the permission slip for Lee to perform in the show that you all put on?" She asked.

Lee felt uneasy in her mothers tone, feeling like something was going wrong.

Adam nodded smoothly. "Exactly. So, if you wouldn't mind…" He pushed the papers across the table to her mother. He added a pen from his black jacket pocket. Her mother looked at the paper briefly, taking the pen in her hand.

"And it wont cost anything?" She asked, holding the pen in her hand, staring blankly down at the paper in front of her.

Lee inwardly grimaced at her mothers comment, wishing she would just sign it already.

Adam smiled and shook his head. "No ma'am. Absolutely free."

Lee watched on edge as her mother spun the pen around in her hand. 'Come on, come on' She thought anxiously.

Finally, her mother scribbled out her signature on the paper. Lee felt a weight being lifted off of her, she felt like she was floating in anti-gravity.

Adam studied her mother, noting that she looked nothing like Lee. A harsher face, taller, heavier. If he knew better he would say they weren't related in the least. "Thank you, Mrs. Jones." He said, briskly sweeping away the papers, afraid she would take back her word or have an objection. "I'm sorry, but Lee and I have to get back to the- camp. They're expecting us.."

"Bye mom!" Lee called as she was ushered out the door.

They jumped into the car, "Back up a little, just get out of sight." Lee said. They pulled back and parked, so the car was hidden behind a row of shrubberies, invisible from Lee's house. They just sat for a moment, Adam holding the papers in his hand. He laughed out loud, reaching over to hug Lee. "You were fabulous." He said.

"Thanks. You too!" She said, hugging him back.

He leaned over and kissed her once. She pulled herself to him, deepening it. Adam took the initiative, crawling into her seat, pushing her down into the soft carpet of the chair. It was a tight fit, but the fact that Lee was so small made it work. He dropped one of his hands from her shoulders to the edge of her shirt, sneaking it under, brushing against the bottom of her bra. Lee breathed in sharply, feeling a cold hand on her bare skin. Adam kissed her again, reaching underneath the garment. He felt a raised line, almost like a scar, along the side of her breast, he ran his thumb over it again. Lee flinched back, feeling the old ghosts and the lost sensations coming back to her.

Adam stopped, pulling his hand out. He pushed him self up by the arms of the chair, supporting himself, hovering over her.

"I-I'm sorry… I got carried away.." He said, apologetically.

"No! No, it's fine." She said, forgiving him.

He wasn't used to this sort of thing, this necessity to hold back some of his feelings for a woman. He thought of the other women he had been with, they were so different to her. None of them had been hesitant, in fact, most had been willing.. But then again all of them were- experienced it the field.

"I just- I'm sorry.. Jackson…" Lee trailed off.

"Lee, did Jackson cut you?" He asked, taking her face in his hands. "Did he do that to you?"

Lee realized he was referring to the scar on her chest. "He- Yeah.. He did. That day he invited me over, he did it…" She could remember him with the razor blade, pulling up her shirt and bra and- She didn't want to think about it.

Adam kissed her for the last time, getting back into his seat. He sat, hands on the wheel, staring out at the road, silent. Lee brushed her shirt down, covering her exposed stomach. She pulled on her seat belt, and glanced over at the brooding Adam. He seethed in silence, absolutely furious. He started up the car, driving fast away from her house. Lee sat back in her seat, slightly nervous. Whenever a man got angry she felt on edge, steeling herself for impending blows, or venomous words.

"Adam, its ok. Really. I mean, its all in the past and-"

"It is not ok, Lee. He literally left a mark on you. Two actually, unless there's more, is there more?" He seemed enraged, setting Lee off.

"I-"

"It's not in the past, its not ok, how could you think that? That's bogus. You and I both know that isn't true. Please, just try and realize that what he did to you wasn't your fault, and that it was wrong."

Lee looked at him, relieved that he wasn't angry at her. She nodded, sullen faced.

Adam pulled over onto the side of the road, turning to her. "Lee, are there more? What else did he do to you?" He asked concernedly.

"I-…" She looked down, thinking of all the things he had done to her that year. She brought herself to say it. "He did. There's more… More than I told you about." She admitted it to herself for the first time. 'He did do things that were wrong…' She thought.

Adam leaned back, running his hands over his face, through his black hair.

"God… Will you tell me, or… show me what?"

Lee nodded. "He did this…" She lifted her leg, resting it on her side of the dashboard. She pulled back part of her jean leg, revealing a moon rock leg, marred by a three inch pink line.

She showed him a couple more things before stopping.

"Um, that's about it.." She said quietly.

Adam sighed softly. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair. 'She's such a sweet thing.. Why her? Why not me, or the next person?'

He embraced her softly, thinking about all of her physical scars, let along mental and emotional scars. It was like handling a broken doll, if shaken or played with to hard, pieces come falling down, some shattering on the floor, unable to be repaired. "I'm sorry" Was all he said. There wasn't much more to say.

Lee fell asleep that night, thinking about what had happened in the car. She felt so- exposed. She had never told anyone about any of this, let alone showed anyone the scars. She closed her eyes, wishing she didn't have these skeletons in her closet. She thought about the next day, about the performance. She hated how she was supposed to be Mary's friend onstage, whenever she acted like it, she wanted to gouge her eyes out while vomiting. 'Well, I'm getting paid to do it…' She thought. This brought a bit of a smile to her face. She would be able to pay for a car at this rate. 'No more borrowing Dads car…'.

Lee and Adam made it to the theatre one hour before show-time. Lee's heart beat rapidly, thinking about performing on the stage in front of a full audience. She sat in her chair in the dressing room as Nancy, the makeup artist, put the green makeup on her face.

"Jeez." Nancy said. "Your face is so pale. You need to get some sun, girl."

Lee smiled, closing her eyes as Nancy moved the brush to her forehead.

"Well, at least it's easier to get the right color." Nancy thought aloud.

After the makeup was set on Lee's face, Nancy pulled Lee's hair back into a net, putting a dark black wig on over her lighter locks. She was thrown into a long black dress, letting the costume designers swarm her, pinning the length of the dress up, enabling Lee to be able to walk. She sat back on one of the backstage chairs, exhausted. Mary walked to her, plopping down in the seat next to Lee. She was in her full costume, her blonde hair curled into ringlets, falling down her back. Her sun-tanned skin was covered with light powder, causing her skin to resemble Lee's. Lee was shocked at the transformation. As much as she hated to admit it, Mary looked- beautiful.

"So, what's up, Lee?" Mary asked, flipping her curled blonde hair over her shoulder.

"Um, not much, Mary." She self-consciously tucked part of the black wig behind her ear.

Mary thought back two days ago. She knew that she had a lot of leverage over Lee, and, honestly, couldn't wait to put it to good use. She couldn't stand that Lee was taking the limelight, and no less, her man. All she wanted was to have her off the cast, and she would pull out all the stops if she had to.

"So," She started. "How would you describe Adam and yours relationship?"

Lee felt her heart jump a bit. "I-" 'She know she knows oh jeez I knew it would happen eventually but I didn't want it to happen now not now not when I'm going on oh jeez oh jeez why why Mary why now why couldn't you just mind your own business-'

"We're just friends." Lee said softly.

"Uh huh." Mary said, smirking a bit.

"What?" Lee asked, trying to pretend she had no idea what was going on.

"Just friends? So… you make-out with all your friends then?"

Lee felt the color drain from her face, glad that the green paint was there. "I- don't know- what you're talking about." She said faintly.

"Sure, sure." Mary said, raising her voice a bit. "'Just asking for car keys'? Please. I saw you two that day, Lee. Face it, you're through. You and Adam had your fun, but its time for you two to go home. Let him come home."

Lee was submerged in ice, her stomach was thrown into a crevasse.

"Oh…" Was all she could say.

"So, I could tell everyone in this cast right now, and you two would be in a world of trouble. Or, you could quit the cast, and leave Adam and I alone, and I would never tell anyone."

Lee's head spun from shock, she couldn't speak. "Um, hold on.."

She got up, clumsily, and shakily walked down the hall to the mens' dressing room. She put her ear to the door, knocking on it. "Adam?" She called softly.

"Yeah?" He muffled answer was a relief.

"Hey, could you- ah, come out here for a second?"

"Sure, hold on."

Lee shifted from foot to foot, waiting for him to come out. She blushed a bit when he came out. His costume was a bit more toned down than her long black dress. Only a pair of khaki slacks, brown suspenders, and a white button down shirt. She blinked, wishing he could wear this every day. Adam grinned at her get up. "Wow… The makeup department really did their job." He noted.

Lee tried to smile, but the weight of current events prevented her.

"I need to talk to you." She pulled him around the bend in the hallway. Mary watched the two of them, marveling at the way Adams shoulders looked in his costume. She couldn't wait for him to come running back to her.

"Adam, Mary knows." Lee told him.

It took a second for it to dawn on him what she meant. "Oh- Oh my god. Ok, what did she say?" He said, taking her by the shoulders.

"Sh-She said that she was gonna tell everyone unless I quit the cast and leave you alone."

Adam released her, running a hand through his hair frustratedly. "Alright, Lee, don't listen to Mary. Let's just wait this out and-"

"Adam, if we wait it out, she'll tell everybody, and then the shit will hit the fan and you'll probably be charged with pedophilia or something-" The word brought the world crashing into her. "That's what this is, isn't it? It's exactly that. I- I don't think we should do this- I mean, its-"

"Lee it's not wrong. I love you, ok? And- I don't care that you're seven years younger; like you said, there are loads of people who are married and are- twenty years apart! Ok? Please. I don't care what you call it, I just know that I have to be with you, damn the rest."

He kissed her, and she was lifeless in his hands. He pulled away, sensing her discomfort. She looked up at him, the desperation and hurt was a highway between the two bodies. She kissed him lightly.

"I love you, and I want to be with you. But I cant." Lee said. She could feel his heart tear itself apart at the words. She felt it in hers as well. He grabbed her shoulders.

"Why, Lee? Please. I love you." Adam pulled her into him, almost shaking with sudden emotion. "I love you." He repeated again.

Lee felt a cold hand crushing her heart. She just didn't care anymore. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him fully. He felt relief crashing over him. Mary turned the corner, hearing the conversation.

"Sooo…. I guess you've made your choice then?" She said.

Adam could have laughed at how backwards their roles were. He looked at Lee in her witch costume, and Mary in the princess getup. "Yeah." He said, shooting her the bird.

Lee stifled nervous laughter, linking her hand through Adams. At this point, she was absolutely terrified, but trusted that Adam had a plan. She suppressed tremors as she held his hand, trying to keep a strong face, for their sake.

Mary smiled sarcastically at him. "Well, ok then." She entered the holding room, where most of the cast and David resided. Lee squeezed Adam's hand, feeling cold sweat creep onto the back of her neck. He put a hand on her back, leading her into the room. Her knees were, literally, almost shaking. Adam held her hand tighter.

Mary cleared her throat. "Cast, cast."

The cast began to quiet down, looking at her questioningly. "Well, I guess I'd just like to say that we have a surprise relationship here, in the cast." She said with mock enthusiasm.

Adam could feel Lee's heart-pace through her hand. He rubbed his thumb across the top of her hand, telling her it was ok. It felt like his stomach was turning over in place, twisting the tubes in fatal ways.

The cast, turned to one another, not really that excited. More wondering why Mary was wasting their time with this pointless announcement. Amidst this commotion, no one seemed to notice the two holding hands on the side of the crowd.

"Well, it's Adam and Lee."

Adam lowered his head a bit, not wanting to meet the accusing glances, or the curious stares.

Lee looked straight ahead at Mary, eyes asking 'Why?'. She felt herself tearing up, and fought bitterly against the blood rushing into her face and the water threatening to spring out of her eyes. Murmured questions like 'What?' and 'Them?' Could be heard throughout the room.

David made his way to the two, hands still interlocked.

"Is she right?" He asked.

Lee nodded. David ran a hand over his face.

"Great." He said. "I'm sorry, but I cant have you two working here because of the situation. The cast and I might be charged with assisting whatever it is you two are doing. So, here's what we'll do. How about you guys perform tonight, and I wont tell anyone about you two, only if you promise to leave after tonight. Does that sound fair?"

Lee felt terrible. Because of her, Adam had been ostracized, he lost his job, he'd probably lose some of his friends…

"Yeah, that sounds great. Thanks David." He said evenly.

"Wait, I-"

Adam silenced Lee with his hand.

"Alright! Ten minutes till show-time!"

The cast quickly recovered from the shock of the announcement, half-heartedly cheering. Lee couldn't stand this. After her parents found out, she would be locked up into her room forever, maybe even until after college, so there was no point in making Adam leave his job.

"Adam, why the hell did you do that? After my parents find out what happened I'm going to be grounded forever, so why not just keep your job and I'll just-"

"Lee, quit it. You're a smart girl, you know as well as I do that I'm not going to just leave you like that. After the show, I'm talking to your parents."

Lee felt a stone hit the bottom of her stomach. "What? Adam, you cant, they'll-"

He pulled her to him, ignoring the nervous looks from the cast. They could feel everyone's eyes on them, the weight of their glances was almost unbearable.

"We should get ready." Adam said. Lee nodded silently. They parted, heading towards their dressing rooms. Mary watched the scene unfold with disgust. This was not what she had wanted. Adam was supposed to come crawling back to her, what had happened to that? She stormed after him. Lee stopped in front of her dressing room, feeling guilty. She had been so finicky through this whole ordeal, wishy-washy.

'I have to go say something to him.' She thought. Lee headed back towards Adams dressing room.

Adam opened the door to the dressing room, hearing someone behind him. The figure pushed him into the room with a hand and kissed him fully. He stumbled back, surprised, stepping back into a wall. He was utterly shocked, not moving for a moment. He lightly pushed against the shoulders of the assailant, trying to pry whoever it was off of him. She pushed back towards him, clinging to him. He shoved hard, sending her backwards. She regained her footing, looking at him, slightly bent over.

Adam's eyes widened at Mary's upset face. "Mary? What's the matter with you?" He said angrily, wiping her lipstick off his face.

"Adam, come on, come back to me. I could be so much better than that kid." She was on him again, kissing him harshly.

Lee opened the door lightly, freezing as she saw the picture of Adam and Mary.

"I-" She shut the door quickly, collapsing against the other wall.

Adam saw the door shut on Lee's face, and felt his heart crumple like a paper ball. He threw Mary off him again, letting her stumble and fall against the other wall. She shrunk slightly under his furious glance. He ran out the door, slamming it behind him. He wiped his mouth again. Lee was gone, 'Where is she?' He walked quickly, finding the door to her dressing room shut tight.

"Lee, please, open the door."

Lee leaned back in her chair, feeling her eyes tear up. She dabbed them away with a tissue, trying not to smear the paint. "Go away please." She said, surprised at the stillness of her voice.

Adam breathed out in aggravation, digging a key out of his pocket to the dressing rooms. He unlocked the door, opening it gently. Lee saw him, realizing he had the keys. She crossed her arms over her stomach, not wanting to talk to him.

"Is one girlfriend not enough anymore? Have the rules changed without me noticing?" She felt the poison in her words and felt a pang of remorse for being so harsh.

Adam sat in the chair next to her, hands clasped together, hanging between his knees.

"Lee please, what you saw back there was not what you thought it was, she came onto me."

Lee didn't want to hear it, she really didn't want to hear an apology, she didn't want to be talking to him, right now, she didn't want to be here.

"Adam, please, I really-"

"Please." He said, moving to stand over her chair. "I don't love her anymore, Lee. Ok? Please believe me, Lee, please."

Lee felt horrible for getting him so worked up over this. 'It wasn't even his fault…'

She held back a sob and fell into his arms. They stayed like that until David called for the cast to prepare. Adam kissed her quickly, guiding the two of them out the door. The beginning of the show went smoothly, to their delight, and as Lee stood on stage, working on singing out as far as she could, she glanced into the front of the audience- and she fought of paralysis.

Her parents sat in the second row, looking at her oddly. She miraculously kept her composure, feeling herself begin to shake, partly from stage fright, and partly from shock. After the song, she waited for the crowd to stop clapping, then hurriedly went backstage to find Adam.

Adam stood next to Matt, not saying anything, afraid of what Matt would think of him, let alone the rest of the cast. Matt elbowed him playfully, "You like the little ones, eh?" He said jokingly.

Adam laughed quietly in relief, glad that Matt was, amazingly, ok with his choice.

"Hey, it's all good, man." He continued. "She's a cute one. Don't lose that one, you hear?"

Adam nodded, smiling. A couple more of Adams friends from the cast came up and talked to him during the song, showing him that they weren't upset.

"So, exactly how far have you gotten with this one, Adam? Hopefully nothing past-"

"No, Matt, not that." He said, cutting him off.

Matt smiled knowingly. "Yeah, wonder how long that mindset's going to last." He said.

Adam rolled his eyes.

"Although, when you do come to your senses, I recommend that you-"

"Adam? Can I talk to you?" Matt turned around from what he was saying to Adam, seeing Lee.

Adam was relieved he wasn't going to have to listen to whatever perverted anecdote Matt was going to spit out at him. Matt turned to him, shooting him a knowing smile.

"Yeah, sure." He said, walking past Matt, looking at him with a face that read 'I would have punched you if you had finished that sentence.' Matt just smiled back, waving slightly to him.

They rounded one of the corners in the hallway. Lee looked exacerbated, letting her arms dangle by her sides.

"My parents are in the audience." She blurted out.

Adam raised an eyebrow. "They're here?" He asked, confused.

Lee nodded. Adam peered around the side of the curtain, seeing her mother, and a man he guessed was her father in the second row. They were whispering quietly, supposedly about Lee's appearance in the play.

Adam leaned back, disbelieving. "Jeez… How'd they find out?" He asked.

"I don't even know." Lee said, worked up almost in a comical way.

Adam put a hand on her head. "Its fine. We'll talk to them after the show and work everything out." He sounded so sure. Lee let herself believe him for now.

The play continued to ride along on the three main characters. The cast was pleased with Lee's performance, or at least the ones that strangely didn't mind the romance between her and someone seven years her senior. At the end of the play, the cast came out, one by one, for curtain call. Mary came up by herself, waving to the crowd, getting a loud scream of applause. Adam and Lee came out next, holding hands in character, waving to the crowd. Adam stepped forward, earning another loud scream from the crowd. Lee clapped for him in her place, a shy smile on her face. Adam stepped back, allowing Lee to step forward to receive her feedback. The crowd screamed, and section by section, stood up. She awkwardly waved, not sure how to take this reaction. There was a standing ovation, something she hadn't even dreamed would happen. She glanced down at her parents, and was surprised to see them standing and clapping, faces still blank, save for a glimmer of a smile.

She almost let a tear out, shocked that her parents were there, clapping for her. She tossed image aside, and eagerly waved back to the audience, a large grin breaking out onto her face. The rest of the cast, who had already been out for curtain call, came up around Lee. They linked hands, and gave a bow in unison. Lee got undressed, and out of makeup and costume as fast as she could, needing to find Adam. She pulled her jeans up, buttoning the top and zipping the fly. She checked her face in the mirror one last time for green; she found none. She tied her hair back up in a bun on top of her head.

She put her glasses back on, glad to be able to fully see again. She wished she could have gotten contacts, but contacts for astigmatisms were just so expensive…

She opened the door to her dressing room, careful not to hit anyone walking by. There was a busy crowd swarming around behind the door. People in and out of dressing rooms, calling to each other about carpooling, asking where their purse was, it was crazy. Lee inched out the door, heading over to Adams dressing room.

Adam pulled his shirt on over his bare chest, hanging the costume back up on the hanger. He checked the dressing room for his cell phone, finding it. He opened the door, almost hitting Lee on the way out.

"Oh, hey." He said.

"Hey." She said.

They started to head towards the main room in the theatre, where all of the patrons of the show resided, talking about the show, who they liked, what they didn't like, and the like. Adam strolled out, Lee tentatively walking in behind him. The crowd members that noticed them, came up, giving excited compliments and congratulations. Lee was still reeling from the standing ovation. Adam plowed through the past, Lee trailed behind him, keeping close, making sure she didn't lose him. He spotted Lee's mother and Father towards the door, waiting around with sour faces.

Adam waved to them, Lee waving along when she popped out of the crowd close behind him. She felt the same stone in her stomach that she always felt whenever something frightening was happening. She pressed closer to him, although careful not to arouse the suspicion of her parents… Not yet.

Her parents didn't smile.

"Lee, you didn't tell us that you where doing this." Her mother started.

Her father nodded in agreance.

"Well, you never would have let me otherwise!" Lee said, aggravated.

Her parents glanced over at Adam. "Who are you, really then, Adam? And why do you always seem to be around our daughter?"

Lee knew that this was it. They absolutely had to tell them now. She linked her hand into his, looking at her parents confused expressions. Adam opened his mouth to speak, searching for the right words.

"Well… You see… Lee and I…"

"Um, we're sort of in love." Lee finished.

She watched her parents faces contort into horrified expressions. "What?" They asked.

Adam and Lee looked away from everyone, trying to recollect their thoughts.

"Well, I mean-" Lee began.

She wasn't able to finish before her mother grabbed onto her arm roughly.

"You are coming with us right now." She said, freezing Lee to her core.

Her father went to get the door.

"No, stop!" Lee cried out, fighting back against them.

She looked to Adam for help, not wanting to go home. She knew what was waiting for her there. Adam came to the scene, pulling Lee out of their hands.

"Wait, Mr. and Mrs. Jones, please just- wait." He said, putting his hand up, protecting Lee from their hands with another. "I know that this looks really bad, but- but please. I promise its not as bad as it looks. I mean, I really love this kid," He said, putting an arm around Lee's shoulders. "She means a lot to me, and I swear I'm not dating her just because she's young and pretty, I really care about her." He looked at them, desperately, trying to get them to believe that what he said was true.

Her parents were unmoved, making to take Lee from him again. Lee grabbed onto Adams arm, moving away from her parents. "Mom, Dad, please!" She felt herself tearing up again for the third time that day. "Please." She felt her throat tighten up again, as she fought back tears. " I mean, you're tearing me apart from someone that I want to have a future with! You think that you're doing it for my own good, but you're destroying something really good! Please! I just want to be with him! You're being unfair." She said.

Her mother took her arm forcefully again. "Sometimes, life isn't fair, Lee." She said. She began to pull her away, but lee broke free again. She jumped up into Adams arms and hugged him around the neck, tearfully.

"I love you." She said softly.

He hugged her tight. "I love you too. Don't worry, we're going to find a way to work this out."

Lee smiled, pulling away from him, shaking her head. "I don't think so, Adam. It was fun, but I think that its coming to an end. My parents aren't going to let us get within a hundred feet of each other. I think that this is goodbye…" She said.

Adam looked at her, feeling the reality sink in. She was so right. He saw her mouth fighting back against the onslaught of emotion that wanted to pour out. He hugged her again, feeling some tears in his own eyes.

He kissed her cheek, already missing the soft skin on her face.

Her mother pulled her away, Lee waved goodbye to him from behind her mother, getting pushed out the door.

She lay in bed at ten thirty, after being lectured, yelled, and preached at for about an hour. She put her hands over her face, regretting some of the things she had said to her parents. Today had, no doubt, been one of the most hectic days of her life so far.

Adam sat in his hotel room, head in his hands. When she had said goodbye, he could have just split in two. He dragged his hands down his face, trying to pull away his problems. He couldn't stand this, it was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. He looked up, taking a sip of water. He saw the car keys on top of his jacket.

5

Lee pulled on her blue tank top over her slim stomach, patting it smooth over her black athletic shorts. She climbed into her futon-bed, when there was a knocking at her window. She sat bolt upright, afraid. Her window was on the second floor, and the only way up was if the intruder had somehow climbed the tree close by her window. She edged to the window, pulling the curtains away from the glass with a trembling hand. Her jaw dropped slightly.

"Adam?" She asked.

She quickly unlocked the window, pulling it up to let him inside. He climbed in swiftly, trying to make as little noise as possible as his shoes hit the floor. He stood in her room, looking down at her, she looked back up at him, feeling very confused, but elated. Her slim, pale shoulders were left out bare by the tank top, her short legs rising up into her shorts. Adam held her tightly, not quite sure of what he had just did.

"Adam, how the heck did you get up here? This is the second story!" She whispered.

"I climbed the tree." He said.

She didn't answer, just simply hugged him tighter. He kissed her briefly.

"Ok, get some stuff together." He said.

"What?" She asked, not quite following him,

"I'm taking you with me."

"What?" She repeated, disbelieving him.

"Come on," He said, grabbing suitcase out of her closet.

"I-"

"Lee, if we don't go now, we're never going to see each other again. It's now or never."

Lee looked up at him. She wanted to go so badly, but her school, and her parents… Would it work out?

"O-Ok." She said. She trusted him. She went into her closet, putting clothes into the suitcase, trying to sort out what she really needed. She put socks, clothing, toothbrush and toothpaste, hair-ties, her laptop, a couple books, piano music, sketch book, wallet, and awkwardly stuffed underwear in last. She looked around her room quickly, thinking of anything else that might be important. She tucked her cell-phone into her jacket pocket as she pulled the white sweater over her bare shoulders.

Adam picked her suitcase up in his arms, ready to go.

"Ok, ready?"

Lee's heart was beating fast, she felt a cold sweat break out. "Um, yeah."

They walked down the stairs together, trying not to make noise. They stepped off the last stair turning the corner, when they were confronted by her disgruntled parents, eyes bleary from sleep.

"What the hell do you two think you're doing? Why are you in our house?" They demanded grumpily.

Adam shifted Lee's suitcase. "I'm sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Jones. I know its late, but I have to be with your daughter. Its like saying I cant eat or sleep. I just- have to."

"Absolutely not." Said her father.

"Wait, dad, please! Please…"

She hugged Adams stomach, frightened. He pulled her to him in a bunch, wondering if this was the last he'd ever see of her. Her parents watched, transfixed by the exchange of emotion. Her mother stepped back, trying to determine what to do. She and her father exchanged quick whispers as her daughter embraced the strange man.

"Adam," Her father said. "You'd better swear that you're going to take care of our girl." He said gruffly.

"I- what?' He said. Lee looked back at her parents.

"Don't you dare harm her, you hear?" He continued. Her father turned to go back to bed. Lee could have sworn that she saw a flash of remorse on her fathers face as he left. Adam put her down, looking at her mother for answers.

"Adam, Lee's yours." She said, briskly. Lee could see her holding back emotion. Lee broke away from Adam, hugging her mother.

"Thank you!" She said. Her mother awkwardly hugged back.

Lee stepped away, watching her mother leave towards the bedroom, with a bit of sadness. Adam draped his arms around her shoulders, disbelieving what just happened.

She rested her head back on Adams stomach.

"I cant believe it…" She said.

Adam just hugged her to him, absolutely elated. He couldn't believe he had just- done this. It was somewhat of a miracle.

"Come on, lets go." He said to her, offering her his hand. She gladly took it, and they headed towards the front door. She stopped right before leaving, bending down to pet her dog that had run to them, investigating this stranger that was by his human. She hugged him tightly, trying to make a mental note of what he felt like. She came close to crying over him, realizing that she'd miss him the most out of anyone. "Bye, Sebastian." She said softly to the black lab.

Adam put a hand on her back, telling her it was time to go. Lee kissed the dogs nose before leaving, Sebastian watching her go through the glass door.

Adam loaded her suitcase into the back of the car, going around to the drivers side as Lee got in. They drove in a comfortable silence, watching the headlights of the car slowly reveal the road path that was obscured by night. They drove for a while, finally pulling into an apartment complex about thirty minutes later. Adam pulled keys out of his pocket, unlocking the door to one of the rooms.

She walked in while he doubled back to get her suitcase. She marveled at the interior. It was a generic off white color, but well furnished, with a bit of art scattered here and there. She walked in to see the kitchen, finding it to be suitable for an apartment. She leaned against the counter, surveying the rest of the apartment through the cut out in the wall, right above the stove. She could see the den, and the hallway to the bedroom from the open space in the kitchen wall. Adam walked in through the den, closing the door behind him. He set the suitcase on the ground next to the lounge chair. He looked at her through the kitchen cut-out, breaking out into a smile, walking through the den to the kitchen, disappearing from her view from the cut-out, reappearing in the doorway. He leaned against the doorpost, looking at her with the same grin.

She smiled back, meeting him half-way, jumping up into his arms. She buried her face into his neck, wrapping her short legs around his midsection. He held her to him easily, seeing as she was pretty light.

She got down, kissing him quickly, making to go get her suitcase. He pulled her back, kissing her again. She froze quickly, then released her tension and kissed back. He pushed her up against the wall, pushing her jacket off of her shoulders, onto the floor. He felt the smooth, slightly cool skin of her shoulders, feeling the small bones underneath the pale skin.

She flinched back a bit, but he knew it was just old habit. He felt her shoulders, running his thumbs over the tops, onto the beginning of her collarbone, telling her it was ok. He felt her shoulders slowly relax, still a bit stiff from fear. He kissed the spot on her neck that had made her cry out last time, biting down softly.

She yelped, out of surprise, feeling her knees go weak underneath her. She grabbed his arms that held her shoulders for support, feeling the muscles ripple underneath from holding back what he wanted to do right now.

Adam restrained himself, trying to hold himself back from throwing her onto the floor and- 'No, don't think about it, or else you'll end up actually doing it.' He thought.

Her head was spinning so fast she could barely register what was going on, she just knew that she was being pinned to a wall and kissed. 'It's not Jackson. It's not Jackson. It's not Jackson..' She had to remind herself. Her memory flashed back to all the times she spent with Jackson, and she began to feel panic creeping over her.

He felt her begin to tense up again, feeling her drawing into the wall, away from him. He released her, pulling away. "What's wrong?" He asked, looking at her flushed face.

"I, I was thinking about- about Jackson, and-"

Adam hugged her again. "I'd never hurt you, Lee. Ever."

She believed him, getting up on her toes, pulling him down to her level to kiss him.

He walked them back into a wall, holding her neck with one hand, and inching another down to the edge of her shirt. She breathed in sharply as he reached his hand under her shirt. She couldn't remember a time when Jackson had ever touched her without hurting her. She shakily let him touch her, terrified, but all the same curious as to what most of the girls her age had experienced.

She could barely breathe, it was like her throat had closed up until it was like a straw tube. She wished she was more- full. She shamefully wore a double A cup, which she hated with a passion. They barely filled his palm.

Adam ran his thumb over the scar, tracing it once, twice, three times. He could feel her heart beat, could feel it quicken when he got close. He pressed closer, putting more pressure on her chest. He felt her heart race. He smirked into the kiss.

She was a tight coil, completely on edge from adrenaline. He pulled her down onto the carpeted floor of the apartment, pinning her under him. He held himself above her with an arm, running other hand up, then down her side. He put a hand on her hip, feeling the groove of her hipbone, feeling the small hollow with his thumb. God he wanted her so badly. She was driving him wild, in a tank top and athletic shorts nonetheless. He could barely restrain his instincts.

She felt him trail a hand down to the edge of her shorts, feeling a finger reach underneath the waist of it, a second one feeling the edge of her underwear- She gasped into the kiss, grabbing onto his forearm, trying to raise a knee, but was unable to; his body was completely on top of her. He came to a stop, pulling his hand out. He pulled away from her, still inches from her face. She was terrified, he saw. And he couldn't blame her, considering what had happened in the past.

"I- I'm sorry. I got carried away.." He breathed.

She could barely speak, still intoxicated from being so close to him. He sat back a bit, pulling her up with him. She sat between his legs, her hand still clasped onto his forearm.

"No- I, I'm sorry, I just cant… It's- old memories." She said, remembering the close call from her Jackson time.

He shook his head. "Its ok." He helped her up, and she went to unpack.

"I-I thought you were living in a hotel." She said as she put her toothbrush and toothpaste in a cup, walking towards the bathroom.

"Checked out before I got you." He said.

"Oh." She set her cup down and came back out. She got situated after a while of debating who would sleep in the bed.

"Adam, it is your bed, so you should sleep in it." She said for the last time.

"Lee, that's not fair. I invited you here, you should get the bed.

She dropped down on the couch, feeling the cushions give way under her, making a small cradle. She smiled up at him. "It's comfortable." She said.

He smiled, rolling his eyes. "Whatever you say."

She tossed her sweater over her shoulders, brushing her teeth in the bathroom. She put some socks on, feeling the cold tile floor of the bathroom. Adam came out with some blankets, giving them to her to make a bed. "And if you need anything else just holler." He said.

"Alright. Night." She said, hugging him.

"G'night." He said back. He lay in bed, not quite believing that there was Lee in the other room. He fell into a dreamless sleep.

Lee woke with a cold sweat, looking around the strange room, disoriented.

'Where-?' She remembered where she was. She tried to wipe the nightmare out of her mind, but failed miserably. Another monster dream. She had been in her old room and oh god it had been there drooling down at her and had taken bite after bite after bite and had enjoyed it and she had died in agony while-

She got up from the couch, going over the her mostly empty suitcase, pulling her cell phone out of the front pocket.

5:47 a.m. She breathed out in dismay. She took her sketchbook out of another pocket, finding a stray pencil on one of Adam's counters. She tip-toed into Adam's room.

6

Adam rolled over in bed, feeling the morning slapping him awake. He laid on his side for a while, waiting for his mind to wake up completely. He rolled over, awake now. He opened his eyes, jumping a bit.

"Christ! Lee, you scared me to death!"

Lee had flinched with him, still wearing a look of surprise. "Sorry, I- I didn't mean to scare you." She quickly closed the cover of her sketchbook, trying to make it as discreet as-

"What's that?" Adam asked, hanging both legs over the side of the bed, ready to get out.

Lee blushed slightly at the sight of him in his boxers and undershirt.

"Oh, this? Nothing." She said, moving to get out of the chair by the wall. Adam was already there, blocking her way out of the chair.

"No, really, what is it?" He asked, reaching down for it.

"Adam, its nothing, don't worry about it." She said, defending it.

"Lee, I just want to see-"

"I-"

She ducked underneath his arm, racing for the door. He grabbed her before she could reach it, wrangling the book out of her grip. He held her to his side, exercising his heavy physical advantage over her. He placed the book on his bedside table, using his free hand to flip through the pages.

He was astonished at what he saw. Perfect, lifelike drawings of people. People eating, sitting, standing at bus stops, everything. He flipped through more pages. All were in pencil, but they seemed to almost walk out of the paper to him, they were- incredible.

Lee continued struggling at his side, trying to break free of his iron grip. He paid no attention. He came to the last page, and felt a slight smile creep onto his face. It was him, sleeping. He guessed that that was what she was doing this whole time. He leaned in closer to see the detail, amazed that someone could do that with pencil at fifteen.

"Wow… Lee… You never told me you could do this." He said.

She continued struggling. "Well- hngh, you never asked- urgh." She wrestled her way out of his arm, at least after he relaxed his grip.

He handed her the book, and she took it back gratefully. "You're incredible, you know."

She looked away. "Um, thanks.." She said quietly. She had never shown anyone before, she felt naked.

She put the sketchbook in her suitcase awkwardly, embarrassed by his praise.

"Lee," He said, taking her by the shoulders. "You're really good. I mean it."

Her face flushed again, she couldn't meet his eyes. She looked off to the left. "Um, thanks. Sorry, I'm just not used to showing people my stuff. I'm sort of like a closet-artist…" She laughed quickly.

Adam hugged her quickly, stepping into the kitchen to make breakfast.

"And on that note, what would you like this morning?"

"Oh, I could make breakfast if you want, I usually-"

Adam smiled. "Nope, I've got this one. What do you want?"

Lee thought briefly. "Um, how about waffles?"

"Yeah, sure." Lee sat while he made waffles. It felt so odd, letting someone else make you breakfast, having someone that was so- nurturing. Her parents were so stiff, it was a shock to have someone hugging or smiling at her all the time. She absolutely loved it.

They ate at the small table in the kitchen, Lee had orange juice, while Adam stuck to coffee. She sighed in content when she finished.

"You're a really good cook, you know." She said to him.

He laughed. "Thanks. I sort of had to learn, with being out of college and all."

Lee remembered school in a flash. "Oh jeez.." She said out loud.

Adam looked up at her from his coffee.

"School. Oh man, I have school in a week. I completely forgot…" She put her glass down.

Adam realized that this posed a problem. "Oh… That's a dilemma… Um… Ok, well, you cant just not finish school. Alright, where is it? Is there a bus stop around here?"

"Um… Not sure. Probably, though. It's like, right around here. It's the DuBois Public High School."

Adam recognized that name. "Oh, yeah, yeah, I know where that is. I think there's a bus stop outside the apartment complex."

"Ok… But what about all the wavers that the legal guardians are supposed to sign?" She asked.

Adam just shrugged, unable to come up with a better answer.

That was soon solved after Adam checked the mail. Her parents had signed the authority forms, giving Adam the position of "Legal Guardian".

After the day blew by, Lee woke up again from nightmares.

She rubbed her face, upset at her lack of sleep. They had been getting worse ever since the winter break started, accompanied by terrible headaches.

She got up from the couch, exhausted from lack of sleep. She walked over to Adams room, still shaking from the nightmare.

"Adam?" She whispered, frightened. Afraid that another monster was going to pop out at her from the shadows of the room.

He rolled over, opening an eye. "Yeah?" He asked, not sounding drowsy in the slightest.

"I had a bad dream, can I sleep with you?" She asked, fiddling with the end of her shorts.

He pulled the sheets back for her to get in. She climbed in, moving close to the warm spot that Adam had made. She eventually drifted off, half-mad from sleep deprivation.

Adam felt something warm next to him the next morning, and he felt an extra heart beat. He looked down, seeing Lee. Last night came flooding back to him. 'Oh, right..' He thought. For a brief moment, he had thought that they had-

'Don't Adam, don't think about it. You'll start thinking about it and then you'll end up doing it.'

She opened her eyes, sleepily. She felt an arm over her, and she froze, then remembered waking up last night and crawling in with him. She glanced at him in her peripherals. He saw she was awake, smiling at her, propped up on his pillow by an elbow. She pinked a bit, smiling back at him.

She sat at the breakfast table four mornings later, knowing that this was the last day of winter break. After that night four days ago, she had moved from transferring beds in the middle of the night to falling asleep in the same bed as him. Her nightmares had begun to fade away, to her surprise. They had gone from horrific to just unsettling, which was an improvement. Something had crossed her mind lately, planting itself deep into her consciousness. She tried to push it out of her mind, but it was just so persistent.

"Lee? Orange Juice?" Adam asked again.

"I-oh, um, yes, please." She said, jolted out of her thoughts.

Adam poured the orange juice, watching her stare off again out of the corner of his eye.

"Lee, are you ok?" He asked, setting the glass of orange liquid on the table.

"Y-Yeah. Hey, um, I need to run out of here to get school supplies, is it ok if I go after this?" She asked, trying to change the conversation.

"Oh, sure. You want me to drive you?" He asked.

"Naw, I'm ok." She said.

She already had school supplies.

Lee drove down to the Mayo Clinic after getting dressed, at twelve. She kissed him goodbye. She parked his car in the lot, going into the front entrance. She re-shouldered her bag, not paying heed to this little nervous habit. She signed in, waiting in the room until her name was called. They did some tests, sending her back out to the waiting room while they ran them. She nervously played with her hands, cleaning under her nails, checking and re-checking her cell phone. Tapping rhythms to songs with her feet. Drumming her fingers. Her heart jumped up when they called her name.

She walked back into the room, watching the doctor pick the papers he had received from the tests, looking at them briefly. He looked at her sadly.

"I'm sorry." Was all he had to say.

Lee felt her face grow hot, feeling the beginnings of tears build up. She blinked them back.

"There's always adoption." The doctor said, trying to console her. "Besides, you don't have to worry about children for a while."

He handed her the papers, and she scanned them, searching for a flaw, or some sort of error. There wasn't one.

'Infertile.'

"Ok.. Thank you." She said. She bid goodbye to the doctor before leaving. She sat in the car, trying to accept that she was completely infertile. She suspected, since she was yet to ever get her period. Her mother had never actually asked why she had never requested supplies; Lee had always just assumed that the day was coming. She started to get uneasy during her fourteenth year, and after she turned fifteen- well, she felt like she needed assurance that everything was ok. Too bad it wasn't. She sat back against the seat, trying to come to terms with this mind-shattering discovery.

She read the papers. Absolutely no eggs. Apparently, her great aunt had been infertile as well. She set the papers on the passenger seat, on top of her bag. She wasn't thinking about having children right now, maybe not ever, but- she wished she had a bit of a choice. It was like a wall of water crashing down over her, the realization that her genetic code would stop right here, forever. She'd never be able to look down on a child with pride and think "That's my kid" or have someone look at her child, then back to her, speculating "They have your eyes".

She breathed in, trying to hold back tears.

She'd never bring a crying baby into this world, never feed it from her, never go through pregnancy, never-

She had to stop thinking about it.

She made it back to Adam's apartment at five o'clock that day, putting the papers into her knapsack. She noticed it was already dark outside from the winter months. He rose from the couch when she walked in.

"There you are! I was starting to get worried!"

He hugged her. She felt the clogged emotional pipes just burst, and she broke down to her primordial form, sobbing, crying, like a newborn.

Adam was shocked. He wasn't exactly sure why she was crying. He wondered if she had met someone bad in the store.

'Maybe Jackson?' His thoughts speculated.

"Hey.." He said soothingly. He sat them down on the couch, pulling her to him. "What is it?" He asked softly.

She didn't answer for a while. After her tears ran their course, she wiped her eyes with a tissue offered to her by Adam. She began to feel normal again, after the heat drained from her face. She felt her burning eyes fade back to their regular form, and her nose finally stopped running. She rested her head against his arm.

She gathered her bearings to her, sitting back in his grip.

"I didn't go to get school supplies today." She quietly.

He touched the side of her face with his hand, feeling her skin back to its normal temperature. She flinched slightly, then leaned against his hand.

"Well, where were you then?" He began to worry.

"The Mayo Clinic."

"And… Why were you there?"

She looked down. "Cause I had to get tested."

Adam wasn't following her. "For what?"

"I'm infertile." She said, feeling the bottle burst open. She could only wait for a reaction now.

Adam looked at her with confused sorrow. He pulled her back in. "I'm sorry." he whispered into her hair.

She couldn't cry anymore, so she leaned against him.

She handed him the papers from her bag, letting him read through them.

"I don't care though." Adam said. He brought her face to his. "It doesn't matter to me." He said.

She laughed once, absolutely relieved at this. He kissed her. They stayed like that for a while, just being together on the couch. Lee let the memory embed itself into her mind as a keepsake.

"Ok, you have everything? Lunch, papers, books-"

"Adam, I'm fine." She said, smiling at him. "Remember, this isn't the first day at school. Its only after winter break."

He smiled back at her from the car. "Have a good day." He said.

"You too!" She called, walking away. She watched the car drive away from the corner of her eye. She could hardly believe it was school time already. She breezed through her classes, already getting into the dull and unimaginative mindset that school required. She sat at her lunch table with her friends, not really paying much attention to whatever it was they were talking about.

"Oooh, Lee, I spy with my little eye, someone that likes what he se-es" One of the girls said in a sing-song voice.

Lee stiffly, turned her head, seeing Jackson smiling at her from another table. She was frozen solid in an underground cave, no, she was drowning in a never ending ocean, no she was-

She turned away, keeping a straight face. She hunched over, trying not to let him get to her. Her friends still didn't know about the past they had, only that they had suddenly broke off sometime earlier that year. Another girl signaled Jackson to come sit with them.

"No, Nichole, please-"

"Don't be stupid." Nichole said back, making room next to Lee. "Just try to be- well, normal-ish."

Lee loved Nichole like a sister, but sometimes she read all the wrong signs. Jackson sat next to Lee, too close for comfort. She eased away from him, trying not to look at his face.

"Hey, Lee." He said.

"Jackson- um, hi." She said, pulling her backpack towards her on the table, trying to find something to do with her hands. Her friends, she realized to her dismay, had moved to another table, trying to look like they weren't watching the two. Jackson smiled at her, putting a hand on her leg, unseen by her group of friends. He gripped it tightly. She was about to cringe when he moved closer, whispering "You're coming back to me, you hear? You're gonna come back, and be my bitch, and we can finish what we started."

Lee tried to keep a poker face, afraid of what would happen if her façade slipped.

"Smile, nod, and come with me." She did what he told her. Her friends watched them go, excitedly babbling about how cute they were.

Lee walked beside the brown haired boy, trying to find the best time to make a run for it. She shifted her backpack on her shoulders. She non-chalantly stuck her phone in her pocket, trying to remember if there was anything else that was important in her backpack. She couldn't think on anything, realizing she had left her wallet at home. She glanced over at Jackson again, sizing him up. He had at least eighty pounds on her, and about a foot in height. She tried to slow her breathing. Just as he turned to her, she sprinted, dropping her backpack. She ran as fast as she could, thanking herself that she had worn sneakers that day. She could hear Jackson gaining on her, he sounded furious.

She felt panic rising, and used it to her advantage. She ran faster, jumping over a rail, speeding back in the direction of the lunchroom. She ran down the hall, just about to turn the corner when he grabbed her by the shoulder. He threw her to the ground, her head hit the ground with a dull thud. Everything went hazy, but she felt herself being lifted off the ground. She groaned, touching the back of her head. She came to her senses, thanks to the adrenaline that was still pumping through her veins. She twisted and writhed in his arms, he held her tighter.

He pushed Lee against the wall and kissed her roughly. She fought back, pushing and scraping his arms. He grabbed her wrists and held them against the wall on either side of her head. He forced his tongue into her mouth, and she bit back, causing him to pull away. He hit her across the cheekbone. She smiled wearily at him. Before she knew it, he pushed her to the ground, causing her to hit her head once again. She managed to keep her senses, and she kneed him between the legs as he put a hand up her shirt. He let out an "Oomf", and she did it again before he could stop her. He rolled off her, involuntarily curling into a ball, hands between his legs.

She kicked his stomach, making sure he stayed down. "Now who's you're bitch?" She said bitterly. She turned her back on him, running around to the corner of the hallway. She called Adam's phone, hands shaking.

"Hello?"

"Adam, please come get me. I need help. I'm in the right wing hallway." She said, inching away from the rising Jackson.

Lee hung up before he could ask any questions. She got to her feet as quickly as she could and began running again. She passed the cafeteria doors, knowing that there was no time to get them open.

'Get out of these hallways.' She told herself. She would have to open a door to do that. She sprinted down, glancing back to see Jackson picking up pace behind her. She had about a ten foot lead. She sprinted ahead, seeing a slightly open door to the hallway. She took the chance, darting to it and grasping the handle- she was grabbed around the middle, pulled away from the door.

She cried out, knowing that no one would hear her inside the noisy cafeteria. She felt a drop of blood fall from her face, realizing that her cheek was bleeding. Her phone fell from her hand, clattering away. She pushed up at him, ready to fight until the end. He pushed her down to the floor, trapping her against the cold tiles.

"Jackson, please." She said softly.

Jackson looked down at her. "We're not over yet, Lee."

He kissed her again, knowing better than to make the same mistake. He pushed himself up against her, ensuring that she couldn't move.

Lee endured this for five minutes. She tried to think about anything else, but the memories were completely taking over her mind. He wouldn't let her speak, she was completely silent against him. He pushed her shirt up, feeling the old scar he had made. She could feel him smirk.

She would rather die than go through this. She pleaded silently for Adam to hurry up, before they really did finish what they started. He put a hand over her mouth, kissing her neck, kissing her shoulders.

"Lee?" Adam came running down the hallway. Jackson let go of her, seeing someone coming. Adam and Jackson made eye contact.

Adam felt a building rage come out. 'This is the kid who hurt Lee.' He thought.

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked, pulling Jackson off of Lee. He held him by the collar of his blue shirt, looking at him with an escalating fury. Lee pushed her shirt down, sitting up slowly, feeling a major headache circling over her.

"Well?" Adam said, shaking him.

Jackson refused to answer, pushing away from Adam. Jackson walked away without an answer, just looking back at Lee. She looked up at him, hurt, tired, terrified.

He turned, walking away, sticking his hands into his pockets.

Adam watched him, deciding it wasn't worth it.

He dropped down to Lee. She looked at him wide-eyes, hands still ready to hold her head to prevent blows. He took her gently, telling her it was ok, knowing that on some level she understood him. She didn't say anything. She was still rigid. He helped her up, putting her into the car after retrieving her abandoned backpack. He checked her out of the school, driving the six minutes to the apartment.

He brought them into the den, keeping a protective arm around her. They sat on the couch together, neither saying a word. She lay against him on the cushy surface, just thinking to herself.

'And if he had lived farther away then- and what if I hadn't even met Adam? What would have happened? He probably would have done it then.'

Time passed, and she lay against him, listening to his heart beat. She could hear the blood rushing in and out of his heart. She endured the headache that plagued her, wishing she hadn't chosen to go back to school that day.

"Adam, can I go to a different school?"

Her question was so blunt and sudden that Adam laughed out loud. "Sure." He said, tousling her hair.

7

She transferred to the public school on the other side of the river, and quickly made friends. She met another girl her age, Stephanie. Through her, she became acquainted with the schools theatrics department, surprised at the sheer amount of people that were there. She even participated in a couple of the school productions.

She stood on the podium, holding her diploma in one hand, leaving the other dangling at her side. She looked into the audience, seeing Adam, smiling back at her. She grinned sheepishly. She shook the principal's hand and walked offstage, cheered on by her drama friends. She felt pretty good about graduating. She had gotten a hold of every scholarship she could find and had worked as hard as she could, driving Adam half crazy with her dis-organized study habits and the constant pacing around the house reciting the table of elements to herself.

Adam hugged her tightly after the ceremonies were over.

"Well, I guess you did it, then." He said.

"I guess I did…" She said quietly.

Now twenty four, Adam didn't look much different at all. Still the same old six-four man that Lee had known for three years. Adam held Lee out at an arms length, looking at her. At seventeen, she didn't actually look drastically different. She hadn't grown up at all, to her dismay. Still five-two. Still flat-chested. Still thin. The only real different was her hair and face. Her hair had grown to her middle back, and a bit more red over the years, turning into a sort of strawberry blonde color that Adam just wanted to run his hands through. He did. Her face wasn't beautiful, still in the permanent "Cute" stage, coined by the button nose and big eyes.

"What?' She asked, as Adam let go of her hair.

"Nothing." He said.

The blue robe was suffocatingly hot, and she had to lift it off the ground to walk. She tucked the graduation hat under her arm.

"Ready to go?" She asked him.

"Wait, did you say goodbye to your friends?" He asked, seeing them looking her way.

"Oh! You're right. Hold on then." She gave Adam her hat and scroll, running to her crowd of friends. She hugged all of them, most of the men lifting her off the ground like a little kid. She waved a sad goodbye to them, promising to keep in touch.

They went out to dinner that night, laughing through most of it. Lee felt like she was floating. She had for the last three years. She loved laughing with him, and she loved falling asleep next to him, and she loved just being around him. He was sort of infectious. She sipped at her water, listening to him tell his story of what had happened at work.

After being kicked off the cast of Wicked, they had settled down here, he had gotten a job that he absolutely hated. He was an employee at a local bank. She always tried to convince him to come work at the restaurant that she waitresses at as a bar-tender, but they had never actually got around to doing that.

She listened intently, but at the same time, her mind drifted into the meshy matter of her thoughts. She knew that now she was seventeen, sex with him couldn't be considered a felony- she tried to get her mind off the topic, knowing she would turn a shade of pink, but it stuck tight. It wasn't that she didn't want to, it was just that- she as absolutely terrified of anything of the sort. When they talked about it in health class, she felt a bit sick to her stomach with discomfort.

They had gotten close a couple of times, but every time she had cracked and had to "go get some air", a.k.a, I'm absolutely terrified of doing this with you. Of course she felt terrible, leaving him there while she stood outside on the apartment balcony, trying to recollect herself.

"Lee?" Adam asked.

She almost dropped her glass of water. "Y-yeah?" She asked.

Adam had grown accustomed to her falling into a state of dream-like consciousness during the day.

"You ready to go?" He asked.

She smiled, nodding.

Adam insisted on paying, as always. He had had something on his mind for a while, since last month. They had both gone to his friend, Matt's, wedding. It had planted an idea in his head… He discreetly touched his pocket, feeling the bump of the case. He had intentions.

Lee flounced down on the couch, exhausted. Her graduation gown sat in the back of their car, her forest green dress billowed out around her like a pool of bright paint, her curly hair tumbled over the pillows of the couch.

"Whew. Some day, huh?" She asked. She sounded like she did when he first met her. A light voice, it sounded like it would have a honey-comb texture if it was tangible.

He pulled the small box out of his pocket, shielding it from her sight with his big hand.

"Mhmm." He said. He kneeled down next to her, opening the box. His heart was practically racing, he thought it would break his ribs. "How do you feel about marrying me?"

Lee glanced over to him, seeing the classic black ring case open in Adams hands. He looked at her, waiting for her to say something.

She sat up on the couch, letting her feet hang over the side. She stared at the box, caught completely off-guard.

"I-" She looked from him to the box him box him box him- "Yeah." She said, faintly. "Yes." She said with more confidence. She threw her arms around his neck, jumping on him, knocking both of them to the ground. She laid on top felt tears cloud her eyes. "Thank you!" She said, half laughing, half crying. Adam sat up with her on top of him, laughing with her in his lap. She felt the laughter vibrate in his chest.

He hugged her tightly. He picked up the scattered box, and pulled the ring out, putting it over her small finger. It fit. Lee looked down at it, not really expecting to ever wear one of these. It had a round diamond in the center, a gold band wrapped around her finger. She looked up at him and kissed him lightly, hugging him again.

"Are you sure though? I mean, we'll never have our own kids and-"

Adam kissed her, cutting her off. "It doesn't matter to me. You know why? Cause I love you." He kissed her again, bringing her closer."Thanks." She said again.

He ran a hand over her back. "No problem, kiddo."

She smiled, burying her face into the shoulder of his jacket.

Lee called her friends later that day, telling them what was going on. Only a couple knew about what her situation was with Adam, but the rest were just as enthusiastic. She promised to extend invitations. She held the phone in her hand, wondering if she would really call them. Her parents. She hadn't talked to them since she left. Sure, she had missed them, but not that much. She was already used to being without them most of the time; but, she felt, they deserved to know what was going on, and to decide whether or not to come to the wedding. She nervously dialed the number, feeling herself begin to get flustered.

Lee almost breathed in relief when she got the answering machine. She left a message, making a mental note to listen for the phone. She hated to admit it, but she wanted to talk to them.

Addressing the invitations was an absolute nightmare. Adam and Lee opted to do it themselves, regretting that decision when they realized how many invitations there were to address.

Lee sighed, putting her pen down. "Jeez Louis. This is taking forever. Why did we have to make so many friends?" She asked.

Adam smiled. "You're just that much of a social butterfly." He said, closing the invitation inside a white envelope. After three hours (and a carpal tunnel), they finally finished the last invitation. Lee slouched back in her chair, tired from doing nothing for so long. They decided on having the wedding a month later, Adam was pretty enthusiastic about tying the knot.

Lee felt the days begin to blur together, one just melted into the other like hot metal. She tried to keep up with the plans, but she could barely remember what day it was.

She got a call a week later. She steeled herself, preparing to talk to her parents.

"Lee?" Asked a girls voice.

"Stephanie?" Lee asked incredulously. "How are you?" She said, excited to talk to her friend again.

"Not much, girl. Hey, congrats."

"Thanks. You coming?"

"You know it. Hey, me and some of the other girls were thinking, how about a bachelorette party? You could stay with us, and you could get a dress and we could party?"

Lee laughed once. "That sounds amazing… Um, hold on. Can I call you back?"

"Sure." The line clicked. Lee sat back on the couch, feeling her heart beat. She really wanted to go and stay with her friends for three weeks… But what about Adam?

"Adam?" She called.

He came out into the living room in his boxers, drying his hair on a towel. She blushed, looking down.

"Um- oh. Right. Ok, so I just got a call from Stephanie, saying that I could come and live with her and some of my other girlfriends for about three weeks. Until the wedding."

"Wow… That's nice of them." Adam said. "You going?"

"Well, I'd like to, but… I mean, is that ok?"

Adam laughed. "Well, yeah. Go ahead, Lee."

Lee hugged him. "Thank you!" She felt his bare chest against her, and she pulled away, red in the face.

"Um, I'm calling Stephanie." She mumbled.

Adam watched her sit back onto the couch, breathing out in exacerbation. 'Sooner or later she's going to have to get used to this- actually, in the next three weeks… Three weeks from now we'll be-' He turned away, going back to get dressed, and smirk on his face.

Lee called Stephanie, bubbly with excitement.

Stephanie insisted on picking her up the next day. Lee packed that night, buzzing with excitement.

"And- and we're going to pick out a dress, and we're having a party and- oh man its going to be awesome." Lee finished, all worked up. She put the plates in the sink, washing them with the sponge.

"Bye!" She said. Lee hugged him goodbye. "See you on the big day." She said. She turned to go, when he caught her arm.

"I love you." He said. He pulled her into a kiss, to the amusement of her friends. He pulled her to him, savoring the moment, knowing this would be it for three weeks. He pulled away, knowing she would be red, which she was. She smiled sheepishly at him, walking to Stephanie's car. She watched him from inside the car, face slowly returning to its normal color.

"Well well." Said Stephanie, getting into the house. "You two are pretty cute, you know."

Lee flushed red once again. "Oh, thanks…"

She put Lee's bag onto the end of the stairs, ready to go up. Lee looked around the house. "Wow… So this is you families vacation house?" She asked, wondrously.

"Yup." Said Stephanie. Among her, there was Alessandria, Meg, Charlotte, Lily, and Jamie; all of which she knew from drama. She hugged and greeted every one of them. They finally headed upstairs, sitting in the main bedroom.

It was at least eight o'clock, although Lee wasn't for sure, there was no clock.

"So, Lee." Said Charlotte.

Lee looked up from the sock she was fixing on her foot.

"You and Adam back there… Have you two even done it yet?"

This seemed to catch everyone's attention. All eyes were on Lee. She turned pink again.

"I- No… We haven't…"

They all giggled, and Lee felt like she was back in fifth grade again, but couldn't help laughing along.

"No way." Said Alessandria. "Why not? He's gorgeous." She said.

"Well, I don't know… I guess I've just been too afraid to." She admitted.

"Well, you're going to have to soon." Said Jamie.

"She'll be fine." Said Stephanie. "We'll give you a few pointers and a bit of help, though." She winked.

Lee laughed.

The three weeks were bliss. Lee had forgotten how fun it was to be around people her age since school, which seemed like ages ago. They had the bachelorette party, and Lee managed to talk them out of hiring a stripper- just barely. Although, she was completely unprepared for the gifts that she received. She burst out laughing at most, along with the rest of the girls, turning a shade of pink, as she always did. It was an evening that she would remember for a while- it was permanently scarred into her memory.

The search for the dress lasted a week, until they finally found the right one.

There was a week left, and Lee felt so- nervous. She didn't ever think she was going to get married. When asked what she wanted to do with her life, her trademark response was "be successful and get a lot of money to travel the world" but now… It had drastically changed. She stood in the mirror, seeing herself in a white gown. Her bridesmaids flurried around her, fixing and straightening this and that.

Stephanie was giving her last minute pointers for after the wedding party, that Lee tried to commit to memory, but failed, due to the graphic nature of the content.

"Good luck, Lee." Stephanie said. "Be brave." She said, jokingly. Lee thanked her, knowing she'd need it.

She hugged her bridesmaids before exiting the room, but not before Meg could stick the veil in her hair.

She froze when she crossed to enter the hall. She had planned for Matt to walk her down the aisle, but- her father looked back at her, tearing up.

"Hello, Lee." He said.

She ran to him (as well as she could in heels) and hugged him dearly.

"Dad!" She said, trying to be quiet. "What are you doing here?" She asked, amazed to see him after three years.

"I'm here to hand you off… Why would I be back here?" He said, smiling.

She took the arm offered to her, gratefully gripping it. She heard the organ start playing, and she walked out of the building, out into the sunshine.

'An outdoors wedding was brilliant.' She thought as she walked down the aisle.

Adam turned to see her, and his breath caught in his throat. This couldn't be the same girl he had bid goodbye to three weeks earlier. She looked- beautiful. She had finally reached that stage. She had graduated from "cute" to "beautiful". Her hair fell over her shoulders, the color catching in the sunshine left him speechless. She had a thin, gauzy veil over her, partially masking her smiling, pale face. God he wished she never tanned. No one could pull off that paleness like she could. She walked beside her father, and it was picture perfect. It was a magazine cover.

Her dress billowed out, a creamy white. It pursed in at the neck line, pinching in at the middle to show off her pencil-thin waist. The bottom of the dress rolled out, making a classic wedding dress. She clasped a small gathering of white flowers between two small hands.

Her father released her, smiling sadly up at Adam, sorry he had never gotten to formerly talk to or have a conversation with him.

Adam looked down at Lee next to him. Lee looked up at him, admiring his suit. A plain black tuxedo, but it was- special. His broad shoulders where accentuated by the shoulders of the suit. He looked so- impressive. Lee grasped for words in her mind to describe him, but came up short. His black hair was brushed the way it normally was, and his eyes still that same foresty green.

They exchanged vows and rings, Lee didn't know what she was doing half the time, she just followed what Adam was saying.

"You may now kiss the bride."

Adam lifted back the veil, seeing her pale face, framed by soft curls, light pink cheeks, he kissed her fully, not caring about the audience. She pulled back, saving him from embarrassment. They ran down the aisle, linking hands, jumping into a car, while being pelted by rice. The chauffer drove them to their next location, being none other than Matt.

Lee pulled her veil off, knocking the rice off her dress and shaking it out of her hair. She pushed her bangs out of her face, turning to smile at Adam. Her heart was racing. She was- married. The title stuck with her. She wouldn't mind if it was to him. She looked down, then back at him, noticing the way he was looking at her.

She kicked off her heels, feeling relieved to get them off. She leaned against Adams shoulder, tired already, at two o'clock. They chatted the whole ride, Adam laughed through the entire explanation of the bachelor party, and Lee had to laugh along with him, it sounded hilarious.

"And I just barely talked Stephanie out of hiring a stripper!" Lee exclaimed.

Adam burst out laughing. "Wow. Cant say I would have expected that coming."

"Alright you two kids." Matt interrupted. "We're here." He unlocked the car doors.

"Thanks Matt."

They got out on opposite sides of the car, Lee carrying her heels in her hands. They walked in to a cheering wedding crowd. They waved next to each other, feeling like they were on some sort of stage. They cut the cake and sat through several toasts, almost crying with laughter at Matt's speech.

When it was time for them to dance, Lee whispered to Adam, trying to keep a straight face.

"Adam, I cant dance."

"I know. Just stand on top of my feet." He said. She stepped up on his feet, glad she wasn't wearing shoes. She wasn't able to reach around his neck, she settled for resting her hands on his bicep and back. Slowly, the rest of the crowd piled onto the dance floor. Matt and his wife, the brides maids and brides grooms, everyone. After that happened, things began to pick up pace.

When it was time for the groom to remove the garter, Lee sat on the chair nervously. After they blindfolded Adam, Lee was quietly taken from the chair. She looked around, confused. Matt sat down, wearing what looked like a long white skirt, and he had actually shaved one of his legs. Lee stifled her laughter. When Adam came out of the skirt with the garter in his teeth, she could barely contain herself. Matt was milking the moment, making faces and motions.

Adams blindfold was removed, and Matt crossed his legs. "I do say, my dear. You could have been a bit more gentle." Matt said prissily.

Adam stared at him, then burst out into laughter. "Matt, oh my god. Matt!" He said, coming after him. They play wrestled, the audience they had accumulated was in hysterics. Adam came over to Lee, hugging her. "Wow." He said simply.

He ended up doing the garter again, this time un-blindfolded. Lee had managed to shimmy the garter down to her knee when she learned about the second trial, but still fell into fits of giggles, turning pink when he removed it.

He picked her up, swinging her around before carrying her out of the building. It was completely black outside, at least nine at night. Before leaving, Lee had bid goodbye to everyone. On her way out, Stephanie had whispered "Don't forget what I told you." Lee nodded, not remembering a thing.

Her parents had actually came, both of them. They had congratulated her, letting her know that Adam had asked her father to walk her. She had looked back at Adam, catching his smile.

She fell into another car, taking shotgun. Adam drove.

She sat in the seat, feeling her heart begin beating out of her chest. She was almost positive he could hear it. She fumbled with her hands, feeling adrenaline coursing through her body. She fidgeted with her dress nervously. Nervous was an understatement. She was chilled to the bone at the revelation that in a couple minutes they would be- She brushed her bangs out of her face. She tried to breath deeply, tried to think about it like it was nothing- needless to say, she failed miserably.

Adam saw her begin to grow nervous. He thought about giving her a choice, knowing that would be the diplomatic thing to do. He was about to say something, when he caught another glimpse of her. He decided to be selfish. He parked the car, running around to the passenger side. Lee found it hard to breathe, her mental walls were closing in around her.

Adam opened the door, smiling down at her, reassuringly. He picked her up easily and carried her up the stairs of the apartment. He shifted her to one arm, opening the door. She was in a soft state of panic. They stepped into the threshold, where he set her down.

She walked into the kitchen, getting glasses down from the shelf.

"Uhm, Adam, are you thirsty?" She asked, trying to stall for time. She downed her glass of water.

"Not really, thanks." He said, voice coming from the living room. He kicked his shoes off, throwing his coat over the couch.

Lee set her water glass down, wiping her mouth. Her heart was beating faster and faster. Two arms wrapped around her, she felt another heart beat against the back of her head. He could feel her heart beating at a lightning pace, knowing that he was doing this to her. He turned her around to face him, not really sure how he should go about this.

She looked at him, feeling her whole being pulsate. He had lost his jacket, now just in black slacks and a white shirt, with black suspenders. She thought back to that night before they had performed for Wicked, he had looked almost the same. She just wished she wasn't so nervous right now. Adam kissed her, pulling the zipper down on her dress.

Her thoughts began to spin rapidly, she was barely able to formulate words. He stopped suddenly. She looked at his face, silently asking What?. He picked her up, carrying her over to the bedroom. Lee's heart beat faster and faster, she was sure that it would either burst or beat out of her chest. He set her down, unzipping the rest of the dress. He pulled her forward, out of the dress.

She fumbled with the buttons on the front of his shirt, 'It's going to happen one way or another, so now is as good a time as any.' She thought. She managed to get the first three undone, Adam helped with the rest. He pulled his shirt off, along with the undershirt. Lee felt his heart, feeling it beat faster when she touched him. It was odd, feeling this seemingly infallible mans heart beat faster just by her touching his chest. The suspenders hung lifelessly at his sides.

Adam undid the belt around his waist, pulling out, throwing it to the ground. He unbuttoned the top of his pants, kicking them off. He turned back to Lee, taking her by the shoulders. They stood there in their underwear, staring at each other. Adam smiled and kissed her. He threaded his arms round her chest and legs, picking her up, setting her onto the bed. She looked at him standing beside the bed, he looked back at her, laying on her back in nothing but her underwear.

He pinned her under him, he told her there was no going back. She kissed him, frightened.

"I'm sorry." He said. He shoved into her and she squeezed his hand, feeling waves of pain crash over her.

"Say my name." He said huskily. She cried it out, feeling the end drawing close.

He rolled off of her, panting. She lay next to him, exhausted. She hurt all over, she was tired, she was hungry, she would do it all over again, given the chance. She rested her head in the crook of his arm, getting comfortable. He was- wilder than she expected. She felt her face heat up, remembering the scene taken place just minutes ago.

"Adam, you were a crazy person." She said.

Adam looked at her. "I've been told." He said. He flipped over, hovering over her again. "After three years, we have some catching up to do. Lets go this time for real."

Lee flushed red. 'For real?'

8

She woke up the next morning in a daze. She remembered- She turned pink. She looked over to her at the empty spot next to her, hearing commotion in the kitchen. She looked down at herself, realizing that she was completely nude. She quickly got dressed, finding walking- different. She still hurt from last night.

"Adam?" She called, walking gingerly into the kitchen. He had already gotten up and dressed in an undershirt and blue boxers.

"Hey, Lee." He said, handing her a plate. She managed to sit down, shifting her weight against the chair. Adam laughed through his nose.

"Hey, don't laugh. This is all your fault." She said, jokingly.

Adam laughed out loud at her attempt to lean forward to her plate. She cringed, finally resolving to stand at the counter and eat. Adam joined her, still laughing lightly.

Lee breezed through college, finally getting a degree in microbiology. Adam was surprised at this choice.

"But, I still don't understand. I thought you liked English."

She sat next to him on the park bench. "I do, but I love biology." She said, smiling. After four years, she was finally twenty-one, finally out of college. She had managed to get a year of college classes under her belt while in high-school, so she only had to go for three years. She leaned her head on Adams shoulder. She had been recognized by Deibel Laboratory, and actually offered a job. They were moving next month.

She linked her hand with his, and they stared out at the lake.

"Adam, do you want kids?" She asked.

"Why?"

"I don't know… I was thinking, and I was watching this mom in the park the other day- yeah, I think I do."

"I'm up for it if you are. What are we going to do then? Adopt?"

Lee shook her head. "No I- I don't believe that clinic place. I think that we could still have kids of our own, you and me."

Adam smiled. "Well, only one way to find out then."

Lee read the stick, standing over the bathroom sink. 'Another negative.' She thought. She threw it into the trash, furious at it. It seemed to smile cheekily at her, saying "That's right, Lee. You can't have kids. You can't have kids."

This was the fifth time that they had tried. The failures were starting to get to her. She was thinking it was finally time to start thinking about adoption.

"Well, lets give it one more shot." Adam said, sipping his cup of coffee.

"You think so?" She asked.

Adam nodded.

Lee didn't look at the stick right away. She closed her eyes, silently willing for it to read something other than "negative". She opened her eyes, looking down at the stick.

Negative.

Lee threw the stick into the trash harshly, almost knocking the small can over. She walked, depressed, out of the bathroom. Adam was waiting with open arms. She sobbed into his arms, furious at herself. He rubbed her back.

"Hey, hey. I already filed for adoption. We'll be able to in a month."

They lay together on the couch. Lee thought about how far they had come, from a distraught couple to this- a comfortably married pair. She leaned up and kissed Adam. He put an arm around her. She looked forward to next week.