Chapter Text
Clementine made herself comfortable in the car as Lee started the engine. It was getting hot, so the man turned on the air conditioning before taking off. He was slowly and carefully driving through the city as the girl was looking outside to watch kids play outside and their parents cheerfully talking somewhere near. She couldn't help but smile. It was all nice. Lee smiled too, sensing the atmosphere.
"Can you believe it's June already?" the man asked, to which Clementine's smile widened.
"Yeah, it's June, it's Pride Month-" she suddenly froze up, realizing what had she said. Lee, of course, didn't miss it out.
"I think I saw you read about it earlier, you're interested?" the man asked as Clementine quietly gulped.
"Yeah, I mean... Some of my friends are, uh, not-straight. For example, Vi is a lesbian, Louis is Pansexual... actually, from what I know, just a couple of us are straight," she mumbled an explanation. "I mean, I, of course, am-" she struggled, but she couldn't decide whether to lie about it, immediately regretting continuing conversation.
"I love you," Lee said suddenly, making Clementine flinch. Did he just?
The girl quickly looked away, biting her lip and pulling on her hat to cover her face. Lee just said a thing she would never expect him to in this situation. He could've let it slip, he could've cut it off, he could've done anything, but he said he loved her. She felt so many emotions in that very moment that she couldn't stop that one tear of confusion, stress, and happiness pour down her cheek. Lee realized almost immediately and so he turned his car suddenly, stoping it on a parking lot that they just happened to pass. The man put his hand on his daughter's arm and shook it slightly, getting her attention.
"Do you, uh... need to talk?" the man asked. Clementine hesitated before nodding slightly.
"Okay, so..." she struggled to put her confession into words. She knew that Lee loved her just as she was his real daughter, but she wasn't sure how would he react.
"Go on, say it," the man smiled at her. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him, thinking that he didn't know what to expect.
"I think... I mean, I am... I, uh, I'm bisexual," she finally choked out and immediately looked down, avoiding Lee's gaze. And so, she couldn't see the man smile at her wider.
"Well, that's- that's amazing!" Lee responded and the girl looked up immediately.
"Really?" she asked quietly. "Aren't you... mad?" she continued to lower her voice.
"What? Of course, I'm not! I'm proud of you, Clem!" the man assured and the girl smiled, not able to stop tears from running down her face. But those weren't painful tears, those were tears of joy.
"Thank you, Lee..." she whispered.
The man smiled at her and then remembered that there were tissues. He leaned over in order to get them to her, but the girl immediately wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. The man was surprised at first but didn't hesitate to hug her back. And so there they were, hugging in a car standing in the middle of a parking lot on the first day of June.
"I love you, Lee..." the girl confessed to her dad, to which he rubbed her back.
"I love you too, sweet pea," the man assured. When the girl pulled away he handed her tissues. As she was done wiping her tears away, Lee smiled at her once again. "Are we good to go now?" he asked, to which the girl nodded. And so the car took off. "Oh, right, I was about to tell you, uncle Kenny is going to visit us within a couple of days," Lee said. Clementine bit her lip once again.
"Could you... not tell him? Or anyone? I just... want to do it myself," she explained a little ashamed, to which the man smiled.
"Of course. Take your time, sweet pea," he nodded. Clementine could feel tears in her eyes again, but she wiped them away with her sleeve before they actually appeared.
"Thank you, Lee," she thanked and the man nodded.
"Anytime, Clem," he answered.