Disclaimer: Characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. I am not making any money off this.
A/N: Okay, I know I've told some of you that this would be a long time coming but these two just won't leave me alone so here it is. I'm writing this from scratch so please don't expect the updates to be as quick as they were with Split.
Prologue
She has spent a long time feeling like the world is against her. In normal human terms, it's probably just a little over a year but she feels like she's been alive since the dawn of time. She's seen the world blossom and she's seen it split open until there was nothing left but deep, empty caverns and a sly snake whispering fairytales in her ear.
While everything else was black rot around her, she found a friend in hope. That other little voice, just as persistent as the one promising the world, telling her that just because they're stories doesn't mean they can't come true. That in the vastness of the universe, one piece can collide with another and cause a reaction that will turn her whole world upside down. Again.
Hope is the only thing that can't be denied by fate or destiny. It is the only friend brave enough to linger in the face of even the most devastating destruction and for a while, hope was all she had.
It's all she really ever had, and she's learnt that lesson by now. We only leave behind what we can be bothered to build. Who we are means nothing compared to how much we put in.
She has grieved for the man she has lost. She has grieved for the girl strangled by her own despair and rage, and now all that is left to do, is search through the rubble and see if something has survived of either one.
It will never be the same but they will make it work, she's certain of that. If they have to rebuild everytime the wall comes crumbling down, then that is what they will do.
Sometimes you have to break the window to let the light shine through.
She opens her eyes and closes them quickly against the sun. It's a beautiful morning. Bright and dry. There would probably be birds chirping if the tiniest of noises wasn't swallowed by the huge monster snoring next to her.
He mumbles something in his sleep and she bites back a laugh. She loves moments like this and not just because they shut him up for a few hours. His face is relaxed, soft features making him look young and peaceful. Beside him, she finds her own peace. She is never as happy as she is with his strong arm thrown around her and his rumbling snores in her ear.
He shifts slightly, his arm almost a vice grip around her waist and she turns to face him. Her fingers flutter against his forehead as she smooths the crease furrowed between his brow. He sighs and his eyes flicker open. He greets her with a beaming smile and pulls her into a deep kiss. She hooks her leg around his hip and runs her fingers through his hair as he grips her thigh.
It's going to be a long morning indeed.
"Do you like ice cream?"
"What the hell kind of question is that?"
It's Wednesday morning and he is sitting in the Clearwaters kitchen. Leah is chewing the tip of her pen and studying him carefully. "You shouldn't say hell in a job interview. What if the person interviewing you is religious?"
"Why would it matter if I like ice cream or not?"
She shakes her head. His inability to grasp the importance of the questions seems to be both confounding and amusing to her. "Some people take their line of work very seriously. There's a 65 percent chance that they will expect you to like ice cream in order for you to be able to sell it."
He shakes his head because he knows it's an argument he won't win. It is illogical and foolish and he really doesn't want to make her angry at him. She looks so adorable, wearing Seth's old glasses and her mom's suit, circa 1987.
The door slams shut and both of them leap up. Sue Clearwater's arms are loaded with grocery bags and she winces slightly as two hungry werewolves charge towards her. Sam takes the heaviest bag and sets it down on the table. He manages to contain himself to slowly rifling through it instead of ripping the bag open and devouring it's contents on sight. Leah suffers no social restrictions. She is already swallowing one handful of chips while grabbing for another.
Sue smacks her daughter's hand away from the bag. A warm smile is playing across her face. "I bumped into your mother at the store, Sam. She wants you to call her when you get a spare minute."
He nods, knowing he will probably put it off for another week or so before he makes that call. He can't stand to see the disappointment etched on her face, or the accusation in her voice whenever she mentions Emily.
"Sam's got an interview at the ice cream parlour in Forks."
He smiles at Leah, grateful for her intervention though he knows it wasn't intentional. She doesn't care much for what Eve Uley thinks and she is of the opinion that he should tell her to mind her own business. He only wishes it was that easy.
"Oh, do you like ice cream, Sam?"
Leah smiles as her mother validates her earlier question. "He's just doing it for the money. Then maybe we can get our own place."
Sue sends him a withering glare. Having 'stolen' her baby girl once, he heeds the warning in her eyes and looks at her apologetically. She sighs "Well, you don't have to rush anything, Leah. I don't want you two living in a hovel. You're both welcome to stay here as long as you want."
Sam intervenes before Leah can start making cracks about Charlie and 'private time'. "Don't worry, Sue. We'll stay close. We won't go out of state. I promise."
She nods and starts packing the shopping away, and he gives her a hug and drops a kiss into her hair. "You have my word."
And maybe things are getting better because that actually seems to mean something to her now.