Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Passions or NBC. I am not making money off this story.
Note: This is before Shuis's engagement party. (But it's the day of it.)
A New Beginning
Tabitha stood looking out of her window at Grace Bennett, who was walking toward the Russell house. She knew that Grace hadn't yet forgiven her husband and if Sam went to Luis and Sheridan's engagement party tonight, with everything that would happen there was no chance she ever would. But she also knew that Sam might not go; Grace was beginning to have second thoughts about it and was going over to the Russells' to talk about it. If Sam didn't go, Tabitha worried, than he and Grace would get back together and then evil had a significantly less foothold in Harmony. The only way to ensure that that would never happen was if Grace was out of the picture, completely.
"What are you doing, Princess?" asked Timmy, coming in from the kitchen.
"Plotting a way for Grace Bennett do die," she replied, still looking out the window.
"What?! Princess how could you? Haven't you learned anything after what happened the other night?"
"Yes I have, Timmy," she said, sitting down on the sofa. "I learned that it wasn't enough that hell was unleashed in Harmony. No one was killed! I have to kill one Standish Woman, that way there is much less good in Harmony and evil has a much better chance at succeeding."
"Sam will be so devastated."
"An additional benefit to killing Grace. Bring pain and suffering among everyone in Harmony." She got up and walked back to the window.
Timmy rolled his eyes. "Will Tabby ever learn?" he sighed and left the room.
Tabitha continued to look out the window and came up with her plan immediately. She quickly ran downstairs to her friends in the basement and opened the door. "Spirits of Evil!" she called. "I have a plan that will enable you to destroy the goodness of Harmony. Destroy Grace Bennett! If you destroy Grace, you will have a much stronger foothold in Harmony. There will be much less goodness. And you will win. You will win. Charity can't fight you alone. You must destroy Grace Bennett!"
The Spirits, who would have never responded to Tabitha's requests unless it was something like this one, left the
basement and headed out at a tremendous speed to kill Grace. Tabitha quickly ran upstairs to watch the action from her
living room window.
Grace was walking over to Russell house thinking about what Pilar and Eve had said to her. She wasn't sure what to do; she wasn't sure what to believe, if Sam still had feelings for Ivy or not. She had to talk to Eve.
Just then out of nowhere the Spirits of Evil surrounded her and attacked her. She screamed as they were attacking her, draining the life force out of her.
"Yes!" Tabitha yelled as she watched what was going on. She was too busy looking at the scene to see Sam coming up the road.
"Oh my God," he said, not believing that evil had come to Harmony again. He couldn't see the victim because of how many Spirits there were, but when she screamed again he recognized whose voice it was. He froze in shocked terror. "Grace!" he yelled, running over to her. Just then, the spirits vanished as quickly as they came. Sam was amazed that they just went away but he was more concerned with getting to Grace, who was lying unconscious on the grass. "Oh my God." He then checked for a pulse. There was none. "Oh no," he said, starting CPR.
"NO!" Tabitha yelled.
"What is it?" Timmy said, coming back into the living room.
"Sam showed up and his love for Grace put a protective shield around her so strong that it sent the Spirits away."
"Yes. Sam saved Grace," Timmy said happily.
"Now wait a minute, wait a minute," Tabitha said, still looking out the window. "It looks like Sam is performing CPR. The Spirits had enough time to kill her after all."
"No! Poor Grace. Oh, I hope Sam can bring her back."
"I wouldn't count on it, dollface," she replied, smiling as she stared out the window.
Grace was stunned. One second she felt tremendous pain and as the Spirits were attacking her; then the next, the Spirits were gone and so was the pain. She wasn't sure what happened. Then she looked down and saw Sam performing CPR on her, at least she thought it was her. And then she realized it was her body. "Oh my God, I'm dead," she said, staring down at Sam and her body.
"No you're not, Grace," a voice from behind said. "You're in between."
Grace turned around to see who it was. There, dressed like an angel, was Faith. Grace didn't know what to say.
"Hi, Grace," she smiled.
"Faith!" Grace almost yelled, finally managing to say something.
"Yeah, its me." The both hugged. "It's up to you whether or not you live or die."
"I have to live!" she yelled. "I have to go back to my family."
"Does your family include Sam?"
Grace didn't say anything for a second. "If Sam resolves his feelings for Ivy, than yes."
"Grace, there's something you have to see." Just then what happened days before at the hospital appeared in front of them both. It was Sam's conversation with Ivy while Grace was looking in on them:
"There's no other woman in my life. Only Grace. She's the only woman that I'll ever want in my life. Even if Grace can't find it in her heart to forgive me after everything that's happened, even if she divorces me, I'll never remarry. I'll just spend the rest of my life pleading for her to take me back." And then he looked up at the glass window and saw through the reflection that Grace had been listening the entire time. "Cause I love her. She is the only woman in the world for me."
Grace didn't know how to react. "So Sam really didn't know that I was listening in the entire time." She paused. "But why didn't he tell me that?"
"He tried too, but you cut him off. And anyway, would you have listened?"
"No," Grace said, shaking her head. She didn't say anything for a few seconds, watching Sam continue to perform CPR on her. "But it doesn't matter because he still has feelings for Ivy that he needs to resolve." Only she wasn't sure how much belief she still had in that statement.
"He doesn't have any feelings for Ivy," Faith finally said. "He had no feelings for her the day he met you Grace."
"Really?" she replied, tears in her eyes.
Faith nodded. "Really."
"Oh my gosh. I was throwing him right into Ivy's arms."
"And it would have worked too."
"What?"
"If Sam did go to Luis and Sheridan's engagement party tonight, evil would have taken advantage of it and put a spell around him and Ivy that would confuse him and he would have told Ivy that he loves her, which he doesn't. And then he would have kissed her because of it." Grace didn't say anything, too shocked. "It doesn't stop there. You would have come to the party worried about what was happening between Sam and Ivy and you would have walked in on them."
"Oh my gosh," she said, knowing how she would have reacted. "I was giving evil a foothold in our lives. If our marriage had ended it would have been partially my fault."
"Sam loves you Grace. Now go back to him."
"I will. Believe me I will." Sam meanwhile, had given up CPR. After the chest compressions he bent down to breathe for her but all of a sudden he stopped and he laid his head on her shoulder and started crying. "Oh, Sam," Grace said, tears welling up in her eyes again at seeing her husband in such emotional pain. "I'm coming back."
"There's also something else, Grace. Sam's love provides a protective shield around you that no evil can get to you. That's why the second he reached you the Spirits left because they couldn't break through that shield. If he hadn't gotten there at that second than the Spirits would have completely killed you and you would not be here now, you'd be in Heaven, with no chance of coming back to Sam. And now, Sam loves you so much more, he doesn't have to be near you anymore for there to be a shield. He just has to declare his love for you and there will be an eternal shield around you. His love for you is that strong."
"He loves me that much?"
Faith nodded. "You both are meant for each other. You both are soulmates."
"I know that now." She paused. "I have to come back to him."
"Grace before you go, there's also another thing you have to know," Faith said.
"What is it?"
"It was going to happen anyway, you losing the baby." Grace didn't reply, she didn't know how to reply. "Even if you had known about Ivy all along, the stress and worry about Miguel, Kay, and Charity being trapped in hell would have caused you to lose the baby."
Grace still didn't reply. "I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing," she finally said.
"Probably neither," Faith said. "Just a fact." They both didn't say anything for a few seconds. But Sam's cries for his wife to come back to him broke the silence. "Go back to him Grace."
"Thank you, Faith," she said, hugging her again. "I love you, sis."
"I love you too, Grace. Now go back to your husband."
"I will," she said, walking towards Sam and her body.
"One more thing, Grace. When you get back, you're going to have a wonderful surprise happen for you and the rest of your family."
"What kind of surprise?"
"I can't tell you, you'll find out when you get back. Goodbye, Grace. And good luck."
Grace smiled a teary-eyed smile to her sister, and then went back into her body.
Sam just kept crying as he was holding his dead wife in his arms. "Oh Grace, don't leave me, please..." He lifted her up and hugged her. "Oh God, Grace I'm so sorry..." He just kept crying.
Grace had come back into her body at that second, and because she was no longer In-Between she felt weak and exhausted since the Spirits attacked her. She didn't respond immediately to Sam because she wasn't used to the weak feeling she was in. And when Sam lifted her and hugged her she remembered what happened at the hospital, when Sam was hugging her and begging her not to die. She came back then and didn't hug him back because she almost hated him for everything that had happened. She barely talked to him at the hospital after that. But now she was no longer angry at him. She loved him more than ever. And so, she hugged him back.
Sam felt it. "Grace?" They stopped hugging and looked at each other. Sam saw that his wife was alive. "Oh, Grace." He hugged her again and fought to control the tears of happiness that were welling up in his eyes. "You came back, you came back."
She looked him in his eyes. "That's right. I came back." She leaned her head on his shoulder. "To you," she whispered, beginning to cry herself.
Sam didn't know how to respond. Grace basically just said that their marriage was repaired. "Promise me you'll never leave me again."
"I promise, Sam. If you promise never to leave me either."
"I promise, Grace. I promise." They both smiled and kissed. By then Sam couldn't stop the tears from falling. "I love you," he said, closing his eyes to keep more from falling.
"I love you too."
Ivy was walking around then. She didn't see the Spirits attack Grace, but she did see Sam and Grace holding each other. She walked closer to them. "Sam?"
"Just go away, Ivy," he replied, not opening his eyes. He hugged Grace tighter.
Ivy looked crushed. She realized right then and there that she lost Sam. She walked away.
When she was gone, they both started to get up. Grace almost fell when she did. "Hey, whoa, are you okay?" Sam asked, concerned.
"I'll be fine. I'm just a little tired."
"I better get you over to Eve's so she can look at you. I want to be sure. It's not everyday you get attacked by Evil, literally."
"Alright." She tried to walk, but Sam wouldn't let her.
"You're too weak to be walking over there," he said, lifting her into his arms so he could carry her. They kissed again. Grace fell asleep in Sam's arms as he carried her over to the Russells'.
"NO!" Tabitha yelled again as this was all taking place. "Grace came back to life, and she and Sam are back together!"
"Yes! I am so happy for them," Timmy said.
Tabitha sat down on the sofa. "Oh, now nothing can tear Sam and Grace apart and the shield that Sam's love creates
when he's around her is stronger than ever. He doesn't even have to be around her anymore for there to be a shield. Now
evil can't attack Grace Bennett anymore." She just kept going on and complaining about it.
A few hours later, Grace woke up in Russell guest bedroom. Sam was there smiling down at her. "Hi," Grace said.
"Hi," Sam replied, stroking her forehead. "How are you feeling?"
"Better. How long was I out?"
"A few hours, 3 I think."
Grace sighed. "Hold me," she said. With delicate care, he pulled her across his lap, and kissed her. "Where is everyone?"
"Eve went to work at the hospital after she examined you, she says you're fine, you just need some rest." They both smiled. "Chad and Whitney are at Theresa's. TC took Simone out just now to get some ice-cream. Chad and Whitney told her they were dating, she didn't take it too well."
"Nothing like ice-cream to cheer you up after a broken heart," Grace said sarcastically.
"It was not a pretty sight. I'm surprised her screaming at Whitney didn't wake you up."
Grace sighed. "She'll move on. I hope so."
"Same here." He wanted to change the subject. "Do you need anything? Do you want me to get you anything?"
"No, I'm fine. I just need you to keep holding me." They both kissed. "You don't have to go to Luis and Sheridan's engagement party tonight if you don't want too. I know now that you have no feelings for Ivy."
"I'm not going then. That's the last place I want to be." They both didn't say anything for a second. "What made you realize that Ivy means nothing to me?"
"You won't believe me if I told you."
"What do you mean?"
Grace sighed. "After the Spirits attacked me, I had an out-of-body experience and met up with Faith. I saw everything and she also told me that you had no feelings for Ivy. I finally believed it." Grace waited for Sam's reply, not knowing if he really believed her or if he thought she was just hallucinating.
"I believe you," he finally said, smiling. "After everything that's happened, an out-of-body experience seems the most normal of all." They both gave a short little laugh. "What else did Faith tell you?"
Grace said that her sister also explained what would have happened if Sam had gone to Luis and Sheridan's engagement party. "If our marriage would have ended it would have been partially my fault," she said after she finished.
Sam sighed. "That doesn't matter. If I had just told you about my past with Ivy none of this would have happened. Our marriage would have never been on the rocks to begin with." He paused. "And we wouldn't have lost our son. How could I have been so stupid in deciding not to tell you? You'd still be pregnant with our son if it wasn't for me." He hugged her. "Oh, God, Grace I'm sorry."
Grace sighed. Sam had to know that it was inevitable. "It was going to happen anyway."
"What?" He looked at her.
"Faith told me that even if you did tell me about Ivy and I hadn't fallen down the stairs, I was going to lose the baby anyway. All the stress from worrying about Kay, Miguel, and Charity being trapped in hell would have caused me to miscarry the baby." Sam didn't say anything, trying to comprehend what Grace had just said. "It was going to happen anyway," she repeated.
"I honesty don't know what to make of that," he said.
Grace gave a fake smile. "That's basically how I reacted."
"We were going to lose our child anyway," he said, shaking his head. "It doesn't matter. I caused you so much pain because I didn't tell you. You almost died. I wish I had told you. Dear God, I wish I had told you. I'm never going to forgive myself for that. All the pain I caused you."
"Shh," Grace whispered, hugging him again. "Let's move on. Faith also told me that you and I are meant for each other. Didn't you wonder why the Spirits went away immediately as you came near me?"
"Yeah. Why did they?"
"Your love creates a shield around me. No evil can get through that. You saved me. You always were my knight in shining armor. You always were and you always will be. You're still my knight."
"Wow," was all Sam could reply. They kissed. "I love you, Grace"
"I love you too, Sam." They both stayed like that in a tight hug for a few seconds, when all of a sudden she gasped.
"What is it, honey?"
"I just remembered something else Faith told me. She said that when I got back there would be a wonderful surprise for me, for us. I think I know what it is. I think we may have our son back. I think I'm pregnant again."
"Are you serious?"
"I don't know. I don't want to get our hopes up, but what else could it be?" They both were breathing heavily. "Could you run to the drug store and get me a pregnancy test? If I'm pregnant..." she didn't feel like finishing her sentence.
"Yeah, sure. I will." He kissed her. "I love you."
"I love you too. Hurry back."
"I will." He ran out the door.
He came back a few minutes later with the pregnancy test and Grace went into the bathroom to take it. He waited outside the door. "Please, God, let us have our son back.," they both prayed as they waited for the results. The results finally appeared and when Grace saw them she burst into tears.
She came out of the bathroom crying and Sam didn't know what that meant. Was she pregnant or not? "Well?" he asked, trying not to show his anxiety.
"I'm pregnant," Grace said through her tears. "I'm pregnant."
Sam had the biggest look of shock on his face, the same look he had when Grace first told him she was pregnant the day of Ethan and Theresa's engagement party. But this time he had tears in eyes. He just dropped to his knees and pressed his head against Grace's belly. After a few seconds he stood up and carried Grace to the bed, where they just cuddled.
When the baby was finally born, Sam held him with tears in his eyes, promising to love him forever and never to let anything bad happen to him ever. They named him Jack Tobias. They chose Tobias as his middle name because it means "God is good." And God was good for letting everything good happen to them from the moment Grace came back to life.
It was a new beginning for the Bennett Clan. A new and great beginning.