Isn't that my shirt?

Chapter 1: It happened

After verbal abuse, wars really… beatings and ridicule, it happened.

Place: The Shay apartment

Time: 11:57 PM December 31st

A New Years Party thrown by the Shay's resulted in something that had been discussed in secluded groups of classmates for some time. Normally, just after the subject was broached, eye rolls and chuckles would erupt. Regardless of the outlandishness, and seemingly pure folly of the action, it did happen.

Just before midnight on this insane evening, Samantha Puckett acted on a whim, (aided by a bit of liquid courage she had found in a bottle of Smirnoff's), and asked her friend Freddie to dance.

A slow dance.

His jaw dropped slightly at her request, but then his expression changed to… joy.

"Yeah, I'd like that…" He replied.

Halfway through the song he stopped swaying to the music, and then she did as well. She looked at him and seemed very confused. He looked into her eyes, grinned and moved his head so he could whisper in her ear…

"You're gonna kill me in a minute…"

He moved his head back, looked her in the eye again, saw even more confusion, moved even closer, and kissed her.

After nearly a minute, he pulled away, slowly. Both of them were ignoring the stares, the quiet. The song had been over for a bit. He looked at her again, smirked and asked:

"Well, am I a dead man?"

She looked back at him with a contemplative grin and replied:

"Maybe… maybe you are. But I know you will be if you don't do that again, right now, and do it properly…"

They were seniors in High School that year, and by graduation night they were a solid couple. Freddie made a number of changes to his life plans to be able to accommodate his girl friend. He had been accepted into a number of out of state schools, but ended up going to the local university. Sam went to the local community college for a while, then quit completely. She had gotten a job with the USDA as a meat inspector, (the job title had made her the brunt of a few off color jokes from some of her friends) and Freddie was an intern with an up and coming computer imaging firm.

It was all good…

After Freddie's graduation from college he was picked up by the firm he had interned with. Sam had been promoted to supervisor. They took the next life changing leap… they moved in to an apartment, together. Unwed, but… that had been discussed in an off hand round a bout fashion.

After about a year of this, Freddie walked into their shared abode to discover Sam in a giddy, nearly frilly mood. She had even cooked him dinner, his favorite, a thick juicy steak. He didn't make a comment about 'the mood' at first. Frankly, he didn't know what to say. Their shared lives hadn't been any different from any other couples. A few minor fights about minor stuff, but nothing important really. Any relationship has its ups and downs. This was looking like it may be one of the 'ups'. He was at a complete loss. Finally Sam smiled at him, a warm, genuine smile. He smiled back, and asked…

"What?"

"So, um… I found something today…" She grinned as she said it.

"What?" He asked.

"Oh, something… something important…" She was still grinning as she said this.

"What?" he continued asking, nearly laughing.

"Well, I finally decided to put your clean socks away. You know the ones you've ignored for the last week and left them lying on top of the chest of drawers… and what do you think I found in your sock drawer?" She said pulling the ring box out from where she had hid it under the table.

Freddie blushed, smiled, and blushed even more.

"Oh…" he said. "So did you look in the box?" He asked.

She said no, but nodded her head, yes while smiling even more than before.

"So…" He stammered.

She attacked him with kisses… he never did get to finish that steak, but… he didn't really care.

All that happened on a Wednesday. They both took off the following Monday, and got married by the County Clerk. Just the two of them, alone. They wanted it that way. No huge ceremony, no massive parties, just them. They used a stranger, a building contractor who just happened to be in the building as their witness.

They didn't advertise, but of course by Tuesday, everyone knew. The news was unexpected, but not surprising.

Married life suited them. Children were planned, but not until after they had purchased a house. Both of them growing up in rented homes had soured them on that. They wanted their children to have the added security of a house, to call home.

Small bits of time slipped by, a one year anniversary, then two… Soon it was close to three. They had been frugal, their third anniversary gift to one another would be a home of their own, albeit small, but theirs. They found a place they both loved and that was affordable, bought it and celebrated their third wedding anniversary with a combined house warming and anniversary party.

While all this had been happening, Carly hadn't fallen from the face of the earth. After High School she had attended college in Portland Oregon and had become a radiologic technologist. While there she had met Tom, who was enrolled in the officer training program for the US Coast Guard at the same school. They were married after her graduation and now lived in Bellingham. About two hours north of Seattle. The old trio didn't see each other as often as they liked, but often enough. Life has a way of doing that.

After the festivities of the combined parties had taken place, Freddie had taken a few days off from work. There were a few small repairs that needed to be taken care of. Sam came home a little early, since Freddie had called her and asked her to pick up some wood putty on her way home. They greeted with a quick kiss and smiles, with Sam handing her husband the putty. Freddie nodded and went back into a spare bedroom to make the repairs. Sam went to change clothes and check the casserole that Freddie had started.

In a few minutes, Sam heard:

"Hey princess, could you come here for a moment? I need some help holding this…"

That's when a different 'it' happened…

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~The CABAL~

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Okay, yes I know… I have THREE OTHER fic's going on, but this one invaded my brain… It HAD to happen. Woe unto you… heh heh heh

:pig~

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