Chapter Two
Sam rolled over in bed. Gosh this was not a night of amazing sleep that was for sure. He looked over at the clock. 5:04 a.m. He had woken up to this exact time now for three nights in a row. He found it to be a strange coincidence, but he wasn't going to linger on it. It seemed pointless. He made the effort to scratch at his chin, his scruff growing back in just as fast as he had shaved it off. If Mercedes didn't mind it, he probably would just grow it out. It stops itching after a certain amount of time, but she had made a few comments in the past about how much it tickled her when they were being intimate. That was enough reason for him to keep it gone. He couldn't help that he was whipped.
He rolled over in bed to watch as Mercedes slept, her chest rising up and down with her hand up on her pillow near her face. God, she was so beautiful. She didn't need to get all dressed up with makeup and accessories. She was perfect just like this, all natural and just as breathtaking as the scenery in Avatar. He reached over to gently stroke her cheek, careful trying not to wake her up. She tended to sleep like a rock, so he wasn't overly concerned. He had once gotten up to take a leak, but didn't notice the misplaced shoe that was near the bed in his attempt to be very quiet. He had stumbled, fallen, and taken then drapery over the bedside window down with him. Mercedes had just rolled over and began to slightly snore. He wasn't cautious with noise after that.
He scooted closer to her, wrapped his arm around her waist, and gently stoked her side with his fingertips. She moved a little then relaxed as he laid his head closer to hers, taking in her scent. He almost wanted her to wake up, just to see her look at him or hear her voice. He felt like he hadn't really seen her much lately, and that was probably because he hadn't. All he had done was work lately and he could tell it was starting to really get to her. He couldn't blame her though. It was getting to him as well. He missed all of the time that they used to spend together, laughing and snuggling up in front of the tv for movie night. There hadn't been many of those in the past few months. When he was home, she was usually either practicing for a performance, or at the club making sure things were running smoothly. He knew things couldn't always be perfect and that this was just a small rough patch that they were going through, but he still couldn't help but think about how spending more time together would relieve his stress in no time.
Sam jumped and almost yelped when he heard a loud noise suddenly make itself known. He quickly turned to snatch his phone from the bedside table when it began to buzz in long loud patterns. He looked at the caller id and rose from the bed, proceeding to take the call in the living room.
"Uh, hello?" He whispered, then cleared his throat to speak up not really knowing why he had gone all the way to another room just to whisper.
"Sam? Hey dude, it's me. I'm sorry for the timing, I just came in for my shift and honestly didn't want to wait to give you a call. Are you…okay?" Sam relaxed when he realized the familiar voice. It was his buddy and old time friend, now turned co worker, Puck. He had noticed the number calling him was from the station and it had worried him getting a call from work at such a crazy hour. He was having to get used to having Puck around again especially as a cop, seeing as how in high school, Noah Puckerman was not known for doing the right things pretty much ever. It had taken him 7 years to get his degree and get certified to do the job, but honestly Sam had to admit that he was damn good at it. After all, he knew most of the criminal secrets.
"I…yeah? I'm fine? Why do you ask?" Sam was confused and honestly just really wanted to go back to bed. He was emotionally and physically exhausted and being in his comfy bed next to his wife was where he wanted to be at this moment in time. Sam scratched his head, wondering if his phone had dropped the call after waiting several moments for a response from his friend.
"Well, I came in and Lenny called me in to ask me what was up with you last night. He said you came in and dropped off some strange paperwork for a DUI with the name Ian Charles Ucheli?" Sam cocked his eyebrow, confused about the question. He didn't think that he had acted strange at all last night. He had just done the usual procedures.
"Uh, I don't know about acting strange, but yeah, I busted a DUI last night. I dropped him off with the paperwork and shot out of there. I had to meet Mercedes and I was already a few hours late so I might've been a little rushed, but I didn't think I acted much different than normal." Sam leaned down against the couch, not bothering to sit down. He knew if he did, he probably wouldn't be able to get back up.
"Dude…are you sure you're okay? Maybe you should take more than just a day off, get some sleep." Sam was starting to get frustrated now. What was the big deal?
"What are you talking about, Puck? I'm fine…" He rose back to his feet again, all of a sudden feeling more awake.
"Sam, you didn't bring anyone in here last night. And all of the info that you have written down here for this Uncheli guy is phony, dude. This information doesn't exist. There is no person listed anywhere that we can find under the name Ian Charles Ucheli…" Sam's heart sunk. Confusion didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling at this moment. He knew that they had to be playing some sort of joke on him. He knew what happened last night and he knew he busted this guy. He saw his license and he talked to him clear as day. He definitely was not in the mood for a practical joke at the moment.
"Very funny, Puckerman. You can tell Lenny that you all can go suck a big fish. I'm tired, I'm annoyed, and I'm not dealing with this on my day off. Bye." He hung up before Puck could continue whatever he was trying to pull and he threw his phone on to the coffee table. He didn't even want to bother taking the phone back to the bedroom with him. On his way down the hall, he glanced at the various photos they had hanging on the wall, shadows of cars and people from the streets of New York City moving on the wall in a layer on top of them. He allowed himself to form a smile as he revisited those moments from his past, pictures of his family from back home and His wedding day. Mercedes hadn't changed a bit, but he could see the changes in himself. He knew that he had let himself get too stressed out the past few years, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to shake the funk he was in.
He walked to the doorway of his bedroom, watching as Mercedes was still fast asleep, a look of total peace on her flawless face. He looked to the window, watching the lights move on the shadows from the marquees on the curtains. They were reaching a point in their marriage where Mercedes was ready to have kids, to start a family. A part of Sam did too. He had always been a family man. But, something was holding him back. He was afraid they weren't ready, especially financially and the thought of trying to take care of another human being in the position they were in seemed terrifying.
He slumped over to his side of the bed and crawled back in, welcoming the warmness of the sheets just as he had left them. As he closed his eyes to drift off to sleep, the scene from the previous night played over and over again in his head. He could see the license as if he was holding it again right in front of his face. Ian Charles Ucheli…
Sam's eyes shot back open and a lump began to form in his throat as he whispered his thoughts out loud to himself. "I C U.". Maybe it was just a coincidence. Maybe it wasn't. Maybe once again, he should just not think so much.
