Chapter 2:

Fifteen years later…

Sarah was staring out her apartment window. It was storming out. Sarah hated thunderstorms. They always seemed to take something from her or made her scared. She could remember every time something bad happened because of a stupid thunderstorm.

Everything started from when her mother died in a car accident. It was two months after she gave her the book, Labyrinth. She was seven months pregnant with her unborn baby brother, Cody. That was what his name would have been. But she was coming home from the grocery store. And of course it was on a stormy night! A drunk driver hit her. Sarah kept silent to everyone. She wouldn't speak at all. All she would do was read Labyrinth over and over again because it was the last precious gift her mother left her, along with the music box. She finally started to talk a month and a half later.

Then the next bad thing that happened on a stormy night was when her father brought over a "friend" from work to their house for dinner. Her name was Karen. Sarah was now 12 years old. She was old enough to know how to play nice because it was only her fathers friend from work, that is what she thought her father saw her as, just a friend, nothing more. But then he was always gone late at nights and Sarah was alone in their big house. Sometimes it would be past midnight before he got home.

The night that her father told her that she was going to have a new mother started off as a nice cool night. Then afterwards, the storm finally announced its self with a big, huge, bang. That storm kept Sarah up for half the night. She didn't want a new mother. She especially didn't want Karen to replace Linda. She loved her mother; she didn't love Karen. But her father did and she didn't want to take his happiness away. Ever since he started to date her, he started to smile again, and that was something Sarah rarely saw her father do since Linda passed away.

Two years later, on another stormy night. It was raining all day that day, but it just started getting bad around dinnertime. It was a quite meal, Sarah remembered, and she was 13 now. They broke the news to her that Karen was four months pregnant. This left her speechless. Then they told her it was going to be a boy. She was going to kill her dad if her was going to use the name Cody Rae Williams. So she asked. Karen started to laugh her dumb blond head off. Sarah didn't laugh at all, and now she wanted to kill Karen. "Good heavens no" Karen responded. Sarah soon found out that the name was going to be Toby Raymond Williams. Great now he was going to replace Cody, Sarah didn't want this at all. It was bad enough that she had to keep her sheep dog Merlin in the garage almost every day.

The day they brought Toby home from the hospital was, yet again, a stormy night. The newborn cried all night. The whole flippin night! Sarah didn't get any sleep that night. That was also when she started to feel unloved. Everyone started to pay more attention to the baby and less attention to her. She felt that if she were to run away, no one would notice.

The night when she wished Toby away to the Goblin King was also a stormy night. She just got fed up with it all. Toby and Karen taking her mothers and her unborn baby brothers place. Even after the Labyrinth nothing much changed. She got a little closer to her half brother, but not much. Just a little more to be thankful she has him in her life. The relationship she had with Karen is still the same now. Sarah was all too happy to move away from that house. Too many memories, good and bad ones.

Merlin died on a stormy night. She cried for days. He was her best friend. Well of course she still kept in touch with her Labyrinth friends, and she did have actual human friends, like her friend Lyndsie, but it was just different when Merlin left her.

Now on this stormy night, Sarah had another bad memory to add. Her father was in the hospital. He ended up having a heart attack. The doctors said he was going to need an operation. Sarah didn't bother to visit, she felt that she should, but she just couldn't and Karen was going to be there. Somehow Sarah just know that if she went to visit, Karen would just find someway to blame her.

Her father and her became more and more distant as the years went by. There was the weekly phone call she got from him, just to check up on her. She also talked to Toby on the same phone call. It was dad for 30 seconds to see if she was ok and then he just handed the phone to Toby and he would fill her in on the new things in his life. Toby was nine years old now. My how time flew. It seemed that only yesterday she was running the Labyrinth to save him.

"Where did that thought come from?" She asked herself. "Talking to myself again." She shook her head and smiled. "I think I need to get another dog or a cat, something." Thunder cracked in the dark, cloudy sky.

She made her way to her kitchen to make some Tea when the phone started to ring. She didn't bother to answer it. Sarah was too afraid that it was going to be Karen, calling to tell her the some sort of terrible news. So she just ignored it. 'If its something important the person will leave a message,' Sarah thought.

"Hey this is Sarah! I'm probably not here at the moment, so please leave me a message and I will get back to you A.S.A.P. Thanks!

BEEEP-

Hey Sarah! It's Lyndsie!

"I'm not home!" she yelled at the answering machine.

Listen, I know your there and you just screening, but I have some good news that might cheer you up! But I'm not going to tell you over the machine! So pick up the phone already! There was a pause. I'm waiting…

Curiosity got the better of her and she went over to the phone and picked it up. "This better be good Lyndsie, or I'm hanging up!"

Lyndsie could clearly tell from the sound of Sarah's voice that she wasn't having a very good day. "Sorry Sarah, I can clearly tell that you don't want to be bothered. Maybe I'll just call back later, or you can call me, what ever works for you…"

Sarah sighed. Her friend was just excited about something that obviously just happened and wanted to tell her in hopes of making her day a bit better. Lyndsie always know how to make you feel guilty. But Sarah loved her anyway. "I'm sorry Lyndsie. It's just that my dad just had a heart attack-"

"Oh my God! Is he going to be alright?" Lyndsie interrupted.

"I don't really know. Karen did say that the doctors said he would need a operation and he would be just fine so there was nothing to worry about, but I don't know if she told me that just so I wouldn't worry and come to the hospital or what." She sighed. "And stormy weather just puts me in a bad mood."

"Oh Sarah I'm so sorry!" Lyndsie said. There was some silence. "Now on to the good news! You see my cousin is coming in to town. He will be here for…a few months maybe."

"Wow, Lindsie that's great!" Sarah tried to sound happy for her friend. But she didn't know if she would buy the tone in her voice or not.

"Hold on I'm not finished yet! He is unmarried, incredibly good looking, and has unique yet gorgeous eyes! Good Lord, if he wasn't my cousin I would snatch him like there's no tomorrow!" She explained.

"Lindsie that's great and all but if you going where I think your going with this then…then…" She stuttered. 'Then what?'

"Sarah you and I both know you haven't been out on a date in like… forever! Trust me, you will end up thanking me! And I will not take "No" for an answer!"

"You already set us up didn't you? You told him I would come!" Great just great!

"Yes and I have to go now. But you know me, I play a wonderful matchmaker! I set up Tom and Allison didn't I?" She knew this would get her somewhere.

"Yes." Sarah agreed. "Yes you did, and now they're happily married." Sarah could here her smile on the phone.

"Now if you don't want to be mean to my beloved cousin" She paused just because she was being dramatic. "Then you will you will meet him at Berkly's on 45th St. at 7pm… tonight and I made the reservations under my last name so I'll let you two introduce yourselves!"

"But Lyndsie-" Sarah started but was cut off.

"Love you, bye!" She left Sarah hanging on to the phone speechless.

Tonight! Why tonight! She glanced at the clock on the near by wall. "I only have two hours! Great, just perfect timing Lyndsie!" She didn't have much time to decide. "I just might as well go, maybe it will help me get my mind off things." So she hung up the phone back on the receiver and went to go get ready for her blind date.

"God! I hate blind dates!" She wined.

AN: Thanks to all who reviewed! Please review again! And for those who didn't please do, because the more reviews I get the more I work on the next chapter!