*15 Years Later*

SAMANTHA'S POV

It had been almost a week since I first met Sam. Almost a week and we had made no progress. Mostly because I wasn't allowing any progress to be made. Things were simple. I didn't want to be there and he was forcing me to stay. My day pretty much went like this:

Wake up

Go downstairs

Ignore Sam

Not eat the breakfast Emily offers me

Steal food from the drugstore

Talk to Cupcake all day

Come home

Ignore Sam

Not eat the dinner Emily offers me

Sleep on the purple carpet

Yup. That's pretty much my day. And today, when I woke up and ignored Sam, I thought things were going to turn out pretty normal.

Turns out I was wrong.

"Do you want some break-"

"No."

I let the front door swing shut behind me as I took the familiar path down the street to the convenient store. A heavy mist hung in the air, but it wasn't raining… yet. I reached the store, noting how the N on the OPEN sign still hadn't been fixed. The automatic doors opened and I glanced at the old woman behind the counter.

Yup, still asleep.

I snorted to myself and went to the snack aisle. I grabbed a pack of peanut butter crackers and a few chocolate bars and headed out. I reached the automatic doors and stepped outside just as it started to rain.

Suddenly, a bony hand grabbed my arm, pulling me back into the store.

"You're the hooligan that's been stealing from my store!" the woman yelled.

I panicked, trying to think of some excuse, "I-I'm not stealing!"

The woman dug her hand into my coat pocket, retrieving the crackers I'd taken, "I'm calling the police!" she declared, taking me by the ear and dragging me to the counter with her. She picked up the phone from the retriever and dialed a number, pointing to a chair for me to sit in. I rolled my eyes and sat down, leaning my head against the wall and shoving my hands into my pockets.

"Thanks you sir," the woman said, hanging up the phone and then turning to me, a cruel smile on her ugly old face, "I've got you now little girl! And you're going to pay!"

0000

"Yes officer, she's just over here."

I sighed in relief and dropped the toothbrush I'd been holding, standing up. An aging police officer with a mustache came around the corner, followed by the evil woman.

"I had her cleaning the floors," the lady told him proudly, "Negative reinforcement, you know."

"Um, yes Mrs. Jennings," he said, "Young lady, I am Chief Swan. Do you think you can tell me what happened? I would like to hear the full story."

"Er…" I muttered, biting my lip, "Well I put the crackers in my pocket to buy but then I uh… forgot they were in there. So I walked out of the store and this crazy bat accused me of stealing! And she made me scrub her floors! Yeah, so you should arrest her for liability."

"You… forgot you put the crackers in your pocket?" he asked, pulling at a pad and paper.

"Yeah?" I said, it coming out more as a question than an answer. But of course, considering my luck, the chocolate bars I had also taken decided to fall out of my pocket and onto the floor, right in front of Chief Swan. We both looked at them for a moment and then he looked up at me with raised eyebrows.

"Er… forgot about those, too," I shrugged.

"See!" Mrs. Jennings cried, "I told you! She's been stealing from my store for weeks now!"

"Not weeks!" I yelled, "Just a few days!"

I realized what I had said too late. I rolled my eyes at my stupidity as Chief Swan scribbled away on his note pad. Mrs. Jennings was staring at me smugly, her arms folded over her chest. I debated on whether or not to pick up the candy bar and start eating it. I was absolutely starving.

Finally, Chief Swan stopped writing and put his notepad away, "Well, I'm going to have to take you down to the station."

"What?!" I yelled.

"I'm not going to cuff you, you're only a minor. But I will be forced to if you don't come with me."

"And stay out!" Mrs. Jennings yelled.

And that's how I found myself in the back of a police car. I stared out the window, arms crossed. Chief Swan finally pulled into the station and I had to wait for him to open the door and let me out. He took my arm and guided me in.

"You can sit here," he told me, gesturing to a chair in front of a desk. I sat down in it, not wanting to piss him off. Normally I would have just stood instead of taking orders, but I didn't want to spend the night in a jail cell. Chief Swan sat in front of me at the desk, powering up an old computer. It moaned as it lit up and there was an awkward wait while the computer dragged itself to life. He clicked a few things and then turned his attention to me.

"I have to ask you a few questions before I let you make your call," he said.

"Shoot," I told him, leaning back in my chair.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Samantha."

"Samantha…"

"Just Samantha," I said and he raised his eyebrows.

"I need a last name in order to-"

"Fine," I sighed, "Uley. My last name is Uley."

"Samantha Uley," he said slowly, typing it in. I frowned at how it sounded. Uley was not my last name, but it was my last resort.

"Wait… are you related to Sam Uley?" he asked, turning his attention back to me.

"Yup. I'm his daughter," I muttered, grimacing.

"I didn't know he had a teenage daughter," he mused and then sighed, "Oh Jeez."

"What?"

"Samantha, your father happens to be a good friend of mine. I'm going to let you call him and we'll drop all charges but only because I'm on good terms with him and you have no criminal record."

My eyes widened in surprise, "Seriously? This is awesome!"

A small smile reached the chief's lips as he dialed the number and then slid the phone to me. Oh crap. I picked it up and waited as it rang. I didn't want to talk to Sam, I enjoyed ignoring him thanks you very much. And I know he would freak out if he knew I'd gotten arrested. He's probably never let me leave the house again. Three rings later and I heard the most amazing voice I've ever heard in my entire life.

"Hello?" Emily answered.

"Emily!" I gasped, never had I been so happy to hear her voice.

"S-Samantha?" she asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Umm," I bit my lip, not sure how to put this, "Not exactly."

"What do you mean?" she asked, "Where are you calling from."

"Don't freak out okay?"

"Why would I-"

"I sort of… got arrested," I said quietly.

"You what?" she asked, not sounding as all as surprised as I thought she would.

"Well I sort of got caught shoplifting and-"

"Don't say anything else. I'll be there in five."

She hung up the phone and I listened to silence for a minute before handing it back to Chief Swan with a half smile and a shrug. He put it back on the receiver and went back to his computer. I just sat there, trying to figure out a way to nicely ask Emily not to tell Sam. Maybe if I got down on my knees and begged… no I would never get on my knees for anybody. I repositioned myself, watching the clock. Who was I kidding? Emily would tell Sam everything and I wouldn't be able to see Cupcake again.

The door to Charlie's office opened and in marched Emily, looking nicer than I'd ever seen her before. She had a business suit on that hid her baby bump and her hair wasn't in its usual messy bun.

"Chief Swan," she said professionally, "I attended one year of law school. You have no right to question this girl without a lawyer present. I am here as Samantha's lawyer and-"

"Emily," Chief Swan interrupted, holding up his hands, "I'm not questioning her."

Emily crossed her arms, "Legally you-"

"We're not pressing charges," he told her, "She can go home."

"Oh… well in that case… how are you Charlie?" she asked pleasantly.

"I'm fine. Haven't been around much, I miss your cooking Emily," he laughed.

"Next week then," she said with a smile, "You and Sue. We'd be delighted to have you!"

"Sounds great," he said, "Now I'm sure you have your kids to get back to."

"Of course," she laughed, "Come on dear."

I grimaced at the pet name and stood up, following Emily to the door.

"Oh and Samantha," Charlie called.

I turned to look at him and he said, "If this happens again, we will be forced to press charges."

"Right," I mumbled, following Emily out of the building.

The car ride back to the house was awkward to say the least. Neither of us said anything, she didn't even turn on the radio.

"Are you going to tell Sam?" I blurted, looking over at her.

She looked at the road, chewing on her lip, "Hmm… no."

"Really?" I asked.

Maybe Emily isn't the bitch I thought she was!

"On one condition. You come to dinner."

"What?"

"You sit at the table with all of us, act pleasant, make conversation, and eat food," she said with a smile.

Okay I was wrong. Emily is a bigger bitch than I thought she was.

00000

"I brought you some clothes," Emily said cheerfully as I opened the door.

"Thanks," I muttered, grabbing them and shutting the door again.

"Dinner will be ready in five!"

I huffed loudly, running my hand through my hair. I set the clothes down on the bed, expecting the worst. Knowing Emily it would probably be a frilly pink dress just to torture me more than she already was. I was already being forced to eat dinner with a bunch of people I didn't know and I had to act pleasant. She told me she would be watching my every move and that I better have a decent expression on my face the entire time and I wasn't allowed to grimace or roll my eyes once.

Torture.

As it turns, the clothes weren't bad at all. A pair of leggings that were too big for me and an oversized t-shirt that made it seem as though I were drowning in blue fabric. I looked younger than I was in the shirt as it covered up my boobs and curves and I wasn't exactly the tallest person in the world, unfortunately for me. A measly five foot three, which wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't being compared to giants like Sam and his friends.

With one last grimace and eye roll of the night, I pulled my hair into a high pony tail and walked downstairs. Unsure how to come off as a pleasant person, I attempted to add a "bounce" to my step but that just made me feel stupid so I cut it out quickly.

Everyone quieted down when I reached the kitchen. Everyone except Paul who was telling some guy a story or something but Emily smacked him in the head with a rolling pin and then the room was silent. All eyes were on me, waiting for me to say something. I don't know what Emily had told them to expect from me, but there was no way in hell I was going to make a speech or anything.

"Hi," I muttered, looking at my feet. I walked to the only remaining seat crammed around the table which happened to be next to Brady. Awesome right.

"Hey Samantha!" Brady said cheerfully. Stupid Brady.

"Okay, you all can start eating now," Emily cheered.

The commotion started again as everyone chatted away and scooped food onto their plate. It reminded me a little of how meals used to be at the foster homes. A bunch of kids sitting around a dinner table. Except the kids would be fighting over the scarce amount of food and we'd all be getting yelled at by foster parents.

This was different though. Everyone was happy to be there and there was an abundance of food. Although a lot of the guys sitting at the table fought over food, it was playfully. There had to be twenty people there. All of Sam's friends and various wives and children, including Sam and Emily's kids.

I looked down at my plate which had been empty a moment before, except now it was full. Mashed potatoes and chicken and roasted carrots covered the surface. I don't think I'd ever had this much food in my entire life. I looked over at Brady who'd spooned it all onto my plate, shocked at the double amount he had. He took a bite of potatoes and then looked down at me, smiling widely. I grimaced, grossed out by how he hadn't waited and swallowed his food first.

But then I caught sight of Emily looking at me with raised eyebrows and I changed me grimace into a smile. I probably looked like I was smelling something rotten but that was the best any of them were going to get.

"So when did you decide to finally join the Uley family?" Paul asked me, his mouth full of chicken.

"I didn't," I muttered, murderously stabbing at a greenbean on my plate.

"Life must have been pretty crappy at the foster home for you to come and take orders from this guy," someone laughed, jabbing his fork towards Sam before stabbing another piece of chicken, "I'm Jared by the way."

"Not cool man," Brady said, "Not cool at all-"

I dropped my fork and it landed on my plate with a clatter, turning to look at Sam sitting at the lead of the tale. He had his hand on his forehead and he was giving Jared a death glare.

"You told them?" I asked, trying not to let the hurt leak in.

How could he do that? What I'd told him was between him and me. Emily, too maybe, but not his friends. Not friends that didn't even know me.

"No, Samantha I didn't mean-" Sam began, but I was already halfway up the stairs.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

I sat against the wall opposite the door, my arms wrapped around my legs. Whatever hopes I'd ever had ever of making at least some sort of amends with Sam were gone, replaced with hate and betrayal.

"Samantha?" Emily said softly from the other side of the door, "Can I come in?"

"No."

"Please?" she asked quietly, "I have food."

I sighed, rolling my eyes. Either way, she was going to come in. She had blackmail, after all.

"Fine."

The door opened and Emily walked in timidly, a plate of food in her left hand. I stayed where I was, not saying anything to her. I kept my eyes on the plate of food, my mouth watering. She set the food down and sat down across from me.

"Do you want to talk?" she asked.

"Are you gonna tell Sam about today?" I asked, raising one eyebrow.

"No," she told me with a small smile.

"Then no, I don't want to talk."

Emily sighed, nodding to herself before patting my arm and standing up. She walked back to the door, pausing to look at me.

"I am here, you know. If you ever need to talk."

And then she left me alone with my dinner.

I had absolutely no idea how to end this but I think I did okay:)

Review please! Maybe I'll update again today;)