Author's Notes:
Here we go! The next chapter! And it's a long one again.
And a million thanks to Jen for the beta!
Oh and I know that the recent episode of Prison Break (Ep. 2.7) said that Sara was an only child and all I have to say about that is LIES! The newspaper article that Michael had of her said 'second eldest daughter' dammit! She has a sister dammit! And that was not the only thing I had to rant about that eppie. But I still loved it though! It was so good. Can't believe we have to wait 3 weeks. pout Anyway, enjoy the chapter!
Oh! And one more thing! The reason why this story is rated M is for later chapters. Okay, now enjoy the chapter!
-- Flashback --
"Mommy?"
An older red headed woman looked up from the downcast look she had on her dinning room table where a half empty scotch glass sat. Her eyes met with her daughter, just a young child, Sara Tancredi.
"Sara, what are you doing up sweetheart?" the older red head asked as Sara crossed the room and climbed into her mother's lap.
"I heard you and daddy shouting again," little Sara said as she buried her head into her mother's shoulder. Her mother smelt like what she would learn later as alcohol.
"I'm sorry baby," her mother cooed in a soft whisper, "I'm really sorry."
"Mommy, why do you and Daddy fight a lot?" little Sara asked.
"It's because he makes you and your sister sad when he makes promises to you and doesn't keep them and that makes me sad too," she said with tears brimming her eyelids, "And then I get mad too because he keeps doing it to you, to all of us."
Little Sara pulled her head away from her mother's shoulder to look at her face. Little drops of water were rolling down her cheeks from her hazel eyes. With her short stubby fingers Sara wiped her mother's tears away.
"Don't cry Mommy."
That only made her want to cry even more. She clutched her daughter's hand in hers and kissed her fingers, tasting the salt of her tears and sadness on them. "I'm trying not to Sara, but I'm not that strong." Mrs. Tancredi reached up to her daughter's face and tucked a lock of red hair behind her ear. She took a good look at her daughter and then smiled lightly. "But I have a feeling that you will be." Her smile became wider but it was still small. "You'll grow up to be a beautiful strong woman."
"Really?"
Her mother nodded. "Yes, why, when you get older men will probably be throwing themselves at your feet."
"Is that a good thing?"
Sara's mother let out a small chuckle at her daughter's innocence. "Most tend to think so." She then gave the young child a solemn smile. "They're going to fall in love with you and you will fall in love with one of them back. I just hope that you'll have better luck than I did."
Sara looked at her mother, not understanding what she meant exactly seeing as how she knew nothing about 'love' and was at the age where she thought that all boys were icky. But then again those fairy tales with the charming princes and the fair maidens falling in love with each other did sound really nice.
"When you do fall in love with someone Sara, make sure that he won't disappoint you. Make sure that he will love you completely and fully. That he will make you smile and laugh. Make sure that you will be happy with him and he with you," her mother told Sara as she stroked her red locks.
"Make sure you don't end up like me."
That last part had come out in the softest of whispers. Sara wasn't sure if she heard it. She looked into her mother's sad eyes. They were pleading, begging, with the fates and the powers that be that Sara would not face the same tragedy that she did, the tragedy that she will face. But in the end, the outcome of Sara's fate entirely depended on Sara herself.
-- End of Flashback --
"Auntie Sara?"
Sara blinked and shook out of her little trip down memory lane. Standing before her was little Angie holding out a broken yellow crayon.
"My crayon broked," the little six-year old sniffed.
Sara gave her niece a small smile. The pig tailed girl had no idea how lucky she was that a broken yellow crayon was the worst of her problems. Things were so much more simple back then when she was a kid. "I'll get you a sharpener Angie, hold on."
Sara pushed herself off her grey couch and took those few steps towards her desk which was littered with mail and paperwork. She pulled open a drawer and rummaged through junk for a little pencil sharpener. When she found it her eye caught sight of the calendar on her wall beside it. Next Saturday was circled and marked "Devin and Megan's wedding. 4 pm."
She had forgotten completely about her friends' wedding what with all that's been going on with her the past month. She had received the invitation months ago, back when she was still single and in a hopeful but sorry thought that she would have a boyfriend by the time the wedding came around she RSVP'd that she would be bringing a guest. And she was right since she does have a 'boyfriend' now, but Sara wasn't too keen on bringing Robert to the wedding, especially after what had happened at Andrew's welcome home party the other night. He'd probably be too busy to go anyway.
"Auntie Sara?" Angie's soft voice broke her thoughts once again.
Sara turned around and walked back to her niece. She gave her a small smile. "Sorry Angie. Let me see your crayon now."
Little Angie handed her aunt the yellow crayola crayon and Sara sharpened it for her. The six-year old's eyes lit up and she said her "Thanks!" and promptly sat back down at Sara's coffee table where her brother Connor sat coloring various pictures in a coloring book.
Suddenly there was a rough knock on her apartment door. All three of them looked up. Sara told the twins to just keep coloring while she went to answer it and there behold was Robert standing in her doorway. Sara frowned. She was still angry at him for his behavior the other night.
"Why haven't you returned my calls?" he asked her.
"Because I'm trying to ignore you," she said curtly.
"Sara, look..."
"Robert, I'm in the middle of something at the moment," Sara said, interrupting him, "you should leave."
Robert's eyes narrowed with suspicion. "The middle of something?" He let out a low growl. "He's here, isn't he?" He pushed his way into Sara's apartment and immediately stomped over to her living room. "Come out here you son of a–"
He was met with two very confused six-year olds gawking up at him as they sat at the coffee table with crayons held midair in their stubby fingers. Robert promptly clamped his mouth shut, realizing his mistake. He turned to Sara to apologize, but one look at her told him that she was not amused.
"You should go Robert."
"Sara, it was an honest mistake..."
"Honest mistake?" Sara scoffed. "You jumped to conclusions! You must really think highly of me," she added sarcastically.
"Can you blame me? With the way he looks at you and the way you look back? Really Sara!"
"I will not argue with you in front of my niece and nephew. Get out Robert!" Sara practically shoved him out of her apartment.
She returned back to her living room. Angie and Connor looked up at her, a little confused and a little frightened. They had never seen their aunt so angry before.
"Auntie Sara, who was dat?" Connor asked.
Sara sighed. "He's...uh... my friend Robert."
"He doesn't sound like a friend," Connor said.
Angie nodded, agreeing with her twin. "Yeah, he's mean and scary and he makes you scary too."
"I'm sorry you guys, I didn't mean for you to see me like that," Sara told them as she plopped herself on her couch and slouched. "Robert and I are fighting. Sometimes people do that."
"Why are you fighting?" the twins asked.
"Because he doesn't like my other friends."
"Why?" Angie asked.
"I don't know," Sara said, shaking her head. But she really did.
"But I like your friends," Angie said, remembering Lily, Andrew and Michael from the barbecue. "Especially Michael! Michael's nice, much nicer than that other guy. And he doesn't make you scary," Angie told her aunt.
Sara lightly smiled at her niece. She was too adorable for her own good. But she was right. And that just showed her how pathetic she was when a six-year old was able to point out who was the better man.
"Is Michael gonna play with us today like last time?" Connor asked.
Sara shook her head. "He has work today sweetie."
The twins pouted. Sara felt like pouting herself.
---
"Andrew, do you have--" Michael stopped mid sentence as he entered his friend's office where he was met with the sight of Andrew and Lily not so subtly groping each other. He averted his eyes and cleared his throat when he realized that the two of them had not noticed that he had entered the room.
"Michael!" Lily said in a flustered stammer as she finally noticed him. She stepped away from her boyfriend, readjusting her shirt before she faced him. "I thought you locked the door?"
Andrew just grinned at her. "Your lips must have distracted me."
Lily fake scoffed at him and playfully smacked him in the chest. She turned back to Michael and let out a small nervous chuckle. "Sorry about that Michael."
"Uh, it's okay," he said awkwardly. He was still getting used to their coupling. "I just came for the prints. Then you guys can, uh, go back to whatever it was you guys were doing."
Andrew chuckled and proceeded to toss his friend a tube that held the blueprints. "There you go man!" He then wrapped an arm around Lily's waist. "And what we were 'doing' was a little something called 'foreplay.' You know, the thing that leads to the birds and the bees?" Lily let out a small chuckle and shook her head at Andrew, but he went on. "Has the 'beast' noticed that Lily's missing from her desk?"
"Uh, he was on the phone the last time I checked," Michael said.
Andrew raised an eyebrow. "Still? Damn, must be some business call."
"It's not a business call at all," Lily said. Both men turned to her. "While you guys were recovering from the car accident apparently our 'beast' found himself a tamer," she said with a small grin.
"You mean he found himself a girlfriend?" Andrew asked incredulously.
Lily nodded. "And ever since he's been a bit more lenient on all of us, haven't you guys noticed?"
"He has been a bit cheery lately. It's actually kinda scarier than when he glares at us and looks down at us," Andrew said with a slight shudder. "But I guess I should just count my blessings now that he's going easier on all of us," he added with a smile and pulled Lily closer to him, nuzzling her neck. "The things love will do to a man."
Lily gave a slight giggle. "Do you think he would notice if we just left the office and didn't come back the rest of the day?" she asked her boyfriend with a seductive tone.
Michael cleared his throat again. Apparently his friends forgot that he was still in the room with them. "I'll be going now," he said with a wave of the tube in hand, but the two of them weren't paying attention. He shook his head but gave them a small chuckle as he walked out of the office.
He walked through the cubicles of his firm towards his own office where he sat the tube of blueprints on his desk. The watch on his wrist then beeped signaling to him that it was noon, lunchtime. And it looked like he would be eating alone seeing as how Andrew and Lily were so enraptured with each other's... okay he was just going to stop right there.
---
Michael walked down the sidewalk of Chicago's streets with his hands in his coat pockets to shield them from the cold autumn weather. He took in all the city sights and sounds and processed them in his head. The sounds of cars honking, cell phones ringing, and people chattering away all flowed in and out of his mind. Then he heard laughter. And not just any laughter, but the laughter of a certain auburn haired woman who had that uncanny ability to make him smile. And here he was now, smiling at the sight of her, smiling at what she was doing at the moment.
Sara was with Angie and Connor and the three of them had made a game out of jumping from crack to crack in the sidewalk. Sara did the task with ease whereas Connor and Angie had trouble jumping just short of the line.
"Dat's not fair Auntie Sara, you're bigger than us!" Connor exclaimed with a childish pout.
Sara slightly chuckled. "I'm sorry Connor," she said ruffling his hair, "but soon you'll be big and will be able to jump really far, I promise."
Michael couldn't help but smile at the scene. He let out a small chuckle. Angie had heard him and turned her head. Her eyes lit up at the sight of him and she skipped on over to him.
"Michael!"
Sara looked up and their eyes met. She smiled and he felt a rush of warmth wash over him.
"Hey," he simply said.
"Michael," Sara began with that bright smile of hers, "what are you doing here?"
"I was heading out to lunch."
"Oh! We were too!" Angie jumped up and down excitedly. "Can Michael eat lunch with us Auntie Sara?"
"Angie, I think you should ask Michael," Sara said.
Angie looked up at Michael with big innocent doe like eyes. "Will you have lunch with us?" She then added, "Please?"
Michael smiled down at the six-year old. "All right."
Angie threw her hands up in the air in glee. The other three in her company let out a small laugh.
"We were going to get some burgers just down the street," Sara said as the four of them began walking down the sidewalk.
"Cool, I was in the mood for a burger anyway," Michael said with a smile.
They walked into a fast food restaurant and Sara told the twins to go grab a table while she and Michael ordered their food. Angie slid into a booth after her brother who was now pretending that the salt and pepper shakers on the table were two soldiers. The six-year old girl watched her aunt and Michael together and noticed how they were always smiling at each other.
"Hey Connor," Angie said, poking him to get his attention, "do you think Auntie Sara likes Michael?"
"Yeah. I like him too," he said, going back to his little battle between salt and pepper.
"No, I mean like she likes him likes him. Like how Cindy at school likes you."
Connor made a face. "But I don't like Cindy."
"I'm not talking about Cindy!" Angie said with the frustration of a six-year old. Then she thought of something else that her dense twin might understand. "Do you think Michael and Auntie Sara like each other the way Mommy and Daddy like each other?"
Connor just shrugged. "Maybe."
Angie sighed in frustration. Boys were stupid, especially her twin brother.
Meanwhile, Sara and Michael waited in line to get their food. Sara glanced at him. "Where are Andrew and Lily?"
Michael tore his eyes away from the big sign menu and looked at her. "Probably back at Andrew's place, playing hooky," he said. 'And probably something else,' Michael thought and he fought to keep the images out of his head.
Sara chuckled. "I think I know what they're doing."
"What?"
"Each other," she said. Michael chuckled. Apparently Sara was thinking the same thing he was. "On the morning of Andrew's release, he asked me if it was okay for him to have sex in his condition."
Michael raised a brow with an amused smile on his lips. "Really? What did you tell him?"
Sara smiled a brilliant smile full of mischievousness. "I basically told him that it would kill him."
Michael let out a loud laugh, turning a couple of heads to him, but he didn't notice. "I wish I could have been there to see his face!"
Sara laughed along with him. They quickly got their food and returned to the table where the twins sat. Connor threw up his hands in the air and gleefully shouted, "Yay! Food!"
Angie looked up at Michael as he sat down. "Michael, will you play with us after we eat?"
Michael looked down at the hopeful six year old. He didn't like disappointing anyone. "I can't Angie. I have to go back to work."
Angie pouted and began poking her French fries. Michael frowned. He didn't like disappointing anyone. "Maybe on the weekend your Auntie Sara and I can take you guys to the park again," he gave the little girl a smile, "and I can push you on the swings again."
Angie brightened at this suggestion. She looked at Sara for a confirmation that it was okay, but Sara shook her head.
"I'm going to a wedding on Saturday," she told them.
Both Michael and Angie looked downhearted when she said that. Michael was disappointed he wouldn't be spending a day with Sara and Angie was disappointed that she wouldn't get to ride on the swings. Connor was just munching away on his burger. Sara felt bad seeing the disappointment on their faces.
"Maybe we could do something another time," she said. Angie brightened again at that prospect and they began eating up their lunch.
"So whose wedding are you going to?" Michael asked, making conversation.
"An old med school buddy of mine as well as my old neighbor," Sara said. "They actually met through me."
Michael smiled at her. "Sounds like fun. I've never been to a wedding before."
Sara smiled back at him. Then a thought hit her. "Would you like to come with me?" she asked, rather shyly.
Michael looked up from his burger. "What?"
Sara slightly blushed. Why did it feel like she was asking a boy out to a school dance? "Well, I don't have anyone to go with and I really don't want to be there by myself."
"What about Robert?"
Sara looked down. "I'm still kind of mad at him for the other night. And plus, he's usually too busy with work."
Michael thought about this. A part of him was jumping for joy at the possibility of spending time with Sara, but there was a little voice in his head that told him that maybe it wasn't such a good idea, especially with Robert around. But then another voice told him 'To hell with Robert! Go for it!' Michael ended up listening to the second voice.
He smiled at her. "Okay."
Sara beamed. "Great." She looked down at her burger, smiling, and the four of them continued eating.
---
The week went by and soon came the day of the wedding. Michael walked down the hallway of Sara's apartment building complex. He was dressed in a dark blue buttoned up shirt with black pants and a black jacket over his shoulders. As he walked up to Sara's door, apt. no. 236, Michael rubbed his palms on his pants. He took a deep breath and rapt his fist on her door. Shuffling could be heard on the other side of the door and soon enough he heard the door being unlocked and opened.
Michael felt his breath hitched in his throat and his heart skipped a beat. There was Sara, dressed in maroon spaghetti strapped dress that had a thin ribbon wrapped around her waist in a bow. It was a simple dress, but Sara made it look absolutely stunning. She looked breathtaking in it. Her hair was down, but in wavy curls that fell about her bare shoulders. She smiled at him. It nearly floored him.
"Hi Michael," she said.
"I...uh... wow..." Michael stammered. Sara gave a small chuckle. Michael became flustered. "Sorry, I didn't mean to stare," he told her.
Sara smiled and shook her head. "It's okay; I'm taking it as a compliment." She grabbed her purse and shawl, along with the wedding gift. "You don't look half bad yourself," she said with a grin as they began walking out the door.
Michael chuckled. "Thanks."
---
The wedding was being held at a club along Chicago's lakefront. The wedding ceremony itself was going to be outdoors by the lake, while the reception would be in the club. Many people were already there when Michael and Sara arrived.
"Sara!"
Sara turned around and saw her old medical school classmate, Devin, come up to her. He greeted his old friend with a smile and a hug.
"I'm so glad you made it! It's been such a long time!"
Sara smiled at her friend. "Yes, it has." She looked at Michael. "Devin, this is my friend Michael. Michael, meet the groom, Devin."
Michael held out his hand. "It's nice to meet you, and congratulations."
Devin shook his hand. He just couldn't stop grinning. It was obvious he was excited for the wedding. "Thanks." He then saw the chairs set up by the lake being filled up. "You guys better go grab a seat. We'll be starting in a bit."
"Okay," Sara said.
Devin said goodbye to them and went on to greet the other guest just arriving. Michael held out his arm to Sara and smiled. "Shall we?"
Sara smiled back and linked her arm with his. "We shall."
The two of them walked on over and found themselves a couple of seats. Sara looked around at the other guests, trying to see if she knew or remembered anyone there. She found a couple of ladies staring at her. Or rather, they were staring at Michael. Sara looked at Michael to see if he noticed, but he didn't. He was busy looking at the setup of columns and archways with flowers draped about it, probably digesting its structure with his engineer mind. Sara glanced back at the women and now they were grinning and waving their hands in their faces like a fan as if it were hot, which was strange because it was cold out. They looked to be almost swooning.
Sara slightly grimaced. They were checking Michael out! Devouring him with their eyes! Undressing him in their minds! Sara felt a vein on her brow twitch. Michael finally noticed her discomfort.
"You okay Sara?" he asked her.
Sara looked back at him. "What? Oh, yes, I'm fine." She pulled her shawl more tightly around her shoulders. "Just a little cold." Actually, she was burning with annoyance.
"Do you want to wear my jacket?" Michael offered, ever the gentleman.
"No, I'm okay," she told him. Then she regretted it because maybe wearing his jacket would send signals to the other ladies that Michael was off limits. Sara mentally shook her head. Michael wasn't her boyfriend, so those women were free to drool over him as much as they like much to Sara's dislike.
The groomsmen shuffled stray people to the seats and shushed everyone. The wedding was about to start.
---
The ceremony was beautiful. Sara couldn't help but sniffle a little bit as Devin and Megan said their vows. Michael offered her a handkerchief and she dabbed at her watery eyes.
After the bride and groom walked down the aisle together everyone was shuffled into the club to be seated for dinner. Single women all around kept checking Michael out, much to Sara's annoyance, but she tried to ignore them and just focus on having a good time. The food was delicious and the couple that they sat with at their table was very friendly.
"The wedding was so beautiful," the woman, Emily, said to her fiancé, "do you think our wedding will be just as beautiful, Matt?"
Matt smiled at her. "It will be a hundred times more beautiful, Sweetheart," he said with endearment. He turned to Michael and Sara. "We're getting married in a year ourselves."
"Congratulations," both Michael and Sara said with a smile.
"Thank you," Emily said, beaming. "What about you guys? Are wedding bells in the future for you two?"
Michael and Sara awkwardly glanced at each other. Michael opened his mouth to speak. "We're not... we're not together."
"I'm actually dating someone else," Sara said. "We're just friends."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I just assumed," Emily said. She turned to Sara. "So why aren't you here with your boyfriend?"
"He was busy, so I asked Michael to come with me," Sara said. "I didn't want to be a loner," she said with a small chuckle.
Matt turned to Michael. "Well Michael, you seemed to have caught many ladies' eye tonight. Maybe you can find yourself a girlfriend here."
Sara shifted uncomfortably in her seat and looked down at the table while Michael lightly brushed Matt's comment off. "I'm not here looking for a girlfriend, just trying to enjoy myself."
A new happy upbeat song began playing throughout the room and soon couples began moving towards the dance floor.
"Oh!" Emily exclaimed. "I love this song!" She jumped up from her seat and tugged on her boyfriend's arm, urging him to come with her to the dance floor and dance.
Michael and Sara watched as the happy couple made their way to the floor and began swaying to the music together. Michael turned to Sara and held his hand out to her.
"May I have this dance?"
Sara smiled at him. "You may." She slipped her hand into his and they made their way to the dance floor.
The two of them swayed and moved together to the beat of the music. Michael even twirled Sara around, earning him a happy laugh.
"I didn't know you could dance so well, Michael," Sara said with a smile on her face.
Michael chuckled. "I have many talents."
They laughed together and kept on dancing. The song ended and a new one began and the two of them were going to dance to that one as well when Sara felt a soft tap on her shoulder. She turned to see a woman with blonde hair smiling at them.
"May I cut in?" the blonde asked.
Sara stared at the girl. She wanted to say 'no.' She wanted to slap the blonde upside her head and tell her to go away, but she didn't want to cause a scene. She didn't want to ruin this day for Devin and Megan. Sara looked to Michael and he seemed to be waiting for her decision. It was up to her.
"Sure," Sara said with a forced politeness. She knew it was wrong to keep Michael to herself when he didn't belong to her.
"Sara-" Michael began, but Sara cut him off.
"It's okay," she said. "I kind of need a breather after that last dance and then I'm going to the restroom. Enjoy yourself Michael."
The blonde was only too happy to take Sara's spot in Michael's arms on the dance floor. Michael watched as Sara walked towards the ladies' room, his eyes filled with concern.
Sara stepped into the empty restroom and ventured into one of the stalls. She sat herself on the toilet seat and let out a long sigh. Soon enough she heard the restroom door open and in stepped two ladies. From the sound of their voices, Sara recognized one of them to be Emily.
"That Michael guy is quite the hottie, don't you think?" the other woman asked Emily.
"He sure is," Emily agreed, "he's cuter than Matt even, but don't tell him I said that."
The unknown woman chuckled then sighed. "It's too bad he's with that red head."
"Oh, they're not dating, they're just friends. She's actually dating another guy," Emily told her friend.
"Really? I like the sound of that." Sara could just imagine the girl grinning. "If I was her I would have jumped his bones the day I met him! I wonder what's wrong with her."
Sara heard the pair laugh. She fought the urge to pull the roll of toilet paper off its hinge and chuck it at the woman's head. She then heard the two of them leave and Sara was alone once again. She pushed open the stall door and walked over to the counter. Her hands gripped the porcelain edge of the sink.
What was wrong with her? There Michael was, an absolute wonderful guy. He was handsome and attractive. He was intelligent and funny. He was kind and sweet. And she enjoyed being around him. So why was she with someone else who did nothing but disappoint her?
Sara let out a long sigh and finally looked up to see her reflection in the mirror. She gasped and then blinked. For a second there, she could have sworn she saw her mother in the mirror, but no, it was just her. Sara shook her self. She was just seeing things. Sara washed her hands and fixed her hair a little bit before exiting the restroom.
Michael was still on the dance floor, but this time with a new girl. Sara assumed it was the girl she heard in the bathroom. She watched as the two of them moved together to the music. Then the girl leaned up on her tippy toes and brought her lips up to Michael's ear, whispering something in it. Sara saw Michael smile and chuckle and she thought she felt someone grab a hold of her heart and squeeze it. She turned away and saw a waiter with a tray with many glasses of champagne as well as the bottle on it. She walked up to him and grabbed both the bottle and a glass and walked away.
---
Michael wasn't used to getting so much attention from the fairer sex before. Sure, girls hit on him before, but not one after the other. He guessed it was because of the wedding atmosphere. Single girls got too emotional at weddings and then become more determined to seek out men of their own. Michael was flattered by all their looks and compliments, but he really just wanted to get back to Sara.
He looked around the room for her, but didn't see her anywhere. Soon the song ended and Michael was relieved. He looked down at his dancing partner.
"Thank you for the dance. Now excuse me," he said as politely as he could.
The girl gripped his hand. "One more dance?" she pleaded.
"I've been dancing all night, miss," Michael said with a forced politeness, "I'd like to take a rest and I want to look for my friend."
The woman pouted but she released his hand. Michael walked away from her and the dance floor and scanned the room for Sara's lovely head. But he couldn't find her anywhere. He walked up to Devin and Megan.
"Have you seen Sara?" he asked them.
They shook their heads. "No we haven't, why?" Devin asked.
"I can't find her at all. She said she was going to the bathroom, but it's been about an hour since she said that," Michael said.
"I was just in the bathroom, she's not there," Megan said.
"Maybe she's outside, getting some fresh air?" Devin suggested.
Michael nodded. "Probably. Thank you!" he said before jogging off.
Michael walked out into the dark cool night and looked about. He then saw someone sitting on the front steps of the building with her head resting on the railing. He took a few steps forward and saw that indeed it was Sara.
"Sara!" Michael bent down to her. "Where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you!"
Sara lifted her head off the metal railing and brought her hand up to her head as if she had a headache. "Really? I could have sworn it was called dancing," she said rather bitterly.
Michael was taken a back for a second with that comment. Did she sound jealous? Was that the reason why she was out here? His foot hit something and he looked down to see a champagne bottle and a glass. He picked up the bottle. It was empty. His eyes widened.
"Did you drink the whole bottle, Sara?" he asked her with concern.
"Maybe," she said in a slur.
Michael stared dumbfounded at her. She was drunk. He saw her head fall back to the railing clumsily. Very drunk.
"I think I should take you home now," he said with worry lining his words. "Stay here while I go tell Devin and Megan that we're leaving."
Sara nodded with exaggerated movements and closed her eyes as she leaned her head on the railing. Michael placed his jacket on her shoulders to keep the cold away from her and then hurried back inside.
"Devin, Megan," Michael called out when he spotted them.
"Michael, did you find Sara?" Devin asked.
Michael nodded. "She's not feeling well, so I'm going to take her home."
"Is she okay?" Megan asked.
"She'll be fine. Thank you for everything. Congratulations and good luck!" Michael said quickly, eager to get back to Sara.
When he walked back outside he found that Sara was no longer sitting on the steps. She was sitting a few feet away on the ground. He rushed to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Sara, are you okay?"
Sara sniffled a little bit. "I fell."
Michael stared at her with worry. "Okay, let me help you up and take you home," he said as he gripped Sara's hands in his and helped her to her feet. He saw that Sara had skinned her knee when she fell. "You're hurt." He pulled out his handkerchief and knelt down to wrap it around her knee. "Can you make it to the car?"
"I don't know."
"That's okay," he said. He wrapped an arm around her waist while the other held her hand to steady her. "Let's just get you home."
---
Michael didn't know how he managed it, what with their stumbling now and then, but he finally got Sara back to her apartment. He led her to her bathroom.
"Let's clean up your knee okay?" Sara just nodded in reply.
Michael flipped the toilet lid down and gently sat Sara on it. He rummaged her cabinets for disinfectant and some Band-Aids. He finally found some and then knelt down in front of Sara. She gripped his hands with hers.
"I can do it Michael," she said.
"You sure?"
Sara nodded, still with exaggerated movements. "Can you... can you get me my pajamas?"
Michael nodded. "Sure."
He walked out of the bathroom and into her bedroom where her dresser was along the wall. Without paying much heed, Michael opened the top drawer... only to find Sara's collection of lacy and non-lacy undergarments. Michael quickly shut the drawer; a rosy hue began creeping up his cheeks. He shook himself of the embarrassment and then opened the drawer beneath the top one with carefulness. He pulled out a pair of grey sweatpants and an old worn 'Northwestern' shirt.
He walked back to the bathroom, with the clothes in his hands. The door was slightly ajar and Michael gently pushed it open.
"Sara, here..."
Michael was left speechless at what he saw. There was Sara, standing in the middle of her bathroom, only she was just in her bra and panties. If Michael was blushing before, he was completely scarlet now. He gaped at her a bit but then promptly turned around holding out her pajamas to her.
"Um... here!" he stammered out. "Sorry... I... uh... didn't know..."
Sara shrugged his stammering off and took her clothes from Michael like it wasn't a big deal that she was standing in front of him half naked. Apparently alcohol made Sara more bold and without shame.
Michael kept his eyes averted, trying to be a gentleman, but he was so tempted to turn around... "Um, I'll wait outside," he said, shutting the bathroom door behind him. Outside, Michael did his best to calm himself down, but the image of Sara half naked kept reappearing before his eyes. "Oh god..." Michael said, running a hand over his face.
He then heard the bathroom door opening and out came Sara, fully dressed. She took a couple steps forward, but began to stumble. Michael quickly reached out and caught her before she fell to the floor.
"I got you! Don't worry," he said in comfort.
He was surprised when Sara stepped closer to him, burying her face into his chest. He felt her grab small handfuls of his shirt in her hands. She then sniffled. Michael felt compelled to wrap his arms around her tiny frame.
"What's wrong?" he asked her.
"I'm turning into my mom," she said, her voice muffled by his chest.
Michael gently pulled her a little bit away from his chest so he could look into her face. "What do you mean?"
Sara sniffled again. Tears smeared her cheeks. "She drank a lot. And she was bitter and sad. And I'm afraid I'm gonna end up like her."
Michael didn't know what brought this on, but he would comfort her nonetheless. "Hey, hey, it's okay. You're not going to end up like her."
"Yes I am!" Sara said into his chest again.
"Who says so?"
Sara opened her mouth to answer, but she really didn't know the answer. Michael pulled her close and hugged her.
"See? No one says so. If you don't want to be like your mom, then don't. It's your choice Sara," he said soothingly to her.
Michael felt Sara relax a little in his arms. She sniffled again and looked up at him. "Really?"
Michael nodded. "Yes. If you feel like you're turning into your mom and you don't want to, then do something about it." Sara nodded and Michael smiled at her. "You should go to bed, get some rest, okay?"
Sara nodded again. She dragged her feet to her bed and climbed in, pulling her covers over her.
Michael watched her as she tucked herself into bed. "Goodnight Sara."
---
The next morning, Sara woke up with the hugest headache in her life. She groaned as she gripped her head.
"About time you woke up. How are you feeling?"
Sara looked up and saw Michael sitting in a nearby chair. "Michael...what are you doing here?"
"Here," he said, handing her a glass of something unidentifiable to Sara, "I wanted to make sure you were all right, so I stayed over. I slept on your couch, hope you don't mind."
Sara took the glass from him. "I don't mind." She smiled at him. "Thanks." She then looked at the glass in her hand. "What is this?"
"Something to help you with your hangover. Don't ask what's in it though."
Sara looked at him funny but she shrugged and took a sip. Strangely enough, it made her feel better, but she should have known that since it was Michael. Sara cleared her throat before asking, "What happened last night?"
"You had a little too much to drink so I took you home."
"Oh," Sara said as the memories slowly came back to her, "I'm sorry you had to see me like that."
Michael blushed slightly. "Um, it's okay."
Sara stared at him, wondering why he was blushing. Then the memory hit her. She had stood in front of him in her underwear! "Oh God!" she said as she pulled her blanket over her head in embarrassment. She heard Michael chuckle.
"Sara, it's not a big deal," he said, slowly pulling the blanket down. "Besides, you have a cute butt," he said with a grin.
Sara faked scoffed at him, turning completely scarlet. She grabbed her pillow and playfully hit him in the head with it. "You're horrible!"
Michael chuckled as he blocked her hit with his arm. "It was a compliment Sara!" he said, laughing.
Sara couldn't help but laugh too. But she was still embarrassed. She managed to calm down a bit and then she remembered the other thing Michael did for her last night. "Thank you for..."
Michael nodded, realizing that she meant the thing about her mother. "May I ask why it upset you so much?"
Sara looked down at her lap. "It's just that... up until her death my mom lived her life unhappy and angry at everything. I don't want that to happen to me. My mom didn't want that to happen to me either."
"I don't want that to happen to you either."
Sara looked up at him and smiled a small smile. "You are right though. In the end it all really depends on me whether or not I face the same fate as her."
"So what are you going to do about it?" Michael asked.
Sara smiled at him. "What I must."
---
Sara sat at a table for two beside the Chicago River. She had already eaten and paid for her breakfast as she was waiting for the person she was meeting.
"Sara!"
The doctor looked up and saw Robert come up to her table.
"You're late," she said as he took a seat.
"I'm sorry, it's a busy morning," he excused, "now what did you want to talk about?" he asked with a hopeful look on his face.
"I wanted to talk about us," she told him.
"What about us?" Robert asked.
"That there's no longer an 'us' as of now," Sara said with a serious face.
"What?"
"I'm breaking up with you Robert," Sara simply said.
Robert's face twisted into anger, but Sara stood strong. "It's because of him, isn't it?"
"It's because of a lot of reasons," Sara said standing up from her seat at the table. "Goodbye Robert."
And with that Sara walked away from him, feeling a bit freer. She smiled up at the sky. 'Don't worry Mom, I promise I won't end up like you,' she silently said to the clouds.