And so it ends...
"Have you ever wondered about the saying "Everything happens for a reason"? Wondered if there was anything true about the fact that every single choice we make is fated for the same end result? It would be quite crazy if you've heard of that and not heard someone utter the words "I was made to love you"." Sam asked as he smiled as if his entire life was flashing before his eyes. "If you don't believe in any of that or in divine intervention, then what I am telling you might seem as if it is truly impossible. How can two complete strangers pass by each other at so many different times in their lives without meeting until that right moment?" Sam smiled as everyone waited on his next words with bated breath. "I was a skeptic also, until that day when Mercedes and I went to meet my biological mother."
Mercedes and Sam arrived at the restaurant before Quinn made it in. Mainly due to Sam's nervousness. He spent the flight and drive to the hotel writing down questions that he wanted answered. Then the entire day, Sam nervously paced about the hotel room practicing the questions and constantly asking Mercedes if this was at all a good idea. To Mercedes, it was a no-brainer but she understood his nervousness and she constantly reminded him that it was a great idea. She would play with her bracelet then look over at him with a reassuring smile then reply: "Everything happens for a reason, Sam."
When they finally made it to the restaurant, Sam continued to ask if maybe it was a bad idea, if it was too soon. Instead of repeating her mantra, she would reach over and place her hand on his then give it a tight squeeze. He would look over at her then take a deep breath before smiling and placing a kiss on the back of her hand. When Quinn finally arrived, Sam and Mercedes both watched as she walked in. Her blonde hair, was cut short to the length of her ears that showcased diamond earrings. She was slim but still wore a belt around the dress she wore that hugged her body. Time slowed down as she walked in with an imaginary light shining on her, chin tilted upwards, an aura that said she was rich and she knew it.
"That's her." Sam said softly. Mercedes wasn't sure if he was saying it to tell her or to tell himself that he was finally seeing her with his own eyes. Mercedes could see Sam in her as she made her way over to the table then smiled at the both of them. Sam slowly stood up and extended his hand towards her.
"Sam...look at you..." she muttered with a shaky voice as if she was holding back tears. She reached for his hand and held it with both of her hands as she nodded before widening her smile.
"Mrs. McIntosh, thank you for agreeing to meet with us."
"The pleasure is all mine...and I kept my maiden name so I go by Fabray or Quinn." she smiled as she looked over from Sam to Mercedes.
"Oh uh...yeah, Ms. Fabray...this is my girlfriend..."
"Mercedes Jones." Quinn said cutting Sam off then extending her hand over to Mercedes. "I saw you perform at the last concert that you performed where you sang your heart out before walking off the stage. It was powerful." Quinn added before looking over at Sam as they both sat down. "There wasn't a dry eye in the stadium. Please tell me you plan on returning to the stage some day?"
"Uh...yes...I do, Ms. Fabray. I'm working on it." Mercedes responded before looking over at Sam. He reached under the table to hold her hand just as the waitress came over and took their order.
"So, I think it would be wise if I begin this whole thing by apologizing for what your sister, I mean, what Kitty did. She told me what my husband...soon to be ex-husband said to you. It was not his place to even utter anything to you. If I had known about you being there, I would have made sure things went a lot smoother."
"I shouldn't have went there anyway." Sam admitted. "Kitty's offer came at a time that made me a bit desperate." Mercedes knew that it had to have been when she left with Brody. If she hadn't left he wouldn't have agreed to meet with Kitty. She hated that every time she did something, Sam was the one that had to deal with the consequences.
"Whatever the reason, I should have been the one to reach out to you and make this happen when your mother first got in touch with me." Quinn responded before taking a sip of her wine. "I was a bit of a coward. Wishing that possibly the letter was good enough and that you wouldn't have a bunch of questions."
"I have a lot of questions." Sam admitted before looking over at Mercedes who sat quietly and watched the two of them.
"I Know...and I am...uh...ready for the questions." Quinn replied as Sam took a deep breath and reached into his pocket for his list of questions. "Oh, you wrote them down." she added nervously.
"I didn't want to forget anything important." he replied as he unfolded the piece of paper. "It's not a lot of questions. Some of these are just random questions that have crossed my mind since I found out I was adopted."
"Okay...uh...I will try my best to answer it as honestly as possible." Quinn replied before wiping the side of her lips. Mercedes reached over again and placed her hand over Sam's. He reassured her with a nod and smiled as she removed her hand from his.
"Like I said some of these are random, so I'll just uh...start with this one here." Sam said as he read off the first question. "Do you have any siblings?" Sam asked then looked up to explain. "I mean, I just learned I got a sister. I am trying to see if I also have cousins that I don't know of."
"I get it." Quinn replied with a smile. "I...uh...am an only child as far as I know. When I was a senior, my mother decided to divorce my father so I don't know if he wasn't out there spreading the love, so to speak."
"Okay, uh, speaking of fathers, who was my father?"
"I...uh..."
"Were you two in love? Do you know where he is so that I can meet him as well?"
"Uh...love...I wouldn't say we were in love. At the time I thought I might have loved him. Then again at that age I thought I loved everyone."
"Was he there when I was born?"
"Sam, give her a second to finish her answer." Mercedes stated as she could see that Quinn did not anticipate Sam asking about his father. If she was being honest, throughout the whole ordeal, Sam never mentioned wondering who he was but she could of course understand why he did. Mercedes could tell the line of questions was already getting to Quinn. She immediately looked uneasy. "Are you okay, Ms. Fabray?" she asked.
"It's fine, Mercedes." she replied with a smile then took a deep breath before responding. "I haven't thought of him in years." she replied with a smile as if she could see him in front of her. "I met him over the summer when he spent the summer with his father."
"What was his name?" Sam asked snapping Quinn back to the table.
"His name was Joseph but I called him teen Jesus as a joke because he wore these Birkenstock sandals and he had these long locs and piercing green eyes..." she paused and looked at Sam. "Just like yours...well yours are a tad lighter if I am honest. Now that I have a closer look at you, I can see a bit of him and myself when I look at you."
"Where is he?" Sam asked as if he didn't care for the responses he was getting. It was obvious that he wanted more. It was obvious that Sam was interested in having the same chat with this Joseph guy as soon as he got a chance. Quinn looked down at her fingertips then licked her lips before looking away from the table.
"When I found out I was pregnant, I went over to his dad's to get his number to know where he actually lived." Quinn responded with a forced smile. "You know, back then everyone didn't have a cellphone but we had this thing called a landline. It made getting on the internet quite interesting." she smiled down at her fingertips again then looked at Sam and Mercedes. "When I made it to his mother's, I thought he'd be happy to see me but he seemed a bit annoyed that I took the trip there. We argued and then I blurted about being pregnant. He left angry and..." Quinn paused for a second to gather herself before continuing. "I waited for him to come back and when he didn't, I left. I found out later, he'd gotten into an accident and didn't make it." Mercedes looked over at Sam, it was killing her to hear how he just kept getting bad news after the next. How many times, can he be told that someone didn't want him?
"Is that why you gave me up?" Sam asked catching Quinn off guard once again.
"Uh...it played a part in it. Yes. I was only 17 as I told you in the letter. When Joe passed away, I knew there was no way I'd be able to care for you the way that you deserved." she replied. "If I kept you, we would have suffered. My mother would have kicked me out and I would have had nowhere to go." she admitted. "I gave you up to make sure that you didn't suffer."
"Bullshit!"
"Sam!" Mercedes exclaimed in shock.
"No, Mercedes, I have to say this." Sam replied before looking at Quinn in pure anger. "You didn't give me up so that I didn't suffer. You did it so that you wouldn't suffer. I didn't fit into that plan of yours to become this rich successful lawyer that you are now. If you kept me, then you would have to alter all those plans with me in mind."
"Sam." Mercedes said softly as she tried to calm him down.
"I thought it was best for the both of us." Quinn replied as she looked between the two of them.
"Well it wasn't. You didn't want me to suffer? Did you even try to find out if I was okay? To see if I suffered or not?" Sam asked. "Well, guess what, I suffered. I struggled. My mom and dad, the ones that raised me, struggled to raise me. Every year my dad moved us back and forth. He could barely keep a job. Then my dad died and I had to work to provide for the family. I stripped to take care of us." Sam admitted then smiled at the shocked look on Quinn's face. "Yes, I stripped. As a minor, I stripped. While you were living this lavish lifestyle, I suffered. While you were spoiling your daughter, I struggled. So, don't tell me that you thought adoption was best for me." he stated between gritted teeth. The tension at the table was so thick that the waitress came over to ask if everything was okay.
"We're fine. Thank you." Mercedes responded as Sam and Quinn ignored her presence. She gave Mercedes a quick smile then looked at Sam and Quinn before stepping away. "Sam." Mercedes said as she placed her hand over his again. He looked over at her and gave her hand a squeeze to assure her that he was okay.
"You are right. My decision was selfish." Quinn admitted. "Since I was in middle school, I had my entire life mapped out. I was going to go to high school, be head cheerleader, most popular, prom queen, graduate as valedictorian and head off to Yale. I knew then that I was going to be the lawyer you see today but I never saw you coming." she added with a soft smile. "I had a plan but God had His own. When I went into labor, my mind went into panic mode because up until that point I had led myself to believe that if I ignored my belly that it wasn't happening. Then my water broke and life told me to get a grip." she told them the story of what happened as she went into labor. "I was in the room with another woman that went into labor...she was my teacher. Can you believe that?" Quinn asked. "Just as I was trying to hide that I was pregnant, life decided to throw a wrench in plans and have my teacher in the room." she shook her head before continuing. "She told me how happy she was because she was going to be a mother. Told me that everything happened for a reason...and then she passed away." Mercedes felt her heart pounding as if she knew this story was about her mother. Something told her that Quinn was talking about her mother especially when she said that everything happens for a reason.
"Wait a minute." Mercedes said as a tear slid from her eye. She reached into her purse and pulled out the picture of her and Sam then handed it to Quinn. "Was her name Cassandra Jones?"
"That's your mom's name, right?" Sam asked as Quinn looked at the picture in silence. She looked up at Mercedes and smiled.
"Yes. Yes. Oh my..." she covered her lips and looked at Mercedes then back at the picture. "Everything happens for a reason."
"Wait...you're telling me that our mom's met when we were born?" Sam asked as Quinn handed him the picture. He stared at the picture and remembered that this was the picture that lead him to finding out that he was adopted. "How'd you get this picture? This is the picture that lead me to know I was adopted." he muttered then added softly: "This is...us?" Sam stared at the picture then looked over at Mercedes. "You knew about this?"
"Not about my mom...no...but I learned about this picture when I went to my dad's over the break." Mercedes admitted. "Things were a bit hectic when I returned so I didn't know how to bring it up or when."
"Mercedes." Sam said as he looked at the picture once again then back at her.
-45 years later-
Sam stroked the top of her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. The same type of squeeze that she used to do to help him calm down, he was using to calm himself down. He remembered when they returned back to the hotel that they spoke for hours. After she told him the tales her father told them on how the picture helped calm her when she cried, he knew they belonged together. He knew then that he couldn't live without her.
"So, Grandma was there the day you got your shots for school?" Sage asked as he looked between his grandparents.
"Yes, apparently my screams scared her away." Sam replied with a chuckle. "I think we locked eyes for a brief second before she left the clinic with her nanny."
"When did you guys meet next?" Melody asked as she looked up from her phone.
"I think the next time we met was camp. We're not too sure if it was then but from my memory and what she remembered, we met then too. Every time something important was happening in our lives, we seem to meet at some imaginary fork in the road." Sam replied. "Life. It's funny isn't it." he added with a chuckle.
"That's awesome, Grandpa." Melody responded without looking away from her phone. "By the way, Nana's been trending all week. All of her music are being streamed online."
"Melody, nobody cares about all of that!" Sage shouted as he tried to grab her phone from her.
"Nana does! She loves music. Music was her life!" she replied as she pulled her phone away from his grasp.
"Music is her life!"
"You swear that you know everything." Melody snapped back.
"Enough!" Destiny said as she'd had enough of listening to her kids screaming about it back and forth. " What is wrong with you two? Last thing my mother needs to hear is the two of you arguing over what she loves."
Sam could hear them arguing but he was in another world at that moment. Although his granddaughter was right that music was what Mercedes loved, it was not her life. He knew family was her life and Sam knew that she was his life. He knew he couldn't live without her because he knew the happiest moments of his life had been with her. As he held her hand, and continued to replay every moment of their life. He remembered the night that Mercedes shocked him with a question he never imagined her asking him.
Sam remembered that they were in bed talking about their journey to where they were at that time. The conversation was lighthearted at first with a couple laughs here and there before one thing led to another. As Sam tried to recall the event, he couldn't remember every detail but he could still feel their connection from that night. She was lying on her side as he spooned her from behind and placed kisses on her shoulder while she spoke.
"Do you believe in destiny?" Mercedes asked as Sam continued to place soft kisses on her shoulder. He paused as if he had to think about it for a second but after hearing how they'd met, he'd be dumb to say he didn't believe it.
"I guess I do...look where we are, how we met. It had to be a destiny thing, right?"
"We belong together." she sang before giggling and turning to face him.
"We do."
"Do you think we should get married?" Mercedes asked catching Sam off guard. He'd thought about it several times. Unfortunately, their success had them all over the place that he never really figured out when they would do it. And if he was honest with himself, he never thought he was good enough for Mercedes.
"You'd marry me?" he asked with an unsure smile tugging the corner of his lips. She reached over to stroke the side of his face before placing a kiss on his lips quickly before reaching over to grab something out of the nightstand.
"Sam Evans..." she smiled as she held a small velvet box and looked into his eyes.
"Whoa, Mercedes...are you serious?"
"Let me ask it, Sam." she giggled as Sam looked at the box as if he didn't know what was inside. He remembered wishing that he had proposed to her instead but knew it didn't matter who asked the other. He knew that one day they would married. "So, we getting married or nah?" she asked as Sam snapped back.
"Are you sure you want to spend the rest of your life with me?"
"You're my destiny, Sam."
Sam remembered that they wasted no time and got married a month later only to find out that she was pregnant a week later. He almost lost her then too. He look down at her hand and shook his head as he remembered the selfish thought he had when she went into labor. The minute he heard emergency c-section, he remembered arguing with the doctors just as he was arguing with them when she was admitted this time around after having a stroke.
"Sir, I get you're upset but your wife needs to have an emergency c-section or you might lose the baby." the doctor responded.
"I don't care! I can't lose Mercedes!"
"Sir, if we don't do the c-section, you might lose them both." the doctor responded.
"Look, I have done my research and it looks like doctors are immediately jumping straight to emergency c-section the minute you see a black woman. I need to know that the reason you're suggesting this is because she actually needs it." Sam responded.
Looking back, Sam hated that he yelled that he didn't care about losing Destiny at that time. After she was born and they placed her in his arms, Sam couldn't stop holding her. She was the best of both of them and Mercedes was mad at him when she heard that he told the doctor to save her over the child.
"Sam, you got to be out yo rabbit ass mind." she whispered at him as she breastfed Destiny. "You were acting a fool while they were trying to keep me and her alive."
"And I would do it again." Sam replied with a shrug. "I want these doctors to know you have people that care about you. That will burn shit up if anything happens to you." he added and smiled when she shook her head at him.
"Sam Evans, you are crazy."
"Crazy about you." he added before placing a kiss on her forehead then adding another to Destiny's forehead. "And now...I'm crazy about her too. I just refuse to live life without you. You know this." She sighed then looked at Sam.
"Sam, you know my dad loved my mom like that too, right?" she asked and watched as Sam looked back at her in confusion. "He didn't want anything to do with me when I was born because my birth took her from him."
"Mercedes..."
"If we go down this road again and I go into labor, I need you to promise me that you will tell the doctor to save the baby. Not me."
"Babe, don't make me promise that."
"Promise me, Sam!" Mercedes shouted causing the baby to cry for a few seconds. "Shhhh...it's okay. Mommy's here." she whispered softly til the baby was back to focusing on her nipples.
"I...promise." Sam finally said. Luckily for Sam, they never had any other children. He did whatever he could to avoid ever getting her pregnant again. Mercedes did as well, but she only confessed it to Sam when Destiny made them grandparents.
"I know you can't make it without me...and I do not want to live in a world without you either." she admitted to Sam.
Now, here he was in the hospital holding her hand and listening to the sound of the only things letting him know she was still there with them. Every time he listened to the sound of the EKG machine beeping, he felt hope of her returning to him. Every time the doctor came into the room, he prayed they would say that she was doing better but unfortunately it wasn't the case.
"Dad, you need to sleep." Destiny said when she finally got everyone to be quiet. "You can go home and sleep while I stay with mom." Sam knew she meant well but she had no idea that Sam would never step out of the hospital if Mercedes wasn't leaving with him.
"I'm fine, sweety. You all go home and I'll call you guys when she wakes up." Sam said for what he felt had to have been the 13th time he'd told them.
"Okay, dad. I'm going to get these two to go home but I will be back to hold her other hand." Destiny added before kissing his forehead. "Alright you two. Let's go. Kiss Grandma and Grandpa good night." Sam smiled as his grandkids came over and kissed him goodnight then went over to say a couple things to their grandmother. Just as they were making their way to the door, Mercedes began to code. "Dad, what's going on?" Destiny asked as Sam quickly called for help.
"Somebody get a doctor in here!" he shouted before leaning forward and whispering in her ear as tears fell from his eyes. "Please don't leave me! I can't do this without you, Mercedes." he begged as the nurse and doctors finally came rushing in and pulling him away from her.
Mercedes stood around them as she looked at her family crying as nurses and doctors tried to revive her. She could hear Sam begging her not to leave him and Destiny hugging her two kids as they cried as well. She walked over to where they'd push her family out of the room and closed the blinds on them. She tried to place her hand on them but for some reason she couldn't touch them.
"Please, mom, you have to fight!" Destiny cried out.
"I'll fight for you, baby girl, I am not going anywhere." she promised and then made her way over to Sam. Before she could say anything to him she heard her name being called from behind her. She turns to see what looked like a bright moving light. She looked back at Sam, blew him a kiss telling him she'd be back.
"Mercedes." she heard a whisper from the direction of the light. She followed it till she was able to see where the voice was coming from. As she made her way towards the voice she noticed her reflection had her back to her twenties. She was in shock to see her younger self but then she heard the voice again. She continued towards the voice and became stunned as her eyes fell upon her mother. "Mercedes."
"Mom...is that you?"
"Mercedes." she smiled before opening her arms to her. Mercedes felt as if she were 5 as she ran into her mother's arms then stepped back quizzically.
"Wait...am I dead?"
"No, child, you're not." she replied with a healthy chuckle. "That boy Sam is holding to you with everything he's got. He sure does love you. Reminds me of your daddy."
"Daddy...how is he? Is he with you?" she asked as she always wondered if they two of them were together. He passed away shortly after Destiny was born and she missed him so much.
"Yes, he's here but I told him I needed to speak to you alone."
"About what, Mom?" she asked as they both took a seat on a nearby bench.
"I know you're holding on for them...for Sam. I know you're weak and in pain."
"I feel amazing, mom."
"Yes, I know." she chuckled. "Back here, there's no more pain. You gotta let him know that so he can be strong enough to let you go."
"We belong together, mom. I know you know this. He was there when I was born. He's Quinn's son."
"I remember and I've been watching you. I have been so proud of the woman that you became despite my absence. I was a bit upset with how your father was raising you without me but it all worked out didn't it?" she smiled. "Everything happens for a reason, right?" she asked before continuing. "If you truly believe that the two of you belong together then you already know that he will be okay."
"Mama, I can't do that to him."
"Yes, you can. Now go back. It sounds like they're calling you." Cassandra said as she began to fade away. "I will see you, baby girl. I love you."
"I love you too, mom." Mercedes responded before making her way back to her room. The nurses looked a few seconds away from giving up as she made her way to her bed. She made her way back to her body and slowly lied down.
"Dad." Destiny muttered softly as the sound of the EKG beeping again. Sam felt his heart beating again as he wiped away his tears. They both made their way over to Mercedes and held her hand.
"Mercedes...baby." Sam muttered as he kissed her forehead once again.
"Sam." she muttered his name for the first time in a week. Hearing her voice was like heaven to Sam as he kissed her again.
"Mom." Destiny cried out as her and her kids gathered around her in tears. Mercedes reached over for their hands and called them over.
"Destiny, my child, heart. I need you to be strong for me. Be strong for your kids. Don't cry. Please, don't cry." Mercedes said as she wiped away the tears from her face. "Sage...Melody...look at you." she smiled at them as Sam just stepped back and allowed her to have a moment with the kids. After she'd finished saying what Sam could feel was goodbyes, he remained quiet as he mentally prayed that she wasn't saying goodbye. "Destiny, can you guys give me and your dad a minute alone please?" she asked as she looked over to where Sam sat and looked on.
"Yes, mom. We'll be right outside. We love you, mom." Destiny said as she and the kids left the room. Sam tried to avoid eye contact. He knew the minute he looked into her eyes that he'd begin crying again.
"Sam, you can avoid looking at me but I know you can feel me. I know I can feel you." Mercedes responded as she extended her hands over to him. He held her hand again but still refused to look her way. "Sam, please..."
"I know what you're trying to do, Mercedes."
"Then why are you wasting time that you know I don't have."
"You can't do this to me." Sam replied as he finally looked her way. "I told you a long time ago that I can't live without you."
"And I told you a long time ago that I need you to do it. Destiny's going to need you."
"I am not strong enough."
"I need you to be." Mercedes said as a tear fell from her eye. They sat in silence for what felt like hours as Sam continued to shake his head saying that he couldn't do it. "Okay, Sam, I'll stay for you. It will be painful but seeing you like this is hurting me more." Hearing her say that she would stay even though it hurt was all that Sam needed to hear to know he had to let her go.
"I'm being selfish, I know. I don't want to let you go. Something a long time ago told me that we were meant to be together..."
"That something was a somebody and that somebody is me." she replied with a smile. "Look, I just think we're holding on way too tight and we are not believing in our love. Since we were born we were together...death can't separate us. I promise you."
"I love you." Sam said as tears fell from his eyes. He kissed her softly and held on to her for dear life before looking into her eyes one last time.
"I know and I love you...forever." she replied before smiling at him and taking her last breath.
2 weeks later-
"Dad, I brought groceries for the house. Sage told me he came by here the other day and there was nothing in the fridge. Not to mention, I've been getting calls from your staff. Have you not been paying them?" Destiny said as she made her way to the kitchen. She began to put the groceries away then stopped when she noticed her father wasn't responding. "Dad?" she called out again as she made her way up the stairs. Each step she took she felt as if she knew what was happening. She quickly pulled out her phone and pressed 911 as she continued towards his bedroom. "Dad, are you in the room sleeping?" she asked as a tear fell from her eyes. "Oh daddy."
When she made into the room, she found him tucked in bed with the baby picture of him and her mother clutched in his arms. She walked over slowly and hesitated to touch him. He looked so peaceful but she hated that he was alone with just the picture to hold. She quickly dialed 911 as tears fell from her eyes. Without touching him, she knew he was gone. He wasn't breathing. He wasn't snoring. His eyes weren't darting back and forth as they normally did. She felt her knees buckling from under her as knelt next to him.
"I need an ambulance, please."
Sam smiled when he noticed Mercedes waiting for him at the end of the light. She was as beautiful as the day that they got married. He looked at his reflection and smiled even wider to see that he was back to his younger self. She ran towards him and jumped into his arms. He was so happy to have the love of his life back in his arms. They held on to each other as if something else was going to separate them once again.
"Sam, we've been waiting for you." she said before taking his hand. "Our dad's are grilling in the back. My mom's been waiting to meet you, too." she took his hand and guided him towards the back where he saw both of their parents joking and laughing as if they were back on earth. Sam couldn't help the smile that spread on his face, when his parents welcomed him to the party. He looked over at Mercedes as she smiled at him and knew that nothing could take away the happiness that was in his spirit at that moment. He was finally at peace and with the love of his life.
Yes they be grilling in heaven lol
Yall that shit was sad AF...I ain't never written anything this sad before lol. Anyway, sorry I made y'all wait for this update. I couldn't post last week. It was like an on going shit show of a week. With everything going on right now in America, I just couldn't deal. I also had to remove a chunk of this fic because it felt a bit insensitive to what's going on (And honestly I was getting mad as I wrote it...it was a huge argument that I wasn't but half way thru when it all came to ahead). Anyway, the argument had to do with the privilege Mercedes had because she had financial stability...either way I removed it from the fic.
I also knew early on that one of the two would die...and wasn't sure who would die first...then finally decided to hell with it ...they belong together. And then samcedes died in my sims game ...I was too thru...
I hope u all are not too upset with what I did with them since it was a big jump from when they finally got together to them being elders. I thank you all for your patience with me and thank you for reading this.