A/N: Enjoy!

Chapter 25

A Memory

"Mercedes, what do I owe this pleasure?"

"We need to talk and I need you to listen to everything I'm about to say because after I leave here the ball will be in your court." She said sitting down hoping she sounded assertive but she was more so angry than anything.

"I think we both have a few things we need to discuss." Mary replied with a nod.

"Do you know how me and your son met?" Mercedes asked getting right to the point and Mary shot her a confused look before shaking her head no.

"We met at a frat party and he made me a drink, my God he was so damn charming but I'm more than sure you already know that. Did you know instead of staying at the party we sat in his room watching Avatar until I fell asleep? Didn't know him for a full hour and he showed me so much kindness and the crazy thing is that when I woke up, we were under a tornado warning and he refused to let me leave, damn near held me hostage but he also kissed me that day and it was the best kiss..." Mercedes said taking a deep breath.

"I don't see how any of this has to do with what's-" Mary started before Mercedes gave her a look making her stop.

"Sam used to sit and watch me on wash day… it's a day solely dedicated to me doing my hair and at first it used to drive me crazy but after a while it became habit having him there just sitting and drawing or watching a crazy movie, the longer we stayed together the more I noticed these little things that he would do that were so cute and made me fall in love with him more and more. His laugh though… hearing it was like hearing the sweetest song, I've been thinking about something lately and the more I do the more I realize that there was a moment four years ago when I heard it again..." Mercedes said tearing up but shaking the tears away. "But I wasn't sure and I didn't want to believe or thought I was going crazy but… maybe you can clear it up for me."

Flashback

"Okay what else do you need from this isle?" Diane asked her daughter who was smiling and playing with her grand-daughter.

"Umm, I think that's it… I'm not sure do you have the list?" Mercedes asked not taking her attention away from her daughter who was in an extra giggly mood.

"I do but the last time we went shopping together you grabbed more than what was on the list." Diane replied and waited for a response but after seeing her daughter continue to play with her daughter she knew it fell on dead ears so she started walking down the next isle with Mercedes following.

"You are just so adorable you know that, you are the cutest little thing in the world!" Mercedes said tickling her daughter making her laugh and right before she caught up to her mother she heard something that made her stop. She tilted her head trying to make sure she wasn't going crazy but she heard it again, that deep distinctive laugh that she hadn't heard in so long. She felt her self start to move right as her mother placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you okay?" Diane asked and when Mercedes turned she saw tears in her eyes.

"Moma do- do you hear that?" She asked.

"Hear what baby?"

"Listen." Mercedes grabbed her mother's arm and moving her to where she heard it and sure enough there it was again, she looked at her mother wide eyed before the sound started to fade. She shook her head and handed her daughter to her mother and began walking fast to get closer to it again but it kept fading. She was shaking her head willing herself to hear it but she didn't and before she realized it she was outside looking in every direction but there were so many people and she wasn't sure which way to look.

"Mercedes baby what are you doing?" Diane asked when she finally caught up to her with Samantha in her arms still smiling.

"Moma, I heard him… I know it sounds crazy but that laugh, that was his it, it was his… I'm not crazy! I'm NOT crazy! I know his laugh, I l-listened to it for years… it was his laugh but I couldn't reach it in time." She said feeling like she was losing her damn mind.

"Baby maybe the laugh just sounded familiar, you and your daddy have the same laugh… maybe you're just missing Sam a whole lot right now. I believe that you believe you heard his laugh and maybe he was watching you two play and you just felt his presence." Diane reasoned feeling horrible for her daughter and for her never being able to really say goodbye. Mercedes understood what her mother was saying but she wanted to believe that there was a chance… but she knew there was no reversing death.

"Why did he have to go on that damn trip… why couldn't he have just stayed. If he had known that I was… he wouldn't have went I know him he would have stayed and acted like I was about to give birth that very second. Why didn't he call me?" She said crying as Diane wrapped her arms around her feeling even worse because they were the last people to see him alive.

"Baby I need to tell you something..." Diane started but when Samantha leaned over and gave Mercedes a kiss she stopped and couldn't help but tear up, for a one year old she was very much in tune and Diane felt that it was Sam in that moment letting Mercedes know everything was going to be okay. Mercedes couldn't help but smile when Samantha place her tiny hands on her cheeks before attacking her with slobbery kisses.

"I'm going to be okay baby girl… just missing your daddy that's all." Mercedes said grabbing her little girl and hugging her tightly thankful that she had a piece of him still there with her.

End Flashback

Mercedes looked at Mary and saw the look on her face and the tears because she knew exactly what Mercedes was talking about in fact, she remembered it perfectly.

Flashback

"What are you laughing about?" Mary asked as she walked along side her son.

"Oh I saw this woman playing with her baby, it was cute and the mom's laugh was funny… infectious almost." Sam replied laughing again Mary stopped and looked in the direction she could hear the soft giggles and her eyes grew wide.

"Sam we need to leave." Mary said pushing Sam with a little force.

"What why?"

"Oh I forgot… we are eating out tonight and we don't need any groceries at the house." She lied with a laugh. Sam looked at his mother before letting out a loud laugh and wrapping an arm around his mother.

"You'd think you were the one with the memory loss, you sure we don't need anything?" He asked walking towards the exit with his mother.

"I'm positive!" She said looking back nervously. "Wanna race back to the car like old times?"

"Oh come on I'd beat-" Sam started before Mary took off laughing and he shook his head letting out another loud laugh before running trying to catch up. When they got to the car she offered to drive back and they pulled off but not before she spotted Mercedes running out and looking around and she quickly sped off.

End Flashback

"I-I… I don't know what to say, I am so very-" Mary started before Mercedes let out gasp and shook her head.

"I wasn't crazy… I heard him. I could've had him back years ago and you took that from me, you not your husband. Yes he did some awful things but what you did, was worse because you as a mother allowed another to live with a piece of her gone. You allowed my daughter to miss out on the best father and Sam missed all those memories and moments. He may have seen her first steps but he never experienced them, he may have seen her first words being spoken but he never got to hear them first hand… all those memories you have with your children and you denied your son that same honor." Mercedes said growing angry but she didn't want to be angry anymore she needed to let go but she needed Mary to admit she knew more than what she pretended she didn't.

"I was just doing what Dwight asked me to do… I never knew-"

"You KNEW! You heard me say it, you heard me say I was pregnant and you looked me dead in my eyes and I knew you knew, your face reflected it. I have held on to this for so long hoping I was wrong, I wrote letters, I made videos… I tried to find out where he was buried but nothing happened. I grieved a man that I felt was still here, I felt him so close but had to convince myself that he was gone and it took my baby stumbling upon him for everything to come to light. My sweet, sweet baby girl who you saw that day in the grocery story and still kept the lie going. You played your roll beautifully but you can stop now because it's just you and me here and pretending to help my parents was a nice touch but something never sat right with me the day I came here for the first time. So you will admit that it wasn't just Dwight, you will admit that you read those letters and that you kept them away from him, that you kept him from me and his child." Mercedes said as tears flowed down her face.

"Well I have to hand it to you, for a second there I thought I had you fooled with my concerned act." Mary said with a smirk and Mercedes just nodded.

"So this is the part where you make me a deal. What is it?" Mercedes said rolling her shoulders and wiping her tears.

"I have no deal to make with you, I honestly want to get to know my grand-daughter. I may be a cold hearted bitch but she is my first grandchild and I want her to know she does have another grandmother… yes I did everything you said and no Sam never knew but me helping your parents after what Dwight did was genuine. I didn't know he was going to take your daughter the way he did and I damn sure didn't fabricate my apology, I have done a lot of wrong… mainly to you but that baby was innocent and for that I am very sorry." Mary said and Mercedes looked at her for any lies but she didn't see one in her eyes.

"You didn't give me a chance. You didn't give my baby a chance and you expect me to allow you into her life when all she knows is love and happiness, in spite of the ache I had looking at her because she's Sam through and through. You read what I wrote and still continued to break my heart allowing my baby to grow up without her aunt and uncle or other grandparents. You READ THEM AND ALLOWED ME THE BELIEVE IT WAS MY FAULT!" Mercedes said letting out a deep sob, that she had been holding in for years.

"I THOUGHT I KILLED HIM! I THOUGHT HAD I KNOW I WAS PREGNANT AND TOLD HIM HE WOULDN'T LEFT… but then I realized that I was pregnant and that wreck would have killed my baby, your grand-daughter that you are so hell bent on getting to know but you were going to allow her to die because of you and Dwight's dislike of me. I called his name every day, EVERYDAY… I would beg and pray that God would bring him back to me, I lost my faith for a while even blamed God for everything." Mercedes said standing starting to pace.

"I never thought about it like that..." Mary said to herself making Mercedes stop and look at her like she was crazy.

"I carry so much guilt because since he's been back he's been giving his all and I can't get passed this boulder that is you! He deserves to have his mother in his life and my baby deserves to have a full family but damnit if it doesn't hurt to look at you and know you stole him from me. He is your child yes, I understand that so much more now as mother but he was my heart and soul and I never got to say goodbye. Did you even have a funeral? Is there some plot with an empty coffin with his name on it? What did he do in those years? Was he happy? Was he my Sammy?" Mercedes asked firing off questions and for the first time the levy broke inside her, she needed to know what his life was like without her because she knew how hers was and that ache from not seeing him everyday was still fresh.

"We...we didn't have a funeral." Mary said looking at Mercedes and feeling the weight she had being carrying around when the tears she had been wiping away finally fell without her attempting to stop them this time.

"Was he happy? Did… was he was still Sammy?" Mercedes asked clutching her chest and Mary had to look away refusing to answer that question. Mercedes stepped closer willing Mary to look at her before she slammed her hand on the coffee table making her jump and look up at her.

"Was he happy? Was he is still Sam?" Mercedes asked again through gritted teeth.

"NO! He wasn't… he wasn't the same, it was like he knew something was missing but he couldn't remember or it hurt to remember. Dwight kept saying he would come back, he just needed time and that's when Quinn started coming around but when she it was like he was moving on in auto pilot sometimes so we planted the idea of marriage… well Dwight did but when he came here that day after seeing you and your daughter..." Mary stopped and studied Mercedes for a moment.

"WHAT!"

"You kissed him and I could feel the gears working in his mind but I played dumb like I didn't remember you… Dwight was furious and I didn't stop him. I admit the two of you together didn't please me because I had this set idea of how his life would play out, don't get me wrong here I just didn't know how deep his love ran for you nor yours for him. We didn't know anything about you or your background and Sam clearly comes from a good family-" She stopped when Mercedes snorted shooting her a look.

"I made a mistake." Mary said after a few moments of silence. "Look Mercedes, I did everything wrong with how we handled you two dating… I lost my son and ultimately the chance to know my grand-daughter but there was something a that I did that was far worse. I never counted you, I never considered you in anything we did… this is me taking accountability for my part in everything. I can not begin to fathom what you think about me or how you feel about having to come here but I want my son back and I want to get to know that sweet girl… and I want a chance at a redo with you."

Mercedes looked at Mary before shaking her head and walking towards the door, Mary got up quickly and went after her.

"Wait where are you going?" Mary asked stopping Mercedes who just gave her a disapproving look.

"Home, you said what you thought I wanted to hear instead of the truth! Admit it, admit you just want Sam back and my baby girl. You don't want me here, you don't want me in the picture… JUST FUCKING ADMIT IT!"

"Fine! I don't want you here… I don't want to have to deal with you because the second you walked through that door I lost EVERYTHING! My husband was hell bent on getting Sam to see things his way, Sam was becoming distant and growing colder but you would text or call while he was here and he would light up like a light… I was jealous and frustrated. My son chose you, he chose a woman he wasn't married to over his family and he wouldn't look back when you were in the picture. You being with him took him away from the only family he'd even known and he did it without a second thought or care about how we felt. So you're right, I harbor resentment towards you for that and I don't think I'll ever get over it but that shouldn't mean I can't get to know my grandchild." Mary replied looking at Mercedes exasperated, Mercedes shook her head again fighting the angry tears that wanted to fall before taking a step back.

"So you want Sam and my daughter but me being anywhere near is problem, I never did a thing to you but love your son unconditionally, deeply and with my whole being. I never wanted him to have to choose between me and his family and for you to say you want a relationship with the child I brought into this world but not one with me lets me know that this will never be… but for the sake of my own sanity and the love I have for you son I am going to give you an inch but I swear if you make me regret this I will personally end you. I do not nor have I ever played about my child. One, I will be present for the first interactions and if I feel like it's going to go left then I will end it all!" Mercedes said saying a silent prayer that she was doing the right thing and the look on Mary's face let her know she was shocked by what she said.

"Wait, so… I get to see her again?" Mary asked softly and still unbelieving.

"Yes because unlike you I want my child to have everyone in her life, you are an extension of her father and she deserves to be whole. I won't do what you did to me, but be mindful I'm not doing it for you I'm doing it for my child. I want you to remember this, you lost out on the same the memories that he did and as a mother you know how much that sucks." Mercedes said before walking out leaving Mary there finally understanding her position and she broke down right there in her foyer.

…

Sam was furiously pacing in the living room waiting for Mercedes to return, when he'd gotten back for dropping Samantha off at school he expected for her to be there so they could talk but she wasn't and he was beginning to think she ran again. He quickly dismissed that thought because he know she wouldn't go to far with taking Samantha along with her, he was racking his mind trying to see if he missed something but he couldn't figure out what it was so he just threw his self onto her couch face down mumbling to his self about things would be easier if he was just an avenger.

"I think we had that discussion before and agreed things would indeed be easier if you were an avenger." Mercedes said with a smirk on her face that turned into a laugh when Sam jerked around and fell off the couch.

"Don't make me laugh, I'm angry and you confuse the hell out of me. One minute you ask me to stay and I tell you I will after I clear up every, I go do just that and then you shut down. It's not like you shut down like a normal person either, no you shut down with a smile on your face giving off double meanings of whatever you're trying to do or say. I'm here and I want to stop the back and forth, I want to be a real couple and a real family and I want you to say yes!" Sam said firing off at Mercedes who shot him a confused look because he lost her mid-way through.

"Umm Sam-" Mercedes said moving closer to him but he shook his head.

"No, I'm at my whits end with all of this! I want you, don't you understand that? God I love everything about you, I love when you get mad at me because you look so damn sexy and I love when you laugh, I mean really laugh and you snort a little… I love when you're thinking because of the face you make. I love that no matter how hard you try you can't lie because your eyes always tell on you, I love that you enjoy being in the rain even though you act like you don't and I love that you literally housed my child inside of you. I'm tired of going in circles about my parents and the past when I'm literally trying to make our present real for us. So I'm not giving you a chance to run either you want me or you don't there is no longer an in between… I have always chose you and us. I'm tired of trying to make up for what my parents did like I had any control over-

"Yes." Mercedes said softly.

"And I… wait what?" Sam asked looking at her with wide eyes. Mercedes just moved closer with a small smile before stopping in front of him.

"You said you wanted me to say yes, so I'm saying yes…" Mercedes replied noticing his eyes growing wider and she couldn't help but giggle at him.

"Yes?" He asked running his hands through his hair before feeling her hands on his face gently rubbing his cheeks.

"Yes."

Soooooooo... Mary really ain't no better than Dwight! Mercedes' hurt hopefully is finally more understood because she had to really convince herself that he was gone when she felt deep down he wasn't... and Mary confirmed it. I hope the conversation shed some light on just how forgiving she is because I would've beat the shit out of Mary. lol I want to hear what you think and if Mercedes was right to give her a chance even though she will never get one.

Now this conversation between her and Sam... *side eye* welp that's just a cliffhanger for now!

psst- next chapter is going to be smutty(kinda) and fluffy lol until next time XOXO!