Epilogue

The Happy Ending

When Sam Hall woke, the first thing he realized was that Laura, his beautiful wife, wasn't laying in bed beside him. He yawned, blinking his eyes to chase away the last remains of sleep, sitting up and leaning against the headboard; his eyes scanned the bedroom, but she was no where in sight. The shower wasn't running and the house seemed almost too silent. Sam was just about to throw back the covers, get out of bed and go looking for her when the smell of something burning reached his nose and he rolled his eyes. Laura was in the house, all right, trying to create something out of smoke and burned eggs in the kitchen.

The smile still on his face, Sam laid back down again, figuring Laura had the smoke under control since he hadn't heard the familiar hiss of the fire extinguisher yet. She had told him that one of her new projects as a wife (and he never got tired of thinking of her as his wife) was to learn how to cook, which found her in the kitchen on most days, dousing her latest creations with water.

Sam couldn't help but laugh out loud when he heard Laura cry, "Damn it!" and the hiss of the fire extinguisher soon after. He rolled his eyes, his grin growing wider as he wondered if everybody had it as good as he did. A beautiful wife that insisted on cooking even when he told her that take-out was just as good, who happened to be the only person he had ever loved and ever wanted to. Sam knew he was lucky and he wasn't going to take her for granite even for a minute; he knew better then most people how quickly you could lose the things you loved the most.

And that was why he made sure to tell Laura everyday just how much he loved her, just in case he didn't get the chance to tell her the following day. And that was also something Laura did every chance she got, told him with a kiss and smile just how much he meant to her.

As he lay in bed, listening to Laura squeeze the life out of the fire extinguisher, Sam thought about all that had happened in the past five months since he and Laura had escaped from the crumbling building. They had both spent the better part of a month in the hospital in the American Embassy, with Laura recovering from a skull fracture and he trying to get over his concussion. He'd often made his mother mad by sneaking out of bed and going to visit Laura until Lucy had just sent him home to recover on his own. But home hadn't been home without Laura and he'd told his mother he'd sprained his ankle, an excuse to spend all the time he could with Laura.

After Lucy had sent her future daughter-in-law back home, Laura and Sam had spent weeks planning the perfect wedding; he had just wanted to make her happy, something that aggravated Laura to no end until she finally got so sick of hearing 'if that's what you want' that she locked herself in the bathroom, told him he could plan the whole thing himself, just to make a point. Sam had apologized for nearly twenty minutes before Laura had thrown open the door with a huge smile on her face.

And despite that teasing fight, they had had the most beautiful wedding Sam had ever been to. Granted, he had only been to one, but he figured that was beside the point; Laura had looked absolutely stunning in her wedding dress. When it had been time for them to exchange vows, he had leaned close and whispered in her ear so that only she could hear his words.

From the first moment I saw you, I knew that I was in love with you and I've always hoped that maybe someday, somehow, we'd end up here. Though, I never could have guessed everything that would have happened along the way, but I would do it all again if it meant that I would get to be with you for the rest of my life. You are the most beautiful, kind person I have ever known and I love everything about you and I always will. I just want you to know that, without doubt, if tomorrow never happens, that I love you Laura Chapman and I'm always going to love you.

Sam smiled at the memory, of just how beautiful she had looked with tears sparkling in her eyes after he had said those words to her. Three months ago already felt like a lifetime, and he couldn't wait to spend three more months with Laura, to wake up every morning to her singing in the shower or trying to convince her that she had plenty of time to learn how to cook and that burning down the house now wasn't going to teach her anything. Laura Chapman meant everything to him and Sam knew that she always would.

The door to the bedroom squealed quietly as Laura nudged it open with her elbow, attempting to balance a tray, laden with two glasses filled with orange juice and two plates piled with what Sam assumed was some sort of breakfast food, at the same time. When she saw that he was awake, she smiled and carried the tray over to him. "I didn't mean to wake you up." Laura said, kissing him as she lay the tray carefully on the bed and sat down beside him. "It was supposed to be a surprise."

Sam smiled. "Well, I smelled smoke so I thought that the house might be burning down and I'd better get out while I still could." Laura frowned, looking hurt despite the fact that she knew he teasing her. "Just kidding, baby," he said, looking down at the plates. "It looks great."

Laura's smile returned and she snuggled next to him, handing him a plate. "I threw out all the pieces that got fire extinguisher stuff on them." She assured him and Sam chuckled softly, rolling his eyes. She looked at him. "What's so funny?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing." Sam assured her, looking down at the plate before looking back at Laura. He took a bite of what he guessed, and hoped, was a pancake, trying to ignore the fact that it tasted like smoke and cardboard as he forced himself to swallow. He grinned at Laura again. "Maybe those cooking lessons you were talking about wouldn't be such a bad idea." He winked.

"Sam!" Laura snapped with a grin on her face as she swatted him on the arm. She rolled her eyes and pulled away from him. "Fine," she said, "if you don't appreciate my cooking, I won't try anymore." The grin was still on her face, because she would be the first person to admit that she couldn't cook.

Sam's grin grew even bigger. "Promise?" Laura swatted at him again. He set his plate aside and pulled her against him, kissing her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Laura returned the kiss, before pulling away and rested her head on his chest, intertwining her fingers with his.

As Sam kissed her forehead, he realized that life was indeed perfect.