"All my life you made me believe I was only worth what someone would pay for me. But he loves me! He loves me and that is worth everything."

- Nicole Kidman (Satine) Moulin Rouge

Chapter Eight

A Home at the End of the World

By the time morning came, or what Coleman assumed was morning judging by the time on his slowly ticking watch, he was the hungriest he had ever been in his life. He'd eaten the entire box of stale cereal and was trying to get rid of his hunger by forcing himself into slumber. But sleep wouldn't come for Coleman's mind was too filled with other things, images of food and he could even taste it in his mouth.

Was that the first step to going crazy? He wondered, imaging things so vividly they had to be real? But if it wasn't, Coleman knew it was only a matter of time now. A matter of time...

Michelle knew it was only a matter of time before she completely lost it and snapped. She figured that was the normal reaction one was supposed to have when their daughter was missing and possibly dead but she knew that her tense and tangled feelings had nothing to do with Laura's disappearance.

Tessa hadn't left her side since they had learned that New York had been flooded and Michelle wanted to strangle the younger girl. And now, on top of everything else, there were rumors that the strange weather that had been plaguing the entire world was going to get worse and they might have to evacuate. Never in her entire life had Michelle ever been forced to turn away or leave anything and now someone was trying to tell her that she had to abandon her home?

Though she knew that it was a baseless excuse, Michelle attempted to tell herself that the reason she didn't want to leave was because Laura still hadn't gotten in touch with her and she might attempt to. And what would happen if she wasn't around to take the call? To assure her daughter that everything would be all right and she would still be waiting when she made her way back home? But Michelle knew that wasn't the truth, that Laura's absence had nothing to do with her refusal to leave her home. She just didn't like to be told what to do; even as a forty-five year old woman, she was still as stubborn as a child.

But Michelle knew that sooner or later, her entire world was going to come crashing down around her, one way or another.

Laura had lost count of how many layers she had pulled over her head, how many shirts she had upon shirts, sweaters and sweatshirts and yet, she was still shaking. Her teeth were chattering and her breath was blooming in a crisp cloud in front of her, reminding her of just how cold it was in the apartment. The windows were beginning to crack with the dropping temperature from outside and Laura feared what would happen if the glass shattered completely and decided not to think about it.

When she could find no more clothes in the master bedroom to pull over her head, Laura retreated from the bedroom, dragging along the sheets and pillows from the bed behind her like a train as she went down the hallway.

Sam was in the living room, attempting to strike a match with shaking fingers, kneeling in front of the fireplace, which had been filled with the two logs rested in a whicker basket on the stone in front of the fireplace, as well as the broken basket itself. Brian was in the kitchen, going through the cabinets and attempting to assess their food supply.

Laura dropped the quilt from the bed around Sam's shoulders and knelt down beside him, slipping her arms around his shoulders and kissing his cheek. Sam grinned and turned to face her, kissing her gently and sweeping her into his arms. He kissed her on the cheek and noted her layers of clothing. "Warm enough?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow though he understood where she was coming from. Sam was freezing, even though he had several layers of clothing on as well and hoped that the fire would provide the heat that the room lacked.

"No, actually." Laura told him truthfully and shivered, drawing herself closer against him. She felt complete whenever she was snuggled against Sam, felt completely happy for the first time in her life and she found it hard to believe that things hadn't always been like that between them.

Sam wrapped his arms around her shaking shoulders, abandoning the fire for the moment and holding her against him. "I might be able to fix that." He whispered in Laura's ear as he kissed her cheek, grinning at her.

Laura felt her cheeks redden in spite of herself; she loved that Sam could still make her feel like the skittish girl she had been for most of her life because she enjoyed savoring the feeling now that she had nothing to hide. Sam knew things about her that no one else did; he knew every aspect of her, every inch and he still loved her and that was a feeling that would never grow old. It was freeing to know that you could be that open with someone, to trust someone that much and Laura loved Sam more then she could ever explain.

Sam kissed Laura then, jarring her from her thoughts and making it impossible for her to think of nothing but him. Not that she minded...

Brian peeked his head out from the kitchen and rolled his eyes when he saw Sam and Laura. "Oh get a room." He grumbled, but neither of them seemed to hear him. Louder, he said, "Hey Sam, how's the fire coming along?" His teeth chattered with every word.

Sam reluctantly pulled away from Laura, and smiled faintly when she drew in a deep and flustered breath. "I think it's coming along fine." He remarked.

Brian shook his head and turned away, facing the kitchen once again. It was just great that his friends had finally stopped acting like they were nothing but teammates and seemed to be getting along quite nicely but he would rather Sam start a fire first and canoodle later. After all, he didn't have the aid of a striking beauty to keep the cold from getting to him.

Laura helped Sam get the fire started in the stone fireplace and shivered as she scooted closer to the flames, allowing the growing heat to wash across her cheeks. Sam smiled at her as he slipped his arm around her waist, listening to the fire crack as it began consuming the locks and dry whicker basket.

The sound of the growing fire was almost drowned out by the constant news reports coming from the Walkman that Brian constantly had at his side. As the hours wore on, the reports were growing steadily worse until Sam had given up all hope of ever being rescued. But just because he didn't think anyone would ever come for them, didn't mean that he had resigned to his fate of dying in this apartment.

Sam could tell that the batteries were wearing thin, which didn't surprise him because he didn't think that Brian had turned the radio off since they had found it the day before. At times, it was almost impossible to hear the reports over the static, which was growing heavier now as well. But the message was still the same: New York City was unreachable, hope of finding survivors was slim. We're survivors! Sam wanted to shout at the voice that couldn't hear him. Come and find us.

The report that a different newscaster, one that Laura hadn't heard in the hours before, was telling them now that there were rumors floating about that the president was going to make citizens evacuate their homes and head south.

Laura snuggled closer to Sam, who wrapped her in the blanket she had dropped over his shoulders earlier. "Do you really think they're going to make people leave?" She questioned, staring into the fire. Sam shrugged. "Is the storm really that bad?"

Sam sighed, not sure how to answer the brunette; judging by what had already happened, he would have guessed that, yes, the storm was that bad. But there was nothing for certain. Until the order was given, he wouldn't plague his mind with thinking about the evacuation when he had so much else to worry about.

Brian entered the living room with a silver pot filled with what little water he had managed to coax out of the frozen pipes and a packet of beef flavored Ramen Noodles. Sitting down beside Sam, he put the noodles in the pot and held the pot over the low flames of the growing fire.

It was only until Laura saw Brian's attempt at making a really late dinner or a really strange breakfast that she realized just how hungry she was. She tried to remember the last time she had eaten but couldn't, knowing that her mind had been to full of other thoughts to worry about hunger.

As silence settled, for the most part, in the apartment, Sam found his thoughts turning toward his parents. Were they all right? Were they worrying about him? That latter was almost certainly true, since all his parents ever did was worry about him. He was struck by just how much he missed them, how much he wished he could be at home listening to his mother tell him how her overly stressful day at the clinic had gone or talking to his dad on the phone from a million miles away.

Sam just hoped that they were all right.

Lucy yawned, shivering slightly, as she rolled over and nearly off her ex-husband's desk. It took her a moment to remember what had happened, to shake herself from her perfect dreamland and remember what was going on. One of the pillows from the couch in the adjacent room was tucked beneath her head and Jack's jacket was draped across her shoulders, but it did little to fight off the coming chill. Teeth chattering, Lucy tried to remember when it had gotten so cold.

Jack was nowhere in sight, leaving her alone in his spacious office. She had no idea what time it was but she could hear voices coming from the hallway outside, so she guessed that morning had come. Lucy remained where she was for the moment, hovering on the edge of Jack's cleared desk where she had slept fitfully the night before, and closed her eyes.

Never in her life had Lucy been good at pretending; her mother said it was because she thought only with the left side of her brain and that creativity had no place in her life. She always thought that was a pretty fair assumption, since she'd spent her entire life thinking within reason, basing her actions on science and nothing else. But now, Lucy found that pretending came easy, almost too easy and she was able to imagine herself somewhere far from Jack's office, maybe down in the Florida Keys where it was warmer then she was now. She was there, on one of the spacious white sandy beaches, enjoying the heat from the sun that was high over head, with Jack in a beach chair beside her.

Sam was there as well, playing Frisbee with the dog he'd had when he was five, with a girl beside him that she had only met once in her life. Sam had reluctantly introduced Lucy to Laura Chapman several months ago, barely giving the women time to exchange pleasantries before Sam had ushered his mother away before she could say anything that might be embarrassing. Regardless of their brief meeting, Lucy wasn't surprised to find Laura in her perfect beach vacation, since she was, after all, the reason her son had left her in the first place.

But now they were all together again and safe, somewhere that problems couldn't find them and New York City was a postcard city and nothing more. Lucy didn't want to think of her son so far away, so alone, and possibly hurt; was he scared, cold, hungry?

Try as hard as she might, Lucy couldn't hold onto her perfectly crafted images and the cold found her once again and she opened her eyes. Everything was the same as it had been before and she shivered, sitting up and swinging her legs over the edge of the desk. She wanted to find Jack, wanted to know whether he had heard from Sam; she wanted to know that her baby was all right and that she would be seeing him again soon. Outside of her mind.

Laura was shivering so much down that she wasn't even aware of it because there were no longer moments when she was warm. She was nothing but cold now, despite the steadily growing fire, so there was no use to fight the shudders.

Laura watched Brian as he balled up another piece of week-old newspaper and tossed it into the fire from where she was nestled against Sam's chest. Brian was shaking as well, so much so that he nearly missed the fire place all together when he threw the ball, which was quickly consumed by the flames. There was a brief surge of fire, a moment of warmth, before the flames died again, only to raise when another paper ball was tossed inside.

The Walkman buzzed beside Brian's knee, nothing but static now, but no one had the heart to switch the radio off. The noise had become nothing but a backdrop now, something that would be missed and noticed only when it was gone, just like the sounds that had once polluted New York City air.

As Sam watched his friend in silence, he finished the remaining Ramen Noodles in the pot. The water was ice cold by now but he forced the food down his throat, knowing that it would be stupid to waste right now; they had a limited food supply and all the necessary precautions had to be taken.

Laura shifted against his chest, resting her cheek against Sam's chest and closing her eyes for a brief moment. Sam stroked her hair, brushing it off her face and running his fingers down her icy cheek, enjoying the feel of her against him. It was easy to forget all the problems that were slowly cropping up, problems that could decide their survival, whenever he was with Laura like this and he enjoyed the feeling. If only it would last forever.

"Sam," Laura mumbled, opening her eyes and lifting her head so that she could look into his eyes. "Do you think everyone is all right? Back home I mean?" Her eyes searched his, probing for an answer before he could give her one.

"Yes." Sam answered, nodding slowly. "I'm sure they're fine." He sighed. "I was just thinking about that myself, wondering what it's like back home."

Brian looked away from the fire. "I bet it's warmer there." He remarked off-handedly before tossing another paper ball into the fire. He had been doing that almost mechanically for ten minutes, keeping himself occupied by doing the same task over and over again. Anything to keep him from thinking about the inevitable.

"I'm worried about my little sister." Laura said, resting her head against Sam's chest again, smiling faintly when he wrapped his arms around her. "I hope she's all right." She sighed. "All alone with my mother..." She was trying to make light of the situation but it was impossible.

Sam smiled faintly as well, but his heart wasn't really in the gesture. "I'm sure she's fine." He said again. Silence settled in the room and he found his thoughts once again turning toward home and how life was continuing along without them. Did they have any chance of returning to their old lives, or where they doomed to remain in this apartment, denying the inevitable.

Attempting to push those thoughts from his mind, Sam spoke again, hoping to turn everyone's mind away from their apparent fate. "Laura," he said, "what's your favorite childhood memory?" It wasn't much, but it was something; anything to remind them of what they were hoping to go back to.

Laura took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, thinking. She understood what Sam was trying to do and loved him for it; if she had the chance, she would do nothing but think of their fate, of being unable to escape a slow death. And that would drive her crazy. "When I was four-years-old and my father took me to the theatre to see Beauty and the Beast." She told him finally. "It was great because it was right after my little sister was born, so it was nice to do something with just my dad." She smiled at the memory, the last memory she had of him before the afternoon he had left.

Sam smiled as well, trying to imagine the Laura from her memory, sitting in a dark theatre and watching in wonder as a prince became a beast. Had she wanted to become a story book princess? Had she dreamed over her Prince Charming all those years ago? Did he measure up to her imaginary knight-in-shining armor?

Instead of asking any one of those questions, he told his own memory. "I remember my fifth birthday, when it was just me and my parents. My mother had spent all day baking my birthday cake because, she can't really bake so she had to start over a couple of times. Anyway, when the cake was finally iced and ready, she left it in the kitchen, on the counter, because she said that she and my father had a special present for me. They went into the kitchen to get it and it turned out to be a puppy. The puppy had also eaten most of the cake by the time my parents went in to get her but I was so happy to get a dog that I didn't care about the cake. I remember the look on my mother's face when she saw the puppy, covered with cake and icing." Sam's smile grew wider. "I thought she was going to kill that dog."

Laura smiled as well, picturing a tiny puppy with cake on in its fur, wagging its tail. "I never had a dog." She said. "My sister's allergic."

For a moment, they remained in silence, remembering memories gone past and a time that no longer really existed. Laura tried to call up another memory from her childhood, a pleasant one she had from after her father left but her mind was, not surprisingly, empty. All she could remember was studying and trying to be perfect, trying to be the best. Those memories were washed away by the knowledge that she no longer had the be perfect, that Sam loved her for her imperfections as well.

Laura pulled away from Sam and sat across from him so that she could see him clearly. "Your most embarrassing moment?" She prompted with a devious smile.

Sam sighed, searching his mind. "Fifth grade talent show." He answered slowly, his gaze flicking over toward Brian. "When Brian and I decided to-"

"No." Brian interrupted. "Laura doesn't need to hear that story." He looked even more embarrassed then Sam did, trying to act nonchalant as he continued to toss newspaper into the fire. "It's not that interesting."

Laura raised an eyebrow. "C'mon." She said, smiling at Sam. "I do want to hear." Her smile grew wider, more hopeful, attempting to drag the story from Sam.

Sam sighed and rolled his eyes. "Brian and I decided that it would be a clever act to lip-synch to the Backstreet Boys' Backstreet's Back." He answered, looking down at the floor in an attempt to avoid eye contact with Laura. He didn't need to see the amusement in her eyes to know that it was there; it was less embarrassing that way.

Laura giggled and covered her mouth with her hands in an attempt to stifle any further laughter. She grinned wickedly at Sam. "You didn't dance, did you?" She questioned. Sam didn't answer and so she turned toward Brian. "Did you?" Brian looked away as well. She couldn't stop the laughter now. "You did." She decided with a laugh. "I wish I could have seen that."

Sam thanked the Lord for small miracles, never having been happier that his mother hadn't brought the video camera that night. "Okay," Sam looked up at her. "What about you? Lip-synch to Britney Spears perhaps?" He questioned.

"Oh God no." Laura shook her head. "My story's not that funny." She told him, waving her hand dismissively. "It's not really important."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "You're not getting out of this one." He informed her.

Laura sighed. "When I was thirteen, I went out with my mom and sister for my mom's birthday at a Mexican restaurant. My sister and I decided it would be funny to see if we could convince the waiter to bring us real Strawberry Daiquiris; we didn't think he really would." She smiled slightly. "But he did anyway and my sister and I didn't realize it until we were one a third drink and feeling a little woozy." She grinned sheepishly at Sam before looking away quickly. "I remember, I started singing that song 'Tequila' out loud five minutes after the band had been playing it. Everyone was staring at me."

Sam grinned, unable to imagine Laura in such a state. "I bet your mom was real pleased about that."

Laura looked at him. "Oh she was." She grinned. "Especially when Tessa and I were throwing up all night and we wouldn't tell her why. She thought we had food poisoning."

Sam took her hand and kissed it in an attempt to elevate some of Laura's embarrassment. "Well, at least you didn't sing the Backstreet Boys." He reminded her.

Laura laughed. "And at least I was drunk when I started singing." She reminded him with a grin and a raised eyebrow.

Sam shook his head, looking at her with mock hurt. "Rub it in..." He mumbled, but he couldn't keep from smiling at her. "Okay, here's one: most physical pain you've ever been in."

"What's with these questions that make us look like idiots?" Laura questioned, keeping her eyebrow raised. "I'd rather not continue to make a fool of myself."

Sam pulled her against him and kissed her on the forehead. "You could never look like an idiot to me." He whispered, kissing her cheek and wrapping his arms around Laura. Laura smiled and kissed him, feeling her heart fluttered. Oh God how she loved him.

Brian rolled his eyes but didn't say anything, continuing to feed the fire. Their reserve of paper was growing low and soon they would have to start searching the house for more kindling.

When the kiss was broken, Sam smiled at her and Laura felt her heart melt. "Here's a better question," he said but Laura wasn't in the mood for answering any more questions. She was tired of talking all together and wished that Brian wasn't around so that she and Sam could find better ways to amuse themselves. "What's your favorite movie."

"Ferris Buller's Day Off." Laura answered without hesitation, though she was still thinking about being alone with Sam. "I always wished that I could be like Ferris, to pretend to be sick and go around town with my friends and not even worry about being caught." She smiled faintly; she wasn't that girl anymore, the girl who worried more about her studies then having fun. Suddenly, studying all the time seemed useless; Laura wished she could have known then that something like this would happen, that studying to get into the best college and make her uncaring mother proud of her had been all for nothing.

Sam nodded slowly, as though trying to read Laura's thoughts or urge her to continue. But she just looked at him and smiled, pushing away her own thoughts and clearly waiting for his answer. "I like The Matrix," He began but Brian interrupted before he could say anything more.

"No you don't." His friend pointed out, looking over at Sam. "You hate that movie." He raised an eyebrow.

Laura looked at Sam, intrigued now as why he had bothered to lie to her; it wasn't important what his favorite movie was and she wanted to know just what it was, why he hadn't told her before. "What's your favorite movie?" Laura questioned, surprised when Sam didn't make her gaze, a little bit of embarrassment entering his eyes. "Sam?"

"The Lion King." Sam mumbled, so low that Laura almost didn't hear what he had said. He looked up at her with a sheepish look on his face. "I know it's a kid's movie but I can't help it." He paused when he noticed that Laura was grinning at him. "You're making fun of me."

Laura shook her head and slipped her arms around his shoulders. "I think it's sweet." She told him honestly. "And I still cry every time Mufasa dies." She said with a smile.

Sam moved to kiss her but before he could, the sound of shattering glass filled the apartment, causing both of them to pull away in surprise. Laura turned her head apprehensively in the direction the noise had come: from somewhere down the hallway. "What was that?" She questioned.

Sam untangled himself from Laura and got to his feet, helping her up as well. Brian stood, though he seemed reluctant to leave the fire. He stayed behind when Sam and Laura started toward the hallway, feeding another piece of newspaper into the flames; someone had to make sure that the fire didn't go out, otherwise they might not get it started again.

Laura opened the door to the master bedroom and was instantly hit was a blast of air colder then what was in the living room, if that was even possible. The wind was so fierce and biting that she stepped away from the foyer, shivering feverishly. Sam pulled her against his chest but she was shaking just as badly as he was.

Reluctantly, Laura nudged the door open the rest of the way and peeked into the bedroom. In the seconds that the solid, frozen phone cable had come smashing through the large window, the room had turned icy, snow pooling around the shattered window, jagged ice crystals forming on the window sill. The room was almost unbearable to be near and Sam wondered how much worse it was outside. He doubted that lower temperatures had ever been captured on record, doubted that it had ever been this cold before; not since the ice age thousands of years ago. He couldn't help but wonder if his father had been right all along, if a new ice age was on it's way and had suddenly caught them all unawares.

Laura shivered, pulling her layers tighter around her. "I guess we won't be using that bedroom again." She remarked, eagerly shutting the door. The cold had seeped into the apartment and she wanted nothing more then to cuddle up by the fire with Sam once more.

Sam seemed to have the same idea, ushering her back toward the fire. Brian looked over at them when they approached, shivering as well. "What happened?" He questioned, his teeth chattering as he held his hands out to the fire.

"The window broke." Laura answered, dropping to the floor and instantly crawling into Sam's lap, laying against his chest. "It's snowing outside."

Sam held Laura close against him, trying to stop her shivers. But it seemed impossible, it had grown too cold in spite of the fire. Laura's teeth chattered as she pressed her face against Sam's chest, her curls spilling down her cheeks and creating a strange sort of protective barrier. She didn't know what she was protecting herself from anymore, but she didn't think it mattered; she didn't have to hide herself from Sam, she never had to.

There was nothing to be said for the moment, three separate minds drifting toward the same conclusion. How soon could you freeze to death? How low did the temperature have to be to freeze to death? Would it hurt dying agonizingly slow, just because you couldn't get warm?

Sam tried to figure out how long they could last in their apartment, their home at the end of the world and didn't like what he came up with. The odds didn't appear to be in their favor.

So, here's another chapter; I know it's been a little while since the last update but I've been busy with school and other fics, yadda yadda. Shout out to my best friend, the P.I.M.P. Lucie Brody, who is my absolute hero! And, of course, to Punkin, who left a very long review. As for my adopted sis, Lily, where's the review love? It makes me so sad... Anyway, keep up those reviews because I love them more then I love chicken biscuits and bananas (LOL, Lucie). Love you all!