There's only going to be one more chapter after this. This chapter may be a little harsh on Belle, but when I think about it, the whole fic has been very anti-Belle. I guess no one minds, which is good.

The first time she knocked nothing happened, but Sami figured that it was possible that no one heard her. The second time she wondered if they had forgotten that she already knew about the party therefore it was, in fact, not a surprise party.

Finally frustrated with the lack of response she opened the door herself to find a cacophony of noise. As Sami neared the living room the tones became clearer and she could discern the voices of Julie and Bonnie in another of their loud arguments.

When they came into view, all she could do was lean against the doorframe to watch. At this point Julie was up to her full temper, which only Bonnie could bring forth.

"You know, I didn't even want you here in the first place. The only reason you are at this celebration is because Jennifer is too nice to leave anyone out. You had no right to invite her!"

"Gee, I'm sorry, but, see, where I come from family means somethin'. I guess you just don't appreciate family the way I do."

"Sami and Belle don't get along. She would not want to be anywhere near Belle the night before her wedding."

"The poor little chick looked so upset when I asked her if she was going. I had to invite her."

"Well, you're going to be the one to deal with Sami. Good luck with that."

At this point Sami cleared her throat loudly to make her presence known. The argument was almost funny, but enough was enough. Both women looked at her with a varying degrees of guilt. Jen caught her eye for a second to share her amusement.

"Sami, darling, I'm so sorry for what Bonnie's done. I didn't want her here."

"Shut up, Julie, how was I supposed to know that Belle wouldn't be welcome. I'm sorry if you're upset."

She considered letting them stew in their anxiety for a little while, but it didn't seem worth it, "As long as Belle stays away from me, I don't care."

Belle brightened considerably when she heard her name mentioned by someone inside. After the day she had it was always nice to have some people build her back up. It was nice being loved by everyone.

Well, almost everyone. Phillip had been unexpectedly cold when he got home. He had greeted her with a chaste kiss on the cheek, told her that they needed to talk later, and then he just left. His nurse had wheeled him out of the loft to go see Lucas. It was disturbing to say the least.

When she entered the living room, with Mimi in tow, everyone stopped talking. Obviously they were surprised she showed up, and she was too. After the way Sami had treated her, it had taken Belle awhile to decide to come. Finally, being the forgiving person that she was, she was able to leave for the party.

Jen moved forward slowly to play hostess and Sami moved into the living room without addressing her little sister. She was a bit affronted at first, but brushed it off as her sister needing to great her other guests.

Sami moved to sit next to Maggie to avoid confronting Belle. It should have been apparent to her that she would not be welcome, but as usual, things were never that simple.

Despite some unwelcome people, the bridal party went fairly well. She got some amazing gifts, most that Lucas would enjoy just as much as her. There was good food and, for the most part, good company. Things were going well, although Sami couldn't help but notice that Belle seemed to pout more and more noticeably through the entire evening.

Sooner or later, in a loud whisper that could be heard through the room, Belle turned to Mimi and said, "I can't believe they're doing this for Sami. I didn't get anything as good as she did. It's not fair."

Julie shot Bonnie a triumphant gaze to let her know that this was all her fault. Mimi flushed embarrassedly and tried to quiet her friend, but the most remarkable reaction came from Jennifer.

She stood up and asked to talk to Belle privately. There was an unintelligible conversation in the hall and then the front door slammed. Jen walked back to announce that she had asked Belle to leave.

………………………………...

Lucas stood in the midst of an animated party in his brother's loft. Rex and Will had worked together to have a small "bachelor party", though it was much more tame and he preferred it that way. Not only because it was kid friendly, but also because he had no desire for a cliché.

He had worked so hard to get to this point with Sami; there was absolutely nothing in him that needed some big last hooray. Mostly, he was looking forward to seeing Philip again. It had been a month and change since he had been shipped out, but it seemed like much longer.

A knock at the door had Will out of his seat before anyone else. He opened the door and let out a whoop of excitement, then moved out of the way to let the wheelchair come through. Lucas was up in seconds to welcome his brother.

Philip made the rounds congenially, even pretending to be surprised to see Jack alive. When he finished the first go around, he returned to his nurse, a very pretty redhead, and whispered something to her. She laughed and then waved goodbye to everyone in the room and exited.

Everything seemed to calm a little and everyone doled out some sage advice. It was fun, but it was some time before Lucas could find any opportunity to talk to Philip. Everyone was occupied with something else when the brothers found each other.

"Looks like I came back just in time for the wedding of the year."

"Yes, you did. I bet you're glad to be home and I bet Belle was excited."

Philip looked down uncomfortably for a second before clearing his throat, "I wouldn't really know. I, um, kind of didn't stick around to talk for long."

"I know she was getting on your nerves before you left, but you can't possibly tell me that you didn't miss her."

"At first it was weird, but after awhile I kind of stopped thinking about her. Then, I met Sara, my nurse, and we just clicked," he leaned in as if he were going to tell a secret, "I'm asking Belle for a divorce."

Lucas was taken aback for a few moments, "Wow. I can't believe it. I mean, you were so convinced that she was the love of your life."

"I know, but I think it was more of an infatuation. She was someone I couldn't have and I just blew it way out of proportion. Do you think she'll be upset?"

"Probably, but she'll get over it. No offense, but I kind of always thought Belle was using you to get to Shawn."

"A few months ago I would have fought you on that tooth and nail, but Sara's changed that."

"So, you're really in love this time?"

"I must be. It's so different from any other relationship I've ever had. She's so funny and smart and about a million other things. She's got a hell of a temper, too."

"It's good to see you in love, little brother."

………………………………...

Finally, the end of the night came and Lucas collapsed on his bed. He had barely shed his pants and sweater and pulled the covers over himself, but he was having trouble keeping his eyes open.

Sleep was trying to pull him into its siren depths and he had no desire to resist. He was completely pulled into a dreamless sleep when the ring of his cell phone dragged him away from his haven.

Suddenly wide-awake, he grabbed the phone off the nightstand before it would disturb Will. He brought it to his ear without once opening his eyes, "Hello?"

"Hey."

A wide smile spread across his face, "Hey. What're you doing?"

"I'm lying here in bed and I realized that I can't remember the last time I fell asleep without you with me. Then, of course, I started missing you like crazy, so I had to call."

"I'm glad you did. How was the party?"

"Pretty good. Bonnie informed me that she and Mickey are ending their huge mistake of a marriage, so I guess our plan worked out."

"You could say that, although we didn't have to do much."

"True. Bonnie and Bart are actually kind of cute together. I guess we're pretty good match makers."

"Well, when you're happy you want other people to be happy, too."

"I'm definitely happy. Nothing else exciting happened, except for Jen kicking Belle out."

"Wow, you had a much more interesting party then I did. The only new thing that I found out is that Philip's asking Belle for a divorce."

"Wow," Sami stayed quiet for a few seconds. She and her sister may not have been getting along, but she almost felt sorry for her. Until she remembered the awful way Belle treated Philip. He was a nice kid and deserved more, "I wasn't expecting that."

"I know she's your sister, but I'm happy for him. He's in love with someone else."

"Me, too. If he's happier this way then we wouldn't want him to stay in the marriage for the wrong reasons. Belle will recover."

"I hope so."

"Hey, Lucas?"

"Yeah?"

"We're getting married tomorrow."

He laughed at the animation in her voice, "I know."

"I'm really happy."

"Me, too. You know, we should go to sleep."

"I know, but I don't think I can."

"We should try."

"Fine, I'll try."

"I'll see you tomorrow. I'll be the one at the altar."

Her laugh was musical, "Bye. I love you."

"Love you, too."

Sami hung up the phone and prepared herself to go to sleep. That conversation had eased some of her nerves. She'd never had a good wedding day yet; it was hard to believe this one would work. But hearing Lucas's voice was all she needed. Now, if she were lucky, she'd be able to get an hour or two of sleep.