Chapter 2: After his sisters disappeared, he'd come and talk to me...

The night sky was lit up by the full moon, the unusually cool summer air was crisp and sent a chill up Sam's back as it blew in through the window. It had been four months since the disappearance of Hannah and Beth Washington, and Sam found her thoughts always drifting back to that night. She lost her best friend, the only person she could confide her inner most thoughts to. As she sat on the bench of her bay window, writing in her journal, she stopped a moment and took in the night. It was June, and she should have been enjoying her summer with her friends. But here she was, alone, wishing that she could be as carefree as she had been the year before. But life in the past four months had been her just going through the motions.

It seemed like many of the others had been able to move past the disappearance and have a summer filled with fun. As she scrolled through Instagram, she could see the changing lives of her friends. Everyone had something going on, except for her and, of course, Josh. They were the only ones who were taking the loss so hard. Sam didn't have anything to post, she didn't want to post anything. She couldn't help but still feel a bit lost.

So, here she sat, reflecting on life since that night. Her parents had finally give her some space for the first time since she returned home, and had allowed her to stop the therapy she had been going to since that night. She could finally breathe and think, work through her many thoughts without someone asking her to express them aloud. Who could possibly know how to describe the pain they had been feeling?

Before she knew it, it was one in the morning and she was starting to drift off by the window. The breeze coming through her window had, somehow, tried to lull her to sleep. She finally moved from her spot by the window and into her comfortable bed, hoping and praying she would get a good nights sleep. She sighed softly, her eyes closing as she adjusted into the right position. Luckily, her mind gave her a respite from her worries.

Thud. Tap, tap, tap. It wasn't a lot, but those four little noises that hit her window, startled Sam awake. She jumped even more as her eyes connected with his grey ones. She wasn't expecting to see him, right there. Even though, he had been doing things like this consistently for the past few months.

"Josh?" She glanced over to her alarm clock. 3AM... And just the realization of the time caused her to sigh. "Josh..." She whispered as she once again said his name. She opened the window, giving him just enough room to climb inside. "It's 3am, you do know that, right?"

"Sorry, I just... I needed to talk," he replied, taking her hand as she helped him climb inside. "You don't think your parents heard me coming up, do you?"

"No, my dad is on a business trip, mom is at the hospital until seven," she sat down by the window, looking at him. His hair was disheveled, he had bags under his eyes and he was paler than usual. "It's still happening, isn't it?"

Josh sat on her bed, his eyes avoided hers and he looked down. Sam had been there for him and while talking to her, he saw them and she saw him losing it. It was embarrassing for him. He didn't want to be this way, he didn't want her to see him like this. Through it all, she never judged him. She understood the guilt he felt, she was feeling it as well.

After a few moments of silence, he nodded before whispering, "Yeah."

"You're still seeing that therapist, right?"

"I uh, I stopped going. I couldn't do it anymore, Sam. It's just hard for me to talk to some guy who never knew my sisters, and doesn't know the situation..."

"What about the medication he gave you? Have you been taking it?" She was worried. She didn't go after Hannah and make sure she was okay, the least she could do was talk to Josh and save him in any way she could think of.

"I'm... I'm losing it, I'm going crazy."

It didn't escape her that he didn't answer her question. After everything he had been through, she didn't blame him for avoiding it. Since he went to the hospital in May, she was concerned that he might hurt himself. It was hard on him when he was hospitalized for mental issues. She was the only one who knew, he was too embarrassed for any of their other friends to find out about it, even Chris. Sam respected his privacy and didn't tell a soul about anything he told her in confidence.

"Josh," Sam rose to her feet, the moment she spotted a tear fall from his eye. He tried to quickly wipe it away before see, but he failed. She sat next to him on her bed. "You're not going crazy, you're going to work through this. I'm here for you. If you don't want to go talk to that therapist, then you are more than welcome to come here and talk to me. I mean, you've been doing that anyway, let's just make it official. Though, I now have to charge you seventy-five dollars an hour," she joked with a smile as she looked over to him, hoping to calm him and reassure him that he be okay.

"Sam... I'm seeing my dead sisters. They're taunting me, blaming me.. saying I didn't save them, that I wanted them to die."

"Josh, it wasn't your fault what happened. You can't blame yourself."

"I don't know what to do... I just want it all to stop and I don't know how."

Sam nodded, she understood the feeling of wanting to go back and change everything that had happened four months ago. However, there was nothing that could be done now. The only thing that they could do was move forward and try to not beat themselves up over mistake they made.

"I..." She was at a loss, there was nothing she could think to say that she hadn't said already.

He suddenly felt the guilt and embarrassment take over him. Why did he keep coming here? Venting his problems to her at all hours of the night, bothering her with the insanity taking over his brain. He had to stop.

"I shouldn't have come here..." He suddenly stood up and took a step towards the window.

"No, Josh," She quickly reached out, stopping him by taking his hand in hers. She couldn't lose him after Hannah had disappeared. "Please stay. You shouldn't be alone."

"Sam, it's..." he stopped, but kept his eyes down. "I feel like I'm disappointing you."

"What?"

"I just..." He stopped, his eyes catching hers and he took in a deep breath, thinking a moment.

There was something there, he could feel it. She could feel it, but she was frozen, unable to move. So, when he moved his arms around her body and pulled her into a hug, it took her a moment to reciprocate. But she did, her arms moving around him and she closed her eyes. As she breathed, she took in the faded scent of cologne that lingered on the black hoodie he wore. It had to have been months since she was close enough to smell this familiar scent, and it occurred to her that this was the first time they had really connected since before his sisters went missing. Sure, they talked, but this was different and made her realize just what she needed since the loss of her best friend.

After a long, yet comfortable, pause, Josh broke the silence, whispering as he held her. "I need you, but I don't want to put all of this on you."

"Josh, it's okay. I care about you and I'll always be here for you," she whispered back as she held onto him.

They stayed in the embrace for a while longer after they spoke, at least a couple of minutes, before he finally pulled back, dropping his head down. But when she looked back up at him, their eyes meeting once again. Neither of them expected what happened next, but it felt right.

When his lips captured hers, there was a shock for both of them. They had just been friends, nothing more. There had been a mutual attraction, some small flirtation that made Hannah whine in disgust whenever she saw it. Before, Sam and Josh laughed it off, but there was no need to ignore it anymore. Perhaps this would be a mistake, but all Sam knew in this moment was that the feel of his lips against hers caused a chill to run down her spine. Her body pressed against his, wanting no space between them. Frantically craving something she had never had, and yet needed more than anything else.

Before long, they were pulling at each others clothing. Breathing already labored, Josh needed to feel her skin against his. Her soft lips pressed against his as hard as she could in the moment, her tongue caressing his hungrily. It was clear that they wanted... no, needed each other.

Her hands ran under his shirt, goosebumps rose on his skin causing the anticipation to feel more agonizing. He broke their kiss only to pull her shirt over her head and throw it down to the floor of her bedroom. She did the same, his shirt falling onto hers. Their lips met again, as if they couldn't stay apart for too long or the world would find a way to get between them.

Their bodies maintained contact as she laid back onto her bed, pulling him on top of her. His bare chest pressed against hers, so close she could almost feel his heart beat against her skin. Lips crashing together again and again, nearly tearing what was left of their clothing from the others body and tossing it without care to the floor of Sam's bedroom.

Sam wasn't a virgin, but she had only been intimate with one other person. Not once had they ever made her feel the way she was feeling as Josh moved over her. His hips thrusting up against hers, driving his cock deep into her as his lips dragged down her neck, landing on her collarbone as she arched her back from the pleasure coursing through her body.

The warmth between them caused beads of sweat to build on her skin, Josh could feel and taste it as he kissed along her clavicle. Their bodies in sync, the pleasure rising in both of them. He pulled his lips from her skin and rested his forehead against hers as he let out a soft grunt, his hips moving faster against hers. He felt her warm breath on his lips as she panted, her walls pulsing against his cock as he continued his decent into her. He never wanted this to end, never wanted to let go of this moment.

Sam's eyes opened, watching Josh above her. She couldn't help but smile. His eyes were closed as his body worked hers. She moaned softly, bringing her hand up to his face, brushing his cheek. Josh opened his eyes, his catching hers as she smiled up at him, a smile he returned. It was the first time in a long time since she had last seen a smile break his features. Her hand moved to the back of his neck, pulling him down and their lips coming together once more.

"I'm almost there, come with me," she mumbled against his lips, gently tugging his bottom lip between her teeth. He said nothing, simply nodded. Their pleasure hit it's peak together, moans being suppressed by their mouths together in a passionate kiss.

They fell side by side soon after, a quiet calm taking over the room as Sam rested her head against Josh's shoulder. He moved his hand to take hers. Watching carefully as her fingers slide through his, interlocking their hands. She said nothing, her eyes on what he was doing but only just a moment before her eyes looked up at his face and his eyes. She smiled when he turned their hands and brought them to his lips, kissing the back of her hand.

"Thank you," Josh whispered. He let her hand go, placing it against his chest. He touched her chin, pulling her into a gentle kiss.

"No, thank you. I don't know what I would do without you Josh," she whispered back. Her eyes began to get heavy, sleep threatening to take over. "I care about you, I... I'm falling..." Her last statement was hardly audible as she drifted off to sleep before she could finish.

Josh swallowed nodding. "I'm falling for you too." His voice was a whisper, knowing she didn't actually hear his response to her unfinished statement.

Once Sam fell asleep completely, Josh put his boxers back on his body and moved to the bay window, sitting on the soft cushion. Since the disappearance of his sisters, he hadn't been able to sleep without the sleeping pills his doctor had prescribed. He spent most of the night watching as she slept, the peaceful way she breathed, the relaxed smile on her face made him smile a bit. He wasn't sure what would happen now between them, but he was thankful for the night they had shared.

The sun broke through the clouds and the warmth of it began to warm the skin on her shoulders, and his eyes were transfixed on the fading golden tan of her skin.

"You'll just ruin her Josh. Maybe she'll die now that you've tainted her."

No, this isn't real...

Josh didn't have to turn, he saw Hannah's face from the corner of his vision and he shook his head, trying to ignore the voice of his missing sister. "Stop," he whispered, closing his eyes a moment. When they opened, she was gone, but her voice remained, taunting him from the depths of his mind.

"Run Josh, get away from her before you get her killed the way you did us. Don't let her see what kind of a monster you are, big brother. She's my best friend, and you just couldn't stay away. Why would you do this Josh? Why would you doom her?"

"You're not real. Go away," He spoke louder now. He stood up, before his eyes shot over to Sam's sleeping form. Thankful that his words didn't wake her from the dream that was causing the smile on her face. "I'm sorry..."

With that, he climbed out the window and left her.

When Sam woke to find herself alone in her crumpled bedsheets, without any goodbye, confusion mounted and she didn't know how to feel. After their night together, she thought he felt for her how she was feeling. But who would leave if there were feelings there? Why make love to her the way he had that night?

As time passed, she realized that she may never know.