A/N: Hey guys, it's LadiJ and Zeejack here, FINALLY bringing you the epilogue to No Need To Run! I know it's been a long time coming, and we are so sorry for letting it go this long without bringing this to you. Life has a tendency of getting in the way, but we wanted to let you know what was going on in the lives of the Evans family. We hope you enjoy it and Happy Reading!

Much Love & Blessings

Mercedes sat in Stacy's room, watching her pack the last of her things for college. She couldn't believe how fast time had passed, but life was moving so fast, she sometimes wanted to just call timeout. It had been ten years since she married Sam, and they'd had three beautiful children. Their oldest daughter Danielle who was 8, and the twins, Jacob and Joshua, who were 6. She loved being a mother, and raising Stevie and Stacy all these years helped her a lot. They were such a tight knit family, even when things were challenging, they were always able to mend things, and get back on the same page. That's why seeing this day come was extremely difficult for her, seeing Stacy and Stevie getting ready to leave for college, put a lot in perspective. She must have zoned out, because she was snapped back into reality by Stacy waving her hand in her face, "Huh…what?"

Stacy giggled, seeing Mercedes jump like that. "Where did you go? I called your name three times."

"I'm sorry Stace, I was just thinking about how time flies. I mean it felt like yesterday I was walking in here for the first time, and I was just the nanny."

Stacy smiled at the memories, "And now you are a very vital part of this family. As much as Stevie and I tried to fight it, you were exactly what we all needed to complete our family again."

Hearing Stacy say those words had Mercedes tearing up, "You guys were what I needed to Stace. I was a broken woman when I got here, but God knew what he was doing when he put us all together. We needed each other."

"Don't you make me cry Cedes, I've been doing enough of that lately." She fanned the tears away, "I never thought going to college was going to be this emotional." Getting up, she ran over to the closet, pulling something out, "I got something for you. It's a thank you for bringing the light back in this family, and helping me develop my passion, gift." She showed her the dress she made for her. "I hope you like it."

Mercedes tried to stop the tears, but it was difficult, especially when Stacy was giving her a dress she made especially for her. "How do you expect me not to cry now?" She asked through her tears. She looked at the dress, and it was beautiful, "I love it Stace, and I can't wait to wear it. I can be the first person to say I have a Stacy Evans original." She pulled her in for a hug, "Thank you so much."

Stacy returned the hug, "I'm so glad you like it, I will need to take a picture of it, so I can put it in my portfolio though." She giggled, and shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know how many people are going to care about my clothes, but we'll see."

Mercedes waved her hand in front of her face, "Girl please, when you win Project Runway, people are going to be clamoring for your clothes."

"You know that's my dream…" Stacy crossed her fingers. She was interrupted by a noise coming from downstairs, "What are those boys up too?"

"And you will fulfill that dream too." Mercedes assured her, but shook her head at the ruckus going on, "There's only one way to find out…"

They got up and made their way downstairs and peeked in to see Sam and Stevie playing a video game, and being pretty animated about it. They laughed, but was interrupted by a pair of little hands tugging on Mercedes shirt.

"Mommy, I'm hungry, can I ask Auntie Tana to make me a snack?" Danielle asked with a slight pout on her lips.

Mercedes shook her head, "I think that's a great idea Dani, I'm a little hungry myself."

"Me too!" Stacy chimed in.

"Do you think daddy and uncle Stevie would want a snack too?" She asked her daughter.

Danielle scrunched her face, giving this a lot of thought before answering, "Yeah they will, they're always hungry." She laughed, "And we might as well get some for J & J too, so they won't try and eat mine." With that, she turned on her heels and went straight to the kitchen.

Mercedes and Stacy couldn't do anything but laugh at the sass this little girl had. They followed her to the kitchen, and with help from Santana and Tina, they had all the snacks they needed. They headed back to the family room to surprise the guys.

"Hey boys, we brought snacks!" Mercedes said joyfully, but quickly frowned when nobody moved. They were so engulfed in the game, they totally ignored her. "Oh no they didn't…" Now it was time to show where Dani got her sass from. She walked right in front of the television, with her hands on her hips, "Did you two not hear what I said?"

Sam was enthralled in this game, and for the first time, he was on the verge of losing, which had never happened before. Stevie was getting better and better at these games, and Sam knew that one day, he would be playing a game Stevie created. However, he didn't like to lose, so he was doing his best to not make that happen. "You're going down bro!"

"In your dreams old man!" Stevie retorted, clicking the controller, and could feel victory in his grasps. That was until Mercedes blocked the screen, and he quickly pushed the pause button. "Cedes! What the…."

She glared at him, daring him to finish that sentence.

Sam on the other hand knew what that look meant, and chose a gentler approach, "Um...babe, what's going on?" He was not about to piss off the woman he laid next to every night.

Now that she had their attention, she put on a smile, "Now like I was saying, we brought snacks."

Sam and Stevie looked at each other, and back at Mercedes. In their minds they were both thinking, she interrupted us for some snacks? But they were smart enough not to say it out loud. They just smiled, and said, "Thank you…"

The ladies passed out the snacks while the guys shifted seats to make room for everyone. Jacob and Joshua came running in.

"Do we have any snacks?" Jacob asked, tugging at his mother's shirt.

Mercedes hugged him close to her, "Of course we do, you don't think mommy would get snacks and not get some for her baby." She tousled his hair.

"Moooom...I'm not a baby." He whined.

"You're my baby." She smiled and handed him his snacks.

Jacob rolled his eyes and went and plopped between Sam and Stevie, "Dad, get mommy…please."

Sam laughed, "Don't worry squirt, mommy is good to have on your side. And she's easy on the eyes too." He shot Mercedes a wink.

That caused a collective groan from all the kids. Mercedes sat on the other side of Sam, and kissed his cheek.

"Thank you baby, you're pretty hot yourself."

Another groan rang out, but this time Sam had something to say.

"Hey, don't hate on our love. That's the reason most of you are even here right now."

"Not me…" Stevie replied, rolling his eyes.

"Me either…" Stacy chimed in, popping a grape in her mouth.

"But we practically raised you guys so…" Sam retorted. "And I think we did a good job, seeing as you two are headed to college."

"I don't want them to go away." Joshua pouted.

"Neither do I." Mercedes said sadly, "But at least they are just going to the city. The apartment is neutral to both Parsons and NYU, so we can still visit them."

"Exactly!" Stevie said, pulling Joshua on his lap, "Just call first."

"Why, you ain't got no game, so they won't interrupt anything. Stacy said laughing, "Now me on the other hand…"

"Will be a lonely spinster, because Sam has all the guys in New York scared to even look at you." Stevie interrupted, throwing popcorn at her.

"Damn right!" Sam said proudly

Which caused an eye roll from Stacy, "He hasn't gotten to every guy. I could end up meeting a guy at school...if they're not gay. Or better yet, at your school."

Mercedes had heard enough, "Look guys, we both know you're growing up, and we'll respect your privacy. We'll call before we come by."

"She does not speak for me…" Sam huffed, which got him a smack on the back of his head from Mercedes, "OW! Stop the violence woman!" She glared at him, and he knew that look, "Okay, we'll respect their privacy." He mumbled something under his breath while he rubbed his head.

"Thank you Cedes, you always did know how to keep overprotective Sam at bay." Stacy said.

"She has a gift." Stevie smiled.

"I'm just glad you guys finally realized that." Sam stated, "It was not an easy road."

"What do you mean daddy?" Danielle asked, "Why was it hard?"

Sam grabbed Mercedes hand and kissed her knuckles. "Well sweetheart, when mommy and I first met, she actually worked as the nanny here, and let's just say your uncle Stevie and aunt Stacy were not fans of hers."

A look of horror came across Jacobs' face, "You guys didn't like mommy?"

Mercedes smiled and pulled Jacob in her lap, "They had gone through a lot, and it was a hard time for them, therefore they didn't want me here. But I'm tough, and I was determined to make them like me."

"And as you can see, she went over and beyond and made us love her." Stevie said, smiling at Mercedes.

"Unconditionally!" Stacy stated, "And we have your daddy's persistence to thank for that."

Sam blushed, "I was just enamored by her beauty, and how amazing she was. I knew it was something special about her, and I had to have her around me. The moment she walked into my office I felt it."

"What you felt was lust bro!" Stevie retorted.

Jacob had a confused look on his face, "Mommy what does lust mean?"

Mercedes glared at Stevie, she had told him several times to watch what he said around the kids. She took a deep breath and smiled at Jacob, "It means deep feelings." That was all she was willing to say, but she was going to get Stevie.

Stevie knew he messed up, and looked at Mercedes mouthing, I'm sorry.

Sam knew he needed to take control of the conversation again, "It was more than that." Although he knew it was definitely lustful thoughts going on in his head the first time he saw her. His thoughts took over, and he glanced over at Mercedes, and licked his lips.

As if Mercedes knew what Sam was thinking, she gave him a smirk, because their first meeting was one of the hardest meetings she had ever had. He was so damn sexy, and the way he looked at her had her panties damp in seconds, and he still had that effect on her, but now they are married and they can act on those feelings anytime they wanted to.

Stacy could see the looks they were giving each other, and rolled her eyes, "Ugh you two…please stop, there are children present."

That comment garnered a laugh from everyone, but truth be told, the kids loved seeing Sam and Mercedes in love, and showing it. Their minds were always at ease knowing their parents were going to be together for a long time.

"I wanna know what you did to mommy?" Danielle asked, "I mean, if you didn't like her, did you just say 'I don't like you' or was there more?" Danielle was a persistent child, she got that trait from her daddy.

Stacy laughed, "Well Dani, I just told her I didn't want her here, but your uncle Stevie here…he made sure to let her know how much he didn't want her here."

Stevie gasped, "Thanks for throwing me under the bus Stace!" He looked at the three younger children, and all their little eyes were on him, waiting for him to tell them what he did. He took a deep breath, "Okay, yes I was the one playing tricks on your mom. There might have been some snakes put in her bed."

"WHAT!" Jacob screamed.

"Did they bite you mommy?" Joshua asked.

"I would have slapped you!" Danielle said with pure diva attitude.

Sam and Mercedes couldn't hold back the laughter after hearing the reactions from their children. After finally calming down, Mercedes was able to respond. "Yes, he put snakes in my bed, but they were garden snakes, and they don't bite. As far as smacking him little missy, you know how I feel about that. Besides, I was not in the position to do that. I was an employee at the time and I couldn't do that."

Sam interrupted, "But times have changed, and feel free to hit him anytime you want."

Stevie covered his head with a pillow, "Thanks bro...all of my family is throwing me under the bus tonight."

Mercedes laughed, "Don't worry Stevie, you know I wouldn't hit you, besides you haven't given me any reason to."

Stevie gave Mercedes a grateful smile, "I don't plan on giving you one either." He needed this conversation to shift and fast. "Sam, we have to finish this game bro, it's getting late, and I need to be in the bed soon."

"You that eager to lose?" Sam smirked.

"Nope, just ready to give you your first taste of defeat."

"Bring it on!"

With that, it was on. The rest of the family watched this epic battle, with the kids choosing sides.

"GO DADDY!" Danielle screamed.

"GET HIM UNCLE STEVIE!" The twins yelled out.

Mercedes and Stacy didn't voice who they wanted to win, but they had their preference.

The battle went back and forth, and it was getting more and more intense. Then finally, out of nowhere, Stevie shot down Sam's man, and won the game.

"YES! I DID IT! I BEAT YOU!" Stevie was elated, he was jumping up and down and rubbing his victory in Sam's face. The twins were celebrating with him.

Sam was genuinely stunned that he lost. He had never lost to Stevie before. But as shocked as he was, he was also very proud of his little brother. He was growing up and becoming a man. He stood up and stuck out his hand, "Congratulations bro, good game."

"Thanks man, that means a lot." He turned the game off, and let out a big yawn, "And with that, I'm going to bed, we have a long day tomorrow."

"That sounds like a good idea." Mercedes said, "We need to get these little ones to bed as well."

"We'll take care of that for you guys tonight." Stacy chimed in, "Since we won't be able to do it in a while."

Stevie agreed, "You guys go relax, we got the little rug rats tonight."

"Thanks guys, we appreciate that." Sam said smiling.

"Make sure they get their clothes out tonight." Mercedes stated.

"We got it." Stacy said, "Now go…" She turned to face Danielle, "Come on little miss, let's get you to bed."

"Okay." She ran over and kissed her parents, "Night mommy, night daddy."

"Thing 1 and Thing 2, let's hit it!" Stevie ordered.

"Uncle Stevie…" They both whined, they hated when he called them that. They went and kissed their parents good night.

"Night boys, mommy loves you." Mercedes smiled as they walked out the door. She then smiled because she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her waist.

"How after all these years, are you still as beautiful as ever?" Sam asked as he nibbled on her neck.

"The same reason after all these years, you are still as sexy as ever." She murmured out, as her eyes rolled in the back of her head with his touch.

"We are blessed baby."

"That we are. We have a wonderful family whom we love, and they love us. A great group of friends that we can depend on when we need them."

"And an amazing relationship that I wouldn't trade for anything in this world." He finished her thoughts.

"Just what I was thinking." She turned to face him, and kissed him deeply, "I love you so much Sam Evans.

"And I love you too Mercedes Evans." He kissed her again, only to be interrupted by Tina.

"Really guys? I have to clean up on here so I can get home to Mike, can you take this somewhere else?"

Sam and Mercedes laughed, "Geeze, you make people family and they talk to you any kind of way huh…? Sam laughed again, shaking his head. "Come on baby, let's move this to the bedroom.

Mercedes shook her head, "No babe, let's take this to the gym, I feel like working out." She bit her bottom lip and shot him a wink.

Sam's knees went weak, it had been a minute since they worked out in the gym, and he thought about all those times Mercedes would tease him in there. "You know what, I feel like working out too." He quickly scooped Mercedes up and ran her to the gym.

"Freaks…" Tina laughed and shook her head at the giggles coming from Mercedes. She loved seeing them happy, and how happy the house was again. After everything they went through, they truly deserved it.

A/N: So there you have it! We hope you enjoyed it, and we hope to bring you more stories in the future. Let us know what you think. And again, we thank you all for reading this brainchild of ours.