Chapter 2: 10 Years Later

Sarah sighed as she looked around her room to make sure that she didn't forget anything. She checked her suitcase one last time and was reassured that all of her Aboveground clothes were there.

She glanced back towards her closet, glanced longingly at her Underground clothes, and tugged on her turtleneck. It hadn't taken her long to get used to Underground clothes due to the fact that they were much more comfortable than the clothes she used to wear.

Sarah wandered over to her window and looked outside. She loved the Underground in winter. The snow was always so beautiful. She smiled as the snow reminded her of the walks and snow fights that she and Jareth had shared out there. She giggled as she thought of the change in their relationship.

Jareth had kept his word and granted her wish to stay in the Underground. He was even willing to allow her to visit her family.

Sarah had been hesitant to leave Toby now that she had realized how much she cared for him. Jareth had been quick to offer a solution.

"How about this? Express your interest in studying abroad to your parents. I can fix that and then you can visit a couple of times a year without making them suspicious. Afterwards, you can 'live' there."

Sarah returned to the Aboveground for a short time and soon received a brochure for an art school in France. It was supposed to be a school that took in students that were in high school and gave them a chance to study abroad.

Sarah had to admit … it did sound interesting. Too bad it didn't exist. As soon as her family took her to the airport and 'saw her off ', Jareth had appeared and took her away to the Underground.

She had found it amusing that he seemed nervous. She had been too. She hadn't been sure as to what he saw her moving in as. She knew that she had feelings for him, but she didn't want a romantic relationship with him. Or at least, that's what she planned on wanting. He had shown her to her room and showed her all of the things that he had provided for her.

Her grand room had its own bathroom and private stock of bathroom necessities. Her bed was huge and delightfully comfortable. Sarah's favorite part was her closet. It was a walk-in closet with various dresses of all sorts. There were short ones and long ones; some were blue and some were green.

She remembered how unsure she had been about the vast multitude of dresses. Sure, they were fun, but she had grown up in a world of T-shirts and jeans. How could she live the rest of her life out, wearing only gowns? Jareth had smiled and showed her another part of the closet in the corner. Here, there were pants and shirts like his. She was still grateful to him for that.

Over time, her closet began to look more and more like his. She still had dresses, but she wore the pants most of the time. On some days, they matched. Jareth always pretended to be irritated by it, but never objected. Sarah thought that maybe he liked it.

He had also made it clear that he knew how she felt about a romantic relationship.

Sarah stared in awe at the beauty of her room. Jareth watched her, smiling at her happiness and wonder. Then he cleared his throat and said, "Sarah."

She looked at him and smiled. He felt butterflies in his stomach, but continued on just the same. "Since you'll be living here from now on, I wanted to say something." Her smile faltered. He noticed, but walked towards her.

"I - " he hesitated. "I thought it would be best if we made our relationship clear." Sarah wasn't sure how to react. A part of her wanted to be with him, but she knew that she just couldn't do it. Before she could say anything, however, he had reached her and held out his hand.

"Friends?" Sarah stared at him as though she had never seen him before. He had caught her completely off-guard and now she just looked at his hand in silence. He began to grow uncomfortable and was about to pull away when she shook his hand and confirmed, "Friends."

They had grown closer than she could have ever imagined. Jareth had become her best friend and it hadn't taken long for her to stop calling him 'Goblin King'. He was Jareth to her now and had been so for ten years.

He was still the same arrogant, lazy, stubborn, flirtatious, and conceited King of the Goblins, but he was everything to her now. Of course, she'd never admit it, to him or even herself, but as the years passed, she was growing more and more in love with him.

She was so deep in her thoughts that she never heard him come in. Although Jareth had agreed on being only friends with Sarah, his love for her grew with every day that passed. He woke up every morning hoping that the day when she admitted her love for him had come, but so far, it hadn't. However, he never gave up hope.

He walked up behind her and grabbed her waist from behind. Sarah squealed in surprise, although she already knew it was Jareth.

"Jareth!" she laughed. He laughed into her hair then turned her around to face him. Being this close to him made her heart pound in her chest. He held up a crystal then turned it into a rose. As he placed it behind her ear, he asked, "Are you ready to go?"

Sarah grinned, looked around, and said "Yep!" She looked at his face and rolled her eyes. She knew he hated it when she visited the Aboveground because she always left for a week or two.

"Oh quit your pouting!" She teased and lightly tugged on some of his hair. He smiled half-heartedly and laid his hand against her cheek.

"But I always miss you when you're gone. It's too quiet without you here to annoy me."

Sarah giggled and Jareth produced another crystal from thin air. "You know the drill."

"Don't worry. I'll be home in two weeks." Jareth sighed and nodded. Sarah walked over to her bed to grab her suitcase. She turned around then threw the crystal up into the air, but before she could catch it and disappear into the Aboveground, Jareth appeared out of nowhere and kissed her on the cheek.

She blinked and when she looked again, she was standing in front of her childhood home with the crystal in her hands. Her hand fluttered up to her cheek where his lips had touched her. She bit her lip and smiled. Although she had convinced herself that she wasn't in love Jareth, she always felt the butterflies in her stomach flutter about and her heart almost pound itself to death inside her whenever he did things like that to her. He was constantly kissing her cheek or her hand, or turning crystals into flowers. She knew that she shouldn't encourage him, but she loved it.

Sarah put the crystal ball into her suitcase, knowing that it wouldn't shatter until she had used it to get back home. Then, she took a deep breath and walked up to the front door. She knocked on the door and heard Toby scream, "SARAH'S HERE!!! SARAH'S HERE!!"

She giggled as she heard what sounded like a herd of elephants run towards the front door.

When it opened, there stood a little boy of about 11 years of age. He had shaggy, reddish-brown hair and came up to Sarah's chest. He was wearing an ACDC T-shirt, blue jeans, and converse. He threw himself on his big sister and hugged her tightly. Sarah nearly fell over from the force of the hug, but held on to her little brother. She had forgotten how much she had missed him. It's good to be home, she thought. She glanced up to the doorway to see Irene and her father standing there. They each hugged and greeted her then the family walked into the house together.

In her happiness and excitement, Sarah never noticed the barn owl perched on the mailbox, watching her and ensuring that she reunited with her family safely.

A/N: There ya go! Chapter 2! So, tell me what you think please!! I'd really love some reviews!