Tada! Uber long chapter for you guys!
Three days passed. With each day that Sam didn't speak to Emily face to face, he felt himself growing more tightly wound. His emotions were triggered into rages and frustration at the slightest prodding. He hardly had to focus to phase because he was always so close to the brink. And always, always, his thoughts were consumed with Emily. Her hair. Her lips, her smile. Her eyes. The way her hips swayed when she walked. Her voice.
Scrubbing his hands through his hair, Sam shoved the plate in front of him across the table. The scraping sound was harsh and loud in the silence of his house.
Before he'd... met Emily, the isolation he experienced as a protector had been tolerable, if only barely. Now, it drove him insane. His house was too quiet. He felt restless, often finding himself pacing from one end of his house to the other. He wanted to get out with people his age, but most of his old group of friends had left the rez to move on with their lives, just like he had always planned to do.
Sam got up and moved to the window in his living room, staring outside. Rain had been pelting the ground yesterday, but today it was patchy skies. Occasionally, the sun poked through and lit the world, reflecting off of the puddles on the ground and the rain drops still clinging to the trees. Most people were outside, enjoying the somewhat clear weather. In Washington, you learned to appreciate it while you could.
Impulsively, Sam grabbed his car keys and got into his car, driving towards the beach.
He passed the actual beach, where he could see groups of people gathered, their laughter and screams of joy faintly reaching him. Sam couldn't see himself among them, as part of them. Disconnected as he'd become from the rest of the tribe, it would only be more awkward, emphasize his isolation and loneliness exponentially.
Instead, Sam drove up to the cliff, parking his car carelessly on the side of the road and walking to the very edge.
The water below looked smooth and glassy, a dark reflection of the patchy sky above it. It was a long way down; he could practically feel the pull of gravity trying to yank him down to the water below. Sam toed a small rock over the edge, watching as it sailed down and plopped into the water with a minuscule splash. Carefully, Sam sat down so his legs were dangling in the large expanse of air and watched the water below.
A long time passed as he sat there, watching the water and thinking. He knew he'd imprinted on Emily, despite his not wanting to, despite the problems it caused. According to the legends, there was no going back. Acknowledging his own feelings, Sam figured that was one-hundred percent true. Staying away from her for a few days was enough to drive him to the brink of insanity; the simple thought that she was only here for another four days and then she'd be gone made pain spasm from his center and the urge to phase and howl his pain rise up almost uncontrollably.
No, there was no going back.
Sam thought of Leah, and the time they'd been together. He thought of all the times he was supposed to be there for her and hadn't. The fighting. The yelling. The tears. The hurt looks and guilt on both of their parts. They'd both tried so hard to hold on to something that hadn't been working. He'd tried so hard to hold on to what they'd used to have that he'd forgotten what it had been like before. It had become something he had to do, simply because. It had become another obligation. Love shouldn't be an obligation. A relationship with Leah shouldn't be viewed that way. She deserved better than that.
Hell, they both did.
Sam stood up, backing towards the railing that separated the road and the cliff. He'd been fighting the fact that he wasn't the same Sam, that he wasn't going to have the life he'd always expected. He'd ruined things between him and Leah by trying so hard to hold on to it, for all the wrong reasons. Now, things had ended on such a sour note; the past few months might have obliterated any remembrance of the good times of before.
Closing his eyes, Sam took a deep breath and very purposefully told himself it was over with Leah, for good. No more trying to make something work that wasn't working. No more pain for the both of them by putting effort where it wasn't needed.
A weight lifted from his shoulders and he opened his eyes, a part of him feeling lighter than he had since before he'd phased that first time. There were still problems, still things he'd have to work at and overcome. But trying to hold on to his old life through Leah was no longer one of them.
He was free of that 'obligation'.
His mind flashed to Emily, her smile, her eyes, the light in her hair.
He was going to embrace what he was now, and do everything he could to make the most of it.
Kicking off his shoes, Sam rushed forward and threw himself over the edge of the cliff. The water surged closer to meet him; gravity pulled the scream of the adrenaline rush and absolute freedom of falling out of his throat.
The water closed around him, swallowing him with a loud splash.
~*~*~
One of the kids on the beach laughed, pointing towards the cliffs. "Hey, Jared, maybe we should go diving as well!"
Emily frowned and glanced over to the boys near her and Leah. They were pointing towards the cliffs, talking about cliff diving. It struck Emily as a reckless activity, but Leah laughed and joined their conversation. Soon, a small group of the kids were rushing to the road, readying to throw themselves off of a very high cliff.
"You coming Emily?"
She glanced over at Seth and grinned. "I'm afraid of heights."
He laughed once, rolling his eyes, and waved goodbye as he hurried after the other kids. Emily leaned back on her towel, soaking up the rare sunshine as it broke through the clouds.
Her thoughts were wandering, not that she wanted to admit where they were going. She shouldn't be thinking-
"Hey."
Her eyes snapped open and she stared straight up into the face of the subject of her obsessive thoughts. His hair was dripping wet, small drops falling onto her face and chest, and....
Emily felt her heart spasm strangely.
Sam Uley's grin was pure joy and absolutely breathtaking. Some of the lines of tension around his eyes and mouth were gone, and he looked younger than he had before. More like a young adult than someone who had suffered too much in life.
"Uh, hi," she said awkwardly, sitting upright. Sam fell onto the ground next to her, the sand clinging to his wet skin and clothes. She frowned as she realized he was wearing a shirt and cut-off shorts, basically fully dressed.
He grinned at her. "Cliff diving," he explained. His eyes flashed towards the cliff all the kids had rushed towards. "I'll have to run up there and get my shoes...." he mused in amusement.
Emily stared at Sam in slight amazement. He was so... different. So much more relaxed, almost carefree. It was invasion of the body snatchers or something. Maybe she should go check under his bed....
Or maybe she was finally seeing the Sam Uley that everyone had told her about. The good boyfriend. The student who had gotten a scholarship. The boy always ready to laugh and help out those who needed it.
So maybe it wasn't invasion of the body snatchers. Maybe it was removal of them.
He turned his head and she looked down, embarrassed that he'd caught her basically gawking. Sam didn't say anything, however, just fell back fully into the sand, causing it to get caught up in his hair. After a moment, he sat up again and pulled his shirt off, tossing the wet wad of clothing to the side carelessly and muttering about hot body temperatures being a pain. Emily frowned in confusion as he fell back again.
Sam let out a huge sigh, staring up at the sky with squinted eyes as the sun broke through. Unable to quite resist, Emily allowed her eyes to drift over his face, the full sharp contours of his lips. Down to his shoulders, broad and muscles bulging as he lifted his arms to put his hands behind his head. The tribal tattoo on his bicep stood out starkly with his arms tensed like that. From there, her eyes drifted down to his chest, bronzed dark skin glistening in the sunlight with the droplets of water. As if they had a mind of their own, her eyes slowly pulled her gaze down to his stomach, the smooth ripples and dips of his abs creating faint patterns of shadows. When she reached his navel, she forcefully yanked her gaze back up to his face.
He hadn't noticed her checking him out. His eyes were closed, face still turned to the sky, and he looked surprisingly relaxed.
Slowly, Emily pulled her knees up to her chest and shifted so she was facing him. Talking with him was fine. He would work things out with Leah; it was fine to talk with him because she'd do that anyway if they weren't fighting right now.
"Why'd you go cliff diving?" she asked.
His lips curled up into a half grin, his teeth shockingly white against the dark tan of his skin. "The rush. The feeling of falling without anything to stop you... it's amazing. Liberating." One of his eyes slitted open and he glanced down at her, raising a brow. "You ever tried it?"
Emily shook her head, a strand of hair blowing across her face in the light breeze.
Sam sat upright, tucking the strand behind her ear. "Why not?"
Emily's eyes shot wide with his action and she looked down, shifting a foot forward to dig her toes into the sand. Unlike admitting it to Seth, telling Sam of her irrational fear seemed frighteningly embarrassing.
Oh, Emily, you are in so much trouble.
Sam tilted his head, grinning slightly. "Come on, tell me. It can't be that bad."
"I'm afraid of heights," she finally mumbled, somewhat horrified to find her cheeks burning with a blush. Oh yeah. Definitely in trouble, she thought.
Sam was quiet. So quiet that finally she couldn't help herself and glanced up at him. He was watching her considerately, head slightly tilted. After a moment, his eyes shifted over to the cliffs and his brow pulled down the slightest bit before straightening out. He looked back at her with a smile and popped up to his feet, easily and gracefully. Emily jumped slightly, surprised by the movement.
Sam held out his hand. "Come on," he grinned.
Slowly, suspiciously, Emily put her hand out towards his. He reached forward and grabbed hers, pulling her to her feet. Biting her lip, Emily followed him as he tugged her up the beach towards the road.
"Where are we going?" she asked cautiously. "Sam?" she called when he didn't answer.
They walked swiftly up the road, towards the cliff. Emily slowed down, suspicion clawing at her and growing the farther they went.
Finally, Emily yanked to a stop. "Sam," she insisted.
He glanced over at her, amused. "Come on, Emily. You'll enjoy it."
"I hate heights," she reiterated pointedly, staring at the man before her in disbelief. "I'm not going to enjoy throwing myself from a cliff!"
"I'm taking you to the shorter one. Trust me." When she didn't move, he turned to face her fully, grabbing her face between his large warm palms. "Do you want to always wonder if it would have been worth it to try? Wondering what it might have been like gets no one anywhere, Emily. It just gets you gloomy feelings and a horrible feeling in your chest and gut."
After a moment, she sighed. "Sam, it's just..."
"I'll jump with you," he promised. "You'll be safe with me. I won't let anything happen to you."
Swallowing uncomfortably, Emily nodded. He smiled, a flash of brilliance, and started pulling her to the cliffs again. Her mind, however, was over analyzing the words he'd said, and the emotion in his voice as he'd said it. The intense look in his eyes. In the face of what he'd said and how he'd said it, she couldn't not believe him.
But what did that intensity mean?
Nothing, she reminded herself. Because Sam loved Leah and they were going to work everything out.
Before they reached the large cliff everyone else must have headed to, Sam turned off the road and leapt over the guard rail. He grabbed Emily around the waist, his hands huge enough to nearly encircle her, and helped her over as well. Then he lead the way again, slipping silently through the trees and bushes. Faintly, she could hear the screams of the other kids from farther up the road.
They emerged at the edge of the cliff. Emily refused to look down, fear causing her stomach to churn queasily. Her throat tightened and her heart raced.
They were going to jump from a cliff with nothing to save them from the water below.
Why was she agreeing to this again?
Sam turned around, brushing another stray strand of hair from her face. "You okay?" he asked gently.
As Emily looked at him, the kindness in his eyes only just covering the excitement, she felt a small push of anticipation trickle through her fear. Maybe even some eagerness.
"Yeah," she whispered.
"Okay," Sam nodded, then gestured to her sandals. "You might want to take those off." As Emily lightly kicked them off, he walked to the edge and glanced down. The water was still smooth, and there weren't any rocks nearby to be wary of. When he was younger, he'd jumped from this cliff countless times. He grinned slightly at the memory of his first jump; it had been a dare, and he'd had to do it completely naked. Chuckling in amusement, Sam glanced over as he sensed Emily stepping closer to his side, her hands shaking slightly with what was probably adrenaline.
"Ready?" he asked.
Emily's eyes shot wide, slightly panicked, and she held up a hand. "Give me a sec," she requested shakily. Sam nodded, leaning back against a tree as she paced in front of him for several long moments. Finally, she straightened her shoulders with a deep breath and marched up to him, nodding once decisively.
"I'm ready now," she informed him unnecessarily.
Sam took her small soft hand in his and pulled her closer to the cliff edge. He wrapped his arms around her waist, tucking her against his chest. The wolf in him growled in contentment, enjoying the feeling of his imprint so close. He dropped his face until his lips brushed her ear, breathing in deeply. She smelled so good. Light, and fresh, just slightly sweet... just faintly fruity, he supposed. Really, there were no words to accurately identify her scent with. It cleansed him, though, increasing the lightness he'd felt after making his decisions to move forward in his life.
"We'll count to three," Sam told her, his lips moving against the shell of her ear with each syllable. Emily shivered lightly as he continued. "Don't forget to hold your breath when we hit the water. And Emily?" he asked.
She swallowed thickly a few times, trying to stop the shaking that was a mixture of adrenaline and the feelings his lips at her ear evoked. "Yeah?" she croaked questioningly.
"Don't try to hold in your scream," he chuckled huskily.
The moved to the very edge of the cliff, Sam's arms squeezing her closer. Emily's hands clutched his arms, her nails lightly digging into his arm as she looked down and felt her stomach flip uneasily.
"One," he whispered into her hair. His lips trailed down, to the top of her ear. "Two," he slowly warned.
Emily took in a deep breath, closing her eyes and leaning against Sam's warm chest. He wouldn't do this with her if it was too dangerous. People did it all the time and were perfectly fine. She'd be fine.
"Three," he breathed into her ear, and threw them off the ledge.
The wind rushed up around them, grabbing her hair and swirling it chaotically around them. Sam's arms still enfolded her tightly to him, his thumbs rubbing against her skin soothingly. His voice was behind her, half a laugh, half a yell. Entirely excited.
Emily felt the yell rise in her throat and for a moment, fought it back. But then she recalled him telling her not to and let it out, a high pitched mixture of fear and enjoyment. As their toes hit the water, she gasped in air quickly, just in time for them to become submerged. Sam let them drift down for several seemingly forever moments. The water around them was freezing, shocking her, yet Sam remained as blistering warm as always. Finally, he released one arm from around her and used it to help them kick to the surface.
As they broke free, Emily gasped in air....
And laughed.
Sam grinned at her as she twisted around to tread water in front of him, laughing. Her hair was plastered to her face, neck, and shoulders. Her shirt was clinging to her everywhere, and her eyes were lighted with pure joy. Something filled his chest, something like pride and contentment and undiluted happiness.
They swam towards the beach, stumbling as they stepped from the surf onto the sand. It coated their feet, climbed up Emily's calves and stuck there.
She pushed her hair out of her face, still grinning. As Sam came up next to her, she impulsively threw her arms around his neck, standing up on the tips of her toes to even manage it.
"Thank you!" she giggled. "Thank you for making me do that! You're right, it was completely worth it!"
Heart pounding, disbelieving, Sam wrapped his arms around Emily's waist and hugged her to him, resisting the urge to hum with the rightness of it. He released her as she pulled away, trailing his hands along her back and waist for as long as he could to prolong contact. Her shorts and shirt clung to her, emphasizing her curves and trim, curvy waist. He followed after her, aware his eyes had glued themselves to her hips again.
He hurried his pace until they walked alongside each other and with what he hoped was nonchalance threw his arm over her shoulders. He grinned down at her. "Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it. It's far better from the other cliff though. Maybe you'll be willing to try that sometime."
Emily raised a brow, scoffing, giving him a look that said she clearly didn't think so. "I'd pass out from fear first."
He laughed. "The fall would wake you up."
"Or knock me out again," she pointed out dryly.
Sam just laughed. Emily smiled vaguely, amazed by this new Sam. This had to be the man everyone had wonderful things to say about, not the one she'd seen since she'd showed up here. In this man, she didn't see the unhappy trouble one trying to pretend everything was fine. It actually seemed like everything was fine.
Maybe something had happened to cheer him up. She wondered what it was.
The heat of his arm over her shoulders fought away the slight chill of the breeze and being completely soaked. Sam seemed perfectly fine, but Emily suspected she'd be shivering lightly if he hadn't thrown his arm over her shoulders.
They reached her towel and she pulled it off the ground, shaking the sand off as best she could before wrapping it over her shoulders. Sam bent down and grabbed his shirt, completely covered in sand. Her lips twitched as he shook his head with a slight smirk before dropping the shirt again.
"Need a towel?" she asked.
Sam's smirk widened. "Nah," he dismissed with a wave of his hand. "I'm perfectly fine."
"Okay," she said with a slight smile, tilting her head. She shifted around a bit in the sand, realizing that she wanted to spend more time with him. Maybe they could go back to the cliff.... "Do you-" she started to ask, when suddenly a voice called out to them.
"Sam! Emily!"
They both glanced over to see Seth jogging forward, dripping water. Obviously he'd just swum out of the ocean after diving. He slowed as he took in their appearances and raised both his brows, still grinning. "Emily, I thought you were afraid of heights?" he teased.
Emily glanced down at the ground. "Uh, Sam-"
"I took her to the smaller cliff to jump," Sam interrupted. "I'll go grab her sandals from there... I've got to go anyway."
Emily watched as he ran off, only slightly aware as Seth came to stand next to her.
"He sure does like to run off a lot, doesn't he?" Seth mused, shaking his head. "Leah's gonna be pissed he was here and didn't try apologizing to her." He rolled his eyes, pulling his towel out of the beach bag. "Which makes no sense to me," he continued, rubbing the towel over his hair, not realizing that Emily had paled slightly and stared at the ground guiltily. "She's the one that told him to get lost, and then she gets pissed when he doesn't come crawling back to beg her to forgive him again. Those two are messed up," he concluded, appearing from under the towel. He wrapped it around his waist and grabbed a soda from the cooler, popping it open and guzzling it down.
"Hey, you okay?" he suddenly asked, frowning in concern. "You look sick."
Emily swallowed, taking a deep breath. "Delayed reaction to jumping," she lied, probably lamely.
Seth just shrugged and took another drink of his soda. "We should head home. Mom's probably started dinner already, and she'll want us washed up." He rolled his eyes.
"Yeah," Emily mumbled mindlessly. She grabbed up the beach bag as Seth grabbed the cooler and followed him as they trudged up the beach. She'd just spent the past almost hour with Sam, and not once after they'd started talking had she thought of Leah. Not once had he mentioned Leah.
And now that someone had brought her up, Emily wished her and Sam were still at the top of the cliff, with no one outside of the two of them mattering.
Tada! Hope you all enjoyed it! ;) Loves and Hugs! ~IG