Chapter 7:

J + S

When Sam got home, she was greeted with a scribbled note on a ripped sheet of notebook paper.

'I wanted to tell you that I have to go on a trip for a few days but you didn't give me the chance. We will discuss this when I get back. –Liam'

He must have really been mad at her if he opted for an old-fashioned note instead of simply sending her a text message. But if it was because he didn't want her to respond, then she would respect that wish. She instead called her mom to tell her everything that happened during the last two days and that she was bringing Josh over tomorrow. Her mom was thrilled and promised she would do her best when Sam told her that she couldn't tell him he was Josh.

"We have to act like I'm just bringing him to meet you for the first time," Sam said.

Margaret laughed, "I'll make sure to have a bag of frozen peas ready then."

Sam laughed as well, remembering the day she first brought Josh home to her mother. She was in eighth grade, Josh was in ninth, and usually the only time they saw each other at school was during lunch and gym. But this day, she was heading to science class when she heard a lot of commotion in the hallway and saw a large group of teenagers creating a circle around two kids that were obviously fighting.

She was planning to ignore it like any other fight, but then she heard two older kids talking.

"My bet's on Washington. He is curr-azy!"

"Nah, you see how puny he is? No way."

This of course caught her attention, and she rushed to break through the crowd but got there a second too late. The principal was already in the center holding Josh and the other kid by the back of their shirts.

"Simons, I expected better of you! And Washington, how many times do I—," but before the principal could finish, Josh kicked the older man in the shins and sprinted toward the side doors that led out to the baseball fields.

All the kids in the hallway laughed and most of them took out their phones to film the event. Sam looked around at all the people that were constantly making fun of Josh for being different, wanting to do more than kick all of them in their shins. But, instead of getting herself in trouble, she snuck out the side doors as well, spotting Josh running underneath the bleachers.

She sucked in a deep breath and began walking. At this point, she had known Josh for about seven months but knew he had been suspended about three times in the last year, mostly from skipping detention. She was sometimes at his house when she heard his parents yelling at him. Though it was mostly, "Stop being an embarrassment to this family!"

Sam reached the bleachers, hugging her science book to her chest. She slipped under a seat, seeing Josh with his knees up to his chest and his face hidden.

"Are you okay?"

He looked up and the first and only thing she noticed was how swollen his right eye looked. It was definitely going to be black and blue in no time.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"I saw you run and got scared," she answered shamelessly. She slid further underneath the bleachers until the seats were completely hiding them, "What happened?"

He sighed and hid his face in his arms again. Sam knew it was probably more to add pressure to his eye than of being ashamed, but she still felt her heart clench at the sight. That's when she noticed that his knuckles also looked swollen and the skin scraped.

"I don't wanna talk about it. All that matters is that my parents are going to kill me, bring me back to life to ground me for a year, then kill me again."

Sam giggled at his dark works, "Well at least we know you're able to be brought back from the dead."

Josh didn't respond though he peeked at her with his good eye.

"My mom's a nurse," she told him, "She should be home right now, I bet she can get the swelling in your eye to go down. I only live a few blocks from here."

It took a little bit of persuading, but she eventually got Josh to walk home with her. Margaret was napping on the couch when they arrived since she just got done working the nightshift a few hours ago.

Margaret seemed a bit upset at first that Sam was not in school, but when Sam introduced Josh as Hannah's brother who needed her help, Margaret put on her nurse face and focused on treating Josh's black eye. She gave him a frozen bag of peas, but told Sam to hold it on his eye for him as she cleaned up his hands.

"So you're the third Washington sibling I hear so much about, huh?" Was the first thing out of Margaret's mouth as they all sat on the couch tending to Josh.

Sam's eyes widened as she shot her mom a look to not mention all the times Sam came home from Hannah's and would talk nonstop about the new funny things Josh did.

Josh tried to look at Sam, but she pressed the peas harder to his eye, making him give a short "ow!"

"Sammy, be nice," her mom chastised dismissively.

"Yeah, Sammy. Rude!" Josh mimed, and though it made Sam want to press the peas even harder, she couldn't hold back her smile knowing Josh was relaxing and hopefully not thinking about his parents killing and grounding him.

Back in the present, Sam was thankful to get through the long Thursday at work and leave to go pick Josh up for their social date with her mom. Josh was already sitting out on his apartment's front steps when she pulled up. Seeing him sitting there so casually continued to make her heart pound. Every time she saw him again, all she wanted to do was run up to him and jump into his arms. Why couldn't she just have that…

But still, him jumping to his feet the moment he saw her and sliding into her car, smiling hugely over at her as he asked if she was up for a ride-along was earth shattering to her. It seemed like he had waited to see her all day, and his eyes lit up like a kids in a toy store upon seeing her.

She gripped the steering wheel and her face went numb from smiling uncontrollably. The last time Josh looked at her like that was the night he also became The Psycho. She tried so hard to ignore it, because she thought he had been ignoring her for months prior to that.

"It really means a lot to me that everyone came back this year and, you know, that you came, Sam…"

She had been so certain that he was flirting with her. And maybe they acted like that during their whole teenage years, but losing Beth and Hannah the year before really forced them to grow up. And realize how short life could be. And Josh seemed so focused and in control; she promised herself that, after her bath, she would stick by his side all night and finally, finally confess her seven year crush on him.

Of course…things can just never go as planned…

But thankfully, Josh was very talkative on the drive to Margaret's house. He talked about the morning class he attended, a new course titled "2025" that discussed how scientists were predicting the next big technology boom for the following year.

"It's a great year to be turning thirty," he told Sam, "The research shows that those of us born in the mid-to-late nineties are the most technologically advanced humans. We were born right when computers started to become the household norm, and were teenagers when the advancement accelerated. They say they might even be on the verge of inventing something that delves into the minds of people with depression, or-or amnesia. They might be able to project memories soon, isn't that awesome, Sammy?"

Sam did a double-take, accidentally swerving a bit. 'What did he just call me…?' But he didn't even seem to notice he did it. He continued talking excitedly about his class and how it would really end up helping people in her profession.

Her heart beat hard the rest of the trip as she paid closer attention to what he referred to her as. But he didn't call her anything. His slip was so natural that he didn't even catch it.

They got to her mom's house, and Josh suddenly seemed a bit nervous when he got out of the comfort of her car where it was just the two of them. She squeezed his arm and told him it would be fine. And then—of course, as soon as Margaret opened the door and took one look at Josh, tears glistened her wise and motherly eyes as she brought him down to her level for a tight embrace.

"Uhh…mom, this is—Elliot," she reminded her.

"Of course, of course," Margaret said quickly, releasing him but then placing her small hands on his face to look at him. He almost flinched away knowing that his foggy eye might freak her out, but she just smiled through her tears and said, "So, so handsome…!"

He chuckled nervously and glanced over to Sam who was shaking her head, but showing a huge smile that couldn't be contained.

"I made coffee and crumb cake. Would you two like some?"

Margaret was already walking inside and to the kitchen before they could answer. Josh looked at Sam with big eyes, "She's friendly…"

Sam laughed, "I told you," she patted his cheek and plumped her lips teasingly, "Mr. Handsome."

He just stared at her, and she realized she may have crossed a line neither of them were ready for. She was getting more comfortable around him, and he was with her too, and she slipping back into her old patterns with him. She cleared her throat and told him to come in, showing him to the kitchen where her mom already had the snacks set out.

"Sit down," Margaret insisted, her hands fidgeting due to her excitement. Sam wanted to scold her mother for being so overzealous, but was actually feeding off of her happiness and good spirits. All three of them sat down, and Margaret only took a small sip of her coffee before talking, "So Elliot, what are the best things going on in your life right now?"

He chuckled again, looking at the fresh coffee and cake in front of him as he thought about her question. Then, his eyes slowly roamed up until he met Sam's gaze. His stare instantly told her that she was the answer. Her lips parted as she tried to catch her breath. She carefully looked over to her mom who was averting her eyes back and forth to the two of them.

"My daughter is a wonderful doctor, isn't she?" Margaret asked gently.

Josh looked over to Margaret, but only for a second before focusing on his snacks again, "The best."

Sam cleared her throat, "Uh, Elliot is taking a lot of college classes that he really likes."

Margaret's eyes lit up again, "Oh? What do you want to be?"

He shrugged, crumbling off a small piece of his cake, "I don't really know yet. I don't even know who I am yet, let alone what I want to be."

She leaned forward, her eyes taking on a more serious look despite still being friendly, "This is what you do: You focus on those best things in your life—focus on what makes you passionate. Follow those roads and you will discover who you are in no time." She gave one hard nod, her smile widening, before she took a small bite of her cake and sip of coffee as though she didn't just say anything that profound.

Sam smirked, "Stop it, Mom, you're gonna make me seem like an amateur."

Margaret laughed like Sam just told the best joke in the world, and waved her off like she was silly. Josh couldn't help but laugh at how naturally silly Sam's mom could be.

"Oh, Sammy, that reminds me. I was going through all those trunks in the attic and guess what I found? Grandma Sarah's wedding dress. She was five foot even just like you, it should be a perfect fit."

Sam tried to force a smile, but it wasn't working, "Thanks but…I'd rather not discuss my—."

"You should go try it on. It's on my bed," she insisted.

Sam narrowed her eyes, starting to feel a bit flushed, "M-maybe next time, I mean…Elliot is here now…"

"Oh, I don't mind waiting," Josh chimed in, and she could see the teasing glint in his eyes as he decided to team up with her mother.

"I'll keep him company as you change. It's not one of those complicated dresses that take five people to help you put it in."

"Sounds perfect for you," Josh nodded.

Sam narrowed her eyes at the two of them, realizing that it was pointless to argue. She stood up and mouthed I'm gonna get you for this to her mom but Margaret just sipped her coffee like she had no idea what she was talking about. So Sam turned to walk toward her mother's bedroom, already hearing the murmurs from the kitchen as Margaret talked with Josh. It made her nervous. Not that she didn't trust her mom, but because they were just on the topic of weddings and she didn't want her telling him anything about hers…

Her mother was right—it was a simple but beautiful dress: a simple A-line Sweetheart Chiffon dress. The bodice was lace, and from mid-knee below it was silk. She felt like she should shower or do something to clean herself before putting it on but didn't have time for all that. She slipped it on and, sure enough, perfect fit. But she didn't even look at herself in the mirror, too scared of her reflection, before she walked back out into the kitchen.

Margaret was now sitting on Josh's side of the table so they could look like spectators—or judges—as she rounded the corner.

Her mom placed her hands over her mouth at the sight of her daughter, but Sam's focus was on Josh's reaction. She wished she could look away as his eyes skimmed down the length of the dress before roaming back up to her face.

"So…what do you think?" She asked shyly, holding out her arms halfheartedly.

"Honey, you look…" her mother tried to find the right word but nothing was coming to mind.

"Wow," Josh finally finished for her.

Margaret finally looked over to Josh and spotted his reaction. He was entranced. She grinned and looked to Sam, but Margaret's smile slowly faded when she saw that Sam's eyes were brimming with tears.

"Don't cry," Josh said quickly, standing up from his chair and going to her, "happy brides are the best. Did you look at yourself?" He grabbed her by the bare shoulders and moved her slightly to the left where there was a wall mirror, "You're gonna be the most beautiful bride ever…I'm kinda jealous," he chuckled, hoping to get her to laugh. It didn't work, but she did look up into the mirror. Seeing him standing there beside her was more beautiful than any wedding dress could make her.

"Can you…can I just make one…little adjustment?" he asked cautiously, reaching his hands up. Sam nodded, so he reached into her hair and took out the clip that was holding her hair up. Her hair came tumbling down over her shoulders. Sam watched as his eyes stared at her through the mirror, completely hypnotized. Then he glanced over to her, looking away from the mirror, and he pushed her hair behind her right shoulder.

His fingers brushed her skin and her flesh instantly got tight. She backed away from him quickly, "It's a great fit, Mom, thanks. Gonna change back into my clothes now." She hurried back to her mom's bedroom where she sat down on the bed before her legs collapsed from underneath her. She covered her mouth with her hands and held her breath. She had to come back down to earth. She had to remind herself again that that was not quite Josh out there and that moment they just had was not okay.

She released her breath after two minutes. Her lungs took in the fresh air and she was ready to go out and apologize for acting so weird. She got changed back into her work clothes and tried to pin her hair up again but then realized that Josh still had her hairclip. She went back to the kitchen but only spotted her mom cleaning up the table.

"Where is he?" Sam asked, suddenly terrified that he ran off and she'd never be able to find him.

But Margaret cocked her head toward the window, "He went outside for some air." Sam nodded and turned to leave, but then her mom stopped her, "Sammy? I'm…sorry I made you try on that dress. I thought—maybe if Josh saw you, he'd just…remember."

Sam smiled softly. Her mom could be such a hopeless romantic. Josh recovering his memories because he saw her in a wedding dress was as cheesy as an old Nicholas Sparks movie. But Allie hardly even remembered Noah—sometimes stories were sadder than real life. And Sam hoped she was living more than just a hopeless fairytale.

Sam stepped outside to the back porch and stood beside Josh at the top of the stairs. He was leaning against a beam staring out into the yard. Sam crossed her arms, "Sorry about how I acted just now…I guess we all have our demons…"

He didn't even look over at her when he responded, "And your demon's a wedding dress?"

She heard the hint of playfulness in his tone, though he was mostly serious. She sighed, "I mean, we all have uncertainties. That fear of the unknown…" Her eyes fell on the tree with J+S carved into the bark. Like it was pulling her in, she stepped off the porch and wandered over to the tree that knew her deepest secrets.

She remembered crying by this tree when she first found out that Josh started dating a girl. Amber Williams. She was pretty enough with her pale skin and violet hair—but she covered her whole body in black clothes that hung like a drape around her tiny body. Her lips were always covered in too much bright red lipstick, and she always swiped her tongue across her top teeth when talking to people. To put it simply, she thought she was a vampire.

Sam had thought the Twilight faze was dead, but apparently not to some people. Either way, Sam was a sixteen year old watching the boy she loved give attention to a vampire-wannabe. The first time Josh brought her to his house, Sam and Hannah were sitting in the kitchen doing homework. The couple walked in, Amber's black nails running through Josh's hair as she said, "Show me the place in which you dwell." Tongue swipe. Teeth clench.

As soon as they disappeared up the stairs, Sam found enough energy inside of her to turn to Hannah and ask, "What the hell was that?"

Hannah only slowly shook her head, "I…have no…idea…" But then she turned to Sam, her eyes wide with excitement behind her glasses, "We have to prank them! This moment is too good to pass up."

Why were all her friends so into pulling pranks on each other? Sam only looked worried as Hannah went to the fridge and pulled out four eggs. She handed two to Sam who took them wearily.

"Hannah, I don't think—."

"Oh, C'mon, Sam…you know how many times Josh has egged us? And you remember that one egg that rolled under my bed and it made my room smell for like a week? This is just payback."

Sam sighed, watching as Hannah obviously went on a sibling revenge mission. They snuck upstairs and saw that Josh's bedroom door was closed with Rob Zombie blasting through the walls. Sam's heart was pounding to the beat of the music…she knew whatever was going on behind that door, she didn't want to see. Yet she was secretly hoping that Josh was playing his own sick prank on them and him and that girl would end up scaring the shit out of them as soon as they opened the door.

But when Hannah cracked the door and they peeked in, Sam saw Josh laying on his bed with Amber straddling him, her hands running up and down his chest. Jealousy and anger flared in her within a second and she launched the eggs at them full force. She didn't stick around to see where they landed, but Hannah told her later that they both landed right in Amber's hair.

It was such a childish thing to do, and going home and sitting against the tree in her backyard with angry tears in her eyes also felt childish. But she didn't know how Josh could give her no warning on suddenly getting a—a girlfriend, or whatever that girl was to him.

And she was hoping maybe it was going to just be some dumb fling, but next time the whole gang met up at the bowling alley, Josh brought Amber along.

Sam was glad she wasn't the only one put off by her. Hannah and Beth seemed pretty much afraid to even talk to her, Ashley tried to maintain an air of niceness that Amber was not accepting of, and Jessica looked at her like she had a disease. Chris always gave Josh worried glances, Mike tried to flirt with her on her emo level for the fun of it, but she took things too far, and she ended up hissing at Emily which only made Amber get bitch slapped and finally get some color to her cheeks.

Still, Sam couldn't bring herself to be outwardly cruel toward Amber—it just wasn't who she was. So she hid her distaste behind a tight smile and focused on bowling.

Josh ended up dating her for two full weeks before Hannah told her that they broke up.

"What?" Sam breathed, her heart fluttering at the mere thought of Josh being single again.

"Yeah, I finally just told him that no one liked her, especially you," Hannah pointed to Sam, a victorious grin curving her lips.

Sam's heart fell, "Wait, huh?"

"I mean, Josh values your opinion the most. So I knew as soon as I told him that you wanted them to break up...I guess he just did it."

Sam narrowed her eyes as she wondered if she was happy or upset that Hannah kind of threw her under the bus. But was Josh upset? Did he actually like that girl? They never seemed overly affectionate toward each other. The moments that Sam hated the most was when they disappeared inside his bedroom and blasted music she never even knew Josh actually liked.

Still, Sam didn't want to get into a fight with Hannah, so she said she was going to head home for the night. It was eight o'clock on a school night anyway. But as soon as she walked outside to her car, she heard Josh call to her.

"Leaving so soon, Sammy?"

She turned around but didn't see him.

"Up here."

She looked up and squinted through the darkness, finally seeing his figure outlined on the flat roof on the second layer of the house. She could see the burning redness of a lit cigarette as he inhaled, "Don't smoke, Josh. What are you doing?"

He looked at the drug in his hand before putting it out then flicking it off the back of the roof, "Yeah, was kinda around that shit for a few weeks." Sam sighed and crossed her arms. Josh cocked his head up, "Care to come up and join me?"

Sam bit her lip and kicked some tiny pebbles with her shoe, "I dunno, I—."

"C'mon, I wanna talk to you."

She could never say no to him, especially when he said stuff like that, so she began her climb up the lattice and vines on the side of his house until she reached the drain pipe then pulled herself up.

"Impressive," he complimented when she sat next to him.

She smirked over at him and wiggled her head in a proud way, "I know I am."

He chuckled then wrapped an arm around her and brought her close to him. She would have normally basked in the joy of it, but she only scrunched her nose and said, "You smell bad."

"Sorry, it's…" he pulled his sweatshirt off, revealing his black t-shirt, and threw it to the ground then dug in his jeans pocket for a piece of gum, sliding it in his mouth, "it's all the smoke." He put his arm around her again and lowered his face close to hers, "Better?"

She gave a half-hearted shrug, making sure not to look him in the eye, "Not entirely."

He laughed at her honesty and kissed the top of her head, "I missed you."

"Yeah, well, I was right here," She said in a tone a bit too snotty and snappy.

"Don't get curt with me, young lady. You know I don't wanna send you to your room, but I will if I have to," he said in his strictest voice.

She rolled her eyes but wanted to play along, yet the only thing that she could come up with was: "Yes, Daddy."

"Whoa-ho-ho, do I suddenly have a naughty girl on my hands?" Josh teased, his fingers tip-toeing up her arm until she nudged him in his side.

"You're so mean to me sometimes," she stuck out her lower lip and wrapped her arms around her knees.

"And you're so cute when you pout," he commented. He pressed his forehead to her temple and out of the corner of her eye, she could see him pouting out his lower lip as well.

She closed her eyes and pressed against him. She turned her head slightly and she could feel his breath against her lips. She felt surprisingly calm despite knowing that if either one of them moved just a few inches they would be kissing.

"You're cute when you're jealous, too."

She snapped her eyes open and leaned away, staring at him as though he told her he was having a baby, "W-what?"

He smirked, "C'mon, you don't think I noticed? My Little Miss Sunshine became Miss Sad Face."

Sam looked away from him, feeling a bit of anger rising in her, "Being sad is different than being jealous, Josh."

His fingers gently yet firmly pressed to her chin as he made her look at him again, "I never wanted to make you sad, Sam."

Her eyebrows furrowed but she saw the sincerity in his eyes. She began to feel a bit nervous because this was the closest she'd ever been to him when it was dark and just the two of them, so she said, "How do you kiss a vampire anyway?"

"Ha!" He unwrapped his arm from around her then leaned back on his elbows. She turned herself so she could look at him, "Believe me, it can get really bloody."

She scrunched up her face, "Ew…"

"Tell me about it. I think I ended up with a bloody lip every time."

She laughed despite herself, "Okay, I'm no expert, but that definitely doesn't seem normal."

His lips pursed together as he stared at her, and it was in the way that she knew he was thinking hard about something, "Come on—I'm sure cute little Samantha Jensen has to be somewhat of a kissing expert."

She rolled her eyes at his humor, "Since when have you seen me with someone that I could be kissing, Josh?"

Josh's face became smug as though he reached a genius conclusion, "You mean you've never been kissed?"

Her face heated up and she was thankful for the darkness so he couldn't see her blushing furiously, "Yeah, so?"

"No—no, you don't have to get defensive about it," he told her, sitting himself upright again, "It's good. I'm pretty sure ninety-five percent of the girls at our school have already done the groin boing. It's refreshing to know you're still one of the pure ones."

"Oh my God, Josh…" she shook her head and looked toward the sky, wondering how the hell they came to this particular conversation. She was sure it was her fault.

Then, without warning, he cupped her face and brought his face close to hers. When their eyes met her mind began racing and then his lips met hers and her mind froze. It was soft, chaste, and she gripped his wrist that was close to her face as her stomach clenched, causing her to let out a surprised yet joyous murmur. She instinctively moved her lips gently against his, basking in the quiet sounds made between them.

Then he ended the kiss. But gave her another quick kiss. Then one more. He smiled, chuckling, kissed her hurriedly one more time, and then moved away from her, though her eyes practically begged him for more.

"I just had to be the first to take some of your purity," his voice was low, husky, teasing.

She folded in her lips, her whole mouth feeling numb and tingly, "You taste like an ashtray…"

He groaned, falling back onto the roof with his arms outspread like she shot him, "My fragile male ego has been killed!"

Sam breathed out her nose into a small laugh, her eyes still never losing their brightness despite her last comment. She laid down next to him, her head on his shoulder as she curled into his side. His arms came around her, his one hand finding the back of her head to massage her scalp.

"Just…don't smoke anymore, okay?"

"Okay."

Back in present day, Josh followed her out to the tree but didn't seem to spot the initials yet, "So you're saying you're uncertain about getting married?"

"I guess everyone gets cold feet before their wedding. It's the idea of being with that one person for the rest of your life…"

"Not really," he said, shaking his head, "That's why there's divorce."

Sam couldn't help but crack a smile, "Most people don't go into marriage reminding themselves that divorce is always still an option."

"Well…they should," he argued, leaning against the tree, "'Cause if they go into a marriage believing they could potentially be unhappy with that person one day, which is what cold feet is, then it would be a comfort knowing they can still escape to be happy again."

She sighed in frustration, "So you're saying you would marry a girl with the thought of possibly divorcing her someday?"

He shook his head, squinting his eyes a bit as he looked at her, "Nah, even if I had that thought once, I wouldn't marry her at all."

Her eyebrows furrowed and her eyes found the J+S again. Josh pushed himself from the tree to see what she was looking at. Then she watched, almost in slow motion, as his eyes darkened and he turned to her with a flash of recognition in those green eyes of his. She saw it. The real Josh was looking at her. Her tongue pressed hard against the roof of her mouth as she got ready to say his name—

And then just like that, the look passed. He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead.

"What was that…?" she asked breathlessly.

"I, uh—I dunno, I get these weird déjà vu moments. That one was…wow, felt like I lived it a hundred times. You ever get déjà vu?"

She blinked rapidly, searching his face, wishing she could just pull the mask from him to reveal the man that was hidden again, "Y-yeah…sometimes…"

"So…" Josh nodded to the initials, obviously wanting to change the subject, "Josh and Sam. You guys were a couple?"

"He…" her hands squeezed her arms tightly and it looked like she was hugging herself, "I guess you could say he was the one that got away…"

Josh stared at her. He switched his weight from one foot to the other, and he looked like he was a bit nervous about his next question, "Why are you even marrying Liam?" He went on quickly, knowing full well that he was probably overstepping his boundaries, "The way your eyes light up when you talk about Josh—there's not…not even a small glimmer when you talk about Liam. Or look at him." He stepped closer to her and Sam looked up, her legs wanting to flee but her feet remaining firmly planted in their spot against her will, "Does he even know I'm here with you right now?"

She only slowly shook her head no.

He licked his lips quickly and she could tell he was building himself up to say more, "Is there…is there something going on…between us-cause I'm feeling some sort of connection here…"

Sam opened her mouth but nothing would come out. Her eyes blurred over and she didn't know what to say that wouldn't be both the full truth and a complete lie.

And Josh realized this and tried to explain, "I mean…I dunno, I know you're my doctor and all, and we only just met but…but I'm…I'm me with you, or at least the me I currently know—and-and maybe I am bad at socializing and that's why I'm—reading things wrong, but when you look at me…you're doing it now, you're looking at me like you—."

"Elliot."

She stopped him in his ramblings. He was getting himself worked up like what happened in their second session except this one was about her personally and she just couldn't handle that. She knew that he knew what he wanted to say and was only delaying it by stuttering and stumbling.

"Hey, you two," Margaret called to then from the porch, holding up the game Say Anything, "Wanna play a board game?"

Sam smiled and nodded, "Coming, Mom." She cocked her head toward the house at Josh, "Come on, let's get back to this socializing experiment. Just don't get upset when my mom wins every round."

Dropping Josh back off at home was becoming a sad part of Sam's day, but she was thankful she had the drive home to think. Being with her mom usually cleared Sam's mind but being there today with Josh just seemed to confuse her more. Even still, it wasn't for nothing. She could have sworn he was beginning to remember. By the time she made it home, she had the wildest idea yet.

Before Sam could talk herself out of what she was about to do, she was already dialing the number into her cellphone. She needed help - she couldn't make Josh remember who he was. He had to remember on his own… but the more time she was spending with him, the more he looked at her… like that… the more desperation she felt steadily growing in her. She had watched Josh fall in love with her when they were kids - she knew the signs. Josh was saying and doing the same things he had already done before, and he didn't even know it.

In actuality, the thing Sam was most afraid of was that if he continued to do these things, she might not have the strength to fight him off.

"...hello?" the voice said on the other end. She cleared her throat, suddenly feeling the nervousness that was creeping up on her take hold of her body.

"Hey, Chris. It's me, Sam," she uttered. "Is this a bad time?"

"No, no, of course not. Just about to get Elizabeth to take a tubbie- er… bath. Get her bathed and ready for bed," he corrected, and Sam scrunched her nose and wondered what other silly words and phrases the Bennet family had for mundane, everyday things. "Elizabeth Bennet, you better be brushing your teeth and not playing around in there when I come in!" Sam heard Chris call out away from the phone. "Sorry about that…" he grumbled. "What's up? How are you doing?" he asked. Sam always appreciated how no matter how distracted or busy he might sound, Chris never gave her any indication that he would rather be doing anything other than talking to her.

"I'm assuming that Ashley was responsible for naming your daughter directly after a fictional character?" Sam noted; who was she kidding. Just by simply agreeing to marry Chris she knew that woman would get whatever she wanted for the rest of her life- he was utterly crazy about her.

"I mean, MY name got vetoed like, immediately," Chris confessed. "I wanted to name her Linux-"

"Linux? That's… different. Where'd you come up with that?"

"...It's a computer operating system..." Chris said sheepishly. Of course it is. Sam chuckled lightly to herself, but mentally had to get herself back on track. She had something very important to discuss.

"Listen, I need to talk to you about something incredibly important, and I need you to have an open mind about this because I'm about to blow it."

"Sounds juicy," Chris bit. Sam sighed, she needed to just spit it out, like pulling off a bandaid. She lowered her forehead into her palm, and she knew he was never going to believe her until he saw Josh with his own eyes. "Spill, Jensen."

"Okay… but you gotta promise not to freak out, okay?"

To Be Continued...