So hi! Hello! It was lovely to see all the follows, favorites and reviews! You guys rock. And this chapter like most because she is my muse goes out to my wifey Genevieve who always has questions for me to make my chapters better! Now on to...

Chapter 2: Lost Without You

Sam took a deep breath as he opened his eyes to the sunlight shining in through his window. It had been about more than a month since Mercedes had left, taking his heart with her.

He just couldn't fathom why. It was such a short time, but he had fallen in love with her. He loved her laugh, her smile. She had a kind heart and was very patient at her waitress job. Everyone fell in love with her if she was their waitress. She liked to bite her lip when she was nervous and her eyes twinkled when she spoke about her interests. It was the small things about her that he couldn't help but love. Once they had made love for the first time, he decided that she was it for him. Nobody else could make him feel like she did. She ruined him for other women and then she just up and left.

If he had known that telling her he loved her would cause her to pack up and leave, he wouldn't have said it. Anything to keep her here with him. But he guessed that was just in her nature. She was perfect in his eyes, but if he could change one thing about her, he'd change her urge to leave him.

Sam got up out of bed even though he didn't feel like it. Life moved on, Mercedes might have moved on, so Sam had to keep on going. He went into his bathroom and started to get ready for work. He showered, brushed his teeth and dressed all in a very short time.

Sam lived in a small dingy one bedroom apartment. He did have more than enough money saved in the bank and he could move into some place greater, but he didn't care. He liked his apartment. The landlord was nice and it was only him. Why would he want something bigger?

Sam worked as a mechanic in Burt's auto shop. He was friends with the owner's son Kurt and Burt gave him a job when he asked. Kurt was his childhood friend. They had met in elementary school and immediately formed a friendship because they were both different. The quiet dyslexic kid and the outspoken fashionista. It was a strange friendship, but for some odd reason, they worked. He hadn't really kept in touch with Kurt ever since Kurt moved to New York. It was a shame really, but sometimes that happens with friendships.

He was never good at school, but he did love drawing. He had dreams of being a comic book artist, but life got in the way and it wouldn't have happened anyway.

His mother was diagnosed with cancer right before Sam was supposed to go off to college. He decided instead to stay to help his mother and the costs that would be rolling in from hospital bills.

Sam put his plans on hold, but he didn't really mind. He would do anything for his family. Once this happened, he managed to lose a part of his innocence and he really had to grow up to be strong and help take care of his family. He still delighted in comic books every now and then and he still liked to believe that he was a kid at heart. It was just that reality kicked him and kicked him hard. You can ever fully go back to being a kid, once adulthood rears it's ugly head.

Even though they tried everything chemo and radio, his mother died a year after getting diagnosed and it was the worse time of his life. He shut down for awhile and just went through the motions until his siblings Stacie and Stevie woke him up. They needed their brother not a zombie. This place brought back way to many memories of their mother, Stevie and Stacie just couldn't handle. His father also saw her wherever he went. So once his dad got a job offer in another state, he jumped at the chance to take it. They had gone to Kentucky while Sam was still in Tennessee. He missed them dearly, but he always tried to send some of his paycheck money to help them out and he often visited when he could.

He never really recovered fully from his lost and never decided to play out his dream. That's when he met Mercedes. She made him want to do better and be better, but now that she was gone, he repressed back into his old self.

He was on his way out of the door when he received a call on his cellphone. It was an unknown number and he considered if he should answer it or not. He just went for it and answered it. "Hello."

Nobody replied on the other line, but he could hear breathing. "Hello? I can hear you breathing. Hello?" After a couple more seconds of no answer, he hung up.

It was the end of the day and he had been receiving those same kind of calls all day. He had just made it home and received a phone call. He answered this time fed up.

"What do you want?" He yelled into the phone.

"Whoa Sam. Calm down, it's your dad."

"Oh dad, sorry. I've been receiving these call and hang up phone calls all day. How are you, dad?"

"I'm good son, just calling to catch up and to make sure if you still plan on visiting soon."

"I'm okay dad. And yes I plan on being there in maybe two weeks or a month if that's okay." Sam spoke a little dejectedly and he hoped that his father didn't pick up his mood.

"Are you sure? You don't sound okay Sam. Okay, I can't wait to see you then and I'm sure your brother and sister will be happy."

Sam noticed the worry in his father's voice and he internally battle if he should tell his father about Mercedes or not. "Uhm...I met a girl dad. She's so beautiful. She has a great smile and laugh. She's so caring too, but...she left me and I can't understand why."

"Really? A girl. She's sounds wonderful Sam except for the leaving you part. So wait did she just break up with you and leave? Or what?"

Sam notice the confusion in his father's voice and decided to tell him the whole story minus the dirty details of course. Once he finished, he sighed into the phone. "I miss her so much dad."

"I'm sorry son. Maybe you will see her again especially if she's the one."

"It's okay dad. And thanks for letting me talk to you about this." Sam said feeling a little lighter because part of the weight on his shoulders was gone.

"It's no problem. I miss you son."

"I miss you guys too. How are Stevie and Stacie?" Sam asked a little excited to hear about his siblings. He loved his family so much.

"They are doing great. Stacie just won a spelling bee and got all A's on her report card. I'm so proud of her. Stevie well, I think he takes more after you. He's struggling with his dyslexia just like you did. But he's a tough cookie and he really works hard to keep up."

"Oh wow. Tell Stacie congratulations from me. I'm so proud of her. And I feel bad for Stevie, but I think that he's smart and he can do it. Where are they by the way?" Sam asked because normally they would be talk his ear off on the phone.

"I will do that son. Oh they're both at sleepovers."

"Thanks, dad. I'm sure their having a blast. Hug them both for me, will ya?" Sam really wished that he could be their in person for those hugs, but he guessed he would just have to send his dad to do it.

"I will do Sam. Well I should probably let you go. It was nice talking to you son."

"It was nice talking to you too dad. I love you."

"Love you too son. I'll see you soon."

"Yep you will. Bye." Sam said before he hung up his phone. He turned on his tv to unwind when his phone went off again. He looked at the screen before answering, exhausted. He just wanted these calls to stop.

"Hello? Look, I'm tired. If you got something to say...just say it."

A couple of moments went by as Sam heard breathing on the other line. He was going to hang up, but then he heard her.

"Umm...Sam. Hi. I...Sam, I have to tell you something that's a quite a bit of a shock. I...I'm pregnant. And it's yours. And I'm going to keep it. I just wanted to let you know. Bye." Mercedes rushed out before hanging up. Sam had given Mercedes his cellphone number and made sure she memorized it once they had become intimate, just in case she needed him. He was surprised that she still knew the number.

Sam took a couple of moments to process and after sometime, he realized that he was still clutching his phone in his hand. He set it down in his lap before running his hands through his hair.

Sam was a little relieved to hear Mercedes voice again. It meant that she was alive and well and that thought made him happy. He knew that he should have been angry with her for leaving and he was, but at this time he was just happy that she was okay.

Mercedes was pregnant and the baby was his. He was going to be a dad which brought joyous tears to his eyes. This was the best news he had ever received. He maniacally rushed up from his couch and went into his room. He stepped into his closet wildly searching for his suitcase.

He didn't know why Mercedes told him, but this news, he couldn't pass up. Why did she feel the need to tell him? I mean she had left and he had no clue what was her reasoning behind this. Obviously maybe some part of her longed for him as much as he longed for her. But that still doesn't explain why she left and now she took his unborn baby with her.

He was mad at her for leaving. She was the one, he knew it and now she was carrying his unborn child in her womb and he had no idea where she was. He had to find her if it was the last thing he did. He packed a quick bag manically. Once he was finished packing, he realized that he needed to have a game plan. He would need money still if he was going to quit his job at the garage.

He'd need to be on the road a lot to search for her. So he'd have to get a job like that. A truck driver that would be perfect. He'd need to get a trucker's license and a truck. It would take some time. He knew that he'd have to go to truck driving school and get his CDL license and then a job as a trucker. But the time would be worth it once he could search for Mercedes.

So what do you guys think?