A/N: Set during New Moon when Bella chases Edward through the woods in an attempt to find him after he leaves her.
Chapter 11
Bella's POV-
"So, last day today, huh?"
It wasn't a question. Today marked the end of our nine-day trip to New York, our flight back home tonight. It had been a beautiful trip, and I hated to go back! I knew that Sam felt the same; he had been avoiding packing his bag since yesterday!
"Yeah, um," he paused, sighing, "I wish we could extend our trip…but…"
"I know." I waved him off, awkwardly gazing at everything but him. I didn't expect him to pay a penny; it would be unfair to even expect so. The deal had been clear from the start; we had no money to spend. Whatever the Sam of this universe had decided, would be followed.
Yet, I wish we had the money to stay another- or maybe more- nights here…
"What did you like best?" he leaned into the desk chair in the room, smiling adoringly. "For me, it was viewing The Statue of Liberty. There is something about it!"
I hummed in agreement. "For me, Central Park, Empire State building, Brooklyn bridge…I can't name one!" I waved my hands in desperation, Sam laughing at my misery. "Ooh, I loved the FRIENDS experience tour that we took. I didn't know they had something this cool."
"I am going to miss this city."
"Me, too." I sighed in sadness. "We should go on more trips together. We make a good team."
"We do." Sam offered his agreement.
We indeed made a good team. We hardly- next to not- fought. We were both understanding and co-operative people. Not once had we argued to get out of our turn of the bed-sofa arrangement; in fact, we had proposed to let the other person take our respective turn of the bed instead! Also, we were on the same page when it came to touring a new city, wake up early in the morning to go sightseeing and return to the hotel before the sun set, getting your fill of rest with a good night's sleep.
I now knew Sam much better than I did before. I knew his likes- dislikes. I knew what pissed him off, and what pleased him to satisfaction. I knew about his childhood, and I knew about his dreams and aspirations. I knew him.
"What comes next?"
It wasn't a question he wanted to ask, or a question I wanted to answer. But it was an important one.
"We go back."
Better to start with the obvious.
"And?" he prompted me to continue speaking.
"And…" I frowned, words refusing to leave my mouth. "I don't want to find the tunnel." I finally mumbled out, the one thought on my mind since days now coming tumbling out.
"Thank God!" he sighed out loud. "I was afraid that I was the only one thinking so!"
"You, too, don't want to go back?"
I waited with bated breath as he took his own time answering that question. It felt too good to be true!
"Of course not." he whispered. "I had a terrible life in comparison to this. I am successful in this universe. I have a good career, a reliable and loving family. I have decent friends, and a future I can look up to. And…I have you."
Oh.
"I have you, too." I mumbled my agreements, impatient to let him know that we were on the same page. "But wouldn't we be messing up with the balance in nature?" I stated my worries.
"If we weren't supposed to be here, we wouldn't be here." There was a sense of finality in Sam's tone, no further thought to be given to this notion.
"Okay." I raised my eyebrows in question as I attempted to understand how we would go ahead with this. "We don't find the tunnel?"
"Yes." He crossed his arms across his chest. "We wholly accept our lives in this universe."
"But that would mean accepting that we are married?" I questioned; my eyes wide.
Was I ready to be married to Sam?
I don't know.
He was my friend…and I liked him. But to be married meant to love one another and promise commitment till our last breath, and we weren't there…yet.
"I…let's take it a day at a time?" he pleaded.
"Yes, of course." I mumbled. "We would need to understand our lives better- our work, family structure…"
"We can't build Rome in a day!"
I shrugged at that. "Will you miss being a wolf?"
He wasn't a shape-shifter in this universe, and if we continued to live here, he probably never would be again.
"Nah." He waved me off. "Being a lone wolf sucked. I couldn't confide in anyone; the secrets were pulling me down. I am glad it's all over!"
"I am glad for you, then." I smiled. "Where would we live?"
"Um," he paused, pondering over that one. "I…actually don't know. Did I live with Edward and Alice? Or with my parents?"
"Please no." I pleaded. "I can't stand living with Edward in the same house!"
"It wouldn't come to that." he assured me. "Sam must have made some arrangements for his future."
"Okay. So, we just need to find out what those arrangements are?" I unsurely questioned.
"Yes." He sighed.
"What about work? Where do I even work? I know nothing about it! How am I supposed to fake being good at it? Do you know the a to z of accounting? We are supposed to be experienced in our respective professions!"
I was freaking out. Big time.
How were we supposed to work this out?
"Stop scaring me!" he exclaimed. "I am just a fucked-up nineteen-year-old who could not even complete college! I have never worked a job that wasn't minimum wage!"
Neither have I.
"Okay." I winced. "Let's just stop. We will find a way out. We need to confide in someone. We would need the help."
"Who?"
"I don't know." I shut my eyes tight, unable to think of one name.
Rosalie?
Nah.
She was super mean.
Esme?
Could be…but could we trust her with such sensitive information?
Edward?
Nope.
Alice?
Nope.
"Charlie." I stated, clear in my mind.
We could trust Charlie. He was my father, an adult, and a cop. He would know what to do.
"Okay." Sam gave in his agreement.
