A/N: Set during New Moon when Bella chases Edward through the woods in an attempt to find him after he leaves her.

Chapter 26

Sam's POV-

The last one year had been tough, for more reasons than one. I had left my home, the only town that I had ever seen, my safety net, and had embarked on a journey I did not know the end of. My aim had been to find Leah, and when I finally had, four months into my travel, having tracked her down through years of conversations of where we would go on a vacation once we grew up and had all the money in the world to do so, the outcome that I had witnessed was nothing like I had hoped.

She had moved on. She wasn't the Leah I had once loved or known. She was tattooed, pierced, wore gothic clothes and thick eyeliner. Also, she dated around and worked in a club as a bouncer.

I tried talking to her. I had attempted to convince her to come with me. I had left behind the lies and the secrets. I was hers. Completely.

She had refused to come with me. She had moved on. In the worst possible way. She loved her new life. And sadly, she did not believe there was any place in that life for me.

She enjoyed dating around. She did not wish to settle down. Not for another few years. She was happy with the way her life had turned out. She did not miss me. She no longer wanted to be with me.

I was heartbroken. I had left everything I had ever known for her…and she did not want me?

I stayed in the area for the next couple of days, trying to change her mind. But it was futile. Once Leah Clearwater made up her mind about something, the ground could open and swallow everyone whole, but she would still stand there with a look of determination in her eyes.

I had finally left, not knowing where I was going. I couldn't go back to La Push. And I did not have any relatives or family outside of La Push. My grandparents had passed away while I was in elementary school, and my parents did not hold good ties with anyone they could consider blood related to.

That had left me on my own.

Becoming a wolf had stolen away a lot from me, my education being the first of that. I was expected to guard my town, my people, and a diploma was not required for that. I had thankfully managed to complete my high school before shit hit the roof, but the opportunity to study further and make something out of my life had been taken away from me. I did not wish to work at a base salary for the rest of my life. I had bigger ambitions and would make it work. It would be tough. But I wasn't giving up. It had been a long road post that. No school wanted to take me. And I did not have the money to pay. Were I to take a loan, I would probably end up repaying it till I was seventy and toothless. It had been my basketball that had finally come in my favor. I played back over the years, representing my school first and later town. Becoming a wolf had only accelerated my performance. Sure, I was expected to keep up with the expectations, but I was here for that.

I stuck to my studies, working on a construction site once I was done with my classes for the day. The hours were long. I often returned to my dorm exhausted and too tired to even keep my eyes open. But it was a small price to pay for freedom. My wolf had all but left me to live a human life. He was too far away from the reservation to actually protect it. And had succumbed to my denial to go back.

Sure, I had made a few friends here and there, being invited to a party once in a while.

I hadn't expected to see her here. Why would I?

We were so far away from La Push, or Forks, for that matter. It was simply fate that wanted us to meet again. The imprint bond was still there. Faint but visible. And maybe, I wanted to give it a try.

She wasn't a rebound. I wouldn't lie and claim that I was over Leah. But I did find Bella interesting. Especially once I got to know her better. Our coincidences did not end at our first or second meeting when we bumped into one another. We kept seeing each other over the next few weeks, at a mutual friend's party, at a seminar, or just across the campus. It was finally one day when we decided to share our tales over a cup of coffee. It was post dinner that we separated.

It wasn't a date. Not initially. Nah. Our first date occurred two months after that first cup of coffee. Our second date two nights after the first one. She knew about the imprint. She had confessed everything to me on the first date itself. She wanted me to trust her. And while I was still conflicted on whether it was all a dream or the spirits had actually guided her on a journey of self-discovery, it did not matter at the end of the day. We had found our way to one another. She was my friend first, my biggest supporter second, and by the end of the second year of our relationship, my wife. We had opted for a wedding of two signatures. Neither of us had any family attending to stand in front of and say, 'I do'. Over the years, Bella had all but stopped talking to Charlie and Renee, distance having done its job. We were each other's family, standing with each other when the road got tough. When we struggled to make ends meet and rent a place of our own, or when Bella suffered a miscarriage.

Those days were tough. I couldn't count the nights I had cried once Bella went to sleep. We didn't lose hope. Not initially. But after the second miscarriage, this time in her sixth month, it was hard not to. Her cervix was prematurely opening. Or so was claimed. I loved my wife. We did not need anyone else but one another. But when Mace entered our life, it all changed. She was five and Asian, and more talkative than anyone I had ever known. We hadn't outright planned to adopt. But after meeting her, it was no longer just an option. We were bringing our daughter home.