| May 13th | Monday Morning |
~ Sam's POV ~
Dr. Dupree and I sit in her quaint office for our monthly session as I naturally unload the anxiety I've been feeling over the past few weeks involving Shawn's announcement a few weeks ago. She listens intently, like she usually does, and doesn't bother taking notes today.
"It's just... hard, thinking about him being far away again," I inform. "And I know three hours really isn't much, but it still upsets me, and I don't want to make him feel bad for furthering his career."
"Change always brings anxiety, especially for people like yourself who have started to rely on the support," Dr. Dupree says. "But you're recognizing that anxiety about things like this is normal, you just can't let it control you."
I nod in understanding. Even though she wasn't telling me anything I didn't already know, it just feels good to vent to someone unbiased.
"I told Megan I wanted to go to the courthouse."
Dr. Dupree raises her brow in surprise.
"We just haven't told any of friends yet," I finish.
"Are you ready for that?" she asks.
"I think so." I nod. "I mean, Megan suggested just having a ceremony later, and I think I like that more. It alleviates some of the stress of a wedding."
"That's a good point." Dr. Dupree uncrosses her legs. "Well, I think that's all the time we have for today Sam."
I stand and thank her like I usually do and head out of the building. Suddenly, I realize I've told my therapist about my plans before telling my best friend in the whole world. The thought of Blair somehow finding that out strikes fear into my soul as I reach for my phone in my back pocket.
It rings exactly two times before she picks up.
"Well, hello stranger," Blair says.
"Hey." I climb into my car. "What are you up to?"
"Oh, you know, just wanting to die because of finals," Blair informs. "I keep telling myself one more year and then I'm free, but I might lose my mind before then."
"You got this," I encourage. "But you don't need me to tell you that."
"No, but it's nice to hear."
I start driving and wonder how she's going to react to the news of me and Megan's future plans. Part of me doesn't want to distract her, because I know it will, but part of me doesn't want to wait anymore.
"I got something to tell you," I say.
The rustling on the other side of the phone stops and I know I have Blair's full attention.
"What's that?"
"I think Megan and I are gonna go to the courthouse soon."
It's completely silent for a good minute, and I start to believe she's hung up on me. I pull the phone back from my face to make sure she hasn't, and then press it back to my cheek in confusion.
"Blair?"
"You can't," she panics. "I have to be there, Sam, and I can't be there right now. And I know that's selfish, but I have to be there, whether it's at a courthouse or a full-blown wedding."
I realize this is way more important to her than I thought, and suddenly I feel bad. She sounds stressed already, and as much as I wanted to go as soon as possible, maybe waiting a few more weeks wouldn't be so bad.
"I can wait," I reassure her. "But we want this soon, Blair."
"I know, and as soon as this semester is over, I'll catch the first flight I can," Blair says. "I just really want to be there with you, Sam."
"I want you there, too, Blair," I reiterate.
"Thank you."
"Megan will feel the same, I promise."
"I hope so."
* * *
"Are you ready?" Megan asks while putting on earrings in the mirror.
"Yep." I grab my keys. "I'll text Dane and let him know we're on our way."
I do just that and we tell Charlie goodbye and climb into my car. We were having dinner with Dane and J.C., who hired a babysitter for the night to do this, so I didn't want to be late.
"I told Blair about our proposal to go the courthouse," I tell Megan. "She really wants to be there with us, so she got upset."
Megan looks at me.
"How do you feel about doing it on June 3rd?" I ask.
I feel her ponder the thought next to me as I pull into the restaurant parking lot.
"I think that's fine," she agrees. "I wanna ask Shawn if he'd like to be there, too."
I smile. "We're really gonna do this."
"I mean, I'm all-in." Megan laughs in response. "I'm just waiting for you to get cold feet."
My eyes roll in annoyance. "That's not gonna happen."
"We will see, Sam Carson."
We walk into the restaurant and I tell the hostess my name for our reservation. We're here first, but Dane and J.C. shouldn't be far behind. Megan orders a drink in the meantime, and eventually they're walking in and joining us at the table.
"Sorry we're a little late," Dane apologizes. "Andre was a little upset we were leaving."
"That's alright," I say.
We fall into conversation and eventually order our meals. J.C and Dane have become decent friends of ours, so knowing that we had people like them on our side makes me feel a little better about Shawn moving away in the future. As much as change did scare me, we were making our own life here, with our own friends. Friends who didn't judge and encouraged us, just like we did for them.
And maybe once Blair graduated, they would join us down here, too.
"Dane and I did a courthouse wedding too," J.C. says to Megan. "It's honestly so much better than a normal wedding in my opinion."
"That's how I feel," I agree.
"We still want a ceremony, but we can do that whenever," Megan informs. "I just think, with everything going on right now, I'd rather be grandfathered in incase they do take away our right to get married."
"That's a smart way to think about it," Dane agrees.
"Will we be invited to the ceremony?" J.C. asks.
"Of course," Megan and I agree. "Whenever we figure out when that'll be, of course."
We get our food and continue the conversation, and then Dane gets a text that causes his joyful demeanor to disappear. J.C. gives him a worried expression, but Dane tries his best to keep the mood light. I can tell it's serious though, just by the way he struggles to hold conversation for the rest of the dinner.
Eventually the night ends and Dane pulls me aside before he and J.C head home for the night. I'm worried at what he's about to tell me, but I try my best to keep calm and be there for him.
"My mother..." He sighs heavily. "She just passed away."
The pain in his voice touches me and makes me flinch. It's always strange to see Dane hurt because he's usually a happy guy.
"What do you need?" I ask.
"Her funeral... It's Friday..."
I nod in understanding.
"Don't worry, I'll cover your shift," I say, knowing Chris had miraculously given me off. "Is J.C. gonna go with you?"
He's silent for a moment, but there's something he's hesitating to say. I look past him and see J.C. and Megan talking, and I already know J.C. is telling her what's going on.
"J.C. can't," Dane struggles. "My dad... I was wondering if you'd be able to come with me instead?"
Initially, I'm shocked.
"I understand if you can't, or don't want to," he says. "But you're one of my good friends, and my family... they just wouldn't be able to look past J.C., even at a funeral, but I can't do this alone. Not after the last time I went see her..."
"Of course," I find myself agreeing. "I'll have to check with Chris, but I'll try my best."
"Thanks, Sam," Dane says. "Sorry, that this happened during dinner."
I shake my head. "Don't apologize."
He tells me and Megan goodnight and we head home. Megan slips her hand into mine.
"J.C. told me..." Megan says.
"He wants me to go with him to the funeral," I say.
Megan nods in agreement, but I feel she has something to say.
"It really is a shame that he can't bring his own spouse to his mother's funeral," Megan fumes.
"It's sad, but it's not surprising." I turn into our driveway. "Not after he told me what happened the last time he saw his family."
We enter our house and greet Charlie who's excited that we're finally home, even though its only been a few hours. When we climb into bed, I pull Megan into me and think about all that's happened today. It feels overwhelming.
"I can feel you thinking yourself into oblivion," Megan whispers.
"It's just upsetting." My eyes adjust to the dark and search for Megan's. "He's such a good person. He doesn't deserve to be treated that way."
"You're right, he doesn't," Megan agrees. "But you're a good friend for trying to be there for him."
"It's just not enough," I say. "He deserves to have his spouse there. To have his son there."
There are things I wish I could do for Dane to help him feel better, but I know it's not my place. Instead, I would try my best to work out the technicalities of Friday night at work so I could accompany him to Georgia and be there for him. He needed someone he could trust there with him.
"People in our community get dealt bad hands all the time, and Dane knows that," Megan says. "But one of the greatest things about our community is that we get to choose our family when our biological ones don't accept us for who we are." I feel her hand rest on my cheek. "Dane knows this, and I promise you, he and J.C. appreciate your compassion."
The validation feels nice, and I know she's doing this, so I go into Friday strong enough to support Dane if he needs it. Unfortunately, Dane controls his emotions very well. I see it every night he works behind the bar. And I have a feeling he learned how to do that by growing up in the household that he did. He wouldn't show how much pain he would be in come Friday, and I knew that, but I would be there for him no matter what.
Because that's what real family does for the ones they care about.
***A/N***
Not much to say here other than hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and if you did, please vote! Much love!
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Be Proud. Stay You.
Lauryn