Something In Between: Sequel to On The Edge of Tomorrow

Chapter 42

The pale-yellow satin shimmered in the mirror as I tried to figure out if I should put my hair up or down for the wedding.

"Up," Sam offered from the doorway. "You have amazing bone structure along your collarbone," he noted.

"Really?" I smiled as I watched him approach from the reflection in the mirror.

"Mmhmm," he murmured as he neared and dipped his lips to my shoulders. "Tess continues to impress with her dress choices," he added as he slipped his arms around my waist. "I feel like it is missing something, though."

"Really?" I gazed at myself in the mirror. "I plan to wear the pearl choker my dad gave me."

"Mmhmm, that will look go, but that's not what I was thinking," he whispered as he kissed my neck.

"And the matching studs," I added.

"But I'm your favorite stud," he teased.

"So cheesy," I chided.

"I think I know what will make it perfect," Sam said as he dropped his hands from my waist.

"Yeah," I said as I turned to face him, just in time to see him drop to one knee. "Oh..."

"Lily, I'm not great with words, so I'll keep this short. I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you please do me the honor of marrying me?"

"What?" I stammered, as no cohesive thoughts collected.

"Marry me, Lily?" Sam asked again.

"Yes. I mean, of course, yes!" I managed.

"Really?" Sam burst up and flung his arms around me. "Yes?"

"Yes! Of course, yes!" I wrapped my arms around his neck as he swung me around in a loop like they do in movies.

"Okay, okay." Sam steadied himself and set me down. "The ring!" He plucked the simple diamond ring from the box and held it up so I could slide my finger into it.

"It's so pretty!" I admired it as I fluttered my fingers so it would catch the light. "Is this really happening?" I whispered.

"I sure hope so," Sam whispered back as he gazed down at the ring. "Lily, I am so lucky that you would choose me. I hope you know how proud I am to stand beside you." As he spoke, he tucked me into his side.

"Aw, I'm so proud to stand beside you," I agreed.

We both spend a moment looking at my ring again.

"So..." I added. "Any chance you want to desecrate this dress?" I teased.

"I thought you'd never ask!" Sam giggled as he picked me up and tossed me onto the bed.

"How do you want to tell everyone?" Sam asked as his fingers combed through my hair while I rested on his chest, listening to his heartbeat settle into its relaxed rhythm.

"What do you mean?"

"You know, how do you want to tell everyone about us?" He pressed.

"Maybe we should get our parents together for dinner and tell them together. It feels weird to tell one before the other, and I don't feel like it's phone news."

"That sounds like a good plan," Sam agreed before kissing the top of my head.

There was a silence that felt heavy. Something stirred in me as Sam gathered his thoughts.

"When are you going to tell your friends?" He struggled to keep his voice casual.

"I don't want to steal Tim's and Tess' thunder, so after the wedding, I guess." The light caught my ring as I drummed my fingers on Sam. "I don't want to take it off." The thought made me sigh.

Sam's fingers glided along the chain around my neck. "How committed are you to pearls?" He asked.

"You're a genius!" I popped up on his chest and gazed down at him as I spoke, eliciting a smile from him.

"And with you wearing my ring, the rest of the world will know as well," he teased.

I let out another sigh as I sunk into Sam's side and flicked my fingers to watch my ring sparkle again.

"What's wrong?" Sam asked as he pushed my hair from my face.

"Wrong?" I giggled. "Nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about how perfect everything is. This moment right now, where it's just us. I love this." I smiled with contentment.

"That's good, since you just committed to us forever." He tapped my ring as he spoke.

"Yes, but at this moment, it's only us. This is our moment. Thank you," I murmured as I laid my head back on his chest.

"You're welcome." After a moment's pause, Sam asked, "why thank you?"

"The proposal was perfect: quiet, us, heartfelt. Thank you for knowing me so well," I cooed.

"Well, the original plan included a jumbotron, but this felt more like us; our moment," Sam agreed.

"I'm so proud of you and love the life we are building with your new role, but I really wish you were coming to the wedding with me," I absently spoke.

"Really?" Surprise filled Sam's voice.

"Of course," I giggled as I twisted to meet his gaze. "Why are you surprised?"

"Nothing, it's silly," Sam murmured.

"No," I tried to keep my voice soft, but something more substantial was brewing in me. "Tell me."

"I don't always feel like a focus when you are with Billy and Tim. I mean, you and Tim are hilarious, but it's like you have your own language and all the inside jokes. And Billy. I trust you completely and don't mind you two spending time together. But I don't like to be around. I just feel..."

"Excluded?" I asked.

"Yeah, something like that," he admitted.

"I'm sorry, Sam. That's not our intention."

"I know. It's better when Sarah is around," Sam added.

"She hates me," I groaned.

"She doesn't hate you," Sam chuckled.

"How can you possibly say that?" I asked as I popped up on his chest again.

"Because I don't hate Billy," He explained.

"Oh." A level of awkwardness that I hadn't felt since the first day of high school when I tripped on a chair leg and fell flat on my face filled me.

"You think I hate Billy, don't you?" He prodded.

"Well, if I were making a bet..."

"I don't hate your best friends. I just don't fully get you two, which is fine, by the way. When you say he is a friend but not a romantic one, I hear it. You two just have such an unusual bond. Hate isn't what I feel. It's more like envy."

"You don't need to be jealous of Billy," I reminded him.

"No, I'm not envious of Billy. I'm envious of what you two have. Look, this is what I know. I have a ton of friends. We go out and have a good time, and they genuinely care about me, but not like you and Billy. You two are just..."

"Yeah," I agreed as his words dropped out.

"You're lucky, Lily; most people don't have a connection with a friend like that. I'm envious of that."

"I love you, Sam. And even though you say you don't really get Billy and me, I think you do."