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Hi all! There was a little delay in getting this out as I had to change an event slightly to make it appropriate for a PG13 audience. Doesn't matter, though, I still get the same message across! Thanks for all your continued support.
Sam
Sam After a few moments silence, I took a sharp breath in and cleared my overbearing thoughts. I walked closer towards this woman and realised she was watching me just as I was her. I said nothing until I was a standing just a few metres away.
"Mum?" The words were out before I had time to restrain myself. The woman said nothing yet kept her gaze fixed on mine. Silently scolding myself for saying something so absurd, I wondered what had got into me. Thinking this woman was my mother, turning up out of the blue after all these years? Was I going crazy?
And then something crazy did happen. The woman came forward and wrapped her arms around me. It only took a few stunned seconds for me to return the gesture. Yes, crazy I know. But it was in this time that I knew; my instincts had proved right. "Oh, Charlotte." Her quiet words caused thick emotion to pool in my chest. I didn't dare say a word for fear of its release.
As she pulled away from our embrace, her hands cupping my face, I saw there were tears forming in her beautiful, emerald eyes.
"I've waited so long, so long..." Her voice trailed off but never did she look away. "You have grown into such a beautiful woman." Ever since I was a little girl, I had imagined what our reunion would be like but never had I expected it to be so overwhelming. Never in my reenactments had I become speechless. There was so much to say, after all, but I couldn't put into words how I was feeling at that moment. Arriving at an unfamiliar house some time later, I couldn't remember how, or why, I ended up there. Everything felt so surreal. I just knew I was with my mother and that made everything more than alright.
"Do you want a drink, anything to eat?"
The question punctured my dream like trance and I asked my mother to repeat the question, even though I had not missed a word.
"Would you like a drink or something to eat?" she repeated, slightly slower this time.
"Oh, no, no, I'm fine. Thanks," I replied. Apparently she wasn't, either. Taking a seat opposite me at the small dining table, we exchanged a curious inspection of each other.
"How...after all this time?"
She looked at me, her eyes full of sorrow, before answering. "If only you had known," she said, "how hard I tried to contact you."
My mother had been trying to contact me all this time?
"My sweet child," she murmured, more to herself than me. "I have dreamt of nothing else for the past two decades than having my children back in my arms. To prevent a mother from seeing her own children...it is unbelievably cruel." My suspicions were then confirmed. I had been restricted from growing up with the mother I deserved for an unknown reason. All these years...wasted.
Tears threatened to spill over as I uttered the words I had wanted to say for as long as I could remember.
"There hasn't been a day that's gone by I haven't thought about you." I took a deep breath in, controlling my emotions. "I was angry for a long time about the fact that I had been deprived of the chance to get to know my own mother, you, someone I may have finally been able to relate to. God only knows how much I've missed you and I cannot believe how lucky I am to be sitting here with you right now." With those words spoken, we stood to embrace once more. Actions could speak louder than words in this dream like moment.
The next few hours were evaporated in a blur of emotions, unshared memories and regrets. The only regret, of course, being deprived of the most important bonding one could experience. Mother to daughter. After all this time, I couldn't believe I was finally experiencing the moment I had grown to believe to be an unrealistic fantasy. A woman lost in a child's desire.
Getting to know my mother was better than I had ever imagined, much better. Discovering that she had spent most of the past two decades trying to contact me and my sister was a relief. My lifetime of uncertainty was suddenly cleared. I had always been loved, always been wanted, even if it was from a distance. It didn't surprise me to learn that the person behind all this had been my father. I had suspected he knew more than he let on but what did surprise me was the lengths he had gone to, to keep our mother from us.
The small house which my mother had brought me to was all she had been left with after she and my father divorced all those years ago. Numerous court hearings had followed, regarding child custody, and the legal costs had wiped much of my mother's savings. She was left struggling for money and had lost the right to raise her children. As the years passed slowly by, my father had made sure someone was watching over Grace and I at all times in fear that we would be snatched away. My mother's requests that she see or even talk to us, were refused. I was even more shocked to learn that she had sent birthday and Christmas presents every year, which I knew we had never received.
Upon learning of my father's passing, my mother explained, she knew she finally had her chance. The long overdue chance to see her children again. But, she admitted, she wasn't sure if our reactions to her would be positive or negative. That was fair enough, really. I would have been nervous in her position, too. But there had never been a time when my reaction to my mother's reappearance would have been anything but positive. I knew that Grace would be a different matter, though. She had disappeared from the burial soon after I had curiously approached my mother. Before we left the burial together, my mother had inquired about Grace and I had told her honestly I wasn't sure where she had gone.
The next morning, with a new bounce in my step, I decided to call Grace. After telling her the fantastic news, I was ready, though still slightly disappointed, to hear a less than impressed reply.
"She was at the burial yesterday, wasn't she?" she asked.
"Yes," I replied.
"She doesn't even care that dad is dead," she accused. "She's so selfish! Turning up after all these years, thinking we'll forgive her just like that for abandoning us. It might work on you, Charlotte, but it won't work on me."
"Grace, there's more to it - "
The dead tone signaled she had hung up. I wasn't going to beg her to rethink, she would have to come round in her own time. I had better things to do and bigger fish to fry. After a week full of new emotions, getting to know the mother I had barely known as a child and reevaluating my life, I realised what I had to do. Something which was long overdue.
"I'm sorry, Julian, it's over." The voice speaking didn't sound like my own. "I want a divorce."
The silence stretched uncomfortably between us.
Finally, he spoke. "Charlotte, you can't be serious." He looked at me, unable to comprehend what I was telling him.
"I'm deadly serious, Julian," I replied. "I don't love you. I never have. And I know you have never loved me either. I can't do this anymore, please respect that." He was lost in thought for a long time before he spoke again.
"You've just lost your father, I can't imagine how hard it's been for you," Julian explained. "But you don't have to resort to this. We belong to each other, my love."
Anger boiled through my blood. "Stop it, Julian, stop calling me that. I am not your love and neither are you mine. I will no longer continue this fake marriage and I hop you have the decency to agree." After a drawn out hour, he finally agreed, reluctantly I might add, to sign the divorce papers I possessed. Only after I threatened to publicly announce the events which had recently occurred at Montrachet Industries.
I can't describe how invigorating it felt to be holding the signed divorce papers in my own, shaking hands. You see, I was harboring a secret no one else yet knew. A secret that made my heart throb with joy. With the papers signed, I returned for the last time to the room I had called my own for the past seven years. I packed my things and left without a backward glance. My unhappiness was going to be left in this house forever, never to return.
Or so I thought. The next time I saw Derek, happiness overwhelmed me. I told him everything, from my mother's incredible reappearance in my life to my relief at Julian's agreement to sign our divorce papers.
He was ecstatic for me, multiplying my happiness as he wrapped me in a warm, celebratory hug. Even though it was a joyous time, I didn't tell him my secret. Not yet. There was something I needed first before I told him.
What I didn't expect, though, was how unprepared he was to go public with our relationship. I thought by making myself available, even though the divorce wasn't finalized, he would be happy. In fact, it seemed to make him more nervous.
"Did you tell him about us?" he asked.
I shook my head. "Of course not. Why would I?"
He just frowned, lost in thought.
The excitement I had been feeling slowly diminished as Derek became lost to me through an unknown threat. I wanted nothing more than to rid this threat from our lives so we could return to feeling the happiness we had become accustomed to feeling, but it was no good.
Little did I know our time together would be cut tragically short, erasing the happily ever after I had constructed in my mind for our future. Unknowingly, the moment which would become my last with Derek was a short one.
Calling my 'zone protegee' home now, Derek had called in spontaneously and surprised me. It was a wonderful surprise of course, and I had wondered if he had been considering to finally go public as a couple. Nothing would have made me happier but like everything else in my life, it wasn't meant to be. Before receiving the news which would turn my life upside down, I enjoyed several visits from my mother. We enjoyed chats over coffee, shopping trips and girly lunches; everything we should have been doing as mother and daughter for a long time before now.
Everything was going perfectly, or close to, and I thought my prayers had been answered after all this time. The only slight setback was Derek but I was sure he would come around when all had settled. This hope was firmly flattened when a call came through late one night. A call I now wish I had never answered in belief it would have been just a horrible story instead of the reality it became. That call will haunt me for the rest of my days.
My heart was crushed, my mind completely scattered and my future thrown away with one totally unexpected, life changing event.
The love of my life...Derek Schultz...had been killed in a fatal car crash.
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21 Comment(s) posted so far
On Dec 20, 2009 fredbrenny wrote:
OMG Sam! What a turn in the story! Great part! She is matured after all this! Wonder who will rescue her in the end. I think it's wonderful she finally stood up for her self. Now here's a woman yo can not ignore! Great installment! Hope she's OK and want too read more! Thanks...cute red sweater she's wearing too!
On Dec 20, 2009 Midnight222 wrote:
Great part Sam. Im glad she finally stood on her own too. I think I know her secret ......
...... and Im sure her mum will give her plenty of support with the death of Derek. Looking forward to the next chapter! 
On Dec 20, 2009 nomienu wrote:
aww poor charllotte...just glad she found her mom. hopefully she'll be there to support her like midnight222 mentioned. great part...waithing for the next
On Dec 20, 2009 Illandrya wrote:
Bravo! Wonderful chapter, Sam, and superb screenshots to bring home the emotions in your words
The next part of her life will be difficult as she learns to stand on her own, but at least she will have her mother to support her. I can't wait to find out how she faces the challenges ahead of her 
On Dec 20, 2009 SnowAngel2008 wrote:
As Always Sam your Stories Seem to Always Hit Home with Me. I Know this is Crazy Sam but Sometimes I feel Like you Know Me and all the Tragedys I have Gone through in my Life. I Think I know what her Secret is Sam, But I will Anxiously Await the Next Chapter to see if I am Right. I Just Hope With her Mother in her Life Now she will Let her Mom Help Her through this instead of going back to Her Husband. Charlotte Deserves to Finally have some Happiness in her Life and I was so Hoping that Derek would be her Happily Ever After. Can't wait till the Next Chapter Comes Out...
....Until then Wishing you a Safe & Happy Holiday Season. Take Care & God Bless....
On Dec 20, 2009 nataliestonard wrote:
O no!!! Thats the end of Derek, i thought they would live happily ever after. What a great twist. Great part again, keep up the great work. Thanks
On Dec 20, 2009 The Simsss Fan wrote:
This is an incredible story,Sam!I never thought that Derek will dye.....a sad turn of the story.I hope Charlotte will receive some help from her mother.And the screenshots are wonderful,as always!I love screenshot 22
I can't wait for the next chapter!
On Dec 20, 2009 oldmember_nataliedycker wrote:
That was again so great! I can't wait for the next part...wondering if the car crash was just an accident, eventhough I wish Derek would be still her happily ever after, its a great tragic tool to make the story even more exciting.
Thank you for your distinctive, precise work!
On Dec 20, 2009 coraski11 wrote:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! i wish derek wasn't dead!!
But great chapter, can't wait for more!!
On Dec 20, 2009 powergirl6193 wrote:
As always sam another amazing part. It was a shock to me as well. Everything good that happens in her life something bad happens to her
On Dec 20, 2009 spitzmagic wrote:
OMG, what a fantastic chapter. OOOH poor Charlotte. I sure hope she's not forced to return to Julian...I bet Julian had something to do with his death...hanging for the next one...
On Dec 20, 2009 martoele wrote:
A fantastic chapter. I wonder if Derek really is dead... Well I have to be patient I guess... MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY
Margo.
On Dec 20, 2009 xxheartlessxx12 wrote:
I can't believe it...Derek is dead?
OMG, what will Charlotte do now? 
I hope she doesnt have to go back to Juilan and I hope Juilan didn't kill Derek, maybe he knew something was going on? OMG. This was such a shocking chapter. 
Great job.
On Dec 21, 2009 Mangio wrote:
nooo.... i bet it was that Julian.. i hope Derek comes back somehow. great part
cant wait to read more.
On Dec 21, 2009 omik79 wrote:
oh NO! great chapter ..poor girl! Im glad she got him to sign those papers! Cant wait to read more!
On Dec 21, 2009 tonya99rn wrote:
What a wonderful twist!! I just caught up on the last three parts. I love your writing and your screenshots were great! Hope the next part comes soon!
On Dec 21, 2009 urm0m wrote:
I hope he isn't really dead
great part!
On Dec 22, 2009 Crazy_doodle wrote:
This is awesome ;]
On Dec 23, 2009 staceface2009p wrote:
omggg. I don't like Grace or Julian. but I hope Charlotte finds loveee. so sadd.
On Dec 29, 2009 Jennifer_R wrote:
Wonderfully written chapter!
Finally Charlotte was able to see her mother again. I feel sad for her loss of Derek though. How tragic. 
And just after everything was working out for her. I must find out what happens next..... 
On Jan 5, 2010 dancergirl7238 wrote:
awww, so sad! that almost made me cry! wonderfully written as always!