* * *
A gentle breeze was blowing through the clouds that Friday afternoon as Sam and Josie sat quietly, holding hands in the school courtyard. It was as if they were in their own little world removed from all the problems and worries that had tormented them both for weeks now. Josie had felt the need to somehow communicate her love to Sam and this was the only thing she could think of to do while she knew the camera was still filming him. Josie was quite sure that with the way she was sitting, the camera was aimed at Sam's face, not at their hands.
Sam looked down as Josie continued to hold his hand softly and firmly in her lap between her own two hands on top of that beautiful romantic white dress she'd worn today. He wanted the moment to last forever or at least as long as possible and he was not about to be the one to pull away, or take a chance on saying the wrong thing, oh no, - not this time.
For one instant he glanced up at her, but she too was staring down at their hands as if she was somehow suspended in time, mesmerized just by touching him. She was rubbing his hand ever so softly with her thumb and somehow he sensed what she was trying to convey to him without words. He knew now that the emotion ran so deep between the two of them�that they didn't need to do anything beyond touching hands - to feel how much they truly loved each other.
He'd never felt anything like this in his life - it was pure love and adoration and he knew they both shared the same emotion. It was like they were really joined together somehow now, away from every one and everything. He was more sure of their love for each other than he'd ever been of anything ever before and sitting like that he knew he'd never felt more contentment or pure happiness in his entire life.
Sam knew somehow that this was the moment he'd been waiting for forever and he was sure that she felt the same way. He could tell by the way she held his hand - by the feelings and sensations pulsating through him that were overwhelming him now with love for Josie. Just to be with her like this was all he needed to be happy - if only they could stay like this, just the two of them - alone in their own little world�
Somewhere on the edge of his consciousness, Sam heard the sound of footsteps coming towards them. Ever so reluctantly he looked behind him, hoping who ever it was would go away. But the footsteps kept coming. Hating himself for doing it, nevertheless, he made a movement to stand, but he still did not remove his hand. Removing his hand was the last thing he wanted to do now.
Josie, hearing the footsteps also, looked up into his eyes, patted his hand, and made the decision for both of them letting him go as Marilyn Knox walked up to them. Sam knew that Josie was somehow guiding him - controlling the situation and he knew he could trust her to do what was best for both of them. There was not a doubt in his mind that he could trust everything to Josie, including his heart. He watched her as she tucked her hair behind her ear - the wind had ruffled her hair a bit and the delicate gesture tore at his heartstrings. Suddenly he missed her terribly even though she was sitting right before him - he missed the way she'd held his hand in hers.
"Oh hi Sam, I've been looking all over for you," Ms. Knox said as Sam and Josie both rose to their feet and turned to look at her. "Hi Josie,"
"Hi, Ms. Knox," Josie said quietly as she smoothed her dress with her hands.
Just the sound of Josie's soft voice now affected Sam more than he would have thought possible. Neither one had said a word for at least the past half hour, while they'd sat together holding hands in the school courtyard.
Josie discreetly pulled off her wings pin then, putting it in her left hand, cutting off the transmission with her thumb, silently hoping that somehow Gus had missed what had transpired between them because if he had seen it, she knew that everything was about to blow up in her face.
Sam sighed and looked at Ms. Knox. "What's up, Marilyn?" He asked it, all the while hoping she'd go away so he and Josie could sit back down and continue where they left off - holding on to each other quietly and lovingly - away from everyone and everything.
She looked at her watch and cleared her throat. "We have to tabulate the Prom Court Votes - Jack says we need to do it before we leave today and um I have plans tonight - I'd like to leave as soon as I can if it's okay with you?" Ms. Knox nervously patted her hair, waiting for Sam's response.
Sam sighed and looked at his own watch. They'd been sitting for much longer than he thought. It had seemed like seconds to him. "Okay, Marilyn, I'll be right there - we can do it in my classroom now if you want to," Sam said reluctantly, knowing now that his interlude with Josie was over for today.
"Fine, Sam - I'll get the box from Jack and meet you there. See you later, Josie," Ms. Knox said brightly as she turned on her heels and walked off quickly.
"Bye Ms. Knox," Josie said quietly, looking at Sam..
Sam slowly turned back to Josie and she put her hand on his elbow and said softly, "I know you have to go and do your work, Mr. Coulson. Thank you so much for all that you've done for me- arranging that interview and everything." She said it as she held on to his elbow, knowing they were now off camera.
After the way Josie had stopped him earlier, Sam was unsure of what to say, especially since he knew he needed to leave now. What had transpired between them had been so profoundly moving for him, he didn't even know if he could put his feelings into words yet. He decided to address his concerns about her future again since he knew what he wanted to say where that was concerned.
"So, you'll think about it, Dartmouth, I mean and college?" he asked hoarsely. He cleared his throat. "For me?" It was hard for him to talk while he felt her holding on to him, he realized. It had seemed so peaceful and so right just sitting there quietly together and he deeply regretted the fact that their special time had ended now.
"I'd do anything for you," she replied forcefully, as she rested her forehead on the arm she held on to. He was such a sweet wonderful person and she knew that she meant it with all her heart and soul.
Sam looked down at the top of her head resting on his arm. He was startled at her change in tone. He could tell that she really meant what she'd said - he'd rarely heard her say anything with such emotion and conviction.
"I want the best for you Josie - for your future I mean - I, I want you to be happy." He swallowed when he said it. Sam wanted desperately to take her in his arms or at least caress her hair, but he fought back the urge and simply let her stay where she was resting her head against his arm.
"I know you do. I'll think about it, Mr. Coulson, I promise," she continued. She looked up then, forcing her self to smile at him, still not removing her hand from his left arm. Sam placed his hand on top of hers for a moment.
"You know I'd do anything for you too, Josie," he said as he squeezed her hand still resting trustingly on top of his arm, and he knew it was true - he'd never meant anything more in all of his life.
"I know," she said quietly, nodding. She ducked her head again as she felt the tears filling her eyes. She took a deep breath and looked up to smile bravely at him as he removed his hand from her. She patted his arm and he turned reluctantly to follow Marilyn Knox back into the school.
Sam had a sudden inexplicable feeling of dread as soon as he left her side as if something was ending between them, rather than just beginning. Maybe it was seeing the hint of tears in her eyes, or maybe it was just some sort of premonition. He tried to shrug it off, but somehow he could not. As he started to round the corner, he turned to look back at her for reassurance, but Josie had turned away from him and was standing alone with her head bowed, obviously deep in her own thoughts.
* * *
Sam rubbed his arm as he walked back into his classroom, trying somehow to recapture the magic of his time with Josie, just moments before, but he still couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong now. He studied his hand - the hand she'd held between her own small hands for what had been the most utterly romantic interlude of his life - all they'd done was hold hands but it meant more to him than any romantic encounter he'd ever experienced.
Sam walked slowly to the window and looked out at the courtyard and there he saw Josie, still by herself sitting on a different bench staring down at her own hands. He was surprised to see her still out there by herself, all alone, looking so lost. He had figured she'd most likely be gone to find Rob by now, but she looked so despondent and even lonelier than Sam felt. 'Oh, Josie,' he thought sadly, 'I miss you so much already. My heart is with you even when I'm not.' The feeling of despair and heartache surrounded him now. He knew he couldn't return to her, as much as he longed to do it.
Sam had the sudden irrational notion that if only he could hold her hand again everything would be fine for both of them.
"Let's get to work, Sam," Marilyn Knox said cheerfully breaking into his gloomy thoughts as she carried the box in and set it on his desk. Sam knew that Marilyn was recently separated from her husband and as far as he knew tonight was her first date - she'd been talking about it all week. Sam was happy for her, knowing that she'd gone through a tough time, and he wanted to do what he could to help her.
"It's supposed to rain tonight and I don't want to be late for my date," she added smiling brightly.
Sam took a long last look at Josie still sitting in her solitary spot and ran his fingers through his hair. He noticed that it had started to look a little dark and cloudy outside, like a storm was brewing. 'Matches my mood,' he thought ruefully. He sighed heavily and turned to pull an extra chair up to his desk, gesturing for Ms. Knox to take his chair so they could go to work counting the Prom Court ballots.
* * *
Rob had restlessly prowled back and forth to Bambi's parking space at least ten times that afternoon after he left Josie with Mr. Coulson. He figured the two of them could use at least a little time alone and he had nothing urgent on his schedule besides enjoying his reunion with Bambi. He felt sorry for them having to keep all their feelings a secret like that for so long. He really liked Sam and wanted things to work out for the two of them, especially now that Sam had convinced Josie to trade cars with him. 'Yup, Mr. Coulson's my man!' Rob thought smiling, rubbing his chin. He knew now that the key to getting Josie to do something was to have Sam in his corner. He could see many ways that would come in handy for his own future needs.
At the moment, Rob was trying to avoid Tracie as much as possible so he had to keep a careful lookout on all his trips to and from his beloved car. Finally after forty-five minutes he decided that he couldn't wait a moment longer and he started searching the school grounds for Josie. He was surprised when he finally found her sitting alone on a bench staring at her hands. Surprised because Mr. Coulson was nowhere in sight.
"Hey, what's the delay? Let's get this show on the road, woman! Where are my keys, let's go Bambi's calling me!" Rob said it eagerly as he walked up to his sister.
Rob hesitated when he realized she hadn't heard a word he'd said. "Josie, what's wrong?" he asked, cocking his head to the side as he studied her. He was concerned now as he saw the look on her face.
Josie finally heard him and looked up into her brother's soft brown eyes. "Oh, nothing. I was just thinking. I feel sad and I'm not sure why. I just have a sad feeling now." He noticed she was twisting her hands together, not a good sign when it came to his sister.
"Did something happen?" Rob asked kindly. Even Rob could sense that something was in the air now. He sniffed and looked around, noticing that the sky was even beginning to darken with clouds. Something was definitely in the air. He could feel it. And suddenly Rob, who never ever worried, felt worried.
Josie looked into her brother's eyes and smiled. He really was a sweet, caring person behind that goofy, manipulative exterior. "No, not really, I just have a bad feeling that's all. I don't know why. Just a feeling." She looked at the sky. "Maybe it's just the weather, you know? - getting me down I mean. The rain coming, you know?"
"Maybe you're going to miss Bambi and you're sad, think so?" Rob teased her.
Josie giggled and stood up then. Rob could always make her laugh no matter what. She was still touching her hands together, remembering how it felt to hold Sam's warm hand in her own. "Bambi's all yours Rob, let's go to my locker and I'll get my tote bag and the keys."
"Now you're talking. Maybe you're sad because you have to go see Gus. That would make me sad, for sure," Rob suggested, scrunching up his nose.
"I'm not looking forward to it, but that's not it exactly." Suddenly Josie knew precisely what it was, or rather who it was. She turned to look up at Sam's classroom window, but he was nowhere to be seen. She had hoped he'd be thinking about her too and somehow sense that she needed to see him. Obviously they were no longer on that same wondrous wavelength. She sighed. 'I miss you, Sam,' she thought longingly. 'Why does this feel like goodbye?'
Rob followed her gaze and squinted up at Sam's classroom window. "Is something up with you and Mr. C?"
Josie sighed. "Not really, Rob. He's just been so nice to me and I feel so guilty for lying to him and filming him for Gus. I actually turned the camera off today. I'll be glad when this weekend is over and I can tell him the truth. I just hope he forgives me. He's been so kind to me."
"You'll both be fine, Josie," Rob said, patting her arm. But now, for some reason Rob suddenly felt even more worried - about both of them - if she'd turned that camera off and Gus knew about it, Rob knew there'd be hell to pay for everybody.
* * *
"Wow, this is incredible, Sam!" Marilyn Knox exclaimed as she finished counting her ballots. She and Sam had split up the votes, with Sam counting the votes for Prom King and Marilyn Knox counting the ones for Prom Queen.
"What's that Marilyn?" Sam asked, only mildly curious.
He'd been thinking about Josie and was trying to concentrate on counting the votes, which were close. He was amused to discover that Rob had submitted his own name for consideration. Rob had received almost as many votes as Guy Perkins, the clear favorite for Prom King. Sam was secretly hoping that Rob would beat Guy Perkins, but it didn't look as if that would be the case, now that he was near the end of the tally. Sam smiled, thinking of Rob sliding across the floor that morning singing at the top of his voice.
'At least Rob is in the Prom Court,' Sam thought grinning to himself. He knew that would please Josie as well as Rob.
"I thought Gibby was the shoo-in for Prom Queen this year, especially to hear her tell it! I even heard her practicing her acceptance speech, as if she'd need one!" Ms. Knox said it as she laughed and shook her head. "Boy is she in for a surprise! And well deserved too. That girl is as mean as the day is long!"
"Did Kristen or Kirsten beat her?" Sam asked it blandly as he stretched and yawned. He wasn't really interested in the result of the vote for Prom Queen, especially since it involved those three. At least he wasn't interested yet.
Sam didn't particularly like Gibby or her two friends especially in light of the way they'd treated Josie in the beginning. And he'd noticed the way they'd treated Aldys too. But Aldys could dish out the insults with the best of them. Sam had been amused when time and time again Aldys put those three in their place and he'd realized that most of the time they didn't even know it. More than a few times Aldys had zinged Gibby and shared an amused wink with Sam.
Josie was more sensitive and easily hurt, especially in the beginning and now that Sam realized that she'd been on the verge of quitting school, he disliked the popular trio even more. They had almost caused him to lose the love of his life and he wasn't about to forget that.
In Sam's opinion all three of those girls together couldn't hold a candle to Josie, or Aldys, for that matter.
"Nope, it's not Kirsten or Kristen, Sam!" Marilyn said it smiling widely. "These teenagers are smarter than we think. It's a landslide for Josie Geller as a write-in. She didn't even submit her own name to be considered. Let's see here - her name was submitted by Rob." Sam nodded as she continued talking, "The rest of the votes are for Gibby, Kirsten and Kristen, but they only got, let's see, thirty votes between the three of them. Isn't that amazing?"
Sam's face lit up with interest as soon as she said Josie's name. He was thrilled for her. He knew it was just like her not to have submitted her name for consideration - and it was also just like Rob to have done it for her.
"That's great, Marilyn! Wow, that's really something - quite an achievement in such a short time I'd say!" Sam said it proudly. He knew how far Josie had come since her first awful day at South Glen South. And he knew that Josie would be so touched by her selection - touched and surprised.
"You know Sam, that girl has really blossomed since she came to this school. She seemed so awkward and out of place in the beginning - and now she's such a beautiful person - inside and out. It's really amazing," Marilyn Knox said it shaking her head. "I'm glad it finally happened to a nice person, you know?"
"Yeah, I do, Marilyn. Josie is a nice person and a brilliant student. I'm sure she'll be surprised." Sam said it happily. He agreed with her about Josie being beautiful too, but he figured he'd keep that thought to himself for now.
"I think so, too. She's so modest and unassuming. I just hope that Gibby and that crowd don't try anything; you know, to get even with Josie. You know how awful and vindictive they can be!"
Sam frowned. "They'd better not try to do anything to hurt Josie - we'll be there to stop them if they do," he said firmly.
"Amen to that, Sam. I've loved having Josie in my class," Marilyn said smiling. "She's like a ray of sunshine."
"I know what you mean, Marilyn."
Sam thought for a moment about what Josie had said to him about Mrs. Knox. "You know, Marilyn, I was thinking about something. Maybe you should lay off the sombrero from now on, until say, the third offense, what do you think?"
"What brought that up, Sam?" Marilyn Knox asked curiously.
He looked at her and decided to tell her the truth.
"Well you said you like Josie, but she told me you had her wear that sombrero her first day of school. We were on a modified schedule that day and I think you might have made a difficult day worse for her, you know?"
"Really, Sam? I never thought about it that way. I just don't want them to get in the habit of being late for my class, you know? Because once they get away with it, they all do it. You know how these kids can be."
"I know, but she had extenuating circumstances. I mean I can't even understand that modified schedule, sometimes, you know?" Sam grinned at her. "How's somebody new to the school going to understand it and get to all their classes on time?"
"Yeah, I guess I see what you mean, Sam, " she said it nodding her agreement.
"All I'm saying is maybe at least give a new student a second chance - Josie told me she had such a miserable first day that she almost didn't come back. I mean, you know, being embarrassed like that can really be upsetting, especially to someone as intelligent and sensitive as Josie. And think what a loss that would have been, if she had dropped out." 'And what a loss to me,' he thought sadly.
"I'll think about it Sam - at least for the transfer students - I'll give them a second chance, okay?"
"That sounds great Marilyn," Sam grinned at her. Sam could see she was eager to get going. He thought of his own lonely plans for the evening and felt a little envious, wishing he could spend his rainy Friday evening with Josie, snuggled up with her in her apartment by the fire.
"So, do you want to announce the girls and I'll announce the guys?" Marilyn asked as she started packing up the results.
"Yeah, how about I do the trio, then you do the boys and the King and then I'll announce Josie, you know, as the queen!" Sam said as he was already daydreaming of how he'd announce her name - being the one to give her the good news and place the crown ever so gently on her head.
"So then you can be the one to announce how the king and queen will have their first dance, right?" Marilyn asked looking at Sam.
Sam felt as if he'd been dropped from a tall building. "What? Oh, uh, yeah, I guess so."
Sam had forgotten about that little custom and he wasn't looking forward to handing Josie over to Guy Perkins. He wondered briefly if there might be a way around it.
"What's wrong, Sam? It's customary - that the king and queen have the first dance, right, you know like the bride and groom?"
Sam winced at that analogy.
"Yeah, I just forgot about it, that's all," Sam said sullenly, wondering how soon he could cut in on them, so that the right man would be dancing with Josie as soon as possible. He wondered if ten seconds would be considered too soon to cut in.
"Oh, one other thing, Sam?" Marilyn Knox said, as she patted her hair nervously.
"What's that, Marilyn?" He glanced at her noticing her nervous change in tone.
"What's Rob's last name? On all the ballots you counted it just says Rob."
Sam frowned for a second. "I have no idea. Maybe Scott knows. It never came up."
"It's no big deal, I mean a lot of the ballots just say Josie, but I happen to know her last name is Geller, so I was just wondering about Rob."
"I'll try to remember to ask Scott," Sam said, looking at Marilyn Knox. "Was there something else, Marilyn?" He could tell she still had something on her mind that she was reluctant to say.
"Yes, um, I was wondering, if um you think it's appropriate, you know, for me as a teacher to dance with a student at the Prom. At the softball game yesterday, um, Rob told me to save a dance for him and I was just wondering your opinion on that, Sam. You know, on whether or not it would acceptable for me to dance with Rob. I don't want to hurt his feelings or anything."
Sam smiled. Leave it to Rob to show the way. He wondered if Rob asking Marilyn to dance had something to do with easing his own situation with Josie. He suspected that might just be the case, along with it having been one of Rob's many successful attempts to distract Marilyn during the softball game. Sam shook his head, thinking of Rob. That kid always had some sort of agenda - winning the softball game, getting his car back, and nominating Josie for Prom Queen. Sam wondered what Rob was up to now - since he always had something cooking in that active brain of his.
"I think it would be great, Marilyn - I don't see a problem with it. Teachers asked students to dance at my high school prom. I don't see anything wrong with it. I might ask one of my students to dance too." 'The one I'm in love with, as a matter of fact,' he thought, sighing. He looked at her briefly noticing her blush, wondering if she might harbor some sort feelings towards Rob. 'Now that's really a strange pair,' he thought to himself.
"Really, Sam? You really might ask one of your students to dance?" He nodded. "That would sure make me feel better about it - dancing with Rob."
"Consider it done, Marilyn." Sam said it and grinned to himself. 'Maybe everything will work out after all,' he thought happily. Everything seemed to be falling into place now. 'So why do I feel so uneasy?' he wondered.
* * *
The sky had darkened considerably by the time Josie arrived at her office in downtown Chicago. She was hoping to get the meeting with Gus over with quickly so she could get home before the storm.
All heads turned to admire her as she walked out of the elevator and through the open offices of the Chicago Sun Times. Josie had noticed that more and more guys were giving her appreciative looks now that she had this assignment. Today even Sam had complimented her on her new dress, so she knew she looked nice.
Lately, quite a few of the of the nicer looking men in the office made it a point to say hello to her when she came in for staff meetings and her dreaded meetings with Gus. One of them was a tall, man with wavy blond hair, which worked as a reporter in the Sports Department. She knew his name was Peter Stevens.
She also knew that he never gave her the time of day or even glanced at her before this, back in the days when she was just a copy editor. In fact the few times she ventured a shy hello, he'd totally ignored her. Three months ago Josie would have been thrilled if he'd even noticed her. As she approached Gus' office, Peter stopped her now.
"Hey Josie!" he said it as he put his hand on her arm as if they were old friends.
Josie turned startled that anyone here in the office would say hello to her using the greeting that Sam used. She realized she didn't like hearing it from any one but Sam and she didn't like any one but Sam touching her now either.
"Oh, hi," she said, trying not to show her impatience.
"I was wondering if you'd like to go out for a drink sometime - after your assignment of course," he asked hopefully. "You know to kind of get to know each other better?"
Josie looked at him. Before her assignment at South Glen South she would have been thrilled if a man like this approached her. Now he was interested in her and she couldn't care less. It was the same situation she'd had yesterday when Matt Riley had flirted with her. The only difference was Peter had snubbed her in the past and it had hurt her at the time.
She realized that she looked more attractive now, but all she cared about was Sam. She knew somehow that Sam would have noticed her and did notice her before anyone else did, before she looked the way she did now. And Josie believed that Sam loved her for the person she was, not just for the way she looked, just as she loved him for what he was inside. She also loved the way he looked, but she loved Sam for the wonderful, funny, good-hearted person that she knew he was. He was quite simply the great passionate love of her life.
"No, I'm seeing someone," she said, shaking her head firmly and confidently. "Sorry."
Josie continued on her way, hoping somehow it all would come true for her: that somehow she and Sam would find a way to be together after all her secrets were revealed. Peter stared open mouthed after her. He wasn't used to being rejected and that made her all the more attractive to him. He wondered why he'd never noticed her before, but he'd noticed her now and he wasn't about to give up this easily.
She could see Gus in his office hovering over his VCR, like a tower of doom, waiting for her. As she walked into his office she could hear the thunder in the distance as the storm approached the city.
"Hello, Gus," she said quietly.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't Ms. Transmission Problem herself. Why is it that we either freeze frame or lose the signal whenever you're with your English Teacher, Geller?" Gus barked.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Gus," Josie said innocently.
"Is that a new suit?" she asked, changing the subject.
Josie had noticed that Gus had been paying more attention to the way he dressed, especially when she'd been in the office lately. Sam had responded to her flattery this morning, so why not try a little on Gus? she figured. She could tell by the look on his face that he was pleased that she'd noticed.
"Yeah," Gus said, momentarily distracted. He looked down at his tie. "You like it?"
"Oh, I really do. Nice tie, too," Josie said cheerfully, wondering if something was going on with Gus in the romance department and maybe Rob was right again. She'd also noticed that Anita had been dressing better - a little more conservatively now. Anita had also worn her hair up earlier in the week - a telltale sign of a romance brewing if there ever was one with Anita. Rob had been right so often lately, that it was starting to worry Josie. She was sure that he was way off base with those stupid rules of his, but yet when had he been wrong?
Gus cleared his throat and looked around as if someone might hear him make an incriminating admission. "Yeah, I thought I'd try to dress a little better, you know get some new clothes - kind of like you've done, Geller." Josie noticed that Gus almost sounded human when he said it. Almost.
Josie bit her lip and started to talk. She figured he was about as softened up as he could get. And she knew somewhere in there was the human being she'd taught how to knit.
"That's great, Gus. I've finished my outline for my story. I've already started to write the first draft, it's going to be a story comparing my first high school experience to this one," she said as she sat in the chair. "Would you like to see it?"
"No!" Gus snapped, as he whirled around, remembering his topic for the day. "I have your story."
"Excuse me? What do you mean, Gus?" Josie asked nervously. Her heart was pounding in fear now. She was pulling on her fingers now instead of twisting them.
He walked over and picked up the remote, switching on the television.
There on the big screen was her own wonderful unsuspecting Sam Coulson, in living color, saying, "You are a great writer. You just have to find your story." He might just as well have had 'I love you' written across his forehead and Josie knew it. And in that one awful moment, she realized that Gus knew it too.
Josie could see it - on the TV screen - what Anita, Rob, and her mother had been telling her for weeks. Sam was hopelessly in love with her too, and she could see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. Everything she couldn't see when she was with him in person, because of her own insecurities, she saw now and there was no denying it anymore. She wished she could have the past two weeks to live over, this time telling him the truth just as her mother had urged her to do. Now she'd set him up to be hurt terribly all because he'd made the mistake of falling in love with her.
Gus pressed the pause button to freeze the frame on Sam's face and pointed at the TV, saying, "He's your story!"
Josie's eyes flew open wide. "You're crazy! NO, No, No!" she protested, holding her hands in the air. 'This can't be happening,' she thought desperately. And then she knew one thing for certain. No matter what, she wouldn't allow this to happen to Sam. She would protect him, no matter what the cost.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, NO?" Gus asked.
He was momentarily shocked that Josie would defy him like this. She was usually so meek and mild that she cowered when he yelled at her. He knew she was smart, but she'd never really stood up to him or gone against him before.
Gus liked Josie, more than he ever let her see. He liked it when she corrected him on his grammar, but now his job was on the line and he didn't like what he was seeing in her eyes as she argued with him. She'd begged him time and again to give her a chance to write - pestered him really, but now she was definitely in his face - disagreeing with him. This behavior was more like Anita, not Josie. When he thought about Anita, Gus blushed suddenly. He'd had feelings for Anita lately, that were threatening to interfere with his job and his job was everything to Gus.
'Focus on Josie, not Anita!' he thought angrily. 'Maybe if I just make it clear to her, what I want,' he reasoned, trying to remain calm.
Gus was waving the remote now as he tried to explain the obvious to Josie. He wondered if maybe she was so na�ve that she didn't see what everyone else had seen for weeks. Surely she had to have noticed the way that English Teacher stared at her and reacted to her all the time. Even Gus had noticed it from the first time he'd seen them together on camera. He'd been waiting for Josie to mention it to him for the past week.
"It's got it all. Sex, intrigue, immorality in the education system!"
Josie shook her head stubbornly. "He's my teacher!"
Gus nodded. Josie could see how excited he was now - excited and determined, "Yeah, that's the best part! Student/Teacher relations - how close is too close? Josie, we're gonna blow the lid off it!"
Everything inside Josie screamed, 'NO! YOU WILL NOT HURT SAM!!'
Out loud she protested, "There's no lid! She jumped up out of her chair now arguing with Gus, "There's nothing going on between Sa- Mr. Coulson and me!" 'Except we're in love,' she thought biting her lip.
Gus shook his head in disgust. He was not to be persuaded. He wondered now if she thought he was an idiot and it was starting to irritate him.
"Who are you kidding? Everyone in this office is in here every day watching you two - it's like the God-damned Young and the Restless, Rigfort is salivating over it!"
Josie looked even more shocked. Her mouth dropped open. They'd obviously all been watching her romance with Sam attentively. Everyone in the office had heard all their conversations that were taped. Her personal life had become a spectacle for anyone and everyone in the office who wanted to watch. She was thoroughly and completely humiliated and worse yet, she knew Sam would be too. Sam, the one person who believed in her was about to be destroyed - because of her.
She'd hoped somehow that Gus had just seen bits and pieces of the tapes, missing the important parts, somehow, some way sparing her and more importantly, Sam, the embarrassment of being exposed publicly. She wondered how Sam would ever forgive her for this. She didn't know if she'd be able to forgive him if the shoe was on the other foot. Josie felt like her whole world was caving in around her.
"You pitched this to Rigfort!?" she asked in disbelief. This was her worst nightmare come true.
"Josie, this isn't a joke," Gus said. Josie could tell he was deadly serious now, but so was she and she wasn't afraid of him anymore. "You heard Rigfort. Both our asses are on the line now. This is the story - call me when you got it!" he said dismissing her.
Josie stood her ground and glared at him for a few more minutes. She didn't agree to his terms. She just stared at him in disbelief. She was furious at Gus and even more furious at herself. Neither one said a word. Gus wondered now what had become of the shy copy editor he'd sent out on this assignment. Josie was becoming more and more outspoken every time he saw her. Finally she turned and stomped out the door, slamming it behind her without uttering another word to Gus.
She passed Anita on her way out.
"Jos" Anita started. Then she stopped when she saw Josie's face.
Josie glanced at her. "Not now, Anita. I can't talk now."
Anita had never seen Josie look this upset. She watched her friend as the elevator doors closed, and then she turned and marched into Gus's office and walked up to him.
"What have you done, Gus?" she demanded.
"Anita, I'm still your boss, and it's between me and Josie right now."
"Don't you care at all about the people you hurt, Gus?" she asked.
"Anita, this is a newspaper - I have to keep my job, so just stay out of it, okay?" Gus pleaded with her.
"Go to hell, Gus!" Anita snapped and turned to walk out of the office.
"Where are you going?" he asked.
Anita ignored him as she went to her desk and got her briefcase and left work for the day.
Gus wondered how his day could get any worse. Now Anita was angry with him and for the first time in their relationship, Gus wondered if Josie Geller was about to defy him too. He picked up his magic eight ball. "Is she?" he asked nervously. When he saw the answer he slumped down in his chair and put his head in his hands. "Oh, God!" he muttered�"Why me?"
* * *
Sam had decided to go straight home after work. Scott Romano had asked him if he wanted to go out to dinner with him, but Sam had begged off, saying he needed to start packing. He had remembered to ask Scott for Rob's last name, but curiously Scott wasn't sure.
"I think it might be Roberts," he suggested helpfully.
"Robert Roberts?" Sam asked, making a face. "What kind of name is that?"
"Well, I think I've heard people call him Robbie-Rob so that would fit," Scott speculated, as he took off his baseball cap and scratched his head.
"Come on, you don't know his last name, do you Scott?" Sam asked, amused.
"You know what, Sam? I think it's Roberts and that's where the Rob comes from - it's a nickname you know for his last name instead of his first name. Just tell Marilyn to announce that it's Rob - everybody will know who she means."
Sam shook his head smiling. Rob sure was a man of mystery. He knew that Rob would enjoy the fact that they were speculating about his last name like this - anything to be the center of attention.
"Sure you don't want to go eat, Sam?" Scott asked again.
"No, thanks anyway, I'd better start packing tonight."
"Okay, then Sam. I'll talk to you later. Let me know if you need help - picking up your car or anything with the moving."
"Thanks, Scott. I will." Sam said appreciatively.
* * *
What Sam really wanted tonight was to be with Josie in her apartment. But he knew he'd have to settle for the distant second choice of time alone to think about things. He'd had a nagging feeling that something wasn't right ever since he'd left Josie's side. The sky had darkened and a few raindrops had fallen by the time he drove into his neighborhood.
As he drove onto his street, he was annoyed to realize that another car had parked in the space he usually used. It wasn't reserved, but all of the tenants normally respected each other's spaces and this one was Sam's. Today he had Jonathan's car, so it was especially irritating to have to search for a space further away from his apartment in the rain.
Sam noticed that the car parked in his space was a rental, so he figured maybe the person would move it later and he could have his own space back. He rolled his eyes in annoyance as he walked up the stairs to his apartment. It was starting to rain a little harder and he heard the thunder in the distance.
As he started to put his key in the lock, he heard a noise inside that sounded like opera playing. Then he realized the door wasn't locked. Sam had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that he knew who was inside - the only other person who had a key to his apartment, and the one person he knew would be so selfish and inconsiderate as to deliberately park in his space - Lara.
Sam took a deep breath and opened the door. There, sitting on the floor going through his CD's was his ex-girlfriend. Lara had helped her self to a bottle of beer from his refrigerator. She was obviously picking out the CDs she wanted and putting them in a big box she brought with her.
She looked up as he walked in. She'd clearly made herself at home - he could see she was wearing a black pantsuit with a white sleeveless top - she had her jacket off and had draped it on his chair. "Good evening," she sneered, waving a CD at him. "Join the party."
To be continued�