Punch Drunk Crazy
like I'm punch drunk crazy
It had been seven whole days since Tom had gone over to Sam's new place with the intent to win her back only to have Paula's brother tell him that she was on some month long trip in Europe and that she wouldn't be back for another five days. He had decided to give her a few days to settle back into being home, before he barged in and turned her life upside down again. He had to know what could be, and if after trying Sam still didn't want to fix things he would go back to his apartment and move on. But he had to at least know.
So as he typed in the code to get into her building Tom chewed on his bottom lip and walked into the lobby. He stepped into the empty elevator, and he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his dark wash jeans. He took a few deep breaths in, and let them out as the elevator slowly climbed up to Sam's floor, he wondered if it would have been faster to take the stairs.
The elevator came to a stop, the doors chimed and then opened, and he stepped out into the hallway. He made his way toward the door of the apartment he knew was Sam's, and he stood outside of it for a moment. He thought about turning around and forgetting this whole thing, to save himself the embarrassment because he knew she wouldn't want him back.
Still, he forced himself to reach out and knock twice on the door. He could heard music from inside, he recognized the voice; Norah Jones no doubt. He waited, nervously bouncing from foot to foot before he reached out and knocked a little bit louder. Maybe she hadn't heard him over the music.
Still, there was no voice on the other side of the door, he couldn't hear footsteps on the floor, so he turned to walk away. And then, like in any half decently cliched romantic movie the door swung open. So Tom turned to it, and his eyes met Sam's, and she looked surprised. Clearly no one had told her that he had shown up the week before like a lost puppy looking for her.
She smiled gently as she leaned against the door and said, "Hi."
"Hi." He mimicked.
He looked at her clothes, and he was not used to seeing her so casual and so messy looking; she was wearing jeans that had holes in them, and a plain t-shirt, both had splatters of paint on them, her hair was being held up by a pen, with strands falling loose around her face and the back of her neck. Despite her being so casual, Tom had decided this was the best she had ever looked. She looked so happy, and so relaxed. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her this way, really. It was like she was the same person, but totally different all at the same time.
Sam caught the way he was looking at her, and she let out a small laugh as she explained the unusual outfit, "You caught me while I was painting."
He smiled and nodded, asking her, "What color are you doing?"
She glanced behind her, and then back at him and Tom was so sure there was someone else in the apartment and his cheeks flushed. He was relieved, and a little surprised, when she asked him, "Do you want to come in?"
He nodded his head, probably a little too enthusiastically because she let out a small giggle as she stepped aside and let him inside the condo. He glanced around, noting how while the design of the condo was so modern and cold the decor was a whole different story. It was all vibrant colors, all very Sam like.
His eyes wandered to the living room, where all of the furniture was pushed to one side of the room and the flooring against the large wall next to the windows was covered with drop cloths. There was a ladder and a step stool, and a plethora of little jars of paint and Tom's eyes wandered to the wall where, against the plain white paint was a large, intricate, still unfinished cherry blossom stretching from one end all the way across to what he assumed would be the rest of the wall.
Sam followed his eyes, and her cheeks flushed as she told him, "I thought the place could use a little color."
He walked passed her and toward the wall, and as he looked at it he told her, "It's pretty amazing."
All this time and he had no idea she could paint like that, or at all.
There was a crackling noise, and the record stopped spinning, and they were in complete silence. Which was when Sam tucked a piece of stray hair behind her ear, smiled gently and told him, "Rick told me you came by last week."
Tom nodded his head slowly, and he asked her, "How was your trip?"
"It was good." She said softly, sitting down on the drape covered couch, and patted the spot next to her. As he sat down she told him, "I'm glad you're here."
"You are?" He asked her in surprise, his eyebrows raised.
She nodded and looked down at her hands in her lap as she told him honestly, "I've been trying to think of what to say to you, that's why I'm glad you're here. I couldn't think of the right things to say so I just never went to you, but now that you're here..."
"So what did you want to say to me?" He asked her curiously, holding his breath as he waited for an answer.
"That I'm sorry." She told him softly.
"Sorry for what?" He asked in confusion.
Sam looked over at him, surprised by his confusion, and said, "For doing what I did. You were right, it shouldn't matter what anyone else thinks, just what we think and I let that decide for me and I shouldn't have."
"Can I ask you something?" Tom asked her, and when she nodded her head he asked, "Do you regret it?"
"Ending things? Yes, and no." When she said this Tom raised his eyebrow as a silent question. Sam tucked another piece of hair behind her ear and took in a breath of air before she explained, "I don't regret taking the time apart, because if I'm being honest I think I needed it. It gave me the option to think about what I wanted, and to make some changes in my life, and it gave me the option to work on myself which is something I've never done. I got to get to know myself, and I think I'm a different person, a better person, because of it. But I do wish things had happened differently between us, and I do miss you."
Tom let out a breath of relief hearing her say that, and he asked her, "Enough to consider trying again?"
She nodded her head slowly, "If it's something you want too."
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't want that Sam. I didn't know it was possible to miss someone as much as I've missed you. I guess I never realized how much of an impact you really did make on me and my life. Being with you made me be the best version of myself, the version of myself that I always wanted to be but never really knew how to." Tom told her honestly, and she smiled gently hearing him say that. He continued on, "I know that this is unconventional, I know that to other people it will seem weird and unusual but I know how I feel about you Sam, and that's all I need to know. I know that I never want to be without you again."
"Me either." Sam stated softly, looking over at him with a small smile. Tom let out another breath of relief, and he smiled widely at her, so she asked him, "So... where do we go from here?"
"Can we start over?" Tom asked her with a hopeful expression.
"I'd like that." She told him.
Her brows crunched together as he got up from the couch and walked passed her, and out of the apartment door without so much of a word. When he knocked on the door from the hallway again Sam got up from the couch with a laugh.
She pulled the door open and he held his hand out to her with a soft, warm smile and said, "Hi, I'm Tom."
Sam smiled and said, "I love you."
So as he typed in the code to get into her building Tom chewed on his bottom lip and walked into the lobby. He stepped into the empty elevator, and he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his dark wash jeans. He took a few deep breaths in, and let them out as the elevator slowly climbed up to Sam's floor, he wondered if it would have been faster to take the stairs.
The elevator came to a stop, the doors chimed and then opened, and he stepped out into the hallway. He made his way toward the door of the apartment he knew was Sam's, and he stood outside of it for a moment. He thought about turning around and forgetting this whole thing, to save himself the embarrassment because he knew she wouldn't want him back.
Still, he forced himself to reach out and knock twice on the door. He could heard music from inside, he recognized the voice; Norah Jones no doubt. He waited, nervously bouncing from foot to foot before he reached out and knocked a little bit louder. Maybe she hadn't heard him over the music.
Still, there was no voice on the other side of the door, he couldn't hear footsteps on the floor, so he turned to walk away. And then, like in any half decently cliched romantic movie the door swung open. So Tom turned to it, and his eyes met Sam's, and she looked surprised. Clearly no one had told her that he had shown up the week before like a lost puppy looking for her.
She smiled gently as she leaned against the door and said, "Hi."
"Hi." He mimicked.
He looked at her clothes, and he was not used to seeing her so casual and so messy looking; she was wearing jeans that had holes in them, and a plain t-shirt, both had splatters of paint on them, her hair was being held up by a pen, with strands falling loose around her face and the back of her neck. Despite her being so casual, Tom had decided this was the best she had ever looked. She looked so happy, and so relaxed. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her this way, really. It was like she was the same person, but totally different all at the same time.
Sam caught the way he was looking at her, and she let out a small laugh as she explained the unusual outfit, "You caught me while I was painting."
He smiled and nodded, asking her, "What color are you doing?"
She glanced behind her, and then back at him and Tom was so sure there was someone else in the apartment and his cheeks flushed. He was relieved, and a little surprised, when she asked him, "Do you want to come in?"
He nodded his head, probably a little too enthusiastically because she let out a small giggle as she stepped aside and let him inside the condo. He glanced around, noting how while the design of the condo was so modern and cold the decor was a whole different story. It was all vibrant colors, all very Sam like.
His eyes wandered to the living room, where all of the furniture was pushed to one side of the room and the flooring against the large wall next to the windows was covered with drop cloths. There was a ladder and a step stool, and a plethora of little jars of paint and Tom's eyes wandered to the wall where, against the plain white paint was a large, intricate, still unfinished cherry blossom stretching from one end all the way across to what he assumed would be the rest of the wall.
Sam followed his eyes, and her cheeks flushed as she told him, "I thought the place could use a little color."
He walked passed her and toward the wall, and as he looked at it he told her, "It's pretty amazing."
All this time and he had no idea she could paint like that, or at all.
There was a crackling noise, and the record stopped spinning, and they were in complete silence. Which was when Sam tucked a piece of stray hair behind her ear, smiled gently and told him, "Rick told me you came by last week."
Tom nodded his head slowly, and he asked her, "How was your trip?"
"It was good." She said softly, sitting down on the drape covered couch, and patted the spot next to her. As he sat down she told him, "I'm glad you're here."
"You are?" He asked her in surprise, his eyebrows raised.
She nodded and looked down at her hands in her lap as she told him honestly, "I've been trying to think of what to say to you, that's why I'm glad you're here. I couldn't think of the right things to say so I just never went to you, but now that you're here..."
"So what did you want to say to me?" He asked her curiously, holding his breath as he waited for an answer.
"That I'm sorry." She told him softly.
"Sorry for what?" He asked in confusion.
Sam looked over at him, surprised by his confusion, and said, "For doing what I did. You were right, it shouldn't matter what anyone else thinks, just what we think and I let that decide for me and I shouldn't have."
"Can I ask you something?" Tom asked her, and when she nodded her head he asked, "Do you regret it?"
"Ending things? Yes, and no." When she said this Tom raised his eyebrow as a silent question. Sam tucked another piece of hair behind her ear and took in a breath of air before she explained, "I don't regret taking the time apart, because if I'm being honest I think I needed it. It gave me the option to think about what I wanted, and to make some changes in my life, and it gave me the option to work on myself which is something I've never done. I got to get to know myself, and I think I'm a different person, a better person, because of it. But I do wish things had happened differently between us, and I do miss you."
Tom let out a breath of relief hearing her say that, and he asked her, "Enough to consider trying again?"
She nodded her head slowly, "If it's something you want too."
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't want that Sam. I didn't know it was possible to miss someone as much as I've missed you. I guess I never realized how much of an impact you really did make on me and my life. Being with you made me be the best version of myself, the version of myself that I always wanted to be but never really knew how to." Tom told her honestly, and she smiled gently hearing him say that. He continued on, "I know that this is unconventional, I know that to other people it will seem weird and unusual but I know how I feel about you Sam, and that's all I need to know. I know that I never want to be without you again."
"Me either." Sam stated softly, looking over at him with a small smile. Tom let out another breath of relief, and he smiled widely at her, so she asked him, "So... where do we go from here?"
"Can we start over?" Tom asked her with a hopeful expression.
"I'd like that." She told him.
Her brows crunched together as he got up from the couch and walked passed her, and out of the apartment door without so much of a word. When he knocked on the door from the hallway again Sam got up from the couch with a laugh.
She pulled the door open and he held his hand out to her with a soft, warm smile and said, "Hi, I'm Tom."
Sam smiled and said, "I love you."
♠ ♠ ♠
And this complete's this story...I know y'all probably wanted some moments between them after they made up, but I loved the ending that I had planned too much to change it.
I'm about to go post the epilogue for Shea as well, but also today, to make up for the ending of two stories, I'm posting two new ones! So check them out: Seguin and Neal - you'll need tissues for that one, it's v v sad.
Anyway.... here's my little 'holycrap' ramble about this story if you care to read it:
When I started this story I didn't expect anyone to read it and like it (Wilson isn't exactly the most popular dude on this site) let alone end up with OVER 80 COMMENTS. It literally blows my mind guys. So thank you to all who read, subscribed, recommended and commented, each and every one of you make updating so much fun because seeing your thoughts and comments was the best part about putting a new chapter up.
So thanks for coming along for this ride, honestly I only expected this story to be 10 chapters but y'all made me want to expand it and I'm so so glad that I did. Thank youuuu.
See you in the next stories, come say hi, I swear I'm not a biter... :)