Timeline: During that little tiny slip of time where Sam and Tabitha are the only New Mutants left.
Tabitha Smith sat on the dock in the moonlight, swinging her feet in the water. The wind blew softly around her, making the leaves rustle and fall from the trees. It was the beginning of autumn, so all the trees were the same red, yellow, and gold.
Tabitha was oblivious to all this. Her mind was a million miles away, contemplating what she was going to do.
"Do I stay or do I go?" Tabitha said out loud. "Cable doesn't do things like we were taught, but he seems to get the job done. But is the way I wanna do things? Do I agree with his methods?"
Tabitha sighed to herself. This was shaping up to be a difficult question, to say the least.
(Of course there is more than Cable keeping me here. I don't want to leave Sam. He means… a lot to me.)
With another sigh, Tabitha pulled her feet out of the water. Pulling on her shoes, she rose to her feet and headed toward the forest.
(I believe in Xavier's dream. I like thinking that I can help other people. And it's not like I have anywhere else to go.)
Tabitha walked through the shadowy forest, the trees hiding the moon from her sight. It was darker here, but she did not notice. Her doubts were assaulting her, making her wonder at her current predicament. (But why should I stay? I don't want to be a soldier. But that's what Cable is going to turn us into. He said so himself.)
Tabitha was so consumed within her own mind that she didn't notice Sam Guthrie until she almost stepped on him.
Jumping back in surprise, she yelped "Sam! What are you doin' out here?"
Sam gazed back at her, seemingly as surprised as she was. "Ah come out here to clear mah mind. Night air helps."
"Oh." Tabitha said, shifting uncomfortably. "Would you like me to leave?"
"Actually I wouldn't. Ah kinda wanted to talk to you." Sam said, blushing slightly.
"About what?" Tabitha asked, looking at him with her large blue eyes.
Sam swallowed hard. (She sure is pretty.) Sam shook himself slightly. (Sam, get a hold of your self! This is Tabitha, the big-mouthed blonde with the obnoxious personality and…and…beautiful soulful eyes.)
"Sam?" Tabitha asked, waving a hand in front of his face.
Sam blinked, and blushed again, realizing that he had been staring at her.
"What are you gonna do?" Sam blurted out, cursing his own tongue.
"What am I gonna do about what?" Tabitha asked rolling her eyes. Better to keep up the smart alec façade, Tabitha decided.
"Are you gonna stay or are you gonna leave?" Sam clarified, his cheeks still bright red. (Since when have Ah been this nervous around Boom-Boom?)
"Oh. I don't really know. That's what I'm trying to decide." Tabitha said, sitting down beside him. Sam suddenly felt self-conscious.
"You, too?" Sam asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Yeah." Tabitha answered.
For a long time they just sat there, each lost in there own thoughts. But occasionally, you would see one of them sneak a peek at the other one.
"So have you decided?" Sam asked after a while.
"Decided what?" Tabitha asked looking at him with huge eyes.
Sam sighed, then smiled. No matter how many different sides there were to Tabitha, he was pretty sure they were all a little on the ditzy side.
"What? What are you laughing at?" Tabitha demanded.
"Nothn'." Sam laughed at her.
"Okay, that's it! Prepare to die!" Tabitha giggled, jumping on top of him, effectively pinning him to the ground. When she was certain he couldn't move, she began to tickle him for all she was worth.
Laughing, Sam tried to knock her off. Tabitha began to giggle when she saw his mock horror expression. This proved to be her mistake. While her laughter distracted her, Sam was able to gain the upper hand, flipping her over onto her back.
"Now Ah'll show you how to win a tickle war!" He promised, laughing again.
"No Sam, stop it!" Tabitha screeched, laughing hysterically.
"Tit for tat girl!" Sam hollered back.
They spent several more minutes rolling around in the fresh grass. Finally Sam pinned her underneath him.
Grinning, Sam prepared to finish her off. Something stopped him though. Maybe it was the way she was lying on the grass, with her hair splayed out around her like a halo. He didn't know why he did it, all he knew was that he reached down and kissed her lightly on the mouth. What surprised him was the way she kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck to hold him closer. It lasted for only a few short seconds, but it seemed like an eternity
Pulling back he stared into her soulful blue eyes for a second, before realizing what he had done.
"Tabitha…oh God…Ah'm so sorry!" Sam cried, pulling himself to his feet, and walking as quickly as he could away.
"Sam! Wait!" Tabitha called after him, scrambling to her feet. Sam stopped but he did not turn around.
Touching his shoulder, Tabitha asked softly "Why did you do that?" (And why did you stop?!)
Sam shook his head. "Ah don't know girl. Ah really don't."
"You don't?" Tabitha asked, stepping around him so that she could look into his eyes.
"No." Sam whispered.
Tabitha looked at him for a long second. A wisp of his hair had fallen in his eyes, and she lifted her hand to push it away. Her fingers lingered on his face, for a couple of seconds.
"Sam…" Tabitha whispered, pushing her self up on her toes. Pulling his face down, Tabitha pressed her lips to his.
After she pulled away, he stared at her for a long time. Finally though, he swallowed and spoke.
"Tabitha…why did you…do that?" Sam asked, his eyes as round as saucers.
Biting her lip, Tabitha shrugged her shoulders. "I just I just…I don't know."
Sam looked at her and whispered "We better get back to the bunker. Cable'll will be wonderin' where we are."
"Yeah." Tabitha said.
They both turned around and slowly walked back to the house. As they walked, Sam reached over and slipped his fingers into Tabitha's. Tabitha just smiled.