Disclaimer: I own nothing.

The Return of Sam

Chapter One

The sun finally started to break through the dark clouds as Reggie, Otto, and Twister drove into the Rocket's driveway after an early morning surf session. The water had been chilly, but the waves were something to be desired by any hardcore surfer. The summer was coming to an end, but the tourists (or shoobies as Twister called them) were still invading the town of Ocean Shores. Because of this inconvenience, the beach was packed by 10am and the water was infested with sun burnt tourist families.

Reggie, Otto and Twister found that the only way to get around this problem was to wake up before the sun came up and catch some waves. Normally, the crew found waking up early hard, but since the best surf was in the early morning, they found the motivation to get up.

Otto Rocket hopped out of his sister's station wagon and started untying the surfboards from the top of the car. He was wearing a full body surf suit, unzipped to his hips to show off the six pack that the girls loved so much.

"Don't even bother Otto." Reggie advised him as she stepped out of the car shaking off her long wet hair. "Just leave them there; we'll save time tomorrow morning. And I don't mind driving around town with surfboards strapped to the top of my car."

"But Reg!!" Twister whined, "What if someone steals my- I mean our boards?"

"Relax Twist, no ones gonna want your crappy board. Seriously, I don't know how that thing hasn't broken yet." Reggie pointed out.

"Hey, I worked hard to get that board!" Twister argued.

"Dude, you fished it out of a dumpster." Otto said in disgust.

"Hey, there were a lot of dead fish heads in there that week!"

"Can we please change the subject?" Reggie pleaded.

"Fine, it's too early to argue. We can pick up on this conversation later. I'm gonna change and get some sleep." Twister said as he started walking towards his house. Otto and Reggie said goodbye and watched him walk through the door of his house.

"Lucky bastard. Doesn't have to work." Otto grimaced.

"This is exactly why his surfboard came from a dumpster." Reggie pointed out. The two Rocket children had been forced to take shifts at their father's restaurant and surf shop over the summer. Reggie and Otto were now 17 and 16 respectively. Reggie was entering her final year of high school while Twister and Otto would be juniors. Puberty had treated all three friends well for the most part. Reggie maintained her tall and skinny physique, which was now complete with the right amount of curvature while still containing muscle that presented her as an athlete. For these reasons, she was quite popular with the male population at school, although she never had a steady boyfriend for more than a month.

Otto had taken on the physique of his father. He surpassed his sister in height and had a broad chest and shoulders padded with muscle. His red dreadlocks had grown longer and reached past his shoulders. Meanwhile, his friend Twister had grown a head taller than him, but did not have defined muscles like Otto. No matter how much he ate or lifted, Twister never managed to gain an ounce of muscle. Luckily his tanned skin distracted girls from his skinny frame.

Otto opened the door to the house and looked back at his sister who was standing in the middle of the driveway looking at the house across the cul-de-sac.

"You coming?" Otto asked, even though he knew what her answer would be.

"I'll be in a minute." She replied. Otto nodded and closed the door behind him. Reggie let out a sigh. This happened a lot. Standing in the middle of her driveway and looking at the house where Sam Dullard used to live. The house was inhabited by a middle-aged couple with no children, and the house had been painted another color with more shrubs lining the side of the house. But Reggie always felt a sense of nostalgia and sadness whenever she looked at that house. She had snuck inside one day while the current owners were out. She discovered with disgust that Sam's old room had been converted into a sewing room for the woman who lived there. Any trace of Sam was gone and replaced with tacky wallpaper and several sewing machines.

It had been three years since Sam left Ocean Shores, and not a day went by where Reggie did not think of him for a brief moment. Sam's move had been sudden. He was thirteen at time and was losing his baby fat and becoming more noticed by other kids at school whom three years before had labeled him as a geeky outcast when he first appeared in the town. Paula Dullard had found a new husband who insisted on moving the family to the east coast, more specifically, New York City. Sam broke the news to his friends one week before he was scheduled to board a plane leaving California. Reggie couldn't control herself, she was angry. Angry at Sam's mother for settling for a new man so quickly and angry at Sam for not putting up a fight.

That entire week, Reggie had ignored Sam while Otto and Twister took him on his final excursions to Mad Town, the beach, and the Pier. Reggie didn't face Sam again until the day he left, a day she remembered very clearly.

Flashback:

Sam stood in front of his house with Otto and Twister as they made their final goodbyes. Reggie was watching them from the window in her room, dreading the moment when she would have to walk out of the house to say goodbye to her friend. Her best friend, the only person who she could talk too about anything and wouldn't go blabbing to the rest of town. Reggie picked herself up and made her way downstairs and out the door. The sound of the Rocket's door creaking open caught the attention of the three boys who had seen very little of her that week.

"Oh, so she is still alive." Twister joked as Reggie approached the boys. But his humorous observation was met only with silence.

"Sam, could I talk to you alone for a minute?"

"Sure Reg." Sam said softly. He led her into his house where they walked into his empty room away from the prying eyes of their friends and parents.

"First off, I'm sorry. I acted like a jerk all week." Reggie apologized.

"It's understandable." Sam said with a small smile on his face.

"Sammy..." Reggie sighed sadly. "You're my best friend and I can't imagine life without you."

"Reg, don't worry about. I mean, you can run the 'Zine by yourself, you know how-"

"No Sam, that's not what's bugging me." Reggie said with a hint of anger in her voice. "Who am I gonna hang out with and talk to now?" Sam looked at her with confusion, something he rarely showed.

"Well, it's not like you're all alone now, I mean you always got your brother and Twister. And Trish and Sherry."

"It's not the same. I can talk to you about things that Otto and Twister are too immature to even think about. And Trish and Sherry are great, but they'll just blab anything I say to the whole school."

"Reg, Otto and Twister will grow up eventually."

"I know, but it's not just talking to you about things Sammy that I'll miss." Reggie was starting cry. Sam started rubbing her arm softly in order to comfort her.

"What else?" He asked.

"I'll miss you, Sam." Reggie choked out as tears started streaming down her face. Sam was taken back in surprise. He did what he felt would comfort her and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Reggie started sobbing even harder and wrapped her arms around Sam's thinning frame. They stood there for a few minutes as Reggie's sobs started to dry out. They let go of each other looked into each other's eyes. After years of being shorter than Reggie, Sam was now at her height.

"I'm gonna miss you Reg. I'm gonna miss you a lot." Sam said. Reggie smiled at him as he tenderly brushed a tear off of Reggie's cheek. Reggie realized that they had never shared a moment like this as friends.

"Sam, we gotta go!" Mrs. Dullard screamed from outside the house.

"That's cue to exit Reg." Sam said as he turned towards the door.

"Sam, wait!" Sam turned around as Reggie launched herself at him for another hug which returned. As they drew apart Reggie kissed Sam on the cheek. Both teens felt the faces heat up and said nothing. They walked outside and said goodbye again, this time without, a hug and kiss, so they would not be teased by their peers and elders.

End Flashback.

By now Reggie had been standing motionless in the driveway for ten minutes. She heaved a final sigh of sadness and frustration before entering her house. After Sam moved, he e-mailed Reggie constantly to help her with his sudden departure, but after a year of daily e-mails, the stream of communication had dried down significantly. The last time Reggie had received an e-mail from Sam was two months ago.

She decided to write him before leaving for work that day.

Meanwhile, in New York City, Sam Dullard and his mother boarded a plane heading west…

A/N: After a long hiatus, I've decided to write another Sam-centered fic. The RP series might have ended, but dedicated fans are still reading and writing fanfiction. So, I woke up this morning and thought to myself- "I think I'll write another fic." As of this point I know some of the stuff I want in the fic, but I don't know exactly where it's going. That's where your reviews come in. Whether you're a member of or not, please post your thoughts about this story. Thank you. I only hope that this fic can receive the same good reviews as my last two fics did.

And yeah I know, first chap is a little crappy, it gets better, I promise.