Date Submitted: 7/13/01
Title of Story: "Deja Vu: A New Love Ch. 4"
Author: shuis_4everinlove@hotmail.com

Chapter Four

Victoria stared in shock at the man that Sam said was his son. It was Noah.

She was in love with the son of her mother's first love! 'Oh my God!' she screamed in her head. 'Oh my God!'

Noah was visibly surprised to see her there, and was even more shocked after Grace introduced them.

"Ivy, Victoria, I'd like you to meet my son, Noah Bennett. Noah, this is Ivy and Victoria Crane."

She noticed his eyes widen at the name 'Crane'. Victoria wondered if he knew about Ivy and Sam.

"Nice to meet you," Ivy said, extending her hand to Noah.

"You too, Mrs. Crane. And you, Ms. Crane."

'If I'm going to do something, I have to act now,' Victoria thought. "Noah, there's no need to pretend we haven't already met. You must remember the wine."

"Oh, of course," he replied, looking at her in slight confusion.

"Wine, what about wine?" inquired Sam, noticing his son's odd behavior.

"Oh, it's nothing Chief Bennett," Victoria said. "I ran into him and spilled wine on his shirt. I also helped him try to clean it up, but it's going to have to be dry cleaned." Victoria didn't want to let Noah speak until they were alone, so she continued. "Actually, Noah and I need to make arrangements to have it dry cleaned, I insisted that I cover the expenses, since it was my fault. So, Chief Bennett, Grace, Mother, if you'll excuse us, we probably should do this now, so it gets done."

"Oh, go on," Grace said. "It's nice to see people taking responsibility for the mistakes."

Victoria started walking off, but Noah just stood there. "Are you just going to stay there? Come on."

He came over, and she lead him into Mr. Taylor's study, where they wouldn't be interrupted.

"What was all that about?" asked Noah, sounding upset.

"Well, maybe I want to talk to you," Victoria replied. "And, I need to explain about Tobias."

"What's there to explain," he snapped. "You're seeing someone, and didn't let on before I kissed you. End of story."

"No! I am not seeing Tobias, we haven't even been on a date! He just thinks that since I was flirting with him earlier, before we met, that he's now my boyfriend. But he's not! I don't even like him that much!"

Noah was silent as he absorbed this new information. Finally, he said, "So, you're not going out with Tobias? You haven't even been on a date?"

"No."

"So, are you single?"

"Well, that all depends."

"On what?"

"You."

Noah laughed. Well, I don't object to you dating, as long as you're dating me."

"Hmmm. I guess I can live with that." With that, Victoria stepped forward, and kissed Noah as passionately as possible.

They continued kissing for ages, until the door opened, and Victoria turned to see her mother standing there, and not looking very happy.

"Noah, could you please excuse me and my daughter?"

Noah stepped back from Victoria. "Of course Mrs. Crane." He walked off.

"Hey, how about I stop in at your house tomorrow to pick up the shirt," Victoria called after him.

"Sounds great."

"OK."

Victoria then turned to face Ivy's wrath. Her mother just stood there, in the doorway, looking shocked, and furious.

"How dare you!"

"How dare I do what, Mother dear?"

"Go after Sam's son! After all I've told you, after all my faith in you. How dare you stab me in the back like this!"

"How is kissing Noah stabbing you in the back?"

"I have always told you the heartbreak that loving Sam has caused me. And now, you add to it by sneaking off to make-out with his son!"

"I was not making-out with him. And what business is it of yours, anyway. I'm a big girl, I can run my own life!"

"What business of mine is it? You are my daughter, and I will not tolerate you ruining your life!"

"Ruining my life! I am not ruining my life! Just because you couldn't keep Sam, that doesn't mean that I won't have any chance with his son! Besides, I didn't even know that Noah was a Bennett when we first met!"

"Well, you know now, and you also knew when you came back here! I will not stand for this Victoria. I forbid you from seeing him again!"

"You can't forbid me from doing anything. You are a hypocrite, Mother! You love Sam. But you don't think that I deserve a chance with Noah. Just because you were to weak to stay with your man!"

"You don't think I can forbid you from running around with him? Watch me! How do you think your father and grandfather would feel about you being involved with someone below your class? You've seen how they reacted about your brother and Theresa! They'd do just the same to you, believe me."

"You're bluffing! You'd never do that, because I know about you and Chief Bennett. What would they think about that? I suppose that Father might actually be allowed to divorce you, like he's wanted to do for years! And then where would you be. Out on the street, with no family or friends, not to mention nowhere to go. Sure Ethan might help you out, by not me, or your other children. And, Sam sure as hell would not help you. I saw the expression on his face when he saw you. I bet you've been throwing yourself at him, like a pathetic wench, and he's refused you every time!"

Ivy went pale at that. "You ungrateful child! I'm trying to save you from heartbreak, and you through it back in my face. Fine! Just through your life down the drain! I don't care." She started to head out of the room.

"Fine, go! See if I care! Go back and beg Sam to take you back, and make him despise you, if he doesn't already!"

Ivy turned, and suddenly slapped her daughter. Victoria's head was forced to the side, so she was facing the door. Where she saw Harmony's Chief of Police, Sam Bennett.

"What is going on in here," he demanded.

"Sam!" Ivy exclaimed in shock. She stood, speechless.

"Nothing is going on Chief Bennett," Victoria said. "Nothing important anyway. My mother was just…um…trying to get me to see her point of view, and it wasn't working. Now, if you'll excuse me, I think that I should be heading back to the mansion. I've had an interesting day, and it's worn me out." She walked past Sam, and went out the door.

"Oh, and Mother," she called back to Ivy, "I see you're point, but it doesn't matter. I'm not you, and my life is my own. See you tomorrow."

Amy arranged to have one of the Taylor's limosines take Victoria home. When she arrived back at the Crane Mansion, she immediately headed up to her room. She changed into her nightgown, and took off her make-up. As she was getting into bed, she looked over at the spot on her wall where Ivy's pictures hung. There were photographs from when Ivy was a baby, up till the latest, which had been taken in Paris three years earlier. Of all the pictures, Ivy looked happiest when she was in her late teens, up to the day she married Victoria's father. That was the time that she had been with Sam.

"Well Mother," Victoria mused to herself, "you were happy then, why can't I be now. You can't stop me, and you know it. And, hopefully, Noah and I will have more luck than you and Sam."

She lay down in her bed, and turned off the light on her bedside-table. Then, Victoria Crane curled up in a ball, and went to sleep, to dream about her and Noah.