Disclaimer: If I owned Chris or Shawn, do you think I would have time to
write this story? ;)
*
*
*
"So that's one cheddar melt with pickles and nothing else, correct?" Caitie smiled cheerfuly as she made her way back to the kitchen to relay the order to the cook. She was now twenty-two, working part-time as a waitress at a local diner to help pay for her college tuition. Her mom, who had been the only parent she had lived with; who she had ever really known, had died in a car accident four years ago, about a week after her high school graduation. Since then, she'd gone through at least thirty off- hand jobs, just trying to earn enough money to make a living until she could finally graduate from college and get a real job. Her friend, Brianne Hartman, also worked there, though she was already making a substantial income as an artist, selling her paintings and sculptures.
Caitie handed the slip of paper she had scribbled the customer's order on to Kevin, the cook, then leaned back against the counter, taking a short break while the food was being prepared.
"Only forty more minutes till our shift's over," Brianne joined her. "Busy night tonight, eh?"
"Yeah, and I still have a paper I need to finish writing for class tomorrow..."
"Oh, how is school going, by the way?"
"Fine," Caitie shrugged. "I'm pulling off a strong B somehow."
"I wish I could go to law school," Brianne sighed whistfully.
"Ha! Why do you need school anyway? You already found your calling in art; no college could teach the skills you have."
"Aw, thanks," she rubbed the back of her head embarassedly.
The two girls looked up at the chiming of the bells above the entrance as the door opened and a man walked in. He was tall and rather handsom, with dirty blonde hair and deep blue eyes. But the thing that caught Caitie's eye most was the single blood red rose he carried with him as he took a seat at one of th booths.
"Your turn," Brianne called, walking rather quickly away. I still have to take care of table four..."
Caitie rolled her eyes. She was so under-paid. Grabbing a pencil and her pad of order slips, she went out to the dining area to meet him. Putting on the cheerful smile required for her job, she spoke, "Hi, can I take your order?"
"Oh," the man flashed a polite grin back at her. "I...I think I'll just have a bowl of the house soup and a cup of coffee."
"Coming right up." She turned to leave, but the man quickly spoke up.
"Uh...my name's Mark."
"Oh...mine's Caitlyn," she pointed to her nametag. Again, she tried to walk away, but he seemed to be desparate to talk to her.
"I...I'm a reporter for the local paper...Mark Webber...maybe you've heard of me?"
"No, sorry, I don't read the paper much." And, ignoring the crestfallen expression on his face, she retreated back to the comfort of the kitchen.
"Aww, isn't that sweet?"
"Isn't what sweet?" she rounded on Brianne.
"He likes you, Caitie."
"Excuse me? Has the gas stove been leaking again?"
She rolled her eyes. "You know it's true. He asked you for your name, told you his, tried to start up a conversation...Caitie, he brought a rose."
"You're crazy, Brianne. Who says that it's for me? For all I know, he's probably meeting someone here. And don't tell me to ask him," she cut off her friend who had opened her mouth to jump in. "I can see it now, 'Hello, that rose wouldn't happen to be for me, would it?' 'Er...no, actually it's for my fioncee who should be here any minute now.'" She smirked. "Besides, how could he like me? He doesn't even know me."
"He's come here four days in a row, he's not wearing a wedding ring, and he's always had his eye on you..." Now that she mentioned it, he did look familiar. "Just go," Brianne motioned as Kevin placed the bowl of soup on a tray and slid it towards her. "Find out."
Caitie sighed reluctantly and took the tray, taking to food out to Mark's table. "Here you go, one cup of soup and one cup of coffee," she sat them down in front of him. Glancing back at Brianne, who edged her on, she bit her tongue hestiantly. She couldn't believe she was doing this. "Um...may I ask...who is the rose for? Your girlfriend, or-"
"Yeah...it's for you, actually," he smiled sheepishly.
Caitie felt a warm, rosey tinge spreading over her cheeks.
That's when the guy sittin gint he booth behind him turned around. "Why don't you tell her why you brought her a flower?"
"I...excuse me?" Mark was clearly startled.
"You know what I'm talking about."
"No...No I don't..."
"Come on, why don't you tell her about the bet you and your friend were discussing the other day? What was it for again? Two hundred, five hundred dollars?"
"Hey, why don't you mind your own business!" he suddenly got defensive.
Caitie felt her heart sinking. "Woah, wait, what's going on here?"
The stranger hesitated for a moment, then answered, "This creep bet his friend that he could...well, that he could get you into bed before midnight tonight."
She faltered for a second, her eyes jumping back and forth between the two guys, then shrugged indifferently. "So...what was it? Two hundred or five? I want to know what I'm worth."
Mark glared contemptuously at the man before standing up and slamming a couple bills down on the table. "It was two hundred," he spat, grabbing his coat and slinging it over his shoulders. "But now that I know you...that's way too high."
Caitie smiled wryly as he walked out of the diner. Oh, she was goin gto kill Brianne for putting her through all this. "My personality bites, doesn't it?" she called to his retreating form.
"Look, I'm sorry," the second man apoligized. "I didn't mean to get involved in your business...I just didn't want to see you get hurt, either." And with that, he turned and started for the exit.
Caitie shot an irritated look at her brown-haired friend who had watched the whole thing from behind the cash register before she gathered Mark's half-eaten dishes and took them to the sink.
"What are you doing?!" Brianne shrieked.
Caitie cocked an eyebrow. "Uh...I'm going back to work."
"At a time like this?! Caitie, you should be chasing after him!"
"After who? That other guy?" She looked at her incredulusly. "Oh, no, I'mnot listening to you again."
"Caitie! He's perfect! He's cute, and sweet, and sensitive! He just saved you from making a big mistake, then said he didn't want to see you get hurt, and you're letting him just walk away?! It's no wonder why you haven't had a boyfriend since high school."
"Oh sure, bring that up again," she muttered. Outside, the man could still be seen through the window, standing on the curb and watching the traffic go by, waiting to cross the street.
"Go!" Brianne pushed her towards the door.
Taking a deep breath, and making a silent vow to herself never to listen to Brianne again, she rushed out after him. "Wait!" SHe yelled, catching himbefore he started across the road.
The blonde haired hunk turned around at her cry and waited for her to catch up to him.
*Ths was a stupid move,* Caitie thought to herself. What was she going to say? Not being able to think of anything else, she started the same way Mark had. "Um...my name's Caitie."
"I know," he replied.
She stared at him blankly.
"You...you really don't recognize me, do you?"
"Um...should I?" She looked genuinely bewildered.
He laughed and ran his fingers through his sandly blonde hair. He had bright ocean-blue eyes and the slight beginnings of a beard. "It's me...Tyler Connell...we went to high school together."
Caitie's jaw hit the floor as she stared in disbelief. "Tyler Connel? THE Tyler Connel? The preppy over-achieving volunteer EMT varsity football player Tyler?"
"Yeah, that would be me," he smiled guiltily.
"Oh my God! I didn't realize it was you! How are you! You look different; I haven't seen you in nearly five years now. Are you still dating Val? How is she? Do you still live in Nova Scotia? What brings you to Manhattain?"
"Woah, slow down. I'm fine, Val and I broke up a while back and as far as I know she's still living in Kingsport, thought we've kind of lost touch with eachother. As for me, my job as executive president of my office firm has me bouncing around all over the continant, which is why I'm here."
"So...how long are you staying then?"
"Hmm, I'm not sure, probably two or three weeks at least...Er...This may sound forward, but...would you like to go for a cup of coffee or something somewhere?"
"Oh...well, my shifts almost over now, so sure, why not?"
Tyler grinned and Caitie blushed.
* * * * * * * *
To Have and To Hold
* * * * * * * *
One Year Later...
Caitie found herself in Tyler's warm, strong arms as they danced together to their wedding song, "I Do" by Ninety-eight Degrees. It was her wedding day, and, as cheesy as it sounded, she could honestly say this had been the best day of her life. Her dress was perfect, the service had been perfect, the many pink and white flowers that decorated the small church were perfect, the reception was perfect, the cake was perfect, the dancing was perfect, Tyler was perfect...
Indeed, everything was perfect.
They were the perfect couple.
What went wrong?
*
*
*
A/N: I know it's going kind of slow...but that's only cause it's an intro. All my intros usually aren't that exciting, but the story needs a beginning, so I must include them. Just read the second or third chapter before you completely write this off as being a waste of bandwith on Fanfiction.net, please. It will get better, I promise you, and those of you who have seen the movie know what I'm talking about. The other IAHB characters will be in this as well. So please R/R if you'd like me to continue. Thanks a bunch ^_^
*
*
*
"So that's one cheddar melt with pickles and nothing else, correct?" Caitie smiled cheerfuly as she made her way back to the kitchen to relay the order to the cook. She was now twenty-two, working part-time as a waitress at a local diner to help pay for her college tuition. Her mom, who had been the only parent she had lived with; who she had ever really known, had died in a car accident four years ago, about a week after her high school graduation. Since then, she'd gone through at least thirty off- hand jobs, just trying to earn enough money to make a living until she could finally graduate from college and get a real job. Her friend, Brianne Hartman, also worked there, though she was already making a substantial income as an artist, selling her paintings and sculptures.
Caitie handed the slip of paper she had scribbled the customer's order on to Kevin, the cook, then leaned back against the counter, taking a short break while the food was being prepared.
"Only forty more minutes till our shift's over," Brianne joined her. "Busy night tonight, eh?"
"Yeah, and I still have a paper I need to finish writing for class tomorrow..."
"Oh, how is school going, by the way?"
"Fine," Caitie shrugged. "I'm pulling off a strong B somehow."
"I wish I could go to law school," Brianne sighed whistfully.
"Ha! Why do you need school anyway? You already found your calling in art; no college could teach the skills you have."
"Aw, thanks," she rubbed the back of her head embarassedly.
The two girls looked up at the chiming of the bells above the entrance as the door opened and a man walked in. He was tall and rather handsom, with dirty blonde hair and deep blue eyes. But the thing that caught Caitie's eye most was the single blood red rose he carried with him as he took a seat at one of th booths.
"Your turn," Brianne called, walking rather quickly away. I still have to take care of table four..."
Caitie rolled her eyes. She was so under-paid. Grabbing a pencil and her pad of order slips, she went out to the dining area to meet him. Putting on the cheerful smile required for her job, she spoke, "Hi, can I take your order?"
"Oh," the man flashed a polite grin back at her. "I...I think I'll just have a bowl of the house soup and a cup of coffee."
"Coming right up." She turned to leave, but the man quickly spoke up.
"Uh...my name's Mark."
"Oh...mine's Caitlyn," she pointed to her nametag. Again, she tried to walk away, but he seemed to be desparate to talk to her.
"I...I'm a reporter for the local paper...Mark Webber...maybe you've heard of me?"
"No, sorry, I don't read the paper much." And, ignoring the crestfallen expression on his face, she retreated back to the comfort of the kitchen.
"Aww, isn't that sweet?"
"Isn't what sweet?" she rounded on Brianne.
"He likes you, Caitie."
"Excuse me? Has the gas stove been leaking again?"
She rolled her eyes. "You know it's true. He asked you for your name, told you his, tried to start up a conversation...Caitie, he brought a rose."
"You're crazy, Brianne. Who says that it's for me? For all I know, he's probably meeting someone here. And don't tell me to ask him," she cut off her friend who had opened her mouth to jump in. "I can see it now, 'Hello, that rose wouldn't happen to be for me, would it?' 'Er...no, actually it's for my fioncee who should be here any minute now.'" She smirked. "Besides, how could he like me? He doesn't even know me."
"He's come here four days in a row, he's not wearing a wedding ring, and he's always had his eye on you..." Now that she mentioned it, he did look familiar. "Just go," Brianne motioned as Kevin placed the bowl of soup on a tray and slid it towards her. "Find out."
Caitie sighed reluctantly and took the tray, taking to food out to Mark's table. "Here you go, one cup of soup and one cup of coffee," she sat them down in front of him. Glancing back at Brianne, who edged her on, she bit her tongue hestiantly. She couldn't believe she was doing this. "Um...may I ask...who is the rose for? Your girlfriend, or-"
"Yeah...it's for you, actually," he smiled sheepishly.
Caitie felt a warm, rosey tinge spreading over her cheeks.
That's when the guy sittin gint he booth behind him turned around. "Why don't you tell her why you brought her a flower?"
"I...excuse me?" Mark was clearly startled.
"You know what I'm talking about."
"No...No I don't..."
"Come on, why don't you tell her about the bet you and your friend were discussing the other day? What was it for again? Two hundred, five hundred dollars?"
"Hey, why don't you mind your own business!" he suddenly got defensive.
Caitie felt her heart sinking. "Woah, wait, what's going on here?"
The stranger hesitated for a moment, then answered, "This creep bet his friend that he could...well, that he could get you into bed before midnight tonight."
She faltered for a second, her eyes jumping back and forth between the two guys, then shrugged indifferently. "So...what was it? Two hundred or five? I want to know what I'm worth."
Mark glared contemptuously at the man before standing up and slamming a couple bills down on the table. "It was two hundred," he spat, grabbing his coat and slinging it over his shoulders. "But now that I know you...that's way too high."
Caitie smiled wryly as he walked out of the diner. Oh, she was goin gto kill Brianne for putting her through all this. "My personality bites, doesn't it?" she called to his retreating form.
"Look, I'm sorry," the second man apoligized. "I didn't mean to get involved in your business...I just didn't want to see you get hurt, either." And with that, he turned and started for the exit.
Caitie shot an irritated look at her brown-haired friend who had watched the whole thing from behind the cash register before she gathered Mark's half-eaten dishes and took them to the sink.
"What are you doing?!" Brianne shrieked.
Caitie cocked an eyebrow. "Uh...I'm going back to work."
"At a time like this?! Caitie, you should be chasing after him!"
"After who? That other guy?" She looked at her incredulusly. "Oh, no, I'mnot listening to you again."
"Caitie! He's perfect! He's cute, and sweet, and sensitive! He just saved you from making a big mistake, then said he didn't want to see you get hurt, and you're letting him just walk away?! It's no wonder why you haven't had a boyfriend since high school."
"Oh sure, bring that up again," she muttered. Outside, the man could still be seen through the window, standing on the curb and watching the traffic go by, waiting to cross the street.
"Go!" Brianne pushed her towards the door.
Taking a deep breath, and making a silent vow to herself never to listen to Brianne again, she rushed out after him. "Wait!" SHe yelled, catching himbefore he started across the road.
The blonde haired hunk turned around at her cry and waited for her to catch up to him.
*Ths was a stupid move,* Caitie thought to herself. What was she going to say? Not being able to think of anything else, she started the same way Mark had. "Um...my name's Caitie."
"I know," he replied.
She stared at him blankly.
"You...you really don't recognize me, do you?"
"Um...should I?" She looked genuinely bewildered.
He laughed and ran his fingers through his sandly blonde hair. He had bright ocean-blue eyes and the slight beginnings of a beard. "It's me...Tyler Connell...we went to high school together."
Caitie's jaw hit the floor as she stared in disbelief. "Tyler Connel? THE Tyler Connel? The preppy over-achieving volunteer EMT varsity football player Tyler?"
"Yeah, that would be me," he smiled guiltily.
"Oh my God! I didn't realize it was you! How are you! You look different; I haven't seen you in nearly five years now. Are you still dating Val? How is she? Do you still live in Nova Scotia? What brings you to Manhattain?"
"Woah, slow down. I'm fine, Val and I broke up a while back and as far as I know she's still living in Kingsport, thought we've kind of lost touch with eachother. As for me, my job as executive president of my office firm has me bouncing around all over the continant, which is why I'm here."
"So...how long are you staying then?"
"Hmm, I'm not sure, probably two or three weeks at least...Er...This may sound forward, but...would you like to go for a cup of coffee or something somewhere?"
"Oh...well, my shifts almost over now, so sure, why not?"
Tyler grinned and Caitie blushed.
* * * * * * * *
To Have and To Hold
* * * * * * * *
One Year Later...
Caitie found herself in Tyler's warm, strong arms as they danced together to their wedding song, "I Do" by Ninety-eight Degrees. It was her wedding day, and, as cheesy as it sounded, she could honestly say this had been the best day of her life. Her dress was perfect, the service had been perfect, the many pink and white flowers that decorated the small church were perfect, the reception was perfect, the cake was perfect, the dancing was perfect, Tyler was perfect...
Indeed, everything was perfect.
They were the perfect couple.
What went wrong?
*
*
*
A/N: I know it's going kind of slow...but that's only cause it's an intro. All my intros usually aren't that exciting, but the story needs a beginning, so I must include them. Just read the second or third chapter before you completely write this off as being a waste of bandwith on Fanfiction.net, please. It will get better, I promise you, and those of you who have seen the movie know what I'm talking about. The other IAHB characters will be in this as well. So please R/R if you'd like me to continue. Thanks a bunch ^_^