The Camera Doesn't Lie
A sequel to A Meeting of Mermaids and Californian Quandary:
Rikki is feeling restless and wants to see the world. Zane makes a startling proposal that sets in motion a chain of events that no one could have forseen...
Standard disclaimer: The H2O universe is not my own, the characters from H2O: Just Add Water are not mine, but the Yanks and this story are.
The Proposal
Life was settling down for Rikki and Zane and the café. Their new American friends had gone home to California, but with a promise to visit someday. Rikki had hired new wait staff to replace the girls; this time each candidate got the "spilled water" test just to make sure there weren't any surprises later on. Although not as good as the Yanks the new staff proved to be competent and soon Rikki found that she didn't have to spend so much time at the café. That meant more frequent swims with her best friends Cleo and Emma.
Bella and Will were still on their trip to Ireland; occasionally a text or email would arrive with information of a more sensitive nature, like about how they found the pool and that the magic was still alive there. More often than not, though, Bella would simply post pictures and status on Facebook. Rikki could sense that the two were getting more serious in their relationship; she half expected an engagement announcement any day.
As for her and Zane, well, their relationship still had its ups and downs, although Zane didn't do quite as many stupid things as he used to do. He was actually getting very dependable and sometimes Rikki caught herself thinking about their future. She sometimes envied Emma and Ash who were engaged but still hadn't set a date yet. Their relationship seemed rock solid. And Cleo and Lewis were still getting used to each other being close again after their year and a half apart; Rikki fully expected them to make the big commitment soon.
Rikki's biggest fear was that something would happen and the other girls would be gone, leaving her behind. 'There's more to life than the café,' she thought to herself, and the others knew it. When Emma told stories about her trip around the world it made Rikki long to experience it herself. Maybe it was time to take a break and go out into the world.
Even though the secondary tourist season had started, with visitors from the southern states arriving in droves to escape the cold winter weather, the café was still running smoothly. The Gold Coast's weather was nice and moderate at this time of year; the lows did dip into the teens but the highs never got above 22; nice and comfortable.
On a very moderate winter day in the middle of July, Rikki was sitting in the office of the café relaxing. Since she had finished training the new shift managers the week earlier Rikki found that she now had a lot of free time on her hands. She used to just dive in and help where she was most needed; now she was content to let her employees work without her interfering.
The door opened and Zane entered, giving her a smile, which Rikki returned. Instead of spitting out her standard sarcastic greeting Rikki kept her mouth shut and simply waited for Zane to talk first.
"Hey, Rikki, things are running pretty smooth out there," Zane told her, coming around and giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"Yes they are, thanks to me hiring Susan and Jody as the shift managers," Rikki said. "They are so much better than Sophie ever was."
"You're right; that was pretty stupid of me," Zane said with a half grin. "Which you don't let me forget."
Rikki laughed; she still loved to bait Zane but lately she found herself not wanting to take it very far. Rikki then sat back in the chair and her attitude turned serious.
"I just wish I didn't have to always keep an eye on this place," Rikki told him as he sat on the desk. "It is running really well now, but…"
"Thanks to you," Zane said.
"Yeah, I know," Rikki said with a wistful look.
"What's wrong?" Zane asked.
"Oh, everyone else is off having fun and we're stuck here," Rikki explained.
"You mean like Will and Bella, or even Cleo and Lewis?" Zane asked.
"Yeah, like them," Rikki replied. "I guess I'm worried that they'll decide to go off and we'll be left alone, stuck here in the Gold Coast."
"There's Mako," Zane said.
"Yes, Mako's here," Rikki said. "But…"
"No, I understand," Zane said. "So I have a plan to help us out…"
"Oh no, what have you done, Zane?" Rikki asked, worried.
"So I could tell that you were getting restless, so I've been working on a plan to relieve you from having to run the café on a day-to-day basis," Zane explained. "Remember Wilfred, who used to manage the JuiceNet? Well, he came by the other day while you were out with Cleo and Emma and talked to me about getting a job."
"What did you tell him?" Rikki asked.
"That we were considering hiring a full-time manager to run the café, that he'd be perfect for the job, but that I'd talk with you about it to see if you approved," Zane explained.
Rikki thought about it. It was actually a very good idea; Wilfred had expertise running the place before and had a good sense for business. If she were to turn running the café over to him she'd have a lot of free time on her hands; enough to spend with her friends and maybe also go off and see some of the world.
"If you don't like the idea I can always tell him no," Zane said.
"No, it's perfect," Rikki replied, and came around the desk and gave Zane a kiss. "Well done!"
"Really?" Zane exclaimed. "Wow, I don't think I've ever done that before. You'd better marry me quick before I screw up something else."
"What did you say?" Rikki asked. "Do you know what you just said?"
"Yes I do," Zane replied.
"Do you mean it?" Rikki asked. "The part about us getting married?"
"Yes, with all my heart," Zane said simply. "Rikki Chadwick, I want to marry you. Will you marry me?"
Yes their relationship had had its ups and downs, but had smoothed out and was running along very well. She'd have to keep an eye on him in case he had any more dumb ideas, but this idea, well, this was his best idea yet. Rikki tried to keep her face impassive as she thought, wondering how he would react, but Zane waited patiently for her answer. Rikki's heart gave a leap and she smiled.
"Yes," Rikki said and a tear slid out of her eye and down her cheek.
"Hey, you're crying," Zane said, wiping off the tear.
"And if you tell anyone I cried I'll seriously hurt you!" Rikki said.
She threw her arms around him and held him close.
"So, when?" Rikki asked. "You don't want to wait like Emma and Ash, do you?"
"No, I think we should get married right away, and then go off on a long honeymoon away from here!"
"That sounds great!" Rikki exclaimed. "Where would we go?"
"Oh, for starters, how about Fiji, or Hawaii?" Zane replied. "I know you've mentioned both several times in the past."
"Yes I have, but you said for starters?" Rikki asked. "What else did you have in mind?"
"We could go to California, maybe drop by and see the Yanks," Zane said. "You'd love to swim with them again, maybe check out their Moon Pool."
"That's a great idea!" Rikki told him giving him another kiss.
"I should have proposed months ago," Zane said after the kiss ended.
"I would have said no then," Rikki said with a smile. "No, your timing is very good this time."
Zane gave her a smile back.
"So when would you want to do this?" Zane asked. "And how big of a wedding do you want?"
"Something small, on the beach I think," Rikki replied. "Not big; I'm not one for impressing everyone."
"You've impressed me," Zane told her, getting another kiss from her by way of reply.
"So it's the middle of July, oh, how about the first week in September?" Rikki asked. "That'll give us a month to get ready."
"Sounds fine to me," Zane told her. "Who do you want to help you?"
Rikki through about her family; her dad would definitely come, but she could care less about her mum. Besides, she hadn't seen her in years. She was closer to Emma's mom and Cleo's stepmom Samantha than her own mum. Maybe one of them would help her out. She thought about her Yank friends and wished they were around; they'd be great help.
"You know, I'm going to text Rowan," Rikki said. "See if we could drop by after the wedding."
"Sounds good; I'll go call Wilfred and give him the good news," Zane said and after giving Rikki another kiss left her in the office.
Rikki got out her phone and composed a text for Rowan, then sent it off.
Back in San Rafael Rowan was just getting ready to meet Melanie and Tanya down at the harbor for a swim out through the bay. Paul was about ready to head off to Jake's house to meet him and Stephen there to watch the game. Sadly Seth and Jackie were currently down in LA; it was time to bring them back up and get the four mermaids back together for some quality time in the Muir Beach pool.
"Ping!"
Rowan's phone signaled the arrival of a text message. Rowan dug the phone out of her purse and opened the message app.
"Oh, cool, it's from Rikki," Rowan told Paul after reading the note.
Paul was just heading out to the garage but hesitated at the door.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Looks like a date has been set for a wedding."
"Ah, someone has finally decided to take the plunge," Paul said. "Who's wedding is it; Emma's? Or has Cleo and Lewis finally gotten engaged?"
"Actually, neither," Rowan replied with a smile.
"What, Will finally proposed to Bella? That took long enough."
"Actually, its Rikki and Zane."
"What? The fakers! Pretending they didn't want to commit and settle down and now they'll be the first," Paul said, grinning, remembering the Aussies' relationship when they had left them a few months earlier. "So when is it?"
Rowan typed in her response and sent it off. Moments later the reply came in with a ping. Rowan read the text and got a big smile on her face.
"September; just about 5 weeks," Rowan said. "And guess where they're going on their honeymoon?"
"Uh, Sydney?" Paul joked.
"No, Hawaii and then Northern California," Rowan said. "She wants to know if it is okay for them to drop by."
"Okay? Tell her of course its okay and if she doesn't come by we'll go to Hawaii and break up their honeymoon!" Paul said.
"We will not say that," Rowan said. "But I'll tell her they are more than welcome and that they can stay here!"
"Great," Paul said.
"Rowan says they'd love for us to come and stay with them," Rikki told Zane when the reply came.
"That'll be fun," Zane said.
There was a quiet pause while Zane waited for Rikki to finish sending to Rowan.
"So, are you ready to tell the others?" Zane asked.
"They are really going to razz us, aren't they?" Rikki asked.
"Probably," Zane replied. "But you'll tell 'em off in your own way."
"Just watch me glare them into silence," Rikki said.
Continued with Chapter 2, Confessions