Chapter 4 – Complete At Last?:

"Are you feeling okay? Can you hear me?" Asked Anthony as he looked at Rachel.

"...Anthony? Is that you?" Rachel replied.

"Yes, it's me. You nearly drowned back there. I had to go out there and save you."

"You... you saved my life..." Rachel murmured with a smile on her face.

"Well, it's only fair since you saved mine. Guess that makes us even huh?"

"Am... am I dreaming?" Rachel spoke with a dazed look on her face.

"Heh heh. Nope. You are awake. That wave really knocked the wind out of you huh?"

"Yeah... thanks for saving me."

"It's no problem. I just saw you swimming all the way out there, and I was certain nobody was allowed to swim that far around this time. You have to be more careful next time."

"Okay..."

Rachel tried to get up. She started to get dizzy and nearly fell down. Anthony caught her hand and helped her up. He put his other hand over her shoulder to support her balance. All of Rachel's friends backed away to give her room.

"Come on. Let's get you back to your resting spot."

Anthony walked Rachel over to her beach blanket. Rachel felt a sensation of warmth flowing through her whole body as Anthony helped her walk. She rubbed her thumb against Anthony's hand.

"Hm?" Anthony looked over to her in confusion.

Rachel blushed and looked the other direction. "I'm sorry! I'm just... out of it."

"It's alright. Here, lay down."

Rachel's friends trailed behind them both. After letting Rachel relax for a bit, the gang decided to leave and go to the volleyball courts. Rachel decided to stay behind with Anthony. Rachel and Anthony talked together for a while. Rachel honestly was considering trying to get laid with him. However, something seemed different about Anthony. For some reason, Rachel seemed to like conversing with him. Most guys she hooks up with will only talk with her for a few moments, and then have sex and leave.

Just being with Anthony made a warm glowing sensation well up inside of Rachel's chest. It was the same sensation she had with Tommy back in high school. As Rachel and Anthony got to know each other more, they decided to ride on the new roller coaster that had just recently been built. They did all of the typical things a couple would do on a date at the beach. Rachel's friends had just gotten back from the volleyball court to find them both laying back on the beach towel. They were both laughing as they talked with one another.

"Hey... maybe we should leave them be." Audrey said to the rest of the gang.

"Why?" Beth asked.

"Look guys..." Audrey pointed at Anthony and Rachel.

All the others looked over to see Rachel laying down with Anthony. Rachel was already feeling the side of Anthony's shoulder. They both looked very content.

"Hmm, that's strange. Normally she would have done him already and left him. I wonder why she is still conversing with him?" Beth asked.

"Well, they both seem really happy with each other..." Amy mumbled.

Beth and the others started to blush. Some of them got butterflies in their stomachs. Amy put her hand over her mouth.

"Oh my..." Beth responded.

"That's so cute! Oh my god! Rachel! Heehee!" Jessica squealed while jumping up and down, her inner teenager starting to reveal itself.

"Do you think maybe she might be in love?" Robert asked.

"Hmm, I don't know. Rachel hasn't really been adamant about starting a new relationship... but who knows? It's still quite adorable though." Beth replied.

The rest of the gang snuck up on Rachel and Anthony from behind. They hid behind a few boogie boards. Amy kept trying to resist the urge to squeal.

"Look, we really shouldn't be eavesdropping on them like this. I'm just gonna go to the snack bar and.." Robert was interrupted by Jessica.

"No! We have to see this!" Jessica replied sternly, while grabbing Roberts hand and pulling him back.

"You're so warm..." Rachel said in a soothing voice as she started to rub Anthony's arm.

"It's just because of the sun," Anthony teased.

They both chuckled. Anthony looked deeply into Rachel's eyes. Rachel looked back, while her heart started to flutter.

Anthony and Rachel both got closer together. Their lips made contact. They kissed.

The gang was so full of energy and excitement as they watched. Amy let out a long sigh, but made sure it was still quiet enough so that Rachel and Anthony wouldn't notice.

Anthony and Rachel continued to kiss, as they both wrapped their arms around each other. Anthony put his right hand on Rachel's cheek while rubbing it slowly with his thumb. He smiled contently at her. Rachel smiled back. She could not remember the last time she felt this happy. She was worried that she would never feel this way again. For the first time in years, she felt loved. She felt wanted.

Rachel hugged Anthony tightly. Anthony ran his fingers through Rachel's soft hair. Anthony himself was experiencing the same emotions as Rachel. They both smiled as they embraced one another.

"I... I love you Anthony," Rachel sighed with adoration.

"I love you too," Anthony replied.

The gang ran back to the hotel room. They couldn't hold in their excitement any longer. It was already getting dark, and Anthony and Rachel decided to exchange phone numbers. Anthony lead Rachel over to his car. They both blushed as they looked over at each other. They already knew what was going to happen next. But before they could reach the car, Hildegaard had run up to them. She was calling Rachel's name.

"Hey Rachel!" Hildegaard hollered.

"Oh... hey Hildegaard..." Rachel cringed.

"Hey, I wanted to say that I'm sorry for how harsh I was towards you. Even if you were a cheater at one point, it doesn't mean I had to treat you that way."

Rachel gasped and put her hands over her eyes. She could not believe Hildegaard had just given away the one thing that she didn't want Anthony to know about. Anthony's jaw dropped. He could not believe what he just heard.

"You know what... I got to go," Anthony said to Rachel in a rushed tone.

"Wait! No! Let us talk about this! I love you Anthony! Please! Don't leave!" Rachel cried out in horror.

"I'm sorry Rachel. I'm not taking the risk. Once a cheater, always a cheater," Anthony shook his head in disappointment.

"No! It's not true! I've changed! That was a long time ago! I would never cheat on you! Please, I'm begging you!"

"No Rachel! I've been cheated on before. I'm not going to take that risk again!"

Rachel stopped for a moment. She was paralyzed. A sense of impending doom engulfed her entire being. For a moment, she felt as though she was doomed to never have anyone to love so long as she had cheated. Even if Anthony hadn't found out from Hildegaard, he could have found out eventually. She thought that all her problems were gone after she had reformed herself, but the biggest one had just manifested itself. She had to do something, and fast.

"I'll prove it to you! I'll prove that I'm loyal! Just please! At least give me a chance!"

"And how do you suppose to do that?"

"Anyone will vouch for me, even my roommates who used to despise me for cheating, right Hildegaard?"

Hildegaard nodded her head.

"Please, let Rachel have a chance. People can change Anthony. I know that from experience. Rachel has changed a lot and has matured, and I believe that she would never cheat on anyone." Hildegaard said to Anthony.

Anthony paused for a moment. He seemed to be deep in thought. Anthony wasn't all just muscle. He was very intelligent in a way. All of the sudden, he looked up and raised an eyebrow.

"Would your ex vouch for you?" Anthony asked Rachel with his arms crossed.

Rachel was struck silent. Anthony had just hit the weakest link. Rachel didn't know what to say. She wouldn't dare lie to him, as her trust was at stake. She wasn't sure if Tommy would vouch for her. Tommy was happy with her for saving Lucy, but that doesn't mean he would trust her again.

"I don't know... we haven't spoken about that, but I did help save his new girlfriend from a cardiovascular arrest, and he was very thankful..."

Anthony was once again deep in thought. He thought about all the experiences he had just had with Rachel from beginning to end. He remembered how she saved his life. He remembered how she was willing to even make sure he was okay after falling off of the top of her car. He remembered all the moments she had with him the whole entire day. She hasn't lied once, except for when she had rubbed his hand after being carried to her beach blanket, but that wasn't a big deal. She hasn't even done anything remotely considered 'bad'. Everything Rachel had told him up to this point seemed to be positive.

However, he still had doubts. He needed a way to make sure that she would remain loyal. He all of the sudden got a brilliant idea.

"Okay, look. I will give you a chance."

Rachel felt an immense sense of relief, she was overjoyed. She wanted to run up to Anthony and hug him, but he still appeared to be a bit stern. Even though Anthony was giving her a chance, she still had to build up his trust a little bit more.

"But I'm going to be leaving to the college for now. When will you be back at the college?" Anthony asked with his arms still crossed.

"T-Today actually, around 12:00a.m." Rachel replied.

"Okay, good. I'll meet with you tomorrow at the college library. Give me a call in the morning so we can schedule a time to meet up there. Goodbye, Rachel."

Rachel stood frozen while Anthony got in his car and drove away. Hildegaard put her hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry Rachel..." Hildegaard lowered her head in shame.

"No, it's okay. You didn't know. It was me who started this whole mess in the first place... and now I'm going to clean it up as best I can," Rachel murmured.

–

It was 8:00 at night. Rachel was at the beach bar by herself. Normally she would have gone with her friends, but she just felt like having some alone time and a few beers. She wasn't driving the truck anyways, so she didn't need to worry. After ordering her first drink, she noticed someone in the corner of her eye. There was a fox sitting a few seats away from her. She could somehow tell that he was checking her out. When Rachel turned her head towards him, she could not believe what she saw.

She saw what appeared to be the hottest fox she had ever laid eyes upon. He had muscles bigger than she had ever seen up close. He looked like he belonged on a Roman statue. His face was perfect. His hair... his eyes... his smile. Rachel quickly looked back at the bar as she twiddled her thumbs and bit her lower lip. Just glancing at him made her wet. She was starting to lose control... again.

"C'mon Rachel. What are you thinking? You aren't honestly going to think about cheating on another guy? After all that you have been through? You are just going to throw this all away?" Rachel thought to herself.

Then again, Rachel wasn't sure if the relationship would work out anyways. Anthony did seem to be a bit oversensitive about her having been a cheater. Perhaps she could just give him up and continue having fun while she was still young. Or better yet, why not just stay with him and cheat anyways? He would never know. This time she would make sure her boyfriend never found out. Nobody she knew was around to snitch on her, she thought. But before she could make any decisions, already the fox had gotten off his chair and began to approach her.