When I wake up, I'm a little disoriented. It doesn't take me long to figure out I'm in my old bed. It's all very familiar, except for one thing…I'm holding Linka in my arms. Her back pressed against my chest, her head resting on my arm, my legs entangled with hers…I could stay like this all day. What time is it anyways? Oh no!

"Linka get up!"

She just groans and buries her head into my arm.

"C'mon Babe, we gotta get dressed and get outta here!"

"I am thinking I might be using that punch I owe you if you do not stop fidgeting."

"It's almost noon! My parents could come home any second!"

"Chyort voz'mi! Why did you not wake me up sooner!" She says as she throws the covers back and begins looking for clothes.

"I just woke up too. Here," I say as I toss her shirt at her, but she's already digging through her overnight bag and pulling out her regular clothes. I pull a pair of boxers on and then put on my jeans. "Hey," I say as I grab her shoulder and turn her to face me. I put my hands on her hips to get her to stand still and utter "Good morning, Beautiful" against her lips.

She gives in long enough to return my kiss and say "Good morning…now HURRY."

In record time, we've cleaned up after ourselves and put all the dishes away. If it weren't for the note I left letting my parents know that I had spent the night after an impromptu trip to the city, you'd have never known anyone was there. We climb the stairs to the top of the building where we parked the Geo Cruiser and head back to Hope Island.


"Sorry everything was so rushed this morning. We didn't really get to start the morning off right. You know, wake up slowly, cuddle for a bit, make you my specialty for breakfast, tell you how great last night was, et cetera."

"Et cetera?"

"Yeah, you can fill in the blanks yourself."

She laughs that perfect laugh of hers.

"Well, you will just have to make it up to me next time."

"I will. I promise. I need you to promise me something though Linka."

"What is it?"

"When we get back to Hope Island, promise me things won't change. Promise me we can still say and do the things we did in New York."

"I cannot make that promise Wheeler."

Ever wonder what it feels like to get your heart ripped out and handed to you? I can tell you exactly how it feels if you'd like to know.

"We were not working last night. When we get back to Hope Island, we will be with the Planeteers and have a job to do, Yankee. We cannot lose focus and disrupt the group. However, I can promise you that my feelings towards you will not change. And when we are not on a mission or have free time around the island, I want to spend my time with you."

"That's all I needed to hear. Oh, and are we gonna tell the others?"

"Well, they do not need to know details, but yes, I was planning on telling Gi what a wonderful time I had and SOME of the things we did. Particularly the midnight kiss. I think Gi will appreciate that since she is into romantic stuff like that."

"Yeah, I can't wait to tell the guys about the body shots!"

"NYET! What will they think of me?!"

"I don't give a damn what they think about you! They're gonna think I'm the luckiest guy alive!"

"Fine, if you are going to tell them something embarrassing that I did, I will tell them that you can't hold your alcohol and you threw up."

"Be my guest. I'll tell them you snore!"

"I DO NOT!"

"I know, but they'll believe me if I say you do. Everyone who snores denies doing it."

"Well that is just lying. I can make up lies about you too."

"Go ahead. Take your best shot," I challenge.

"Ok. I will tell them you have no stamina!" She says with an evil laugh.

"I DO NOT! I GOT PLENTY OF STAMINA…or have you forgotten?"

"I know, but they will believe me if I say you do not. Everyone who has no stamina denies it."

She's using my own words against me. That's not right.

"Fine. I won't tell them you snore."


We arrive back on Hope Island a few hours later. The welcome we receive isn't exactly what I would describe as "warm."

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? WE WERE WORRIED SICK!" Gi chastises.

"We thought you were kidnapped!" Kwame says.

"Whoa, chill. I kidnapped Linka and took her to New York for New Year's. I'd have invited you guys to come along, but you party poopers were sleeping. How ya feelin' Ma-Ti? Better?"

"Yes. A little. I was the one that discovered you were not here when I came to the kitchen to mix some herbal medicine. I saw that the commons area was set up for a party, but it did not look like anyone had been there. There were no glasses, no food, and when I turned on the TV, the 24 hour news channel was on, not the channel that normally shows the New Year's celebrations."

"Da, that was me. When I was decorating, I had on the news because they were showing New Year's celebrations from around the world when it turned midnight in each time zone."

"I checked your room, Wheeler, and saw that your bags were here so you must have come back to Hope Island. Then I checked Linka's room and got no answer when I knocked, so I looked in and once again, saw bags, but no sign of her. I know you took the Eco-Copter to New York for Christmas, but it was returned and now the Geo Cruiser was gone. Kwame and Gi were just waking up so I asked them if either of you said anything to them about going somewhere, but they had been asleep all evening."

"Well you're quite the detective Ma-Ti! So you figured we didn't have a party and that we'd been back on the Island, but not any more. Why didn't you just use your ring to find us?" I ask.

"I did."

"WHAT?!" Gi and Kwame both exclaim at the same time.

"Why didn't you tell us Ma-Ti?" Gi inquires.

"Once I knew they were ok, I figured they would be home soon."

"What time did you use your ring?" Linka asks.

"Yeah, we never heard you." I say.

"About 5:30 am." Ma-Ti says as he refuses to make eye contact.

Oh.

"We were sleeping." Linka says.

"Um, Linka." I say to her as I shake my head.

"Oooh," she says as the realization hits her. Her face is as red as my hair!

"Sorry." Ma-Ti says sheepishly.

"Does anyone want to explain what's going on?" Gi asks.

"I took Linka to New York for a real New Year's bash. We just wanted to ring in the New Year with a bang." I say, trying to suppress a laugh.

Gi and Kwame seem satisfied with that, but still had to send a few words of wisdom on their way out the door.

"Well next time my friends, leave a note!"

I don't dare look at Linka or Ma-Ti until I'm sure Gi and Kwame are out of ear shot. When I do, Ma-Ti is trying to hold back a smile, and Linka and I bust out laughing. Ma-Ti finally joins us.

"You certainly have a way with words Wheeler. Sorry again for the intrusion."

"That's ok little buddy. We didn't even know you were there."

"Obviously!" Ma-Ti says as he pats me on the back. "I am happy for you both."

"Thank you Ma-Ti, but can we keep this between us for now? At least until Kwame and Gi cool off." Linka asks.

"Sure Linka, but I can assure you they will be most happy for you. Before they started getting worried about you, they were actually joking that maybe you two had run off together! Or Linka had finally had enough and was off burying your body!"

Once we stopped laughing, Linka and I took our things to our cabins and unpacked. Then we cleaned up the commons room and took down the decorations that Linka had put up the day before. The rest of the day, we tried to avoid Kwame and Gi because they still seemed mad. It probably didn't help that I was trying to make a joke about the situation by letting them know where I was going every time I left the room. "Hey Kwame, I'm gonna go to the bathroom. That ok with you?" "Yo Gi, is it ok if I go to the kitchen to get a drink?" "Has anyone seen Ma-Ti? Maybe we should send out search and rescue!"

The toughest part was not being able to be with Linka. We'd sit on the same couch, but kept our distance. We sat in our usual seats next to each other at the dinner table, but all of a sudden, we had nothing to say to each other. There was alot of awkward silence. I don't know why. It's like we were afraid to talk to each other or even have a casual conversation because the tone of our voices would give our secret away. At least at dinner, I was able to maintain a little bit of contact with her under the table by brushing my leg against hers. It wasn't much, but it got her attention and it got her to smile at me.

The best part of the day was bedtime. As usual, the others had gone to bed before us. Now that we were finally alone, we were able to curl up on the couch together, watch TV, talk, and occasionally, steal quick kisses. We were still careful not to get caught because you never know when someone's gonna walk in because they got up to get a drink or couldn't sleep.

When we finally decide to go to bed, Linka and I walk hand in hand to her door and I give her a kiss goodnight. We stay there for a few minutes just holding each other. She's leaning against the wall and has her arms resting on my shoulders. I have my hands on her waist and am looking down into her eyes. I see it, a golden opportunity.

"Come back to my cabin with me," I say.

"I cannot."

"Why?" I ask as I lean down to kiss her.

"The others," she says against my lips.

"…are asleep. We'll sneak you out in the morning." I press closer to her so she's pinned between me and the wall.

"Yankeeeeeeeeee," she purrs as I move to kiss her neck.

"Baaaaaaaabe," I mock and then look at her with my best puppy dog eyes.

"Let me change into my pajamas."

YES! I WIN!

"I'll wait out here for you."


Wraps up in the next chapter. Sorry there's no drama. Got enough of that in real life!