The plane landed at Los Angeles International Airport in the afternoon. It had been a pleasant flight, despite the meltdown Jem had during take off. They had a meal on board then watched in fascination as the stewardess turned their seats into a double bed for them to rest for a few hours.
It had been a good landing; they barely felt it when the plane made contact with the earth once more. They were allowed off the plane first and so entered into the noisy world of LAX. Clearing immigration was a breeze as most of the security checks had already been done in London. They then went to the car park to find their car.
The stewardesses who had served them on the plane would not have believed that this beaten up old Toyota belonged to them. Tessa slid into the driver's seat and started the ignition.
It was a sunny day outside and Jem wound down the windows to let the wind blow in. The sudden gust blew Tessa's hair over her face and she swerved a little. Jem laughed and pulled her hair back into place, his fingers intentionally brushing against her cheek as he did so. She looked so happy driving along the coastal road in the sunshine, and he told her so.
"I've always thought of buying a convertible," she told him. "But I didn't want to be too over the top."
"I'll get you one, one day, after I've saved up enough," Jem promised. "Maybe that'll make us fit in more in the neighbourhood."
"Took us a long time to find that neighbourhood, didn't it?" Tessa reminded him, laughing.
Jem laughed too. "Remember that first place the estate agent took us to see?"
"Six bedrooms, four baths, a private movie theatre and an enormous swimming pool. And it looked like Madonna might live next door."
He nodded. "I don't know why she thought we might like it. It was so ostentatious."
"Well, they do get a cut of commission for the house they sell. Maybe the bigger the house, the bigger the commission," Tessa suggested. "But then, that walk-up studio apartment doesn't fit into the rule."
"That studio apartment didn't fit any rule about what a home should be," Jem remarked. "It was more like a dingy storage space than a home. And that strange smell it had… what a stench. I couldn't imagine anyone wanting to live there."
"To be fair," Tessa admitted. "If you gave the place a good cleaning and sealed up the windows, it might have worked."
"I wouldn't like to live in a place that was shut up all the time. I doubt you would either," Jem retorted.
"That's true, but you would want a house that could be shut up sometimes."
"Are you referring to the dogtrot house?" Jem asked, remembering the house that did not have a front door but instead had an open passageway through the centre of the house lined with doors that led to the rooms.
"Of course. It was a nice house, Jem, I don't deny it. But not too safe, I think. Think of the number of doors we'd have to lock every night. And it would be freezing in winter, having to go outside to get to another room. I thought it was strange that you liked that house."
"I liked that it was so open. But I understand your point," Jem conceded. "I also liked those apartments the agent showed us downtown."
"I remember," Tessa agreed. "I'm sorry I didn't though. Those ultramodern apartments were too cold and sterile for me. If I were living by myself, perhaps they would work, but not if I wanted to raise a family. I'd like for our kids to have space to run around – inside and outside the house – and not have to worry about them breaking a vase or getting electrocuted by all those high-tech appliances. No, I wanted trees and a garden and grass."
"You sound like Will," Jem noted. "He was always going on about the hills and dales of Wales."
"I guess I lived with him so long that a bit of it's rubbed off on me," Tessa chuckled. "I do see what he was getting at though. After all, humans are all products of nature. It's strange to take us out of nature and place us in concrete cells. Even you; you used to be a city boy, but I notice that you appreciate nature more now."
"I do," Jem admitted. "But I still wouldn't want to live miles and miles away from the city."
"That agent thought you did; that's why she recommended that mansion out on the cliff road," Tessa said. "There was absolutely nothing for miles around. I was shocked at how long it took just to drive there."
"And it was a monstrosity when we did arrive," Jem said. "All that dark stone and spires and flying turrets. Like something out of a nightmare."
"Probably had monsters chained up in the dungeon," Tessa giggled.
"I wouldn't be surprised," Jem agreed.
"Appearances can be deceiving though," Tessa reminded him. "Remember that apartment we wanted to take in Los Robles?"
"We were so close to signing up for it too," Jem said, sighing. "It was a lovely apartment – nice spacious rooms, good neighbourhood and shops around."
"Good thing we brought Emma and Jules to come take a look at it," Tessa said. "I still can't figure out how Emma knew the neighbours were weirdos."
"I can't either. They said they were scientists and they seemed alright," Jem admitted. "Though I wouldn't like to meet that pale skinny man every day. After Emma pointed him out, I couldn't stop thinking he might be a stalker or blow us up in our sleep."
"Or unleash a plague of rats to eat us alive," Tessa joked.
Jem laughed, remembering another apartment. "I know. That apartment in downtown LA. Three bedrooms and close to a park. Thank god we returned more times to look at the place before we signed the papers. Imagine what would have happened if we discovered that family of rats in the ceiling only after we moved in." He shuddered at the memory.
"I'd never seen so many rats in my life," he continued. "I'm sure an exterminator could have dealt with the problem, but I still wouldn't like to live in a place that had housed so many rats. We could kick one lot out but another lot might move right back in."
Tessa laughed as she turned off the coastal road to head towards the Palos Verdes Peninsula. "The estate agent must have been desperate, trying to find a nice home for us that we liked. What with the houses being too big, too small, too modern, too old-fashioned, or just plain 'not having the feeling of home', I'm surprised she didn't just give up."
"She didn't really help in the end. We found our home on our own," Jem noted.
"It was serendipity," Tessa said. "Being in the right place at the right time. I'm really glad you found it, Jem. It's perfect."
Jem recalled how he had been driving out from the LA Institute when he took a wrong turn off the highway and ended up going around the Palos Verdes Peninsula. It was a scenic drive so he did not mind that he had got lost.
Eventually, he found himself in a cul-de-sac in Rancho Palos Verdes and had to make a clumsy three-point turn to get back to the main road. But as he did so, he spotted a house tucked away among the trees. It was a small beige coloured bungalow with a pretty garden that had a cobbled path that led up to the front door. Instantly, he knew this was the house he and Tessa had been looking for.
He parked the car and walked over. He could not believe his eyes when he saw a "For Sale" sign outside. He went up to the house and knocked. The owners showed him around the house and he loved it. He drove off and returned within the hour with Tessa.
They loved the house. It was plain but had a view of the Pacific Ocean that made up for everything. Its slightly dim interior was cosy and spoke of a place where one could make a home. The bare walls were crying out for pictures to be hung, and the empty rooms were perfect to fill with the sounds of family life. There was a large backyard where children could play and Tessa could even grow some plants and vegetables. The large kitchen could also serve as a dining room, and had enough space to cook and to spend time in.
Even Church liked it. He sauntered in, made a tour of inspection of all the rooms, then settled down on the windowsill in the small home office at the back and gave angry glares as though challenging anyone who thought of removing him. He even gave Jem a few swats with his paw when Jem tried to pick him up so they could leave.
"This is is, Jem," Tessa said happily as they sat in the car and looked at the house after viewing it, reluctant to leave. "This is our home."
That was months ago. Now, Tessa reached the house, pulled up outside and parked the car. Jem dashed out with a quick "wait here" to her. She was puzzled but stayed put in the car, wondering what he was up to. She saw him run up the path and open the front door, through which Church shot out and disappeared into the bushes.
Jem returned a little out of breath. "Ok, you can come out now," he said.
Tessa obediently climbed out of the car and let out a little scream when Jem swept her off her feet and into his arms. "Jem! What are you doing?"
"I'm going to carry you over the threshold," he announced. "Isn't that the thing to do?"
Tessa laughed and put her arms around his neck. "Oh go on then," she said.
Jem had certainly put on a bit more muscle in the last century and he carried her effortlessly into the house. He swung her down in the living room and kissed her. "Welcome home, Mrs Carstairs," he declared.