Disclaimer: Yeah, well, I still
maintain that if I did own anything IaHB related, they would be going into a
second season. *Grumbles at Disney* Suffice it to say, I own nothing IaHb related.
Thanks to everyone who reviewed my fic. I know this fic is a long one and most of you stuck it out to the
very end. Thank you a lot for
that. You guys are wonderful.
Oh, and Darkchilde? Equipment? Erm, what kind of equipment would that
be? And I am glad to hear that the
soundproofing is coming along well.
Here we go:
The sun rose the next morning, sprinkling its dusty rays throughout the
town of Kingsport. It was a pleasant
morning- not too hot and not too cold. People who had lived in the town all their lives had to admit that it
was one of the nicest mornings, weather-wise, that they had had in a long
time. Not a cloud dotted the beautiful
blue sky. It was a beautiful day in
Kingsport.
Well, almost
beautiful. Six people awoke to the
morning sunshine and cloudless sky and could feel none of the happiness that
all of the other people in the town felt. No, they could not seem to admire the wonderful weather at all. It seemed that all six people had other
things on their mind.
It was the end of the
reunion. Today, everyone would be
saying their good-byes and going back to their old lives. And Tyler, Val, Caitie, Jamie, Hank and
Melanie all wondered how they would manage to leave. After everything that had happened in the last couple of days,
they all wondered how they could possibly turn their back on it all and leave
to go back to the lives that they had had before. For the six of them, life would never be the same again.
…………………………………………..
Val stood pacing right
outside of Tyler's door. She was
rehearsing what to say to him when they said goodbye. She had wanted to get an early start that
morning back towards the city and that meant saying goodbye to Tyler. Sure, she didn't really want to say goodbye
to Tyler, but some things just had to be done.
I will just go in there
and tell him how much I……….care for him. And then I will tell him to keep in touch, she thought, trying to get it
all straight in her mind. Then I will
tell him……..
It was funny how she
couldn't seem to say the word goodbye in her mind.
Well, her mind mentioned
casually, look at the bright side. When
you get back to the city, you can have Kiandra take you to get that great
fleece sweater you wanted.
"Oh yeah," Val
mumbled. "Like that even matters now."
But still, she had to
admit that the fleece sweater would be nice. Of course, she would get this sweater from winning the bet she had with
Kiandra. Val almost laughed. Kiandra was so crazy. There was no way that Val was going to ask
Tyler to go with her back to the city to meet Kiandra. There was just no way.
See? Val told her mind. I am going to tell him bye right now. That should be proof enough that I never intended to ask him to
go back to the city with me. I'll get
the sweater, but it won't really matter because Tyler won't be there.
Val stopped pacing and
her shoulders slumped at the last thought. He wouldn't be there, she realized. And all the sweaters in the world would not make her feel better about
that. In fact, nothing would make her
feel better about that.
I just have to get it
over with, she told herself calmly, ignoring that fact that she wanted to
cry. Val squared her shoulders and
knocked on the door before her.
Immediately, Tyler opened
the door as if he had been waiting for her to arrive. Val vaguely hoped that Tyler had not known she had been pacing outside
his room for a few minutes before she had knocked on the door.
He smiled at her and
gestured for her to come into the room. She walked inside slowly, knowing that telling him goodbye would be one
of the hardest things she would ever do. But, it has to be done, she told herself for the millionth time. Sometimes we have to do things that we don't
want to do and this is one of them.
"So, what's up,
Val?" Tyler asked, hoping that she had
not come to tell him goodbye. He was
not ready for her to leave yet at all.
Val ran through
everything she had rehearsed in the hall. No big deal, she told herself. And then out loud she said, "Tyler, I wanted to tell you something."
Val smiled hesitantly and
then looked directly into Tyler's eyes. And that, she realized two seconds too late, was a huge mistake. His eyes were blue, as she had known that
little fact for years now. But, that
day, they seemed even lighter blue than before. They seemed to sparkle at her and Val was suddenly reminded of
the ocean. And, she thought surprising
herself, when he smiles his eyes crinkle in the corners. Whoa, she thought, I am losing control.
And it was true. Val could feel her resolve slipping away
slowly and she knew that if she stayed in Tyler's room too much longer, she
would end up never leaving. I have to
do this, she told herself. I'll just
say it quickly and have it over with once and for all.
"Tylerwillyougotothecitywithmeandmeetmyroommate?" Val said in one quick breath. Then she froze. What had she just said? She had meant to say that she had come down to his room to tell him
goodbye. But, it surely had not come
out that way. Oh good Lord, she thought
as she closed her eyes in embarrassment. What have I done?
"What?" Tyler asked
sharply. He had wanted her to say those
exact words for so long. Of course he
wanted to go back to the city with her. He wanted to be with her forever. But, he was also practical about the situation and he wanted to see if
that was what she had really said.
"I said, I came down to
your room to tell you goodbye," Val amended quickly, hoping that Tyler really
hadn't been able to understand her the first time.
Tyler smiled and looked
at Val knowingly. No, that had not been
what she had said at all. It wasn't
even close. He watched the girl before
him as she would not meet his eye. "That's not what you said," he said quietly, watching as Val began to
squirm a little bit.
"I..um….well…of course it
is!" She said loudly. "I know what I said, Tyler. Now, just let me think about what comes
next."
Tyler almost laughed as
Val started to pace his room. So, she
had planned to tell him goodbye. And
she had planned it all out well. Except,
Tyler thought with a grin, she was having trouble remembering the plan and her
mouth was saying things she never meant to say.
Val stopped pacing and
looked at Tyler. I can do this, she
thought, her heart beating wildly. All
I have to say is goodbye.
"What I wanted to tell
you was…..goo…..ggg……gooooo…" As hard
as Val tried, she just could not get the right word out. She closed her eyes in concentration, trying
to shove the vowels and consonants into a word that made sense.
Tyler leaned forward,
playing along. "What was it you wanted
to tell me? I can't quite understand
you."
Val opened her eyes and
gave Tyler a dirty look. "You know, you
aren't making this any easier," she said briskly before going back to forming
the word on her tongue. "Gooo….ggg…"
But it just was not
coming at all. Aw, forget it, Val said
and she stopped thinking realistically and logically. "Do you want to come back to the city with me?" She asked. It was funny, she noticed, how every one of
those words came out just fine.
Tyler smiled and wrapped
his arms around Val. "I would love to,"
he said and then he leaned down to kiss her gently on the lips.
But the sweater…, her
mind reminded her, but Val just sighed as Tyler kissed her. It was a stupid bet anyway, she thought.
………………………………………..
Jamie felt like
crap. There was no other way to
describe it. He felt as if someone had
torn out his heart, stomped on it a few times and then had handed it back to
him for safekeeping. Every part of him
was screaming to grab Caitie and never let her go. But, he knew that he wouldn't.
It's her choice, he
thought darkly as he followed Caitie out of the door of the hotel to the
parking lot, where her rental car was parked. If she wanted to be with you, she'd stay.
But, she wasn't
staying. It was painfully evident to
him by the fact that her packed bags were in his hands. He was carrying them for her, but he wished
he weren't. Jamie wished that he could
simply put them in his rental car and beg her to go with him to K's Camp. He could see it in his mind. He would load their bags in the back of his
car and then plop himself in the drivers seat to drive to the airport. But, before even putting the key in the
ignition, he would lean over and give her a little kiss, in a way thanking her
for choosing to stay with him. Of
course, that's what he wanted to happen, not what was going to happen.
After the dinner the
night before, Jamie and Caitie had gone back to her room in the hotel. There, they had spent their time talking
until the had fallen asleep. They had
talked about everything- the schools they had gone to, the places that the
currently lived. But, the one thing
that they never had gotten around to talking about was the fact that they would
have to say goodbye to each other the next day. It had been a bit of a sore subject, as one could well
imagine. And so, they had simply
ignored it, knowing that talking about it would only lead them to think of sad
things.
They reached the small
red car and he waited as she opened the trunk. She lifted the lid slowly and Jamie threw the suitcase and bag inside
quickly. A part of him cried out as he
did so, as if to protest the fact that it was not his car that he was throwing
the bags into. She is not going with
me, he tried to convince himself. She
doesn't want to.
He stood back stonily as
Caitie shut the lid of the trunk. Then
she looked at him, her head cocked to one side just a bit. He had known her long enough to know what
that gesture meant.
She was worried about
him. It would be so easy to pretend
that nothing was wrong, he knew. Jamie
had done it many times in high school. When he had first realized that he liked Caitie more than just friends,
he had tried to hide it. He had
pretended that nothing was wrong, that he had no feelings other than friendship
for her. But, this time was
different. This time they had crossed over
the friendship line and he was tired of pretending nothing was wrong. I am about to lose her all over again, he
thought sadly. Of course something is
wrong.
Caitie rushed to Jamie
and enveloped him in a hug. His arms
wrapped around her out of habit, and he pulled her close, never really wanting
to let go. Everything about her, he
would miss. Jamie buried his head in
Caitie's hair and breathed in the fresh coconut smell. God, he would miss that too.
"I'll miss you, Jamie,"
Caitie said into his shirt, and Jamie felt his heart sink. This was really it. She was really leaving.
"I'll miss you too," he
replied after a second, his voice thicker than usual. He tightened his grip around her. Jamie knew that if he let go of her, she would leave. She would get in the car and drive away and
he would not see her for a very long time. He didn't want to let her go, but he knew that he had to. It's her choice, he reminded himself
bitterly.
Jamie felt Caitie start
to pull away from him and immediately, he commanded his arms to release
her. His brow furrowed as he realized
all he was giving up as he let go of her. And he tried to look happy. She
has chosen this, he thought as he tried to smile. This is what she wants.
Caitie gave him a quick
kiss on the lips before turning back towards her car. She opened the driver's side and climbed in without
hesitation.
Jamie finally forced a
smile on his lips and moved the couple of steps to stand next to the open car
door. He knew that his smile must seem
so fake, but there was really noting he could do about it. After all, he felt crappy about the whole
situation.
"Call me," Caitie said,
turning the car's key in the ignition.
Jamie nodded and thought
about how true he would stay to that promise. He would call her a lot. As much
as he could. Everyday if possible. Anything to hear her voice.
Jamie watched as one
small tear appeared under Caitie's left eye. She wiped at it with her hand quickly as if she did not want him to see
it at all. And then she looked back at
him. "Goodbye Jamie," she whispered.
"Bye," he returned,
equally quiet.
And then Caitie shut the
door of her car and put the car in gear. Jamie watched as she slowly pulled out of the parking lot of the hotel
and started off down the road. A tear
from his eye traveled down his cheek, but he did not wipe it away as Caitie had
done. He was tired of hiding his
feelings. And he wasn't going too
anymore.
He stayed right where he
was, standing in the middle of the parking lot, until he could no longer see
her car. And then he closed his eyes
and wished that the pain in him would go away.
Caitie felt the tears run
down her face as she traveled down the road. They were coming faster now, meandering their way down her cheeks. She felt awful. She hadn't wanted to leave Jamie at all.
Then why did you? A little voice in the back of her mind asked
innocently. Surprisingly, she did not
really have an answer for that question. She shook her head and tried to think of all the reasons why she and Jamie
could not be together.
"Well, there's the……,"
she said aloud to herself. "And then
there's the whole……". But, no matter
how hard she tried, Caitie could not finish either of those sentences. What were the reasons again? She thought.
And then she rolled her
eyes. What was she doing? She wondered. She was running away from the only person that she had ever
fallen in love for. And for what? What was awaiting her back in the city that
was so very important? Nothing. Jamie wasn't going to be there. So, nothing there was important.
All Caitie wanted to do
was be with Jamie. And it really did
not matter to her where they would be together, as long as they were together.
"What am I doing?" Caitie said out loud and then before her
mind could change, she made a very illegal U-turn and started back towards the
hotel.
Jamie heard the car pull
up next to him, but he still did not open his eyes. He was afraid that if he opened his eyes and it wasn't her, he
would be sorely disappointed. He imagined
the person in the car next to him was probably some lost tourist going to ask
him for directions. Nothing more. She's not coming back, Jamie told himself
for the hundredth time. But, still he
did not open his eyes. He simply waited
to hear a voice.
"Jeez, are you that tired?" Came the sarcastic tone. "I just left you not even five minutes ago
and you are already sleeping?!?! And on
your feet too!"
Jamie smiled and opened
his eyes to the most beautiful sight he had ever seen in his entire life. Caitie Roth had come back to him. All the sudden he was nervous. His hands shook and he wished with all his
might that she would get out of the darn car so that he could kiss her. But, he simply stared at her instead,
waiting for her to explain her return.
Caitie read his mind, it
seemed. And she tried her best to make
light of the situation. "Well, you know
James, I thought that I might just have to take a look at this camp of yours." She looked at him with a rather false
superior look. "You know, to make sure
you aren't warping young children's minds or anything like that."
Jamie nodded his head,
playing along. But, inside he was
ecstatic. She wanted to go with him to
K's Camp? That was great! "I see," he said, solemnly.
Caitie unbuckled her
seatbelt and threw open the door to the car. For a second, Jamie wondered why she was hurrying so much, but then it
did not matter. Caitie threw her arms
around Jamie and buried her head in his chest. The tears came even quicker now, soaking into his shirt. But, Caitie didn't care. She was where she was supposed to be. She was with who she was supposed to be
with. There was so much she wanted to
say. She wanted to show him how much he
meant to her and how frightened she had been that she would lose him for good. She wanted to show him how happy she was to
be back in his arms again.
Caitie looked up at
Jamie's eyes, which danced with happiness. He smiled down at her and wiped a tear away from her cheek. There is so much I want to say, she thought
in her mind.
And then, as if Jamie had read her mind, he
replied, "I know. Me too." And then he kissed her.
………………………………………….
Hank had not slept a
wink. He had gone through all the
motions- brushed his teeth, put on his pajamas and then had laid in bed. But, sleep had never come. He had spent the night, laying on his back
and staring at the dark ceiling of his hotel room. And he had thought long and hard about what he wanted.
The entire weekend had
had him question exactly what he wanted to do- not only that morning, but in
life. Where exactly was his life
going? Hank had always had a plan in
his life. Right after high school, his
plan had been to go to college and then Med. school. Then, after that, he had worked his butt off to get to the
position that he was at. But, now that
he was there, what was his plan? This
question had kept Hank up the entire night. And he wondered if, since he didn't have a plan for his life, if he was
really happy.
Presently, Hank was up
and dressed. He sat at the little table
in his room, staring at the wall. Thoughts were still rushing around his mind like they had all
night. What did he want? Well, he knew the answer to that one. He wanted Melanie. He wanted her to be in his life forever. But, the question became, how would he go
about keeping her in his life?
After the dinner the day
before, he and Melanie had walked in silence to the bleachers at Kingsport High
School. The bleachers held a bit of
sentimental value for them, seeing how it was the place they had first
kissed. And they had sat there in total
silence, holding hands. Both Hank and
Melanie had been aware of the problem that the next day would bring. And they had both been aware of the fact
that they could possibly lose each other the next day. But, all that had not mattered as they sat
on the bleachers together. No, all that
had mattered was that they had been together for that moment. Even if they lost each other the next day,
they would at least be able to remember that moment on the bleachers.
A scraping sound and a
thud outside Hank's door made the thoughts in his head vanish. He looked
towards the door, a rather perplexed look on his face. What in the world, he thought as he moved
towards the door to his room. He leaned
towards the door and placed his ear on the hard wood. The scraping and thudding sounds continued. It seemed to Hank as if they were actually
coming from down the hallway a bit. But, Hank thought as he kept on listening, they are getting closer.
He listened as they came
nearer to his door. For some reason,
Hank did not want to look out his door and see what the source of the sound
was. The whole thing was like his own
private little mystery. And for just a
few seconds, it took his mind off of Melanie for the first time since he had
seen her at the beginning of the reunion.
Suddenly, the scraping
sound stopped and one last loud thud resounded in the hallway right outside of
Hank's door. He thought he heard a
quiet curse following the thud, but he was not too sure.
And then there was a
knock on his door. Hank jumped back
from the door as if he were a child being caught doing something he knows not
to be doing. His heart started to beat
rapidly. He stared at the door,
wondering who was on the other side. There was no more scraping or thudding sounds to be heard. Just simple silence.
Hank took two deep
breaths, hoping to calm himself a bit. He reached for the knob on the door slowly. His fingers closed over the cool metal and Hank braced himself
for whatever might be on the other side. Hank turned to knob and pulled the door open slowly.
His eyebrows shot up at
what he found in front of his door. Or
perhaps it would be more appropriate to say who he found in front of his
door.
She must have dragged
that huge suitcase up the stairs, Hank thought, as he looked her over.
The suitcase in question,
which Hank surmised had been making all the noise, was standing on its
end. On top of the suitcase was
precariously perched the one girl that Hank did not ever want to say goodbye
to.
A few strands of her long
hair were hanging in her face and she blew out of the corner of her mouth to
try to move them without using her hands. Her eyes were narrowed as if she were trying to look determined to get
her way. Her arms were folded over her
chest as if she were angry. And her
legs were crossed as if she were trying to show that she was totally
comfortable with the way she sat.
Too bad the suitcase kept
shifting and almost spilling her to the floor.
Hank leaned against the door
jam and tried not to laugh. If he
laughed, she would get flustered. He
didn't want her to get flustered. He
was enjoying Melanie trying to look angry way too much.
The suitcase shifted
again under Melanie's weight and she threw her arms out to stop herself from
falling. Hank stifled a chuckle as he
watched her reposition the suitcase under her bottom and then resume her angry
look- folded arms and all.
"Well, you have—,"
Melanie started, but the suitcase started to buckle again. Jeez, she thought, this is supposed to be a
real moment and this stupid suitcase is ruining everything. She thought she heard a slight snicker come
from the direction of Hank and she shot him a dirty look. Then, with as much dignity as she could
muster, Melanie fixed the suitcase underneath her and resumed her pose once
more. Melanie looked at Hank with a
look that she hoped screamed determination. It was hard to do so, though, when she was sure the suitcase would dump
her at any minute.
"Well, you have me for
the next three weeks since I cleared my schedule for you," she said, happy to
get out a whole sentence without the suitcase moving. "What are you going to do with me?"
And in that second,
everything clicked for Hank. Every
question that had been brought to his attention in his mind the night before
was suddenly answered. He didn't know
where the idea had suddenly come from. And he certainly didn't know why he hadn't thought of it before. But, it made so much sense. It was the perfect way to stay with Melanie
forever.
He looked at the girl
before him as she struggled to keep her balance on the suitcase. She was still trying to look defiant. And, Hank noticed with a bit of happiness,
he could see the old Melanie from high school in her eyes. Hank smiled as he watched her throw out her
arms once more to stop herself from falling off the suitcase. Slowly, she readjusted the meddlesome
luggage again and then looked up at him, waiting for his answer. Yes, he thought, I know what to do now.
And he only said two words. Two words that would change both of their
loves forever.
"Marry me."
For the first time since
the beginning of the reunion, Hank realized he had been the one with the
surprise. Throughout the reunion, it
had been Melanie who had kept surprising him. But, not this time. This time,
it was Melanie's eyebrows that shot up at his words. She froze, staring at him in surprise and
wonder.
And Hank just grinned as
Melanie forgot all about her fight to stay balanced on the suitcase. He could tell that every part of her was
focused on him and what he had just said. And he waited because he knew the inevitable would happen.
The suitcase moved a
slight bit and Melanie fell on her butt on the floor.
………………………………………
Brooke sat at her desk in
the station and smiled. Oh, it truly
was a wonderful day. The weather had
been so good that morning that she had decided to walk to work instead of
drive. And, boy was she glad that she
had walked! It had been so warm
out. Then, of course, there was what
she had seen as she had passed the football stands at Kingsport High on her way
to the station. All three of her
favorite couples were sitting on the bleachers, talking and laughing away. It made her happy to see such a sight. And, she had noticed with satisfaction, each
couple was holding hands. So, my plan
worked really well last night, she thought with a smile on her face.
"Brooke?" Alex called from the doorway. "So? How did it go last night?"
Brooke smiled and thought
about what she had seen at the dinner the day before and then what she had seen
on the way to work. All three couples
had looked so happy.
Brooke looked at Alex,
the devious glint back in her eyes. "Mission accomplished," she said.
The End
Well, after fifteen
chapters, I figured it was time to end this thing. I hoped everyone liked it. Oh, and would anyone be interested in a sequel? I have ideas for one, but I am not sure
whether or not to write anything more on this one. What do you guys think? Please don't forget to review. Thanks!
