Disclaimer: I do not own any of the "In a Heartbeat" characters, except for the ones that I make up. The Disney Channel or whoever owns the show owns the characters, although probably not anymore because they are canceling the show. (I want Shawn Ashmore!)
Author's Note: I want to thank everyone who has read my story, especially Momo Claus, (I think that's how you spell it) who is my newest reader, or at least my newest reviewer. I want to thank Aricraze for taking the time to e-mail me and answer all my questions from the "longest author's note in history." I really appreciated it. Anyway, on with the story! I warn you, this may be a little confusing, but I thought that it was essential to the story in a way. I guess you'll understand better when you read Chapter 12.
PS: Did you notice that I tend to name chapters after songs? This is an O-Town Song and "Love is Leaving" is by BBMak. I just noticed that I did that. Hmmm...
Chapter 11: "Love Should Be A Crime"
Tyler Connell walked back to his condo slowly, so deep in thought that he had forgotten his Neon in the driveway of Val Lanier's house. He was so deeply hurt, so confused. He had been absolutely, positively sure that the day before she left Kingsport, she had whispered in his ear, "I love you." Had he been mistaken? He had been so sure. That's what had kept his search for her going, even a year later. Now that he thought about what she had just said minutes ago, he wondered if she had meant it the way he had thought before.
As he trudged toward his condo, he looked with a broken heart at the couples walking the beach, some of them so incredibly - obviously - in love with each other. Tyler's heart longed for that so much. He thought he had found it when he found Val in that grocery store earlier in the day, that he thought nothing - and I mean nothing - could burst his bubble.
He was wrong, though. He thought back to that kiss. That was not a kiss between friends, he thought desperately. That was way too passionate to be a kiss between friends. Maybe she was just so vulnerable that she would have kissed anyone that would comfort her that way, he thought. But then dismissed that thought immediately.
As he kept walking along the beach, alone, he felt tears stinging his eyes, threatening to spill over onto his face. He knew that if he let them escape, his "manly image" would shrivel up and disappear. He had to keep his emotions inside. At least until he reached his condo.
If only Tyler had seen those glittering tears of heartbreak creep down Val Lanier's face...
~*~
Val Lanier sat heartbroken on her bed after Tyler had left her home, left her life. Her heart urged her to run after Tyler after that door had closed, but her mind told her what she had done was for the best. That now, Tyler would be out of danger, even if it meant breaking his heart, and breaking her own in the process. Too bad her mind had won the fight, and although she would be miserable the whole time she was in Myrtle Beach, she knew that if something had happened to him because of her, she would not have been able to live with herself, just knowing that.
Val lay back on the pillows that covered her large bed, without tears - she had none left - reflecting on the good times Tyler and her had had over the years. She had not realized, though that silent tears where running down her face and onto her shirt in the process, although she really didn't care at the moment. Val just let those happy - and sad - memories come rushing back to her, as if in a wave, until she finally drifted off into the first dreamless sleep she had had in months.
When Val woke up in the morning, her arm was soaking wet, as was her pillow. She had been so exhausted that she had drooled all over the place.
"Gross!" she exclaimed, fully awake in seconds.
She hopped off her bed and rushed in the shower to clean herself, because she felt so incredibly dirty. The drool just added to it. She scrubbed her skin until it had turned pink. Or was that sunburn? It couldn't be because I haven't really been outside, she thought. It was then that all of the memories of the night before had come rushing back to her. She couldn't cry. Her tear supply had completely dried up from all the crying she had done in the past few days.
She remembered that today was Sunday. It was still the weekend. She wished that the weekend were over. She wanted to go back to her job at the ice cream shop in town and work, just to get her mind off of everything. But then again, she decided, it would be better to just lay around the house today, watching TV and drowning her sorrows in a gallon of Edy's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream with butterscotch chips on top. So she did.
~*~
Tyler searched the beach that day, hoping he would run into Val. He didn't, however, and that just dampened his spirits even more. Although she had said in layman's terms there was nothing between them, he knew there was. That was all he could think about all that night. Actually, he had been so depressed that he had gotten drunk. That was the first time he had ever done that, mostly because he was not of age to drink alcohol, and so he had awakened with a major hangover that morning. Knowing that drinking was not the answer to his problems, he had decided - once he had regained control of his numbed brain - the only way to solve his problem was to talk to Val and get this all straightened up. He searched that beach like hawk searching for prey for hours, and not seeing her, decided to walk around town looking for her instead. But still, he did not see her. But, then it occurred to him. He kicked himself in the butt for not thinking of it sooner: he knew that when Val was upset, she usually watched TV for hours on end, and drowned her sorrows in food, particularly ice cream. He then marched over to Val's house with resolve, and knocked insistently on her front door.
Val looked through the peephole on the front door to see who it was that was so impatient. It was Tyler. She whirled around and decided to ignore him until he went away. He probably wanted to talk, but she didn't. She knew that if he strode into her house wanting to talk, she would look into those crystal-clear blue eyes and completely melt, telling him why she said she didn't love him the night before. And Val didn't want that to happen. She wanted him to be safe, away from harm.
Tyler didn't give up, however. He knocked, and knocked, and knocked, even though his hand was throbbing. He threw in an occasional, "Open up, Val! I know you're in there!" But still she would not open the door for him.
To Val it seemed like forever before he finally gave up, when in reality it had only been half an hour. Only a half and hour, she thought. That's a long time. But I can't give in to him.
Tyler, discouraged and once again heartbroken and hopeless, walked down the front steps after trying to get Val Lanier to open the door for half an hour. I know she was in there, he thought, and that banging and yelling had to have gotten extremely annoying. She must really not want to talk to me. But why? I didn't do anything. What's she got to hide from me?
All week, Tyler had been searching the beach and the town for Val. The little hope that had not dwindled or disappeared was making him continue his search.
But after searching for her to talk about what had happened for a week and a half, he had nothing left in him. No hope. No faith. Only sadness, and his love for Val, and that was not much comfort to him at the moment.
He finally decided that to leave Myrtle Beach earlier than he had first planned, and to go vacation somewhere else would be the best solution.
He got the rest of his money back from his rent from the condo owner, drove to the airport, and returned the car he had borrowed. He bought a two-week long round-trip airline ticket for Key West, Florida and was soon on his way.
~*~
TWO AND A HALF WEEKS LATER
Val had walked in her front door after a day at work when the phone rang. She picked it up, having no idea who'd be calling.
"Hello, Mathews' residence," she answered the phone politely.
"Haille?"
The voice was familiar. But it had been so long ago that she had heard it that she had a hard time placing it with a name or face.
"This is Detective Jim Anchor. I know it's been quite a while since the last time we talked."
"Oh, hi Detective," Val said, somewhat relieved it wasn't someone else. But then, her relief almost instantly turned into worry and nervousness.
"I've got some news for you and your family, Haille," he said. He had grown used to calling her by her fake name rather than the name Val.
Oh no, she thought, HE'S coming after us! Val gulped in some air before she replied, "Yes? What is it Detective?"
"Well, as you know, we have been continually searching for that so-called 'Adam Wood' guy for over a year now," he began slowly. Slower than Val could stand.
"And?" she asked anxiously.
"And we just got a call on a grocery store robbery where the clerk there was shot just as the clerk at the grocery store in Kingsport had. We have custody of that man, who fits the description you had given us over a year ago perfectly. We have his real name, which is Corey Peterson. We are positive this is the man who committed that crime you witnessed a year ago, because he used the same exact method in all the grocery store and mall robberies that have occurred in the last five years. Which means," he paused, "that if this guy is found guilty in the trial two days from now, that you will be able to return to your home in Kingsport, worry free," he finished, waiting for a response from "Haille".
He heard a loud, apparently overjoyed squeal come from the other end of the phone.
"Thank you so much for calling me, Detective. You have absolutely no idea what this family has been through in the last year and how happy this makes me and the rest of my family!" she squealed. "Please, call me as soon as you know for sure that he is guilty. I'll be waiting by the phone!"
They bid good-bye and hung up the phone.
Val Lanier phoned her mother and Brooke at work and told them what happened. Her mother started crying out of happiness and Brooke was completely speechless.
Val dropped the phone on her bed and dreamed about going back to Kingsport. She would never leave there again! She had missed being there too much! Oh, how she couldn't wait to catch up with all her friends there!
She began packing her things, knowing that for once in the last year, things were finally going her way.
TWO DAYS LATER
[Ring, ring, ring!]
"I've got it!" yelled an ecstatic Val Lanier from her bedroom. "Hello?" she said into the receiver most anxiously.
"Hello, Valerie," came Detective Anchor's booming voice. He had called her by her real name! Woo-hoo!
"Hello, Detective," she replied.
"I have very good news for you, Valerie!" he boomed. He was obviously very happy that this case was finally over and done with. "Corey Peterson was guilty of all charges! You can move back to Kingsport!" Even he was ecstatic.
"Oh my God! Oh my God! Thank you so much Detective!" Val screamed. She was just so happy. Brooke and Mrs. Lanier rushed into Val's room with apparent anxiety on their faces.
"Well?" Brooke and Joanne Lanier replied simultaneously.
Val's face lit up and her blue-green eyes sparkled as she said in a loud, very happy voice, "We can move back to Kingsport! Corey Peterson, a.k.a. 'Adam Wood' was found guilty of all charges!" She spun around as if she were a ballerina because she was so incredibly happy.
Sighs, tears and laughs of relief flooded the room as the Lanier family happily hugged one another tightly.
The first thing she wanted to do was find Tyler to tell him the news. She hadn't heard from him in almost three weeks. She hoped he hadn't forgotten about her. She knew that he had rented a condo on the beach and began searching for him. She walked the beach and went into the offices of the only condos on the beach, and asked him if he knew which one Tyler Connell was staying in. He told her that he "checked out" of that place a while ago. Saddened, but brought up by the fact that she was going home, she figured he must have gone back to Kingsport, and decided she would find him there.
The next morning, Val, Brooke, and Joanne Linear were on a plane headed back to their hometown in Kingsport with nothing but joy.
~ Well, what do you think? I know it's a tad bit confusing in the beginning, but it kinda all leads up to what happens in Chapter 12. Please review and tell me what you think! ~
Author's Note: I want to thank everyone who has read my story, especially Momo Claus, (I think that's how you spell it) who is my newest reader, or at least my newest reviewer. I want to thank Aricraze for taking the time to e-mail me and answer all my questions from the "longest author's note in history." I really appreciated it. Anyway, on with the story! I warn you, this may be a little confusing, but I thought that it was essential to the story in a way. I guess you'll understand better when you read Chapter 12.
PS: Did you notice that I tend to name chapters after songs? This is an O-Town Song and "Love is Leaving" is by BBMak. I just noticed that I did that. Hmmm...
Chapter 11: "Love Should Be A Crime"
Tyler Connell walked back to his condo slowly, so deep in thought that he had forgotten his Neon in the driveway of Val Lanier's house. He was so deeply hurt, so confused. He had been absolutely, positively sure that the day before she left Kingsport, she had whispered in his ear, "I love you." Had he been mistaken? He had been so sure. That's what had kept his search for her going, even a year later. Now that he thought about what she had just said minutes ago, he wondered if she had meant it the way he had thought before.
As he trudged toward his condo, he looked with a broken heart at the couples walking the beach, some of them so incredibly - obviously - in love with each other. Tyler's heart longed for that so much. He thought he had found it when he found Val in that grocery store earlier in the day, that he thought nothing - and I mean nothing - could burst his bubble.
He was wrong, though. He thought back to that kiss. That was not a kiss between friends, he thought desperately. That was way too passionate to be a kiss between friends. Maybe she was just so vulnerable that she would have kissed anyone that would comfort her that way, he thought. But then dismissed that thought immediately.
As he kept walking along the beach, alone, he felt tears stinging his eyes, threatening to spill over onto his face. He knew that if he let them escape, his "manly image" would shrivel up and disappear. He had to keep his emotions inside. At least until he reached his condo.
If only Tyler had seen those glittering tears of heartbreak creep down Val Lanier's face...
~*~
Val Lanier sat heartbroken on her bed after Tyler had left her home, left her life. Her heart urged her to run after Tyler after that door had closed, but her mind told her what she had done was for the best. That now, Tyler would be out of danger, even if it meant breaking his heart, and breaking her own in the process. Too bad her mind had won the fight, and although she would be miserable the whole time she was in Myrtle Beach, she knew that if something had happened to him because of her, she would not have been able to live with herself, just knowing that.
Val lay back on the pillows that covered her large bed, without tears - she had none left - reflecting on the good times Tyler and her had had over the years. She had not realized, though that silent tears where running down her face and onto her shirt in the process, although she really didn't care at the moment. Val just let those happy - and sad - memories come rushing back to her, as if in a wave, until she finally drifted off into the first dreamless sleep she had had in months.
When Val woke up in the morning, her arm was soaking wet, as was her pillow. She had been so exhausted that she had drooled all over the place.
"Gross!" she exclaimed, fully awake in seconds.
She hopped off her bed and rushed in the shower to clean herself, because she felt so incredibly dirty. The drool just added to it. She scrubbed her skin until it had turned pink. Or was that sunburn? It couldn't be because I haven't really been outside, she thought. It was then that all of the memories of the night before had come rushing back to her. She couldn't cry. Her tear supply had completely dried up from all the crying she had done in the past few days.
She remembered that today was Sunday. It was still the weekend. She wished that the weekend were over. She wanted to go back to her job at the ice cream shop in town and work, just to get her mind off of everything. But then again, she decided, it would be better to just lay around the house today, watching TV and drowning her sorrows in a gallon of Edy's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream with butterscotch chips on top. So she did.
~*~
Tyler searched the beach that day, hoping he would run into Val. He didn't, however, and that just dampened his spirits even more. Although she had said in layman's terms there was nothing between them, he knew there was. That was all he could think about all that night. Actually, he had been so depressed that he had gotten drunk. That was the first time he had ever done that, mostly because he was not of age to drink alcohol, and so he had awakened with a major hangover that morning. Knowing that drinking was not the answer to his problems, he had decided - once he had regained control of his numbed brain - the only way to solve his problem was to talk to Val and get this all straightened up. He searched that beach like hawk searching for prey for hours, and not seeing her, decided to walk around town looking for her instead. But still, he did not see her. But, then it occurred to him. He kicked himself in the butt for not thinking of it sooner: he knew that when Val was upset, she usually watched TV for hours on end, and drowned her sorrows in food, particularly ice cream. He then marched over to Val's house with resolve, and knocked insistently on her front door.
Val looked through the peephole on the front door to see who it was that was so impatient. It was Tyler. She whirled around and decided to ignore him until he went away. He probably wanted to talk, but she didn't. She knew that if he strode into her house wanting to talk, she would look into those crystal-clear blue eyes and completely melt, telling him why she said she didn't love him the night before. And Val didn't want that to happen. She wanted him to be safe, away from harm.
Tyler didn't give up, however. He knocked, and knocked, and knocked, even though his hand was throbbing. He threw in an occasional, "Open up, Val! I know you're in there!" But still she would not open the door for him.
To Val it seemed like forever before he finally gave up, when in reality it had only been half an hour. Only a half and hour, she thought. That's a long time. But I can't give in to him.
Tyler, discouraged and once again heartbroken and hopeless, walked down the front steps after trying to get Val Lanier to open the door for half an hour. I know she was in there, he thought, and that banging and yelling had to have gotten extremely annoying. She must really not want to talk to me. But why? I didn't do anything. What's she got to hide from me?
All week, Tyler had been searching the beach and the town for Val. The little hope that had not dwindled or disappeared was making him continue his search.
But after searching for her to talk about what had happened for a week and a half, he had nothing left in him. No hope. No faith. Only sadness, and his love for Val, and that was not much comfort to him at the moment.
He finally decided that to leave Myrtle Beach earlier than he had first planned, and to go vacation somewhere else would be the best solution.
He got the rest of his money back from his rent from the condo owner, drove to the airport, and returned the car he had borrowed. He bought a two-week long round-trip airline ticket for Key West, Florida and was soon on his way.
~*~
TWO AND A HALF WEEKS LATER
Val had walked in her front door after a day at work when the phone rang. She picked it up, having no idea who'd be calling.
"Hello, Mathews' residence," she answered the phone politely.
"Haille?"
The voice was familiar. But it had been so long ago that she had heard it that she had a hard time placing it with a name or face.
"This is Detective Jim Anchor. I know it's been quite a while since the last time we talked."
"Oh, hi Detective," Val said, somewhat relieved it wasn't someone else. But then, her relief almost instantly turned into worry and nervousness.
"I've got some news for you and your family, Haille," he said. He had grown used to calling her by her fake name rather than the name Val.
Oh no, she thought, HE'S coming after us! Val gulped in some air before she replied, "Yes? What is it Detective?"
"Well, as you know, we have been continually searching for that so-called 'Adam Wood' guy for over a year now," he began slowly. Slower than Val could stand.
"And?" she asked anxiously.
"And we just got a call on a grocery store robbery where the clerk there was shot just as the clerk at the grocery store in Kingsport had. We have custody of that man, who fits the description you had given us over a year ago perfectly. We have his real name, which is Corey Peterson. We are positive this is the man who committed that crime you witnessed a year ago, because he used the same exact method in all the grocery store and mall robberies that have occurred in the last five years. Which means," he paused, "that if this guy is found guilty in the trial two days from now, that you will be able to return to your home in Kingsport, worry free," he finished, waiting for a response from "Haille".
He heard a loud, apparently overjoyed squeal come from the other end of the phone.
"Thank you so much for calling me, Detective. You have absolutely no idea what this family has been through in the last year and how happy this makes me and the rest of my family!" she squealed. "Please, call me as soon as you know for sure that he is guilty. I'll be waiting by the phone!"
They bid good-bye and hung up the phone.
Val Lanier phoned her mother and Brooke at work and told them what happened. Her mother started crying out of happiness and Brooke was completely speechless.
Val dropped the phone on her bed and dreamed about going back to Kingsport. She would never leave there again! She had missed being there too much! Oh, how she couldn't wait to catch up with all her friends there!
She began packing her things, knowing that for once in the last year, things were finally going her way.
TWO DAYS LATER
[Ring, ring, ring!]
"I've got it!" yelled an ecstatic Val Lanier from her bedroom. "Hello?" she said into the receiver most anxiously.
"Hello, Valerie," came Detective Anchor's booming voice. He had called her by her real name! Woo-hoo!
"Hello, Detective," she replied.
"I have very good news for you, Valerie!" he boomed. He was obviously very happy that this case was finally over and done with. "Corey Peterson was guilty of all charges! You can move back to Kingsport!" Even he was ecstatic.
"Oh my God! Oh my God! Thank you so much Detective!" Val screamed. She was just so happy. Brooke and Mrs. Lanier rushed into Val's room with apparent anxiety on their faces.
"Well?" Brooke and Joanne Lanier replied simultaneously.
Val's face lit up and her blue-green eyes sparkled as she said in a loud, very happy voice, "We can move back to Kingsport! Corey Peterson, a.k.a. 'Adam Wood' was found guilty of all charges!" She spun around as if she were a ballerina because she was so incredibly happy.
Sighs, tears and laughs of relief flooded the room as the Lanier family happily hugged one another tightly.
The first thing she wanted to do was find Tyler to tell him the news. She hadn't heard from him in almost three weeks. She hoped he hadn't forgotten about her. She knew that he had rented a condo on the beach and began searching for him. She walked the beach and went into the offices of the only condos on the beach, and asked him if he knew which one Tyler Connell was staying in. He told her that he "checked out" of that place a while ago. Saddened, but brought up by the fact that she was going home, she figured he must have gone back to Kingsport, and decided she would find him there.
The next morning, Val, Brooke, and Joanne Linear were on a plane headed back to their hometown in Kingsport with nothing but joy.
~ Well, what do you think? I know it's a tad bit confusing in the beginning, but it kinda all leads up to what happens in Chapter 12. Please review and tell me what you think! ~