I own nothing
A/N: Thanks for the reviews and for sticking with the story.
------
Anna POV
Arriving in Hawaii was quite uneventful. We had to announce our arrival to the coast guards because we were coming off international waters and Ryan got a little kick out of that. He wouldn't admit it but I could tell that he was excited about getting to Tahiti so that he could finally get a stamp in the passport the Cohens had gotten him when he'd first moved in with them.
"What is this?" Ryan asked, looking up from the post-it I'd scrawled a number on. While Ryan was offloading our boat, I'd gotten our papers together and asked one of the workers for information on the nearest hotel, local cab companies, eateries, and any other things needed to make my stay comfortable.
"The number to a cab company." I reached into my bag, pulled out my phone and handed it to him. "You can use this."
He was confused. "What do I need this number for?"
"To call a cab, duh." I put on my back pack and started rolling my suitcase towards the huge parking lot.
"Oh, you've decided on a hotel?" he asked, following me.
"Yes, I have." I pointed at the post-it. "That company has a flat rate to the airport. You'll want to call so that you can get book a cab as soon as possible."
"What?" He stopped. I kept walking. It was sweltering and I couldn't wait to get to an air-conditioned hotel room.
"Remember your flight to LA? We talked about this yesterday," I reminded him.
He was still in shock. "Anna... you still want me to leave?"
Not really, but I couldn't say that. "You need to be with Theresa."
"No, I don't."
I shook my head and kept on walking. I needed to get to the already long cab queue. He ran after me then clutched my hand to stop me. "Anna, what's going on?"
I turned around. "You said you needed to be with Theresa, right?"
"I did, but I don't want to leave you here," he said sincerely.
"What does that mean? That you don't want to go back?"
"That's exactly what I mean."
"You realize I can be here on my own, right? Don't stay here because you think I need you."
"I know that."
He loosened his grip so I took my hand back. "And you're not going to go off on me again, right?" I didn't want him to feel guilty about being with me when he was obviously worried about the people he'd left at home. "I am giving you a chance to leave."
"I know that."
"And this is not because of whatever Mr. Cohen said, right? I'm sure he'd be glad to see you."
"Anna, I want to be here with you."
Satisfied, I nodded and got behind the queue. It was nice to hear but I could only hope he was being truthful.
----
We arrived at the hotel at around 8:30am.
"Wow," he said looking around. "It's in the old hacienda, and with what I'll guess are Hawaiian influences."
I was stunned. Those weren't words I expected to hear from Chino Ryan. "What? You're into interior design?"
He laughed. "No, hacienda is colonial Spanish architecture. I wouldn't have expected to see that here. It's a pretty new building.. I guess they wanted a mix of old and new."
I smiled. He just kept getting cuter and cuter. "You're into architecture? I wouldn't have guessed."
"Anna, there are a lot of things you don't know about me. Hey, let's get our room," he said walking to the front desk.
I followed him but was still intrigued by this newly unveiled side to him. "Do you sketch?"
He nodded. "Sometimes," he replied shyly. Cute!
"For real? Me too. But not buildings though."
"No? What, then?"
"Cartoons, still life, some nudes..." I'd expected him to react to the word 'nude' like every other red blooded guy but he didn't say anything. We joined the line of two at the reception desk. "So, you sketch buildings?"
"Yep."
"Oh my god, you'd love Europe. Not London or Paris or any of the big cities, even though you might still get a kick out of them, but Veneto in Northern Italy. It's so beautiful and the buildings are pretty quite interesting. I'm sure you'll get loads of inspiration from it. "
"That's great." For some reason, he didn't really seem to want to talk about it.
"So, when do I get to see these sketches?"
"Anna, it's our turn. Let's get a room first."
We proceeded to argue about the room. I wanted two rooms because I figured he'd need some privacy but he insisted that it was a waste of money so we ended up getting a double room. As much as I enjoyed sleeping next to him, I relished the thought of a queen size bed to myself, where I could turn and toss without risk of hitting anyone.
We checked-in, took a short nap and still managed to get to the restaurant before breakfast ended.
"So what exactly did Seth's dad say?" I asked, between bites of scrambled eggs.
"He just said we should wait."
"For how long, though? We've only been here for less than 2 hours and I'm already getting antsy."
"Just relax," he said, lightly patting the hand I had on the table.
"Easier said than done." Then I had a light bulb moment. " Ryan, you know how we agreed that Seth's probably fine...?" I asked, sitting up.
He nodded. "Yes?"
"You know what I was thinking? Something that could totally help?"
"What?" He rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me - you want to search for Seth here."
I smiled. "Exactly."
"We don't even know if he came here."
"True. He could have gone to another Island and Honolulu is quite huge but it couldn't hurt if we tried. Plus, it'll give us something to do, instead of just sitting and waiting."
He thought about it for a moment and from the expression on his face, I could tell he warmed to the idea. It definitely beat staring into thin air. He stretched his hand out to me. "You've got your phone, right?"
"Yep, but it's upstairs. And you know what else we can do? We can split and search different areas - that way we can cover more in less time."
"That doesn't sound too good. I can't let..."
"Ryan," I warned.
"Let me finish. It makes no sense. How would I know where you've been?"
"We can get a map and divide the town."
He wasn't satisfied. "What if I find a clue? How would you know?"
"You're right," I sighed, resting my back in my chair. "Your cell phone most likely won't work here because I bet you have some el cheapo plan."
"Hey."
"I'm just saying. I guess we better do it together."
--------
We tried to rent a car and just as expected, were told we were too young, even though we'd offered to get the most expensive insurance.
"What do we do now?" I asked as we walked out of the office.
He glanced at me and I could tell his little brain cells were moving. "I bet you I can get us a car."
"You're not going to steal one," I teased. He responded with a bored expression. "Ryan, I just don't understand how you think you're going to be able to get us a car."
He looked back into the office. "Just wait here," he instructed.
I didn't say a word when he returned about 2 minutes later -all I could do was laugh.
-----
We ended up chartering a cab for the entire day and just drove around Honolulu stopping at different locations, showing Seth's photograph around and searching for any clues or evidence that he'd been in the city. We'd been driving around for about three hours, with no luck ,when we passed by a comic book store.
"Stop!" I screamed at the cab driver.
He screeched to a halt. "Miss, you need to give me advanced notice," he repeated for the umpteenth time.
Ryan looked at me curiously. "What's it this time?"
I pointed at the store. "Seth was there."
He studied it. "How do you know?"
"I feel it. I just know he was there."
"Just because it's a comic book store?"
"Ryan," I said, stepping out of the car. "This is the kind of place Seth would come to. Remember back in Newport how we used to go to Larry's on dates? Those were fun times," I smiled reminiscing. I'd always enjoyed an afternoon browsing comics with Seth.
"Uhm, okay," he said, following me.
I walked in first and approached the somewhat pretty sandy-haired girl behind the counter. "Hi, do you mind if we ask you a few questions?"
She looked completely uninterested till Ryan stood by me. "I'd love to," she replied. She ignored me and instead, trained her eyes on him.
"Have you, by any chance, seen the guy in this picture? We think he was in here recently," I said holding it out to her. She bypassed it and reached for the one in Ryan's hand. He gave her a picture he'd taken with Seth a few months earlier.
"You were here with him?" she asked him.
"No, just him."
She smiled and held out the photo. "Which one?"
I could guess what her game was and I wasn't having it. We'd come in to find Seth and not flirt. So, to move things along, I snatched it from her and folded it in half so she could only see Seth's image. I handed it back to her. "That one."
She looked a little annoyed then shook her head. "I'm sorry, I haven't seen him. Have you been here before?" she asked Ryan. She produced another sleazy smile when he explained that he hadn't . "I didn't think so. There's no way I would have forgotten you."
I rolled my eyes, took back the picture and walked out.
"Does that always happen to you?" I asked when we were back in the cab.
"What?"
"Girls openly flirting like that? If we'd stayed any longer, I bet she'd have taken her top off and jiggled her boobies around."
He chuckled. "I didn't even notice."
"You've gotta be kidding - her legs were practically spread."
He laughed again. "Does that bother you?"
"No, of course not. It's a little annoying and I guess surprising. I never realized girls were like that with you."
"Oh, why? Because of my big nose?"
"What the hell are you talking about?" I pinched his nose. "It's very cute. I mean, I thought most girls had more class than that. That was a little trampish. She saw you come in with me but she still had her ovaries out on display. What a slut!"
-----
We drove around the entire city and came up empty. On a whim, we decided to pay the cab driver off and just check the hotel that was about half a mile away from ours.
The blonde lady looked at the photo then handed it to the brunette next to her. "He looks familiar, right?"
My heart jumped. The brunette nodded then crooked her finger at the concierge. "Wasn't he here?" she asked, showing it to him.
He peeked at it then shook his head vigorously. "Yes, he was."
"Take another look. Are you sure?"
He shrugged. "It looks like him."
"Do you remember his name?" Ryan asked.
He looked at him suspiciously. "No. But I try my best to forget all names once they've left. We have so many guests that I try not to store useless information."
I nodded. "We understand. But you're saying he was here."
"Yes. He was. At least, I think it was him. "
That was much better than nothing. "When did he leave?" I continued.
He thought about it. "He left yesterday."
My tummy did flip flops. That meant we weren't too far behind.
"Did he say where he was going?" Ryan asked.
"No," he said, shaking his head so vigorously it was obvious he was lying.
"Look, we are his friends. He left California a few weeks ago and his family has been looking for him."
"Maybe he doesn't want to be found."
"Listen, we need to find him. His life is in danger and we just want to protect him. He sailed on such a little boat that we are surprised he even made it this far," I chimed in, glancing at Ryan.
Ryan shook his head vehemently. "Yes, it's dangerous."
"See? He was lucky the first time around but it's still not safe. If anything happens to him, you won't be able to live knowing you could have done something to prevent it. So please, tell us where he went."
He scrutinized us for a bit then gave in. "I don't know for sure. But he kept talking about Tahiti. I don't know for sure but he might have gone there."
The front desk confirmed that a Seth Cohen had resided at their hotel for two nights and had checked-out the day before. He'd paid with travelers checks but they were not at liberty to disclose the credit card number he'd left for any outstanding bills.
When we walked out of the hotel, I glanced at Ryan and could tell that we shared the same feelings. We felt optimistic but didn't want to say or feel anything till we were absolutely sure. But the news was great. There really couldn't be another Seth Cohen with dark hair and a skinny frame who was also obsessed with Tahiti, could there?
I reached into my bag to call the Cohens but soon realized I'd left my phone at the hotel. Ryan agreed to pick up some dinner while I ran back to the hotel to call them.
----
My heart raced out of control when I realized I had one new message. I pressed the button to hear the message that could potentially change my life.
"Hello, kids," Mr. Cohen's voice sang. "We drove down and just as hoped, it's not Seth. The watch didn't even look like his. Unfortunately, this means that another family has lost their son. Anyway, call us when you get this message. Are you in Hawaii yet? Make sure you call. We love you."
I screamed. All the frustration, the fear, the anger, the pain all dissipated with those words. It had been a while since I'd felt such joy and relief. Not only did we now know that it wasn't Seth's body lying in that morgue, I was 100% sure that Seth wasn't hurt because he'd recently been in Honolulu. It felt amazing.
Ryan walked into the room about ten minutes later. "Pizza's fine?" he asked, lifting the box.
I nodded, hoping that my face was devoid of any emotion.
"Hey, what's going on?".
I handed him the phone. "Listen to the message."
He was a little frightened. "What? Anna, tell me," he pleaded, taking it from me.
"Just listen, alright?"
He dropped the box on the table then hesitantly put the phone to his ear. I watched as his face went from one of apprehension to uncertainty and finally to plain elation.
I started jumping around. "He's alive, he's alive!" I cried as I moved across the room. Ryan just watched and laughed. Then I leapt on him.
We held on to one another and just kept laughing -Seth was alive! We were still chuckling when he put me down. But even when the smiles faded away, we kept staring into the other's eyes. I could already tell that the mood was changing and I felt my breath sharpen. There was just something in his eyes and as much as I tried, I couldn't make myself look away. Then he cupped my face and gave me a soft, long kiss. I didn't put my arms around him nor did his fingers leave my face. We just shared a kiss that was comprised mainly of lips - not much tongue, just lips moving on lips, then broke apart.
I felt a little odd so I sat on the bed. "So what did you get us?" I said, moving on.
He reached for the box and placed it next to me.
"Stuffed crust pizza?" I laughed.
He nodded. "Yes."
"I thought you didn't like it."
He grinned. "I lied."
------
The trip to Tahiti wasn't particularly interesting. Sandy had tried to convince us to return to Newport but this time around, Ryan was all for looking for Seth. I think learning that he'd been in Hawaii strengthened his resolve to find him - it no longer felt like a wild goose chase. We left the morning after we arrived in Honolulu and spent most of the time on deck searching for Seth. We knew that we were only a day apart so we figured that we'd eventually find him. The time we didn't spend behind binoculars was spent teaching Ryan to sail.
Two days to arriving in Tahiti, we were downstairs watching Jeopardy! We'd fallen into an upgraded version of our routine. We weren't making out or anything but just like we had at the beginning of the trip, we sat around playing video games or watching television except this time around, he'd sometimes put his arm around my shoulder, or we'd sit close together. I think having Seth's supposed near-death experience made us appreciate one another a little more. Personally, I didn't know if I was supposed to interpret the cuddles as friendly or much more. He hadn't attempted to kiss me since that evening in Honolulu so I didn't bother pretending we could be something more. Or at least, I tried my best not to.
Alex Trebek asked another question and as usual, Ryan gave the wrong answer.
"When are you going to accept that you suck?" I said, looking up at him. He'd refused to sit on the other couch so I'd been forced to put my head on his lap. I could have easily just sat up but I wanted to be comfortable.
"I don--" His response was interrupted by a ringing phone. We immediately looked at one another. Since the phone had never rung, we knew it could only mean one thing - information on Seth. I was scared out of my wits and I could tell that Ryan wasn't particularly pleased with the situation. The plan was to find Seth so that everything could get back to normal. We hadn't anticipated receiving any nighttime calls while at the 'finding Seth' stage.
"Go ahead, Ryan. Pick it up."
"No, you pick up."
"It's probably from the Cohens. You should pick up - they are your family."
"But it's your phone," he said as we both reached for it. It had already rung four times and we didn't want the caller to give up. He got to it first and listened in.
A minute later, he put it back down. "Seth's in Newport. And he's fine," he droned in a zombie-like voice.
----
For the second time in about five weeks I arrived at the John Wayne Airport. Sandy had insisted we return to California and I didn't put up much of a fight. The idea of sailing back to Newport, with Ryan in tow, seemed wrong. I knew he had many obligations back in Chino and I didn't want to keep him from them. Yet, the idea of sailing on my own just didn't feel right. All the pleasure I'd attained from sailing alone - the solace, the freedom, everything I'd initially cherished, paled in comparison to what I'd experienced sailing with him. But then again, the last two days we'd spent together had been a little off, to say the least. It was almost like we'd been jolted back into reality. Our little vacation in the Pacific had ended and real life awaited us. I became preoccupied with going back to Pittsburgh and trying to continue my life from where I'd left off and I imagine he was thinking about his new child and maybe, Marissa. Whatever it was, those two days were more than a little awkward. We tried to pretend that everything was back to normal but it so obviously wasn't. The smiles were far more strained and we were pretty much apart most of the time.
We didn't speak much on the plane either so I opted to finally read the novel I'd brought with me. Unfortunately, Kit and Louisa decided to make out and that just made me think of us even more. I became obsessed with what getting back to Newport would mean for us. I still didn't even know what the status of our relationship was. Or if we even had one. I spent the entire plane ride dissecting every single moment we had shared and the more I thought about it, the more it seemed to have all the characteristics of a summer fling. And that just depressed me.
----
"I'm guessing my parents are already here," I said, looking at my ringing phone. "What about you? Are Mr. and Mrs. Cohen picking you up?" We'd just come through Customs and as it was his first time on an international flight, he was pleasurably drinking in all the mundane procedures experienced travelers detested.
"No. Seth said he'll come with Summer and Marissa."
"Oh," was all I could say. Again I wondered about Marissa. Was she coming as a friend or more? As much as I wanted to, I didn't dare ask because I didn't want to seem particularly interested, or worse, desperate. If Ryan Atwood was going to dismiss what we had as a fling, I could certainly handle it. It's not like it would break my heart or anything. I hoped.
I soon spotted his little gang of waiting friends.
I pointed them out to him. He waved to get their attention.
"I guess I'll be seeing you," I said, looking for my parents.
He spun around, his forehead wrinkled. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find my parents."
"Anna, what the hell? Don't you want to see Seth? You should stop by for a minute, after all, he's the reason we're here. Come on, let's go," he said, taking my hand and dragging me with him.
As usual, Summer was looking gorgeous in a spaghetti-strapped sundress and very girly sandals, as was Marissa who was also seasonably-clad. Other than looking a little tired, she too looked beautiful. I couldn't help but wonder if her fatigue had been caused by her boyfriend's absence.
Summer sprinted to cover the distance between us. I was surprised that she'd missed Ryan that much when she shocked the hell out of me and jumped on me instead.
"Anna, I'm so glad to see you," she shrieked, holding on to me tightly. Seth and Marissa walked to us.
"Wow, Summer. Talk about a great welcome."
I glimpsed at Seth and saw that he was sharing a warm hug with Ryan.
Marissa waved at me. I smiled back. We hadn't really been friends and I hadn't even seen her on my first return trip to California.
Summer released me around the same time Seth and Ryan broke apart. Then Ryan moved along the line and hugged Marissa.
I glared at Seth but he smiled back. I'd already made plans to kick his ass the minute I saw him but I couldn't help cracking a smile as I stared at the goofy mock-expression of shame that was plastered on his cute face.
He stretched his hands out to me. "Come on, come to Papa. You know you want to."
I was about to when, from the corner of my eye, I saw Ryan plant one on Marissa. Not in the we-are-so-cool-we-kiss-on-the-lips kind of way, that hipsters kissed their friends. No, not that way. But in the Angelina/Billy-Bob-we-are-so-in-love kind of nasty way. Except worse.
A/N: Thanks for the reviews and for sticking with the story.
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Anna POV
Arriving in Hawaii was quite uneventful. We had to announce our arrival to the coast guards because we were coming off international waters and Ryan got a little kick out of that. He wouldn't admit it but I could tell that he was excited about getting to Tahiti so that he could finally get a stamp in the passport the Cohens had gotten him when he'd first moved in with them.
"What is this?" Ryan asked, looking up from the post-it I'd scrawled a number on. While Ryan was offloading our boat, I'd gotten our papers together and asked one of the workers for information on the nearest hotel, local cab companies, eateries, and any other things needed to make my stay comfortable.
"The number to a cab company." I reached into my bag, pulled out my phone and handed it to him. "You can use this."
He was confused. "What do I need this number for?"
"To call a cab, duh." I put on my back pack and started rolling my suitcase towards the huge parking lot.
"Oh, you've decided on a hotel?" he asked, following me.
"Yes, I have." I pointed at the post-it. "That company has a flat rate to the airport. You'll want to call so that you can get book a cab as soon as possible."
"What?" He stopped. I kept walking. It was sweltering and I couldn't wait to get to an air-conditioned hotel room.
"Remember your flight to LA? We talked about this yesterday," I reminded him.
He was still in shock. "Anna... you still want me to leave?"
Not really, but I couldn't say that. "You need to be with Theresa."
"No, I don't."
I shook my head and kept on walking. I needed to get to the already long cab queue. He ran after me then clutched my hand to stop me. "Anna, what's going on?"
I turned around. "You said you needed to be with Theresa, right?"
"I did, but I don't want to leave you here," he said sincerely.
"What does that mean? That you don't want to go back?"
"That's exactly what I mean."
"You realize I can be here on my own, right? Don't stay here because you think I need you."
"I know that."
He loosened his grip so I took my hand back. "And you're not going to go off on me again, right?" I didn't want him to feel guilty about being with me when he was obviously worried about the people he'd left at home. "I am giving you a chance to leave."
"I know that."
"And this is not because of whatever Mr. Cohen said, right? I'm sure he'd be glad to see you."
"Anna, I want to be here with you."
Satisfied, I nodded and got behind the queue. It was nice to hear but I could only hope he was being truthful.
----
We arrived at the hotel at around 8:30am.
"Wow," he said looking around. "It's in the old hacienda, and with what I'll guess are Hawaiian influences."
I was stunned. Those weren't words I expected to hear from Chino Ryan. "What? You're into interior design?"
He laughed. "No, hacienda is colonial Spanish architecture. I wouldn't have expected to see that here. It's a pretty new building.. I guess they wanted a mix of old and new."
I smiled. He just kept getting cuter and cuter. "You're into architecture? I wouldn't have guessed."
"Anna, there are a lot of things you don't know about me. Hey, let's get our room," he said walking to the front desk.
I followed him but was still intrigued by this newly unveiled side to him. "Do you sketch?"
He nodded. "Sometimes," he replied shyly. Cute!
"For real? Me too. But not buildings though."
"No? What, then?"
"Cartoons, still life, some nudes..." I'd expected him to react to the word 'nude' like every other red blooded guy but he didn't say anything. We joined the line of two at the reception desk. "So, you sketch buildings?"
"Yep."
"Oh my god, you'd love Europe. Not London or Paris or any of the big cities, even though you might still get a kick out of them, but Veneto in Northern Italy. It's so beautiful and the buildings are pretty quite interesting. I'm sure you'll get loads of inspiration from it. "
"That's great." For some reason, he didn't really seem to want to talk about it.
"So, when do I get to see these sketches?"
"Anna, it's our turn. Let's get a room first."
We proceeded to argue about the room. I wanted two rooms because I figured he'd need some privacy but he insisted that it was a waste of money so we ended up getting a double room. As much as I enjoyed sleeping next to him, I relished the thought of a queen size bed to myself, where I could turn and toss without risk of hitting anyone.
We checked-in, took a short nap and still managed to get to the restaurant before breakfast ended.
"So what exactly did Seth's dad say?" I asked, between bites of scrambled eggs.
"He just said we should wait."
"For how long, though? We've only been here for less than 2 hours and I'm already getting antsy."
"Just relax," he said, lightly patting the hand I had on the table.
"Easier said than done." Then I had a light bulb moment. " Ryan, you know how we agreed that Seth's probably fine...?" I asked, sitting up.
He nodded. "Yes?"
"You know what I was thinking? Something that could totally help?"
"What?" He rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me - you want to search for Seth here."
I smiled. "Exactly."
"We don't even know if he came here."
"True. He could have gone to another Island and Honolulu is quite huge but it couldn't hurt if we tried. Plus, it'll give us something to do, instead of just sitting and waiting."
He thought about it for a moment and from the expression on his face, I could tell he warmed to the idea. It definitely beat staring into thin air. He stretched his hand out to me. "You've got your phone, right?"
"Yep, but it's upstairs. And you know what else we can do? We can split and search different areas - that way we can cover more in less time."
"That doesn't sound too good. I can't let..."
"Ryan," I warned.
"Let me finish. It makes no sense. How would I know where you've been?"
"We can get a map and divide the town."
He wasn't satisfied. "What if I find a clue? How would you know?"
"You're right," I sighed, resting my back in my chair. "Your cell phone most likely won't work here because I bet you have some el cheapo plan."
"Hey."
"I'm just saying. I guess we better do it together."
--------
We tried to rent a car and just as expected, were told we were too young, even though we'd offered to get the most expensive insurance.
"What do we do now?" I asked as we walked out of the office.
He glanced at me and I could tell his little brain cells were moving. "I bet you I can get us a car."
"You're not going to steal one," I teased. He responded with a bored expression. "Ryan, I just don't understand how you think you're going to be able to get us a car."
He looked back into the office. "Just wait here," he instructed.
I didn't say a word when he returned about 2 minutes later -all I could do was laugh.
-----
We ended up chartering a cab for the entire day and just drove around Honolulu stopping at different locations, showing Seth's photograph around and searching for any clues or evidence that he'd been in the city. We'd been driving around for about three hours, with no luck ,when we passed by a comic book store.
"Stop!" I screamed at the cab driver.
He screeched to a halt. "Miss, you need to give me advanced notice," he repeated for the umpteenth time.
Ryan looked at me curiously. "What's it this time?"
I pointed at the store. "Seth was there."
He studied it. "How do you know?"
"I feel it. I just know he was there."
"Just because it's a comic book store?"
"Ryan," I said, stepping out of the car. "This is the kind of place Seth would come to. Remember back in Newport how we used to go to Larry's on dates? Those were fun times," I smiled reminiscing. I'd always enjoyed an afternoon browsing comics with Seth.
"Uhm, okay," he said, following me.
I walked in first and approached the somewhat pretty sandy-haired girl behind the counter. "Hi, do you mind if we ask you a few questions?"
She looked completely uninterested till Ryan stood by me. "I'd love to," she replied. She ignored me and instead, trained her eyes on him.
"Have you, by any chance, seen the guy in this picture? We think he was in here recently," I said holding it out to her. She bypassed it and reached for the one in Ryan's hand. He gave her a picture he'd taken with Seth a few months earlier.
"You were here with him?" she asked him.
"No, just him."
She smiled and held out the photo. "Which one?"
I could guess what her game was and I wasn't having it. We'd come in to find Seth and not flirt. So, to move things along, I snatched it from her and folded it in half so she could only see Seth's image. I handed it back to her. "That one."
She looked a little annoyed then shook her head. "I'm sorry, I haven't seen him. Have you been here before?" she asked Ryan. She produced another sleazy smile when he explained that he hadn't . "I didn't think so. There's no way I would have forgotten you."
I rolled my eyes, took back the picture and walked out.
"Does that always happen to you?" I asked when we were back in the cab.
"What?"
"Girls openly flirting like that? If we'd stayed any longer, I bet she'd have taken her top off and jiggled her boobies around."
He chuckled. "I didn't even notice."
"You've gotta be kidding - her legs were practically spread."
He laughed again. "Does that bother you?"
"No, of course not. It's a little annoying and I guess surprising. I never realized girls were like that with you."
"Oh, why? Because of my big nose?"
"What the hell are you talking about?" I pinched his nose. "It's very cute. I mean, I thought most girls had more class than that. That was a little trampish. She saw you come in with me but she still had her ovaries out on display. What a slut!"
-----
We drove around the entire city and came up empty. On a whim, we decided to pay the cab driver off and just check the hotel that was about half a mile away from ours.
The blonde lady looked at the photo then handed it to the brunette next to her. "He looks familiar, right?"
My heart jumped. The brunette nodded then crooked her finger at the concierge. "Wasn't he here?" she asked, showing it to him.
He peeked at it then shook his head vigorously. "Yes, he was."
"Take another look. Are you sure?"
He shrugged. "It looks like him."
"Do you remember his name?" Ryan asked.
He looked at him suspiciously. "No. But I try my best to forget all names once they've left. We have so many guests that I try not to store useless information."
I nodded. "We understand. But you're saying he was here."
"Yes. He was. At least, I think it was him. "
That was much better than nothing. "When did he leave?" I continued.
He thought about it. "He left yesterday."
My tummy did flip flops. That meant we weren't too far behind.
"Did he say where he was going?" Ryan asked.
"No," he said, shaking his head so vigorously it was obvious he was lying.
"Look, we are his friends. He left California a few weeks ago and his family has been looking for him."
"Maybe he doesn't want to be found."
"Listen, we need to find him. His life is in danger and we just want to protect him. He sailed on such a little boat that we are surprised he even made it this far," I chimed in, glancing at Ryan.
Ryan shook his head vehemently. "Yes, it's dangerous."
"See? He was lucky the first time around but it's still not safe. If anything happens to him, you won't be able to live knowing you could have done something to prevent it. So please, tell us where he went."
He scrutinized us for a bit then gave in. "I don't know for sure. But he kept talking about Tahiti. I don't know for sure but he might have gone there."
The front desk confirmed that a Seth Cohen had resided at their hotel for two nights and had checked-out the day before. He'd paid with travelers checks but they were not at liberty to disclose the credit card number he'd left for any outstanding bills.
When we walked out of the hotel, I glanced at Ryan and could tell that we shared the same feelings. We felt optimistic but didn't want to say or feel anything till we were absolutely sure. But the news was great. There really couldn't be another Seth Cohen with dark hair and a skinny frame who was also obsessed with Tahiti, could there?
I reached into my bag to call the Cohens but soon realized I'd left my phone at the hotel. Ryan agreed to pick up some dinner while I ran back to the hotel to call them.
----
My heart raced out of control when I realized I had one new message. I pressed the button to hear the message that could potentially change my life.
"Hello, kids," Mr. Cohen's voice sang. "We drove down and just as hoped, it's not Seth. The watch didn't even look like his. Unfortunately, this means that another family has lost their son. Anyway, call us when you get this message. Are you in Hawaii yet? Make sure you call. We love you."
I screamed. All the frustration, the fear, the anger, the pain all dissipated with those words. It had been a while since I'd felt such joy and relief. Not only did we now know that it wasn't Seth's body lying in that morgue, I was 100% sure that Seth wasn't hurt because he'd recently been in Honolulu. It felt amazing.
Ryan walked into the room about ten minutes later. "Pizza's fine?" he asked, lifting the box.
I nodded, hoping that my face was devoid of any emotion.
"Hey, what's going on?".
I handed him the phone. "Listen to the message."
He was a little frightened. "What? Anna, tell me," he pleaded, taking it from me.
"Just listen, alright?"
He dropped the box on the table then hesitantly put the phone to his ear. I watched as his face went from one of apprehension to uncertainty and finally to plain elation.
I started jumping around. "He's alive, he's alive!" I cried as I moved across the room. Ryan just watched and laughed. Then I leapt on him.
We held on to one another and just kept laughing -Seth was alive! We were still chuckling when he put me down. But even when the smiles faded away, we kept staring into the other's eyes. I could already tell that the mood was changing and I felt my breath sharpen. There was just something in his eyes and as much as I tried, I couldn't make myself look away. Then he cupped my face and gave me a soft, long kiss. I didn't put my arms around him nor did his fingers leave my face. We just shared a kiss that was comprised mainly of lips - not much tongue, just lips moving on lips, then broke apart.
I felt a little odd so I sat on the bed. "So what did you get us?" I said, moving on.
He reached for the box and placed it next to me.
"Stuffed crust pizza?" I laughed.
He nodded. "Yes."
"I thought you didn't like it."
He grinned. "I lied."
------
The trip to Tahiti wasn't particularly interesting. Sandy had tried to convince us to return to Newport but this time around, Ryan was all for looking for Seth. I think learning that he'd been in Hawaii strengthened his resolve to find him - it no longer felt like a wild goose chase. We left the morning after we arrived in Honolulu and spent most of the time on deck searching for Seth. We knew that we were only a day apart so we figured that we'd eventually find him. The time we didn't spend behind binoculars was spent teaching Ryan to sail.
Two days to arriving in Tahiti, we were downstairs watching Jeopardy! We'd fallen into an upgraded version of our routine. We weren't making out or anything but just like we had at the beginning of the trip, we sat around playing video games or watching television except this time around, he'd sometimes put his arm around my shoulder, or we'd sit close together. I think having Seth's supposed near-death experience made us appreciate one another a little more. Personally, I didn't know if I was supposed to interpret the cuddles as friendly or much more. He hadn't attempted to kiss me since that evening in Honolulu so I didn't bother pretending we could be something more. Or at least, I tried my best not to.
Alex Trebek asked another question and as usual, Ryan gave the wrong answer.
"When are you going to accept that you suck?" I said, looking up at him. He'd refused to sit on the other couch so I'd been forced to put my head on his lap. I could have easily just sat up but I wanted to be comfortable.
"I don--" His response was interrupted by a ringing phone. We immediately looked at one another. Since the phone had never rung, we knew it could only mean one thing - information on Seth. I was scared out of my wits and I could tell that Ryan wasn't particularly pleased with the situation. The plan was to find Seth so that everything could get back to normal. We hadn't anticipated receiving any nighttime calls while at the 'finding Seth' stage.
"Go ahead, Ryan. Pick it up."
"No, you pick up."
"It's probably from the Cohens. You should pick up - they are your family."
"But it's your phone," he said as we both reached for it. It had already rung four times and we didn't want the caller to give up. He got to it first and listened in.
A minute later, he put it back down. "Seth's in Newport. And he's fine," he droned in a zombie-like voice.
----
For the second time in about five weeks I arrived at the John Wayne Airport. Sandy had insisted we return to California and I didn't put up much of a fight. The idea of sailing back to Newport, with Ryan in tow, seemed wrong. I knew he had many obligations back in Chino and I didn't want to keep him from them. Yet, the idea of sailing on my own just didn't feel right. All the pleasure I'd attained from sailing alone - the solace, the freedom, everything I'd initially cherished, paled in comparison to what I'd experienced sailing with him. But then again, the last two days we'd spent together had been a little off, to say the least. It was almost like we'd been jolted back into reality. Our little vacation in the Pacific had ended and real life awaited us. I became preoccupied with going back to Pittsburgh and trying to continue my life from where I'd left off and I imagine he was thinking about his new child and maybe, Marissa. Whatever it was, those two days were more than a little awkward. We tried to pretend that everything was back to normal but it so obviously wasn't. The smiles were far more strained and we were pretty much apart most of the time.
We didn't speak much on the plane either so I opted to finally read the novel I'd brought with me. Unfortunately, Kit and Louisa decided to make out and that just made me think of us even more. I became obsessed with what getting back to Newport would mean for us. I still didn't even know what the status of our relationship was. Or if we even had one. I spent the entire plane ride dissecting every single moment we had shared and the more I thought about it, the more it seemed to have all the characteristics of a summer fling. And that just depressed me.
----
"I'm guessing my parents are already here," I said, looking at my ringing phone. "What about you? Are Mr. and Mrs. Cohen picking you up?" We'd just come through Customs and as it was his first time on an international flight, he was pleasurably drinking in all the mundane procedures experienced travelers detested.
"No. Seth said he'll come with Summer and Marissa."
"Oh," was all I could say. Again I wondered about Marissa. Was she coming as a friend or more? As much as I wanted to, I didn't dare ask because I didn't want to seem particularly interested, or worse, desperate. If Ryan Atwood was going to dismiss what we had as a fling, I could certainly handle it. It's not like it would break my heart or anything. I hoped.
I soon spotted his little gang of waiting friends.
I pointed them out to him. He waved to get their attention.
"I guess I'll be seeing you," I said, looking for my parents.
He spun around, his forehead wrinkled. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find my parents."
"Anna, what the hell? Don't you want to see Seth? You should stop by for a minute, after all, he's the reason we're here. Come on, let's go," he said, taking my hand and dragging me with him.
As usual, Summer was looking gorgeous in a spaghetti-strapped sundress and very girly sandals, as was Marissa who was also seasonably-clad. Other than looking a little tired, she too looked beautiful. I couldn't help but wonder if her fatigue had been caused by her boyfriend's absence.
Summer sprinted to cover the distance between us. I was surprised that she'd missed Ryan that much when she shocked the hell out of me and jumped on me instead.
"Anna, I'm so glad to see you," she shrieked, holding on to me tightly. Seth and Marissa walked to us.
"Wow, Summer. Talk about a great welcome."
I glimpsed at Seth and saw that he was sharing a warm hug with Ryan.
Marissa waved at me. I smiled back. We hadn't really been friends and I hadn't even seen her on my first return trip to California.
Summer released me around the same time Seth and Ryan broke apart. Then Ryan moved along the line and hugged Marissa.
I glared at Seth but he smiled back. I'd already made plans to kick his ass the minute I saw him but I couldn't help cracking a smile as I stared at the goofy mock-expression of shame that was plastered on his cute face.
He stretched his hands out to me. "Come on, come to Papa. You know you want to."
I was about to when, from the corner of my eye, I saw Ryan plant one on Marissa. Not in the we-are-so-cool-we-kiss-on-the-lips kind of way, that hipsters kissed their friends. No, not that way. But in the Angelina/Billy-Bob-we-are-so-in-love kind of nasty way. Except worse.