Title: Ryan and Joan

Summary: Ryan meets Joan from Joan of Arcadia.

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to The O.C. or Joan of Arcadia.

Chapter 14 - "Halloween, part 2"

In the Range Rover, Joan gave Ryan a guided tour around Arcadia. She directed him towards the different neighborhoods: working-class, middle-class, rich. She showed him downtown. They drove by the bookstore where she worked. They drove by her high school, which is where they'd be going that evening for the dance. They ended up at the mall.

Ryan complained. "We're not going shopping, are we?"

Joan smiled at him indulgently. "The little kids get dressed in their costumes and go to the mall to go trick-or-treating. The stores give out candy. I thought we could go, watch the kids, maybe get something to eat..."

Ryan smiled back. "Cool."

And so they parked and went into the mall.

Inside the mall, Joan and Ryan headed over to the Food Court, to the ice cream place. They got in line. While they were waiting, Joan noticed a distinctive high school guy with black lipstick. Him, again.

Joan said to Ryan, "Can you order for me? I have to --" And she gestured in the general direction of the restrooms.

"Sure. What do you want?"

"Small strawberry cone."

"You got it."

"Thanks."

Joan headed over to talk to Him. She had some questions for Him. About Ryan. She had seen Him since the night she met Ryan, what with the whole garage sale thing, but hadn't been able to talk to Him about Ryan.

When Joan approached, He said, "I see you're having a good time."

"Yeah, you know. I have a question for you. Why did you tell me to bring Ryan home that night? I don't get it. What's the plan? Just to get me a boyfriend?" Somehow, Joan doubted that.

He said, patiently, "You know I don't answer questions, Joan."

"You told me to introduce him to my parents. As far as I can tell, all introducing him to my father accomplished was to get him grounded." Joan looked back over at Ryan, who was now at the front of the line.

When Joan looked back at Him, He smiled. "Exactly."

"What does that mean?"

By this time, Ryan had purchased the two ice cream cones and had looked around for Joan. He saw her talking to a freaky-looking high school guy. He told himself to relax. Just because a guy liked to wear freaky make-up didn't mean he was a danger to anyone. Maybe it was just a Halloween costume. Ryan hurried over there anyway.

As Ryan got close to Joan and this guy, heard Joan say what does that mean? She sounded a little upset. Ryan walked up to them and handed Joan her strawberry cone.

Ryan asked Joan, "Is everything OK?" Then he looked over at the guy who was dressed like a freak.

Joan quickly said, "Fine."

In the short time that she and Ryan had spent together, she already knew that he was the protective type. And he looked like he was in full protective mode right now. She prayed to Him that Ryan wasn't going to try and get into a fight with The Almighty. That would definitely not be good.

Joan watched Him smile at her, then look at Ryan and say, "You must be Ryan."

Ryan raised his eyebrows in surprise. He looked at Joan. Joan told Ryan, "He's a friend. I know him from school."

"Ah, OK."

Ryan looked back at the freak. Joan must have mentioned him to this guy. Actually, now that Ryan was really looking at him, he looked familiar somehow. Ryan looked at him quizically. "Have we met?"

The guy smiled, again, and said, "Possibly. I meet a lot of people."

He turned to Joan and said, "Think about it, Joan."

Then He turned and walked away.

Joan watched Ryan turn to look at her, with a confused look on his face. So Joan said, "He's just a guy I know. No big deal."

Ryan said uncertainly, "OK."

Ryan and Joan sat down on a bench and started eating their ice cream cones. They watched the kids go by in their costumes. Joan started to think about what He had said. It didn't make much sense. She got Ryan grounded. That was the plan? She'd have to think about it some more. Try to make sense of it.

After a while, Joan realized that she'd been spacing out, thinking. Joan looked over at Ryan. He didn't seem to have noticed. He looked like he was thinking, too. She wondered about what.

Once they were both done with their ice cream. Ryan and Joan looked at each other. Joan said, "Let's walk. Go window shopping."

"Sure."

So they stood up and started to walk around the mall, holding hands. They walked past different stores, stopped to look in the windows at some, went into others. They talked, and joked, and laughed. They had a good time.

Walking along a side area of the mall where Joan had rarely been before, she noticed a photo booth. She pointed it out to Ryan. "Hey. Look."

Joan started pulling Ryan towards the booth. "We don't have any pictures of each other. Let's take some!"

Ryan was less than enthusiastic. "I don't like having my picture taken."

"Oh, come on. It'll be fun! Don't you want a picture of me?"

Ryan considered. That was true. He would like one. He sighed. "OK."

"Great!"

So they got out some small bills and change, and paid to use the booth several times. First Joan alone, then Ryan and Joan together, then Joan pushed Ryan in to take some pictures of him alone.

Joan's pictures showed her making faces, and moving around, and generally having a good time. Ryan smiled. He liked them. Ryan took the row of pictures to take home with him. Joan tried to take them back. She hated them.

"Ugh. They're awful. There are much better ones of me at home. I can get you some of those."

Ryan wouldn't give them back. "Hey, this was your idea. I'm keeping these. But I'd like some from your house, too. I can't get enough of looking at you."

Joan smiled at that and blushed a little. Ryan gave her a quick kiss.

Ryan's pictures were different than Joan's. He sat still, stiff, either smiling or not. He didn't like his pictures, either. He never liked how he showed up in pictures.

Joan kept them, too. "Well, you can give me some pictures from your house, too."

Ryan considered. He didn't think he had any pictures to give her. He hadn't brought any with him from Chino, not that his mother was big into the picture taking. And he had never seen the Cohens taking any.

"I don't think I have any pictures of me at home."

"Really?" Ryan shrugged. Joan continued. "OK, well. Maybe when we're back at my house, I can take a picture of you with our camera."

Ryan wasn't sure that was such a good idea. He said, uncertainly, "Maybe."

The pictures that were of both Ryan and Joan were kind of in the middle of their individual pictures. Joan had tried to get Ryan to loosen up and have fun and it partially worked.

Joan said, "When we get home, we can cut this strip in half and each get some."

"OK."

Ryan and Joan pocketed the pictures that they were taking home. Then Ryan took Joan's hand, and they continued their window shopping.

To Be Continued