I was procrastinating again...so here is the next chapter. Read, enjoy, and let me know what you thought about it.

Disclaimer: The characters are not even close to being mine.

"In the end

we let it go away

we let it float away

on the breeze

round the bend

the sun is in the sky

it's starting to look like

it's gonna be, yeah, it's gonna be

a bright, beautiful day

yeah, the good times gonna come" - Aqualung

"Mommy! Watch this!" Seth said as he bounced into the kitchen where Kirsten was sipping at her coffee. She was exhausted, but managed to smile at her son, and watch as he pretended to fly around the kitchen with his blanket tied around his neck like a cape.

"Wow, Sethy," Kirsten said smiling at him. Seth clambered up onto the stool next to her.

"Can I call Daddy?" Seth asked as he reached over and took a drink of the orange juice that Kirsten had poured for him.

"Sure honey," Kirsten answered and she dialed the phone for Seth who held it up to his ear and did a little dance as he stood waiting for his father to pick up.

"Dad! It's Seth!" Kirsten could hear Sandy's laugh through the phone, and his patented,

"Hey, kiddo."

"Guess what Mommy and I are going to do today?" Seth asked. He didn't wait for Sandy's reply before jumping into a list of activities that Kirsten had promised him they would do. "We're going to get the paddle boat and go out onto the lake, and Mommy said that if it's warm enough we can even go swimming. And she said she would ride bikes with me, and we're going to roast hotdogs tonight, and marshmallows, but maybe not, maybe something else, something better. Cause Grandpa has a whole cupboard of things that you can roast." Kirsten had to suppress a giggle as Seth listed off the things that they could potentially put over the fire and eat. "Do you want to talk to Mommy? I got to sleep in the big bed with her last night, cause you weren't there."

On both ends of the conversation, both Kirsten and Sandy felt the pang at the words.

You weren't there.

"So do you want to talk to Mommy?" Seth asked again. This time he waited for an answer, and with a quick goodbye, handed the phone off to his mother.

"Hey," Kirsten said softly.

"How'd you sleep?" Sandy asked.
"Not very well…you?" It was one of the most awkward conversations of Kirsten's life. She didn't know what to say to Sandy, and that was a weird position to find herself in. She and Sandy had never been at a loss of words even from the beginning of their relationship. And any silence was quickly filled by Sandy's inane, but charming, rambling.

"I couldn't stop thinking about you," Sandy said truthfully. "I miss you already. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean any of what I said. I was just…frustrated. Can't you come home and we can talk about it? Or I can come there? We can stay at the cabin, Seth can take off school for a couple of days, and we'll take off work…" Maybe that was the key; maybe they just needed to get away, all three of them. Maybe on neutral territory they could just talk about the options instead of fighting.

"Sandy," Kirsten said closing her eyes.

"Please don't say no," he whispered. "Please just think about it."

"Mommy! Are we going to go out on the paddle boats?" Seth asked impatiently.

"I should go," Kirsten said grateful to her son for the distraction.

"Think about it? Please?" Sandy pleaded again. Kirsten felt a headache coming on, and she rubbed her temple with her free hand.

"Okay, I'll think about it," she finally acquiesced.

"I love you," Sandy said feeling a little better after his small victory. At the very least she would think about it.

"I really have to go," she said and he heard a click and the dial tone. Kirsten hung up the phone and looked at her son.

"Are you ready?" Seth asked exasperated. "I've been waiting forever." Kirsten managed another smile for him, and nodded.

"Let's grab some shoes, and we can go."

Sandy did nothing but sit by the phone and wait for Kirsten to call. He had work in front of him, but he wasn't actually doing any of it. He had to reread the same page five times, and finally gave up and moved on. He actually played with one of Seth's new video games, and decided that he was terrible at it, and gave up at that too.

When the phone rang, he dove for it, and answered with a breathless,

"Hello?"

"Sanford." Great, Sandy thought. Just who I wanted to talk to. Caleb.

"Caleb."

"I want to talk to Kiki," Caleb demanded.

"You know Caleb, normal people ask if the person they want to talk to is home, sometimes they even try to make small talk with the person that answers," Sandy said. At first he had been uncomfortable around his father-in-law. Sure, he and Kirsten had been married for years, but he wasn't completely himself around Caleb. That had changed once Sandy realized that he would be dealing with Caleb on practically a day to day basis. Sandy was quick to then reply to Caleb's harsh words with sarcastic ones that drove his father-in-law crazy. It was one of Sandy's favorite aspects of Newport living, driving Caleb Nichol up a wall.

"Where's my daughter?" Caleb asked again, ignoring Sandy.

"She's not home right now," Sandy answered. "She and Seth are out for the day."

"When will she be home?" Caleb asked. It relieved Sandy at least slightly that Kirsten had not told her father that they were having problems, he would never hear the end of it.

"I'm not sure, I can have her call you though," Sandy replied.

"Fine," Caleb huffed, and without a goodbye, hung up the phone. Sandy shrugged and placed it back in the receiver, and continued his vigil next to the phone willing it to ring, willing it to be Kirsten asking him to come to the cabin so that they could talk things over.

It rang in the afternoon, about an hour after Caleb had called. Kirsten's voice soft and uncertain on the other end.

"If you want to come up here…that would be okay," she said softly.

"Are you sure?" Sandy said. He knew that he shouldn't get his hopes up, but that couldn't stop the grin that was creeping over his face. No, Kirsten said in her head. She wasn't sure. She wasn't sure if she could forgive him yet for the things he had said, but she knew that they should talk about things. She knew that they should talk about Newport and Berkeley and their marriage.

"I don't know Sandy," she finally said. "I'm not sure about anything. But you want to talk, and so I'm giving you the opportunity to come here and talk."

"I'll be there. As soon as I can, I promise."

"Drive carefully," she warned.

"I will. I'll see you soon," Sandy hung up the phone, and hurried and threw clothes into a bag, and threw the bag into the car and peeled out of the driveway and headed towards the cabin.

It was a good sign. That she was willing to talk to him. It meant that it wasn't over. It meant that he hadn't screwed up everything.

He made a decision right there and then that if it meant that much to stay in Newport, he would try his best to make the best of it. If it meant being with her, than he could live there. He would deal with Caleb, if it made her happy.

Seth was exhausted. They had been going since morning, out on the lake, then on the bikes, and they had gone for a quick swim before Kirsten suggested they take a little break, which she was surprised when Seth quickly agreed. They had eaten a snack and Seth had fallen asleep on the couch, his little arm hanging off into the bowl of popcorn.

God, Kirsten loved that little boy.

She gave him a kiss on the forehead, and grabbed a book and was grateful for the hour or two that she got to relax while Seth slept and before round two of the day.

And before Sandy got there.

Kirsten had called him before their swim, and wasn't surprised at how quickly Sandy agreed to come up there. She glanced at the clock. He should be there soon. She sighed and tried to concentrate on her book again.

When she heard the gravel on the driveway, she stood and walked to the window. She watched from the window as Sandy climbed out of the car and grabbed a bag from the trunk. He looked up at the cabin and spotted her in the window and lifted his hand in a half-hearted wave before making his way up the steps.

Kirsten moved to the door and pulled it open. Sandy slid his sunglasses to the top of his head. Kirsten was wearing just a t-shirt and jeans, and her hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail, and she had never looked more beautiful.

"Hey," she said softly. "Seth is sleeping." She gestured towards the living room and when Sandy peeked in, he saw Seth lying on the couch fast asleep.

"You wore him out huh?" Sandy asked.

"He wore me out too," Kirsten said.

"How long has he been sleeping?" Sandy asked quietly as he leaned down and pushed Seth's hair from off his face and kissed his cheek.

"An hour or so," Kirsten replied shrugging. Sandy nodded and followed Kirsten out of the room and into the massive kitchen.

"Would you like anything to drink?" She offered.

"A water would be nice," he requested and it was her turn to nod as she pulled open the fridge and pulled out a bottle for him.

"So…" She started sitting down on one of the stools. Sandy took her lead and sat down on the stool across from her. "I guess we should…"

"I'm sorry," Sandy broke in. "And on top of that, I'm sorry. And also, I'm sorry." She started to open her mouth, and he shook his head. "I was out of line and what I said was uncalled for, and not true at all. I don't regret, not ever, not for a single second, being married to you. I don't even know why I said it, except that I knew that it would hurt you and at the time that was what I wanted. I didn't mean it. I love you so much."

"Sandy…"

"Kirsten, please. I love you. Okay? I love you so much that sometimes it scares me. Please, I don't want this…I can't have this…" He shook his head, and it was Kirsten's turn to talk.

"What you said hurt me."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"And sorry doesn't really make it better Sandy," she said. "But I love you too." She was silent for a minute before looking him in the eye. "I want to stay in Newport. I want to be close to my family. I want to keep my job. I'm sorry. I know that it's unfair to you, and maybe even a little unfair to Seth…" Kirsten couldn't help the tears that started to slide down her face. "God I'm really selfish, aren't I? You were right. I'm acting like a spoiled brat. Seth doesn't like it there, you don't like it there. I'm the only one who wants to stay there."

"You aren't a spoiled brat," Sandy said moving towards her. "Despite what I have said. What would I know? I'm a pompous ass sometimes. And Newport…it's not that bad."

"What a rousing approval," Kirsten remarked sarcastically.

"No, what I meant is, if it means that much to you, then we stay, and Seth will get used to it. It's not all bad you know. He loves the ocean, and the beach, and our house. And as much as it pains me to admit it, I love the house, and being able to surf every morning. I like my job in Chino. I feel like I'm really making a difference there. Sometimes I feel as if I'm meant to be there in some odd way." Sandy closed the small gap between him and Kirsten and took her hand cautiously, relieved when she let him. "We'll stay in Newport."

"Daddy!" Seth's voice interrupted them and he bounded into the kitchen and Sandy let go of Kirsten's hand so that he could scoop his son into his arms. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was lonely at the house, and Mommy and I thought it would be a better idea if I came up here to be with you guys," Sandy answered giving Seth a hug.

"You're just in time for hot dogs!" Seth told him. "Want me to show you the cupboard with the roasting stuff?" Sandy looked over at his wife, who wiped away the remaining tears and nodded her consent.

"Sure, kid, let's go. You lead the way," Sandy placed Seth on the ground and watched as the six-year-old scrambled towards the door. "We'll talk about this later?" Kirsten nodded.

"Let's go Dad," Seth said with a roll of his eyes, and Sandy was hit with the terrifying vision of what Seth would be like as a teenager.

Seth was tucked away in the bedroom that was his in the cabin, and Kirsten shut off the lights and met Sandy in the hallway.

"Tonight was fun," Sandy said. They had roasted hot dogs and then baked potatoes in foil, and then marshmallows. Kirsten, it turned out, was about as good at roasting things as she was at cooking. Her poor potato had dropped into the fire, as had both her hot dog before, and her marshmallow after.

"Mommy," Seth had said taking her stick from her. "I'll do it for you." And he had. Perfectly.

"Yes it was," Kirsten agreed. She started towards the bedroom that she and Sandy always stayed in. Sandy followed, unsure as to whether or not they were on good terms yet.

"We need to finish our discussion," he said gently as she closed the bedroom door behind them.

"I don't want us to stay in Newport, and you become bitter about it, and resent me for making us stay there. I don't want Seth to resent me…"

"He won't. He adores you."

"Yeah, well, maybe now, but what happens when he's a teenager."

"He'll still adore you. And he's going to be fine, in Newport or in Berkeley…and I'll be fine. Wherever you are is where I want to be, and I'll be fine as long as I'm with you."

"Are you sure?" Kirsten asked softly. "Are you sure that this is okay?"

"Kirsten, baby," Sandy said stepping close to her. All night she had been in arms' reach, but he hadn't had the courage to actually pull her into his arms like he had wanted. It made his arms ache to know that she was right there, and he couldn't hold her. He couldn't take it anymore, and reached out and took her arm and pulled her closer to him. "Listen to me. I just want you to be happy, and if that means Newport than that's where we will stay…"

"God, though, Sandy, do you understand how selfish that makes me? That you are willing to make this sacrifice for me? And I'm not willing to make it back?"

"Kirsten, both of us can't make a sacrifice, that's not how they work…so it's my turn this time, and one day it's going to be yours. Give and take, baby. And it's my turn to give, and your turn to take." Kirsten's last wall of defense broke down and she buried her face in Sandy's chest and cried as he held her.

"I still feel so selfish," Kirsten said weeping quietly.

"You want to stay there more than I want to leave," Sandy reminded her. "It would be selfish of me to make us leave."

"Seth will be okay?"

"Seth will be fine," Sandy promised. "Seth's a good kid, he'll be okay wherever we go." Even Sandy didn't know if Seth truly would ever fit in there, but he didn't want to make Kirsten more upset. He was tired of fighting her about it. They would move to Newport permanently. He was willing to do that for her.

They stood there for a few minutes, before Kirsten looked up at her husband.

"You know you aren't totally off the hook for the things you said yet, right?"

"I know," he said nodding. "I need to make it up to you."

"A necklace would really do the trick," she proposed grinning at him. "Or a new ring…"

"Really?"

"Yes, silver…with diamonds." Sandy leaned down and kissed her, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For letting us live in Newport," she said softly. "It does mean a lot to me." Sandy didn't reply, just tightened his hold on her and leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"Does this mean I don't have to sleep on the couch tonight?"