Disclaimer: I don't own The O.C. or its characters
Thanks to everyone who reviewed! You're feedback has really made my day and I've got a crap week at school with assignments and tests, so it's made it more bearable. (Hint, hint.)
Sandy pulled up at Charlotte's house. Or, at least he thought it was Charlotte's-there was no number on the letterbox or anywhere for that matter. He checked the address Kirsten had given him: well, he had the right street. And given the fact that next door was Number 17, Sandy was fairly certain this was Number 19. But still; there was no car parked at the front entrance.
He hadn't driven all of this way for nothing, Sandy decided hopping out of the car. And perhaps Kirsten was inside. Sandy walked up to the entrance, pausing to try to find the non-existent house number.
This house was not something he'd expect a Suriak patient to be living at, Sandy observed, noticing the peeling paint on the outside and the overgrown garden. He headed up to the door and had walked up the front steps when a voice floated across to Sandy from inside.
"I told you to get your fucking wallet and check book!" came the man's voice, followed by the sound of someone being hit and a cry.
Sandy's stomach gave a terrible lurch as he recognised Kirsten's cry. Initially pausing with shock, Sandy was soon racing towards the door, his hand shaking praying that it would be open, yet scared of what he might find inside.
Sandy almost passed out with relief as the door handle turned under his clammy hand. Sandy swung open the door, trying to adjust to the darker atmosphere inside.
A man who looked in his late forties turned around and gave hima startled glance.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Sandy yelled, advancing on whoever this man was. All he knew was that he had some serious ass-kicking to do.
Perhaps it was his shaking hands, or perhaps it was the fact that he was still trying to adjust to the darkness but Sandy found himself to be at a disadvantage as the man pushed him against the wall and managed to escape.
Initially tempted to go after him, the sight of Kirsten curled up on the floor erased all thoughts but her from his mind.
"Kirsten, honey, are you okay?" Sandy asked anxiously, bending over her and brushing the hair from her face which sported a developing bruise on her jaw line and a cut on her forehead. Quickly looking around, Sandy noticed blood on the hall table, concluding the cut must have come from there.
Kirsten opened her eyes at the sound of Sandy's voice, still in shock from what had just happened.
"Sandy?" Kirsten whispered in disbelief, scared she was hallucinating.
Sandy took Kirsten in his arms, thanking God he had followed that nagging feeling, and trying not to think of what could have happened if he hadn't of come.
"Look, we need to get out of here," Sandy told Kirsten. "Can you go grab your stuff?"
Kirsten nodded and stood up with the help of Sandy, physically shaking and finding it hard to function normally. Her head was sore and her mind was racing with images of Richard, yet his face was now only an indistinct blur.
Turning around to face him, Kirsten asked in a small voice, "Will you come with me?"
Sandy looked sideways at Kirsten asleep in the car and sighed. This was about as different as you could get to how he envisioned it would be when Kirsten came home.
After they'd got her bag, Sandy had driven her to the police station to inform them of what had happened. It had been a lengthy process that elicited little-if any-results: Kirsten could only give them a first name and limited physical descriptions. Sandy was of even less help: he had seen the man for maybe five seconds, and Charlotte's house had been quite dark which made it harder to work anything out.
Kirsten had held on to his hand tightly the entire time, but her voice never shook once nor did any tears fall. The minute they had left the station and entered the car; she had fallen asleep.
Sandy hated it when this happened. Kirsten hated people to see her cry or upset in any way. Sandy was only a minor exception to the rule: although she'd let on to him more than anyone else, she still tried to avoid expressing her feelings through crying. The worst part was knowing Kirsten was upset and using sleep as a means of escape.
He couldn't let her go home like this, Sandy decided. Sandy indicated and turned off at the first sign of a town. She needed time to get her head together, and while a night wouldn't make it all better, it would certainly help.
Kirsten hopped out of the bath in the hotel and changed into her pyjamas and robe. She'd hoped that a bath would fix everything-wash away the remnants of today. It was amazing how your mind would block out someunpleasant memories, Kirsten thought. She couldn't remember what Richard looked like, she couldn't remember falling and cutting her forehead-the whole ordeal just seemed like a blur now. She could, however, remember the coldness of his eyes and the terror of what might happen. Even clearer still was calling Charlotte and breaking the news to her at the police station. Charlotte had flipped, and declared that she would move in with her sister in Canada.
Kirsten took a deep breath and forced any thoughts of today out of her head. There was no point in dwelling on it, she told herself. Today was the start of her new life back with her family.
Walking out of the bathroom, Kirsten smiled at the sight of Sandy lying on the bed watching TV. At least now she could see him every day, and fall asleep next to him. They wouldn't have to miss each other anymore.
"What are you watching?" Kirsten asked, lying next to Sandy on the bed and cuddling into him.
"Over the Top," Sandy replied. "Are you feeling better?"
"Uh huh," Kirsten told him. "Even better still if you'd get rid of that movie. Once a year is more than enough to force me to sit through it-especially considering it's every Christmas."
"Well, what do you propose we do instead?" Sandy asked.
"Change channels," Kirsten suggested. "Order room service."
"Interesting," Sandy said, contemplating the idea before sighing and handing Kirsten the remote. "You don't know how big a sacrifice this is."
A new idea coming to her head, Kirsten took the remote from Sandy and turned off the TV. Kirsten smiled at the confused look on Sandy's face before kissing him.
"What about room service?" Sandy asked, wrapping his arms around Kirsten.
"It's still early," Kirsten whispered into his ear, nibbling it. "We have plenty of time for that."
"Okay," Sandy replied happily, returning Kirsten's kiss.
For the first time in two months, they were alone and uninterrupted.
Kirsten woke up with a start early the next morning. She was certain she'd been having a nightmare but she couldn't remember what it had beenabout.
For a few moments, Kirsten felt disorientated,struggling to remember where she was: she wasn't at rehab, or Charlotte's, or home. The memories of the previous day slowly returned, living a sinking feeling in Kirsten's stomach, the Richard incident impacting more on her than the night she and Sandy had just spent together.
Prising her eyes open, Kirsten noticed it was still dark-she had a few hours of sleep left. Sliding over, Kirsten gently cuddled into Sandy; trying to avoid waking him. At least she didn't have to sleep alone anymore and rely only on herself when things went wrong.
Despite what had happened, Kirsten couldn't help but smile at the thought that Sandy had known just when to come; just when she needed him. He had been, in this case, her knight in shining armour.
The first thing Sandy felt when he woke up the next morning was Kirsten's arm around him. This was enough to bring a smile to his face and inspire him to open his eyes.
The first thing Sandy saw when he opened his eyes was Kirsten. This was enough to turn his smile into a grin and wake him up completely.
Having Kirsten back just seemed to make everything right. Having her to fall asleep and wake up next to made facing each day a hell of a lot more enjoyable and made Sandy feel invincible.
Sandy couldn't wait to see the looks on Ryan and Seth's faces when he came home with Kirsten: they'd decided to surprise the boys and Sandy had just told them he would be out and returning some time today. The boys-and Sandy-had missed Kirsten like hell. The house just didn't work without her. Three males under the one roof resulted in chaos, mess and a fair few unidentifiable smells.
Kirsten roused, reluctantly forcing her eyes open, wishing she was still asleep. The sight of Sandy lifted her mood considerably.
"Morning, beautiful," Sandy said, kissing her and bringing a smile to her face. It had been so long since Kirsten had heard Sandy say that.
"Morning," Kirsten said, laying her head on Sandy's chest, wishing they didn't have to move. If it wasn't for the boys and how much she missed them, Kirsten would have suggested they stay at the hotel for a few more days. It just seemed so idyllic and peaceful.
They lay like that for several minutes: Kirsten lying on Sandy's chest, listening to his heart and Sandy stroking her hair, both wishing they could hold on to this moment forever. This, Sandy decided, was how he envisioned it would be when Kirsten came home.
Kirsten walked along the beach with Sandy, gazing out somewhere at the ocean; a million miles away. Sandy had suggested going for a walk before returning home and Kirsten thought it would be a way to try to keep her mind off the other day. She tried so hard not to think about it, but the events-or what she remembered of them-couldn't help but penetrate her mind. At times, it felt like the entire thing happened so quickly. At others; it was as though it had stretched on for eternity. Kirsten was lucky with her injuries: the bruise was mild and could be covered with some concealer, and the cut on her forehead was small and able to be hid behind hair. From the looks of things, they should be gone within the next week, and Seth and Ryan would never need to know about Richard. The last thing Kirsten wanted to do was worry them.
Sandy watched his wife, in a world of her own. Kirsten had pretty much been like this since breakfast but she hadn't mentioned the events of yesterday once. Sandy wished she would open up. He squeezed her hand, waiting for her to squeeze back as she always did, but this time, there was no response. Kirsten looked as though she hadn't even felt it.
"Hey," Sandy said, "let's sit down."
"Hm?" Kirsten asked, coming out of her trance. "Oh…right. Okay."
Sandy sat down and pulled Kirsten in between his legs, wrapping his arms around her waist. Kirsten lay against Sandy's chest and returned to gazing out at the ocean.
"Do you want to tell me what's on your mind?" Sandy suggested.
"It's nothing," Kirsten lied.
"It seems to be bothering you, this 'nothing'," Sandy pointed out.
"I'm sorry," Kirsten apologised.
"Hey-I'm not asking for an apology," Sandy told her. "I want you to tell me what it is so you can get it off your chest. And maybe I could help then."
"I don't know if you could," Kirsten admitted, shaking her head.
"It's Richard, isn't it?" Sandy asked, feeling Kirsten's body tense at the mention of his name.
"I just can't get it out of my mind," Kirsten explained, quietly. "You know; what I should've done, what I shouldn't have done… It just replays in my head over and over-the entire thing. And I can't stop wondering what might have happened if you hadn't of come. I guess it'll just take time."
"I know," Sandy said, tightening his hold of Kirsten, remembering her recount of events to the police-she'd been able to tell them bits and pieces, but a lot of it she seemed to have forgotten. "There's no point going over the what ifs, but that's easier said than done, right?"
"Yeah," Kirsten agreed. "I'm just glad I have you."
"I'm very glad I have you," Sandy told her. "If I can do anything-tell me."
"You do," Kirsten stated. "You listen to me and you hold me. You make me feel less alone. That's more than anyone's ever done for me."
Sandy kissed the top of Kirsten's head, reinforcing the fact that if it hadn't of been for Sandy's timing, Kirsten would have been far worse off. The tears she'd been trying to suppress for the past day finally won; a stray one slipping out, followed by another one until they were no longer able to be controlled. Sandy held Kirsten as she cried, hating to see her hurting so much yet glad she was finally releasing her emotions. Kirsten held on for dear life to the only man-the only person-she'd ever dared bare her soul to.
I know that everything was probably tied up quickly in this chapter but this isn't the end of Richard. The next few chapters will be less dramatic, probably, but they're leading up to what will happen so please don't stop reading. Seth and Ryan will come into the story next chapter, too. Richard did have a motive and you will find it out (eventually).
Thanks again to everyone who reviewed!