groovygamers.com

Elrod's voice sounds distant, probably on speaker phone in his car.  "I'm actually heading to you house.  Meet you there?"

Sammy thinks briefly of a question Sarah asked earlier, and sighs.  No window.  Maybe another time.  "Sure.  I'll be there in a few minutes."

She alights on the lawn at the side of the house, making it look as if she was just coming down out of a tree, and walks around to greet him.  She doesn't say anything, just wraps her arms around him and holds on tight.

"I missed you too."  he says, holding her for a couple of minutes.  "I talked to your mom.  With school out she thought you and your sister and her could take a few days off.  Since it's my familes beach house she said it would be okay for me to come along too."

Sammy, finding it pretty much impossible to conceal her pleasure at the prospect of going to California, squeals with delight.  "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"  She releases him from the hug only to grab his hand and tug him along.  "Come on up to my room.  I need to pack!"

She doesn't leave him any room to protest, even if he's not intending to protest.  She leaves her bedroom door open at least 8 inches, wide enough to shout out that nothing is going on in here that even her dad can't know about.  "Here.  Look at these."  She opens her footlocker and pulls out the photographs of her taken by Colin.

"Wow."  is all he has to say as he looks over the photos.  "Hard to imagine that someone could make you look more beautiful then normal."  he says with a smile.

Sammy's mom and sister were packing and dad was getting instructions on how not to burn down the house or anything.  He'd decided to spend the time watching gory horror movies and eating take-out pizza.

"I figured if I invited the whole family along, your mom would be a little more open to the California thing."  Elrod says, tossing out about half of what Sammy packs as she puts it in the suit case.  She's thinking Chicago cold and packing for it.  He's thinking California sun and unpacking the stuff that she wont get to wear.

Her heart goes skippity skip.  "Pick one to keep for yourself," she says, "you've more than earned it."


Noticing that he's pulling stuff out of the suitcase almost as fast as she's putting it in, she smiles wryly at him.  "Since you seem to know what I'll need better than I do, how about I just sit on the bed and look pretty while you pack for me?  I'll tell you where stuff is if you can't find it."  She gives him free rein through her closet and clothing chest, letting him riffle through the bright and the silky and the shiny as well as the faded and stained and soft.  Nothing is kept secret, nothing is off limits.  Her homecoming gown is in a clear protective bag on a hanger on the back of her bedroom door.  Its a very simple formal  in a Grace Kelly classic style, with a black velvet bodice, floor length white satin skirt, and a powder blue sash around the waist.

Elrod pauses briefly when he comes across the Homecoming gown, but it's short lived as he makes a quick pass through her cloths.  He packs like a teenage boy, folding is something yet mastered or cared for and in a few minutes she has a pile of cloths fit for being in the sun.

"Toothbrush, shampoo, all that good stuff I'll leave to you."  he says, sitting next to her on the bed.  "As for the photo, I'm tempted to take this porn one."  he shows her the one where she's fantisizing, "But I think the angry one would go on my wall better."

"Take them both then.  I want you to have them; I know you'll appreciate them."  She flops bonelessly backwards onto her bed, both feet still touching the floor.  Everything is still safe for parental observation.  "Thank you so much for this trip.  It'll be good to get away from here for a while.  Things are getting to me, and it'll be good to have a chance to cool down."

"No problem.  Unwinding is something I'm pretty good at."  Elrod says, and his phone begins to ring.  He glances at the display and makes a face like he's suprised to see the caller.  "Hey dad, how's the Med?"

"Yeah, I'm taking my girlfriend and her family.  We'll probably fly back here Sunday.  I have someone watching the house and Lisa so I'll get a call if anything goes strange."

Elrod's smiles, and almost laughs.  "Where did you get the impression I was gay?"

He nods as his father answers him, Oh, I see.  Well, I'll just have to make sure to spread some equally bothersome rumor about her when school is back in session.  How's mom?"

"Tell her I love her too.  And you.  You two try and have some fun this trip okay?"

"I'm glad you're glad I'm not gay too dad."  Elrod begins shaking his head.  "See you when you get back."  He closes the phone and leans in to give Sammy a kiss on the mouth.  "Dad's glad I have a girlfriend and he's releived I'm not gay, he wanted me to tell you thank you."

Sammy slides her head back far enough that she can look at El's face without crossing her eyes.  "That's the first time you've done that.  Called me your girlfriend, I mean.  It sounds nice."

Elrod smiles.  "I thought it would be easier to say then 'the first girl I've thought was cool'.  My dad reads into things, so what I say to him usually has no room for misinterpretation."

Sammy laughs, secretly glad that she's reaped the benefits of "no room for misinterpretation" as well.  "We can make a point of stopping by your house on Homecoming night and let him see for himself that I'm not a blowup doll or a guy in drag."  Dragging a thick strand of hair over her upper lip, she continues, smilingly, "But I always did wonder what it would feel like to have a beard or mustache.  How's it look?  Would you kiss this Sleeping Beauty?"

Something clicks in her head, and she sits up abruptly.  "Crap.  I almost forgot.  Sleeping gas."  To his questioning glance, she replies, "Tim McVane was the band geek so overwhelmed by Megan that he gassed the room we were in to try to get closer to her.  He told me and Sarah where he got the gas.  Two of the science club geeks had stashed it away in a closet.  I think one was Preston Wilde.  I don't know who the other one might be, just that he's into Hong Kong action flicks.  I forgot that Sarah doesn't know who the 'robot geek' is.  Do you want the honors of grinding the story out of Mr. Wilde, or would you rather I hand this over to the Scooby Gang?  I know at least one or two of them would be more than happy to thump the snot out of him.  I'd tell the police, but then I'd have to spill the beans about Tim.  I'd rather not do that to him.  He feels bad enough about it already."

"Maybe after a shave."  he says with a smile.


"No offense, but I'm gonna stay clear of the entanglements of kicking the crap out of a fellow student.  I'd like my criminal record to remain in the juvenile realm if you get my meaning."

"No problem," she replies.  "To be completely honest, I'm not much into the beating up part of things myself.  I just thought I'd offer."

She rolls herself towards her laptop, starts it up and fires off a message.

Sarah, I think the sleep gas "robot geek" is Preston Wilde.  I forgot you might not know him b/c only John and I went to the Science Club meeting.  I don't know who the HK action movie guy is.  You guys can handle it.  I'm running away to California with Elrod.

--Sammy

"Done.  Let me go get stuff from the bathroom.  When do we have to get to the airport?"

"Plane is scheduled to leave at 3PM, so we have a little time.  We'll have to share the cabin with a couple of execs from the city, but they should be busy reading whatever it is guys that read on trips to California."

"A private flight.  Dang you're good.  I could get used to this.  Of course, I'll have to pay you back.  Want me to take you flying tonight?  No cabin, no wings, just you and me and the air."

"Sure."  he says, "That could be cool.  Besides, no one in SantaMonica will think twice about seeing people flying around.  It's California after all."

Sammy chuckles in response, and gets the rest of her things together.  Pretty soon she's packed and ready to go.  She and El lug her belongings downstairs and recline on the family room couch to watch some TV until everybody else is set.

Once Stephanie and mom are packed Elrod drives them to the airport.  He's traded his two-seat roadster for a full size sedan with enough trunk space to carry everything.

Within a half hour they're at the airport parked a few yards from the corporate jet they'll be taking to California.  A valet helps to load their suitcases and another takes the car to a private parking area.

The plane is nicely appointed, more like a narrow conference room then a plane.  It's got couches and tables with comfortable swivel chairs.

Elrod meets with the men in suits and shakes hands.  They engage in some quiet conversation, and it's obvious to Sammy that even though he certainly tries not to look it, Elrod fits into the world of corporate suits nicely.

He helps everyone get seated for take off, and it's not long before they're airborne and on their way to California.

"Pilot says about four hours."  Elrod says, coming back from up front.  "It'll be about 5PM or so when we land, local time.  Might take us some time to get to the house, maybe we can get an early dinner and try the roads after the rush dies down some?"

"That sounds like a good idea to me," says Sammy.

She settles more comfortably into her seat and reads the paperback novel she brought along for the plane ride.  After a while, her hand slides over to rest on Elrod's arm.  "Thank you," she whispers.  "I won't tell anybody, but you really are a nice guy.  You even fit in nicely with the suits.  It'll be our secret though."

After a while, the words on the page all run together into one big blur, and she falls asleep with her head resting on El's shoulder.

Elrod wakes Sammy up before they land.  A few minutes later they're on the ground and the door opens to a warmth that tells them they're not in Northern Illinois anymore.

A car is delivered and Elrod has the luggage put in the trunk.  It's not LA-X, but a municipal airpark closer to Santa Monica.  Elrod  takes them out the gate and a few blocks to the ocean, where he finds a parking space near a boardwalk.  "There is a little place down here that serves really good Sushi.  There are a few Soul Food places, and a hole in the wall barbecue place that has awesome ribs.  Anyone have a preference?"

Stephanie is eager to give Sushi a try, and mom seems to think that would be a California thing to do as well.

Sammy is amenable to whatever the rest of them want to eat.  They go to the sushi place, and she tries to order some things that don't seem too scary weird in the menu descriptions.  She is very happy to see her mom and her sister getting into the vacation mode and enjoying themselves.  She's even content to play along when her mom goes all touristy and whips out the camera to take some photographs of all of them having fun.

Elrod helps Sammy find some safe and edible looking choices.  He takes pictures so all three of them can get in the shot.  He takes them down by some wonderful wall murals and grafitii so they can get some good pics before the dun goes down.

Sammy looks at the murals and wishes she had more than a shred of artistic talent.  "Wouldn't it be cool to paint a whole room like this?" she asks nobody in particular.  She gets her mom to take a couple of photographs of her and El together.

She begs for a walk along the beach so they can all watch the sun go down over the ocean.

A California sunset is certainly nice with the ocean as the setting.  Elrod drives to a spot that's a bit away from the city lights so they can watch the sun go down.  There is a breeze and a slight chill, but nothing like Chicago in October.

After the sun is gone from the sky they make the final drive to the house.  It's a little back from the road, down a bit of dirk road that's not as smooth as it could be.  The house itself sits long side to the ocean, with a modest two car garage and very little in the way of front yard.  the ocean side of the house is mostly sliding glass doors and large windows.  It's hardwood floors and comfortable furniture give it a charming feel.  There is a fire in the fireplace when they arrive and a small hispanic, older woman hugs Elrod and speaks to him in rapid fire Spanish, which he answers back in.

"Everyone, this is Francis.  She takes care of the place for my folks."  He introduces everyone to Francis and then takes them into the house to show them their rooms.  The house has three bedrooms, large living room, and a very modern eat-in kitchen.  There is a deck that takes up the majority of the back length of the house with patio furniture and a gas grill.

"I'm going to stay here in the living room, the couch is a fold out.  I spent a lot of time there as a kid."

Once everyone is settled Francis rattles more Spanish to Elrod and gives him a kiss on the cheek before she leaves for the night.  they hear the garage open and clsoe and her car pull away.

Sammy starts to protest when she hears Elrod say he'll sleep on the sofa bed, but realizes that he's probably not going to back down.  Had he wanted a bed, it would have been easy enough to put her and her sister into the largest bedroom and her mom into one of the smaller ones, leaving a bed for himself.  He arranged things this way on purpose, he was the host, and he would win.

"OK," she sighs, "if that's really the way you want it.  Let me know if you change your mind.  I'm probably going to spend half the night out on the deck staring at the ocean anyhow.  Its beautiful out there.  I might not want to do anything else, unlike some people I know!"  Laughing, she turns to Stephanie.  "Got your shopping plans laid out for tomorrow?  Isn't Rodeo Drive pretty close to here?"

Stephanie's eyes shine at the mention of Rodeo Drive.  "Oh, shopping.  What a wonderful idea."  she says with a smile.

"It's not too far."  Elrod says, "And there are some nice places to have lunch too."

"Elrod."  Sammy's mom begins, "I really appreciate this.  You're doing a very nice thing."

Sammy's not sure, but she thinks Elrod almost blushes.  "It's not a problem Mrs. Jameson, really."

Mom kringes when Elrod says 'Mrs. Jameson'.  "Please, Elrod.  Call me Kim.  Mrs. Jameson was what kids called me when Sammy was eight."

Elrod laughs, "Okay.  Kim."  He walks to the kitchen and opens the fridge, taking out two bottles of soda.  "Francis stocked the kitchen for us, so make yourselves at home.  I'm gonna be on the deck with Sammy."  He opens the door for her and the pair go outside.  Sammy notices immediately that the wondows on this side of the house lock out the light from the interior, making the deck a perfect place to see the sky and ocean without the glare of the house lights.  "I like your family, they seem pretty cool."  Elrod says offering Sammy one of the soda's he'd gotten.

"I like them," Sammy says simply, then laughs.  "and like it or not, after the events of the last 36 hours, they see you as part of us now.  I think Mom would adopt you if she could.  If there's ever anything she or my dad, any of us really, can do for you, all you need to do is ask."

--~~--

The two snuggle close in companionable silence for a while, looking out at the stars and the sea.  Sammy stretches, turns, and gives Elrod a slightly toned down version of the "dreamy" look.  "The sky is waiting," she purrs.  "Want to fly?"

Elrod gives her a soft kiss.  "Sure."

She shivers in delight.  "You'd better hold on tight or not touch me at all.  I don't want to drop you, and if you keep distracting me like that... well, lets just say I might find it awfully hard to concentrate on anything else."

She stands face to face with him and wraps her arms around his body.  "Let's go," she says.  "I'll just stick to the area along the beach here unless you want to go somewhere in particular.  Just let me know once we're up and you're comfortable with it."  She takes him up, and they glide gracefully in long, smooth curves above the beach and the ocean.  Then she leans back and shifts so she's just holding his hands with hers, and she starts them into a series of slow spins that feel almost like they're ice skating in the air.  She grins.  "Having fun?"

"This is certainly different."  He says, gripping her hands and smiling.  "You're pretty good at this, you must practice a lot."

"I've taken a couple of other people up," she replies.  "But I don't know that this is practiced.  To be honest, I just kind of go with my instincts.  I seem to know better at a gut level what I can and cannot do than I do if I try to think about it too much.  I don't have to touch you to keep you in the air, but I think it helps with confidence.  Plus I like touching you, so you'll never fly free unless you especially ask for it."

She lets go of one of his hands, and maneuvers them into a side by side position, so they glide like a pair of birds, skimming over the beach and water.

"Any place you want to go?  This is your territory.  It's all new to me.  I've never even touched ocean water before."

"I'm along for the ride and the company."  he says, "Think of me as the map home if we get lost, so the sky is the limit."

Sammy and Elrod zoom around for an hour or so, looking at the area with a bird's eye view.  When Sammy has had enough, she asks Elrod to steer them back to the beach house.  She doesn't bring them down on the deck, but on a darker area of the nearby beach, just in case her sister is awake and looking around.  She isn't quite sure how much Stephanie knows now because of the chaos yesterday.

Wanting to feel the ocean water but a little bit nervous that it might be too cold in November, she pulls off her shoes, rolls up the legs on her jeans, and starts walking along the waterline in the general direction of the house. 

"That was a heck of a ride.  If you ever need extra cash you could sell tickets at the faire or soemthing."  Elrod says with a chuckle.  "I appreciate that though.  That'll be something I'll never forget."

"Dude, I could do so much better than rides at the fair."  Sammy stops and looks at him, the moonlight softly reflecting off of her dark hair and eyes.  "I found out this morning that I'm at least partly something called a Djinn.  I think that's the same thing as a Genie, like Barbara Eden blink-blink on TV Land.  Who knows, maybe someday, in some way, I'll be able to make wishes come true.  How weird is that!"

"No weirder than anything else these days."  he says, putting his arms around her.  "Besides, you can already make some wishes come true."  He punctuates his statement by kissing her.

Sammy laughs and kisses him back.  "You have it backwards.  You're the one making wishes come true.  I'm just the happy girl standing with you on a moonlit beach in California."

After a very long embrace, she sighs.  "We'd better get back before I say something stupid like the water doesn't feel all that cold, and swimming might be fun, and oops I forgot, my suit is in my suitcase all the way back at the house, but its dark, nobody will know if the suit part is skipped.  It'd be too easy to get caught and the whole vacation could be messed up, right?"  The way she says "right" sounds like she's trying to convince herself that the risks aren't worth it, but she doesn't want to believe it.

"Statutory rape."  is all Elrod says with a smile, "So no to the opps we forgot our bathing suits."  He takes her hand and they start back towards the house.  "We'll have plenty of time for legal swimming and stuff.  We'd better get some sleep before jet lag set in."

Sammy checks her accounts soon after they get back inside the house.  She sees the message from Sarah.  She wanders out into the living room.

"Do you know Mike Brooks?" she asks El, and her sister if she's there and not sleeping.  "He and Preston Wilde were the ones who were storing sleeping gas at school."

Step looks up from her magazine, "Brooks.  Isn't her that creepy guy that's all gah-gah about kung-fu movies and Japanese comics?"

"Yep."  Elrod says from the kitchen.  "He's supposed to be going to Japan this spring break for some martial arts tournament.  He's allegedly pretty good."

Sammy snorts in derision.  "Well, he might be good at that, but he's still an idiot.  Who brings sleeping gas into school?  I hope the cops burn him and Preston too."  She flops down on the couch and stares at the flames flickering in the fireplace.  "I can't believe I was so stupid.  I told Daddy all about a robot Preston built and showed off at a Science Club meeting.  It was pretty cool, and I really thought it would be something Daddy would be interested in, but I sure didn't read Preston right.  I thought he was just a mostly harmless geek.  He turned out to be a jerk."

"Well, he's one of the recently converted geeks."  Steph says, "He was all geeky and pimply last year and this year he's suave and has clear skin.  One of the girls I have Lit with even asked him out.  He took to to Spiaggia.  she said he's still too geeky to date again."

"Wow."  Elrod says, "Spiaggia isn't cheap.  Hardly the place I would figure a high school kid would take a girl for dinner."

"Maybe somebody paid him to build something and he wanted to show off that he had money to burn?  But what's this about him being 'One of' the recently converted geeks?  How many more are out there?  Did a network show come through and run a geek makeover summer program?"  She giggles.  "Actually that could be funny if they did it right.  "Geek to Chic."  Heehee!  Seriously though, who else is out there?  I want to know who to avoid."

Silently, she adds to herself, "Or who to watch."

"Well, I could ask around Monday." Steph says.  "I know there are five or six of them this year, and Logan last year."

"Dave would know."  Elrod say, sitting down next to Sammy.  "He's become rather interested in everything this year."  He adds quietly, "Probably hanging out with all those hero types is motivating for him."

"Thanks, Steph.  After yesterday, I am not trusting too many people who are suddenly acting different.  I'll ask Dave too."  Sammy is quiet for a moment, then says, "Does Dave like Sarah?  I mean, I know they were buds before this year, so maybe that's all there is to it, but he's always around, always willing to do pretty much anything she asks him to do for her.  He doesn't seem unhappy about it, its just he doesn't seem to do much of anything else, other than knowing everything about everybody."

"I'm not sure.  I know he's really gotten interested in people at school.  A couple years ago Dave sort of lost his desire to achieve.  He'd been an 'A' student and was on the fast track to go to an Ivy League college and be the next great success story.  Then, almost overnight he seemed to slow down to a crawl.  He's always been a slacker, but he went from looking like one to actually being one.  Now, with this whole super hero thing going on around him he seems to have found a direction again."

Sammy files this information away to think about later.  "Maybe he was just bored, and finally found something interesting again.  Good.  I'd rather think that than think he was mooning after Sarah.  She and Colin seem pretty tight, so he'd have a long wait."  She boldly mooches some of the food Elrod had made while out in the kitchen.  "Mmmm.  Yummy!"

"Francis has agreed to cook if we want her too.  I just have to have her home by 9PM so she can see her shows on the TV."

"Sure.  She's somebody you definitely want to keep happy.  My mom's a pretty good cook though.  We'll see what she wants to do.  She might like having access to different ingredients than home."

Sammy yawns widely, and realizes she's getting tired.  "Wow.  I think I'm going to call it a night.  Good night, Steph."  She leans over and kisses Elrod.  "Good night."  She then whispers  "Don't worry, you'll be safe.  I'll lock the door behind me so I don't accidentally go sleepwalking or anything.  Feel free to visit me in your dreams though;  I'll be looking for you in mine."

Standing and stretching, she walks to her mom's room to say good night before heading off to bed.  As she sticks her head in the door, hoping her mom is still awake, she says quietly  "G'night, mom. Thanks for letting us come here.  Love you..."

Sammy's mom smiles, "I love you too honey.  And you deserve a break, after all that happened."

"You do too, Mom."  Sammy sits down on the bed.  She says, hesitantly, "I found out something this morning after breakfast, and you probably ought to know about it.  Those witches... they didn't want a witness.  They wanted a sacrifice.  Me.  But the spirit that they called... it recognized me, but I didn't know then it was talking to me.  It called me a Djinn, a child of the Air, and said something like it was happy to see one of that kind walking the world.  So that means you're one of those too, a Djinn."  She takes a deep breath, putting up her hand in a gesture to let her mother know there was more to be said.  "The spirit did what it was called to do.  But it didn't take me.  It took those girls instead.  They're all in comas, mom.  All of them.  And I'm not sorry for any of them, not one bit!  I... I just thought you should know."

"I'm glad that you're still here with us."  she hugs Sammy for a minute.  "You're going to feel all kinds of things.  When people do you wrong it's easy to not want to sympathize with them, with their position.  Let me tell you though, from experience, power does  corrupt.  You have tremendous power, and so did those girls.  Ultimately it's what you do with those powers that makes you a villain or a hero.  Not what you feel about someone."

"I don't think I'm a villain for not being upset about them.  I'm not even especially upset that I don't feel sorry for them.  They were bad people who abused their powers in order to do bad things, and they deserved to be paid back in kind.  I think that is exactly what happened, and I'm okay with it." 

She laughs, softly. 

"It was the Djinn thing that I really thought was important for you to know.  The rest was just supporting information."

"Well, I've got no idea what it might mean.  We can do some research when we get back home."

"I wasn't planning on doing anything here.  I'm on vacation!  My only job is to relax!"  Sammy hugs her mom.  "Good night."

She goes into her assigned room and sends a message off to Sarah.

Hi Sarah,

El says HK boy is some kind of martial arts expert.  Tell Kel?

Also beware of geeks gone chic.  There seems to be something weird going on there, starting with Logan D., but I don't know what it is exactly.  Dave might know.

The beach is great.  I might stay here forever.  Seriously.  California rocks.  El knows the best running away from home destinations.

Samantha

Bedtime prep routine taken care of, she locks the bedroom door. *CLICK*  Then Sammy opens the window so she can enjoy the ocean air and listen to the sound of waves crashing on the shore.  She burrows beneath the layers of extra blankets tossed onto the bed, and goes to sleep.

Morning in California came early, it probably had to do with the abundance of sunlight streaming in through the windows of the house.  The smell of bacon drifted through the house, and there was music playing out in the living room.

Sammy eases herself into conciousness, torn between the dueling forces of the combined warmth of the blankets and the sunlight streaming through her open window and the smell of the bacon sneaking its way under her bedroom door.  She thinks briefly about sprucing herself up before wandering out into the public areas of the house, then decides that she cannot ignore the enticing smell of cooking bacon for much longer.  She compromises by pulling back her dark brown hair into a ponytail and brushing her teeth before going barefooted towards the kitchen, still wearing the tee shirt and sweatpants she slept in.

"That smells really good!  Want any help?"

Elrod looks up from the kitchen.  "No, I'm good.  you a coffee drinker?  There is a fresh pot."  The layout of the kitchen allows the chef to see into the open space that is the living and dining areas.  Elrod is chopping and stirring and turning with what seems a practiced ease.  "Omlets or just eggs?  I'm not sure what everyone likes."

Sammy takes a little bit of coffee then pours a lot of milk in with it.  "I'll take eggs, fried and runny so I can dip my bacon and my toast in the yolks.  Mom will probably want an omelette.  Steph -- I'm not sure.  Since she's on vacation, she might go for broke and take an omelette too.  Otherwise, she might just take some coffee and sniff at the steam coming up off of the food."  She sits on a bar stool at the counter.  "Did you sleep okay?"

"Slept great."  he says getting some eggs into a bowl for an omelette.  "We would usually come here with friends.  So mom and dad would take the master bedroom, Lisa would take one and the guests would get one.  That left me on the sofa, so it's got lots of fond sleep in it."  he says smiling.

"Good," Sammy says.  "There goes the last little shred of guilt I had about sleeping in a bed while you slept on the couch.  Poof!"

She opens up some cabinets and drawers, and sets out silverware and napkins for breakfast.  Plates are stacked next to Elrod so that he can load them with food as it finishes cooking.

"Any plans for today?  I'm open to suggestions.  You know the area a billion times better than I do.  What's fun?"

"Well, there are museums, shops, the boardwalk.  There is also swimming with whales and dolphins, scuba diving, the aquarium.  All manner of diversions await.  If you wanted we could go to Disney Land, it's not that far."

Stephanie emerges from her room, "I heard coffee."  she says in her morning zombie voice.  she wanders past Elrod and Sammy to fetch a cup of the black brew.  "I also heard shops."

Sammy didn't especially want to spend her whole vacation shopping, but on the other hand, she knew Stephanie would be very disappointed if she didn't get to go. 

"Maybe hit some shops early in the day, and then do something else after lunch?" she proposed.  "The Aquarium sounds like it could be fun."

Steph nods, sipping her coffee.

"That sounds good."  mom says, coming out of her room.  "And this smells really good."  She joins Steph in some coffee.

"Okay then.  We'll have breakfast.  Maybe lounge for a while, walk on the beach some and then head into town about eleven.  Shop and then maybe grab some lunch at an outdoor cafe, then hit the aquarium."

Tentative plans made, Sammy pours herself and anybody else who wants it some very fresh orange juice and digs into her food when it is ready.  Elrod's a pretty good cook, and she compliments him on his skill.

When she's done, she showers and gets ready for the day, then takes some magazines out onto the deck to settle down in a lounge chair while everybody else takes care of their own business.  She figures if she's not dressed right for shopping in this town, somebody will clue her in.

Feeling somewhat restless, Sammy quickly throws aside the magazines and goes for a walk along the beach, quietly ogling the bronzed young gods jogging along the waterline.

Once Sammy makes it back to the house The group piles into Elrod's car to head to the city.  Shopping is the first order of business, and Elrod takes them to a couple of malls and then down Rodeo drive to some of the specialty shops there.  Steph spends a good chunk of the money she's been saving from typing term papers and reports on some high end cloths that look like they came fro the Salvation Army.

After the shops they stop at a cafe with outdoor dining and an ocean view for lunch.  While mom and Steph are up at the salad and pasta bar Elrod leans over to Sammy.  "I got a voice mail from Megan.  I guess she wants to talk to you.  I was thinking maybe I could call her and ask what it's about, if it's not Earth shattering I could let you talk to her when we got back.  Or, I could not call her back at all."

Sammy is staring out at the ocean, endlessly fascinated by the waves and the sky and the vastness of it all.  "Do what you want to do," she replies somewhat absently. "But it'd be rude to ignore her since you know she called.  Stupid cell phones.  Now I understand why my dad turns his off.  How else can you get to be really alone for even just a little while?  You or I can call her back, it doesn't matter to me."  She nibbles delicately at a seasoned french fry and contemplates a seagull in flight.

"Rude is my middle name."  Elrod says with a smile, mooching a fry from Sammy's plate.  "Let's pretend I didn't mention it and I'll continue to ignore her."

Sammy experiences a tingle of excited pleasure at the idea of just walking away and pretending ignorance.  She smiles broadly at Elrod and says "Pretend you didn't mention what?"

Then she says "Someone will call back if its really important.  They probably just found my cell and wanted to let me know."

"Like I said, rude is my middle name."

Lunch is refreshing and then the group heads to the aquarium to spend some time before they head back to the beach house for dinner.

Elrod cooks, stir fry, and after dinner mom and Steph decide to take a drive into town to pick up some stuff so mom can make breakfast in the morning.  Elrod gives them directions to a market nearby and the keys to his car and the two are off a few minutes later.

Elrod makes some virgin strawberry daqaris and takes Sammy out to the deck to relax.  "I'm glad you mom and sister came along.  They're pretty cool.  You have a nice family T-Bone."

"Thanks," Sammy says as he hands her the drink.  "They like you too.  Especially if you keep cooking for them like you have been.  You're pretty good at it; where'd you learn?"

"Books mostly."  he says, settling into his chair to look at the ocean.  "My folks were gone a lot and mom has this hug collection of cook books.  So, I'd try stuff out, see what worked and what didn't.  We've had a few cooks, but most of them want you to stay out of the kitchen.  It's been one of my many rennisance man habits."

"Renaissance man, huh?  You cook.  You write.  You play music.  What's left, dabbling in some kind of science and mastering a martial art?  Boxing?  Fencing? Duelling pistols?"  She settles on a chair.  "I've been getting self defense lessons from someone in town -- me and the others -- but I'm not really great at it.  My best defense is staying out of reach! "

"Sounds like a good plan.  I wouldn't want anyone touching my girlfriend anyway.  Rumor has it I'm the jealous type."

Taking careful aim, using her powers to assist, she flicks a tiny bit of  daiquiri at his nose.  "Good thing you don't have anything to be jealous about then, isn't it?"  She giggles and points at his face.  "I suppose you'll want me to clean that up ?"

Elrod gives her a long look.  "Shouldn't let it go to waste."  he says, getting up and coming over to her chair.  He leans in close, "I don't have a napkin, could you get that for me?"

In her best soap opera sexy voice, Sammy replies, "I'd hate to disappoint you..."  She sets down her drink, and wraps her arms around his chest.  She moves in close, closer, closer, then suddenly takes them both up in the air.  She soars over the water and quickly plunges both of them into it.  They surface together.  "I've been wanting to go swimming all day.  Dang!  Its colder than I thought it would be."  She kisses him on the nose.  "All clean."

A laugh escapes Elrod as he wipes the water from his eyes and pushes his hair out of his face.  "It is October afterall."  he says splashing as he makes his way back towards the beach.  "At least now I have a good excuse to light a fire."

They're already cold and wet.  A little splashing won't matter, so Sammy splashes him back.  "A  bonfire?  or one in the fireplace?  Should we call mom and tell her to get some  marshmallows?"

"Fireplace."  Elrod says getting closer and hugging her.  "And I already have marshmellows."  He gives her a kiss.  "Hey, if they don't find your phone I'll buy you another one.  Since I'll be texting you all the time now, I might as well get you a phone that supports easy use."

Relaxing into his hug, Sammy replies "Thank you, but you don't have to do that.  My parents will get me a new phone if I need one.  I don't want it to look like I'm using you for your money, or like you're buying me.  I like you too much to let anyone paint you that way."  She looks at his face and wrinkles her nose at him, unsure how he's going to take her refusal.  "OK?"  Putting a few inches of space between the two of them, she continues.  "But feel free to suggest some phone models to them, and back up your choices however you think is best.  I don't want to get stuck with a crappy phone either."

She thinks to herself, wow he smells good...

"I can totally respect that."  Elrod says with a smile.  "We better get out of these wet cloths.  Missing school for a cold you caught while on vacation in California will certainly spoil any good will your folks might have for me."

"Pfft.  At this point they'd probably welcome me missing school for something as normal as a common cold."

They enter the house through a beachside entrance, and she tells him she's going to toss her wet stuff into the washing machine to get the salt out; if he wants his clothing washed too, he should just dump it into the machine and she'll take care of the rest.  She quickly changes and puts on thick socks and an extra sweatshirt.  The clothing wash cycle gets started.  She wanders into the living room and turns on the TV just to see what's on.

Elrod has gotten a fire going by the time Sammy makes it back to the living room and the house is taking on the warmth from it. 

Not long after they're back in the hosue Sammy's mom and sister return with groceries for dinner.  Mom gives Sammy and Elrod a long look before going into the kitchen to start dinner.

Recognizing the look, Sammy wanders out after her mom and without being asked to help, starts unpacking bags.  Very matter of factly she says, "If you hear the washer running,  its because I have some of our clothes in there.  I took Elrod out over the ocean then dumped us both in.  I thought it would be funny, and I wanted to go swimming anyhow.  TV shows lie, you know that?  The ocean water in California isn't always warm."  She shivers inside her sweatshirt.  "And I can still be used as unicorn bait, so quit thinking dirty thoughts."  She is ever so slightly pink with embarrassment.  However, she didn't do anything really wrong, so she wants her mom to be fully aware that she doesn't deserve The Look.

Her mom smiles and gets close to whisper, "I'm glad.  We weren't gone long enough for it to have been any good if you had done something."

Now Sammy really flushes with embarrassment.  "Mom!"  She hurries up to finish putting stuff away, then hot foots it back out to the couch and the tv where she can recover in peace.

Later that evening while the gang is gathered around the table near the fireplace playing cards Elrod checks his phone during a break.  He listens to the messages, his brow furrowing.  "Megan and John think you have a stalker.  Colin is checking it out.  I think you'll be safe here."  he continues to listen, then his face falls.  He hangs up the phone and dials, "I need to talk to my sister, I'll be outside."  He steps out on the deck and yelling ensues.

"A stalker?"  Sammy can't for the life of her figure out who would want to stalk her, or why.  There were much prettier and much more popular girls at school.  She watches Elrod leave the room, then hears the yelling.  At first she leaves him alone,  but as it continues, she grows concerned and follows him out onto the deck.  She walks up beside him and touches him comfortingly on his shoulder.

He gives her a smile and sets his head against hers for a minute.  "Think of him as your own personal poparatzi, at least until I get back.  And be glad dad isn't gonna hear about this one kiddo."  He shakes his head and Sammy can faintly hear his sister yelling on the other end of the phone.  "I love you too."  and he hangs up.  "My sister realized I had someone following her around.  She's mad, so to punish me she threw a bunch of my stuff into the yard.  The guy I have watching her got some pics of it and left me a voice mail.  She's now mad that I have someone following her around, and mad that he takes pictures of her doing stupid stuff and tells me."  he puts his arms around her.  "Have I mentioned how cool I think your family is?"

"About a million times."  She gives him a solid hug, the kind that shares strength.  "Do we need to go home early?"

"Nah."  he says shaking his head.  Little does she know, mom and dad will be home tomorrow.  If she hasn't cleaned up the mess they'll know it was her.  Not unless you want to go meet your stalker?"

"Not especially," she says.  "The whole idea is kind of creepy."  After a moment of silence, she asks "Why do they think I have a stalker?  Did they suspect somebody of riffling through my underwear drawer?  Oh wait,  that was you when you helped me pack."

"Cute, very cute.  They found some pictures in the basement of the school, some notes.  I'm sure they'll fill us all in when we get back."

By this point her face is hidden in his shirt.  "Mmmph.  Maybe I'll just stay here forever then.  Would you mind?  I promise I'll never throw your stuff out on the beach."  She looks up at him, obviously more worried than her easy words indicate.  "Do you know if my parents know?"

"I'm guessing no.  Would Megan or John tell them?  As for staying here, I'm gonna have to play grown up and say no.  you have blah, blah, blah and whatnot to look forward to.  Etcettera and so forth, blah, blash, blah adult speak."

Sammy snorts.  "You've been babysitting Lisa for too long.  There are schools in California,  good ones,  and rumor has it they even have universities.  The weather is better.  The scenery is better. The vegetables are fresher than any I've ever had in my life except for maybe the stuff from Mom's kitchen garden.  I could earn money giving rides to people from the pier."  She's thought this out.

"I know I can't stay here, if only because I'd really miss that family you admire so much.  But if I don't go back there, they don't have to worry about me so much.  I'll be far away from the chaos at school.  That's bad enough by itself, but when you add this stalker thing...  it's a lot to put on them."

"Wow.  You'd make a good lawyer.  We've only been here two days and you've already put together the case for staying forever."  Elrod hugs her and gives her a kiss on the cheek.  "Could you really walk away from your lifelike that?"  The question seems to carry something with it, like he's tangled with the idea himself.

"It wouldn't be easy," she admits.  "I probably wouldn't do it unless I absolutely had no other choice, if it was the only way out of something unbearable.  What about you?"

"I've thought about it.  Dropping everything and leaving on some Jack Caruack type adventure across the country.  In the end I always realize that it's always better in fantasy then reality."

"I dunno.  Are you talking about dropping everything, or just the clutter?  I mean, would you leave your identity behind along with your stuff?  Would you let yourself keep your driver's license, your passport and enough money stashed away somewhere so you could bail out and come home if you got tired of it all?  Just because you have the money available wouldn't mean you'd have to use it, but having an emergency parachute is never a bad plan."

She leans back and intently studies his face.  "You fight every day to hold on to who you really are, don't you, because so many people force you to wear so many other faces?  There's the face you show at school.  Then, I saw you with the people who flew out here with us; you blended right in, knew the right things to say and do.  Then you have that whole thing with supervising your sister.  That sucks on both sides of the story.  You don't like having to police her, and she doesn't like being policed by you, but you can't get out of it easily.  You also have that writer inside, longing for experiences to make into stories."  She smiles at him.  "So in this fantasy walkabout of yours, where do you go first?  Do they sell postcards?"

"You read me entirely too well.  I hope all Freshman girls aren't this sharp, for the sake of all those poor Freshman boys that wont be getting any action over the next four years."

Elrod moves to sit down and watch the ocean.  "I love New Orleans, so I'd go there first.  Maybe bum around doing odd jobs, meeting people.  Then over to Texas, see if it's all it claims to be.  Alaska is on the list, and maybe the orient for a while."  he looks into her eyes for a minute, "I'd make sure to send postcards."

"Cool," she says.  "I'd put the postcards in a scrapbook.  You could send me a new one every day, with news of something different you saw or did or heard.  Then, when you finally wandered back in my direction, or if I decided its time for me to do some wandering too, I'd hand the scrapbook over to your care.  Next to your postcards would be something like diary entries from me, responding to your postcards or telling you about what I saw or did or heard.  Then you'd have one big story to write that is really two stories wrapping and weaving through each other, touching and not touching at the same time like a harmony and a melody, and it'll be the stories that are important, not their endings, because they won't have really ended yet.  Those are the best anyhow."

She's silent for a few moments, then adds "If I had time to plan it out, I'd start in Europe.  Never been there, but I really want to go.  Maybe do the whole hiking across the continent thing, staying in youth hostels, picking up extra cash by playing music in train stations or flying people around at fairs.  If I was home,  and had to run for it... I'd cut out over the Lake and head for Canada.  I've heard Vancouver is nice.  Maybe I'd try to get to there."

More silence, except for the sound of wind and waves.  Sammy speaks again,  and her voice is somewhat strained.  "I don't want to have to run away from you because I'm afraid that being around me creates a threat to you.  Do you feel safe?  Even with this stalker thing? It... It's okay if you don't.  I understand.  I could get a sore throat for Homecoming, or have a great big public blowout with you."  She half smiles.  "But then you'd have to put up with me looking at you longingly every time I saw you.  And you'd have to expect one hell of a make-up session after the stalker got caught."

"Well."  he says, drawing out the word, "If there's a great make up session, I might consider it."  He reaches out to hold her hand, "I feel safe enough.  Who wouldn't feel safe, I have a super hero for a girl friend."

Sammy laughs, more like a snort than a chuckle, but definitely a laugh.  "No pressure there."  She squeezes his hand.  "That man who's been  giving us self-defense lessons would probably teach you too, if you want.  Might be useful for your walkabout too.  Not that I wouldn't come flying out to be at your side at the hospital after you got mugged, but I'd rather you didn't get hospitalized in the first place.  They don't let you sleep, and the food isn't so great."

"I'll think about it.  What idel rich kid shouldn't take self defense lessons, right."

Shrugging, Sammy replies "I kind of half expected you to laugh and say you already had a black belt in something, or that your grandpa the circus performer taught you everything there was to know about knife throwing."  She looks thoughtful.  "But I guess I should have put more money on the option that might give you a chance to wrestle with me in public --woo-hoo!"

"Kind of sounds like I decided to go back, huh.  Think anybody will notice?  Other than you, my dad, and my stalker?"

"Yep.  Lots of people will notice.  You have friends outside the usual suspects, I've seen them."  Elrod smiles.

Sammy rolls her eyes.  "Okaaaay."

More silence.  "I should call home and find out about that stalker, shouldn't I."  She doesn't seem convinced.

"Sunday.  We'll go back Sunday and you can call and get the low down.  I doubt he's going anywhere.  What kind of a stalker would he be if he gave up because you were out of town?"

"The not-annoying kind of stalker that I wouldn't have to worry about very much?  Creepy but harmless and easily distracted by shiny things?"  Sammy scrunches up in her chair, wrapping her arms around her knees.  She takes a deep breath and lets it out.  "Enough of that.  I'm thinking too much and making myself sick."

Elrod comes over to her chair and squats down in front of her.  "You have a rich boyfriend and lots of friends that are super heroes.  How much trouble can this guy make, really?"

"Money's nice, but its not a magic shield, El.  It doesn't always stop people from getting hurt by motivated nutjobs.  There's no shortage of dangerous crazy people at our school this year -- its like some kids set free all of the nightmares that were hiding in their closets, lurking under their beds, or waiting with bloody axes at the bottom of the dark basement stairs.  Don't laugh!  You know what I mean.  I have no idea if this is a ho hum run of the mill freak or if he's something scarier than the other stuff that's been popping up.  I don't want you or Heather or Janie or anybody else getting hurt because I say Hi to one of you between classes." 

She tightens up the grip she has on her legs and says sadly,  "It seems like it's dangerous trying to have friends unless they have powers too.  But, if the only thing you really have in common with someone is having powers, that wears thin real fast no matter how 'safe' they are.  That's kind of where I am."

"Part of being someone's friend is being there.  I know it's not the same if they don't know you have powers but, you can't shut them out because of it either.  We'll deal with this guy, same way we'd deal with anything else."  He takes her hands in his.  "Together."

Sammy doesn't say anything.  She just leans forward and presses her forehead oh so gently against his forehead.  After a moment of wordless comfort, she pulls back to stare out over the ocean.  "I'm going to miss this when we go back."  She sighs, and moves on.  "So what's your plan for Homecoming night, or is it a big surprise?  I still need to pull some Spirit Week crap together."

"Just wear a nice dress and leave the rest to me."  Elrod says.  Then groans at the mention of spirit week.  "I forgot, you're in the band, you actually have school spirit."

"Nah, I just like playing in the band and hanging out with my band friends, and the band plays for school events, so there you go.  Our job is to stir up emotional energy, that's all, same as any band.  But I am, uh, expected to at least pretend to be excited about things, that whole 'Fake it till you Make it' deal.  Some events are easier than others.  Its hard to get excited about wearing something yellow."  She shoots him a coy look.  "But I'll bet you'll look precious in pink.  It'll bring out the rosebuds in your cheeks."

"I'll rosebud your cheeks."  he says.

"Gotta catch me first."  She leaps up and dashes toward the dark sandy beach.  She moves just fast enough to play the game.