Coalescence - SF3 (29 page)

"Okay, you’re the boss," Jamie agreed.

"Don’t I wish," Ryan teased as she patted her on the butt.

They moved the car to a parking lot near the Santa Cruz boardwalk, but instead of heading back to the beach, Ryan led Jamie to the little shops that lined the streets of the town. Both women had slipped back into sweats and sandals and they strolled along the busy streets, hand in hand.

After surveying the neighborhood, Ryan finally informed Jamie of her objective. "I need new wheels for my skates," she said. "I wear them out pretty fast, and I’m sure the sand will chew up my current ones." Given the choice of three likely looking stores, Ryan chose the one that looked the grungiest. The salesclerks were dressed in big, black, baggy jeans and huge black Tshirts with logos of various bands on them. They were heavily tattooed and pierced, and Ryan thought they looked like they knew how to skate.

After chatting with one of the clerks for a moment, Ryan had her wheels, but a new toy caught her eye, and she had a hard time leaving the store.

"You look like a kid in a candy store," Jamie joked. "What'cha looking at?"

"It’s kind of cool," Ryan said with a crooked grin. She showed Jamie a shoe that had a steel-reinforced piece of plastic right at the arch. It sat horizontally in the thick-soled shoe, and looked like a piece of pipe cut in half.

"What in the world is the point of that?" Jamie asked.

"It’s hard to explain," Ryan said. "I’d have to demonstrate."

Their sales clerk heard the conversation and casually asked, "What size do you take?"

Ryan told him her size in both women’s and men’s, and he gave her a little smile as he went in the back of the store. He came back out with a pair in her size that had been returned due to a defect in the leather upper. "These have to go back to the company," he said as he looked her up and down. "You up to giving ‘em a try?"

Ryan knew a challenge when she heard one. She figured the kid didn’t think she would accept, but he didn’t know Ryan very well. She yanked them out of his hands and sat down to lace them up. They were a tiny bit snug, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her. "Where should I go?" she asked him.

"There’s a bank just down the street, and they don’t patrol it very well," he said casually, jerking his head in the proper direction.

Jamie had no idea what was going on. With a very confused look on her face, she looked from the clerk to Ryan, trying to figure out what they were talking about. Ryan turned to her and said, "Let’s go. I may need you to bail me out," she added with a grin.

Jamie trotted along behind Ryan, who was purposefully striding down the street. Grabbing her arm roughly to stop her, the smaller woman demanded, "Where are we going? And what are you going to do that can get you arrested?"

"I was just kidding. I don’t think I’ll get arrested. I’m pretty fast when I have to be," she said with a chuckle.

"Did that answer my question?" Jamie persisted.

"Wait and see, Jamie. I’m going to show you how I whiled away the hours of my misspent youth."

When they came close to the bank, she could see Ryan gazing all around, sizing up the layout. The cool blue eyes glanced around carefully, trying to see if there were any guards present. As they went around the bank to a side entrance, her eyes lit up with delight. She turned to Jamie and said with a twinkle in her eye, "This could be kinda cool, or I could split my pants or my head open." When Jamie’s eye widened, she added, "My insurance card is in my wallet," as she took off running up the stairs.

The bank was a big, impressive structure, probably 75 or so years old. There were about 20 steps up to a wide, graceful entry. This side entrance had obviously been modified to make it handicapped accessible, since there was a new ramp that curved up next to the stairs, making the incline less steep. When Ryan got to the top, she focused her eyes on the ramp, and Jamie saw her rock back and forth a few times, planning her attack. Finally, a small smile came over her face, and her posture took on an air of confidence. She went to the far end of the entrance, turned, and started running--first in small steps, and then in a few long strides--and finally leapt into the air with her feet tucked up under her body.

Jamie nearly passed out from shock and fear. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and her eyes were wide as she stared, open-mouthed, at the image of her lover, flying through the air.

When Ryan’s momentum carried her to the ramp, she lowered her feet and caught the handrail with the plastic inserts in her shoes. She sank down into a crouch, and rode the rail just like a surfboard, but when she hit the first curve, she lost her footing and started to fall. Jamie’s heart was in her throat as images of Ryan’s broken body flooded her head. The dark woman’s momentum was throwing her towards the concrete stairs, but just when it looked like she would crash, she pulled her feet back under herself and did a tight somersault in the air, landing neatly on both feet with a small stutter step to bleed off some of the force.

As soon as her feet hit the ground, a massive grin broke over her face, and she raised her arms like a gymnast and took a bow.

Jamie was too stunned to move. Her mouth hung open and she tried to force sound from her lips, but nothing would come. Ryan gave her a quick look saying, "I almost had it, Babe. Next time for sure!" as she bounded back up the stairs.

She repeated her little ritual, bearing that same confident look as she began her approach. This time she hit the railing with more force than her previous attempt. She got down lower in her crouch and leaned back a bit, centering her weight over her butt. As she hit the first curve she leaned into it like a racecar on a track. She settled her weight again as she careened down the straight section of rail. The next turn was at a 90-degree angle and Jamie assumed she would jump down. But when she got close she jumped in the air, still in her deep crouch and made a half turn, coming down the next section backwards. As she slid off the end of the rail, Jamie saw a bank guard come huffing out of the side door. "Hey!" he called. "Get off that rail!" As he came running down the steps, he stopped for a second, and with a look of surprise he shouted, "How old are you, anyway?"

Ryan shot him a grin as she ran past Jamie. "Run like hell!" she shouted as she blew by. Jamie heeded her advice and took off down the street; running as well as she could in her sandals. When she trotted into the store, completely winded, Ryan was already sitting in a chair trying on the shoes in her proper size. "I gotta have these," she said, with a look in her eyes that reminded Jamie of Caitlin with an ice cream cone.

The winded blonde plopped down next to her and admonished her firmly, "You have to warn me earlier when there’s chance we’re going to be arrested." She pulled in another deep lungful of air, "I could at least have worn my running shoes." When her breathing returned to normal, she looked at Ryan with concern, "Are you sure these are a good idea, Ryan? You know you can’t take many more blows to the head."

"I’ll be careful," she promised with a wide-eyed look of pleading.

"That’s a laugh!" Jamie said with a shake of her head. "You don’t have a careful bone in your body!"

Ryan just gave her a little shrug, along with a sheepish grin, as she handed the shoes to the clerk to ring up. She insisted on paying for the shoes herself, reminding Jamie, "If I do break my neck, do you really want to be responsible for purchasing the instrument of my demise?"

As they walked back to the car with their purchases, Jamie stopped and turned to her, giving her a big smile as she shook her head. "What was that for?" Ryan asked as they resumed walking.

"You just never cease to amaze me," she said simply. "I mean, I really don’t like you doing things like that. I love you so much that it frightens me to death to think of you getting hurt."

Ryan started to interrupt, but Jamie placed both hands flat on her chest, stopping her rebuttal. "You will get hurt, Ryan. You have before, and you will again. Let’s be realistic," she said firmly.

Ryan pursed her lips before giving her a reluctant nod. Jamie continued, "Despite that, your wild side is so much a part of who you are, that I can’t ask you to give it up just to keep yourself safe for me." She leaned in and gave her a small kiss on the lips, "To be completely honest, I think you look really hot when you do crazy things like that."

Ryan gave her a broad grin and hugged her soundly as people passed by, staring at them as they went. "Hot, huh?" she whispered.

"Very," Jamie whispered back. "You look all wild and untamed, and your face breaks into this sexy, confident smile that just makes me want to ravish you."

"I’d love to be ravished," she hummed into her ear.

"Um...Tiger?" she asked as she felt her knees beginning to weaken. "We’re kinda in a public place. Can I ravish you at home?"

"Well," she said with a grin as she pulled back. "I’d love to be seduced in public, but I guess home’s okay too."

Jamie gave her a firm pinch on the butt as they started up again. Ryan just casually tossed an arm around her shoulders as they sauntered down the street.

As they passed a good-smelling coffee shop Jamie looked into Ryan’s eyes and begged, "Can we stop here for a jolt? Getting up at 4:30 is hard on this little body."

"Anything you want, Babe. You run in. I want to check something out." Jamie did as requested and, just as she received her drink, Ryan sidled up to her, looking a little smug.

"Where’ve you been, Sweetie? You look like the cat that swallowed the canary."

Shifting a paper bag from one hand to the next, Ryan pursed her lips and puffed out her cheeks, feigning the removal of something from her even, white teeth. She gulped audibly, and smacked her lips together, looking at Jamie with dancing eyes. "Got a feather stuck between my teeth," she grinned, unwilling to reveal anything more.

Seeing Ryan’s purchase spurred Jamie on to buy a little something, so they walked around for a while, looking in the little shops. Jamie finally decided on a cute pair of board shorts for her long-legged lover. They were quite a bit shorter than the men’s style, and were a very bright red, with a white design of pineapples and palm trees, and a white waistband and lace that pulled steel grommets together to hold them up. She looked terribly cute in them, and Jamie was completely pleased with the purchase.

Heading back to the Boardwalk, Ryan decided she needed a little blow out to test her new wheels. She got back into her blades, kissed Jamie lightly on the lips and wiggled an eyebrow. "Back in a minute," she said with a twinkle in her eyes.

She took off down the path, heading away from the populated section. Within three strides she was bent forward at the waist, her extended arms crossing in front of her with each long stride. Surprisingly, she didn’t use her knees much at all. She had them flexed, but her real movement came from her powerful hips. She propelled herself by pushing out strongly toward the side with long, deep strides. When she was whisking along at her desired speed, she placed her hands behind her back, grasping one lightly with the other. Jamie watched her with amazement.
Is there anything she can’t do well? She looks like every sport was just made for her.
As she watched, she began to get a familiar tingling and she mentally rebuked herself.
If you get hot every time you watch her do some activity, you’re going to spend your whole life turned on!
After a moment she gave herself a mental slap and thought,
What’s the problem with that?

Ryan returned after about 15 minutes, winded and slightly sweaty, but content. Jamie couldn’t help but give her a strong hug, smiling to herself at Ryan’s puzzled expression.

Ryan was starving by now, so they stopped at the first place that looked non-lethal and loaded up on fast food. Exhaustion overtook them both, and without a word they agreed to head home. As soon as they reached the house they collapsed into bed, fully clothed.

When Ryan woke, she slid out of bed and stretched for a few minutes. She was rested and ready to do something, but Jamie looked like she’d be out for a while. Rather than leave the room to look for entertainment, she decided to investigate the bookcases of her partner’s childhood room. There were a number of family portraits placed around the room, and Ryan spent a few minutes studying them. She was particularly taken with one of the whole family when Jamie was about a year old. The resemblance between her lover and young Caitlin was really astonishing, and Ryan barely moved for a few minutes, studying the photo closely. Jamie came up behind her and slid her arms around her waist, laying her head against Ryan’s back. "You were such an adorable baby," Ryan said as she turned and wrapped Jamie in her arms. "Of course, given how adorable you are now, that isn’t surprising," she said with a grin.

"Flattery will get you everywhere," she replied with a crooked smile as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss her partner. She continued the hug, nuzzling her face into Ryan’s chest for a full minute. "When do you want to start our family?" she asked casually, releasing her hold and stepping back to look at her lover.

Ryan stood stock-still and tilted her head before she asked, "Where did that come from?"

"There were quite a number of kids at the beach this morning, and it just started me thinking. How do you feel about having kids? I mean, I know you want to, but I don’t know when or how."