NationStates Jolt Archive

'What about the 'about time' when you go back with me?'

<One more>

"Hm. I wager that would be a 'aren't you glad I crashed your computer?'. Actually, the handy thing is, Vic is too proper to be smug."

'Whereas Annie's never going to let me hear the end of this...'

'Hey!'

He smiles, "Well, I suppose she does have some room to gloat..."

'Gloat? Me?' Annie smiles.

The ride back doesn't take too long.

<Cut to 'The next day: Josef returning?'>

[If you want, we can skip right to the next night, with Alice coming to the Embassy after work]

<Sounds good. You want to start?>

[Sure. I'll assume Alice stopped and changed out of work clothes]

Josef meets Alice in the lobby, looking dressed nicer than usual. He smiles, "Good to see you, dear." He gives her a kiss, and leads her through the embassy, to a side room she's never been to before. He holds open the door and lets her go in.

The room is a small, semi-formal dining room. There's a table set for two, with a single red rose in the center, candles on either side of it, providing the light for the room. A halographic violin player provides mood music. A bottle of wine is in a nice ice bucket (a good vintage, should she ever check).

"Dinner's just about ready."

[tg]

<Replied>

'Wow...This is really nice.' She's wearing the evening dress. 'You went to all this effort just for me?'

"I wanted it to be nice for you. You're worth it."

He leads her over to her seat, and pulls it out for her. Once seated, he pushes it in. He pops open the wine bottle.

"While it's breathing, I'll get the dinner, one moment."

He returns a minute later with a pair of plates. "I hope spaghetti bolognese is acceptable?"

She blinks then smiles, 'My, you have done your homework...It's perfect. Like you.'

He sets down the plates. "No sense in half measures, now is there?"

He picks up the bottle of wine, and pours for two glasses, conveniantly so that she can catch a glimpse of the label.

'Eep...That's expensive...'

He grins, "Well, there's some wine-in-a-box if you prefer..."

'I didn't say that...'

He smiles and takes his seat. "I hope you like it."

'I love it...I'm not sure what I've done to deserve this, but hey.'

He raises an eyebrow. "How about by being the woman I love?"

'You always know what to say, don't you?' she smiles.

"You make it sound like I spent all day thinking of what do say and do..."

[Which, of course, he did]

'Well, you've certainly put in a lot of effort...I'm just honoured that you think I'm worth all this, I guess.'

He smiles, "Of course you are. And I wanted this night to be... special."

'It already is.'

He smiles, looking a little more relaxed, "Oh good. I'm glad."

'Hey, this is really good...You're talented.'

"I'm glad you like it."

She looks around the room, 'It's nice here, too. Thank you.'

The room is actually somewhat spartan. There's some artwork, but not much else.

He smiles, "I figured it'd be nicer than in my kitchenette."

'I think you were right.' She laughs.

"And, well, making pasta takes a bit more room than I have upstairs."

<I'll have to go soon; few more posts.>

She grins, 'And who's fault is that?'

"Hmmm... I suppose it's mine for wanting to do the whole thing from scratch..."

He grins, "Or, I could blame you for liking spaghetti..."

'Or you could blame Annie for cooking it for me the first time...'

"Nah, Annie was the one to drag you to the bar..."

'For which I'm eternally grateful. We really have to get her something...A bottle of champagne, perhaps?'

He pushes his plate aside a bit. "I was thinking of an invitation..."

'Invitation?'

He walks over to her, dropping to one knee, and produces a small box. He pops it open, showing a sparkling ring. "Hopefully to our wedding."

She blinks, 'I...That is...I...You're...Proposing?'

She swallows hard, 'I accept.'

"Yes, I am."

He slips the ring on her finger, "I love you."

'I...Err...I love you too.' she smiles as a tear runs down her cheek, 'I'm sorry...I never thought this would happen.'

He brushes the tear away, "It's okay... it wasn't exactly in my planner when I came here either..."

She drops down off her chair and puts her arms around his neck, 'I love you...'

<He can probably make out that she's still crying.>

<One more post>

He puts his arms around her, holding her quietly. "I'm just glad you didn't say no..."

'I'd never have said no...I love you.' she pauses, 'Thank you.'

"Why are you thanking me? I should be thanking you for saying 'yes'."

She smiles, 'This is the best night of my life...'

<Was ill yesterday>

He smiles back, "I'm rather liking it myself."

[Heh... how DARE life get in the way of NS?!]

[TG]

[ack attacha. Next day then?]

[Yep.]

Alice yawns and stretches as the alarm goes off, quickly switching it off before Josef costs her another clock. 'Hmm...Oh, S'tuesday. Day off...' she rests back against the pillow, and smiles, then stands up to go and make some coffee.

He considers smashing the clock out of spite, but doesn't feel like expending the energy. He sits up, and looks around wondering where she ran off to. "Oh... wait... morning..." he rubs his eyes, hoping she'll return with coffee soon.

She returns quickly, 'Oh...I'm sorry, I didn't think you'd wake up before I got back.' she smiles, 'Here's your coffee.'

"Hm... s'okay. Thanks for the coffee. You're an angel."

She smiles, 'I like having you around in the mornings...'

He laughs a little, "I certainly hope so. It'd get awkward otherwise," he says, nodding towards her ring.

She looks at it: 'It's really pretty.' she smiles.

"I'm glad you like it. I found it in a little shop downtown, and it looked perfect."

'Am I supposed to get you one?' she smiles, 'It's not like I've had any practice at this...'

He starts to laugh, then looks thoughtful. "I don't think so... in the Hack there's generally a wedding ring for both, but I don't think the guy gets an engagement ring..."

<I've got an engagment ring...>

'I'm not sure...I'll ask Annie...'

[Hm. American/English differences in custom, I guess.]

He nods, "Good idea." He thinks a moment, "Should be interesting watching the cultural differences bubble up, hmm?"

[No idea. She bought my ring, I bought hers. We'd agreed on it in advance.]

'Yeah...I guess so. So, shall we get ready?'

[Makes a certain degree of sense, I suppose.]

"Might as well... we're supposed to meet up with everyone soon." He starts to get ready, finding it a little odd to have to get bundled up so he won't freeze to death before reaching the sunny beach.

'We're meeting up there.' she smiles, 'Just trying to imagine you in swimming trunks.'

He grins, "I'm waiting for the debut of your swimsuit, myself..."

She blushes, 'I hope you like it.'

He smiles, "I'm sure you'll look radiant."

'Well...I hope so. I've always wondered if it's really my colour.'

He gives her a hug, "It'll look fine on you."

She smiles, 'As long as you like it. It's one piece...I've never really gone for revealing.'

"I'll just use my imagination." He catches her look and grins.

<She's probably a little worried about the prospect of Josef seeing Rachel next to her, which Josef may well pick up on.>

'I've got a beach umbrella somewhere...Have to dig that out...And the towels. I think they're in a bag downstairs.'

"I think I saw the umbrella in a closet downstairs, I'll go check..."

'Yeah...I think it was somewhere like that. You want me to come too?'

"Sure, I think we're done up here anyway." He nabs the empty coffee mugs and heads downstairs. "`Morning Dredd..."

Alice smiles on seeing the dogs, 'Oh...I've got to let you guys out and feed you, haven't I? C'mon, Violet...'

She heads outside.

<She has a dog flap so they can get out during the day, in case you were wondering.>

He watches her lead the dogs out smiling to himself. "I could get used to this..."

He rummages around in the closet and eventually finds the umbrella. He also finds the bag of beach towels buried under a pile of model boxes.

Alice comes back in a few minutes later, walking up behind him and putting her arms around his waist. 'Hey...You find everything?'

"Yup." He points to the back with the umbrella. "Do we need anything else?"

'Some sandwiches?'

"Oh, good idea! Got a picnic basket?"

'Yep, just in there. We could probably manage a few cool drinks as well.'

He nods, "Okay. I'll go whip up a bunch of sandwiches, if you wanna nab the basket and drinks."

She nods, 'Kay.' She comes back a few minutes later with the basket, a few drinks and an insulated box to put them in. 'There should be a few icepacks in the freezer...'

He puts the final touches on the last sandwich, and wraps them all up.

"Freezer, hm?" He looks inside, sees them and pulls them out. "Whoa... pretty cold," he switches hands, and grins.

Alice grins, 'You see, that's why it's called the freezer...' she puts the icepacks in the box with the drinks, then carefully packs everything else, 'Ever surfed, by the way?'

"Kinda like complaining that freshly cooked food is hot, huh?"

"Nope. I've never been to a beach, remember? I have snowboarded tho. They similar?"

'Don't know, I've never done either.' she smiles, 'Not really much of an action girl. Just wondering.'

He grins, "I suppose I may find out."

"Ready?"

'Yep...' She looks out the window, 'Oh...I'd better drive.'

He follows her gaze, "Uf. Yeah, you can drive. I'll provide moral support."

They're soon there.

For the outside, it's hard to imagine it as a beach; it's a gigantic, slightly curved building, the outside of which is mostly concrete. After parking in one of the multistories that are attached to the main building, the two step out.

'We get in downstairs,' Alice says, leading Josef towards the dorrway out of the car park. Through it are several lifts and a few escalators. 'Which do you prefer?'

"Might as well take the elevator... er, lift... er, whatever it's called."

'No glass floor in this one...' Alice smiles.

"Good, I wasn't up for a case of vertigo."

Alice smiles, 'Ground floor, below the first. Here we are.'

It's a pleasant-looking hallway ending in a few pay booths with turnstyles that don't look particularly difficult to negotiate. Beyond that is a large open area with a few arcade machines, a gift shop and a restaurant. Everything is signposted; the signs are made of driftwood. Still no beach as yet, though.

'Well, shall we head inside?'

[One more post, then the vanish again]

He smirks, jokingly muttering something about crazy floor numbering procedures.

"Yes, let's go on in."

<I should probably get some sleep, actually>

'Ok.'

There's swimming pool-style changing rooms, either side of the hallway. Josef can probably smell salt water as he gets changed.

Heading out, he'll be amazed. But then he is stepping out from a door in a sand dune onto a glittering sandy beach. It's all perfectly simulated; the heat, the sunshine, the waves in the crystal-clear water...

Alice runs over to him, in her blue one-piece. 'So, what do you think?'

Upon seeing the beach, he says "Wow..."

Upon seeing Alice, he says "Wow!" He smiles, "You look great, love!" He's in a pair of trunks that are reasonably fashonable in GMC. They're of a grayish color.

She smiles, 'You don't look so bad yourself. She takes the basket off him, 'Thanks for carrying. You can manage that umberella, right?'

He grins at her, "Yeah, I think I can manage an umbrella."

He looks around, trying see if the others have arrived yet.

'Ah...There they are.' she points over to a small group a little way off. If Josef looks closely, he can probably see Annie waving.

He strikes a swashbuckling pose, using the umbrella as a sword "Tally ho!"

Annie smiles as they come over, 'Made it here ok, I see.' She's wearing a red two-piece. Rachel's nearby in a red and white one-piece, while Elisa's sitting under their umbrella in a loose white dress with a sunhat beside her.

Rachel smiles and points to the guy standing next to her; he's quite athletically-built, and has shoulder-length brown hair, worn loosely; 'My fiance, John. John, this is Dr. Josef Specter.'

He nods, and extends his hand 'Hi.'

He shakes John's hand, "Pleased to meet you." He also greets the three ladies.

It's at this point that a fourth lady walks up, carrying a few ice cream cones. Glancing in that direction, Josef would notice a small hut selling cold drinks and ice cream.

'Hey, I got everything.'

She's got a slightly unpleasant (in the 'ye-gods-that-must've-hurt' sense) scar right across her belly, light pink in colour. Her hair is light brown, fairly short. 'Hi. Helen Matthews.' she holds out a cone, 'Want one?'

He notices, but isn't creepy about it, considering.

"Hi, I'm Josef, and I'd love one."

Annie smiles, 'So, this your first trip to a beach? I bet it's the last place you thought you'd find one.'

He smirks, "You're telling me. The thought of bundling up to go to a beach seemed more than a little odd..."

"Yeah, first time. Bit too cold at the Hack for it... then again..." He looks around the 'building'.

It's rather cleverly designed to look bigger than it actually is; the walls are enormous flatscreens showing a computer-generated continuation of the beach, although if he were to look hard enough he could tell where the beach ends. Same for the sky; the 'sun' also moves as the day goes on.

Rachel smiles, 'Maybe we could open one of these up in The Hack some time...Do you think we'd get much custom?'

He ponders this for a moment. "It might. Especially as it'd be a good alternative to skiing, which is a pretty big industry right now."

"Oh, that reminds me, Vic'll probably be getting in touch with you at some point about trade contracts..."

Rachel nods, 'Annie said. I guess he'd be ok about a standard nonaggression pact as well?'

John grins, and hugs her. 'You're off work, Rachel.'

"Non-aggression? Yeah, that'd probably get a green light."

Josef smirks at John, "Heh, don't worry man. We won't be signing any contracts or anything. Vic signs the deals."

'We're supposed to be here to relax, s'all.' he smiles at Rachel, 'Because you don't do that nearly enough.'

'Well...I guess that's true.'

Alice turns to Josef, 'Shall we get that umbrella set up and go for a swim?'

"Yeah, that's a good idea." He pops open the umbrella and sets it up.

"Hey, is it salt or fresh water?"

'It's salt; they wanted it to be convincing. Apparently it's not much good for the pumps...'

<He can swim, right?>

[quite well, after he learned to compensate for the arm]

"Thought as much..." He digs around in the bag, and pulls out a little spray can. He sprays it on his cyber-arm. "It won't rust, obviously, but it'll keep the salt from caking..."

She blinks, 'Oh...Never thought of that.'

He grins, "S'okay. Besides, makes it nice and shiny too."

''Kay...Shall we head for the sea?'

Elisa looks up from the book she's reading, and smiles, 'Have fun!'

"Yeah, I'm all set." He waves to Elisa as he chases after Alice.

As he'd expect, the water's warm; the kind of thing you'd expect from a tropical island. John's bought his surfboard; there's a few big waves at regular intervals.

Alice splashes Josef.

"Gak!" He wipes some of the water from his face and splashes her back "Take that!"

'Hey!' she smiles, 'Just don't splash Annie...Unless you want to see something I've never seen anyone else do...'

His eyebrow pops up. "I shudder to think," he says imagining a giant column of water crashing down on his head.

'It's not that bad...I've just never seen anyone do it but her.' Alice grins, 'Go on.'

"Hm... I like my mental image of the giant water column better..."

'Not really...' Annie says, walking up behind them, 'It'd be a bit much to do just for fun.' Turning, Josef will see she's throwing a ball up and catching it; after a while, he'll realise it's made of water.

"Show off." He's still obviously impressed though.

She lands it on her fingertip and spins it around, 'Wouldn't you if you could?'

"Hell yeah." He grins, "Levitate the water, add the grounds, compress to heat... instant coffee!"

She smiles, 'Difficult to do first thing in the morning, though.'

He remembers that Alice is always the one to make the coffee, "Hm. Well, there is that..."

'Whereas when I'm awake...' she reaches inside the ball, pauses for a moment, then hands Josef a small origami-style swan made of ice. 'You said something about showing off?'

He takes it, and looks rather stunned. "Whoa..." He watches it melt, "Okay, that was impressive."

'It's a great party trick...Takes a bit of practice, though.'

"I should think so. I bet it'll really entertain your daughter too."

'Actually, I'm really looking forward to teaching it to her...She's psychic too.'

"I was wondering if she would be. I'm sure that'll make things... interesting."

'I think 'fun' is a better word,' Annie smiles.

He grins, "Well, that too. Can't wait for the first time she decides to levitate you."

'I hope she asks...' she smiles, 'I did.'

He laughs, "I suppose it's only polite."

'Well, mum and dad are both a little psychic...Not much past mind reading, though. I'm not sure how strong my little girl's going to be.'

"Hm. I don't think I've ever asked, but is Elisa?"

Annie shakes her head, 'Not in the slightest. She's as psychic as you are.'

"Ah, wasn't sure. I didn't think she was, but better to ask."

'Rachel isn't either...They thought some people would find it disconcerting if our ext aff speaker was a mind-reader.'

"I suppose there's a certain logic to that." He shrugs. "Of course, some people are going to get torqued out of shape over just about anything."

'Well, the Supreme Commander thought it was best not to give them any extra ammunition. It's not like you can read minds intercontinental anyway.'

"He seems to make some pretty wise choices," he smiles at Alice.

Annie nods, 'That's why he's Supreme Commander.'

"Can't argue with that..."

He looks over and watches John do a bit of surfing.

'You know he's taking Rachel's name when they tie the knot, do you?' Annie says.

"Really? Hm. Wasn't aware. Is that common here?"

'Not massively...It's a condition of Rachel's contract, though. It'd cost too much to change everything with her name on, apparently.'

"I was wondering if it was something like that. Hm. What's he do for a living anyway?"

Annie grins, 'Watching him surf is obviously the best time to tell you he's a barrister...'

[early night, one more post]

"A lawyer?! Well, if that ain't stereotype breaking, I'm not sure what is.."

'That's what I thought the first time I met him.'

He shrugs, "Then again, I suppose me snowboarding doesn't do wonders for the computer geek stereotype either..."

'Never been into that, myself...Gymnastics and martial arts, mostly.'

"Well, it wasn't something I would have picked... it was kinda for a bet... Then I found out that I liked it, so..."

'It's funny how things like that can happen...Huh?' Annie turns suddenly, 'Sis?'

She's looking at a small lilac-haired girl of seven or eight, 'Annie? What're you doing here?'

'Oh...School trip, isn't it?'

The girl nods, 'Yes.'

Annie turns to Josef, 'This is my actual little sister. Carol, this is Josef.'

'Hi!'

"Hello. How's it going?"

'I'm fine...It's nice to meet you.' she smiles brightly.

"I'm pleased to meet you to." He smiles back at her, "What's your favorite subject?"

She pauses, 'I've always liked art.'

<Josef will get the impression Annie and Carol are 'talking.' They're both psychic. Annie's twenty-one years older than her sister.>

He performs his near-patented eyebrow raise, but doesn't comment on that. "That's good. The world could use some more artists, and I'm sure you're quite talented."

[Dealing with kids isn't exactly his strong suit.]

'Well, I'm not as good as Elisa, but maybe I will be one day.'

Annie smiles, 'You'd better get back to your class...'

Carol nods, 'Nice meeting you.'

Annie pauses, and point's at Alices hand, 'That's...?'

Alice nods.

'Well, congratulations, you two!'

He smiles somewhat self-consciously, "Thanks. I... asked last night..."

Annie smiles, 'That's quite the whirlwind romance...It's great that you guys are happy.'

"Hm... I suppose it was... but... yeah, we're happy," he smiles.

Annie nods 'Wasn't expecting to see my lil' sis...'

He smiles, "What can I say? She's wonderful."

<Surely he's going to comment on her hair colour?>

Annie nods, 'That she is.'

[gah... that sailed right by me...]

He looks back at Carol, "Your hair's an interesting color..."

Annie smiles, 'I did say you had to head back...'

'Aww...' Carol heads back towards a group of other children.

Annie turns to Josef, 'It's part of being enhanced...There's a somewhat wider spectrum of 'natural' hair colours. Elisa's is naturally white, too. I guess it's just one of those things.'

He pauses, "I thought you said Elisa wasn't enhanced... or is she just not psychic?"

Annie grins, 'Don't those pretty red eyes give it away a little? She's enhanced, but not psychic.'

"Red eyes, pale skin, white hair... coulda been albino...? Er... well, I guess not..."

He grins, "So this is what culture shock feels like..."

'I guess it must be a fair bit to get used to.'

He shrugs, "Well, I am getting used to it." He smiles, "Which is good, since it'll be a second home now."

'So, have you two got a date for your wedding at all?'

"Uh... not yet. We'll have it here, however..."

''Kay...Can't say I'd thought that much about timetables before I asked Elisa. So, it'll be Alice Specter? Or Josef Merriweather?'

<Alice wouldn't mind changing her name, as she's said>

[Ah yes, with her oh-so-subtle hinting that one night...]

"Unless she's got a nasty contract like Rachel, I believe it'll be Alice Specter."

Alice smiles, 'It'd be fine.'

Annie nods, 'There aren't too many posts where you can't change your name...Rachel's is the only one I can think of off-hand.'

<Gotta go to bed soon>

He smiles at Alice, then turns to Annie, "Hm. Well, as official government mouthpiece, I guess that makes sense."

'I think she'd prefer to be speaker rather than mouthpiece...'

He blinks, "Hrm. Sorry. Wasn't trying to insult. I'm just so used to teasing Vic by calling him that it must of slipped out."

[not lying]

''S ok, she's not that irritable about it...' Annie smiles, 'It's not like I've never teased her myself...'

<Exes, remember? One more post>

He feigns shock, "You? Never..."

'Oh come on, I've know her since I was eight...'

He grins, "I suppose you're allowed then."

Annie smiles, 'She's my oldest friend, actually.'

He nods, "That's pretty neat, to know someone for that long."

Annie nods, 'We went through school and college together; shared a house as students, us and Helen.'

"Ah... that would explain the comment last night."

["it's not a party without..."]

Annie smiles, 'Yep. We did have a few parties while we were there.'

"I can only imagine..."

"Oh, hey... what did you study anyway?"

'Me? Officer program...Military theory.'

He blinks, "I probably could have guessed that..."

'I guess you're PhD computing?'

"Comp Sci and EE. Double doctorate." He smirks, "I didn't have much time to party at school."

Annie smiles, 'Just like Alice...'

Alice nods, 'Never really was one for partying anyway.'

He smiles, "Nothing wrong with that. Gives me something to stick on the wall to impress the interns with."

Alice smiles, 'I hope these aren't female interns you're impressing...'

<She's joking>

"Oh heaven's no!" He catches on that its a joke, and smirks. "Funny..."

Cute smile; 'I do my best.'

He smiles back, "And you do a great job, dear."

She give him a hug. 'Thank you.'

Helen comes over. 'Hey guys, am I interrupting anything?'

He smiles at Alice, hugging her back. He turns when he hears Helen's voice. "Not really, just talking."

She smiles, 'Just wanted to say hi, since I'll probably be seeing you around a fair bit*.'

<*Since Annie, Helen and Alice get together fairly frequently.>

"I look forward to it," he says with a smile.

'Josef, take a look.' Annie points out to sea, where John's surfing with Rachel standing on the back of his board, 'He's talented, that one.'

He peers out, and seems a little introspective. "Hm... that is impressive..."

Alice nods, 'Looks like fun.'

"I think I should learn how to surf..."

Annie grins, and points to the small hut, 'You could rent a board...'

"Hmm... yes I could..." He ponders a bit, then looks back toward John and Rachel. "Seems to be largely an issue of balance..."

'I'm sure you'd soon get the hang of it.' Alice smiles.

<Few more posts>

"Eh, what the hell. I'll give it a shot."

<He'd have been given a waterproof ticket when he came in; he'd have to present that to the rental place, and then hand it in and settle up on the way out. Saves carrying cash or cards on the beach>

Annie grins, 'Good luck.'

As Josef walks past her, Anne whispers, 'I can give you a hand if you want...'

He raises an eyebrow, again. Pausing to "inspect his ticket", he whispers back, "Oh?"

'You know, keep it steady...Just while you're learning.'

"Tempting, but I think I'll respectfully decline..."

Annie nods, 'That's what I thought'

<Annie chalks up another point on Josef's 'good' slate.>

He smiles, and heads out to the surf shop. After talking with the clerk there for a longer than normal time*, he eventually heads back to the water with a board, slightly smaller than someone his size would normally get. He goes out far enough to be out of the way of swimmers.

Oddly enough, he just sits on the board for a few minutes, watching waves go by, paddling back to deep water when they push him in. He watches a couple people surf too. Eventually, he stands up and catches a wave.

And wipes out. After watching a bit more, he tries again, and seems to get the feel for it, the smaller board allowing him to be a bit more manueverable. He's not too bad, especially considering he hasn't surfed before.

[*Being of a related sub-culture, he talked with someone at the shop who actually surfs for a bit, got a few pointers, and the clerk suggested the smaller board]

Alice waves.

He waves back, and continues for about 10 minutes or so before heading in their general direction. A bit out, he stops, and sits down on the board, letting the current carry him over. Once he gets near them, he hops off and stands next to them, arm resting lightly on the board to keep it from wandering.

"That's pretty fun."

John's standing there, looking impressed. 'That's pretty good for a beginner.'

'You're amazing.' Alice smiles.

He grins, rather pleased with himself. "Thanks." He looks randomly about, "Yeah... I want one of these back home."

John nods, 'Yeah...I mean I'm ok at snowboarding, but there's just something about surfing...'

<One more post>

"Hm. I think I like snowboarding a little better." He grins, "Something about rocketing down the side of a mountain*... still, once I get a bit more practice, I think I'll try some of the harder stuff, like going inside the barrel**..."

[* He's pretty into it. Jumping out of a helicopter onto the mountain, all that crazy stuff.]
[** Or under the curl, or whatever its called when the water curls over and surrounds you.]

<I'm not hot on the terminology (because I don't do it myself)...>

John grins, 'Well, I guess you'll have plenty of time for both...There's some great ski resorts here, especially up on Mount McKinley. I've been there a few times with Rachel.'

[nor I, just wanted you to know what I was trying to talk about]

"We'll have to go some time." He looks to Alice, "That okay with you?"

'Sure! I've never been to a ski resort before. Sounds like fun.'

"Wonderful. They're a lot of fun. And the view is great."

'Is it easy to learn? I mean, it's not like I've skied or snowboaded before.'

He grins, "It's all balance. Actually, skiing isn't too difficult." He smiles, "I could teach you if you like."

'Sounds good. Perhaps we can look up a few resorts later on.'

"Sure. Probably should be thinking about such things anyway..."

[He's referencing the honeymoon]

She smiles. So, if Josef is looking, does Annie.

He smiles despite himself. Then he catches the looks from Rachel and John, and can't help but grin.

Annie looks at him, 'I guess that wedding goes down as 'soon,' then?'

"Yeah, I think 'soon' sounds good."

'Right, I'll have to start shopping around for a toaster...'

He laughs, "Yeah, some planning on our part might be a good idea too."