Chapter 3

© Copyright 2008 by Elizabeth Delayne



Tyler sat on the edge of the fountain in front of the Aerospace Museum of California. Dressed casual in cargo shorts and a favorite college tee, he looked all American. He held a book he’d been reading, more to pass the time than as a prop.

He’d been there for most of the afternoon, filming basic shots, putting his thoughts on film. He was used to it all. He’d been taking the summer off for five years now to manage this crazy turn in his life. It meant he hadn’t moved up the career ladder as he’d once hoped, but he wasn’t as interested in doing that. Not anymore.

It stilled seemed like yesterday he’d tried out for the show with a bunch of his fraternity brothers. They’d graduated and wanted one last hurrah ... unfortunately the only one of them to make it on the show, was the least of them sure of why he was there.

Then he’d met Frank, one of his teammates that year. The deep discussions they’d fallen into during the long nights riding on the bus had changed him.

And he’d come back, year after year. His grandfather accused him of postponing his life, his mother ... well, she understood that he’d finally begun to live.

There always seemed to be more that he wanted to do. There were still so many people he didn’t even know that he wanted to know that he wanted to meet, and still so many places he hadn’t gone. Before Frank he’d never realized he’d wanted so much, wondering through life making easy decisions based on what was comfortable.

He looked up at the sky that was still a bright summer blue. Two years ago his team had shown up way into the night, late for their project and already bickering. It had taken weeks for that to level off and they’d lost precious time figuring out their clues.

He shook his head and leaned back. He’d learned to relax the last couple of years, to take in the moment, the people, the sounds. Every place was different.

God breathed, as Frank had shown him.

Even now he enjoyed watching the families arrive at the museum. He watched the children, busting with excitement, the people on the cell phones, not even really present.

He watched it all.

He didn’t have to do anything. Mike and Dave—he could no longer help but know the people behind the forth wall–had already shot him sitting there. They were now paying attention to the streets, listening to their headsets, waiting for his team to arrive.

They’re appearance would be much more of a surprise to him, then he was to them, but it didn’t bother him. People were people. Interesting, vibrant, and part of life.

He’d only once, in the show’s history, come to serious blows with anyone.

He sat up when he saw the awareness in the crew. They were coming. He glanced at his watch. They had made good time following the clues, seeing the city.

He stayed seated even as he watched them come into view. Two males, three females ... and no bickering. Inside, and only on the inside, he did a happy dance.

He closed his book, then pushed himself up and stepped forward. It was time to see what his team was made of. He held out his hand as the first one, a tall rangy blond male, with chin length blond hair stepped up, a skateboard was under his arm.

"Welcome to my team."



The men had ended up on ahead, with Thessa—and her long, athletic legs coming in after them. As they caught up with the front of their group, Felicity was nearly bouncing, obviously more excited about being on Tyler’s team herself then she’d let on. Jamie could only inwardly sigh, knowing it would mean something to her grandmother.

Tyler the Great.

Tyler the nice boy with the pretty smile.

Watching him as he stepped around and shook their hands, she had to admit she liked his smile, but she wouldn’t call it pretty. With the dark shadow of evening scruff to the deep dimples in his check, it was more rugged and masculine, more devastating than pretty.

No wonder Felicity was enamored.

His handshake was warm, firm and sure of itself, something that reminded her of her grandfather. Nice smile, good handshake, likable personality. Inside, purely female yearning tumbled over itself, as she imaged had happened to dozens of girls who’d come on the show before.

It would be easy to fall for him, way too easy to make a fool of herself on national TV.

In the end they stood in a small circle, with the camera crew circling like vultures. Tyler’s role as leader felt natural somehow. They all knew he was experienced. During their search of the city on the way to find him, they had shared that much of their thoughts of the rules or roles or whatever it was that made the show tick. It gave them an advantage, she thought, because they trusted him some already, and respected him.

But people were rarely ever exactly the same as they seemed on TV.

"As you probably know, tonight’s assignment is more about getting to know each other. We will be split into teams of two. Every hour, we will rotate around, meet each other, and work with the people here. Give the kids and families a good time. And of course … win prizes in the end. Keep in mind that everything is a clue, including who we are." Tyler shrugged. "That’s the whole shebang, then. Any questions?"

"What exactly are we doing here?" Felicity asked.

He smiled, just a simple instant sign of enjoyment. "Excellent question. Let’s go find our contact."

Families arrived in droves to spend the night of space and flight discovery at the museum. Their first job was to organize the people into lines where the cots would go. Having been sponsored by their network, there was a screen the size of a wall set up in the center.

Children were running around from the different stations, laughing, screaming. Jamie stood up from stretching out a cot and looked around.

"Out of your element?" Tyler stepped in front of her and smiled. "you look like you’re about to bolt."

"it’s really loud."

"Not used to the noise?"

"Not this constant clamor," she shrugged.

Too many kids, to much stimuli. She was used to the rush of adrenaline to carry her through an emergency, to the focus of the job, but not this continued, sustained pulse of children.

She nearly told him, but she hesitated. She didn’t know him well enough. And not knowing him well enough, the explanation would have come out as a long, disjointed ramble anyway.

He laughed, so easily, then tipped his head to the right, signaling her to follow. She fell into step with him, conscious again of the cameras following them. He’d stepped in and rescued her she thought, from her expression of disgust, fear; whatever she’d looked like, she was grateful to him. It might not have been intentional. In fact, it probably wasn’t, but she knew she’d been looking uncomfortable.

Soon the six of them were paired off in twos, still at the beginning of a night long meet and greet. She found herself working in a make shift kitchen with George, sorting through catered boxes and preparing for the moonlight snack.

“So, you’re a professor,” she said as she tugged on her latex gloves with practiced ease. “Why this, why here?”

George lifted the first box to the table and opened it so they could sort the contents out on the table. They both pulled out a half dozen sandwiches and began to place them where they were labeled.

“I was coming up on a sabbatical to write and they had the auditions in town. One of my graduate assistants was talking about trying out, about it being part of the social commentary of the time. And started thinking about it. To travel to so many places. To meet so many people. In such a short amount of time. It’s an amazing experience.”

“I suppose it is,” she agreed.

“And you’re a nurse,” he said. “What made you come?”

“No social commentary for me,” she returned. “My grandmother. It was—is her dream. I think she wanted me to get out, see the world.”

“You’re close to her.”

She set the wrapped sandwich down on the roast beef stack and went back to the box for more. “Yeah. She needed some help when my grandfather died, so I moved in with her for most of high school, then college.”

“Is that why you went into nursing?”

“Sometimes I think so. Sometimes it just feels ... like it’s where I’ve always supposed to have been. I even nearly specialized in geriatrics.”

“But you didn’t.”

“No. My first job was in emergency, then I was moved into surgery. I fell in love with Perioperative—surgical. Still keep my hand in emergency.”

“Like TV.”

“TV doesn’t show the nurses,” Jamie laughed. “We’re much better than that.”

She lifted the last sandwiches from the box and moved on down the table. “You have family at home?”

“A wife, three daughters. Twelve, fourteen and nineteen.”

“Teenagers?” she nearly shuddered. “Is that why you’re here for the summer?”

“If I agreed to that on national television, I’m not sure I could return home.”

But he laughed as he tossed the empty box off to the side and went for the next.


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