This is just a disclaimer saying that I don't own any of the characters in this story, I simply like them a lot. Though the characters are not my own, the ideas are, and if you decide to use this story on your site, please let me know. If you just want to tell me what you think of my story (and please do) you can e-mail me at lainey93@hotmail.com. Enjoy!
"I don't know about this, Sheridan," Hank said worriedly. "Luis doesn't
like surprises."
"Oh come on, Hank," Sheridan pleaded, "How could anyone possibly not like
what we've done here? It looks great."
Hank looked around the Youth Center, which they had decorated with
streamers and balloons to celebrate Luis' birthday.
"It does look good," he relented. "But I still think Luis will freak."
"Well you can let me handle him," Sheridan assured him. "It's not like
it'll be the first time I've done something he doesn't like." They both laughed.
"That I know," Hank said. "Okay. More balloons over there?" He gestured to
a corner of the room that was flooded with balloons and streamers.
Sheridan grinned. "You can never have too many," she agreed.
When they finished twenty five minutes later, the Youth Center was a
transformed place. There was no notice of the scuffed wooden floors or peeling
walls, only the bright balloons and swinging streamers that adorned the room.
"Okay. Now for the cake," Sheridan announced.
"I'll get it."
Sheridan watched as Hank left. Luis is going to be so mad at me, she
thought, then shrugged. She smiled to herself, thinking of what his expression
would be when he walked in. Shock, anger, then pretend happiness? Or maybe the
pretend happiness until he found out she was behind it. Then the anger would
come out. Oh well. Worry about that later. Hank emerged from the back room with
the large chocolate cake they had ordered for Luis.
"Over here?" he asked, heading towards the refreshment table.
"Yeah," Sheridan called back. "Right in the middle. That's perfect."
A few kids that came to the Youth Center often arrived. Each had a card
they had made for Luis.
"Hey guys," Sheridan greeted them.
"Hey," Hank said.
"Hi," they responded in unison.
"Wow, this looks great."
"Thanks," Sheridan said. "What great cards. Luis should be here in about
half an hour. Want to help us blow up a few more balloons?"
Twenty minutes later the room was filled with kids ready to surprise Luis.
The Youth Center gymnasium was packed, with balloons and food and people.
Sheridan smiled to herself. How could Luis possibly get mad with all these happy
people around him? she thought. Surely he'll appreciate our effort… I hope…
"Okay guys!" Hank shouted, running in the front door. "Get ready! Luis just
pulled in, he'll be in here any second now!"
Sheridan took a deep breath and smiled at the kids around her. Any second
he'd come through that door. She hoped for the best.
"SURPRISE!" a chorus of voices rang out.
"HUH? What the--?" Luis's startled voice was almost as loud as the entire
group. "Whoa," he said, smiling now. "What's going on here?" He took in the room
of people, the balloons and streamers, and finally the "HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUIS"
sign Hank and Sheridan had hung up. "Ohhh," he said, understanding. "Thanks
guys. This is great." He smiled at the kids in the room. "I, uh, I'm just going
to put this in the back…." he gestured to the bag he held in his hands. "I'll be
right back."
Sheridan watched hopefully as he strode swiftly to the back room, passing
Hank on the way. He didn't seem too upset. She glanced at Hank. He was looking
back at her. He raised his eyebrows and grinned before following Luis into the
back room. Sheridan bit her lip. Okay. So maybe he was upset after all…
Sheridan was cutting the cake when Luis approached her. "Uh, Sheridan," he
started, trying to keep the anger out of his voice for the sake of the kids
surrounding them.
"Um, yes, Luis?" she asked innocently.
"Can I talk to you for a minute?"
She gestured with exaggerated helplessness at the kids waiting for their
cake. "Well, I'm kind of busy right now," she answered sweetly, "but maybe you
can thank me later."
He stared at her, his dark eyes flashing.
"Oh, I'll thank you," he said before storming off.
Sheridan looked at the kids around her. "Luis loves your surprise," she
told them.
"Hank! What am I going to do? Luis is going to kill me!"
"I told you he hated surprises!" Hank whispered back.
They were huddled in a corner of the Youth Center, hidden by piles of
balloons.
"Well what am I going to do?"
"I don’t know. You said you'd handle him!"
"I know what I said! But you didn't see him looking at me!"
Hank raised his eyebrows and grinned. "Oh, I saw him looking at you,
Sheridan."
She stared at him. "Hank! Help me!" She thought a minute. "Maybe I can just
sneak out the back…"
"Oh no," Hank stopped her. "There's no way you're leaving me here with all
these kids, the mess, and, worst of all, Luis."
"But Hank--"
"Shh! There's Luis!"
They watched with wide eyes as Luis passed by them, muscles tense. He was
hating the party, though putting on a good exterior for the kids who had shown
up for him. When he was gone, they resumed talking.
"Hank, you've known him for years! I'm sure he wouldn't kill you!"
"What?!"
"Look, I thought I could deal with him, okay? But look at him out there!
He's just storming around, waiting until he can get me!"
"Sheridan, look, I don't think it'll be that bad."
They peered out from behind the balloons to see Luis searching the crowd of
people, eyes flashing, hands clenched.
"Look at him!" Sheridan exclaimed. "Even when I crashed into his car he
didn't look this angry! And it's just a party! In his favor, no less!"
"I told you before Sheridan, when you came up with this idea, that Luis
hated surprises," Hank reminded her.
"Look, you're being no help at all. Maybe if I just leave now, and come
back tomorrow to clean up, he won't be so angry with me."
Hank considered this. "Okay," he finally agreed. "Try and sneak out through
the back. I'll keep an eye out for Luis."
Sheridan hugged him quickly. "Thanks, Hank," she said.
Carefully she crept along the side of the gym, staying close to the piles
of balloons and streamers in a lame effort to hide from Luis. Hank kept an eye
on her, also keeping an eye out for Luis. When she disappeared into the back
room, he walked through the crowd, trying to find Luis, to make sure he didn't
check the parking lot for Sheridan.
Sheridan moved quickly through the back rooms of the Youth Center, then
finally out into alley behind it, and headed towards the parking lot. It was
raining outside, and the damp air felt great after having spent the past hour
hiding from a fuming Luis. I'll just come back tomorrow, she told herself. After
Luis has had time to cool off… Somewhere a door slammed, jarring Sheridan from
her thoughts. What was that?? she wondered frantically. Then, God, Sheridan.
It's not like Luis would really hurt you… Stop worrying about him finding you.
Maybe he's secretly having a good time… She reached the parking lot and spotted
her car, not too far away. She glanced around one last time before dashing
through the rain towards it. She paused in front of the driver's side door and
fumbled in her jeans pocket for the keys. She pulled them out and unlocked the
door. She breathed a sigh of relief as she slipped into the seat and closed the
door."Whew," she said, letting out a gust of air. "I made it."
Suddenly the passenger side door flew open and Luis dropped in beside her.
"Going somewhere, Sheridan?" he asked, slamming the door shut.
Sheridan jumped in her seat and her head whipped around to stare in shock
at Luis.
"L-Luis!" she gasped. "Wha--uh, what are you doing out here?"
"What do you think I'm doing, Ms. Crane?" he demanded. "I'm here to thank
you."
"I--uh, I was just, um, coming to get something," she stuttered. "You
didn't have to follow me. I can get it by myself." Luis didn't say anything,
just stared hard at her with his dark eyes. "Well… you're welcome," she said
nervously. "Uhh, bye."
"I'll just sit here," Luis said, leaning back in the seat and closing his
eyes. "Ahh," he sighed.
Sheridan stared at him in disbelief. "Well…" her voice trailed off and her
hand wrapped around the door handle. "As you wish!" She shoved open her door and
swung a leg outside. But before she could stand, Luis's hand was around her arm
like a vise, pulling her back into her seat. He reached over her and pulled the
door closed.
"You're not going anywhere yet, Sheridan," he promised, his face close to
hers, his hand still holding the door, blocking her in.
"I--Luis! Let me go!"
"You knew I hated parties, Sheridan," he snapped. "Especially surprise
parties. And what did you do? Why do you do things like this?"
"What are you talking about?" she lied. "I thought you'd be glad somebody
remembered your birthday."
"You could have just said so, you didn't have to throw a damn party behind
my back."
Sheridan yanked her arm out of his grip and shoved him away.
"Geez, Luis. There's nothing like gratitude to show your appreciation," she
responded sarcastically. "Look, there's been nothing fun going on at the Youth
Center--
"What??"
"Well there hasn't! And I just thought that a surprise party would be a
great way to get people to come out and have a good time… I did it for the
Center!"
Luis glared at her.
"You did not, Sheridan. You can't lie to me. You're a lousy liar and we
both know it."
She stared at him for a long time.
"I’m leaving," she said finally. "You can sit here and stew if you want,
but I'm going back to join the party. Which I threw for the Center." Sheridan
climbed out of the car and slammed her door shut angrily. Luis was the most
aggravating, ungrateful egomaniac she had ever encountered. She started walking
back to the Youth Center and heard the passenger side door close behind her.
Luis's footsteps followed until he was close behind her.
"Sheridan," he said harshly. She ignored him and kept on walking.
"Sheridan!" He grabbed her arm again and spun her around.
"What, Luis?!" she snapped. He didn't say anything, just stood there
furiously, gripping her arm, the rain soaking both of them. "Would you like to
add anything else? Huh? Is there something else you'd like to accuse me of doing
simply to spite you? You know, not everything that happens happens because of
you, Luis! The world does not revolve around you, no matter how much you may
like to believe it does! So you can stand out here getting wet and trying to
think of all the reasons you hate me, or you can go inside and show some
gratitude to all those people who came out here for you!" And with that she
yanked her arm out of his hand, spun on her heel, and stormed back to her car.
Luis did not turn around as he heard her speed away.
The next day Sheridan arrived early at the Youth Center to start cleaning
up. The door was open when she arrived, and she saw Hank as she hung up hercoat.
"Hey," he said, taking in her haggard appearance. "Rough night?"
"I got a cold," she mumbled. "Stupid Luis."
"What?" Hank asked, confused.
"He made me go in the rain," Sheridan complained. "And now I have a cold."
Her words were hard to make out as she fumbled in her purse for a Kleenex. "I've
been sneezing all night. And my head hurts."
Hank smiled sympathetically. "Well maybe all the cleaning up will take your
mind off of it."
Sheridan smiled back despite herself. "Thanks Hank," she sniffled. "You
always know just what to say." Hank laughed as he disappeared out back.
Left alone, Sheridan turned to survey the mess that awaited her. Balloons,
some still full of air, the majority having been popped though, littered the
floor. The streamers that had seemed like such a good idea the day before now
made her flinch at the idea of climbing up and taking them down. Paper cups,
plates, and napkins had been dropped at random through out the gym. Squished
cake and cookies, as well as several other foods, were all over the place.
Sheridan groaned and put her face in her hands. Why had she ever thought that a
party was a good idea?? This was going to take forever! She sneezed loudly
before turning to get a garbage bag.
An hour later she triumphantly scooped up the last broken balloon. She had
managed to get all of the garbage off the floor. She still had to take down the
streamers, put away all the tables and chairs, and sweep the floor. Sheridan
blew her nose and surveyed the gym. I guess I'll start with the chairs, she
thought.
As she carried the last chair into the back storage room, she passed Hank
again. He was scribbling something down on a pad of paper. "What are you doing,
Hank?" she asked.
Hank glanced up. "Oh, hey, Sheridan," he said with a smile. "How's the
cleaning coming?"
She shrugged. "Slowly," she said tiredly. "I just wish I didn't have this
cold."
Hank laughed. "I just have to finish figuring out these numbers, then I'll
come out and help you. I've been doing this since six o'clock this morning."
Sheridan raised her eyebrows. "You should get some sleep," she said. "I can
clean up myself. Don't worry about it." Hank started to protest but she stopped
him. "Forget it, Hank. I'll see you later." She smiled again before heading back
to the gym. But her smile promptly disappeared when she saw Luis observing her
work. He glared at her when he saw her.
"What are you doing here?" Sheridan snapped, sniffling.
"What do you think I'm doing her--he-he--Achooo!" Luis sneezed
mid-sentence. "I--I work here. Willingly."
She glared at him. "Just stay out of my way," she said, annoyed.
"My pleasure," Luis snapped back.
Sheridan stalked past him and dragged a ladder to the corner where several
streamers had been attached. She felt his eyes on her as she climbed up and
reached for the tape that attached them to the wall. Dust sprinkled down from
the ceiling and tickled her nose.
"Achoo!" she sneezed. She heard Luis laugh from behind her. "Is something
funny?" she demanded, sneezing again into a Kleenex.
Luis laughed louder. "You--you--Achoo!"
Sheridan started laughing too. They both stood there laughing and sneezing
until Hank came out.
"What is going on?" Hank exclaimed. "You two sound like you're either
laughing together or killing each other, I can't decide which."
"We have colds," Sheridan tried to explain through her laughter. "We can't
stop sneezing."
Luis was laughing so hard tears were starting to trickle down his cheeks.
"I--I can't stop!" he cried, wiping his eyes.
Hank stared hard at them both. "I don't believe you two," he said. "One
minute you hate each other, the next minute you're friends. I don't get it."
Promptly Sheridan and Luis stopped laughing and resumed glaring at one
another.
"I am not friends with Sheridan Crane," Luis stated.
"And I am not friends with you, Luis Lopez-Fitzgerald," Sheridan sniped
back. "Achoo!"
Hank shook his head and turned to Luis. "Well, anyway," he said pointedly,
"I need your help out back, Luis. I can't figure out where those extra figures
came from."
"You still can't?" Luis groaned. "We've been looking for days."
"It just won't balance, buddy."
Still talking, they disappeared out back together.
Sheridan shook her head. "God," she breathed. "That man drives me crazy!"
Luis was thinking the same thing. He was supposed to be helping Hank find where they were losing money on the budget, but he couldn't take his mind off of Sheridan Crane. He smiled as he thought of her sniffling and sneezing up there on that ladder. His fault, of course, he knew. He was the reason she got out of her car, and stood in the rain… to yell at him. Something she had said hit a nerve with him. And it wasn't about how self-centered he was, thinking the world revolved around him. It was that she thought he hated her. He didn't, really. Sure, he despised her family, but Sheridan had another affect on him. Something he couldn't quite put his finger on. He wasn't quite sure what it was, but he knew he didn't want her to think he hated her.
With a relieved sigh Sheridan yanked down the last streamer. She ran her dusty hands back through her hair and stared in dismay at the mass of streamers littering the floor. She had just dropped them where she pulled them down from, and now all that remained was collecting them up, throwing them out, and sweeping the floor. Then she could leave. But now she didn't want to go home as much as she had before. Seeing Luis had made her forget about her cold, fighting with him had cleared her head, and for some reason, she wanted to see him again. But that was crazy. He hated her. And she hated him. Well, not hate, really. Sure he was annoying, and egotistical, and tyrannical… but despite all those frustrating facts, just seeing him smile had made all those things pale.
"Luis? Are you even listening to me here?" Hank rapped hard on the table.
"Luis!"
"Huh? What? Oh, sorry, Hank. Yeah, I'm listening. I am." He stared at the
paper in his hand to prove his point.
"You've been looking at that same page for the past twenty minutes," Hank
pointed out. "What are you thinking about?"
"Nothing. I just have a cold. Really. I'm not thinking about anybody.
Thing! I am not thinking about anyTHING."
Hank stared at him with sudden clarity. "Okay, Luis. Whatever." He looked
exaggeratedly at his watch. "Wow!" he whistled. "Look at the time! I've gotta
go, man. Good luck."
Before Luis could respond Hank swept out of the room. But soon his thinking
went back to Sheridan Crane. Had she left yet? She'd been pretty close to
finishing when he'd arrived. She really had done a lot of work, both putting the
party together, and now cleaning it up. Maybe he should go help her… He put his
head in his hands and groaned. He didn't want to help her, he just wanted to see
her. How did this happen??
Sheridan scooped up an armful of streamers and squeezed them into the
garbage bag she had hung between two chairs, so it stayed open. She had gathered
all the streamers around the bag, and now she just had to throw them in. She
grabbed another bundle and straightened up. Some of the loose ends flew up and
wrapped over her shoulders, one getting stuck in her hair. She tried to blow it
out of the way, but it wouldn't budge. She turned to dump them into the garbage
bag and stopped cold when she saw Luis watching her from across the gym. "I
don't hate you, Sheridan," he said softly. She opened her mouth to speak, but
realized she didn't know what to say. She didn't have to say anything, according
to the look on Luis's face. He knew what she was thinking. What she wanted. The
streamers slipped from her hands as Luis moved towards her, and she waited for
him. He reached her and his hands raised and held her face, stroking her cheek
briefly before falling forward and meshing his mouth with hers. Her arms wrapped
around his neck, her hands in his hair, as she kissed him back. They clung to
each other amidst the streamers strewn around them, lost to the world. Sheridan
felt Luis's hands move over her, and she kissed him fervently. He responded to
her intensity and kissed her harder.
"This is my favorite birthday yet," he whispered.
"Just wait," she said, smiling, kissing him still. "There's more."
