From the step at the front of the hotel Chelsea could see Trevor approach from a block away with his suitcase trailing behind him. He saw her and quickened his pace until his suitcase careened off a pawn shaped post at the edge of the sidewalk. The case skidded out of control and flipped over and forced him to stop and turn it upright. She stood motionless with head turned away so he wouldn't see her giggling. Then, he was standing right in front of her.

Trevor gazed at Chelsea for a moment. Her auburn hair flowed from beneath the white sunhat with a black ribbon accent he had seen her wearing at the beach a day earlier. It matched the white shirt and black shorts she wore. She looked beautiful. Cute. She was physically captivating but there was more than her appearance that drove his need to be with her. He needed to plead his case. He needed her.

He let his suitcase drop then wrapped his arms around Chelsea and sighed, "Thank you for waiting. I tried calling so many times but..."

Chelsea hesitated then lightly returned the embrace but did not speak. She knew he had called but didn't pick up the phone. Trevor noticed the indifference and stepped back.

"I'm sorry. I..." he started, "If you don't want to speak to me or be near me, I understand, but please give me a chance, please. Just... listen to me for five minutes and if you want me to leave you alone, I will. Please, just five minutes."

"Okay..."

"Were you heading out for breakfast?"

Chelsea nodded.

"Can I drop my stuff in your room? We can go to that place behind the theatre and grab something. Or, we can go wherever you want. If you tell me to get lost, I come back, get my stuff, and I'm gone. Well, I have your book and bikini top and the charger for your camera battery, so we'll have to get those out of my suitcase... then I'm gone."

While Chelsea waited in the lobby, Trevor dragged his suitcase into the room and wheeled it up to the bed. He noticed the message slips, wrinkled, but flattened and neatly placed on the night table. She had read them. She had crumpled them up but smoothed them out and read them. He hoped that was a good sign.

Chelsea followed Trevor back to the street but remained silent for the walk. She let him take her hand. It felt comfortable and her eyes couldn't help but sneak the occasional glance towards him. She wanted to pull her hand away. She didn't want him to think she was ready to forgive him just yet. She wasn't sure if she could, but she wanted to. She let his hand hold hers but didn't return the gesture.

With a table, two croissants and two coffees between them, Trevor gazed across and contemplated where to start. Chelsea sat quietly, her gaze moving between him and her cup of coffee. She didn't want to let him off too easily but inside she was happy he had come after her. She didn't know how he had left things with Letya; perhaps he planned to meet up with her again if things didn't go his way. Perhaps she was history, but what about the next Letya that crossed his path? She tried her best to appear to be indifferent to his presence, using the 'what ifs' to numb herself even if she was tingling inside.

"All last night I was trying to think of what to say. Even walking up from the train station, I was... rehearsing," he said as he fidgeted with a napkin. "Excuses. That's all I came up with. Excuses for being an ass. Excuses for treating you... You didn't deserve the way I treated you. And, I certainly don't deserve someone like you."

Chelsea looked to the Trevor's hands. They trembled as his fingers worked over the paper napkin. That poor napkin; a helpless victim of the events of the previous day. In the few minutes they had spent at the table his expression had changed. He had looked hopeful as they walked from the hotel but now, Trevor appeared defeated and lost.

"I probably came up with a hundred of different ways to say I'm sorry, but... I don't even know why I'm here, why you didn't just tell me to get lost at the hotel."

"Maybe I want to hear one of those excuses. Like, was it because of that night? The last night we were here, and I couldn't—"

"What? No! Don't think that!" Trevor said as he took her hand. "I meant what I said. That's not why— Not at all!"

"It seemed like it. A day later and you started acting different and then SHE shows up and I just sort of disappeared."

Chelsea felt a strength inside her that seemed foreign. A few minutes earlier she had to hold herself back from wrapping her arms around him. But, as she spoke, as she expressed herself, she felt deserving of an explanation. She felt she deserved to be treated better. If Trevor wanted her forgiveness, if he wanted her back, he would have to work for it. He would have to fight for her. She felt impowered yet frightened. If she sent him away, would she regret is later? If she let him stay would he hurt her again?

"Believe me, that was not..." Trevor shook his head as he spoke. "I'm better at running away from things than dealing with them."

"Maybe try to explain what changed when we got to Marseille? Was it, HER?"

"No. Not really. I read that email from my dad," Trevor said as his hands went back to strangling the defenseless napkin. "He forwarded the message from Well Stone about being expelled, then went on about being a perpetual screw up. He's tired of cleaning up my messes but... he worked some deal at some place in Portland. The one in Oregon. I guess he wants me as far away as possible, now."

Chelsea felt herself softening as she looked at Trevor.

"Like I said, just an excuse," Trevor continued. "I'm supposed to go there this summer, make up all the courses I've tanked, then start college. Chambers expects to meet with me to discuss it when I get back. But I decided I wasn't going to go back."

"You're not going back?"

"I wasn't. Not to Well Stone, not to home, nowhere. I decided I would just stay here," Trevor said as he noticed Chelsea's eyes drop towards the ground. "But I've changed my mind. Or, you did, I guess."

"I did? I changed your mind. I haven't even decided if I want to forgive you or not," she lied.

"Fair enough. I know I screwed up. On the plane, in Barcelona, in Marseille. And, I wouldn't blame you if you kicked me and told me to screw off. I decided I need to go back. I need to face this and fight to stay."

Trevor's eyes followed Chelsea's hands as she lifted her cup of coffee and took a sip, then watched the cup settle back on the table. She noticed his eyes following her movement then repeated the motions. She turned her head as she tipped the cup to her lips and used hand gestures as if she were performing a product demonstration. Trevor looked down at his own cup and noticed he hadn't even taken one sip since they arrived at the table. He snorted a laugh before taking a sip of his coffee.

"And that, kids, is how we drink coffee," Chelsea said with a smile that quickly faded. "But, I'm still mad at you. I saw you kissing her, in front of the hotel, on your way to the restaurant. Up until then I was upset, but I wasn't going to just let her–win. But then I realized I already lost. So..."

Trevor smiled for a moment. His lips flattened and he furrowed his brow, "She kissed me, and, yes, I didn't exactly stop her. Before that, I guess back when I decided to go on this trip, I figured I was going to stay, find someone like her or lots of girls like her and just, not go back."

"The plan?"

"The plan! But you came along and—"

"Sorry."

"Don't be. I should thank you. My liver definitely thanks you," he chuckled. "I've never really had a reason to want to stay somewhere. Lots of reasons to want to leave, I guess. Now that I have a reason to stay at Well Stone, they decide to kick me out. You know, I worked hard at getting kicked out, but Chambers kept giving me another chance, then another..."

"Now you want to stay?"

"Well, that's where you are, so... yeah, I want to stay. I want to go back, finish my time a Well Stone and... be near you. Even if you don't forgive me, I'm going back."

Chelsea felt a tingle in her nose as Trevor's hand reached across the table. She let him take her hand and felt his fingers caress her skin.

"So, she kissed me, and I think that's when it dawned on me; it felt wrong, like I wasn't supposed to be there kissing her. It felt like I was cheating. And I was, I guess. It should have been you, not her."

"It hurt. Seeing you kissing her. Everything about the day, from when she showed up at the beach, it all hurt, but that... that's what hurt the most."

"I'm so sorry. I never meant to hurt you," Trevor paused for a moment. "That sounds so stupid, saying that. The truth is, if I was thinking, at all, I was only thinking about myself."

"I want to believe you. I want to. But, what about the next time your dad emails? What about the next time some other Letya flashes her boobs? And, why me? There are a dozen girls at Well Stone that would do anything to be with you. And, at least one in Marseille. So why me?"

"There's a lot of things I can't explain but that is one I know I figured out. You make even the simplest, most ordinary things exciting. Just looking at you while we are sightseeing or eating dinner, it's like you are there, in the moment, the place, all of you taking it in. It's like it's the most fascinating thing you've ever seen or eaten or... All this stuff we've seen on this trip. I've never been on date with any other girl that would do all this stuff and be fascinated by it all."

"And that's enough for you?"

"More than enough. The better question is, why would you want me? I sat in the station last night, convincing myself to just let you go. I'd be doing you a favor if you never had to see me again."

"In other words, you were going to just run away again."

"I know I haven't given you any reason to trust me. All I can say is I promise to change, to be better, to be the kind of guy that deserves... you. I sat at the restaurant, thinking you would come down soon and SHE kept going on about ditching you, about going to her place. She said she knew what I want and what I need. And, I started thinking about what you said at that candle store in Barcelona. You remember, you said I might not know what people there need."

"Yes, I remember."

"I had just figured out what I need and what I want, and it's nothing she could offer."

"Sex! You realize that's what she was offering, right?"

"Really? Shit! Why didn't she just say that?" Trevor said with an exaggerated look of surprised.

"You know, a guy with your reputation, I thought you would have figured that out," she added with a smile.

"You girls are so complicated," he said as he rubbed his brow. "My reputation? Let's just say that has been a little, exaggerated."

"Really? So, you haven't had sex with, like, hundreds of girls?"

"Hundreds?"

"Okay, tens... How many?" Chelsea asked without thinking. "Never mind, I don't want to know."

Trevor held up one hand with the middle and index fingers extended in the shape of a V.

"Wait, is that letter V, like roman numeral for five? Or two? Or, two tens... five tens, so like twenty? Fifty?"

"Two," he said. "I know, it's stupid, people talk like I've been with every girl I've met, and I don't say anything."

"I was expecting a lot more," Chelsea said sheepishly.

"Does that bother you? You know, that I've been with SO MANY? Or, so few?"

"No, I hope I don't know them. That might be a bit weird," Chelsea said with sneer.

Trevor chewed a bit of his croissant then replied, "The first was my girlfriend at my last school."

"You had a girlfriend? I heard you never wanted steady girlfriends, like some sort of two date maximum. Did you break it off 'cause you got kicked out?"

"Well... sort of. Remember when I said I puked on someone at the Halloween dance?"

"Yes... NO! You didn't!" Chelsea said as she cupped her hands over her mouth. "You puked on your girlfriend."

"Sort of ended it right then," Trevor nodded. "The other, it was one time just after I got to Well Stone. You wouldn't know her either, a girl I met in Auburn at a party. So, no, it wasn't Bethany, like all the rumors, I did go into a room with her, but she was drunk and stoned and just completely messed up. We just sat and talked."

"And, it wasn't Stacy," Chelsea added. "I'm sure she would have told me all about it."

"Stacy... no—no—no— The only thing we shared was a taxi back from a party. Next thing I know the word was we were making out and... She was pretty hammered and was getting all over me, but... that's it! She did kiss me, but I didn't kiss her back, I'll put that on the record... it was a one-way kiss. And, for the most part, I've successfully avoided her ever since."

"I know," Chelsea laughed. "She woke me up that night and told me all about the taxi ride. Complete with reenacting pretty much the entire ride home. At one point, I thought she was going to kiss me and grab my boobs for full dramatic affect!"

"I didn't go anywhere near her boobs, except to pull her shirt back down over them. There may have been some contact, maybe a slight knuckle on nipple graze; she had pulled up her bra with the shirt, but it wasn't a grab or a grope or even a feel," Trevor protested. "I don't get it... You two seem so different, and she's... well, I don't know what to say about her, but, how is it that the two of you are friends?"

"I guess it's 'cause she's the only one that keeps coming around and I'm the only one that doesn't avoid her. Or, well, most of the time I don't avoid her. She's really the only one that ever tries to convince me to go to dances and parties even though she knows I won't go. When my grandmother died, she got a taxi, went into town and got a pizza then sat in my room with me. Nobody else understood. I hadn't seen my grandmother since I was four, but when she died, Stacy understood that I was alone. Completely alone. She does that on the anniversary of my parents' accident, brings pizza and stays with me. She'll delay leaving for Christmas break to make sure I'm not on my own. I know she's a bit of a flake; she wasn't always like that, just so you know. I think she tries too hard to get people to like her, especially guys," Chelsea's eyes sank towards the table.

"She does that? Wow! I had no idea," Trevor responded. "I saw that she brought in some cupcakes a while ago. I'm guessing that was for your birthday."

"She always remembers. Always. Since we were little. She would drive Mrs. Peterson nuts, reminding her that she needed to get me a cake."

"I saw her bring them into the commons while I was walking out. I never thought to...stick around. You know, I'd seen you around school and you just looked, well, I'm sorry to say it like this, but... pathetic looking..."

"Pathetic? Gee thanks...You really know how to win over a girl."

"Sorry, not like— I'm not sure how else to describe it. More than just sad. There were a couple times I was going to just plop into the chair across from you in the library and say, 'hey', but then Stacy shows up or something. Then after that taxi ride I was thinking something like, she's friends with her so... I guess I avoided you too."

"Really? You noticed me?" Chelsea said with surprise. "I have to warn you, me and Stacy are sort of a package deal. You don't have to like her, but she's my friend. Really, she's my only friend... I'm not going to, like, cut her out of my life."

"So, I should cut her some slack is what you're telling me? Okay... Actually, Clay used to have a thing for her but... When we get back maybe I'll set them up or something. We could double date."

"That would be nice. I'd like that. I'm sure she wouldn't mind either."

"So, does this mean I can tag along with you on the rest of your vacation?" he asked.

"I'm still thinking it over," she replied as she finished her coffee.

Trevor held Chelsea's hand for the walk back to the hotel and noticed a young man glance at Chelsea as they walked past. He draped his arm across her shoulder and pulled her in close. "In French, how do you say, back off, this is my girlfriend?"

"Girlfriend? Who said anything about being your girlfriend?" Chelsea said with a laugh as she turned to look at the man that had just walked by. "I just said you can tag along with me on my vacation. So, let's review the plan, there's a sofa in the hotel lobby—"

"No, forget the plan," Trevor said as he took her hand again. "From now on the only plan I have is to keep you with me."

They continued towards the hotel. He only let her fingers slip from his hand after they had entered the room. He held it again after they stepped back into the hallway a few minutes later. The desk clerk extended their stay in the room and smiled as they walked hand in hand from the lobby.

Chelsea watched the cobble stones pass under her feet as they made their way along Rue du 4 Septembre, past Chapelle des Pénitents. She remembered the empty, lonely feeling that followed her on this same street on the walk back after her late dinner. The pattern in the stones went unnoticed until now.

As they neared the end of the street a large truck approached and forced them to duck into the recessed area of a doorway as it slowly passed. They waited under the stone arch entryway, with the gate on one side of them and the truck on the other. The narrow roadway seemed to be intended for pedestrian traffic only, but that truck was there, slowly rolling past. Chelsea didn't mind; she turned and kissed Trevor while silently encouraging the truck driver to take his time, maybe even stop for a coffee break or an early lunch.

They walked with no particular destination in mind and eventually found the day had slipped past. As the sun neared the horizon, Chelsea urged Trevor to hurry back to the Catherdral to take in the sunset from the top of the ridge.

The narrow streets of the historic center of Béziers were quiet in comparison to the bustle of crowds in Marseille and Barcelona. They walked past tables setup in front of restaurants on Rue Viennet. The roadway was closed to traffic except pedestrians, and became the dining room for the small places. They chose one of the restaurants at random and sat for dinner.

"Did you get some good pictures?" Trevor asked as he inspected his photos. "These are crap. I need some photos of us together to post for my Stone Wall. You don't mind if that one of us kissing with the sunset."

Chelsea felt giddy inside. It was one thing for Trevor to talk about being a couple in the conversations between them but sharing it with people from school and showing his friends that they were more than just travelling together seemed to make it official. He wasn't embarrassed. She nodded enthusiastically.