A Very Interesting Future
by Kristen Fife


Part 1
Natalie Lambert, medical student and now officially
“Doctor” Lambert after her final exams in med school,
had a splitting headache. And cotton mouth. In short,
a hangover. A very BAD hangover. She wasn’t sure if it
was the champagne or the tequila. Probably both. She
moaned as she pulled the blanket up over her head to
cut out the bright light of the midmorning June
sunshine. Suddenly the shrill sound of the telephone
ringing sliced across her ragged nerves. She jumped up
in an effort to stop it from ringing again and further
upsetting her head.

“Hello?” her muzzy voice sounded.

“Nat, where are you? I’ve been waiting at the airport
for almost an hour.” Her brother Richard’s voice
sounded mildly panicked. She groaned.

“Oh, Ritchie, I’m sorry. I went out celebrating last
night and got a little carried away. Give me another
40 minutes or so. I totally spaced.” She moaned a
little.

Richard chuckled. “OK. I’ll just grab a bite to eat.
Why don’t I meet you at the baggage claim section
around 12:45? That should give us both plenty of
time.”

“That works. See you then.” Natalie hung up the phone
and looked longingly at her bed. But, she realized she
would just have to live with her unaccustomed
excesses. There was so much to do. She had been
accepted at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto for her
residency, and she only had 10 days to go through
graduation, pack up her apartment, move across the
continent, find a new place to live and start the next
few years of her life.  She was going to miss
Vancouver.  The city was incredible and she had met
some amazing people in her life here, but she was
ready to move on. Richard had come to visit
her several times over the last four years, first
during his undergraduate years and then as he entered
law school. After their parents had died, they had
become even closer despite the vast distance. She was
looking forward to being in the same city as her
outgoing brother. He had been telling her stories of
Toronto and how vibrant it was for the last two years,
and her few visits there had helped her decide to
apply for residencies there.

But first, she had to calm her head and stomach and
become functional, and pick her brother up from the
airport. She headed for the shower and tried to
remember some of the fragments from the previous
night’s celebrations. As she slipped on her new pink
terry cloth bathrobe (a graduation gift from her
roommate Angela), she moaned again and headed to the
kitchen for a glass of water and some ibuprofen for
her aching headache. She also nibbled on some
crackers, realizing that an empty stomach and 4
ibuprofen probably wasn't the best of ideas. After she
finished her impromptu meal, she went to
the bathroom for a shower, hoping the hot water would
help her aching head. Her stomach was already feeling
a bit better after the crackers.

As she got into the steamy shower, she tried to think
back to the previous night. She remembered a bunch of
her classmates cajoling her into joining them for a
celebratory dinner. She splurged on a wonderful steak
dinner at The Keg, and she remembered them ordering
two bottles of champagne. She wasn't used to drinking,
but for the first time in four years she let go. Her
memories started to get hazy after the dessert. She
recalled Angela and their other roommate Susan
suggesting they head down to Gastown to go to some
clubs. She remembered them all returning home to put
on some "club clothes". She put on her black leather
miniskirt and a tight red t-shirt with her black
boots. Then the three of them collected five of their
friends and headed out to Gastown. She remembered
going into a club that had a long dark hallway and
dark German music blaring. She had never been to a
club that served the alternative
rock/gothic/industrial crowd, and it was fascinating
as well as disturbing.

As she washed her hair, her face took on a puzzled
frown. She had a hazy memory of a very pale man with
dark hair and green eyes approaching her. She must
have *really* had a lot to drink. Her drunken memory
showed her the guy's eyes *glowing*. She shook her
head and decided it must have been the tequila they
had started just as they walked in the door. Angela
was really goading her to let loose. She did, with a
vengeance. The memory of dancing, drinking, laughing,
and drinking some more stayed with her. She didn't
remember making it home, only rolling into bed
somewhere after 5 AM.

Finally, feeling somewhat more human and ready to at
least contemplate the day, Natalie got out of the
shower and returned to the kitchen, a towel wrapped
around her wet hair. She started a pot of coffee while
she went down the short corridor to her bedroom to get
dressed to pick up her brother. She peeked out the
window and saw that it had started to cloud over. She
sighed, but grabbed her sunglasses. June weather in
the Pacific Northwest was wildly unpredictable. She
slipped on jeans and a long sleeved blue t-shirt and
shoved her feet in a pair of sandals. She grabbed a
travel cup and filled it with coffee as she headed
down to the garage to get her car.

She smiled as she looked at her new car. Well, new to
her. She had finally scrimped and saved and bought a
used car, figuring that she would need it not only for
the trip across Canada, but also for her new job. She
had done a lot of comparison shopping and finally
decided on the 1982 Ford Taurus. It had a lot of
mileage on it but it should see her through at least a
few more years if she was careful. She had survived
most of her undergraduate and graduate years without a
car, walking or taking the bus. She wasn't alone since
many of her friends were in the same boat. It felt
good to have a car, though. It made her finally feel
responsible. As she hummed and got into the driver's
side, she smiled and put her coffee between her legs.
Pulling out of the parking garage, she headed down the
highway toward the airport, anticipating her brother's
grin when he saw her car. He had flown in both for her
commencement ceremony and to drive back to Toronto
with her. Luckily the University of Toronto had
already finished their school year. Richard's summer
job didn't start for another two weeks, so his offer
to help her pack and move had been well received and,
she admitted privately, took a load off her mind.



Part 2
She approached the parking terminal and took a ticket,
then circled around for a few minutes before finding a
space. As she pulled in she glanced at her watch and
pulled Richard's itinerary out of her purse. It was
12:28 and he was on Air Canada flight 154. She
grinned, and put her sunglasses on the dashboard as
she made her way through the double doors to the
baggage carousel. She scanned the crowd for Richard
and saw him sitting next to his luggage reading a
magazine. As she approached, he looked up and grinned,
then stood to hug her.

"Nat! You look great. I'm sorry to roust you out of
bed...sounds like you were out celebrating up a storm
last night, hmmm?" Her brother teased her. Although he
was three years younger than her, he always treated
her like the younger sibling.

Punching his arm, she retorted "Someone has to take it
easy every now and then...we both study too much! I am
truly looking forward to having *normal* hours. Come
on, let's get this luggage stowed. Some friends are
having a party tonight and you, of course, are
invited. Nothing like *last* night, thank God. Just a
nice quiet dinner party at my friend Rob's house."

As they walked toward the car, Richard filled her in
on some of the happenings in Toronto. He had brought
several apartment guides for her to look at, with a
sheepish apology that he couldn't have her just stay
with him, but he had a small studio apartment.

"Ritchie, don't worry about it. I need to find a place
of my own. But it will be SO good to have you nearby.
I've missed you!" Natalie's enthusiasm made Richard's
face light up.

As they drove back to Natalie's apartment, Richard
asked about the dinner party. "What should I wear? Is
this formal? I have my suit for your commencement
tomorrow, but all I brought was jeans and polo shirts
for the rest of the week."

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Richard, this is a bunch of
grad students, just like you. OK, we're a little bit
more morbid in our humor, but really. NO ONE is going
to be dressed up for this shindig. Jeans and a polo
shirt are fine. I'll probably just change my shirt and
throw on some lipstick."

As they got back to her apartment and walked in,
Angela looked up from the living room couch where she
was reading a book. "Hey Natalie. Rob called to say
that the party is going to start at 7 instead of
6...they forgot to get something for the chicken and
needed to make a quick grocery run. Hi Richard, great
to see you." Her dark eyes sparkled as she regarded
her roommate's very handsome brother. She had harbored
a crush on him for almost three years, but in all his
visits he had never shown the slightest interest in
her. She mentally shrugged. "Hey Nat, can you believe
this, I'm reading a book for PLEASURE!" She grinned
and held up the trashy romance she had in her hand.

Natalie laughed. "Wow, that's the first one I've seen
in this apartment in the last three years. I don't
think I even OWN any reading books." She set about
stowing Richard's gear in the corner. "Ritchie, do you
need a shower or anything? I'm going to take a nap.
I'm still a bit tired from partying last night." She
grinned sheepishly.

"Nah, I'm good. I actually have some journals to catch
up on, if Angela doesn't mind sharing the light with
me." He grinned a charming smile and Angela smiled
back.

Natalie saw the calculating look in Angela's face and
smiled privately. Richard hadn't had a girlfriend
since his sophomore year, any more than she had had a
boyfriend. It was good for him to have Angela flirt
with him. He had no idea how handsome he was. She went
down the corridor to her bedroom, shut the door and
took off her jeans. She set the alarm for 5, giving
her a couple of hours of sleep before the dinner
party. She slid under the covers and quickly fell
asleep.



Part 3
She had a nightmare of a pale face leering at her with
glowing yellow eyes and fangs protruding, coming at
her. She was paralyzed by fear, her heart racing.
Suddenly she woke up and sat straight up in her bed,
her alarm buzzing loudly in her ear. She reached over
with a shaking hand and switched it off. She shook her
head. *Boy, no more tequila for ME! Geez, Dracula
nightmares?* She swung her feet out of bed and pulled
on her jeans. She walked out into the living room
where Angela and Richard were laughing.

"Hey guys. Angela, I am NEVER touching tequila again.
I had this intense Count Dracula nightmare. Scared the
living daylights out of me!" She shuddered then
grinned.

"Just what I need...my sister the vampire!" Richard
said teasingly. "Well, I'm going to go change. Thanks
for a great laugh, Angela." He slyly looked over at
Natalie. "I'm going to remember all those tidbits for
the next few years when my sister tries to pull her
I'm-older-than-you-are routine." He winked at her and
headed down to the bathroom.

Natalie looked at Angela. "Just what were you telling
him?" she demanded.

Angela grinned. "Oh, I told him about that lab rabbit
you lost. And the fish tank incident. And the purple
mouse. And I might have mentioned the St. Patty's day
pizza."

Natalie groaned. "I should NEVER have left you alone
with him."

Angela laughed. "Well, I'm going to go change. What
are you wearing? I was thinking of my green sweater
and my black jeans. I think Rob said his friend Mark
was going to be there. You know, the gorgeous guy from
Manitoba?" Her eyes lit up with mischief.

Natalie grinned. "YOU are hopeless. I'm going to throw
on a shirt and pull my hair back. Um, if you wear the
green sweater, you should wear your silver locket.
They look great together." She winked at her roommate
and headed back to her room.

She rooted around in her closet for a few minutes
before deciding on a plain white blouse. She shrugged
into it and her mind drifted back to her nightmare.
DEFINITELY no more tequila. She shook her head and
exited her room.

Richard was waiting for her in the living room. He had
put on a navy blue polo shirt and dark blue jeans. He
looked up at her and smiled. "I hope they got their
grocery run finished; I am HUNGRY!"

Natalie laughed. Her brother's appetite was one of the
family jokes. Angela came out, dressed in her green
sweater, black jeans and the suggested silver locket.
Her short dark hair was spiked up. She looked very
sassy.

"Ready?" Natalie asked as she picked up her keys and
purse. They headed out the door and off to Rob's
house, about 20 blocks.




Part 4
As they parked and walked up the driveway, Natalie
noticed all the cars. She didn't realize there would
be so many people. She sighed. In another week, she
would be leaving her friends and classmates of the
last 4 years. She would miss a lot of them. Medical
school created some strong bonds, and she was a little
nervous about leaving. She was very glad her brother
would be near her.

As they walked in the door, she noticed Rob standing
in the hallway. "Hey, Nat, Angela! Good timing." He
walked over to them and hugged both women. "Richard,
right? We met last year. Glad you could make it." He
shook Richard's hand and then led them into the living
room just off the foyer. As they walked in and Natalie
glanced around, she saw a lot of people she didn't
know, and realized there were probably friends and
family members in town for the commencement the next
day.  She turned to say something to Richard and
noticed that he was rooted in place staring at a woman
on the other side of the room. Natalie followed his
gaze, and saw Sarah, Rob's cousin. She had just
finished getting her degree in education and was
starting at the University on her teacher's college
program. She looked from Sarah back to Richard. They
were staring at each other. She cleared her throat.

"Uh, Richard? Hello, earth to Ritchie". He didn't hear
her. She grabbed his arm and shook it lightly. Richard
dragged his eyes away from Sarah.

"Huh? Nat, who is that beautiful girl over by the
door? I think I'm in love!" His eyes were glowing.
Natalie started to laugh, then realized that he was
totally besotted.

"That's Sarah Murray, Rob's cousin. She's here
finishing up her teacher's college. She's very nice,
although I've only met her a few times. Let me
introduce you." She took Richard's hand and led him
over to where Sarah was standing. She noticed that
Sarah was blushing, although her eyes were riveted on
Richard's.

"Hi Sarah. This is my brother Richard Lambert.
Richard, Sarah Murray." She felt as if she had been
dismissed as the two looked at each other and shook
hands. Natalie shrugged and walked over to socialize
with Angela, who had indeed found the attractive Mark
Hubbard. She grinned as she watched Angela flirting
with him.

As they drove home, Natalie and Angela talked about
the dinner party, reminiscing on other occasions when
the med students had celebrated or crammed or studied
or spent other times together. Richard sat in the back
seat, a dazed look on his face. He had spent the
entire night next to Sarah, talking quietly. They had
even taken an hour-long walk in the evening light
after dinner was over. Natalie was torn between alarm
and amusement. Richard had never reacted to any woman
like this before.

The pulled into the garage, parked the car and went up
to the apartment. They walked in the door, and Angela
let out a huge yawn. "Good night, Lamberts. Tomorrow
is going to be a BIG day." She went down the hallway
to her room and shut the door.

Natalie went over to the linen closet and pulled out
blankets and sheets to make up the sofa bed for
Richard. She turned toward her brother. He was sitting
on the couch staring at the floor. She quietly
approached and dropped the linens on the other end of
the couch. She sat in the chair next to him. "Ritchie?
Are you ok?" She asked worriedly.

Richard looked up at her, and she realized he had a
small smile on his face and that his blue eyes
were...luminous. She wasn't sure how else to describe
them.

"Nat, do you believe in love at first sight? Soul
mates? Or fate?" He asked her. He was totally serious,
she realized.

"Richard, I'm a scientist. I don't know. I've seen
some couples that meet, and are married a few weeks
later and seem blissfully happy. I know other people
that date for several years, get married, have kids
then one day up and divorce for no seemingly good
reason." The subject was making her uncomfortable.
Although she WAS a scientist, there was a very private
part of her that wished, someday, that she would find
someone special, someone that would make her entire
world a different and magical place.

"Natalie, I'm in love with Sarah. I think I'm going to
marry her one day. I know it sounds crazy, but I feel
like I've found my other half, something I didn't even
know I was looking for." Richard looked at her, a
calmness and peace settling there that she had never
sensed before.

"Richard, whatever else happens, just remember that I
want you to be happy." She leaned over and kissed her
brother on the forehead. "Now, GO TO SLEEP. Tomorrow
is going to be a big day for me, and then YOU get to
help me pack and get ready to start a brand new life."


"Good night, Nat. I have a feeling the future is about
to get very interesting for both of us!" Richard got
up to start making the bed as Natalie went back to her
own room and thought about his words.

"Yes, the future is looking VERY interesting indeed,"
She mused to herself as she drifted off to sleep.

=====================================
Disclaimers etc.
OK, I don't own the FK characters. Sony, Tristar et al
do.

Permission given to archive at the FTP site and
the current fanfic site.
Everyone else, drop me a line at:
fenix23fyre@yahoo.com.

Tequila, anyone? :)