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                         Swans Crossing: the Reunion	
		          Chapter 1: The Homecoming
		           By Michelle Rutherfurd

	Sydney set her suitcase down next to her and indicated for the limo 
driver to do the smae with the rest of her luggage. She payed the driver and 
watched the limo pull away. Then she turned around to look at the door of 
her childhood home in the wealthy town of Swans Crossing. A flood of 
memories enveloped her, and though they were happy ones, they almost pained 
her. She took a deep breath and opened the door. 
	"It's amazing!," she thought. "This place hasn't changed a bit. It 
looks exactly like it did last time I was here, four years ago now."
	Just then, Ralph, Sydney's old butler, walked into the foyer.
	"Sydney, oh welcome home dear!" he said with his British accent. 
"Oh, Miss Sydney, you haven't changed since the last time I saw you! How 
was your flight?"
	"Horrible! But it's good to see you, Ralph. Thank you so much for 
looking after the place all this time."
	"Just doing my job, Miss Sydney. I always knew you'd return. Tell 
me, how long do you plan to stay here in Swans Crossing?"
	"Oh, I don't know. Just long enough to visit old friends. I suppose 
I should tell them the news. Maybe invite them back to Europe if they'd 
come. I don't even know if they're all still living here in town. If not, 
I'll have to look them up. But I estimate I'll stay here for the summer and 
then fly back home." she replied as she began to walk through the halls, 
looking at all the pictures she knew so well. "It seems funny to call 
France my home. I never thought I'd know any other home than Swans Crossing. 
But now, well, now it just doesn't feel right being here without Mother."
	"Miss Sydney, I hate to see you so unhappy looking. I know the 
incident with your Mother is painful for you to remember. Why don't you go 
get something to drink, Miss, you look a bit faint. I'll bring your luggage 
up to your room and then you should go rest a while."
	"Yes, thank you, Ralph."
	Sydney entered the great room. She walked over to a table with a 
picture of her mother and herself as a young teenager, a few years before 
her mother had sent her off to college in Paris. 
	"How can I come back here?" she wondered silently. "How can I come 
back to the place where Mother gave up on her life and I wathced her slowly 
deteriorate?"
	All at once Sydney felt a rush of fatigue and hurried up to her old 
bedroom, not willing herself to reminsce about her last years in this house. 
Once in her room, she walked over to the window seat, the one that faced 
the Booth house. As she looked down to her old friend Glory's window, she 
noticed the Fabian shade pulled down. 
	As a teen, when her and Garret Booth were forbidden to see each 
other, he would pull down the shade in her sister's room to signal her to 
meet at No Man's Land.
	"Could he be signaling me now?" she wondered. "Might as well find 
out," she thought out loud as she hurried back down the winding stairs of 
the Rutledge mansion. "So much for avoiding annoying memories."
	*	*	*	*	*	*	*
	"Glory, what in the hell did you cook for us?" Garret asked his 
younger sister.
	"It's a new recipe, something I'm trying. Just try it."
	"Ok, whatever. Anyways, it can't be worse than that casserole you 
made last week."
	"Well I'm sorry that I don't have enough time for you and my fiance 
and my job."
	"You teach kindergarten, Glory, you're not training to fly a space 
shuttle. Besides, Grant runs the construction business and still has time 
occasionally to cook us a decent meal," Garret said with a wry grin, 
referring to their older brother.
	"You're right. And that is a big deal considering he has no help 
with the company from you, Mr. Vice President. Besides, Grant doesn't live 
here. He doesn't have to clean up after you on top of everything else. And 
furthermore, if it means so much to you, you learn to cook. You'll have to 
anyways, once you move out."
	"Ok, ok, you win. Hey, this stuff isn't half bad. Considering the 
cheif!" he added.
	"Alright, that's enough. Well, I'm off to go see J.T.. I'm going to 
pick him up from the lab and we're going to go see the floral arrangements 
at the garden. If the bridal shop calls, tell them I'll pick up my dress 
tomorrw." 
	"Flowers, dress, gottcha."
	"Oh my gosh! Is that...could it be?"
	"What are yout alking about?" Garret asked his bewildered sister. 
	"It's Sydney! Sydney Rutlegde!"
	Garret looked out the foyer window to see his ex flame, Sydney, walk 
up the path to her mansion. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. After 
four years, she was returning. He was almost afraind to see her. He hadn't 
left things well with her. After having an on again, off again relationship 
with her during their high school years, senior year he started to think 
that he really loved her and thought their relationship would get serious. 
Then the incident with her mother took place.
	Sydney's mother, Mayor Rutledge, was known for her determination 
and will. She lost the mayoral election back when Sydney and Garret were 
fifteen, as did Garret's father. As a way to get back at Sydney, Garret had 
announced to the town that Sydney and her friend Sandy Swan, who, unlike 
Sydney, was poor and unsocial, were swithced at birth. He told the town 
that the mayor had learned of the mistake a few years back and because of 
the difference between the social status of Sydney and Sandy, had made no 
attempt to inform either girl of the incident or fincially help her 
unwealthy biological daughter. The Mayor was outraged at this lie. But the 
birth certificate was looked over and proven to be phony. Because of the 
rumor about Mayor Rutledge and the lie Garret told, both Sydney's mother 
and Garret's father lost the election. However, the press continued to 
hound the former mayor. During their senior year, she slowly began to give 
up on things and eventually turned to alcohol. Then, that summer, right 
before Sydney announced that she was leaving the U.S., her mother drove off 
the docks into the lake in a drunken rage and was killed.
	Sydney became withdrawn. She pulled away from Garret and the last 
time they saw each other they had a horrible fight. Sydney left shortly 
after and had only called and written to her friends back in Swans Crossing 
a few times. Yet here she was. He went to his sister's room to pull down 
the shade.
	*	*	*	*	*	*	*
	"Well, well, well. Garret Booth. How are you? Still coniving and 
lying to get your way?"
	"Yes, well, I learned from the best," he replied, referring to her. 
"So what brings you back here?"
	"Just wanted to reunite with old friends. And foes," she added.
	"About that, Sydney. That was four years ago. The only reason I got 
so upset is because I really cared about you. Can't we just forget it? 
Neither of us meant what we said."
	"Truce then. So what are you up to? Don't tell me you still live 
with your parents?"	
	"No, they moved out to California last year. Glory and I live there 
now. But I'll be moving out in a month or so. Glory and J.T. are getting 
married and are going to live in the mansion."
	"No kidding? I always knew they were meant for each other. Looks 
like I have a lot of catching up to do."
	"Well, if you want, I could help you with that. Why don't you and I 
get together tonight and we'll walk around town, maybe visit some people. 
I'll update you on what's been going on."
	"Sounds good. Meet you at Swans Soda Shop at seven?"
	"It's a date."
	As Sydney walked away Garret's words rang in her mind. "It's a 
date," he said. "Is it?" she wondered. "No, it can't be. It won't be. There 
is no way anything can happen between Garret and I. Why didn't I tell him? 
What do I do know? He's going to go ballastic when he finds out," she 
thought as she stared down at her engagement ring.
		
		     Copyright: Michelle Rutherfurd 1999

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