I do not own any of the characters of "Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?" They are
all copyright Dic Productions and Broderbund Software. Carmen Sandiego is also a
registered trademark of Broderbund Software.

This is the first "Carmen Sandiego" story that I've written. Although it is my first, I have
been an avid fan of the cartoon show ever since I first saw it on Nickelodeon way back
in '95. It was taken off Nickelodeon a while back, and only recently did I remember the
show. After looking into it a bit more, I decided that I would show my dedication to the
show and it's characters by starting to write about them. This may not be a typical
"Carmen Sandiego" fanfic but I hope you enjoy it anyhow.

Please send any reviews/critisisms to chandler3224@aol.com

-=-=-=-=-

Loneliness
By Steve Chandler



Ivy looked at her watch once more. It was 11:53 am and there was still no sign of
Carmen. She didn't quite understand it. The chief must have been wrong for once, or
Carmen had actually slipped on her timekeeping and was late. After thinking for a few
more seconds, she decided that the chief had actually made a mistake. Ivy looked up
into the sky. The sun was blazing down on her. She squinted her eyes as the bright
rays hit her. Immediately she stood up from her seat and took off her brown jacket
exposing her white shirt. It was too hot and she wasn't going to pass out from over-
heating. She folded up her jacket and placed it in her lap as she sat down. She looked
around at the scene before her.

Young couples walked hand in hand through the square. Children ran about playing
and tourists stumbled about trying to find out where they were. She looked over to the
Capital FM Radio Café. There was a huge queue running out of it, and she shook her
head as she wondered why people continued to try to get into a Café that was almost
constantly booked. As she turned her head she set eyes upon this couple standing in
the middle of the path, arm in arm, gently kissing each other.

Ivy sighed.

Today it was Valentines Day. Everyone had left their homes today to celebrate their
love for each other. Being it a hot day, it was perfect. She looked away from the couple
as she became instantly saddened. It would have been ok if it had been raining like it
always did in London, but no. The week she visited London had to be the week that
there was a huge heat wave. She couldn't believe it. Sure, it's not like she hated the
sun. She was used to it. It was just the fact that it had to be extra perfect on a day
especially for people who were in love.

Ivy sighed once again.

She sipped at her McDonalds drink as she took another visual sweep of the busy
capital. Where ever she looked, there were couples in love. It was beginning to annoy
her now. Everybody was in love, except her. Even Zack was in love! He had met this
girl had his school, and he found out the not only did he like her she also liked him!
That was partly the reason he wasn't on this mission. He was too busy with his new
girlfriend and he had to keep an eye on chief anyhow. Chief had been acting up
recently, and it was Zack's job to keep an eye on him until the A.C.M.E scientists came
to fix him.

The atmosphere around Ivy was full of other people's love. It was inevitable that Ivy
was going to think about her last love. She looked at a couple sitting opposite her on
the other side of the square. She thought her last boyfriend, Jay. She was 16 and so
was he. They were both deeply in love. She had first met him in San Francisco back
before she started going after Carmen. Jay was a good kid. He was the same height at
Ivy, had brown hair and eyes. He was the perfect guy. Never would he blow her off to
go out with his mates. He would always make time for Ivy. He constantly surprised her
with his gifts. He knew how to cheer her up and knew how to make her day.
There was this one time where she was particularly surprised by his actions. A car had
hit Ivy one night and she was pretty seriously hurt. She was rushed to the hospital with
severe injuries. She didn't remember, but there was this one point where she was
unconscious for three days. As soon as Jay had heard of Ivy's accident, he had rushed
down to the hospital with a bunch of roses, a box of chocolates and her favourite book.
Upon arrival Ivy had been unconscious. It was the start of the three days when she was
out. From that moment until she woke up he had stood by her side. He never left and
comforted her while she slept. Sure, the hospital staff had tried to take him away, but
he was eventually allowed to stay.

Jay hadn't noticed Ivy waking up on the third day. He was sitting at the small desk
opposite her bed and was writing down on a pad. Facing away from her, he just didn't
know. As her eyesight adjusted from the three-day sleep, she spoke out his name in a
very weak voice. She would never forget that moment when he turned around with a
huge smile on his face. He rushed over to her and had given her a huge hug. When Ivy
asked him what he had been doing when she woke up, she found that he had been
writing a poem for her, for when she woke up. It wasn't finished yet, but he gave her it
anyhow. She cried when she read the poem, as it was so beautiful.

However, it was their separation that really killed her. She received word from the chief
that she was going to be an A.C.M.E detective for the first time. She would be tracking
other villains around the world, but not Carmen yet. She ha d to break the news to Jay
that she was going to have to go. It was a surprise that he was also moving with his
parents. They were moving to the other side of America, so Brooklyn in New York City.
Ivy broke down in tears as she spoke. Jay didn't speak. He just cuddled her as she
cried into his shoulder. After she had calmed down a bit, although still sniffing, Jay told
her to meet him round his house that night. His parents would be out and it would be
their last night together. She accepted.

That night was the most intense night in her life. Never had she felt such love for Jay.
He had prepared a home cooked meal and had given it to her in candlelight. Once
they had finished the meal, they had just cuddled up to each other on the leather couch
and watched TV. The fire was burning next to them making the whole room glow a
romantic orange. That night they proved their love to each other. Lying down in front of
the fire, they had made love.

Ivy thought about that last night with a smile on her face. Never before had she loved
him that much. He was her first and she was his. The next day they parted with a kiss
as Jay left with his parents for New York. Ivy also left that exact same day for A.C.M.E
headquarters.

Ivy longed to be with Jay again. After 2, almost 3 years apart she couldn't stand it. She
longed for him to hug her once again. She longed for his fingers to move through her
red hair. She longed to kiss him once again. She longed to love him once again.

She knew that would never happen though. They would never meet again. Ivy couldn't
see him again due to her long, hard work. One day though, if she ever caught Carmen,
she would track him down. But she knew that the chances of seeing him were slim.

She sighed again.

It was probably for the better though. Ivy thought about what he would be doing now.
Would he have another girlfriend? Would he be happy and successful? Would he still
be in love with her? With her right hand she grabbed the necklace from around her
neck, concealed by her white shirt. It was one half of a heart. Jay had the other. He had
given her the necklace minutes before they parted. Ivy had never taken it off. She wore
it everywhere with her.

Ivy looked up again to the couple in front of her. They were speaking to each other
now, but were still looking into each other's eyes. She closed her eyes and moved her
head away. She looked at her watch again. 12:42 now.

"Ugh, where are you Carmen?" After Ivy had said that, a tall black hair woman sat
down beside her on the bench. Ivy looked at her, swearing she recognised her. The
woman was wearing a long red dress. Her hair was jet black but was tied into a bunch.
Her eyes were blue and her lipstick looked a fiery red. The woman looked at Ivy and
spoke out.

"Waiting for someone?" She spoke. The woman had a very strong, posh English
accent.
"Kinda," Ivy replied. "But she's late."
"She?"
"Yeah. Her name's Carmen. She's supposed to be here by now, but it looks like it's off."
"Well how do you know that?"
"She's not usually late."

Ivy thought for a few minutes. Would she ever find love again? Jay had ruled her love
life completely, and still did. She would never find a guy like him again. She had to
move on with her life.

"I'm sure she'll turn up." Said the woman.
"I don't know. Maybe." Ivy decided that it was time to return to the chief. They had to
think of a new plan.
"So who is this Carmen?" asked the woman. Ivy wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but
hey, this was just a woman in England. She had to talk anyhow. She was going insane.
"Carmen is a friend. She's always travelling around the world, and being the friend I
am, I have to follow her and keep and eye on her."
"Why? Isn't that stalking?"
"No, no you don't understand. It's my job. I'm, well, kind of a paparazzi."
"Oh, so it's your job to catch her?" Ivy smiled at the woman's reply.
"Yeah," she laughed. "Something like that." The woman looked up from Ivy to the view
in front of her.
"This Carmen sounds very interesting."
"Oh she is. Very smart." Ivy looked at her watch once again. She decided that it was
time to call it a day and return to A.C.M.E headquarters. She stood up and put on her
jacket.
"Miss, it was very nice talking to you. I have to go now."
"Oh well, by then!" she replied enthusiastically.
"I hope we meet again sometime" Ivy spoke out as she began to walk away. From
behind her the woman spoke out.
"I'm sure we will," The women moved to fingers up to her forehead in a mini salute to
Ivy. "Until next crime..." Ivy stopped dead in her tracks. She spun around to look where
she was sitting. The woman had disappeared. She knew who the woman was now. It
was Carmen. She scanned the crowds to try to find her. Carmen had disappeared as
usual. Ivy laughed and turned around to walk away. As she did, she spoke out.
"Very clever Carmen, very clever. Speak to you soon."

Ivy walked into a small alleyway out of anyone's view. She spoke into her wrist as a
large portal opened in front of her. Taking one last look at London, she jumped through
back to A.C.M.E headquarters.

The End