What's In A Name?

This little scene didn't leave me alone until it was written. It's sort of a continuation of where the movie ended, but it's also kind of a missing scene from the movie. See for yourselves. It starts right after the movie ends, on the cliff.

The sun was slowly sinking into the ocean and wrapped the cliff in a deep orange hue. The two people on it didn't pay any attention, they were lost in themselves and their fervent kiss. But eventually Declan let go of Anna's warm lips and, arms still wrapped firmly around her and eyes closed, leaned his forehead against hers. He could feel a shiver go through her delicate body, and as much as he wanted to believe that it was due to his kisses, Declan knew that she was getting cold.

He opened his eyes at last. "We should go back."

Anna let out a little sigh and finally looked up into his weathered face. Gone was the cynical pull around his lips and the sarcastic and exasperated glint in his eyes that she'd come to associate with Declan. Now his blue eyes shone with joy and his mouth with the unruly beard was twisted into a content smile. Declan looked truly happy.

Anna sent him a smile and couldn't resist one last quick peck on his lips before she nodded and took the offered hand to walk with him away from the cliff and back to the pub. She'd love to continue kissing him forever and she realized with a start that she could. They would marry! They would spend the rest of their lives together.

Anna threw a furtive glance at Declan. Once again she took in his face, the curve of his nose, his mouth, the set of his shoulders, the feel of his rough palm in her hand as they walked… and she made a startling discovery. It all felt so fresh, so new, because it was.

She knew next to nothing about this man! She had agreed to marry him, she felt deep down that she loved him, and yet she didn't know him. She'd spent only two days with him, and it had been two of the worst and at the same time best days of her life. But those two days could hardly count as normal, could they? Anna had no idea what everyday life with Declan would be like.

She didn't know if he snored (okay, she did know, and yes, he did, but in a cute way), if he liked coffee or tea with his morning paper, if he even read the paper in the morning, she didn't know how he spent his days (apart from working in the pub), who his friends were… she didn't even know if he had any family. She didn't know if his parents were still alive, if they lived here in Dingles as well, if he had any siblings, if the man she'd seen in the photo had been his brother or his friend before he'd stolen his former fiancé… Anna realized that she knew nothing, only that she loved this man.

Would that be enough?

Declan suddenly seemed to feel her gaze and stopped walking. "What?"

"Nothing," Anna quickly shook her head and leaned up to kiss him again. "Just, I love you."

Declan's smile made her heart beat faster. "I love you, too." He returned her kiss, slow and deep, and then tugged her forward once again. "Now, come on. They're probably wondering where we've run off to."

"Who?"

"Everyone at the pub," Declan shrugged. "They're a nosy lot. And, in case you were wondering, it doesn't happen everyday that the host walks out to run after a beautiful American redhead that just propositioned him in front of the whole town."

"I didn't… it wasn't," Anna blushed when she thought of earlier, of all the eyes that had been on her. "Please tell me that it wasn't the whole town in there?"

"No, not the whole town," Declan smiled and pulled her into his arms. "Most of them weren't locals. But some were, and they've probably alerted everyone by now, so… prepare yourself to be welcomed and questioned and examined and prodded and probed at…"

"Oh God," Anna hid her face in the crook of his neck and Declan laughed. He placed a kiss onto her head. "Come on, it won't be that bad. Some of them you already know."

"Yeah?" Anna lifted her head and frowned. "Who?"

"Remember Dave and Owen and John? Dave took a nose-dive in front of you the first time."

"Oh, right," Anna remembered the elderly man that had stood by the phone on her first morning at the pub. He'd been nursing his ale, still or again already, she didn't know, and he'd looked at her friendly enough, before he'd fallen onto his face, drunk. Owen and John had to be the other two elderly men that had sat at the bar, arguing about some crazy superstition or other.

All three of them had been there when Declan and Anna had started their journey in his old Renault 4. That suddenly reminded Anna of something. She looked at Declan. "What happened to your car? Did you salvage it from the river or…?"

"Of course I rescued my baby!" Declan sounded outraged and playfully proud at the same time. "She's as good as new!"

Anna smiled at his happy face and they continued to walk on. Declan put his arm around her shoulders. "But that reminds me," he said. "How's Louis? Did you bring him?"

Louis! Her suitcase! Anna let out a laugh. "Of course I brought him! I wouldn't go anywhere without him." She turned serious and stopped walking once again. "He's the only thing I could think of to take when my sixty seconds came around."

"Really? Good old Louis!" Declan laughed but stopped when he noticed Anna's serious face. "Anna?"

"Huh?" She was lost in thought, lost in the memory of the night of her engagement and housewarming party. The night she'd decided to turn her whole life around.

Declan lifted her chin up so that he could look into her beautiful eyes. "Anna? Are we talking metaphorical sixty seconds here or did you really…?"

She smiled and decided to tell him everything. He deserved to know. "I really did pull the fire alarm. It was our engagement slash housewarming party and the apartment was full of Jeremy's and my friends. I should have been so happy but… all I could think about was you. And I stood in the kitchenette, surrounded by my friends and feeling more lonely than ever. And so I pulled the fire alarm."

Declan listened to her in silence, one hand on her back, steadying her, while the other played with a lock of red hair. Anna's eyes seemed far away but then they focused on him once again, and she smiled. "The alarm was blaring on, the others had gotten out, Jeremy was somewhere getting his stupid stuff he thought he'd need, like his laptop and cell phone and the remotes, and I stood there and looked around and there was nothing I needed. And then there was only one thought: Louis! I needed to get Louis! So I ran into the bedroom, grabbed him from his hiding place in the walk-in closet, and left. I even talked to him. I told him: 'Come on, Louis, it's time to go!' I didn't put anything inside, I just took him and left."

Declan stared into Anna's face. "You didn't put anything inside? No toothbrush, nothing? You took nothing else?"

"Well," Anna shrugged absentmindedly. "No. All I could think about was you. I took Louis, I grabbed my purse, and I went."

"Aha!" Declan laughed and pointed a finger at her face. "You took your purse!"

"Sure, I needed my ID and my credit cards. How else did you expect me to book a flight?"

"True enough."

Declan held out his hand and when Anna had taken it, started walking again. In the distance the pub came into view and with it noises started to reach their ears. Music was playing and people talked and laughed.

"What's it called?" Declan asked suddenly.

"Huh?" Anna had no idea what he was asking about.

"Your purse," he clarified with a smile and a raised eyebrow. "I'm sure it's something fancy as well, another famous designer piece with a silly name."

"It's not," Anna gave him a playful slap on the arm. "It's not silly."

"What is it?"

Anna let out a sigh. "It's Chanel."

"Chanel?" Declan pursed his lips and seemed to think about it. Then he smirked down at her, his blue eyes twinkling in mirth. "So Louis has a girlfriend named Coco, huh? I like it!"

Anna laughed out loud and then Declan's mouth descended on hers once again and she laughed into the kiss. Only he would think of something so silly and cute. She'd have to come up with a way to get even.

"What do you call your car? Other than baby I mean?"

"What?" Declan broke free and eyed her suspiciously. "Why would you think she has a name?"

"Because all men name their cars," Anna grinned. "Their cars and their…" Her eyes traveled down to the front of his pants and Declan couldn't mistake her meaning.

"That," he grinned and pulled Anna flush against his body, "you'll find out soon enough. You're gonna like it."

"The name or…?"

"Both, I hope." Declan bent down and captured Anna's lips between his own.

"I'm sure of it."

Later that night Anna found out that indeed she did like both. A lot.

When I saw the movie for the first time, I felt immediately like there was something missing. Anna should have remembered Louis when she'd pulled the fire alarm, right? So I hope you like what I made of that. I have no intention of continuing this story (although I'd love to write more). I know that I should finish my other WIP's first. But... never say never. Perhaps I will come back to this story one day. In the meantime, please tell me what you think.