Disclaimers in Part 1

Her eyes opened slowly as dawn broke over the mountains. Disoriented, she shook her head to try to get her bearings; nothing felt familiar as she tried to fully open her eyes in the still-dark tent. Her face was resting on something smooth and warm, but it didn't feel quite right. She knew she was intertwined with her lover, but the parts didn't seem to be in the right order. Finally adjusting to the light, she could begin to make out where her head lay-- on a firmly muscled thigh--and she felt with her hands until she could discern that Jamie was indeed facing in a different direction, with her head resting on Ryan's abdomen. That's why I have to pee so badly, she thought absently.

As soon as this thought hit her cerebral cortex she shot straight up, causing Jamie to do the same. They sat, wide eyed, facing each other for a few seconds, trying to make sense of their strange positions. Finally, Ryan just shook her head, as she struggled to find her shower gear. "I need a honeymoon," she grumbled, as she crawled out of the tent into the misty dawn.

When Jamie had packed up the tent for the last time, she stood in line to put their gear on the correct truck. They were going to the closing ceremonies, but a number of people were not, so there were different trucks for the different destinations. Since their things would be delivered based on last names, they decided to put Jamie's name on everything. That way, when Mia came to find them, their gear would be together.

Ryan came back from the shower looking a little grumpy. Jamie pulled her aside and sat down with her at a picnic table. "You know, I think Mia would understand if we just went home tonight. We could be in Pebble Beach by midnight," she said optimistically.

Ryan just shook her head, still wearing a little frown.

"We could go to a really nice hotel in L.A. We could stay for a couple of days if you want," she offered. "That would be a perfectly acceptable compromise."

The frown remained, as the head shook again.

"Tell me what you want, Sweetheart," she cooed, running her fingers through the dark tresses.

That brought a smile to the grumpy-looking face. "You've never called me that before," Ryan said shyly as she looked up, blue eyes twinkling through dark bangs.

"Well you are my sweetheart," she soothed as she pulled Ryan's head down to kiss her thoroughly. "Now tell me what you want, and I'll do my best to give it to you."

"I want to be with you, and I want to wait," she moaned as she leaned into the contact. "My head's all clouded. I don't think very well when I'm turned on all the time. I don't have enough blood going to my brain," she pouted.

"You poor baby," she murmured softly. "Your head's all cloudy and confused, huh?" she asked, gently kissed the cloudy head.

Ryan just nodded slowly, still refusing to meet Jamie's eyes.

"Are you all grouchy 'cause you're horny?"

Another little head nod.

"How can I help you? I'll do anything you want," she soothed into her ear.

"Anything?" she said as she pulled back and allowed her blue eyes to search Jamie's carefully to determine her sincerity.

"Anything."

"You'd go back in the tent and have sex until they threw us out?"

"Absolutely," she said sincerely. "And when they threw us out, I'd take you to the first motel we passed and do you until you begged for mercy."

"Okay, you don't have to do anything," she said rather happily as she stood and stretched.

"What?" Jamie asked, truly confused.

"I feel better knowing that you take me seriously. As long as I know you would go out of your way to make me feel better, you don't have to," she said, as though this was an obvious answer.

"Has anyone ever told you that you were a little quirky?" Jamie teased.

"Get in line," Ryan said as she narrowed her eyes in a playful glower.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

They left the campground later than they would have liked. Today's ride was only 70 miles, but it was fairly hilly, through lots of traffic, and they expected the wind to be in their faces the whole day. Ryan was still feeling a little out of sorts, and her demeanor was off enough to cause Jamie some serious concern.

When they approached the first pit stop, Jamie came over and put her hands on the broad shoulders. "Ryan, tell me what's wrong," she demanded.

She looked down at the ground for several minutes. Jamie wasn't sure if she would answer her at all, but she finally looked up. "I don't know," she said as she shook her head.

"Something must be wrong, Ryan. You've barely said a word to me since we left camp. Now tell me how you're feeling."

"I really don't know what's wrong," she replied with just a hint of an edge in her voice. "But I don't like to feel like I'm under a microscope, so just give me some space, will you?" Jamie's head jerked back at this totally unexpected rebuke. Her feet didn't want to move, so she stayed right where she was, still grasping Ryan's shoulders. But her grouchy lover shrugged out of her hold and stalked over to a group of trees, dropping to the ground dejectedly.

Jamie sighed heavily, shook her head just a bit and walked over to the line for the Porta-Potties. Ryan stayed where she was, just looking miserable. After she was finished, Jamie hopped on her bike and took off without even looking for Ryan. I really don't want to snap at her, she thought as she pedaled along, and I'm afraid I will if I stay close. It's obvious she's cranky about the ride ending…I guess she just doesn't deal with this much emotion too well. She had gone about two miles when she paused at the top of a small rise and saw Ryan, back in the distance, riding alone. She must just need to have some time alone to get a handle on how she feels, she thought. She'll probably be better by the next rest stop. And by then I can give myself a little pep talk so I don't get angry with her if she's not.

She didn't see her partner for the rest of the 16-mile trip to pit stop two. After getting a power bar and some Gatorade, Jamie sat down to wait. She felt a lot better than when she had left the earlier stop. She knew that Ryan was just having an off day, and she felt much more able to be supportive after giving herself a little talk.

After twenty minutes she began to worry. She looked all around the incoming riders, finally spotting the one familiar face that she would have preferred not to see. Nonetheless, she approached the woman who had taunted her about Ryan at the opening ceremonies. "Hi um…Carly, isn't it?"

"Yeah, hi…"

"Jamie."

"Right, hi, Jamie," she replied pleasantly.

"Did you happen to see Ryan on your way in?" she asked, trying to sound casual.

"You know, I think I did," she admitted. "I saw someone off the side of the road by that hill by Point Mugu. I kinda thought it was Ryan, but that just didn't make sense for her to be taking a break there, so I didn't stop. Do you think she's okay?" she asked with real concern.

"Yeah, I'm sure she's fine," Jamie said with much more confidence than she felt. "Thanks for the info, Carly."

"I'm feeling really good today," Carly offered. "I'd be glad to ride back there and check on her."

Jamie was touched by this generous offer. "That's totally sweet of you, Carly, but if she really needs it she can catch the SAG van."

"They'd have to hog tie her to get her in that van, Jamie. If she's not here in a few minutes, I'll go back."

"Thanks," she said, as she let out a relieved sigh. "That's very generous of you."

"Hey, no big deal," she brushed off the compliment. "I should apologize to you for being bitchy on the first day. I was just jealous that you nabbed her."

"I understand," she said sincerely, as she grasped Carly's arm. "No hard feelings. I'll go look for her and let you know if I can't find her."

Ten minutes later Jamie spotted her in the distance. Carly was just getting on her bike to go back, so she thanked her again and sent her on her way. Ryan pulled in looking worse than Jamie had ever seen her. She was the color of chalk, her skin was sweaty and cold and she was shaking so badly that she could hardly stay upright.

"My God, Ryan!" she gasped as she helped her off her bike. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," she moaned. "I just don't feel good."

"Let me help you sit down," she offered, placing her hand on her waist.

"I don't want any help," she snapped, her temper in good shape even though nothing else was.

"Ryan, we need to go over to the medical trailer," Jamie said as she tried to drag her along.

"Uh-uh," she said firmly as she stopped walking and dug her heels in to the dirt.

"What do you mean 'uh-uh'?" Jamie cried, incredulous that her normally reasonable partner was being so unreasonable. "You're going over there Ryan, and then we're gonna get SAG'd the rest of the way."

"Uh-uh!" Ryan said, sounding much more like Caitlin than herself. "I'm riding, and that's final."

With a heavy sigh the smaller woman sat down on the ground and looked up at her wobbling partner. "Sit down right here and tell me exactly how you feel," Jamie ordered, her patience beginning to flag.

Ryan heeded her wishes and allowed herself to collapse right at Jamie's feet. She hit the ground with a thump and immediately stuck her head between her raised knees, obviously struggling not to vomit. Jamie began to lightly run her fingers down her spine, trying to reassure her. It took quite a few minutes, but Ryan finally gathered herself enough to begin her story. "I just didn't feel right from the time I woke up. I'm tired and listless, and my stomach is upset. I threw up everything I had for breakfast just after the first pit stop." She paused to stare at the ground, "When you ditched me," she added quietly.

"Oh, Sweetheart, I didn't ditch you!" Jamie cried. "I felt like I was irritating you, so I just tried to give us both some space. You didn't act like you wanted me there, Ryan, but I'm so sorry you felt like I had left you."

"I was sick, and you didn't even care that I was sitting on the side of the road barfing my guts out," she said with a pout weighing down her lower lip.

"I couldn't be sorrier, Ryan," she soothed as she cradled her face with her hands. "I hope you can forgive me," she said. "I feel so bad that I wasn't there for you the one time that you needed me."

"I need you all the time, Jamie. I just needed you a little more than normal today," she said, her lower lip starting to quiver.

It felt like a vise was tightening around her heart, and Jamie struggled not to burst into tears. Her normally stoic partner was so terribly fragile and vulnerable that she just wanted to cradle her like a child and rock her until she felt better. "What can we do now?" she finally asked.

The fragile child remained for just another moment or two. Then Ryan's analytical mind kicked in, and she began to try to identify the needs of her usually responsive body. "I need a pretty long rest, and I need to force as much fluid down as possible. I really screwed up my electrolyte balance when I threw everything up and then had to ride without any fuel," she admitted glumly. "But if I can suck down some GU and keep it down I should be okay in a half-hour or so."

"What do you think happened?" Jamie asked as Ryan leaned back on one arm and sucked deeply on a bottle of Gatorade.

"I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the tent," she said with a wan smile. "The last day of the ride is usually hard, and I think I just let it get to me. I was feeling out of sorts, and I didn't pay close attention to what I was doing. But I think my big mistake of the day was drinking that energy drink they had at breakfast. I should have checked the carbohydrate level, but I'm guessing it was over the maximum I can tolerate, which is eight percent. If I drink anything higher than that, I always get sick to my stomach." Jamie checked her skin again and found that it now felt normal to her touch. "So I think I'm kinda bonking from not getting enough calories, plus add the too-sweet drink and you've got trouble."

"Well, you're looking a lot better now. How do you feel?"

"I feel better. I don't feel sweaty and clammy any more. But I knew I was in trouble when my bike shorts felt too big today. I don't know how much weight I've lost, but I couldn't really afford to lose any. I know that's the biggest problem."

Jamie put her arms around her and hugged her tight. "Are you mad at me for not being there for you?"

"No, I was being kind of a jerk. I don't blame you for wanting to be alone," she said as she stared down at the ground.

"Please don't think that Ryan. I thought you were right behind me. I just assumed that we needed a little break from each other. I would never leave you if I thought there was a chance that you needed me."

"Okay, let's just put this behind us and try to get through the rest of the day. I think I can go again."

"No, not yet," she insisted. "I want to make sure that drink settles in your tummy before you try again. I screwed up once today, and I'm not going to let that happen again."

Ryan leaned her head back and gazed at her lover with an appreciative glance. "You didn't screw up, Jamie. I'm kinda hard to be around when I don't feel well. It's really not your fault."

"You're never hard to be around, Sweetie. I just have to learn your cues a little better," she declared confidently.

"Well if you figure me out, be sure to tell my father," Ryan said with a small smile. "He's been trying for 23 years."

After another 20 minutes, they decided to give it another go. "I'm going in front of you to try to block a little wind," Jamie declared. "We'll get through this, Ryan. You and I.... together."

Ryan looked up at her with her first real smile of the day. "I know we will, Jamie."

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

The pace they kept was much slower than normal, but Ryan stayed right on her tail all the way to lunch. When they pulled off, she dropped right to the ground and stayed there until Jamie brought her lunch back. Jamie pulled her up just enough to be able to eat, and propped her up against her outstretched legs. Ryan got all of her lunch down, albeit slowly, and then she drank her own sports drink mix, getting down two full bottles before she announced that she was ready.

As they left lunch, Jamie looked around at the assembled crowd. This was their last meal together, and she felt a lump in her throat just thinking about it. Ryan noticed her expression, and she leaned over and said, "I'll miss this too," hugging her firmly.

"It's like the world's biggest family," she said as a few tears escaped. "There are the relatives you love, the ones you're not so crazy about, and the ones from out of state, who you don't see much, but you're all connected in a deep way. I never want to lose this feeling, Ryan," she said helplessly.

"You don't have to," Ryan insisted. "Some of these people are my closest friends even though I only see them once a year. Your family will be here next year and the year after that. There will be some new faces and some will be absent, but the feeling remains, Jamie, I promise you that."

She closed her eyes for a minute, reflecting on Ryan's words. "Thanks," she murmured. "That helped."

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

They only had 30 miles to cover after lunch. On a normal day Ryan could do that in an hour and a half—max, but they stopped frequently—very frequently--along the way to drink from their water bottles and eat a power bar. Jamie was nearly obsessed with making sure her partner was well, checking her temperature at every stop and forcing her to drink until she needed to use the facilities. She was so focused on checking her mirror to make sure Ryan was following that she nearly gasped in amazement when she realized they were cruising down Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica. Turning away from the beach they headed towards Brentwood. Jamie had been to this area several times with her parents since they normally stayed in Bel Air when they visited Los Angeles, but she had always been in a car or an airport limo when they had traversed the winding, tree-lined streets on those trips. This was an altogether different experience, and she found herself smiling widely as they powered down the street.

Since the distance to be covered was short, the riders were bunched closer together than normal. A steady stream of riders passed them, quite a few turning in the saddle to give them questioning glances at the slow pace they were maintaining. But Jamie responded to each look with a smile and a thumbs up sign and the riders continued on their way. As they followed the pack her heart started to beat a little faster as they approached Century City.

This small, neat section of Los Angeles boasted a dozen high-rise office buildings, many restaurants, and a nice outdoor shopping mall—but that was all. It was really quite tiny, not more than four blocks square. Nearly every major law firm was either headquartered here or had an office in one of the high rises, and she could see the tower where her father's L.A. office was housed. She had learned on an earlier visit that the neighborhood used to be a part of the 20^th Century Fox back lot. Many productions had been filmed on the property, but when Fox overspent on Cleopatra, the Richard Burton/Elizabeth Taylor film, they found themselves in such a cash crunch that they had to sell the lot to developers just to stay solvent. The lot was cleared and the buildings went up quickly, transforming a quiet little tree-lined neighborhood into a bustling business district filled with BMWs and Mercedes.

Just shy of Century City they took a quick turn and headed towards the staging area—Beverly Hills High School. So here we are in 90210, she smiled to herself.

As they drew near, they were greeted by hundreds of family members and local residents, but the people were spread out over a very large area, and she struggled with her disappointment for a while. I thought it would be more special, she thought with a mental pout. It's really nice that some people came out though…I guess it's just to hard to get jaded Angelenos out of their own swimming pools on a lovely June day. Looking into her mirror she saw that Ryan looked pretty normal, although her fatigue was evident. This must be what she expected, she reminded herself. This is her sixth ride after all.

As they rolled into the athletic fields to park their bikes she did her best to put her disappointment aside and focus on Ryan. She never mentioned what the last few miles were like, Jamie recalled. And if it were going to be special, she would have teased me with it—just to keep me going.

Ryan actually allowed her to help get her off the bike, and it was evident that even the act of swinging her leg over the frame was an effort. They parked their bikes with all of the others and found a quiet grassy spot to lie down. It was only two; they were not due to begin organizing until three, so Jamie propped herself up next to the bleachers on the football field and Ryan put her head in her lap. She ran her fingers though the shiny tresses for just a few minutes before Ryan was sound asleep.

She studied her lover like a precious work of art, watching her steady intake of breath, seeing the little twitch of her eyelids, the slight pursing of her lips. She watched in annoyance as her dark eyebrows furrowed when a passerby was speaking too loudly and nearly woke her. Quiet! She wanted to yell, but that seemed a little counterproductive, so she held her tongue and just gave a small scowl to people who had the nerve to come too close.

Continuing to run her fingers through the dark hair, Jamie thought of how sad Ryan had looked when she felt that she had been deserted. If I've learned one thing on this ride, it's that my sweetheart needs a lot more care than she'll ever let on. I swear that I'll never ignore her again if she seems under the weather. She had learned a valuable lesson, and even though it was painful for both of them, she was grateful that she had been shown this vulnerable side of her stoic partner. She had learned that Ryan was truly a terrible patient. She knew her body better than anyone Jamie had ever met, but when it started to fail her she fell into an intense state of denial. Jamie vowed that she would pay better attention to the small signals and not let Ryan's brusqueness cause her to turn away.

Glancing around idly, a shiny object hidden inside Ryan's helmet caught her eye. She pulled the helmet over and tilted it to get a look as a laminated photo fell out. Jamie reached down and turned the small, concave photo right side up. Gazing back at her was a very attractive young man who looked to be in his mid-teens. A broad smile graced his friendly, open face. He looked fit and strong, and appeared to be on the verge of growing into a powerful body. His hair was a deep auburn, and the sun showed deep red highlights in the straight, medium length locks. His muscular arms were raised in a classic weight-lifter's pose; fists clenched, biceps tensed. He was standing with his legs slightly spread to support the weight that he carried upon his shoulders. That beaming weight was a young Ryan, no more than five or six years old. She mimicked the young man's pose, showing off her smooth, thin arms. They looked like they were having a marvelous time, and both wore the untroubled, carefree faces of youthful innocence.

Jamie stared at the photo for a long time, realizing immediately that the young man in the picture was Ryan's cousin, Michael. This must have been taken before Ryan's mother died, Jamie mused. And before Michael contracted AIDS, she added grimly.

There was something so terribly appealing about the twosome, that Jamie could not stop looking at the photo. It was hard to pin it down, but it was obvious that these two were more than cousins, more than friends. I don't think I'll ever really understand what this young man meant to her, she thought. But I know that he was one of the biggest influences in her life. Looking down at her sleeping partner she thought, I'm so sorry you had so much pain at such a young age, Sweetheart. She continued to run her fingers through the dark hair, wishing for nothing but peace and joy and love for the precious woman lying in her lap.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Ryan did not move from her position for a solid hour. At a little after three, they began to hand out special long sleeved t-shirts. The riders would parade down the street in groups, separated by color, so Jamie had to extricate herself from Ryan to fetch the same color t-shirts for them both. She lifted her head to wake her, but not a muscle in the tanned face flinched, so Jamie placed the dark head on the ground, jogged off to grab the shirts, and was back before she stirred.

She looked down at her and decided to do the one last thing that Ryan was obviously too ill to do for herself. Struggling through the assembled bikes, she found Ryan's and performed the simple task with love.

There was a lot of noise from the nearly three thousand people assembled and the plethora of announcements over the public address system, but still Ryan did not move. Jamie was beginning to worry when she finally stretched and groaned at 3:30 on the dot.

Jamie had replaced Ryan's head on her lap, and the blue eyes finally looked up at her groggily. "Where are we?" she asked through a parched throat.

"We're at the high school. Don't you remember?" she asked with concern.

"Oh, yeah, I remember," Ryan said as she closed her eyes again.

"We're going to be moving in a few minutes, Ryan. Can you get up?"

"Yeah. I just need another drink," she said as she smacked her lips together audibly.

Jamie scrambled up and fetched a water bottle for her. She sat up and drank the entire thing down without stopping. "I feel better now," she said sweetly. "Thanks for taking care of me," she added as she rested her head on Jamie's shoulder. "Last year's tent-mate would have kicked me as she walked over my unconscious body."

"Well your current and future tent-mate loves you completely," she vowed.

The ever-cheerful crew called them to order and organized them by t-shirt color. There were about 450 people in each color of the rainbow flag: blue, red, green, yellow, purple and orange. They had been assigned purple, and they lined up on their bikes with the others. "I've never been part of a flag before," Jamie said with a grin.

"I think you look adorable as a little rainbow stripe," Ryan pronounced, bending to kiss her. Her eyes were twinkling again, and her color was completely normal by the time they hopped back on their bikes.

They rode slowly--extremely slowly--until they reached the Avenue of the Stars. "What's the holdup?" Jamie asked, as the crush of riders around them became a little claustrophobic.

"Can't say from here," Ryan remarked casually. "I guess we'll find out when we round this corner."

As they negotiated the last turn of the ride, Jamie nearly fell from her bike at the sight before her. Their slightly elevated position at the crest of the street showed the massive throng below them, and as soon as they saw the crowd, the cheering and applause assaulted them. The six-lane major thoroughfare was the main road through Century City, and the nearly three thousand riders filled the massive street from curb to curb. The wide sidewalks were absolutely packed with well-wishers and family members. They were about three-quarters of the way back in the procession, and Jamie could see all of their fellow riders slowly pedaling up the street with the cheering crowd waving and clapping. The noise was overwhelming, and the emotion from the crowd fed the weary riders and brightened the spirits of every single one of them.

Turning to her partner with her heart thumping in her chest she cried, "You knew!"

"Yep. I knew," she replied with a blinding white smile. "But I wanted you to savor it for yourself."

"I love you, Ryan O'Flaherty!" she cried out as she threw her head back and howled with delight.

When they were no longer able to move forward, the street was filled with the multicolor jerseys looking very much like the world's largest rainbow flag. The announcer asked the crowd to welcome them home, and the noise grew even louder as Ryan turned to her and said, "Remember all those exercises I made you do on your pecs?"

Jamie nodded, a bit confused.

"Well, here's why!" she cried as she and every other rider picked up their bikes and held them high over their heads. Jamie fought back the tears as she grabbed her bike by the frame and powered it over her head. The emotion that flowed through the crowd was so strong that it was almost palpable. Ryan gave her a luminous smile, leaning forward just a bit, kissing her soundly, bicycles held high over their heads. "I'm so proud of you, Jamie," she said as the tears rolled down her beautiful cheeks.

Jamie just had to lower her bike to the ground. She had to wrap her arms around this wonderful woman right this moment. She hugged her with every ounce of her strength as she murmured, "You're my hero, Ryan," as she kissed her again and again.

Moments later they were drenched by all of the riders squirting their filled water bottles up into the air. Jamie had wondered why Ryan had insisted on throwing away their energy drink and filling their bottles with water, but once again she was glad for her preparedness. They squirted each other and shot their extra bottles high into the air, blowing off some of their excitement in the process. The cheers of the crowd were almost deafening as the sound reverberated off the towering high rises that surrounded them on every side. The applause seemed to rise in waves, flowing over the now energized throng like a gentle caress.

Ryan looked at Jamie with tears in her eyes as the speakers began to address the crowd. "You polished my bike," she choked out in a mixture of delight and gratitude.

"Of course I did. It was important to you," she assured her. "And anything that's important to you is important to me."

The crowd grew quiet, and Jamie saw the riderless bike being led forward by representatives from the various crews. She did not want Ryan to have to watch or listen to this in her weakened state, so she wrapped her arms around her and whispered right into her ear the entire time that the tribute was being read. She whispered how proud she was of Ryan for struggling through a very, very hard day. She thanked her for all of her help and encouragement in getting her ready for the ride. She thanked her for all of the tips she had given her on the way. She thanked her for the nightly massages that she had received. She thanked her for being such a good friend, and most of all, she thanked her for just being herself.

She pulled away as the speech ended. Ryan was crying hard, her shoulders shaking from the effort, but she perked up as they joined together to thank the crew who had made this ride happen. They all chanted "Crew, Crew, Crew," as the smiling men and women ran down the raised center platform, filling it for nearly two blocks.

A few more quick speeches, and they all joined together to sing 'America the Beautiful'. Jamie was sure that some people were not crying, but she did not see any of them. When the song was finished, everyone struggled to regain their composure for a few minutes, and then they started to mingle, trying to find friends and relatives who had come to welcome them.

Ryan was struggling to get her emotional bearings but as friends and former teammates approached them from all sides Jamie could actually see her normal mood return. After just a few minutes, Ryan was joking and laughing with the near-constant stream of people who stopped to wish them well and pledge to see them again next year.

They moved forward very slowly in the crowd, finally finding themselves about 100 feet from the huge stage that stretched across the wide street. Out of the corner of her eye Jamie saw a woman dash across the stage and yank the microphone from its stand. Tugging on Ryan's sleeve, she asked, "Isn't that your friend?…"

Ryan turned her attention away from the man she was speaking with and looked up to where Jamie pointed. "Yeah, that's Brenda all right. I wonder what she's up to?"

The impish-looking woman was hard to ignore even among all of the distractions. She had followed the style for the last day, decorating her bike helmet as many others had. But Brenda's look was quite distinctive. She had two Barbie dolls attached to her shiny black helmet, engaged in an act that Mattel clearly had not intended for the little plastic figures. Jamie had a hard time prying her eyes away from the happy-looking identical lesbian twins on Brenda's head, but her amplified words finally yanked Jamie from her musings.

"HEY!" she yelled at full volume. "Is this on?"

The bemused crowd yelled back, "YES!"

"Okay! Most of you don't know me, but there's a very special pair of women out here today. One of these girls has been a tremendous inspiration to me and to dozens of other people who are here today. She and her partner are tying the knot on Monday, and I want you all to join me in wishing Ryan O'Flaherty and her lover Jamie the very best from everybody connected with AIDS Ride 6. Come on guys, let's show 'em that we love them!!"

As Jamie stared at Ryan in amazed silence the rest of the Lavender Menace ran onto the stage. Seconds later they were joined by each of the teams Ryan had trained over the years. By the time two women from the crowd grabbed the stunned lovers and dragged them up to the stage, there were at least 75 people packed onto the platform.

Jamie had never seen her partner so overcome with surprise. Ryan actually looked frozen as she was pushed along the group, receiving a hug and a kiss from each of her friends and training partners, but as the minutes wore on she loosened up a bit and started to enjoy herself.

The crowd still packing the street was thoroughly taken with this spectacle, and even though most of them did not know anyone on the stage they quickly joined in the fun, clapping and yelling out their congratulations.

Someone found the musicians that had played 'America the Beautiful' and convinced them to come back up on stage, instruments in hand. A few instructions from Brenda, and they launched into the requested song. As the crowd heard the opening chords, they began to join in until everyone was singing:

Brenda knew Ryan rather well, and she shoved the microphone into her hand, urging her to sing the lead. Ryan hesitated for just a moment, but when she saw Jamie's dancing green eyes looking up at her she accepted the microphone and sang:

The crowd joined in for the chorus once more, the ranks of singers swelling as more and more people got in on the fun.

"Yeah…yeah…one more time," Ryan sang soulfully, sinking to one knee in front of her blushing lover.

Jamie dropped onto Ryan's leg and tossed her arms around her neck, leaning in for a very public, very enthusiastic kiss. The crowd cheered loudly, demanding more. As Jamie pulled back slightly, Ryan's dancing blue eyes twinkled impishly as she said, "Can't disappoint the crowd now, can we?"

The beaming smile and little head shake were precisely the answer Ryan wished for. Several more joyous kisses followed, with Jamie finally leaning against her partner as she vowed, "I've never been happier in my life."

"You ain't seen nothing yet, Love!" Ryan promised as she wrapped Jamie in her arms and gave her a kiss that satisfied both the cheering crowd and her beaming lover.