Melissa & Keoni - CHAPTER II

Melissa and Keoni watched Jason lift the rental car with the towing device in front and leaving

shortly afterwards. Holding her backpack in her hand she was standing next to Keoni.

For a second, a slight doubt darted through her mind. Keoni had called her to be brave. But was it really braveness or rather boldness? Or even adventurousness? She wasn't sure. Melissa had never been very fearful in her life. But she also hadn't focused that much on herself before. This was indeed new and the decision to travel alone to Hawai'i was surprisingly easy for her.

When she arrived at Honolulu Airport and left the plane she knew that her decision had been just right. That she was just right on this island. A feeling of coming home took hold of her and she had no explanation for it.

She shook her reddish curls and glanced sideways at Keoni who looked at the same moment to her and said "Okay. So, let's drive to Pu'u 'Ualaka'a." He turned to his black pickup truck, went to the passenger side and opened the door for Melissa.

With a smile she got into the car. "Mahalo."

Also smiling he replied "You're very welcome, Melissa." before he closed her door and headed around the car.

__________

Only a few minutes later, Keoni parked his car in the Lookout's parking lot.

During the short drive, he had found out where she was staying and told her in return that he lived in a small house in Ahuimanu. The fact that he lived there on his own impressed Melissa. She knew that family ties in Hawaii were strong and housing was expensive, so it was unusual.

Her eyes fell on his hands. They were long and strong and showed that he was working with them - and yet they looked neat. Somehow she liked everything about him too much, she thought. She wasn't looking for someone to complicate her life. But he definitely attracted her and so she shivered inside.

Side by side they walked to the observation deck. The view was fantastic and Melissa quickly found herself at the railing in astonishment. Her eyes wandered from Diamond Head across the city and the port to the airport. The blue tones of the sky and the sea were indescribably intense. She didn't like big cities, but Honolulu was different. Being on the island for two days and experiencing that she liked everything she saw always gave her goosebumps. And this handsome man standing next to her made that feeling even stronger.

Keoni saw Melissa really liked the view and smiled. "Have you imagined it this way?"

"The view is so beautiful!" she said and took some pictures with her digital camera. Then she lowered the camera and looked at Keoni.

"I think it was a very lucky coincidence that you drove past the moment I broke down. Thank you for bringing me here."

"Yes, a lucky coincidence, definitely. And it's a pleasure to help you out of this glitch."

Keoni looked her in the eye and noticed that he could get lost in them. Oh boy! What's going on here? he thought and couldn't turn away. When Melissa broke eye contact and went back to her camera, he almost sighed. He had no idea how much his intense gaze had gotten under Melissa's skin.


She felt her pulse increase and realized that the attraction was mutual. It had been quite a while that something like this happened to her. Trying to ignore the confusing feelings she took more pictures. There were other tourists on the observation deck around them who chattered while laughing. Melissa couldn't figure out the language but she recognized that is was Asian. She lowered the camera and looked around curiously when her eyes fell on Keoni again who was leaning against the railing sideways and looking at her.

"I wonder which kind of tourist you are, Melissa." he said.

"Which kind of tourist? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, there're those who only want to spend their time in the sun on the beach. Then there're those who spend the whole day on a surfboard. Or those who party every night and spend their time in the clubs. And ..."

"Oh my...! Stop please!" Melissa cut him off. "That sounds terrible!" With a smile she continued "Okay, I love the ocean and the beach. I also love dancing in a club but I'd never spend my whole vacation on this!"

Keoni wasn't able to reply because she continued.

"I want to learn more about the Hawaiian culture and I want to see as much of the island as possible. In this respect, of course, the beach and the sea are also part of it."

She paused for a second and smiled at him. "I guess I need a guide. Maybe you know someone I could ask?"

Was she flirting with him? Keoni wasn't sure, but when he saw that she was biting her lip so as not to grin, he knew she did. And so he couldn't avoid replying with a slightly amused grin. "I've to think about but I guess I know somebody who'd like to take that job."

________________

What the hell am I doing here? Melissa thought. This handsome guy made her do unusual things and she knew that if he got involved with her game she would be in trouble. The wind blew her long hair into her face and she asked him without looking at him.


"What do you think? Has Jason repaired my broken tire in the meantime?"






"I  have no idea, frankly speaking. Let me call and ask him." Keoni replied and reached into his pocket. Before he was able to dial his friend's number Melissa put her hand on his arm and asked

"Can't you just take me there?"

He noticed her insecurity and wondered if he had somehow caused this reaction. He felt a sense of regret, but without hesitation, he said

"Yes, of course I'll take you to Jason's garage. As you wish."

They went back to the parking lot without speaking. Keoni was tempted to ask if everything was OK, but he held back. When he held the car door open, he looked at her, but Melissa lowered her eyes and avoided looking back.

Where the hell had this insecurity come from? she wondered and glanced at Keoni shortly as he climbed behind the wheel of his pickup truck. When they left the parking lot, her eyes fell back on Keoni's hands on the steering wheel. And when she felt this strange feeling inside, she suddenly realized why she was so insecure.

He was very attractive to her and when she saw his hands, she inevitably imagined to feel them on her skin. His sonorous voice and appealing appearance made this effect even stronger. She swallowed hard. But that was not how she imagined her vacation. She didn't want to fall in love, here and now, but he had every potential for that to happen.

"Hey, are you alright?" Keoni interrupted her thoughts. She took a deep breath, then looked at him and nodded slowly.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I was just thinking. I have to go shopping. My fridge is still pretty empty."

And Keoni knew it wasn't all that was bothering her.

_______________

A few minutes later, Keoni stopped in front of Jason's garage. The large gates to the workshop were open and Melissa's blue SUV was still on the lift. They both got out and turned to the workshop when Jason already came up to them. He wiped his oil-smeared hands on a cloth, pulled the baseball cap from his head, and stopped in front of Melissa and Keoni.

"Well ... I'm really sorry, Melissa. But I'm afraid I can't keep my promise."

He looked at her embarrassed and ran a hand through his messy hair.

"I can't repair the tire. You need a new one and I don't have it here right now. This is really crap!"

Melissa looked at him with raised eyebrows, but before she could react, Jason continued.

"Tomorrow morning I will find a suitable tire and then your car would be fixed in no time! And if you give me your address, I will bring the car over to you personally."

Again Melissa had no way to answer when a phone rang in the background. Jason apologized and went back to the workshop to answer the call. And now? she thought for the second time that day. After a deep breath, she looked at Keoni.

Keoni could see that she didn't like the situation and felt partially responsible. Would he still have a chance to ask her about a date? he wondered.

"Oh man, I'm very sorry about the whole thing, Melissa."

She looked at him incredulously and returned "It's not your fault! At most, this is an unfortunate chain of circumstances!"

She took another deep breath and continued "Yeah, it's a dumb thing now, but it is what it is."

He was relieved that she was calm and considered. "Hey, can I give you a ride for the rest of the day? Wherever you want to go. That's the least I can do."

Melissa hadn't expected that and hesitated for a moment. The uncertainty hadn't gone, but the prospect of spending time with this handsome man was somehow irresistible to her and so she asked Keoni "Do you have time for that? You really don't need to do that."

"But I'd like to, Melissa. You don't need to worry about my time because currently I've some days off."

She smiled slightly at him and looked him in the eye as she answered "Okay, then let's give this thing a second chance. I hope you like shopping!"

Her smile became a broad grin that made Keoni laugh. "No problem! I've a large family and a sisters who I think are addicted to shopping!" He had noticed the ambiguity of her words.

"Who's addicted to shopping?" Jason asked, whereupon Melissa and Keoni looked at him. Neither of them had noticed that he had come back from the workshop.

"My sisters!" Keoni said laughing.

Jason nodded in return "Yeah man, that's indeed true. I'm glad that my wife isn't like that!"

Men are the same everywhere! Melissa thought and giggled. She liked both men and somehow the laughter had driven away her insecurity. I think it will be very interesting time on this isle, she thought and looked from one man to another.

Shortly afterwards she was back in the car next to Keoni and they were on the way to Kailua. For a split second, she wondered: Am I a little too daring after all?

Melissa & Keoni - CHAPTER I

The blue SUV rumbled through the pothole and then Melissa heard a hissing sound. She had felt the blow in the steering wheel and at that moment the car started to flutter.

No! Please don't! Please no flat tire! She reduced the speed and drove onto the verge of Tantalus Drive.

She had no desire to get out to make sure and instead put her forehead on the top of the steering wheel. But that was exactly how it felt - like a flat tire - and so she sighed and got out.

After throwing the driver's door shut, she saw what was going on. The front tire was flat. Frustrated, she folded her arms and leaned against the fender of the car.

What a great start! She had been on O'ahu for 2 days and had just set up in the apartment in Kailua, not far from Lanikai Beach. Did that have to happen now on her first jaunt on Tantalus Drive? Hopefully the rental car had a spare tire and no such a stupid repair kit as to find in most cars nowadays.

For a moment she thought about whether the car rental company had said anything and turned to the trunk. Hadn't they! She was sure about that but she also hadn't asked. She opened the trunk, leaned in and pulled up the cover on the floor. And the depression in the form of a tire was empty. Nothing! No spare wheel. She let go of the cover and with a popping noise the flap fell back into place.

And what's next? she thought and sat down on the sill of the trunk while starring on the sandy floor beneath her feet.

__________

Keoni steered his pickup around the curve and saw a blue SUV standing on the side of the road with the tailgate open. A woman with long reddish-blonde hair was sitting on the loading sill with her head bowed. The moment he wondered if she needed help, he saw the flat front tire. With a dangling he brought his car on the hard shoulder and applied the brakes with all his strength, so that the wheels locked and slid over the sandy surface. He turned off the engine, got out, and started for the blue car. Meanwhile Melissa had raised her head and was looking in his direction. When he spoke to her, a little dust was still blowing through the air from his abrupt stop.

"Aloha. Do you need help?" he asked with a smile.

Melissa looked into the friendly face of a tall and well-built man who had unmistakably Polynesian roots.

She replied "Hi!" and looked at him frankly. "Looks that way. It's a rental car and it doesn't have a spare wheel. It's a really stupid thing!"

Keoni looked into her blue-gray eyes that adorned a pretty round face and raised his eyebrows.

"No spare wheel? Also no repair kit?" he asked.

Melissa shrugged and replied "I haven't found anything and I have no idea how you handle it here on the island."

Because of her fair skin he already had suspected that she was not from here and said

"Breakdown Service. That's how you do it on the island."

He couldn't resist winking at her and continued

"A good friend of mine has a garage not far from here. I could call him if that's okay with you." 

Melissa considered for a second. He was nice and didn't look like she couldn't trust him. That being said, at that moment she had no idea how to solve the tire problem. So she decided to accept his offer, slid off the loading sill and replied with a smile

"This is really very kind of you and I am happy to accept your friend's help." Then she held out her hand to him and said, "I'm Melissa, by the way, and I'm on vacation here which you probably already thought."

Keoni laughed and took her hand "I actually suspected that. Hello Melissa, nice to meet you. I'm Keoni and I live here."

She giggled and replied: "I wouldn't have thought that. I thought you were a tourist like me. Hello Keoni!"

__________

He held her hand a moment longer than necessary. He didn't just like her humor. No, she was radiating something that appealed to him. He let go of her hand and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.

With the phone to his ear, he walked a few steps away from the car and Melissa heard him say, “Hey Jason. Ae Bra, I know. No, it wasn't possible. Listen! Can you tow a flat tire on the Tantalus?"

Keoni turned to Melissa and smiled at her. "On the verge at the Manoa Cliff parking lot. A tourist's blue rental car, an SUV." he continued. "Okay, great! Yes, I'm here too. Mahalo and see you soon."

With a slight shake of the head, he ended the call and put the phone back in the pockets of his shorts.

Both hands buried deep in his pockets, he came back to Melissa and said, "I think I should warn you. Jason is a great guy, but also a bit unconventional."

Keoni seemed a bit embarrassed and so she grinned at him and said "I like people like that. Those who are not afraid to be different."

She went to the low wall that delimited the hard shoulder from the steep slope, sat down and held her face in the sun with her eyes shut.

Keoni followed her. "May I ask where you're from?"

She opened her eyes and looked at the man who was standing in front of her and who still had his hands buried deep in his pockets. He had the typical dark hair, dark eyes, distinctive facial features, broad shoulders and seemed muscular and trained. A very appealing appearance, Melissa thought.

"I'm from Germany and for the first time in Hawaii."

His eyebrows went up as he repeated, "Germany? That's pretty far."

She nodded and added, "Yes, that's it. That's why I have 4 weeks of vacation. There is so much to see and do here!"

Keoni had gotten to know a lot of tourists, but no one had been from Germany before. And he had never found anyone as interesting as Melissa.  

"Are you alone here?" As soon as he had said this he regretted it. What was she supposed to think of him asking her something like that?

But Melissa just giggled and seemed to be amused by his question. "Yes, I travel alone. It seems to surprise many people that I travel alone." She looked at him openly and waited for his reaction.

Keoni's eyes moved over her shape. She was about a head shorter than him while he was taller than many Hawaiians with Polynesian roots. Her figure was feminine and she seemed to be friendly in nature. In any case, she hadn't fallen for her mouth as he had already noticed. Speaking of mouth. She has really nice full lips, Keoni thought, trying not to stare at her.

"It's unusual. Above all, it's also quite brave. Are you like that with everything?" he asked.

"You're curious!" she gave back and laughed.

He promptly lowered his eyes slightly embarrassed and was about to apologize when she said

"But I like directness. Such a stupid back and forth is just a waste of time."

He looked at her in surprise.

"You know, Keoni." she started "My parents raised me to be independent and that has brought me far, I think. The world belongs to the brave, they say. So here I am!"

He liked her smile and also her way. "Tell me, what are you doing up here on the Tantalus Drive? Where did you want to go?" he asked her.

Melissa had already been waiting for this question and replied " To the lookout at Pu'u Ualaka'a State Park. The view is supposed to be awesome."

Keoni's thoughts whirled through his head. He wanted to know more about her and get to know her better, but he didn't want to scare her. Apart from that, there was still the question whether the liking was mutual.

__________

He didn't got any further because Jason's truck turned the corner. When the driver saw the two cars on the hard shoulder, he pressed the horn hard. Melissa peered curiously at the man behind the wheel, who slowly steered the truck past them and stuck a hand out the window in greeting.

Keoni also raised his hand and said to Melissa "That's Jason."

They watched him turn over the truck in the middle of the street and park it in front of Melissa's car. The driver's door opened and a bearded man in an oil-smeared jumpsuit jumped out of the cab.

"Keoni, buddy!"

In a typical male manner they hugged, patted on the back, and Jason said, "It's good to see you! Haven't seen you in a while. Kimi is already asking for you!".

They let go again and Keoni replied, "Please say hello to her from me. As soon as I have more time, I will come over. I was just too busy!"

To Melissa, he said, "Kimi is Jason's wife. We went to school together."

Jason now looked at Melissa curiously and raised an eyebrow. "Jason, this is Melissa from Germany. Melissa, this is my friend Jason." Keonie introduced the two to each other.

Before Jason shook her hand, he wiped it again on his overall.

"Aloha Melissa! From Germany on our rock in the middle of the Pacific. Not bad!" he said and smiled at her. "What happened? Was it one of those deep potholes here on the Tantalus?"

She nodded and replied, "Yes, exactly. A pretty deep one that I haven't seen and that's it. Fortunately, Keoni came over. The rental car doesn't have a spare wheel."

Jason winked at her and said, "That's not nice but good for me! Otherwise I wouldn't get to know you now."

With a laugh she replied "Well, there are as many tourists on your rock as sand by the sea!"

He laughed hearty and contagious and held his stomach with laughter "As many tourists as sand by the sea! You're funny!"

Still laughing, he turned away and went to the front of the SUV.

__________

Melissa gave Keoni an amused look and said softly, "He's a funny guy."

He grinned and said, "Yes, Jason is cheerful and rarely in a bad mood."

Then he gathered up all his courage, looked at Melissa firmly and said "Listen. You can go with him without worries and wait for the repair if you want. Or - and I would be very happy about that - you let me take you to the Lookout and later to Jason's workshop."

He withstanded her gaze and waited for her answer. Just like with Keoni, her feeling said that she could trust Jason. She noticed that she wanted to get to know Keoni better.

His dark eyes fascinated her and so she replied "Well, if I'm already here on the Tantalus, I would really like to go to the lookout. I guess you're a great guide because you are at home here."

It sounded to Keoni as if she was interested in him as well. So he would get the chance to find out.

Melissa & Keoni - PROLOG

So, that's my first story, accessible to anyone who wants to read it. While I'm sleepless in my bed I think the story should get a prolog. Yeah, I'm one of those who have sleeping issues from time to time. Most times best you can do is to stand up and keep yourself busy until you're tired enough to continue sleeping or until you'll have to start the day. Today, for me it's the second option of the mentioned. But let's return to the story.

This is no 'fanfiction' as I announced in my travel blog. At least no 'fanfiction' of Hawaii Five-0. But this story is based in Hawaii and relates, among other things, to my wonderful experiences on O'ahu. When I started translating the first chapter into English on my blog page, I noticed that I had written down some details many weeks before our trip started without ever being on the island. Details that we really found and experienced later, just as I wrote them down. As a funny note in addition. 😉

Writing my stories in another language as my mother tongue is a bit challenging and I hope for the mercy of the readers regarding my wordings. I'm fascinated by the English language, regional and local differences and colloquial language. But I'm still a beginner and need to learn a lot. And yet I want to dare to go outside with it. 

Well, let's see where the storyline will lead to. It's a 'boy meets girl' story and frankly speaking I don't have the ending in mind yet. Do I have to mention that similarities are coincidental and fictitious? Have fun while reading! And as always, thoughts and comments are welcome! 👍