Arzt, Lies and Online Dating
Title: Arzt, Lies and Online Dating
Fandom: Lost
Characters: Arzt, Shannon, original character Marianne Baxter.
Pairings: Arzt/OC
Rating: G
Warnings: Spoilers for mobisode Tropical Depression and Exodus Part 2.
Summary: Arzt remembers the time he tried online dating.
For toestastegood, who requested the Internet in the luau. (Told you you were getting one more gift didn't I?)
Arzt couldn't remember now exactly how it had all started. He did remember all his friends telling him they were sick of hearing him go on about his ex-wives - "Does it matter what 'I didn't sign up for this' meant? Just forget her, man. She's gone. Move on. Find somebody new," or variations on the same theme. But meeting someone was easier said than done, especially in the small suburb where Arzt lived. He'd tried all the traditional ways of meeting women, from bars to friends of friends, and all that had netted him was three ex wives and a truckload of alimony payments.
And it didn't make it easier even to meet new people when your workplace was Eden Falls Junior High, a place where everyone divided into their own little cliques, tight knit groups it was impossible to break into, one particular in-crowd ruling the roost - and that was just the staffroom.
He thought it had been his friend Nick who, fed up of hearing about Arzt's third wife, and how difficult it was to meet people, had suggested that he try the Internet. He had some story about some friend of a friend (Arzt couldn't remember details) who had found love that way.
Arzt was initially sceptical. How could you possibly know if a relationship could work without even meeting the person face to face? but eventually (Arzt wasn't quite sure how) Nick had talked him into placing an ad on a few dating sites. He'd got Nick to read the ad before posting, and Nick had approved it. Arzt would ideally have liked a second opinion, but there were very few people he trusted enough to tell what he was doing.
The ad was fine. Finding a suitable photo was trickier. Arzt didn't have that many decent pictures of himself, even before he ruined them all by cutting his ex wives out of all the pictures. But it wasn't just that. He wasn't sure anyone would want to know if he did use a picture of himself. In his experience, women were more likely to go for someone like Nick, someone who worked out, took care of themselves.
And that's when Arzt had his brilliant idea.
Her name was Marianne, and she was a botanist, at least according to her reply.
Arzt still couldn't quite believe he'd actually got replies to his ad. He was convinced it was because he'd used Nick's photo, rather than one of himself. Nick had been reluctant at the time, saying that if a woman was worth having, she'd appreciate Arzt for who he really was, and had tried to talk him into using a real picture of himself.
Easy for Nick to say, Nick who had always had a way with the woman, even from the days they trained as teachers together.
Arzt had gone through his replies and whittled them down to four. After one no-show (thank you, Catherine, 42, GSOH, likes watersports) and another couple with whom he'd exchanged emails but things had just fizzled out, Marianne actually seemed to be working out. She'd been divorced before, like him, loved animals, even shared Arzt's interest in discovering new species.
There was just one drawback.
She lived in Sydney, Australia.
Nick and the guys had thought this was hilarious when Arzt told them about Marianne. All this obsessing over some woman he'd never even met, probably never would, really wasn't much different from the way he used to go on about his exes. Their eyes all began to take on the familiar glazed look every time he mentioned Marianne.
If Arzt was honest with himself, at first the fact that she lived in Australia did make things easier. His friends had suggested that this was because he was scared of taking the risk with a real relationship. But in some ways, they were right, it was a relief to think that meeting wasn't on the cards any time soon. He was still using Nick's photo, and he was worried that if Marianne knew the real him, she wouldn't want to know. But as time went by, Arzt began to feel that they really connected.
Surely Marianne knew the real Arzt now from the emails they shared. It wouldn't matter that he didn't look anything like his photo.
That was what he told himself when Marianne proposed a visit.
Arzt smiled to himself as his plane touched down at Sydney airport. After a year of exchanging emails back and forth, he and Marianne were to meet at last.
"I'll want to hear all about it when you get back," Nick had said when he dropped Arzt off at LAX.
Arzt had winked at him. "Dude, if it goes well, I may not be back."
Nick had laughed and clapped him on the back. "Take care of yourself, buddy."
They'd arranged to meet in the Arrivals lounge that day, unable to wait any longer to meet in the flesh. As the "fasten your seatbelt" sign clicked off, Arzt felt the first rush of anticipation at the thought that he would finally meet Marianne. He grew steadily more impatient as he watched the obligatory abandoned bag go round the carousel four times before his own luggage eventually appeared. Arzt was first to exit baggage reclaim, scanning the faces excitedly for Marianne.
He spotted her straight away, big welcoming smile on her face as she watched the faces of the people entering the Arrivals lounge, giving way to a confused frown as the face she expected to see never materialised.
I should have come clean, Arzt thought. I should have sent her my real picture when she first suggested meeting up. But it was too late now. With butterflies in his stomach, Arzt tentatively approached Marianne.
Her features arranged themselves into a puzzled smile as she asked "Can I help you?"
"Marianne Baxter?" Arzt asked.
Suspiciously now "Yes?"
"I'm - I'm Leslie Arzt." He held out his hand, which she hesitated for a second before taking.
"The photograph - I can explain..."
Marianne hastily plastered a smile across her face. "Yes, well, I won't..." She stopped, began again. "It's okay. It doesn't matter. Let's go somewhere we can talk."
As they left Sydney Airport, Arzt began to relax. Looked like his gamble had actually paid off after all.
He wasn't too worried at first when Marianne excused herself to go to the Ladies.
There had been a few awkward moments at first, but Arzt had put them down to its being the first time they had met in the flesh. After they'd spent a bit more time together, he was sure the conversation would flow just as easily as it had done via email.
Speaking of time, Marianne seemed to have been a long time in the Ladies. But he knew what women were like. His ex wives used to be just the same.
Fifteen minutes passed, then twenty three. Maybe he should go and check to see if she was all right.
He hovered uncertainly outside the Ladies, ear as near to the door as he dared, waiting, hoping she was going to reappear.
A young blonde woman approached, shooting him a quizzical look. Arzt had noticed her earlier, going on to her Australian companion about how someone named Boone had come up with some money, or something.
Arzt made a quick decision. "Hey. Excuse me. Ma'am?"
The woman gave him a bored look.
"My friend, Marianne. She went in there a while ago and hasn't come out yet. Blonde hair, red dress, about my age. Do you think you could go and check for me if she's okay?"
The woman shrugged. "Sure, whatever." She walked in, tapped on the cubicle door. "Hello?"
Eventually, she came out. "Sorry," she said, not sounding sorry at all. "There's no one else in here."
"Ah," Arzt stammered, blushing to the roots of his hair. "My mistake. We must have passed each other. She must be back at the table now."
The woman smirked. "Must be."
Arzt muttered a prayer under his breath as he made his way back to the table.
But all that greeted him was the remains of Marianne's congealed lobster.
Marianne had thought about it for four days before she made her way to the hotel where Arzt was staying. She'd been shocked, sure, when she found out he'd lied about the photo. It had made her wonder what else he could have lied about. And Marianne didn't need another liar in her life, not after her ex husband.
But she did feel a bit guilty about not having given him a chance to explain. Maybe it really was like he'd said, maybe he really thought she wouldn't want to know the real him. And leaving him with the big bill in the restaurant was out of order.
Yes, she did owe him an apology.
The vacant-looking desk clerk stared at her blankly when she asked for Leslie Arzt.
"No one here of that name," she muttered, inspecting her manicure.
Marianne glared at her. "Try again."
Reluctantly, the clerk typed something into her computer. "I'm afraid he checked out two days ago."
Marianne froze. "That's impossible. He was booked in until October 4th."
"He flew back to Los Angeles early," the clerk shrugged. "Said something about there being nothing here for him any more."
Marianne turned and walked away without another word. She'd have to send him another email explaining, apologising.
She was sure he would understand.
Everything would be fine.
She got into her car, turned the radio on.
"This is a special news bulletin. Reports are coming in of the disappearance over the Pacific Ocean of a flight from Sydney to Los Angeles, Oceanic Flight 815."
Fandom: Lost
Characters: Arzt, Shannon, original character Marianne Baxter.
Pairings: Arzt/OC
Rating: G
Warnings: Spoilers for mobisode Tropical Depression and Exodus Part 2.
Summary: Arzt remembers the time he tried online dating.
For toestastegood, who requested the Internet in the luau. (Told you you were getting one more gift didn't I?)
Arzt couldn't remember now exactly how it had all started. He did remember all his friends telling him they were sick of hearing him go on about his ex-wives - "Does it matter what 'I didn't sign up for this' meant? Just forget her, man. She's gone. Move on. Find somebody new," or variations on the same theme. But meeting someone was easier said than done, especially in the small suburb where Arzt lived. He'd tried all the traditional ways of meeting women, from bars to friends of friends, and all that had netted him was three ex wives and a truckload of alimony payments.
And it didn't make it easier even to meet new people when your workplace was Eden Falls Junior High, a place where everyone divided into their own little cliques, tight knit groups it was impossible to break into, one particular in-crowd ruling the roost - and that was just the staffroom.
He thought it had been his friend Nick who, fed up of hearing about Arzt's third wife, and how difficult it was to meet people, had suggested that he try the Internet. He had some story about some friend of a friend (Arzt couldn't remember details) who had found love that way.
Arzt was initially sceptical. How could you possibly know if a relationship could work without even meeting the person face to face? but eventually (Arzt wasn't quite sure how) Nick had talked him into placing an ad on a few dating sites. He'd got Nick to read the ad before posting, and Nick had approved it. Arzt would ideally have liked a second opinion, but there were very few people he trusted enough to tell what he was doing.
The ad was fine. Finding a suitable photo was trickier. Arzt didn't have that many decent pictures of himself, even before he ruined them all by cutting his ex wives out of all the pictures. But it wasn't just that. He wasn't sure anyone would want to know if he did use a picture of himself. In his experience, women were more likely to go for someone like Nick, someone who worked out, took care of themselves.
And that's when Arzt had his brilliant idea.
Her name was Marianne, and she was a botanist, at least according to her reply.
Arzt still couldn't quite believe he'd actually got replies to his ad. He was convinced it was because he'd used Nick's photo, rather than one of himself. Nick had been reluctant at the time, saying that if a woman was worth having, she'd appreciate Arzt for who he really was, and had tried to talk him into using a real picture of himself.
Easy for Nick to say, Nick who had always had a way with the woman, even from the days they trained as teachers together.
Arzt had gone through his replies and whittled them down to four. After one no-show (thank you, Catherine, 42, GSOH, likes watersports) and another couple with whom he'd exchanged emails but things had just fizzled out, Marianne actually seemed to be working out. She'd been divorced before, like him, loved animals, even shared Arzt's interest in discovering new species.
There was just one drawback.
She lived in Sydney, Australia.
Nick and the guys had thought this was hilarious when Arzt told them about Marianne. All this obsessing over some woman he'd never even met, probably never would, really wasn't much different from the way he used to go on about his exes. Their eyes all began to take on the familiar glazed look every time he mentioned Marianne.
If Arzt was honest with himself, at first the fact that she lived in Australia did make things easier. His friends had suggested that this was because he was scared of taking the risk with a real relationship. But in some ways, they were right, it was a relief to think that meeting wasn't on the cards any time soon. He was still using Nick's photo, and he was worried that if Marianne knew the real him, she wouldn't want to know. But as time went by, Arzt began to feel that they really connected.
Surely Marianne knew the real Arzt now from the emails they shared. It wouldn't matter that he didn't look anything like his photo.
That was what he told himself when Marianne proposed a visit.
Arzt smiled to himself as his plane touched down at Sydney airport. After a year of exchanging emails back and forth, he and Marianne were to meet at last.
"I'll want to hear all about it when you get back," Nick had said when he dropped Arzt off at LAX.
Arzt had winked at him. "Dude, if it goes well, I may not be back."
Nick had laughed and clapped him on the back. "Take care of yourself, buddy."
They'd arranged to meet in the Arrivals lounge that day, unable to wait any longer to meet in the flesh. As the "fasten your seatbelt" sign clicked off, Arzt felt the first rush of anticipation at the thought that he would finally meet Marianne. He grew steadily more impatient as he watched the obligatory abandoned bag go round the carousel four times before his own luggage eventually appeared. Arzt was first to exit baggage reclaim, scanning the faces excitedly for Marianne.
He spotted her straight away, big welcoming smile on her face as she watched the faces of the people entering the Arrivals lounge, giving way to a confused frown as the face she expected to see never materialised.
I should have come clean, Arzt thought. I should have sent her my real picture when she first suggested meeting up. But it was too late now. With butterflies in his stomach, Arzt tentatively approached Marianne.
Her features arranged themselves into a puzzled smile as she asked "Can I help you?"
"Marianne Baxter?" Arzt asked.
Suspiciously now "Yes?"
"I'm - I'm Leslie Arzt." He held out his hand, which she hesitated for a second before taking.
"The photograph - I can explain..."
Marianne hastily plastered a smile across her face. "Yes, well, I won't..." She stopped, began again. "It's okay. It doesn't matter. Let's go somewhere we can talk."
As they left Sydney Airport, Arzt began to relax. Looked like his gamble had actually paid off after all.
He wasn't too worried at first when Marianne excused herself to go to the Ladies.
There had been a few awkward moments at first, but Arzt had put them down to its being the first time they had met in the flesh. After they'd spent a bit more time together, he was sure the conversation would flow just as easily as it had done via email.
Speaking of time, Marianne seemed to have been a long time in the Ladies. But he knew what women were like. His ex wives used to be just the same.
Fifteen minutes passed, then twenty three. Maybe he should go and check to see if she was all right.
He hovered uncertainly outside the Ladies, ear as near to the door as he dared, waiting, hoping she was going to reappear.
A young blonde woman approached, shooting him a quizzical look. Arzt had noticed her earlier, going on to her Australian companion about how someone named Boone had come up with some money, or something.
Arzt made a quick decision. "Hey. Excuse me. Ma'am?"
The woman gave him a bored look.
"My friend, Marianne. She went in there a while ago and hasn't come out yet. Blonde hair, red dress, about my age. Do you think you could go and check for me if she's okay?"
The woman shrugged. "Sure, whatever." She walked in, tapped on the cubicle door. "Hello?"
Eventually, she came out. "Sorry," she said, not sounding sorry at all. "There's no one else in here."
"Ah," Arzt stammered, blushing to the roots of his hair. "My mistake. We must have passed each other. She must be back at the table now."
The woman smirked. "Must be."
Arzt muttered a prayer under his breath as he made his way back to the table.
But all that greeted him was the remains of Marianne's congealed lobster.
Marianne had thought about it for four days before she made her way to the hotel where Arzt was staying. She'd been shocked, sure, when she found out he'd lied about the photo. It had made her wonder what else he could have lied about. And Marianne didn't need another liar in her life, not after her ex husband.
But she did feel a bit guilty about not having given him a chance to explain. Maybe it really was like he'd said, maybe he really thought she wouldn't want to know the real him. And leaving him with the big bill in the restaurant was out of order.
Yes, she did owe him an apology.
The vacant-looking desk clerk stared at her blankly when she asked for Leslie Arzt.
"No one here of that name," she muttered, inspecting her manicure.
Marianne glared at her. "Try again."
Reluctantly, the clerk typed something into her computer. "I'm afraid he checked out two days ago."
Marianne froze. "That's impossible. He was booked in until October 4th."
"He flew back to Los Angeles early," the clerk shrugged. "Said something about there being nothing here for him any more."
Marianne turned and walked away without another word. She'd have to send him another email explaining, apologising.
She was sure he would understand.
Everything would be fine.
She got into her car, turned the radio on.
"This is a special news bulletin. Reports are coming in of the disappearance over the Pacific Ocean of a flight from Sydney to Los Angeles, Oceanic Flight 815."