"HAWAII, IT'S ALWAYS BEEN MY PLACE TO GO FOR EXCITEMENT, RELAXATION AND FUN. BUT FOR ME RIGHT NOW, A PLACE FOR SOLITUDE. EMPTY BEACHES, A PLACE WHERE I CAN BE ALONE. HERE ON A PERSONAL SEARCH, SOMETHING I REALIZED I'D JUST LOST. FINDING IT ISN'T GONNA BE EASY. IT'S GONNA TAKE SOME TIME TO DRIVE SOME PAIN. A LITTLE OR A LOT OF HEARTACHE. BUT IF I'M LUCKY, IF I'M REAL LICKY, I'LL FIND WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR."

 

The camera closed in on his face, unshaven with a bandana tied around his head, making him look like some middle-aged gang-banger. "I'LL FIND ME."

 

Meanwhile, a family of four was picnicking on the beach. They werecarrying their belongings to set up. "Let's go kids!" Their mother said.

"Come on, let's go!" Their father reinforced.

They were soon all set up by the water while their children Eric and Hina ran off to the water with their nets. Mitch was walking along the shoreline. The children were avoiding waves to catch fish in their nets. "Kids, wait for us now!" Their dad yelled. "Don't go by the rocks!"

Mitch watched as the kids fished. The children's father resumed preparing his fishing rod. Just then, Mitch saw a huge wave coming. It overtook the children and carried them out a bit. Faced toward the water, their mother noticed it and and father quickly went out to the water to attempt a rescue. Mitch swam out. he rescued the mother and then asked if she was O.K. once he noted that she was O.K. and went out again in the water to help the others. Meanwhile, the father had the kids and lost his son. He held onto the girl. "Eric!" He cried. "Eric!"

Mitch got over to the boy. "Hang on, I got you! Let me do the work!" He proceeded to swim the boy in. Mitch yelled out to the man to hang on and that he was going great. He'd be back. Another huge wave came in and jarred the two apart. Little Hina cried for her father to help her. "Hina!" He cried. He had been washed closer to shore. Mitch had now gotten the boy to safety. He seemed dazed.

"Stay with your mother," Mitch said. the woman held the boy close. Mitch made it out toward the man.

"My daughter!" He cried.

"Can you swim to shore?" Mitch asked.

"I have to find my daughter!" He cried.

"I'll get her," Mitch said. "But I can't get both of you. Tell me you can swim to shore."

"Yes," he said.

"Do it. Trust me!" Mitch said. "I'll get her. She'll be all right. Go!" Mitch then searched underwater until he got her and brough her to shore, while giving her oxygen.

"She's not breathing," the man cried.

"Give her some space," Mitch ordered. "I'm a lifeguard."

While Mitch administered CPR, her father said in hope, "Come on! Come on, honey! Breathe now!" She then responded by breathing just as the lifeguard and ambulance came. They all got the unconscious girl onto a backboard, on oxygen and into an ambulance. As he watched them work, Mitch walked away from the scene in disappointment.

"She's just hangin'." The man said. "Oh God! Hina!" he started to look for Mitch. "Hey, where did he go?" The lifeguard pointed toward Mitch, who was pretty far away from them now. "I wanted to thank him. He saved her. He saved all of us."

 

Mitch came out of a hut-like cottage on the shore of the beach. He sat down to drink his coffee at the picnic table. The lifeguard who was on the scene of the family walked toward him. His name was Kelelie Rock Keaweamahi, but Mitch called him Rock.

"Hey," Rocky said. 

"Hey," Mitch said, staring straight ahead. "So much has happened Rock. My father passed away, Hobie's gone off to college. I don't know how to talk to him anymore. Mom has Alzheimer's. Doesn't know who I am. Still think about my ex-wife. I'm just burned out."

"You're tired," Rocky said.

"It's more to it than that," Mitch said. "Lost my confidence. I don't think I should be on the beach anymore." 

"Mitch, you pulled a family of four out of Killer Surf by yourself. Just because of you they're still alive."

"Little girl's in the hospital," Mitch said in disappointment.

"She's alive," Rocky said.

"She's in intensive care. She hasn't regained consciousness. That's because of me. A couple of years ago, I would have saved them all." Mitch said.

"Mitch," Rocky said. "Three times into that surf could have taken it out of anyone."

"It wasn't about being tired. I've been tired before. I made mistakes, Rock. I thought the little girl was caught in a rip current. She was in a lava tomb. I spent most of my time looking in the wrong place."

"Look at that rock pit. Look at the way the waves break along it. Caves, lava tombs, rip tides! That's why the family was sucked in! How are you to know?" Rocky said.

"You can tell all that by looking at it?" Mitch asked.

"Experience," Rock said. "This is my turf."

"Wish I had known that.!" Mitch said.

"Wish I had been there to tell ya!" Rocky said, placing a comforting hand on Mitch's shoulder.

"Me too." Mitch said.

 

Mitch visited Hina in the hospital to check on the little girl's condition for any progress. No change. He looked at her sadly. he took his necklace and placed it in her hand. He closed her fingers around it and held the hand between his. After the visit, Mitch went swimming to work off the frustration. He then made an appearance at Rocky's tower. "Rock!" Mitch said.

"Mitch! Lookin' good bro! Wha? You wanna work my tower?" Rocky asked.

"No, no, no!" Mitch said. "I wanna talk to you about somethin'. Minute?"

Rocky told him sure. He got another lifeguard to watch his tower.

"The incident with that little girl has really affected me. Ignorance kills, right?" He asked.

"Every day," Rock said.

"Now as a lifeguard, how do we learn? We learn from personal experience. We also learn by talking to each other." Mitch said. "Rocky, the idea of the Center is a place for lifeguard to come ffom all over the world to share ideas, personal experience, rescue techniques, they learn from each other. If I had talked to you before that family was swept off the rocks, I would have handled it differently."

Rocky asked Mitch if this was motivation or a guilt trip. 

Mitch responded, "What difference does it make what the motivation is here. It's about saving lives."

"O.K., O.K.! Don't bite my head off." Rock said.

Mitch told Rock that in Australia last year, they lost a hundred swimmers due to drowning. Japan lost 80 people in one weekend alone. Mitch also reasoned that those deaths may not have happened if lifeguards had talked to each other. He continued, teling Rock that all he was saying was maybe with a little bit of what you knew and a little bit of what he knew could help solve the problem. Mitch had thought about going back to LA to set it up, but felt that LA wasn't the right spot. The staff had to be trained right for any possible situation. The location would be Hawaii-North Shore. And eventually a lifeguard from every country of the world would be on the team. LA had the organization and Hawaii had big surf and had perfected the Jetski rescue. As well as other counties that are innovative. The staff would be a small group of elite individuals.

"Ya know Mitch, I'd really like to see this work." Rock said.

"I'll make it work," Mitch assured him. "All I gotta do is think of that little girl in the hospital fighting for her life. I won't let that happen again."

 

"IF I'M GONNA PUT TOGETHER THIS TEAM, I GOTTA GET SOMBODY I KNOW. GO BACK TO CALIFORNIA, GET TWO OF THE BEST, J.D. DARIUS AND JESSIE OWENS."

 

The scene changed to Jessie training in the pool at Baywatch Headquarters. "You're dirfting Jessie," J.D. said. "Concentrate. Just don't stroke-focus!"

Jessie got out of the pool and was soon facing him. "I am focused."

"Now you are," J.D. said, handing her a towel.

"I hate you, J.D." Jessie said.

"Hate the swimmer in front of you, hate your own mediocrity, hate losing, but it's me you gotta love," he said. He then walked away.

"How come I gotta?" She asked.

"Because Jessie, my love," he said, coming toward her. He stood behind Jessie and placed his arms around her waist. "I can make you pay."

She grimaced, making a face. She continued training.

"What'll we tell Mitch?" J.D. asked.

"Tell him we can't go!" Jessie said. "I'm not gonna stop training, J.D. No distractions, remember? That was the rule. No excuses! I got to win this rotten...race."

"hello? Jessie! The best triathlon on the planet is whree? That's right, Maui! And where is Maui? That's right, Hawaii! And where does Mitch want us to go?" J.D. asked. "I promise I'll have you ready."

"O.K., J.D. you promise, then I'll go." She said.

"Now there's something else about Maui." He said.

"What's that?" She asked.

"That it's the number one honeymoon destination spot in the world." J.D. informed her.

"Is that a proposal?" She asked.

"I don't know. Is it?" He answered with a question.

"It sure sounds like one to me." She said.

"Well, what do you think?" He asked.

"I think that I need to do this race. And then anything is possible." She said. before they kissed.

 

"YOU KNOW, I LOVE THE AUSSIES. COMPETITIVE, CONFIDENT. ALLIE REESE, HELICOPTER PILOT AND AS MASTER OF TECHNIQUES FOR THE RUBBER BOAT RESCUES. SO I SENT HER A PLANE TICKET."

 

"What could this be?" She asked to herself, opening the envelope. She then pulled out a yellow swimsuit with the old LA Headquarters logo patch with new Lifeguard Training Center attached. Along with her plane ticket. "An invitation," she said smiling. Allie took a deep sigh before looking out at the water.

 

Rocky waxed his board. Mitch kneeled beside him. "Wow, classic, huh?" He asked.

"She's a beauty," Rocky said.

"Rock, what do you know about this Sean Monroe?" Asked Mitch.

"You know him." Rock said. "He used to work at LA County."

"I know, he's on at Hawaii now. What do the locals say about him?" Mitch asked. "Good reputation?"

"Yeah-tough!" Rocky said. "A loner. Learns quick though."

"Thinking about choosing him to run the Training Center." Mitch said. 

"Sean Monroe?" Rocky asked surprised.

"What do you think?" Mitch asked.

"One thing's for sure. He knows these waters." Rock said.

 

"SEAN MONROE WORKS SOME OF THE MOST TOUGHEST, DANGEROUS BEACHES ON THE PLANET. THE KAUAI COAST. THIS IS MY CHOICE FOR TEAM LEADER. HE IS THE MASTER OF THE RIFF MANAGEMENT. HE ANTICIPATES, HE'S PASSIONATE, DEDICATED, DETERMINED. HE SAVES LIVES."

 

Sean and a team of two lifeguards took the speed of a rubbre boat toward a cave. Taking it through the cave, they finally heard screams for help. Sean jumped in and started rescuing the victims. He swam them to the boat and the other lifeguards pulled them in.

"Relax, just let me do the work." He said to a victim. After he finished, he asked if there were any more victims.

"No, we got 'em all."

"Let's get out of here. We got pretty lucky." Sean said.

They headed out of the cave. there was call for Sean Monroe!"

"Mitch Buchannon!" He exclaimed. "How in the hell did you find me here?" A what? Lifeguard Training Center? I don't know Mitch. It sounds like a lot of yak." Sean said. "Yeah, yeah, I'll check it out! You know me. If it gets boring, I'm gone!"

 

At Wahiawa General Hospital, Mitch dropped in to see if the girl had improved. The girl's father was there. He was crushed. "Hey," Mitch said greeting him. He shook his hand.

"Hey," Hina's father said.

"I just came by to tell you I'm really sorry." Mitch said. "I know I promised to save her."

"You did, she's still alive." He said.

"She should be home, not in a coma." Mitch said. "Have they updated her condition or told you anything?"

"Just wait, be patient, to pray." He said. The man then invited Mitch in to see her. Mitch went on in whining about how he spent too much time looking in the wrong place.

"Don't martyr." He said.

"What?" Mitch asked.

"You're mourning she's dead. She's not. She's alive." He told Mitch. "She's gonna be 12. We're gonna have a party. You're invited."

"I'll be there!" Mitch said.

"Good," he said. "When you come, you can be sorry."

"I will,' Mitch said.

"Then you will be welcomed." He said.

"I don't even know her name." Mitch said.

"Hina," he said caressing her head. "Her name is Hina."

"Hey Hina," Mitch said softly.

 

A plane made its way toward the airport.

"ALOHA! ON BEHALF OF ALL OF US AT HAWAIIAN AIRLINES, WE WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING TO FLY WITH US TODAY. WELCOME TO HAWAII. MAHALO."

 

"A very tall teen made his way toward the baggage rack. He grabbed his bag, only to have J.D. get a strong grip on it too.

"I think this is mine." J.D. said.

"It's not." The teenager said with an extremely deep voice.

"O.K., a lot of bags look alike." J.D. tried to reason with him.

"You wanna turn it loose?" The boy demanded in question.

"Look, you have a claim check?" J.D. asked.

"No, do you?" He asked rudely.

"Of course I do. It's right here." J.D. said. He looked at the check.

"It's not mine. Sorry." J.D. said.

"No problem," his voice emphasized.

"You won't get out of here without a claim check." J.D. cautioned.

"Yeah, I will." He said. he made his way toward the DOLLAR booth. He informed the clerk that he was there to pick up a car under the name Baywatch Hawaii. He just gave the name Jason when she wanted a last name. It checked out, so all she needed was his signature.

"What I get?" He asked.

"A van," she said.

"A van?" He asked. He tried to turn on charm that really didn't exsist. "Please," Jason pleaded. "I'm a single guy. First time in Hawaii." She was pretty young too and it worked. He ended up with a nice little red sports number. Outside, he sat against it with a handwritten sign BAYWATCH HAWAII. Allie Reese was the first to find him and he just acted like a jerk trying to flirt with a woman that he didn't even know. His second not so good start.

"Hi," she said extending her hand out for him sto shake. "I'm Allie Reese."

"I'm in love," he said.

"And how old are you Jason?" She asked.

"Nineteen?" He said with questionable tone.

"That's too young," she informed him.

"I'll get older," he said.

"I don't think I can wait that long." She said.

J.D. and Jessie showed up.

"Allie!" Jessie exclaimed. "Oh my God, I can't believe it!"

They embraced and chattered on about how they were. J.D. and Jason exchanged unfriendly glances. Jessie then introduced J.D. to Allie and explained that they had met in Aistrlia. And then Allie introduced them to Jason.

"I didn't catch the ladt name," she said.

"Jason's enough." He said.

"Jessie Owens," said Jessie, shaking Jason's hand.

J.D. asked, "You coming with us?"

"No," Jason said in his usual Cigar Store Indian tone. "You're coming with me."

 

They arrived at the training Center and J.D. was already dressed an looking for Jessie.

"Jessie," he caled, entering a room. "Jessie, let's go ho..." He stopped right in his tracks, and found himself staring at a rather SHAMELESS, topless Hawaiian lifeguard. He just kept staring rather than even making an effort to look away. Turning around to face him, she had no problem with him staring at her ample, bare chest. She just stood there for SEVERAL seconds making no effort to cover up. You can even say that it looked as though she enjoyed it.

"Jessie's not here," she said, smiling at him. The seconds ticked on as she walked toward him while finally getting that swimsuit into place.

"You see, there's a meeting..." J.D. babbled as she looked at him with interest while approaching him.

She paused and introduced herself, "Kekoa Tanaka."

He caught himself and shook her hand. She told him that he didn't want to be late on his first day.

 

Later on the beach, Kekoa spotted J.D. running toward Jessie. She watched as the two kissed.

"Hey!" Jessie said with usual huge smile. "Where've you been?"

"I've been looking for you." He said, feeling uneasy.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"Yeah," he answered weakly. He just kept staring at Kekoa.

"You all right?" Jessie asked.

"No, never better." J.D. assured her.

Jessie noted J.D.'s string at the Hawaiian lifeguard and asked who she was.

"Oh, one of the Hawaiian lifeguards." He said. "Her name's Kekoa Tanaka."

But Kekoa just kept staring at J.D.

"She's got an interesting look, huh? She's pretty." Jessie said.

"You think so?" J.D. asked.

"Don't you?" She asked.

"Yeah, she's got an interesting look." J.D. said, trying to cover up his guilt.

Jessie looked at him and said, "J.D., it's O.K. to think that other girls are tretty. It's when you act like they're not that I get concerned."

"Jessie," J.D. said. "Are we gonna argue about this? She a pretty girl. She's a knockout. She's Miss All Everything, O.K.?"

"O.K." She said.

"Come on, we'll find a place to relax." He said taking her hand. 

As they walked away, Kekoa kept looking over her shoulder at him.

 

Jason and a muscular Hawaiian lifeguard exchanged glances as he walked toward Sean. the lifeguard asked Sean who he was. Sean explained that Roger Lawrence sent him from Galveston. Roger stated that Jason was a prodigy. Sean then told him that he was going to find Mitch.

The Hawaiian lifeguard walked up to Jason.

"Hey Cuz," he said.

"The name is Jason. Not Kappa anything." Jason said in a huff.

"Jason, I'm Kai and Kappa is not an insult. It means half, a part of. Almost everyone in Hawaii is Kappa." Kai said.

"That's you. Me? I'm me-one thing, one piece, one person." Jason said.

"I didn't mean to hurt you feelings," Kai said sarcastically.

"You didn't!" Jason said.

"Say Jason," Kai said.

"Yeah Kai?" he said.

"You have been trained in Texas with all of the sharks we have here." Kai said. "But don't be afraid. It's not as bad as you hurt."

"You trying to get into my head?" Jason asked.

"I don't know," Kai said. "Can I?"

"I don't know, can you?" Jason asked angrily.

 

Sean asked Mitch how he wanted to handle the meeting. Who was going to say what. But Mitch told Sean that he wanted him to do it all. Sean reminded Mitch that it was his show. He put the money together and set it all up. Mitch told Sean that he would be around to advise. He had some responsibilities in LA. He was sure that he could handle it. Sean then told Mitch that he wouldn't let him down. Mitch said that he knew that. It was why he picked him.

 

Sean started the meeting. They all stood single file facing Sean like the military before a drill Sargent. Sean introduced himself and then said that he had ten years in LA County and five yeard in Hawaii. They were setting up a Lifeguard Training Center. Before lifeguards are invited, they must know the waters. The beaches, the surf, the rips and conditions. They would train...until every member of the team was proficient. The training would be difficult and dangerous. He reminded them that Mitch picked him to head this team and them to be a part of it. Mitch picked them, he didn't. He went on rattling. That the waters were the most dangerous as they went over thirty feet. He talked about how they would feel getting caught in the Drop Zone. Lifeguards died there. It would be an elite team. But every team had it's Weak Link and he would find it and send that person home. He then challenged them all. If they were the Weak Link to do him a favor. He or she should leave now. He looked them all over. "Training starts tomorrow." Sean said, before he left.

 

Jason caught up with Allie. He asked her she though was the Weak Link. She told him that it wasn't her without breaking her pace. She suggested him and Jason protested. "They'll have to plant my ass before they send me home." He called after her.

 

Sean walked along the shoreline with Mitch. He asked how he did. Mitch approved, telling Sean that he got their attention. jessie didn't like what was going on. it was like Mitch was setting them all up against each other.

"Mitch wouldn't do that!" J.D. told her that Sean was tough, but he was right. There was a Weak Link.

Jessie questioned that if it was her, would he stay?" J.D. told her that it wouldn't be her. She told him that he was just hoping that it wouldn't be her so that he wouldn't have to make that decision. And he could be alone with Kekoa.

"Jessie, I just looked at her, that's all. Just looked at her." He told her. They then assured each other that it wouldn't be them.

 

Kekoa approached Sean about the testing. Would he just watch or do it with the rest of them. He told her a bit of both. She questioned if the Weak Link would be him, but Sean told her that it was not possible.

 

The little girl Hina had come out of her coma. She was now out of the hospital and seemed to be healthy. She had a lei made of feathers for him. She told Mitch that her Mother made it for saving them. Rock explained that feathers were for royalty. Hina went on to say that as long as he had the lei, his soul would be in their keeping. She then remindind Mitch about her birthday party. Mitch assured her that he would be there. Hina then left. Rock told Mitch that the lei was a great honor.