Summary: Seventeen-year-old Riley Hoffman, nicknamed The Hoff for her job at a local radio station, was queen of the world in 2001. She was starting her senior year and going places. All that changed September 11th after the towers came down. Now the newest CSI in New York, she reunites with someone she thought she would never see again during the third season – Mac Taylor…

A/N: This is gonna be pretty AU. And for the anti-Peyton fans, she won't be around for long.

Disclaimer: Don't own any of the characters except for the following: Riley, Remy, Bianca, Katie, Rod, Blake, Babs, Kayla, Jen, Mandy, Deb, Cassie, Jared, Brad, Thomas, Diane, and Sylvia.

Prologue- September 11, 2001 Part 1: Just Like Any Ordinary Day… NOT!!

5:00 AM, a penthouse in the Upper East Side.

Riley woke up to the nasty noise of her alarm clock. It was only her second week of school, and she was already sick of it, not to mention the party at her job last night. She walked up to it and shut it off, putting her dirty blond hair into a ponytail afterwards. Staring in her mirror, her bright blue eyes looked bloodshot, and she was sober.

"One of these days, alarm clock, I will kill you," said Riley.

She would've gone back to sleep and skipped out if the noise hadn't woken her up completely. She also had to bring her video camera to school today. She would be filming the hallways during school, then afterwards would photograph and film the World Trade Center, then head to CTNS 101, the radio station in SoHo where she worked as a Dear Abby of sorts, taking calls from people with problems, giving advice, and playing requested songs. CTNS was short for City That Never Sleeps, and Riley was getting less and less of it. It was only her alarm that she hated as it sometimes gave her a headache. She got dressed into her Hathaway Prep uniform and walked into the kitchen. There she tossed an egg bagel into the bagel slicer, then both slices in the toaster. She then poured herself some cranberry juice and took out the cream cheese and a knife. She turned on her transistor radio while eating and tuned in to CTNS. It was on speaker, and the next words nearly made her spit out her juice.

"… And school has been canceled at Hathaway Prep due to a burst pipe in one of the bathrooms. The principal informed us of the matter last night. Have fun, Hoff, and come to work whenever you feel like it."

Riley laughed, not just because the cancellation was a possible prank. She hated being called The Hoff because she hated Bay Watch and the way all the show's actors puffed out their chests, especially Pamela. Her cell phone rang. She took the call. It was her boss, Rod.

"I have good news, Hoff," said Rod.

"I heard about it, you know I tune in every morning," said Riley. "I'll come in at 11:30. I need to get some views of the World Trade Center with my video camera. It's for the video yearbook for the senior class".

"Have fun, Hoff," said Rod. "Don't forget the pizza."

"I won't," said Riley.

They said their goodbyes and hung up. Riley changed into a pair of jeans, an AC/DC concert tee, and biker boots. She then grabbed her cell phone and called some close friends from her choral class: Jen, a junior, and Deb, Cassie, and Mandy, who were all sophomores. Riley thought of calling her BFF Alexa, but the girl would still be sleeping right now. She left all four girls the same message as she put on her black leather jacket.

"Meet me in lower Manhattan. 8:00. Come in Jen's SUV. I'm gonna film some crazy footage."

She didn't need to yap about school. Everyone who attended listened to CTNS. Rod, her 20-something boss who considered getting laid the only thing more important than the station, and had even gotten laid at the station. Bianca, her eyes and ears for the station's website wanted to be a supermodel. Katie, the redhead reporter-turned-receptionist in her thirties who always had a pot of coffee on hand, a great story about her days as a journalist, and a nasty story about her separated cheating husband who worked at the World Trade Center, were the foundation of CTNS. They were the eyes and ears of New York. God forbid something tragic happened, they would be the first to know about it.

Riley started her motorcycle and left. She had filming to do…

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7:00 AM, an apartment in lower Manhattan.

"Stop it, baby," said Claire Taylor. "I have to get to work by 8:00".

Mac Taylor showered his wife of six years with more kisses.

"So do I, but we could always play hookie," said Mac.

"You're a CSI, I'm PR," said Claire. "Playing hookie is out of the question."

They sighed, got dressed, and got ready for work.

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7:30 AM, CTNS 101 Radio Station in TriBeca.

Rod Barr loved his radio station. He loved women. He loved having sex with them in the station most of all. He was the black sheep of his ultra rich family for wanting to live an unconventional life. As his latest fling kissed him in unmentionable places, he thought of Riley Hoffman. Everyone called her the Hoff because her name bore similarity to David Hasselhoff's. He had seen his persona and familial problems in the teenager a few years ago and had hired her after his interview with her. He hadn't touched her, though. While he was a sexual animal, he didn't have sex with underage girls. His fling, Blake, said something that brought him back down to earth.

"Shouldn't we be listening to the police scanner to see if anything major happens?" said Blake.

"We're near the World Trade Center," said Rod. "The worst that'll happen will be a binder fight in one of the boardrooms."

Blake grinned and they resumed their tryst.

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8:00 AM, a few feet from the Twin Towers.

Riley dismounted from her Harley and looked around. The sky was as clear as it could get. What a day to film outside footage, thought Riley. She fished her digital camera from her purse and started snapping pictures of the Twin Towers. She wanted pictures and footage. She would be doing the same with the Statue of Liberty tomorrow and the Empire State Building Thursday. She had gotten a few people heading to the towers in their cars on her video camera.

"Why are you doing double duty?" said Amanda.

"The landmark structures get special treatment" said Riley. "They're pieces of history and should go on the tape both ways".

"Neat!" said Cassie.

"Start the car, Jen," said Riley.

Jen had done this before. Drive Riley around while filming a huge space. Riley turned on her video camera, got in the car, and soon was halfway out of the van via the skylight. Amanda was in charge of the Harley as the van drove around the Twin Towers. Satisfied with what she had gotten on camera close up, Riley decided she would get some far-off footage with the video camera zooming in later. Her friends drove away. Riley put on her helmet and drove off in a different direction.

I hope I get some good feedback with this one, it's kinda out of the box for me. Tomorrow I have school so I may or may not update, depending on homework. Also, I've had trouble updating another story. Every time I try to post a new chapter, it posts the same one instead. Anyone care to explain how I can fix that bug? Thanks.