Sheridan Crane sat on her couch, staring blankly at the television screen in
front of her. She wasn't really watching, she just needed some sort of
distraction to keep her mind of Luis. Oh how that man infuriated her! Always
trying to control her, and now, of all things, he had been assigned to be her
bodyguard! She had had a hard enough time before trying to keep her thoughts
from drifting to him, and now with him living with her it was near
impossible. An eruption of thunder shook her from her thoughts. She rose and
walked over to the window, pushing away the curtains to see outside. Rain had
been pouring down for the past day, with no sign of stopping. The wind was
blowing furiously, and Sheridan sighed and continued to stare out into the
stormy night.
Luis stepped into the main room of Sheridan's cottage. He stopped and just
took in the image of her, leaning against the wall, her arms crossed and just
staring out the window. He thought she was so beautiful, but all her
stubbornness made him so angry. He didn't understand why she still wouldn't
trust him, after all the times he had saved her, and he still didn't know why
she was so angry with him. He only wanted to protect her; keep her safe from
harm.
Sheridan heard a sound behind her and turned around to find Luis staring at
her intensely. He walked towards her, never losing eye contact. Sheridan
inhaled sharply as she saw Luis coming closer and closer to her. He stopped
right in front of her. She looked up at him, straight into his eyes. No she
told herself. No. I can't let myself fall at the mercy of that man. I did it
once already, and look what happened. She looked away, telling herself he was
just using her. This made her angry all over again. "What do you want Luis?"
she asked icily. Luis was taken aback by her harsh tone, and the pain that
was laced through her voice. He could have sworn that only a moment ago there
had been warmth in her eyes. They were so close, but now, they couldn't have
been farther apart.
I just wanted to see what the storm was doing"
answered Luis, though really, he had just wanted to take Sheridan in his arms
and kiss her with everything he had in him. He looked out the window, and saw
the rain coming down in sheets, worse than it had been. "The storm is
worsening. All residents are advised to stay in their homes," said a reporter
on television. Sheridan looked at Luis with fear in her eyes. The wind beat
against the house so furiously it seemed that the house would fall in. The
wind slowed after a few moments, and Luis saw that Sheridan was shaking with
fear. "Sheridan" Luis put his hands on her shoulders and lowered his face to
level with hers. "Oh Luis. I'm so scared" she whispered in a shaky voice.
"Shh. Its okay" he said, hugging her close to him. They stood that way for a
few minutes, just being in each other's arms.
Luis pulled back and looked
into Sheridan's tear filled eyes. She looked back up at him, unable to stop
herself from falling under the spell of the moment. They leaned towards each
other, their lips catching in a gentle kiss that sent electricity shooting
through both of their bodies. Sheridan's head was telling her to pull away,
but her heart said differently. It was inevitable now. She had fallen in love
with Luis. The realization hit her just as the rainwater began seeping under
her door. The cold water ended their kiss as both saw what was happening. "My
house is flooding" Sheridan said. "We have to get the water out!" The water
was now coming in faster. "There is a flash flood alert in effect for the
town of Harmony. All residents are advised to get to higher ground" could be
heard coming from the television in the background.
"A little late" muttered Luis. "We have to get out of here," he said to
Sheridan.
"Where?" she asked frantically.
"The mansion is up on a hill. We have to get up there."
"Luis, in case you haven't noticed, its pouring out there."
"Would you rather be stuck in here when it completely floods?"
Sheridan sighed. "No"
"Well then, come on." As soon as they had stepped out the door they were
soaked all the way through to their skin. "Take my hand, and don't let go"
shouted Luis over the roar of the pounding rain. Sheridan nodded and took his
hand. Sheridan's cottage sat at the bottom of the hill which the Crane
mansion lay atop, so Luis and Sheridan had to travel uphill.
The water made
the ground slippery, and the rain was coming down harder and faster.
Sheridan's foot slid in the mud and she fell, twisting her ankle in the
process. Luis bent down to help her up finding her face streaked with tears
and mud and her making no effort to get up.
"Come on Sheridan. We have to get to the mansion."
"Just leave me here Luis."
"Sheridan, I will not leave you here! Now come on. The water is rising fast
and we need to get to higher grounds." Sheridan looked up at Luis, then took
his hand, allowing him to help her up.
They pushed their way up the hill, and were about halfway up the hill, when a
torrent of rainwater came splashing down on them, knocking both off of their
feet. They were pushed downhill by the force of the current. Sheridan came up
from under the water, coughing and sputtering, to discover that she was back
at her cottage or at least what was left of her cottage. The water had risen
to the base of the windows and was still rapidly rising. Sheridan scanned the
area as best she could in the dark, as all the lights had gone out.
"Luis" she called out in a shaky voice.
"Luis!" she shouted again.
"Luis where are you?!" she screamed, trembling, not just from the cold water,
but from the thought that Luis might be gone--forever. She had a flashback of
her and Luis kissing in her cottage. That had only been a short while ago,
and now he could be gone. Tears streamed down Sheridan's cheeks, mixing with
the rain. No matter how much anger she felt towards Luis for using her, she
couldn't bear the thought of him being dead. She loved him.
"Luis!" she screamed again.
"Sheridan!" cried Luis breathlessly. Sheridan turned around and filled her
eyes with his image, then threw her arms around him.
"Oh Luis! I thought I thought you were dead!"
"Shhh. I'm here. Its okay." Sheridan clung to Luis, holding him as close to
her as humanly possible. "Sheridan, we have to go now!" shouted Luis, taking
in the rising water around them. By now it was necessary to swim to get
anywhere. Luis grabbed Sheridan's hand and started swimming. "Damn! The
current's too strong!" said Luis.
"Come on Luis. We have to keep trying!" Luis grimaced, then pushed with all
his force against the water. He was seeming to make progress when another
rush of water pushed him and Sheridan back under. When they both resurfaced
Sheridan was clinging to Luis, her head buried in his shoulder.
"We're going to die, aren't we?" she sobbed.
"I..I don't know Sheridan" replied Luis. "But if we do, I have to tell you
something." "What?"
"I love you!" Sheridan opened her mouth, but was silenced by another rush of
water. She came back up, her face inches from Luis's.
"I love you too Luis!" she said, and then saw nothing but darkness.
Sheridan slowly opened her eyes and glanced around. She was in a hospital
room. She sat up and winced in pain as she felt a sharp pain in her head.
"Sheridan!" cried Ethan, entering her room.
"Ethan, are you okay? Is everyone else alright?"
"I'm fine, and fortunately only a few people were injured."
"Ethan where's Luis? Is he okay?"
"He's in the room next to yours."
"How did we get here?"
"You and Luis were found after the storm, by the mansion. Everyone is saying
it's a miracle you survived."
"I want to talk to him."
Sheridan went to Luis's room and found Pilar, Miguel and Theresa by his bed
talking to him. Sheridan approached his bedside. He had a few cuts on his
face, and his head was bandaged.
"Mama," Luis whispered, "would you guys mind if I spoke with Sheridan alone
for a moment?" Pilar nodded. She stopped to hug Sheridan, then she, Miguel,
Theresa, and Ethan left. Sheridan sat in the chair beside Luis's bed and took
his hand.
"You look awful," she said.
"Hello to you too" Luis replied, smiling.
Sheridan smiled back. "I can't imagine I look much better." The smile faded
from her face. "Luis?"
"Hmmm?"
"Did you mean what you said out in the rain?" He locked his eyes with hers.
She felt like he was penetrating into the very depths of her soul, like he
could read every thought that went through her head. He continued to hold her
gaze, replying
"With all my heart." He paused. "Did you?"
Sheridan's smiled. "Yes." Luis sat up and took her into his arms, holding
her tightly to him. She smiled up at him, knowing her life would never be the
same. They leaned in for a passionate kiss, and suddenly none of the pain and
heartache of the last few months mattered. All they needed now was each
other.
THE END
