Thank you, LaPaige, for the writing prompts. :)
90. Storm
Thunder shook the walls of the cabin and lightning flashed across the night sky. Rain splattered on the roof and the wind whistled through the closed windows.
Nate sat cross-legged in front of the window, staring up at the clouds like he had been for the past ten minutes, since the storm had gotten worse. Caitlyn stared at him from the foot of her bed, like she'd been doing ever since Nate had sat himself down there.
Finally, Nate turned his head toward her.
"I thought you weren't afraid of anything."
Caitlyn shook her head. "No. There's plenty I'm afraid of. I'm not afraid of storms, though." She scoffed.
"Then why don't you come sit with me? It's beautiful, Caity." He patted the wood floor next to him.
A flicker of something one might describe as fear crossed Caitlyn's face for a short moment. "No."
Nate raised his eyebrows, smiling. "Why not?"
Caitlyn frowned decidedly. "I don't like storms."
Nate just looked at her with the same expression on his face. "You're scared."
"No, I'm not." Caitlyn said stubbornly.
"What scares you about them?" Nate saw right through her.
"Nothing!" She threw her pillow at him. He caught it and continued.
"If it's the sound, I can just cover your ears for you."
"I don't care about the sound." Caitlyn lied.
"If it's the sight, I can cover your eyes for you."
"I'm not!..." Caitlyn protested.
"Caity, I'll protect you." Nate said earnestly.
"I hate you." She threw her other pillow at him.
Nate gazed at her knowingly. Then he stood up, walked over to her bed, and scooped her up into his arms. It was so quick that Caitlyn gasped before yelling "Put me down!"
Nate smiled and leaned toward her face. "No."
Caitlyn narrowed her eyes.
"I think it's cute that you're afraid of thunderstorms."
She scowled at him. He stared into her eyes and didn't blink.
Her poker face crumbled reluctantly. "Really?"
Nate laughed. "Yes. Big, bad, Caity, afraid of thunderstorms. Who would have known?"
She wrinkled her nose. "It used to only be my parents…"
Nate gave her a swift kiss on the lips. "I won't tell anyone." He vowed.
She smiled as he sat them down, back at his spot in front of the window, with her in his lap.
"You're safe right here." He whispered, holding her close, looking back up at the sky.
She sighed, laying her head in the crook of his neck, letting her fears dissolve away.
"I believe you."
I was looking at LaPaige's writing prompts last night and was thinking how I needed to write something from one. Out this came. :) What did you think? Please review and thank you for reading.