JURASSIC PARK

This story takes place after the events of the first and second movie.

San Diego was a peaceful city in California…well it was busy, but peaceful and beautiful. Today though the skies were dark and rain seemed to loom upon the civilians in the city who were rushing about trying to finish whatever objects and activities they needed to get done. In a small apartment, ten miles away from the zoo, paced a tall and flustered Ian Malcolm who was currently trying to decide whether or not to shoot himself in the foot multiple times with a stun gun just to see what the odds would come out to. In the master bedroom was a young woman with frizzy red-brown hair who was rattling off about different subjects as she packed a small, leathered green bag with clothes that had accumulated over the years she and Ian had been together. Her tan work clothes from the zoo were dirty and her boots left small smudges on the carpet that really needed to be replaced soon or else the tenant was going to start throwing fits. Ian sighed and closed his eyes for a moment as he tried to tune out the fly buzzing in the window sill. There was a cat outside that was taunting a dog, the car horns outside reminded him of New York when he taught that seminar a year ago, someone was blasting music through their stereo either in the apartment next to him or above him and-

"Ian god damnit will you listen to me?!"

Ian spun around, his leather shoes twisting easily on the carpet as his black button up shirt was hit with a flying shirt. He ran a hand through his short black hair and tossed his glasses on the couch. He looked back up at the frustrated woman in front of him, holding two bags in his doorway, a lost expression on her pretty face.

"I'm trying to Sarah but I-I don't know where to begin when you keep interrupting me. You- you keep accusing me of cheating on you but I'm not-"

"I saw you with her! In daylight Ian, at the park I saw you. If I had access to the cameras I'd present them in court! Save it Ian. Just save it. You know if you listened more to the people around you instead of just existing in your own world you may learn something new. Your chaos theories were going to hell anyways." Sarah moved past him heatedly, tossing the two bags on the couch to accompany the other one, Ian threw his hands up as she moved to the kitchen. He stared at the ceiling for a moment before moving through his apartment to where she was, "You can say what you want Ian but I'm going all right?"

"I listen just fine! I have the University crawling up my ass every second about kids dropping and coming into my classes and Kelly's choosing to go live with her mom in a few months all the way in Colorado and Hammond's will keeps eating at me everyday even though I promised to not take it-"

"Right, blame it on your job. That's what you seem to be doing best at. Always, 'oh I have to stay late for the next four days grading papers' even though tests are over because it's a new subject! What the hell are you doing at the University Ian? Playing checkers?! And don't even bring up Kelly, she's growing up and Colorado is better than living here with a dad who doesn't give her the time of day except when he comes home at eleven just in time to say goodnight! Really Ian, it's not that big of a surprise!"

"At least I don't-"

"Don't even say it!" she chucked a shoe at him and he ducked, watching as it landed on the wall and left an imprint. Sarah chuckled in frustration and pinched her nose, "God, you're a piece of work. Excuses every day it seems. We can't even sit through dinner without an argument these days, and you know what? I keep forgiving you, thinking it's just your job."

"Sarah please. You know what happens every time we do this; just stay, save us both the taxi fare." He joked, offering a crooked smile but Sarah just glared at him. He picked up one of her shirts on the floor that she usually used to dry dishes and she took it from him softly and tossed it to the couch on a bag that Ian was beginning to really hate, "Come on Sarah. Please, be rational…or at least think about it."

She leaned against the counter as Ian stepped closer, she put a hand on his chest and pushed back softly, her green eyes shining slightly under the lights and she dropped her head. Ian reached out and tried to wipe away the tear that threatened to fall.

"Ian-"

"Sarah, I'm listening now. Please, just stop and think about what you're doing. What am I supposed to tell Kelly? She loves you, matter off act she's the one that pressured me into dating you in the first place-but then again she probably did that to get a little hero worship in on her small brain and-Ow!"

Sarah retracted her hand from Ian's chest which had stung him right through his shirt. The look of pain was gone from her eyes and she gave a disbelieved huff of anger, her eyebrows knitted together and she jutted one hip out.

"So dating me was pressure?"

Good going Ian, YOU IDIOT.

"Sarah…that's-that's not the way I meant it to come out." He held up a hand and Sarah pushed passed him going straight for the couch where her things were. Ian groaned, "This…this is what the chaos theory was modeled after-Sarah wait!"

Outside the sky loomed darker than the previous hour as Sarah walked to the taxi she had called when she came to Ian's. Ian followed behind her, dressed in all black and fitting in with the sky perfectly. He didn't want her to leave, he truly loved her. Loved her smile, loved her stubbornness on most topics they argued about. He cared about her; especially after what happened four years ago…Ian reached out softly, pulling Sarah closer to him as she tossed her bag in the trunk.

"Sarah, please…don't do this." He lifted her chin up with a finger; she sighed and reached up, giving him a soft kiss on his cheek. He closed his eyes and felt something tug in his stomach, "Sarah please don't do this. I love you-"

"It's best for both of us. Fresh air is good, time apart is healthy okay?" she traced a finger around the scar on his neck from four years ago. An unexplained feeling shivered through her and she retracted her hand from him quickly. He frowned and raised an eyebrow, "Ian please. After what happened with…everything, you pulled away and neither Kelly nor I could reach you. I don't want to be the next ex-Mrs. Malcolm, I really don't. We both have our careers set out for us…so…if you need me call my agent in Africa."

"Sarah!"

She stepped away from him with a sad smile and got into the taxi. Ian leaned into the open window, something inside of him flaring he held up a hand as the taxi started the car.

"Wait-wait-wait okay? Come on Sarah I'm-I'm on my last boat here. Please think about what you're doing to us-to me."

"I have my ticket for Africa. I'm leaving soon Ian. I'm sorry. Take care of yourself okay? God knows you forget to buy food for yourself."

"Sarah."

"I'll call you soon, don't tell Kelly yet." she rolled up the window and he was forced back from the glass, the curb behind him nearly tripping him. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he watched the yellow taxi pull away from the curb of the apartment and disappear down the street. Above him, rain began to fall and grey clouds grew darker as the sun began to go down. He felt the icy hot drops of water his face as he stood still. He was a black figure on a cold sidewalk with rain that felt like acid on his skin. He sighed and looked around, spotting people closing their doors from the coldness sweeping through the air.

"Yeah…Yeah." He sighed to himself and turned, walking back into his apartment and climbing the stairs ignoring the memories of when he first brought Sarah to his place and he geeked out telling her where the wood on the banister came from.

Ian scoffed and entered his living space, closing the door behind him with his foot as he undid his damp shirt button by button until it was hanging loosely by his sides. He clicked the lights off, drew the blackout curtain shut and sat down into his couch flicking the TV on and letting it drone out the silence and emptiness around him. He looked around and spotted a picture of him, Kelly and Sarah in Hawaii when Kelly decided to take up surfing. He laughed and set the frame back down. God, he had been so scared for Kelly, even more scared when Sarah took Kelly windsurfing the next day.

He should have seen this coming, Sarah was right she always was usually. After Sorna and the Zoo fiasco he had pulled away from everything. He was just tired, tired of dinosaurs attacking him in his dreams and tired of having to fix what Hammond had created. He retreated into his University and seminars like Alan Grant had done after Nublar, he stayed late after school hours just for the hope of not passing the zoo on the way to work where the Park was still being torn down bit by bit.

He hated seeing it on his way to work, despised it if it was lit up while it was being taken apart. But Sarah…after Sorna and the zoo she had delved even further into paleontology and archeological digs. She disappeared for two weeks once without a word and when she came back she had loads of research in her bag about dinosaurs she had accumulated. They had an argument, a large one where they didn't bother talking for a month when she brought up interest in scoping Isla Nublar where the first Park was built. He had blown up, anger seething through him like none other. It wasn't so much that he was angry about her interest, he was afraid she'd go anyway and he'd have to face his nightmares again trying to reach her. Ian flicked the channel to shark week then flicked it to an episode of CSI.

So they both were unequally matched. Her interest in returning, his strong need to not return and to protect her from the monsters that had evolved rapidly and ha, reproduced. Ian folded his arms across his chest as he closed his eyes softly. As for the accusing of him cheating on Sarah…that was only partially true and an incredibly taboo subject he had deemed. It wasn't the fact that the girl was younger than him it was the fact that she was one of his students and Alan Grant's daughter. Call him crazy but he knew Grant despised him somewhat and if he knew…he'd be facing the dinosaurs again against his own will and Alan would watch him from a helicopter.

Angela Grant, one of his brightest students in his classes who had jumped a few grades due to her mother's smarts. He probably wouldn't have noticed her or even gave her a second thought had she not come up one day after school and introduced herself. After that she had taken interest in his chaos theories and had opinions of her own. She had questioned his findings and he had questioned her sanity but they seemed to at least become acquaintances. She wasn't Grant's biological daughter but Ellie's from a previous marriage, Angela had said she preferred living near Grant than her mother because they seemed to have more in common. And they did, even though they weren't biological Ian could see Alan in her, in the way she spoke and the way she surveyed situations and asked questions. She even wore a red bandana on her wrist that Ian recognized from the one Alan wore to Isla Nublar the first time. She was a pretty twenty two year old senior, short brown hair to her shoulders and brown eyes that smiled for her…and she was experienced in the art of Tae-Kwon-Do that he had the displeasure of experiencing when he approached her in the parking lot. His wrist felt broken time to time even though she had only sprained it back then.

As for the actual 'cheating' part that had come much later when he had run into her coming out of the library at ten o'clock finishing up a paper he had assigned. They had a late dinner at Denny's as a way for him to make up as an apology. She was swamped with homework and he had known it but Grant's daughter or not it was still a class assignment. After that they'd meet a few nights a week for a late dinner after she typed essays and he finished grading.

Then one night, when Sarah was all the way in India taking pictures of tigers he had asked her out on a formal date to a restaurant he had found. She had accepted and their night had ended in a rather intense make out session. Even when Sarah got back they'd still have dates, without Angela knowing Sarah was with him, and then he started to purposefully flunk her so she'd be forced to get a tutor which could only be him since no one taught the chaos theory anywhere else. The tutoring and Skype sessions really killed the both of them and before Ian knew it he had two women on his arms which, back in college was his M.O. but this was far beyond different and more difficult to balance. Angela was quiet and considerate and never bugged him but that bothered him. Why would Sarah start getting suspicious yet Angela not really giving a damn? Ian sighed; they're so hard to understand.

Women.

BRRRIINNGGGGGG!

Ian jumped up at the screeching sound of the phone ringing as rain pelted the earth from outside. Snapping out of his reverie he grabbed the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey dad, it's Kelly."

"Kelly, sweetie how are you? Are you going to come visit before you head to uh, to Colorado with your mom?" he smiled at the sound of his kid's voice, relaxing back into the couch as she rattled on about nothing and boys, sometimes…sometimes he wished that Rex had eaten him.