A/N: I love these two so much and just had to write a one-shot for them. Maybe I'll end up adding more and make it a collection, who knows.

Title: Of Storms and Men

Summary: Marco is terrified of storms, but he wasn't about to look weak in front of Candy of all people.

Marco wasn't fond of storms. They were loud, the blacksmith's shop became cold, and sometimes he could feel the house shake from the thunder booming over head. It wasn't that he wasn't scared per se, he was a man and men didn't get afraid of storms, but that didn't mean he had to like them either. This particular storm had only just started a few minutes ago when his mother had shut down the shop for the day. Marco wasn't even sure where it came from, one minute he was sitting at the table looking over his wooden sword, the next thing he knew the room had darkened and a loud boom came from over head. He froze in his spot and stared out the window, his blue eyes widened in surprise. "I couldn't even smell the rain today."

"Maybe it's all the water runeys." Candy said from behind him. "They might be affecting the weather."

Marco frowned but didn't answer her, already counting the seconds until the next thunder clash. He wanted to be ready for this one, he didn't want to look like a wimp in front of Candy. It's not like he liked her or anything! Candy was a girl, and girl's needed protection, even from huge rain storms. A flash of lightening lit up the dull gray sky followed by another thunderclap. This one was louder than the last and nearly made Marco jump out of his seat. His small hands gripped the table, his knuckles turning white form how hard he was gripping it. A small soft hand covered his own, and Marco's face heated up as he glanced up to look Candy in the face. She was so close now, he could see the small orange flecks in her amber eyes, and smell the citrus tang of the orange juice she was always guzzling down. Marco could feel his face heating up, and did his best to lean away from the girl."Why're you so close?!"

"Aren't you scared?"

"N-no! Of course not!" He puffed his chest out and jabbed a thumb at his chest. "I'm not afraid of anything, especially a little-"

Ca-BOOOM!

Marco jumped, body lurching backwards and making him tumble to the wood floor. Candy stood over him, a small smile on her lips. "Were you dodging the storm's attack?"

"Shut up, Candy!"