Dr. Nicholas Rush (100 Drabbles) Drabble #70- "Storm"

They were definitely lost, and it seemed as if they had taken this path twice already. Trees and bushes were starting to blend in, and it was so tough to try and walk through this relentless storm that kept beating down on them. He could hear her following close behind, even though they were both soaked to the bone and were being weighed down by the mud on their fatigues. If they hadn't been fighting with each other, he would have told her to stay behind. It was too dangerous just for himself to go, but for her to tag along as well? He grunts, as his foot slipped on another mud pocket, and he almost landed face first in the mud. He looked around, as he heard the wind howling, the rain suddenly feeling like needle pricks against his skin. The weather conditions here were just getting too intense and he made the decision to find shelter.

"We have to find somewhere to wait this storm out!"

"But we're so lost! How does a rescue team become lost themselves?"

He heard her question him, but he ignored the comment for now and kept walking forward. There had to be someplace dry that they could simply wait until the storm got more manageable. Hair stuck to his face, in his eyes, as he couldn't even see two feet in front of him. His arm reached back again, grabbing a hold of her fatigues, just to make sure that they didn't lose one another. He already felt bad about the whole chair situation; he didn't want to feel even worse if he lost her. Blinking the rain out of his eyes, he had to take a good long look ahead of him, before picking up his pace. Up ahead, he could see what appeared to be a small cave. It would have to do for now.

"Come on, just up ahead. Just a little further…"

He encouraged her as he heard her panting heavily behind him. He wasn't necessarily trained for this kind of abuse from nature, but she was really having more of a difficult time. He sighed a bit as he finally stepped out of the storm, and stood by the entrance of the cave. She soon stood by him, the two of them watching the fury of the storm just on the outside. He took a good look at her then; she was absolutely soaked. Her boots had water filled to the brim, leaking out on the sides every time she took a step. Her hair was matted on her face and was weighing her down. She was definitely covered in mud, having fallen down quite a bit. He watched her reach a hand up, knocking clumps of mud off her face, before her arms wrapped themselves around her body. It was at that moment that he realized something he hadn't; it was cold.

Looking over at her, he heard her teeth chattering and she kept moving from side to side. He had forgotten, for the time being, that she was partially an alien, with amphibious type skin. Even though those patches of skin seemed to be fairing the water drenching her body, he somehow knew she had to be freezing. He sighed, looking around and finding a stump they could lean against. Reaching his hands off, he unhooked the pack that had been slung around his shoulders. He threw that somewhere to the side, as he sat down on the ground. He grunted in slight annoyance as she didn't move; sometimes, she could be a bit hardheaded. He knew she was still upset with him, but that was no excuse to just stand there, shivering and freezing to death.

"Lily-"

"I'm fine."

"No, you're not. Your lips are turning blue and you're skin is even paler. Clear indication that you're suffering from hypothermia."

"No, I saw the gate just over there. We can make it if we-"

"Lily, we haven't seen the gate for some time now. And it's definitely not just over there. You're disoriented, confused, it's another sign."

"I'm okay…"

"Lilith, I'm serious. Get over here, now. If we sit close together, our body heat will rise and we can increase our warmth. And you seriously need to raise your body temperature. Hypothermia can kill…"

She almost seemed confused, which he told himself, was another sign she was definitely suffering from a moderate case of hypothermia. She took a few stumbled steps forward, finally giving in to his request. Before she sat down, he noticed she hadn't taken her vest off. It was holding a good bit of moisture, and that probably would have to go, in order to better warm her up.

"Lose the vest Lily. It's holding water, it'll just prevent any body heat from coming to you."

He watched her hesitate a bit, almost as if she was wearing the vest to hide something. She finally reached up and started to unzip the vest, before throwing it aside. He noticed the slight swell of her belly, in fact, he had been noticing it more and more. But he assumed it had been a side effect to whatever narcotics those aliens had injected into her system, in order to turn her partially into one of them. He opened his legs as she took a seat in front of him. He leaned back against the log, as he felt her lean back against his chest. He watched her turn more to the side, and felt her arms wrap around his waist. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, and pulled her as close to himself as he could. She was still chattering as they stayed that way, his hands moving up and down her body to try and cause friction, to help the rise in body temperature.

The storm was still going strong as another hour passed, and they had managed to raise a good bit of body heat. She was still soaked, but at least she didn't have blue lips or fingertips. They watched the storm from their dry place within the cave; the wind howling, thunder rattling in the background, followed by flashes in the sky. It certainly was a lot better watching the storm rather than be in one. He looked down, seeing her frown, and get closer to him. He secretly smiled to himself, already knowing of her uneasy fear of lightning. He grunted to himself after another minute, having taken note of the time on her watch.

"We have another hour before Destiny jumps back into FTL."

"What happens if we're stuck here?"

"I don't know. Manage somehow."

"I feel bad that we didn't find Chloe, Eli, Matt or Greer."

"We'll find them eventually; I wouldn't worry. I don't think Young would leave them behind…"

He saw her frown; knowing she still hadn't let go of the time Young left not only her but also himself stranded. If Young hadn't done that, maybe she would have never been subjected to the horrors of those aliens, and what they have done to her so far. He pushed some of the wet strands of hair out of her face, as she seemed lost in her thoughts. As he watched her more closely, he could see new wetness, aside from what was pouring outside. Tears laced her eyes, and he felt his heart get heavy for a moment. Why was she about to cry? He frowned, thinking she was still very upset with him.

"I know I messed up Lily-"

"No, let's not talk about that. Please, just…hold me…"

She had become so vulnerable suddenly, and it made him curious as to why. He pulled her closer to him, so that he was embracing her. He felt her hands go to his, and redirect them to not sit around her waist, but rather, on the swell of her belly. He briefly wondered about the sudden change in her anatomy, but pushed it to the side, his hands moving up and down out of habit. She seemed to physically relax as he continued to do this, and never saw the tears that were now falling down her face. He was watching the storm that still continued on outside. Until after 20 more minutes, it suddenly became calm enough for them to try and find the gate.

"Come on, we have to try and get back to Destiny."

They quickly packed up, and they started in the direction that they assumed the gate would be. After another 15 minutes, they finally found it, just as the storm was picking up once more. Before he could step through, he saw her just standing there, looking back in the direction of the cave. Something looked heavy on her mind, almost as if she was about to tell him something back there. But when she turned around and pushed him slightly forward, he ignored it and walked through the gate. Even once they got back to Destiny, she never told him anything, if there was a secret to be told.

Author's Notes: This drabble ties into my story "Rushing Through The Emotions"