The wind was really picking up. I ran as fast as I could to the lighthouse steps and pounded on the door.
Oh man, I thought, I recognize this storm. I can hear Felicity now: "Unrequited love has driven him mad is all," I said aloud with my pretty darn good impersonation of Miss King herself. I couldn't help but smile.
The wind howled again and I pounded on the lighthouse door once more. It was so cold!
The door swung open and I seized my opportunity to escape the cold and dashed inside.
"Hey!" yelled Gus, "What's this?"
I turned around to see Gus Pike standing there with his long johns slightly unbuttoned and that awful beanie on his head.
"I'm sorry, sir," I fumbled, suddenly out of breath-most likely from seeing Gus in a rare state of undress. "It was so cold and I was lost!"
"Well, no wonder you're cold- what are ya wearin'?" Gus asked, eying my ragged state.
I looked down at my jeans and snow-covered toms.
"I-uh," I started, "I'm not from around here." Yep, that makes sense.
Just then someone began to pound on the door.
"What's all this commotion about?" Gus whirled around to the door again.
Holy crap. I really am in the story!
"Please!" A woman ran through the door shouting, "I need sanctuary! I'm in grave danger and there isn't much time! Hide me, you must hide me!"
"Wow. That was even more pathetic in real life," I said aloud.
"Huh?" poor Gus was confused out of his mind. Two strange women had just barged into his lighthouse in the middle of the night.
"Uh, help me hide her!" he said to me. Together, we pulled the trunk back to hide her in the secret-rum-storage thing. I grabbed Gus by the shoulders and said,
"Look, Christopher Reeve is going to be here in like two seconds, you've got to get out of here!"
"What?! Look, you better tell me whats going on!"
The door burst open and in came the man himself.
"I told you!" I said to Gus.
"Where is she? Or do I have to snap you in two?" Reeve threatened and gave Gus a shove.
"Why don't you just get out of here?" I shouted, suddenly feeling rather emboldened.
He slapped me with the back of his hand and I fell backward.
"Hey!" Gus yelled, "you can't treat a lady like that!"
He gave Gus a good punch to the face and shouted,
"You can't hide forever! I'll chase you to the ends of the earth if I must!"
As soon as he was gone, I ran to Gus- he had got it worse than me.
"Oh gosh, are you alright?! I'm so sorry, that was my fault."
He sat up and looked me right in the eye.
"No, I shouldn't've let him touch ya," he reached up to touch the hand print on my cheek. I grabbed his wrist in a burst of discomfort.
"What about her?" I signaled to the secret door. We got up together to pull the trunk back.
"This is where Cap'n Crane used to store rum and money," Gus explained.
The ever-charming Gus is at it again, I thought as I watched him.
"Miss?" he pulled the woman out from the door. "He is a mean piece of work, that gentlemen," Gus said.
"Rutherford's a monster," Amanda announced, shoving her pointed shoe back on to her stockinged foot.
"Gus! You're bleeding," I piped in before Miss Stone could. I knew where this was going and for some reason I knew exactly how Felicity felt. I didn't want that hussy putting her hands on Gus. I picked up a rag lying on the steps and dabbed his forehead.
"It's nuthin, ma'am," he whispered to me, looking at my face so intently. I looked down before I got too red.
Wait, this is all wrong! I thought.
"I best get going," Miss Stone said from behind us, "He might come back!"
But Gus didn't take his eyes off my face. I couldn't help but become glued to his own. It was as if their airy greyness wanted to tell me a story. Amanda must have run out, and in her place came three eager faces. When they saw us, they stopped dead in their tracks.
"Gus Pike!" I heard Felicity say, and I realized my hands were on his shoulders. I dropped them and turned around.
"Who is she?" Felix asked. Sarah gave him a shove for it. "Ow!" he let out dramatically.
"I, um," Gus couldn't seem to make out any words. Either that, or he just didn't know my name. Realizing I had never told it to him, I held out my hand to the children and said,
"My name is Emma Foster," I stood for a moment with my hand extended, and the kids just looked at it.
Gus turned to face me and took my offering slowly.
"Gus Pike," he said, still staring at me.