Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters – I'm just borrowing them to write a story
Story set after the breakout in season 2
Chapter 1 – First glimpse
Michael stood in the large, imposing doorway; one arm leant against the cold stone wall, the other holding a mobile to his ear.
Come on Sara, pick up, he thought, willing her voice on the other end of the phone.
The rain fell heavily as Michael sheltered in the entrance of the church. He'd seen Sara there every Friday evening since his escape from prison – he'd spent the first few months keeping a low profile since Lincon's and his exonerations. He knew they were free men, but while Linc couldn't be more open about the fact he was an innocent man, Michael was unable to forget what he'd had to do to achieve it for them; the people he'd hurt.
Michael knew the route Sara took to church and the exact time she turned up. She stayed half an hour before taking the same route back to her flat – a ten minute walk. It wasn't that Michael didn't want her to see him, it was just that with all that had happened - Sara's overdose and rehab stint – because he felt responsible for it all, he had no idea how she felt towards him. He'd sent the origami birds to her and he knew she bought them to church each week because she would take them out as she sat in the back pew, holding them in her palm. Her actions in that at least gave Michael a sense of hope.
The phone went to voicemail for a third time before Michael gave up. It was an hour past when she was normally at church and Michael was unnerved.
Why isn't she at church? If she's not at church or at home, where is she?
Too many thoughts clustered inside his mind so Michael stepped into the rain to clear them – he found that as the rain washed away the dirt of the day, it also cleared his mind, restoring clarity and control once more. He decided to walk the route back to Sara's flat in the hope that she merely hadn't heard the phone, or didn't want to answer, and he might catch a glimpse of her in the window. He wouldn't have said hello if she had picked up, just hearing her voice would have been enough.
So now he stood in the shadow of Sara's building, looking up at the dimly lit third floor window. A light on indicated she was there, but Michael needed more than that. He waited another twenty minutes until finally he saw Sara walk across the room. He knew her figure by heart – her silhouette was as beautiful to him as ever. It took every ounce of strength he had not to run up the steps and reveal himself to her, but his head told him to wait. She's not ready, he told himself, she needs more time,he convinced himself as he turned and walked back towards the centre of the city. Because even if Sara was really to see him, he knew deep in his heart that he wasn't.
Sara watched Michael's retreating figure as she counted to twenty. That was her technique when she wanted to act irrationally. Ten wasn't long enough. By the time she got to twenty Michael had disappeared. It's for my own good, she told herself, you're not strong enough. Yet Sara knew, like Michael, that if they were to meet, she'd have no idea what to say to him.