There was something about him. Something strange and something very different. I never thought I`d be the one saying that, the perfect little story-book line 'he was so special' and all those cliches.

Except it happened. I met him and I knewthat he was definitely special. It was the way he walked, that look in his eyes, the way he spoke.

He was damaged in ways I had no capability of understanding.

And I loved him. Suddenly. Abruptly. Chaotically.

I loved him.

It rained often in this city. It poured, actually. I never carried an umbrella. I had a car so wherever I went, I just made sure I had on decent shoes for running and didn`t park too far away.

Of course, rain never hurt anyone. I didn`t mind getting a little wet.

It was Thursday. A storm was hanging over the town and the diner was nearly empty. I sighed, pulling my hair over my shoulder and walking to one of the only tables left in the room.

"More coffee, sir?"

The older gentleman nods and I fill his cup. He's a trucker. His semi is parked just around the front of the restaurant. He's worn and visibly exhausted. I doubt the coffee has any effect at this point but I smile anyway at eyes that don't meet mine.

It's slow at this hour. I clean a table and pick up a tip that might have been better off getting left on the sidewalk for good luck. The old man is now the only customer left in the diner. Thunder claps threatenly outside. I head to the kitchen and find Joshua watching TV.

"Emily Woods has now been missing for the second day. She was last seen at Cromdale Park wearing a pink and yellow dress. If you have any information about Emily's whereabouts, it is strongly recommended to call the number below or your local authorities."

The photo of a tiny little girl with blue eyes and curly brown hair on the TV screen makes Joshua sigh and mutter something about how sad it is that people steal children. I put a hand on his shoulder and then watch as the girl's image is replaced by a report on budget cuts.

"Storm's coming in," I say and he stands up, wiping his hands on his apron, "sounds like a strong one."

Joshua looks out through the kitchen and out the front window where black skies stare back at him, "hope that little girl isn't outside somewhere."

I look up at him and open my mouth to say something when the front door opens with a bang causing both of us to jump up.

"Sam, I don't think-"

I've come out from the kitchen to where two men are standing in the doorway, soaked. One is tall with long hair that is plastered down to his head now with the hair. The other is slightly shorter with a cropped cut and piercing eyes. They're both strongly built with broad shoulders, sporting heavy coats and what look like hunting boots. They're not the usual truckers, though. They're younger. Their eyes don't hold the usual lack of sleep. They seem hollow, yet fiercly focused. At a first glance, they frighten me.

"Excuse me, Miss, but would you mind helping us out for a minute?"

My jaw hangs for a minute, unable to formuate a response. It was the shorter one that spoke yet now, as he steps a few feet towards me, I realize he is quite tall and quite intimidating with a deep voice and those protruding eyes.

"Miss?"

I shake my head and swallow hard. "Sorry. Yes, what can I help you with?"

The taller one steps in and places his forearms on the counter, "we're looking for a little girl. She's from around here, been missing a few days. Brown hair, blue eyes. Here," he pulls a picture out from his coat pocket, "have you seen her?"

I turn from the taller man to the shorter one and then look to Joshua behind me, staring out from the window in the kitchen.

"Well, she's been on the news program but otherwise no, I haven't heard anything else. Are you-"

"FBI Agent Dean Jacobnsen and my partner, Agent Sam Randall." The men pull out two badges that indicate their position with the FBI. My eyes widen silghtly and they put the items back in their jackets.

"What exactly is the FBI doing on a missing girl's case in Ceder Falls?"

"Let's just say this is a lot bigger than it appears," the taller agent says.

I nod softly and then shrug my shoulders slightly, "I wish I could help but I really don't know anything. Sorry."

The shorter one smiles and hands me a card, "well, if you here anything, anything at all, you call me. Okay?"

I nod. Then, just like they came in, they turn around and leave. The storm pounds down around us and I head over to the old man's table, filling up his cup once more.

"It's a good night to search for bodies, that's for sure."

I tilt my head and stare at the old man, "pardon me?"

"With the rain and all. Anything sitting around will float right down the river and wash up onto the shore. Cops love these kind of nights."

I swallow, furrowing my brows and feeling uncomfortable for a reason I can't fully detect, "Can I get you anything else, sir?"

Then, he raises his eyes from the notebook he had been reading and a smile spreads across his face, "maybe a little later, sweetheart. Thanks."

I turn, feeling suddenly uneasy, and walk back to behind the counter where I put the coffee back down. The storm is still steady and Joshua is silent in the back. The two men who had come in have long since left the parking lot. Suddenly, this whole place seems too empty and I feel very, very alone. The image of the little girl keeps appearing in front of my vision and the old man's words that anything sitting around will float right down the river and wash down onto the shore are providing the most groteque imagery in my mind.

"Sophia?"

I turn, startled, to see Joshua behind me, "You scared me! What? What is it?"

"I just wanted to let you know that you can start locking the doors. Jim called and said that this storm's going to get pretty bad."

I nod, leaning almost my whole weight against the counter. A strange tiredness has come over me that feels like overwhelming fear. I close my eyes and exhale slowly.

"Are you okay, Soph?"

I nod. "Just tired, that's all."

The sound of the old man getting up from the table makes me turn around. He pulls on his jacket and brings me a twenty dollar bill.

"Any change, sir?"

He shakes his head and pulls on a hat, "no, sweetheart. You keep that. Have a good night."

"Take care." I tell him and he turns, wearing a strange smile that offsets my uneasiness once more.

"Well lock up those doors now. I'll be done back here in just a few minutes then I'll walk you out."

I shake my head, "no, you don't have to do-"

"I insist. Considering there's a missing person right now, this is mandatory the way I see it."

I smile and hurry to lock the front doors and then finish cleaning up the table the old man was at. Thunder continues to clap and from the front window I can see the semi truck exit the parking lot and merge onto the main road.

Ten minutes later and half past eight, Joshua waves goodbye from outside my car door and I turn on the engine, watching him get into his own vehicle. He lives the opposite direction from me in a small house just outside of town with a pregnant wife and a little girl. I put my car in drive and wave goodbye to him as I exit the parking lot, heading west into Ceder Falls.

The rain is pouring down and the wind has picked up. I can barley see as I drive down the highway into town. My windshield wipers can hardly keep up with the intensity of the water and I find myself peering out to try to see in front of me. I turn my headlights as bright as they can go and drive slowly the seven minutes into town.

Then, out of nowhere, I see her.

I slam on the breaks but I can't stop. Hydroplanning, isn't that what they call it? When a thin layer of water is sitting between your tires and the road causing you to just keep gliding like you're on ice or something? I tap the breaks, trying to get some sort of traction, and my car responds. I start to stop but it's far too late. Skidding sideways now, the little girl's wide blue eyes meet mine as I cut right through her into the darkness of the highway.

My car comes to a stop, horizontal across the highway. Panicked, I can hear my heart in my ears and feels tears rolling down my face. Her body had no impact on the car. I felt nothing! Of course, I hit her. I saw her in front of my vehicle, saw her just metres away, and then? Nothing. Her small little frame must had been so tiny that it had no affect on this massive steel frame.

I killed her. Effortlessly. A scream leaves my throat and I can't bring myself to get out of the car. Shaking and crying, I pick up my phone and pull out the card that was given to me just a few hours earlier. I dial the number, even though it's out of area code, and put it to my ear with an enormous amount of effort to keep it steady.

"Hello?"

"Off-officer? I-it's the girl from the diner-you-you said t-to call if I heard-an-anything-"

"Miss, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I-I killed-" The words don't come out. "My c-car-"

"Where are you?"

"T-two minutes out of C-Ceder F-Falls."

"Okay, stay on the line with me. My partner and I are going to be there in a few minutes. Do you understand?"

I let out a weak sound that I understand.

"Can you tell me your name?"

"S-Sophia."

"Sophia? My name's Dean. Now Sophia, can you tell me if you're hurt at all?"

I close my eyes and swallow hard, "No."

"Can you see the little girl at all, Sophia?"

"N-no. I'm in my car."

He pauses, mumbles something I can't hear to someone, "Okay. That's okay. Stay in your car. We're just a few minutes away. Do you have your lights on?"

"Umm-" I swallow, looking out the front window and seeing the reflection of headlights on a wet road, "yes-yes I'm-"

But suddenly there's something else on the road in front of me. In the light from the headlights, I can see a figure coming up from the trees. His clothes are dark, looking worn and hanging off him with the weight of what I can only assume is from the rain. He's wearing a cap, hiding his face. I feel like I've seen that hat before...

It's the man from the diner.

I scream. I try to stay calm but all I can do is scream. I drop the phone, unable to hear what Dean is saying into the line. Shakily, I try to put the car in drive but the damn stick is stuck. I turn to look out the window and see that the old man is closer now, just inches from my window. I think I'm still screaming, locking the door beside me and watching as he raises his arm and brings down a crushing blow to the window with his elbow.

It's at that point that I bury my head in the steering wheel, close my eyes and listen as the sound of glass shattering matches the intensity of my wailing.

Thunder crashes and I fall sideways out of the passenger door. He's pulling me out, dragging me into the rain, and I'm kicking to try to get him off me but he's strong and holds his grip.

"Please-please let me go! PLEASE!"

"Hey-"

I'm crying, punching with arms that are being restrained by hands that seem much too soft to be an old man's, "Please let me go!"

"Sophia, it's me! It's Dean!"

I stop. Slowly, I turn to look at him, this transformed man. "Dean?" He is not wearing a cap, his skin is young. His eyes aren't threatening. He isn't the old man.

I fall limp into his arms and the world grows black around me.