A/N: Honey, I'm home!

Alright, here's another chapter for y'all. This is the first one in a while that I actually like. Especially the second segment. Can you tell I went to the beach yesterday? ;)

And I just want to say Thank You to every single one of you, whether you're one of the lovely people following this fic or one of the equally lovely people who review it. I don't think I say that enough.

Disclaimer: Francisco… Fraaancisscooo… Frahncisssco.


The bombs are loud, much louder than they've ever been before. She gets up, her eyes heavy, and hears him yell her name. A small squeal escapes her as she stumbles down the stairs, and she reaches out her hand, blindly searching for him. The house is falling down around her but she doesn't know it.

She hits her foot on something and screams his name, quietly. He doesn't respond, though, and her heart stops along with her feet. She calls him, louder this time, and he says her name. The tone of his voice, however, suggests he doesn't know where she is and probably didn't even hear him. Her arm scrapes against something she swears wasn't there before, but she shuffles on regardless.

Her feet are suddenly standing on moist soil, but when she moves forward she finds a large chunk of stone blocking her path. He's calling her again but she doesn't know where he is. Then, and only then, she realizes the cold air should have only just hit her. But it didn't, it hit her about three minutes ago, when she hit her foot. She was still inside when it did. Which only means one thing. The house has been hit but the bomb hasn't exploded yet.

Her nails feverishly drag across the concrete slab in front of her and she hears him scream this time. Her name mixes itself with a strangled cry, and she knows he's torn between staying with her or keeping alive. So she calls out to him, to go, with all she's got. And she hears a sob then heavy footfall and thinks he must have been nearer than she'd thought.

But he's gone now and she has to work out how to escape. Her attempts cease, though, when another chunk of rubble falls and pins her to the dusty ground. It hurts. And then, amidst the screams and the cries and the loud noises, she holds her breath as she hears a muffled sound.
Tick. Tick. Tick. .
Boom.


The concrete turns to pebbles, and the pebbles turn to sand, and the sand turns to- nothing; everything. The surprisingly warm air contrasts with the icy cold grains against her skin as the vague breeze swirls her dress round her ankles. Insistent ripples are protruding from the ground in seemingly formidable shapes, but she finds them crumbling beneath the balls of her feet. Her toes squelch as the khaki earth turns to deep brown slush; the tide's been here recently.

She just keeps walking, the lack of sleep not fazing her even as the sun rises a little more and stains the sky a baby blue. Only when the water is seeping underneath her feet and cooling her down even more, does she stop. She likes this beach.
It's long and straight and seemingly endless. The sand pales to a ghostly white when you put pressure on it. Footprints are tiny and unidentifiable. You can be who you want and change what you desire.
The waves continually ebb and flow and never stop. There's only one constant noise of the sea, never loud or violent or separated. The tide is always so far away it feels like you're in a different world when you do reach it. You can be who you want and change what you desire.
It's never too hot or too cold and you can alter that however you please. Nobody goes out that far and never that early. The shadow on the horizon looks just that little bit impossible. You can be who you want and change what you desire.

He finds her not ten minutes later, and she hears him meters away. His feet line up with hers, the perfect distance from the tide to catch the dregs of an extra-long wave. She hears him sigh deeply yet contentedly as he hooks her hand in his, and she half wonders what the matter is. Then, he does nothing for a while. Just stands there next to her, looking out across the sea during which time his thumb begins to sway and brush against her knuckle. Eventually, he speaks. Just four little words. She doesn't turn to face him and he still just stares out at the horizon. But she doesn't think she's ever known anything so small to stun her so much.
"Will you marry me?"
She hesitates only momentarily as she realizes she has no reason whatsoever to refuse. So she accepts, never having been so sure of herself in all her life.


Just like that, the memory's gone. And fearful, blank, nothingness replaces it.


A/N: If you press that review button, all your dreams will come true! Maybe.