The rain hammered against the car as thunder loudly provided a type of natural background music. Though it was morning, the sky was as dark as the night, barring the frequent strikes of lightning that illuminated the bleak city streets.
Releasing an ungentlemanly string of profanities, Jason pulled his car over to the curb before violently banging his fists against the steering wheel. Of all the days for his car to breakdown, it had to be on not only the stormiest day of the year, but also on the only day Chloe Lane was riding with him.
"I seriously doubt that attacking the steering wheel is going to help fix whatever happened to your car."
"Are you sure? Because, seriously, Chloe, I thought that if I just sat here and threw my fists at it, my car would just magically be fixed. Boy, it sure is a good thing that I have you here to tell me that won't happen."
Rolling her eyes at Jason's bitter sarcasm, Chloe turned to look out the passenger window. The rain continued to vehemently fall from the sky, and Chloe was beginning to wonder just how she was going to get home.
As though he were reading his companion's thoughts, Jason grumpily stated, "My house is only two blocks away. We can walk there and wait for the storm to pass. Then, just maybe, I can get rid of you."
"Gee, when you put it that way, how can I refuse?"
"Whatever, Ghoul Girl, you should just be grateful that I'm letting you wait at my house until this storm calms."
"Oh, yeah, you're a regular humanitarian," snidely commented Chloe as she continued to keep her face turned away from Jason. When Jason did not give his expected scornful response, Chloe turned to look at him - only to find his face mere inches from hers.
For a moment, neither teen could do anything but stare into the eyes of someone who they had, more than two years ago, declared as an enemy. As Chloe's eyes locked with Jason's, the storm raged on, but the world seemed to come to a complete stop.
Breaking the intense lock of eyes, Jason cleared his throat and nodded toward the backseat, saying, "I was just reaching back to get my coat. It won't do much to keep you from getting wet, but it'll help a little."
Nodding breathlessly, Chloe tried to process the words erupting from Jason's mouth. Her thoughts clearing after a moment, Chloe questioned, "Wait - it'll keep me dry? What about you?"
"Don't worry about me. A little rain never killed anyone."
"Then, there shouldn't be a problem with me getting wet so you can use your own jacket."
"Dammit, Chloe! Why do you always have to argue with me? Why can't you just shut your mouth and use my jacket?"
Realizing that getting into a disagreement with Jason wouldn't do either of them any good, Chloe suggested, "How about we compromise? We can both use the jacket. We can just hold it over our heads. Okay?"
"Fine," huffed Jason. "But, I don't see why you have to make such a big deal out of everything."
Grabbing his jacket, Jason hurriedly opened his door and stepped into the heavy rain and harsh winds. Keeping the jacket above his head, he ran around the front of the car and opened the passenger door for Chloe.
As Chloe stood and shut the door, Jason threw his right arm around her and kept her sheltered from whatever rain he could. Part of him was wondering what Shawn, Belle, and the others would say if they saw him actually treating Chloe like a human. Making a mental note, Jason reminded himself that Chloe Lane was his enemy and that he was only being decent to her because he had promised Belle that he would do something nice for Chloe.
Practically running down the street, Jason and Chloe quickly came to realize that Jason's simple jacket did very little to keep them dry. The rain seemed to be trying to assault them and as they ran, they only succeeded in splashing water on themselves from the puddles of water along the sidewalk.
After what seemed like a wet eternity, Jason and Chloe finally arrived at the Masters' home. Quickly running up the steps, Jason and Chloe welcomed the dry sanctity of the veranda. And, as Jason pulled his keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door, Chloe attempted to stop herself from shivering.
Surprising Chloe with his manners, Jason held the door open and let her enter the house first. However, his gentlemanly appearance was tarnished when he began to curse profanely after trying to turn the lights on only to realize the power was out.
Crossing the foyer, Jason approached a small stand. Opening the drawer, he fumbled for the candles, matches, and flashlights that he knew his mother kept there. After a few minutes of searching in the dark, Jason was able to retrieve the desired items and returned to Chloe who had remained standing hesitantly by the door.
Turning on one of the flashlights, Jason handed it to Chloe before turning his own flashlight on. Waving the beam of light in the direction of a set of double doors, Jason said, "The living room is right through there. I'll build a fire and we can just wait in there for the power to come back on."
"Yeah," responded Chloe. "That sounds fine."
Jason opened the oak doors and led Chloe into the spacious living room. "I'll be back in a minute. I'm just going to go out on the back deck and get a few pieces of firewood."
Not waiting for a response, Jason exited the room and left Chloe to anxiously wait for his return while using her flashlight to search for a place to sit.
Within minutes, Jason had returned and wordlessly began to build a fire. And, though Chloe was a little curious about where Jason's family was and when she would be able to go home, she forced herself to remain silent. It wasn't very often that she and Jason were able to spend time together without verbally assaulting each other.
Noticing for the first time just how wet he truly was, Jason said, "That jacket didn't really do us any good. I'm going to run upstairs and change clothes."
Jason was halfway to the door before his more mannerly side took over and he reluctantly said, "I guess you're probably pretty wet and cold, too. If you want, I can scrounge up something for you to wear so we can try drying your clothes by the fireplace. Hell, I'm feeling so generous, I'll even let you borrow one of my blankets to curl up in. Then again, it's not like me and most of the school hasn't seen you naked. But, if you want to be all modest, that's fine. I honestly don't care what you do as you don't bother me."
Chloe didn't bother to dignify Jason's comments with a response as she angrily stomped up the darkened staircase behind him. She silently chided herself for not knowing better than to actually expect Jason Masters to not treat her like dirt.
Reaching the landing, Chloe followed Jason down the hallway until they reached the very last door on the right. After a short moment's consideration, Chloe decided to follow Jason inside. Despite her anger, Chloe was far too cold to turn down warm, dry clothing. However, she told herself that she would surely make Jason pay for his remarks once the storm passed and the sun returned.
Lost in her own thoughts, Chloe didn't see the jersey Jason picked out for her until he had flung it at her and hit her in the head. Pulling the article of clothing away from her face, Chloe sent Jason an unhappy glare that was clear despite the lack of light.
Beaming his flashlight toward an open door across the room, Jason tersely stated, "You can change in the bathroom."
The formerly heavy downpour was beginning to settle into a light rain, and Chloe couldn't be more thankful. She and Jason had hardly said two words to each other since coming downstairs, and the silence was becoming more than a little oppressive.
Seeing that her clothes that had been hanging by the fireplace appeared dry, Chloe reluctantly dropped the blanket she was using to cover herself with to the floor. Avoiding Jason's gaze, Chloe crossed the dark room to retrieve her clothing.
Just as she was passing Jason, Chloe felt something brush up against her bare leg. Screaming in shock, Chloe jumped backwards as Jason jumped to his feet. Bumping into her nemesis, Chloe continued to try and get away from whatever had met up with her leg in the dark.
However, Chloe's panicked attempts to avoid the mystery creature only succeeded in causing her to fall against Jason's chest, which caused him to back into the corner of the coffee table, which ultimately caused the both of them to lose their balance and fall to the floor. Luckily, their fall was somewhat cushioned by the blanket Chloe had left in the floor.
His shirtless body hovering just above Chloe, Jason finally realized what Philip had meant when he continually said that Chloe had the most captivating eyes in the world. Staring down into his foe's pretty blues, Jason had to admit to himself that Chloe Lane was truly a beautiful woman.
However, Chloe's eyes were the last thing on Jason's mind when he heard someone clear their throat from the doorway. Glancing across the dimly-lit room, Jason saw his older brother staring at him with a very bemused smirk.
As though on cue, the power was then restored, and Chloe and Jason's partially dressed bodies were made even more noticeable by the light.
"Now, baby brother, what would mom say if she found you and your girlfriend going at it on the living room floor?"
Her face flushing a bright shade of red, Chloe muttered, "I can't believe this is happening."
Quickly getting to his feet, Jason extended his hand to Chloe and helped her stand before reaching back down to get the blanket so Chloe could once again have more to cover her body with than just Jason's jersey.
"It's not what it looks like, Devon."
Attempting to not laugh, Devon responded, "No, of course it isn't. I mean, just because you are half-naked on the floor with a beautiful girl wearing nothing but your jersey while staring lustfully into each other's eyes . . . . well, I'm sure that means nothing, right?"
"You know that I never wear a shirt around the house. It's not a big deal. And, another thing, she is not my girlfriend."
"Lustfully?" Chloe questioned, giving her usual roll of eyes. " Never would I look at him lustfully. The only thing I will ever feel for Jason is contempt."
Ignoring his older brother, Jason gave Chloe a dirty looked and retorted, "Don't worry, Vampira, the feeling is mutual."
"Good. Now, may I please get dressed?"
"Who's stopping you?"
Releasing a disgruntled sigh, Chloe and the blanket crossed the living room and finally retrieved the clothes from where they had dried in front of the fire. As she was approaching the stairs, Chloe happened to look to her right and notice a very bushy animal that was most certainly the creature that had caused her to scream.
Tossing the Shih Tzu a glare similar to the dirty ones she gave Jason, Chloe dashed up the stairs. She wondered if she would ever be able to forget the embarrassment she had felt when she saw Jason's brother staring at the two of them on the floor.
Entering Jason's bedroom and shutting and locking the door behind herself, Chloe began to change back into her regular clothes, mentally calculating just how long was left before her friends would return from Florida and save her from Jason's obnoxious presence. The answer?
Two horrible, long weeks.
At least, Chloe believed they would be horrible, but when a spiteful love is involved, one can make no assumptions.