1Hey guys, thanks again for reading! When you review, please let me know if you think it would be a good idea/would like it if I made this story into a very long one, working on it through the hiatus, it would really help me out a lot. Also, this chapter was heavily influenced by a song called 'I Can't Make You Love Me' by Bonnie Raitt. It would be a really cool experience if you would download the song from me (it's uploaded to http/s37. and press play when the story says so. It's a pretty long song, but it would be best to keep it playing until you've finished reading through the end, so you might want to put it on repeat. Thank you so much for reading!

Chapter 3

Sara parked her car within sight of the treehouse she'd grown to love over the years. It was massive and sturdy, and sat amongst the branches of one of the big and old oak trees that were scattered throughout the park. She recalled loving the robin's egg blue trim of the windows the very first time she saw it at age nine; she wished she had one just like it for her very own in her backyard. Her father obliged, of course, and one was built for her... it, however, lacked the majestic beauty that this refuge epitomized.

But Sara wasn't there for the treehouse.

She glanced around the parking lot, feeling completely exposed to her surroundings. The beeping as she set her car alarm seemed much louder than it was, and she jumped. She breathed deeply to calm herself, and decided it was best to continue doing so to calm her nerves as she made her way toward the tree. Eyes darting, searching for his familiar face, she walked slowly and softly, almost tiptoeing, so as not to disturb the perfect scene of nature laid out before her.

PLAY SONG NOW!

In front of her, the sole streetlight in sight flickered; she watched it, willing it to become bright again, but instead the light died out and she was left with the stars. There was no moon in sight that night, and Sara noticed the stars more than she had before; briefly, she allowed them to calm her, to comfort her and to give her the strength to move along. She made her way down the final stretch of the walkway leading up to the tree, and found herself at the bottom of the ladder attached to the trunk.

Craning her neck upward, Sara tried to see through the walls of the treehouse, wanting to know if he was there waiting for her. She placed her right foot on the first rung of the ladder, and prepared herself for the physical and mental climb she was about to embark on. Her head hung down, her eyes closed, and she entered a world where she was alone to concentrate on her journey. Her chest heaved deeply, willing her nerves to subside, letting her melancholy state take over.

Her body felt heavy, and she couldn't lift her other leg to climb the ladder. Instead, a flood of tears gushed from her eyes, and she sank to her knees, holding herself. She felt that if she let her grip on her sides go, she would float off into oblivion if her sorrow and tears hadn't weighed her down.

Just as Sara felt she would melt into the Earth and no one would notice, strong arms encircled her body, comforting her, warming her, encouraging her to sink into them and never look back. When she realized these were not her own arms, she jerked away, feeling threatened. She stood and spun to face her attacker, and found herself staring straight into the deep blue-green pools in the eyes of Michael. She had to look up to meet his eyes, forgetting how tall he was. He towered over Sara, with a look of concern on his face, reaching out to touch her arm. His touch was hot, and at that moment, unwanted. Afraid, she hurriedly backed up three steps, crashing straight into the humongous girth of the oak's trunk.

"Sara..." he said. Her name, from his lips, was emotional poison. "Please. Please, Sara, don't be afraid of me."

Her whole body trembled as she attempted to speak. She stared at him, shaking, his eyes prying into her soul, wanting to be let in again. Slowly, Sara's breath came back to her and she became angry. She took an assertive step toward him.

"What are you doing here, Michael? Why did you come back? I was finally starting to be able to deal with what happened." She stood two feet from him now, questioning him with her stare. "Answer my question, Michael- Why?"

His signature gaze was now caring, not the one she usually saw from him when he was dodging a question she asked. "I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what, Michael? You were, or should I say are, a prisoner, and I am a doctor in that prison, that is it." He was quiet. "Right? Right, Michael? THAT'S IT!" She reached out and pushed her hands against his defined chest, catching him off guard. Michael stumbled back a few feet, and he did not fight back. Her hands dropped to her sides in defeat. She felt one lonely teardrop slide down her cheek, and drew her eyes toward the ground, not wanting to let him know she was effected by his stare.

"Sara... you know that's not it, and that's why you're crying and staring at the ground." Michael pivoted so his left side was to her, and lifted his head upward toward the sky, white thermal shirt glowing in the starlight. At that moment, Sara was terrified of him and how he made her feel. The way the light of the stars hit his face made him look angelic. He was beautiful. "I came back here for you. I want you to come with me. To Cancun."

"Cancun?" He looked over at her, his jawline clearly defined and reminiscent of a Greek god. Sara's eyes met his and she wanted to give in to her heart and believe him. She was nervous, and held his gaze only for a moment before looking up at the stars, giving him the chance to marvel in her beauty. "So you're basically on spring break?" He smirked, as did she. This was them, not the lunatics they'd been in the preceding minutes.

"Something like that, only I can't be happy... because you're not there," Michael admitted.

"How can you come back here, after all your lies and deceit, and say these things? I know you used me, Michael. I know you did." Again, she looked down.

"I had to follow the plan, but I didn't count on you being the doctor."

Sara sighed loudly. "I don't know what I'm supposed to feel right now, Michael. I really don't."

It was his turn to look toward the ground, and he did so willingly, turning back to her and shortening the distance between them. He lifted his long arms, placing one on each of hers, again showing his height. "Sara, I'm here because I would rather fight with you and feel like hell for what I've done than even think about making love to anyone else." He looked at her, begging. "Please come."

They stared at each other for what seemed like a lifetime, each silently questioning the other about everything, but mostly the meaning of the inclusion of their relationship in each other's lives. Michael took a step in, making the distance between them dwindle to mere centimeters. He placed his large hands on either side of her delicate yet steadfast face, and tilted his face. Sara closed her eyes in preparation, but his lips lingered above hers, tickling her with his breath.

And then, their mouths melted into each other, their feelings transferred from one to the other through hot breath. Her hands fluttered up to his face, trying to remember it with her hands. His moved to her waist, circling around her and drawing her in close to him. Michael pushed her back against the tree and deepened their kiss; he wanted this to be what she would always remember him for, not his lies or fake diabetes.

Then, as quickly as their embrace had begun, it was over. Sara's hands moved to his chest and pushed forcefully, making him stumble backward again. "How could you?" she muttered, and turned to leave.

As she walked away, Michael ran after her. Thanks to his long legs, he caught up to her quickly, grabbing her arm and stopping her in her tracks. "Sara..."

"Let go of me, Michael. Just let go," she whispered, looking away. "Please."

He used his hand to gently bring her face around to look at him. "I know I can't make you love me, but I can try."

With that, he let go, and was gone.