WHEW! This chapter's a doozy (by MY standards) and has almost left me with carpal tunnel as it took me an hour to write, lol. Eh, it isn't the most exciting chapter, but I was inspired by the song "The Ocean" by Mae (great song!) to write it. Anyway, a quick thanx to all of you for getting me to 100 reviews, you all rock! I'm not just saying that either, without you guys or your encouragement I doubt I would've made it to chapter 2, seriously! lol So as a reward, here's chapter 28! R&R and enjoy!

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28

I sat in the darkness of the hawk's abandoned cave, waiting for my body to allow me to sleep. I was so worn out from everything that had happened over the last twenty-four hours that I thought it would be easy to doze off in the quiet of the small cave. But it wasn't. My mind was filled to the brim, and it was keeping me awake. So I made a quick decision.

Quietly I crept to the edge of the cage and peeked out to make sure it was clear. I didn't know what to expect really, or even what I was looking for, but I had learned in my life to never take chances. Slowly I let my wings unfurl and felt a cool breeze drift through my feathers. It felt so perfect, so calming, and so peaceful. I didn't want it to stop, but it did after a few minutes, and I let out a small sigh.

A second later, I stood at the edge of the cave, wings at their full span, and let myself freefall towards the ground below. It was such a rush, feeling the air ripple through my feathers, and I knew it was just a taste of what I was going to experience in another second. About twenty feet from the ground I let my wings carry me up a bit, taking my whole body in a pattern that swooped upwards.

Then I really took off. It only took a moment of thoughtless flying and I was traveling at what must have been three hundred miles an hour. And it was fantastic! I soared higher and higher until I was just below the cold December clouds that had thickened the sky during the course of the afternoon. They felt wet against my skin and wings, and I shivered a bit, then glided back down a bit. Now I was about a hundred feet above the treetops, completely clueless of where I was. All I knew was that I was flying west. My senses told me that much.

I watched as forests and mountains passed below me, the beauty of Colorado. Then I passed right through a cloud that had gone a little too low. It was icy cold and made my teeth chatter, but it wasn't a big cloud, and soon I was back out in the open calm of night, watching the world soar beneath me at twice the speed of a professional racer.

It must have been about an hour later when I saw something not too far away on the horizon, something big and blue. The ocean. I smiled as I remembered how the flock and I had traveled to the ocean on the other side of the continent not too long ago, how we had basked in its warm waters and played with the sharks when we found out Angel could breathe underwater. It was so much fun remembering this that I decided to go back.

Gently I let myself slow to a stop until I was just a mile away from the ocean. I could already smell the water emanating from its rippled surface as the wind brushed against it. I skimmed along a few more treetops, surprised to see no houses or towns in the vicinity, and then dropped to the edge of the water below me.

The shore's cool sand formed softly around my shoes, and I removed them to let my bare feet touch the surface. My toes sunk in between the small grains, relieving me of the pain in my legs that had followed me all day. I let my wings drop to the ground and felt the sand brush against my feathers, washing away their own pains. This was definitely going to be remembered as the most perfect moment of my evening.

I walked slowly along the beach, feeling the cool breezes wafting through my hair. There was a spot about a half mile down the beach where I decided to rest, sitting on the soft sand with my legs straight out in front of me. The ocean water lapped up against the soles of my feet, and I was surprised to find that it was almost warm. Not warm, mind you, but almost warm.

I must have been sitting there for a full ten minutes when I started feeling drowsy. I wanted to just fall over and go to sleep right then and there, but I knew the flock would awaken the next morning and panic with me being gone. So with a feeling of longing to stay there, I pulled my wings off the ground and shot upwards into the night sky.

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It took me at least another hour before I was in sight of the cave. My mind told me to go back and try to sleep, but my wings thought otherwise. I circled the small forest beneath the cave for a few minutes, trying to find a spot to land. Then I found it. Nestled in the center of the forest was a small pine tree that hadn't yet been covered in snow.

Gently I lowered myself down through the treebranches until I was hovering just above the ground. I noticed surprisingly that the ground didn't seem to have been touched by the snow, and then figured it was because the trees above were so thick, they stole it all. Darn trees.

I landed next to the beautiful tree and leaned back against its cool bark. Next thing I knew, I had flopped onto the ground with my back still against the tree. Everything was rushing back to me. Every painful memory I ever had, every sad memory, every heart-rending, soul-crushing memory I had. All of it was crashing in on my mind, and I felt warm, salty tears streaming down my cheeks. For a second I wished it would rain so I could feel warmth against my skin.

Whether by some new power I was discovering or by strange coincidence in the middle of December, it started raining. A low, deep rumble of thunder traveled through the clouds as a light wash of warm rain silkily journeyed through the treebranches, battering its tiny droplets against my skin.

It felt so refreshing, and the rain mixed with my tears, creating a waterfall that erupted from my eyes. I wasn't even making a sound, not like when I normally cried. I just sat there thinking about everything as tears and rain rolled down my face. I made another hopeless wish that someone were there with me. Someone that could help me, someone that would be a sign, someone that would…

"What are the chances of rain at a time like this?" A voice called from above me. I lifted my face from where it was buried in my jean legs to see Fang hovering down next to me. Well I didn't rub a magic lamp. Do I still get a third wish? I almost laughed a bit at the thought as Fang sat down next to me with his legs stretched out.

"What are you doing up at a time like this?" I asked softly, a tiny hint of a smile spreading across my face.

Fang leaned back against the tree and sighed. "I could ask you the same thing." He looked at me and we both laughed.

"I'm glad you're okay."

"So am I." Fang smiled and turned his head back to look up into the sky, the rain gently drumming against his face. "What happened back there?"

I thought about telling him, I really did, but I was just too worn out to talk much tonight. "Oh nothing important. I'll tell you in the morning." And that was that apparently. Fang glanced at me again, then turned his head up and closed his eyes.

We sat in total silence for a few moments, and then Fang spoke. "You were crying before the rain started." I looked at him, trying to pretend like he was crazy. But we both knew the truth. "What's wrong?"

My mind was filling with the bad memories again, and I stifled a few weak sobs in the back of my throat. "Nothing. Really, it's nothing."

But that wouldn't cut it. Fang reached out and put his arm gently across my shoulders, and I let him pull me closer. His jacket felt so warm against my face, and immediately I lost it. I was sobbing and crying uncontrollably into his chest, and all the while he endured it, quietly patting my back and leaning his head against mine. I felt so pathetic, sitting her bawling like a baby as Fang merely watched. It was almost embarrassing, but then Fang whispered into my ear, "it's okay. I don't mind."

It took a few more minutes before I had regained control and was back to just a few heaving breaths. I still had my face buried into Fang's jacket, and he was rubbing his hand against my shoulder. I looked up at him and noticed his eyes were half-closed and staring right at me.

"I'm sorry, Fang," I said quietly, still fighting back a few sobs here and there. "I'm so sorry…I just…"

Fang brought his other arm around and put his forefinger softly against my lips. "It's okay. Sometimes it's okay to cry with somebody by your side." I almost lost it again. I had read Fang's blog before, but this was unbelievable. I had never heard him saying anything like this in front of me. It was like a dream, and I thought of pinching myself just to make sure. "I should've learned that a long time ago. But I've been hiding too long."

"Fang…" I said. I brought my arm around his shoulders so we were locked in a warm embrace. "Fang," I said again, "I want to tell you something." This was insane. I couldn't believe I was actually saying anything. We could've just sat there and fallen asleep peacefully, but noooo, I went and broke the silence. Well, it was too late at that point. "I just…I want you to know…I…"

But something happened. Fang whispered, "I know," and leaned forward. His face came closer to mine until we were a mere inch apart, then he kissed me. His lips met mine and instantly my mind was spiraling. It was like everything I had always seen in movies, but nothing like I had ever truly felt. So I let it last. I brought my hand up to cradle his head, and he did the same to me.

Okay, scratch that thought a ways back. This was definitely going to be remembered as the most perfect moment of my evening.