Chapter 7
Michael sat secluded and away from everyone in his limo seat. He was thoroughly depressed. The only image that kept replaying in his head was the one of Sara and Mr. Collins walking off arm in arm. It killed him. He stared out the window. And I thought that she cared for me. He thought. He scoffed quietly. Figures. The only person that cares for him is my family. He stared out the window without seeing anything, then he glanced at Sara. She was laughing at something that one of his co-workers said. He continued to stare at her, and noticed that although she was laughing and smiling, it looked forced. Her face looked strained, and after she everyone stopped talking to her, her face went to this sad, heartbroken one. She glanced over to him, and he held it for a second, before turning his attention back towards the window. But his head started working. Something was wrong. And he'd be damned if he didn't find out what.
Sara slowly got out of the limo when it stopped in front of the restaurant. The look on Michael's face broke her heart again and again. Every time she saw it, she felt a great foreboding feeling in the pit of her stomach. She could only pray that she would be able to corner him that night, and explain everything.
They took their seats at the fancy table, Sara next to Mr. Collins, who was at the head, and Michael all the way at the other end from them. They all ordered their food, and when it came, Michael just poked at it, not feeling hungry at all. He really wanted to talk to Sara, but she hadn't got up to leave at all yet. Maybe she would follow me, he thought. So he excused himself, and went to stand outside. It had started raining, hard. Michael stared at it, fascinated. It reflected his mood perfectly. The drops were whole, until they shattered on the ground, the drops of water exploding on impact. Just like his heart when he saw Sara and Mr. Collins together. He chanced a glance back inside. Sara was still sitting there, and Mr. Collins was talking to her. She nodded and went back to poking at her food. Knowing that she wasn't going to get up and come and talk to him, he sighed dejectedly and made his way back to his seat. He looked at her face, and she looked distraught. The mindless chatter around him was making him angry. How could they possibly be happy when he was so miserable? Dinner couldn't end soon enough, and they all got up and went back to the limo. Sitting back in the same seat, he continued to stare out the window, completely oblivious to the people around him. He didn't even feel Sara's gaze upon him. She had tried so hard to get up and leave the table when Michael had got up, but Mr. Collins threatened her even more. So she was forced to ignore Michael, and his sad and depressed expression. She was on the verge of tears the entire time during dinner, and they threatened to spill over in the limo, but somehow, she was able to keep her resolve. Back at the hotel, Michael walked behind the entire group, not paying attention to anything. Sara kept glancing back at him, but he was seemingly oblivious to the looks that she was trying to give him. She decided that she was going to go to his hotel room after Mr. Collins went back to his room. That way, she would be able to talk to him. Up at his room, Mr. Collins pulled her forward forcefully and kissed her. Michael saw this and sped up and went into his room, slamming his door. Sara pushed him back immediately, and ran up to her room to change and come back down to Michael's room.
In his room, Michael stood against the door and slowly slid down it, his breathing shaky. He rubbed his head in his hands, but stood up quickly when there was a knock on his door. He composed himself, and then opened it, hoping, but not expecting it to be, Sara. And of course, when he opened his door, it was none other than his good friend Tim.
"Hey Tim." Michael said, halfheartedly.
"Hey. Are you alright? You were really out of it at dinner." Tim asked with concern. Michael paused for a second. "Yea…yea I'm fine. Hey listen, you want to rent a movie or something?" he asked him, forcing a smile.
"Yea, sure." He said. He was concerned about Michael. He had never seen him like this.
"Great. I'm just going to take a quick shower." Without waiting for a response, Michael went into the bathroom and locked his door. Breathing out, he quickly undressed and got in, letting the hot water soothe his troubled mind.
Sara made her way quickly to Michael's door. Taking a second to compose herself, she lightly knocked on the door. Someone opened it, and he looked at her surprised.
"Hi. Is…is Michael here? I uh, I really need to talk to him." She asked him. Tim looked at her for a second. "Yea, yea sure. Hold on a sec." Tim left her at the door, and went over to the bathroom that Michael was in.
"Hey, Michael. Mr. Collins date is here to see you." He told him through the door. Michael sighed and rolled his eyes, mishearing what Tim had said. Couldn't that man ever leave him alone?
"Tell em' I don't want to talk to him right now." He called through the door, the shower muffling out his voice.
"Ok." Tim said to himself. He walked back over to Sara. "He said he doesn't want to talk to you right now." He told her. Sara's face fell dramatically.
"Oh. Al-alright. Tell him I'm sorry that I ever bothered him." She turned away and practically ran back to the elevator, tears streaming down her face. She had done it. Michael no longer wanted her. It was too good to be true, believing that someone actually cared for her. She walked through the lobby of the hotel with her head down, hiding the tears that were still running down her face. She left the hotel and walked outside. It was still pouring rain, but she didn't care. She walked around slowly, and eventually came to a park. It had a little bench, so she sat down on it, the rain drenching her clothes. She shivered. It was freezing outside. But she didn't care. She felt hollow. The only man that she had ever loved no longer wanted her. No one wanted her. She pulled her knees up to her chest and put her head on them, now completely sobbing. She hated her life. Simple as that. Everyone she let in left her. She lifted her head and looked towards the sky, letting the cool rain soothe her burning face. She would leave tomorrow morning. Go back to Chicago, and then move to California. Far away from Michael, and everyone else that reminded her of him.
Michael walked out of the shower, feeling slightly more relaxed, but still completely heartbroken.
"Dude, that girl that you didn't want to see…Mr. Collins date, she looked really sad." Tim told him when he walked into the mini living room. Michael stopped dead. "Sara was here? You told me it was Mr. Collins." He said, his face turning white. If it really was Sara, then he had told her to go away. Not really, but that's what she thought he said.
"No…I said it was Mr. Collins date. What did you do to her? She looked pretty distressed." Tim asked him. Not bothering to answer that, he ran over to the door and threw it open.
"Which way did she go?" he asked Tim. Tim pointed towards the elevator, and Michael took off. Getting to the elevator he paused. He had no idea which room she was in. He decided to go down to the lobby. Hopefully they would tell him. The elevator slowly pinged down, stopping at every floor. He grumbled angrily, and switched stances. He couldn't stand still. It finally reached the lobby, and he practically pushed everyone out of the way to get to the front desk.
"Did you see a redhead down here recently?" he asked the front desk. The man looked up lazily.
"Yea…yea I did. She went outside. She looked like she was crying." He told Michael. Michael's heart lurched. He had made her cry.
"Oh God. Did she have anything with her?" he asked urgently. The man went back to flipping through his magazine.
"Nah, man. She just walked outside. No jacket or anything. It's pouring outside." He shivered just thinking about it. Michael nodded.
"Thanks." He said, before taking off outside. He had to find her.
He ran outside, searching every inch that he could see, hoping that she would not have wandered far from the hotel. His heart sank when he didn't see her at all. Now he had a real problem. Noticing a park to his right, he decided to take his chances, and he ran off towards it. His heart lightened when he saw a lone figure with their knees curled up on a park bench. He walked closer, and sighed with relief upon seeing that it was Sara. He tentiveley walked closer towards her. Her shoulders were shaking, and it made his heart ache knowing that he had caused that.
"Sara." he said, reaching out to touch her shoulder. She jumped and spun around, then scrambled off the bench and away from his outstretched hand.
"What do you want?" she hissed. "Haven't you done enough?" She wrapped her arms around her shoulders. She was cold, and her clothes were soaked. Michael stood there for a second, shocked at how angry she was at him. Then the shock turned to pain. He took a step closer, and Sara took a matching step back. So they were back to how they were after he had broken out. He sighed.
"Why are you here, Sara?" he asked her. "To get with my boss right in front of me?" He regretted the words as soon as he said them. She just stared at him as a fresh onslaught of tears came forward and sniffled.
"You know, this is why I don't give my heart to people. They always smash it to pieces." She said fiercely. "I came here to see you. To tell you something, but now," she laughed sarcastically. "Good old me, falling for everything." Michael took a small step forward, feeling terrible about what he said.
"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it." He said softly. She scoffed and took a step back, away from him.
"Michael, just drop the damn act. Everything with you is an act." She paused. "I really did come here to see you. Mr. Collins threatened me with your job if I wouldn't be his date." She turned and started walking away from him, again. But Michael wasn't having it.
"Sara…please. Wait." He ran after her and grabbed her arm, forcing her to turn around into his chest. "You did that…for me?" he asked her. He felt even more horrible than he already felt. She had tried to save his job, and he had made her feel like crap. Sara nodded.
"Yea. Y-you love your job. It made you happy, and I would rather go on a forced date with Mr. Collins than see you upset. And then I try to come and explain, and you don't even want to talk to me. I'm done. I'm done giving my heart to people who don't want it. I'm done loving someone who doesn't love me back." She told him. Again, she forced herself out of his grip and started walking away. Michael stood there shocked for a second. She did it because she loved him. His heart soared, but quickly came crashing back down when he realized that she was walking away again. Michael ran after her and grabbed arm, and turned her around, but this time grabbed both of her shoulders. She brought her hands to her chest and folded them, staring at the ground.
"Please, Sara, let me explain." He took a breath. "When you came up tonight, I thought that it was Mr. Collins. I misheard my friend. I would never turn down a chance to talk to you. And besides, I would rather have you than this job. Hell, I would rather have you than the best job in the world" He stopped for a second, staring at her face, which was deliberately turned down and away from his. But she hadn't tried to move. Michael took this as a good sign. He opened his mouth to talk again, but Sara beat him to it.
"Why can't you just leave me alone?" she half-whispered to him, leaning her forehead down against his chest. Michael half smiled.
"Because," He put his hand underneath her chin and lifter her face up. "I'm in love with you Sara Tancredi." He stared into her eyes, letting her know that what he said was true. She stared back at him, and then it became too much. She broke down, and collapsed in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and cried into his shoulder. Michael just held her and rubbed her back. Finally, she calmed down. She felt like a weak little girl for breaking down the way she had, but she liked standing out in the rain with Michael. It may be cold, but he warmed her, all the way down to her toes. She turned her head to the side so that her face was facing his neck.
"Michael…" she started, then lifter her head up and stared him in the eyes. "I love you too. That's why I came to Washington. I came for you." She watched his facial expression. First it was shock, but that quickly disappeared to complete happiness.
"You mean it?" he asked, not daring to believe it incase he was hearing things. Sara smiled and nodded bashfully, rolling her eyes in the process.
"Yes, Michael Scofield. I am head over heels, struck by cupid's arrow, whatever you want to call it. But I am in love with you." She watched as his face turned even happier than before, then squealed as he picked her up and spun her around. She laughed happily, wrapping her legs around him and hanging on to him for dear life. He slowed down, but didn't relinquish his grip on her, and she didn't let go of him.
"You have no idea how happy you just made me." He said, staring at her, entranced by her beauty. The moon was behind her, making her glow, and even though she was soaking wet in a white wife-beater and gray sweatpants, and her eyes were red and her face tear streamed, she was beautiful. Sara reached down and closed the gab between them, kissing him with as much passion as she could muster. Michael eagerly returned it. Shifting his grip so that he could hold her with one hand, he brought his other hand up and tangled it in her hair. Leaving her mouth, he started trailing kisses down her neck, and she let her head fall back, breathing deeply. Sara brought her head back up and grabbing his head, made him come back up towards hers. The next kiss being even more passionate than the first, their tongues dancing inside each others mouths. They stood out there for a long time in the rain, kissing and holding each other. Finally Sara's chattering teeth stopped Michael.
"Come on, your cold. Lets go inside." Michael told her against her lips, kissing them between every few words. She nodded, and slowly unwrapped her legs from Michael. Standing up, she made no move to leave, perfectly happy to be standing in his arms, but Michael grabbed her hand, and entwining their ice cold fingers, led her back into the hotel. They made their way to the elevator, getting weird looks from the other guests and the people who worked there, but they paid no attention to them. Michael sighed in relief when the elevator doors opened, revealing no one, and Sara pushed the button to her floor. As soon as the elevator doors closed, Michael pounced back on Sara, grabbing her and pinning her against the elevator wall. Sara laughed, but the laughter quickly died down as she gave into Michael mouth. He tasted even better than he smelled. Slowly she lowered her hand and brought it under his shirt, feeling his well toned chest, and then brought it around to his upper back, leaving her hand there. They jumped when the elevator pinged open on Sara's floor, but made no move to untangle themselves from one another. Sara slowly led them towards her door, still kissing Michael,and reaching in her pockets, took out the key to unlock the hotel door. Kicking the door shut after them, he immediately put his hand under her shirt and placed them on her hips, rubbing light circles on them. That little feat drove her crazy, and she struggled trying to take off his t-shirt without ungluing their lips. Seeing as that wouldn't happen, Michael took his lips off hers for a second while she guided his t-shirt off of him.
"I love you." He whispered, then swooped down and kissed her passionately again. He brought his hands up higher under her shirt, then went back down to grab the edge and lift it off of her. Ungluing their lips again, he took off her shirt and threw it in the corner. "I love you." He whispered again. Sara reached up and locked their lips again, maneuvering him towards her bed. The rest of that night was given to showing how much Michael loved Sara, and Sara loved Michael.