ch3 up, and i greatey appreciate the support this old fic has gotten so far:)
plz feel free to voice your opinions, good or bad, thanks--nik
Michael knew the moment he reached out to her that she would back away. He'd seen it coming.
It was expected, but still disappointing.
He sighed internally and almost began to regret writing that letter.
From the looks of things, she wasn't thinking along his lines.
"Look, Michael. This isn't…I mean, what are we doing? What am I doing here?" He heard the exasperation in her voice, and decided to lay the cards on the table.
"I know what you're thinking Sara. I'm a convict, and a fugitive, and you being here too long can only complicate both our lives. But I wanted…needed to see you. I guess in Fox River I let myself be too open, get too close. I didn't know what else to do but try to get in touch with you and…talk. I wanted to tell you that I'll be turning myself in soon."
She looked at him quizzically, almost like she didn't believe him, and then her face showed a mix of sadness, fear, and shock. He watched her move closer to him and give him that look.. damn…THAT look. The look that made him fall for her.
Michael's arm twitched as she brushed her fingers lightly against it before applying pressure, and her expression transformed into what he saw as anger. Her voice, however, was quiet and contained.
"You do realize that you'll be imprisoned for much longer than before. And you may not be sent back to Fox River. Even if you were, I won't jeopardize my job for a doctor/inmate tryst…even with you." he couldn't help but smile at her words. So determined, yet so unsure at the same time.
Michael broke the connection of her hand on his arm and backed a few steps away, his bare feet sloshing into the ocean.
"I'm not asking you to do that. And don't worry, I can get myself back into Fox River. No other penitentiary will want an escaped convict with my experience. Besides, if I'm going to spend 10 years or more in a prison, I'd like to be in that one. You could get to know me, Sara…the real me. There would be no secrets, no lies-just me. I'm not asking you to tie yourself down to a possible future with me. I know it doesn't work that way. But if I did my time I could be free of the obstacles standing between us. Maybe I'd finally get to take you to dinner."
He noticed her glare.
"Lunch?"
"Michael."
"A cup of coffee then." he saw the small grin that threatened to play on her features. His attempt at distracting her with humor was somewhat successful.
She was quiet, and he knew she was thinking. She had her head turned away from him, looking out across the beach.
He wasn't going to let her arrogance get the best of him. He wasn't the type to take no for an answer.
"At least do this, Sara. Stay the night. You can leave first thing in the morning if that's what you want. But just give me one night to know you as you are. A real person, Sara…before we once again have to fall into the pattern of a doctor/patient relationship."
She still didn't speak…it was unnerving him.
This time he really did sigh, and looked away from her back to the sunset.
Her voice surprised and relieved him at the same time.
"I guess…ONE night in Panama can't kill me. I did tell my father that I was taking a short vacation."
With that she smiled at him, turned and walked out to stand in the shallows of the orange ocean, and he knew she was still worrying about what the future held for them.
She wasn't the only one.
Michael did, however, get the feeling that her vacation would last longer than just one night.