The rain was coming down a lot harder than Chelsea thought it would. Already, it was pouring, obstructing some of the view with both rain and mist.

So much for getting home before it starts...She opened the umbrella and grimaced.

There was only one thing she hated about her work, and that was being rained on. Where she grew up, she was almost always inside, so it was never a problem, but now that she was on her own ranch things were different. When the storms waited until she was inside before tumbling down, she loved listening to the sounds it made on her roof (and she loved that it meant she could go a day without watering her plants); but, she had always hated getting soaked. It was cold and unpleasant, but more than that it was heavy and suffocating. It was far too much like being in the water, which made things worse.

She walked more briskly through town, holding the umbrella close, though it did little good against the wind. The strong gusts tried to wrestle it from her grasp, and it was hard to keep it steady over her head. Because of this, she was unsuccessful in her attempts to stay dry, but right now her top priority was just going to be getting home in one piece. She wondered if Taro had been wrong, if this was the beginning of a Typhoon rather than just a simple rain storm. That thought did nothing to calm her nerves, so she tried to calm herself with assurances that Taro was never wrong, and the storm would lighten soon. Even so, her stomach turned as visibility dropped as she reached Verdure Island.

I'm close to my ranch, she told herself, I'll be fine.

She should have stayed at Regis's. Why didn't she realize the weather would be this bad? Then again, even Taro underestimated how severely it was going to come down. She had thought his "trick knee forecast" to be perfect.

Why did it have to be a typhoon?

She hoped she was the only islander foolish enough to be out in all of this; thankfully the streets of the town were as empty as a ghost town, though admittedly she couldn't see very well how true that was. It was getting darker and darker, even though it couldn't have been past midday. Thunder boomed, she could feel it rattle around inside her as it rumbled over the island. It was so close. When lightning lit up the sky, she startled a bit, but thanks to it's light the town was illuminated again, and she saw with comfort that she was was close to the bridge that led to her ranch.

She considered going to taro's house, rather than risk trying to make it home over a bridge that might be slick and bouncy, but just as she neared their front door, something caught her attention.

She heard something.

No, someone. Who else is out here?

She turned, knowing that sometimes the wind can sound eerily similar to a voice, and looked around. There was nothing that stuck out to her in what she was able to see. Had it been the wind all along?

Taking one last look towards the bridge, she squinted against the rain. Another bit of lightning flashed bright above, and in it's light she caught a glimpse of someone's figure, bits of blonde hair and a white jacket.

Will.

She didn't even have a chance to think about what she was doing before she was running towards the bridge, against the wind and away from the safety of Taro's house. Will was holding onto the rope handrail of the bridge with all of his strength, trying to steady himself. She wasn't even sure if he could see her reaching for him or hear her voice over the rain, but she called out to him and put her hand on his. He turned to face her, and through the rain, clear and pure relief filled his eyes, even if she wasn't completely relieved herself. They still had to cross the bridge.

As things were, they were closer to her ranch now than Taro's home, so that's where she would try to lead them; staying on the bridge certainly wasn't a good idea. Elliot's poor umbrella was blown from her hand in a gust of wind that would surely send it to the ocean, but Chelsea made no effort to stop it. It was hard enough to hold onto it and Will's arm.

"Hang on to me!" she said, hoping she was projecting her voice over the rain. "We're going to my ranch!"

He nodded to show he understood, and they held onto each other. One step at a time, they worked their way across the bridge still in the opposite direction of the wind, fighting the sway and bounce beneath their steps.

Chelsea tried not to think of the fact that the only thing separating her and a cruel sea was a bridge. She'd been told it was a very well made bridge, but she wasn't too keen on testing it's structure herself right this moment, falling into a tumultuous ocean. The unforgiving ocean that pulled at you when you fell in, tossing you about and dragging you further down until-

She closed her eyes tightly. No. Not today. I won't fall in.

With one more crash of thunder, the two of them finally found their footing on solid ground. Still, as they made their way to her home, they held on to each other until Chelsea flung open the door and they both collapsed on her wood floor. The wind from outside closed the door behind them, and for what felt like many long minutes they both sat on the floor, dripping wet and catching their breath.

Woo, Chapter Three's done! Sorry for the delay-finals took me by surprise. This one's a bit short, but Chapter Four will be longer. ^.^ There's much I need to improve on in my writing, which is why I wanted to try writing fanfiction again to practice. If you're here, thank you for reading!