Chapter 5 The Storm

Mrs. Nelson parked at the curb of Hannah's house.

"Thank you for the ride Mrs. Nelson."

"No problem Hannah it was a pleasure meeting you."

"Mom I'm going to walk Hannah up."

"Okay Ty."

Hannah and Tyler approached the door as a bolt of lightning flashed over head. Tyler saw Hannah jump. He could see her hand shaking when she tried to put the key in the lock. He took the key from her and unlocked the door. It was dark inside the house. He put a hand on Hannah's shoulder and could feel her trembling. He flipped the light switch on and looked at her. She was terrified. There was a flash of lightning and then the house went dark. Hannah screamed. Tyler could hear her heavy breathing. He felt his way around to where he had last seen Hannah standing.

"Hannah it's okay. It's only a power outage. You're going to be okay." Tyler spoke softly to her as he put a hand on her arm and felt his way to a couch. He sat down beside her and put an arm around her

shoulders. He felt Hannah's shakings and when thunder roared she leaned against him. He enveloped her in his arms and ran a hand down her back as he spoke soothing words to her. He surprised himself when he heard himself draw in a breath as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

'Come on Tyler she's scared. Don't think about it. The gesture doesn't mean anything. Calm down.'

He could feel his heart begin to beat faster. He could hear her muffled cries as she hid her face against his shoulder. Hannah looked up at him moments later. He could see the tears on her cheeks, he brought a hand up and brushed them off her cheeks as her ran his knuckles down them. She had soft skin. Felt like silk. He brought his hand back suddenly realizing his gesture and the thoughts that came with it. Her shaking was subsiding.

He glanced down at her a moment later and saw her eyes closed and heard her gentle breathing. She had fallen asleep in his arms her head resting against his shoulder. He sat holding her in the darkness trying not to think for fear of doing something he might regret. He suddenly felt very aware of her and couldn't miss the attraction he felt to her now. He leaned his head back against the couch and closed his eyes. Tyler's eyes quickly opened when he heard a key turn in the lock. He glanced over at the clock. It was 11:30 he had been asleep with Hannah in his arms for 2 and ½ hours. He let out a heavy sigh. He smoothed her hair back from her face.

'She is so beautiful even in her sleep' Tyler thought to himself. She opened her eyes when he ran his knuckles down her cheeks. Tyler smiled at her. The lights came back on suddenly. Hannah pulled away from Tyler blushing when her mom came into the room. Tyler rose and extended a hand to Hannah's mom.

"Hi, I'm Tyler nelson. I hope you don't mind that I stayed here with your daughter. It must look really alarming for you as a mother to come home and find a strange guy alone in your house with your daughter. I'm sorry. She just seemed scared and all and I couldn't leave her here scared and alone with no lights" he explained.

"No, no I'm glad you did. Hannah has told me about you and how you helped her and befriended her during her first week. It means a lot to her and I can't thank you enough. Would you like to stay for some hot chocolate?" Mrs. Parker asked. Tyler looked over at Hannah who smiled at him.

"Sure, why not?" Tyler agreed. When Mrs. Parker disappeared around the corner Tyler sat beside Hannah. She turned to look at him.

"Thank you Tyler. I know this must've looked pretty weird. I'm sorry." She glanced down embarrassed. Tyler tipped her chin up and gazed into her eyes. He was surprised at the sudden rush of emotions he felt. "Hannah, don't worry about it. It was fine. I don't think any less of you."

'I think the world of you' Tyler thought. He quickly pushed the thought aside. Hannah blushed under Tyler's gaze.

"You're so pretty when you blush Hannah." Tyler whispered as he lightly stroked her cheek. He quickly stopped himself and pulled his hands away. A heavy silence hung between them until Mrs. Parker arrived with 3 cups of steaming hot chocolate.

"So Tyler, tell me about you?" Mrs. Parker asked him.