~Chapter 16~ 🥺😌🙄😭
"I'm glad you're okay," Devin breathed, hugging her tightly. He gently supported her weight, asking if she could walk. But as Allison finally managed to stand, the rain washed away the blood, oozing from a little cut on her forehead.
Panic flared in Devin's chest. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her toward the door, reaching into his wet pocket.
Allison watched in stunned silence as he pulled out a key and unlocked the beach house. That explained it. That was why her kite was inside, perfectly whole and carefully looked after all these years.
He carried her straight into the master bedroom—right beneath the window she had tried to climb through before she slipped and fell. Allison sat on the soft mattress where the kite was laid. Wasting no time, he gently tended to the small wound on her forehead.
"Damn it, you fool. Why did you do that?" Devin asked, his voice rough with worry.
"Do what? Try to climb the window?"
"No," Devin replied as he carefully secured the bandage then continued, "disguise yourself as someone else." He wanted to laugh, but only managed a small, relieved grin.
He grabbed a dry towel, draped it over her shivering shoulders, and turned to the dresser. "We can't stay here any longer. I saw your parents with the police, searching for you all over the coast. If they find us here together, you already know what will happen." Devin opened a drawer and pulled out some of his extra clothes. "Put these on. We need to get moving."
Allison let out a soft breath of disappointment. "Oh, come on," she murmured. "I thought we could stay here until morning."
Devin went still, his back turned to her, staring blankly into the open drawer. "Allison... we're not kids anymore."
Allison looked at his tense shoulders, then shifted her gaze away, the heavy reality of his words sinking in. Slowly, she stood up and walked toward him to take the dry clothes still hanging from his hand.
But suddenly, a violent gust of wind slammed into the house, followed immediately by a deafening crack of thunder that roared across the sky.
Allison didn't even realize she had moved until she found herself pressed against Devin's side, her arms wrapped tightly around him, scared to death.
Devin didn't pull away. He held her close, staring out the window at the angry, bruising sky. It felt as though the raging storm itself was telling him that he had endured six long years for this exact moment—just to hold her again.
"Alright, that's not a good sign." Devin muttered.
Wrapped in the warmth of his arms, Allison felt the freezing cling of her wet clothes simply melt away.
As the storm's fury grew, Devin had to reluctantly break their embrace, rushing to secure the windows. Safe inside, they watched the raging winds swallow the coastline, trapping them indoors. Yet, despite its wrath, the storm couldn't shatter the glass sanctuary Devin had built for them.
Devin realized they were locked in, and a sudden, fluttering warmth tightened his chest. The thick silence between them was more scorching than the storm was cold. He knew exactly how much he loved her—he just couldn't bear the thought of another obstacle driving them apart.
"I guess that leaves us no choice, Devin," Allison said with a soft sigh, taking her clothes and stepping into the dressing room.
"Yeah, I guess it does," he said, his eyes lingering on her. "We're here until the sun comes up."
After changing into his clothes, Allison stepped out of the dressing room. "I need to dry my clothes for tomorrow," she said.
"Let me take them," Devin offered, reaching out.
But Allison stubbornly insisted. "No! I can do it."
"The laundry room is downstairs," he finally yielded with a soft sigh. "But anyway, let's eat first. I know you must be starving."
"That sounds good," Allison replied. Her voice was soft and laced with a lingering shyness, the unfamiliar intimacy of the situation still making her uncomfortable.
Miles away, the situation was far from calm. The heavy, devastating winds of a Signal Number 5 typhoon had forced the Ainsleys to completely abandon their search for Allison. Stuck indoors, Anna paced her room like a caged animal. She sat on the bed, stood up, paced the floor again, completely ignoring her phone as it lit up with a relentless barrage of missed calls and messages from Sam.
"Oh God, this is my fault," Anna whispered to the empty room, her voice shaking. "I should have gone with her. At least she wouldn't be alone in this nightmare. Please God, just keep Allison safe."
For Lauren and Alex, history was cruelly repeating itself. They were plunged back into the exact same terrifying ordeal they had faced six years ago, all because their only child always chose to follow her reckless heart.
Yet, while the rest of the world was paralyzed with dead worry, Allison and Devin were completely safe. They were tucked away from the storm, wrapped in the quiet warmth of the beach house he had promised to build for her—a sanctuary she didn't even know was hers yet.
"So, tell me about this house," Allison suddenly asked, blowing on a spoonful of hot ramen.
Devin froze, his chopsticks pausing mid-air. "This house?"
"Yeah. I have to say, I'm impressed. It's grand. Poetic. Dramatic. Honestly, I don't think words are enough to describe it."
Devin let out a careful breath. "You think so?"
"Mhm," Allison chuckled, stirring her noodles. "It looks like the kind of house built by someone planning to get married."
Devin looked her right in the eyes. "I am, Allison."
Allison's heart did a sudden, wild flutter. She quickly looked down at her bowl, trying desperately to hide the blush creeping up her neck, even though he hadn't mentioned a bride's name. Deflecting the tension, she offered a nervous laugh. "Oh, how I missed my best friend."
Best friend? Devin thought, his stomach dropping slightly. Okay, just calm down. It's just a word. It doesn't mean she doesn't feel this too.
"Just imagine," Allison continued softly, filling the silence. "The last time we were together was six years ago. That... that really stayed with me."
A soft, understanding smile passed between them.
"It stayed with me too, Allison," he replied quietly.
"And I'm so happy that you wrote," she said, her voice dropping to a whisper. "It meant you hadn't forgotten about me."
Hearing those words, Devin's smile deepened, filled with all the things he wasn't quite ready to confess.