Then.

            "Care for a dance?"

"A dance?" My eyebrows raise in amusement as I fight off a smile, looking at the burly man who's jaw is always clenched, accent thick and deep -- the one who drinks his whiskey straight and thinks crying at movies is stupid -- is asking me to dance.

Tyler nods, raising a pointed finger to the speaker playing You're Still The One throughout the diner. "It's a good song."

But the sound of rain down-pouring drowns it out almost. I smile, watching the sky darken with gray clouds and the rain patter against the cars in the near-empty parking lot. I look back up at Tyler and grab a hold of his hand from off of the table. "I'll do you one better." 

His brows furrow ever so slightly -- eyes glinting with intrigue as I push past the olden double doors, not letting go of his hand until he does. 

And when he does, he drops it so harsh I almost can feel a pull. He freezes in the doorway as his eyes stay fixated on the gray sky, the rain pouring from it and the thunder that practically rumbles the ground beneath us. 

I look up at him, a teasing grin on my face as I take his hand back in mine. "What? You afraid of rain all of a sudden?" 

His face goes white, and his palm against mine goes sweaty and he looks down at me like I have him all figured out and he isn't sure whether to be embarrassed that I figured it out or the matter of fact. 

I can't help but laugh. "How the hell're you gonna chase storms if you're afraid of 'em?" 

He doesn't respond, just works his jaw back and forth while that furrow between his brows deepens with emotion. 

"Come on," I pull him out into the rain with me. "You wanted to dance, right?"

There had only been two or three cars except for Tyler's truck, and it wasn't likely that anyone was going to come to this diner so late at night anyhow. 

You're Still The One is still playing -- even outside, even when I can hardly hear it over the pitter-pattering of the rain -- when I take his hand and place his hands on my waist, while I wrap my arms around his neck, and if it weren't for my boots, I'd likely have to stand on my tippy toes to be able to reach. 

I feel the rain on the open back of my dress, beginning to wet my hair. And I don't know if it's the sight of Tyler's face going from being petrified, eyes worried beyond belief, to almost grinning, or if it's the lightning flashing behind him that makes me smile. 

"Not so bad, right?" I say, eyes glimmering as I sway us back and forth to the music. 

He doesn't look any place but right into my eyes, and the fear gradually leaves his eyes with each second, the color of his face returning when I blink. 

Tyler doesn't speak, but his grip on my waist tightens ever so slightly, a silent reassurance that he was there, present in that moment with me.

The thunder rolls again, closer this time, but Tyler didn't flinch this time. Instead, a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips, his eyes betraying a mix of amusement and relief. 

We're both soaked, hair falling over our faces, but neither of us care.  

"You know," he finally spoke, his voice low amidst the sound of rain, gruff almost. "maybe chasing storms isn't so different from dancing in them."

"Yeah," my lip curls into the smallest of smirks. "maybe." 

His eyes darken, like he has an entirely different motive that crosses his mind.

"What're you thinkin' about?"

He shakes his head so briefly, I might have missed it had I not been so focused on only him. And instead of telling me, he shows me. 

His lips caress mine, so soft yet so desparate and hungry. His hand slides all the way up the side of my body and it finds it's place resting just beneath the corner of my jaw, holding me right where he wants me while our closed mouths say more than we ever could aloud.