[ WARNING. This chapter will contain implications of suicidal thoughts and a possible suicide attempt.]

CHAPTER TWO.
CHALLENGE ACCEPTED

It was precisely 2 years after the EF5 ripped through Kit's world that she decided she couldn't stick around Oklahoma anymore. She couldn't take having to drive under the overpass where she watched her friends die. She couldn't take the pitiful looks she received when she walked around her neighborhood. Worst of all, she couldn't take having to see Connor and Addy's parents, who watched her when she walked by. They tried to talk to her and tell her that it was okay. She couldn't do it. Being around them? It reminded her that Connor and Addy should have been the ones to survive, not her.

Everything was too much. She wasn't "Kit Lainey, the future country star!" anymore. She was the girl who survived a tornado and watched the people she loved die. Everyone knew it. Kit didn't want to be that girl; she couldn't be that girl. She needed to leave.

Her parents tried to convince her to stay the day she decided to go. After hours of arguing back and forth, they both realized she wasn't going to. So when they couldn't convince her to stay, they tried to persuade her to go to Tennessee. It's where she had been planning to go; she could still go now. No matter how long it had been since Kit had even hummed a note, her parents were insistent that she not give up on her dream.

Kit didn't want those dreams anymore. Even more than that, they felt impossible to achieve. With a hand that had nerve damage so bad that it made it hard even to strum a guitar, and the memory of the last time she sang when she was holding on for dear life. Her dreams faded away - or instead she shoved them down so deep that she could pretend they never existed. So no, she wasn't going to go to Tennessee. She wasn't going to be a star. Kit didn't know where she was going to go or what she was going to do. All she knew was that she needed to leave because she couldn't survive here any longer.

....

When Tyler Owens met Kit Lainey, she was stuck on the ledge. It wasn't a literal ledge, but it might as well have been, and Tyler became determined to pull her off of it.

The Wranglers were headed back to Arkansas. Tornado season was basically over, and until it returned, there wasn't much left for them in Oklahoma. They stopped at the gas station, Boone claiming he needed "fuel." He was out of snacks, and with a six-hour drive ahead of them, everyone knew that they had to stop, or they were going to spend those six hours listening to Boone complain about how hungry he was.

When he walked into the gas station, his eyes were down on his phone. He was scrolling through the comments of their last video. His eyes narrowed as he saw some that weren't exactly what he'd call compliments. Labeling them as "Reckless Idiots," who were "Going to kill someone someday."

Dani did what she could to keep track of their accounts, but with 500 thousand followers, it wasn't easy to handle alone, and she preferred handling the Wranglers' merch and marketing. Tyler couldn't really blame her; reading the comments made his head hurt.

"Come on, man," A voice brought his attention away from his phone, and he glanced up. "You're telling me that there are no more buses coming tonight? It's barely midnight." He stepped out from behind the rack of candy he was behind and looked towards the counter. His eyes landed on a woman, probably in her mid 20s. The cashier groaned and shook his head at her.

"I told you, lady, you're out of luck, " he snapped. "Bad weather is about to hit, and there won't be any more buses until probably Thursday." Tyler heard the girl curse and watched as she shook her head before storming out of the building, leaving her snacks behind. Tyler walked towards the counter, grabbing a soda from the cooler before pushing it towards the cashier. His eyes didn't leave the door through which the girl had left.

"I'll pay for the lady's stuff too." The cashier didn't say anything; he just nodded. Tyler paid before picking the snacks up and walking outside. His eyes wandered, trying to find where the girl had gone. There she was in the short distance, seated on a bench alone. Her head was in her hands, and he could hear the small sobs she let out. He paused and looked back at his team, who were heading back outside, but then he went with his gut and stepped towards the girl.

Kit had had a plan, she was supposed to be gone by now. Instead, she was sitting on a dingy bench and crying. She didn't notice when Tyler approached, or even when he cleared his throat. She only noticed when suddenly he reached his hand out, offering her the snacks she'd left.

"You..." Tyler trailed off. "You forgot your snacks." Kit looked up at him, and their eyes met. Tyler felt completely awkward, not even sure what he was doing. All he could tell was that this girl needed help, and helping was what he did best.

"I didn't pay for them," Kit's voice was quiet, and he shrugged.

"Don't worry 'bout it." Kit hesitantly sat up and took the snacks from him, a wary look still on her face while she wiped her tears. She was trying to pretend that she hadn't been crying.

Tyler took the time to observe Kit. Her right hand was shaking consistently, even as she sipped the soda he'd grabbed for her. Her eyes looked tired and empty.  He recognized that look. His eyes flickered in concern and he hesitated before sitting down next to her on the bench.

Kit stiffened but didn't say anything. Her eyes remained glued to her shoes, hoping that maybe he would just get up and leave. He seemed nice enough but Kit didn't need nice right now and she couldn't let him know what she was considering. Tyler seemed to sense it, because he sat up a little straighter before he spoke softly.

"You alright out here?" Tyler said it before he could stop himself, unable to continue to  hide the worry in his voice. Kit stayed silent. "I heard ya talking about needing a bus?" The woman shook her head.

"I just need to leave; I can't wait until Thursday." Kit ran her left hand through her hair, tugging on it roughly as she did. "Don't worry; I'll figure something out. There's always a backup plan" She mumbled the last part and Tyler's eyes narrowed. Kit was being careful with her words, but Tyler could read between the lines and tell that there was something very wrong going on.. His looked over at her again, watching the way she stared at the ground like she wanted it to swallow her. A pit felt like it was forming in his stomach. All the signs were there.

"Thanks for the snacks, but you can leave me alone now." Kit spoke after a moment. She glanced at Tyler for a moment.

Tyler paused. He could leave her alone. It would be easy to walk away and let her be. If he were anyone else then he might have, but he is not anyone else . Unfortunately for the girl in front of him who wanted to be left alone, he wasn't anyone else.

"I could," Tyler acknowledged her words. He didn't walk away; instead, he leaned back on the bench, resting his arm on the back. He spoke causally, but there was concern lining his tone. "But why do I feel like I'm going to regret it if I leave?" Kit froze but didn't respond. Tyler watched as she swallowed harshly before standing.

"I should go," Tyler grabbed Kit's arm, and she pulled it away instantly as if she'd been burned. She glared at him, and he put his hands up. "Don't touch me." She went to walk away again and Tyler began to spiral. How did he fix this?"

"We have room for one more,"  Tyler called out, his heart beating loudly against his chest. It was an offer he didn't know he could make until he'd give it. Kit stopped; she turned her head slightly to look at him.

"What?"

"You need a ride somewhere? We have room for one more." Tyler didn't notice that Boone had walked toward them and was now looking at him confusedly.

Kit stared at him, trying to decide if he was serious or not. Truth be told, Tyler was figuring that out, too. He didn't know what he was doing, but wasn't taking back the offer. Something was happening to her, and he wanted to help.

"You're a stranger, " Kit said bluntly, crossing her arms across her chest. Tyler knew she had a point. They had met barely five minutes ago, and he was offering to let her catch a ride with him. He opened his mouth to respond, but Boone beat him to it.

"Hell, we're not strangers; we're on YouTube, you know? Half a million followers," he grinned at her, nodding his head, not exactly sensing the tone of the situation. Apparently, that somehow worked because the girl cracked a smile. "Tornado Wrangler's baby!"

The girl's smile fell at the sound of the word "tornado," and Tyler didn't question it.

"We got room in the truck, don't we, Boone?" Tyler looked at him, moving on from the mention. Boone caught on immediately and nodded.

"Oh, hell yeah, we always got room. Especially for a lady as pretty as yourself." His voice shifted towards flirtation, and Tyler rolled his eyes. "I'm Boone. This is Tyler." His friend clapped him on the back and then walked towards Kit who had stepped towards them a little.

"I don't know where I'm going, " Kit admitted. She didn't give her name, but she took another step closer. "I don't exactly have a plan," Tyler shrugged.

"Are you any good at social media?" It was a shift in the conversation, but Tyler had a point. She needed a place to be, a place to go. The Wranglers had an opening.

Boone finally seemed to understand what was happening, so he bolted towards the rest of the team for a quick second. Tyler could see them nodding in the corner of his eye, and Dani was walking towards him within a minute.

"I ain't bad at it. What does that have to do with a ride?"

"Our team needs someone to manage our accounts. Comments, blocking, photos, meetings. That kind of stuff."

"You're offering me a job?" Kit seemed surprised as she spoke slowly, and Tyler nodded.

"Hell yeah, he is," Dani leaned forward, smiling at the girl. I need help, and these losers won't do it." Tyler rolled his eyes and shoved her lightly. Dani laughed. Tyler turned back to the girl. She seemed hesitant but hopeful. "What do you say?"

Kit  paused for a good 30 seconds. She bit down on her lip. Tyler wanted to know what was going through her head. More than anything, he wanted her to say yes and let him and his team help her off the ledge she was clearly on.

"My name is Kit," she took a step forward towards him and Dani. Boone wasn't far behind, and he had a beaming grin on his face. 

"That a yes, Kit?"

"It's a very hesitant..yes." 

The words left Kit's mouth, and Tyler grinned. Boone let out a cheer. Kit's stomach twisted in anxiety, but the way Tyler was smiling comfortingly at her made her feel a little better.

Honestly, Kit didn't know if she was going to regret this. God, she didn't even know what she was getting herself into. They said the words Tornado Wranglers. She recognized that name. Storm Chasers. What the hell was she doing getting involved with chasing again after what had happened last time? Almost immediately, she wanted to take her agreement back.

It was a bad decision. The last time she'd gone chasing it had resulted in so much pain. It lived in her mind. The remembrance that if Connor hadn't convinced her to come with them into the storm, he might have saved himself, and he would still be here. Instead, he was gone. It was just her. Well, Javi and Kate too- but Kit hadn't talked to them in ages. Kate always ignored her calls, and the last time Kit had spoken to Javi? He told her not to call him for a while. So really, it was just her.

Kit was always one who was there to make good decisions. But what was the point of making good decisions if you were always alone? She was at the end of her rope, and she was slipping, but Tyler was here, opening his doors wide and inviting her in. She followed alongside his team, moving towards the vehicles. Her phone buzzed and she paused to look down. An Unknown number flashed across the screen.

Kit's heart beat quickly while shs stared at  the number. It was an unfamiliar one, and part of her had hopes that it was Kate. Maybe it was her, after all this time. Or, maybe she was building herself up for disappointment. She could call.back, but when she tapped her screen, her other tabs flashed in front of her. A picture of her and Connor had come up. Suddenly the feelings she was having earlier overwhelmed her. If Tyler hadn't been watching her, she might have turned and left. She would have found herself in a downward spiral.

Glancing between her phone and the trucks of the tornado wranglers, Kit bit down on her lip. She wasn't okay, she knew that, but she also didn't know if that was something she was capable of feeling again. Still, as Tyler called out her name, calling her over, she closed her phone. She stuck it in her pocket and she took a deep breath. This was a new chance and she needed to take it.  She looked up at Tyler nervously and he grinned right back at her. There was a sense of relief in his eyes that Maisie didn't recognize.

Boone threw his arm around Kit's shoulder as he introduced her to the rest of the team, and she blinked in surprise at the affection. One by one, she learned everyone's names and heard as they welcomed her onto the team. Kit didn't know why these people were offering her a chance. It didn't make any sense to her.

Tyler was going to take the chance on her. He'd talked her off whatever ledge she was on for now and offered her a place in his family. She'd accepted. Whatever she was running away from, the Wranglers would be a place she could run to.

"I should mention, I'm not really good with storms." Kit wouldn't explain the reason why, probably not ever. They didn't seem to care or question it. Tyler only opened the truck door to let Kit and Boone in.

"Don't worry. We'll make you a storm chaser!" Boone nudged Kit, and she raised her eyebrows a little. There was a hint of a smile on her face.

"Yeah, I'd like to see you try."

Kit climbed into the vehicle and glanced around. She was really leaving Oklahoma. Whenever she used to think about this day, it was to go to Tennessee. That seemed way too far in the past now, and it caused her chest to ache at the memories. Was this why Kate had left? Did she leave because of the pain that Kit was feeling now? It was a question she had that she doubted would ever be answered, so she tried not to think about it. Kate was gone, Javi was gone, and now it was Kit's turn. So she looked out the window as Boone rolled it down and pulled her to lean out of it at the same time Tyler spoke.

"Challenge accepted, Kit."

note.
shorter chapter but also i'm going to try and write another one tonight. i almost just made this one longer but i felt like it was more important to show this part where she's joining the wranglers rather then jumping right into the movie. you'll get more background on her relationship with the wranglers as the story goes on.
again, i hope you enjoy! again, please vote and comment!!!
- c.j