Will woke up to a crack of thunder. Turning to the bedside table, he touched his phone and groaned when he read 2:00 AM on the screen. Rain splattered against the roof and the sky lit up outside his window as lightning stung the lake. Despite the warm sleepiness that clung to his skin, he shook off the covers and padded downstairs to watch the storm. Glancing around the great room, he realized he wasn't alone.

Skye was wrapped in a blanket, curled up in a corner of the leather sectional as she watched the rain. The floorboards squeaked as Will stepped forward and she gasped, lightning illuminating her startled face.

"Oh my god, you scared the crap out of me!" she whisper-shouted.

"Sorry!" he whispered back, raising both palms in the air. "I just came down to watch the storm, but I'll go back upstairs if you want to be alone."

Skye shook her head. "C'mon, it's your cottage, not mine. You can do what you want." She patted the couch cushion beside her. "You wanna watch with me for a while?"

Her smile wrapped around his chest and squeezed. Pushing the feeling away, he grabbed a soft throw from the blanket box and took a seat on the couch. Outside, the rain beat down, and the trees swayed, persuaded by the growing wind.

"My dad used to love thunder. I was so afraid of the noise when I was little, I'd hide in my closet until he'd come and fish me out. We'd watch storms together, and it made my fear go away."

Will looked at her profile in the dark. "I've been watching storms since I was small. At first, I just liked the big lights and crashing sounds. But now it's more about perspective, you know? I get caught up in my head sometimes. Weather like this reminds me life gets intense, but things calm down again eventually."

They sat in silence for a while, looking out the windows as rain cried down the glass. Saplings swayed in the wind while branches of mature trees slunk lower to the ground than usual, their leaves drenched and heavy with water.

"Will?" Skye sounded shy all of a sudden. "Thanks for having me out here this weekend. I didn't plan on leaving my friends in New York this summer, so it's taken a while to adjust. If you want to know a secret, when Mom first brought it up, I didn't want to come to Reese."

"Really? I hadn't noticed." He laughed, thinking about the scowl she'd worn the first night they'd met. She punched him in the arm. 

"Shut up, Will! Now I'm glad about it, okay? Shel and I have gotten a lot closer, and Josh has a way of growing on you. Like a fungus maybe." She grinned. "And I'm happy we met, too."

He found himself wondering what it would feel like to touch her cheek. "Me too, Skye." Looking out toward the water, he tried to sweep away thoughts of her soft skin under his thumb. Another roll of thunder rippled in the air, and a gust of wind rattled the chimes outside.

"You've been so great, I ... well, I feel like I need to apologize." Skye looked down at her hands.

"Apologize for what?" His eyebrows raised in surprise. There was no reason for her to be sorry.

"It's complicated, but I haven't been entirely truthful with you." The sky lit up like daylight, and her 1 flashed brightly for a second. "Look, there is no condo reno, okay? That's not why we're here." It was like the laughing girl from the bonfire had been replaced with a sad-eyed young woman he didn't know. 

"What do you mean?" Will shifted uncomfortably on the couch.

Her tone doesn't sound right. Something's wrong.

Skye fiddled with her rings again, turning them around and around. "Shelby and her parents know what's going on, obviously, since we're staying with them, but we haven't told anyone else. Actually, we never meant to tell anyone else."

"Okay ..." Thunder cracked again outside. Will wasn't sure what to expect next.

When Skye started to speak, her words came out fast, like water rushing from a faucet. "It's been a ton of pressure to act like nothing's going on. I'm so crappy at lying, and I feel like a loser pretending. It's just not who I am." She pulled her knees to her chest, and her long hair fell in front of her face like a veil, hiding her expression.

"Look, Skye, you don't have to tell me anything. We can just sit here and watch the storm." She was kind of freaking him out. Maybe he didn't want to hear what she had to say. The rain tapped a staccato percussion on the roof, and Will pulled the downy throw a little tighter around his shoulders.

Skye sighed. "I don't think I can keep it to myself for much longer anyway; it's too hard to hold in. I love Shelby, but we spend all our time together, and I don't want things to feel heavy between us. I've been trying to be strong for my mom because she has so much on her mind, but it's tough to carry something like this on my own."

Will sighed. He'd be a total ass to brush her off. Besides, he knew too well what it was like to tend a difficult secret of his own. He'd considered telling someone the truth about himself and the numbers so many times, but he couldn't imagine a scenario where it didn't completely change the fabric of his relationships.

No one could stop the numbers from appearing. No one could change what they meant. And even if someone did believe his story, they'd always wonder what he saw when he looked at them. It would be different if he could use the numbers to help people; but so far, they only revealed decline and doom instead of giving him solutions to save anyone. More than anything, Will envied the numberless normal. So, he wasn't about to reveal himself as different. Telling someone would only amplify his frustration and make him feel worse. 

"Of course, Skye. You can talk to me." Lightning flashed again. Skye's 1 burned deep in its pupil, and a strange sensation started blooming in Will's chest, like an invisible string was snaking out to connect them, pulling him closer to her. He shivered and tried to shake off the bizarre feeling by concentrating harder on her words.

"So, here goes." Her voice broke the spell. "I told you my stepdad was particular, but I didn't mention that he's an abusive prick." Will flinched in shock, and Skye exhaled with a whoosh. "Mom and I left him, and we're staying here for a while to figure things out." Her sigh filled the space between them as Will tried to process what he'd just heard.

"We weren't always like this, you know." She was twisting the ring on her index finger again. "When my dad died, I was just a little kid. Mom and I were on our own, just the two of us, after that." She paused to look out the window. "She's a great mom, but I can see now that she wasn't always happy as a person, you know?" Skye looked a little wistful when she spoke about her mother.

"Anyway, things changed when Mom met Tom. I mean, the guy's as charming as his bank account is large, and when he wants something, he knows how to get it. They married a year after they met. By that time, I was twelve." She bit her lips for a second to stop the trembling, then kept talking.

"It didn't start out badly. Honestly, it didn't. Tom was so happy to see us all the time. I think Mom and I both fell in love with him in our own way. He was so generous, so welcoming, and so proud to have us by his side. I thought ... well, I guess I thought we'd get back a little of what we had with my dad, and I'm sure Mom felt that way, too. Probably more than I did." Her eyebrows knitted together and she shook her head. Thunder rolled.

"The first couple of years were great. Mom ran in pretty high circles already, so I didn't even have to change schools. Tom's company had always done well, but markets changed and things kind of skyrocketed overnight. He was more successful than ever, but it was a lot of pressure -- at least that's what Mom said." Skye shrugged and sighed quietly.

"They started going out more -- there were galas, events and client parties to attend. When they came home, Tom smelled like alcohol. Then he started smelling like that on days he didn't have anywhere to go. After a while, I started noticing him snap at my mom like the smallest things would get under his skin. When he was happy, our life was great; but when he wasn't? Sometimes the things he said were mean."

Will held his breath, afraid to move or make a sound. It was like they were on a collision course, and the story was only going to get worse.

"Last summer, they started arguing at night, just loud enough that I could hear without making out what they said. At first, it was only once in a while, then more often, then every night. I started looking forward to the times Tom worked late. It was just more relaxed when he wasn't there." She kept her eyes on the rain. Will couldn't look at anything except her.

"One night, I was out later than usual with friends. When I came home, they were already arguing. They tried to act like nothing was going on, but I could tell Mom had been crying. I hated him for that." She paused, and in the short silence, Will's heartbeat drummed in his ears, as heavy as the rain driving against the window panes.

"I ... I ... went upstairs but forgot a book in my bag that I needed to study. They mustn't have expected me to be back down so soon." Skye's voice trailed off, her fingertips pushing tears away from her cheeks like she resented them for being there.

"Skye, it's okay. You don't have to keep going if this is hard for you. Shit, I wish I knew what to say." His mouth was dry, making him sound hoarse.

"No, I have to say it. If I don't get it out, I swear I might explode." Her voice was verging on frantic, so Will sat as still as he could and simply listened to her talk.

"When I came downstairs again, I saw Tom's hand on her arm. She was trying to pull away, and for a second, I froze. Then his arm came up so quick and hard and ... and he slapped her face. He slapped my mom's face!" Skye's breathing came in jagged gasps, and thunder rolled again.

Cold fingers wrapped around Will's heart and goosebumps poked through his flesh from forehead to foot as he watched Skye rock back and forth.

"So, I ran in there and grabbed his arm. He smelled like he'd doused himself in booze. I screamed at him to stop, but he wasn't listening. He looked at me ... and his eyes, Will, his eyes had this crazy look like he wasn't even Tom. Then he threw me hard against the wall, and I must have passed out because that's the last thing I remember." Her words hung in the dark air, and they sat, frozen in silence. A flash of lightning projected rivulets of rain from the window onto her cheeks, like nature's tears were falling on top of her own.

Will's stomach hurt. "Skye? ... Skye? I'm sorry to ask, but I have to know. What happened next?"

"What happened next? I woke up in the hospital; that's what happened next." Her tone was bitter. "Mom was there, and the doctor said I had a concussion. He said I was lucky 'cause I just missed my temple when I hit my head. While I was passed out, Mom sold him this lame story about me slipping and falling down the stairs; I couldn't even be mad at her for lying because she looked so freaking scared."

Her 1 glowed in the dark, making Will shiver. Between the accident when she was small, the regular close calls that accompanied daily life and now this, her 1 made terrible, sickening sense. When he tried to swallow, his saliva was thick as paste.

"I'm... God ... Skye, I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's no one's fault except for that bastard Tom. Mom promised me he'd never laid a hand on her before that night. It's so screwed up. But I'm proud of her, too, because she didn't give Tom a chance to let it happen again, to either of us."

Her smile broke his heart. In a million years, he couldn't have guessed all she'd been through. "But how did you end up here, Skye? How did you get away from him?"

"Mom sneaked stuff out of the condo when Tom was at work and we moved to a building with 24-hour security until I finished spring semester. He showed up at my school one day, but the dean had him escorted out and he didn't come back. Mom's phone rang at all hours. He pleaded for her to come back so many times, but she managed to stand her ground. After the semester finished, we said good-bye to the people who mattered most and took off to come here. We still have to figure out what happens next." Running her fingers through her hair, Skye shook her head slowly like she could hardly believe her own story.

"Wow." A three letter word was the best he could do. She'd shocked him. 

"Yeah, wow." She sighed gently. "Why do you think I'm so interested in psychology? I keep hoping to find an explanation for why Tom changed. He definitely abused alcohol, but I keep wondering if maybe his anger was always buried there and we were too vulnerable after losing dad to pick up the signs. I know nothing will change the past, but if I can learn anything about why Tom snapped maybe I can make sure it never happens to us again. It can't happen again, Will. It just can't." Voice cracking, her fingers trembled as she clasped them together in her lap.

"It won't happen again, Skye. You're here now. You're safe."    

"Safe is relative, Will. We're safer, but I don't know if I'll ever feel totally safe again. You must think I'm a total disaster for telling you this. I know I'm a mess." Closing her eyes, she pursed her lips for a moment as tears slipped down her cheeks.

Will looked outside, trying to let his thoughts settle. The storm was calming down, and the moonlight shone softly on the water. It reminded him of his dad's saying, about the dawn breaking after a long night.

"I don't think you're a mess." He took a breath. "Actually, I think you're pretty much perfect."  Will cleared his throat, thankful that Skye couldn't see him blush in the dark. He'd probably cringe when he thought about his words in the morning; they'd come out cheesier than he'd wanted, but he realized they were true.

Thanks to the utterly screwed up universe, he wasn't just getting close to a 1, he was starting to fall for her. Before he could stop himself, he reached out and gently brushed Skye's hot tears away with his thumb. She grabbed his wrist, and he pulled her close, kissing the top of her head. Her hair smelled honey-sweet, and her small hand felt soft in his. Leaning against his shoulder, Skye sighed, and they sat together quietly until the thunder was no louder than a muted growl on the horizon.

"We should probably go upstairs," he said reluctantly. "We're going to be exhausted tomorrow. Uh, I mean today."

Skye looked up at him and smiled softly. "Maybe we will, but staying up was worth it for me." Her eyes connected with his for an extra beat, and her 1 sparkled in the moonlight. "Thanks for listening, and for not judging me. I honestly feel like a huge weight came off my shoulders when I told you the truth." She reached up and pushed the hair away from his eyes.  "And Will? I think you're pretty much perfect, too." Kissing him softly on the cheek, she looped her arm around his waist as they walked up the stairs.

***