The roar of the engines was nothing compared to the storm building on the horizon. Dark clouds twisted, shaping themselves into an ominous wall of fury. The team sped down the highway, everyone focused on their screens, tracking data, trying to predict the storm's next move. But in the quiet moments between updates, Faith found her thoughts drifting to Tyler.
She had always been good at compartmentalizing her feelings. Storms were science—predictable, measurable, something she could control with enough data and understanding. But Tyler Owens? He was a different kind of storm, unpredictable, reckless, and impossible to ignore.
As she sat in the back of the StormPAR truck, her eyes flickered to the rearview mirror. There he was, trailing behind them in the Tornado Wrangler truck, probably with that cocky grin on his face. She hated how easily he got under her skin, hated how even now, when she should be focused on the task at hand, she couldn't stop thinking about him.
Tyler had always been a thorn in her side, but lately, something had shifted. Beneath the teasing and rivalry, there was... something else. She hated to admit it, but his confidence, his fearlessness—it was starting to intrigue her.
"Faith?" Javi's voice cut through her thoughts, pulling her back to the present.
"Yeah?" she replied, turning her attention to the screen in front of her.
"We need to get ahead of this storm. It's picking up speed, and if we don't move fast, we could lose our window."
Faith nodded, her fingers flying over the keyboard as she pulled up more data. "Got it. There's a better path if we cut across Route 7. It'll give us more time to set up the radar."
Javi glanced at her, trusting her judgment without question. "You heard her, let's move."
The truck veered off the main road, the team working in sync, but Faith's mind wandered again. She couldn't help but wonder what Tyler was thinking, if he was as focused on the storm as she was, or if his mind was drifting like hers.
In the Wrangler truck, Tyler had his eyes on the storm, but his thoughts? They were with Faith. He could still see the fire in her eyes from earlier when she told him off. She always gave as good as she got, and he loved that about her.
"What's the game plan, T?" Boone asked from the passenger seat.
Tyler grinned. "Follow StormPAR's lead for now. Faith's got instincts. She knows what she's doing."
Boone chuckled. "You sure it's just her instincts you're following?"
Tyler shot him a sideways glance but didn't deny it. "She's smart. That's what counts."
Boone snorted. "Yeah, sure. That's why you're always staring at her like she's the next storm you're about to chase."
Tyler didn't respond, his grin fading slightly as he focused back on the road. Boone wasn't wrong, though. Faith had him hooked, and no matter how hard he tried to keep things professional, there was no denying that she was under his skin.
By the time they reached the new spot, the sky had grown darker, the wind picking up speed. The team scrambled to set up the radar, checking equipment and gathering data, but Faith's heart was pounding for an entirely different reason.
She could feel Tyler's presence long before she saw him. It was like the air shifted whenever he was near, a kind of tension that buzzed just beneath the surface.
"Need a hand?" Tyler's voice drawled from behind her.
Faith didn't turn around, but she could feel his smirk. "Don't you have your own team to help?"
"Come on, Faith. You know I'm just here to keep an eye on you. Make sure you don't get swept away."
Finally, she turned, narrowing her eyes at him. "I can handle myself, Owens."
He stepped closer, just enough to close the gap between them, his eyes never leaving hers. "I know you can."
For a moment, neither of them said anything, the storm rumbling in the distance the only sound between them. The tension was palpable, a mix of frustration, competition, and something neither of them could quite name.
"You think this storm's going to be a big one?" Faith asked, trying to shift the conversation back to something safe.
Tyler shrugged, his gaze softening. "Could be. But I've seen worse."
Faith raised an eyebrow. "Ever thought that maybe you're the one who needs watching? You're the reckless one out here."
He laughed, the sound low and teasing. "Reckless? Maybe. But I always come out on top."
"Not always." Faith's voice was quiet, but there was an edge to it, a memory of storms past, of friends they'd both lost.
Tyler's expression sobered, and for a moment, the teasing was gone. "No. Not always."
The air between them was heavy with unsaid words, and before Faith could think better of it, she spoke. "Why do you always push so hard?"
Tyler looked at her, really looked at her, and for the first time, he didn't have a quick comeback or a joke. "Because sometimes, it's the only way to feel like you're in control."
Faith's breath hitched, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew exactly what he meant. She felt it too—the need to control something, anything, when everything else was chaos.
"Yeah," she whispered. "I get that."
Tyler stepped closer, his hand brushing against hers, just for a second, but it was enough. Enough to remind her that maybe, just maybe, there was more to this than rivalry, more than storms and competition.
But before she could say anything else, the wind picked up, and the storm reminded them of why they were really here.
"Come on," Tyler said, his voice quieter now. "We've got work to do."
Faith nodded, but as they both turned back to the storm, she couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted between them. Something that had been building for a long time, and maybe, just maybe, it was time to stop fighting it.
The storm was coming, but so was something else.
