Rainbows after Hurricane

16. |p r e s e n t|

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As soon as Zach takes a step out of the hospital, the urge to return back inside the safe confinement of the hospital overwhelms him-not because of the rain that drenched him in less than a second or because of the strong wind that's hitting him with full force, but because for the first time in two years, he will be alone with Asher.

A moment Zach has been avoiding successfully for the past two years.

But, now is not the time to think about his selfish needs. It's time to think about what Dianna needs in order for her to survive.

And, if that means to spent time with Asher, he will do it, for Dianna-for his sister.

                "Let's hurry." Asher shouts, before sprinting out the hospital and towards the rain. Wordlessly, Zach follows Asher out of the hospital. Zach starts panicking when he sees Asher fumbling with a jeep that's parked outside the hospital building.

               "What are you doing?" Zach questions, although he already knows what Asher's up to, still he asks because of the lack of words.

               "Exactly what you're thinking." Asher replies without taking off his eyes from the car's door as he continues fumbling with its door.

                "Asher, this is not the time to play all these childish games. We need to get to that blood bank."

                 "That's why I am doing this. We need a car if we want to reach there as fast as we both want." Asher says, just when the door makes a click sound. Asher smiles in triumph and opens the door, turning back to look at Zach. "What are you waiting for? C'mon, get in."

               "You do realize that this is stealing?"

               "Don't act like we haven't done it before."

               "We are already over that phase." Zach argues.

                "I know but we don't have any other options. Our car is abandoned on that road accompanied with those humongous trees and we need to get to that blood bank as fast as possible." Asher makes his point. "And, believe it or not, I don't want to take any risks. So, you're coming or not?"

Zach sighs in aggravation but gets inside the car, eventually. Without wasting any further second, Asher pulls out of the driveway and speeds down the road.

Asher's driving skills were still the way it was before, just like Zach has it memorized. Fast, fluent, and smooth. Zach had always wanted to drive like him, but he never succeeded even after Asher trained him multiple times for several months. Zach was fast, yes, but not as fast as Asher. No matter what, he could never drive like him. And, after the accident, he never wanted to drive like Asher.

It was Asher's driving skill that killed the only love of his life, Ashley; but tonight, it is Asher's driving skill that might save Dianna's life.

As the scenery passes by in a blur, Zach notices the destruction the hurricane has already caused in less than twenty hours. Roofs of the houses collapsed, trees fallen down on the road, smaller roads filled with water. Zach looks away from the window and looks straight ahead on the road. He doesn't need to be reminds about how worse this hurricane might be.

                  "Asher, watch out." Zach shouts, noticing the huge trees in the middle of the road, blocking their path ahead. Asher may have seen it before him, because he's already slowing down.