Summer Dream

Chapter 18

That night, the biggest storm of the summer hit. Michael and Alex got out of their bunks and tried to the turn the lights on. "Power's out." Michael said.

"Everybody up!" Alex yelled, the kids groaning. "Sorry to wake all of you, but we need to move to the storm shelter. Grab your pillows and let's go, before we all die."

"Okay, we're not gonna die." Michael laughed a little. "But, we do need to get to the shelter."

"Yes, let's go, boys. Get a move on." Alex said, helping the kids grab their pillows. Michael grabbed a flashlight and started leading their boys to the shelter. They got down into the shelter and they helped the boys get settled in.

"Alright, try and get some sleep here." Michael said, tucking a few of them in.

"Good, I think we're all here now." Carter said, looking around.

"Wait. Where's Aspen?" Michael asked, looking around. "Carly, where's Aspen?"

"Oh, God.." Carly covered her mouth. "She went down to the river about an hour ago."

"Okay, I'm gonna go look for her." Michael said, grabbing the flashlight.

"Mike, be careful." Karmen told him. "The river gets incredibly dangerous during storms like this. You could be swept away in a matter of seconds."

"She's right. The river currents are unpredictable." Carter said. "Please, be careful."

"I'll be careful." He nodded. "I just need to find her." Michael ran up the stairs and back out into the storm. He walked down to the river and looked around. "Aspen?!" He called out. He couldn't hear much over the sound of the river and the thunder above him. "Aspen!!" He yelled, hoping she'd call back. "Dammit, baby, where are you?" Michael sighed, looking around. He walked to the bridge that crosses the river, but half of it was missing. "Oh, my God.." Michael whispered, looking down at the river. "Please, God, no." Michael pleaded, looking down the river. "Aspen?!" He called out. "Aspen, where are you?!" He yelled. He tried to look in the trees on the other side, but it was too dark to see anything. He took a deep breath before running at the bridge, jumping over the broken gap. He landed on the gravel, scraping his arms against the rocks. "Son of a bitch." He groaned, rubbing the rocks out of his skin.

He spent nearly an hour searching the woods for her. "Aspen?!" Michael called out, trying to see through the rain and the darkness. He jumped slightly as lightning hit a nearby tree. "Jesus Christ." Michael sighed, continuing to move through the trees. "Aspen, are you out here?!" Michael yelled, pushing through the trees. He walked until he came to the farm. He walked inside the barn to get out of the rain.

"Michael?" Aspen asked, coming into the light.

"Aspen? Oh, my God." Michael sighed, hugging her tightly. "I was so worried about you."

"You shouldn't be out here. The storm is too dangerous to be wandering around in." Aspen said, holding onto him.

"I had to find you. You weren't in the shelter and Carly told me you were down at the river." Michael said, pulling away to cup her cheeks. "I couldn't leave you out in this storm all alone."

"You shouldn't have come out here. This storm could have killed you." Aspen sighed, rubbing her hand along his forearm.

"But, I couldn't leave you out here." MIchael sighed. "Come on, let's get back to the shelter." Michael said, trying to bring her out of the barn.

"Mike, the bridge is gone. We can't get back across the river." Aspen shook her head. "How did you get across the river?"

"I jumped across the bridge. I fucked up my arms, but I made it over." Michael said, showing her his scrapes. "We could jump across again."

"I'd never make it. Not with my ankle." Aspen sighed. "Our safest bet is to just wait here until the storm passes."

"Stay here? With these animals?" Michael asked, looking around at the cows and horses.

"Or, you can go die in the storm. That's fine, too." Aspen rolled her eyes, sitting down on a bale of hay. Michael sighed and sat with her.

"That was rude." Michael huffed, crossing his arms.

"I'm just saying, our only option is to stay here. I already found some horse blankets we can use for warmth and pillows." Aspen said, pointing to the makeshift bed on the hay.

"That looks really uncomfortable. Are you sure you don't want to try getting across the river?" Michael sighed, looking at her.

"Mike, I wouldn't make it. You and I both know that." Aspen sighed. "I'll get us some more blankets. You should take off your wet clothes and let them dry overnight."

"You just want me naked." Michael joked, taking his wet t-shirt off.

"Yeah, that's definitely it." Aspen rolled her eyes playfully and grabbed a few more blankets.

"These horses are judging me." Michael said as he took his jeans and boxers off. Aspen handed him a blanket to wrap around himself.

"They aren't judging you." Aspen giggled softly. "Lay down and let me know if you need another blanket pillow."

"You seem pretty adept to sleeping out here." Michael raised an eyebrow and laid on the hay bale bed.

"I used to fall asleep out here when I was younger. I always took care of the horses and cows and I'd be out so long, I fell asleep." She shrugged, laying down next to Michael. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to his chest.

"I love hearing about your childhood." Michael hummed. "Tell me a story about living here."

"What kind? Happy or sad? Long or short?" She asked, looking at Michael.

"Whatever you want to tell me." Michael said, rubbing his thumb along her hip.

"Well, most of my childhood was sad, so you might get stuck with one of those stories." Aspen said, snuggling closer to him.

"That's okay, I just like hearing your voice." Michael smiled.

"Alright, you asked for it." Aspen shrugged, hugging the blankets around them. "When I was about 13, I found a stray cat in the woods here. My grandpa said I could keep it, if I took it to the vet and made sure it wasn't carrying diseases and if I took care of it by myself." Aspen started. "So, I did. I took him to the vet and got him his shots and got him neutered. I worked really hard at taking care of him. I came home from school one day and I asked my grandpa where Cheeto was, but my grandpa said he hadn't seen him. I looked for him all afternoon. He enjoyed being outside, but he'd always come when I shook his food dish. This time, he didn't. I found him down at the lake that night. He was laying on the dock and he was missing both of his back legs and he was barely breathing. We never figured out what happened for sure, but my grandpa said a snapping turtle probably got him. My grandpa ended up shooting him, to put him out of his misery."

"You're gonna make me start crying. Why did you have to tell me this story?" Michael looked down at her.

"I asked what you wanted to hear. You said you didn't care." Aspen looked up at him.

"Well, now you have to tell me something happy." Michael pouted. "Poor Cheeto."

"He was a good cat, very friendly." Aspen sighed. "Alright, let me think of a happy thing."

"Is it that hard to think of a happy memory?" Michael held her close to him.

"I had a rough childhood. Things didn't start getting better until my career took off." Aspen looked at him.

"Tell me your favorite part of your career." Michael smiled, rubbing her back.

"My favorite part are my fans." Aspen smiled. "They're the kindest people in the world. They're always tweeting me things about how many friends they've made through my music. I bet you can relate to that."

"Definitely. It's nice for fans to find a sense of belonging in the music of their favorite artists." Michael smiled.

"I've found mine in you." Aspen whispered, smiling softly.

"I've found mine in you, too." Michael smiled, pressing a soft kiss to her lips.