𝐧𝐨 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲, 𝐧𝐨 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞- 𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧

12.

    Rafe's smirk was wide as ever when I took a seat in the passengers seat. I ran a stressed hand through my wet hair, pushing my hood back. I hated that we were back to square one. I was sure the Pogues did it regardless of the not so great proof. But if it was them, they wouldn't be shy to call me out right away.

"I love this side of you. Never knew you had it in you." Rafe carelessly held the gun in his hand after I handed it back to him.

"I think we should go see Dustin." I curled my legs up, pulling them up to my chest. "I'd rather catch him before Shoupe sticks his nose further into the case."

"He's not going to catch us." Rafe spoke. "There's no proof." He added, lending his utterances of confidence.

"They have to have someone." I let my arms fall to my side, groaning.

"Unless it goes unsolved." Rafe pointed out, shrugging.

I kept my eyes on one of the rain drops slowly making its way down the window. Rafe took my silence as a response of its own, driving out of our made up parking spot. The silence was loud between us and the pain in my stomach reminded me of how hungry I was.

Rafe pulled up in the parking lot in front of the beach, taking out his notebook again. He hated to do it, but he put a question mark beside the Pogue's names. If it was them, then Sarah would know too. She never mentioned it, she clearly believed Trevor and I were just friends. Not my victim.

Rafe was going on and on about possible witnesses, but I wasn't listening. The rain was pouring down onto the car, drowning out everything around me. It was peaceful for once. It was somewhat comforting sitting in the car, gazing over the ocean. Who knew I would find comfort in Rafe Cameron's car.

I slid off my jacket, leaving it on the seat. I opened the car door, cutting Rafe's sentence off with a bewildered gawking gaze. I ignored him, shutting the door so I wouldn't have to listen to his complaints about his seat. I made my way down the sand hill until I reached the edge of the ocean.

"Atallia?" Rafe yelled, chasing after me. "What are you doing?"

He blocked me like he expected me to drown myself in the water. I always thought the girls who stood in the rain in movies were overrated and exaggerated, but it was oddly calming letting the rain wash away the blood on my hands.

"Are you okay?" Rafe bent down in front of me, his face inches from mine.

A strange feeling came over me. A voice in my head wanted me to press my lips against his, closing the space between us. Fighting the urge knowing that it was just the exaggerated dramatic part of me, I pushed those feelings deep inside of me.

I held out my hands for him instead. He didn't take them, too confused. I spun around, smiling up at the sky. Rafe seemed to catch onto my weird behavior, smiling widely at me. He reached out for me, but I dodged him and laughed at his change in features.

He made another move, groaning as I started running through the wet sand. The sand flew up, getting in between my converse and my white socks. The wind and rain were flying in my face. At some point I knew I would be annoyed, but right now it felt exhilarating. It was like a breath of fresh air.

Rafe followed, determined to catch up to me. It didn't take him long, it wasn't a shock that he was faster than me. His arms found their way around my waist, pressing my back against his chest to swing me around. I laughed, trying to push his arms away from me. His hands forced me to face him, almost stumbling into him. My breath got caught in my throat, hitching at the way he looked down at me.

I never forgot how tall Rafe was. He would purposely tease me about it all the time because he thought it was his funny advantage. He removed his jacket too, so his shirt was stuck to his skin, outlining his abs and the muscles he never failed to show off.

He gulped, searching my eyes for some sort of emotion. I failed to hide it and I knew he could read it. But I hated him, right? I despised him because he was an obstacle in my way of happiness. He was the boy who tripped me in the hallways, he was the boy who stole my hairbrush and my towel. He would lie to get his way and get a stupid reaction out of me. He would glare at me across the room or ignore my presence entirely.

I wasn't going to be the one to give in no matter what my body was screaming at me. I knew Rafe wasn't going to give in either. He wouldn't be the first to close the space between us no matter how much tension is between us. But the rain made his lips look so much better. His hands gently gripping my waist almost made my legs go weak.

I wasn't sure what to do, but the lighting in the corner of my eye snapped me out of my thoughts. Rafe didn't care, but he quickly snatched his hands away, nervously scratching at the back of his neck. The thunder that followed confirmed our need to make it back home quickly, forcing us to leave this moment behind us.