Survivor

55| Bonfire's and Fireball

I sat at the local news station in San Antonio Texas, about 40 miles from Nathan's family farmland. My heart was beating irregularly and I was bouncing my knee up and down in anticipation as I awaited the beginning of the interview. To occupy my thoughts, I reminisced on last night with Jake.

Since Nathan said we could bring friends, I decided to bring Caralyn along with me. Out of courtesy, I also invited Alexa to the party. We did live together after all, and it would have been hard to hide the party from her. Plus, she kept dropping hints at how much she "loves Texas." However, she would be joining us later on since she had to work.

I ended up being super grateful that I brought Caralyn. I hadn't been on a plane since our last flight went down, and I'd be lying if I said flying didn't make me even more nervous now. I knew crashing was rare, but I also knew what it was like to go through a plane crash. Every bit of turbulence brought me back and if it weren't for Caralyn by my side, and knowing that in a few hours I'd be with Jake, I would have probably lost it.

Since Jake lived in Houston, Caralyn and I got our flight into the airport there, and Jake picked us up to drive to San Antonio. I didn't think it was possible for him to look even more handsome than I remembered, but somehow, he did. He was wearing dark wash jeans, a black v-neck t-shirt, and a black leather jacket. It was night time in Texas, so the air did have a bit of a chill to it, but I hadn't seen Jake in a jacket... ever. My heart skipped a beat.

The second we locked eyes, his face split into a huge grin and he opened his arms wide. I wasted no time making my way over to him, running as fast as I could with my clunky walking boot cast, and launching myself into his arms.

He snaked his arms around my waist and lifted me off the ground, holding me tight to his body. I had missed his embrace so much it took everything in me to not cry happy tears. I breathed in his masculine scent as I buried my face into the space between his neck and shoulder.

"God Cass. I've missed having you in my arms," he said in a low tone in my ear.

I pulled my face back to look him in his emerald green eyes. "I missed you so much," I replied.

Jake immediately gave me a deep kiss as he set me back on my feet. Knowing we didn't have much time because we were in a terminal, and knowing Caralyn was with me watching our every move, I found it in me to pull away. "We should probably get going?" I suggested.

Jake cleared his throat. "Right sorry. Let me help you with your bags," he offered, addressing both Caralyn and I. He lifted both of our bags into the trunk and made sure we were both settled into the car before moving around to the driver's side.

I knew that I had missed Jake during our weeks apart, but it wasn't until seeing him now that I realized the true extent. For now, I would just enjoy our conversation and the feel of his hand in mine as we made our way to the hotel.

By the time we got to our destination, it was 11:30 at night. Most of the guys had informed us that they were either on their way and getting in really late, or had arrived earlier in the day. Either way, the guys who were at the hotel were already sleeping, so we agreed to just meet in the morning and go to the news station together.

Which brings us to now.

I was growing more nervous by the second about the live interview. I had no idea what the questions were going to be, and I had never been great at public speaking. The producers had positioned us so that we were sitting like a panel with two rows, and I was placed right in the center. They thought it looked best for the photos and the camera angles for the interview. I didn't mind, but I hoped that it didn't mean more questions would be thrown my way.