Rain

"Are we going to be fine?" I asked.

"Stop stressing yourself, my love. Everything is going to be fine. We are a team, you're not doing this on your own."� � � � � � � � � � � � �

"I wish I had your faith."

"You do."

Rolf was right. Even on the toughest days during my treatment, I had no intention of surrendering to my diagnosis. I couldn't change it, but I could certainly be the decision-maker in how I handled it.

It was time to be proactive and do all I could to live as much of my life as possible for the good of my physical and mental health.

When I could get into the gym, I worked on building up my strength, most of the time with Rolf, sometimes alone. Rolf had my back, but he didn't intrude on my private time. He had some Spidey-sense to know when I needed company, and when I wanted to be alone. Always with a nod from the gym staff and gym buddies, who very soon became good acquaintances.

Sometimes, I'd sit on a bike and pedal slowly for ten minutes until I was exhausted, but it was more than I had done the day before. That was progress. The next day I would pedal again and maybe try a bit of rowing or lift some light weights.

I'd build myself up until the next chemo dose took me back to square one.

I was telling all this to a lady having her chemo not far from me. We started talking, and very soon we became close. She turned to me one day and said, "Well, if you're doing all this, I'll suppose I have to try it myself. I am not so old for the gym. Maybe, with luck, a hot gym instructor will squeeze my buns," and winked, which made me smile.

One day, I was back in the chemo ward having another dose of poison fed into my arm. Rolf kept looking at me and smiling as if he knew something I didn't.

Then, he got a text, read it, and stood up saying, "I need to go out for a minute. Don't go anywhere."

"Ha, ha, very funny."

Minutes later, a group of people entered the ward, shepherded in by Rolf. Almost immediately, I started recognizing their faces. There was Theodore, Mrs. Rowland, Laura and Percy, and most of his crew. At their side, I saw Aunt Molly, and her husband, John. I had visited their farm more than once. His son, Red, and his wife, Kat, were at his side. They had offered me a job as a waitress at their restaurant. Behind them, I could see Daniel and Georgina, Diana and Steve, and Derek with Bella.

In front of the lot, there was Grace, the realtor with whom I went to see houses and exchanged gossip more than once. We had become very good friends. Her husband, Landon, was an ex-soldier, and they were inseparable. Just like Rolf and me.

"What a lovely surprise. What are you all doing here?" I asked. I looked at Rolf and he winked at me. I wanted to cover my face because I suddenly became conscious that I had no hair, no eyebrows, no eyelashes.

"This is not a social visit, Rain," Grace said, "We all came here to get tested. There are more of us waiting at Middletown for their turn. The private jet can hold up only up to twenty passengers."

"You what?" The enormity of what Grace was saying was still sinking in my mind. Sobbing uncontrollably, I only kept repeating what she just said, unable to say anything else. "Private jet...? Get tested...? More of you...?"

Everyone was smiling at me.

I gently wiped away my tears with the palm of my hands. "I don't know what to say..."

"Thank you, would be appropriated," Rolf suggested.

I pointed a finger at him in mocked anger, "It was you... You called them... You sneaky bastard..."

Everyone laughed, and he nodded, "Well, it was my idea, but everyone jumped in when they knew that you needed us. When Grace told Middletown what was going on, everyone volunteered. Lukas paid for a private jet to bring all of them here and a hotel room for their stay."

I frowned. "How many people are we talking about exactly?"

"Hundreds," Grace chimed in. "Almost everyone in Middletown wants to help. There is a second group ready to come if none from the first group is a match. And a third... and a fourth..."

"And they'll keep coming 'til we find a match," Molly added and smiled at me.

Watching them there, all willing to help, all smiling at me and giving me hope, I completely lost it. I cried so hard I could hardly even breathe.

"Why? Why would any of you do this for me?" I asked, still in tears.

"You said you had no family," Rolf said, sitting at my side and rubbing the back of my neck. "But you are wrong. Family isn't blood. Family is the people who love you. The people who have your back. Rain, you are very very loved, and you have a very large family in your corner."

"You're one of us, Rain," Mrs. Rowland said.

"You showed us love and kindness," Theodore added.

Lots of heads nodded in approval.

Rolf leaned down and kissed my lips, and I wrapped one arm around his neck, kissing him back.

I could hear my friends, my newfound family, cheering 'til Julia came to usher them out of the ward.

"Small town, big hearts," never better said.

CHAPTER 15: ROLF

When the chemotherapy was over, Doctor Brown's secretary called Rain and told her that he had some news for her.

Of course, we spent most of the night awake, agonizing over what he might need to tell her.

She kept asking herself if it was her time to go, and she kept coming to the same conclusion. "I refuse to give up, no matter what news Doctor Brown has to deliver."

I kissed her scalp and held her against me. "Everything is going to be okay."

Whatever doubts I had, I kept them to myself.

Her body was thin and cold. I pressed her against my chest hoping my warmth would somehow sink into her.

"I love you, Rain," I whispered. "I'm a fucking idiot for not telling you when you was living with me. I love you."

"I love you, too."

Finally morning came, and my gaze was drawn to the window. Golden rays streamed into the bedroom.

I gently shook her awake. "It's sunrise, Rain. Can you see it?" I choked out the words. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. I had to stay brave for her. "It's beautiful, my love."

I drove her to Doctor Brown's office. His secretary let us into his private office immediately. We sat down in front of his desk, our eyes fixed on him with anxious stares.

"I have some news for you," Doctor Brown said.

Rain's grip tightened on my hand.

"Your blood test results are good," he informed us, with a smile.

We both let out a loud sigh of relief.

Finally, some good news.

"I have some more good news." The doctor's smile turned wider. "We have found a match among your Middletown friends."

Rain began to cry happy tears. I was crying, too. We both hugged each other and cried. Rain was crying, I was crying, and then we looked into our eyes for a few seconds, and we both laughed aloud.

"Thank you," Rain said, wiping at her eyes. "Thank you so much. Who is the donor?"

Doctor Brown checked at his papers. "A woman called Janice Cooper. She is young and healthy, and she more than willing to help. It's not often we find a non-relative match so close by. This means we can do a transfusion and hopefully put you into full remission with a very small chance of recurrence."

Rain and I hugged again.

"We need to wait a few weeks," the good doctor continued, "and then we can get started."

We both nodded.

When we left, it felt as if we were floating.

"It's almost over," Rain said.

"That's it," I agreed.

As soon as we were in the car, we hugged and kissed and laughed again.

Then, Rain picked up her phone and called Lukas to give him the good news. She put him on speaker.

"Everything's okay?" Lukas sounded like he was holding his breath.

"Yes. In fact, everything is more than great. The doctor said my blood work looks really good... the chemo worked."

"Yay! That's great news, guys!" Lukas cheered through the speaker.

"He also said that," she choked on her words, so overwhelmed and teary, "they found a bone-marrow match."

"Oh, wow! Wow! Rain..." Lukas was sobbing now.

"We feel just so happy, so relieved. We wanted to share the good news with you."

"I'm so glad for you," Lukas said in a shaky voice, after a long moment, "so, so glad. We will celebrate when this is over. You and Rolf should come to Austria."

Rain looked at me and I nodded in approval.

"We will. Thank you, Lukas," I said. "We still have a long way ahead of us, but it seems we are closer to the light at the end of the tunnel."

"Of course, Rolf. Thank you for being there for Rain."

"I wouldn't want to be anyplace else. I love her and for some crazy reason, it turns out she loves me back."

"Crazy reasons and Rain walk hand in hand," Lukas said with a laugh.

Rain giggled at my side.

"It's great news. It's really great news. I'll let you celebrate. Please, keep me updated."

The second call was to Janice Cooper. I looked for The Gazette number on the internet. She was nice and insisted there was no need to thank her. We both got the impression that she actually felt uncomfortable with the attention, so we kept the call short.

No matter how she felt, she had made two friends for life.

CHAPTER 16: RAIN

The bone-marrow transplant was a success. I survived the observation period and my body was rapidly recovering. This was just another step in a long, slow process that would test our faith, hope, and love.

"You're alright now, Rain," Doctor Brown told us with a smile. "You're one hundred percent cancer-free. Enjoy your life."

I had broken all hospital records for quick recovery from the transplant.

I closed my arms around the good doctor's neck and kissed his cheek, making him blush.

"Thank you, doctor, for everything you did. I longed to hear this news, and I still can't believe I don't have this monkey on my back anymore."

Rolf and I were over the moon. It felt like a weight had been lifted from our heads, and we could start to look forward to the future again.

"Are you going to stop running now?" he asked.

I pretended to think, "No, but I'll do it only if you come with me. You're stuck with me, for life, Rolf."

"That's a life-sentence I can live with," he said, kissing me.

Middletown organized a Night Beach Party for us, when we finally got back to town.

The bonfire was set up in a secluded section of the beach, a small bay sheltered by rockfall and bushes called 'Lover's Beach.' When we arrived, the fire was already blazing and all of our friends were there.

I got a lot of hugs, tears, kisses, and cheers.

Someone had dragged logs close by the fire, and people were sitting on them, warming themselves by the heat, as twilight descended. Music played from some speakers nearby, although it wasn't loud, more like soft world music. The kind of music I loved. The sound of chatter and laughter filled the air.

Janice was there, too, and I making my way across the sand to her. I stood in front of her, and I pulled her into a tight hug, wrapping my arms around her and pressing my lips to her cheek.

"Thank you, I owe you my life. Whatever you need, you have made a friend for life."

"Um... you're welcome. Let me interview you for The Gazette and you can call us even." I could tell Janice was obviously uncomfortable with the hug. She allowed it just for a few seconds, and then she drew back.

I was hugged and petted and kissed until I felt like a newborn baby, as delighted as a small child on her birthday.

"Welcome back, Rain," was said over and over and over again. "What are your plans now?"

Rolf and I hadn't talked about the future yet. We loved each other and that was fine for us. We had gotten used to enjoying one day at a time.

"I plan on staying here with Rolf. I finally found a home in Middletown."

Someone handed me a beer and then someone else made a toast to me, reiterating my good news. I smiled and sipped my drink.

Rolf was taken to the side by Daniel and his friends. I sat by the fire on one of the logs. Tania sat down beside me and offered a small smile. I shifted uncomfortably, remembering the last time I had spoken to Tania at Theodore's store.

"Sorry to hear about your cancer," Tania said, quite abruptly. "I didn't know at that time. I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks, I guess," I replied warily, "although it's not my cancer."

"Oh yeah. Sorry. Wrong choice of words, I guess."

I nodded, doing my best to ignore her. People didn't know what to say, and cancer made them awkward and uncomfortable. I understood that.

"So, you and Rolf are a thing?"

"Yes, we are. We are in love."

"He's sure acting like you're the greatest couple ever."

"I don't care about other couples, but we went through hell together and that created a very strong bond between us."

Tania twisted her mouth, but said nothing.

"If something good came out of all this, it is that it taught us to appreciate simple joys in life."

"Well, you're getting a lot of attention out of it."

I shook my head in disbelief. "Do you think I got sick to get attention?"

The idea that anyone would even think that about me made me feel sick.

"No. But I think you took advantage of it to steal Rolf from me."

"Tania!"

Tania jumped at the sound of her name.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Janice demanded, her voice seriously pissed off. She moved past me to come toward Tania.

"Rolf... is not... interested... in you..." she said, poking a finger in her chest with each word.

"Janice... I..."

"Get the fuck out of this party," she roared. "If I see you near Rain again, I'll make your life very difficult."

Tania colored and left with a mix of hurt and fear.

As soon as Tania left, Janice took me into her arms. "I can't believe she would say that," she muttered. "I can't believe anyone would say something like that. She's jealous. I guess she's always thought there was more between her and Rolf than friendship."

I smiled at Janice, "Thank you, Janice. For everything."

We held each other tight this time.

"Listen, I need to talk to you..." she took a look around, "...alone."

I looked around too, and said, "No time like the present."

She licked her lips, looked into my eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "When the doctors told me that I was a match, and they informed me about the odds of something like that happening, I asked them to run a DNA test..."

Janice made a pause to lick her lips again.

"And...?" I asked, my heart thumping in my chest.

"It turns out we are related. We are half sisters..."

I looked at her not knowing what to say, "When you called me to thank me, I was processing the news, I still am."

"Right now, I'm in shock. Do you have any idea how is this possible?"

Janice moved her head up and down slowly, "I can make an educated guess. My dad traveled a lot because of his work. Not only the US, but Europe, and South America, too. I know for a fact that he was unfaithful to my mother several times before the divorce, so..."

"Do you think he had sex with some woman during his travels, got her pregnant, and left?"

"Knowing my father, it's quite possible. He liked them young, so don't be too hard with your biological mother if you ever find her."

"Are you still in touch with your father?"

"No. My parents divorced when I was thirteen, and he became just a check in the mail. He never answered any of my letters. Last thing I heard, he was living someplace in South America."

"So you are my sister," I shrieked, in a high-pitched voice.

Janice made me a gesture to keep my voice down, "Please, keep it between us."

"I need to tell Rolf."

"Okay, but only to him."

I pulled Janice into my arms and held her close. She was surprised and tense at first, but then relaxed and hugged me back.

After a few minutes, I sensed and then recognized the familiar body of Rolf beside me. We broke the hug and Janice left without saying a word.

"Still showing your gratitude?"

"Yeah, but this was about something else, too. I'll tell you about it when we get home."

I didn't say anything else, staring out over the black water, at the multitude of stars dotting the night sky. Rolf was quiet, obviously understanding that I didn't feel quite like talking yet. I liked that about him, his ability to sense when I needed quiet, when I needed company, when I needed to be touched and when I needed to talk.

I glanced at Rolf out of the corner of my eye. Suddenly, I wanted his arms around me. Turning around, I stepped into his arms, and he immediately wrapped them around me. I clung to him, pressing my face into his chest and inhaling deeply. He smelt like Rolf, warm, masculine, minty, and fresh. And he was warm.

"Rain?" I tilted my head back and looked up at him. The white of his eyes glowed in the darkness, and I could make out the concerned frown that marred his expression. "I love you."

"Rolf," I whispered, "I want you."

"Let's get out of here," he growled, and I recognized the flare of desire in the shadows of his eyes. "Now. Before I take you here on the beach."

I giggled. "Is that supposed to be a treat? Now, who is the adventurous one? I've had sex on the beach before. Trust me, it's overrated. Too much sand."

I thought maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that, but he just replied, "Too many people around for that. Tonight, I want to take you to our bed."

"Sounds good to me. What are we waiting for?"

Draping an arm around my shoulder, Rolf led me up the beach, past the bonfire, and to his car.

As soon as we were in our place, I leaned across and kissed him, and then climbed across to his lap, straddling him. My hands cupped his face as I kissed him, lowering myself down, so I could feel him, hard and ready, through his jeans, against my center.

Rolf's hands moved up under my shirt, and he reached around to unhook my bra, before wrapping both hands around my breasts. My nipples were hard and puckered, and he squeezed them.

"Rolf," I whispered against his mouth through heated kisses. "I need you."

He grinned but didn't break the contact of our mouths or took his hands from my breasts.

Grinning, I lifted myself, positioned him at my entrance, and then slid down, sheathing him to the hilt in my warm silkiness. Rolf clutched at my hips, guiding me, as he claimed my mouth with his.

I moved, sliding up and down slowly, painfully slowly, driving us both mad with agonizing desire.

"More... more..." he urged, his fingers cutting into my hips.

"Yes." I picked up my pace, thrusting harder and deeper against him, driving him further into my warm, and velvet tunnel.

"Rolf!"

"Hmm," he murmured, sucking my earlobe into his mouth and sucking hard. He let me set the pace, taking what I needed, and at the same time, giving him exactly what he needed. My hands clutched at his shoulders, holding on as I continued to ride him.

Rolf felt my climax building and lifted his hips urging me on, whispering my name, knowing I was close. I wanted him closer. I wrapped my legs around him, and swept his back with my hands, trying to pull him further into me.

It's as if my heart sprung up and married my soul, as my whole body imploded. Like a stone falling in a pond, circles, and circles of love rippled through me.

Rolf pulled back to watch me, as I lost myself in an orgasm that washed over me. He shouted for joy. And then we were falling, losing ourselves in ecstasy.

I gathered him and held him close. I was amazed at him. At us. This gift.

He stroked my head, my face, he kissed my tears.

I was alive, blessed to be with him in this town, at that very moment.

After a long moment, as our breathing returned to normal and our heart rates settled, I went climbing off, but he held me.

"No," he ordered, his voice thick with emotion. "Please, stay. Stay with me."

"I will. You're my home."

EPILOGUE: One year later