note: sorry for being inactive. irl life is really rough rn and i'm struggling so i'm posting some drafts (not this one, i wrote this last night while i was sad LMAO)
Emma took off her apron and flung it over the hook where a piece of tape stuck above it, almost illegibly reading her name. Today was her only half day, but with the weather being drowsy and dark, the only she thing she could think about was going home and sleeping until she saw Paul. "I'm out." Emma called, shooting her boss a quick wave before grabbing her bag from under the small sink at Beanie's.
"Bye, Emma." Nora replied, sweeping the floor, looking tired as usual.
As she existed the coffee shop and looked down to her right to where her car should've been, she discovered it was missing. Emma's heartbeat began to speed up and she wondered if it had been stolen, but as her gaze lingered on down the path she saw a large tow-truck taking away her small yellow car. "No, no, no, no!" She called, quickly taking off down towards her car but she was too late. The tow-truck had already moved on and sped off down the street.
The rain started up again, leaving Emma cold and wet and no way of getting home other than walking. She was either covered in salty rain, or she was crying softly as she felt her cheeks burn up and let out a quick sniff. Today, of all days, she didn't bring her cardigan, so all Emma could do was wrap her arms around herself and walk off towards her apartment, which was several blocks away.
Meanwhile, back at Beanie's, a familiar face came in. Nora looked up and smiled at him kindly. "Hello, Paul. Emma isn't here, she just left."
Paul looked around and realised she was right, Emma was no where in sight. "Oh." He said quietly, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Where is she? Lunch break?"
"It's her half day." Nora replied, flinging a tea towel over her shoulder and crossed her arms for comfort. "Probably about to leave, you might be able to catch her down the street if you need her right now."
"Sounds good." Paul nodded at her, and gave her a small wave, just as Emma had done to her before. "Well, bye, Nora." Paul walked out the door and shielded his eyes as the rain outside picked up. He looked towards his left to where Emma usually parked and saw her car was gone. Of course to Paul this just seemed like Emma had already taken off home and he has missed her.
Paul sighed and decided that he may as well get her a treat or something as he liked to do every week. A small cafe was placed a few blocks away, and if he walked fast enough, he could get there in time before the rain was too much for a normal person to hang out in.
Paul took off down the street, strolling by quickly and decided to take another direction, a quick shortcut, to the cafe. The raindrops had started to pour down now, and he wiped his eyes as he made it down the quiet alley way, before noticing a drenched figure in front of him, walking in the middle of the road.
But he recognised the small person, with her messy bun with tiny curls hanging out and her black bag which swung from her shoulder. "Emma?" He called out, picking up the pace behind her.
Emma turned around and squinted, wiping away the tears and raindrops from her face. "Paul?"
"Are you alright?" Emma had stopped now, and Paul almost caught up to her when he noticed a car speeding straight towards them. In a time like that, one can only act as quick as they can, and as the car did not appear to be in the right position to slow down and stop, Paul lurched forward towards her and called out her name desperately. He grabbed her by the waist, and yanked her over the left, tumbling to the ground over each other.
A loud crash could be heard right in front of them, and a puff of smoke erupted from the car that had smashed into the wall opposite them. Sirens blasted through the alley way and two cop cars sped through, swerving to not hit Emma and Paul and the damaged car. Doors being thrown open and slammed shut, loud yells and handcuffs jingling, all the sounds you'd hear in an action movie were now appearing in front of them, as Paul shielded Emma with his hand sticking out in front of her. She clung to him, frightened and shocked by what was happening.
A middle aged man was dragged out of the smashed car moments later, completely passed out with crimson blood dripping down his face. Two officers called out to each other and moved him over a cop car, cuffing him before shoving him in the backseat roughly. The car sped off, and a lady officer caught sight of the couple huddling in the corner of the alleyway.
"Oh my god, are you two alright?" The lady rushed over, bending down to check if they were injured.
Paul wrapped an arm around Emma and nodded. "Y-yeah." He said shakily as Emma hid her face in his shoulder.
"I'm Officer Rose Rodrigez. Can you tell me what happened?" The lady said softly but firmly, as Se grabbed out a pen and paper.
Paul explained quickly why he had been down the alley and how he had seen the car rushing past and quickly knocked Emma out of the way. She added how her car had been towed, as to why she was in the alleyway herself. Paul sympathised her even more, and held her close. She clung to him limply, her heart still beating fast from the accident.
Rose asked a few more questions before standing up. "Thank you for all your help, you two." She smiled at them softly, and looked behind her. "I can drop you off at your home, if you'd like."
Paul shook his head. "It's okay, I've got my car." The rain had eased off now and he looked up at the grey clouds above them.
"Sounds good. Well, I will be off. Someone will have to clear the accident tomorrow, we've got more to do today." The officer shook her head sadly and looked down at them. "I'm glad you two are alright. Get home safely please. And if you have any thoughts about what happened and need to talk to someone, here's my card. Stuff like this can be traumatising, and I'm here for those who go for it. You're lucky to have each other."
Paul and Emma nodded at her silently and watched as she climbed into her car, pulling away down the alleyway back onto the main street. Paul moved his eyes back over to the destroyed car in front of him before looking down at Emma, whose eyes were red and puffy.
"Oh my god, Em." He whispered, pulling her onto his lap as they sat on the side of the road. She began to cry again softly, and held her close. "You're okay. Jesus Christ, I'm so glad I was there. Imagine if... No, don't. It's okay, I've got you."
His words were slow and comforting for Emma, and she took deep breaths between her sobs, clinging to Paul's shirt weakly. She lay her head on his shoulder, shivering in the cold.
Paul pulled off his jacket quickly and wrapped it around her. They sat together for a while, before Emma spoke up. "Are you okay?" She looked up at him and sniffed.
Paul stared down at her lovingly and wiped away a tear from her cheek. "If you're okay, than I'm okay."
"I-I love you, Paul."
"I love you too, Em." He leant down and kissed her softly. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in for warmth. As they let go, Paul spoke to her again quietly. "Come on, let's go to the car." He pulled her up and grabbed her hand, before letting it go and putting his arm around her waist.
Emma groaned and looked down the street. "I'll have to get my car tomorrow."
"We will, together. But let's go home now." And with their arms wrapped around each other, they walked back down the alleyway in the cold towards Paul's car.
