Title: Stormy Day
By: kim22
Pairing: Horatio/Ryan
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Ryan and Horatio take a trip on a stormy day.

Horatio Caine looked up at the sky. A storm was forming. He could tell because of the dark clouds rolling across the normally blue sky. It had been incredibly hot out and now it was cooling considerably.

He sighed as he walked to the hummer. Ryan Wolfe was already waiting there anxiously, hopping from foot to foot. Catching sight of Horatio, he grinned. The big brown puppy eyes of his watching Horatio's every movement. He was Ryan's mentor, so he could understand how eager Ryan was to please him. The wind whipped up, causing Ryan's silky brown hair to ruffle slightly. It brought a smile to Horatio's face.

"Hey H. Are we going to check out that D.B?" Horatio went around to the driver side and got in.

"Yes, Wolfe, we are. Hop in." Ryan jumped in and leaned against the window. "Ryan, make sure you lock the door before you lean on it." Ryan turned to him and smirked. Horatio smiled apologetically. "I just don't want you to get hurt." So he locked it, only to humor his boss. "Also, I hear that at red lights, you can get pulled out of the car by gangsters if you don't lock it."

Ryan laughed a little at this. A silence followed as they drove down the highway. "Can we listen to music H?" Horatio shook his head. "Oh. Alright." He sat back with his arms folded, once more staring out the window at the darkening sky. Rain began to splatter on the windshield.

Horatio felt he had hurt his feelings. Looking at him once more, he noticed Ryan was shaking. The incoming storm brought chilling winds and rain. Ryan was wearing a t-shirt. He reached forward and turned on the heat for Ryan. "Horatio, you would tell me if I was annoying you, right?" Ryan looked somewhat put out, but rain will always do that to people.

Horatio nodded. "You aren't annoying me. I'm sorry I seemed rude about the music, but I just wanted some silence to think about some things." This seemed to get Ryan's attention. 'Oh God.'

"Like what?" Ryan was turned facing him and had dropped the defensive barrier his arms provided. Horatio sighed.

"Just things Ryan," he sighed. Ryan then looked ahead on the road. Lightning flashed through the sky eliciting a small whimper from Ryan. Horatio looked over in surprise.
"Lightning scares you, Wolfe?" Ryan was looking ahead at the slippery road.

"Just a bit," he replied, " but I don't quite advertise that," he joked. Horatio reached over and patted his arm. He felt goosebumps on his soft skin.

"I know how you feel. There are a lot of things I don't advertise for fear of being judged." Horatio quickly looked back to the road, fearing he said too much. Ryan took the hint and sat silent, squirming in his seat.

They rode in a comfortable silence for a while, then the heater suddenly quit working. Ryan was once again shivering. They pulled over and Horatio pulled off his blazer, then he handed it to Ryan.

"Huh? H, what's up?" Once more he offered it to him.
"Oh. Thanks!" Ryan put it on. A little big on him, but that was why Horatio thought it was so cute. Ryan could still smell Horatio on the blazer. It was cinnamon, fabric softener, and a smell all Horatio.

The hummer's heater cutting off was a bad omen. Not even 10 minutes later, they heard the flash flood warnings on the radio. No longer in the city, they took the warnings seriously. Going over a bridge Ryan could have sworn was ancient, the hummer broke down all together. "Shit!" Horatio cursed, upsetting Ryan. "I'm sorry Wolfe. I have to go see what's wrong."

He got out of the hummer and looked around. No signal for his cell phone. The hummer was dead, no doubt about it. Lightning flashed nearby and Ryan poked his head out the window. "Horatio! Come on!" The river below the unstable bridge was raging. They were out on a country road bridge with no one around for miles, in the rain, with no cell phone signal.

Horatio sighed. 'Best not scare Ryan. He's freaked out enough as it is.' Ryan was getting impatient. "Horatio, please! I don't want you hurt! Please hurry!" The water was rising quickly. It was just beginning to touch the bottom of the bridge.

He felt warm hands on his arm tugging him back toward the car. The pounding rain and raging river made it so loud that Ryan had to yell for Horatio to hear him. "Horatio!" He was crying now. "Please come back! Come on!" He tugged harder. The water was touching his shoes.

A loud crack sounded. Horatio heard it even above the storm. Ryan's terrified, high-pitched scream horrified him. The bridge had broken and the river seized his lithe body and hauled him away from Horatio.

"RYAN!" Abandoning all reason, he jumped after him. Rocks assaulted his body as he tried to keep above the deadly water. He could see Ryan struggling to breathe as the waves came crashing down on his weak body, pushing him under.

"HORATIO! HEL-" The water kept plunging him down. He coughed and sputtered as he flailed his arms, struggling to stay afloat. Horatio wouldn't give up on him. He felt his blazer just brush his fingertips. He knew if he could just seize his shirt, he could help him stay above the water. Finally he managed to grip Ryan's waist and pull him up.

He only hoped that he wasn't too late. Horatio was able to pull himself up near the side of the riverbed. Clinging to Ryan's limp form, he held onto a branch of an uprooted tree. It provided a good enough anchor. He looked at Ryan and winced. He wasn't breathing. Horatio pulled them up and onto the ground using all the strength he could muster.

He opened Ryan's mouth and began CPR. When he didn't respond, Horatio finally crumbled and bawled like a baby. He had feelings for Ryan and he never got a chance to tell him. He stroked his cheek and wailed. "Ryan. Oh Ryan. I love you! Please don't die! I can't live without you. No, I won't live without you!" He knew he was panicking, speaking irrationally but still, Ryan meant a lot to him. He laid his head on Ryan's chest and sobbed. Ryan suddenly coughed and shivered, reaching for Horatio. " I l-love you t-too H." Horatio gasped and held him close.

Ryan timidly kissed Horatio's soft lips. Horatio kissed back and smiled against his skin. Everything was going to be fine. Ryan closed his eyes and rested on his chest.

After what seemed like an eternity, he heard a car pulling up. Erik Delko and Calleigh Duquesne jumped out, helped them in and immediately transported them back to the crime lab. They had been worried after hearing the flood warnings and came to find them. They were safe.


~*~

Ryan walked with Delko and discussed a case. Horatio and him had decided to keep their relationship private for now, but Horatio just couldn't resist slapping his ass as he walked by. Delko was looking the other way, but he shook his head thinking he was going to get caught. He looked behind him and caught Horatio's smile and wink. He smiled back and blew a kiss. He was totally going to get him back. After all, he did owe him.