He held my hand as we walked down the street. It was such an amazing feeling and I had never been so happy. We had just been eating sushi in that sushi restaurant around the corner. I had makirolls because I love them the most. The ones with salmon and the ones with avocado. But even the ones with sesame seeds and crab. Dip them a little in soysauce and take a bite. If you’re not hungry and you take the whole damn thing in your mouth, and look like a hamster because your cheeks get all big and round. Sushi… I love sushi. I looked up at him and I smiled, and he squeezed my hand. I giggled a little and he kissed me. first it was just a normal little kiss on the lips but then it started to burn. A heated kiss. But the heated kiss didn’t just burn like it did when you felt love for someone. It was actually burning. Like fire. Soon I broke the kiss and then his hands started to burn my skin instead. I tried to pull my hand away but I couldn’t. His hand bursted into flames and I tried to scream and pull away. But his hand held me so tight that I just couldn’t get away. I looked up to his face again and I saw Dave. He was smiling before his whole body caught fire.

I gasped and sat up, and hit my head in the bunker above me.
"Chris babe, are you okay?" Austin called out and almost fell out his bunker. He hurried over to mine and I just laid there and stared into air with tears in my eyes. The others popped their heads out as well.
"Chris?" Austin asked and pulled me out from the bunker.
"It was just a nightmare" I said and hugged him.
"Fuck, it’s like you…" he said and stared at my hand. I looked at it and it was all red. Like it had been burned. Austin looked at my face and then he looked even more shocked.
"It’s like you…. like you got burned or something" he whispered and rubbed with his thumb over my lips. It stung and I frowned. He dragged me over to the bathroom and he pulled out a small towel. He wet it with cold water and laid it over my hand, and then he looked at my lips.
"What did you dream about?" he asked.
"Dave, and when he kissed me it burned my skin and… he held my hand as he bursted into flames" I whispered. Austin stared at me.
"You’re body thought it was for real, I’ve heard about this… The psychological can become physical" he whispered and looked at my hand. The redness was a light shade of pink now and my lips started to feel normal.
"You okay?" he asked and looked at me. I nodded and he helped me up on my feet again.
"It’s only around 2 am, so go back to sleep" he said and kissed me cheek. I smiled and nodded. But I felt like I didn’t really want to.

The morning after I woke up and felt at ease. I felt completely new again. The others was sitting out in the lounge and they had breakfast.
"We’ll be reaching Grand Canyon in a few hours, thought we should stop and have a look" Phil said and smiled.
"I’ve never seen the Grand Canyon" I said and got a huge smile.
"You’ve never seen the Grand Canyon?" Alan asked and looked at me. I shook my head and he shrugged.
"I guess we’ll really have to stop right now" he said.
The bus driver, Tom, stopped a few minutes later for a short pee break and when he got back he looked a bit worried.
"What is it Tom?" Austin asked.
"Apparently there are some kids driving around in this area, going nuts with their cars and making people drive off the street" he said.
"Seriously?" Tino asked. Tom nodded.
"About 10 cars have crashed the last two weeks because of these kids" Tom said.
"I don’t think they will go after a bus" I said and shook my head.
"Maybe, maybe not" Tom said and shrugged.

About an hour later we stopped to fill the bus up with some gas, and I decided to walk out and buy some snacks. I craved for some chocolate and some sour sweets. I even craved for some fanta and I didn’t even like to drink that. but today I wanted some.
"Is that all?" the man behind the counter asked.
"Do you have earplugs?" I asked and looked at him. He crouched and looked through some boxes before he got up with a package of cheap earplugs. Better then nothing and I just needed them for sleep.
"That would be all" I said and smiled. Someone smacked my ass and I gasped, and turned around. Behind me a total stranger stood and grinned.
"Well you got a fine ass" he said.
"fuck off" I said and glared at him. I took my things and walked away and he smacked my ass again. I turned around and was just about to slap him in the face when he grabbed my wrist.
"A little bit frisky" he said. I tried to pull away and my heart started to race. But he wouldn’t let go of my hand. Then Tino appeared and he grabbed the mans hand. The man frowned and let go of my hand and I backed two steps.
"You okay Chris?" Tino asked and looked at me. I nodded and Tino let the mans wrist go. He glared at me and walked away, and Tino and I walked out to the bus again.

Little did we know that it wasn’t the last time we would see him.

- - -

I jumped outside and Austin followed me. He put a hat over my head, my big white sunhat, and I smiled. He cared for me.
"The sun is strong" he said and smiled. I kissed him and smiled.
"I know" I said and he kissed me back. Then I noticed that everyone except Alan had walked out from the bus. Maybe this was my chance.
"Austin, I’m gonna go talk to Alan" I said and he nodded. He followed me back to the bus and he sat on the stairs so no one could walk in as I walked inside to talk to Alan.
"Alan?" I asked and I saw him by the bunkers. He was looking for something. He looked up and I smiled.
"What are you looking for?" I asked.
"Some sunblock" he said and laughed. I smiled and walked over to my bunker and gave him mine. We used the same.
"thanks" he said and smiled.
"Alan, there is something I need to tell you" I said and swallowed.
"If it’s about you being pregnant I’ve already figured it out" he said and shrugged. I stared at him.
"Am I that big?" I said and looked at my belly.
"No, it’s just the way Austin behaves around you… the way he unintentionally strokes your belly every time he hugs you" Alan said and grinned.
"It’s not Austin’s babies" I said and swallowed.
"Babies? you’re having twins?" Alan asked and looked surprised. I nodded and swallowed again. I could see that Alan looked really surprised.
"And not Austin’s babies?" he said and I shook my head. I looked at Alan and then I told him the truth. And that Austin didn’t want me to do an abortion. Alan looked really, really surprised.

- - -

Austin’s POV

I heard her tell him the whole story and I swallowed. It was still a little bit hard to know that it wasn’t my babies. But I had accepted it. I closed my eyes and pulled the fingers through my hair.
"what is going on?" Phil asked. I opened my eyes and saw that he, Tino and Aaron were all looking towards the same thing. A cloud of sand coming towards us on the street. Cars screeching and driving fast towards us. I stood up and looked at it and they came closer and closer. The first car passed and I swallowed. It felt like a know it my stomach when I saw the other cars coming towards us.
"This doesn’t feel right" Phil said.
"Chris babe, Alan… Can you get out here?" I called. One of the cars got closer and closer and I swallowed.
"Chris… Alan, get out here" I called again but the car lost control and slammed into the bus. I could hear Chris scream and Alan call out. Then the next car lost control and slammed into the bus as well and this time the bus tipped over. I could hear Chris screaming and Alan growled in pain.

- - -

First I screamed because of the large bump and shake on the bus. My whole body trembled and I fell to me knees. Alan called my name and tried to hurry over to my side.
"You okay?" he asked and then the next bump came and the whole bus flipped over. I screamed as I fell towards the benches. It wouldn’t have been anything if it wasn’t that I landed on my stomach, and got the hard corner and edge right in my belly. I screamed out as my whole stomach clenched in pain. I could even hear Alan growl in pain, and when I looked over at him I saw that he had fallen down on the bunkers and gotten both Phil and Aaron’s suitcases over him. I slowly stood up and swallowed.
"Alan, are you okay?" I asked. He opened his eyes and I could see blood from his arm, his nose and he held a hand over his ribs
"I think I just broke two of my ribs" he said and frowned. He crawled out from the bunkers and he looked at me.
"You’re bleeding" he said and looked at my face.
"I hit myself pretty bad" I said and swallowed.
"No I mean… you’re bleeding" he said and pointed towards my thighs. i looked down and I saw my mint green sundress was bloody. I swallowed and started to hyperventilate. Alan caught me when I fell and he frowned a little.
"CHRIS, ALAN… ARE YOU OKAY?" Austin shouted. Alan just stared at me as I started to cry. My whole body felt sore and it felt like period cramps, heavy period cramps, in my stomach. I knew what had happened. I didn’t even need a doctor to tell me. I already knew.
"ARE YOU OKAY?" Austin called again.
"No, I think we’re not" Alan answered and stared at my bloody dress.