One

Cole Ryan

Nothing ever happens in this town. The words were on repeat in my mind as my feet pounded the pavement of the country road I was currently jogging on. I'd lived in Hickory Crossing for all of my thirty years, and not once had something happened that surprised me or was unusual. It was always chronically the same as it was yesterday. It was my own damn fault. I'd been offered a scholarship from one of the state colleges to run track for them after high school, but that all sounded so scary when I was a teenager who had never gone past the county line.

Now I was just stupid enough to stay here and let life pass me by as I complained daily about how boring my life was.

"Mornin', Cole," Miss Avery said, as I ran past her small farm like I did pretty much every morning. She lived alone and ran her small goat farm by herself. I waved to her and continued on my way, grumbling under my breath about how every damn morning it was the same old thing.

The sun was barely rising as I crossed the four-way stop and ran on toward town. It had rained nearly every day the past week, and it was nice to have one morning where I wasn't soaked to the bone by the time I got back to my house. I needed to run, and rain or not, I was still going to go. The clouds rolled in heavy and within a few minutes it looked like rain was a given. "Fuck," I said under my breath and picked up the pace.

A rumble in the distance told me it wasn't going to be long before once again I was getting rained on. I glanced back at the gathering storm and noticed something I'd never seen before. The clouds were dark, but they seemed to glow an electric blue. I stopped running and cupped my hands over my eyes, squinting and straining to get a better look and some understanding of exactly what I was looking at. It was strange, and I wondered if maybe the sun was illuminating the clouds from behind but that didn't explain the blue color. "The sun is behind me," I mumbled, still not sure what I was seeing.

Electricity crackled in the air as the first flash of lightning illuminated the sky just before a loud crack of thunder startled me. I turned again and started running, and hoped I could get home before it all hit. The sound of my shoes on the pavement was amplified, and the hairs on my legs and arms stood up. Ozone was thick and heavy in the air, and I knew it was only a matter of time before it hit.

Three things happened at once. There was a flash of blue that I knew was lightning. A clap of thunder hit so loud and hard I felt the ground shake under my feet just before I was launched through the air and landed in the grass at the side of the road. My breath was knocked out of me, and the thought crossed my mind I could be hurt really badly. Then there was nothing.

"Hey, buddy, are you okay?"

I struggled to open my eyes, but it was pouring rain and my whole body ached. I sucked in a deep breath and coughed out a lungful of smoke. What the— Forcing my eyes open, the first thing I saw was a head full of light blond hair and bright green eyes filled with worry. "Are ye okay?" he asked in a slight accent I knew I should recognize but my brain was still stuck on the fact I'd exhaled a bunch of smoke.

"What happened?" I finally managed to croak out.

"I think you got hit by lightning," he said, and helped me to a sitting position.

"What?"

"I said I think—"

"I heard what you said, but that can't be right. I was just running and then—" I couldn't remember what happened next.

"You don't remember?" he asked.

"I guess not," I said, and wondered where my shoes were because I knew for a fact, I'd had them on earlier. I glanced around and after he helped me stand, I slowly walked over to where I was when I'd been running. There, in the middle of the road, were two burn marks that looked suspiciously the same size as my footprints. "Where are my shoes?"

"Let me take a look. I was wondering why you were out here barefooted." He walked back over to the side of the road while I stared at the burnt impressions that definitely looked like footprints. "Is this one of them?" He walked closer to me holding a scrap of the white leather that had once been an expensive pair of running shoes.

"I think so, I mean maybe?" If I didn't know that was a part of my shoe, I wouldn't have recognized it. It was charred black and what wasn't burnt, was melted. I looked down at my feet, and the band that was at the top of my socks was still there, but that was it. That was all that remained of my shoes and my socks.

"How do you suppose that happened?" the guy asked, and I realized he was standing next to me staring at my burnt shoe impressions with me.

"I think you're right. I got struck by lightning."

"What do you remember?" he asked and stood with his hands on his hips waiting for me to answer as though he were talking about a vacation I'd taken or possibly a long lost memory.

"Nothing. I was out for a run and the next thing I remember is you waking me up." As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I found it harder to believe that's what had happened, but there was no other explanation.

"Are you sure you're not hurt?" he asked and gave me a onceover.

I patted the pockets of my running shorts and my light jacket. Nothing hurt anywhere, but on closer inspection the zipper to my jacket was fused and burn marks were visible at the bottom. "I don't think it got me."

"Oh, it definitely got you," he mumbled. "Come on then, I'll give you a ride home." He led me to the small van he was driving while I tried to comprehend what was happening.

"I don't think I should get in the car with you. I mean I don't know who you are." That was the first thing my parents taught me when I was a kid: don't get into a car with a stranger. And right now, that simple lesson was kicking in strong.

"I promise I'm not a bad guy. I'm making a delivery for a paper company. A place in town ordered some of our finest linen paper for a project. The boss wanted me to deliver it in person, so they get to know us a little better. He's all about the personal touch. The name's Bobby Sanders." He held his hand out to me, and I stared at it for a full minute before my brain kicked in and I shook it.

"I'm Cole Ryan." Thunder rumbled in the distance and once again the clouds threatened to rain down on us.

"Well, Cole Ryan, unless you don't mind walking back to town in your bare feet during a rainstorm, I'd love to offer you a ride." He grinned, and all I sensed from him was his want to help me.

I thought about it, and tried to gauge how fit he was and if I'd be able to wrestle away from him if he tried to hold me captive, before realizing he was still waiting for my answer. Hickory Crossing was about five miles away and while I didn't want to risk my safety, I wasn't sure I could walk it. "Sure, I'll take a ride. But if you try anything just know I will fight you for everything." I pointed my finger at him to punctuate my words, and he responded by holding his hands up in defeat.

"I promise I won't try anything. Just doing my good deed for the day," he said, before turning to walk to his van.

I followed behind him and noticed it was still running. He opened his door, and I took a deep breath before opening the passenger door and sliding into the seat.

"So, what do you do in Hickory Crossing, Cole Ryan?" he asked as he put the van in gear and drove toward town.

"Apparently run in rainstorms and get struck by lightning," I muttered, making him laugh while I once again questioned my sanity.

"Well, hopefully you don't do that too often," he said, and reached across to turn on the radio.