A/N: Obviously, I do not own Drake & Josh.Any and all reviews are greatly appreciated. Great thanks to acid-free and Itzel A. Garza for proofing the story and giving me crazy ideas at three in the morning (you guys are awesome). Enjoy!

Summary: A freak thunderstorm causes Josh & Mindy to be stuck in the Nichols-Parker household with no power and no one to supervise them.

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LOSS OF CONTROL

Josh had always thought the night he lost his virginity would be something that he would have control over. It would be a night planned so meticulously from what he would wear, to the food he'd serve for dinner, and down to the speech he'd planned out to tell the lucky girl. It was bred into Josh that he be the neat one, the organized one, the one who had a handle on whatever situation was thrown at him.

However, he was also the guy who knew that not everything he wanted went according to plan, no matter how much he wished it to be. For example, whenever he flipped a coin, the opposite would be true of whatever he called out – that's just how his life was. But his own virginity? If there's anything Josh undoubtedly thought he had control over, this would definitely be it.

Mindy had come over on a rainy Saturday night, enjoying the time spent with her boyfriend. It was a rare night that Josh had the whole house to himself and he was excited when his dad allowed for Mindy to come over when no one was home. Drake was out on a date, Megan was conveniently spending the night at a friend's house, and his parents were having dinner with Walter's boss and his wife. Josh had appreciated the silence for once, but had been a little relieved when Mindy finally arrived. With the rain drizzling outside, he felt a little cooped up with nothing to distract him until she rang the doorbell.

Like the good kids that they were, they stayed down in the living room to watch a movie, upon Josh's insisting. What if his parents had come home? He didn't know how freaked out they would be to find the two of them alone in his bedroom, despite the fact that they'd probably just be watching the movie up there. Josh had no intention of getting grounded and being deprived of any time spent with Mindy.

They watched the movie quietly, cuddling together close on the couch and sharing a bowl of popcorn. As the movie progressed, the two of them barely noticed that the rain sprinkling softly on the roof had become much louder as it rattled down the gutters. It was only when the credits began to roll and Mindy snuggled her face into Josh's shoulder that they heard the boom of thunder from outside. Looking out the window, Josh's eyes widened at the rain pouring from the pitch black sky.

"Oh man, look outside! It is like cats and dogs out there," he said, clicking the remote to rewind the video.

"Yuck, gross weather," Mindy agreed, wrinkling her nose as she turned her head to look up at him. "You should check out what the news is saying. It looks so nasty."

"Sure, no problem." Josh clicked the remote again to turn on a local weather station and was greeted with the sight of Bruce Winchell, his glorious hair shimmering under the bright studio lights as he gestured over the green screen.

"Well it looks like the dry spell for us is finally over folks. We've got showers all up and down the coast of California, with flood watches hitting areas like Santa Monica, Venice Beach, and San Diego. Keep your eye on Channel 2 news to keep up on further flood watch broadcasts."

"Flood watches? Next thing you know the power…" Josh started as the lights flickered before all going out at once in a moment of sheer coincidence. "…will go out. Perfect, just perfect!"

"Now Josh, don't panic," Mindy said, aware of Josh's tendency to overreact to simple situations. "I'm sure they'll come back on in a few minutes." They both waited a beat, but the lights continued to stay off as if to mock them. Before Josh could say anything, they heard the tiny electronic song on his cell phone trumpet from his pocket. The caller id glowed with his dad's number as he answered the phone.

"Hey Josh, did you lose power?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"The restaurant we're at lost power too, so your mom and I are just going to head over to my boss's house to wait out the storm because it's much closer than driving all the way back home."

"What about Drake and Megan?"

"Megan's fine, the lights at her friend's house just flickered for a bit. Drake's phone was off though. Do you know where he is?"

"He mentioned something about going to The Premiere, so he might be in the middle of a movie."

"Okay, well tell Mindy to stay put and hopefully we'll see you guys in about an hour or so, depending on the storm."

"Okay dad, see you later. Be careful driving."

Josh pressed the off button and slid the phone back in his pocket and turned to face Mindy. "Well, looks like you'll be staying here for awhile. My dad doesn't want you to drive home in this weather."

"I guess that would be the smart thing to do, following the advice of a weatherman," Mindy replied. "Do you have any flashlights or candles or anything? The dark is kind of freaking me out."

"Yeah, we've got a couple of flashlights in our rooms. Why, is strong, tough Mindy afraid of the dark?" Josh teased, slipping his hand into hers as he guided them both up from the couch. He was surprised when her grip grew tighter.

"Not afraid," Mindy said defensively. "Just…nervous that's all. The power is out, the streets are flooded, and your house is big so it makes weird noises…"

"Weird noises? Like what?" He guided her toward the stairs, knowing he'd reached his destination when his free hand found the smooth curve at the end of the wooden banister.

"Just little creaks."

"Watch your step," he told her, still holding her hand. "Mindy, you know that's just the house settling."

"Doesn't make it any less creepy in the middle of a storm," she pointed out, making sure not to let go of his hand. Step after step, she followed him up the staircase in a house that she was much more comfortable in when she could see where she was going. Thunderstorms had made her uneasy ever since she was little and tonight was no exception. Being with Josh made her feel a little better, but she couldn't shake the nervous feeling snaking its way up and down her spine. She needed some kind of distraction to calm her down.

They reached the bedroom that Drake and Josh shared and Josh easily navigated his way from the door to his bed. Mindy sank down into the soft mattress as he rifled through the contents of his nightstand drawer, convinced a flashlight was hiding somewhere in there. Before long, he found it and turned it on as he pointed the light under his chin to give his face an eerie glow as he turned to face Mindy. She smiled at his goofiness and pulled him down to have him sit next to her.

"Ha ha, very funny Josh."

"But I'm not Josh," he replied, in a deeper, more menacing-sounding voice. "I'm…the tickle monster!"

Before she realized what was happening, Mindy was on her back laughing hysterically as Josh's fingers wiggled unpredictably on her stomach and hips. When she got her hand free, she stuck it out to tickle Josh in his own sensitive spot, where the curve of his neck met with his shoulders. He yelped in surprise as he dropped the flashlight, both of their laughter filling the once silent room as the flashlight made a hollow thumping sound on the wooden floor. Mindy, gasping for air, tried to put an end to his silly behavior.

"Josh…Josh, just stop it!" Her girlish giggles made her demands sound empty and non-threatening. He was laughing along with her, positioning himself so that he was on top of her and able to pin her arm away from his neck. "Stop, stop….stop!" She breathed a sigh of relief when the tickling sensation finally subsided and she was able to breathe normally again as she felt her body relax. Josh sighed too and they both grew quiet as the realization slowly began to dawn on them.

They were alone. In Josh's bedroom. The lights were off. And nobody was coming home anytime soon.

The moon was illuminating bits and pieces of the large room and the sound of the soft, steady rain was only overshadowed by their shallow breathing. Josh continued to rest on top of Mindy, wondering if he should move. Not that he wanted to move, but maybe she was getting uncomfortable and all of a sudden the room felt very hot to him. But he could see Mindy's pretty face in the dim light, her lips curving into a small smile.

"Hey you," she said quietly, sliding her hand up his sweater-covered arm. She used her tiny fingers to play with the soft, black curls at the nape of his neck. He braced himself, for another tickle attack, but it never came. Instead, Josh felt the pressure from her palm bring his face down so that she connected her lips with his.

Josh kept it slow; felt that it was better if it was slow. Slow kisses meant less risk of screwing up the mood. Slow kisses meant he could enjoy this perfect moment while it lasted. Slow kisses were comfortable and safe and meant everything to him.

He pulled his head back, allowing for a moment for them both to breathe. Mindy still had that same little grin on her face, obviously having shaken the nerves out of her system from earlier. She couldn't have asked for a better distraction.

"Hey you," Josh said to her, kissing the tip of her nose. "We should probably get back downstairs."

"Why?"

Josh froze at the simple question as his eyes widened. Why? A million reasons jumbled his brain, one after the other in a confusing mess. Because his parents weren't home. Because somebody could come home at any time. Because he was pretty sure it was against house rules to have a girl in his bed. Because…because…because…

"I mean," Mindy said, starting to backpedal as she saw the surprise in his eyes. "It's not like we can do anything downstairs, what with the power being off. And your dad said they wouldn't be home for at least another hour…"

If he could've said something, Josh definitely would have. But the implications of what she was saying and the way she was playing with his belt buckle left his mouth dry and empty. He made a sound that resembled something of a gasp when he felt her palm become flush against his stomach.

"But downstairs there's…there's…there's a couch."

"Don't you think your bed is comfier than that old couch downstairs?"

Josh's brain went numb, but his body was almost crackling with excitement. Impulsively, he leaned down to kiss her as he was unable to think of a suitable verbal answer for her question that wouldn't make him trip over his own words. Their lips tangoed for a bit with Mindy's tongue teasing his bottom lip in the way that she knew drove him crazy.

Thoughts began to swirl in his head and Josh began to wonder how much farther he could (and wanted) to get away with. His hand grazed against her side as it moved upward, his fingers feeling the bottom edge of her bra. In response, all Mindy did was sigh and brought her arms around his neck just to bring him closer to her own face. Josh brought his other hand up to Mindy's back as his fingers worked the stubborn, metal hooks. It was a bit of a struggle but he figured it was just a bra, not rocket science. Before he even thought about moving further, Josh broke contact from their lip lock.

"Is this okay? Is this too fast?"

Mindy was quiet, feeling her heart pound an uneven rhythm into her chest as she took a deep breath. "No, this is good." To punctuate her point, she grabbed the flimsy straps and managed to slide the clean, white bra out from under her shirt without ever taking her eyes off him. Josh almost had to pinch himself to make sure that this was really happening.

A bold, fleeting feeling of confidence swept over him as Josh leaned in to kiss her earlobe. "C'mon, let's get more comfortable."

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To be continued...