Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down, or it's characters. The lyrics used in this story are from Westlife's "Puzzle of My Heart."
Nathan passed her on his way to the well; she was carrying an armful of firewood, and she gave him a smile as she passed by. The sun peeked through the trees in the jungle landing softly on her curly hair, its rays illuminating her already brilliant hair color. She left a nice scent in the air, probably from her shampoo. He watched her over his shoulder paying close attention to the slight sway of her hips, and the way her hair moved in the slight breeze. She was perfect. He watched her until she disappeared behind a group of trees. He wanted to chase after her, they were alone, it would be the perfect time to... he shook the thought away. "No Nathan. She doesn't like you, and you know that." Nathan continued on his way to the well thinking of her the whole way.
It's the way she fills my senses
It's the perfume that she wears
I feel I'm losing my defenses
To the color of her hair
And every little piece of her is right
Just thinking about her
Takes me through the night
Nathan filled the two water containers he had brought with him, and headed back to camp. The first thing he saw when he emerged from the trees was her, sitting on the beach trying to crack open a coconut. "She's so cute. She'll never get it open that way." He put the water jugs by the fire, and made his way over to her. "Need some help?" She looked up at him with frustration in her eyes.
"Yeah! I can't get this stupid thing open." She held the fruit out towards him, and when he took it out of her hands his fingers brushed against hers. His heart skipped a beat with the feeling of her flesh on his. He always felt so alive, so complete, just being in her presence; but touching her was a whole new feeling of elation. He felt like he was on top of the world, and no one could ever bring him down.
Every time we meet
The picture is complete
Every time we touch
The feeling is too much
She's all I ever need
To fall in love again
I knew it from the very start
She is the puzzle of my heart
He sat down so close beside her that their legs touched. He looked into her beautiful eyes to see how she felt about that. She thought nothing of it, he noticed, for the only thing that she said was "What are you looking at me for? I told you I couldn't open it. Crack it open already!" She giggled, and nudged his arm with her elbow. "Please?" She gave him a puppy dog face, blinking her eyes several times in the cutest fashion. He smiled, and they laughed loudly together. He watched her laugh, paying close attention to her mouth. Her had the most beautiful teeth, and her lips were soft and smooth; for a moment he regretted that he had never had the chance to kiss them. They stopped giggling, and Nathan straightened up and said, "Let me show you how this is done." He took her through the process of opening a coconut, but his mind was still stuck on her smile. Back home he remember that she was always the person that was smiling about something. Her smile made her eyes light up in such a way that Nathan had never seen in a person before. She smiled a little less here on the island, and Nathan was glad to help bring it back for a moment.
It's the way she's always smiling
That makes me think she never cries
I feel like I'm losing my defenses
To the color of her eyes
And every little piece of her is right
Every time we meet
The Picture is complete
Every time we touch
The feeling is too much
She's all I ever need
To fall in love again
I knew it from the very start
She is the puzzle of my heart
Later that evening Nathan went for a walk into the jungle; little did he know that she went for a walk too...
Nathan wandered around in the jungle alone for a while, dreaming of her. He was happy. He realized that he was happiest when he was with her, and second happiest when he was thinking about her. She was like a lighted candle inside of him that chased away anything negative that may also be residing in his heart.
Like a miracle she's meant to be
She became the light inside of me
And I can feel her like a memory
From long...ago
He grew tired of walking after a while, so he headed for the coconut tree that he had fallen out of before. He remembered that there was a nice tree nearby that he could sit under and think. He spotted the tree, and noticed that she was sitting under it. She had her head back against the tree, her hair being blown back from the warm breeze. Her eyes were closed, and it looked as if she might be sleeping. Her face was so peaceful; he stared at it; admiring her features, all in a total state of relaxation. Her long thin legs were stretched out in front of her, and crossed at the ankles. She even had beautiful ankles.
Suddenly, reality hit him. She was sitting under a coconut tree! If a coconut feel onto her head... he couldn't even finish his thought. He quickly approached her squatted down beside her, and tapped her shoulder. She gasped, and her eyes fluttered open. She giggled when she saw Nathan; and through the laughter, she said "Hi. I think I dozed off."
"Yeah, and under a coconut tree!" He wanted to display a little anger from her stupidity, but she was still smiling at him; it was impossible for him to mad when she smiled at him. He giggled, and pulled her up by the hand. "Let's sit somewhere safer." He was unusually calm now; he was never calm around her. She always made him feel so wonderful, and bubbly. He kept a hold of her hand, and led her to a different tree; one that was not full of heavy objects.
They sat down close together with their hips touching. Nathan loosened his grip on her hand to let go, but she kept a firm hold on his. They laced their fingers together, and she let her head fall lazily onto his shoulder. Nathan's face was completely overtaken by his smile. "Her head is on my shoulder..." He let his own fall onto hers, letting his nose be overtaken by her slightly frizzy hair. She smelled so good, just like she used to back home.
"Hey Nathan?" Her voice broke him of his trance. She patted his leg with her other hand, and lifted her head back up. They looked into each other's eyes, and he saw that hers were full of tears. He fought against his eyes so they would not follow suite. Something was wrong with her; and he couldn't stand to think of her hurting in any way.
"What's wrong?" He squeezed her hand a little tighter.
"I..." She struggled with her words. She knew what she wanted to say, but at the same time she didn't know. "I... I..." A few of her pent up tears started to roll, and Nathan brushed them away with his thumb. His touch on her face was comforting, and she was finally about to force her words out. "Remember when we had that argument, and I said I hated you, and I could never be with you?" More tears escaped but she didn't bother to brush them away, and just let them fall down onto their bare legs.
"Yeah I remember, but don't cry. It's ok. I understand." Nathan didn't understand though. He could not comprehend that if you love someone, they may not love you back.
"No, it's not ok... because I don't. Hate you. And the truth is... I... I can't see myself with anyone but you." She suddenly felt embarrassed; it was if finally telling the truth drained her of any confidence she had left, and she almost wished she had not even said those words. She turned her head away from Nathan, and studied the grass beside her. A tiny bug crawled up a blade of grass, and then over another, and another until it was gone.
Nathan had not said anything, but still had a firm grip on her hand. Nathan's reassuring hand fell onto her chin, and gently turned her head until she was facing him again. He stroked his fingers over her cheek wiping away some of her tears. After a moment he smiled at her, and moved his hand up to stroke her brilliantly curly hair. "I feel the same way. I never wanted to break up, I think that I'm in love with you Taylor Hagan."
More tears flowed from her eyes; only this time they were tears of joy. She laughed, allowing saltiness to enter her mouth. "I think I love you too Nathan McHugh."
Simultaneously, they pulled each other into a tight embrace. Taylor buried her face into Nathan's shoulder; and he did the same into her lovely scented golden hair. She made little whines and moans into his shoulder trying to stop her crying, and he rubbed her back with his strong hands. He was the happiest man alive; he had his Taylor back. He smiled at the phrase "his Taylor"; she was his girl, and no one else's. For the first time since they broke up, he felt whole again; and the last piece of the puzzle was put into place. It didn't even matter that he was stuck on an island; as long as he had his Taylor it just seemed that nothing else mattered.
Every time we meet
The Picture is complete
Every time we touch
The feeling is too much
She's all I ever need
To fall in love again
I knew it from the very start
She is the puzzle of my heart
Still in her arms, Nathan whispered, "Taylor, can I kiss you?"
She pulled away slowly. Her eyes were red, and her face blotchy, but she was still beautiful to him. She turned her mouth into a small grin and gave her reply. "Yes, Nathan. You can kiss me."
And so he did.
A/N- I know this is not a usual pairing, but I just had the idea one day, so I had to run with it. Let me know what you think. I was going to add more chapters, but I decided to leave it as a one shot. This is also my first story that deals with a romantic relationship; so let me know how I did on that as well. Please review, and let me know what you think about the Taylor/Nathan pairing.