It wasn’t clear to Tyler whether this was something to talk about. He wasn’t trying to pry. What was going on between them was new and felt fragile, some rare flower that only bloomed once a decade, but he also didn’t want to be that guy who shied away from the hard shit and she’d been through it, well before El Reno.
(There were old pictures at her mom’s house that included a guy who was probably Kate’s dad, but neither Kate nor her mom had mentioned him. Tyler knew enough not to broach the subject the first time he showed up at the place, even if he’d fucked up the guest-gift, handing over some Wranglers merch to Cathy who’d given him a look so bemused, he’d caught himself about to say, My mama didn’t raise me to have such poor manners, ma’am as Cathy had shrugged and smiled her thanks. So, Kate’s dad was most likely dead, a while back, unless Cathy was the most forgiving woman in the world and kept photos of the guy who’d ditched her on the front hall table.)
So yeah, he hadn’t mentioned anything, just asked her one time about the way she took her coffee and memorized the answer, making sure to have a mug ready when she woke up, adding the milk once he heard her stir in the bed, the creaky frame finally a plus. He didn’t try to wake her up if he woke up while she was dreaming, but not because of the conventional wisdom that you shouldn’t wake someone up during a nightmare. He had no idea what he’d say to her other than, you were dreaming, Kate, and she’d either know that or not as soon as she opened her eyes. He didn’t see it helping.
She wept by the end of most of them. He’d tasted the salt of her tearstains the first morning he’d woken her up to fuck at dawn. The tears had run into the hair at her temples and he’d kissed her there first, big spoon wrapped around her. He’d been drowsy himself, hadn’t had the awareness to say anything and now there was nothing to say.
She needed to cry when she slept because he’d never seen her do it awake, not concussed, not even when she’d had too big a mouthful of Dani’s jalapeno dip. They didn’t talk about that either. They talked about storms and the music on the radio, what she missed about New York, his old dog Sassy and how he wanted to get a new dog but he didn’t think it was fair, how she only read non-fiction and he had a soft spot for old school sci-fi, with lots of aliens and lasers, and also the Vorkosigan saga because he had some standards, no matter what she thought.
She’d grinned then and asked what she should read. He told her Cordelia’s Honor and that he didn’t expect her to read any of the others.
She fell asleep with the book held in her hand. He used a receipt from the hardware store as a bookmark so she wouldn’t lose her place. He turned off the light and closed his eyes, listening to the sound of her breath. He’d always been a light sleeper and he’d wake up if the pressure changed, a storm on the horizon a lure more than an interruption.
He’d wake up when she had a nightmare. It amounted to the same thing.
If she wanted to, she’d tell him sometime, what she dreamed about.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Length: 6,875 words (2/3)
Rating: T for language and distressing themes
TWs: nightmares, PTSD, non-graphic descriptions of pain
“You doin’ okay?”
Kate chews the end of the pen as her mouth goes dry, then swallows hard and wets her lips. “I’m not sure how to answer that.”
Her mom shrugs a little. “Honesty's always a great start.”
“Well, I'm honestly not sure how to answer that,” she barely avoids snapping.
“Katie…”
The words explode out of her before she’s even processed them.
“I left New York to come home for a week of tornado research, and instead I’m looking at a month of itchy medical shit, and a couch that’s older than I am, and—and stupid fucking reruns,” she finishes, breathing a little too heavy, and chucks her pen at the TV. “And that’s not fair.”
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Length: 4,158 words (1/3)
Rating: T for language and intense themes
TWs: non-graphic injuries, panic attack, vomiting
“I get it,” she interrupts and tries not to glare at the knee brace, or at the few inches of scar that it doesn’t quite cover. “Sapulpa until further notice.”
Cathy pats her hand. “Try not to sound too excited about another month with your mom.”
Kate takes a breath to steady herself. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way. Being back here has just been…”
“Hey,” she soothes and squeezes Kate’s hand now. “I get it, and I wish this place would stop puttin’ you through the wringer. But maybe the downtime will do you some good,” she suggests. “Take a break from chasin’. Give Oklahoma a chance to make amends. Who knows—you might just fall in love again.”
Suddenly the door opens and Tyler shoves through with a coffee cup in each hand. “Two creams and two sugars for you,” he says and offers one to Cathy, “and black for me.” He lifts his own cup to his lips but stops mid-motion when he finally realizes what he’s interrupted; starts to speak, changes his mind, tries again, then his expression softens. “Hey, Kate,” he greets just above a whisper.
.
(An alternate ending, three parts, title from "Out of the Woods" by Taylor Swift.)
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Twister (Movies 1996 2024), Twisters (2024)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Kate Carter/Tyler Owens (Twisters)
Characters: Kate Carter (Twisters), Tyler Owens (Twisters)
Additional Tags: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Literal Sleeping Together, Nightmares, Storm Chasing, Pining, Hurt/Comfort, Canon Compliant, Post-Canon
Summary:
The doctor who had come to give Kate her discharge papers had been very clear: until she was fully recovered — four weeks at minimum — she was to do very little physical activity, lift nothing over five pounds, and she was expressly forbidden from even thinking about chasing a tornado.
The hospital should have added phone calls with Tyler Owens to the list.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
FANDOM: Twister (1996) / Twisters (2024)
PAIRING(S)/RELATIONSHIP(S): Kate Carter/Tyler Owens, Jo Harding/Bill Harding
CHARACTERS: Tyler Owens, Kate Carter, Jo Harding, Bill Harding, mentions of: Javi Rivera, Addy, Praveen, and Jeb
ADDITIONAL TAGS: Post-Twisters (2024)
STATUS: Complete, One-Shot
WORD COUNT: 2,583
LINKS: AO3
SUMMARY:
"Jo can see something in his eyes though, in the look he’s giving Kate, that says it’s so much more. It reminds her of the time Bill had done the same for her— Confronted her with the past in the face of losing her to it. Helped her learn to live with it, to let it go. "
Or, Kate pays a visit to Muskogee State.
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2087
