“What else would I be doing?”
“Reflecting? Contemplating the meaning of life? Deciding which model has the better reliability to forecast hurricane intensity: the Euro or the GFS?”
“The Euro. Hands down.”
“Funny.” Sebastian sets the tripod on the ground and attaches his microphone to the front of his shirt. “I was going to say the GFS.”
“Of course you would.”
“Want to argue about it?”
“Why are you here? Please don’t tell me you put a tracker on my car.”
“Now who’s the one with an inflated ego?” His smile curves up on the right side of his mouth, and he flips his hat backward. I want to knock it off his head out of spite. “You should be flattered, Pres. Of all the fields to chase a storm, I walked into yours. That’s what we call fate.”
I roll my eyes and divert my attention to my phone. I’m hoping the break in weather commentary hasn’t driven too many viewers away, but I’m shocked to find the number is higher than before. Comments are flooding in, remarks fromoh my god, who is THAT?andlisten to them! Banter as foreplay is one of my favorite things!Followed bywait, is that Sebastian Dunn? My two worlds are colliding this is WILD.
“How about we draw a line in the dirt? The left side is mine. The right side is yours.” I point to a tall tree with weeds around it. It’s one of the only ones nearby, its low-hanging branches rotting near the roots. “That’s a good place for you to shoot.”
“Too far away. I wouldn’t be able to give you shit from over there, and you know how much I enjoy annoying you.” Sebastian pulls his phone from his front pocket and sets it in the holder on his tripod. “Truth or Dare, Monroe?”
“I’m in the middle of a—”
“Show. Yeah. I figured that out when I saw you talking to yourself. Give me a little bit of credit. Hello, chasers.” I have no clue how he knows what I call my viewers, but there’s no time to ask. He’s too busy leaning over. Crowding my space so he can wave to the camera. Standing so close to the screen, his face takes up too much of the frame. A swarm of heart emojis come in when he laughs and rubs the back of his neck. Boyish, sheepish, as he looks back my way. “It’s an easy question. Want to play?”
Irritation flashes through me, a bolt of lightning in a summer storm.
The sooner I answer him, the sooner he’ll get out of my hair.
And I need him out of my hair.
The sky is turning menacing. The air is shifting to still and calm, an early sign a tornado might be forming nearby, and I don’t want to waste any precious seconds on him when I could be capturing footage.
“Truth,” I blurt, not trusting any dare he might try to give me.
“Are you scared?” There’s a taunt in the question. A challenge in his dark eyes when he steps closer, shoulder brushing mine. “Tornadoes are unpredictable. This could get dangerous.”
“All weather is unpredictable. You’d know that if you used actual science to explain what causes heat domes instead of relying on the song of the day your viewers pick.”
“Look at you paying attention to me.” It’s a murmur, soft and smooth enough to be a caress. Arrogance practically rolls off him, a wave I refuse to indulge in. “Is that why you were always staring at me in AP Physics? To figure out my scientific process?”
“I was staring at you hoping you’d disappear. I haven’t gotten my wish yet. No, I’m not scared.” I squint at him. His throat bobs around a swallow, skin tinged pink and that dimple carved out on his cheek. “Truth or Dare, Dunn?”
“Truth, obviously. I’m so happy I got you to play.”
“Areyouscared?”
“Nah.” Sebastian taps the device strapped to his chest. I’m realizing it’s a GoPro, small enough for him to move freely without having to hold it. It’s genius, and I can’t believe he’s influencing me to buy one. I wonder if he has a discount code. “Danger is a side effect of this job, and when I accepted that, I started to enjoy the thrill of the chase a hell of a lot more than before. We have a finite amount of time on this planet. If I go out doing what I love, then it’ll have been a good life. How many people can say that?”
His answer makes me pause. There’s a twist of something sharp, something knowing, in the center of my chest.
He’s not wrong.
Most meteorologists spend their time assessing weather impacts from their concrete office buildings or a storm shelter in their basement.
A select few of us go into the danger head-on, and it comes with risks. Besides the storm itself, there are other factors: flying debris, downed power lines, and falling tree branches. Idiot drivers—mostly fellow storm chasers—who are too busy watching the sky than the roads ahead of them.
If only people knew we’re so much more than influencers seeking fame and clout. We put our life on the line, and that’s worth more than likes and views.
