The Summer of 1981, Part 33: I Made It Through The Rain

[Padraig]

For those of you who would like to catch up, here are links to the earlier chapters:

Part 1: The Best of Times
Part 2: Wasn't That A Party
Part 3: The Boy From New York City
Part 4: The Voice
Part 5: Feels So Right
Part 6: Sausalito Summernight
Part 7: The Waiting
Part 8: All I Have To Do Is Dream
Part 9: Urgent
Part 10: The Theme From The Greatest American Hero
Part 11: Rock And Roll Dreams Come Through
Part 12: Life of Illusion
Part 13: America
Part 14: Deep Inside My Heart
Part 15: Mister Sandman
Part 16: Hard To Say
Part 17: Bette Davis Eyes
Part 18: Limelight
Part 19: Cool Love
Part 20: Don't Let Him Go
Part 21: Physical
Part 22: Hold On Tight
Part 23: Medley
Part 24: I Love You
Part 25: The Sweetest Thing (I've Ever Known)
Part 26: Everlasting Love
Part 27: It's My Turn
Part 28: I Love A Rainy Night
Part 29: Promises In The Dark (Beginning)
Part 30: Promises In The Dark (Middle)
Part 31: Promises In The Dark (Almost To The End)
Part 32: Promises In The Dark (The End)


Any feedback is very much appreciated – I would love to hear from those of you who have been reading. Or if you just want to reminisce about some of your favorite music or memories from 1981, please feel free to share. Thanks!!


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We dreamers have our ways
Of facing rainy days
And somehow we survive

We keep the feelings warm
Protect them from the storm
Until our time arrives

Then one day the sun appears
And we come shining through those lonely years

I made it through the rain
I kept my world protected
I made it through the rain
I kept my point of view
I made it through the rain
And found myself respected
By the others who
Got rained on, too
And made it through

He was leaning into the wind, navigating his way down the path. The storm was raging all around him, with almost-hurricane level gusts and torrential rain, but he powered forward as quickly as he could.

He had just left his house, on his way to see his friend, when the tempest unexpectedly arrived. Within minutes of beginning his trek, the blue sky clouded up, the temperature dropped about 20 degrees, and a fierce wind began to howl. Because of its abrupt onset, he wasn’t properly dressed for inclement weather, wearing only his tight short-sleeve shirt, shorts, and tennis shoes, all of which had become drenched within seconds. He had no coat, no hat, and no boots.

Fortunately, he did have two weapons at his disposal as he fought against the storm – 1) his ultra-muscular body, developed from years and years of rigorous weight training, which provided him with deep reservoirs of immense strength, and 2) an unquenchable desire to see his friend as soon as possible. The man couldn’t explain the overwhelming urge to visit this particular friend, but he knew it was something he needed to do.

So he walked and walked and walked, cupping his hand over his eyes to help him see through the blinding rain.

Suddenly, the sky erupted with flashes of lightning all around, with monstrous strands that shot across the ceiling of dark clouds. One bolt launched itself in his direction, but struck the base of an oak tree about five yards ahead of him, lighting it up as if it had been decorated for Christmas. The resultant thunder was immediate and deafening.

Dang! That was close! I’m going to have to move faster…

He didn’t have a chance to take one step, however, before he realized the lightning strike had almost obliterated the trunk of the tree, and the once-majestic oak was now falling right toward him. It seemed to gain speed as it fell, and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to outrun the massive column.

So he held his arms up in the air and braced for impact.

He felt his entire upper half surge with vitality as the tree landed squarely in his hands, and he stopped its fall just above his head. He then pivoted on his right leg, pressing the weight higher, and swung the fallen oak to the side of the road. As it crashed to the ground, he brought down his arms and flexed his melon-sized biceps, marveling at their ability.

More powerful than an oak tree!

But then, remembering his goal, he stopped staring at his glorious arms and started down the path again. The rain and the wind continued their bombardment, but it wasn’t enough for him to turn back. He pushed himself forward using all the strength his brawny legs could muster.

I’ve got to get to him…he needs me…

He rounded a slight curve in the trail and found himself at the bottom of a steep muddy ravine where a huge boulder had tumbled down, most likely from the storm. The rock was six feet high, and it was completely blocking the path ahead of him. But the man would not be deterred.

Using his incredible strength, the rain-soaked Hercules pulled back on his gigantic left arm, balled up his fist, and punched the boulder with all of the force he could muster – the pain was hot and intense, and a normal man would have broken his hand. But this was no ordinary man. He simply pulled back his fist and shook off the achy feeling as he watched cracks begin to form in the large rock and immediately spread across the formation.

He dug his fingers tightly into the crack nearest him, ripped a huge section of the heavy stone away, and tossed it behind him. He then took the next section and pulled it away as well, tossing it aside. Again and again and again he furiously broke off huge chunks of the wet boulder, until only the bottom two feet remained.

Stronger than granite!

The he-man jumped over the bottom section of the boulder and continued on his journey, determined to get to his friend before it was too late. He began running through the ravine, which was becoming harder and harder as the storm raged on.

I must make it through the rain…

He ran faster and faster along the muddy path, pumping his legs as hard as he could. He opened up his wide chest as far as it would go, taking in huge breaths of oxygen to keep his system at a maximum pace. He ran and ran and ran…

Suddenly, he saw a wall of water advancing toward him – the ravine was flooding from the storm. The stream grew larger and larger as it got closer and closer, but the man kept running, stripping off his shirt as he went. Within seconds it was twenty feet away, then ten feet, then five feet…

As the water surged around his knees, the man dove forward and began to swim. Feverishly he pumped his legs and arms, gliding through the water with the ease of a man half of his size thanks to the years and years of workouts that had supercharged his powerful physique. He swam as if his life depended on it, harder than he had ever done before.

The water level grew higher and higher and higher as the ravine rapidly filled up, and the current increased in strength. Still nothing could deter the man – the wilder the river became, the faster he swam through it. His energy level never flagged, not even for a moment, as he willed his pumped-up muscles to give it everything they had.

I must save my friend…I must save my friend…

I only hope I can get to him in time…

I’m coming, Ben…I’m coming…


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“Ben!” said Tug as woke with a start.

His eyes fluttered open, and he realized he was in his bedroom, resting under the comforter on his bed – he was shirtless, but it felt like he was wearing an old sweatpants on his legs. The shades were drawn in the room, but enough light was peaking trough he could tell it was morning.

“Sweetie, you’re awake!” called his mother from somewhere on his right. He turned his head to see her, only to realize that it was very sore.

“Mom?” What happened? Where’s Ben?”

His mother rushed to his side, sat down next to him, and leaned in for a hug. “Tug, try not to move. You have a nasty bump on the back of your head. But the doctor says you’re going to be OK.”

“Where’s Ben?” he repeated. "Is he OK?"

Tug’s mother sat back up and gently put her hand on her son’s shoulder. “He's fine, Tug, but he just left."

“He's not here?” asked Tug with more than a hint of sadness in his voice, turning his head ever-so-slightly so that he faced his mother. She looked more tired than usual, but still had her radiant glow.

“Oh, Tug, he stayed the whole night. He sat right next to you, hoping you would wake up. Your father practically dragged him out of here a little while ago to get him changed into some clean, dry clothes. And even though the doctor checked him out last night, your father was going to make him go back this morning just to be sure.”

“Did he tell you what happened?

“Yes, he told us. It sounds like you both were very lucky and very brave to make it through.” He watched her expression, and if there was any anger or disappointment, she hid it very well.

“How did I get back here?”

“Ben said he carried you.”

Tug smiled.

Always a showoff…

“What time is it?”

“It’s about 9:00am, sweetie.”

“I slept that late? So why am I so tired?” he asked with a yawn.

Tug’s mother gently put her hand on his shoulder. “The doctor gave you a painkiller for the bump, and he said it would make you a little woozy for a while. But in a day or so you’ll be as good as new. Now go back to your dreaming, and when you wake up, I’ll have nice hot bowl of oatmeal for you.”

“Thanks, Mom.” He watched as she rose from the bed and left the room, still smiling, and thankful that the events from the night before had not ended in tragedy.

After yawning again, he closed his eyes and tried to fall back to sleep, but he was pre-occupied with thoughts of Ben. He wanted to know he was okay, he wanted to see his face, and he wanted to be close to him.

Tug was just drifting off again when he noticed a strange sensation of his left wrist – it felt odd, and heavy, and different. He lifted his arm out from under the cover and was surprised to see his white belt, still caked in mud, looped around and around his wrist like a giant bracelet and securely buckled in place. He pulled it closer and noticed three words scrawled on the leather –

"I love you"

Instantly, Tug began to cry.

[Padraig]

I apologize for the delay in posting ? I was going to put this chapter up last night, but computer issues slowed me down. I hope it was worth the extra wait.

And now for today's song, courtesy of Mr. Manilow.

I Made It Through The Rain

[toad687]

i just finished reading this story up to this point and i want to say i love it! can't wait for the next chapter and see how things unfold with Ben and Tug.

[michaelv2]

Whew! I hate to admit how I woke up late last night and had a good half hour of stewing about Tug and Ben! I guess Tug was well named - hauling his friend back from the abyss.

[Padraig]

Thanks, Toad! And Michael, I'm sorry about the stewing, but I'm glad you're into the story!

[redroger11]

Aw, Hell yeah. There's a big goofy grin on my face. Where's that thesaurus? I have it here somewhere. I gotta find all the really cool words of praise for the author...
Keep Writing. You will be getting a lot more praise as you go.

redroger11

[Padraig]

Thanks, Roger! And while you've got that thesaurus out, please let me know any new synonyms for strong, muscular, Herculean, etc. After 30+ chapters, I feel like I have used them all about 1,000 times. :-)

[ferro]

Originally Posted by Padraig

Thanks, Roger! And while you've got that thesaurus out, please let me know any new synonyms for strong, muscular, Herculean, etc. After 30+ chapters, I feel like I have used them all about 1,000 times. :-)

In the unlikely event that the next chapter is delayed due to a lack of synonyms, here are a few that might help speed things up (if only to send you back to your usual choices): brawny, mighty, powerful, powerhouse, strapping

On the extreme end of the scale (probably of limited use): colossal, gargantuan, hulking, immense, massive, titanic

Definitely looking forward to a new chapter. Thanks for continuing this excellent story.

[Padraig]

I just posted the latest chapter, and two more will be coming tonight.

Thanks for the adjectives ? I need them!!