The rain was falling softly over the small town of Willow Creek when Emma first saw him.
She was standing at the bus stop, holding a broken umbrella that was doing nothing to protect her from the sudden storm. Her white dress was slightly wet, her hair clinging to her cheeks. She sighed in frustration.
"Looks like your umbrella gave up on you," a deep, warm voice said beside her.
Emma turned and saw a tall boy with kind brown eyes holding a large black umbrella over both of them. He smiled — not the kind of smile people give to be polite, but the kind that feels real.
"Thank you," she said softly. "I guess it wasn't my lucky day."
"Maybe it is," he replied. "Otherwise, we wouldn't have met."
His name was Daniel. He had just moved to town and was starting a new job at the local bookstore. Emma loved books more than anything, so when she heard that, her eyes lit up.
They talked while waiting for the bus. About books. About dreams. About the places they wanted to travel. The rain didn't seem so cold anymore.
When the bus arrived, Daniel hesitated. "Would you… maybe like to visit the bookstore tomorrow? I could recommend you something special."
Emma felt her heart beat faster. She didn't know why, but she felt safe with him. Comfortable.
"I'd like that," she said.
The next day, she went to the bookstore. Daniel had saved a novel for her — a romance story. Inside the first page, he had written:
"For the girl I met in the rain. I hope this is the beginning of a beautiful story — ours."
Weeks turned into months. They read together, laughed together, and slowly, without even realizing it, they fell in love.
One evening, as they walked under the same bus stop where they first met, it started raining again.
Daniel gently held her hand. "I used to think rain was lonely," he said. "But now, every time it rains, it reminds me of the best day of my life."
Emma smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. "Mine too."
And as the rain fell around them, they knew — sometimes love doesn't need perfect timing.
Sometimes, it just needs a little rain.