The Storm Before The Storm

Two girls run across an open field as the dark blue sky above them blazes with lightning. The rain begins, lightly at first, then gradually harder as the thunder becomes more and more frequent. The girl ahead is grinning and she holds out her arms, palms up, offering herself to the sky. The air is electric around her and she relishes the feel of the rain, slowly soaking her skin. Lightning cuts the sky as the urgent wind flutters her skirt and a ferocious clap of thunder resonates around her. She laughs as the girl just behind her screams.

"It's okay," the girl ahead says, turning around to grasp her friend's hand. "We're almost there."

They run along an old wooden fence that outlined the woods they'd emerged from only moments before. The frightened girl lightly runs one hand along it, keeping her balance as she struggles to keep up. Although her vision is blurred, she can see her friend in front of her, strong and confident, the grip on her hand firm and reassuring.

The thunder is much more intense now, and each time it sounds they both scream, one with fright, the other with insolence, as if daring nature to harm her. The frightened girl can't help but take note of her friends' disregard of natures absolute power over them. She, on the other hand, has always had a healthy respect for nature and she takes her friends brazenness as almost an insult. She, unlike her friend, is scared of the possibility of being hurt. No, that wasn't it, Cassie thought as they drew nearer and nearer to their destination. Her friend was brave, not stupid. She understood the danger. But, one should have stuffiest cause to be brave, she thought, and Rachel's displays of boldness seemed to Cassie to be without merit.

Another roar of thunder, more powerful than any one before it, crashes all around them. Cassie stops running and lets go of her friends' hand to clasp both hands over her ears. She screams.

"Cassie, it's okay," Rachel says, putting her hands on Cassie's shoulders. Her blue eyes are piercing through the matted blonde hair covering most of her face. She is smiling, unbelievably and Cassie realizes that Rachel is enjoying this. Her eyes are bright and alive, happy even. How could something so real and frightening, happening all around them, give her best friend such joyous excitement? Cassie smiles in spite of her fear, knowing no matter how much gratification Rachel was getting from this danger, she would never leave her behind.

They ran together, Rachel, still a little in front, guiding Cassie to the safety of her barn. The storm raging becomes more and more intense and there is a moment where Cassie is sure that they'll be electrocuted. She looks to Rachel, who is jumping as she runs, holding her hands straight up. She spins and runs backwards, facing Cassie.

"We are totally gonna get zapped!" she yells over the nearly defefaning howl of the storm, laughing kindly at her friends terrified expression. Cassie finds, though in that moment, that Rachel's courage, her unwillingness to submit to her fear has somehow inspired her. She is suddenly overcome with a compulsion to match, if not surpass her fearlessness. She picks up speed and passes Rachel, for the first time not thinking about the storm and its danger, and thinking only of her objective; to reach the barn. They run together in the last stretch, with Cassie just barely ahead as they finally burst through the barns doors.

They collapse on barrels of hay, breathing hard and giggling. Cassie looks at Rachel as she calmly picks through her tangled blonde hair, wondering if her flaunting of her courage had been purely for Cassie's benefit, to get her to overcome, if only for a second, her own fear. Rachel takes of her shoes, emptying the water from them and frowns as she realizes that they're probably ruined. No, Cassie thought as she caught her breath. Rachel never did anything for show and she certainly felt no need to manipulate. She led by example, and it was just fortunate that her example had just happened to bring out the Rachel in her. Cassie smiled, as little girls, Rachel had always secretly been her hero. Looking at her now, situating her outfit as if nothing had happened, Cassie realized she still was.

"So," Rachel said helping Cassie up with a strong hand. "Who'da thunk we'd begin this afternoon with a casual stroll in the woods and end it with a death defying mad dash to your barn?"

Cassie laughed. "Not me."

The rain stopped quite suddenly and both girls emerged from the barn. Rachel looked at her watch.

"Okay, so it's about 5 now, so that gives us enough time to dry and change and head to the mall. We'll have at least an hour to shop."

Cassie groaned. 'Do I have to?"

Rachel narrowed her eyes. "Yes. You do. Besides, I think Jake is gonna be there. Perhaps we can happen to bump into him."

Cassie laughed as Rachel started down the driveway and mounded her bike.

"Come on, don't you think a nice, relaxing stroll throught he mall would put a perfect calming end to this afternoon?"

Cassie nodded. She'd definitely had had enough excitment for one day.