(A SHORT EXCERPT)

Elliot stepped of the school bus and onto his front lawn. His blond hair blew in the strong gusts of wind, and his skin glistened with sweat from the day’s humidity. The bus’ rusty-hinged door squeaked shut behind him and pulled off with a roar as he traversed the lawn, golden with dead grass, to his front door.  Elliot watched the thick, gray clouds billow in the sky and hoped that the storm would pass.  The ever present scent of  nickles that lingered in the air told him it otherwise. A fat grasshopper buzzed by his ear making him flinch as he unlocked the front door.

Elliot was struck by a wall of  the cool air that circulated in the house.  The sudden change of climate made him feel sticky. He set his book bag down next to the door and entered into the kitchen. “Mom”, he yelled, “Hey mom I’m home!”  His calls were met with no answer. He wandered into the pantry and tore open a Rice Krispie Treat.  His next attempt at calling for his mother was quelled by the sticky, sweet treat that filled his mouth.

Something felt off to him, the house was too quiet. Usually the television was on and his baby sister was screaming bloody murder, but not today. His sister lay calmly asleep in her playpen holding her bottle, and the television was off. The open patio door was causing the curtains to wallow. Through the streaked glass Elliot could see large anvil-headed clouds quickly moving through the black sky toward his house.  A strong gust of wind burst through the screen door knocking him back a few steps, and the snack out of his hand.  He struggled against the strong wind and grasped the handle to the porch door sliding it shut with every ounce of energy he could muster. A deafening clap of thunder roused his sleeping sister with a start. She let out a loud wail and gripped the mesh wall of her playpen, desperate to escape.  After not having her request for escape granted immediately she retreated under her blanket and quietly whimpered as the rain fell in waves on the roof like hammers.

Elliot picked her up from then playpen and gently bounced her in his arms. He never understood why this was soothing to children, but his sister loved it. She gently put her head on his shoulder and clasped both arms around his neck. “Everything will be alright”, he whispered in her ear, “let’s go find mommy.” They rounded the corner to the stairwell and took them one step at a time.  Elliot strained with each step as he ascended them, not used to the added weight of his growing baby sister.

There was a landing in the staircase halfway up with a giant window set into the middle of the wall. Rain coated the window in such strong waves it looked as though the house had been submerged in the sea. They rounded to the second set of stairs and a bright flash of lightning coupled with another crash of thunder sent Elliot up the final few steps in double time. “Shh,” he whispered in his silent sister’s ear, “everything will be okay, it’s only thunder.” Only he wasn’t trying to comfort her, he was trying to comfort himself.

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