Sail

The sky was an ugly shade of gray and the rain poured down in buckets. Flashes of lightning were shortly followed by booming thunder that shook Briella's bedroom walls. Why couldn't her parents see that even God could hear them arguing? She didn't know what started it this time and as uninviting as outside was, she wouldn't stick around to see who finished it.

She shoved her feet into a pair of calf-high rain boots and tucked her hair into the army green windbreaker that had her older brother's name stitched onto the chest. Without trying to go undetected, Briella slipped out the front door. She hadn't bothered to try and swipe a set of keys from the hook by the door because driving in this weather would be too reckless. Instead, Briella cut through a series of backyards to get to her friend's house. It was a Sunday evening so she knew Sasha would be home. She bounded up the stairs and pulled a fist from her jacket pocket to knock on the door. Minutes later, it opened and Briella shoved her way inside.

"A girl could drown waiting on your slow ass to open the door in this kind of rain," Briella complained as she tugged the hood from her head.

Sasha rolled her eyes. "The trick's on you because I was just about to head out."

"It is raining cats, dogs, and giraffes outside and you were about to go out?" Briella curved her lips to the side and eyed her friend over her black rimmed glasses. "He must be all that and a bag of chips."

Sasha laughed and hugged her friend. "Girl, yes he is!" She peered over Briella's shoulder. "Look, he's pulling up now. I would invite you to stay but I don't know what time I'll be back."

"If you come back at all you mean," Briella teased.

The smaller girl giggled and kissed Briella on the cheek before donning a jacket and jetting for the awaiting sports car. Briella closed and locked the door behind her, peering up at the angry sky once before descending the stairs she'd just climbed. She took to the sidewalk, not caring that the rain was soaking through her jacket. At times when Briella was all Briella had, she liked to go to lay at the bottom of the slide in the park not too far from her house.

In the rain it wouldn't be as pleasant but as she lit up, Briella began to imagine sunny weather. The Bahamas were nice year round, so she'd heard. That's where she was. She was on the beach with a Sex on the Beach in one hand and some hot island man caressing the other. She imagined the rain drops were the spray of the ocean as she splashed around with her island boy toy without a care in the world. Music played softly in the background but as she took another pull from her blunt, Briella realized she wasn't imagining the music at all. She opened her eyes and could hear the music coming from around the jungle gym.

She stood up and sloshed around the playground until the music grew louder and louder. She neared the bright orange tunnel and saw a pair of boot clad feet sticking out of one end. As carefully as she could, she climbed on top of the tunnel and balanced herself so that she could lay down and continue to listen to the serenade.

The notes flowed up to her ears and touched her soul. The song, although without words, spoke to her. It was a sad sort of song, the kind that could bring tears to your eyes even if your world wasn't shattered to a million pieces. Slow, soft and meaningful was the rhythm and Briella imagined herself being carried away to a lonely place. It was the escape she'd been in search of when she'd left her house not too long ago and although it was solitary, at least there was peace.

But suddenly the music ended and a voice spoke. "It's garbage isn't it?"