Chapter 17: The First Drop
Chapter 17: The First Drop
The dismissal bell rang, but the sound was instantly swallowed by a low, ominous rumble from the sky.
Through the tall glass doors of the school lobby, the afternoon had turned a sick, bruising gray.
Splash.
A single drop of rain hit the glass.
To Chloe, the sound was deafening. It wasn't water; it was the echo of heavy boots. It was the suffocating darkness of the alleyway. Her lungs instantly seized. The color completely drained from her face as a violent tremor violently racked her small frame. She backed away from the doors, her spine hitting a row of metal lockers, and slid down to the cold linoleum floor. She squeezed her eyes shut and clamped her hands over her ears, desperately trying to block out the rhythmic, terrifying drumbeat of the impending storm.
Then, the heavy front doors pushed open.
A giant yellow bear stepped into the lobby.
Inside the suffocating, sweltering helmet, David saw his daughter hyperventilating on the floor. A spike of pure, raw panic tore through his chest, but he forced himself to move with agonizing slowness. He couldn't run to her. He couldn't grab her.
Instead, the bear simply walked over and sat on the hard floor right beside her. With slow, deliberate care, the bear popped open a massive, ridiculously bright pink umbrella right there in the school lobby, holding it over both of their heads.
May you like
It completely blocked her view of the gray sky and the rain-streaked glass.
Under the artificial, absurd canopy of pink fabric, the roaring storm outside seemed to mute. Chloe slowly opened her tear-filled eyes. She stared at the unblinking, goofy face of the bear. With a ragged, shuddering exhale, she leaned her small, trembling head against his thick, synthetic fur shoulder, finding her only safe harbor in a world that was constantly trying to drown her.
