How Lucky We Were

"A brilliant light flashed in the sky." page 222 of The Seventh Door by Bryan Davis

I grabbed the flashlight from my dresser drawer and rejoined my friends on the bed. With the strong storm rolling in, we probably wouldn't get to watch a movie like we'd planned.

I lay back and sighed as my friends kept going on about which instrument was superior. Natalie thought a cello, Reigha petitioned for ukulele, and Megan insisted on kazoo. As their discussion got more heated, I sat up and interjected my two cents.

"Obviously bagpipes, you guys."

Megan laughed, and Reigha smiled.

"Letting your Irish roots show?" Natalie asked.

"Scottish, but whatever," I said with a shrug. I glanced out the window. "That's some storm."

The three followed my gaze to the darkening four o'clock sky. Their conversation fell silent as all of us kept watching the dim scene outside the window.

"We should make some cocoa," Reigha suggested, "maybe gather some blankets, too. Make it cozy." She let forth a radiant smile.

"Oh yeah!" Megan exclaimed. "Emilee, do you have any marshmallows?"

I nodded. "Sure do." So, the four of us headed downstairs to begind making some hot chocolate.

We'd just finished heating the milk when the lights flickered out. Megan let out a yelp, and I searched the counter for the flashlight I'd brought.

"Dang," Natalie mumbled.

I turned on the flashlight and exclaimed, "Ta-da!"

"Emilee to the rescue!" Megan laughed.

"We can still add the chocolate and have some nice drinks," Reigha suggested.

So, we all added the chocolate and the marshmallows before heading back up stairs. At the top of the steps, the flashlight beam greeted my dad.

"I'm heading to check the breaker box," he said. "A surge may have tripped it."

"Cool," I said. "Be careful. My phone said the winds were pretty strong."

"Will do," he said with nod and headed off down the stairs.

As we passed my parents room, I saw my brother sitting on the bed with my mom, huddled around a small light box and talking.

The four of us kept going until we reached my room where we all grabbed our phones for extra light. Then we all huddled under some blankets I kept in my closet while we drank our cocoa.

"We should play some music," Megan suggested. "The pitter patter of the rain is getting to my head."

"I don't have any data to spare," Natalie said. "And I don't save music to my phone."

"Same here," I added.

"Lucky for you guys," Reigha said, setting her mug down and reach towards her pile of stuff, "I never travel anywhere without my ukulele."

I laughed. "You're the best."

"As is the ukulele," she said, grinning at the other two.

"Quick!" Megan exclaimed, tugging on Natalie's arm. "Pull out a cello from your bag! You have to prove her wrong!"

Natalie chuckled and turned back to Reigha. "Go ahead."

Reigha smiled and began softly strumming her ukulele. As her voice sang out the sweet melody, I recognized the song to be the one that the four of us had written while Natalie was living across the country. The chorus our fourteen year-old brains came up with was probably my favorite part.

As suns go down or school lets out

We're always together

Even if there's miles between

We're always together

I smiled at our silly friendship song as thunder rumbling outside and a brilliant light flashed in the sky. Watching Reigha's smile as she sang, Megan's head bobbing back and forth, and Natalie carefully watching the strumming, I realized just how together we were, and I'd never know how lucky were we to have each other.