Rain

I have memories as a child, resting my head against the car window, feeling the bumpy vibrations of the engine running. Tapping noises smacked against the car as if aching to get inside; upon lifting my head, I saw the pouring rain outside lashing down like the heavens were mad at Earth. My eyes shifted to two particular little raindrops against the outside car window, wiggling down before they dropped into a puddle below. I imagined them racing each other - “First one to reach the puddle wins!” The adrenaline would rush through my body as I silently rooted for my favourite droplet to win. To travel back to the times where my mind was so imaginative and innocent is a wish to die for. Now, we repeat the same scenario. It’s years later, and we’ve shifted into a different perspective. My flimsy shoes squelched with every step I took, continuing to absorb every droplet of water that fell from the sky. Shaking hands that were too weak and too cold to even bother gripping onto the hood of my light coat fell droopily by my side. An expression of so much emotion, yet none at the same time was painted across my face, with a red-tipped nose from the single digit weather. My fingertips slightly shifted every now and then to grasp the hem of my skirt, having to pull it down in a fear of oversexualisation by my peers. Head hung low, I finally reached the foot of the bus, scrambling the insides of my pocket in a desperate search for my ticket. A queue forms behind me and the embarrassment flushes my rosy cheeks. I step to the side, accepting my failure and now doing a re-scramble for change. Managing to obtain the exact amount of coins, I got on with a few seconds to spare and sat myself down at a window seat right at the back of the bus, a grand sigh escaping through my lips as I slowly blinked in a form of exhaustion. My head sank onto the window panel beside me as my body rattled, the bus driving heavily along the roads. Zoning out my mind and replenishing the stress with the soothing sound of the rain seemed like the best idea for a 20 minute ride; it was proven difficult by the noise of laughing and conversing around me. Hefty rainfall striked the concrete roads outside, asserting its power and making me feel frail. I took a glance at the raindrops on the opposite side of my window, maneuvering and falling so fast. At an instant, my body began to imitate the likeness of the same drops of rain, as a small teardrop plummeted from my eye to the floor. Blurred vision, a sparkling yet sorrowful gaze as both eyes began to fill up with everything bottled inside me. Stress, panic, sadness, fear - all portrayed in the form of a tiny, crystal-like droplet. This isn’t what it was like as a child.

by Izzy, Age 14

© Copyright 2020 Izzy. All rights reserved.