Smiling Skies, Storming Skies

Chloe scowled at the pile of wilted broccoli on her plate. She sighed, picked up her fork, and stabbed at one of the limp florets. The prongs pierced the rubbery stem, and she shuddered. With her free hand, Chloe pinched her nostrils shut. She closed her eyes, opened her mouth and brought the fork to her lips. She bit into the broccoli, refusing to taste as her teeth ground the bitter vegetable into soggy mush. She choked it down as fast as she could, then took a big gulp of water.

“Can I be excused now?” Chloe asked.

“Yes, clear your place,” Mom said. 

Chloe carried her cup and plate into the kitchen. She dumped her water out and placed the cup on the top rack of the dishwasher. She scraped what was left of the putrid green pile on her plate into the trash. She rinsed that too, before sliding it into the bottom of the dishwasher. 

The scowl was back on her face. Chloe had been in a bad mood ever since her auntie left for the airport earlier that afternoon. Auntie came to visit every few months, and it always made Chloe grumpy when she had to go back home.

Auntie’s home was Chloe‘s home too. At least, it used to be, before Mom and Dad moved her across the country four times in the last two years. Chloe missed her family and friends in Minnesota. She missed all the fun things she used to do there. She loved her parents, but they were always busy, stressed, and tired. They rarely had energy to play.

When Auntie came to visit, all she wanted to do was spend time with Chloe. She would play any game or read any story that Chloe asked her too. Auntie was always up for a trip to the playground, and she usually packed lots of treats.

Chloe opened the back door and stepped out into the yard. The air was thick, and she began to sweat immediately. From high up in the old oak tree, a cicada screamed. Most people were annoyed by the sound, but Chloe found it oddly comforting. 

She trudged over to the tree and scanned along the bottom of the trunk in search of discarded cicada exoskeletons. She kept a collection of the shells, and other treasures, in a wooden box that she stored under her mud kitchen. 

There were two more exoskeletons stuck to the tree. They were both right next to each other, which surprised Chloe. She didn’t usually find them so close together. She gently removed the exoskeletons and carried them carefully over to her box. With one hand, she opened the latch and lifted the lid. Chloe placed the shells inside the box and picked up a small black feather that was on top of the treasure pile. She ran a finger across the small white polka dots that were scattered down the sides of the feather.

“Auntie,” she whispered, tears filling her eyes.

Auntie was the one who had found that feather. She told Chloe that it was special, because it belonged to a woodpecker. Auntie loved woodpeckers. 

Chloe brushed the feather along the side of her cheek. It felt smooth against her skin. She did it again on the other cheek, and got a chill as it tickled her. 

Chloe put the feather back in the box and closed the latch. She slipped it under her mud kitchen, and gazed up at the sky.

Brilliant blue was quickly being replaced by lots of big, angry, gray clouds. Chloe hoped that Auntie’s plane would fly by before the storm started. Auntie went to the airport over two hours ago, so her flight had to be leaving soon.

Every time Auntie had to go back home, Chloe cried and cried. In an attempt to ease the sadness, Auntie always promised to make the airplane fly over Chloe’s house so she could blow kisses down to Chloe on her way out. Chloe knew Auntie couldn’t really control which way the pilot’s flew, but she always waited in the yard until she saw 

 a Smiling Skies airplane fly overhead.

Chloe climbed into her hammock. Her toes curled in the dirt as she pushed off with her feet. Her hammock began to swing between the two big pines it was tied to.

A crow landed on the powerline behind Chloe and perched on the wire. It cawed, and three more crows joined it. They seem to be watching Chloe, and she wasn’t sure how to feel about that.  When she was younger, she used to yell at the crows to be quiet. Auntie told her that crows were really smart, and if she was nice to them, one might even decide to be her friend. Ever since then, Chloe had been wary of the black birds.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. Chloe looked up and saw that the sky was almost black. If there was lightning, she would be forced to go inside, and she would miss Auntie’s plane.

Chloe wondered if planes could still fly in a thunderstorm. She worried that Auntie’s plane would be struck by lightning. The thought sent a shiver down her back.

Chloe snuggled in to the hammock. The temperature had dropped several degrees since she’d first stepped outside. Big, fat drops of rain began to fall. 

One by one, the crows sought refuge in the two pines. They each found a branch to perch on. Chloe wrapped the sides of the hammock tighter around herself as the rain fell harder. A big crack of thunder made her jump, and her heart skipped a beat. She wished Auntie’s plane would hurry up and fly by.

Chloe scanned the dark clouds, pleading with Smiling Skies Airlines to send a plane in her direction soon. She had to see one before she could go in. It was always her sign that everything was going to be okay.

Thunder crashed and the rain poured down. The drops stung when they hit Chloe’s face.

“Chloe! Chloe, get in here, NOW!” Mom shouted from the back door.

Chloe pretended not to hear her. She needed to see a plane. It wasn’t fair that it was storming and she had no control over the things that were happening. She didn’t get a say in moving, and she didn’t get a say in Auntie leaving. She needed to see this plane before she could go in.

“Chloe, NOW! Get in here!” Mom shouted again, but Chloe could barely hear her over the wind and the downpour.

“Chloe! Listen! Inside, NOW!” her dad’s angry voice vibrated with fear.

Chloe knew better than to ignore her parents for too long. She climbed out of the hammock and made a run for the house. When she was halfway across the yard, she stopped and looked up at the sky. There it was. A plane, with lights flashing. Chloe could just barely make out the Smiling Skies logo on the side, but it was there. 

Chloe smiled, twirled around twice, and then ran to her parents. Her dress was drenched, and heavy with rain. Mom was waiting with a big, warm towel. She wrapped Chloe up in it, and then gave her a big, squeezy hug. 

“Sweetheart, you can’t be outside in a storm. You know that. What were you doing? What were you thinking?”  Mom asked.

“Sorry, Mom. I was just watching the sky, and I lost track of the situation,” she explained.

She couldn’t tell her the truth. Mom would think it was ridiculous to watch for Auntie’s plane.

“Go dry off and change into some pajamas. We can watch a movie before bed. I’ll pop some popcorn,” Mom told her.

Chloe ran up to her room and changed into her coziest pajamas. When she came back down, Mom and Dad were waiting on the couch with a big bowl of ​buttery popcorn. Chloe squeezed in between them, and they wrapped her in a giant quilt. 

Chloe still missed home, but in that moment, she didn’t question her parents’ love for her. She  thought about how the crows tucked themselves into the pine trees to take cover from the rain, and she felt grateful that she could wait out the storm with Mom and Dad by her side.