Fairview, a quaint town, lay under the sinister shadow of an oncoming storm. It wasn't just any storm, though. The townsfolk could feel it in the marrow of their bones; this one was coming for them personally. Just what it had in store was anybody's guess, but when it came down to the drenching and the windblown, it was sure to be a sight to behold. The first peal of thunder that rang out was enough to send the folk of Fairview rushing into action. They knew that they needed to button down the hatches, and down the hatches they went, securing homes and places of business with all the vim and vigor of old-timey settlers faced with a

Native American war party.

In the heart of Fairview, two friends, Lila and Max, sat in the quietude of the local library, fully absorbed in their studies. They were nestled in what could only be called a sanctuary of learning at the time. Although the windows were several feet away, they could see shadows flit across the surface of the glass, as if the tempest outside had been created by some malevolent force that desired the friends' very displacement. And then it fell—as if the sky had opened itself completely to unleash a downpour of apocalyptic proportions. The first wave of water seemed to "double the stitches" that the eyelids held closed. Flooded with light, the library was at last the thoroughly intimidating space that it had been designed to be. A sudden silence, a studying hush that contained only the sounds of panting breaths and even more desperate heartbeats.

Just when it seemed like despair was about to overflow and consume them, Lila caught sight of what could only be a sign of hope—the gazebo in the town square. It wasn't much of a structure; the little it had going for it before the storm—mostly its elevated position amid the surrounding buildings—was gone now. Its exposed ribs were backlit by the angry clouds, and the wind was doing its best to peel them out of earth tones. "Max, over there!" Lila shouted, and he turned to look. They surged toward it, dodging wind and rain, and Lila's heart began to lift. Maybe they wouldn't die after all.

The ruse that gave them even a modicum of safety didn't last long. The storm hit the gazebo with the oh-so-majestic might of nature. The rain fell in thick curtains, and the wind, oh, the wind! If there had been any semblance of a roof to the gazebo, it wouldn't have helped. The two of them stood there behind the only thing that could even faintly be called a windbreak, but there was no real escape from what nature was dishing out. Huddled together as closely as they dared, teeth chattering, breaths coming in almost-laughing gasps, they thought the storm would never end.

Max pulled Lila up from the ground and took her to the gazebo. For a moment, they froze, unsure of what to do next. But then, almost instinctively, they began to move. The storm had escalated, the winds now shrieking in protest. Yet the sound of it didn't seem to reach Lila and Max as they weaved and curved and swayed within the storm's eye. The thunder that followed overhead was a command to fight; the lightning was a reminder to live in the moment, for who knew how many more they'd have after this one?

Lila's dress was tattered now. Max's button-up, which had been partially undone when he'd gotten dressed that morning, had given way. Their clothes whipped around them but it felt as if they were becoming un-embedded from Earth, and if they continued long enough, they'd dissolve into the wind and rain and not exist anymore.

In the low light, they spun together, and it seemed as if their movements had soothed the raging tempest. The wind dialed down to a mere murmur, and the rain came slanting through the air, almost playfully, as if it was no longer angry. Max and Lila...had made it through the storm, and while they were exhilarated, they were also tired, and the first few moments of going back to the world in which sunshine reigned felt dreamlike. However, they were soaked, so in the few pictures that survived, they look a bit wild and crazy. Indeed, I can't remember a time when my hair was wilder than in these pictures.