I was staying at Courtney's condo this particular weekend. Her roommate was out of town and we had the run of the place. We could make as much noise as we wanted to, whenever we wanted and wherever we wanted. The kitchen table, the couch, her roommate's bed and even the stairs soon fell witness to our in-out-in-out action. Life was good.
Saturday evening had us sitting in a local restaurant – eating nachos, drinking a few beers, and having a great old time. My occasional glances out the window had detected winds picking up a bit, as well as the sky beginning to fill with clouds. A strange feeling crept through my body – a mix between excitement, anxiety and anticipation. I shrugged it off and enjoyed the remainder of our little outing.
It was about 7:30 when we headed back to her place. The dark sky appeared ominous, and the trees swayed in strong winds of the front blowing through. We were just about home when large raindrops began splattering against the windshield.
"Looks like we are in for a good one," I predicted the obvious.
We jumped from the Jeep and made a mad dash to her front door in a meager attempt to avoid getting wet. As Courtney fiddled with the lock on the front door, a soft rumble of thunder drifted through the evening air from off in the distance. It began to rain a little harder.
Once inside, we both seemed to forget about the rain. We kicked off our wet shoes and socks, grabbed some beers, popped a movie into the DVD, and settled on the couch. Only the occasional faint flash of distant lightening illuminating the sky outside the living room window reminded us of the weather outside.
About halfway into the movie it hit – a blinding, brilliant bolt of lightening coupled with a deafening clap of thunder that shook through the house, the couch and our bodies. I don't know who jumped higher – Courtney or me. Instantly, the lights and the television cut off.
"WOAH!!! Holly Shit!! That was close!"
Those profound words of wisdom were all I could muster. The hairs on my arm and my neck stood on end, my heart raced as if juiced by the electrical surge, and a sharp pain shot through my left thigh. As the thunder's rumble began to fade, I realized the pain in my leg was due to Courtney's death grip. She sat wide-eyed and terrified, staring out the window into the darkness and grasping my leg for all she was worth. I managed to pry myself loose and made my way to the window. All the power in the neighborhood was out and the rain was coming down even harder that before. Another radiant flash and thunderous boom scared any remaining living daylights out of me.
From behind me, Courtney spoke. "I'm getting a little scared, Bill."
Realizing I was supposed to be the man here, I hesitantly told her everything would be OK. "It's just a little storm that happens to be right over our heads. Don't worry – it'll blow over in a minute or two."