Our Last Days

A Storm Is Brewing

The next morning I felt warmth on me. I opened my eyes to the sun's rays shining through my cracked blinds, my cousin Ashley curled up on my right side. I glanced at her for a moment before slowly sliding out from beneath her. It didn't phase me anymore, she used to climb into my bed every night as a kid. Rubbing the back of my head I walked out of my room and straight into the bathroom. I heard a door open from down the hall as I closed the door. "Morning." A gruff voice called. "Morning Dean." Carter spoke with a yawn. I did what I needed to, heading out of the bathroom and toward the kitchen. I passed 2 more rooms before I reached the living room where Dean and Carter sat watching TV with cereal in their hands. Carter wore light blue plaid pajama pants and a light gray tank top. Dean wore his black tank top and red plaid pajama pants. I stared as I passed, my cheeks reddening as Dean turned to look at me and met my eyes.

"Hi, Serena!" My sister called from the kitchen, she stood at the stove flipping pancakes and bacon in skillets. I walked over to her, my feet dragging along the wooden floor. Stopping in front of the fridge door I pulled it open and searched for the milk. "Where's the milk?" I finally asked. "The boys used the rest of it up, it's alright I made orange juice." She giggled as she pushed a pitcher toward me, freshly made orange juice inside. I stared momentarily before grabbing a cup from the cabinet and pouring some into it. I drank half of the juice in one gulp. "Why'd you leave meeeeee?" A whining voice cried out. Arms wrapped around my waist, Ashley hugging me as tightly as she could, but it felt like a teddy bear holding me.

"I'm taking a shower." I grumbled, putting my orange juice down as I pushed Ashley off me with as much gentleness as I could muster.

Once I showered I pulled on a pair of black fish nets and black shorts over them. A black tank top and a brown long coat made of wool. The coat itself went to the top of my calves. I pushed my hair over one shoulder, letting it air-dry as I walked from the bathroom. "You feeling better?" My sister asked as she shoved a mouthful of pancake between her lips. "Food." I protruded my lower lip with the singular word, smiling brightly as she jerked her thumb toward the kitchen counter where my plate sat. I all but ran, grabbing a fork from a drawer and the syrup bottle from the counter. I smothered my pancakes, picked up the plate, and walked over to the only empty recliner. Our living room was made up of a long sectional and two recliners, a glass coffee table, and a TV above the fireplace. A set of two stairs surrounded the living room which dipped slightly into the floor.

Once we finished eating and played a game of cards we all decided it was time to pack up and go. Outside, the air smelled of fresh rain, and the sky still held dark clouds that threatened to pour again at any moment. I stared at them from inside the house, my feet now clad in black leather hiking boots. I crossed my arms for a moment, chewing on my lower lip. With my keys in my right hand, I crossed my arms, the keys clinking together as my fist closed around them. "I'm sure it'll clear up later sis, the forecast says it will at least." Ariellia spoke. She came up behind me, placing an arm on my shoulder. She wore brown hiking boots, denim shorts, and a pink tank top with a red flannel. "Yeah." I pressed my lips together for a moment before heading outside. The Ford and the Subaru both sat, full of groceries in coolers, camping gear, and other various items. "Alright everybody, you know the drill, let's turn off our phones." Carter pulled his phone out as he spoke, turning it off. The rest of us followed suit before we loaded into the cars.

We drove out of the suburb, toward the mountains that reached for the sky above. Once we reached the bottom of the mountain we circled the side to find a dirt path through the trees littered with gravel. I lead the way up, my truck gliding over the bumps of the trail on the way up the hill. I switched the radio off as it began to crackle, Ariellia pouting in disappointment. "We must be out of range, you know we always lose signal around this spot." I shrugged as we made our way to the parking spot a short bit away from where we would set up our tents. Once we'd gathered everything from the back of the cars, we began to hull our stuff through a short but thick path of trees. The path leads us to a cliff overhang with a fence set up on the perimeter. Flowers littered the ground, stones leading to a set of two old wooden picnic tables that sat on the edge of the cliff by the fence. I dropped the backpack full of camping gear from my shoulders, letting out a relieved huff as I stretched my arms and legs. "Man, that drive is always long." Dean reminisced as he sat his pack next to mine. Our eyes met for a moment, but I quickly looked away again with my hands now on my hips.

In the distance, rain began to fall over the city.