It was a cold summer night, a gentle breeze swept the  clouds away revealing the night’s true colors of a dark, inky, crystal sky. Scattered across the heavens, stars bright as day ease the stress of the world’s troubles. Clusters of lavender and coral petals reflected the glow of the off-white midnight stars. Blue poles and a black net held the not yet faded memories of three young beautiful girls. Tears of laughter and pain still remain in the girls’ hearts and stain the bed that captures their soul.
“Come on Emily!”
“Hurry!” Anne added.
Quickly, Emily grabbed the maroon towels and lime green dish soap, then ran. The trampoline engulfed the three girls and created lively bubbles which pranced, and stuck on them like raindrops during a summer drizzle. Their laughter could be heard from miles away while smiles stuck on the girls’ faces like glue. “Stop!” Katie chortled as Emily sprayed her with the hose. Anne soon joined Katie but only used her for a guard; which was soon destroyed by Emily who happened to be now misting them with the dish soap. Shortly after being drenched in water and soap, Emily, Katie, and Anne all headed inside Emily’s not so quiet home for lunch.
“Hand me a bowl, will you?”
“Here.”
“Thanks boo.” Emily responded.
The three girls snuggled up in their towels and watched as Emily’s mother filled their bowls with broth as yellow as a flower and flakes of leaf like substances. Smells of spices and broth surrounded the kitchen and filled the house of sweet smelling chicken soup. Steam floated gently up towards the egg white ceiling fan.
“What do you guys want to do after this?” Katie questioned.
“Let’s go back outside on the trampoline; when wet the trampoline makes you jump higher.” Emily explained.
“Okay!”
“Sounds good to me!” Katie added with excitement.
After the girls finished their lunch, they laid their bowls in the metallic sink and headed to their most memorable spot in Williamsport. The three girls walked across the wet grass and listened to the gentle rustle in the newspaper-like leaves. Each step another splash, their shoes were fully absorbed with muddy water and tinted rust soap. As the girls approached the trampoline, the skies darkened with rage, and that sunny bright day suddenly disappeared as if it never existed.
“Did you just spit on me?!” Emily was disgusted.
“No.”
“I didn’t,” Anne remarked. Instantly, drops of clear rain began to descend from the sky.
“Hurry! In the house!” Katie shouted.
Quickly the girls ran to the house slipping and falling in their soaked shoes.
The sound of thunder boomed across the lightning lit sky as if it were morning again. Boom! Crack! The thunder spoke. Boom! Crack! Then again. Boom! Crack! Another storm.
“At least it’s not as bad as the last storm, you know, the one earlier this week,” explained Emily, who had been staring out the window watching the raindrops race down the bottom of the glass.
“But it’s still pretty bad,” added Anne.
Turning to the couch in the corner of the living room, Emily spotted Katie housing her head under the cotton blue blanket used for the living room rocking chair.
“Come on Katie! If you’re gonna be scared of the storm, at least be scared of the lightning; the thunder can’t even hurt you,” clarified Emily.
“Yeah, why are you even scared of thunder anyway?” inquired Anne.
“Long story. Besides everyone has fears. Mine just happens to be thunder,” Katie remarked, her voice muffled under the blanket.
“Okay, you have a point,” acknowledged Emily.
All three girls had fears; Anne was scared of spiders, Katie was scared of thunder, and Emily was only scared about losing the ones she loved, because she believed that without her best friends and her family, she wouldn’t be able to carry on in life. Though everyone in life has a bit of that feeling, Emily was just one of many who thought about it a lot. Luckily, she hasn’t lost anyone yet and she wasn’t planning on it.    
“Let’s go in the rain!” Anne’s eyes filled with excitement as she placed her hands and face on the window, smudging it with every warm breath.
“No, no, no!” Katie moaned, hiding with her phone still under the blanket.
“Are you okay?” Emily asked with concern.
“Yeah, it’s just that the thunder is driving me crazy,” replied Katie.
“No, I mean are you okay, okay.”
Katie grew silent.
“I just feel like I haven’t asked in a while,” sighed Emily.
“Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” sniffled Katie as she turned off her phone.
But everyone in that room knew she was lying, including herself. No one knew exactly what secrets she had been hiding. The room went silent.
“Hey! Look! The rain is dying down!” Anne broke the awkward silence with her joy and a happy little giggle.
“Finally!” Emily joined.
Katie threw the blanket off her head and forced a smile. Her dark brown hair stuck straight up towards the cracked ceiling due to the static in the blanket.
She sighed, “Thank God.”
But even though the tough rain had died down, suddenly all the lights in the house had shut down leaving only the light from outside which was very dim.
“What the hell?” Katie quaked.
“Mom!” Emily belted. “Could you please come in here?”
Emily’s mom came shortly after, bringing flashlights and a brightly colored red lighter.
“I came prepared,” her mom smirked.
“Ew mom, just go away,” Emily’s cheeks quickly turned red from embarrassment, “Thank you, but please just go away.”
Katie and Anne giggled. Before Emily’s mother left, she lit some half used candle sticks and placed the lighter on the coffee table just in case it needed to be used again.
“Now what?” Anne cackled while she held one of the flashlights slightly under her chin; that way only part of her face was showing, while other parts were covered by the shadows that were created by her features.
“Stop!” Emily laughed.
Then as fast as the lights turned off, they came back on, and the rain slowly came to a stop.
“You know what?” Katie spoke, “I kinda actually want to go outside now.”
“Then let’s go!” Emily smiled.
Throwing down the flashlights, and putting out the candles with their spit, the girls darted out the back door to the trampoline which surprisingly hasn’t been hurt whatsoever by the vicious storm. The three girls leaped and laughed until their sides hurt. Water on the trampoline seemed to make the girls jump so high it was like they were flying up in that cool summer afternoon sky.
“Emily!” Emily’s mother shouted from the porch, “It’s time to take the girls home! You have school tomorrow!”
“Aww mom! But it’s only 5:30!” Emily responded.
“Let’s go!” Her mom’s voice drifted off as she went inside to get her car keys.
Disappointed, the girls trudged themselves over to their mother’s car, and hopped in. Click. Click. Click. The girls buckled themselves in and relaxed. The car engine roared as her mom wedged the car keys in the ignition. The girls silently looked out the car window and watched the damp trees fly by. To the girls, it seemed as if they just got there and now they’re leaving. But in reality they had been there since 3:00 p.m. sharp. One by one Emily’s mother dropped the girls off only until her own daughter was left. 
For the rest of the night Emily just followed her nighttime routine. Homework, shower, pajamas, toothbrush, bed. As she laid in her bed she stared up at her ceiling, then rolled to her left side and stared at the wall. For most of the night she pondered about Katie and worried. Was she okay? Did she need my help? Did she even want my help? Thoughts like this raced through Emily’s mind until she drifted off into a deep sleep. Nobody knew it yet but Katie’s secret would soon be revealed at around 4:00 in the afternoon the next day.
The next morning Katie, Anne, and Emily all headed and met each other at their school’s right side door.
“Hurry!” Katie said as the bell rang, “we’re gonna be late for class!” The girls rushed down the never ending hallway and stopped at their homeroom, classroom 251. It was as normal as a regular old school day in the 7th grade and the girls didn’t seem to mind. All students seemed to snooze as Mr. Krumt read chapter 4 of The Hound of the Baskervilles. Finally the 5th period bell rang and the girls hurried down to the cafeteria, their favorite period.
As the girls entered the cafeteria doors, smells of fresh lemon cleaning supplies filled up in their noses; they must have just cleaned the floors. Rushing over to their regular seating table they see Katie’s boyfriend, Liam. He greets Katie with a half-hearted smile.   
“Hey,” he says.
“Hey,” Katie mumbled. Anne and Emily looked at each other and gave each other a look only they understood. They gave each other a I-hope-this-won’t-be-awkward kind of look. Katie and Liam have been dating for only a couple months and they happened to be in a fight. But whenever Anne and Emily would ask her what they were fighting about she would only replied with “long story.”
Throughout the whole lunch Katie and Liam avoided eye contact, and both decided not to speak to each other. Emily and Anne sat quietly and watched as Katie just pushed her lunch tray aside. Glances were exchanged from one side of the table to the other. The students were dismissed to go back to their classes. For the rest of the school day Katie was silent and had tears in her eyes, but no matter how desperately Anne and Emily wanted to ask what was wrong and tried, the teacher would always hush them to silence. And it wasn’t until the end of the day did Emily and Anne had asked Katie what was wrong. She replied with “long story.”
The girls’ mother came and picked them up and took them all home. Emily sat in the back seat of the car and wondered. Raindrops began to fall again and and land all around the black suited car.
“Hey Emily, I have to go shopping. So I’m going to drop you off at the house then I’ll leave.” Her mom spoke looking in the car mirror in front of her.
“Okay,” Emily replied while she stared at the car’s clock, 3:56 p.m. Her mother pulled up to the back yard and Emily hopped out and kissed her  goodbye. Ding! Emily’s phone went off as her mother drove away. “Katie?” She muttered. Emily scrolled down her messages with Katie and came across a new message.
“Dear Emily,
Thank you for everything. I love you so much. Make sure you take care of Anne for me. You’ve been a great friend to me.You’re beautiful inside and out and don’t let anyone tell you different.  I sent this message because I just wanted to let you know why I won’t be around anymore... I think It’s time for me to go. I’ve been hiding behind many lies, that I have not yet told you, and I  believe that since I won’t be around anymore It would be rude of me not to tell you why. Over these past few years I have been bullied. And I know people think it’s whatever, and you can easily just ignore them or get help. But I’ve realized that it is not that simple. They follow me everywhere, in school, online… in my head. And I can’t take it anymore. I can’t hold this pain in any longer. I’ve cut, taken drugs, and I’ve realized now that there is no escape from this pain. But I have finally found a way out. A way where I can be away from my own thoughts. I can be away from feeling this way. From feeling ignored...worthless...fat...ugly...like a broken trampoline. I can be free. I can escape. I can fly away. You know, I never believed in God, because he wouldn’t have wanted me to feel this way; if there was a real God he would of helped me. But where is he when I needed him? That means that I believe that once it’s done, I won’t have to do it again. I would no longer exist. So that’s it I guess...
Goodbye.”

Emily found herself on the ground shaking, tears streaming down her face. She knew she had to do something. Emily forced her weak body up and started to run while rain smacked her face. She had decided that she was going to save her best friend. She had reached Katie’s house and ran through the empty driveway and busted through the locked door.
“KATIE!” Emily screamed and ran to the kitchen where she found Katie crying and holding a knife long ways up her arm. “DON’T YOU DO IT!” She shouted out and took a step forward towards her. She looked down and found the knife drawer pulled out from its place and spilled out on the floor.
“Take one more step and I’ll pull it up!” Katie cried.
“Katie please don’t! I’m here, I’m right here! It’s okay, I’m here...” Emily voice drifted off and she kept crying.
“No! You don’t understand! It’s my fault. IT’S ALL MY FAULT!” Katie screamed and started to move the knife slightly up her forearm; a drop of blood fell to the ground.
“NO! STOP! KATIE I’M HERE I’VE ALWAYS BEEN HERE! JUST TALK TO ME!” Emily took a short pause and Katie stopped, “Listen, talk to me. Just talk to me. I’m here Katie… I’m here. You are beautiful and you shouldn’t listen to what those people say because you’re perfect to me and I’m all you need. Okay? I’ve always been here, and I’m here to make your life better. It’s not your fault.”
“He left me because of me. My parents divorced because of me. I’m bullied because I’m the way I am.” Katie started to cry and watched as tears mixed with her blood.
“It’s not your fault Katie, It’s not your fault. I’m all you need. I’ve the one who’s been here. Just come to me. I’m here, I’ve always been here, you just haven’t seemed to realize that yet. But you know now,” explained Emily. She was too scared to blink because she knew that with just one easy cut, she could die. “Just put the knife down…” Katie moved the knife away from her arm, looked up at Emily and took a step towards her and reached out towards her for a desperate hug.
Bam. Not a slip of the hand, but a slip of the foot. And just like that, gone.
“KATIE!” Emily dropped to the floor and reached out a numb hand toward Katie’s lifeless shell.
It was a rainy summer afternoon, down the dark oak wood cabinets and down the white splashed counter, colors of red race across the floor and cover a now stained shirt. In the middle of the kitchen sat two young beautiful girls. Memories of the girls still remain in their hearts and lay in an old trampoline that’s stained with faded white splashes of color and haunted by laughter of a dumb little child.