Waiting

The rainwater made the schoolyard shine like polished obsidian, glinting in the glimpses of golden light that shone through the wall of grey cloud. Erik stood alone, hood pulled up, bent under the weight of a backpack almost as back as him, and kicked at puddles.

His friends– Aamina, Harith, and Firdos – weren’t there that day, not a single one of them.

Erik made up stories: they had been taken by creatures that lived in the rain and he would have to ride off to the clouds to save them, they had been taken by secret spies and the other spies would ask Erik to rescue them, they were working on a rocketship and would show up with it at the school and ask him to go with them to the moon.

He stood by himself in the puddles and waited for them to show up.

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Word Count: 133

This is for Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writer’s 100th Challenge! Thanks to Priceless Joy for running the challenge and Jessica Haines for providing the photo prompt!