She was looking up at the sky, drops of water hitting her face, some of them landing on her eyes. She blinked and the drops fell, continuing their journey. It was raining heavily, but strangely enough, there was no lightning or thunder. There were other kids playing tag behind her, but she wanted to savor this moment, as she felt as if nothing would ever be this peaceful. Suddenly, she was jolted out of her thoughts when she heard a voice speak.

"Hey, do you wanna play tag with us?" said a boy, maybe a year or so older than he. He had striking blue eyes and his hair was messy, drenched in water.

"My mom told me not to speak to strangers," she replied.

The boy, however, had not gone away and continued playing with his friends. Instead, he stood beside her and said, "I'm Rick. Richard Rodgers, but just call me Rick." He looked at her, expecting her to introduce herself as he had done. Instead, she frowned and crossed her arms.

The girl continued to look up at the sky, and they stood for several minutes, and the only sounds were the laughter of other children. At last, she couldn't stand the uneasy silence.

"Go away!" she said.

"What if I don't?" he retorted. "What're you gonna do to me?" There was a mischievous glint in his eye, as if he enjoyed seeing her annoyed at him. "Come on, what's your name?"

There was something about this girl, something about her that made her seem mature. He was proud of himself for remembering that word, his mother had told him what it had meant.

They stared at each other's eyes, daring the other to look away or back down.

Finally, the girl consented. "Kate. Just call me Kate."

"What, aren't you gonna tell me your last name? What is it? Kate Perry? Kate Nicholson?"

Kate's forehead cinched tighter, getting more and more annoyed by Rick.

"I'm not telling you my last name, Richard. Stranger danger, remember?"

"Aww, come on. That name makes me sound old or something. Like I'm a bazillion years old. I'm only 7."

Rick sighed and crossed his arms, matching her stance. "Come on," he said. "Let's go and play. I'll let my friends meet you."

She looked back up at the sky. The rain had lessened ever since they had started talking to each other. What's the harm? She thought. Besides, she had missed playing tag. None of her friends were here, they didn't like the rain like she did.

"Okay." Kate said. "But I'm not it!"