…Yasmin walked angrily down the street fuming. She knew her parents would be mad about her breaking curfew but she hated it when they started talking trash about her friends and the people she hung out with. They of all people had no right to judge anybody. Putting her headphones in she turned the volume up and let the sound of "From the Inside" by Linkin Park flood her head. "I don't know who to trust, no surprise, heavy thoughts sift through dust and the lies, trying not to break but I'm so tired of this deceit, every time I try to make myself get back up on my feet, all I ever think about is this and the tiring time between and how trying to put my trust in you just takes so much out of me, I take everything from the inside and throw it all away 'cause I swear for the last time, I won't trust myself with you…" Singing quietly along with the lyrics she glanced up at the sky. The dark, swirling clouds fit her mood perfectly. She remembered that the weatherman had mentioned thunderstorms that afternoon and it looked like he was right for once.

Yasmin walked the remaining two blocks to Ashley's house and knocked on the door. Ashley's mom let her in telling her Ashley was upstairs and that pasta would be ready in twenty minutes if they were hungry. Yasmin loved being at Ashley's house. It always had a brighter atmosphere than her own. She went upstairs to Ashley's room.

Her friend opened the door before she could knock. "Hey," she said with a grin, "I heard you downstairs. How did it go with your parents this morning?"
"How do you think it went?" Yasmin answered.
"Oh..." Ashley nodded with understanding.
"Yeah…" Yasmin followed her into the room.
"Guess what," Ashley said smiling again.
"What?"
"I finally got Skillet's new cd," she grinned.
Yasmin brightened instantly. "That's great!"
"I know! It's so good!"

They spent the next two hours just hanging out. As Yasmin flipped through one of Ashley's magazines thunder echoed outside. A flash of lightning lit up the sky making both girls jump. "Looks like we're about to get a hell of a storm," Ashley said looking out the window.
"Want to go for a ride?" Yasmin asked grinning.
"Yeah! I'll call Karina and see if she's busy." Ashley's smile reflected hers.

After picking up Karina at her house the three of them drove down to their favorite spot, a small beach at the edge of a wide, round lake with a small island in the middle. They got out of the car and walked down the path through the tall grass to a log near the water. It was eerily quiet and the dark purple clouds were pressing down on them. The three of them came to this spot often, especially during thunderstorms. There was just something relaxing about being there while rain poured down rinsing everything clean. It rinsed away any stress, anger, sorrow or unhappiness you happened to be feeling, leaving you ready to go back and face the world again.

Thunder echoed across the sky again and rain began to fall, quickly turning into a downpour. They looked at each other and started laughing, all three of them soaked to the skin despite the hoodies they wore. Suddenly Yasmin's phone rang. She dug into her pocket and held it up to her ear, keeping it sheltered inside her hood from the rain. "Hello?" she answered.

"Hey Yasmin. It's Bill."

"Bill?" Yasmin's friends looked at her in shock.

He laughed. "Yeah. I didn't think you knew anybody else who sounded this sexy. How are you?"

She rolled her eyes and smiled. "I'm okay… You? I haven't spoken to you in a while."

"I'm good." Bill answered. Another bolt of lightning illuminated the beach causing static to echo through the phone. Thunder rumbled all around them. "Where are you?"

"We're down at the beach we used to play at when we were younger."

"During a thunder storm?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes during a thunder storm. That's the best time."

"I'll take your word for it," he said laughing. "By the way, I have some good news for you!"

"What?" She could hear the excitement in his voice.

"We're coming back and we'll be in town for a week!"

Yasmin couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Oh my god are you serious? That's great!"

Bill laughed. "Yeah I know! I'm so excited and Tom is too! He can't wait to see Karina again." Bill said this last part in a whisper and a second later Yasmin heard a muffled yelp and laughter followed by what sounded like a scuffle. A moment later Bill came back on the phone laughing. "You know, I don't know why I thought Tom wouldn't hear me in a space this small."

"You're on the tour bus?" Yasmin guessed.

"Yeah and we're about to go through a tunnel so I'll lose you in a second. Why
don't we all meet at our favorite restaurant. Do you remember it?

"Of course," she replied. The restaurant that they had all made a tradition to meet at once a week when they were younger, was down the street from her house. "When do you want us to meet you there?"

"Umm… How about two o'clock on Wednesday?"

"Okay, I'll see if I can switch shifts at work." Yasmin worked at a small CD store in town along with Karina.

"Sounds Good." he said. "See you soon."

"Bye." Yasmin closed her phone and stared at it for a second.

"They're coming here?" Ashley asked grinning. Renee and Karina's expressions instantly turned from shock to excitement.

"Yes!" Yasmin said happily.

"Well this will definitely make spring break more interesting." Renee said.