It shouldn't have been logically or scientifically possible, yet it occurred right before my very eyes. How?
The rain pelted Mia, drenching her raincoat as she ran along the sidewalk illuminated by the street lamps. 'Slosh' went her ankle boots as she stepped into a puddle on the street. She still couldn't comprehend what she had witnessed a moment ago.
With darkness already fallen, Mia was late getting home from her afterschool job at the public library downtown. Mother's going to kill me when I get home. Mia was meant to be home by sunset, but here she was heading home after nightfall. I've missed curfew.
Mia's heart was pounding against her chest, the sound resonating noticeably in her ears. She felt nauseous, but not from being late to get home. It was the event she had witnessed a moment ago in the entrance of an alleyway. She could still hear the high pitched scream of the person. There is no way anyone is going to believe me, yet I need to tell someone. I saw the impossible tonight.
Mia recalled the event, minute by minute. Each frame played in her mind like a movie. She was running down the downtown sidewalk in a hurry from the local public library, having stupidly forgotten to bring her bicycle from home. As she rushed, she noticed a lady at the entrance of an alleyway up ahead. Careful not to bump into her, Mia started to reduce her running speed. Noticing static in the air behind the lady, Mia came to a complete halt. Abruptly, a circular portal swung open behind the lady, swiftly expanding in size.
Mia gasped, rubbing her eyes, scarcely believing what she saw before her. I'm hallucinating. It's not there. Mia grappled with the surreal scene unfolding.
Mia watched as the lady turned around and stared straight at the thing. The lady also saw the object, implying that it was truly there. It was black like a void or an endless pit with no bottom in sight. As the lady slowly stepped backward, Mia noticed an expression of fear on her face. Without warning, the lady was drawn forward towards the void. She grabbed onto a nearby lamp post, holding on for dear life, but the force from the void was strong, akin to the wind from a cyclone. The lady let out a high pitched scream as her grip on the lamp post loosened. She was flung right into the void, being devoured by gravity. The void closed once she was completely consumed.
Mia stood on the sidewalk, unable to move due to the shock of what she had just witnessed before her. A void in the middle of town? A black hole? How? Where did it come from? Nothing made sense. Every fibre in her body told her that this didn't occur.
Mia pinched herself. "Ouch." She wasn't dreaming at all.
Terrified, Mia looked around, finding herself the sole witness of this eerie experience. She needed to get away from here before anything else mysterious occurred. At least it can't get any worse. Before she could start running, she felt her hair get wet from cold water droplets. Obviously, it can. Looking upwards, she saw dark black clouds overhead, draining away the little amount of light present that night. The heavens had opened, and a steady drizzle of rain began to descend from the blackened clouds. The world became a shade darker than it currently was. The drizzle soon turned into a downpour as Mia found herself racing against the rain and the wind. The wind picked up, roaring like an enormous lion, blowing harder and growing more furious with each howl. Mia felt that at any moment she would be swept off her feet and carried away by the wind.
This is not how I die. Not tonight.
It wasn't meant to rain tonight; I checked the weather forecast app this morning. It was supposed to be a clear night. The app has never been wrong. Why did I decide to leave my umbrella at home? Maybe it was for the best. It would have caught the wind by now, carrying me along with it.
Mia imagined the horrifying thought of being carried away by the wind. Her mind conjured the vivid image of her being lifted off the ground by a powerful gust of wind, her umbrella transforming into a makeshift parachute or kite, carrying her through the night sky along with it. All of this reminded her of a scene in a movie where a bunch of people on the street were blown away by the unexpected wind in broad daylight.
Mia suddenly remembered in the midst of her thoughts about her raincoat in her backpack. She took it out, quickly putting it on over her drenched shirt as she raced down the sidewalk. She pulled the hood of her raincoat over her head, preventing her already soaked hair from getting any wetter.
As she ran down the street, Mia observed the frightened public in the downtown area beginning to panic. Frantic movements animated the scene, with people running in all directions, seeking refuge in buildings or getting inside cars to escape the unexpected downpour.
This all led up to where she was now—running down the sidewalk in the unexpected night rain.
The streets in the downtown area were empty of people by now, and all traces of outdoor activity had ceased. No one wanted to be outside when it rained, let alone when it poured. As far as Mia could see ahead of her in the light from the lamp posts, there was no one in sight. She could run at any pace and even zigzag her way down the street without worrying about colliding into anyone.
The street was covered in rain with puddles here and there. Luckily, she had worn her ankle boots as usual and didn't need to worry about getting her footwear and foot soaked in water.
The water accumulating on the street slowly flowed toward the curb. It gathered there before draining into the storm drain, preventing rainwater from accumulating on the road and causing potential flooding in the area.
The sound of the downpour was drowned out by Mia's heartbeat in her ear as she bolted through the empty town street.
As the downtown area came to an end, Mia found herself faced with darkness. There were no lamp posts illuminating the rest of the way forward. She would have to walk on the sidewalk beside the soccer field in the darkness before coming up to the brightly lit residential area.
Mia paused at the end of the downtown area and took her flashlight out. The pause was a brief relief from all the running. She got to rest her weary legs for a moment and catch her breath. With the beam of the flashlight pointed downward to the street, Mia began walking at a normal pace. The light from her flashlight was her only guide along the street. She needed to be careful not to trip over anything.
Mia caught her reflection in the water on the ground, which was illuminated by her flashlight. She pointed her flashlight down the sidewalk, the beam of light reflecting off the water on the ground, indicating that there was water everywhere.
An earthy aroma permeated the night air, rising from the wet grass on the soccer field. The smell was refreshing.
She knew she was already late to get home, but would be even later now. It was better to be safe than sorry.
How did I lose track of time? I always manage time well. I'm never late or early to get anywhere or do anything. So how did I lose track of time?
As Mia pondered, a hooting sound was heard in the distance. Mia jumped, almost losing her grip on the flashlight. She steadied her hand around the flashlight, pointing it towards the soccer field. The field was empty. The flashlight's beam caused a shimmering effect on the water droplets clinging to the grass blades. It was strange seeing the field at night, especially on a rainy night.
"Hello?" Mia called out.
No one responded. Must have been an owl.
"Stupid owl!" yelled Mia. "You almost gave me a heart attack. I thought owls were meant to be wise, not stupid."
I hope there isn't anything else here except for the owl. I don't want to be attacked by anything.
Before Mia could move forward, away from the soccer field and into the lit residential area, something happened. An electric shock passed through her body, akin to the sensation of touching a doorknob after rubbing your feet against a carpet.
Mia stood frozen. A sudden, deafening rumble echoed overhead, its reverberations palpable in the air.
Mia smelled a burnt odour. Touching her hood, she discovered a hole in it. Her fingertips brushed against her hair underneath, which was singed at the top.
Mia put everything together—the electric shock, the rumble, and her singed hair.
"I've been struck by lightning," said Mia aloud. "I'm alive!"
Mia heard a 'splashing' sound nearby. "Get lost, owl!"
As if someone was protesting against Mia yelling at the poor owl, the loudest howl heard tonight echoed, followed by a rumble in the distance.
Mia couldn't believe her luck. She had survived twice in one night. First, she had stopped a good distance away from the black hole, preventing herself from being dragged within it. Now, she had survived a lightning strike. Not many people survive a lightning strike.
I may have survived twice, but mother will surely kill me when I get home. I can sneak into the house through the window of my room on the second floor and pretend that I was home all the time when mother calls me for dinner. She'll never know I missed curfew.
Mia decided to continue running home from the middle of the road alongside the soccer field. Uncertain about how long her luck was going to last, she pondered the irony – being the tallest object on the street had attracted the lightning strike. It is advised to keep out of open places when lightning occurs and stay near tall objects. However, she never expected the weather to get worse tonight. Had a cyclone approached the beachside town of Broodhaven without any warning?
I was struck by lightning. Mia collapsed to the ground as the realisation struck her, losing consciousness as she fell backward.
As Mia regained consciousness, she pulled her phone out of her pocket, placing it on her abdomen and spoke to it.
"Hey, Siri, call ambulance," Mia said to her phone.
"Calling an ambulance to your location," responded Siri.
Third time, luck has favoured me.
Mia felt her clothes; they were soaking wet and clinging to her body. She must have fallen into a large puddle of water, and it was still raining. The rain pelted against her face hard. How long had she been unconscious? Mia had no way of telling as she hadn't checked the time when she approached the soccer field. Luckily, she hadn't hit her head hard on the sidewalk.
Mia had nothing to do but lay on the hard, wet ground until help arrived to take her to the hospital. She had lost her flashlight somewhere in the dark. Even with her phone's ability to function as a flashlight, she didn't want to take any risks getting up from the soaking ground with her aching body. So, lying in the puddle was the safest option right now.
Mia suddenly remembered the time she had slipped on ice while crossing the road in the big city she previously lived in. Luckily, she had fallen into a sitting position on her bottom, and no cars were passing on the road.
Some time later, the wailing sound of a siren pierced through the rhythmic patter of rain, increasing in intensity as its echoes reverberated through the night.