The Windstorm

I wake up in the middle of the night. I’m in my bed at home. I’m not sure why I’m awake, but something feels different.

Then I realize why. It’s hot in here! Really, really hot.

I get out of bed. Dad is in the hallway. He has a flashlight.

“What’s going on?” I ask. “There’s no air-conditioning. It’s so hot!”

“It turned off,” he says. “The power is out!” He clicks a light switch up and down. Nothing happens.

Suddenly, we hear a huge gust of wind outside. The whole house creaks. Thunder booms in the distance. Then rain starts pounding on the windows.

“Don’t worry, Emma. It’s only a storm,” my dad says. “But this wind is really strong!”

I’m nervous. I’ve never heard wind this loud!

We go downstairs. Mom is in the kitchen. There’s a flashlight on the counter. She is taking ice cream out of the freezer.

“With the power out, the freezer won’t stay cold for very long,” she says. “This is going to melt. How about some midnight ice cream sundaes?”

“Yes, please!” Dad and I say together. Mom doles out the ice cream into bowls. She pours chocolate sauce on top. Maybe this storm isn’t so bad after all!

Another huge gust of wind whooshes around outside. Suddenly, I don’t feel so hungry.

“Let’s take our ice creamto the basement,” Mom says.“It’s safest there during a storm.”

We gather blankets and pillows from our beds. Then we go to the basement to try to sleep. It’s still so hot!

“I’m scared,” I say. “What if the wind blows our house over?”

“It won’t,” says Mom. “Try not to worry.”

I try to go to sleep. Then my eyes snap open. “My lucky purple Crocs!” I say. “They’re outside! What if they blow away?”

“We’ll go find them tomorrow,” Dad says.

“Yeah, if they’re still there,” I grumble. Finally, I fall asleep.

When I wake up, the house is quiet. I go upstairs. Dad is standing at the window, peering outside.

“The storm is over,” he says. We open the front door. I gasp.

Branches and leaves are strewn all over the ground. There are garbage cans and yard tools in the street. A tree has fallen over onto the power lines!

“That explains why the power went out,” Dad says.

“My Crocs!” I say. I run to the yard. I find one shoe but not the other. “My left Croc is gone!”

“Emma, could you check on our neighbor?” Mom says. “I’m worried about Mrs. Williams.”

“Me?” I ask. “By myself?” I get shy when I have to talk to people I don’t know very well.

“I’ll come with you,” she says. We go knock on the neighbor’s door. Mrs. Williams opens it.

“What a storm!” she says.

“Are you OK?” Mom asks.

“I’m fine,” Mrs. Williams says. “But with the power out, I can’t charge my phone. I’m going to go to the community center. They have a generator.”

“Great idea,” Mom says. “We’ll be right behind you.”

After we leave, I ask Mom, “What’s a generator?”

“It’s a machine that gives a building backup power when the power is out,” she says. “I bet a lot of people have the same idea we do.”

I’m outside Dylan’s house. My mouth feels dry. I try to swallow.

I’m scared to talk to Dylan. What if he doesn’t like me? I’d still have to see him every day in class and on my street!

Then I think about how I’d feel if Dylan found my Croc. I would be so happy. I would be ecstatic!

I knock on the door. Dylan opens it.

“Um, is this yours?” I ask. I hold out the glove.

Dylan grins. “Yes!” he says. He hugs the glove. “Thank you so much! Where did you find it?”

“It was in my yard,” I say. “I thought it was my Croc, but it wasn’t!”

“I’m sorry you haven’t found your Croc,” says Dylan. “Can I help you look?”

“Really?” I say. “I mean, only if you want to.”

“Yeah!” says Dylan. “Let’s check my backyard first.”

As we walk to the yard, I ask, “How do you use this glove?”

“It’s easy!” says Dylan. “Here, try it on.”

I put it on. “It’s huge!”

“That’s so you can catch a baseball!” He picks up a baseball from the grass. “I’ll throw this slowly. Try to catch!”

He pitches the ball to me. I try to catch it. It bounces off the glove. It lands on the ground and rolls under a bush . . . where something purple is peeking out.

“My Croc!” I say. “I found it!”

I do a dance to celebrate. Suddenly, I feel a little shy again. But I look up, and Dylan is doing a dance with me.

Looks like I found my lucky Croc—and a new friend.