To Be With You by Opal Mellon

good thing.”
    Nicole scratched her head and wondered if it really was.

Chapter Eight
    S everal weeks later, Sean left his house aware of the smell of rain. It smelled of wet dirt and leaves, like the earth was sweating after a shower, the earthy smell was clean and inviting. Distant thunder added to his pleasure as he drove to the dojang. The rhythm of the wipers lulled him. He didn’t want the drive to end, and took an extra loop around the block, humming along to the radio because he could never remember lyrics.
    Inside, the sound of the rain against the glass door and windows was a good consolation prize for the loss of the rain smell, the trade for the dirty, hardworking martial arts student smell.
    He moved to his desk, dropped his bag to the ground, and started sorting through the mail and fliers piled there. Bills, invoices, one letter of resignation from an instructor who’d become too busy with college and left months ago. Some of the instructors weren’t much younger than him. It was weird to think of the different position he was in, one he’d been neglecting by going to the club. He dropped his face into his hands and kneaded his forehead. Being here, where he was expected to have so much authority, so much responsibility, made him feel ashamed of his activities at Blue. Made him feel like an irresponsible, selfish child. What had he been thinking?
    He sat up and turned his chair to the window, listening to the drone of the rain. A few months ago people had liked him. Even without the host club, he was an interesting person. He was driven. He wasn’t constantly focusing on someone other than himself.
    He stood and walked to the glass door to look at a flier one of his teachers must have put up. It announced the Cal State open. Before the club, he’d lived for competition. Though he was old by some people’s standards for competing, he knew he was still quick enough to try for it, if he started practicing now. And it could take his mind off Nicole while she sorted things out.
    Dang, two months. This is going to take more time at the dojang. He thought of the club. He studied the flier again, thought of the club again, and made a decision. He pulled out his cell phone.
    “Hi, Hope?” he pulled out his date book with the other hand to mark the day of the competition while holding the phone with his shoulder to his ear. “I’m going to need some time off.”
     
    Across town, Nicole considered calling Sean over. Rain splashed against the living room window and she wanted to go out and walk in it. She decided to go out alone, and slipped into a swimsuit and T-shirt. The water would be frigid, but she was used to it and knew how long she could stay in. A raincoat or anything that kept her from getting wet was out of the question. Getting wet, feeling the tiny pinpricks of the rain like little kisses from falling stars, was the whole point. Occasionally, she’d wear a hat if it was hard to see in front of her, but not today. Just a swimsuit to solve the see-through issue of wet T-shirts and shorts so that she could swim if she liked. Swimming in the ocean was divine. Rising with the waves while watching the tiny pinprick ripples creating polka dot rings around you, with the little plop-plop rhythm that accompanied them, was the closest Nicole could get to heaven. If you included a beautiful, grayscale horizon with moody clouds to watch as well … well … that was cosmic.
    Looking out on the ocean was a lot like looking at the stars, except that the ocean with its turmoil and rolling beauty was more frightening and real.
    She walked out with bare feet, skirting lightly across the road, happy for such close beach access, and hopped the small barrier that separated the road from the beach. Her feet sunk into moist sand, cool and soft like cookie dough from the fridge, and she sighed and wiggled her toes for a moment. She sat on the barrier and put her face into the rain, opened her mouth to catch a few drops