Secrets of Adeline (Book 2)

Chapter 30: Bonfire

My father lit the fire, the flames suddenly bursting to life. It crackled and spit rapidly. Jasper burped loudly, interrupting the moment. A laugh escapes my mouth as I pile up the dishes. Kat smirks, Cody giggling. Suddenly, we are all laughing together in a rhythmic chorus.

I hugged my mom and my brother, telling them goodbye. I did the same with the rest of my family members. The only ones left at the table were my friends. My dad, Annabelle and the kids went inside and headed to bed. Cody rubbed his hands together with excitement. The flames danced in Paris's eyes as she marveled at the light cascading from the fire. The sun set, stars twinkling in the darkened night. Malory began playing music from her speaker, just below our voice level. I dragged out chairs and lined them up neatly in a circle around the fire. Paris wrapped herself in a blanket, sitting on the nearest chair. Jessica wrapped her legs to her chest after clumsily sliding into another. Maya ended up walking home because her mom wanted her home before 8:00. Zack and Jasper picked up the picnic table, sitting it beside the fire as they took a seat on it. Cody plopped in a lawn chair, Kat gliding into his lap with a blanket to wrap around the two of them. Malory took a seat between Paris and Jessica, laughing as the chair rocks beneath her. I smirk, laughing a little. "So who wants s'mores?" Todd asks, bolting from inside with a handful of Hershey chocolates, marshmallows, graham crackers and roasting sticks. Hoots and hollers echo over the music. Todd passes around the sticks, handing each of us a marshmallow with it and taking a seat on the picnic table with the chocolates and graham crackers laid neatly beside him.

I squish the marshmallow between my two fingers, imagining how unhealthy it was. But I didn't care. Shoving the marshmallow onto the stick, I lean over the heat radiating flames. I waited until the white marshmallow turned to a soft, golden brown color and slid it onto a graham cracker and chocolate. Laying the top graham cracker over it, I squished it together. Marshmallow goop seeped over the sides of the cracker as I bit into the warm, deliciousness. Kat and Cody fed each other theirs, licking each other's fingers clean. Malory and Paris went for seconds as I wiped off my hands.

Once everything settled down and everyone finished their s'mores, I scooted to the edge of my chair and flicked on a flashlight. "Who's ready for story time?" A wicked grin spreads across my face. "Oh, me! Me!" Jasper says between swallows. "Okay." Cody shrugs. "Who wouldn't be?" Zack throws his hands up matter of factly. "True. True." I smirk, clearing my throat. "Okay, so have any of you heard of the legendary blood sucking creatures?" I began my story. "You mean vampires?" Jessica grows curious. "Yes, of course I do." I laugh, beginning to tell my story. Between each part, "oh's" and "ah's" bounced between fire crackles from my friends, each into the story as much as I was. "And then BAM! He sinks his sharp fangs into her throat!" I shout, causing everyone to jump. They play it off, laughing at their own reaction. I scan the crowd, smiling faces staring back at me. My words flew rapidly out of my mouth as I told the story. After I finished, everyone else took a turn to tell theirs. Kat snuggled up to Cody, Malory teasing them every few moments.

The fire died down, Cody deciding to try to light it up again. He grabbed a lighter, flicking it on. He kneeled down in the grass, inches away from the burning amber as he pointed the flame onto the wood. The fire flashed quickly, bouncing back to its original state. A scream escapes Cody's mouth as he topples clumsily onto his back. Kat covered her mouth, trying to hide her laughter. I busted out laughing, Cody nudging me in the leg before regaining his balance. "It just scared me, I'm fine." Cody clears his throat, brushing off the dirt from his shorts. Kat smirks, giggling slightly. We sat quietly for a bit, enjoying the moment.

"I got an idea." Malory breaks the silence. "What is it?" Paris looks at her. "A dance party." Malory flicks her eyebrows. "Oooo, yeah that sounds fun!" Paris shivers, smiling excitedly. "Everyone grab your partners." Malory announces in a deep, joking tone. Cody sweeps Kat off her feet, carrying her into the grass. Malory cranks the music, each of us gathering in a group. We danced freely, losing sight of the moment. My feet dragged, my body bounced. I lost myself within the beat of the music, each of us in a trance. Flashes of smiles appeared before my eyes as I turned in each direction. Paris pumps her fist, jumping wildly. The fire dancing behind us, time freezes. Nothing mattered in that moment, nothing accept the simplicity of dancing.

When I was younger, I used to take advantage of moments like these. I didn't understand their value. After all, we would never get these years back of our lives, so why not spend them wisely? I learned to cherish moments like these and savor every last second of them. When I'm old and grey, I'm going to look back at these moments. I'm going to remember these people, what we did, what we said, who they were, what they meant to me, how they made me who I am. I hope that even then, when my body is fragile and my once young appearance has withered, I won't have to look back and miss anything. I hope I will have everything then that I have now. Yes, that sounds unrealistic. But in a world of poverty, slavery, wars and many more things, you have to learn to just hope anyways. Hope and hope and hope. It gets you through anything.

My eyes closed, my body moving, a sudden wet drop splashes onto my nose. A few more sizzle into the fire. We stop dancing, scanning our surroundings. "It isn't gonna rain now, is it?" Jessica groans. "I think so, honestly." Todd sighs as another drop hits his forehead. Malory quickly relocates her speaker to a shaded area on my porch. "That's okay, who need the fire anyways. We have the stars!" Paris smirks, mesmerized. More raindrops pelt my head, heavier this time. Maya jogs through my gate suddenly. "I didn't make it home, a storm warning popped up on my phone so I came back." She heaved out her breath, Beatrice suddenly entering as well. "And... I ran into Beatrice on the way. Can she stay?" Maya bites her lip. "Is she going to be a jerk?" I put my hand on my hip. "Or are you going to be my best friend like your supposed to?" I flick an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, Ads. I won't snap like that again, I swear." Beatrice assures me. "Fine." I groan, looking up at the cloudy stars. More raindrops fall, some in groups now. The rain picked up, suddenly it was a light sprinkle. "Eh. I can live with this." Zack shrugs. I laugh, shaking my head. Then, a crack of thunder echoes through the air. Just as I turned around, a waterfall of rain began hurling down from the sky, drenching each of us. The fire turned to smoke, the flames being watered out. The amber hissed, creating more smoke. "It's whatever, this is still pretty cool." Beatrice shrugs. "It feels great!" I twirl in a circle, soaking in the water. Kat holds out her hand as water droplets gather on her arm. She smirks, grabbing Cody's cheek. "I've always wanted to kiss you in the rain." She admits suddenly. "I have always wanted to give you everything you could possibly want." He sputters through the water, kissing her softly. "Well, that's my signal." I laugh, pointing in another direction.

Puddles splashed below my feet, my shoes slopping and squeaking. Malory turned up the music, each of us continuing to dance. Lightning cracks across the sky, creating pathways through the stars. I jump, shivering at the thunder. It roared from every direction. "Maybe we should go inside." I say between laughs. "Yeah, I think so, too." Maya giggles.

We clumsily flow into my house, dripping wet. Throwing us towels, my dad points us in the direction of the basement. Soon, we all are making our way down the stairs. Malory's speaker playing music in her hand, we hum along to the rhythm. "You know, this was pretty fun." Todd admits. "It was really fun, not pretty fun." Paris smiles, drying herself off. I wrap myself in my towel, sitting on the stone floor. "Can we just spend another night?" Zack suggests. "Sure, that's fine with me." I shrug. "Sweet!" Cody pumps his fist, wrapping his towel around Kat.

After we all dried off, we ended up falling asleep. Overall, the day was amazing and I didn't regret a second of it. In fact, I kind of wish it would've lasted longer. I could finally say that there was nothing that could change the fact that I was finally happy.