I opened the door, feeling the fresh air blow in against me. The overwhelmingly loud sound of rain hitting the stone steps trickled into my consciousness and I looked up at the sky, offended. “Really?” I called out to the Universe.

The Universe said nothing back.

I stepped out into the rain, feeling the cool drops hit me with all the force of gravity; they wanted to hit the ground, I’d just gotten in the way. I looked up at the clouds, my glasses protecting my eyes from the falling rain.

When I’d woken up, the clouds had been dark and heavy, ambling hesitantly through the sky, as if their weight was enough to hold them back. All day they’d looked fit to burst, waiting for the opportune moment to dump water on the unsuspecting denizens of the lower world. And all day I had cringed as I’d gone about my business, dashing from class to class beneath a ceiling of gray cotton.

And they had the audacity to wait, patiently, for me to drop my guard before giving in to the forces that kept them sewn to this world.