Saving Rain

by Kelsey Kingsley

It wasn’t until a couple of painful hours later, when the sun had set and the moon dropped silvery beams of light into The Pit, that Billy finally announced that he was ready to go home. He said his mom would start to worry about him if he didn’t get back. He said she’d be mad, so we collected our stuff and left, although I doubted his mom could be mad about anything at all. I insisted on walking him home, making sure he got there safely, even though he'd sworn he was fine. Mom said she was fine all the time, too, but I knew better than to ever believe her. “Hi, Soldier!” Billy's mom called from the door, waving in my direction as her son slowly trudged his way up the path. “Do you wanna come inside for something to eat? I made a spiral ham!” God, when was the last time I'd eaten ham? When was the last time I'd eaten anything that hadn’t come from the school cafeteria or out of a can at home? I couldn’t say for sure, but it had to be before Gramma had gotten really sick and couldn't cook anymore. What I did know was, ham sounded great. Billy's mom was a good cook, and I knew there'd probably be a couple of excellent side dishes to accompany the ham as well. But I smiled and shook my head. “No, thanks, Mrs. Porter,” I replied. “I gotta get home and do my homework.” “Oh.” She looked disappointed. Billy's mom was always so nice to me; she always seemed like she genuinely enjoyed my presence in her house. “Well, okay then. Maybe another time. Get home safe, okay? Tell your m...