Brendon ran down the hallway, laughing as he chased Ryan through the dark. The power had gone out while Brendon had been excused to go to the bathroom. Ryan had walked in just as the lights went out. His eyes glowed red with mischief and he had a grin to match.

"Come on!" Ryan had urged, grabbing Brendon's wet hand from where it was under the sink's nozzle. "The dark is where the fun happens!"

He had started the run as well, encouraging Brendon to follow suit. "Check this out!" He had laughed as he tilted his body and slid along the wet floor. "Try it!"

Brendon nodded, trying to mimic Ryan's movements as he came up to the wet spot of the floor. Unfortunately, he must have done something wrong because he lost control of his slide. His arms waved wildly as he grew closer and closer to collision with-

He couldn't even complete the thought before he was sprawled out on the ground, vision fading in and out. His head pounded. What had just happened? Something warm trickled down his face by his eye, but he couldn't lift his hand to wipe it away.

Ryan leaned into his darkening vision. "That's going to leave a mark." He said simply before busting up into cackling laughter.

°

Brendon stepped into the hall with his knees shaking.

His memories were changing. Or had they been shifted to what he originally remembered all along? Before this storm, he knew nothing of a red eyed boy named Ryan.

Or, at least, he thought he didn't.

He walked down the hall in a daze. The memories that had been replaying in his head since arriving. The red eyes and dark grin that now accompanied them. It couldn't be real. He must have hit his head hard before he woke up at the edge of the eye, because nothing was making sense.

He stumbled back into the gym, gripping the doorframe to steady himself. He felt like he could puke.

The others were all there. Tyler had Josh's head in his lap as he combed his fingers through his short curls. Patrick was signing to Pete, who rolled the basketball back and forth between his hands. Dallon sat by his and Brendon's sleeping bag, looking down at his phone.

He know Dallon was mad at him, but he needed to reconcile. He needed something to make him feel sane.

He shuffled over to Dallon. Dallon didn't look up from whatever he was doing on his phone. Brendon sat down slowly, hoping that his shaking wasn't too noticeable as he leaned back on his arms.

"I don't know why I said it." Brendon said after a moment, "I'm not right after what happened. I wasn't thinking. It was a stupid joke and I'm sorry."

Dallon didn't respond, but Brendon saw him bite his lip.

"I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to you." Brendon continued, "As soon as the storm is over. Anything you want. Anything." He winked with a lopsided grin, despite how he felt.

Dallon set his phone down with a sigh. He turned to Brendon, looking him up and down. "You're shaking." He noted.

Brendon sat upright and crossed his arms over his chest. "No..."

Dallon locked eyes with him. Though they still reflected anger, there was also something else. "Are you okay?"

"It's not about me right now." Brendon said, keeping his arms crossed. "Unless you count my apology."

Dallon stared at him for a moment. His expression was unreadable as he looked Brandon over again.

"I know you didn't mean it." He finally spoke, bringing Brendon to release a nervous breath. "I probably overreacted, but this storm is really reminding me of her..." He picked his phone up and held it out to Brendon.

Brendon slowly uncrossed his arms and took it. On the screen, a smiling photo of Dallon's mother looked back. She had her head cocked to the side and her arms around a younger Dallon, who appeared to be trying to escape her grip with laughter. It was one of Dallon's favorite photos.

It was one of the last happy photos he had with her.

"These storms scare me, Bren." Dallon lowered his voice, making it hard to hear over the sound of nature beating down on the building. "It drove her crazy up until..."

Brendon nodded, knowing the story far too well.

It happened when they were back in early high school. A nasty storm had reared its head. Buildings were desimated. Dips in the earth became swimming pools. It was one of the worst in their lifetime.

Unfortunately, it all happened on the day that Dallon's mother couldn't take it.

She had changed over the years. When Brandon first knew her, she was carefree and full of life. Over time, however, she withdrew. She came outside less. Her smile, if you saw it, wasn't so bright. Her eyes seemed to have lost their shine.

Dallon tried to avoid talking about her when he could. He would just grow quiet when the subject came up, sometimes getting a far away look in his eye.

When that vengeful storm struck, something within Dallon's mother was struck as well. He said she had begun to go crazy. She cried and curled into a ball in the corner at the sound of the wind. She screamed at Dallon to get away from her if he tried to comfort her. She locked herself in her room when a branch struck the roof of their house.

Dallon was left on his own until the eye of the storm.

The lock on his mother's door clicked. She shakily stuck her head out, looking frantic. Her hair stood on end. He eyes had a wildness to them that Dallon had never seen before, and she muttered to herself.

"We need to go!" She yelped, throwing the door open. "Now! While the storm is silent. We can't stay!"

Dallon had tried to argue, talk some sense into her, but she dismissed him with screams. Eventually, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him out of the safety of their house.

They got in his mother's car.

She began to speed away from their home.

Where she was going to take them, Dallon never got a chance to discover.

The storm picked up quickly. The vehicle lost control in the dangerous conditions. Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

The next thing Dallon knew, he was in emergency response's care and his mother was dead.

Brendon shut his eyes. He could practically see the dead look in Dallon's bruised eye when they first saw each other after the accident. The storm had driven his mother mad. He was terrified of another storm taking someone else he loved.

"I don't want to leave you like that." Brendon said, gripping Dallon's phone tightly. "I don't want you to live in fear of these storms that invade every year."

Brendon opened his eyes and turned to Dallon. "We'll run away together once it's over. Just the two of us."

"Where?"

"Wherever we want!" Brendon scooted closer to him. "New York? California? Hell, maybe we can live in Australia. I'm sure the kangaroos would accept us."

Dallon smiled.

"I'm tired of seeing you tortured by this forced repeat of your past." Brendon said as he took Dallon's hand. "I want to see you thrive."

"Where's this coming from?" Dallon asked, tilting his head at Brendon. He reached out, placing the back of his hand against Brendon's forehead. "Did the kangaroos already get to you?"

"I'm serious!" Brendon insisted. He gently grabbed Dallon's wrist and pulled his hand down. He kissed the back of Dallon's hand before pressing it against his cheek. "This is gunna be our last bad storm."

Dallon smiled. He twisted his hand in Brendon's grip so that his palm was pressed against his cheek. "That makes for a really good apology." He brushed his thumb along Brendon's cheek. "I'd like that."

Brendon smiled. "Forgive me?"

Dallon nodded.

Brendon let out a soft sigh. He was was so relieved to have the weight of Dallon's anger off his chest. He wanted to say more, share his appreciation of Dallon, but it was at that moment that the all of the lanterns went out.

The others cried out in confusion. The lanterns shouldn't have gone out already. They shouldn't be sitting in pure darkness.

"The dark is where the fun happens!" A voice in Brendon's head cackled as the storm raged outside.