Work Text:
As dark clouds cover the sky and thunder sings its dreadful song, Alexa hides herself under her blankets, hands over her ears. Madame Petrova had told her that she would be home late, so Alexa must practice ballet then go to bed.
However, Alexa had found it hard to concentrate on her steps with ominous thunder slowly becoming louder and louder. The minute the first roll of thunder unexpectedly crashed right by her window, Alexa had dashed under her covers.
“I hope the little by-irds are safe in the storm,” Alexa whispers. “The weatherman says that the worst place to hide during a storm is under a tree.”
Another roar of thunder. Alexa shivers. “Mama and Papa would tell me to stop being such a baby. ‘You are big girl now, Alexa! Now clean!’ No wonder they sent me away.” She looks outside her little window, watching the rain splatter down.
“Mama and Papa, are you out there? I’m sorry for being such a scared, bad little girl. I hope you can take me back one day,” Alexa says, sniffling. More thunder rumbles outside. Alexa whimpers softly, fighting back tears. “I know I shouldn’t cry, I’m big girl now! Big girls don’t cry! But I’m scared! I hate storms and their sudden, loud noises!”
Rap, rap, rap! Alexa lifts her head. “That didn’t sound like thunder.”
“Hello, Alexa!” a small voice calls out. “I’m here to clean your room!”
“Janusz!” Alexa wiggles out from under the sheets and jumps down to let her friend in. She opens the door to a little boy with golden hair and a sweet smile, exposing the gap between his two front teeth. Alexa pulls her friend inside and closes the door.
“I’m so glad you’re here!” Alexa cries. “The storm is super loud and I hate it when it suddenly makes a loud booming sound!”
BOOM! Alexa yelps, covering her ears. “Like that!”
Janusz wraps his little arms around the ballerina in a hug. “If you’d like, I can stay with you until the storm ends. We could listen to the thunder together. Things are less scary when there’s another person with you.”
Alexa nods frantically. “Can we do it under the covers, please? I think I’d feel safer there.”
“OK.” Janusz kicks off his shoes, then follows Alexa into bed and under the covers. Just as the two settle down, the lights flicker, then turn off.
“Oh! Now we can’t see,” Alexa says. “It reminds me of my room at home. Mommy and Daddy told me to sleep in the dark attic, so I wouldn’t take up so much space.”
“It’s alright, Alexa! I have a flashlight!” Janusz flips the switch, suddenly illuminating his and Alexa’s faces. “My dad always said janitors must have flashlights on them at all times.”
“Genitals are so smart,” Alexa says. “I should start bringing a flashlight with me at all times.”
“‘Janitor’, Alexa,” Janusz interjects. “With an r, not an l.”
“Oh, sorry,” Alexa says. “I’m so bad at words.”
“It’s alright.”
The children huddle together as the storm continues to roar. Alexa leans her head against Janusz’ shoulder.
“Did you know that you can tell when a storm is passing over you?” Janusz suddenly asks. Alexa looks up at him.
“The milkman that came earlier today told me that lightning comes before thunder.” Janusz continues. “If you count the seconds between the lighting and the thunder, it will tell you how close or far away it is.”
Lightning flashes. Janusz and Alexa count together. Fifteen seconds pass before thunder rolls, this time quieter.
“It’s farther away now,” Janusz explains. He turns to Alexa, grinning. “Isn’t that cool?”
Alexa nods enthusiastically. “Wow!”
The lights suddenly flicker on. Alexa pushes the blankets off of the two. “Oh! Looks like they fixed the lights!”
“...We can discuss it tomorrow, Dmitri,” a voice from downstairs snaps. “I’ll see you then.”
“Madame Romanoff is back!” Alexa exclaims. Janusz scrambles off the bed and shoves on his shoes.
“I should go before Madame gets mad at you,” he says, turning off his flashlight. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Alexa!”
“Thank you for staying with me during the storm!” Alexa calls out, smiling shyly. Janusz returns her smile with a bow before running out.
Alexa turns off her bedroom light and lies down, closing her eyes. She hears footsteps click down the hallway and her door open once more. Though her eyes are shut tight, Alexa can still feel Madame Petrova’s icy eyes look over her star pupil, before the door closes once more and her heels click away.
“One day, Janusz and I will escape and live our own lives,” Alexa whispers to herself as the rain pours down, lulling her to sleep.