Raine

It wasn’t like Emily to run off and leave me like that. But she did. I thought that surely she would be right back and everything would be okay, but sometimes life isn’t that simple.

I should introduce myself. My name is Raine and I am Emily’s partner. We met about a year ago and we’ve been together ever since. Almost ever since, anyway.

I do my best for Emily and I know how much she loves me. She could have picked anyone that day in the store, but she chose me.

I have to say, she has been the best companion I could ask for. That’s why I couldn’t believe she left me behind that day.

Emily doesn't take me with her every day, of course. Only when it’s raining, or if there’s a chance of rain. That morning, there was a downpour.

That day, Emily and I went to Brewed Awakenings, our favorite coffee shop. She settled into a corner table and lost herself in her writing.

It’s a cozy place and I like it there. Sometimes people notice me and comment on my fabulous paisley pattern. That makes me happy.

Coffee shop people seem to appreciate me more often than other people, for some reason. I suppose that makes sense. Emily chose me and she’s a coffee shop person.

Sorry. I’ll get back to the point.

We spent a few hours at Brewed Awakenings. Emily got a lot of work done while I sat on the floor. While we were there, the rain stopped and a hint of sun came through the plate glass windows.

Emily noticed the time and realized she was cutting it close for an important meeting. In a rush of panic, she grabbed her belongings and burst out the door. Let me rephrase that. Emily grabbed most of her belongings. I was still there, lying on the floor.

I lay there under the table for quite a while, all alone. I felt sad but expected Emily to return at any minute. After a while, someone else came in and sat down by me. I recognized him. He was another regular customer and sometimes Emily would chat with him. His name was Lucas and he was an artist.

When he sat down, his foot bumped into me. He peered beneath the table and there I was. He recognized me, too.

“Hey, Jenny,” Lucas called to the barista. “Was Emily here earlier? I think this is her umbrella.”

“Oh, yeah,” Jenny answered. “She was sitting at your table but rushed out a little while ago.”

Lucas picked me up and leaned me against the wall by his chair. He took out his sketch pad and worked on a landscape drawing. After two cups of coffee, he collected his things to go. That’s when he realized that it was raining again. He hadn’t brought an umbrella, so he looked at me and then spoke to Jenny again.

“I don’t want my pictures to get wet, so I’m going to take Emily’s umbrella. If I don’t run into her myself, tell her I have it next time you see her. Okay? Otherwise, I’ll just bring it back here for her.”

Jenny was busy making a latte, but she nodded and gave Lucas a thumbs up. That sounded reasonable to me, also, but I worried that Emily was out there in the rain without me. I went with Lucas and did my best to keep his drawings safe and dry.

It was one of those on-again, off-again kind of rainy days. Lucas and I got on a bus, heading downtown, but it stopped raining before we got there.

I couldn't believe it, but when the bus came to a stop, Lucas got off without me.

I didn’t like the bus. I had fallen on the icky floor. Too much dirt and discarded chewing gum. I must have ridden four full circuits around town before someone else sat in the seat where Lucas had been.

It was a young woman, dressed in a long skirt and a floppy blouse. The girl had bright red hair and a ring in her nose. To me, she seemed like an artsy type, like Emily and Lucas. Turns out I was right.

While on the bus, the girl called someone on her cell phone.

“Hey, it’s Elsie,” she said. "You won't believe the day I'm having."

Elsie was a street musician. She had a case with her, which I assumed held her guitar. Elsie was telling her friend how she hadn’t made any money that day, because she had gotten rained out.

The hassle was too much, so she was headed back home. On the bright side, Elsie told her friend, she found a cool umbrella on the bus.

When we got to Elsie’s stop, she picked me up and took me with her. I kept her and her guitar dry on the short walk to her apartment. Her apartment was older than Emily's and, honestly, a bit dingey. Warm and cozy, but it smelled too much like patchouli and clove cigarettes for my taste.

I enjoyed listening to Elsie play her guitar that evening. She was talented. I still missed Emily, but the soft music comforted me.

The next day there were scattered showers across the city again.

Elsie took me with her to play music on the street. She went to a popular park where a lot of buskers played for tips, but it wouldn’t stop raining long enough to make any money. Elsie decided to try her luck elsewhere.

We got on and off the bus a couple of times, trying out different spots around town. Elsie got frustrated and decided to give up for the day.

After one more bus ride, Elsie and I got off in a familiar-looking neighborhood. It was drizzling, so I was out where I could see everything. She walked with me for a couple of blocks and with each turn, I was more sure I knew the area.

Funny how life works out. I was right about the neighborhood looking familiar.

We turned one last corner and there it was. Brewed Awakenings.

As soon as we walked into the coffee shop, Elsie shook the water off me, but before she could close me up, I saw Emily look up from her laptop. Her eyes got big. She was as surprised as I was.

Just as Elsie started to close me up, Jenny looked over from behind the counter. A funny grin spread across her face when she saw me.

“Emily,” Jenny said. Emily was already standing up. “Isn’t that…?”

“Yes, it is,” Emily laughed.

Elsie was a little confused because it was clear that both Emily and Jenny were looking at her and me. She was a little disappointed when they explained who I was, but she was polite about it and handed me back over to Emily

Emily and I were so happy to be back together. I felt a little bad for Elsie, but Emily told her where she first found me. Hopefully, Elsie was able to find one of my sisters there. She was a likable girl and deserved a rain partner, too.

As for Emily and I, we were never separated again. Now we are very careful to keep track of each other. One adventure was enough for both of us.