After a few minutes, the rain stopped.

The front of Zoe's hoodie was covered in wet, muddy sand. She breathed in and out slowly for a full minute, then pushed herself up to a low crouch. Her clothes were heavy with water and caked on sand. There were no arcs of lightning in the sky now, but every now and then a patch of clouds lit up white-grey, along with its double in the lake's surface.

If this wasn't the worst night ever before she fell asleep, Zoe thought, it certainly qualified as the worst night ever now. Her mom, Robert—and now her bike! And maybe her hearing too. She had only been to one concert, but it was loud and her ears sounded much worse now.

She had managed to crawl a few yards away from her bike. The way home would be even longer.

She slowly started walking across the beach—