The cool night air blows against my face as I open up the window for just a moment, trying to restore some lucidity to my life - just a little something to make everything slide back into focus. My eyes slip closed for a second, but then I open them up again, and as I take a deep breath, I focus on what's on the outside of the window.

Even though it's not that late, the sky is already as dark as pitch, the blackness thickly spread over the sky. There are faint shapes of blue-black clouds, the moon's silver glow shining weakly through its thin veil. The stars are blocked by the clouds, and suddenly, the thunder rumbles, and the tension breaks.

The storms lets itself go, the air suddenly getting warmer as the rain plummets downwards, and as the first drop hits my head, I retract from its gentle caress, and duck back inside the small, suburban Maryland house I'm forced to call home. And yet, something's different about my house now - the tension had broken, and the fury of the storm is about to descend upon me.

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