"Rainbow Socks"

by Camila Fitchitt

Through the window, the sun had almost set, but lamps lit the room softly. A little of the light filtered into the space behind the curtain, where the girl stood on her tiptoes against the wall. She looked down at her friend’s socks: where her own were dark, fit for the shadows, her friend wore socks with bright neon rainbows.

The girl swung her gaze to her friend’s face. Their eyes met, and the girl’s finger brushed just over her mouth at the sound of footsteps outside the curtains—shhh.

Her friend nodded, then watched her point down to the rainbow socks. Confusion furrowed her brow as the girl moved her finger to point toward her own black socks. Too bright, she mouthed, though she knew her friend couldn’t read lips. A few moments passed as her friend looked back and forth between the socks until her mouth formed an o. Oh, I get it.

Her friend squinted for a moment at the soft curtain, head tilted, before bringing her knees up to her chest one by one. The curtain rustled and caught on her movements. She pulled off her socks and held them out towards the girl, grinning widely.

The girl sniffed and clutched her chest in pretend gags. It was all she could do to keep in a giggle as she made grossed-out faces at her smiling friend, who waved the neon socks at the girl. The girl stumbled back, away from the cover of the curtain, with a stomp that gave them both pause. She straightened up, wide-eyed, and looked around.

It’s not too late! she thought, ducking back behind the curtain. No one had been in the room to see her leave the spot. A little shocked, her friend stared at her for a moment, face lit by the ambient light. The girl let out an exaggerated sigh of relief—phew!—earning a hushed laugh from her friend.

The footsteps returned, pounding down the hall. The two held their breath and stood perfectly still, watching each other intently out of the corners of their eyes. Their backs pressed into the wall, flattening themselves into the shadows, as the footsteps circled the room and came to a stop in front of them.

“Caught you!” The seeker flung the curtains aside. “You guys were super loud. Is that socks?”

The girl wrinkled her nose. “It was all because of your socks. Way too bright.”

Her friend mock-gasped. “Nuh-uh! That was totally your fault!”

The seeker rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t hide his smile. He turned away, leaving the two to fight over the rainbow socks.