Twister: When We Were Young - Part 1

 

"Thank you Aunt Meg!", Jo said as she picked up her fork and knife.

 

   Jo began to cut the steak into bite-sized pieces and eat them. Once she finished the steak she took a sip of water and quickly scarfed down the eggs. Suddenly there was a clamor of footsteps on the front porch and in came Bill through the front door. Bill was only about 11 years old but still had his same dark drown, almost black, hair. He waved to Aunt Meg who was cleaning up the kitchen then ran over to Jo.

 

"Jo! Come on!", Bill almost shouted as Jo hopped down from her chair.

 

"Bill, what is it?", Jo asked as she wiped a small amount of egg yoke from her lips.

 

"There's already been a dust devil over in Mr. Miller's field! Come on!", Bill exclaimed and tugged at Jo's white tank top.

 

"OH! Give me a second to get my shoes on and then I'll be out!", Jo said and ran up stairs to her room.

 

    She sat on her bed and quickly slipped on her shoes, then dashed back down the stairs, yelling bye to Aunt Meg as she ran out the front door where Bill was waiting for her.  Jo and Bill quickly ran to their bikes which, as usual, were dumped on their sides in the front lawn. Bill was the first on his bike and rode out into the street and motioned for Jo to follow him. Jo was only a few seconds behind Bill and quickly caught up to him. Her look of excitement extended from her smile, all the way to her emerald green eyes which were lit up with joy. Her long blond hair fluttered in the wind behind her as her and Bill rocketed down the street as fast as their legs would take them. As Jo looked ahead she saw a few more kids on bikes, which she knew without a doubt was Dusty, Rabbit, and Sanders, all waiting for her and Bill. When they got to the street corner, Jo and Bill hit the breaks and skid to a stop in front of Dusty, Rabbit, and Sanders.

 

"You guys ready!?", Bill asked as he turned to the others.

 

"You know it Dude!", Dusty exclaimed as Rabbit and Sanders both nodded their heads in agreement.

 

   With that the group was off. They traveled down the street, with Bill leading and Jo close behind. Behind Jo was Rabbit and Sanders, then bringing up the rear was Dusty with the words "Barn Burner" painted on the side of his bike. Rabbit yelled for them to take the next left as they approached a small intersection. Bill turned left, followed by Jo and the rest of the gang. As they rode through the street the houses ended and a plowed dirt field was reveled. Jo's eyes widened as they saw a tall and thin dust devil tearing across the endless dirt field. 

 

"You Guys stay back! Me and Jo will try to get the probe inside!", Bill shouted back over his shoulder at the others.

 

"You got it boss!", Dusty yelled back to Bill and slowed down.

 

"You ready?", Bill asked as Jo came up beside him.

 

"Ready as I'll ever be!", Jo replied and grinned at him with her perfect white teeth.

 

   Jo and Bill kept pace with large whirlwind as they peddled along the road. Dusty, Sanders, and Rabbit had all stopped along side the road and watched through their binoculars as Jo and Bill turned, and rode through the ditch and into the field, towards the dust devil. The dust devil was nearly thirty feet tall, bending and twisting like a snake as it ripped across the dirt, picking up small objects like sticks and leftover pieces of corn husk from the year before. Bill and Jo got right along side it and Bill pulled out a small Dorothy doll with a parachute attached to its back. They tried hard to get ahead of the dust devil, but the dirt started to turn into loose sand as they rode along. Their tires sunk into the loose earth and both, Jo and Bill, fell over. Jo hit the ground with a thud and her blonde hair swished over her face. Bill managed to land on his feet and quickly went over to Jo. He helped her up and brushed the sand off her back, but suddenly turned around and noticed that the dust devil was now heading straight for them.

 

"Run!", Bill shouted over the wind as the dust devil came closer and closer.

 

   Jo looked over her shoulder and saw the tall, skinny whirlwind heading at them. She quickly ran back towards the street, with Bill right on her heels.

 

"Come on! In here!", Jo yelled as she climbed into the ditch and laid down.

 

   Bill jumped in and laid on top of her to cover her from the small debris. The dust devil came closer and Jo's long blonde hair fluttered and whipped around her face. Then the two were enveloped by the whirlwind. The sand pelted Bills neck, face, and back as he used his body to cover Jo. As the center of the dust devil moved over them, the flying sand began to sting as it hit Bills exposed skin. This chaos only lasted a few seconds as the dust devil roped out and disintegrated as it moved onto the warm, black pavement of the street.

 

"You alright?", Bill asked as he rolled off of Jo and stood up.

 

"I'm fine. What about you?", Jo replied as she stood up and brushed the sand off herself.

 

"I'm good, it just stung a little is all." Bill replied as Dusty, Rabbit, and Sanders rode up on their bikes.

 

"Dudes! That was wicked!", Dusty exclaimed as he hopped off his bike. "What was it like?"

 

Jo looked at him, "It was windy." She said with a chuckle as Bill brought their bikes back over from the field.

 

   Dusty laughed at Jo's little joke and patted her on the shoulder. Rabbit and Sanders were holding their own conversation on how the dust devil moved and how long it lasted. Within a few minutes, the gang was back up on their bikes and riding again, searching for another dust devil.