Word: Calescent

calescent

[kuh-les-uh nt]

adjective

1. growing warm; increasing in heat.

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              Jack lay face up, sprawled across an ottoman.  His friend, Walt, lay on the floor nearby, splayed out on the wood floor.  Neither boy was in a comfortable position, but moving would have taken too much energy.  Jack voiced his displeasure by releasing a long, drawn out groan.

               “Why.” He said.  The word was said with a croaking voice, and was as drawn out as his previous groan.  “Why is it so hot?”

               “I dunno.” Walt said, although the words ran together until they were nearly indistinguishable from each other.  He looked at the large digital thermometer that hung just outside the glass door.  It read 95 degrees.  “Global warming?”

               Jack thought about that.  Or at least, he tried to.  He swore the heat would fry his brain if he thought too hard.  “Yeah, sounds about right.” He concluded.  The thermometer ticked up to 96.

               Even though they both wore nothing but the lightest, thinnest swimsuits they could find, they oozed sweat from every part of their body.  Being inside offered no protection either, as Jack’s parents stubbornly refused to get AC.  They claimed it was too expensive.  Jack had insisted the hospital bill for heat stroke would be worse, but the argument fell of deaf ears.  And so they suffered.

               Another increase, up to 97. 

               “Should we do something?” Walt asked.  He clung to the floor as if the wood would somehow cool him off.  It had worked, at first, but his own body heat had rendered it ineffective for long.  Still, he longed to seep deeper into the material, as it was still slightly cooler than the air. 

               “Eh, that sounds like a lot of work.” Jack replied. 

               “Yeah, I guess so.” Walt mumbled, not being able to muster the energy to speak any louder than the bare minimum. 

               Neither of them said anything else.  They simply watched the thermometer as it displayed 98. 

               “You want some ice cream or something?” Jack asked.

               The thought was tempting.  Something cold would be nice.  There was just one problem.  “You gonna get it?”

               Jack was silent.  “Maybe not.”

               Up to 99.

               “Maybe your mom’ll get some?”

               “She’s doing stuff outside.”

               “Why?”

               “I dunno.”  Nor did he want to think about it.  Thinking was too much effort.  Silence reigned for almost a minute.  The thermometer finally broke 100.

               “Your mom’s dumb, I think.” Walt said.  Jack knew he should be offended, angry, or some combination of the two.  But he just could not care.

               “How come?”

               “She’s doing stuff outside today.  Nobody smart would do that unless they had to.  Plus, no AC and stuff.”

               “Oh yeah.  Right.” There was no energy to argue.  Everything he had was going into not overheating.  As the thermometer hit 101, he knew it was a losing battle.

               The door opened and someone entered the room.  Jack’s mom walked in, drenched with sweat and skin red from the sun and heat.  She cast her eyes from one boy to the other.

               “Are you boys going to lay there all day?” She asked.

               “Yup.”

               “Uh huh.”

               “Well, that’s a shame.  Because I was going to take you to the pool, seeing as you’re already dressed for it, but if you’d rather sit there, then by all means.”

               Suddenly, the boys found a reserve of energy even they did not know they had.  They even forgot about the thermometer that had just hit 102.

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It's pretty hot out there.  Remember to do your best to keep cool.  But don't stay inside all day.  It's just as unhealthy as spending all your time outside.  And yes, that can be dangerous.  Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.