All Summer In a Day
By Ray Bradbury
Plot
The story is about a class of school children on venus, which in this story is a world of constant rainstorms, where the sun is only visible for two hours every seven years.
One of the children, Margot, moved to Venus from Earth five years earlier, and she is the only one in her class to remember sunshine, since the sun shone regularly on Earth. She describes the sun and the other children, being too young ever to have seen it themselves, refuse to believe her account of it. Out of jealousy, she is bullied and ostracized by the other students and finally locked in a closet during the time the sun is due to come out.
As the sun is about to appear, their teacher arrives to take the class outside to enjoy their only hour of sunshine and, in their astonishment and joy, they all forget about Margot. They play everywhere, savoring every second of their newly found freedom. "It's much better than sun lamps!" one of them cries.
Suddenly the children and their teacher must run inside as the rain is coming. Then one of them remembers Margot who is still locked in the closet. They stand frozen, ashamed for what they have done, unable to meet each other's glances.
The sun has now come and gone and, because of their horrible act of jealousy, Margot has missed it. They walk slowly and silently towards the closet, and let her out.