...............................................................
Every where there is calm. Ma, my sis, baby Miley and Mitch. Everyone is in glee. Jewel will be home soon. Getting her babies dressed was never easy.
There is a knock.
"Quick! Evacuate." Jewel breaks
through the door in a petrified hustle. She grabs things and starts
throwing them in a bag, "They're coming," she tells us.
Shit.
Mitch and I were completely dressed so I stand watch at the door as my
family runs through the house like mice in a cage. Hurry. Please hurry.
There
is a creak at the door. I dash to it and slam it closed. A little part
of me hoping there will be a souvenir finger in the hinges when we
return. The foreign figure continues to push at the door. And I thrust
my whole body into it, bringing my knees up to my chest to rest on the
wall opposite the door.
"They're here," I
scream. The caged mice move quicker. It's quicker to run out the back
door, down the fire escape and out, down the driveway and into a
neighbors yard until the street clears of them. The back door is open.
Ready.
I can already smell the fresh green from the outsides.
Jewel
walks over to me and gives me the okay to lean off the door a little.
She wants to get a better look at them. I cautiously bring my feet to
meet the ground. I pull the door open very slowly...
"It's Dr Slavin, He's a good guy."
I
quickly open the door fully, as he falls through, unaware of his sudden
granted access. He looks at me and I shy away, feeling terrible for
stalling whatever message originally prompted his visit.
"Good
luck out there." He looks at me and his sarcastic tones gives me
chills. Jewel walks over and gives him a hug. When she steps back, he
hands her a piece of paper. Folded. She thanks him. He disappears back
down the empty hallway.
The siren sounds,
giving warning. Damn. Blood rushes to my face as my family and I make a
mad dash to the back door. Babies in arms, we run down the stairs.
Realizing I forgot my bag on the table, I run back up, sending Mitch
with his mom as he tries to come with me.
I
grab my bag in record time and dash for the fire escape. As I run down
the stairs, I'm checking through my bag to make sure the necessities are
there.
Wallet. ID. iPad. Yes, I'm still a modern girl.
I
swing the bag over my shoulder in somewhat of a relief until my eyes
look up. There are people, possibly hundreds. Running. Crying.
Screaming. Dust is in the air. Helicopters are close by. Babies.
Mothers. Fathers. Best friends. Cousins.
Where is my family? Where is my family?
I
look across the long end of the yard and they are standing on a
homemade ladder into the garden, which now has a fence around it. I scan
the scene and notice the men with black plastic hats and big guns
marching back and forth at the other end of the driveway.
The end that led to our freedom.
I
run to my family. My mom is on the ladder with my sister behind her.
There is a voice in my head: look to the left. I do. There is an opening
in the fence, confirming that it was thrown up temporarily to stop us
from escaping.
"Quick. Come this way," I shout.
My family looks at me and we run to the opening, I squeeze through,
hoping to make more room for my mother and sister as I yank at the
wires.
It's beginning. The wind is picking up. Circles. Circles. And more circles of dust. Dirt. Baby shoes. Hats.
Where are Jewel and the babies??
I yell to my mother, "where are they?"
She
looks at me in horror, sending chills up my spine. I rush back into the
cage, seeing my freedom slip more and more away from me and I lock
hands with my sister, who then locks hands with my mother. We rush into
the crowd, looking left and then right.
Mitch is in a far corner, holding tightly to the fence. The wind is picking
up. We call for him and he runs over and grabs a hold of my sisters
hand, moving my mother to the end.
Where's Miley??
My heart beat quickens. Where is she? We continue to run through the yard, hand and hand calling for Jewel and Miley.
I
spot Miley trapped in a cloud of dust. Her 15 month old legs can barely
stand any longer. I break from the human made chain and run to Miley. I
scoop her up in my arms and kiss her. She still smells like baby powder.
The
cloud of dust is getting thicker. It's getting harder to see. I run back
to my sis, Mitch, and my mother and we lock hands as we hunt for Jewel.
Where is she?? Where?
The
yard is getting quiet. The dust is slowly rising to the sky. There are
less figures running. Less crying. Less shoes floating in the sky. There
is less. We call for Jewel again. There is no response.
The
dust has cleared. I break from my sisters hand, cradling Miley in my own,
and run through the yard. Looking for her. Calling for her. Praying for
her. I see two shoes sticking out from under a piece of wood. I run
over, somewhat relieved and somewhat petrified of what I may find.
Is it her?? It has to be her??
I lift the wood to find that it isn't her. It's another woman. She's dead.
I
turn around, screaming for Jewel louder. From the corner of my eye, I
notice the folded paper that Dr. Slavin handed her caught in a bush. I
run over and grab it, scanning the yard with every step I take. I unfold
the paper and read it. Its an address. To where? I don't know.
The
yard is still. My mother and sister seem to know the answer to my
search as they bow their heads and take a seat in the dirt. My mother
grabs Mitch and pulls him onto her lap. I can see his tears.
I
can't accept this. I keep searching. Trees. Bushes. The porch. The
front of the house which has now cleared of them. Everyone is gone.
Everyone. The thought sinks deep within me...
No!!
That
can't be it. I rush back to the back yard and I can feel my chest
getting tighter. Panic sets in as I realize the only figures in the yard
are my mother, sis, Mitch, and me with Miley in my arms.
She's gone. Jewel is gone.
The words sink in, knocking me to the ground. I cradle Miley.
She gone. She's really gone. My breathing gets harder. Seems like something is blocking my air way.
"I
can't breathe. I can't breathe," I call to my mother. She jumps to her
feet and dashes towards me. "I can't breathe," I repeat. It's getting
harder to talk.
I can't breathe.
I
look down at Miley, sleeping peacefully in my arms. I look up at my
mother approaching me. She is fading. Slowly fading. My eyes are getting
heavy. Then she is gone.
..................
I
open my eyes to a bright white wall. I am on a mattress. A wooden bed
frame is firm around me. I feel movement. I look down and my mother is
watching me. She doesn't say a word.
She smiles.
I
can tell she has been crying. I look to the window and see the sun. I
never thought we would see the sun. I hear seagulls. I hear waves. I try
sit up using my arms, but my mom motions to me to take it slow.
My
sister rushes through the door with a box in her hand and passes it to
our mother. Mom knods her head towards me, and my sister looks down at
the end of the bed where I'm laying. A look of relief flashes over her
face.
"Finally!! Two months in and I was ready to sell your IPad."
She grabs me and hugs me. Was I really in a coma for two months? And where the hell are we?
There's a loud bang.
"I'll get the babies. They'll be happy you've finally opened your eyes," she says as she leaves the room.
Mom is inspecting the box she was just given. She reads the address out loud. It sounds familiar...
I get out of the bed, legs still wobbly, and reach for my bag. I reach into the side pocket and pull out the piece of paper.
The address on the box, and the address on the paper... match.
I look up at my mom. There are tears in her eyes, and she is smiling.
