Hurricane (short story)

[Narrator]: On March 20th 2018 the parents of Jacob Bailey, mysteriously went missing in the season of spring on a hiking trip in Huntsville South Carolina. There was no trace of their disappearance and the only thing that was found were there belongings. It was truly a tragic experience that their son had to bear, since he was only 13 years of age at the time.

3 YEARS LATER.

[JACOB] POV

The air turned black all around me as I bowed my head at their empty coffins. With the pastor’s prays fading in the wind. The guest that arrived late without any care, crocodile tears fell off their cheeks. My mind was in complete denial of the situation at stake. “No way they could be dead. I won’t believe it. It has only been 3 years they might still be out there.” My mind flooded with questions. The ceremony ended; my friends who came to give their respects left, followed by the rest of the guest. Tears cascaded down my cheeks as I watched the men bury my supposedly parents. I walked away with guilt, blaming myself that maybe if I haven’t stayed home and join them on their quest, maybe things could have turned out differently. The next morning, I was meeting up with my friends at the beach. John, Kyle and Kiara, are the closest friends to family I’ve ever had since the disappearing of my parents. Arriving, I plastered on a tight smile not to make my emotions from yesterday noticeable. I walked up to them with my feet burning in the sand. John, Kyle and Kiara were sitting under a tree, they looked up to me and their smiles faded. They all looked concerned and asked of how I was doing. I replied and joined them under the tree carrying on with the previous conversations. Later on, we all headed back to my place where we were approached by a tall slim but curvy woman who wore a fitted formal black knee length sleeve dress with black high heels and had brunette hair that was tied up in a bun. “Am, excuse ma’am how may I help you?” We all stood there confused. “Are you Jacob Bailey?” she asked. “Yes, and who’s asking?” “Well, my name is officer Silvia Lewis, I’m from the children’s protection department. You have just turned 16 and still doesn’t haven’t a legal guardian. Is that correct”? “Yes” “Ok then, you will sign these paper work and tomorrow you will be escorted by two male officers who will take you to home.” “Wait, what no! I have a home here; I’ve got friends here. I can’t just pick up and leave.” “Well unfortunately you are under age to live alone in this house. Look I’m sorry but I’m just doing my job, have a good night”. We went inside disappointed of the news we just heard. I was furious I couldn’t leave behind my friends they are my only family. We sat on the couch with the radio on listening in on the news with gloomy faces. [News reporter] “In this hurricane season. There will be a hurricane arriving tonight. Make sure to stay indoors. And remove all outdoor pets to safety. We are not certain of the duration and also how dangerous this storm can be. It may cause a lot of damage to houses and cars so I will advise to stay clear of windows, they might shatter with any flying objects. We’ll be back on the weather; we’re taking a quick break”. I insisted that my friends stayed over until the storm past, they agreed and all got ready for bed afterwards.

1:23 a.m. Thursday 18th

BANG!! Car alarms went off. Every muscle in my body tensed. “What in the world was that noise”? I turned to my left to see empty sleeping bags lying beside me. Where did everyone go? I step out the room heading to the living room. The rain was so load and pouring heavily I couldn’t hear the creak from the door nor my own footsteps on the wooden floor. “Hello! Anyone there. Hellooooo”! I shouted for a response. Then I heard Kiara’s voice. “Over here”. I saw all of them cuddled up next to the fire place. I asked them what’s wrong, with confusion written on my face. “Look outside”. They said in unison. I faced the window, I stood momentarily paralyzed. The streets were flooded with water. The roofs of houses where missing. The cars were flown across the street. That must have been the noise I heard. The water was rising rapidly quick, almost knee length. The trees were swaying lifeless in the blustery winds. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The damage that this storm is causing. I urged my friends that we have to leave and find safety. “We will not be able to survive this trauma! We have to leave. The water will reach the house eventually and we won’t be able to cope with the surroundings. Please! We must leave! “And go were! Jacob”? Waves of anger gripped John as he said those words. “I don’t know. But the best thing to do right now is to gather all our goods before-” “CLASH”!!! A stone flew into the house breaking the window. Ok, I think that’s our sign to leave. “You guys we don’t have much time. Are we leaving or not?”

[News reporter] Briefing. There are four underground shelters in different areas of the island. You may make your way to them safely. Listen attentively. Smallville 4th street. Paper town 7th street. Blue coast 11th street. And Huntsville 8th street. There will be a sign pointing to the location. I hope you all reach safely, carry only light weight “Ok guys we can make it to that shelter. Its only 8 blocks away from here. Are u guys in”? They all agreed on the quest. We packed our bags and carried what we could bear. The water had already reached the house leaving our feet soaked. We slowly tried leaving the house with beads of perspiration trickling down or faces. We were all filled with fear as we gripped each other’s hand tightly trying to keep balance with the gust of winds. In just a few minutes we were drenched in water. It felt impossible to walk with the rising water below. It was only 5 blocks away and are body was losing stability. “I don’t think I could make it anymore guys”. Kiara said. her legs were wobbly and she looked like she was on the edge of passing out. With the stinging rain drops hitting her face, I couldn’t blame her. I think we were all tired but trying to stay strong. About an hour pasted by and maybe we were close to the shelter but all hope was lost when a big tree branch was heading our way. It collided with u breaking our hand bond. We all got separated for a minute, floating in the muddy water. I gasped up for air leaving my mouth ajar, then without a trace of anyone I felt a burst of adrenaline surging through my veins, and I yelled. “Kyle! Kiara! John! Where are you guys! Hellooooo! Can anyone hear me?” I was ready to burst in tears of the thought of losing them to. “(literal gibberish)” I heard a sound. “We’re right here”! I heard Pope’s voice. “Ok I’m coming for u guys”. I shouted with all my might. I followed the sound of his voice pleading for help. I approached them with a smile not knowing what I was about to see. Kiara was unconscious with blood running down her cheeks from the scar on her forehead. “She got hit pretty badly”. Said John “We have to get her to the shelter quickly” I replied. We all in turns carried the wait of Kiara on our backs. It felt impossible to reach to our destination but we kept our faith and Keep Moving Forward. No matter how hard it felt. Eventually we saw a flicker of light. It was a metal sign being shun with flashlight. We picked up the past and headed straight. We approached the sign and felt a metal door under my foot. I looked at the guys in relief. We finally made it. I stumped on the door yelling. “Help! Help! We’re outside”! The boys joined in with me. We heard a creak and was greeted by a pleasant face. “Oh my God! Come inside children, come inside. You’ll be safe here”. We stepped down the bunker and was taken inside. They took Kiara from us saying shell be fine. We walked to the rest of people and was suffocated with hugs from Kyle’s and John’s parents. It felt nice to feel the embrace of a parent’s hug. The boys and I was welcomed with some new clothes and some hot chocolate. We waited patiently for Kiara to awake but instead decided to wait till morning when the storm calms. We were escorted to our sleeping bags and in minutes we were out cold. The next morning, I woke up once again to see empty sleeping bags beside me. I went looking in search of my friends and found them around a table drinking tea. I was happy to see Kiara, that she was alright. I walked towards them and gave them a hug. The storm and calm down but rain was still pouring. I was happy to see us all together again, safe and alive.