Cooper busts through the door. Water sprays at my back. “Where are you guys?! I’ve been —” He makes a full-stop. I pull my hands away and jump up so quickly I can barely breathe. I don’t know what to say or do so I push past Cooper and leave the stairwell. I hear the door click behind me. The two of them stay inside.
The group has crowded around George. My feet make little splashes as I join them.
“Ma’am, I think you need some medical attention,” George says. His voice is calm. I peer over the other heads to see who he’s talking to. It’s a middle-aged woman. She has dark auburn hair that’s frizzy and backcombed into a large bump on the top of her head. She’s wearing a thin pink tank top with spaghetti straps and black pants that are faded in spots to a dark grey. She’s got a small backpack on her shoulders and she’s sitting directly on the ground in the water. The water has seeped through most of her outfit. She’s frighteningly thin; her bare arms and legs are practically all bone.
“I’m fine. I’m fine,” she says, waving George off. When she speaks her mouth opens just enough for me to notice that she’s missing more than a couple of teeth. The remaining ones are like filed-down stubs in her mouth.
She tries to get up but then falls back down into the water. It sloshes around her.
“I’ve got her.” A man steps forward. He’s equally thin. His black T-shirt and shorts hang awkwardly off of his emaciated frame. He has shaggy dark-brown hair and a small moustache. His eyes look sunken. He grabs her wrists and we get a full view of her arms. They’re bruised and show the marks of an IV drug user. He pulls her up to standing. She holds on to him for dear life.
“What are your names?”
“I’m Alec, and this is Betty.” Alec is practically holding Betty up. His arms have the same tell-tale marks that hers have.
“George,” Rory says. He’s pointing to the floor of the elevator. A needle and an empty plastic bag are in the corner. George nods and turns to the couple.
“Are you hurt?” George asks.
“We’re just fine.”
George stares back and forth at the two of them. He motions for me to come to him.
“Any chance these are the people you saw upstairs?” George whispers. I shake my head no. They aren’t the two I saw, and with them being stuck in the elevator this whole time, that would make it an impossibility.
“Where’s my Sammy?” the woman asks, looking around.
“Who?” George asks.
“Sammy.”
“There’s nobody here by the name of Sammy.”
The woman lets out a yelp and buries her face into Alec’s shoulder. He doesn’t comfort her.
“We don’t need Sammy,” Alec says gruffly.
“Sammy!” the woman cries.
“Are you saying that someone else is around here?” George presses. “Was there someone else with you?”
“No,” Alec barks. “Does it look like someone else was with us?” Alec motions to the open elevator that is clearly empty. “We were all alone.” Betty continues to cry.
The building shudders with the force of the wind and everyone freezes in fear. Even I feel myself tensing up. George switches gears. “Okay, now that we’ve found you guys,” George motions to Alec and Betty, “we should get everyone into the stairwell. It’s the safest place for us.” He motions to the door. “Everyone, back into the stairwell. We’ve got to take cover.”
He’s right. The stairwell will be the safest landing spot for us.
Liam and Henry start crying. Nancy wraps her arms around their shoulders and squeezes them into herself. Rory opens the door for everyone. The emergency light outside the door brings light into the stairwell. I hang back, wanting the others to get in first. I’m also not sure if I can face Samara right now. My vantage point allows me to see her legs through the opening of the door, and I watch as her legs take her up the steps as people approach. Hanging back will give me more time to figure out how to act in this situation — this scenario where I’m crushing on this amazing girl while she’s into my best friend and he almost catches me making a move on her. I don’t feel as guilty as I should. I mean, I told him straight up that I was into this girl. He was so busy looking at the Okami HD display that he didn’t pay her any attention. How was I to know that the two of them would hit it off like this?
I can’t help but replay the scene in my head over and over. The feel of Samara’s hand in mine, my fingertips tingling against her delicate skin. I replay the scene in my mind, the wet tears that hit my fingers as she cried. I wanted so badly to kiss her, to put my arms around her and comfort her. I wanted her to know that I’d do anything to keep her safe. In a split second, the moment disappeared, and with it, my hopes of ever getting close to this girl. Maybe some things just aren’t meant to be.
TIP #9
Never underestimate your strength and abilities
We’ve been sitting in the stairwell for an hour. My back throbs even more from sitting on the hard tiles. All of our bodies perch on the steps up the winding staircase to the second floor. Wrappers, napkins, and empty water bottles litter the stairwell. We passed out as much food from the cooler as we could to keep everyone satisfied, but it’s clear that we’ll need more food soon if we’re going to be staying much longer.
“Burritos and chips for breakfast,” Liam says. It’s six in the morning. “Score!”
I smile but I’m achy and tired and would do anything to go home to my own bed at the moment.
Ira is cranky and restless in Valerie’s arms. She tries to nurse him but he fusses. She bounces him on her lap and sings to him softly, but he’s had enough of being in the mall. Valerie looks exhausted. The batteries have died in all of our phones. The only source of light we have left are the two flashlights. Earlier the group was making small talk; now everyone but Ira sits quietly. I can’t see Cooper and Samara, but I figure they’re at the top of the staircase near the second-floor door. I wonder if Samara’s doing okay. She was pretty shaken up earlier; I hope she’s doing better. I’m sure Cooper is handling it. Don’t step where you don’t belong, I tell myself.
George is sitting in the corner of the landing between the first and second flight of stairs. It’s the first time I’ve seen him sit since we’ve been in this mess. He’s wiping sweat from his brow and twisting his hat in his fingers in a rhythmic motion.
“How are you doing, George?” I call up to him. He doesn’t look very good, but then again we’ve all been looking a little worse for wear since we got stuck here.
“I’m fine.” George waves me off. Ira cries out.
Valerie sighs, rummaging through her bag with her free arm. “I think he needs to be changed. I’m down to my last diaper!”
“That’s no good,” I say. I don’t know how often babies need a diaper change but I know that no one would want to sit in a wet or dirty one no matter who they were.
“We can take care of that,” George says. He waves for Erwin, who joins us. “I need you to get into the Shoppers Drug Mart downstairs,” he tells Erwin.
“Now?” Erwin asks. “Isn’t there a tornado about to hit?”
“We could use a few things and we might need more supplies afterward. Who knows if we’ll be able to get to them after the fact.”
Cooper and Samara appear from around the corner on the landing to listen in. Samara is wearing Cooper’s hoodie — the hood is pulled over her head. I wonder if she’s cold. I’m mad at myself. I didn’t bring a hoodie; I wouldn’t be able to give her one if I wanted to. A hero comes equipped with the tools he needs for every situation. Or he finds what he needs so that he can get the job done — or else he risks someone else scoring the points.
“Who has keys?” Erwin asks.
“No one,” George says. Everyone is quiet.
“You want me to break in?”
“We’ve got to make sure we have supplies,” George says.
“I doubt I’ll be able to get a delivery cart.”
“You could use th
e stroller?” Valerie says.
“Good idea!” George says. “Let’s get a list going.”
Erwin takes out a small notebook from his utility belt.
“What do we need?”
“Bottled water, packaged food, diapers for Ira …” George counts off of his fingers.
“What size?” Erwin asks.
“Size 4,” Valerie says gratefully. “Any brand.”
“Get some jars of baby food, too,” George adds.
“Thank you!” Valerie says. “Here, I can give you money for them.” She starts digging through her bag once more.
“No need,” George assures her. “Can’t even open the tills. We don’t have to worry about that right now.” He scratches his head. “Take all of the flashlights you see and get all of the D batteries you can. And then all of the first aid supplies you can find. There should be some kits somewhere. Add whatever gauze, tensors, and bandages you come across. Maybe some cold/hot packs. I want to be as prepared as we can be.”
“I think I’ll need some help with this. It won’t all fit in the stroller. Maybe someone can wheel some baskets back with me?” Erwin says.
“I can!” Cooper volunteers right away.
“I’ll help, too!” Samara offers.
“I can go, too,” I add. It may give me some more time with Samara and allow me to intercept anything between her and Cooper.
George shakes his head. “I think two is enough. Zach, we can use you here.”
Great. Once again, the dynamic duo is going to take care of things together, without me.
“Okay, let’s go then,” Erwin says.
I watch as Cooper shuffles down the stairs and then trails off, sloshing the stroller through the water, Samara by his side in those amazing boots.
“George, you okay?” I ask.
“I’m okay, Zach,” George says, but there’s a weariness to him that says otherwise.
There are a few coughs here and there, but otherwise everyone is pretty quiet. The building continues to creak and moan. We hear it through the walls, like the building is moving and stretching under the strain of the storm.
“When is this going to be over?” Valerie says to no one in particular. We all mull over her words. Being held up in the mall started as an inconvenience, but now that we’ve been here overnight and the storm has only ramped up — this is getting serious. When I was about eight, a huge storm ripped through the city. There were tornado warnings and numerous funnel clouds were spotted, but none actually touched down. My family camped in the basement that night. We pumped up a few air mattresses and lined them up across our family room. Marshall was terrified that night, sobbing in my mom’s arms with fear of what might happen. I remember being a little scared, too, but mostly thrilled that we were breaking out of our family routine to take cover downstairs. If our parents were keeping us in the basement, things had to be serious. Emergency warnings kept flashing across the TV screen as our parents tried to distract us with a made-for-TV movie. We couldn’t hear much of the storm other than the loud cracks of thunder that would penetrate the walls every so often. At times Dad would run up the stairs to take a peek outside the front window. I wanted to join him so badly but he made me stay downstairs, just in case.
“It’s really coming down out there,” I remember him saying. “Can’t even see the Robinsons’ house from the window.” The Robinsons were an elderly couple who lived across the street. The rain didn’t feel like a cause for concern. We’d never flooded before; the rain would always just stop and things would dry up. I’d never really given it more thought than that.
That night, I lay awake for as long as I could. I waited until I could hear the soft snores of my parents as they curled up on the air mattress beside me. I knew Marshall was fast asleep. He always slept like a rock — deeply and barely moving from the position he’d fallen asleep in. Once I was confident that everyone was sleeping, I gently rolled off of my air mattress, the vinyl crackling under my weight. I cringed until I hit the carpet, not wanting to wake anyone up. I tried to move like a ninja — smooth and stealth-like — up the stairs. I had only planned to peek at the storm but when I got to the window I couldn’t tear myself away from the dazzling circus of a weather system that I knew could reduce our home to a pile of sticks. It was like watching an orchestra, with each element taking its turn in the spotlight and displaying its power in nature’s perfect timing. I fell asleep in front of the window. I received a stern lecture from my parents when they found me the next morning. By then all was calm outside, as though the city were resting and healing from a relentless beating. Apart from shingles being torn off of roofs and trees snapped in half in yards and across roadways, the city had emerged relatively unscathed.
This storm feels different. There’s a charge in the air, an eeriness I’ve never experienced before. A feeling of awe and trepidation gnaws at my stomach but it lacks the thrill I felt as that little kid. Being stuck in a stairwell in a public place away from home adds to the uncertainty. I think of my parents and Marshall again. I wonder if they’re safe at home. I wonder if they slept in the basement on air mattresses again and if Marshall still needs comforting.
The bottom door of the stairwell swings open. Erwin, Cooper, and Samara wheel in the stroller and a couple of baskets of supplies, their way illuminated only by a couple of flashlights.
“George!” Erwin says breathlessly. “Shoppers Drug Mart was already broken into! Looters!”
George pales. “What?!”
“The gates were already broken open. Some of the aisles were ransacked but mostly the thieves wanted into the pharmacy.”
“Of course,” George says grimly. “Doesn’t surprise me. No sign of them?”
“There was no sign of anyone else in the mall but us,” Erwin says.
“Looking for drugs?” I ask. Everyone nods.
“Unfortunately, they can make a lot of money off of some of those medications,” Erwin explains.
“So, what if it was the same people who were trying to get into Spell Jewellers?” I ask. I know I saw two people.
“It’s possible they tried there, too, but got spooked after you saw them, Zach,” George says. “I just want everyone to be safe. Hopefully they got what they wanted and got out of the building. I can’t imagine them sticking around. We’ll have to stay extra vigilant to noises and activity though, just in case.”
“If they want to go back upstairs, they’ll have to use the stairwell,” Cooper says. I’m sure he’s thinking what I’m thinking: What if these guys have weapons? What if they’re dangerous?
The thought of having other people in the mall stealing stuff gives me the heebie-jeebies. I think back to Samara’s comments about people doing extreme things in difficult circumstances and it makes me wonder whether or not we’re truly safe in here, storm or no storm.
“Cooper, do you want to hand these out?” Erwin asks, indicating the cases of bottled water they’ve brought back. Cooper grabs a case and starts passing them out.
“Got everything on the list,” Erwin says. “They only had two flashlights, but I got a lot of batteries.” He passes them up to people for them to open. “Diapers for Ira,” he says, passing some out of a box to Valerie.
“I appreciate that very much,” Valerie says. She stuffs them in her bag.
“We also got him some jars of food, some Baby Mum-Mum biscuits because I know my grandbabies love them, and then we couldn’t resist …” Erwin tosses her a stuffed toy with a teething ring and crinkly fabric attached to it. “Thought maybe he’d like something new to play with.”
Valerie laughs. She hands it to Ira and he examines it carefully. “That was very thoughtful of you. Thank you!”
“We’ve got some boxes of crackers and cookies and chips here … the food in the coolers was already warm so we didn’t grab anything from there,” Samara says as she rummages through her basket. “And more first aid supplies in this one,” she continues, pointing to the other basket.
Cooper joins Samara once he finishes handing out the water.
“The water has risen. It’s about ankle-deep all the way to Shoppers,” Cooper tells us.
Samara looks down at her wet suede boots and groans. “Wish I’d picked different footwear yesterday.”
“We’re in the safest place we can be for now,” George reiterates. He leans his head back against the wall and tries to rub some of the sweat off of his face.
Ira has settled in to his mom. He’s no longer crying. Instead he’s slumped against her chest, depleted. Valerie resumes her singing — she has a pretty soprano voice that carries up through the stairwell. Her lilting voice is a soothing balm for our jangled nerves.
I study the faces of the people around me in the dim light. They are lost in thought; perhaps they’re contemplating the gravity of the situation as well. George has been our compass on this journey so far, working to keep everyone together and safe. The weight of the responsibility is etched on his face.
“George?” I say. George’s hat tumbles down the steps. His arms go limp for a second before the rest of his body slumps forward. “George!!!” I shriek. I race up toward him and hold his head up with my hands.
The panic in my voice seems to snap everyone back into high alert. “George?!” I shake him by the shoulder and try calling his name into both of his ears but he doesn’t move. “Help!” I yell. But I know that there will not be medical assistance on the way at this point. We’re on our own. Rory steps behind George to help while Erwin slides in beside me. The flashlight beams all swing toward us.
The Gamer's Guide to Getting the Girl Page 9
