Felix stared at the dirty white sneaker she now held in her hand. She couldn't catch Jordan before she clipped the edge of the roof, tumbling head first into the flood waters surrounding them. A small squeal left Felix's throat as she assessed the situation. She threw the shoe behind her as she began to moan in horror.

     She wasted no time looking in the water from afar, and without any second thoughts, she thrust herself in after the younger girl, paying no mind to the fact that with each minute, the night time darkness came faster and faster.

    All she could see were faint shadows, her vision slowly disappearing the longer she had her eyes open in the contaminated waters. Throughout this entire ordeal, she had only been above the massive force of nature, but now, she was inside of it, completely unguarded and helpless against its strength.

    She moved her arms around, in search of any part of Jordan's body that she could drag to the surface. Tress limbs passed her by, and what she figured was the neighbor's dog. Terrified she raced to the top to take another breath.

      Scrambling for air, she broke the surface gasping. Wiping the dirt from her eyes she called out one more cry for help and heard nothing but silence. There was no way she could stop the sobbing going on if she wanted to. She couldn't lose her sister this way. If she didn't have her mother or Jordan, then there would be no reason for her to try and survive alone. She refused to be left behind by them. No way.

    Going under once again, Felix swam to make sure that dying wasn't her only option left.

oOo

     Nothing.

     She had nothing.

    Felix's face rested against the hard shingles of her home's roof, her body still half submerged in the water. Her arms were heavy with exhaustion as every muscle ached from swimming.

  "Jordan..." Her voice croaked. Her stomach was filled with swallowed water, making her feel like retching.

    She was tired. So tired.

     Her eyes slowly blinked, too heavy for her to control as her eyelashes rested atop her cheeks. Around her, she could hear the small sounds of the water moving, it licked the sides of the house as her body drifted in it.

    With a ringing in her ears, Felix looked up to the dark sky and the stars scattered everywhere. As a girl, she liked to believe that the stars were where people went when they passed on. She couldn't grasp the concept of heaven being so far away and out of sight. When her grandmother had died, she remembered lying out in their backyard, staring at the sky as she looked for the biggest and brightest star. It had been the first time she had seen a falling star as one raced across the black velvet backdrop.

    Just like that night from long ago, she picked out the best ones for her mother and sister. She wanted them all beside each other, so that they could last forever.

     Lifting her arms, Felix pushed away from the house.

     She wanted to sleep now. If she could just to drift away into death with no pain or thought about where she was headed, she would be alright. She promised not to panic, promised not to cry if that one wish could be granted.

     Water pooled in her ears as she lied her head back, floating across the streets. A whirling noise approached her from the distance, getting louder and louder with each passing second. She didn't bother to open her eyes when she could feel the water move around her as a strong gust of wind hovered above. She only thought this to be God‘s angel coming forth to trouble the waters she was in.

    Felix found delight in that.

    When a light penetrated through her eye lids, she opened them to gaze at it. She didn't want to miss out on this moment. When she got to her family, she wanted to talk about it and all its glory with them.

    Suddenly, her body was being lifted, ascending through the air with ease. She could see the stars getting closer and closer, and a smile broke on her lips as she waited to be among them.

oOo

    In the church, pews were scattered with blankets for refuge. Doctors worked on the sick and injured in their impromptu working spaces. There was chatter among the hundreds there. Babies cried, grown men cried, the place was filled with sadness and relief.

     Sadness overtook Jordan unfortunately.

    She was seated in the back of the church, away from the chaos as one of the men who had found her administered oxygen to her, calming down her breathing.

     Jordan didn't know how she ended up in their small boat, but she was glad they did. She did remember hitting the water, her sister yelling at her and pushing her into the water.

     Felix must have really hated her for what she had done to their mother. The thought made her drop her head to her chest, as she took another deep breath from the plastic mask on her face.

     When the men had come across the little girl after combing the nearby homes for survivors, they had found her unconscious with a mouth full of muck. She had coughed up water held deep within her lungs, and they rushed back to the church to get her treated for contamination. She hadn't said a word to them, not even when they had asked for her name.

      One went to look for a female helper that could possibly get through to her as the other stayed behind.

    "Everything's going to be okay. I promise. You're a very lucky girl." He spoke soothingly.  She still showed no intentions of communicating, but he was glad to see her take in the oxygen mask with earnest.

    He was surprised her small lungs hadn't given out on her. When he had listened to them on the boat, they were in great distress, so much so that he didn't believe they would make it back in time with her alive. His only hope was that if any of her family was alive and rescued, they would have a body to identify and bury.

       But now sitting here with her wrapped up in the throw blanket around her shoulders, he knew that she wasn't just lucky, but was strong as well.

     "Bill..." His teammate called his name as he approached with a social worker who had lived nearby the church and rushed to help once the worst of the storm was over.

     "This nice woman is going to help you. She's going to get you some food, some water, make sure you're taken care of okay?" Suddenly Jordan's head shot up, and her little hand reached out to grasp his forearm, forcing him in his seat as he attempted to stand. He was shocked to say the least that she reacted that way. It was the most he had seen from her all night. The fear in her brown orbs let him know that she didn't want to lose something that was familiar to her.

      "It's going to be okay. I promise." He knelt down before her. He had a daughter around her age, he took the girl for no older than seven or eight. His heart clenched at the thought of his little one being in her place. He was thankful for his family being safe in a hotel in another state, but couldn't help to feel horrible that this child had to sit through the turmoil brought in by the storm. Did she have a family? Was she the only one left? These thoughts had coursed through his mind, and he knew that even he wouldn't be able to deal with the answers to those questions if he was in her position.

        Taking the mask away from her face, Jordan shook her head vigorously as she held on to his jacket sleeve. She wanted him to stay. Wanted him to be there with her to keep her safe.

    The woman came to sit beside the young girl, gingerly touching her shoulder. Jordan yelped, and jumped into the arms of Bill.

    "No!" She screamed. Her arms were linked tightly around his neck, and he could do nothing more than to hold her as he felt her tears soak his shoulder. He began to worry for her sudden attachment. He would have to go back out to search for others, and if she clung to him like this, she would only be devastated when he had to leave for hours at a time.

    "Hey, it's okay. Don't cry." He patted her back, brows drawn together as he felt something within him break. Pulling her away by her waist, he made eye contact with her, smiling like he would his daughter when he was comforting her.

    "Can you stay with this nice woman? I'll be back to see you."

   "No...." Jordan groaned. Tears dripped on the ground as they fell heavy.

    Clearing his throat, he reached into his pocket, withdrawing a handkerchief with his initials on it. He pointed to the red letters.

    "My name is Bill, and this is my favorite handkerchief." Wiping her tears with it, he placed it in her small hands." I'm entrusting you with the responsibility of protecting it for me. I will come back for it to see that you've done your while I do mine by helping other people, okay? Can you handle this task?"

    Jordan gripped the material in her hand. When she looked down, she gasped as her hands dirtied the white cloth. Wiping it off, she looked to him and nodded  her head. As long as she had it, he said he would come back. She would make sure she never let it go to ensure he returned to her.

   Bill stood, and nodded to the woman seated on the pew.

    "Be good for her." He told Jordan.  As he walked away, he couldn't help but look back at the little girl whose eyes never left him. Turning around he was met with a skeptical look on his partner's face.

   "What?"

  "The kid isn't a puppy Bill, you can't go around with her tagging along, you know?"

 "I'm helping, we're all helping here." He gestured to the filled room." That's our job."

    "Yes, it is. Taking home stray kids isn't. I see the look on your face."

    "I'm not taking her home! The kid was just scared. I was comforting her." Bill shook his head, ignoring what his partner was saying to him.

   "Right." The other man said with a laugh.

    Cutting him a glare, Bill walked ahead to find another job to do.

oOo

    "What's your name sweetie?" Jordan looked at the woman next to her. She didn't feel like speaking to anyone, not even the teacher like lady who talked with a smile.

     She gripped the handkerchief in her hand, turning her head away.

  The older woman could tell the girl was using the, if I don't look at you then you don't exist tactic with her, so she tried a different approach.

    "Well let's see." She sat back in the seat, tapping her chin with a finger as she thought.

    "My name is Amy. I love cats. I have two named Stella and Furbs. "

    "I'm allergic to cats." Jordan said softly. She pulled her legs up to her chest, and thought about how if her mother was here, she would slap her legs for putting her feet in the seat. Jordan figured God wouldn't mind just this one time...

  "Oh really? Do they make you sneeze? I'm allergic to dogs and whenever I get around them my nose starts to wiggle, I get an itch and then I can't control myself as I... I... ACHOO!"

   Jordan watched Amy and her theatrics with an amused grin. She giggled just barely as she wiped at her nose.

   "Just the thought of them makes me sneeze!" Amy laughed alongside Jordan as she slowly began to open up. The little girl turned to her with hands raised to her cheeks as she barked like a dog.

   "Oh no! Achoo! Achoo!" Amy turned to Jordan with a determined look.

   "Is that the game you're going to play? Well you better watch out because I feel my claws coming. Meow..." Amy slinked towards Jordan as she shrieked with laughter and back pedaled on the pew. Jordan began to playfully sneeze and bark, attempting to defend herself away from Amy.

    From outside the church doors, there was a loud moaning coming from a new arrival. The woman was brought in on a stretcher, and she cried at the top of her lungs in pain and grief. Jordan's fun was ended as she hurried to sit beside Amy. She gripped the handkerchief in her hand desperately wishing that Bill was there with her.

   Amy wrapped her arm around the frightened girl's shoulders, and was relieved to see that she allowed her to. The sight was gruesome; the woman had blood covered clothes as she was whisked off to a room behind the choir's platform. The room became much more solemn as volunteers and doctors raced to her aid.

    Looking down at the curly haired child, she rubbed her head as she spoke quietly.

   "How about you and I go look for some food. Would you like that?" Amy could tell that she would need all of the energy that she could get her hands on. Jordan's eyes remained on her feet, even as she was led by the hand to find nourishment. Her stomach hurt so bad she didn't think she could eat. Jordan thought of Felix, and how she hadn't eaten or drunken during the days that they were trapped on their roof.

    A small tear formed in her eye as she wondered where her sister was. She was scared, and wanted Felix there to hold her.

oOo

    "Jordan!" Felix shot up with a fright. "Jordan? Where are you? Jordan!" She looked around her flinging her arms to fight through the water. Until she realized, she wasn't in the water anymore.

     She looked down to see blankets covering her lower half and an IV in her hand.  

    Either heaven had free healthcare, or they had been rescued.

    She looked to her left, and she looked to her right hoping to find Jordan lying beside her. Two older adults were there instead, watching the young lady search for family that wasn't there. They had been there when she was brought in two days ago. The poor thing had slept hard the entire time. They knew that she had been brought in alone, but obviously she was the last to know.

     "Have you seen my sister? Her name is Jordan. Curly hair, looks like me..." The older man shook his head no.

    "Have you? She literally looks just like me. She's little. She's seven."

    "Honey..."

    Smacking her teeth, Jordan stood to her feet and took the IV out of her hand.

   "I'll find her myself."

   As she looked around, she recognized just where she was. It was her high school gym. Except today, it was filled with cots and makeshift tents of people rather than screaming students and fans.

    "Jordan!" She called. She made her way in between people's temporary shelter, wobbly on her feet. She saw some bodies that looked as if they were dead, but awoke at the sound of her voice passing by.

     She had to find her sister. She didn't want to leave her alone with so many strange people around. Turning, she called for her again. She walked backwards as she scanned the large room. She knew Jordan wouldn't have gone far. She just had to look carefully.

   Felix felt her back meet another body.

   "Excuse me..." It was a woman who must have been a nurse. She had a special colored vest on, maybe she could help Felix.

   "Yeah, I'm looking for my little sister. We were brought here, but I must have fallen asleep." She laughed. " Have you seen her? Her name is Jordan, has curly hair and these big brown eyes...."

   The nurse recognized the teenager standing before her. She was the first to get to her when she was brought in two nights ago. She had been delirious within the first few hours of arriving, but now she was sure that she was sane. This sister she spoke of didn't exist...

   "Let's go back to your bed. You need to rest."

    "No, I'm fine. I need to find my little sister. Seriously, can you not help me?" Felix became agitated. She didn't need someone to hold her back from looking for Jordan if they had no intentions of helping.

     "I think you need to return to-"

   "No!" Felix twisted her arm out of the woman's hand fiercely. She began to stumble backwards from the sudden motion.  "I need to find Jordan."

   She began to quickly walk away but was stopped once again.

   "Let go of me! I need to find my sister! She's in here somewhere; I just have to get to her. Please!" She begged.

   "Ma'am."

   "Don't talk to me! Don't touch me!" Felix clawed at her fingers to pry them away. "I have to look for her!"

   The nurse held on tight even with the oncoming hits she received as Felix fought to get away from her.

    "Help! Someone help me!" Felix cried. All those around them watched the commotion as male helpers rushed to see what the problem was. When they found Felix flailing around, they quickly rushed in.

   "She won't let me look for my sister. Can you help me? I need to get to her." She was carried back across the room, all the while she sobbed for someone to assist her. When they placed her on the bed, she immediately made to stand up, but was stopped. She stared at the three adults with a tearstained face. They weren't going to help her.

    Taking a deep breath, Felix shouted.

    "Jordan!" Over and over again. Her throat began to ache. The hand that pushed against her shoulders forcing her down met no resistance.

      Felix sat slumped on the bed. Realizing what was happening.

    "She has to be here. I was looking for her; they had to have found her too."

  "I'm sorry." The nurse didn't know what else to say to the distraught girl. She had seemed so sure that her little sister was here, and now seeing her so dejected broke her heart for the thousandth time since the storm hit.

    The men had since left the scene, shaking their heads at the devastation on her face. Not knowing what else to do, the nurse too followed suit. Leaving a dry eyed Felix behind.