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HER school had been closed for three days by the time she realised that it wasn't a joke. when her father ordered her to pack a bag of her things and get ready to leave within the hour, she knew it was bad. the news reports had told people not to panic, to sit tight and wait for the national guard to tell them what to do. that was almost a week ago now and nobody had come knocking, but the death toll was rising and the streets weren't safe to be on. she guessed her father was just jumping ahead of the gun before their neighbourhood was next.
sierra alonso was sixteen years old and from sandy springs, georgia. she had attended high school like everybody else her age and lead a pretty normal life. her father was thirty-six year old estate agent mateo alonso and her mother was thirty-five year old elementary school teacher, cindy alonso. she was an only child, but not by choice. the couple had her young and then could never conceive again. because of this, they were fiercely protective of their daughter. she was their angel and the thing they lived for. sierra sometimes struggled to understand how lucky she was to have such loving parents, and so she often took them for granted.
"are you ready si?" her fathers voice called up the stairs.
"uh," her voice faltered a little as she looked around the room that had served her for her whole life. her parents had reassured her that they'd be back as soon as things were safe, but she had a gut feeling that it just wasn't true. her walls were painted a soft, eggshell grey and her bed was made exactly how she did it every morning or else she couldn't sleep. on her dresser were pictures of her favourite people. her parents, her grandparents, cousins and school friends. she guessed they would be making the same trip to the refugee centre that they were, but the phone lines were so backed up she couldn't get through.
"i'm ready."
she pushed down the handle on her wheelie suitcase and tightened the straps on her backpack, clicking her bedroom door shut for the final time. her father came up and took the bag for her as she followed down behind him, mentally saying goodbye to every room. the trunk of the car was almost full, just enough space to squeeze the last bag on top. her mother was sat in the passenger seat in the front already. sierra could tell she had been crying. her pretty face was red and splotchy and she kept sniffling, staring out the window with glassy eyes. sierra got into her seat behind her and placed her backpack by her feet.
"are you okay mom?" the girl asked, leaning forward slightly to look at her through the centre console.
cindy nodded quickly and wiped her eyes, turning to smile at her daughter, "i'm fine baby. there's food in the cooler next to you but make sure to make it last, alright?"
sierra opened the cooler and saw what had been filling their fridge just hours before. in the footwell by her feet was also a bag with all sorts of snacks. her dad got in the drivers side, putting the house keys in his pocket and putting his seatbelt on.
