My father was hunched over me, shining a bright light into my eyes.
I opened my eyes slowly, still trying to get used to the light, I squinted at him and a faint smile spread across his face.
“I have never met someone as klutzy as you Grace Marie. Are you alright?” He asked quietly.
Gathering my thoughts I answered, “I’m okay…” I took a deep breath, sat up, and then continued, “I’m sorry dad. I didn’t expect to be that disturbed and to faint like that.” “You don’t have to apologize sweet heart, I thought that might happen when you saw her, I should’ve warned you.” He placed his arm around my shoulder. I was extremely comforted by this simple but sweet action. It brought me back to about a year ago when, being the emotional teenager that I am, I was having a hard time with school and was more stressed than normal.
***
I sat in the corner of my dark, barely lit bedroom, crouched against the wall with my arms wrapped around my knees.
I tried to hold myself together, tried to control the endless tears streaming like waterfalls down my cheeks.
I whimpered and wept for what felt like days.
I was completely alone.
After about an hour of sitting… holding that same position without failure, my father gently knocked on the door and opened it without my consent.
“Grace? Grace what’s wrong?”
My father and I had been left alone that Saturday afternoon while my mother was on a business trip, and my two sisters were with their friends.
I didn’t look up at him, nor did I say a word. Instead I stayed perfectly still and started at the carpet beneath my feet.
“Grace please, speak to me. You know you can tell me anything.”
He entered the room and sat beside me. I then began to sob uncontrollably and fell into his open arms.
“I don’t know what to do dad!” I squeaked. “Help me please! I’m so lost and confused. I don’t know how to deal with my own emotions. I don’t know how to handle all of this schoolwork. I’m stressed all of the time. I’m scared for the future… for college… what am I supposed to do dad?”
We sat in silence for a long moment, and I began to worry that he would criticize me for acting so childish but he continued to hold me and listen to every word that I said.
“Grace,” he began “I’m not going to tell you that I understand how hard it is to be a teenager. However, I do understand to some extent, what being a teenager is like.” He paused and winked at me. “Dealing with all of the emotions that life throws at you is hard my dear, and quite frankly… the emotions never go away. You only learn how to cope with them more as you continue to grow in age and in understanding. Unfortunately, growing up is challenging and a lot of the time… unfair. Now, I know that all of this may seem very redundant, and I don’t know if any of this is helping you, but what I’m trying to get across is that, I know you are a very strong girl, and even though life may seem very unfair, stressful, and a struggle in itself… you have the ability of becoming such a powerful women, and though school is hard right now, and most likely will be for as long as you further your education; just know that one day, all of this heart ache, stress, and endless hours of tears,” he paused and wiped a tear from my face. “Will have brought you to a wonderful time in your life where you worked hard to become what you wanted to, and you struggled, kept on pushin’, and you kept trying, you got back up even when you were knocked down… that’ll be the day sweet heart. When you achieved what you worked so hard for.”
He paused again, took my face in his hands, and said, “This is one of those times where you have to pick yourself back up. The hardest decisions we face in life are more often than not… the right ones. I know you’re strong. I know you can do this. I have all the faith in the world in you Grace.”
***
As my father and I sat beside one another, my mind wondered back to a few hours ago, when there had been a loud shudder.
I stood up from the bed of which I was placed; although my brain screamed for me to lay back down, I ignored it and thought to myself,
How many head injures have you had in the past month? Or even two weeks? You can get over it.
“Grace, you need-“ “No dad. I’ll be back later, if you need my help with the autopsy, please let me know, but I have to go somewhere.” I gave him a tight hug, got up on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek softly.
I sprinted to the door leading out of the basement and shoved it open. Ignoring the stares from numerous individuals, I ran up the stairs and opened the door to the roof.
The wind was howling and the lightning was raging. My hair blew in my face and I was blinded by the next crack of lightning. My heart raced as I pushed the hair from my eyes and ran for the edge of the roof.
I clasped the edge tightly and looked over and was terrified by the sight.
About one hundred men were gathered around the entrance of the facility shouting loudly to one another. Though the wind was too strong, I was unable to hear what they were saying, until one man shouted loud enough, just as the wind calmed for a brief moment.
“Shut all the doors leading to the outside! Lock them, and make sure no one gets out!” Just as he finished another giant bolt of lightning struck the ground less than a mile away, making me jolt backwards and fall on my back.
I hit the ground hard, but the man’s words hit me harder. As what he said began to register, another bolt of lightning struck again, but drawing closer and closer than it had before.
One after another after another, the lightning struck until the men below began to scream for everyone to get back inside.
Terror rose within me as the wind grew stronger, and the lightning grew more furious, and the rain began to set in, clouding my vision, and soaking me within a matter of seconds.
I heard the door burst open behind me, and I grew more aware of the fact that I was still on the floor, and just then I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist.
The voice was unfamiliar and he was shouting, but his words were unclear until he drug me back into the facility and slammed the door shut behind us.
“What are you thinking miss!?” He yelled.
I stared at him blankly, wiped my wet hair away from my face and shouted back, “What is going on out there!? Why is the storm getting worse?! Why are you keeping all this information from us!?”
“Well your mommy and daddy are the scientists right? Why don’t you ask them princess?” He said with a smirk.
“Watch your mouth!” I shouted.
“Oh yeah princess? What’re you going to do about it?” He said leaning closer to my face.
Instinctively, my arm retracted and I punched the man hard right in the center of his nose. Sending him backwards against the wall.
Anger grew in his eyes and he took a swing but missed my left cheek just by an inch.
I was now completely furious and lost control of my anger. I swung and punched him again, this time hitting his right cheek.
I kept swinging and gave him no chance to respond with his fists.
Again and again, I punched him as hard as I could until his nose was broken and my knuckles bled.
With one final punch he fell to the floor… unconscious.
I heard commotion, and a mess of people running up the stairs.
What have you done Grace?
Josh was the first to see the man laying on the floor, with my fists still clenched and covered with a mixture of the man’s blood and my own.
“Grace?” Josh asked, with a look of horror forming on his face.