Nothing in my thirty five years prepared me for this. One minute I had my arms full of groceries, browsing through store fronts grateful to my husband for staying with our son and the next I was surrounded by blistering hot winds and scorching sand dunes, the sun blazed down at me in all its sweltering glory. I made a full turn as despair slowly weaved its way through my veins, my body started shivering despite the high temperatures around me. There were no land marks, no buildings, no trees not even rocks in this moment I knew I was completely and utterly lost with no idea which way was home.
Let's go back a few hours in the day. My name is Mia Christian and I'm here putting myself together to run errands. I sling my grey handbag that doubles as a knapsack over my shoulder after checking its contents to see if I had everything for my run out to the city to pay a few bills with impending due dates and top up on groceries. My husband had decided to stay with our one year old son while I went in his stead. It was his way of giving me a break from being a stay at home mother and housewife and though it consisted of so much running around, I appreciated the change of scenery every once in a while. As I poke my soon to be tired feet into my only pair of white sneakers, I hear a shuffling sound and looked behind to see my husband Hanes scoop up our son Kane who had been toddling to get to me through the passage way.
"Mama!" He said as his chubby little hands reached out to me. I smiled walked over to him and kissed his chubby cheek.
"Mama will be back soon baby, stay with Dadda until then ok?" As I moved my face away Kane made a grab for my hair which he held in a vise grip that took both me and his father to release.
When I finally got free I chuckled and turned back to head through the door.
"Later hubby"
"Hmm, later, remember to pay the furniture bill first"
"Ok" I waved over my shoulder as I pushed the door opened then closed it behind me after one final glance at my little family.
I don't drive so this journey into the city requires either the bus or an expensive taxi ride to get into the city. I walked over the to the metro bus stop and waited as the bus came by on the hour. I hopped up on the bus as it stopped and the doors swished open, swiping my metro card as I went by the driver.
"Good morning" I said.
"Good morning dear!" The driver is a female in her late sixties and had been on this same route for many years, so we were familiar faces to each other.
I found one of the vacant window seats and sat down as the bus moved off. I pulled out my phone from the front pocket of my bag and started browsing through my book library to see what I wanted to read. The entire journey usually took at least thirty minutes so I preferred to read to fill the time.
In what seemed like no time at all the bus pulled into the station for its final stop in the city, I had gotten so lost in the story that the time just flew away!
I scrambled off the bus nodding at the driver on my way out, the warm air filled with both pleasant and revolting scents warfted beneath my nose.
"Ah the joys of the city!" I muttered as I made my way out of the city metro station and out into the busy throng of people going about their business.
I made my way to the furniture store. We had gotten a bundle of furniture and fixtures for Kane that we were still paying installments for. It was conveniently not too far from the metro station so I could get it out of the way. The automatic doors slid open as I got close, I stepped through and made my way over to the counter to make my payment. I slinged my bag around so I could pull out my purse and pulled out my bank card.
Thankfully the cue for payments only had two others ahead so I didn't have to wait long. When it was my turn at the window, I returned the cashiers' plastic smile and put my card on the counter.
"Paying on Hanes Christian's account please"
"Do you know the number on the account?" She asked.
"It's, 6389643802"
"Thank you, please wait a moment while I process, can you tap your card here please"
And like that the payment was done. I shuffled from the from of the line and to the side as I put my receipt and card back into my purse and the purse back in the bag. Slinging it back onto my shoulder and turned to start browsing through the store. Our small family was not well off and mostly lived paycheck to paycheck and especially after I gave birth and Hanes suggested I stay at home with our son I couldn't help feeling that our situation had become even more tight despite Hanes trying to convince me that everything was ok. My mother didn't make things any easier as she would call at least once a week to tell me that it was time to put Kane in a daycare and return to work. I want to contribute to our family as well so her whispers are a weekly source of headache for Hanes as he now has to constantly reassure me that I don't need to rush out to work. The contradictory feelings that course through me at these times have put me in a tailspin of depression that never really goes away. Most days I feel so worthless I have to struggle to move around even just to do chores.
That's why I jump at these rare chances to leave the house especially because it's Hanes day off from work.
After looking at more things to add to our growing wish list that I would like from this store I ventured back out into the warm wind and walked to the shipping company next. I had bought a couple of cute things from overseas online that I had gotten a notification had arrived a couple days before. It was cheaper to pick up at the shipping company than have the courier deliver to our countryside apartment. With excitement coursing through me I almost skipped over and through the door of the shipping company and over to the receptionist desk.
"Any package for Mia Wong please" the account I had here was before I got married so they only had my maiden name on file.
"Let me check" the receptionist showed a warm smile which I returned. She was used to me by now as at least every month a small package would be delivered for me.
"Yes here it is, five dollars to clear" she put a small box about eight inches across on the counter and clicked away at her computer keyboard to pull up the information.
"Just sign here" she presented an invoice sheet for me to sign after I handed over the payment.
"Thank you!" I said as I picked up my package hugging it to my chest as I left. I stuffed it into my bag pulling out the side extender so it could fit.
"Now the least fun part, groceries" I murmured to myself with a sigh.
The store I preferred to shop in was a few minutes away and I weaved my way through the crowded sidewalks to get there. Because I have to take the bus I couldn't buy a whole lot so this was only to top off with things I couldn't get at the local corner shop.
I pulled out a small basket as I passed the door of the grocery store and made my way down the first isle.
"Let's see here, the milk Kane likes is only sold here, a few boxes of those," I glanced at my phone list as I plucked things off the shelves and into the basket tucked on the crock of my arm, by the time I was finished my arm just about felt like it was being torn off by the weight and the cue infront of me to get to the cashier was torturously long. I released a frustrated breathe but stood in line because it was the shortest cue compared to the others.
I breathed a sigh of relief when It was finally me turn and unloaded my basket on the conveyor, watching the price counter as the amount kept increasing and comparing it to what I had budgeted for this trip.
When the cashier told me the final amount I had to hold back from sucking my teeth. It was a whole ten dollars more than I had estimated.
"Why is everything getting so expensive" though I mumbled to no one in particular I could see the lady behind me nodding as if in agreement.
I scooped up my three bags and made my way out of the grocery store. I weaved my way through the bustling crowd, navigating with bags swinging hoping not to hit anyone along the way but at the same time wishing some ediot who wasn't paying attention would get hit especially with the bag containing a few cans of fish.
While I walked in the direction of the metro station to get back home I stared into the store fronts that I passed by stopping in front of a store that had baby clothes and toys on display and as usual I was adding things to my list.
"That would look so cute on my baby!" I was there making googly eyes at a set of blue sailor tunic and pants with the boots. I took out my phone and snapped a picture a smile on my face.
[I'm heading back home now hubby!] I texted Hanes.
[Ok be safe, see you soon]
As I lifted my foot to move away from the store it felt like the floor shifted under me and as I lost my footing I fell to my knees but the upheaval didn't stop at that, I felt like I was on a boat on rough seas as I was tossed to and fro. As I looked around I could see people panicking as they ran around and the tremors increased in intensity. Cracks began to run haphazardly across the pavements and asphalt and in some areas the ground buckled, drivers grew frantic and some started to attempt speeding away only to collide with someone with a similar idea. Buildings started to crack and break apart and at that point I heard a creak above my head and without looking I lunged out into the open and away from the over hanging of the store, the bags weighing down my arms didn't hinder the boost of adrenaline coursing through me. I looked back to see the entire store front awning collapse onto the spot I had just occupied.
I heard a roaring whooshing sound and looked behind me only to see the ground that had previously only been cracked, start to gape wide open like the maw of a great beast.
I was still on my knees from the lunge earlier and what I was witnessing now had me glue there. Crawling out from the abyss in the ground were large scaled lizards the size of a car, their red eyes ravenous as the looked around at what must seem to be a feast to them. One of the lizards broke away from its troop and prowled its way towards me. No matter how much I tried to spur myself to move I felt paralyzed in place. Just as the lizard got close enough and launched itself towards me, a pillar of blinding light swallowed me up.
When my vision returned to normal I found myself surrounded by sand, three grocery bags in my hand and a knapsack on my back.