Just Out of Reach (Norminah)

"Remember me but not like this."

After making sure Lauren arrived to her apartment safely, Normani immediately raced to her car as she sped down the roadway. Every negative scenario you could think of was playing behind her eyes as she gazed at the many buildings passing by. Her eyes scanned the signs, the people walking, the cars parked on the side of the roads as she desperately hoped to find a familiar head of blonde hair walking out of one of the stores or hidden in the crowd of people.

Finally, her eyes landed on the big blue sign that read 'Wall-e's Sugar Shack'. She parked the car and bolted towards the crowd of people. She couldn't see anything but from the looks of it....it wasn't good. There were people huddled up and praying, people crying, people screaming. It was chaos.

Normani felt her stomach drop as she walked closer and closer to the group of people. She couldn't see much as she maneuvered her way through the crowd of bodies but one thing she did see...... was a bead of bloodied blonde hair against the cemented roadway. She immediately pushed the bodies aside as she walked as fast as her feet could carry her, to the very front of the crowd.

Her eyes raked over a woman's body. She was an older woman, much older judging by her grey hair. The lady was sprawled out on the roadway with a shard of glass sticking out of her arm. She wasn't hurt bad but she was surrounded by paramedics. Her eyes raked over to the bloodied head of blonde hair but she quickly released a sigh of relief when the woman's face was revealed.

It wasn't Dinah.

Her happiness was short lived when her eyes landed on a smaller silver car which was toppled over, bent and flipped upside down.

No, no, no.

It can't be....could it?

Normani felt her heart sink when she noticed the rainbow keychain dangling from the rear view mirror. It was the keychain Dinah and Tamia had picked out a couple days ago after the shindig at Dinah's parents house. The front end of the car was completely totaled and the windshield was broken, the door bent out of shape.

Please let her be okay. Normani prayed in her mind.

The sound of her name being called caught her attention. She swiftly turned her head to be met with a man running through the crowd. She didn't recognize him or know him but he somehow knew her.

Then it clicked - the guy from the phone call earlier.

"Miss, come with me. Your wife-"

"Where is she?" Normani cut the man off just as he reached her.

"This way." The man replied turning on his heels, leading Normani to Dinah.

They weaved their way through the crowd as another view of the freeway opened up. There were two people lying on the ground: one surrounded by paramedics and the other was being worked on as well. Normani thought the lady was okay but she was sadly mistaken when she was turned over and a huge shard of glass was sticking out of her side, blood pouring from the wound.

The man suddenly pulled her forwards causing her eyes to focus on another woman. Normani immediately bolted underneath the yellow tape before an officer stopped her.

"Ma'am you can't be in here. They have to work, it's not safe for you." He pleaded with her.

She gazed into his sky blue eyes feeling herself get lightheaded and her knees grew weak. "She's my wife." Her voice came out as a whisper.

The man's features soften even more as he noticed how broken Normani looked in this moment. Her shoulders were slumped as she broke eye contact and she looked like a small child. He reached out placing his hand on her shoulders.