Dark Waves of Discovery

Chapter 2 – Elizabeth Scott

I grabbed my phone and sat down on the couch. The extracurricular music classes I had been taking for several days now were fun but tiring. I’m glad Mom agreed to fly back early so I could take them—and that the discounted flight allowed us to get back early, I thought. After my father’s business trip to Arizona (that we all came along for) he, along with my twin sister Opal and younger brother Kai had stayed there for a few extra days due to some last-minute meetings, while my mom and I returned home early. I switched on my phone. Poor Opal was stuck taking care of Kai for three whole days! Not that my twelve-year-old brother is always annoying, but being mainly the one  responsible for him for long periods of time is not fun. I felt sorry for my sister who was  having to spend her last days of summer break like this. I knew also that if the opportunity presented itself, Opal would be taking the music classes with her prized violin, but that since these classes were only for professionals interested in enriching their ability to play in quintets, the only reason that I had been able to join was that someone had canceled. I remembered how excited I had been when I got the call from the music conservatory. 

“Would you be interested in filling this cello spot in our small group enrichment classes?” the voice of Dr. Saito had said over the phone. He went on to explain that this was such a great and rare opportunity and that high school students usually weren’t invited (even if they did play with the State Competition Orchestra like I did), but I only heard the first question. I’m glad I went, I decided. But it has been lonely. I’m glad Opal gets back today. And I’ve missed Kai and Dad. I should check if I have any texts from her, as a matter of fact, I thought as I opened up my phone. I did have a text from Opal, but instead of the expected text reading that they were getting on the plane I saw that their flight was delayed. “Due to a weather issue,” she had said with a sad emoji.

“Oh no! Sorry!!!” I typed. I saw three dots appear on the screen immediately, an indication that she had already read the message and was responding.

“LOOK AT YOUR WEATHER ALERTS,” she  texted. What? I thought, but before I could respond she texted again. “It could be an emergency! LOOK NOW!!”  My phone vibrated in my hand and I saw that my now seemingly panicked sister was calling me. 

“Opal! What is it?!” I said upon answering the call. There was terrible static and about three different genres of music along with several broken conversations at the other end, which I knew was due to her airport waiting room location. 

“Elizabeth! Did you check the weather alerts?” She said above the din in the background. 

“No, they are turned off on my phone.” I responded, a bit confused to say the least. 

“Turn on the news!” she commanded. 

“Guys! What is going on?” I demanded. 

“Are you at home? Turn on the news to a regular news station — anything local! And turn up the volume.” 

“Okay, okay, okay.” I walked into the living room and fished around for the TV remote. “Okay…hmm.…….” I switched the volume up and glanced at the screen. 

“What are they saying?!” I heard Kai exclaim over the phone. 

“Elizabeth, turn up the volume!” Opal demanded. 

“I did!” I snapped. “Mom is working in the other room, and I am not going to annoy her by blasting local news weather reports across the house just to please my siblings who want to hear some boring forecasts!” 

“Just listen to it then Elizabeth!” They exclaimed at the same time.

“It’s an advertisement,” I replied. “An advertisement for Disney Resorts in Florida.” 

Suddenly though, the screen changed and the serious face of a weather reporter flashed on the screen. The smiling Mickey Mouse figures vanished, and instead there was a shot of broken buildings, their walls looking as fragile as paper, with shattered windows and torn roofs. Giant rocks and pieces of gravel lay in the street. Water, water, and more water surrounded this area, in fact, everywhere seemed to be flooding. Crying children stood outside of the demolished houses, their parents holding a sparse amount of belongings. “This major earthquake has rocked the coast of Chile, and a massive tsunami is expected to arrive in Hawaii, near Oahu or Hawaii islands in about two days,* perhaps less time. This event was very unexpected, as the disaster in Chile occurred only this morning. All people on the west coast of Hawaii, especially on Oahu or near Hilo Bay in Hawaii Island, are advised to secure their homes and leave IMMEDIATELY,” the reporter on the TV screen stated gravely. 

I gasped. “What!?”

I could hear my brother and sister babbling incomprehensibly over the phone, but my brain couldn’t wrap around their words. Tsunami? Here? I guess I didn’t hear about the earthquake earlier …Oh no! What about school? What about our home? Our lives! Everything I own and love is here. How are we going to evacuate? I thought in a panic. I’m not sure why, but I had the strange urge to pray, though my spiritual connection had not been the best as of late. Dear God, please don’t let it come. Please make this a dream. Protect me, Mom, our home and Opal, Dad and Kai. Please don’t let this happen!! And what’s that phrase that Dad’s always saying? Your will be done? God, how is this your will? Please, make it your will to protect us and our belongings, my mind frantically requested in a silent and childish prayer. What are you doing, Elizabeth? I reasoned with myself, Telling God to change his plan? Like Mom and Dad have always said, all things work for the good remember? But do I trust that? How do they know God really has our best interest in mind? I tried to recall the childhood platitudes and spiritual foundation my family had tried to create in me as the shock of the reporter’s words started to flee my mind, but a cloud of panic blocked out my rational thinking. Sirens began to blare outdoors, as everyone who hadn’t already been notified was informed of the limited time we had to pack up our lives as best we could and leave before the unthinkable occurred.  

“MOM!” I heard my own voice shout. 

To be continued from a new perspective!

*Disclaimer: This timeline is unrealistic, as a tsunami resulting from an earthquake in Chile would take around 14-16 hours to reach Hawaii, not a bit less than 2 days as I have included here. However, I decided to slightly alter this fact to include more time for events and character development in my story.