To Turn Back Time

Unfinished Business

When Coco woke, she wasn't really sure where she was.

It smelled like dust and old paint. She could almost taste the dirt lingering in the air. She didn't open her eyes right away, instead favoring a deep, although hindered, breath. There was a heavy weight pressing on her abdomen with another on her knee and arm. She tried to push the unyielding weight off of her, but it refused to budge and sent a shower of dust on her. She sneezed, wrinkling her nose and tucking her face away to one side.

After the dust settled, she carefully opened one eyelid and then the other. Her eyelashes were gummy with sleep and sprinkled with dust that sprinkled into her eyes. She blinked rapidly, bringing up her free hand to pull at her bottom lid.

She craned her neck, peering around to see what she had to work with. Chunks of, what used to be, the roof and walls lay strewn around her. A particularly large one was settled on her stomach and knee, while another pinned her arm to the floor.

Spots of sunlight peeked in through cracks in the rubble, offering a faint glimpse of a pale blue sky above. Coco, squinted at it, wondering if she called loud enough if someone would hear her. Probably not. Her throat was dry and sandy, she probably couldn't get it to work if she wanted to.

Coco let her head fall back once more, knocking against a sharp chunk of concrete. She sighed, all of that effort and here's where she ended up. In a pile of rubble, like a piece of trash.

How delightful.

Coco closed her eyes, sighing. Before realizing she had to try at least one more thing.

"Aisha." She muttered.

No response.

"Aisha?" She called a little louder.

Still nothing.

Her head was as empty as it had been before all of this started. A comforting silence bounced around in it, echoing off the sides. She almost laughed. She was finally alone with her thoughts.

A soft smile made its way onto her lips. "Aisha, it worked." She sighed happily, "It worked."

"Coco?" A faint voice called.

Coco opened her eyes, frowning. Her heart sank as she sighed, "Or, maybe not."

"Coco?" The voice called again, but louder. "Coco, if you can hear me, I need you to say something so we can find you!"

It was Aisha's voice, but it wasn't. It was stronger, louder, almost confident. It was a tone Coco had never heard from the girl before. Most of all, Coco could actually hear it with her physical ears.

She gasped, mouth falling open as she sat up as far as she could manage. "Aisha?" She croaked, the mere motion of her vocal cords moving sent her into a violent coughing fit. Just over the sound of her own hacking, she could make out Aisha's voice.

"I heard her!" She called, "I heard her, she had to be down there!"

A chorus of voices joined Aisha's cries and she heard a quiet rumble. The rubble above her began to shudder and Coco used her free arm to grab her shirt and press it over her mouth and nose.

Just in time, dust rained down over her head and mingled with her hair and clothes. She sneezed once more, coughing into her filth-riddled shirt. After a few moments, she felt the pressure on her stomach lift and there was a hand on her shoulder as someone spoke.

"Can you hear me?" It was a guy, one she hadn't met before but seemed oddly familiar.

Coco nodded, digging her teeth into her lip as the debris was taken from her arm and leg.