The Thread Between Danny and Me

Chapter 13: Have a good weekend

The funny thing about tragedy is that life goes on, whether you want it to or not. The world went back to work, and we went back to school. After some discussion, it was decided that Homecoming would also go on as planned. After all, the teachers reasoned, doing things as normal as possible was the best course of action.

But the world would never be the same. In general for everyone, and some of us specifically.

After my dad told us that there'd been news, Danny left, and we headed inside. My mom was clutching the phone as if it were a snake. She put it on speakerphone for all of us to hear.

We learned that my uncle was on duty when the North Tower had been hit. His ladder had immediately gathered rescue equipment and headed out. By the time he arrived, the second plane had already smashed into the South Tower. He joined the fighter fighters from Ladder One that had set up a rescue operation in the base of the North Tower.

They asked my uncle to head out to the adjacent buildings.

It wasn't just the Towers themselves that had been burning. Other buildings surrounding the Twin Towers had been hit with debris and were also on fire. There were a lot of people who needed help outside the World Trade Center buildings.

So that's what my uncle did. He'd gone up and freed an entire floor of people who'd been trapped and led them to safety, just like the hero he was.

My Uncle was just exiting the building after another sweep when the South Tower collapsed. He tried to find shelter but got pinned down under falling debris. It knocked him unconscious. When he came to, he found out that his legs had been pinned down. He called for help, but it took a while for someone to find him.

Eventually, he was taken to the hospital. His legs were amputated, but he was alive.

Ashley-Claire wasn't so lucky. Even after two weeks, there hadn't been any news of her dad. He was probably dead. The lack of closure was especially traumatic.

I sat with Danny outside the school at the end of the day. It was chilly, but I found myself needing to be outside more often. Even though my uncle was safe, I hadn't been able to shake the trauma of waiting for the news. I still had nightmares.

"No Homecoming for me this weekend." I looked across the concrete to where the cars were. "We're going down to New York to visit my uncle. He's home from the hospital, finally."

Danny nodded.

"But honestly," I said through tears, "I don't think I'd want to go to Homecoming, anyway. I know they want us to carry on with life like normal because they think that's the best way to cope with what happened, but life isn't normal. I keep thinking about Ashley-Claire."

Danny nodded again.

I wiped my tears. "Sorry. I'm not against people going to Homecoming if it makes them feel better. It just feels weird for me, ya know?"

"I get you."

"Are you going to Homecoming?" I asked Danny.

"Nah."

"Why not?"

"You won't be there."

I elbowed him. "Dork."

I glanced at him and suddenly wondered if he would go to Homecoming with Emily. The idea made me apprehensive. If he did go with Emily, he might start to like her. Maybe he still did. Then he'd start dating her. And then I'd lose him. He wouldn't come over to my house anymore. He wouldn't sit next to me. He wouldn't skateboard with me.

But...it wasn't my place to keep happiness from him. In fact, I'd be a terrible friend if I did.

"You know, Emily Saladin told me she wanted you to ask her to Homecoming. So, if you wanted to go with her, you could." My voice wavered at the end.