Parallel Lives

Chapter 2: 8:46 AM - Angela

   (Now it's gonna get to everything. I hope you guys will enjoy this)! 

   I took a sip of my morning coffee, feeling exhausted. I didn't really get good sleep last night. I slept late last night, since I thought today would be my day off. But unfortunately, I had to fill in for another coworker last minute. "Well you look like shit." One of my coworkers, my best friend since high school, pointed out. "Thanks dude, I totally didn't know that already." I snapped sarcastically. My best friend, James, shook his head while chuckling. He was always a morning person. I wasn't.

   I work for a telecommunications company called Network Plus in one of the tallest buildings of New York. It's an awesome job, filled with wonderful people around my age, some being a little older. Most of us were essentially kids straight out of high school. I started working here two years ago. Initially I worked upstairs in Windows on the World before being hired here. In total, I've worked in this building for four years. Ever since I was 18. 

   "So, how come you're here? Weren't you supposed to be off?" James asked. I shot up out of my desk after nearly falling asleep. "Blame your sister." I expressed, wiping my eyes. James' sister Nina was two years younger than us and just started working here a few months ago. She decided to take the day off today, so I had to replace her. "Oh shit. Probably because she was too busy with her best friend tequila last night." He joked. I giggled, knowing that he was probably right. Nina and tequila were quite a pair. 

   I stood up from my desk to go wash my face in the bathroom, hoping to get the exhaustion out. Before I could go, something caught the corner of my eye. A tiny speck from across the window by the Empire State Building. I stood in front of the window, adjusting my eyes to see if it was just an exhaustion fueled hallucination I was experiencing. The speck became bigger and bigger, the sound getting louder until I finally realized the speck I was seeing was an airplane. "Guys..." I began to mutter, frozen in fear. The sound became even louder, and the plane was closer. "Guys!" I shouted. Before anyone could respond to me, the plane was gone, and a strong force jolted us.  

   I lost my balance, falling to the floor. I felt someone fall on top of me in a protective hold, though I couldn't tell who it was. The building shuttered uncontrollably, as if there were an earthquake. The lights began to flicker. The room shook violently. I could hear things falling and glass breaking. Screaming filled the air, further adding to the chaos. After a moment, it stopped. "What the fuck was that?!" Another coworker of mine frantically yelled. "That was a fucking plane!" I yelled, preparing to stand. As I stood up, I realized it was James who fell on top of me at that moment. I mentally told myself to thank him later. 

   "A plane? In this building?" James asked in shock. I nodded, bewildered at what I saw. We all stood there, not knowing what to do. I immediately jumped into action, rushing over to the staircase. Luckily it seemed fine to me. I looked over at the elevators, which were stuck and open ajar. Fire was falling down from the shafts, when fire usually goes up. I immediately knew the plane had hit somewhere upstairs. I momentarily began to fear for the safety of my dad, who worked at the American Bureau of Shipping on the 91st floor. I had to get to him, but I had to focus on my friends first.

   "James, take everyone and get out of here now! Don't take the elevators. There's fire falling down the shafts and they're stuck." I ordered with an authoritative tone. James nodded and took all of our coworkers out. I gazed out the window and saw papers, debris, and fire falling. "Oh shit!" I muttered, in shock at what I was seeing. I knew I had to get out of the office before smoke and fire started coming here. I rushed out to the Bank of America offices on our floor, warning them to quickly get to safety. I then headed towards the staircase, where some people were heading down. Instead, I was heading up. I needed to get to my dad. 

   I began to pray that things would be ok. Which is weird, considering I'm not necessarily a religious person. Just goes to show how things can change in the event of panic, I guess. I hope that it's not as bad. A plane hitting is pretty bad, don't get me wrong, but I hope it isn't severe. Things were alright in 1993, four years before I started working here, despite the basement being the weakest part of a building. Maybe things will be ok again?

   (Well. shit is getting real. There will be more chaos in the future chapters so stay tuned for that. I hope you guys enjoyed this)!