And So We Wait

Clara hurried down Oxford Street hoping to reach the bookstore before it closed at 16:00. The cool September wind blew straight through her tweed jacket causing a shiver to run down her spine. She inwardly cursed herself for not grabbing a thicker coat.

Clara hardly noticed the cafes, supply shops, and boutiques as they blurred past her. She was nearing the bookstore when her loafer snagged a loose brick on the cobblestone sidewalk, causing her to trip. She caught herself before she fell and took a breath that was followed by an unpleasant mouthful of smoke from the men outside the bar to her right. She hurried past the two men who couldn't be much older than she.

"Be careful, little girl. You wouldn't want to fall on that pretty face of yours." One drawled, already intoxicated. She had learned these past few months to ignore them. Men like these never meant well, they were just counting down the days until the draft took them too.

As of June 3rd 1939 the Military Training Act came into effect. Men twenty to twenty-one were liable to be called upon for four years of military service. That was more than a year ago.

The rest of her walk was uneventful and the bookstore was a welcomed sight. She slipped inside the dimly lit store and smiled when she saw the shelves crammed with books that nearly reached the ceiling. Clara brushed a lock of pale hair behind her ear as she embarked to search for her school books. She wished she could spend more time here but the store would be closing soon and her mother needed help with dinner.

There weren't any other customers in sight and the middle aged owner was snoozing behind the counter next to the doorway where she stood. Clara didn't expect any help from the man. She walked to the back of the room where the non-fiction books sat and began looking for the first textbook on the list. She scanned the shelves that didn't seem to have any specific organizational pattern. Huffing out a breath she continued looking.

After a few minutes of intently searching the shelves Clara finally located the first book on her list. It wasn't until this moment when she noticed an eerie silence in the room. It was not the kind that usually accompanied a vacant bookstore, but one that unnerved her. The traffic on the streets dulled into a steady hum and everything seemed to still.

That's when the earthquake hit, or at least she thought it was an earthquake. The ground shook with such force, nothing else would've made sense. Books toppled off the shelves, hitting Clara on their way down. She threw her hands up, protecting her head as she dropped to her knees and waited for the books to cease falling.

After what felt like hours but couldn't have been more than three seconds, the shaking stopped. Clara slowly lifted her hands and stood on shaky legs, her heart beating so fast it was as if somebody was pounding on her chest. Besides her obvious shock and fear, confusion also settled amongst her bustling emotions. Never in her life had an earthquake hit London. It didn't make sense.

Carefully stepping over fallen books she worked her way to the front of the store. To her surprise the store owner was still asleep in his chair, undisturbed by the shaking. This made her wonder if it was all in her head but it couldn't be, the books didn't fall over by themselves. Not knowing what just happened shot a tremor of fear through her.

Deciding that the bookstore could wait another day, she opened up the creaky wooden door and stepped outside into the crisp evening air. She needed to head home and figure out what was happening. The minute she left the building another quake rattled the ground accompanied with a loud bang. It wasn't as strong as the first but just enough to make her grasp the rim of the door. The shaking stopped as soon as it started and Clara got her feet back under her. Shock went through her as she was confronted by swarms of people coming from her left, running away from what looked like a billowing cloud of smoke.