Elemental

Chapter Three (Revised)

Jade was unsure whether to look outside. It had been at least an hour since the tornado had struck. Mom and Dad had never come down and that worried Jade. She told Charlie to stay put for a moment while she went outside to check if the storm had calmed.

Jade pushed opened the cellar doors and climbed out. A bright midday sun was shining up above in the sky as if nothing had happened. But something definitely had happened. Every single tree had been uprooted and blown away. The earth was churned up and it looked like there had been an explosion.

Jade looked towards her house. No, she looked at the empty space where her house used to stand. Jade looked past the space, to where the small forest used to be. But it wasn't there. She looked for her garden. But it wasn't there. The realization hit her like a bullet. Jade wanted to scream. She wanted to cry for eternity. Her home was destroyed. The farm was torn apart. Her parents were dead. The places she had grown up with were gone. All gone. Just gone. There was a lump in her throat and her eyes were watering up. Jade didn't cry, though. She knew she had to keep calm for her little brother.

Trusting that Charlie would stay in the cellar, Jade walked towards the spot where the house was supposed to be. She found small bits of the house scattered randomly across the property. Other than the few pieces that were left of it, it seemed as though the whole house had just disappeared into space. Jade stood still for awhile as her grief soaked in. She scanned the area again. This time something caught her eye. A small red pot with a pink peony sprouting out of it. How could have the fragile pot survived the disaster? Jade picked up the last thing left of her home.

Jade hurried back to Charlie and the cellar. "Charlie..." Jade started, but she didn't know how to tell a five year old that his parents were dead and his home was gone.

Charlie frowned "Jade sad?"

Jade sighed "Mom and Dad went on vacation for a very long time. They packed up the house and the farm and all of the trees." Jade lied for her and Charlie's sake. Jade started crying at this point. Charlie was so sweet. He walked over to Jade and sat down at her side.

He patted her head saying over and over, "It's okay, Jade. Mommy and Daddy will come home." Jade hugged him. She never wanted to lose Charlie. At that precise moment, Jade promised herself that she would always look out for Charlie, no matter what. He was so innocent. Too innocent. Charlie didn't deserve to lose his parents. Nobody did.

Jade wiped away her tears. Crying wouldn't bring back her mother and father. She rummaged through the storage, eventually finding an old large orange backpack. Jade put the emergency kit inside it and carefully placed some food in it, too. She put in crackers, cheese, frozen ham, and a few other foods. Jade found some matches and five water bottles. Soon, the backpack was full. Jade put it on.

"Come on, Charlie! We're going on an adventure." Jade said as happily as she could.