A young girl of 12, Chloe, was sitting on a brown leather couch at about 10 a.m. in the morning. It was snowing outside, and small snowflakes were dancing in the air. The couch was covered with many soft blankets and faux fur pillows to keep the family warm and cozy in the winter. Chloe held a mug filled with warm hot chocolate and flipping through a magazine.
"Tornado warning! Guys, there's a tornado warning at 2:00 a.m. in Georgia tomorrow morning!" Chloe heard someone yelling. It was her mom watching the weather channel in her office room.
"What?" Chloe's father stepped out of his office room and asked quietly.
Chloe's mom repeated "There's a tornado warning! A tornado!" Her mom started panicking immediately and screamed, "OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO US!!! OUR LIVES WILL BE RUINED. OH, GODS! WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO! SOMEONE NEEDS TO HELP!"
Chloe's dad, on the other hand, was cool and calm. He casually said, "Now, Sally, screaming like a maniac will not be helping matters."
Chloe's mom reluctantly agreed, so, for the rest of the day, Chloe and her mom were just planning on how they were going to all run down the stairs in the middle of the night. They also made an abundance of first aid kits. They then moved all of their precious valuables downstairs. This took them almost the entire day, and by the time they went to bed, they were exhausted. Her dad, on the other hand, stayed calm the whole time and stayed in his office and acted like there wasn't going to be a tornado.
Chloe's mom promised, "I will stay up all night, and when the wind gets worse, I will wake you both up."
Then, they hugged each other good night and went into separate bedrooms. Chloe was excited yet also scared since it would be her 1st time having experience in a natural disaster, and this tornado might even change her life! Chloe twisted and turned in bed thinking about all the details, but, eventually, she fell asleep.
At exactly 2 a.m., she suddenly heard her mom scream. Chloe jumped out of bed, startled and dizzy, and immediately started putting on her coat and sweatpants. Her mom quickly ran to their bedrooms to wake them up. Just as her mother was about to turn on the TV, Chloe suddenly remembered that she hadn't texted her friends all day! She needed to know if they were okay and needed their reassuring texts and positive vibes!
She suddenly remembered that she had left her phone in her bedroom upstairs. She ran to her mom who was waiting for the forecast and said, "OMG, guys, my phone is still upstairs in my bedroom! I left it there while gathering my valuables!!!"
"OH NO, Chloe, you can't go! It's too dangerous!!! Just leave it, we'll get it when the storm is over." her mother said clearly scared.
"But we can't just leave it there like that!"
Her father was tired of the screaming and said, "Alright, guys, how about this. I will escort Chloe into her bedroom and make sure that she is safe. Sally, there is no need to worry, you know how strong I am." He flexed his muscles.
"Fine," her mother said, "but go QUICKLY."
As Chloe was running up the stairs, there were suddenly large gusts wind. She tripped herself many times while dashing up the stairs. Her heart was beating ridiculously hard, and she almost chipped her tooth. When she finally reached her room, she grabbed her phone and dashed back down the stairs with her dad close behind.
As they waited for the forecast to start, Chloe texted her friends and her dad suddenly said, "Guys, erm, I don't think there's a tornado. I mean, just listen..."
Chloe was finished texting her friends and listened carefully. Outside, the wind sighed, but it wasn't quite strong enough for a tornado. She took a peek out the window. The grass was perfectly still, and the trees were only swaying slightly. Chloe looked at her mom. Her mother's expression was of both relief and shock. That's when the Georgia weather forecast started. "The tornado has now passed Atlanta, Georgia, and is now traveling to east ..."
"What? In Atlanta? Well, it looks like we might not be in the path of the tornado." her mom murmured.
No wonder there was no sign of a tornado outside. Chloe and her family lived in the city of Suwanee, not Atlanta.
Her dad remained calm and said, "Let's go back to sleep!"
Chloe wondered if the path of the tornado had changed or if her mom had just been too stressed to listen to the complete weather forecast. But she was too sleepy to ask, and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, the family took another half-day putting their valuables back upstairs.
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