When tragedy strikes, it unfolds in the most unexpected ways.

There were no ominous narrations or suspenseful melodies, no hints that the ordinary will suddenly transform into an extraordinary event.

In an instant, a cataclysm can reveal its devastating more, leaving chaos and despair for those left to witness.

The air was chilly in November, and amidst the anticipation of a four-day Thanksgiving weekend the impending doom of the finals

loomed, clouding our excitement.

At morning I was in science class doing my best on the final exam too quickly in the blink of an eye.

Everything changed. The events that followed were both awe-inspiring and terror-inducing.

As I recall, we were finalizing the evidence for our report when my ears popped as if I had rolled down the

window of a speeding car.

The jarring rumble shook the classroom, accompanied by a deafening blast that robbed me of breath.

The fire alarm wailed as water rained down, drenching us. I sprang up from my desk with an odd adrenal focus.

We hastily made our way toward the aisle, abandoning our finals.

Surprisingly, we maintained a semblance of order. abandoning our

final finals. The fire alarm blared as our teacher guided us out

and we obeyed in a mix of fear and trust.

Like frightened animals, we followed the teachers lead,

navigating the corridors to the nearest exit.

We had to walk past my mom's classroom and I wondered if I'd see her

getting her kids out. As I turned the corner her classroom came into full view, and what I beheld was a nightmare made

manifest.

My heart seemed to stop, yet its frantic pounding was louder than ever.

My mother's classroom door torn off its hinges lay in a shattered heap against the opposite wall. The threshold was consumed by a furious

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