The Forgotten Love ✔

21 Dannie

Dannie POV.

The village has lost all contact with the outside world. Such villages are not uncommon in this area, and waiting for rescue is futile; we must help ourselves.

The village chief has some experience dealing with floods. He starts building boats with other villagers. I join in, even dismantling the doors and tables from the new school. Nothing is more important than saving lives.

Two students follow behind me, asking, "Teacher, when will the rain stop?"

The sky remains perpetually overcast. I watch the misty rain, extending my hand as water droplets mercilessly pound into my palm.

I don't know how to answer the students.

Maybe I should start with astronomy and geography and explain why this area suffers from disasters and why the people living here are poor and forgotten by most people.

As I work on the oars, I tell the students that the rain will stop soon.

The sky remains ominously gray, getting darker after three or four in the afternoon.

Homes in low-lying areas are already submerged. Everyone crowds into a few higher houses, lighting candles and sharing sleeping spaces.

The village chief and I visit the homes of several elderly villagers, some are widowed, and some just live alone. They are now the greatest challenge in the village, and we must gather them all together to prevent any accidents.

During the evening meeting, everyone remains calm and solemn, including that tearful new widow.

The village chief says, "We all must make it out alive, leaving no one behind. If we don't have enough boats, we'll make more overnight."

I know these so-called boats are nothing more than hastily constructed pieces of wood that can float on the water, not enough to safely transport all the villagers.

But I want to stay, to be with them.

The village chief approaches me and says, "Miss. Dannie, we've discussed this. You have to leave."

I'm hammering nails and ask, "Where do I go?"

"You came here to teach the children. We can't let you die with us."

I continue hammering, saying, "I'm not leaving."

"You have to. Your family is waiting for you to come back."

I suddenly remember I have no family left.

Anthony may be saddened by my death, but he'll deal with it. My mother and child are in another world. If I die, will I meet them?

So I say to chief, "I believe in fate. If I die here, I'll be happy."

The children and elderly go to sleep, the rest of us stay awake through the night. And in the early morning, we find that the river upstream has burst its banks.

Everyone gets up in a hurry to get on the boat.

The village quickly becomes submerged in water. My boat is not yet finished; I only managed to pull one old lady onto it.

The sound of rain is so loud that it makes people upset. The current is also fast. When I glance back for the last time, I can hardly see where the village used to be.

My heart sinks; surely there are people who didn't make it onto the boats in time.

But I'm lying on the makeshift boat, unable to stand, unable to search for others.

The sky is still dark; the entire world is water, sky and ground integrated into one.

There are some ropes on the half-finished "boat." I tie myself to the old lady to prevent her from being thrown off.