I don't know how long it's been since OA left to find help. Ten minutes? An hour? A day? I know it hasn't been that long even though it feels like it, each moment an endless fragment frozen in time, because the sunlight is still visible through small cracks around me.

I'm getting colder. I'm still losing blood and feel it pooling around me. How much blood have I lost? It looks like more than it is, right? I try not to think about it as I do my best to stop the flow despite how much it hurts. Shouldn't I be in shock? Maybe I am. I feel woozy and am having a hard time staying focused.

My eyelids start to droop and I fight to stay awake. I'm not sure how long it will take, but I have to hold on.

OA-

After maneuvering around countless piles of rubble and going down four floors, I'm extremely worried. It has to have been at least another hour and approaching hour two since I've left Maggie. By the time I get to the third floor, I'm desperate. I haven't seen anyone who is in any condition to help us.

I'm about to completely lose my cool when I hear shouting. It sounds like it's coming from below me off to my right. I'm headed in that direction to get to the second flight of stairs in hopes it's not also damaged. I climb over a partially collapsed wall and nearly trip over the unsteadiness of my own feet. As I reach the stairs, I push open the door.

I hear more shouting. It's louder now. I yell for help hoping to be heard. I quiet and listen to see if they heard me. I'm about to shout again when the door to the second level stairwell opens.

"Hello?" a voice calls out, "Fire and Rescue. Can you hear me?"

I nearly cry out of relief because this person can help, but I don't because there is no time.

"Yes!" I say loudly. My voice echoes off the eerily quiet stairwell as I go down the stairs. There's nothing blocking our path, so we meet in the middle.

"My partner, Maggie, is trapped. She fell through the floor onto a pipe and is hurt. It's bad."

"Where is she?" he asks quickly, ready to spring into action.

"Tenth floor on the opposite side of the building by the elevators. We were a level higher when part of it caved under her during the earthquake. Somehow she ended up trapped between a wall and part of the floor. I can't get to her."

I'm speaking to him robotically, and see him thinking, seeing the wheels turn in his mind. It seems like it can't possibly be Maggie in this situation, yet I know it is. I can't help but feel it is all so bizarre.

Finally he nods.

"Okay, I have an idea. I need some equipment and more help. If your partner is trapped, we will need a saw to get to her. We have one, but I'm not sure if it's still being used. Hold on," he says as he grabs a radio out of his large, construction yellow jacket. Fire and Rescue is across the back in large letters.

"Marta, Enrique, can you hear me? What's your status?"

We are trying to get to a room on the fourth floor. There are people inside, but they are trapped. What's up?"

I can hardly make out the woman's words with the noise of a saw ringing out in the background.

"I've stumbled across a man..." he pauses and looks at me waiting for my name.

"OA," I say.

"OA. He needs help. Actually, a woman. She's up on the tenth floor. We need the saw."

"You can have it as soon as we're done," the woman says.

She must not realize the gravity of the situation.

"Maggie can't wait that long!" I say loudly. "She needs help now!"

The man looks at me, still thinking hard.

"Are those people in danger?" he asks.

The woman sighs. "One of the women is pregnant. We have to make sure she's okay. She got hurt and needs medical attention immediately."

I can't listen anymore and start to walk away. Multiple people, one of whom is pregnant and injured? This doesn't bode well for Maggie. I shake my head and run my hand over my face. I hear the man behind me, walking closer.

"OA, I have a plan. Honestly, it's not great, but it's a start. The rest of my team is just below us on the second floor helping a few people. We need to gather them and go up to Maggie. Two members of the team will go meet up with Marta's team and will bring us the saw as soon as they can. Maybe by the time we get there, they will be done with it anyway, or will be able to wait to finish. We will do what we can to help in whatever way we can. We will need you to lead the way."

I don't know what to do other than nod. Well, nod and pray.

Maggie-

I hear noises, lots of noises and am not sure what they are. I think the building is moving. Is that possible? Can buildings move? I almost laugh out as I imagine the tall building growing legs and running off, but the pain prevents it.

I feel funny. Like my head isn't connected to my body anymore. I know I'm here for something important, but can't remember what. I try to sit up, thinking maybe I should turn on the light. Why is it so dark? I can't hardly move and when I do the pain is so much. Why am I hurt? Why is it so dark here?

I can't really get a good breath and can feel my heart beating in my head and chest. It's pounding away. Maybe it will jump right out of my chest. I start to laugh again at the thought, but my laugh turns into a scream. I look down and see the pipe again and am brought back to reality. My brain is so jumbled and I can't keep anything straight. I know blood loss is causing this strange state and it will probably only get worse.

OA. He's here somewhere. I want him to come back. I need to remind myself that he is tying to find help for me. I'm so tired. Maybe I should take a nap. When did my bed get so uncomfortable? I'm not home, I remind myself. I'm stuck and hurt and alone.

OA-

It is taking us too long to get back up to Maggie. We dropped off two people just like was promised. I had been banking on being able to convince them We needed the saw more than they did, but by the time we got there, we discovered the pregnant lady had gone into labor. Of course she had. It seemed like every part of this day was pitted against us, against Maggie, against her survival.

They swore they would hurry and get back to us as soon as possible. We move faster than I did the first time because I knew which way to take and which ways to avoid. Still it took forever.

"I'm Martin, by the way," the man offers, breaking the silence between us. "That's Kaitlyn and Josiah." He points with his thumb to the two following us. I nod briefly making eye contact, but don't say anything, too focused on the task at hand. Honestly, I just wanted to get back to Maggie.

We could me moving even faster, but we are carrying a lot of supplies with us. Kaitlyn and Josiah have a stretcher they are carrying, and we also have medical supplies.

I am slowly losing my mind. We are going as fast as we can, I know that. But it doesn't ease my mind,

doesn't talk down the what-ifs that plague my thoughts. The rest of the climb to the tenth floor is spent in silence.

Maggie-

Another loud noise nearly makes me jump. Why? Why am I here? I hear voices. They are muffled, but close.

"OA?" I try to call out, but I'm breathing too quickly to speak loudly.

Still, he's there. I see him on the ground at that small hole and his hand is reaching through. I slide my hand weakly across the floor until his hand wraps around mine.

"Maggie. How are you?" His voice is matter of fact, and strong, yet seems distant and cold. Like he's afraid I'm already too far gone. Like he's preparing himself for the loss.

I want to make a joke, but I just don't have enough energy. "Fine," I muster.

A light appears at the hole up higher in the wall and I'm confused because OA still hold my hand. I wonder who is there. I hear another deep voice and realize there is another person.

"She's lost a lot of blood," this voice says. "We need to start an IV."

"Her heart is beating so fast."

I think that voice belonged to OA, but I can't keep track anymore. I just want to sleep, but they keep talking, too quiet to make out the words, but the mumbled speech seems way too loud.

"Mags, we are going to give you fluids."

"Needles?" I whisper hesitantly. One of my few fears. Yes, I know it's irrational.

OA laughs. I can tell it's him because it brings back memories of that laugh and images to go with it.

"You have a pipe sticking out of your stomach and you're worried about a needle or two?"

What? I have a pipe in my stomach? The light filtering from the flashlight shines on my stomach. I start to panic. How did I not know that? That's why I'm hurting so much. I start to panic, feeling it down to my bones. I'm moving around, pulling on the pipe and causing excruciating pain, but I can't stop. I can't breathe, can't get myself under control.

Someone is shouting and it takes a few moments to realize it's OA, and he's yelling my name. His hand is squeezing mine tightly.

Slowly I stop fighting and breathe as deeply as I can to fight the panic.

"Maggie, it's going to be okay, it's okay. You're okay."

Our eye lock and I see him nodding at me.

The edges of my vision are dark. It's so dark in general. Can't they turn on the lights? I ask, and can't figure out why OA is laughing at me again. He must see my confusion, because his laughter dies quickly. His face disappears for a moment.

"It's okay," I hear the deep voice say. "She's in hypovolemic shock which causes confusion and disorientation. It's normal for the amount of blood loss she is experiencing. We need to replace some of the blood she's losing. Do you know her blood type?"

OA mumbles some more and then his face reappears.

"Maggie, Martin is going to give you some blood and fluids."

I'm not sure if I actually nod, but I think about it. OA disappears and the man with the deep voice takes his place.

"Hi, Maggie, how are you doing?" I can't find it in me to answer.

"You've found yourself I'm quite a conundrum, haven't you?"

Conundrum. I mouth that word a few times and it feels funny. I smile a little.

"I have some morphine that is going to dull the pain. How's that sound?"

I nod weakly as I feel him grab my arm and extend it completely toward him. He can only reach one a through far enough to get to me, so I do my best to hold still. He pokes me over and over and I start to get frustrated. I feel my heart rate increase even more and want this man to leave me alone. Why is he trying to stab me anyway? Why is OA telling me to let him? The pain, I remember. He's going to take it away.

OA-

Martin mutters something about not being able to find a vein.

"She's too dehydrated."

But he keeps trying. He eventually finds one and starts the blood transfusion. I have to hold the bag as he works on getting a second IV in for the fluids she so desperately needs.

As Martin finishes, he stands and turns toward me.

"I'm going to be honest, it doesn't look good, though I'm sure you already knew that. We need to get her out of there quickly. Before I can say a word,

He's back on his radio asking about the saw.

"We're almost done," says a voice, this time a young man's.

"How long?" Martin asks impatiently.

"Twenty minutes. Maybe more." He sounds sorry, but being sorry doesn't change anything.

"Plus almost an hour to get to us. We only have two units of blood and that's not enough to replace what she is still losing. She might not have that long."

Without realizing what I'm doing, I turn around and slam my fist into the wall. Luckily, this section of wall was drywall rather than concrete. It doesn't do too much damage.

I hear Maggie mutter softly so I lay back down on the floor and look through the hole. I reach through and take her hand.

"It's okay, Maggie. I'm here. You're okay."

"Jason, I'm so glad you're here. Something's wrong," she sputters before she lets out a cough that morphs into a scream as it pulls on her stomach. She moves her hand away from her mouth revealing blood that coats her palm and runs down the side of her face.

That's not good.

"Jason," she huffs, "you've been gone so long."

That's really not good.

AN: Hi to all of you wonderful readers. I am so sorry it has been so long. I know I've been MIA; I was in a pretty bad accident. Everything is okay, but recovery has been a bit of a challenge. Things will be a bit slower than before, but I'll keep writing. This chapter is a lot of back and forth, but hopefully was enjoyable. I did not edit, so I apologize for any mistakes. The next chapter will be better grammatically, I just really wanted to get this posted. I hoping to have another chapter by Thursday, but next weekend might be more realistic.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you who are reviewing. Some extra love and encouragement right now would be wonderful!