*Note: This story was created to remember and honor the lives of those that were lost during 9/11, or the ones that were in danger*

It was an ordinary Tuesday morning; until it happened.  I was finishing up breakfast with my father and little sister, Jade, after changing for high school.  My hair was tied up in a ponytail, I had on a teal baseball tee, and my pants were simple denim skinny jeans.  Jade had turned on the news, and the first thing that appeared on screen was a live video of the twin towers on fire.  What could this mean?  Are there terrorists in the City?  Then I remembered that my mom was working an eight-hour shift that morning.  She has been an employee there for fifteen years, and I was very concerned about her safety. 
“What is going on, dad?” Jade asked.
I added, “How did the twin towers catch on fire?”
“I - I’m not exactly sure, but we need to get to those buildings as soon as possible,” he replied. “We need to contact mom to make sure she’s alright.”
My dad dialed my mom’s phone number, but the call went straight to voicemail.  He tried again, placed her on speaker, and fortunately got an answer.
“Hello?  Are you guys there?” my mom asked, trying to act as calm as possible. 
“Yes, we’re here!” he replied ecstatically, because he was able to reach her.
“The World Trade Center is being attacked.  Th - the buildings are on fire, but please, don’t try to rescue me.  I -- I’ll find a way out of this situation.”
“No, we have to come get you!  You won’t be able to escape with that many people around,” my dad insisted.
How will we get to her with many people around?  I wondered.
“Alright, but please hurry.  I am worried about what will happen next,” my mom pleaded.
“Okay, see you soon.”
He ended the call and rushed to the garage to get into our car. 
“C’mon let’s go,” he ordered.
From there I knew that I was going to miss school.  I followed my dad’s trail, but Jade stood still in our hallway.  My sister was very perplexed about what was going on, but I knew that she should be that way in this specific situation.  She asked me countless questions, but I refused to answer. 
“You heard him,” I told Jade. “We need to go!”
“But what about school?” she asked.
“This is far more important right now,” I responded.  Then I nudged her forward towards the car.
We sped through the traffic and all of the stoplights, while thinking of the fastest route to reach my mom.  Piercing horns of cars were blaring at us as we passed by, but my dad’s brain did not process them.  We made abrupt turns that only made me shift side-to-side in my seat.
As we approached the twin towers we saw hundreds of people running away from the towers in our direction, like a stampede of wild elephants.  Cars were stuck in the middle of the roads which made it even more difficult for people to escape this tragedy.  I can only hear the alarming noises of the fire trucks, ambulances, police cars, and the cries and screams of frightened people. Then we looked up into the air and saw the buildings still on fire.  Thick clouds of smoke, which were turning a color mixed between brown and yellow, were rising to sky.  The only thing on my mind was whether or not my mom was safe.
“Let’s try contacting mom once more,” my dad proposed.
He dialed her phone number and called again, but she did not answer.  Jade was terrified of the scene that was going on around her.  I understood, for every little child like her should not have to experience a tragedy like this one.  Tears began to trickle down her face, her body was stiffened, and I could see her eyes pointing towards everything. Then suddenly straight ahead, I saw my mom in a packed crowd of people, running out of the two buildings.  Everyone was pushing and shoving each other to save their valuable lives. I alerted my father and sister and we began shouting for her in desperation.
“Mommy!” Jade and I shouted in unison.
“Kaitlyn, we’re over here!” my dad followed.
My mom’s head turned in all directions, not sure where the familiar voices were coming from.  Her eyes eventually met ours, and I could see a huge grin forming about her face.  She ran in the direction the other people were moving and kept her eyes on us.  It did not take long for her to finally run into our arms and hug us all.  We were finally together at last.
“Thank goodness you guys are here!” as she cried tears of joy.
“We’re so glad we found you out of all these people!  However, we must get going now!” my dad exclaimed.
Altogether we maneuvered past loads of people to get back into our car, which was parked on the side of the road.  We got inside quickly, turned on the engine and drove off.  I turned around to catch another glimpse of the twin towers that were still burning.  Firefighters were struggling to save the lives of people that were still inside the buildings.  People in helicopters were taking videos of the scenery to show the media.  May God bless America.