Tanya’s baby was adorable but I found it awkward to hold her. I’m usually pretty good with babies but this one was particularly screamy and slippery. Erin appeared and invited me next door to see her place. Relieved, I handed the baby back and followed Erin. I was suitably impressed. I had no idea that the ocean was just on the other side of the park and was greatly envious of her beautiful beach house. We sat out on the deck, drinking cocktails and chatting while the sun began its lazy descent. That’s when I noticed it. A dark line on the horizon. I put my drink down. Erin kept chatting. The dark line appear to grow and seemed to be getting closer. The water below us on the beach gasped and drew away. I grabbed Erin’s hand while she was in mid-sentence. RUN! I screamed. Her glass shattered on the deck as her eyes focused on what was frightening me. We ran for the stairs. There was a steep sand dune behind the house. Erin climbed it with ease but for me the sand just kept slipping away and I couldn’t climb. I gave up and looked around me — the dark line was now clearly an enormous wave. Stairs were nearby. I ran up them, breathless. Erin was ahead of me but looking back for me. I waved frantically and screamed for her to keep going. We raced across the grass towards the city, the wave roaring behind us. I hoped Tanya had made it out but knew already she had not. Ahead of us was a pedestrian bridge that crossed Lexington and stairs to the street. But we could not go to the street — it was already a raging river. As we reached the end of the walkway, there was a twelve foot gap between the bridge and the building across the way. We had no choice but to run full speed, step up onto the railing and jump. Somehow we made it, grappling to hold on and clawed our way to the roof as the water toppled the pedestrian bridge. We watched for a moment, in shock, as the wave lessened slightly and rushed around the buildings. But we knew we had to get further inland and started crossing the roofs of the buildings as the water started to rise again.
