Sprinting to the end of the hallway, I arrive at a large opening in the wall. No doubt the hole was created by a bomb or missile. The floor beneath me is shaky, threatening to crumble at any moment. But I don’t care. Standing at the edge, I face the situation down below. The lank and burly gunmen are directly below me, not even ten feet from the base of the building. I see the tops of their heads.
My eyes look towards the slab of concrete. It’s thick and holds up against the streams of bullets raining down on it. I tear my gaze off of it and focus on the men.
Will this really work? I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. People are pinned behind that slab of rock, and those two gunmen won’t stop until they’ve shot them. I take a step back, preparing to do what I never imagined I ever would before.
I hesitate. A twinge of fear finally surfaces above all the adrenaline coursing through my veins. Its voice reminds me that if I jump, there’s no turning back. I’ll likely miss and be at the mercy of those two men. The promise I made to Fatima echoes through my head—the promise that I would become a doctor and change the world. There’s still hope for that, isn’t there?
I remember the words of my father: never give up your dreams; never surrender them no matter what. If I take this leap to my certain doom, I’ll condemn all that I ever dreamed of. My life is worth something, isn’t it?
Shaking my head, I put an end to that voice. That isn’t the voice of my dreams. It’s my fear using my own father’s and friend’s words against me. As I ball my hand into a fist, another voice suddenly echoes through my head.
My true voice drowns out everything else. It reminds me of my dream, my real one. It’s to make the world a better place, to save the world and help those suffering. And if I save one life, then I may have very well saved humanity.
My name is Zaid Kadir. This is my city. My home. These monsters can take away everything, but they will never take my courage. And I am willing to sacrifice everything if that’s what it takes to save a life, if that’s what it takes to keep hope burning in the darkness.
There’s no more hesitation. Without thinking, I close my eyes and leap out of the building. My body curls into a ball as my forearms shield my face. I hang in the air for an eternity. I feel the rush of it blow right past me. Everything seems to freeze, even my own mind. But just when I think it won’t end, there’s an abrupt jolt.
I go feet-first into something—no, somebody. The impact painfully shoots right through me. My whole body suddenly rings with agony. As my legs hit something hard, I hear a loud crack. I don’t get a moment to digest it. I crash headfirst into the concrete, my skull protected by my arms.
Everything goes black.
It’s all numb: my body and mind. I’m lying on the concrete ground. I don’t feel anything. My eyes won’t open.
When sensation does finally flood my limbs, the first thing I feel is the excruciating pain echoing through my limbs and body. It’s nothing I’ve ever felt before. My forearms and hands are scraped up. My head is spinning worse than it was after being knocked unconscious. I’m bleeding, but I can’t tell from where. Everything in my body feels broken or torn. For a long moment, I can’t move a muscle no matter how hard I try.
What… what happened? I hit something. Was it him?
Each and every fiber inside me is throbbing. But I slowly force my eyes open. Not far away, the lank man is sprawled on the ground. He’s just lying there, not moving a muscle. There’s… there’s blood on his face. Did it… work?
My gaze tears away as something else catches my attention. I slightly turn my head to look, only amplifying the pain. The burly man collapses with a loud thud right next to his comrade, falling down like a sack of bricks. There’s somebody standing above him. No, there are two figures.
Now they’re standing over me. I can barely move, but I force myself to look at them, squinting my eyes in an attempt to make them out. My heart stops. The world stops. It… it can’t be. It’s…
Salman.
Fatima is by his side. My anguish is extinguished. Their wide eyes are filled with as much disbelief as mine. Without a word, Salman grabs my shoulder and slowly pulls me to my feet. He’s strong enough to bring me upright in one haul. The legs under me are wobbly, but he keeps me steady. Salman’s grip is tight, as if I’ll disappear if he lets go.
My eyes go from him to Fatima and then back to him. Is this really happening? I can’t speak, can’t utter a word.
…and I never get the chance.
In the next moment, the ground violently shakes as if it’s an earthquake. I fall backward, away from my friends. Landing roughly on my side, I try staggering back up, but my legs give in and I collapse onto my stomach.
An explosion erupts down the road. Then another. Dust and bricks are blown into the air as the thunderous detonations explode. The deafening blasts ring in my ears. I crawl onto all fours, barely keep myself up as the road tremors.
Salman and Fatima are only a few feet away from me. They’re under the shadow of the building I leapt out of. The structure quivers with every detonation, threatening to collapse. The shop behind me goes up in smoke. My ears fall deaf with the eruption. The force and heat of the blast beat against my back.
But then I see it.
Neither of them do. Their backs are towards it, blinding them from the danger. A chunk of the building’s wall is ripping off. It suddenly breaks free, plummeting below. And—and the debris is falling straight at Salman! They can’t hear it. Not above the barrage.
The pain disappears. So do any inhibitions. I don’t think. I don’t hesitate. With strength that I don’t have, I kick off of the ground and leap towards him with every ounce of force I can muster. My arms are outstretched.
Salman senses me coming and whips his head around. Time seems to stop. Everything falls silent. My vision is tunneled. There’s nothing but me and Salman. No war, no chaos. Just us. I can’t move fast enough. Our eyes lock. I’m not going to make it. He’s too far. The wall is going to topple right on top of him. I’m too slow!
No! Not my friend! I can’t lose him again!
My eyes shut. Arm still outstretched, I desperately reach for my friend—desperately reach to push him out of the way. The debris is nearly upon us. At that moment, I sense nothing, think of nothing, except Salman.
But then it happens. I feel something on my arm—feel something grabbing me and pulling me towards my friend. Strength suddenly rushes through my veins—strength that I’ve never felt before. At the last moment, my palms touch something. It’s him.
And the world ends.
Did I get him? Did I save my friend?
There’s nothing but an abyss around me. Blackness is on every side. I can’t see or sense anything at all.
The abyss ends when I hear Salman’s voice. And Fatima’s. They’re… they’re calling out to me. My eyes open slowly. There’s not an ounce of strength left in me. My vision is a blur, the edges all black. The first things I see are Fatima’s green eyes. Then his. I… I can’t move my legs. I can hardly feel them either. I finally sense it. There’s something heavy on them, keeping me pinned on my back. It’s the wall. My legs are crushed under it, completely numb and unable to even twitch.
But it doesn’t matter.
All I can think is that I got to him in time. I did it… I saved him. Staring at Salman, I care for nothing except that I saved my friend—my brother.
Bombs are falling all around us. Blasts erupt up and down the street. The heavens are blocked by the dust and dirt, but Salman and Fatima don’t move. They don’t even wince. I see the look in their eyes. They… they’re scared for… me. I’ve seen them scared before, but never like this. They’re saying something, but I can’t make out either of their words.