Rebirth Into My Second Chance

Richard assured me. "No matter what path you choose, I'll be right there for you, just like in our past life. No matter how the world changes, my support for you remains unshaken." "Thanks, Richard," I replied, and my gratitude for Lydia's saving me poured into those words. I was determined to help save others, too.

Due to the flooding, many roads were in the water, and houses collapsed, making it challenging to find our way back to the route we initially took. We wandered around for a while before finally figuring out the direction toward the hill we aimed for earlier. Fortunately, the skies were only overcast without further rainfall, aiding our search for the elders' homes.

Along the way, we passed vast stretches of fallen trees and crops farmers had painstakingly tended to, all submerged underwater. As the harvest season approached, the hard work of the past six months would be in vain with this flooding. "Richard, I once read a poem about floods but didn't fully get its meaning until today. Now I truly understand what 'fear of nature' means," I said, trying to find some poetry in the chaos.

Richard frowned slightly but patted my head, comforting me, "Everything will be okay, Claire."

"That kind of talk gets to me, you know. I'm already in my senior year internship," I said, suddenly realizing I was just 22 years old.

Yet, with all that had happened, I felt like I had lived a century's worth of experiences.

As our kayak approached our destination, I could see the large house Claude had prepared on the high ground, half-destroyed by a mudslide.

I couldn't help but wonder, 'Didn't Claude watch the news? With Elmwood Springs suffering such a disaster, did he ever worry I might get caught in it?'

time, I understood the importance of self-reliance over expecting others to

at the foot of the hill were

kayak, and I pointed toward the general area, my voice nearly breaking with sorrow. "Over there, some old houses. I heard

level, which wasn't too high, but the thick mud was challenging. They chose to wade through it, and upon reaching

their calls cut through the silence,

silence, no one responded until an elderly voice, tinged with a local

started digging toward the source of the voice with their bare hands. "Don't be afraid. We're here

As he spoke, he, too, jumped into the mud. His figure,

throat. But before I could succumb to sadness, the rescue

ver

immediately started providing

emergency care.