They refused to leave a man behind. When they finally removed Ma’tee from the rubble, they realized that he was already dead. They debated whether they should carry his body down the mountain, but there was no point in wasting their energy on him. Even if they did take his body to the town, it would just lie out in the streets. No one who died in this tragedy would receive a proper burial, so they figured it best to just let him be.

Breeze let her head rest against the chest of one of the rescuers as they began their descent down the mountain. Not once did she look back. She was eager for help, and expected to be rescued as soon as they finished their descent down the mountain. She was unprepared for the chaos that awaited her in the city of Port-au-Prince. Everything had been destroyed, and there were too many people to help and not enough relief to make a difference.

The men dropped Breeze off at a safety site that had been set up, and went on their way. It was a free for all; everyone was out for self, and the lack of organization gave her no one to turn to. She was left to fend for herself.

The safety site looked more like a demolition site to Breeze. Makeshift tents had been made out of sheets and spare fabric to cover some of the injured people being treated by the doctors. The chaos was overwhelming as Breeze surveyed the aftermath of the quake. Trapped atop the mountain with Ma’tee, she had no idea how big the earthquake really was.

The magnitude of its destruction was unimaginable. Everyone was displaced, everyone was injured, everyone needed help. This natural disaster had destroyed an entire nation of people, so much so that even the organizations that had come to help did not know where to start.

Breeze had been one of the lucky ones. She had made it out of the rubble. She was cut badly, bruised beyond belief, and starving for nutrition, but she was alive, and as she looked around sadly at all of the dead bodies, she realized how grateful she was.