WHEN: During the hurricane
WHERE: the streets of Downtown
WHO: @kieranhales
One of the first thoughts about the hurricane had been the animals who were currently at the clinic and making sure they were safe and that thought led to the animals that were outside in the hurricane themselves and she knew she had to do something. She had contacted Kieran, unsure if he had already left or not. She knew it wasn’t smart to go off on her own in this weather and she knew she needed to leave, now, well, more like when the evacuation had been ordered but there she was. When he had agreed to go check on the animals with her, she was relieved, although a little concerned about why he hadn’t left either.
They had agreed to meet somewhere in between the two and Arlo waited for him in her car, smiling as he got in. “Glad you got here alright. I didn’t think it was going to be this bad.” She said as she started the car and carefully made their way over to the clinic, running in quickly with him. She looked at all the animals and made sure they were up as high as they could go, knowing there was no way they could get them all out of the clinic. She made sure they all had food and water before she turned towards Kieran. “We gotta get out of here, maybe we can still get out of town.” She said as she eyed the door to spot a dog running past the clinic. She knew that it wasn’t one of the clinic dogs which meant it was either a stray or it belonged to someone. She ran out after it, looking around for it, wondering how many animals there were out in this weather.
“We gotta help him.” Arlo said, immediately changing her mind on trying to leave and instead deciding to try and help as many of the animals that were tapped out here as she could. She waited for Kieran to get into the car before starting it and taking off as carefully as possible in the direction the dog had run. Visibility was low and the water seemed to have risen since they were in the clinic and she slowed down, wondering what to do next when she felt the car sputter to a stop, water rising quickly as it seeped through the car, flooding it as the water was at their ankles. “Shit..” She said quickly as the water continued to rise quickly. She took her phone out only to drop it in the water and she frowned. Of course she would drop her phone, of course. She looked over at Kieran as she tried to open her door but the pressure of the rising water kept the door shut tightly. “What do we do now?” She asked, a hint of panic in her voice as she realized they were trapped and the water was very cold and rising quickly.
Kieran didn’t do well with storms. He hated the rain, the wind, the impending bad mood that came along with it. Everyone was either panicking or fleeing the city, he had done neither though, so far. The call from Arlo had relieved him, knowing he wasn’t the only one still in Wilmington. He was procrastinating, to afraid to leave his belongings behind. He didn’t want to lose any of it, especially since there was no insurance coverage. If it was lost in the storm, it was lost forever. He eagerly agrees to meet up, driving her way and arriving there in about half an hour--it would have been quicker but the weather was a cause for concern. The rain hadn’t caused serious flooding yet, but it was getting worse by the minute.
He knew how much Arlo loved animals, so it didn’t surprise him when she asked for his help. The little things were so helpless and had nowhere to go, Arlo was hoping to find them a safe place to ride out the storm. She always had a good heart. When he arrived, she’d managed to give them a safe place to take shelter with the help of Kieran. They made sure to leave ample amounts of food and water for the critters before going on their way, in hopes of maybe being able to rescue a few more animals.
But within a few minutes, the weather got tremendously worse. What was just a slight shower turned into a downpour, making visibility low. When they drive into the deep pool of water, they don’t even realize until the engine cuts out. The water finds it way in quickly. “Shit.” He curses, curling his legs up toward his chest. They had no way to escape, the pressure of the water keeping their doors securely closed. “Uh, the sunroof, maybe?” Kieran suggests in a panic. “We’ll have to pry it open with our fingers, though.” It seemed like the safest idea. The water wasn’t above the car, but it was enough to find it’s way inside. He didn’t want to be stuck inside any longer.