Ground Zero

Brandon wakes up on the watery floor. He cannot see and thinks he has gone blind. He calls for Richard, but no one answers. Brandon cries because he is all alone. He thinks that he is “better off dead” (234), but then he thinks about how he has survived and needs to keep going. When he gets up, he cuts his hand on a piece of glass. He calls for Richard again and hears a moan. He bandages his hand with a t-shirt and goes towards the person. He feels around in the dark and accidentally grabs something: the Wolverine claws he wanted to buy that morning. He believes he is alive because of the toy; he left the 107th floor to buy them and would have died otherwise. He finds the person moaning, but it is not Richard. The man, Pratik, says he cannot see, and they both realize that they are not blind, just in complete darkness. They hear a woman ask for help and pull her along with them. Another man groans, but he is injured beyond saving. Brandon keeps calling for Richard. He hears “This Land Is Your Land” and knows it must be him.