“But I heard it all the same. And I’ve felt my muscles getting tighter—can almost hear them growing shorter—which makes me wonder when my bones will snap like twigs. SNAP! SNAP! I never dreamed I’d be lucky enough to have my first broken bone from such an exciting event like tonight. Or last night. It might be after midnight. I can’t tell what time it is anymore.

As I grow colder, the only thing that runs through my head is that awful bedtime prayer about “if I should die before I wake.”

If I should die before I wake—and I am hoping I’ll eventually fall asleep so I can forget about the cold for a little while—I know I will die happy, because I broke my leg doing the best I could to protect the boy who was kidnapped, the one from TV that everyone’s talking about.

I don’t want to die.

I want to live.

And after thinking about my life, after hours of sniffles and tears in the dark, I can honestly say I tried my hardest to save the little boy.

Now it’s up to Auntie Liv to find me. To save the day.

I’ve decided to call this my rainy day. Mom always told Emma and me to save up for a rainy day, so I’ve saved up all my hopes and prayers for today. I’ve prayed hard several times already for God to let Auntie Liv figure out my story. The story I’ve been trying to tell all day. Since Christmas morning.

As the night keeps getting colder and darker, I’ve been trying to find a sliver of sunlight, something that will bring me hope. And in the dark, I feel thankful for what my parents told me about my birth. They said when they laid eyes on me they understood how Noah must have felt seeing that first ray of sunshine after forty days and nights of rain.

And if I had to be honest, I’d admit that I’m scared. Really, really scared.

And it feels like I’m trapped in the rainiest of all days.

My name is Noah.”