*Chapter 7* Check in on Amina.

You peek through the window of your house. Your mom is back in the kitchen, cleaning up the dishes. You run over to the back of the house to where you mom's room is and start tossing pebbles at the window. Amina looks outside and you wave. She smiles and waves back, then shows you the shirt she chose to wear. You nod your head approvingly at the blouse and try to signal her to go downstairs. She gets up on the window sill and shows the light brown mom pants she chose to wear. You sigh and nod at that choice as well and again try to signal her to go down. She points down questioningly and you nod. She nods back and heads out of view.

You race back to the side of the house where you can see the stair landing. Amina is headed down the steps when you mom approaches at the same time. You quickly wave at Amina and tell her to go back up. She sees your mom and gets the message, tip toeing upstairs again. Your mom has a mop and bucket which she sets down by the bottom of the steps where you left your mess earlier. She'll be cleaning that for a little while. Amina pokes her head out from the top of the stairs and you point to yourself and then point up, mouthing, "My room."

Amina nods and goes up. A minute later, your room window opens and Amina's head pokes out. You hold your arms out and gesture for her to jump. She slowly shakes her head as dread fills her eyes. You urge her to come down through the window and she bites her lower lip, contemplating. You mouth the words, "Trust me..." and she slowly nods, steeling herself for the fall. She climbs out the window, turning to look at you. You hold your arms out ready.

She stands on the ledge, holding the sides of the window sill, prepping herself for the jump. She takes a quick glance down and turns back to the sill, clutching it tightly. She goes to her knees and crouches down lower and takes another glance at the drop. Not encouraged by the view, she slides to her belly so her legs dangle over the edge. You start to get the feeling she isn't ready to make the jump. Still, you stand ready for the next few minutes as she hangs from the window, not moving.

Finally you see movement and you brace yourself to catch her. You stare up at her, but are surprised to see her slip back inside. Maybe she lost her nerve. You stand around, waiting for her to come out again, but she doesn't. You take a quick look inside the house and don't find your mother by the stairs. You start to panic.