"When the time comes, be ready". Those were her last words to me, and I still regret what I did. On the afternoon of February 29th, at precisely 1:45 p.m., our plane entered turbulence - as we had been told. As a stewardess with seventeen years of experience, I can assure you that this happens all the time in the sky. In fact, most of the time, the passengers are entirely unaware of sudden airflow movements. We knew this, so our crew was calm, and the precious time had been lost. Only one person sensed something was up - Vikky, our chief stewardess. "I don’t like this", - she whispered over my ear as the plane got violently thrown to the side. "It’ll be alright", - I answered with an adamant smile, still serving the food to the passengers. - "You haven’t been quite yourself lately. Maybe that’s because..?" I nodded toward her belly, still too flat. "Oh no, please don't start again", said she and nudged me. "No one takes me seriously these days." The next second, the cabin decompressed. There was a loud blaring sound and a flash of scarlet light. My lungs suddenly felt empty, and my sight grew dim. I remember only rushing to the nearest position at the front of the cabin and grabbing a portable oxygen system. I couldn't see Vikky; I could only assume she did the same. "Dear passengers, this is your Captain speaking," suddenly screamed the radio. "Please use the oxygen masks above your head. Keep calm and remain seated. For further instructions, please follow the cabin crew. We will shortly make an emergency landing." I knew we should have been above the ocean by this time of the flight, leaving the ground long behind, so this could only mean a water landing. I braced myself. There was one emergency landing in my life, but not like this. Fumbling through the dark and staggering from side to side in the narrow aisle, I looked for Vikky. Suddenly, someone grabbed my hand, and I felt Vikky's cold Pandora charm bracelet. She led me to the nearest emergency exit and reached for the liferaft. Then she, ignoring all the safety measures, took her mask off for a moment and shouted, "When the time comes, be ready". The captain spoke to us over the radio, telling us to begin the evacuation. It was going surprisingly smoothly until the very moment when only me and Vikky were left in the cabin. "You go now" - she gestured. I hesitated. "That is an order!" I tried to object, but there was so little time, and she was a chief, after all. Hoping for the best, I pulled over a life vest and jumped in the ice- cold water. I reached the nearest raft and turned around, but Vikky was gone. They didn't find her afterwards. My life is now worth two; I must live it with dignity.