N. 92nd Street

Please read this article. 

December 28, 2005 -- Mike 

"Twenty two, twenty three, twenty four," I said, counting the change I needed to give back to the customer. 

"Thank you!" A very happy happy customer, with very long brown hair said, as she sat down to eat her egg roll. 

It was a Wednesday night, the Wong's Kitchen was slowly heading downhill. We made a whole whopping $200.00 today, which means that if I want to get enough money for food, I have to stay later. I was supposed to pick Kristie up, however she was at the museum with Sherry's parents. 

Around 5:00 pm, a car pulled up. 

I had my back turned to the door. I was making some chicken, and had to turn the burner on. When I turned around, everything changed. Men dressed in black, with masks, holding guns.

I blinked.

"GIVE US THE MONEY, OR WE'LL SHOOT" they screamed. 

I had no choice, I went to open the register, but I was too late. I heard a gun shot, and felt immense pain in my chest. I fell to the floor.

I heard the door close, they got away. 

"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me," she sang to me. I had no idea who she was, none at all, but she was there, holding me. Until the end. 

December 28, 2005 -- Sarah 

"Twenty two, twenty three, twenty four," he said, handing me back my change. 

"Thank you!" I smiley said, looking back at him, while taking a seat. I had just gotten out of work, and needed something to eat, so I decided to try Wong's Kitchen. So far everything was great, the food, the service, I decided that I would start coming here more often. I continued on with the meal, going up and down between my laptop and my meal. 

The door opened.

I assumed that someone was coming in to buy food, but this was no time for making assumptions. 

I was busy typing as I heard it. A gunshot.

I looked up, but not it time, they had already ran through the door, and the nice man who had given me my food, had already fallen to the floor. 

I sprinted over, and held him in my arms. I didn't know the man up until today,  but now I will remember him forever. 

"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me," I sang to him, until he took his last breath. 

December 28, 2005 -- Darleen

I had just settled down after a long day, to watch the 5 o'clock news. This was my favorite news show, because you got all the inside scoop on the dirt that happened in Milwaukee today. 

"Hello, viewers, this just in, a man shot and killed at a Chinese food resturaunt today," I tuned into the TV, "for more information, stay tuned." 

"Larry! Get in here!" I called out to my husband. Just as he walked through the door, the screen switched to a live view, and there, in sight, was my son. He was laying on the floor; dead. 

Tears rolled down my face, crying so hard I was shaking. "Why?" I sobbed out, "Why my son?"

December 28, 2005 -- Sherry

Driving down 92nd street was a part of my everyday schedule. I started by picking up my dry cleaning, then I would get some grocery's and then stop in at Mike's work. I loved my husband, more than anything. We fought, all the time, but I still loved him. 

I was running a little late, because I had to drop Kristie off at my parent's house, because they were taking her to the museum, which then pushed my whole day back about 20 minutes. And of course, with my luck, an accident must have been up further on the road, because there were tons of police cars, and ambulances driving down the road. 

After I had ran my errands, I was on my way to stop in by Mike. When I got to the exit, I saw that it was blocked off, and all the ambulances and police were in Wong's Kitchen. 

"What's going on in there?" I asked a police, from inside my car. 

"Some cashier was shot. Dead." he said, "Sorry ma'am, but there'll be no dining in there tonight."

"Do you happen to know the man's name?" I said, praying that it wouldn't be him.

"Mike. Mike Tabbert. Why? You know him?" 

Tears ran down my face, in an instant. I ran out of that car so fast, I almost forgot to put it in park. "He's my husband, I hollered."

Walking in, I saw the unimaginable. Mike, my husband, the love of my life, laying there lifeless..and he wasn't coming back. 

December 28, 2005 -- Kristie

I loved the museum. I loved the fact that whenever I was there, I would be with my grandparents, even my cousins sometimes. But it was different that time. Grandma's phone kept ringing. It was mommy. 

"Hello?" Grandma said.

"Hi, hurry, leave the museum and come to the Chinese restaurant," I heard her crying trough the phone. 

We left in the blink of an eye. Traffic was bad. I kept on asking what was going on, and the only answer I got was that we needed to go see my daddy. 

It took an hour to get to the restaurant. When we showed up there were blinking lights and roaring sirens. 

I ran inside, only to see my other grandparents, my uncle, and my mommy crying. My daddy was there, too. 

But he wasn't crying. 

He wasn't moving, or talking, or breathing. He wasn't alive. 

I dove down onto the ground, and held my daddy's hand, asking him to wake up.

He never did.

December 28, 2005 -- Marissa 

We had just gotten back from my brother's indoor soccer game. Me and him were now watching TV.

Then my mom walked in. She was crying, and holding a box of tissues. 

"Kids, your uncle Mike has been shot, and killed." she said. And from that moment on, nothing was ever the same.