Never More Alive

By Natalie Major


     I have never felt more alive than in this moment.  I stood on the middle console in his car with half of my body outside the window.  Everyone told me that it was wrong to hang out with him.  That he was a horrible person.  In this moment I didn't care.  He made everything that worried me fade just by blasting his music and letting me feel the wind through my long brown hair.  He suddenly tapped my leg to bring me back into the car.  I sit down, take a deep breath and smile.  It felt like we had been driving for hours, but in reality we had been driving up and down the school parking lot for ten minutes. 

     We headed out of the parking lot and merged onto the highway. "ready?" He said with a big smile.  I just nodded and smiled back not knowing what I was ready for.  I look over and he takes his hands off the steering wheel with his foot still on the pedal.

     "What are you doing!" I screamed over the music.

     "Having fun!" He screamed back.

     I was scared out of my mind, but just went with it.  Next thing I know we hit a semi and roll off into a ditch, the car is in pieces.  I look over at him and he is passed out with a smile on his face.  Then I am gone. 

     I wake up and all I see is bright lights moving fast.  Or maybe I was moving.  There are faces above shouting to one another.  I lift up my hands and they are covered in blood.  I look around for him, but he is no where near me.  A mask is going over my face and I push it away.  They try to put it over me again, but I sit up trying to find him.  I get dizzy and feel pain pierce through my entire body.  The doctors pull me down and cover my face with the mask and I fall asleep. 

....

     "Emily. Emily.  It's time to wake up."  Said a soft voice as they shook me awake.

     I slowly open my eyes remembering where I am.  The nurse is standing at the end of my bed looking at paperwork.  "Um excuse me, where is the boy that was in the accident with me?"  She ignores my question and continues writing things down.  She then walks towards me and hand me some pills and a cup of water.  I move my body ever so slightly to try to get the cup up to my mouth.  My body is suddenly over taken by piercing pain.  I look up at the nurse as she comes and takes the cup out of my hands recognizing the fear in my eyes.  She then grabs her papers and walks out of the room.

     I lay there letting the pain settle.  I think about the accident and wonder what had happened to my body.  I begin to take the blanket off, but am quickly interrupted by loud voices entering the room.  I look up and see my parents.  My moms face is all red from crying and my dad is looking down at the ground.  They both come and sit down next to my bed.  I grab their hands reassuring them that I am okay.  My mom begins to cry as she excuses herself from the room.

     I look at my dad. "Dad what happened to me, why am I in so much pain?"

     "Both of your ribs are fractured, you have a concussion, and you had a giant gash in your leg with glass in it.  They had to remove the glass and glue your leg back together." He said.

     I pause for a minute to take it all in.  "What happened to the boy that was with me?"

     He looks at me puzzled, but before he could answer the nurse comes in and kicks him out.

     He walks out and the nurse comes up next to the bed.  She pushes some buttons and the bed moves to where I am sitting up.  She then hands me the pills and cup again.  I was sick of not getting answers so I set the cup back down.  "Where was the boy that was in the accident with me?"

     "Emily, there was no one else in the car with you."