A Higher Place

The room is tightly packed with sweaty bodies gyrating against each other. The strobe light is blinding Sally and her ears are drunk on the sound of upbeat music and light bubbly laughter. She has never felt so alive. Then her favourite song came on and she whoops with pure delight. She can feel her skirt ride up her waist as she wildly moves her body to the beat. Her happiness lifts her to a higher place. But then a cold clammy hand brings her right back down. She turns to mouth them off but turns to see the face of her best friend Emily.

"Let's go Sally, Mum will kill us if we're not home on time," Emily said, her words are slurred and fumble on her tounge.

Sally leans in to smell her alcohol breath. "Your drunk," she said matter-of-factly, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

"I know,"Emily said, hopelessly giggling at her non-existent joke.

Sally sighed and rolls her eyes. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Nothing, I'm going to drive us home," Emily said firmly.

"Not in the state your in."

Emily pestered until Sally's resolve weakened and Emily led a reluctant Sally to her second-hand dump of a car.

Emily started the car, after a few tries, and the roar of engine made Sally's heart skip a beat. Sally sat silently, uneasy for some unkown reason. Even through her drunkeness, Emily could sense the tense atmosphere. She turned the radio on full blast to fill the silence. The music relaxed Sally and soon she found herself laughing carelessly with Emily about the silly antics that happened at the party. She was so relaxed she didn't realize the small red needle move upwards on the speedmeter.

Then out of nowhere a big truck is speeding towards us. The fear makes Sally's heart beat erratically and a scream escapes from Sally's lips. The driver of the truck beeps the horn furiously, trying to swerve out of the way but it is too clunky. It's too late. The shock sobers Emily up instantly. She holds Sally's sweaty hand and sobs on her shoulder while they both head towards the light. The world goes black.