Fixing the Crash

ONE

The radio is playing softly in the car. The song playing is soft and melodic. No one is really paying attention to the music, though. They are all discussing some new family drama or another. My Grandmother tells my Father and Grandfather what happened on a television show the night before. My Brother sits quietly next to me. We both stare out the windows, waiting until we reach home.

The subject of the conversation changes and now dinner plans are being discussed. My Father slows down slightly as the stoplight we are approaching changes from red to green. He speeds up again. Then, my nightmare began.

The tires on our silver Tahoe screech as they are slammed down. I turn my head just in time to see a white Escalade coming straight at us. A scream catches in my throat as the two cars collide. My Grandmother screams and my Brother’s body falls on top of me. Then, there is only darkness.

TWO

I wake up on the side of the road. There is something wrong. I feel as if I’m missing something. As I open my eyes, I wish I could close them again. The sight I see is one I wish I could forget. Our nice, shiny Tahoe is wrapped around the Escalade. The windows in my car are shattered. I gulp back tears as I slowly walk towards the cars. This has to be a nightmare. There was no way that this could possibly be true.

As I look inside my window, all I see is red. It’s everywhere. The redness covers my Brother’s body. Something is sticking out of his side. Tears are streaming down my face as I look at my Grandmother’s still body. She isn’t moving. No one is moving inside my car. My Father’s head is covered in the red liquid. My Grandfather’s body is broken on the floor. I’m frightened as I walk around the car to the other side. I look in the window and will my family to move. How had I survived this? I get my answer as I reach my car door. I hadn’t. There was my body; lifeless, unmoving, crushed by the heavy weight of the car. The red is trickling out of my mouth.

I step away from the car and scream. The sound rips through the air. The people who have stopped to see aren’t affected by the piercing noise. I lie on the ground and sob as sirens and flashing lights fill the air around me. The paramedics take out my family and cover them with sheets. I close my eyes and try and erase everything. This must be my Hell.