Braden

“Shannon are you ready to go?” Dad asked getting his softball mitt.
“Yeah hang on.” I replied and grabbed the cell phone. We walked outside and got in the truck. I dialed Jenny’s number. No one answered. I sighed and dialed her cell phone number. She picked up on the third ring.
“Hello?”
“Hey Jenny are you going to the church softball game?” I asked.
“Yeah we’re on our way right now.” She replied.
“Cool. Did you ask if you could spend the night?”
“Yeah I have all my stuff here with me.”
“Okay cool. See you there.” I said.
“Okay bye.” Then Jenny hung up.
I hung up. Dad stopped by the store and got us each a pop, him some sunflower seeds and me some Gardettos. I love love love love love Gardettos. Favorite food in the whole world. We pulled into Mt. Solo Middle School’s parking lot. That’s where dad has his games. It’s also the school I go to. We got out of the car and walked toward the field. Jenny was already there sitting in the bleachers waiting for me.
“Shannon, Shannon, Shannon.” She said and gave me a hug.
We sat and watched the game. We cheered and clapped for our team and shouted at the other team like real fans would…for about five minutes. Then we got bored and went and sat in the truck. I put the key in the ignition and turned on the radio to Radio Disney. Don’t ask. We sat and talked about Tristan and Harrison until it was time to leave.
We watched dad walk back to the car. I rolled down the window.
“We don’t want any.” I said then began to roll the window back up. Then I smiled and unlocked the door. Jenny still sat in the front seat so I crawled to the back. Dad started the car and we pulled out of the parking lot.
“So,” I started when I finally got situated. “Who one?”
“We did.” Dad replied. “Both games.”
Jenny and I cheered. We turned onto ocean beach.
“Wait!” Jenny yelled.
Dad and I both looked at her.
“I forgot my stuff in my car.” She remembered.
Dad turned around and went back into the parking lot. Jenny’s family was just getting into their car. Jenny got out and ran to her car. She grabbed her bag and got back into the truck. It began to rain. Within minutes the rain was coming down hard.
“Okay. I got it.” Jenny said.
“You sure you didn’t forget anything?” Dad asked.
She nodded her head.
Dad drove to the exit again. As he was about to pull out, a Semi seemed to appear out of nowhere and smashed into the side of our truck. We jerked sideways. Then the Semi swerved and hit a parked car head on smashing the front window to pieces. Then the Semi kept going. Dad looked around.
“Is everyone okay?” He asked.
Jenny and I nodded. Besides the fact that my heart just stopped beating.
“I’m going to go get help.” He said then pushed the door open. He ran out into the rain and disappeared.
Jenny and I sat in the truck in shock. Someone opened the red car door of the other vehicle. A tall figure stumbled out dragging something else out with it. I forced our door open and Jenny followed me out into the rain. As I walked toward the figure, his features became sharper and more detailed.
He was tall with short, dark hair. His stone like face helped me realize who it was.
“Tristan.” I whispered.
Tristan looked up. Blood ran from his nose. He held someone in his arms. Tristan fell to his knees trying to hold up whoever was hurt. Jenny and I were stunned. We ran to Tristan and I froze. In his arms, was Braden. He had a big hole in his forehead and it was bleeding onto his blue t-shirt.
“We need to get to a hospital.” Tristan said shakily.
I never knew Tristan to be like this. When I think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Tristan show emotion before. I nodded and ran back to my dad’s truck. Jenny’ red Minnie mouse bag sat on the seat. I dug through her stuff until I found her cell phone. After calling the ambulance, we sat with Braden until the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance.
Jenny and I sat in the waiting room at St. Johns Hospital. I had my head on Jenny’s shoulder. Tears stained my face. Tristan, still with an emotionless expression on his face, was pacing around the floor stopping every so often to look down the hall. I pictured Braden lying on an operating table with doctors surrounding him. I began crying again. I looked at Tristan. He still showed no sign of emotion. No sadness whatsoever.
A doctor approached us. I sat up ready to listen to anything but he turned down a different hall. Tristan sat down and rubbed his hands together. I laid my head back on Jenny. None of us had said a word since we got there. I closed my eyes.
“Well,” A voice said. I opened my eyes and saw a doctor standing in front of us. As if on cue, Jenny, Tristan and I all stood up.
“What is it?” Jenny asked. “How is he?”
“It doesn’t look good.” The doctor replied shaking his head.
My heart sank and my stomach tied into a knot. Tristan’s shoulders sagged but his expression didn’t change.
“What do you mean?” Tristan asked furrowing his brow.
“Well, a piece of glass from the windshield of your car has lodged itself into his brain and it’s in a very difficult spot. We are operating on him right now. If he survives, he will have permanent brain damage in that region, but there’s a very small chance of any survival. I’m so sorry.” Then the doctor turned and walked away.
Jenny and I turned to each other. We braced each other in a hug and cried. I looked over at Tristan. He had a look of shock on his face.
“Tristan?” I said.
He looked at me. His eyes showed sadness, confusion and pain and I felt my heart break. He sank to his knees.
“How could this happen?” Tristan asked. He sat back and held his head in his hands, then he looked up at me, “He’s only thirteen. Only a kid.”
“Tristan.” I began crying harder.
“He had so much to live for,” Tristan kept going. “He’s just a boy. Just a kid.”
I knelt down next to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. He laid his head on my shoulder. Then he began to shake. Like…like he was crying. I stopped crying. I sat and listened to Tristan. A stray tear slid down my face. Wow, I thought. This is overwhelming.
“It’s okay Tristan,” I said. “Braden will be alright.” I looked over at Jenny. She was sitting in a chair with her head in her hands crying. “Jenny.” I said. She looked at me. “Could you call my dad and tell him where we are?”
“But-” She started. I looked down at Tristan still crying on my shoulder. She nodded and got up and left the room. Tristan took his head off my shoulder and laid it against me. I kept my arms around his shoulders. We cried together.
A few hours later, the doctor came back. Tristan and I were sitting next to each other and Jenny was looking out the window. The doctor cleared his throat to get our attention. We looked at him.
“Well. The operation is complete and Braden is in recovery.” He said.
“Is he going to be alright?” I asked.
“We don’t know yet. If he makes it through the night there’s a chance he’ll survive, but we won’t no for sure.”
Tristan nodded. Then the doctor left. He turned to Jenny and me.
“You two better go.” He said quietly.
“No Tristan. You and Braden need us.” Jenny insisted. I nodded in agreement.
“Thanks.” He gave a small smile but then it quickly disappeared.
We stayed in an empty hospital room. The next morning, the doctor woke us up.
“Good news. Your friend has beaten the odds.” He declared.
Tristan shot up, “He’s alive?”
The doctor nodded. “You kids better go on home. We’ll take it from here.”
Jenny and I began to leave but Tristan stayed.
“When will we be able to visit him?” Tristan asked.
“We’ll call when he’s ready for visitors.” The doctor assured him. “That is, if he makes it.”
“Come on Tristan. My sister can come pick us up,” I said. “We’ll take you home.”
Tristan nodded and followed us out the door. After calling my sister, we waited outside. None of us talked while we waited for Sam to come. No one talked when she pulled into the parking lot and we got into the car. No one talked on the car ride home or when we pulled up to Tristan’s house. I got out with him. To make sure he was alright.
We stopped at his door.
“Tristan?” I asked. “What were you and Braden doing by Mt. Solo Middle School anyway?”
“I’ll tell you later.” He muttered then went inside.
A week later, the doctor called and told us that we could come visit him. I met up with Tristan and Jenny at the hospital and we all went in together. When we got into Braden’s room my heart sank. Braden was lying on a hospital bed with his eyes closed. He had tubes going up his nose and IVs sticking out of his arms. He also had a big gauze bandage around his head. It hurt to see one of my best friends like this.
“Um…Braden?” Tristan said.
Braden’s eyes opened slowly. He looked around then looked up at us.
“Hi.” He said weakly. He strained to put on a smile. His smile was what really got me. I remembered how he used to smile. Big, happy, lively smiles that would brighten up a room. But this smile wasn’t near as big and happy and lively. It was smaller, painful and weak. A tear ran down my face. I couldn’t stand seeing him like this. I had to get out.
“I have to go.” I said and quickly walked out of the room. Out in the hall I found a bench and sat down with my head in my hands. I breathed in and let it out slowly. I listened to the soft voices of visitors, doctors and nurses. Sounds of the hospital filled the halls. I listened closely to Braden, Tristan and Jenny.
“Is she going to be alright?” I heard Braden ask.
“Yeah.” That was Tristan, “She’ll be fine.”
“I should go out there and be with her.” Jenny said then I heard footsteps and Jenny appeared in the doorway. She sat down next to me.
“Are you going to be okay?” She asked.
“His smile…” I started crying again, “It was so small, so helpless. I can’t stand seeing him like this Jenny.”
“Neither can I, but he wants to see us Shay. We can’t waste time. He may never see us again.” Jenny explained.
I nodded and wiped my eyes. We walked back in together.
We stayed with Braden until visiting hours were over. When it was time to go, I called my mom and had her come get us. While we waited, I walked over to Tristan.
“So you never told me why you were outside Mt. Solo.” I said.
“I’ll tell you later.” He replied and started walking away. I grabbed his arm and turned him to face me.
“No Tristan. I want to know.” I said with a concerned look.
He looked at me. “Fine,” then he looked me straight in the eye. “Mom wants us to move into one of the houses across from the school. That means going to a different church.”
“You’re moving? But that’s not fair.” I exclaimed.
“That’s what I said. She got mad and we got into a fight on the way there and she told me to wait in the car until they were finished. I was really upset so Braden stayed in the car with me. He was trying to cheer me up and I ended up yelling at him. He and I had an argument. Then he unbuckled his seat belt because he was going to get out when the semi came crashing into the car and he went flying into the windshield. I wasn’t hurt as bad because I still had my seatbelt on. If I wouldn’t have gotten mad at him, he would still be okay if not just banged up. And if I wouldn’t have gotten in the fight with Mom, none of us would have been in the car when that happened. So it’s my fault that the car is totaled and that Braden is in the hospital.”
I was speechless. What I wanted to say was that it wasn’t his fault but when I really thought about it…it was partly his fault. “I-” I started but then stopped. I couldn’t really say I was sorry. I mean I sympathized but it was partly his fault. What was I supposed to say? I’m sorry you almost killed your brother. That just didn’t sound right. So instead I just walked away. I looked back at him. He sat down on the curb and put his head in his hands.
We didn’t speak or even look at each other for the following week. I couldn’t find anything to say. I knew that if I started a conversation, it would eventually lead to Braden. My friends at school even noticed that something was bugging me. When I talked to Harrison on the phone, he could hear the stress in my voice. One day the phone rang.
I hesitated. Jenny’s name and cell phone number flashed on the caller ID. I picked up the phone.
“Hello?” I asked and sat down at my computer.
“Shannon get down to the hospital now.” She sounded terrified.
“What is it? What’s wrong with Braden?” I asked.
“Something went completely wrong. Get down here now!” Jenny shouted then hung up.
I slammed the phone down and grabbed my jacket.
“Sam!” I called but she didn’t answer. “Mom! Dad! Tim!” I shouted as tears ran down my face. Crap, I thought, Mom and Sam are at work, Dad is at the apartments and Tim is mowing Grandma’s lawn. I was alone with no one to take me to the hospital. It was at least ten miles to the hospital from my house. I knew what I had to do.
I got into the garage and grabbed one of the bikes. No time for a helmet. Safety wasn’t an issue at this point. I just had to get to the hospital and I just figured it didn’t matter if I had a helmet or not because I was getting to the hospital one way or another.
I sped out of the driveway and down the street. I tried to remember the fastest route to the hospital from the Safeway gas station (which is where I just happened to be). Okay the lake was up Ocean Beach and the hospital was on the other side. I just had to take the bridge and go towards the Y. Sounds easy enough. Too bad I couldn’t just zap myself there. I decided I had to try. Then a thought came to my head. I can do this. After waiting for the walk light for forever, it finally came on. I pedaled across the cross walk and rushed down the sidewalk of Ocean Beach.
Now really this didn’t happen. I wasn’t smart enough to actually think I could make it in time if I just tried hard or tried my best. That only works in superhero movies. You know where the main character and a friend get into a fight then the friend comes just in time to save the main character from a horrible death. Then the person says, “How did you know?” and the friend says, “I just knew.” Yeah the really stupid movies. Well let’s just say there was no superhero friend to save me from the stupidest stunt I ever pulled in my life. Rewind back to before the crosswalk light.
Then a thought came to my head. About something I had thought of earlier. I was getting to the hospital one way or another. I sighed and silently prayed that I would live.
“For Braden.” I whispered then waited for the light to turn red. That way the person would be slowed down a little. As soon as the light turned yellow, my stomach got all twisted. Suddenly the light turned red and I pedaled out in front of a car. I heard a honk then sensed the impact. I felt my legs come off the ground as I flew on top of the car. My body hit the hood full on and my head crashed into the windshield. Then everything was silent. I weakly opened my eyes and saw blurs of people running in chaos around me. I smiled a weak smile. A thankful smile.
“Don’t worry Jenny.” I whispered. “I’ll be there in no time.” Then everything disappeared into a white haze.
When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw was Jenny pacing across the floor. When she saw that I was awake she sighed and walked over to me.
“How are you feeling?” She asked worriedly.
“My head hurts like crazy.” I replied and sat up. Tristan was sitting over in the corner with his head in his hands.
“Sorry to hear that,” Jenny smiled a sympathetic smile but it quickly faded to frown, “But it’s gonna get worse. How could you be so stupid!? What were you thinking?” She screamed. “Did you just figure that you would survive and luckily be taken to the same hospital?”
My head really did hurt more. Gosh Jenny, thanks a lot. “No actually I-“
“And another thing, the hospital bill. Do you really think that your parents will want to pay for the hospital bill when they hear the reason you’re in here? Oh mom could you spare about a hundred dollars so I can pay the doctors for being so nice after I jumped in front of a car and almost got killed!?”
“Jenny I-”
“What were you thinking when you decided to risk your life? Don’t you think we’ve been through enough?” Jenny asked.
“Jenny-”
“What were you thinking?”
“I was thinking of Braden!” I shouted back. “I knew that if I tried to pedal all the way here, I’d never make it in time, what else could I have done?”
Jenny hesitated then looked at me. I tear ran down her cheek. “You could have answered your cell phone.”
I looked at her confused then saw my cell phone on the nightstand next to me. I picked it up and saw that I had missed three calls from Jenny. All before I had jumped in front of the car.
“Braden fell into a coma five minutes after I called your house. The doctors hooked him up to life support.” Jenny said.
“They said that if he doesn’t wake up in the next two days, they’re pulling the plug and announcing him dead.” Tristan finished.
My mouth dropped open. “But he was doing so much better.” I whimpered.
“Well let me explain. You know how in some diseases there’s a stage where you can get better and a stage where you can’t?” Jenny said.
I nodded. “Yeah. My grandpa has MS and he’s in the second stage. He’s just getting worse.” I replied.
“Well,” Jenny started as another tear slid down her face, “Braden’s not getting better.”
Tristan got up. “He’s getting worse. It seems that when they removed the piece of glass, they didn’t get all of it and a piece is digging deeper into his brain toward the central something.” Tristan sighed. “I can’t remember what it’s called. But…no matter what, sooner or later Braden is going to die. Probably sooner than later.”
I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t feel the throbbing in my head, which was the only good thing at that time. In fact, I couldn’t feel anything, which I thought was quite weird. I didn’t feel happiness, well that’s a big honkin’ DUH! But I also didn’t feel pain, grief, sorrow, calmness or sadness. I was absolutely…gone. I felt nothing whatsoever. If someone had shot me in the head just then, I still wouldn’t have felt anything. There were no thoughts running through my head. I even tried to get a thought to go through my head…but I couldn’t think of anything to think about. No memory. I couldn’t even remember my parents, my sister and brother, my two best friends who were standing right in front of me, or my best friend who was at deaths door at that very moment. I could hear everything, I could see everything, and I could smell everything, but…I truly found the meaning of being a vegetable. I know, that sounds kind of corny (corny get it? Vegetable. Actually corn is…no wait that’s potatoes that I’m thinking of. Anyways) for this kind of situation but it’s true. My mom is always telling me about these people who can’t do anything by themselves. They even have to have other people take them to the bathroom, or worse, other people have to…well, you know what I mean.
But if you ever felt the way I did…you’d wish you were dead. In fact I wished I were. That was the only thing that ran through my head and seriously I felt something inside me die. I looked from one friend to the other. I felt as if I could never smile again.
“Shay?” Jenny said. When I didn’t answer her, she and Tristan looked at each other then walked out.
Tristan stopped in the doorway and looked back at me. He sighed then shut off the lights and closed the door. I sat in the darkness staring at nothing. Then my brain started working again. My head once again started throbbing and what Jenny and Tristan had said earlier sunk in. I burst into tears. Not only for Braden, but for his family and the church and Brady’s friends at school. What was life going to be like after he was gone? I couldn’t say the three Hunter brothers, it just didn’t seem right. If Braden died, the whole family would fall apart. But then I stopped crying. Crying wouldn’t save Braden. It wouldn’t bring him back from the dead. Then I was filled with anger and cold feelings. I hated everyone. I hated the doctors for missing that one piece of glass. I hated the semi driver who hit Braden. I hated my friends for not caring. I almost wanted to hate Braden for not trying, not fighting hard enough, for giving up after so long. I felt I would never smile again. I felt hate and anger take over my body.
The next morning, I watched as Jenny and Tristan walked back into my room.
“Hey Shannon.” Tristan said casual sounding.
“Hey Shay what happened last night. You just all of a sudden blanked out. Are you okay?” Jenny asked.
I looked at both of them. My gaze turned into a glare. How could they be so…fine? Tristan’s brother is about to die, I thought, and a car hit me the day before.
“Yeah,” I scowled. “I’m fine.”
“What’s wrong?” Jenny asked giving me a confused look.
I just glared at her.
“O…kay. We’re just going to get some smoothies. Do you want anything?” She asked.
I sat silently glowering at my friends. Tristan and Jenny walked out of the room. They didn’t come back for the rest of the day.
The next day, I was allowed to walk around the hospital. The first thing I did though was got dressed in normal clothes. Walking around the hospital wearing a hospital dress thing only made me feel like I was a patient in an insane asylum. I was not insane. So I jumped in front of a car, that doesn’t make me insane. I think. I hope.
I stepped out of my room and the first thing I saw was Jenny and Tristan sitting across from me drinking soda and laughing their heads off. I was still ticked at them for not being a little more caring, so I ignored them and started walking down the hall.
“Hey girl.” Jenny called after me.
I sighed and turned around. Jenny and Tristan still sat drinking pop. Then I put on a fake smile and walked over to them.
“Hi Jenny, Tristan.” I replied in a phony, happy voice.
“Hey Shay what happened yesterday? You were like, all weirded out.” Jenny said.
“It must have been the medicine they’re giving me. Crazy pills.” I laughed. I fake laugh.
“That explains a lot.” Tristan joked.
“Yeah funny, okay let’s go see Braden.” I said and started toward Braden’s room.
I noticed that Jenny and Tristan weren’t following me. I turned around and they still stood there looking at me.
“Are we going to go?” I asked.
“But we just saw him yesterday.” Jenny replied.
I looked at Tristan hopefully. He shrugged and walked the other way. Jenny followed. I scoffed, then walked toward Braden’s room. Fine I would see him alone.
When I got to his room, I cautiously peeked in the door not knowing what to expect. What I saw was Braden peacefully asleep. Well that’s what it looked like anyway. I knew he was in a coma. And he probably wasn’t going to wake up. I walked over to his bed and sat down. Braden was hooked up to a big machine that showed his heart rate. I looked around and saw an x-ray of my friend’s brain. I walked over to it and scanned it. I couldn’t even see anything wrong until I looked a little closer. Toward the bottom of his brain, was a pin-sized white fleck, which was probably the small piece of glass they missed. Wow, I thought, I wouldn’t have been able to see that either if I was operating on him. Suddenly all my hate evaporated. My hate for the doctors was gone. It’s not like doctors are perfect, I could barely see that glass as I stood there. My hate for the Semi driver was gone. The driver probably lost control. My hate for my friends was gone. They can’t do anything about Braden’s condition now and crying won’t save him. My hate for Braden was gone. He tried his best and that’s all he could have done.
Then I felt proud of my friends and the doctors and Braden. Not the semi driver. No no no no no. But for my friends for trying to stay strong while their friend (and brother) was dying in the hospital. The doctors for finding most of the glass and letting Braden live a little longer so he could see us. And for Braden, for trying his hardest and not giving up until he was beaten. A tear slid down my cheek. A tear of happiness. Of victory. I touched Braden’s hand. It was warm but limp. I could feel the life being drained out of him.
“Good job Braden. I’m proud of you.” Then I got up, kissed his forehead and turned toward the door. Tristan and Jenny stood in the doorway. They looked at me. Jenny started crying.
I ran over to my friends and gave them a huge hug.
“I love you guys.” I said.
“We love you too.” Tristan replied.








Epilogue

“Braden lit up a room whenever he came in. Even the saddest person would smile at the sight of this lively child.” The pastor said.
Shannon and Jenny sat together at their friend’s funeral. Gary, the children church’s leader, was the speaker for the event. Tons of kids from Braden’s school and church were there. Not to mention all his family, including the Gilberts which had moved up to Seattle only a month or two before. Shay looked over at Xander. He looked so confused. Almost like she had when she saw Jenny and Tristan acting so casual the day after she got hit by the car.
“Does anyone want to say a few words?” Gary asked and looked around the audience. Shannon took a deep breath then stood up and walked toward the stage.
Gary stepped aside so she could get passed. Shannon gave him a small smile, then looked out at the crowd. Her eyes caught one person. It was a person with short brown hair. He looked at her with sadness but he didn’t cry. Tristan stared into her eyes.
“Um,” She started. “Braden was such a great friend to me. We were real pals. According to Mrs. Hunter, we were partners in crime, a disaster duo.” Everyone laughed, “I just wanted to say a few things about Braden. What my experience was with him at the hospital. When I was in that room with him, everything felt okay, like he was going to pull through. My first time in Wednesday night kids church, I was nervous as ever. The first person I saw when I walked into that room was Braden. He smiled his now famous smile at me. We didn’t even know each other, yet his smile made me feel like I would be fine. He was the first person to talk to me.”
“Every Sunday and Wednesday, I looked forward to that smile, and the special hug he would give me when he would leave.” She paused to hold back her tears. “And no matter what, I always got them. Even the day he came really sick, I got the smile and the hug. Braden’s smile would light up the darkest corner. It was so big and happy and bright. Even when I was in a crappy mood, his smile would make me smile and I would be fine.”
“Well, in the hospital as soon as I walked into his hospital room, I was greeted with Braden’s smile. But it was different. I could tell immediately that things would never be the same after that. His smile was so much smaller. It was strained, forced on and painful. Not at all like I was used to. After that, he tried to act like the normal Braden. But it didn’t seem right. But it was still Braden. Even through the unwanted disguise, I could see Braden fighting to make everything normal again.”
“He was a true fighter. And a true friend, right up until the end. Thank you.”