I Remember

It was a month after her favorite grandmother died that it happened.

She had to stay at her high school, 'cause it was open house and she was asked to help. She didn't want to, but her parents thought it was a good idea, so she did it.

She was supposed to bring around a group of eighth graders and their parents and talk about why the students should go to her school, and she did do it; she was just the last person to take a group around. Since she was the last, her parents - who came to pick her up - had to wait in the lunch room.

When she was finally dismissed, she went there, seeing her parents talking to other people. She didn't care, she just wanted to go home, get out of her skirt and watch 'The Office'. While she was waiting for her mom to wrap up the conversation, her dad's phone went off. Not too surprising, since his phone usually goes off. She didn't give it much thought.

Until her father's face paled.

She started paying attention, not really listening to her friends that were around her. Her father kept asking, "But are you alright?" but she never heard the response. She didn't know who he was talking to, and it made her nervous.

Finally he hung up and said, "Sharon, we have to go." Her mother quickly looked up and saw her father's face. She quickly got her bag and stood. When they got to the car, her mother asked anxiously, "Ronnie, what is it? What happened?"

"It's Ryan," he said, refering to the girl's older brother. "He was in an accident."

The girl panicked, imagining her brother on the side of some road, wrapped around a tree. But, she reasoned, he must be okay, since he called their father.

Her father drove for what felt like hours, but was probably close to hour. She was listening to music, but she was barely paying attention. Tears sprang to her eyes and curses formed in her head. 'Idiot' she thought. 'He drives too fast. Mom and Dad always tell him to be careful. Dumbass.'

She started paying attention when her father handed her mother his phone. "Call him," her father said. "Ask him where he is"

Ryan told them that a pickup truck was driving him to a road that she never heard off. He told them how to get them and that they would be at the McDonald's that was there.

She folded her fists in her lap, certainly that when she would see him that she would punch him. Hard. She didn't need to be scared. Once was enough, thank you very much. More curses formed in her head. 'Fucking idiot. I'm going to kill him. He's a fucking idiot!'

Finally they arrived at the McDonald's, but Ryan was nowhere in site. The father called again, making sure they got it right. They did; the car Ryan was in had hit traffic.

They waited for what felt like days but was probably about ten minutes for him to arrive. He got out of the truck and the girl and her mother flew out of the car. "You idiot!" the girl yelled.

He look sorry, and kept repeating "I'm sorry"

Their mother held on to him and said in a voice filled with tears, "I just lost grandma; I can't lose you too!"

Their father came over and asked, "What happened?"

He was driving on the highway - on the far left - when he saw a car stopped up ahead. He was about to go around the car when it pulled out extrememly fast. Not wanting to hit the car, Ryan turned the wheel right and went through the three lines of traffic. Luckily no one else was around, so he didn't hit another car, but he did hit a tree. The driver's side was all scratched up, and he couldn't turn the wheel at all. The car kept going, but another man stopped to see if he was alright. He helped Ryan get his bearing, and after realizing that he was fine, called their father. The man called the pick up truck, and another woman stopped to see if everything was alright. They both stayed with him until the pick-up truck arrived.

Ryan, literally, walked away without a scratch.