He turned the radio up louder, and the car accelerated faster. I danced around, trying to pretend that I didn’t feel the car starting to recoil from the dirt and grass, making my body jolt around all over. I had waited a few minutes before I pressed my hands against the dashboard, trying to hold my body steady from the impact around us.

“Slow down!” I finally yelled.

“We’re almost there!”

My stomach felt queasy, I wasn’t having fun anymore. I felt scared, so I turned down the music. “You’re going too fast.”

“Relax we’re fine.”

It didn’t feel fine. I didn’t feel fine. Panic started to take control and a huge lump in my throat made it hard for me to breathe. I gasped in and out, my chest rising and descending at rapid speed as I took in our dark and dim surroundings. The cars headlights only illuminated a few feet out in front of us, making it hard to know where to go next. Austin swerved left and then right, and for a second I thought he may have lost control of the car, but when I saw the clear path ahead of us I finally exhaled out a sigh of relief.

Except it was too soon.

A tree lay out in front of us a few feet ahead, probably as a result from the last few hurricanes.

“AUSTIN!” I screamed bloody murder. It vibrated throughout the entire car as he looked over at me with regret and sorrow spread all over his handsome face. He slammed on the brakes, but it was too late. We were in Gods' hands now. I instinctively placed my arms over my face to provide a false sense of protection that we would be okay. I swear on everything that was holy I felt Austin’s arm pressed up against my chest, trying to hold me in.

Choices…

Everyone had them.

The good.

The bad.

The right.

The wrong.

The moment I heard our car crash into a tree my life was forever changed...

Like the accident, my life was on a collision course of choices and like that I had to make a choice.

I put on my seatbelt.

He didn’t.

The moment I realized that.

Everything. Went. Black.

I lay leaning with my head against the seat, my legs spread out in front of me and my arms crossed over my chest.

“Honey, you need to go home and get some rest,” Mom said.

“I’m not leaving,” I replied with my eyes closed.

“Lucas, they don’t know when she’s going to wake up,” she reminded.

“I heard the doctor.”

“Lu—”

“Mom,” I argued, narrowing my eyes at her.

She sighed and nodded. “I’m going to go get some coffee, do you want anything?”

I shook my head no.

She leaned over and kissed my forehead, whispering, “She’s going to be okay.”

I wouldn’t believe that until she opened her eyes and looked at me. Dylan and Jacob had been going back and forth between Alex and Austin’s rooms. It had been three days and neither one of them woke up yet. Austin was in much worse shape than Alex. He flew out the windshield. The doctors had put him in a medically induced coma after they operated on his brain with the hope that it would help the swelling decrease. He suffered severe trauma to the head, he had several broken ribs, burns and deep cuts on his face and chest from the airbag and windshield.

Alex’s brain was swollen from her head busting the window. No operation was needed since it was slowly decreasing on its own. Her trauma wasn’t as severe as Austin’s, but she was still in a coma. The doctor said she would wake up eventually. We just had to be patient. She had four stitches on her forehead and two on her lip. She suffered minor cuts on her face, her arms and around her body. She was bruised everywhere, along with a few broken ribs.

Her alcohol level was .16 while Austin’s was .092, the doctor said they were lucky to be alive.

It was just a waiting game now.

My body was exhausted, but my mind wouldn’t stop reeling, I couldn’t sleep even if I wanted to. I would remember that phone call from my mom for the rest of my life, like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from.

“Alex is hurt. She’s in the ICU. The doctors say… Austin is in surgery. They were drinking… he hit a tree. They were rushed to the emergency room… you need to come home…”

Dylan and Jacob heard the news by the time I got off the phone with my mom and we all took the next flight out. People talk about having an out of body experience. You see it everywhere, on the news, in the paper. It seems surreal until it happens to you. I moved in an autopilot state of mind, I just needed to get to her. I needed to see her, hold her, and talk to her. I felt like if I did, everything would be all right.

As long as we were together.

When I saw her, covered in bruises, eyes closed, tubes coming out of everywhere and sounds blaring loudly from the machines, that will forever haunt me, I wanted to breakdown. I wanted to switch places with her. I wanted to make her wake up. The only piece of mind I held onto was that she was strong. She would fight. No matter what, she would come out swinging.

I taught her to.

We all did.

What blew my mind was that Alex was drunk in the first place. She never drank, it was so out of character for her. Something must have happened and I hated not knowing what that was. I was pissed at Austin for getting in the drivers seat when he had been drinking. He knew better, and I subconsciously held him accountable for Alex being in this situation in the first place. I tried like hell to not let that influence my anger toward him, but I couldn’t help it. He was supposed to take care of her.

What the fuck was he thinking?

“Hey,” Jacob whispered, walking into her room and coming toward me. “You been in to see Austin lately?”

“Yesterday.”

“Lucas…”

“Don’t,” I snapped.

“We’re all upset with him, but shit happens. He would never put Alex’s life in danger or his. He was stupid and irresponsible, he’s paying for it now.” He eyed Alex’s bed, machines surrounding her with sounds that told us she was alive. Which was ironic since the beeping noises made me realize the severity of the situation. At least that is how I felt.

“And so is she,” I added, making him turn back around to face me.

He begrudgingly nodded and followed it up with a long deep sigh. He knew I was right but couldn’t admit it.

“You going home to sleep?” he asked.

“Are you?” I countered.

He nodded again in understanding, putting his hands in his jean pockets, leaning against the wall with one foot over the other.

Waiting.

That’s all we did.

My mom walked in with Alex’s mom and Lily by their side. She was thirteen now and reminded me so much of Alex at that age. She dressed like her, put makeup on like her, was spunky like her. Half-Pint was her hero, and I couldn’t have been happier for her to follow anyone else’s footsteps.

“Hey, Kid,” Jacob greeted. Lily wrapped her arms around his waist, as he tugged her into his side. He placed his ball cap on her head. She was always stealing it from him and I knew he put it on her to make her feel better.

“Hi,” she softly spoke.

I smiled at her when she looked at me.

“Are you okay, Lucas?” she questioned. Concern and worry evident all over her face.

“I’ve been better.”

She bowed her head with sympathy, it didn’t matter what I told her. My baby sister was intuitive, just like Alex.

“Lily is exhausted. Can you take her home?” Mom asked, pulling all of us away from our thoughts.

“I can’t leave, Jana,” Mom whispered low not wanting to disturb her, even though she wasn’t paying any attention to us. She sat on Alex’s bed holding her hand.