Roman Hawthorn's Story

It was one of those days. The kind of days in which Roman felt the absence of his mother more than what his chest could bear. The morning had started off with looming clouds. Angry thunder rolled through the sky in such a way that reminded him of his father during one of his tantrums. He'd been quick to barge into Roman's room, nostrils flaring at the sight of his son still in bed. Each morning brought a new cascade of insults with which Roman was pulled out of bed and into a specially tailored suit jacket. The man carried on as he left the room, something about important meetings and clients to impress. The phrase itself wasn't said out loud, but all Roman could hear was "Don't be your usual disappointment.'

Raindrops pounded against his second-story window, his hazel eyes taking in every aspect of the scene. The idea graced his thoughts yet again, one he'd been contemplating for months. His mind waddled between common sense and insanity as he made his way down the stairs and into one of his father's company cars. The sound of the rain was deafening, and the clouds seemed to call for him as he glanced up at the sky. He knew she was up there somewhere, waiting for him. Today would be the day he could finally reunite with her.

The black sports car sped onto the slippery highway, its wet tires rubbing against the pavement. His busy thoughts focusing on only one thing, the idea of embracing his mother pounding so loudly in his head that he'd missed the outline of a person that grew closer to his bumper. He slammed on the brakes and the screeching of his tires echoed in his eardrums as the vehicle began to spin out of control.

Alex saw the car before he really identified it as anything. It was coming straight towards him. His body's instincts told him to run, to get out of the way, but he couldn't for three reasons. One- he was too terrified to move. Two- it was too late to get out of the way. And three- he was finally ready to die.

The impact hit him hard, sending him backwards and making him double over. His head hit something hard and he saw stars, the world spinning around and around as he stumbled down the tiny hill into the ditch. He felt the warmth of blood running down him from who knows where, and he realized he wasn't dead yet. Through hazy consciousness, his hands found his neck and were about to squeeze when he completely blacked out, his head leaning to the side.

"Hey! Someone call 911! Somebody crashed their car, and there's another kid lying in the ditch!!" a man called. Another bystander pulled out his phone and frantically dialed 911, asking for an ambulance for the two boys. The first man peeked into the car, seeing Roman, and tried to figure out if he was alive. Traffic on the highway slowed down, and several more people came to inspect the situation.

Roman never meant to harm anyone. Anyone aside from himself, that is. But the indistinguishable figure came out of the shadows as if it'd been wanting to be hit. Regardless of how hard Roman tired to take control of his car, the wheels screeched their way down the rain covered pavement. There was a loud thump, after which Roman was convinced he'd hit someone. The car then continued to spin until it collided with a large semi-truck up ahead.

Roman's body was jolted forward. His head smashing against the steering wheel. Shards from the shattered windshield fell around him like snow crystals as he faded into unconsciousness. For a while, it was nothing but darkness. Regardless of which way his eyes turned, Roman could see nothing but black. But just as quickly as the dark had come it vanished, taken over by a bright light revealed the silhouette of a woman. Her long hair danced with the window, and as she stepped closer, her features began to form. Mom?

Had he done it? Roman could only think of the possibility of having been reunited with his mother, but the more he tried to speak to her the harder it became. She said nothing but simply brought her index finger to her lips before mouthing the words I love you, Roman. And then all at once, the light behind her began to grow brighter and brighter until he could no longer see her face. Though he attempted to call for her, no sounds left his throat. There was a stabbing sensation in the back of his head, and as he blinked the bright light away, his surroundings began to come into focus. He was no longer in his car, nor in his mother's arms, but instead was in a hospital room.

Alex didn't feel anything at all after he blacked out. He felt like he could see, but it was all dark- he was floating at the bottom of a black abyss. He tried to call out to anyone, but he couldn't hear a single sound. The words never came out of his mouth. 'I must be floating down to hell...' he thought, feeling a sinking sensation throughout his entire body.

A bright light opened up at the top of the blackness. He felt pulled to it, but it felt wrong- like it wasn't going to let him die. He tried to fight it, to push himself farther down, but his body didn't move. He saw something at the end of the tunnel of light... his dad. He'd never seen his father before, but the man looked kind...unlike his mother, who held a knife at him every chance she could get.

He reached out to try and grab his father, and his body finally moved. However, he passed through the older man's body- still heading straight for the light. He tried to flail around and go back down, but his father smiled at him. "Keep going, son," he said. "You still have life in you."
The darkness faded and Alex opened his eyes, not moving but looking around. He appeared to be in the hospital, lying in a bed- and next to him was another bed, also holding a person.
"I didn't...die..?" he mumbled hoarsely.

Overting around him was becoming one collective headache for Roman. The lights were too bright, the sounds coming from the machines were too loud, and his body felt as if it was one giant bruise. He hadn't bothered to look in the other bed's direction, mostly because the pounding headache made it impossible for him to focus on anything else. But the moment he heard a voice, his head turned slightly.

He winced at the paralyzing pain that ran from his neck down to his lower back. Blonde locks fell over his red-rimmed hazels as his head turned, gaze examining the boy beside him for the first time. For just a split second, that image of the shady figure that suddenly appeared in front of his car flashed over his eyes. Was this it? Had this been the unknown figure he hit? Before he could continue to wonder, the door opened. A woman in scrubs appeared first, followed by the last person he wanted to see. "Roman! Oh thank god you're okay?" The blonde had to practically force his eyes to not roll into the back of his head and he forced himself into a sitting position despite the pain and the nurse's protests. "Get out."