It was like any other Saturday night. Going home from church, my dad driving, him constantly yelling at me for something I did or he thinks I did, and of course my mother tries to be the peacemaker. This is until my dad is so caught up in yelling at me he isn't even paying attention to traffic and runs through a stoplight and a car hits us dead on the side. The next thing I know I'm waking up in the hospital.

Let's take back a little shall we? My name is Aria Katelyn and I'm 16 years old. When I was a child my life was great… Until my grandpa died. My grandpa was my dad's everything, so naturally when he died my dad found a way to grieve. His way was to get drunk every night and then come home to find some little detail wrong with me. I was never good enough for him after that. Everything I did was wrong and when I was wrong I was severely punished for it. His punishment was to beat me almost to the point I was unconscious and almost dead. This man has abused me so much that at times I've thought of committing suicide or running away. Then I think of my mother... My mother is the most loving, kind, and sweetest person you will ever meet. She's my everything, so I couldn't bring myself to do either. I would just think of her finding me in the morning and breaking down. I couldn't do that to her… and I especially couldn't leave her with him. So for her sake I continue on with my miserable life and pretend as if everything's just peachy.

The night of the accident was just a typical day of my life. My dad and I were arguing about absolutely nothing and I knew when I got home I was in for it. My dad wasn't paying attention, which was unlike him, that he ran right through a red light and an eighteen-wheeler ran straight into my mom's side of the car. The next thing I know I'm waking up in the hospital with doctors and police at my side. My mom's friend Julia, who is also our lawyer, saw that I was awake. "Baby are you alright?" I looked up and down my body. My leg was broken, so was my arm, and it felt like some ribs too. "I'm alive that's all that counts right?" I said in a hoarse voice. She strained a chuckle stroking my hair. "Is there someone you want me to call sweetheart?" I looked around first trying to figure out where I was and why my mother wasn't there. "Where's my mom?" I asked a little afraid. Tears started to stream down Julia's face. "Julia where's my mother?" I asked sitting up a little more ignoring the pain in my ribs. "She didn't make it baby." "And my dad?" Again she shook her head. My parents… gone? I mean as much abuse I got from my dad I could care less if he was dead; I was kind of happy he was gone. But my mom; my world, my sanity was gone? I fought back tears just thinking of my mom's body lying somewhere in this hospital. Her dead cold body; the very body that gave me comforting hugs and helped me sleep at night when I was so angry with my dad. She couldn't be gone. I needed her, so she couldn't have just left me like that. I grab the nurse's arm that was fixing my IV. "Can I see my mom?" She looked at Julia. "Please, I need to see it for myself." I guess Julia nodded or the nurse could see that I needed to because she brought in a wheelchair and helped me in it. They took me down to the morgue, which gave me chills down my spine. They opened one of the chambers and revealed my mother's body. Immediately I turned away when they removed the cloth that was draped over her face. I couldn't believe it… I didn't want to believe it. Finally I looked and saw for my own eyes that it was indeed my mother. "Do you want to see your father too?" I shook my head. "I'd rather not see that monster." Julia took me back up as soon as she convinced me to let go of my mother's cold hand. "Who do you want me to call sweetie?" "Call Jaxs for me."

Jaxs' my dance director and history teacher. We first met through studio that she worked at part time, and then when I started high school I was assigned to her history class. Jaxs became like my second mom; if I couldn't go to my actual mother for things I could always count on Jaxs for anything.

Julia nodded and went to get Jaxs' number since my phone was destroyed in the accident. Jaxs said she was on her way but it would take her about half an hour to get to the hospital since she lives in New Braunfels. While we were waiting Julia's phone kept going off for work. "Julia go to work, I'll be fine until Jaxs gets here." "I don't want to leave you though." "I know you'll come right back. Go, check it out, and then I'll be here when you return. I mean it's not like I can leave with a broken leg, a broken arm, and broken ribs that hurt when I breathe." She gave me a look that said, "Don't be messing with me Aria". "Seriously go, I'll be fine." "Ok, but promise you'll call me if something happens?" "I promise," "Ok I love you." She gave me a kiss on the head and left. I could see the doctors looking in through the glass door. I didn't pay any attention to them. I just stared forward not really thinking of anything. I guess I was just trying to wrap my head around what had happened. I guess I was doing this for a while because I didn't even notice Jaxs looking in talking to a doctor before coming in. "Baby are you ok?" Just hearing her voice interrupting my thoughts all my tears for my mom came pouring down my face. "Oh baby, don't cry." She came to my bed, sat down, and grabbed me in a hug. I can't remember how long we stayed like that; me crying on her shoulder with arms around my shoulders rocking me back and forth. Later my tears turned into tears of hatred for my dad. She tried to calm me down as much as she could but nothing helped at all. Julia came back about two hours later and nothing helped. Finally I fell asleep I think from just being exhausted from crying. I remember waking up several times but only because of the pain I had from moving.

"Who do you want of your family?" Jaxs and Julia asked. "No one," I said looking away from them. "Aria you have to have someone." Jaxs said crawling on my bed trying to be careful. "The only person I wanted was you." "Aria you have to pick someone to stay with." Julia said. "I can't go to my mothers side because I'll get eaten alive by them and I don't want to go to my dad's side since they don't really care about me except my grandma and my grandma lives with my aunt so that wouldn't work out so well. I just want you Jaxs." I grabbed onto her. She wrapped her arms slowly around me. "How long would it take to get new adoption papers in order?" Jaxs asked.