My life had becoming mind-numbingly dull, and consistently predictable. Everything was routine. If my life were a movie being watched from the heavens above, one could leave and return a week later to discover they had not missed a thing. I woke up in the morning, went to school, came home, did homework, chores, and went to bed. Even my weekends remained unchanged. The only slight difference is instead of going to school I babysat the evil twins next door. So when my boring schedule wasn't sucking the life out of me I was being tormented by the vicious demons of my next door neighbor underworld. It sucked, but it was life. I never went out or did anything, because my mother believed that if I went out and had fun I'd decide to drop out of school and shack up with a 22 year old juvenile delinquent who was so broke the only way he could eat was by stealing twizzlers from the Walgreen's he worked at. That was her mistake, and no amount of convincing would assure her that I had no interest in repeating it. My friends were probably the only thing that kept me from going insane. If I hadn't known them I swear by now I'd be talking to cotton balls with faces painted on them. My friend Desiree and I had grown up together, and I always joke that we were friends by default. Desi and I met Lena in grammar school, and the three of us have been best of friends ever since. We always did everything together, even when "everything" was nothing at all. So it was perfectly normal for us all to risk a life time grounded just for some fun. We had all decided to go on a road trip behind our parents backs for a month. They would think we were at camp, so it worked out. We all piled our things into Desi's small baby blue convertible. We were headed to California, to spend a month of freedom on the warm sunny beaches of San Francisco, away from the ties of stress and responsibility that held us down. We had all decided to take turns driving, Desiree would start. Helena was in charge of the map, even though she has absolutely NO since of direction and can't even find the house next door to hers even if arrows pointed the way. After we were completely settled in, we took off on what we planned to be the best adventure of the summer. We gossiped about boys, made jokes, and sang songs on the radio to the top of our lungs. After a while we got tired of hearing static and having to change the station every time we crossed state lines, so we decided to just sing randomly.
"Where's my next turn?" Desiree asked as Helena sat in the passenger's seat texting. "Make a left there." She pointed to an exit lane, having barely looked at the map. I was in awe of the scenery. "Are you sure? I thought we had to take a right." Desi asked leaning over to grab the map from Helena, who quickly snatched it away. "Yes I'm sure!" she snapped back. "Stop trying to be in charge of everything, I know what I'm doing." The long car ride was starting to get to her. Helena often became frustrated with Desi, who always needed to feel like she had control in situations in order to feel secure. "Fine, you better not get us lost." Desi replied. She made the left turn onto the exit. We drove for another 2 hours before I began to notice mountains, and heavy gray clouds taking form. "What did you say was the weather report for California today?" I asked Desi.
"Well it's a big state, I don't know about the whole thing." She answered back.
"Did it mention anything about a storm coming in?" I asked, slightly uneasy. "No, I don't think so..." Desi answered.
"Why do you guys always have to ruin fun by panicking about everything?!" Helena yelled at us.
"Why are you so touchy?" Desi asked, her lip curling in irritation. "I'm touchy because you guys are starting to annoy me!" she hissed back.
"Well then why did you decide to come on a month long trip with us?!" I shouted back.
"YOU GUYS! LOOK!" Desi shouted and pointed to a big hovering sign, diverting our attention. The sign read, "Welcome to Washington!" We all stared in shock. "I THOUGHT YOU SAID TO MAKE A LEFT?!" Desi shouted at Helena.
"I did, the map said to, I was-"
"NOT PAYING ATTENTION!" yelled a panic-stricken Desiree.
"WELL I'M SORRY I'M NOT PERFECT!"
"ALL I ASKED WAS FOR SIMPLE DIRECTIONS BUT NOOO!!!! YOU'RE TO BUSY TEXTING!!!!"
"WELL NEXT TIME HAVE AMINA DO IT SINCE SHE WASN'T DOING ANYTHING BUT STARING OFF INTO SPACE!"
"DON'T BRING ME INTO THIS!!" I yelled in defense.
"I asked you if I had to make a right and you said no, because you supposedly knew what you were doing! What's wrong with you Helena?" Desi said, her tone venomous . She took a deep breathe as she tightened her grip on the steering wheel. "How do I go back?" She asked between clenched teeth. It was more of a statement then a question.
Lena began to take out the map but as she unfolded it a gust of wind blew in the car through the windows. The map, our only source of direction, went flying away, completely out of reach, and out onto the freeway.
"Great. Now we have no idea where were going. Where lost, and in the wrong state, thanks to-"
"LOOKOUT!" Helena yelled, interrupting Desiree's rant.
A huge reddish-brown wolf stood in the middle of the road, as we turned of the freeway onto a side-road.
"You're going to hit him!" Helena screamed
"Just shut-up!" Desiree screamed back, waving her hand toward Lena and letting go of the steering wheel.
Instinctively, I reached over the back of her seat and grabbed the wheel, turning it left away from the wolf and straight into a ditch. Lena and Desi screamed, and very suddenly, I was enveloped in impenetrable darkness.
My body impossibly heavy, as if I was tied down with iron chains. I groaned as I struggled to open my sore eyes. Where was I? I looked around slowly. Everything was blurred. There was something different…something lingering above my head. As it came into focus I discovered it was the top of a canopy. The sheets in the bed were soft, most likely silk. And the pillows were huge and feathery. On the right side of the room was a large sliding door that led onto a balcony. A curtain covering the glass door was drawn half way. I tried to pull myself up, but my arms screamed in protest. I couldn't find the strength to move at all. There was a continuous stabbing pain in the back of my head. I noticed a needle in my right arm and saw I was hooked up to an IV. What happened? I looked down to discover my left leg was propped up in a cast; my right ankle was bandaged on top of a mound of fluffy pillows. I could hear murmured voices coming from beneath me. "Hello?" I called; my voice was low and shaky.
"I don't care; I just want to see her!" I heard someone argue, could it be Desiree? "So what if I have a concussion. I'm fine I just want to see her!" Yeah, it was definitely Desiree.
"It is important that you take things easy and rest, working yourself up is only going to add stress and cause more pain to your head injury. Please sit down." said a soft velvety voice.
"Hello?!" I called again. "Desi?!"
"Fine, I'll sit but can you at least tell me how she's doing?" she asked again.
"I will check now and let you know, but please, try to stay calm."
The voices below quieted until there was a calm stillness. "Hello?!" I called again.
I gave up. My body was tired and aching. I closed my eyes, trying to relax.
A cold breeze went through the room, and I shivered.
"How are you feeling?" said the velvety mystery voice from before. I hadn't even heard him come in. My eyes snapped open. It was almost impossible to fathom the marvelous spectacle that stood before me. "Well…um…actually…"I found it extremely difficult to speak. Looking at him made my head spin and the feeling of disorientation came over me, a combined result from the injuries and the shock of seeing him there. The expression on his face became apologetic.
"Did I startle you? I'm sorry; I didn't realize you were asleep. I just wanted to make sure you were doing all right. That was quite an accident you got into. It was a good thing Jacob was walking along, or else…" he hesitated. "You probably wouldn't have been as fortunate." he smiled. I looked down at my legs, bandaged and being held together by a cast. Suddenly the throbbing in my head became more apparent. Was this really good fortune? "Um… Jacob?" I asked, slightly confused. "Forgive me; I have been so preoccupied with work that it appears I have forgotten all my manners. I am Dr. Carlisle Cullen. Jacob is the young man who, with help, brought you and your friends to me after having witnessed the awful accident." I continued to stare at him, awestruck, as he reached for my arm and gently pulled out the needle to the IV. I took a moment to force my eyes away from his angelic face to examine his clothes. Any normal person would've come to the conclusion that Carlisle was a doctor. He wore a long white jacket with a hospital ID card clipped over his right pocket. "Dr. Carlisle Cullen M.D." was embroidered underneath the pocket. A stethoscope was draped over his neck. Underneath the jacket, he wore a black collard shirt, and dark pants. The color of the shirt was a stark contrast to his pale skin. His luminous eyes were rimmed with rich gold, accentuated by his blonde hair. I couldn't help but gasp at his beauty. Worry lines creased above his eyebrows. "Are you alright, Amina?" He leaned in and gently pressed the back of his hand to my forehead. Chills ran down my spine. "Um…I'm fine." He looked back at me unconvinced. "It feels like your running a fever. I'll need to take your temperature. Are you experiencing any blurred vision or headaches?" He asked, concerned. "Um…headaches, that's it." I answered stupidly.
"Are you allergic to any specific medications?"
"No…I don't think so." I answered.
He nodded. "I'm going to give you a low dose of naproxen. It will reduce any swelling that may have been caused and relieve your joints and muscles of any pain or stiffness you may be experiencing." He looked up at me. Any other day I wouldn't have had trouble understanding such an explanation, but in my current condition, and with the sight of him my brain had turn to mush.
"In other words…you'll feel better." He explained smiling. I smiled back; this was the most painful bliss I have ever been surrounded by. He was so angelic I honestly considered the possibility of me dying and having gone to heaven. Very cliche, I know. Carlisle walked across the room to a small desk area with a medium sized black case on top of it. He carefully opened the case and began looking threw it. "Um…, when can I see my friends? Are they all right?" I asked.
"You can see them whenever you're ready. They're doing just find, no need to worry. Desiree has a mild concussion and Helena was left completely unscathed." He said, before turning around. "And please, call me Carlisle." He smiled.