1.

Crash! The sound of metal grinding against metal was the worst sound imaginable. My head turned itself toward the other driver, but I couldn't make- out his face. Glass flew through the air and I felt a mix of glass and metal stab into my skin. My head slammed against the wheel, full force, causing everything to numb down. The first things that crossed my mind was 1- I'm going to be late for dinner. 2- My dad was in the car with me. I suddenly realized it. I had a passenger in this car. I was in a wreck. This was not a good sign. I felt my car slam to a stop, causing me to, again, slam my head against the wheel. I, with all the capability could possibly have, turned to the passenger seat.

Dad was covered in blood. He had a nosebleed and blood was dripping from his chest. I tried to focus on him.. but I couldn't. Everything was starting to blur. I heard distant voices screaming at me, demanding if I was okay, or if I was hurt. I wanted to say "Help my father.." but I couldn't manage to say a word. I felt a tiny pull at my arm, like I was being grabbed and I heard another voice in the distance. A familiar one.

"Ronnie!" I heard my twin, Jane, say, but I couldn't see her. I could see her outline, but not her. "C'mon, honey, are you okay, girl? Please answer me!"

I felt someone feel for a pulse in my neck, and then I heard them mention that I was, in fact, alive. I heard people calling 911 telling them about the wreck, and that there was a presumably dead man in my car.

Daddy isn't dead, Ronnie, you know it. You may be stupid, girl, but you know he's not dead, I tried to tell myself. I tried to listen for them to say he was breathing but all I heard was "No pulse! No pulse!", and I was starting to get scared. I tried to see straight, to see if it was true, but I couldn't even manage to see Jane. I tried to lift up my head, but it was heavy. As were my eyes. I heard Jane say, "Stay with me Ronnie!"

I couldn't. I was tired. I wasn't about to stay here forever and not at least get a couple seconds of shut- eye. I tried to listen to the cause of the accident, but everything was becoming slurred and rushed. I couldn't focus on anything but my thoughts. My dad had the heart of a bull, and the enthusiasm of a ring- master. He can't die, for Christ's sake, he's immortal! I knew I wasn't the cause of this crash. I was watching the road, and them wham! Instantly I was getting punched out by glass and metal.

The numbness was getting worse; unbearable, even. Until my eyes closed and I was absorbed by it. It was dark all of the sudden. No lights, no voices, just dark..

Suddenly, I was somewhere else. It was a quiet, white room. White benches, white floor, white walls, white ceiling. I looked around, and saw no one. I looked down, and I was wearing a white dress, which is weird, because I absolutely despise dresses. My hair was straight and I just knew that I had no scars on my body. It was official. I was dreaming.

Frightened, I shouted, "Hello?"

It echoed off the walls and my heart started racing. I didn't want to be alone here. I never wanted to, and I never will want to. I heard a sound to my left, and I turned to see Jane. She was a friend of mine; not related to me at all, even though I had introduced her as my twin. The thing is, Jane and I could be twins. We looked alike (according to friends and family), and we sure act alike. The only difference was that she dyed her hair all types of colors, and at the moment she was a blondie with dreads. I had our normal hair color: brown.

She had tear-filled eyes, and she ran up to me, embracing me with the biggest hug I've ever received. I wrapped my arms around her tight and whispered softly in her ear, "What the hell is going on?"

Jane instantly pulled away. "Your unconscious on the side of the road. The ambulance is arriving. You were literally butchered by all the glass and shit.. Your head's beaten and bruised, and we're looking at a couple broken bones, too. Your father.. he's presumably dead.. but there's a good chance he might start breathing again.."

I gasped, "Jane you have to make sure we starts breathing, okay?"

"I know, Ronnie, I know, I'm working on it."

"Go. Go back up and take care of things.. Make sure your in the ambulance with me and Dad."

"I will. See you later, alright? Just sit tight.." she muttered and vanished.

I looked to the ground and saw a big black cat at my feet. He meowed, which sounded like a squeaky little sound; instantly, I knew this cat. His name was Mannequin, a cat we had put down when I was fourteen. Now, being sixteen, it still felt like no time has passed. Manny looked like Manny. When thinking this through, I hadn't realized my eyes were starting to cloud up.

"Hey baby boy," I whispered to him, and he replied with a little tiny squeak. I crumbled to the ground, tears running down my face like a river. He was just around seven years old when we put him down. My subconscious was being kind to me today, for if it wasn't, Manny wouldn't be here. I placed a hand on him, and stroked down his back. His purring started up like it used to when I did that, like an engine being revved. "Been a while since I've seen you, huh?"

Again, he meowed in a response, and he fell to the floor, still purring. His beautiful eyes closed in comfort. I was jealous at that moment. I wanted to feel comfort and stay at ease, but then again, Mannequin isn't living. He's dead. Once again, everything started to blur, and Manny disappeared. The numbness swallowed me for the second time.

My eyes opened, immediately hearing shouting and different slurred sentences. And as everything started getting sharper, I heard "she's back" from one of the paramedics. I heard Jane's voice from the background. Then, the numbness subsided and my sight and hearing wasn't the only thing sharp I felt. I couldn't move, and I felt everywhere the shards of glass had made contact with my body. I felt where I would have broken the bones Jane had mentioned. Now, all I wanted was a shot or something to make me numb again or put me into a deep sleep.

"He's breathing!" another medic said, and right on time I heard the monitor attached to my broken father start beeping. That part of me that gave a rat's ass about something that didn't have anything to do with all the pain I was in sighed in relief.

Jane murmured to me, "Did you hear that, Ronnie? Your dad's breathing."

I tried to give the most enthusiastic smile I could manage, but that wasn't much. Jane let out an exhausted sigh and grabbed my hand, holding it like something from your granny's china cabinet; delicately. At the same time, she was holding as tight as she could without hurting me. Her eyes were still cloudy, and she looked a bit sick. I tried to squeeze her hand, but it wouldn't work.

Jane started sniffling, and wiped little tears from her eyes. I frowned, or, felt my mouth crease into a frown. Jane's phone started vibrating, and she took a long, deep breath. She clumsily dug it out from her pocket, and she took on look at the caller I.D. A look of disgust slid across her face. She flipped it open. "What, Jack?"

My hand stiffened. Jack? Jack was my big ex. The oldest, tallest, cutest, and the baddest. He was your everyday bad boy. But the only thing I typically asked myself about him, was how in the hell did he get Jane's number. Somehow he did. He might have gotten it from his sister, Kara. I wanted to scream or take the phone from Jane, say "go to Hell", but I didn't have that kind of strength or energy. So I decided to put my energy into thinking about my dad.

Daddy was a tall, handsome man. He always had a five o'clock shadow, and unnatural bleach-blonde hair (a.k.a blonde with a lot of white hairs). He always had this smile that gave you a weird feeling, like he was saying "don't do something you'll regret". Jane got that vibe from that smile, too. He was also a very fit man, muscular and active. He was in his late thirties, and his name was Donald Void, but everyone calls him Don or Donnie (hence my name is Ronnie Void, but since I'm a girl, my name isn't Ronald).

I remember the first time he gave me that weird little smile I mentioned a moment ago. I was about to go on my first serious date with my first serious boyfriend, Jack (also mentioned above). I was fifteen, and my dad said "be home by ten", and there was that cursed smile. I was familiar with it by then. And I gave him that typical teen "roll the eyes" routine. I regret that routine now that he's beside me, barely alive.

Back to reality, I remembered that Jane was on the phone with Jack. I listened to her telling him to "screw off" and to "leave Ronnie the hell alone". But with an exasperated sigh she told him where we were and how I was doing and how the crash had happened (a drunk driver him me and my dad head- on and he died on impact). I still lay practically lifeless in the ambulance, just wishing, hoping, that one of those medics would just give me something to put me to sleep. Something to make everything go away. I think Jane saw that in my eyes and immediately just hung up on Jack. She tried to give me a comforting smile, and God, I wish it worked.

She still had her hand in mine and she lightly squeezed it, but immediately pulled her hand away when I flinched in pain. She sadly looked at me, with a look that told me she didn't want this for me. That she'd rather it be her. And I didn't blame her; it would've been the same way had the positions been switched to me being the one beside her while she lay in an ambulance. I knew it was hard on her to see me so.. broken. It's a twin thing.

One of the medics, a serious- looking guy with a mustache, leaned down to talk to me. "We're going to give you some medicine that's going to make you sleep, okay, sweetie?"

I nodded (half-nodded), and with a hoarse voice mumbled, "Y-yes.."

He held up a needle, and his partner put some alcohol on the target. I closed my eyes, and then I felt the needle enter my arm, pushing in the medicine (which hurt but it wasn't too bad), and then I entered the deepest sleep I had ever yet entered in my life.

2.

It was a couple days until I had awoken from the sleep injection the medics had given me. Amazingly, I didn't even feel any immediate pain. I can't say the same for a couple minutes after, but the surprise was no immediate pain. I was also free to turn my head, as dull and boring as that sounds, it was exciting for me. I happen to love seeing every aspect of life I can without looking straight- ahead. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a nurse mall-walking toward me. She was a big woman, sweet face, but she had a bit of a feisty tinge in her eyes.

She went to the foot of my bed, tugging at the clipboard attached to it. She then looked up at me, and asked, "Ronnie Void?"

I nodded. "Yes ma'am.."

She gave me an orientation on visit hours and the life I'd have around the hospital, and how to work the TV (most important part of her never-ending speech). She introduced herself as Nurse Alice, and under strict instruction, made sure I knew not to call her ma'am ever again. And after that, I practically knew I'd regret it if I did, no matter what state I was in. I looked up at her face again and she smiled a fake smile, and ran a hand through her red hair.

She walked to the opening, and motioned someone in. No doubt in my mind that it was some visitors here to see me. Within seconds, familiar faces flooded in one-by-one. Jane, Kara, my other friends Penny, Delilah, and Alice. All delighted to see me, but all avoiding the topic of my father. It wouldn't normally worry me, but it went on for a long time. All the talk of the crash but not even saying a word about him. I started panicking in my head.

Where's my dad? They haven't even said one word about him! I shouted to myself. It became too much, and I actually said it. "What's happened to my dad?"

Alice was the only one who even bothered to answer, but before then she even nervously jerked her head around to double check to see if anyone was gonna say anything, "Well... Um.. He's not in the best condition. I mean, he's really cheerful and everything.. But.."

Penny nervously slapped Alice, but for as long as I've known Alice, it came back to bite her. After all, she was on the soccer team and had reflexes of a ninja warrior. Immediately, Alice punched Penny's arm with as much force she could. I glared at them and they stopped just as fast as they started. I knew Kara would be the one to tell me, so I gave her my puppy eyes. She looked into them, turned away, then back into them, cracking under the pressure to keep this thing about my dad secret. I wouldn't let her. I needed to know this.

"Kara. What happened to my dad," I whined pitifully.