The dream always started out the same way. A rush of passing lights and the awareness of where she was as she found herself seated and buckled in the passenger side of a car. There was music, upbeat oldies that filtered through the speakers, loud and unrelenting. The windows were open, drawing in rough gushes of wind that had her hair flying all around.

Alexis was laughing. She was always laughing, a bubbling, girlish sound that mixed and blended with her friend's laughter, a chorus of gleeful sounds that was almost as loud as the music. Her gaze always averted then. Nothing seeming odd when her eyes rested on the figure of the person driving, her best friend Diana. Long black hair was twisting and dancing, some of it stretching out the window as its owner drove. Brown eyes turned toward Alexis as a hand came forward, a large bottle of Coke given to her that she could only do with as she always did. Bring it up as she took a long sip, some of it crashing back out of her mouth when once more she was filled with mirth.

There was a stain left. Alexis remembered that, the soda drenching her tan pants and spreading quickly. But she didn't care. She was too busy talking, her voice loud and excited as tales of the past were exchanged, each one more humorous than the last.

"Remember how you met Darren?" Diana spoke, changing the subject yet again.

"Yes, that was your fault if I remember."

"Hey, you may have been pissed at me then, but you gotta admit... you owe me... you owe me big time!" Her friend nudged her in the shoulder.

"You couldn't think of something better than pushing him into me?" Alexis asked with feigned annoyance.

"How was I supposed to know you were going to lose your balance, grab onto him and pull the both of you into the pool?"

"I was standing two feet away from it! That outcome should have been plausible."

"Plausible," Diana laughed, "you and your words." She continued to laugh, it building as tears came out of her eyes. "Man, Alexis, you should have seen your face when you got out! I thought you were going to kill me!"

"I should have; it was the beginning of winter. That water was freezing!" Alexis mildly groused.

"Your fault for standing so close to it!"

"It was your idea to go outside, if I remember correctly, something about a headache and a need for fresh air... how true was that anyway?"

A wicked grin appeared on Diana's face. "True enough. Those people were a drag. The only interesting thing going on that night was how Darren was staring at you... which kinda..."

"Gave you ideas... as if you need any help."

"Well, I thought it was time you had some action... of the manly kind!"

Both turned to look at each other. Alexis rolled her eyes. Diana grinned wide. A couple of minutes passed, the music once more taking prominence in the vehicle. Signs started to appear on the side of the road, ones of restaurants and fast-food joints.

"I'm hungry," Diana suddenly said, "why don't we stop and get some food."

A decision, it had been her decision in the end. Alexis knew how the thing was going to play out, knew what the outcome was going to be, even before she opened her mouth and responded. It was always the same. As if she was some sort of soothsayer, somehow she suddenly knew how everything was going to be and what was going to happen next. But Alexis could do nothing but that which had been written, that which had already passed and taken place.

"Let's continue for a little while longer, then we will only have to drive a couple more hours to reach our hotel."

Alexis always felt pressure then. It was in her hands and digging into her seatbelt. She could almost feel her heart pick up pace as it drummed loudly, blocking out the sound of the radio. The only thing she heard was Diana.

"Okay, another hour. But then you can drive the rest of the way."

That was when Alexis would find herself outside the vehicle and standing in the middle of the road. Things slowed down to a crawl as the unavoidable came to be. Alexis watched as Diana saw it first, the truck that came curving off the highway's exit to their right, a perpetual destruction of dominoes starting as it crashed into a car in front of it. The chain continued as people swerved off the curved road, everyone trying to avoid being hit from behind, not paying attention to what was going on in front of them or to the side.

"Diana!"

She heard herself scream; it came out as an echo behind her, or at least it started that way, the shout of the name ending right in front of her and leaving her own mouth. Alexis was once more in the vehicle, buckled and still a passenger. Her eyes filled with terror, the need to breathe forgotten as a small vehicle swerved and came right at them.

It was supposed to be her. It was on her side, her side! The vehicle was coming directly toward Alexis, mere moments and the whole thing was going to be over. Then her attention turned toward Diana as it always did, her view changing to take in the clenched hands around the steering wheel, the flash of movement as the wheel spun sharply to the right.

The vehicle lurched and spun, tires squealing underneath them in protest as their car stopped with a crash and then a bang. Her neck lashed backwards, the seatbelt tugging Alexis back to the seat. The air filled with horrible grinding sounds, metal against metal, scents taking over, burnt rubber and the sickening smell of fuel. She breathed in hard and wheezed. Alexis brought her head forward, pushing her hair away. Her fingers came back sticky and wet. Alexis' attention would shift then, there was never avoiding that, there was never avoiding any of it. Her vision found Diana, screaming starting as she took in what had to be each and every time, the event always ending on one twisted, painful crescendo of horror.

The saving and ending of a life.

Alexis was awake. Her throat was tight and her breathing shallow as her heart thumped hard and fast. The darkness was swimming around her, and Alexis' cot felt hot and untouchable. Shakily, she sat up and then stood. Her body was covered in sweat, defying the cold room she was in.

Moving forward, her eyes welled up. She bumped into an object and was pushed down. Crashing against the hard floor, something sharp dug into her leg. The pain had her quickly back up on her feet, a scream floating around the empty room she was in, her eyes landing on the thing that dared to be in her way.

The worktable, the one Barricade put all her tools on, the one that revolved around all the orders, demands and all the demeaning things she was forced to do. Alexis knew exactly what she was doing when she kicked the thing, when her hand clenched around the edge and pushed it with everything she had as she forced it to over turn, the tools and equipment spilling and crashing about.

She started to cry then, but that didn't stop her from picking up all the devices and throwing them against a wall, across the room and even the only source of light from above. Some glass rained down and the light flickered as it swayed back and forth. Sharp stings were present as she continued to walk. Tears flooded and she started to sob.

Alexis never truly mourned for Diana. There was too much guilt, too much remorse over what had been done and what had happened. Even after attending the funeral, there was still a sense of denial and a sense of disbelief that had her leaving the house the two shared and traveling as far away as she could.

It was just too painful to deal with. Not real. It couldn't have been real. Nevertheless, suddenly, right then, in her cell given to her by a sentient cop car, it felt real. Diana was dead. And she was alive. There was no taking it back. There was no changing what was.

Dropping onto the ground, Alexis moved slowly as she crawled to the corner. Hugging her body tightly, she continued to cry, misery, grief and anger pouring out as something imploded inside. Soon after that she heard something. The ground underneath her body awakened with a vibration of a tremor.

Alexis had company.