I tugged my coat closer around me, trying to shut out the biting cold. I hate winter and I love it at the same time. There's an eerie beauty to it, to all the death and stillness that occurs in that time of the year. But then there's the cold. I can't handle cold. I must have the worst circulation in the world but every year it's a bit of a struggle to deal with my increased potential for frostbite. Anyway, it happened when I was walking home from the library. It was my birthday, and I was contemplating whether my cold intolerance was due to my being born right in the middle of winter. Literally, my birthday is the 21st of December, which is usually the winter solstice.
I remember I had my iPod in my ears on repeat. I was listening to this version of an Adventure Time song I found on Youtube. So with Marceline's lyrics ringing in my ears and my soul, I tugged my bag and guitar up higher on my shoulders. I trudged out of the warmth of my daytime sanctuary, heading for the train station. My parents died in a car accident when I was little. They'd been out to the theatre for their anniversary and as they were crossing the road to go into the car park some maniac, high on god knows what, pulled a hit and run. They said I was lucky I had been at home with the babysitter; I didn't feel lucky. Since then I'd been at a children's home in London, but finally today was the day when I was old enough to leave. I'd been looking for somewhere to stay for a long time, and my parents' inheritance would cover enough for this cute little studio apartment on an alright side of town. It wasn't that I had a problem with the home, it was just...
Getting back on track, I had made it all the way to the dual carriageway, but I was stuck on the wrong side for the station. I always used road crossings. It was a thing I had always done. Partly out of fear, but also from simple caution. I had nothing to prove by sprinting dangerously across roads, so I took the sensible route and used the crossing. Always. Except that one day. I was cold and the wind wasn't letting up, and walking all the way up to the crossing only to have to walk back down on the other side was just such an inconvenience. I figured one day out of the six thousand five hundred and seventy in my life, I'd be fine. What are the chances, right?
Wrong. My family is cursed or something. I hadn't accounted for side roads. Initially all was fine; I made it across the traffic coming from my right fine, but then as I crossed the traffic coming from the left, I saw this huge sleek black thing that was probably killing the environment all by itself. The car was pulling out from the little road for the station car park with the only problem being that the driver was looking back over his shoulder to make sure there he wasn't cutting anyone off. He pulled round that corner at some speed and put his foot down to make sure he wasn't hit from behind by traffic coming after him.
It was too late for me to just turn back, so I did the thing I'd promised never to do. I just sprinted and hoped for the best. Because of course my basketball toned legs would be enough to outrun an idiot in a huge car. The guitar solo in my ears reached a crescendo as the burning in my legs and my lungs intensified. I knew it was going to happen. It's like time slowed down enough to let me comprehend my inevitable demise. The car was too close and I was too slow, and as my mind caught up to that fact, time sped right up again and I was airbourne. The left half of my body felt very strange, like I'd been slapped so hard the pain didn't quite register yet. And then I blacked out.
The song mentioned is watch?v=-PKSLLiS3JQ&list=PLb_ng8NZe_uZ5ZQ64RvzuOXjimb_hoSsO this version of "I'm just your problem"