The Accident

Oh, hello there. I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting anybody else to be here. My name is Hayleigh Edwards. A little bit about me is that I'm in my mid twenties, finishing nursing school so I can work with one of the best Endocrinologists that my county has to offer, and am currently working part time doing blood draws as a phlebotomist at my dream hospital, which happens to conveniently be nestled in the heart of Memphis Tennessee, my home town.

The year is 2018, and I've been single for over a year now. You see, my fiancé- sorry, ex-fiancé, fumbled the ball and got his ass caught in bed with his coworker early last year. Four months before we were supposed to tie the knot and get married, mind you. We were together for five years and in a blink of an eye we were nothing but an aching memory. The entire thing left a bad taste in my mouth regarding commitment, so I've decided to avoid putting my heart on the line in order to keep all relationships strictly platonic.

But I guess you're here to learn about why I'm currently stuck in this state of limbo, not actually here to listen to my sob story. Makes sense. I can't recall much about the accident I was in, but what I can give you is all the details I have from when I first woke up in the morning of that fateful day to when I saw the lights that threw me into a darkness that I wouldn't have any idea how to navigate. It would probably be best if you settled in for this one, as it's quite a doozy.

…

It was a regular Thursday in the cool month of April. The frilly pink buds were already sprouting on the magnolia trees that surrounded my apartment building. The flowers that lived in the chipped clay pots on my balcony were blooming with the colors of pink, orange, and yellow. The grass was becoming soft and dewy after months of being dry and crunchy due to the cold. Spring was well into the throes of being sprung.

I woke up to my alarm sounding off from my cell phone, it was eight thirty in the morning. My mind went through a mental checklist of today's events while my body tried its hardest to stay in bed just five minutes longer. Work was going to be busy today. The local Red Cross was setting up a blood drive in my hospital's lobby, but lucky for me I didn't have to be there to help out until two o' clock. Being up and moving was the first order of business for the day, followed by whatever food I could manage to scrounge up in order to at least have breakfast before work.

I shoved the quilt off of myself and lazily dragged my legs to the side of the bed. I gently planted my feet on the soft carpet of my bedroom floor as I stretched my stiff upper body, receiving satisfying pops and cracks from my upper back and shoulders as I did so. Pushing myself off the bed, I padded across my room to the open door that led into my small apartment. I could see the sunlight that had burst through my balcony windows and was gently illuminating my kitchen in hues of yellow and white. My curtains were always open nowadays, the sunlight really giving a lift to my mood at the start of each and every day. I always felt that it made my quaint apartment feel more homey when it became flush with the light from bright morning sunrises.

I made my way to the fridge nestled in the corner of my kitchen in order to assess my breakfast options. Opening the stainless steel door, I was met with the sparse plastic shelving that seemed to be holding the last of my Greek yogurt, a single green bell pepper, half of a medium pineapple and bacon topped pizza, and a collection of mixed berries that sat neatly in a small plastic tote. Fruit and yogurt seemed to be my only healthy option this morning. I made a mental note to go grocery shopping today in order to stock up before Easter weekend cleared the shelves.

After spooning out the rest of the yogurt into a bowl and dropping in an assortment of raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries, I sat down to enjoy my morning. My phone was the main source of entertainment during breakfast. Checking the daily news and scrolling through Facebook seemed to make the time pass quickly as I brought small spoonfuls to my mouth, savoring the sweet juices from the berries as it mixed with the sour tang of the yogurt.

My phone started vibrating in my hand as I finished breakfast. My mother was calling me. It was our little ritual to call each other in the mornings ever since Cameron and I split up. I smiled down at my phone as I accepted the incoming call.

"Good Morning, pumpkin!" She said on the other line. I could hear the chipperness in her voice as she spoke. She always had a way of making every morning more welcoming with her presence alone.

"Morning, mama," I replied. "How's you and daddy doin in the new camper?" I asked inquiringly. They had just gotten a brand new fifth wheel to replace their old camper and it was a huge upgrade.

"Oh, Hay's it perfect," she squealed with excitement. "We are just over the moon enjoying ourselves with all this new space, I almost didn't know what I was going to do with it!" I hadn't been out to see their new mobile home since they parked it in their campground space. I made a mental note to go and see them for dinner when I got off work later today. It had been too long since the last time I had spent time with them.

"That's great, mama," I exclaimed! "Hey, I'm gonna come down there tonight after I get off of work to check it out, if that's alright with you?" I asked as I finished my breakfast and made to put all of my dishes into the partially full sink, making the stack of plates and bowls slightly larger.

"Sure thing, honey," she said, "I'll make that chicken pot pie you used to love so much when you were younger." That sounded amazing. A freshly baked pot pie and a night with my family, I don't know how this day could get anymore perfect.

We ended up talking for another twenty minutes as I leaned against my kitchen counter. When I checked the time it was nine fifteen in the morning, I had better get my day started before it was too late. I said goodbye to my mother and assured her that I would see her later that evening for dinner before hanging up the phone and setting it on the counter. I took a deep breath and started getting ready for my day, which included a hot shower with lavender soaps, brushing my teeth and hair, and finally putting on a comfortable pair of light blue skinny jeans, a strappy black tank top, and an oatmeal colored sweater that ended just above my knees. I walked to the square mirror that was set above my entryway table to give myself my morning pep talk before grabbing my grocery list and the pair of white slip-on Vans off the top of the shoe rack and heading out the door. Once outside, I jogged down the stairs that lead to my apartment and made my way towards the parking lot that housed my car overnight.

I drove a dark blue 2009 Toyota Corolla. My parents bought me this car when I started nursing school back in 2014 and it has continued to take me places without fail for nearly four years. There were scrapes in the paint and dents in the bumper from where I would accidentally back into small trees while at concerts, but it was nothing bad enough to worry about. I ducked into my car and started the engine so it could have a chance to warm up before I left my apartment complex for the nearest grocer's. The radio had been left on the rock and roll station previously and it awoke in the middle of The Beach Boys re-released song 'God Only Knows' as the keys turned on the ignition.

I slid into the driver's side of my car and fastened my seatbelt before leaving. My destination was the H-E-B a few miles down the road from my apartment. I backed out of my parking space and slowly made my way out towards the main road. I put my blinker on, indicating that I was making a right turn in front of me. This road wasn't a busy one, so I pulled out and continued on my way.

The sun was shining right into my eyes as I pressed on the gas to reach the speed limit. When I made it into the flow of traffic, I found myself behind a large box truck. It was kicking up debris from the road and throwing it each and every way as it barrelled down the street. Suddenly a rather large rock hit my windshield and left a huge, splintering crack in the glass that sat in front of me. Well that's a pisser, I thought to myself as I continued down the road. The crack was making the glare from the sun ten times worse, as it was now shooting sunbeams in different directions all in front of me. I could still see, but barely, I thought I could still make it to the store without any issues…

…

…I was wrong. You see, what I didn't realize was that the box truck that was in front of me had barely made it past a yellow light that I couldn't see. I had just passed the large white line meant for keeping cars from running red lights when the blaring of a deep horn could be heard to my left. I was in the middle of the intersection when I slammed on my breaks. My head had turned to look towards the honking of the horn and that's when I saw the headlights. I knew it was one of those big trucks with eighteen large wheels, as the headlights came up past eye-level, and I was underneath it. I couldn't feel my legs, or any part of me for that matter. I wasn't panicking though, which I knew wasn't right. My left hand was crushed between the steering wheel and the door, fingers lacerated with the shattered glass shards from my driver's side window. The space in front of me where my legs should have been, all I could see was a me-sized tire.

The blood had started to run from the top and sides of my head. I could hear the ringing in my ears getting deafeningly loud. I could see the sides of my nose covered in drippings of blood, covering the splattering of freckles that rested upon my face. I looked down at my nice, light-wash jeans and noticed they were stained a dark red color from my waist down. I tried to speak and it left a stinging pain in the front of my throat. My cries for help weren't going to be heard that day. My neck had been cut open from the seatbelt holding me in. That also explains the blood in my lap, the waist belt had got me there too. You have to admit, it's kinda funny though, the one thing that everyone said would keep me safe did the most harm.

The warmth is what got me though. It felt comforting, like it was beckoning me to just let go. I couldn't close my eyes, despite the blood from my brow blinding me, but it didn't matter at that moment. My breathing slowed as I calmed. Blinded, bloodied, and bound yet I was calm. The vision in my eyes slowly faded from a deep red to a soothing gray and finally the darkness felt as if it was surrounding me entirely. No pain, no tears, no worries, just darkness.

And I guess that's where we end up right now. This isn't the golden gates of heaven that I was promised as a child, but I wouldn't say I'm disappointed. After all, we wouldn't have met if all that had transpired hadn't happened, right?

The mysterious form that was listening to me started to approach. It slowly circled me, and as it got closer I could see that this was an animal. Not just any animal, this was a wolf. The canid stopped directly in front of me, so close I could feel the hot breath coming from the creature's nose, blowing steadily into my face. It opened its piercing blue eyes to look at me and I felt like the animal was staring directly into my soul, and that's when it vanished.

The darkness was now warm, just like the wolf's breath, and smelled of sweat and alcohol. I can hear someone playing show tunes on a piano somewhere. I thought I was dead, is this heaven?