Grass

October 27, 2024

Grass tickled my ears as I awoke, sprawled out under a tree. How long had I been there? The sky was dark and filled with stars and it looked as though it had been dark for quite some time. I sat up slowly and looked around. What had happened? To my right, I saw my green Chevy Tahoe, flipped upside down and smashed into a tree. To my left, I saw Bren, sprawled out on the grass, just like me. I tried to push myself up, but my movement just sent sharp pains down my spine and legs. Looking down, they were bent in strange directions, and my right shoe was missing.

“Bren! Bren!” I can hardly make a sound, but I call out to her, hoping she can hear me. “Bren! Wake up! Can you hear me? Bren!” The shock is wearing off and the panic is setting in as I try to situate myself to drag myself toward her. I hear her groan in pain and feel a cry well up in my throat.

“Bren! Are you okay?” My ears are still ringing, so I am not sure if it is her, or me, who responds with a pained grunt. Pulling myself toward her, I ache all over.

“Leh meh seep.” Comes in a near whisper, from her bloodied lips. One of them is split in half, and I press my hand to it to try to get it to stop bleeding as I asses the rest of her body. It seems as though her head was hit the hardest - both of her eyes were swollen shut and bruising was already forming on her forehead. Her hairline was cracked as well, and I had to hold back a gag because I could see all the way through to her creamy white skull.

“Bren, you’re okay, I am going to get us help. We’re okay, though. We’re okay.” My whole lower body is killing me and I start to scream for help. There has to be someone near by. It is still warm enough out that there should be campers and it is late enough in the year that hunters could already be setting up their stakeouts. My voice is horse and dry but I yell and yell until I see lights.

“They’re coming to help, Bren. We’re okay.”