Paraplegic (COMPLETED)

Chapter 11

She stops in front of the prepackaged pizza rolls and opens the freezer door. "I'm not mad. It's just—" She tosses the pizza rolls in the cart. "I really wanted to get accepted. Since I was six-years-old, I've always had the mindset that I would one day make a difference in the world: discover new planets, cure diseases, fight world hunger. And I really thought getting into this school was my ticket to greatness." She hangs her head. "I guess I was wrong."

I rest my hand on her shoulder. "You don't need a college degree to make a difference, Rora. Take Henry Ford for example; the guy didn't even graduate high school for crying out loud, but that didn't stop him from being the founding father of the automobile. Or the fact that Steven Spielberg was denied acceptance into film school, but such a setback didn't faze him in ultimately becoming the co-founder of DreamWorks Studios. And Abraham Lincoln didn't even know how to read or write until age twenty-three, but that didn't prevent him from being the most lovable U.S. president who ever lived."

"Hmm. No, that would be Teddy Roosevelt. Ya gotta love Teddy." She looks down at the bag of pizza rolls in thought. "I'm doomed to be nothing more than a pizza maker, aren't I?"

"Que sera sera, Rora."

"What does that mean?"

"It means 'What will be, will be'. We can't predict the future any more than we can change the past. And if you do turn out to be nothing more than a pizza maker, then that's one pizza I would certainly eat."

She places a hand over her heart. "That is the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. Thanks, Bestie."

I laugh and wrap my arm around her neck. "Whaddya say we go home and take these pizza rolls and ice cream up to my room and watch a chick flick?"

"I'd like that very much."

* * *

As we make our way to the checkout, we find that the line is several people deep, so we decide to use the self-checkout machine instead. Aurora slides her items over the electronic scanner and I bag them for her. A harsh beep sounds as she slides her credit card through the machine. "Huh? That's weird. It says my card's been denied." She tries again, but the same result occurs. Her bottom lip curls inward.

"Here. I'll use mine." I slide my card through the machine and it gets accepted immediately. "It was probably just a glitch or something."

"Yeah. Probably." She walks out of the store with a concerned look on her face.

As I navigate the Mustang back home, I rack my brain as to how I will get this car back inside the garage unnoticed. I really hope father doesn't decide to work out there later; he may smell fresh exhaust if he does.

I check again to see if Xander has texted me—still no new messages.

"Must you do that now?" Aurora moans. "Can't it wait until we get home?"

The rain is starting to pick up now; big, fat raindrops pelt the windshield.

"I'm just checking to see if I got any messages. Chill, okay?"

"Chill? It's raining cats and dogs right now and you're on your phone!"

"Fine." I drop my phone inside my purse, and as an added bonus to appease her, I switch my windshield wipers to a faster setting.

A minute later, the sharp notification whistle of my phone goes off. The twisty knot in my stomach is telling me I shouldn't pick it up. Aurora's right; it is raining pretty hard right now. The sky is canvassed with ominous looking clouds. It's only a quarter past four in the afternoon, but the storm makes it appear a lot later in the day. But what if it's from Xander? I've been anxiously waiting to hear from him as to why he wasn't at the cookout. My curiosity is getting the best of me; I need to know if it's him! I'll make it quick. If it is him, I won't even reply right now. I'll wait until I'm safely home to reply.

I take my eyes off the road for less than two seconds and reach for my phone; the steering wheel shudders as the tires slide on the slick asphalt. I tighten my grip with my left hand, fingers sliding in between the grooves of the steering wheel, and use my other hand to withdraw my phone from my purse. I flip the lock screen aside with my thumb. Yes! It is a text from Xander. I quickly read it, consciously switching my vision back to the road every couple of seconds.

Aurora's scolding tone breaks my focus. "McKenzie, what did I just say?"

"I know, I know. Just give me two seconds. Xander invited me to a party at his college. Can you believe it? A party! It's next Saturday night."

"Next Saturday night! Kenz, Duke University is in North Carolina. That's over a thousand miles away."

"I know, but Xander said he's leaving a day early and offered me to carpool with him. I just need to write a quick reply." I know I told myself I wouldn't, but I'll make it quick.

I begin a reply; my fingers fly over the touchscreen. I first thank him for the invite and let him know that I, of course, would love to go to the party with him, while consciously checking the road every couple of seconds. Aurora's body stiffens with fear. She's such a baby. It's not like I'm going to let anything happen. I'm a good driver. A little rain can't overpower me.

I finish my reply. There. That should do it. Wait. I'll put a cute winking emoji. Done. Now I just gotta hit send and—

"Watch out!" Aurora's panicked cry startles me into action.

The red glow of taillights zoom towards us. I slam my foot on the brake pedal—the brakes lock up, tires squealing; the steering wheel twists and jerks itself as it tries break free of my grip. The fender of the Mustang misses the car in front of me by what can't be more than a couple of inches. The phone is thrown from my hands and hits the floor somewhere by my feet. The tires continue to squeal. I struggle to keep the steering wheel under my command, but I can feel it slipping. As if it has a mind of its own, the car veers off the road and onto the grassy sideline. The soft turf is even slicker than the asphalt. My feet rapidly switch back and forth from the brake to the gas pedal in attempt to regain control, but that only makes things worse. As soon as the tires hit the grass, the front end jerks to the right. Aurora screams in terror. I find myself struggling to contain my own fear. We're helplessly tossed around; our seat belts tighten over our chests.

We're gonna die. We're gonna die! I'm panicking. Don't panic, McKenzie!

The rear end of the car spins around; the entire earth swirls around us like we're inside a tornado. Fat raindrops viciously attack us from every angle, splattering each window to the point of no visibility.

Somebody help us!

The grass is filled with potholes and the car bounces across the unlevel terrain. Metal grinds against metal. The veil of raindrops folds back for a split second as the image of a tree slides into view. The nose of the car stops instantly as we crash into the base of it. The impact sounds like a gunshot. My whole body is thrown forward and then yanked back as the airbag collides into my face.

I can't think. I can't—I can't breathe. Wh-what happened? My head—it hurts. I can't see—I can't. Rora? Aurora? I can't—I can't move . . .

***Enjoying this story? Please vote, comment, and tell your friends because the kind people at Wattpad love to see activity. And cheers to you for taking the time to read my book!***