“Are you sure it’s safe?” My mom asked worriedly as I threw my wallet into my purse.
“I’ll be fine, mom. It’s just a concert. I’ve been to concerts before.” I rolled my eyes, grateful she couldn’t see that through the phone.
“I know. I’m just a worrier. I’m not used to being so far away from you..” I could hear her starting to cry. A few months ago, I left Colorado to go study abroad in the UK with my best friend, Kimberly. I loved everything about my new home, but it was hard being away from my family.
“Liam’s going with us so we won’t be alone,” I reassured her. “And I’ll text you when we get home.”
“You promise?” My mom sniffled.
Liam’s car pulled up to our flat and immediately started honking at us. “I’ve got to go, ma. I’ll talk to you soon.” I hung up and grabbed my jacket. Kimberly ran down the stairs and out the door, and I followed close behind her.
We climbed into the back seat of Liam’s car. Liam was Kimberly’s step brother, and he was very attractive. He was like an older brother to me though, so he was off limits. Next to him sat his best friend, Louis. How they became friends was beyond me. Liam was responsible and protective, while Louis was sassy and rebellious. Louis and I always bickered, and Kimberly and Liam always had to shut us up. It was a good little group we had.
“I am so pumped!” I exclaimed, tightly gripping my ticket. We were off to see my favorite band, Walk the Moon, on their first European tour.
“Sooo pumped!” Louis said, mimicking my voice with an unnecessarily obnoxious tone. I kicked the back of his seat, and he turned around to grab my ankle.
“Hey!” Liam called as he pulled out onto the street. Kimberly laughed and loosened Louis’ grip from my shin.
“We’ve barely left the apartment and you two are already fighting? This is going to be a long night” Kimberly said.
I laughed and grabbed the aux cord from Louis’ hand. He started to protest, but Liam shot him a warning glance. I plugged my phone in and hit shuffle. It landed on a classic, You Can’t Always Get What You Want by The Rolling Stones. I settled back into my seat and stared out the window as we drove down town.
*****
Half an hour later, we were nearing the center of town. We found ourselves in a huge traffic jam. No one was moving, and we were getting dangerously close to show time.
“Well this is fucking brilliant” Louis groaned.
“We’ve got to find a way out of this!” Kimberly whined. “We’re going to end up standing in the back!”
“Well what do you want me to do about it?!” Liam yelled. Silence filled the air. Liam rarely yelled, and if he did, it was almost always directed at Louis.
After a brief pause, I spoke up. “Try turning onto that side street over there. Maybe it’ll get us around this mess.”
Liam nodded, and maneuvered his car across the lanes. As the light turned green and we entered the intersection, Kimberly screamed.
It took me a moment to process what was happening. One moment, we were turning right. The next, Kimberly was screaming and Louis was calling out Liam’s name. I didn’t react though. I didn’t know how to react.
I saw the headlights of a large truck heading right for me. I sat frozen in fear. I felt a rush of panic throughout my body. I felt the car shake and heard tires squeal as the truck rammed into us. I felt the strong metal of Liam’s car crumple around me like tin foil. Then, I felt nothing.
