2.
Whilst her mother made sure that all the food was packed, Annalise made sure her I-pod was fully charged. It was the only salvation she would get on this 7 hour drive to Scotland. She double checked that all her electricals where in her bag, including her car I-pod charger. She picked up her bag walking into her sisters’ room without knocking. This always got on Tamia’s, Annalises 1 year older sisters nerves, but today she was preoccupied. She was on the phone to her boyfriend.
Annalise could tell Tamis always played with chain he had gotten her on their anniversary. She would swing with the chain around her neck with her hands anytime she spoke to him or about him. When Tamia was stressed, Annalise noted that she would turn the promise ring her boyfriend also got her when they first started dating. Annalise thought it was cute but their Dad hated it.
“I love you too baby.” Annalise made a face. Tamia wasn’t an emotional person. So you could understand everyone’s shock when she bought home a boy. You could also understand how everyone nearly had a heart attack when she announced to her family proudly that she was in love. That was nearly 5 years ago now though. “See you soon, bye.” She hung up, but stayed near the window playing with her necklace. That meant she was thinking about him. She finally turned with a grin and looked at her younger sister on the bed.
“Why are you wearing jeans missy?” Tamia asked crossing her hands. Tamia knew that out of the two sisters she was more confident. Annalise’s actions were more calculated whereas she worked on impulse.
“I’m not hot.” Tamia nodded knowingly at her younger sister. She knew the real reason why she was wearing jeans, but she didn’t say mention it further.
“You look nice though.” Annalise complimented Tamia. Tamia thanked her and scrutinized herself in the mirror on more time. She threw Annalise her phone. Annalise stood up and turned the camera on. Tamia immediately put her hand on her lip and slightly pouted. She did it so naturally, almost like a professional. Annalise couldn’t help but he slightly jealous at the way she looked the camera dead in the eye. She knew that when Tamia uploaded this onto Facebook later on that everyone would comment, that all the girls would ask to wont he picture and all the boys would tell her to inbox them, knowing that she had a boyfriend.
“Girls! Time to go” Tamia and Ann shouted back to their mother that they’d be down in a while. Ann carried both their bags as Tamia was now texting her boyfriend, even though she had just gotten off the phone to him.
*
Annalise felt her mother watch her walk in her jeans. She sat in the car avoiding her mother’s eyes. She knew the second she did her mother would say something she didn’t want to hear. They had been driving for a while, only now getting onto the motor way when her mother burst. She couldn’t keep her thoughts to herself for any longer.
“Thank God you did the sensible thing and covered that God awful scar.” Annalise gulped down the tears that dared to fall. They almost did. Even if they did, no one would have noticed, over the years Annalise had learnt how to cry silently. Her phone vibrated on her lap. She unlocked it and read the message from her sister.
“Never be ashamed of a scar. It simply means you were stronger than whatever tried to hurt you.” Annalise read it once. Then over again and over again. She looked up at her sister. Tamia was having a conversation with her father as if nothing had happened. Annalise was grateful she hadn’t said it out loud. There was solidarity within the message she sent her. Tamia always knew how to deal with her younger sister. She was kind of perfect like that.
Annalise placed the ear phones in her ears silencing her parents, she could see their mouths moving but Florence + the Machine played instead. The Dogs Days Are Over. This was by far Ann’s favourite song. She could spend a day listening to it over and over again. She imagined herself running in the fields that the car was driving past at great speed. She imagined herself dancing with painted traditionalist Aboriginals in the middle of nowhere. She imagined herself diving somewhere, feeling the cool water hit her.
Tamia watched her sister get lost in the music. Her parents were complaining that they could hear her music and that she would be blind before she was 50. But none of them bothered her. They know how peacefully Annalise was when she listened to her music. Annalise would act like a person floating in the middle of the ocean. She would float perfectly still, with a look of absolute calm, only moving to blink and swallow. Tamia smiled and went back to her man fashion magazines. She was more than ready to finish university and get an internship at a law firm. Whilst there she planned to meet her gay best-friend for life. She would have a beautiful boss as well, who would not notice her at first, but eventually fall in love with her. Her life would be like Ugly Betty she imagined, except for the Ugly part.
Annalise on the other side never too an interest in fashion. She would wake up and throw on whatever was closest. The only reason she didn’t dress like a homeless person was because of Tamia. Tamia would often force Annalise to go shopping with her. So even if Ann did wear whatever she could find, it would be nice clothes.
Annalise looked to the other side, green scenery filled her eyes, the car was going at a high speed so it was all blurred, with some blobs of sheep’s and horses. The music in Annalises’ ears seemed to make the world move to her, the other cars seemed to pass at the same sound as the bass, even the cows were bobbing to her music, and she was dancing in a world of illusion in her own mind.
Two hours into the drive, Annalises’ eyes started to close slowly. She tried to stay awake as she was secretly texting her sister so her parents couldn’t hear, but she couldn’t fit it any longer.
The next time she opened she was convinced she was in a dream.
It was all silent. Slow motion even. Then Armageddon.
When she opened her eyes, her ear phones were still in.
All she heard was a messy sound, it sounded as if her mother was screaming. She was sure her mother was screaming. Her mother’s high pitch scream was the only sound that could cut through her loud music.
A fraction of a sound later, Annalise found her music once again being cut through by another engine. That was followed by the desperate sounds of a car horn. Annalise pulled her earphone out just in time to hear the crash.
It sounded like when you drop cutlery. But it was thousands of cutlery. Dropping onto a metal surface. The cutlery scraped each other creating an ear deafening sound. Annalise wanted to cover her ears as if that could protect her.
This was the part where everything was happening in slow motion. Annalise turned to her left, where her sister sat. Tamia was screaming. Annalise couldn’t make out what but she wasn’t calm. Tamia was always calm. Annalise held her beating chest trying to make out what was going on, but she couldn’t.
It was too late for Annalise to fully register what happened when the car flipped. She was too disoriented to understand what was happening. She remember being in the air, maybe for a second, maybe two. She remembered the car falling at a weird angle. It fell with most of the weight on the bottom left upside down. Annalise didn’t understand then, but Tamia was crushed instantly.
Annalise blinked. This was the Armageddon part.
Something hard was resting on her back. Her cheek felt wet, she swallowed, blood.
Annalise looked up at the night sky. She breathed in. She swallowed again causing one of her ears to pop. That was when she heard it.
The car alarms.
The screams.
The horns.
She turned to see a scene out of a horror movie.
She was confused. She was looking at fields 3 blinks ago. She was in the car safely with her family 2 blinks ago. She was flying a blink ago.
What was going on?
Sirens blared and Annalise finally gathered what had happened.
She suddenly found it hard to breathe.
“Tamia?” She croaked silently. She tried again, louder. “Tamia?” Still no reply. Annalise coughed trying to clear her throat. It sent sharp pains down her chest all the way to her lungs, but she tried again, louder to locate her sister. “Tamia?” Annalise tried again. She needed to see Tamia. Tamia would know what to do.
The next time Annalise opened her eyes she was on a higher level. She was scared to move any part of her body. Instead she darted her eyes around. She saw people in uniforms. Police, ambulance, fire brigade. She saw that she was now on a gurney. She was being pushed towards the ambulance.
“Tamia?” Annalise called out again. Her head was pounding but she needed to find her sister. She blinked.
Her eyes fell on the family car. The family car that was cruising a while ago. The nearly recognizable family car flipped upside down going up in flames. Her chest tightened. She tried to raise her neck to get a better view, to see where Tamia was standing but she found it too painful. She had rely on her eyes even though they were blurry.
“Where’s Tamia?” Annalise asked trying to steady her breathing. She asked again but it seemed that no one could hear her. She felt them lift her up into the gurney. It was quieter once the ambulance doors were closed. “Tamia?” Annalise tried again. She tried to keep her eyes open but the world started to dim around her. She tried to breathe but it felt like bricks where her blanket, the more she tried to breathe the more they appeared and they heavier her chest became. She fell into complete silence as she felt herself slip away.
Annalise was awoken by the door knocking. She jumped up from the sofa. She was annoyed she was awoken but she was happy that she had been pulled out of that memory. She obviously hadn’t made it all the way to her room yesterday as she was till in yesterday’s clothes on her sofa. Ann rubbed her eyes, muttering that she was coming to whoever was at the door. She opened the door still half asleep. She signed the package that the postman needed signing and placed it down on the floor somewhere. She had order clothes a couple of days ago so it must have been that, although they had gotten her early.
The fortune teller had somehow woken up the dreams that she had just put to bay. The nightmares, her memories seemed to be clawing back and opening the box. Annalise traced the scar that she had, a constant reminder of that day. It ran from her shoulder blade down to her elbow in a crooked C shape. She traced it again and again, as if it would disappear.