This is for my girl Jemaya King, she's fabulous and I had to write this for her, enjoy ;)
Young adults normally avoid waking up bright and early at any cost; but today was an exception. Students were cramming their suitcases into their cars. They were locking their dorm rooms up, all eager to head back home for the long-awaited winter break. For many it would be the first time seeing their families since classes had started. For others it would be a familiar trip home. Jemaya King struggled with her suitcase; the last of four. Her petite figure didn’t help that the fact that her suitcase was enormous.
“Bring twelve pairs of shoes, I said. It won’t be too much at all,” she grumbled under her breath, blowing her dirty-blonde hair out of her eyes.
“Let me help you with that,” Beau shouted as he sauntered over to her, in jeans and a bright blue singlet, showing off his arms. His dog tag jingling lightly as he walked. The snow on the ground around him meant nothing when it came to his clothes. He grabbed her huge suitcase and hauled it into the back of her tiny Honda without any sign of struggle.
“Oh thanks Beau, where’s your stuff?” She asked, glancing at the only thing he had clutched in his arms; two medium-sized duffel bags.
“Is that all you’re bringing?” Jemaya asked incredulously, hands on her hips.
“I’m a guy. I don’t need to change for every meal,” Beau said with a smirk, his green eyes twinkling. He pulled the door open with one hand and tossed his bags in the back. He slammed it shut with the back of his foot and looped an arm around her shoulder.
“Shall we head off, my lady?” Beau mimicked their Shakespearean literature professor, which he knew always got a chuckle out of her.
“Stop, we need to leave or we’ll be stuck in traffic. I can smell my Nonna’s turkey from here,” she said with a laugh, swatting away his kiss with her hand and walking towards the driver’s seat.
As they exited the parking lot, she started to get a tad worrisome. This would be the first time her parents would meet Beau. This would be the first time he would meet her entire family, actually. Christmas at the King house was a family tradition. Beau had transferred in from Australia for the English program at Michigan State. They met on campus through friends and have been going strong ever since. She knew that her family was more than welcoming. She had talked about him enough times. Still, she couldn’t help but worry.
Beau seemed to notice her furrowed eyebrows and creased forehead, so he turned on the radio and blasted a familiar song.
“And I-I-I, will always love you!” He sang at the top of his lungs, off pitch and in his best attempt at a southern accent. He would do anything to brighten up her mood, even if it meant looking like a complete fool in front of the cars around them.
Beau quickly peeked over at her with the corner of his eyes, relieved that she had a smile on her face, her fingers around the wheel relaxing. He hummed in contentment and got comfortable, ready for the five hour trip.
“Jacksonville, here we come!” Jemaya whooped, switching lanes as she entered the freeway and humming along to the tunes.
After a couple of hours on the road, Jemaya’s eyes began to strain. Lunch traffic was beginning to set in and it was apparent that the journey would take longer than expected.
“Stop over at the nearest Macca’s love, you need coffee and I need chips,” Beau announced.
“Macca’s? Chips?” She laughed, taunting him.
“McDonald’s and fries, you know,” he waved his hand, motioning to the exit on the right.
“Turn here? Alright mate,” she mimicked, nudging his side jokingly.
“Oh very funny, taunt the one with the better accent, why don’t you.” Beau laughed.
“Hey, you started it,” she protested, bringing her hands up as they approached a red light, stopping behind a garbage truck.
“I definitely can’t wait for-” Beau started. A horribly loud screeching of wheels was heard behind them. They both had a moment to look behind them to take the situation in. A huge truck was barreling straight towards them, spinning out of control. They would be hit dead center from the rear. There was nothing left to do now, nothing they could do. They were stuck. They would be caught between the truck in front of them; in a heap of twisted metal.
Her tiny Honda Civic seemed like a lunchbox right now. Jemaya squeezed her eyes shut. Beau felt something hold him in his seat at the very last moment, and a feeling of ease came over him. They both felt the impact of the crash at the same time, jolting them forward in their seats. The smell of metal filled Beau’s nose as he coughed. The airbags blew up, puffing in their faces.
“Are you alright? Can you hear me?” He shook Jemaya’s shoulder.
“I’m okay, are you hurt?” She yelled, attempting to look him up and down.
“I’m fine!” He reassured her, only now noticing that he actually was.
The shaken truck driver got out of his car and sprinted towards them, opening the door and gently letting Jemaya out, Beau doing the same.
“I’m so sorry! The brakes gave up and I couldn’t stop. This has never happened before,” he gushed as loud sirens blared, assuring them that police and ambulance were on the way; rushing to the scene.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Beau said, coming over the side of the car.
“I’m fine, thank God.” She had a few scratches on her face. Bruises were inevitable, but she seemed unhurt for the most part; just visibly shaken. He put his arms around her and breathed deeply, realizing what could have happened to both of them.
The truck driver took his baseball cap off, wiping the sweat off his brow. “You two are lucky, I tell you. I thought you were goners.”
Beau crouched down readjusting the snapback on his head, and pushing his straight hair out of his eyes. They could have died. They could have been dead. They should have died, logically. There was no way that they could be alive right now; but they were. He looked over at his girlfriend, perched on the back of an ambulance, talking to the paramedics. A minor cut on her cheek was being tended to. He had refused any help, except for a bottle of water. He was completely unharmed.
Beau looked over at the tow truck, taking away the mangled piece of blue metal. They were unhurt, and their belongings were not damaged. The only thing that was destroyed was the car. How was that even possible?
“Mr. Brooks, your friend is almost done, we’re just patching the last of her scratches up,” the paramedic reassured him; a middle-aged woman with a sweet smile and a motherly tone to her voice.
“Thank you,” Beau smiled gratefully, looking over her shoulder at Jemaya.
He suddenly thought back. He had felt something hold him securely. It wasn’t Jemaya, obviously.
“Alright, you’re done sweetheart, there’s a rental car service up the street if you’d like us to drop you off there?” the paramedic asked.
“That would be great, we appreciate it,” Jemaya smiled, holding on to Beau’s side. He tucked her body into his side, kissing the top of her head and holding her tight. He had a feeling she wouldn’t be letting him stray too far after what had just happened.
“You two are lucky ducks, the pair of you,” the paramedic joked as they walked toward the ambulance.
“We’re not lucky. We’re blessed,” Beau stated, sitting himself down in the back of the car.
“An angel saved us,” Jemaya added in, confirming what Beau had been thinking the entire time.
