After 17

Chapter 5 - What 17 Misses

Before we get started with the chapter, I just want to clear up some things I didn't mention.

Brooke's birthday is November 21 and she gets into her car accident November 22. She's in a coma for 4 weeks and she wakes up December 21. She stays in the hospital 1 day after that before her IV gets taken out and then she has to stay 17 more days meaning that she was in the hospital for 6 weeks and 4 days total. Her last day in the hospital was January 7 so we are still in Winter at the time that she gets out of the hospital.

This was really just to lay down a bit of ground work and a bit of a timeline.

Also this chapter will be more about her relationship with her father and what her family was like before.

Thank you and I wish you happy reading.

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My bags were packed and everything was ready. My mother waited for me by the car while I moved my bags down the stairs to our doorway. As I loaded my bags in to our trunk, I thought about the stress I've endured. Before and after the coma. I thought about the questions that I had never asked about. Like what did Allison and Alissa do while I was in a coma? How long did it take for people to forget about me at school? Are they still popular at school? Who is by my side at school?

As soon as the car got on the road, I was finally calm. I haven't been calm in weeks and it felt good to finally feel ok. As my mom was driving across the neighborhood, a house stood out to me. It wasn't really the house that stood out but its address. 1717. An address only made up a number that has cursed me for a while. And again a bad feeling was shaking my bones. When we got far away from the house the shaking feeling went down but I was confused. 

I have never noticed that house before and it has no significance to me. I haven't gone there before. I don't even know who lives there. Why is that what gives me a hard time?

The side of the car had piles of chips and soda for the trip. They live in the country side of a town far from New York City so it would take a while. First, we were driving to Hadley, Massachusetts. This isn't where they live but we needed to stop and eat on the trip at some point. Then with no stops (or maybe just one stop at Dunbarton, New Hampshire) we're driving straight to Abbot, Maine. This was supposed to be 9 hours on the road (including Dunbarton, New Hampshire) and 3 hours in a hotel to rest, rather it was a hotel in Hadley or Dunbarton...but compared to what it ended up being...

The trip was way to much to take in but at the same time, it was a good type of overwhelming. The one thing it was missing was my father. He used to do everything with me but ever since he got his new job last year I haven't seen him often, and now that he and my mother are divorced, I won't see much of him at all. I'll miss his love for me, his laugh, and the way are family was perfect with him. It'll never be the same without him...

He might not be there like he used to be...

--April 18, 12 Years Ago--

"You need help, Brooke?" My father said.

He looked at me with worry as the boat was starting to shake. My foot was already on the side of the boat . With pride, I stretched my foot to the side of the boat, mother and father by my side, my foot making the boat steady.

"No Dad, I'm good."

My foot was frozen to the boat dock, fear passing through my legs. My foot was trying to move on to the boat further, finding balance for me to stand when I take my left foot off of the dock. As I stepped off of the dock, my foot on the boat slipped, causing the boat to push further into the lake and causing me to fall into the water. As a five year-old who couldn't swim, and could barely hold a doggy paddle, I thought my life was going to end.