Dare me to love you

Prologue - valeria

My heart palpitates faster with every passing second, I can no longer hear the screams of my parents only the silent screams of my own mind.

It's only when my head is hurled against the back of the driver's seat that I am shaken from my trembling thoughts. It takes all the strength in me to lift my hands up from my lap and move my head to the headrest. I try to open my mouth to speak, but no sound comes out. The only sound I can hear is the echo of my parent's car colliding with another. I open my eyes to examine the damages when I see my parents slouched forward into the windscreen not moving. Out of impulse, I carefully jump out of my seat, to check that they're still breathing whilst also making sure not to step on any of the shattered glass. I grab both hands and place two of my fingers on each of their wrists. Nothing. Instead, I place two fingers on their neck. Nothing.

No, no, no, this can't be happening they have to be alive. I reach my hand into my pocket and pull out my phone. I punch 911 into my keypad and wait for an answer. "Hello, this is 911. How can I help you?" It takes me a few seconds to remember how to speak. "Yes, hello, I really need your help, my parent's car was just crashed along Highway 1. They're not breathing anymore, and I don't know what to do." There's a short pause on the other line before someone answers. "Ok, stay there and don't move. I'm sending help to you now, they should only be a few minutes." Those few minutes may have been the longest minutes of my entire life, and the worst part is that they meant everything and nothing at the same time.