Unbroken

Broken

I looked around at my life; destroyed before my very eyes. 

…

          I screamed in pure anger and frustration in the middle of dinner. I hated everyone in my life. I wasn’t kidding.

I had caught Zachary and my own damn sister Kenzie making out in my own damn room. Then my own damn parents yelled at me for dragging them out by their throats. When my own damn best friend Blue tried to make light of the situation, I got mad at her for being so damn stupid and optimistic. There is nothing to be happy about. Absolutely nothing. My own damn brother Scotty got drunk on prom and smashed my own damn car coming home.

          I’ve got a slut for a sister, a player for a neighbor, morons for parents, an idiot for a best friend, and a drunkard for a brother. Great. These days, I wish they would all just die.

          Kenzie knife-edge scream shattered the silence as the world fell into hell.

          The windows blew in, shards of glass flying. She and Dad threw themselves over Kenzie as the howling wind tore the wall away. The last thing I saw was Scotty covering me as I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking out the destruction.

…

          I woke up, pain in every part of my body. I pushed myself up.

          Our house lay in ruin. There was nothing left of it. There was nothing left of anything. My eyes filled with tears as the despair filled me. And then I saw Scotty. I screamed, ignoring the glass that cut me as I ran toward his body. I fell to my knees as I clutched his cold, cold hand. He died to save me.

          “Mom! Dad!”

          Their bodies still covered Kenzie, whose chest barely rose. But my parents were gone; my brother was gone, their lives stolen by the tornado. I would never talk to them again. I would never ever tell them how much I loved them. Because they were gone forever.

          I screamed, the tears running through my dirt smudged face.

          “No!!!”

          I fell to the debris strewn ground, unconscious once again.

…

          I woke up again in a hospital bed. I looked to my right. Kenzie was still sleeping, a jagged red scar on her cheekbone marring her beautiful face. I touched my own face, an identical scar forever linking us to the memory of the terrible events that had happened. I felt a surge of relief that she was still alive, and then sorrow so raw ran through me, tears once again came to my eyes.

            I had spent my last moments with my parents screaming insults at them. Scotty was killed so I could live; yet I had wanted him to die. He was so noble, so brave when he was everything I was not.

          I turned on the television, hoping to drown out such thoughts, but there was little I could do to escape. My breath caught in my throat as I saw the only place I had ever known brought to the ground. Lone building stood among the wreckage. There was nothing left. The reporter, his voice grave, read the names of the departed. I choked on my tears when I heard a name.

          Blue Hansen.

          She had spent her last hours being called stupid by the person she thought was her best friend. Those were the last words she would ever hear.

          There was so much remorse. I was such a terrible person. I didn’t deserve to live while these noble people died. My parents were amazing people who loved me no matter what. Scotty was the bravest, best brother you could ever have. Blue had stuck with me through thick and thin, never leaving my side. They died unhappy because of me.

          I couldn’t cry anymore. There are times when you are beyond tears, when you are in so much pain there is no room for crying. I wanted to die.

          How could I ever redeem myself? How could I ever live without shame? How could I ever become a good person after all I’ve done?

          How can I rebuild my life? 

 

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So I was inspired to write this while watching the news about Joplin, MO. This story isn't exactly based on the city, but the theme of a town being destroyed by a tornado is the same.

So the narrarator, Jess, hates her life and the people in it, but when they die, she realizes how much she had, and tries to rebuild her life and maybe even her town. I'm really happy for this story.

It's kind of funny because I'm a really funny person in real life but I can't write comedy for beans. I am way better at drama and tragedy. Eh. I'm dramatic. I guess...