Black Ice

Chapter Four

"You don't always need a plan. Sometimes you just need to breathe. Trust. Let go. And see what happens."

~Mandy Hale

*****

The next morning, I leave the hospital. 

Mum isn't there. She has some sort of big meeting with her birdwatcher's club, which roughly translates into: She needs to go buy a new dress for her date to the club that's opening tonight. I do appreciate her sticking up for me yesterday, but it was to no avail, and now I find myself resenting her behavior again. 

No; I can't do this. Mum is Mum. No use getting angry. 

My best friend/surrogate sister, June, meets me by the car, and she hugs me, her eyes gleaming with tears of joy. "I thought you were going to die." 

There's a lump in my throat the size of Alaska. "So...so did I." 

My mind flies to the old man in the hospital. I am going to die. So is he. My heart aches. 

I suppress this wave of emotion and slide into the backseat of the car. "Why no limo?"

"I thought you'd like this better," June smirks, patting the side of the car. 

I give the interior a once-over. "Um, a rusty Yugo? Do they even make these anymore, or did you dig it up just for me?" 

"I dug it up just for me," June corrects, slipping behind the wheel. 

I gape at her. "You're driving?"

"While you were taking your nine-day-nap, I got my driver's permit." 

I frown. "Oh, I see. Instead of weeping over my lifeless corpse, you were out running over old ladies in a crappy Yugo?"

"Pretty much. Wanna know the best part?"

"Do tell." 

"I'm sixteen next month, midget. I don't need to ride with adult supervision!" She grins and starts the engine. "I'll have you home in twenty minutes." 

*****

We're home in seven minutes, mostly because June drives like a maniac. 

I leap out of the car and immediately puke into the flowerbed. June climbs out of the car more slowly. "Is that a side effect of the pain meds they have you on?" 

"No," I mutter, wiping my mouth. "It's a side effect of your driving." 

She throws her hands in the air. "Hey, now, girl. Don't be hating on the Yugo." 

"It has fuzzy dice hanging from the rearview mirror."

"I'm just gonna block out everything bad you say about my baby." June moves to the trunk and pulls out my bag. 

"You do that," I reply, not really focusing anymore as I turn to my home. It's good to be back. I think of my room, warm and cozy and personal. The walls lined with posters of my favorite boy bands. The bed covered in knitted quilts from my grandmother. A picture of me holding baby Ben on the nightstand. 

I am home. For the first time since the accident, I feel calm. I feel whole. Now I just need to see-

"Ally?" 

Oh, my god. There she is, standing in the doorway. She never did end up seeing my in the hospital - Mum probably didn't think she should see me like that. And I'm glad. I wouldn't have been able to take it if she were there. But now...now I need her.