the girl on the tire swing

p r o l o g u e

*SIX DAYS AFTER THE ACCIDENT*

Hurt. That's all the young boy felt as he groggily opened his eyes, only to find himself staring into a bright light. He wondered both what the light was and where he was, but he couldn't find the right words to say. Looking around, he saw a machine that led up to his nostrils and mouth, though he couldn't quite think of what it could be for. His head was also painfully numb and his stomach felt as if he had been punched.

Right then, a woman came in with scream lines that made her look fifty, even though she hadn't even reached forty yet. Tears fell down her face as made her way to the boy, saying something that didn't quite reach his ears. She quickly pulled him into a hug, kissing him all over. This woman obviously loved him so very much. The boy couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he was sure he'd seen her before. It was right on the tip of his tongue...

"Ryder, I missed you so much," She cried into his chest. Ryder, he thought, who's Ryder? Nothing was quite clicking right with him. Hell, he couldn't even remember how he got where he was. Or where he is, he doesn't know that either.

"Ryder?" The woman lifted her head and looked into his dazed eyes. She began to cry even more as she realized that something wasn't right. But, then, as if a memory or something had been triggered by the woman's eyes, a voice awoke inside of him.

"Mom..ma?" The boy asked tiredly. The woman's depressing face quickly turned into one of a smile... but suddenly, the smile faded.

"Momma? You haven't called me that since you were..." The woman's voice trailed off as a tall man in a white coat came in. In his hand was a clipboard and something was written on it that Ryder couldn't quite figure out. The woman's tears came out once again, freed from their previous container.

"Mrs. Montgomery," The man's noticeably deep voice began, "I'm afraid I have some bad news. The test results have gone back and it appears... that your son has retrograde amnesia."

"W-well, what d-does t-that mean?" She choked out between sobs.

"Your son has long-term memory loss. We're not sure how much he's forgotten, but it could be anywhere from birth to 2 weeks ago. We're terribly sorry..."

The woman began to cry harder, leaning on the boy's stomach. "Surely you remember your b-brother... right?" But no, he had never realized anything about a brother until she said something. That said, he still had no idea of even a name. He shook his head, unable to say anything.

"How long ago was your son born?" The man in the white coat asked the woman, taking notes on his clipboard.

"He was born... six years ago..." The woman's sobs became uncontrollable. "And he died six days ago.."

*Hi I really hope you like this chapter!*

**I would like to note that the gif is how old Ryder's going to look in the story, not nearly this close to the accident...**

***Love you all, thank's so much for reading! Likes, comments, and follows are always appreciated!***