Cassie Jenkins [On Hold]

Alisikaa Jones

“Where are the other casualties?” A man poked his head out of the ambulance.

“D-down there,” Jake pointed with an unsteady finger.

There was a muffled voice of the man that had asked where the people in the car were, probably telling the other ambulance where to go.

Soon, another ambulance came fast, but not too quick, as not to slide, down past everyone. A stretcher was rushed over to my body, but just to get me away from here and off the blood stained road. Jake ran beside it, holding my cold hand, still with tears in his eyes.

“Ow,” Jake said, clutching his shoulder as he pulled himself on to the ambulance.

“You okay son?” One of the ambulance drivers asked.

“Not one bit,” Jake looked at him with red eyes.

“Your shoulder I mean?”

“Really sore, but that doesn’t matter,” Jake said gloomily.

“We’ll get that checked out at the hospital,” The ambulance driver said, closing the doors and not waiting for a reply.

There was a nurse in with Jake and me. She was looking at a clip board and writing hurriedly. Jake just looked at my still body. The ambulance started moving and tears fell from Jake’s eyes, still holding my hand. “You should ring her mother,” the nurse said. Jake looked up at her and blinked, tears dropping to the floor. “Or would you like me to?” She said, seeing his distressed face.

“I’ll do it,” Jake said in a shaky voice.

He took out his phone and typed in my name as he had my mum saved as ‘Cassie’s mum’. When he typed in Cassie, it came up two contacts, me and my mum. But what was the sweetest thing I saw, was what he had my name saved as, Mrs Cassie Woods<3’ He started at it for a while then shakily clicked on the contact above me and clicked call, he put his phone to his hear and breathed deeply in.

“M-Mrs Jenkins,” Jake stuttered.

“Yes Jake? Are you alright?” I could hear mum in a mumbled voice, as Jake had his phone turned up loud enough for me to hear.

I went and sat down beside him and hugged him as he tried to hold back his tears-

Hold on a minute. How? I looked back at my motionless body on the stretcher and then looked down at my hands and feet and everything. Jake didn’t feel me holding him but I could feel him in my arms. “What the-“

“Hello,” I heard a voice say, I turned round in response but didn’t see anyone.

It was only Jake, the nurse and mum on the phone that it could have been but, it was a girl’s voice, so it couldn’t be Jake and the nurse hadn’t spoken and it was clear, so it wasn’t mum. So who was it?

“Over here,” I turned to follow the voice. There was a girl sitting at the edge of the stretcher. “Is this you?” She looked down at my lifeless body.

“Yea...” I said, very confused.

“Alisikaa Jones,” She held out her hand. “Spelt, A-L-I-S-I-K-A-A, but you can call me Alisaa, with two a’s of course,” The girl smiled.

“Alisikaa Jones?” I muttered. “I’ve heard that before.”

“Well it’s an unusual name ain’t it? My dad named me after my mum, little sister and big brother, who all died in a car crash when I was a week old. It’s all their names together, Aaliyah, Lisa and Kayne,” She said, still smiling. “I died a month ago, I’ve got pretty used to this life now, but as you probably don’t have a clue what’s happening, I’ll explain.”

“Okay.”

“Well you see; when you die, you’d think you go to heaven or you know, the other place,” She lowered her voice.

“Right...”

“Well usually that’s what happens, to the very young or the very old. The very young, as in up to age seven or so, would go straight to where they’re going because they have nothing that is left unfinished. The very old are well... not expecting death, but are... ready for it? But you see, people around our age, have started a relationship or just ended one, or not told our mum’s that we love them enough... are you following me so far?”

“I think....”

“So I’m guessing that he,” She nodded at Jake, who was still on the phone, “is the reason you’re still here.”

I looked at Jake, who was crying while telling my mum what’d happened. “Yea, I guess he is,” I murmured.

“So what’s your name?” Alisikaa asked.

“Cassie Jenkins,” I said, still extremely confused.

“So Cassie,” Alisaa said. “I’ll meet you and explain after you get out of the hospital.”

“But how will I know where to find you?” I asked Alisikaa.

“Close your eyes and think of what you want, and you’ll be where you need to be.”

“Okay,” I said, a little confused.

“Bye Cassie, it was nice meeting you.”

“Ditto, bye Alisikaa,” I struggled with her name but we exchanged smiles all the same.

Alisikaa disappeared and I looked back at Jake, who now had his head in his hands, tears still falling to the floor. I wrapped my arms around him and cried. The ambulance slowed and we turned round a tight corner, probably turning into the hospital. I kissed him on the cheek and although I knew he couldn’t feel it, I felt it warm me up.

“Why’d you have to leave so soon,” He whispered, slowly moving his head to look at my body. Suddenly he slipped off the seat and hit the ground on his knees. He took my hand and bowed his head over me; and with closed eyes he said in a soft voice, “I need you here Cassie,” He burst into tears that broke my heart. “I need you,” He said, pausing after each word as he was crying so much.

I hugged him and cried on his shoulder, I couldn’t bare this. Just then, the ambulance slowed to a halt and there were doors slamming outside. There was a noise of a handle being pushed down and the doors opened. They pulled the stretcher out, with Jake still holding on to my hand. I followed him out. They pulled the stretcher to the automatic doors at the hospital and into a room. I saw my mum sitting in the darkened room on a chair, crying and with tissues in her hand.

She ran to Jake and hugged him as they cried freely on each other’s shoulders, mumbling stuff I couldn’t make out. Mum let go and looked at my motionless body lying with my eyes shut and still some stains of blood in my hair. “I’m sorry,” the man that was in the ambulance said to mum. Jake and mum stared at me, Jake’s hand still in mine.

“My little girl,” My mum whispered, running her hand over my arm and staring at me mournfully.

Mum and Jake spent the day in the hospital and finally left my body in their care. Mum took Jake home and I followed them to the car. I sat on Jake’s lap and hung my hands on his neck and rested my head on his shoulder. The drive was silent. Neither of them spoke to each other. After all, what would they say?

Mum slowed to a halt outside Jake’s house and let him go. “Thanks Mrs Jenkins,” Jake broke the silence before he got out. Mum didn’t reply but just nodded her head. I kissed mum on the cheek and gave her a quick hug. I went with Jake just to keep with him. Jake’s mum was standing at the door, waiting for him to come in. He walked slowly up the path and only looked up when he was at the doorstep.

His mum opened her arms and held her son while he let out, yet another burst of tears but this time, the tears he shed were quiet. He soon let go of his mum and marched up to his room and locked his door. He sat on his bed with his back to the headboard and his knees a few centimetres from his face. His eyes were red and his T-shirt was stained. He looked at his wall; there was a picture of us. He was standing behind me with his arms hanging in V with my head in where his chest was. He had his hands clasped around mine and we were smiling. It was a picture Skye took on the night of the formal. A tear trickled down his cheek and he looked down at his hands. He put his hand into a loose fist and breathed deeply. At that moment, I fell apart.