Another one of my simple short stories. My first attempt writing with present tenses. Read, enjoy, comment :)
“What are you up to?” Shane asks. I was lost in my train of thoughts. I reply after much hesitation, “Nothing much, just lazing around.” It is just another boring weekend for me. I am lying on the hammock in the backyard, my usual spot when I’m chatting with Shane. He calls me up for a chat every weekend. We keep each other company when the other cool kids hang out at the mall or watch a movie. I glance to my left, on a dry patch of grass sits my additional mathematics homework which seems so inextricable. I let out a sigh and ask if he has done his homework. He scoffs and says, “It’s the weekend. Homework is the least of our worries.” I give his words some thought. Maybe I should do something like going out for a stroll, a run or perhaps a drive. My thoughts were interrupted by his voice , “Hey, I have to get going now. Talk to you later? Have fun!”. “Sure. Goodbye.”
I muster up some strength to get off the hammock and head back into the house. I walk past the living room and see my older brother on the sofa, dozed off with a can of Coke in his hand and the television remote in the other. I walk to the 42 inch LCD screen to turn off the television and make my way to the main door, grabbing the keys to my beat-up Beetle. It has been awhile since I drove my car since my brother has been sending me to and fro school for the past month. I have to get out of this house, this town. Today is July the 2nd. The same day I lost my parents 3 years ago in a car crash that I survived. Shane had been so kind not to mention it but he knows very well that I am still traumatized and have flashbacks of that nightmare every day since the accident. As I enter my Beetle, I think of all the places I could drive to until I stumble upon the image of a lake near the outskirts of town. It is the perfect place to calm my mind and spend the last few hours of the day. The one hour drive would definitely help me clear my clouded thoughts and enlighten my mood as the scenery along the way is breath taking.
50 miles on the road and I begin to notice dark clouds looming ahead. Funny, I think to myself, it was a perfectly sunny day moments ago. However, I do not want to turn back. I hope the clouds would clear by the time I reach the lake as I continued driving, fingers crossed. As I drive, the sky starts to evolve into a shade of grey, shadowing the sun. This cannot be good. The windows on my Beetle are jammed, leaving an opening of a few inches. A few drops of rain start splattering on my windshield causing me to turn on my windshield wipers. In a matter of seconds, the drizzle turned into a shower of rain. The droplets pattered on my car like bullets and the wind directed a few drops into my car through the opening in my window. I should have brought my car for the repair which was due 2 months ago. I still continue driving, determined to reach the lake in half an hour or so. There will be a chalet I can rent for the night if the rain does not subside.
“Oh no, it’s raining cats and dogs!” I exclaim to myself. Even with the windshield wipers on maximum speed, my vision is still impaired by the rain. Why did I not turn back earlier when I first saw the dark clouds? I slam my fist on the steering wheel as I recalled the weather report which predicted a heavy storm this evening before I turned off the television. Why am I always so oblivious? I have no one else to blame for not having any shelter in this storm. Soon, I see a sign stating that a there will be a motel in another mile. I have no choice but to seek shelter there. My journey to the lake has to be put on hold due to the unfavorable weather. Even without the air-conditioner, I still feel like I am going to get frostbites. I pull my jacket sleeves over my palms in hope that I would not get sick as there is school the next day. I start thinking of history class with Mr. White, the way he rants about students who do not complete their homework. I giggle to myself at the thought of that.
Somehow, the rhythmic droplets of rain on my roof calm me. “Just over the bridge and two more intersections to the motel”, I tell myself. I tinker with the radio hoping there would be some pop music on air so that I would not fall asleep. At that instant, the headlights of an oncoming car light up the interior of my Beetle. I swerve my car to avoid the dump truck. I let out a sigh of relieved as I realize I would have been crushed if I had acted any later. When I regained focus on the road, I saw the railings of the bridge right in front of me. I slam my feet on the brakes but my car does not stop. It skids side ways and I brace myself for impact. I feel myself flying over the bridge as my car did a somersault and landed in the river. “This is bad”, I say to myself.
I have watched enough movies to know what happens next. I try to open my door, I kick and push with all the strength I have but my efforts are fruitless. I feel my car sinking deeper. I start to panic as I feel my feet being submersed in ice cold water. I take off my safety belt and start to kick at my windshield as that seems like the only way of escape for me. The current of the river is so strong due to the storm, causing water to flow into my car so swiftly. Soon, the water is up to my shoulders. I could drown anytime now. I don’t stop kicking. I see a few cracks in the windshield but those aren’t enough. I push myself against the driver’s seat and continue kicking. The water level is now inches away from the roof. I take my last breath as my car continues sinking towards the abyss. I managed to gather strength to throw a few kicks and punches at the windshield before I feel my vision blurring. I have no more air. I need someone to abet me, someone to rescue me. I feel water pouring into my lungs as I gasp for the non-existent air. I see the glass shatter before me, most probably due to the high pressure underwater. Instantly, I see nothing, I hear nothing, I feel nothing.
