There she is on the edge of the old rusted metal bridge in the middle of winter with no shoes or coat. She rushed to be done with the reality of life, the life that made her feel broken, lost and used. Now how she reached this breaking point is quite a story...
Annalise woke up early that winter morning ready to start the day ahead. She lived a quiet, simple life with limited social interaction. However, she liked it that way. People only brought pain and trouble, Annalise knew that first hand.
She worked at Birch Coffee on the corner of 27th and Madison street in New York. She enjoyed being around people without the hassle of making conversation. It was mostly small talk Annalise had to worry about, but the owners Marie and John were very understanding and didn't put her on the register often. They treated her like the daughter they never had; Marie and John had a son but he left home many years ago to "better" his future. Marie talks about him sometimes when he was just a small child and when he was older as well. Annalise could see the heartbreak that was in their eyes when they mention him.
She knew what it felt like to be losing someone so close, it felt like your heart is being twisted and pulled out of the cavity of your chest. She remembers how it felt to be young and free with no worry in the world. For Annalise, it has been a quite some time since she felt that way. Ever since that fateful day where everything she loved and cared about was ripped away from her in a matter of minutes.
Annalise went to work that day in a solemn mood because that night she was kept up consistently with the memories of the past. The past that she tries to keep hidden from her mind, it haunts her day and night. She just hopes that work won't match this depressing mood she was in or the next eight hours were gonna be one of the longest in her life.
When Annalise walked in through the back staff door she noticed it was a bit noisier than a usual Thursday morning. Noticing this she hurriedly took off her coat and put it and her purse on the coat rack outside the office. Annalise tied her apron around her waist and made sure her name tag laid straight on her gray blouse when she went through the door that led to the front of the cafe. Marie spotted her fast and waved Annalise over and told her that she needed a few drinks made and to grab some pastries. That was how the cafe was for many hours, when it finally started to slow down she felt exhausted.
A few more hours passed by when Annalise was scrubbing the last couple counters before she could go home when she heard John yell her name in panic. Rushing into the office to see what's wrong she saw Marie laying on the ground with John kneeling on the ground looking quite panicked. Annalise quickly got into a worried mood not wanting to lose another person she asked him if he called 911. John nodded his head and looked at Annalise and spoke to her in a meek voice and said, "could you call Nathaniel and tell him what has happened, his number is in the address book, I don't think he wants to hear from me."
Agreeing to call him after the paramedics arrived, she rushed around making sure everything was shut off and the store door was locked. Annalise heard the siren from the ambulance getting closer and closer till it was almost right next to her. The paramedics rushed in to help Marie onto the stretcher and into the ambulance before they hopped in and zoomed down the street, John followed not far behind.
Annalise knew that she had to call Nathaniel and break the news to him, she picked up the address book flipped to his name. She paused for a minute then punched the numbers into the phone, and then it started ringing. Suddenly the ringing stopped short and a somewhat familiar voice rang through saying hello.
"Hello is this Nathanial Drakos? If so I am Annalise I work at your parent's cafe and John asked me to call you. Marie was just rushed to Widows Peak Hospital, she had uh I'm not exactly sure but I think a heart attack." She waited a couple moment for a response when she asked if he was still there.
"Tell them I'll be there before eight o'clock, thank you," Nathaniel spoke in a fast tone before hanging up. Annalise could not put her finger on why that deep voice was so familiar, she just knew that it caused an uproar of emotion within her.
Annalise knew she had to get to the hospital to see if the women that were like a mother to her was okay. Widows Peak hospital was only a few blocks away which made it a walking for her. Annalise was rushing down the streets of busy New York during six o'clock rush. She was trying to stop the tears from rushing down her face, however, she knew she failed when she felt a small tear roll down her cold redden cheek. Which caused much more to rush down before she tried to wipe them away with her homemade wool scarf. Looking up teary eyed Annalise noticed that she was less than a hundred meters away from the brown brick Widows Peak hospital.
Wiping away the rest of her tears before composing herself in the last steps until she walked into the hospital , warm air rushing past her. Annalise walked to the front desk and asked the tired looking nurse if she could tell her what room Marie Drakos was in. The nurse looked up and asked politely if she was in any relation. Annalise replied and said I'm her daughter, the nurse believed her and said it was room one hundred thirty-nine.
When she walked in the room Annalise noticed Marie laying in the hospital bed with two or more wires coming out off her arm and John sitting in the chair next to the bed with his head in his hands. Annalise had to stop herself from letting any more tears run down her cold wind burned cheeks, noticing someone walked in John lifted his head to look at whoever walked in.
"Oh Anna the doctors say she had a mild heart attack, I just don't understand why my Marie out of anyone had to have it. Did you talk to Nathaniel? Does he want to see her?" John sounded hopeful.
"I'm so glad it was nothing too severe, however, yes I did talk to him. He said he'll be here by eight," Annalise responded to John who seemed to look like he just got the best news in the world. He responded with five meaningful words which were my boy is coming home.
Annalise could see the joy of his son coming home cover some of the sadness in his eyes. She wanted everything to go back to the way it was just a few hours earlier, however, she knew that wish would be in vain for once something changes it could take a lifetime to be fixed or maybe it couldn't. Annalise sat next to John and suggested that he went home to eat and shower before coming again later that night, John agreed and asked Annalise if anything happened to call him immediately. Agreeing to do so she relaxed her back into the chair and took off her wool coat and leather boots. She closed her eyes to let them rest for a few seconds, without releasing she fell asleep.
Annalise woke up to someone walking into the room, looking up she saw a face that she never thought she would she again. "Nate," she whispered hoping she was still sleeping."You're Nathaniel their son! You told me you had no family, why would you say that when you have two amazing parents who love you no matter what and miss you more than the whole world." Annalise nearly shouted it to him.
"Anna, what are you doing with my parents?" Nathaniel said with confusion dodging her questions that came out like rapid fire.
Annalise told him in a heartbreaking voice that she works at the cafe. Nathaniel was even more confused as he knew she wanted to be a preschool teacher. "What happened to teach why work at the cafe when your degree would have been done years ago."
"After my parents and brother dying my marks went down and my scholarships backed out. You leaving me right after the funeral to travel the world didn't really help either." She couldn't help the tears that trailed down her cheeks.
"Anna I know I left unexpectedly but I couldn't tell you straight out that I couldn't return your feelings anymore. I truly am sorry that I left when I did," he spoke with sincerity. Their conversation was cut short when Marie's heart machine started to beep fast, the nurses rushed in calling the doctor in as well. Suddenly the beeping stopped to just one long steady beat signifying that Marie's heart was no longer beating.
Annalise was overwhelmed with emotion first with Nathaniel confession that should have been told years ago and Marie someone that was so close to her almost like a mother had just died. She ran out of the hospital room not noticing john running in, she ran out the door down the street and to the river.
There she was on edge of the old rusted metal bridge in the middle of winter with no boots or coat, drowning in the depression and misery of life ready to take her life for once and for all. No longer thinking life had any meaning she suddenly jumped off plunging down to the ice cold water letting out a scream. Annalise felt her body touch the freezing water when everything just went Black.
