THE RAVENS

prologue

- a l i y a h -

It was Christmas Eve, we were driving to my Grandma's place. The roads were icy, my Dad had to be cautious while driving. 

'I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing' by Aerosmith was playing on the radio, my parents were jamming out to it. I looked out the window and admired the white trees and banks of snow as we drove by. As a kid, winter was always my favorite season. I loved making snowmen and having countless snowball fights with my Dad (he always won). I was 14 at the time, my Dad had this tradition where he would count the days 'till my birthday which was on Christmas day. 

My parents were high school sweethearts. Both falling in love at the age of 17, getting married at the age of 23, moving into their new home at the age of 25, and having me at the age of 27. I admired them, and I wanted a marriage just like theirs; filled with love and trust. 

As we drove into a new subdivision, we collided into a truck.  The truck came out of nowhere and both vehicles began to lose grip on the road and collided, causing an unfortunate tragedy.

I woke up in a hospital. My Mother was in another room. I remember being confused and scared. A nurse walked in and asked how I was feeling, I told her I was feeling fine. I then asked her where my parents are and what happened. 

"Aliyah, unfortunately, you and your parents collided with a truck, sweetheart. You won't be able to remember what exactly happened since the incident has caused minor brain damage. However, you will slowly begin to remember and recap what happened over time. Your Mother is in the other room, she has survived and is doing fine, but she did lose a lot of blood." The nurse explained to me. 

"How about my Father?" I asked. She looked saddened, and her soft blue eyes were filled with nothing but pity. There was a long silence before she answered. 

"I'm so sorry. Your Father didn't survive the crash." She said. 

"No, t-that's not right. If my Mother was able to survive the crash then my Father had to survive too. You see, that's the way things go around my family. We fight through things together, even if it means death. M-my Mom can't live without my Dad. They are one, and as a family, we are a team. Without him, what will we be? How could we manage? We need him."  I said as a tear slipped down my cheek.

The nurse looked even more saddened than before, she didn't know what to say. 

It was silent. 

"I'm so sorry sweetheart." She said after a long pause. 

I looked at her, tears escaping my eyes and I couldn't accept nor believe a word coming out of her mouth. I simply couldn't. I stood up and walked out of the hospital room, looking for my Father, calling out his name. People must've thought I was crazy but I didn't care, I just needed to find him. 

"Aliyah?"  My Mother's voice called out.

I turned around to see her in a wheelchair, I ran up to her and hugged her. The feeling of relief that my Mom was alive calmed me down. 

"Where's Dad? There is a weird nurse telling me that he's dead, she has to be lying. I mean, he can't be." I started frantically. 

She looked down, perhaps she couldn't bear to look at her daughter's reaction when she tells her that her Father is dead. 

"Aliyah..."  I stared at her, she was shaking as tears fell down her once so rosy cheeks. She looked up at me, her eyes filled with pain and sadness, telling me the worst news a 14-year-old kid could ever hear. 

"He's dead. He's gone."  

__________

a/n: Hey guys, I hoped you like the prologue of the book. It's just a backstory to understand more of the book which would explain a lot of things later on in the storyline. don't forget to vote! ;) 

-bdelarosaa