The Sun and the Moon

➸ Chapter Four: Rescued

Will

Just like most days, I'm drawn to the memories of the car crash again, with all of the self-destructive nature of a moth drawn to a flame. I can't help but be burned alive.

The night of the car crash, the pain that racked my body mercifully dragged me into the depths of unconsciousness and the ignorance that accompanied it.

I woke up to the deafening sound of a siren piercing through the still air that was laced with the coppery scent of blood. I looked over at the driver's side. Theo still lay there, blood slowly dripped from his open wounds and his skin taking on a waxy pallor.

Suddenly, my door was pried open and a man, in an EMT uniform, ducked his head into the car. His eyes, ringed with dark circles, immediately darted to the seat beside me, taking in the gory scene. Then, he looked back at me, pity in his gaze.

"Okay, so we're going to get you out and check you out and then...we'll get to your friend."

I flinched as he mentioned Theo in such an offhand manner.

"No," I whispered. My voice hoarse, but I knew that he heard me because he turned and said,

"What?" The space between his eyebrows crinkling.

"You get him out of the car and then, you can treat me."

He gritted his teeth, but still tried to maintain a calm demeanour.

"Sir, I understand-"

I cut him off because he didn't. Because he hadn't had to watch as his best friend of fifteen years bled out.

"You get him," I emphasized each word, trying to drill them into his head. "Then, you get me."

Finally, the EMT backed away from the car and I heard the low tones of a whispered conversation.

"We can't..."

"We have to..."

"...won't move."

Eventually, someone sighed and I heard footsteps. They passed by my door and I tensed, but they continued and the door on Theo's side opened. They cleared the glass from around him and then, lifted him out.

I stared at the pool of blood on the dashboard until the man came to my door again.

"Your turn," he said, as he cut away my seat belt and slid an arm under my arms.

They guided me to a gurney and then, loaded the gurney onto an ambulance. The entire time I just stared up, first at the sky. Dawn had come and passed, the sky was a bright blue that was illuminated by the rays of a sun that hurt my eyes. Then, it melted into a sterile white ceiling that I stared at until my vision finally dimmed.

I slid into consciousness again, feeling like I hadn't rested at all. A bright white ceiling haloed by fluorescent lights stared back at me. A machine beeped steadily by my bedside and an IV was trapped under my skin, pumping a clear liquid into my veins. My head felt like it was stuffed with cotton balls.

Beside my bed, my mother was sleeping in what looked like a thoroughly uncomfortable chair. Her blonde hair was piled onto her head with tufts of hair drifting away. I scanned the sparse room, hoping for some sign of my father, but I was sorely disappointed. He had been working hard, too hard. His doctor had told him that if he kept doing this...he would have a heart attack in the next five years. At most. At that moment, he walked into the room holding two coffees.