My favorite thing in the world, twirling my fingers in the wind out of a truck window. Feeling the breeze in the palm of my hand brings me back to a more child like place. The crackle of gravel scraps against the tires below us.

“You need to slow down”. I yell over the punk rock from the old staticky radio.

“Were fine” My brother says back calmy.

I pull out my phone to see if I have anymore messages, anything to get things off my mind. I could feel us swerve and the truck slide over over the gravel like it were a glossy ice patch.

“Seriously knock it off Dewy!”

But when I yelled this time I didn't get a response i turned to see he wasn't joking anymore, he was struggling to keep the truck in his control. His arms flailing all around the wheel, arms turning like he would in a fast game of mario kart we would play when we were younger.

“OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD!”

I was screaming in my head, but I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. That's when it hit me a tight pull in my gut as I realized. I don't have my seatbelt on. I pushed my hand out in front of me as if it would protect me somehow. A fast jerk, the truck was off the ground, rolling down the crop side hill. Me, being thrown around like a kids ragdoll and my eyes wide open as I saw the windshield in front of me I closed them and scattered lightening of purple and green spread across the back of my eyelids. It was silent and pitch black and then I opened them. All I saw was dirt and looked to be a crumpled rustic green metal rectangle a hundred feet from me. No. No this isn't happening, not to me.

I could hear my brother screaming my name, I had no words to responded with. I rolled over from my awkward position in the dirt. I felt nothing, no pain, no emotions, nothing. I layed there for a moment and watched the dust from the gravel road drift threw the air and disappear like nothing had happened. That's when he grabbed me, pulled my arm around in attempt to turn me over. Sharp pains struck through my back and hands tingling I finally found my voice to bellow out in pain. My legs and feet were still numb and I could taste copper. This is real..This is happening to me..

“Why weren't you wearing your belt Danielle?!”

I couldn't respond I couldn't believe the amount of pain I was in I couldn't make it stop. A memory formed in my head of a commercial I had seen months before “Hitting an immovable object in a vehicle going 40 miles per hour and not wearing your seatbelt is equivalent to a straight down drop from a ten story building. Avoid the risk, buckle up.”

I knew I’d messed up, how fast were we driving 60, 70, 80? I couldn't remember. I couldn't feel anything, I couldn't speak, I couldn't even think straight. All I could do was keep telling myself don't fall asleep.
Within minutes my close friend Travis was speeding down the road. When he got out he ran to me grabbed my hand, and started crying as he looked at me and my emotions came out too. But his Red Cross training kicked in he levitated my head called 911 and started checking my body for any serious injuries. He started asking me questions and reassuring me I was okay and that he's not gonna leave me. Then I was in the ambulance then hostpile, helicopter, Life trauma center, bright white room, x-ray room. Finally a room with a window a bed and a white board on the wall in front of me. And I sat there for a long while, by myself in the empty room , I didn't know what was coming next, frankly I didn't want to.

My Father arrived. I have no words that could ever described the fear and disappointment he had in his eyes. I had never seen him look at me like that, I never want to again. He began calling family and close friends. I had wondered what had happened to my brother but at the same time I wondered if I even cared in the disbelieving absence of him to me in this whole event. And whose last words to me as i’m on a stretcher in the speeding ambulance is,

“If anyone asks we were going thirty five”

No. I didn't care anymore. My night went on and they released me to go back home. It was a long and draining drive, but eventually we arrived back and I was glad. Happiness is a warm bed after a long day, words of truth. I went to school the next morning, I saw my relived friends and teachers. I saw Travis, the one I owe a million thanks to. Who had gone back to that field and picked up my belonging that were thrown all over in the mud and had cleaned them for me.

Of course this was not the end of what happened that day, I will carry the aftermath of the event my whole life. This is very far from the end of my story. But I can say one things for sure, now I always buckle up.