I walk back to the house, I’m worn out. I go upstairs and sit on my bed, flopping onto my back, closing my eyes. I was so thankful to have met Maida, although I’d only known her for a few short days, she felt like a true friend. As the days had passed more memories came back, no longer with a splitting headache. Memories of my friendships with Esther, Nick and Rachel mostly. Esther had been my best friend for as long as I could remember but Nick and Rachel had treated me with contempt. They hadn’t really been my friends at all.
The night we graduated high school we went to the beach, Nick, Rachel and I. Esther was on a trip overseas and I’d stupidly agreed to tag along. It was late, Nick was driving his Dad’s new Mercedes, his parents had gone away again, so he had their concrete and steel behemoth all to himself. Whenever they left, often for months at a time, he could do whatever he wanted, becoming the most popular person at school, throwing a never-ending series of house parties that got crazier with each passing week.
That night we were driving back home from the beach, the weather had turned and it had started to rain as soon as we arrived. It had been a long boring drive, around four hours, the weather had been lousy and so was the company. We’d grabbed some food and parked, watching the waves lap in the distance, shifting quickly under the dark and cloudy sky. I sat in the backseat as the awkward third wheel. Needing a break, I got out of the car to get some fresh air. I walked around in the rain for a bit, watching the droplets getting absorbed into my jacket like a sponge, I was cold but I couldn't sit in the car any longer. I wasn’t sure why I’d come, I would've rather stayed home. Without Esther the drive had been torture, she was the glue that held our group together. She was the cheerful one, the friendly one, the one who could diffuse any bad situation. Nick and Rachel were too alike, both bullies from birth, they brought out the worst in each other and I was an easy target who never fought back.
I walked back to the car, the rain getting heavier now, soaking my hair, falling in thick droplets. I looked into the distance, the black Mercedes directly in front of me. My sandalled feet kept slipping as I walked, getting covered in wet sand. I tried to brush the sand off my feet and ankles but it spread onto my hands, making it worse. Not wanting to get sand in the car, I went off to the public toilet to wash the sand off, a dingy little structure, old concrete, dim lighting, no toilet paper. The mirrors were cloudy, dark splotches dotted over my reflection. I washed my hands in the small metal sink and then rinsed the sand off my shoes and feet, the water unbearably icy. The dryer didn’t work so I wiped my hands on my clothes and walked back to the carpark, my feet making squelching sounds as I walked, my toes hurting from the cold. The rain had stopped but the wind had picked up, whipping up the cool air from the sea. I looked out at the dark bitumen of the carpark, the lights above me flickering. The Mercedes was gone.
I sat down on a wooden barrier, unsure what to do or how to get home. I got up to leave, following the road in the direction we'd been driving, my hair dripping water into my eyes, my feet aching, hoping I'd stumble upon the nearest town soon.
Half an hour into the walk and I still hadn't found anywhere to stop, a car honked behind me, I turned, it's lights blinding. The car sped up and came to a halt next to me. The Mercedes. The passenger side window slid down, Rachel sticking her head out and yelling through the heavy rain. “Where do you think you’re going?” I could see them both laughing in the front seat. I didn’t want to get in, a feeling of immense dread hit me as I got back in the car. The only solace the thought that soon I'd never have to see them again. I prayed for a quick and painless drive home.
“Where did you guys go?” I asked.
Rachel laughed. “Nick said we should play a prank on you, like a graduation prank.”
“A graduation prank?”
“Yeah, I don’t know if that’s a thing.”
“It is now.” Nick said, quickly glancing at me in the rearview mirror.
Rachel told Nick to take the back roads in case the cops were around, they wanted to make good time. The roads were rough and muddy, many of them just winding dirt tracks. Nick was going way too fast, driving around corners on the wrong side of the road. I urged him to slow down but he wouldn't listen. As he turned a corner, a truck came barreling down the road, he kept driving toward it, laughing. Rachel laughed too at first, until we got too close for her comfort. “Nick, stop. It’s not funny anymore.” She said to him but he ignored her. The truck honked at us, horn blaring. Rachel grabbed the wheel and turned the car back to the right side of the road, the truck speeding past us, a rush of air hitting the side of the car. The car began to slide, Rachel letting go of the wheel and Nick having control of the car once again.
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“What did you do that for?” He yelled at her.
“You’re out of control, stop the damn car!” She shrieked back.
I’m scared and I can see Rachel has started to freak out too, I look at her face in the rearview mirror, she looks sick. All of a sudden there's a deafening screech and the car hurtles off the side of the road. My head hits the window next to me, a searing pain coursing through my skull. The car comes to a complete stop, hitting something with a loud bang. I try to move, I seem to be fine, I unbuckle my seat belt. I reached over and pull the door open, stumbling out and looking down at the ground. There's a multitude of leaves under my feet, shiny from the rain, slippery. I see stars and nearly fall but steady myself against the ruined car, the front pushed in, the windscreen cracked. Fallen victim to a monstrous oak. Rachel is slumped in the front, while Nick looks straight ahead, terrified, his hands still gripping the wheel tight, white from the pressure. I watch as he opens his door and steps out. He looks over at me. “We’ve gotta go.”
“Help me get Rachel.” I say.
“Just leave her, she’ll be fine. We need to get out of here.”
“Are you serious? We can’t leave her here.”
“I can’t get in trouble for this.”
“It’s your Dad’s car, they’re going to know it’s you anyway.”
Nick is wild-eyed, he looks over at me once more and then begins to sprint away. Two people are walking down the hill towards us. “Hey, are you okay?” One calls out. I watch Nick lope away, fading into the darkness, a lost cause.
“Yes, I think so.” I answered. “I’m not sure about my friend though, she’s still in the car.”
The two people, a man and woman, jog towards the car and help get Rachel out. She begins to stir, dizzy but okay, the man holding onto her and the woman putting her arm around me, leading us back up the embankment towards the road. The woman talks to us as her husband calls the police from their car phone. "You were all over the road. You guys should get checked over, you must have lost control, the road’s so slippery and it’s pitch black out here.”
When the police arrive the women tells them what she saw. I watch from afar as the officer writes in his notepad. After what feels like an eternity the couple get in their car and drive away, waving goodbye as they leave. Then the officer comes over to talk to us, asking if we’re alright before proceeding to ask us some questions.
“The lady said you were driving on the wrong side of the road, any reason why?”
I go to answer. Rachel butts in. “Elena was driving, I think she just lost control of the car.”
You have got to be kidding me, another person covering for Nick. I go to correct Rachel’s statement. “I wasn’t driving the car, I was in the backseat.”
The officer looks down at us, then his notepad. “There are only two of you,” he looks a Rachel, “were you driving the car Miss?”
“We were with our friend…” I start.
“Stop lying Elena, just admit that you did it!” Rachel butts in again.
“I’m not…”
“This will go much quicker if you just tell the truth. Have you been drinking?” The officer says.
“No, of course not. I’m not lying.” I can tell he doesn't believe me, Rachel's been getting me in trouble for years, she's an excellent actress when she needs to be.
He looks towards the wreckage. “Is that your car?” He asks.
“No.” It’s my friend’s, the one who was driving, I silently add.
“Elena borrowed my boyfriend’s car.” Rachel says.
“Borrowed?” The cop looks suspiciously at us both, he doesn’t seem convinced. The officer tells us to stay put and goes back to his patrol car, sitting in the driver’s seat, leaving the door open.
“Why won’t you tell the truth? He could’ve killed us both.” I hiss at Rachel.
“Nick has a future Elena, I’m not going to ruin it for him.” She whispers back.
“And I don’t? Why didn't you say you were driving?”
“You have nothing to lose Elena. Me and Nick do, I have to put our relationship first.”
I turn away from her, not wanting to look at her anymore, wishing they’d left me in the carpark and gone home. The policeman walks back. “This car has been reported stolen.” He points towards the Mercedes.
“What?” I say.
“Reported stolen by a Mr. Nicolas Sullivan. Name ring a bell?”
“I didn’t steal it. He was the one driving it.” I start.
The cop furrows his brow, he still doesn’t believe me, he turns to Rachel. “Is this true?”
She looks over at me, a look a guilt displayed briefly on her angelic face. She swallows and looks back at the officer. “No Officer, she was the one driving.”
Hours later, I’m in my mother’s car, getting driven back to Ridgemont, she’s angry, rightfully. I continually apologise but she says nothing the entire drive home. She doesn’t show any emotion but I know how disappointed she is. I miss my father, it’s such a lonely existence in my house now. Me and my mother barely talk and my brother has moved away for school. The only saving grace is our new housekeeper Agnes, who seems lovely.
A week later, everything was smoothed over. My mother spoke to Nick’s and it was all swept under the rug, never to be mentioned again. After that my friendship with Nick and Rachel was completely fractured and I no longer spoke to them. After school I dreamed of moving away, writing lists in a notebook, planning my escape, but I never left. Instead I spent years at home, just existing, too scared to make a decision. I spent my days with Agnes, helping her fold sheets or cook. In return she told me about where she grew up, told me stories of her life, becoming my best friend while Esther was away. She’d worked for families all over the world, omitting names and places, she'd give me interesting and funny anecdotes that kept me entertained, distracting me from my unhappiness. Looking back, I was the only one who stopped me from leaving, I believed I couldn't, giving up before I'd even started. I'd wasted my life. A life I could never get back.