A Night To Remember
by Meg Jones
**********************
Once again, kayos was met. But there was even more people here, even more
deaths too. As I stepped out of the truck I looked about me, taking in all
the people rushing about, but not comprehending it all. And then I began to
pick out familiar faces.
Mrs. Wilson who ever so kindly brought me rare, exotic tea when I was
sick. Mr. Hanely, who often came to chat with Daniel and I. This town filled
with such kind and generous people, who didn't deserve any of this brought
upon them, were now all in a state of unmistakable terror.
The more I looked, the more horrified I became. Everywhere there was
children and adults and teenagers and cots and stretchers and sirens and
professionals. What I had experienced before was nothing compared to this. I
searched and searched but there was no sign of Daniel, Lindsay, or Darren
anywhere.
And so, Joe and I split apart, with me giving him descriptions and names,
while I asked around to see if anyone had spotted them. One person, an enemy
of mine, whom hated me because I married Daniel, suggested I try searching
the morgue. She left with a wide, taunting grin on her face, and skipped
about the place as if she were the big attraction. She had wounded me. Inside
my stomach twisted and my mouth watered. Without seeing anything I bent over
and vomited in the crowd, not watching who was around me, yet knowing that
they weren't paying any mind to me either.
"Any luck?" Joe came behind me and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.
"No." I grunted and stood upright, wiping the sour taste off my mouth and
holding my stomach with my left arm. My head was spinning. There were so many
people rushing about, so many familiar and unfamiliar faces that twisted
together in my mind. Finding my loves would be hopeless.
"Miss?" Joe tapped me on the arm. "What?" I asked, feeling tears start to
build in my eyes. "Is that him?" "Who?" I asked, not really paying any
attention to what he was saying or who he was pointing at. "Your fella. Is
dat 'im?" Joe's arm was out stretched as he pointed to a tall man standing in
the parking lot, arms folded, dirt caked on his face and in his hair, talking
to a police officer.
Numbly I walked toward him, forgetting about Joe. As I got closer the man
I was heading for began to look familiar. The way he stood, his figure, his
hair, his long slinky arms, the look of worry on his face. That look of worry
that had been imprinted in my mind.
I tried calling out to my husband but I could barely talk, I was so
choked with tears. Hoarsely I called his name and continued to stagger
towards him. Suddenly he turned to look at me. His arms dropped to his side
and his mouth fell open. Once again I tried to call his name, but only a
hoarse whisper escaped.
"Meg!" he suddenly called, running towards me, arms outstretched, eyes
wide with joy. "Daniel!" I called faintly, and limped toward him, and into
his open and warm arms. "Oh honey..." He whispered, stroking my hair, holding
me close to him. I opened my mouth to say something else, but I found that
tears were all that would fall.
"Where's Lindsay and Darren?" I asked, my words slurred because my mouth
was full of his shirt. Daniel was still. Slowly I looked up at him,
frightened and confused. He looked down at me, a desperate look on his face.
"I don't know." He said quietly, casting a glance around us. Slowly I stepped
back from him. "What?" My hand flew to my mouth, the old feeling of sickness
returned. He reached out and pulled me back to him. "After you left, they got
in their car and tried to get home..." When I gasped, my ribs struck me with
pain.
"We have to find them." "I know. But how? Meg...what happened to you..."
Once again he tried pulling me back to him as I stepped away. But this time I
wouldn't let him. "You let them go!" I near screamed at him, feeling rage and
hate suddenly. I hated myself, not him. I should have been there.
He looked down and stuck his hands in his pockets, shoulders slumped
forward. "I did. I...I didn't know what to do." He whispered, his voice
choked with regret and sorrow. Me and my idiotic mouth! Again, I regretted
what I had just said. The feeling was not unfamiliar. "No Daniel..no I'm
sorry...please don't blame yourself...honey no..." Tearfully I embraced him.
But the poor guy had no strength left. He was tired and worn, the same as I.
I was a hateful, terrible person. What had I done?
He put his arms across my shoulders and pulled me into him, and rested
his head limply on my top of my head. I could hear him clear his throat, and
sniff as he cleared his eyes and mind. Suddenly I remembered Joe. Slowly I
turned my head and checked behind me. Joe was no where to be seen. "What
the..." I pulled back from Daniel and looked around, searching the crowd. But
Joe was gone. "Honey, what's the matter?" Daniel asked nervously. I shook my
head. "Nothing." I almost felt like crying. He left without my thanking him.
I just left him behind. I could never repay him. And he didn't even know my
name.
"Come on, we need to find a ride." "To where?" I asked stupidly, feeling
far off and tired. "Well, I was thinking we could just drive the back roads
and look for them, I suppose..." The tone of his voice stated clearly that he
had no idea what to do. But I nodded. "Sounds good to me." I turned and took
his hand. "Hey wait...Meg? Where's the truck?" "What truck?" "Your truck." My
heart skipped a beat. I hadn't told him a thing of what happened. And he
didn't know I was hurt.
"It's gone." "What? Gone? What do you mean gone? How'd you get here?"
"Dan it's a long story...please..." I tried to move away but he pulled on my
arm. My shoulder popped and ground against the surrounding bone. I screamed
as a sickening pain flooded me. A few around stopped to stare, but quickly
continued when I looked at them. "Meg what the hell happened? What'd I do?" I
looked back at Daniel and realized he was more terrified than he'd ever been
in his life. "My shoulder's a little sore." I lied. Not surprisingly, he
wasn't convinced.
"Really I'm fine, can we please just go?" I had hurt him again, I could
see that now. Damn me and my mouth! But leaving right off was not as easily
said as done. As in the last emergency shelter, this one was flooded. All
help was used up, and more was needed. Finding someone to take us through
back roads was impossible.
At first we tried asking people we knew, but they couldn't help either.
So, we began asking anyone who came a long, whether we knew them or not, if
they would take us through back roads. The usual reply was a quick shake of
the head and a "you're insane" look. As time passed we became more desperate.
We were both tempted to steal a car in the very far corner of the parking
lot. But we couldn't stoop that low.
After a while, I sat down on the small patch of grass, furthest from all
commotion. It was dark in this corner, the street lamp lights couldn't quite
reach this far over. Daniel sat down heavily next to me, and put his head in
his hands. "What do we do now?" I asked, but it was more a plea. He shook his
head and didn't look up. There was no Joe to help me this time. Helplessness
and dread flooded me as I thought of Lindsay and Darren, and of the time
slipping past us, taking little bits of them with it.
Carefully I laid back and stretched out on the grass, feeling myself go
limp and my eyes grow tired. Next to me Daniel sat, cross legged, head buried
in his hands, his shoulders bobbing up and down as he sobbed silently with
desperation. How could things have gone so wrong? Was it not this morning
that we had been laying lazily on the bench on our front porch, without a
care in the world?
Gently I laid my hand on Daniel's back, felt the damp T-shirt that he was
wearing, felt his bony back, and the exhaustion in him. Sniffing and wiping
his face with the back of his hand, he laid back next to me and put both his
arms around me, snuggling closer in the damp earth, burying his head in my
neck. He was shivering, either from cold or from fear. Or both. Either way I
had no way to keep him warm, although I wanted to desperately.
As he laid there in my arms, trying to get some sleep, or just lying
there thinking, I looked up and saw that alien sky again. The clouds had
passed again, and the stars were now out, sparkling and shining for little
children to wish on. How I hated everything. How the hell could everything go
so wrong? How many times were we going to be unlucky? Were we going to be
okay? More importantly, were out friends okay?
The pale pink of dawn was beginning to touch the horizon. Next to me lay
Daniel, still in the same position, huddled up next to me, sleeping soundly.
Not far from where we lay, kayos still plagued the parking lot, of what I
could see now, used to be the parking lot of what was a Hy-Vee, but was now
just a foundation. Little children cried for their mommies and dadies,
husbands and wives cried for their loved ones.
The night had passed quickly, for we had only been laying here for about
two hours when the first streaks of dawn touched us. I had not slept one
wink, and was so exhausted I could not move. Yet I could not sleep either.
Darren and Lindsay were still missing, as were so many others, their faces
kept haunting me. Next to me, Daniel stirred and opened one eye sleepily.
"What time is it?" He mumbled, his words slurred by sleep. "Don't know." I
replied softly and touched his golden hair with my fingers. He raised one eye
to me.
"Are we dead?" He asked, his eyes looking young and innocent, like a
small child. I smiled without meaning to. "No. No Dan, we're not." "Good." He
buried his head back into my shirt and sighed deeply. Which was good, he was
sleeping and I didn't have to move. Getting up was going to kill me, and I'd
probably have to tell him about my injuries.
The warm morning sun didn't last long. At about 7 o'clock or so, the sky
clouded up with the familiar dark gray clouds. The cold winds swept over us,
chilling me in my dry but stiff clothing, sharpening the pain in my ribs. We
had to do something. Carefully I tapped Dan on the head. He jolted in his
sleep, then looked up at me with foggy eyes. "Huh?" He groaned, his mouth
open in exhaustion.
"Time to get up." I tried to smile but failed. He nodded and slowly
crawled to his feet, dusted himself off, and then held out his hand for me to
take. I refused it and rolled over on my stomach and pushed myself up. As I
rose I met his confused eyes. Oh, this was going to be hard to hide. Pain
shot through my stiff limbs, my stomach was queasy due to lack of food, and
my shoulders ached to be popped back into place. Dodging Daniel's eye I
limped through the parking lot.
Last night's scene of terror was nothing compared to this morning. Even
though it was cloudy, things were clearly seen. People still rushed about,
children screamed, tears streaked through their dirt caked faces, their
little dirty fingers crusted with blood. Tall pine trees surrounded the
parking lot, blocking most of the view of the rest of the town. But some had
been completely uprooted and tossed aside, like a child's boring play things.
Beyond where the Hy-Vee used to lay, a small glimpse of the town could be
caught, the school had been partially demolished, the courthouse lay in a
heap of bricks. Fires raged from broken gas lines, smoke poured into the sky
and mixed with it's twin brother clouds.
Daniel came up behind me and put his arms around me. "So foreign..." He
whispered, holding me close as if the winds would pick me up and carry me
away. I nodded. "Is this really home?" I asked, tears coming to my eyes, my
nose burning with emotions. Ahead of me a new squad of rescue teams pulled in
from the surrounding counties, in their big flashy cars and ambulances,
completely unaware of the scene that they were about to behold. "Aren't they
a little late?" Daniel asked, sounding sour. "Surely we can hitch a ride with
them though." He nodded and began walking with me leaning on him.
As we approached a police car, I saw a young man, maybe about 23 years
old, step out, radio in hand, badge flashing as he looked around in sheer
horror. He had no idea it was this bad. Daniel let go of me and walked over
to him. I tried to listen to what he said, but my mind kept drifting to the
left over panic around us. I saw neighbors and friends, enemies and strangers
all around. To me they were all the same. All the dirt covered faces were the
same. Everyone's goal was the same. To help save lives. Well, almost
everyone's goals. Far off to the side of the parking lot, unharmed people
sat, wrapped in two or three unnecessary blankets, sipping supplied McDonalds
coffee, watching all around them, not giving a damn about anyone but
themselves. How I hated them.
"Honey..." Daniel walked up to me and took my hand. "We're in luck, he's
hitting the back roads." Daniel pulled me into the back of the police car.
But I hardly noticed. Even though the car was warm and quiet, I still felt
the icy wind outside, I still heard the children scream and the adults cry,
the radios blare and people screaming for help. It made me shiver. Daniel
noticed and pulled me close to him. He stroked my hair and rubbed my back,
but it didn't do any good. I wasn't going to forget this.
"In what direction were your friends going?" The police officer asked.
"North west." Daniel answered. Heavily I sighed and closed my eyes. Had they
been in the path? Up front the officer shook his head sadly and turned out of
the parking lot. Daniel's heart beat quietly in my ear, a soft rhythm that
somewhat comforted me. "What kind of car were they driving?" The man asked.
"A black jeep." Daniel replied. The man nodded and didn't say anymore.
Conversation was hard, especially in moments like these.
I sunk into Daniel and rested my head on his chest, pulling my arms close
for warmth, feeling the usual sickening pinch of my broken bones, feeling the
pull of my dislocated shoulder. "Is there something wrong?" Daniel whispered.
It was more like a statement. Stubbornly I shook my head. I couldn't say
anything, he had to much on his mind. Daniel delicately took hold of my hand
and held tight, running his thumb smoothly over my wedding ring.
I tried sleeping but it was of no use. I wouldn't sleep for weeks
with this living nightmare constantly plaguing me. Daniel's shirt. It smelled
like blood. I opened one eye and looked at the black fabric. There was a
stain, barely visible. I sat up quickly and lifted his shirt. He tried to
stop me but it was no use. There was a gash on his stomach. It had been
bandaged crudely, the blood had seeped through the cotton gauze and then
dried into a near black spot. I looked up at him. "How did this happen?" He
shrugged. "I think I was knocked unconscious, I'm pretty sure I was actually,
I woke up and I was bleeding." "What were you knocked unconscious by?" Again
he shrugged, and pointed to the back of his head. He lowered his head for me
to see. Sure enough, there was a big black and blue knot on the backside.
I groaned pathetically and took his head gingerly into my arms and bent
down to kiss the back of his neck. Even when he got a paper cut, I felt bad.
I felt it was my duty to protect him and take care of him, as much as it was
his duty to do the same for me. Not that it was an undesirable job though.
Rocking Daniel back and forth slowly I closed my eyes and laid my head back.
"Hey is this it?" The driver's unusually high voice shook me. Had I
fallen asleep? The ache in my eyes told me I had. I shook my head to clear
it. "What?" I asked. "Is this it? Is this their jeep?" He asked, pulling to
the side of the road. I looked out the side window. And sure enough, there
was a black jeep, thrown upside down a little ways off the road.
"Oh my God..." I whispered. "Daniel!" I shook him awake. He opened his
eyes and looked up at me. "Darren's jeep!" I gasped and let go of him, and
opened the door. I jumped out of the car and hurried over to the jeep, Daniel
and the policeman on my heels. Darting around to the other side of the jeep I
dropped to my knees and looked in. The top of the car was completely
demolished, it must have flipped and landed on the top. "Oh my God..." I
choked, frantic tears streaming down my face. They weren't in here! The
driver's window was smashed, broken before the car landed, I knew this
because there was no glass surrounding the window.
Same deal with the windshield, what remainder of it could be seen. They
had been thrown out. Quickly I got up, slipping on the mud, feeling the cold
wind bite at my face. "They've been thrown out! Look around!" I shouted to
Daniel and the police officer, who's badge read Jeff. I began running around
frantically, my eyes darting all over the perimeter, and then I began looking
near the edge of the woods, which was about fifteen feet away. Sure enough,
twenty feet, slightly to the right of the vehicle lay Darren. He was propped
up against an oak tree, his eyes closed, his face bloody and dirty. In his
lap lay Lindsay, her hair clotted with dirt, her face cut, blood and mud
matted everywhere. Neither appeared alive.
"I found them!" I screamed, and then began to sob. Daniel ran to my side
and knelt down. "Oh God..." He whispered, reaching out to touch Darren's
face. To our shock, Darren winced under Daniel's touch. "Darren!" I
whispered, reaching out to shake him. Jeff rushed up aside us, radioing for
an ambulance. Darren opened one bruised eye. "Hey guys...you found us." He
whispered, his voice hoarse. I nodded and smiled. He smiled back, except
there was something wrong with this smile, something not quite right.
Jeff ran back to his police car to wait for an ambulance. Darren looked
down at Lindsay and touched her eyes gingerly. "Lindsay, honey, wake up. "He
cooed, running his fingers down her face. There was no response in Lindsay.
"Lindsay, Meg and Dan are here." Darren's smile left him as he opened both
eyes wide and became more alert. I looked down at Lindsay and touched her
face. Ice cold.
I swallowed hard and stumbled off of my crouch position. "Oh God!" Came
my choked voice, tears starting to fall as my hand flew to my mouth and my
stomach flopped. My mouth watered and I knew I was going to be sick again.
And I did. I threw up what little there was left. Darren ignored me and
continued to touch Lindsay's face.
"Linds, honey, please wake up...Meg's here..." Darren was becoming more
and more worried as he poked and shook Lindsay harder. But she never moved,
she never would move again. Tears began to fall from Darren's eyes.
"Lindsay...Lindsay please...you were okay when I crawled over here last
night...Lindsay please don't go..." Darren began to sob. And I knew what was
wrong with his smile. He'd lost his wife. And he's lost his mind.
Daniel wrapped his arms around Darren and hugged him tight as tears fell
from his eyes. "Lindsay no!" Darren cried, his sobs erupting from him, tears
flowing in a constant stream. He managed to shove Daniel off of him and he
pulled Lindsay's limp and lifeless body to his chest. "No..." He sobbed, his
hand grabbing a fist full of her dirty hair and rocking her back and forth.
"No!" He cried again, this time dropping Lindsay lifelessly into his lap and
covering his face as he sobbed non stop.
I looked over at Daniel. He was crying too, his eyes were puffy and red,
his shoulders hunched forward, his mouth open and twisted in pain. I crawled
over to him and threw myself into his lap. He grabbed hold of me and held
tight, his sobs ringing in my ears, my own tears mingling with his, my heart
aching as I said one last good bye to my best friend.
The next few days were a blur. The ambulance came and picked all three of
us up. Darren had a broken collar bone and two broken legs, which he
recovered from in record time. What he never quite recovered from though, was
the insanity that every person suffers from when they lose someone or
something they love dearly. The first days were awful. He ate maybe two bites
of food in a six hours period, and he wouldn't drink a thing, therefore he
was stuck with two IVs.
The week he went home, we went to live with him. After all, we didn't
have any other place to go anyway. For about two months we took care of each
other, silence becoming a common tune in the household, take out and pizza
becoming a familiar food, for none of us had the strength to cook. For weeks
Darren did nothing but sit by the large living room window, a blanket around
his legs, hands folded neatly in his lap, just sitting there, staring at
nothing. He had aged in a matter of weeks. He was no longer the happy young
Darren he once was.
I, on the other hand, was right about my injuries. I suffered two broken
ribs, and two out of place shoulders. Also, my back had been jolted so that
it was slightly out of place, but all that was taken care of. Like Darren, I
suffered a wound that would never heal. I had lost someone whom I loved so
incredibly dearly, that I cannot describe it. Every day I would wake up and
see her face, and I would sometimes find myself getting online, expecting to
see her screename, sitting there, under my buddy list, waiting. Or sometimes
I'd walk to the phone, pick it up, and start to dial her number. And every
time I'd realize that she was gone forever, and that I'd never be able to
talk to her again. And every time I'd fall to the floor and break down and
cry, until Daniel came into the room and sat with me and talked me through it.
Daniel was probably doing the best out of the three of us. Yes, he loved
Lindsay just as much as I did, but I believe he's the stronger one, the
survivor of us all, he knew he had to be strong or none of us would make it.
He was the glue that kept us together. He had to be strong or Darren and I
would perish in no time. He was there when one of us needed to talk, he was
there when one of us needed someone to lay on and just be with. He was there,
just to plain sit and hold one of us, just to be there, so we knew we were
not alone. He's our savior, and I love him more than anything else on this
physical plane.
After a few weeks, Daniel ordered a construction crew to rebuild our
house. A year later we're moved back in, with the exact same belongings we'd
had before, some of them being replacements. But the memories here were
different. The walls no longer held the cheerful talk they once held. It may
have been the same design, but it was still a new house, with different
people in it, starting new lives.
Our town was rebuilt in record time. The Hy-Vee went back up, roads were
repaired, power installed, houses rebuilt, families together again. Darren
moved out of his old house, packed up all his belongings and came to live
with us. He couldn't bear the memories anymore, and neither of us could blame
him. It was extremely hard. There were days when all I wanted to do was die.
And then I'd remember Lindsay and I'd have to drag myself out of bed and
stand up, because I knew I'd let Lindsay down if I quit over her.
Slowly our lives pieced back together. Daniel and I went back to work.
Darren began talking more, opening up to us, revealing his long hidden
thoughts. He got out more, exorcised, went back to work, ate better, and
finally, he smiled. The same Darren smile that I had known and loved for so
long. He told jokes and laughed now. Sometimes at night I could hear him cry
for Lindsay, downstairs, in the bedroom he now shared with himself. There
were nights he and I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning, reminiscing
until we passed out. We nursed each other back to health and happiness, it
was a kind of therapy for us.
And now, two years after the passing of our much loved Lindsay, we are
finally getting back to our lives. We still have the scars to remind us of
that dreadful Fourth of July, but we still march on, holding our heads high,
smiling at what the day brings us. Bad days are becoming fewer and fewer, the
bad memories and nightmares are fading. Daniel and I had a child. A beautiful
little girl that we named Lindsay. Darren started to date again. He doesn't
get serious, but it's still good for him. He and Daniel go out and do their
thing, I stay at home and remember the old times and cuddle baby Lindsay whom
we all love so much. She brings me so much joy, just like my best friend
Lindsay, I truly believe that the child holds Lindsay's spirit.
A tragedy we had overcome together, brought us close, closer than family,
and we love each other so much. We are there for each other, and even though
life may be different now, things are not over. Not for us. We're still going
strong. And nothing can bring us down.
~fin~
The Final Chapter
+
Baby Lindsay- As the years passed, baby Lindsay grew up to be a beautiful
young woman with flowing brown hair and bright blue eyes that changed with
the weather. She was tall and skinny, with milky white skin and a smile that
brighten up a cloudy sky. From the start she was wise beyond her years, her
mother teaching her foreign languages and reading, as well as self defense
and self respect. Her father taught her to play every instrument the two
could get their hands on. For hours they would sit in the basement and play
the guitar and drums, or the keyboard and piano, as bright eyed and proud Meg
sat in the far corner and watched with joy.
As the years passed she grew up and joined the band Savage Garden which,
after all these years, was still doing well. After a while, Darren and Daniel
retired, and Lindsay took over and hired her own band members, keeping the
bands name and rep for music, using her inheritance from her father to hit
number one on the charts and became the most talked about girl in all of the
world.
From time to time Meg would talk about her best friend Lindsay. But more
and more Meg noticed the similarities between Lindsay and Lindsay. The same
hair color, the same laugh, the same smile, and the intelligence level was
amazing. Though this Lindsay possessed more of Daniel's musical ability and
her mother's sense of wacky humor, style, and taste, she was almost a mirror
image of the Lindsay before. Naturally Lindsay married a wonderful man by the
name of Ben and the two lived happily, having two children and living
successful and unforgettable lives.
Meg- After the birth of her first daughter Meg decided to take some time
off and spend it with her family. While she was off she dreamed up some plans
which were later set into action. She built a homeless shelter dedicated to
the victims of weather disasters, which she named "The Light Of Lindsay"
after her best friend whom had inspired it. When she went back to work, Meg
was named the United States top professional meteorologist. All the fame
never went to Meg's head though. She spent every spare moment over seas,
helping treat victims of hurricanes and clean out the mess so everyone could
start over.
With everyone she shared her story of terror, and her loss of someone she
loved. Today there is a plaque in Blainsville dedicated to her. After a year
or so, Meg had another child, which she named Dylan, so he would have the
initials of his father. Dylan followed Meg into the career of meteorology,
and later took over her place as a happy Meg retired. He was also well known
and lived up to his mother's name, his inventions and improvements in the
weather industry still used and acknowledged today.
Daniel- As stated before Daniel went back to work and he and Darren produced
five more successful albums before they retired and Lindsay took over. A lot
of the money made by touring and the selling of albums was sent to shelters
for the homeless and to the rescue teams who stood by in case of a natural
disaster. When he retired, he was beyond happy, and lived at home and spent
most of his time with the wife he loved dearly, Meg.
He taught Dylan to play guitar, but Dylan took more after his mother,
with his straight black hair and almond eyes. Not that that was bad, but he
just lacked the patience for music that his sister held so beautifully.
Daniel supported his daughter well in her achievements, as he did his wife
and son. He attended every judo class Lindsay took, and went to every weather
seminar Dylan was interested in. When he was lonely for Meg when she was
overseas, often he'd fly over there to help and be with her. He was quite the
loving and dedicated husband, everyone says.
Darren- After about five years Darren remarried. He married a beautiful woman
who had lost her husband to a motorcycle accident. The two were quite happy
together, and had two children, which possessed Darren's beautiful singing
voice and his pale blue eyes and natural blond hair. They went on to
professional careers, one as a music producer, the other as Lindsay's back up
singer. All say Darren was a happy man, happy with his children, happy with
his new wife, happy with his new life.
Of course he moved out of Meg and Dan's house but he only moved a mile
down the road, he couldn't bare to leave his two best friends behind.
Sometimes there were days when he'd call them up in need of someone to talk
to, because he would remember and grieve over Lindsay. But he felt it was
time to move on, felt it was time to complete his life by becoming a father.
He was so proud of his children and their dreams, proud of Lindsay whom he
loved like his own daughter.
He was now more open, and more forgiving. He took everything to heart
like always, and never pitied himself. He still laughed and made jokes, and
was his odd self again, even though he was letting a big piece of him go so
he could heal. Anyone you talk to who knew him will say his recovery was
miraculous, and that he was a strong and smart man., which is how he is
remember.
Lindsay, how she died- A later autopsy showed that Lindsay had been thrown
through the windshield of the jeep that night, and sailed through the air
twenty feet to where she landed, breaking her arm and leg. Darren was thrown
through the drivers window, and only landed about five feet from where the
jeep landed. He managed to pull himself over to Lindsay where he propped
himself up against a tree and then cuddled Lindsay to keep her warm until she
died. Excess blood in the brain revealed Lindsay had serious hemorrhaging in
the brain and was only conscious for about an hour. She died later on in the
night.
~fin~
other fics to be read
~return~
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