Window

  Rei Hawk

The rain dripped down the window slowly, as if it was carrying on with its life, ignoring what had just happened in mine. I knew that everything would hit me in a moment or two and my chest tightened in anticipation. Where was my mother? The window had many cracks in it but hadn’t shattered. It hurt. Where? Everywhere. But especially my neck. I knew I had to get outside. I pushed the window, knowing that my body was in a tight space and that forward was the only way out. It didn’t take much, the window just collapsed. But I felt a great pressure on my hand, not just from pressing the now shattered window. What was that in my hand? A jagged grey item, sharp just by the look of it, was submerged in a pool of sticky crimson liquid. What was that? Was that my hand? I was bleeding. That was blood. I could feel my eyebrows knit together. I knew I was frowning. I took a sharp breath in, trying to remember what had just happened. It was just a moment ago. I should remember. I was laughing. I was laughing so hard that my eyes closed and my stomach hurt. I was laughing and sitting in the passenger’s seat next to my mother. Where was my mother? Then there something white. It was a truck, and it…

Suddenly I could hear. Everything came around me so fast, it took a long time to figure out what all of the sounds meant. It was as if was a newborn. There were shouts, screams in fact. Loud, obnoxious, never ending sounds. A siren. There were people outside, I knew that. I had to get to them. I reached my arm through the window. I planned to crawl out, I think. But it was so hard. And my neck hurt. It was dark outside, I was sure of that, but everything seemed so bright and blurry, I could barely see. Maybe I was a newborn. Maybe I was just crawling out of the womb. No, birth wasn’t supposed to be so terrifying. I felt my arm muscles bunching as I tried to pull my body from its fissure, but my leg was caught underneath something. I didn’t look back to see what it was. Why didn’t I look back? Had I been trying to pull myself out with only one arm? Where was my other arm? I couldn’t move my neck. That’s why I didn’t look back. And I abruptly realized the sensation coating my left arm. My arm burned. Then my neck joined in. They burned and sizzled until I couldn’t feel them. I had not the strength to raise my head anymore. Nor the strength to keep my right arm from resting down upon the jagged edges of the shattered window.

The cut was slow. It sunk deeply into my skin. I could feel it, but just the pressure, not the pain. It was dark all around me and I could hear the rain. I could almost picture it. The slick, sharp glass would slide easily into my forearm like a smooth knife into butter. Butter. I never really liked butter, not even on my popcorn. One line of blood probably spilled out from the wound. No, that wasn’t realistic. My heart pounded in my ears. There was probably much more blood. I blinked. It might have been the first time since I’d woken up. But I didn’t wake up. I was awake the whole time, for a long time. I was awake for so long, just watching the rain droplets roll down the window. The long sharp glass had reached my muscle by now; my arm stilled. I suppose the thick muscle tissue stopped the glass. I think I smiled, because then, I was completely still. 

My eyes were open, and the sound of the shouting, no, screaming, maybe crying, or perhaps laughing, people had dulled. What was this repetitive sound? What was left? Only the sound of rain. A piece of glass lay near my head. It was a piece of the window that I was watching before. Why did I bother to stop staring at the window in the first place? It was so peaceful. The rain had raced down the glass. Why did I beak that window? How stupid! Now what was I left with? This never ending drip, splash, drip, splash, of the water droplets falling from whatever was above me onto this little piece of glass that lay near my head. That was what I would have to listen to? The sound of the rain fall grew louder and louder. And my heart’s pumping increased even more. It was soon just a large thump in my ear. Perhaps my body was trying to drown out the drip, splash, drip, splash, drip, splash, drip, splash. But my heart ended up being more annoying in the end. Why wouldn’t it stop? I tried to scream out. This agonizing sound was worse than any pain. But my mouth immediately filled up with a thick liquid. I felt it pour from my mouth. Ha, just like the movies, I figured.

The thumping stopped. All I heard now was the drip, splash, drip… No splash. I couldn’t see the glass. I couldn’t see the water dripping. But I could hear. I must have closed my eyes. I must have given up. I heard footsteps. They were boots probably. They were getting closer. Splashing in the rain. Splash. Drip, splash, drip, splash. But nothing after that. I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t even feel that darkness that surrounded me. Someone was coming for me. Was it too late? 

I wondered.