I was driving on Rt. 1 yesterday with quietgirl in the passenger seat and my best friend in the back. Beach traffic is heavy, and I looked away from the road at just the wrong time. A light turned, and then I looked up.
If there’s any moment I’m going to have nightmares about, it’s when I looked up and realized that there was no way that we could stop in time.
There was a car and then there was the white of the airbag. I don’t remember the actual impact and I don’t remember pulling my car over to the side.
There was smoke and a chemical smell all over the place and the horn wouldn’t stop. The passenger doors wouldn’t open so the three of us had to get out on the driver side.
It was completely my fault. I rear ended an SUV which then rear ended a minivan.
I was basically in hysterics. Jennifer kept on telling me to calm down and said I shouldn’t look at my arms. They hurt- I had elbow surgery in June- and my chest and my stomach hurt. I’m short, and all of my injuries came from the airbag and the fact that I was so close to it. Jen also got hurt by the airbag on her side- she had scrapes all over her legs and her glasses were broken. Travis had a burn from the seatbelt on his neck.
Nobody in the other two cars were hurt except for a small twisted ankle. I was the most serious one.
Glass was all over the road. The front of my car looked like an accordian. THe SUV that I hit was the least damaged- its front and rear bumpers were bent in. The minivan’s trunk was caved in and the window was shattered completely.
I was the only one they deemed necessary to take to the hospital, so I was strapped onto a backboard with a collar and put in an ambulance. They let Jen come with me. Travis got a ride with the police.
I had to have a CAT scan, X-rays, and other sorts of stuff to make sure that my spine wasn’t hurt or that there was any internal bleeding. Thank God that there wasn’t.
By the end of my three hours in the hospital we were starting to get a sense of humor about the whole thing. Like when Jen helped me get into a gown and the nurse said “Are you sure you two are just friends? I’m kind of worried about you.” My comment: “We’re very close.”
And yes, I got to detail why there was no way I wasn’t pregnant.
The three of us are all stiff and scraped. I’m going to be in long sleeves for awhile and we’re all moving very slowly.
I’m getting the insurance and police stuff dealt with. Everybody was extremely nice, and I’m just thankful the only thing that didn’t make it was my car.
I don’t want hugs and I don’t want sympathy. I just needed to get this out. I’ve spent the day being thankful for seatbelts and airbags and Travis and Jen.
