I remember it all so clearly. People say it changed me. People think I’m crazy. But really, it happens to be a miracle, and I am perfectly fine; though I tend to talk more than I used to, way more. Until now, the accident seems so distant to me. But, every time I look in the mirror, it all comes back.
***
The wind blew in my face as I stepped out the front door. I wore a plain pink t-shirt with jean shorts and my aunt wore a simple green v-neck with white pants. She held a clutch (she wanted new clothes and being five years old, I wanted new toys). From the narrow road that our neighborhood was in, I looked out on the main street; motorbikes crammed each lane, polluting the air with smoke. I stared up into the purple-blue sky and because of the city lights, the stars were impossible to see.
My aunt started the engine and left her motorbike in front of our front steps. She said she forgot her helmet so she hurried inside and grabbed it off the shoe-shelf. As she adjusted her helmet, I reached for the motorbike. Climbing on with my right foot and swinging my left over, I held onto the handle bar for balance. At the same moment, I twisted it, and the engine began to roar. Hearing that, my aunt jumped on behind me and fiddled with the keys, hoping to pull it out. Unfortunately, everything happened in a blink. She failed to remove the keys out of the ignition and off I went.
For the first two to three seconds, the wind was blowing harder, and my gut went flying through my throat as if I was going down the highest and steepest roller coaster every! It was an experience I’ve never experienced before; like I was controlling the machine, which was ten times bigger than me. But as I was enjoying myself, my aunt thrashed and kicked. She jumped off to the left side, which physically adds force to the motorbike, sending me off to the other direction. My aunt let out a cry, and I took a quick glance. She landed on a heap of bricks that were used to build a house opposing ours, her watery eyes wide.
The motorbike's speed started slowing down, and it lost its balance. I crashed into one of my neighbor’s wall and the motorbike went down with me, crushing my legs. Big, heavy parts of the wall descended on my head, and my face was buried in the ground. My tongue tasted of pennies and blood, and I tried to swallow. My throat ached, and my eyes were wide open in the dirt, stinging my pupils. I blinked.
It took me exactly four seconds until I cried… of not pain, but fear.
Arms were wrapped around me, embracing me onto what felt like a bed. The arms were trembling, and I heard a woman’s voice screaming; my aunt. For a couple of minutes, I laid there. My eyes were closed, but I was as awake as ever. The ambulance alarm sounded, and I knew right then that everything was not okay.
I realized that I was on a portable bed and was being pushed. My eyelids were heavy but I braced myself to open them, even if it was just the slightest bit. Everything was white. It was all so unfamiliar to me. Where am I? I remembered thinking. I opened my eyes fully then, even though the smallest movement of muscles hurt me. I saw my aunt and a male doctor looking down at me, still pushing.
“Everything’s going to be okay. We’re going to get you fixed up,” he said.
I was stimulated. My lips parted and a whimper escaped. I didn’t want to be fixed. I wanted to be normal again. A hand rubbed my arm.
“I want… a female… doctor!” I finally got the words out, whining as I said them.
“Everything’s going to be okay,” he repeated, and that made me more frustrated.
I didn’t know what to say. It took every fiber of my body just to say something and I didn’t want to say something so unintelligent. I was pushed through more doors; double doors. When the portable bed stopped, I figured that I was in a room. There were many more doctors, all male. That frightened me.
The main doctor smiled and put on his mask. He held a huge needle, and that caught my attention. I was totally awake by then, but I was still weak. I managed to say, “Doctor, if you do a good job, I promise I’ll take you out for Pho.”
I felt the needle stabbing into my delicate skin, and before I could get the tears out, everything went black.
When I woke up, I lightly slid my fingers over my forehead. The room was empty and quiet, the only sounds being the steady footsteps of doctors outside. Three quarters of me wanted to grab the nearest object and started telling every single detail of what happened to me. The other quarter felt lively, and I was more than ready to spring out of bed and get back home. I felt different.
***
Now, I easily accept the harder things in life. I see the world differently, knowing that the most horrible things can happen to even the most normal people. I have learned that even when I was unconscious, the world was still constantly moving; with or without me. I am just one person and it was just a small accident; compared to those who didn't survive. The selfishness that was in my before is here no longer, because I am grateful of what happened. I am alive, and that's what matters.
