After all this time, it just doesn’t feel real. I can’t believe...--Nadia

My name is Asami. I am nothing special, just your average 18 year­old. Always stressed out about school and just wanting some adventure in life. I guess going off to college will be the most exciting adventure that I have been searching for. It’s 5 pm and I am packing up last minute miscellaneous items in my car before I take off and take the 5 hour drive up to my future school, Stanford. As the sound of my heart pounding in my chest floods from all the anxiety floods my mind, I scan through my checklist in my head to make sure that I have everything I need. My mom and dad keep repeating “Remember to call us when you take rests.” “Don’t take rest stops in isolated areas.” “Keep your phone charged.” “Call us every half­hour.” I take a deep breath, trying to relax and put my anxiety aside. I look both my mom and dad in the eye. “Mom, Dad, I will be fine, don’t worry. You guys act like you’re never going to hear from me again.” I give my sister a long hug, followed by my brother, my dad, and then my mom. My mom looks me straight in the eye, her eyes glittering from all the tears of mixed emotions that filled them. “Are you sure you can’t wait until tomorrow morning? It would be safer. With all the traffic and the breaks you’ll take along the way, you won’t get there till 11 earliest.” I think about it a minute and decide that it’s my time to go. “Mom, I have to go now. There’s nothing to worry about. I will get there in no time. Relax.” I put on my sweater, sit down in my car, turn on the engine, and reverse out of the driveway. I take a long look back and capture the image of my family standing in front of my house, waving and wearing the saddest smiles on their faces. I look back at my mom and still see that same look of uncertainty in her eyes. I give her a reassuring smile and start driving to my new home.
I decide that I will take PCH all the way up to Stanford so that I can enjoy the view of the ocean and the trees. To pass time by in traffic driving west, I listen to Drake’s new album and in no time, I made it to PCH in time for the sunset. I drive along the coast and see the crest of the sun hiding just above the shore, the sky a beautiful array of colors. Purple, red, pink, orange, blue. The ocean looks the most beautiful royal blue with a shimmer of sunset orange skimming across the waves. I take in the scenery around me and decide to call my mom. It goes to voicemail, so I leave a message. “Hey mom, I’m fine, I’m not tired yet so I’m going to drive a bit longer. I wish you could see this sunset. It looks like I am staring straight into the gates of Heaven. It is so beautiful. I’ll see you soon. Bye.” I put down my phone and glance up to see my headlights on a person standing in the middle of the road, hooded so that it was covering their face, their jeans torn and blood all over. “OH MY GOD.” I blast the horn and swerve the steering wheel, making my car spin out and crash into the huge trees on my right.
I wake up after God knows how long and feel my head heavy on my shoulders. I look around and see my headlights shining bright into the forest and my windshield completely shattered. I put my hand to my forehead and feel the blood streaming down my face. “Damn it.” I get out and inspect my car. There’s no way I’m getting to Stanford tonight. I grab my phone just to see it completely shattered. I did everything that Mom and Dad said not to do, good job Asami. I look around the lonely road and see no sign of the idiotic creep that was standing in the middle of the road. I walk down the road until I see a small Subway. I walk in and order a meal.

The lady taking my order doesn’t look at me in a funny way or ask what happened to me. I figure that maybe I don’t look as bad as I thought. I sit down and look out the window. I see hooded person standing a couple feet away. I rub my eyes and look back. Mystery Freak wasn’t there. “I’m just seeing things, I was just in an accident,” I think to myself. I go to the restroom to wash my face. I look in the mirror and see the blood all over my face, sweater, and jeans. Basically, I look horrid and I don’t understand how the Subway employee didn’t question how beat up I look. I rinse my face, look in the mirror, and see Mystery Freak behind me. I scream and fall down to my knees. The Subway lady runs in, asking if everything is okay. I try explaining everything that just happened and she stares at me as if I’m some psychopath. I walk out of the bathroom, take my sandwich, and go to the telephone booth outside and immediately call my mom. “Hey Mom!­­” I get cut off. “Sorry who is this?” Some woman picked up the phone. “Where is my mom? Where’s Jasmine?” She said, “I’m sorry, I’m her neighbor. She got a call from the police. Her daughter Asami, so I guess your sister, was killed in a car crash. Your dad is on his way to the scene and­­” I dropped the phone. After all this time, it just doesn’t feel real. I can’t believe... that I am dead.