The beginning

The rain had started to come down harder when I decided to leave. Serves me right for choosing today of all days to not check the weather forecast. I scurried out of the house, my spaghetti strap dress doing very little to shield me from the assault of the downpour.

The noise from the frat party grew softer and softer the further away I drove. Turning onto the main road, I switched on the AC in my best friends beloved 2012 toyota Corolla- which she so graciously allowed me to use tonight. It was unusually hot in here despite it being the middle of the fall.

The road ahead was quiet and foggy. I turned on my headlights to the brightest it could be as I leaned forward in my seat, struggling to see much further ahead. At least it was a full moon, I found myself thinking. It did help a little, its brightness cutting through the fog in certain places. I fidgeted with the stereo, scrolling through the hundreds of songs that I had loaded onto the USB connected to it. Dandelions by Ruth B, my recently discovered favorite driving anthem, blared through the speakers. It probably wasn't the best idea to be driving in these conditions with the music turned up so high but hey c'mon, it's DANDELIONS! How could you not listen to it on full blast.

I tried my hardest to maintain my speed between 40 and 60. It was so hard driving at this speed. Now, I'm not a maniac, reckless driver but c'mon, I'm no grandma to be driving anything under 100.

And I have the speeding tickets to prove it.

My phone ringing cut through the chorus, just when I was getting into the zone.

"Hello?" I answered, turning the volume on the stereo down and putting my phone on speaker.

"Woman, where are you? Its almost 11pm and we have classes tomorrow!" Courtney, aka my obnoxious roommate, best friend and owner of this car yelled at me through the little device.

"I'm on my way, mom." I teased. Courtney may be a little over bearing sometimes but she was also one of the few people that I could tolerate being around.

"Are you drunk? Are you driving? Are you DRUNK AND DRIVING?"

"Uhm no, yes and kinda. Exactly in that order."

Over the years of partying and underaged drinking, I'd come to realize that my tolerance for alcohol was pretty extraordinary. It would take me close to 10 beers before I even felt the slightest bit tipsy. And tonight, I hadn't even had 5 so consider me as sober as...well I don't know. A judge? Was that it?

"Listen Jazz, I don't want to have to be identifying your corpse after you end up in a wreck. So just, get your ass home as fast as possible. Well no, not fast. Drive the speed limit, or under. Yeah under is better. It's raining fucking cats and dogs."

I chuckled. Courtney worried about me way more than she should. It was nice, having someone care about you but this girl was going to give herself an aneurism with the way she over thinks things.

"I gotcha ma'am. Now hang up before I really do wreck."

"Don't say such things, dumbass. Don't you know about Murphy's law...is that the right one? Yes, Murphy's law."

"Good bye, Court!" I cut off her rambling and hung up for the both of us.

The AC was not doing a good job helping cool me down in the least bit. I'll have Courtney get that checked out tomorrow after classes.

The moon had reached its peek. I found myself in awe of its beauty. The way it can illuminate the darkest nights almost seemed like a metaphor for my life. I know, its probably dumb to compare oneself to something as ridiculous as the full moon but it seemed fitting. The dark road ahead was my life and the moon above was my best friend who I'd forever be indebted to for making my life worth living.

A smile broke out on my face as I reminisced about my life but was quickly replaced by a scowl as a nauseating feeling flooded my body followed by a splitting headache. It only lasted a couple of seconds.

What the hell?

Wait? Was I losing my high alcohol tolerance super power?

Is this what drunk feels like?

The music from the stereo seemed to be getting louder. The sound hurt my ears. I could've sworn I turned the volume down. Then came the headache again, this time along with a ringing in my ear. I let out a yelp when I felt a stabbing pain shoot through my back. My grip on the steering wheel almost faltered and I swerved a little but quickly gained control again. In an instant my entire body went numb with pain and then I heard a crack.

Am I having a stroke?

What the hell does a stroke even feel like?

I screamed when the second crack sounded and my foot slipped off the accelerator. The next two came from my hands, leaving them limp and painful at my sides. My vision blurred, clouded by the tears that now filled them. I cried out so loud that I was almost convinced that that sound didn't come from me.

What the hell is happening?

Everything that happened next was a blur. From my car swerving off the road and hitting the barricade, to my entire body feeling like it was being pulled and twisted in different directions.

When I came to it, just barely, I was laying at the bottom of a river bank. The wet grass and muddy terrain stuck to my naked body while the light of the full moon made the falling rain look like shooting stars.

Oh fuck you, Murphy's law- was the last think I thought before my eyes closed and I drifted off into oblivion.