Read Online Suicide Note by Teresa Mummert - Free Book Online Page B

crossroad.
    “You choose. Why don’t you have your license?”
    She glanced in both directions a final time before putting on her left turn signal and pulling out across the road.
    “When I was fifteen, my best friend was Liz. We were inseparable. She had turned sixteen before me and managed to pass her driving test on the first try.” She looked over at me; my eyes were locked on her as she spoke. She turned right onto Brickel Street and cleared her throat. Her heart rate began to quicken and she began to mentally count.
    “What happened?”
    “It was Friday and we left school. It had rained all afternoon. We rounded a corner and the car hydroplaned. It was horrible. One second we were singing along to a song on the radio, the next we were screaming. Everything was so loud and time moved so slowly.” She blinked rapidly to push the tears back.
    “I’m sorry.”
    “Sometimes bad things happen to good people.” She sighed loudly as I nodded. “Anyway, after the accident, my mother refused to let me take my driver’s test. She said one teenager’s funeral was enough for her. I didn’t argue with that fact. I was terrified.”
    “I shouldn’t have asked.”
    “No, it’s fine. No one ever asks. It’s nice to talk about her. To remember her.”
    There was a long, pregnant silence as her memories flooded with her friend she had lost.
    “They should have made you take the test,” I thought aloud as I stared out of the passenger-side window.
    “Why is that?” She turned onto Interstate 95 and began driving north.
    “It’s like falling off a horse. It is important to get right back on before the fear settles in.”
    “Story of my life.” She laughed and glanced over at me. “What about you?”
    “What about me?” I asked, looking over at her.
    “Tell me something about you. What was a defining moment in high school for you?”
    I laughed and shook my head as I ran my palms over my jeans. I thought back to the fights I had gotten into and all of the days I had decided to just not show up. I never talked about my mother, keeping all of the anger from her death inside. I loved my aunt and uncle, but I never really felt like I belonged anywhere.
    “I was your average kid with a chip on his shoulder.”
    Jenn nodded as she craned her neck to look in the mirror at the vehicle behind her. They were riding incredibly close but she was scared to go over forty-five miles an hour.
    “Don’t worry about them. They can pass you if they want.”
    She nodded and relaxed in her seat.
    “So, what does that mean?”
    “I thought the world was against me.” I laughed. “But it all worked out. I met a recruiter who helped me get my life on track. Here I am.”
    “Here you are.” She smiled.
    “You’re not half-bad at this driving thing.” My eyes darted from my side mirror to her as I kept an eye on the driver behind her.
    “Thanks.”
    “So, why aren’t you with your family on your birthday?”
    “You ask a lot of questions.” She cut her eyes to me, but a small smile played across her lips. “They had better things to do.”
    “No boyfriend?”
    “Not anymore. Why aren’t you spending time with Jake?”
    I laughed at her attempt to change the subject.
    “He needs some alone time with his wife. They have been having a hard time lately.”
    “He’s very…intense.”
    “He’s not a bad guy.”
    Jenn nodded but didn’t respond.
    “Where are we going, birthday girl?”
    “We are going to buy you a coat.”
    “We could go anywhere you want for your birthday and you are taking me to buy a coat?” I laughed.
    Jenn exited the highway and turned right onto Stillwater Avenue.
    “I wouldn’t feel right if you froze to death on account of me. I’m sure the weather in North Carolina is beautiful this time of year.”
    The smile faded from my face as I thought of home. I hadn’t been there for a few months and beautiful was the last thing I thought when I pictured going back there. The car slipped