Ring! Ring! …. Ring! Ring! “Stay here my mother said as she went to get the phone. I went to get my cell to call josh to see were he was. By the time I got to my room, my mother screamed my name from the living room. I was scared to think what had happened who was calling, and why were they calling. Why my mother calling my name likes that? When I got back to the living room, I asked what had happened. She said “ the hospital called and said josh was dead.”

It was 3pm. My mother, josh, older brother, Tyrone my older brother, my older sister Sara, and I were all sitting in my room playing my wii when josh got a call from his friend Jaylen. He was asking josh if he wanted to come to this party later that night. Like brothers do, he said he would come, but like my over protective mother, she said no because there would be under-age drinking there. All josh said was “okay”, but I knew he was getting out of the house one way or another.
It was 9:43pm when josh called my name. “ Kaelah come here real quick.” He said when I got to his room, I asked, “ What do you want? I was in the middle of my game. “ He said that he was going out to that party even though mom said he couldn’t go at all. I asked, “ Didn’t mom say you couldn’t go?”
“ Yeah but I have to go It’s the party of the year and everyone is going to be there” he said, standing up and squeezing my shoulder with this look in his eye that kind of scared me.
“ So what do you want me to do?” I asked trying to leave the room so he wouldn’t ask me.
“ If mom ask where I went, lie to her Just tell her I went to the mall with jaylen and Kenny,” josh said nervously. I looked josh up and down with this look on my face like he was crazy if he thought I was really going to lie to mom. All I could say was,“ okay ill do it”. But right then and there, I knew something was going to happen.
It was 10:23pm when my mom woke up. She called my name from her room. “ KAELAH COME HERE! “ I jumped at the thought that she might know that josh gone. “ Yes mom” I said shaking a little bit.
“What do you want for dinner?” she said with her smooth, calm voice.
I relaxed a little, “Wendy’s is fine with me, “ I said still shaking a bit.
“Okay. Why isn’t josh here” she said, still with her calm voice. I knew if I didn’t tell her where he was, something was going to happen, and it wouldn’t be pretty.
“Um, is he in the basement? “ I said with a shaky voice.
“ No kaelah Josh is never in the basement he hates it down there now where is he?” she said standing up and walking over to me.
“ Um… so how’s your life going as a mother, huh? You always say that we never ask you about your day,” I said stalling and walking back a few steps from my mother
“ Okay where is he Right now or … “ suddenly the phone rang. Ring! Ring! ……. Ring! Ring! “ Stay right here! “ my mother said with anger in her voice. As she went to get the phone I ran to my room and got my cell to call josh to see where he was. As soon as I grabbed my cell my mother screamed my name from the living room “ KAELAH? COME HERE! PLEASE COME HERE! “ She said with this shriek in her voice
I ran down the stairs and turned the corner I said, “Yes mom who was that and why were you screaming? “ I saw my mom crying for the first time in a while she said
“A police man called they said josh got into a accident and he hit the median on the side of the road. He couldn’t get out, and the car blew up in flames and Josh…Josh…. Josh is half dead they say.” Omg was all I could say. There were so many thoughts running through my head. Why didn’t I tell her josh left the house when he wasn’t supposes to? Then my sister Sara and my older brother Tyrone came busting through the door and Sara was crying to but Tyrone wasn’t. I could see in his eyes that he was going to be crying soon.
“Yes I just got it do you guys know were he wtent please just tell me, “she said still crying and trying the tears away But they kept running down her face
“Yeah mom. He went to that party you said he couldn’t go to, but before he went, he said if you asked were he went, to lie to you. But I couldn’t do it.” I felt guilty inside because none of this would have happened if I would have told him stay home and not go. My mom ran to her room and got her shoes and told us to get in the car because were going to the hospital.
When we got there my mom ran up to the desk. There was a slim blue-eyed lady with dirty blonde hair sitting, looking at other paper works. She looked up at my mom with a happy smile on her face and asked, “ Yes may I help you ma’am?”
“Yes you may my. Son Josh Johnson, was sent here he got into a accident about 10 minutes ago can you tell me what room he is in?” my mom said still crying a little her eyes were blood shot red.
“ Yes He is in room 134 down the hall and to your right,” she said still having that smile on her face like everything was okay
Well it wasn’t I wanted to tell that lady to wipe that smile off her face. I don’t get why she was smiling anyway. She’s in a hospital where she see’s dead or hurt people all day. I didn’t I simply walked beside my mother.
When we got to the room, Josh he looked really bad my mother couldn’t take the sight of him so she ran out into the parking lot. Sara followed her out there. Tyrone and I sat and looked at him.
“ Is that him? “ he said trying not to cry”
“ Tyrone, I think so but he’s so unrecognizable, “ I said looking down on him with guilt in my face. The heart monitor was beeping very slowly. “
Is he …… alive?” asked Tyrone, walking on the other side of the bed. Before I could answer, Sara came back, in but my mother didn’t. I asked, “Where is mom”
“She’s calming her self down in the car”. She said looking down at the floor
I knew she couldn’t stand I put my own brother in a hospital bed “ I blame myself” I said, quietly.
“ Its not your fought kaelah, “ said Tyrone, as he came on the other side of the bed were I was and put his hand on my shoulder.
I got up and slapped him “ Yes it and all you know it is If I had just told mom were he was he wouldn’t be in the hospital half dead! “ I screamed at Tyrone and everyone was quiet. Sara was going to say something but the heart monitor stopped beeping, and that’s when I ran out screaming and crying I knew josh was dead. Sara came after me, but I was a better runner than she was so I ran faster.
Sara got tired of chasing me so she stopped and she yelled out “ KAELAH COME BACK! “ I kept running until I hit unbanned building. I sat there thinking about all the stuff that just went happened. An hour later I was back at the hospital. When I walked in, saw the same dirty blonde headed lady with blue eyes still sitting at her desk reading-paper Work when saw she me walk back in she asked “ wasn’t you just in that room 134?

” Just by the way she asked me, I grew mad, “ yeah why do you care? “
I asked with irritation in my voice. She looked at me like she was irritated to ‘ look kid – “
“I cut her off “ no you look ma’am cant you see that im irritated and im confused right now and my brother is dead! And you have this happy go lucky smile on your face like everything is okay well its not you work in a hospital were you see dead people all the time but your still happy smack that smile off your face and stop bothering me “ I spoke with a fierce voice and everyone in the waiting room looked up at surprised.
The lady with dirty blonde hair looked at me like she was scared or nervous “ well im sorry if I made you mad and im also sorry your brother died “ she said looking away from me. I kepted staring at her wanting to pull that hair out her head even though she was just doing her job I was mad and didn’t care I said “ its okay and thank you “ and walked back into the room were I saw a nurse and a doctor in their talking to my mother she was crying even harder her eyes were not even blood shot any more they were darker then blood shot. When the doctor and the nurse walked out so did Tyrone, Sara, and my mom we all walked to the car and went home. My mom went straight to bed because she cry so much I didn’t I stand up looking in josh’s room at all the stuff her had in their I didn’t pass out until 4:39am, but before I went to sleep I knew everyone lives were going to change.
The lives of my entire family would never be the same with Josh ever again.