Frigid

I could see my breath in front of me as I walked to my car.  It was flurrying outside. It was beautiful. Magical even. The flakes were just barely laying on the ground but I knew that the snow was going to speed up later.  I got into my car and pulled out of the driveway to go get my brother, Zack, from basketball practice. He was truly talented at basketball, or almost any sport you put him in for that matter.  Me, I’m more of a nerd. I do enjoy the occasional game of ping pong, but other than that, I tend to stay away from balls flying through the air towards me.

My brother’s practice was in a gym that was a town over.  I drove past lots of houses, empty corn fields, and a few churches, all glistening in the new, light layer of snow that was only getting heavier.  The shimmer of the snowflakes was blinding, but I was still able to see the road in front of me. I turned on the radio. The first song that came on was one of my favorites.  It was one of my brother’s favorites, too. I was even singing a long a bit. I realized that I was passing through a wooded area where you could see a small lake frozen over just enough to hold a few people and a snowmobile, at most.  

I spot a duck by the side of the road and it's the last thing I see before my car hits an ice patch on the road and spins onto the frozen lake.  The ice holds just long enough for the car to slide out to the middle of the lake. Then the ice shatters. I could feel the water gush around the vehicle as I’m transported below the surface of the icy water.  I don’t remember there being any other cars on the road with me. Knowing my luck, I’ll drown before anyone even realizes I’m in the lake.  

I could already feel my feet being soaked with the frigid water.  My back really hurt and I thought I could feel blood, so I tried not to move, despite the water having risen to the middle of my shins.  I tried opening the door but it wouldn’t open. I wasn’t nearly strong enough to break a window. I was trapped. I grabbed my phone to call 911 but it wouldn’t even turn on.  The screen was severely cracked and it was sitting in water so I wasn’t expecting it to work, anyways.  

I was beginning to feel extremely tired.  I could barely keep my eyes open, let alone continue trying to escape.  I knew I had to stay awake though. Zack was waiting for me. I still had to pick him up from basketball practice.  We were supposed to go out to dinner tonight together. But staying awake was so hard. The water was up to my waist now.  My entire body was numb. At least my back didn’t hurt anymore. The water around me was turning red, though. Zack would understand if I took a nap, right? A nap wouldn’t hurt anybody.  Just five minutes…

I woke up in my bed at home.  It must have all been a dream.  That was relieving. I checked my phone to see that it was about 9 in the morning.  I was late to school. Of course I was late to school. I raced through my house to shove on my sneakers and grabbed my backpack.  I sprinted out the door and ran toward the school. I only lived a block away so there was no use driving. I quickly became out of breath and stopped running.  I took this moment to look around. There was a fresh layer of snow outside, untouched. Untouched. Even the snow on the sidewalk I ran on had no footprints. I was confused, but I caught my breath and continued on my walk to school anyways.  

I walked into the school.  The halls were empty except for those few kids that didn’t feel like being in class.  One of them was my ex-boyfriend Avery.  

“Hey, Avery,” I tried to get his attention. “Avery!” He didn’t respond.  He was probably just still mad at me over something stupid. I could also see Lacey, a girl who is kind of obsessed with death.  I heard rumors that she talks to ghosts.  

I was supposed to be in Mr. Davis’ English class so I made my way over to his room and let myself into the classroom.  No one even flinched at the sound of the door opening. No one acknowledged me. Not the teacher, not even my best friend, Cyrus.  It’s like I didn’t exist. Maybe that whole car crash wasn’t a dream. Did I die? Am I dead right now? Am I a ghost? Is Zack okay? So many things crossed my mind at once.  I look back over at Cyrus. Did he know I was dead? He seemed too focused on his laptop to tell. I decided that I should find Zack. He wasn’t at home when I left. If he knew, he shouldn’t be at school, but I decided to check in some of his classes anyways.  Did he even get a ride home from basketball practice yesterday?

I enter one of the math classrooms to see Zack sitting in the back row with a worried look on his face.  Maybe they didn’t find me yet. Am I just a missing person right now? Could I possibly be half dead at the hospital?  That’s not important right now. At least Zack made it home and is in school. I decided to sit in the empty seat next to him for a while.  He was in geometry class and seems to be very good at it. He raised his hand to answer almost every question and was confident with his answers.  I’m so proud of him. I wish I could tell him how proud of him I am. I already miss him, and he’s right in front of me. I decided to get up and leave the classroom.  Maybe I could check to see if anyone found my body yet. As I left the classroom, I glanced at Zack for the last time, and he looked at me for a second. He made eye contact with me.  Did he know I was there with him? I couldn’t tell for sure, so I left.  

I walked out of the school and towards my crash sight.  It was a long walk, but everything around me was so beautiful.  The sun reflecting off the snow made everything shine. Everything was just so still and silent.  When I got to my destination, nothing had changed since yesterday. No police or ambulances had showed up, let alone the tire tracks of them.  The car was completely submerged and you couldn’t see it. There was even a new, thin layer of ice over the top of the lake. No one knew I was dead.  I really hope Zack doesn’t think that I would just run away. I would never leave him alone. I really hope he knows that. What will happen to me? Am I just left to roam the earth for eternity?  

“Spencer?”  

Who the hell said that? I thought that people couldn’t see me.  I turned around to see Lacey. Of course it was Lacey. I don’t think that she could really see me.  She could definitely sense that I was here though.  

“You can see me?” I ask.

“Sort of.  What are you looking at?” she responds.  

“Well this is where I died.  My car slipped on a patch of ice, I guess, and it slid into the lake.  The lake froze over again before anyone even realized that I died.”

“Oh, so that’s why you’re a spirit.”

“Can you do me a favor?”

“Of course.  How could I say no to a dead guy?”

“Too soon dude.”

“Sorry, but what did you need me to do?”

“Can you get someone to search the crash site and tell Zack that I didn’t leave him on purpose?”

“Yeah, definitely...so what’s being a ghost like?”  

“Really boring and depressing so far.”