I hadn’t seen Mrs. Amber’s phone number pop up on my phone in over a year.
The second I answered, I knew something was wrong.
She was crying, and the only words I could make out were:
“Coma…”
And his name.
Nathaniel.
I was left on speaker while she bought my ticket.
The next flight to Minnesota.
“He wants you here,” she sobbed. “He’ll want to see you when he wakes up. He… he’s…”
Her voice broke.
“Your flight leaves tonight, honey. From Omaha. I can get you clothes here, so don’t worry about packing. Austin, honey, will you get her an Uber?”
Austin and Nathaniel had been in an accident.
A serious one.
“Hey, slow down. Slow down. What happened? Is everyone okay?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm.
Austin grabbed the phone.
His voice was barely steady.
“The doctors aren’t sure if he’ll wake up. They don’t know anything for sure, but it looks really bad. It’s really bad, Kate.”
I froze.
I had never heard Austin scared before.
Not once.
I had never heard his voice shake.
“We hit head-on.”
He paused.
“He was drunk.”
“He was drunk?!” I gasped.
“No, no—the guy who hit us. Derek. Stupid, drunk Derek. He was driving the truck. He was drunk.”
“Okay…” My heart was pounding. “Are you okay? Is Nathaniel okay?”
“He hit his head on the windshield really hard, and we started spinning. I couldn’t get control of the car. We slammed head-on into another truck.”
I sat frozen in my car.
“Austin. Is everyone okay?”
His voice cracked.
“I don’t know what happened after that. Suddenly I heard sirens, and I was hanging by the seat belt. My head was pounding. I looked over, but he wasn’t there.”
His breathing uneven.
“He wasn’t there, Kate. So I started screaming his name. I couldn’t get my freaking buckle off, and there was blood everywhere.”
My throat tightened and I felt the warmth of tears rolling down my cheek.
“Is Nathaniel okay? He’s alive, Austin?”
He was silent.
“Barely.”
“Barely?” My voice rose. “What does that mean?”
“Kate…”
He was crying now.
“His heart is so slow. I don’t know. They haven’t stoped working on him. There are so many doctors hovering over him, and they won’t let me back in the room. Every single machine is going off…”
My phone was wet with silent tears, sticking against my cheek.
“Oh God, please don’t let him die,” I whispered. “Lord, please.”
Every single thing ran through my head. Memories flashing through my mind. Moments we had, things he said to me that took years for me understand. My chest was so tight I felt like I was having an anxiety attack.
Picturing him the way Austin described him is too much.
“Will you pray with me, Austin?”
Silence.
Then his broken voice.
“We were talking about God in the car.”
I could barely understand him. His sweatshirt sleeve was pressed against his face as he wiped away tears.
“That’s good,” I said softly.
“I mocked Him, Kate.”
“You mocked God?”
He sobbed.
“I can’t pray.”
Before I could answer, someone spoke in the background.
“Are you Austin Bennett? I’m sorry, but I need to ask you some questions about the accident.”
“Call me back,” I said quietly.
I hung up.
Debris from multiple vehicles shattered the vehicle’s sunroof, causing glass to enter the passenger compartment.
The 2020 Tesla Model 3 was located overturned in the ditch.
The driver regained consciousness and was found suspended by the seatbelt.
The passenger was ejected from the vehicle and located approximately 20 feet away, lying on the roadway.
The passenger was found unresponsive and covered in blood upon EMS arrival.
The driver reported regaining consciousness shortly after the collision and observing emergency lights on scene.
The driver stated he was unable to hear or process EMS instructions due to the level of shock following the collision.
Mrs. Amber called.
“Hi honey,” she said, trying to sound calm. Distracted. Busy.
“I emailed you your ticket. You have the same email, right? You have the Delta app?”
I squeezed my eyes shut, more tears falling, resting my head against the steering wheel.
“Is Nathaniel okay, Mrs. A?”
“We have incredible doctors here. He’s in the best hands. They’re doing everything they can.”
That was all it took.
I broke down.
“Can I ask you something?” I whispered.
“Of course, baby girl.”
I was so scared to ask.
“Does Nathaniel love the Lord? Is he faithful?”
There was a pause.
“Oh honey, yes. He loves Jesus with all of his heart.”
“Okay.” I cried. “Good.”
“The only thing he’s ever struggled with loving more is you, sweetheart. He loves you so much.”
My heart broke.
Because I don’t know how to tell her…
I had practically put a restraining order on her son.
I decline his calls and ignore his texts.
He had broke me.
But I had to see him.
I had to get on that flight.
“Is Austin there with you?”
“He’s giving his statement to the officer right now.”
She sounded exhausted.
“A shard of glass from the side mirror cut his lip. He has a concussion from hitting his head on the steering wheel and two broken ribs from the collision, but he’s okay.”
She forced a small laugh.
“He’s making the nurses mad, of course. He’s supposed to be resting, but he keeps getting up and pacing.”
“What about Nathaniel?” I asked quietly.
Her voice changed.
“He has shards of glass… pieces of glass all over his body.”
She stopped.
“And he…”
She couldn’t finish.
“It’s okay,” I whispered. “You don’t have to explain. I’ll see him myself. Just call me if anything changes. Anything at all.”
“Okay, sweetie.”
Then I heard Austin in the background.
“It’s all my fault. I can’t live with myself if I killed him. The car came out of nowhere, I swear. He’s my freaking best friend. He can’t die.”
Mrs. Amber grabbed his arm.
“Austin, honey. That’s enough. You’re supposed to be in your room.”
I heard the officer in the background.
“We can finish the rest of this later.”
Austin’s voice cracked.
“We were going to stay another night and drive back in the morning, but I didn’t want to. We were just talking and then he… he unbuckled to grab something from the back seat, and that’s when the truck appeared.”
He started crying again.
“I’m so sorry, Mrs. A. I’m so, so sorry.”
I hung up.
It was just the two of them there trying to handle it all.
Austin.
Mrs. A.
Mr. Bennett was flying internationally on a friend’s jet.
He wasn’t waiting two days for a commercial flight.
I sat in the garage at work, staring at nothing.
What the heck was I supposed to do?
I had to go.
I knew I did.
Austin and Mrs. A need me.
I grabbed my phone.
I had to call my boyfriend and explain.
I had a ticket to Minnesota.
Austin and Mrs. Amber needed me.
Then I had to call my dad.
I had to tell him I wasn’t coming home but that I’m flying across the country to see two college-age boys he had never even met.