(Edited)

The sudden change in the bipolar Midwest weather caught me off guard. I used my blue and gold pom poms as a makeshift umbrella while dashing across the parking lot to my mom's silver minivan. A strong wind blew past, whipping my already shorter than short cheer skirt up and leaving me running along with my spankies on full display.

A loud whistle garnered my attention. "Looking good, Shelby!" Sebastian Birch, Patterson High all-star basketball player, my sometimes archnemesis, and my twin brother Kyle's jerk of a best friend, shouted loud enough for the rest of the team to hear.

I flipped him off before hurrying toward the car to keep from getting completely soaked. What good those damn poms did. I ended up drenched from head to toe anyway.

The side door to the minivan automatically opened, and I clambered inside as a bolt of lightning forked in the distance. My mother passed me a dry towel once I had situated myself in the back seat.

I quickly wiped the water from my face and muttered, "Thanks." 

Kyle's amused hazel eyes locked with mine in the rearview mirror. "What did he do now?" His added chuckle made the question even more annoying.

"Bass is just being himself. A complete asshole," I said.

"Shelby. Language!" Dad's gruff voice radiated from the front passenger seat. I shouldn't have even bothered complaining since it would only fall on deaf ears. My parents had already drunk the Sebastian Birch is wonderful Kool-Aid years ago, and in their eyes, he did no wrong.

Yeah, whatever.

Kyle's laughter grew raucous. He found it utterly hilarious and entertaining that his best friend could drive me crazy in mere seconds. He took Sebastian's side in everything even though I was his damn twin. I'd shared a uterus with him for Christ's sakes!

But did that earn me any preferential treatment?

Nope. Not when it came to those two.

My brother was lost to the dark side. Between that and dating Lindsay Matthews, the she-devil incarnate of Patterson High, it was in my professional sisterly opinion that he was out of his freaking mind.

Still all riled up, not only from getting cat-called but also cheering at my brother's and his basketball team's state championship game, which they won, I flung one of my pom poms at the back of Kyle's blond head. The plastic handle made an impact, resulting in a dull, yet satisfying thud.

"Damn it, Shelby." His hand rubbed at the point of contact. "Can't you see I'm getting ready to drive here?"

That was the problem.

My completely gullible parents were allowing Kyle, also known as the absolute worst driver in the United States, to drive. They should have realized six failed driver's tests ago it was a lost cause. That and their darling son better invest in one hell of a reliable bicycle or start saving now for all those Uber rides he would inevitably have to take.

But no.

My parents gave Kyle yet another chance to practice driving. And this time, I had to contribute as an unwilling participant to their madness.

"Umm... yeah. Maybe my plan is to inflict enough damage to ensure that Dad drives and not you." I threw the other one as well and almost hit his head in the same exact spot. Score.

"Stop it!" Kyle twisted in his seat and glared. "Unless you want to ride home with someone else?" My stupid brown-nosing brother looked at our dad to intervene.

Dad chuckled. He knew it was pointless to get in the middle of our squabbling. Especially taking sides. That was just dad code for wrong. "Tonya," he groaned, signaling my mother to step in as referee.

"Kids, behave," Mom ordered while her nose was still deep in the pages of one of her silly celebrity gossip magazines. She had a stack of them that she perused during the games since her attention span when it came to organized sports was zilch.

Since my brother had already posed the question, I answered with, "Maybe I should ride with someone else? At least then, I'd know for sure I'll make it home in one piece."

"Shelby Elizabeth!" Mom unbuckled her seat belt to face me. The scowl on her face let me know she meant business. "Apologize to your brother right now."

"But..." I started, and she raised a lone finger to silence me. Mom shook her head, and it was useless to try and continue.

"Sorry, dear brother," I sneered and sprawled on the third seat to hide from any further retaliation. Too lazy and way too tired to buckle in for the duration, there were more pertinent issues to attend to now. Most importantly, the hunger pains in my stomach. "Can we at least go through a drive through, please?"

"Nope," Kyle said as the car began moving at a steady pace. "That's a negative, sis."

The rain relentlessly pounding on the roof of the car resonated like multiple taps on a snare drum and distracted me momentarily. "What? Umm. Starving child back here." I waved my hand like a kid in class, hoping the teacher would notice. "And I need sustenance, or I shall wither away to nothing..."

"Then you should've eaten before the game." Kyle's loud voice echoed throughout the confines of the car. "Oh, but that's right, we were almost late because of you. I wonder why you overslept this morning."

Kyle knew exactly why I'd overslept, considering he went to the same party as me last night. Mister Goody-Two-Shoes left early since he needed his precious beauty sleep to get up and play in the stupid game today. All I had to do was cheer and therefore snuck in a good two hours after curfew. Next time it happened to my twin, though, I was throwing him under the bus as payback.

I cowered lower, in the hopes that my parents didn't catch on to what Kyle was inferring. Subject change was essential to this plan. "Food? Because I know Mom isn't cooking this late."

"You've got that right," Mom muttered.

"You'll be getting fed, Shelby, when the team comes over to celebrate," Dad said smugly. "So, what do you think, Tonya, will twenty pizzas be enough for dinner?"

Ugh. The team. That meant ten male varsity basketball players all with their inflated egos contaminating our home for the next few hours. And if I knew my parents, most of them would end up spending the night which would entail even more torture at my expense. Those overgrown, mindless baboons would traipse around the house like they owned the place, and I wouldn't get an ounce of peace, let alone sleep. Even my room wasn't safe.

"Can you drop me off at Trina's?" I crossed my fingers while sending out the say yes positive vibes.

"Nope," Dad said.

"Well then, can she come over?" I messaged her, typing a quick  S.O.S. and was just itching to hit send. There was no way that I could handle this shit on my own and needed reinforcements. "And Katlyn?"

"Umm," Kyle sounded as the car stopped. Probably at the last stoplight on Main before reaching home from my guesstimate. "That's a no on Katlyn coming over."

Where did he get off on deciding who came over? Nine of his idiotic buddies were invited, so what was wrong with two of mine? Trina was my best friend and would receive an invite just on that merit. Katlyn Severs was meh. I didn't care for her, but she was Sebastian's new girlfriend and would serve as enough of a distraction for him to leave me the hell alone.

A girl could hope.

I propped myself on the back side of the second seat, ready to win this argument. "The last time I looked you weren't Mom or Dad, so why do you get a say in who comes over?"

The light turned green, and the car moved forward.

"Shelby, we'll—" Dad started as the impact from another car crashing into the driver's side cut him off.

The force of which, lurched everything and everyone toward the right side of the car.

My body jolted upward. The deafening sounds of crunching and shrieking metal drowned out the cries of my mother. The windows imploded and sent hundreds upon hundreds of glass shards prickling my face and arms. The world was spinning as the car rolled. Once. Twice. My head rammed into the ceiling, and I was sucked out of the car like in a vacuum.

In utter shock while on the damp pavement, I barely noticed the acrid smell of burning chemicals and gasoline as something heavy slammed on to me and then bounced off just as quick. My mother was still crying, and the ground shook as the rain continued pelting against my battered body. I couldn't move, but at least I couldn't feel anything either.

It took every ounce of energy I had, but I shifted my head to the side. It allowed me to watch in horror as the trail of gasoline from the wet blacktop ignited and trickled a streak of fire directly toward the mangled upside-down minivan. The roof had caved, and the tires were still spinning as the flames caused the vehicle to explode.

I was lying here, helpless and unmoving in complete disbelief at what I'd seen. My family. My mom. My dad. Kyle. They were in there, but where were they now?

I tried moving even an inch but felt trapped. My eyes stayed fixed on the bright yellow and white flames as they hissed and sizzled from the rain drops.

My fractured and wounded body trembled and then soft sobs emanated from my chest. I finally gave up, waving that white flag toward consciousness as the sirens sounded in the distance.

The only thing left was darkness.

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