Saving Anna

Anna

“Ross, why won’t you tell me where you’re taking me?” I asked my boyfriend for the umpteenth time that night. We’d been together since high school—freshman year to be exact. He was it for me, just as I knew I was it for him.

Our story wasn’t a normal one. Some might even frown upon it. I’d been a foster kid, and his parents had taken me in while the state worked on finding me a more permanent home. I’d been taken from my home in the middle of the night after my mother overdosed and my father took off for the hills. A neighbor had called the authorities and informed them I’d been on my own for days.

But after two nights with the Verns, they wanted to keep me there. They showed me what it was like to have a loving family, to have parents that actually cared about you. It was something I’d been yearning for but had never thought possible.

Over time, Ross and I fell in love. We started out as friends. He’d stay up late with me watching movies when I couldn’t sleep. Sometimes, he’d even read a book with me. He never cared that it was a sappy romance novel. He was interested in doing whatever I wanted to do. Ross was everything in the absolute best way.

Even when his older brother, Ryan, had come home from college for a weekend and met me for the first time, he’d welcomed me with open arms. Ryan had been the older brother I’d never had—a protector, someone that actually cared about my wellbeing. His weekends and holidays at home contained some of the best family memories I held. He truly was the life of the party most of the time.

But in my eyes, no one compared to Ross. Some people said we wouldn’t make it, that young love never lasted. But I knew without a doubt that Ross and I were forever.

Nothing could destroy us.

Now, six years later, Ross was taking the little bit of time he had away from football practice and college classes to surprise me with a date.

“Where are we going?” I asked for the umpteenth time. Ross knew I was horrible when it came to surprises. The build-up was exhausting. Anxiety and depression were my silent killers. Ross knew and understood that, and he tried to avoid anything that triggered me.

So for him to do this—it meant he was planning something big. I just didn’t know what. And it was driving me nuts to not know.

He grinned over at me. “Be patient. You’ll love it.”

I rolled my eyes with a huff. “You know I’m the worst when it comes to having patience.”

He laughed softly, slipping into the right turn lane. “Well, I need you to find it tonight.” I rolled my eyes. Patience was not one of my virtues. His mother teased me all the time for it.

I ran my eyes over his features. Ross looked tired—exhausted, really. I knew between practice, constant games, and studying all the time, he missed out on a lot of rest. Despite my concern for him, it really warmed my heart to know that even though he was just about dead on his feet, he still wanted to spend time with me.

It meant I still meant everything to him. I’d been terrified when he showed me his college acceptance letter, and I freaked out when he informed me they required him to live on campus for his first year of college courses. So, he held me in his arms, a blanket wrapped around us as he rocked us on the porch swing, the rain pounding down around us.

Ross was the one person in this world I was afraid of losing. I wasn’t sure if I could survive without him.

I wasn’t in college. It wasn’t in my plans to go. I instead got a job waitressing at a bar/restaurant, and my tips more than covered the rent for my small apartment, my car note, my car insurance, the utility bill, and whatever else I might need to cover that month. I even made enough to put into savings. I knew I was extremely lucky. Not everyone was lucky enough to land an entry-level position that provided them with a financial cushion.

Ross began to turn just as I saw the eighteen-wheeler turning as well. My eyes widened in horror. My heart lurched into my throat.

“Ross—” I screeched, but it was too late.

The eighteen-wheeler blew its horn, but Ross didn’t realize the situation we were in until it was too late. His exhaustion made his reaction time slower.

The last thing I heard was Ross screaming my name before my head slammed against the window, knocking me out cold.

~*~*~

Ryan

I rushed into the hospital, my hair a mess on my head, my eyes no doubt as wild as my hair. All I’d done was sling on a pair of gray sweats, my slides, and a long-sleeve shirt before rushing out of the house when my mom called me in tears, telling me to get to the hospital. She couldn’t even tell me why I needed to get here. She was crying too hard.

And that freaked me out.

Dad was waiting for me in the small, quiet waiting room, tears rimming his eyes, though they didn’t spill over. My heart was thundering against my breastbone. “Dad?” I questioned, coming to a stop in front of him.

He swallowed thickly and led me over to some chairs that were away from everyone else in the waiting room. I slowly dropped down into the seat, my hands beginning to tingle. Somehow, I knew something was really wrong.

“Ross and Anna were in a car accident,” he quietly began, taking a seat next to me. I swallowed past the lump that formed in my throat. Dad scrubbed his rough, weathered hands down his face. He was fifty-five years old, but right then, he looked a lot older. Something had severely aged him tonight.

“Ross didn’t make it,” he said quietly. Tears burned in my eyes. I dropped my face to my hands. This couldn’t be happening. “A witness said an eighteen-wheeler was making its left turn. Ross didn’t check to make sure everything was clear before he turned right. Eighteen-wheeler smashed the car in—crushed just about every bone in Ross’s body with the impact. Anna is unconscious. The only injury the doctors can see she sustained is a pretty bad head injury.”

She was lucky.

That was the part Dad didn’t say, but both he and I were thinking it. She was lucky to be alive and not crushed like Ross.

My shoulders shook as I cried into my hands, loss for my little brother ripping through me. He was so full of life, headed for bigger and better things. There was already talk of him all over the United States that he would be the next Tom Brady.

He would never get that chance now. It was ripped from him, just like he was ripped from Anna.

He’d never have the future he dreamed of. He’d never be able to give Anna everything he wanted.

“He was going to ask her to marry him tonight,” I rasped. I sat up, leaning back in my chair, silent tears sliding down my cheeks. Dad pinched the bridge of his nose, agony twisting his features. “He called me for advice, asking if I could pull strings to get him in at Delarosas.” I swallowed thickly. “He was so tired, but he wanted to ask her on their anniversary night.”

I shook my head, staring up at the ceiling. Ross wouldn’t get any of his planned happily ever after, wouldn’t get any of his dreams. And it wasn’t fair.

And Anna. God, Anna.

Sweet, soulful, loving Anna.

This would kill her.

Dad’s phone suddenly vibrated, and he grabbed it out, looking down at it. He swallowed nervously. “Anna’s awake,” he whispered, his voice cracking.

This was going to destroy her.

I stood to my feet, swiping at my cheeks. We may be crushed. We may be burying my little brother way too early, but Anna had the worst of it all.

She’d lost the love of her life tonight. She lost the man that helped her heal, helped her grow.

And she had been with him in that car. Chances were, she saw everything that happened. And that would sit with her for the rest of her life.

We pushed through the heavy, blue double doors, and I followed Dad down the hallway that led to Anna’s hospital room. I swallowed thickly at the sight of her as Dad walked to her side, pressing a kiss to her cheek, asking her how she was feeling.

Her head was wrapped in a thick bandage, and I could tell part of her head was shaved, most likely for stitches. Her face was bruised and swollen on one side, and her movements were stiff.

Dad was right.

She was lucky.

“Anna,” I rasped, moving forward. I forced a smile to my lips. “How are you, sweet girl?”

I’d always called her sweet girl because that’s what she was. She was the sweetest soul I knew. My brother… God, he’d been so lucky to have her. If he hadn’t snatched her up, I sure would have eventually. She was everything I’d ever wanted and more.

She licked her lips, her eyes moving around the room. “Where’s Ross?” she spoke, asking the question I knew all three of us were dreading. My mom turned her head to hide her tears. I swallowed past the sudden, large lump that blocked my throat. “Why isn’t someone with Ross?”

She remembered the accident—at least the portion that happened before she was knocked out. But she had no idea what happened to him.

I grabbed her hands in mine, crouching next to her bedside, deciding to be the brave soul to destroy her world. Her eyes followed me, and fear flickered in her eyes. I hated seeing that fear there.

I hated that I was about to be the one to crush her soul and all of her dreams.

I licked my dry lips, wishing I didn’t have to do this. “Anna, sweet girl, Ross didn’t make it.”

It took her a moment to register my words. I watched the emotions play across her face—disbelief, anger, sadness, and finally, gut-wrenching pain. And that pain? I would never forget the way it haunted the light in her eyes, killing it, for the rest of my life.

“You’re lying,” she choked out, shaking her head.

I shook my head as well, trying to swallow down that large lump, but I couldn’t. It was stuck there. “I wish I was, sweet girl.” A tear slid down my cheek. “He didn’t make it, Anna.”

“No!” she screamed, her hands fisting in mine. Sobs tore from her chest.

And I watched my beautiful, sweet Anna shatter completely.