Another Drive Home

Pellets of rain beat themselves against Bryce’s windshield.  The wipers made a rhythmic swishing as they cleared the downpour.  He’d driven the road many times in the rain.  Every single curve he knew better then the back of his hand.  Up ahead was dead man’s curve, quaintly named for the ninety degree bend.



Bryce put his foot on the break, slowing his car to an almost halt.  Moments before he reached the turn, he watched as a blue caravan hit corner traveling to quickly.  The driver braked, sending the car into a skid on the sleek roads.  To his horror, the van flipped and headed directly for him.  He swerved to avoid the oncoming vehicle, pulled over on the side of the road and raced to assist the driver.



The caravan was upside down in the middle of the road, Bryce hoped no car came, at least until the driver could be freed from the wreckage.  He pulled his phone out of his jacket pocket and dialled emergency.  He looked inside the van while on the phone, he could only see the driver, there didn’t appear to be anyone else in there with him.



Bryce tried pulling open the door, locked from the inside.  The man looked unresponsive, so asking him to unlock the doors wasn’t going to work.  He tried the passenger’s side, but it as well was locked.  A safety feature on modern cars, lock upon driving, Bryce wasn’t sure how it was a safety feature during an accident.  He threw his fist towards the window, glass spattered everywhere.  Pain shot through knuckle of Bryce’s hand, and he could feel the blood and rain trickling down to his wrist.  In the distance, he was able to make out the headlights of an oncoming vehicle. 



It was now or never.  Bryce unlocked the car doors, he ran back around the driver’s side.  After throwing open the door, he carefully held one arm under the man to catch him once the seatbelt was unlatched, then with the other arm he hit the release button.  Bryce gently tugged the man out of the van, and over to the shoulder of the road, next to his parked car.  The other car had finally made it to the bend, it slowed to a halt and swerved to miss the van, the cars passenger mirror went flying into the road, but the car made it by.  The car kept driving.



Bryce took his coat off and draped it over the man while they waited for help.  He put his ear to his chest to insure he was still breathing.  He checked the trunk of his car for anything that might help.  Bryce found an old blanket balled up.  He re-rolled it nicely and placed it under the man’s head.  The sounds of sirens could be heard echoing in the distance. 



More screeching tires could be heard.  Bryce looked up in time to see a red car collide with the van.  The impact of the crash sent both cars skidding to the side of the road.  Bryce jumped to his feet, he had a man at his feet unconscious and another car just collided with the first wreckage.  He was about to make his way to the other car when a lady stepped out.



She had a few bumps and bruises, but overall, she seemed more in a panic than anything.



“Are you alright,” called Bryce.



The lady looked over to him and to the man on the ground.



“I think so,” she said walking over to him.  “Was he in the van?”



“Yah, I’ve already called for help, they should be here soon.”



Moments later the paramedics, as well as police arrived on scene.  They placed the man on a stretcher and moved him into the ambulance.  One of the paramedics tended to the man, while the other attended to the woman and to Bryce. 



“I think you should have your hand looked at,” the paramedic told him as it was bandaged up.



“I will,” promised Bryce.  “But I need to get somewhere first.”  It was the first time he realized how much his hand had been paining him.  Despite that, Bryce was late enough.  He climbed into his car, took one last look in the review mirror at the scene behind him, and then drove away.  Five minutes later, Bryce pulled into the laneway of his home.  He was about to get out of the car when his wife came running out of the door carrying an umbrella.  He was soaking wet from standing so long in the rain, the umbrella however, was a small comfort as the husband and wife made their way inside.