Bright yellow, unrelenting headlights boring down with terrifying speed; a moment when times seems to slow down, looking back on it Peyton would have said that time hadn't slowed down, necessarily, rather that her senses had been heightened. Perhaps it was because her focus had been narrowed down much more than usual, or maybe it was the fact that she thought she was going to die that made her brain spin wildly through all the things that had happened in her life up to this point.

She remembered Jenny and Jake, Brooke, long fights, the pain of realizing Lucas had found someone else. Those memories flitted by quickly until she started to remember Ella and everything that had happened since Ella was born. She remembered the toll it had taken on her heart when she realized Lucas was not there and would not be coming. She remembered the grief and guilt she had been drowning in until she was forced to accept Ella, and the vow that she would never leave her alone again.

And now she had finally come back to Tree Hill only to find he had found someone else to replace her. And now she was just going to give up? She was just going to let everything that had happened, everything she had fought for, go to waste? Ella's face appeared once again in Peyton's mind, and Peyton vowed that if she lived (which she was determined to do) she would tell Lucas the truth about Ella.

Though not usually one for religion, Peyton found herself with the plea of life sliding desperately off her tongue, then her car hit the oncoming vehicle and everything went black.

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Lucas was woken by frantic shaking. He sat up and looked around groggily. He could see the vague outline of a familiar face as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and tried to hold on the dream he had been having just long enough to remember what it was about.

"Lucas! Lucas! Are you listening to me?!"

The urgency in Lindsey's voice snapped Lucas out of his reverie. "What is it?"

"It's your mom," Lindsey placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, "She's been in an accident."

Lucas shot out of bed, fully awake. He grabbed a shirt and pulled it over his head, the wheels in his mind spinning frantically. He stood up, pulling pants on over his boxers and rummaging through his dresser for a pair of socks.

"I'll get the car ready," Lindsay's voice was calm. She knew that she had to keep her head in this situation, as Lucas wouldn't be able to. She ducked out the door, car keys in hand, and headed towards their car.

Lucas finished getting dressed as he followed Lindsay out the door, not bothering to tie up his shoes in his frantic rush. He watched as Lindsay as she started for the driver's side of the car, then as she changed her mind and walked around to the passenger side. Lucas would have found this endearing at any other time, but now his mind was completely fixated on thoughts for his mother and wondering how badly she was hurt.

Later, both Lindsay and Lucas would wish that Lindsay had stuck with the driver's seat.

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Peyton lay still, searing pain pumping through her veins. She tried opening her eyes, but the bright images that danced and twirled before her were overwhelming. She snapped her eyes shut again and waited for the pain to disappear.

Peyton wasn't aware of the fact that she had dozed off until she woke again, this time with loud voices booming around her; inflicting pain on another part of her brain. She choose not to open her eyes, instead she tried to let herself fall back into a less pained state. This time she found it slightly harder to doze off.

Little snippets of conversation were wheedling their way into her sub-conscious, making her thoughts before falling asleep a confused mix of fear and confusion.

'She's got a pretty good chance of surviving... But who knows how long it'll take for her to get better.'

'She probably won't survive the night...'

'Her poor family... Did anyone contact them yet?'

'He's in fine condition. Got off pretty easy if you ask me... Looks like he wasn't driving very responsibly.'

'The one has her daughter and best friend here. Her daughter doesn't look very old. I hope she can pull through it..."

'Peyton, can you hear me?'

'Mommy?'

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Lucas was driving too fast and he knew it. Lindsay was sitting quietly beside him, a mask of fear painted over her face. The numbers on the speed dial were climbing, and Lucas still had his foot pressed firmly against the pedal.

'Shouldn't we slow down?' Lindsay's question bounced around the inside of her head in a demented and fruitless search for an escape. The pitch-black night closed in around the car, pierced only by the thin beams of the car's headlights which glistened like diamonds on the wet road.

Lindsay closed her eyes, eager to block out the images of the trees and bushes whizzing past, their forms turning into a greenish-grey blur. For a few minutes Lindsay pretended t hat she was at home, resting peacefully on the couch, until the screeching of tires pulled her back from her daydream. She opened her eyes only to be greeted with a bright and malicious yellow light that burned into her retinas.

She shut her eyes and waited for the impact. When it came, I shoved the front of the car in on itself and shattered the windows.

Lindsay's mind went blank about the same time Peyton's did.

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A/N: So, the different people's stories take place at different times. Peyton is after and at the crash, Lindsay and Lucas are before and at the car crash. If you don't understand... I really don't know how to explain it. OK, so we know that Peyton crashed into Lucas and Lindsay. I'll probably fill in the gaps next chapter.

Merry Christmas!!

Thanks to my Beta, emotionalxchamp. Without you, I'd be nadda.

I think I'll be updating this more frequently. I have inspiration and I don't think it'll be many more chapters.

Please review!