I'll tell the story from my point of view, just so you'll get another opinion of what had happened, though my story is a lot more grisly than Kim's ever could be, I'm the one that didn't live through it after all, plus I remember everything that had happened, every little detail…unlike someone else.

The day started out like any other, the alarm went off at five in the morning, a-typical. I threw my pillow at it and Kristin, my roommate laughed. This was typical too, she always thought my morning antics were something funny. I still don't get it, oh well, it don't much matter now.

I took a quick shower then Kristin bolted into the bathroom, like she was afraid I was going to decide I wasn't done and go into the bathroom again. The girl was just plain weird, but then again most of my friends were, Kim included.

Anyway, after we'd got our showers, we'd met up with Renee, Kim and Annette then made our way down to the compound. We had to be there exactly at six in the morning or we would be in severe trouble. No one knew exactly what that trouble was since non of us had ever been late, but we didn't plan on finding out any time soon either!

Coach was already there…no one else was.

We had till noon to do as we pleased, what ever we wanted. Coach was going to give us the morning off. Immediately Kim had wanted to call her boyfriend Tommy over in California. 'Hello Kim? Anyone home?' Kristin had asked.

Kim gave her one of those 'What's that for?' looks. 'Ok Kim, if it's six in the morning here, that would make it what-um, three in the morning there! Your boy toy is probably still in bed dreaming not so sweet dreams about you!' I had said to her, getting a dirty look and a playful punch in the arm.

So we all decided to head out to the mall and see what the ordinary teenagers do on their free time. Kim drove, so did Annette and Kristin…why we all didn't just take one car is beyond me. We could've all fit in Kim's car…but then we'd all probably be dead then…so forget that idea.

We all went to the mall, like I just said, but nothing of any real interest was going on so we decided to head to the beach and catch a few rays…total boredom there too. Kim was constantly talking about Tommy, Annette and Kristin were watching these guys in barely nothing at all, who suspiciously kept walking right in front of our noses. Though they never stopped and said anything…I still wonder why.

Renee was relaxing, the only one of our group. She seemed to actually be enjoying herself, again, the only one of our group. After much debate, we all decided to head over to the local cinema-complex and see what was playing. Nothing at all! Which was unusual.

Then Annette brought up the idea of catching an early lunch. We all agreed. Jumping into the cars once more we all headed to an expensive restaurant in the middle of the city. Somehow Kim beat the other two there…so of course she got a really good parking spot. Kristin and Annette had to park quite a ways away from the restaurant, they weren't too happy about that…oh well.

We sat at the restaurant for the next hour or more, just talking. Kim couldn't shut up about Tommy, which made all of us jealous since we weren't able to hold steady relationships because of distance. Tommy sounded like a really nice guy…I wanted to smack her just to shut her up, but I enjoyed listening to her stories about this tall dark man!

It was almost noon, I don't remember actually who had said about leaving or if it was unanimous thing, but we all got up to leave. I decided to go with Kim, Renee was going to head off with Annette, they were going to stop at a store real quick. Something they needed to look at real quick, or something like that.

Kristin was going to head back to the compound too. She made it out of the parking lot before we did. Kim's car developed a flat tire and some guy, pretty cute too, stopped to help. Kristin must've gotten worried because she turned around and came back to find out what had happened to us. Flat tire, nothing more.

So Kris left. That would be the last time she would ever see me alive.

The tire was changed so we got back into the car and started on our way…we'd never make it though. The light turned yellow and instead of Kim doing what she would usually do of speeding up to beat the light before it went red, she stopped. She'd never done that before, so what made her do it that time I'll never know.

She was in the middle of changing the station on the radio when the light went green. I told her so, but she looked up to make sure herself. She never looked to make sure that opposing traffic had stopped, if she had she might've seen the truck wasn't going to stop.

She started through the intersection and then decided to look…all I heard was her scream. I looked out my side window and saw the large tractor-trailer barreling down on us and all I could do was scream too. She grabbed hold of my arm, as if to say she was sorry. I never looked at her, I couldn't take my eyes off of that truck. I could see the driver, he was just starting to reach for his horn. I heard the loud noise of that horn and turned what had to be stricken eyes toward Kim. She was to busy trying to stop the car or maybe get it going. I actually think it stalled and she was trying to get it started again. I don't know, I'm not the one who was driving…

Anyways, I heard the engine gun, she must've gotten it started…but it was to late. The truck struck my side first and sent her tiny car spinning out of control. I felt fire spread up my leg, then numbness. I think that my leg was pinned between the caved in door and the dashboard. I remember seeing what looked like a telephone pole, or it could've even been on the traffic light poles, I'm not sure, but her car was heading directly toward it.

She regained some semblance of control of her car and steered it away from the pole only to send it into another spin that crashed it into the rear wheels of the trailer. Her side was completely demolished, the front end wedged beneath the rear tires…the whole car was crinkled, I don't think there was anything left of it at all. How we both didn't die is beyond me.

As soon as the car slammed into the rig for the second time she slammed her head into the steering wheel, I remember seeing the blood streaming down her forehead. The force of the impact threw her against her seatbelt at a strange angle, I knew there was damage to her back, there just had to be.

She was still conscious though and she raised her head and looked over at me, my vision was just starting to dim and I couldn't see her very clearly. She was surrounded by a vivid pink halo…unlike anything I had ever seen before or since. She reached over for me and took me into her arms and pleaded with me not to die. I was dieing and we both knew that, it was something I couldn't fight, no matter how hard I tried. I could hear my heart beat echoing within my ears…slowing…slowing…slowing until it finally stopped.

I took three unsteady gulps of air, I wanted to tell her I didn't blame her for it. She needed to know that…I couldn't get the words formed past the lump in my throat. 'I'm sorry Vicky…' I heard her quiet voice, it sounded so far away.

'I know!' I tried to cry out to her. She couldn't hear me…would never hear me. 'I know Kim, it wasn't your fault! I don't blame you, don't blame yourself!' She wouldn't hear me but I had to try. If nothing else I had to try.

I've been trying ever since, almost nine years now…I've been trying to tell her it wasn't her fault. Everything was stacked against us that day, it was my time and there is no way she could've changed that. No way at all.

She has never heard me, but finally some one has managed to get through to her that it wasn't her fault. I'm so relieved that someone finally did, now I can finally rest. Finally I am free…

*******

Oh yeah, I know that. We still have a lot to talk about before we can even think about being anywhere near to the relationship we had once before…and that won't happen over night. I still have so much to explain and so much to atone for.