Prologue

Nearly a year ago, Ryan was killed. His three best friends revisit that day.

Prologue: That Day

June 21, 2008

 

Maddi

            I still remember that day.  It happened almost a year ago now.  It seems like a long time ago, but it isn’t.  I can still see his smile, still hear his laugh.  Most of all, I can still feel the baseball thumping into my glove as we played catch. 

            After it happened, my school counselor came and talked to us.  She told me that time would ease the pain, would dull the memories.  She was state-certified, but she was wrong.  Today I feel the loss as sharply as I did the moment I found out.

            Like I said, I remember everything.  The most stupid, insignificant details.  I could recall every second of that terrible Thursday, the day my life changed.

            I had been eating breakfast.  Honey Nut Cheerios, my favorite.  It was still relatively early for summer break.  I was planning to meet up with some friends for lunch, then hang out at the mall.  Then, in the evening, we had a baseball practice.  It was a typical summer weekday for me.  After eating, I remember switching on the television to ESPN and watching Sportscenter.

            Just as I did, my cell phone rang.  It was Chace.  I picked it up, said, “Hey,” and waited.  When he said nothing, I knew immediately something was wrong.  “What is it?” I asked, anxious.

            He replied with three words.  Three words that would change my world as I knew it.  “Ryan’s been shot.”

 

Chace

            I still remember that day.  I guess it’s been a pretty long time now, but sometimes it feels like it just happened, especially when I run onto a baseball field.  He was my best friend, and I can still picture him perfectly.  He was of average height and had longish brown hair.  I generally envision him with his worn Indians cap on his head.  His grey eyes were mischievous and sparkled with life.  He had this funny crooked half-smile, and when he was angry, he wouldn’t talk to anyone.  Even though he had a sense of humor, he had a serious side, too.  That’s why he was our team captain. 

            Ryan was charismatic and perpetually optimistic.  He could lift anyone’s spirits with a few words.  As easygoing as he seemed, however, he had a competitive nature.  He didn’t like losing, and he could get pretty intense during ballgames.  He never blamed anyone for a loss, though, even when it was clearly someone’s fault.  If anything, he beat up himself for not getting that hit in the third inning, not catching that impossible liner over his head.

            That awful morning, when I woke up, I had no idea how bad my day would be.  How could I?  I looked at the clock; it was already nine.  I usually woke up around eight, but I must have been tired.  Every morning I didn’t have a game, I went running, so I put on some athletic shorts and a shirt and grabbed my cell phone.  I remember wondering why I was bothering to take it; I normally didn’t.  I took it anyway. 

            I usually went on a five mile run with a break after the third mile.  I lived by a park with a nice running trail that ran along the road in some places.  It was really very convenient.  My running route cut across Ryan’s route (He lived about five blocks from me).  If he was running this morning, maybe we would see each other.  After a good fifteen minutes of running, I found myself near Ryan’s trail.  I turned the corner, and I saw him.

            He was lying on the ground, facedown, maybe a hundred or so yards from me.  I swear, I have never run faster in my life.  Thoughts like “He just slipped and hit his head” and “Maybe he just pushed himself too hard” ran through my head.  There was something else too, in the back of my mind, but I wouldn’t even let that thought surface. 

            As I got closer, I could see a dark liquid pooling under his body.  No problem, I remember thinking frantically, It’s just Gatorade.  When I saw that it was blood, I almost threw up.  But I knew I couldn’t.  Instead, I knelt by him.  I swear my heart stopped as I lifted his wrist and felt for a pulse.  I nearly fainted in relief as I felt the weak pulse under my fingers.  It was feeble, but it was there.

            Then common sense took over and I called 911.  Luckily, this part of the trail was by a small side road, so the ambulance would be able to find us quickly.  After that was taken care of, I began wondering what had happened.  And why hadn’t anyone noticed him lying there?  After all, it wasn’t exactly normal to sprawl out in the middle of the sidewalk.  But I couldn’t think logically.  I just remained kneeling by his side.  When the ambulance pulled up I simply stared up at the paramedics.  I couldn’t think anything but, The ones who did this will pay.  The head medic said to me, “Would you like to ride with him?”  By this point, I couldn’t even speak.  I just nodded and followed the medics and Ryan into the back of the ambulance.

            The paramedics put the oxygen mask on Ryan and checked his vitals.  I had no idea what else they did, but I did notice the slightly worried look that flashed between them.  Suddenly I had trouble breathing.  Lifting my cell phone with shaking hands, I wondered who I should call.  I knew I had to call someone, but I didn’t know who.  Not Ryan’s parents.  That wasn’t my job.  My finger hovered over speed dial 4.  I pressed the button and held the phone to my ear. 

            When Maddi answered the phone with a “Hey,” the words I had been about to say caught in my throat.  “What is it?”  She asked, now concerned. 

            I took a deep breath and whispered, “Ryan’s been shot.”

 

Jake

            I still remember that day.  Afterwards, the police told us it was a drive-by.  But they couldn’t find the people who killed him, and they still haven’t.  It was July 5, 2007, the day after Independence Day.  It was just so unexpected, it took us all by surprise.  I mean, the neighborhood we live in is safe, or so we thought.  We never imagined that one of us would… get killed.  People always say grief and pain gets better with time.  They’re wrong.  It doesn’t get better.  If anything, it gets worse.

            That morning when I woke up, I felt good.  We had a tournament coming up, and there was a practice tonight.  And some of my friends and I were planning to get together for lunch.  I grabbed a cereal bar from my pantry and headed to my laptop.  I had some research for an extra-curricular class I was taking for my sophomore year. 

            I had just logged in when Mom called.  She’s a nurse at the city hospital.  I answered, “Hello?” 

            Mom said gently, “Honey, I want you to go over to Maddi’s house.  You two should be together right now.”  Maddi lived a few streets away, and I was frequently in and out of her house, but I honestly thought that Mom was crazy.

             “Why, Mom?  What’s wrong?  Did something happen at work?  Is Dad okay?”  I figured that since my mother was not the type of person to go nuts, something was seriously wrong. 

            “Dad’s fine.  Jake...” 

            “What?”  I practically yelled.  What Mom said next made my head whirl.           “Ryan’s been shot.”

 

Author's Note

So... What do you think?

Reviews

[Kayla1995]

That was really good

[Tesh]

I like the format of this story. Telling about the same events from the point of view of different people puts a new spin on the events. I also like the connection between how Maddi, Jake, and Chase each found out about Ryan's death.

Also, I noticed and liked how each section started with "I still remember that day," and "Ryan's been shot." However, be careful with repetition- the reader doesn't need to be told the same information over and over.

On to the next chapter! I really want to know why Ryan was shot.

Tesh : )

[Rebecca Chamaillard]

I really like this story. It's pretty heart wrenching, and I really like the way you expressed the emotions friends can feel for one another. I might work more towards creating chapters for each person in your story, rather than splitting one chapter into parts where each person does a first person narrative. It reads a bit awkwardly with those paragraph breaks. Another thing to consider might also be using a third person narrative, so the breaks would flow easier. But, then you would lose that personal touch, which I think is really important here.
I can't wait to see where this goes and where you take it. Please let me know when you post the next installment :-)