Was he Never Real?

Chapter 1

Beep

Beep

Beep

My head was pounding from the constant beeping ringing through my ears as I tried to pry my eyes open. I slightly groaned and looked to my left as I heard a shuffle next to me.

“Em?” I hear and finally pull my eyes open to see my brother, Mason, sitting in a chair by my bed. “Emma, oh my gosh, you’re awake!” Mason chokes out, sounding as if he might cry. He rushes out of the room, following a nurse back in soon after.

As the nurse was checking my vitals, Mason began bombarding me with questions. “Are you alright? How are you feeling? Do you need anything?”

“I just need to know why I’m here.” I croaked out, my throat scratchy and sore, my voice barely a whisper. That was my only response to his questions, which caused him to freeze.

“W-What do you mean? Do you not remember the accident?” he asked slowly, sounding as if he was in disbelief.

Just then, I watched the nurse gently place her hand on Mason’s shoulder and nod towards the door. They both walked out into the hallway and I watched them talking through the small window in the door. I can’t make out what they’re saying but they both appear to be on edge.

After a few minutes, Mason walks back into the room, still seeming to be on edge, but I don’t ask him why — I assume it’s just because I’m in the hospital. Mason has always been extremely protective of me, but it only got worse when our parents passed.

When I was twelve and Mason was 19, our parents got into a terrible car accident that killed them both on impact. A car lost control and hit the driver's side of my dad's car, which sent them rolling until they hit a tree. I was immediately put into Mason’s care, and he sheltered me as much as he possibly could. He’s the best big brother I could ask for, but sometimes he drives me crazy.

He didn’t want me to have a boyfriend because he didn’t trust the way that teenage boys drive, so he didn’t want me in the car with them. I got a boyfriend anyway, Lucas Maddel, but Mason didn’t like him, so I usually told him I was going out with friends when I would hang out with Lucas. I’m not quite sure if it’s the fact that Lucas is almost two years older than me, riding a motorcycle, or just the fact that Mason doesn’t trust any boys around me, but Mason has an extreme dislike for Lucas.

Thinking about Lucas made me realize that the last thing I remember before waking up in this hospital bed was being on the back of Lucas’ bike, heading home. I immediately snapped my head to Mason and started freaking out.

“Where is Lucas?” I asked in a panic, trying to keep calm.

Mason looked at me with a worried expression and immediately I went hysterical. That look can only mean one thing — Lucas is dead.

Everything rushes back in that very instant. I went out to dinner with Lucas, and he surprised me with a beach picnic while we watched the sunset. We had a great night, but Mason thought I was with my friend Kelsey and on the way back home, the car in the lane next to us swerved and hit us from the left. As soon as I felt the impact, everything went black.

As the memories rushed back, I began crying and screaming for Lucas, needing to find out if he was here or even alive. My brother rushed to my side, putting his hand over mine, trying to calm me down. He looked terrified, like he had no idea what to do.

After what felt like hours, I calmed down enough that Mason felt comfortable to speak. He looked a bit hesitant about what he was about to ask, but after closing his eyes, running his hand over his face and taking a deep breath, he looked me in the eyes and whispered, “Em, who is Lucas?”