The Five Horsemen Book 1: Death Warmed Over

I can't believe we are finally going to the concert we all agreed on. My siblings and I do not have the same taste in music. Ever. My sister Emmeranne, long hair down to her butt with the color changing every 3 months (currently a nice reddish brown to match the fall season), pale skin and blue eyes and all of 5'3", is like me the most, we both like multiple genres and artists. My sister Artemis, blonde, curly hair down to her mid back, blue eyes and pale skin standing at 5'5' tall, hates country music, with a "passion of a thousand suns"; my brother Oberon, black curly, shaved short hair, brown eyes to match his skin standing at 5'6", hates hardcore metal music. I think it reminds him of his time in the Army and that isn't something any of us want him to remember, and my youngest sister, Zephirah, black hair mixed with bright turquoise down to just below her shoulders, brown eyed and naturally tan skin at 5'2" tall, likes techno music for some strange reason. I am the oldest of 5, I am 5'4.5" tall with naturally dark strawberry blonde hair that I'm trying to grow out(currently down to mid back), blue eyes and pale skin, with my sister Artemis right after me, then Oberon; he prefers to be called Void, then Emmeranne, and Zephirah is the baby. We are also of similar, average sized. Though we don't talk about weight directly due to me and 1 other sibling having eating disorders growing up. I was someone who ate my feelings and got big for about a decade; about 300lbs; while my sibling stopped eating due to severe depression. It took a long time for us to get healthy again. While none of us are blood related, we are siblings none-the-less. We made a family where we didn't have one. Or at least not a good one. I met Artemis in middle school and then came Emmeranne at a job when I was 27, Oberon and Zephirah at another job when I was 29. Turns out I collect people...not in the creepy way though. I thought I would have another sister too, turns out, though she only wanted to be family if it benefited her and was annoyed when it didn't. I still felt guilty for ghosting her though. I know her home life sucked majorly with a narcissist for both bio parents and the family who adopted her at 17 left her high and dry when it came out that the "father" figure in that family sexually abused her and the "mom" felt betrayed. Yeah, b***h move lady. But still, if someone won't be there for you, even if it doesn't benefit them, then don't bother. It still hurts, and I find myself wanting to reach out, but I have to remind myself that I cut her off for a reason. I am pulled out of my thoughts when my sister Emmeranne taps my arm from the back seat of the car. My car. The 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner, in dark purple, with a black pearl finish and black leather interior. I saved for this baby and had it repaired and rebuilt at a garage near where we live so I could keep an eye out as well as help out where I could. I never learned about cars but I wanted to. I have a mother who supported that, but went to a school that didn't, so i wasn't able to take the classes. Didn't go to college until recently, however. "What's up buttercup?" I asked in a chipper voice. "What's up with you, you had this weird look on your face." She says. She gives me a look I have come to call the "I will keep bugging you until you tell me what I wanna know". Rude. "Just thinking about the past and some people who I've let go of." I said as nonchalantly as I could, well aware the others were paying very close attention. "Oh? Anyone in particular? Or are you just reminiscing about assholes for no reason?" Artemis asks snarkily. I swear, she may have agreed to go to this concert but she is still cranky, and I don't know why, so I ask, "You hangry? Or are you just gonna be a t**t-waffle all night for no reason?" I put as much snark in my tone as she did. If looks could kill, I would be a smoking pile of ashes right now. "If you must know, Jeff texted right before we left. It was weird. It said, 'have fun at the concert, see you after'. I never told him where we were going, and I know none of you did, so it's just feeling off to me." She said in a confused tone. My heart rate sped up. Her ex was a serious POS and an abusive one with a restraining order against him in regards to all of us for a reason. When Artemis finally left him, I wasn't allowed to make him disappear like I wanted to, but we all helped her pack her stuff and brought it back to our house. "How did he know?" Artemis mutters more to herself than us. We all looked at each other in the rearview mirror. I slowly applied the brakes with the intention of slowing down for the curve ahead and to possibly pull over. The brakes give out. f**k. They were working just fine earlier. Artemis gets a text just as I am about to tell them what happened. "You should never have left me. If I can't have you, no one can." What? "Jeff just sent me that text, what's going on guys?" Artemis asks, starting to panic. I know I am. I pulled the emergency brake. It doesn't work either. f**k me sideways. "OK, don't panic, the brakes are out, and we are not going to make this curve." I say as calmly as I can muster despite feeling a sense of complete and utter doom. Everyone starts yelling in my ear and freaking out, I can't blame them. I'm freaking out too. The curve gets closer and closer. Here we go. I turn the car so the drivers side hits the guard rail first. We flip. Then, nothing. 1 Week Later I stretched my sore and tired body like a contortionist as I groaned with the sweet, sweet pull and then relaxed back in bed. I opened my eyes to 3 nurses and what I assumed was an orderly staring at me with jaws dropped and eyes bugging out. I sat up a bit in my hospital bed and then used the buttons on the side of the bed to sit up my body further. It was then that I noticed all the flowers. How I missed that many to begin with I don't know. My room is filled with flowers, teddy bears and ballons and 'get well soon' messages and cards most likely saying the same thing. "Hey y'all. What happened?" My throat is dry and sounds scratchy. " Last I remember my siblings and I were going to a concert." I tried to sound casual for having a serious rasp from going so long without water. How long, I have yet to figure out. What no one knows, I remember everything. I remember going off the cliff from the curve. I remember falling and rolling and crashing over and over. I remember me and my siblings getting thrown from the car after our seatbelts fail and break open from the force of the falls. I remember seeing us all dead or dying from our injuries. I remember it all, and it will haunt me for the rest of my life. Talking to the nurses and orderly jarred them out of whatever stupor they were in and I watched as the orderly, who looked a lot like Idris Elba, ran out of the room as the 3 nurses rushed over to start running tests. 1 nurse got out a blood draw kit, and that made me panic. Not because I'm scared of needles, but because I didn't want anyone to figure out we were different. I pulled my arm away as she reached for it with the rubber tourniquet in her hand. "No." I said. "No blood draws, or anything like it. I do not consent to that kind of testing." They all stopped. Stared. "But. But we need to run all the tests to see what's going on. W-we can't just not do that." The nurse stammered out. Then she got an indignant and haughty look on her face, "You'll have to get over your fears of needles for a while so we can run tests. I'm not asking young lady." Young lady? Get over anything? Who the f**k did this b***h think she was? Alright then. My 'f**k around and find out' switch just flipped. Ready or not b***h. Here I come.