Deja Vu on the California State Route 1
It was night when my sister and I were returning home. It had to be after ten as the freeway was empty on the weekday. Classes ended early, and we considered visiting our grandmother's grave. It took a quick call to our parents to let them know our plans, and we were off. We visited the grave for around two hours before getting lunch and walking around the coastal city. The salty cold scent of the ocean engulfed the town, but it wasn't too bad after getting used to it. My sister always hated how far our grandmother was buried. It made visiting her hard to do with our busy schedules. But visiting the dead is for the living, so she likely didn't mind. We stayed longer than we wanted in the city. Still, given the traffic and California's lack of reliable public transport, we used my sister's car. It was her turn to drive this time, as we always carpooled.
The bleak black of the ocean was unsettling at this time of day. The daylight usually made the water less frightening, but it is an endless abyss with no end at night. At any moment, it'll take one wrong turn of the driving wheel to plunge the car into the water depths. I wonder why I thought this, but my sister seemed to drive faster than expected. And she never liked to do so at night. I would brush it off as it all being in my head, but she admitted to driving faster when I asked. We didn't need to rush home, so what was chasing us? This wasn't the first time we visited our grandmother by ourselves. But a memory keeps returning to me, and it's not good either. It's of watery darkness and deafening screams. But that was the uneasiness getting to me as the road blindly passed by.
"How much longer will it take to get us home?" I asked.
My sister shrugs a shoulder, "Probably, forty to fifty minutes. We made good time."
We sat silently as the smell of long-gone hot chocolate filled the car. Neither of us breathed deeply as if trying to ensure the air in the car lasted. But why do we feel the need to do that? We'll be home soon. The hum of the car is the only sound between us, and I feel my hand inch its way to my sister. I couldn't bring myself to call our parents because somehow I knew they wouldn't answer. Maybe because this isn't the first time I've tried calling them? I turned my head toward my sister, and I saw her crying. It was then I realized I was crying too. I faced forward again.
"LOOK OUT!!!" END.
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