Dan, Phil, and The Two Kids

Anathema

Phil POV

Dan hung up the phone abruptly, leaving me confused on the line.

"Louise, where did Dan go?" I ask her while she picked Darcy who had her fingers in the cake.

"He went to pick up something by my house," She replied once getting her kid away from the food, "Should be here in about fifteen minutes."

I scoff and look at the ground. I jolt up when I hear Louise's phone vibrate.

"Phil, look at this," She shows me the alert on my phone, "there's been a car accident on the highway."

"Isn't that the highway to your house?"

"Yeah. Dan was on the way to my house. We need to find him, he could be hurt." She says.

"Yeah, let's take your car." She nods as we walk towards the parking lot to her car. Well, I more less waddled to the car, but I got there. We immediately drive out of the park and onto the highway. We eventually see the pileup of cars waiting impatiently to get through. We pull up on the accident and drive slow enough to see the wrecked cars.

"Louise... oh my god, Louise! That looks like Dan's car. No, it can't be." We drive a little closer as we see the ambulances and police cars start to pull up. I lean on the dashboard of her car and squint my eyes, trying to catch sight of the license plate.

"Phil, doesn't Dan have loads of baby things in the back of his car? He tells me all about how he buys so many things, but always procrastinates when putting them away." I look through the back window of the black car and see the countless bags that seem to have toys and blankets in them.

"No, no, no. That can't be Dan. This can't be him. What about our family, what about us? Louise, he can't be in there." Louise squeezed my hand.

"Phil, look closely at the license plate. Is it his?" I look very intently at the back of the car and start to read off the numbers and letters in my head. I gasp and bring my hand up to my mouth. My eyes fill with tears and I start shaking intensely. "It's him, isn't it?"

I only nod, closing my eyes and pointing my head down. Louise pulls over, unbuckled herself from the seatbelt, and wraps her arms around me.

"I didn't... I never thought I would be in this situation. Dan... he can't be... Louise, he can't be gone." I sob into her shoulder.

"Phil, he's not. Trust me, he's not. Dan is too much of a trooper to be gone." I look up from her shoulder and back at the damaged cars. The front part of Dan's car was completely demolished, while the other car was dented, but not destroyed.

"The twins... they can't go without their father. He has to be alive, he just had to."

"He is, Phil. I just know he is."

By this point, the fire brigade was already here and trying to pry Dan's car door open. They eventually got it open, and the paramedics run over with a stretcher. I see then pull Dan out onto the stretcher, and I caught a glimpse of Dan, his body bloodied and broken.

"No, Louise, look at him. He so bloody... I'm gonna be sick." The sight of blood always made me nauseous. I immediately feel bile rise up my throat and start rapidly tapping Louise hand and covering my mouth. She reaches into the backseat of the car and grabbed a plastic bag. I yank it from her grasp and I vomit. Louise rubs my back and pushes my fringe out of my face.