Leah Archer was just 12 years old when she hit her head on a rock and fell into a coma, one that doctors weren't sure she'd ever come back from. But when she wakes up four years later, she faces the struggle of recovery and fights to regain any hint...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Five years ago
HALLOWEEN HAD ALWAYS been my least favorite holiday.
I got scared way too easily, and I could never think of a good costume. I also usually ended up changing my mind a few days before Halloween, but Mom never let me change my costume because it was a waste of money.
But my least favorite part had to be the fact that my brother always insisted on watching a bunch of scary movies after we went trick-or-treating, and there wasn't anything that could get me out of it. It was still a few days before Halloween, and he was already mocking me about it.
Even walking to school, he couldn't help but bug me about it. "Hey, Leah, what movies do you think we should watch this year? I'm thinking The Shining followed by The Exorcist, followed by–"
"Stop!" I cried out, interrupting him. He and Noah just laughed, while Bree tried to hold back a smile. It didn't help that she also shared their enjoyment of horror movies. "It's not funny! I just don't like those movies."
Noah scoffed. "That's an understatement. Didn't you cry last year?"
I heart clenched a little at his words. Much like I feared, we had grown even farther apart over the last year. Caleb and his friends started hanging out at the skate park and a park farther from our house, meaning I barely saw either of them anymore, other than our walks to and from school. His teasing didn't seem heartfelt anymore, but just mean.
I was quiet the rest of the way to school, looking the other way as Caleb, Noah, and Bree all continued to joke together. It wasn't surprising that Bree was finally the one to speak up once we were through the gates.
"Hey, you know we're just kidding, right? It's fine that you don't like scary movies."
I shrug, not really wanting to talk to her. "Yeah, whatever. It's fine."
Bree didn't question it, instead spotting one of her other friends across the courtyard and running to her. I sighed, walking alone now.
I really hated Halloween.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
