Calibrations: Extras

Oneshot #7: Collateral Damage

When Evan Nestor woke up, he was surrounded by sterilized surfaces and blank white walls. He was hooked up to multiple machines, with an IV stuck into his arm. He tried to move his right leg, but he still couldn't feel a thing. When a doctor walked in, dressed in scrubs, the reality of it all hit him. He'd been hit by a bus. It hadn't just been a dream.

"Oh good, you're awake," the doctor said in a thick Australian accent. "I don't know how much you remember, but your van collided with a bus earlier this afternoon..."

"I know that," Evan interrupted. He remembered it all, every last second of the crash. He could still hear the police sirens, the crunch of metal, the screams. As the accident flashed before his eyes again, he turned toward the doctor. "Where are Paul and Frank?" he asked. "Did they...did they make it?"

The doctor nodded. "They're in the other room," she said.

Evan breathed a sigh of relief. "Can I see them?" he asked.

"Not right now," the doctor said. "By the way, we called the emergency contact on your phone...Jamia, right?"

"Yeah, she's my sister."

"She just booked a flight to Sydney. She should be here tomorrow."

"That's good to hear."

"Great," the doctor said. "I need to go check on one of my other patients, but I'll be back in a few minutes."

"Okay, thank you," Evan said.

Once the doctor was gone, he reached for the remote control and turned on the TV, but when he realized that there was nothing good on, he lay down and stared at the ceiling. He should have been onstage with the band, strumming on his guitar, but instead, he was here. He replayed the accident over and over in his mind, wishing that it would just stop.

At least I'm alive, Evan thought to himself. As it was happening, as the cars collided, he never thought he'd survive, but somehow, he'd made it. He was alive, even when he wasn't supposed to be.

Yet, Evan couldn't stop thinking about the accident. Is this what death is like? he wondered. Will I have to go through this again someday? He'd already suffered the pain of thinking that he might lose his closest friends, that he might meet his end on the streets of Sydney. He never wanted to go through it again.

There was something strange about the accident, something that he thought of again and again. Seconds before the bus had crashed into their van, Evan spotted a car in the distance, a white Trans Am with a spider painted on the hood. It looked like it had appeared out of nowhere, even though he knew that wasn't possible. It must have come from somewhere.

Maybe he was just going crazy.

As Evan wondered where the car had come from, he spotted someone at the door. At first, he thought the doctor was back, but it was just Gerard. "Hi Evan," he said as he quickly waved to him.

"Hi Gerard," Evan said.

Normally, he liked Frank's boyfriend, but the last thing he needed was another reminder of just how alone he was. When he was this far from home, there was no one to visit him, no one to give him love and support when he needed it most. He couldn't even check on his bandmates to see how they were doing. It was nice of Gerard to stop by and see him, but Evan could tell he was just here to see Frank.

"How is everything?" Gerard asked.

"Okay, I guess," Evan said.

"That's good. I hope you and the rest of the band get better soon," Gerard said.