Maya woke up and laid there with her eyes closed, she had no idea where she was and

all she could hear was a soft beeping noise. Then she noticed the pain, everything hurt. Trying to

think clearly, she opened her eyes and looked around. She noticed the boring white walls, and an

IV sticking out of her arm.

She sat there, trying to sift through her thoughts, though this was remarkably difficult

given she was suffering from what was the worst headache she had ever experienced. She tried

to regain her bearings, forcing herself to piece together what had happened to land her in the

hospital.

She began to remember now, it had been around eight the night before and she had no

plans for the evening. Matt, the son of her host family, knocked on her door. He came in and sat

down on the chair next to her bed. He stared at her as she was reading and cocked his head to the

side with a sly grin.

“Why are you so amused?” she had asked, setting her book down next to her on the bed.

Leaning back into his chair he said “I just can’t believe it is one of your last nights here

and you’re in bed, reading.”

“Well what else would I be doing?” she inquired.

Standing up he said “Let’s go out, have some fun. Give you one last night to remember

before you leave. Be ready in 20 minutes.”

She had been nervous to go out. She knew she was legally allowed to drink here in

England but she was still uneasy nonetheless. However, she told herself to shake it off and just

loosen up a little for the night, how bad could things go? Besides, she didn’t even like the taste of

alcohol, she didn’t think she would even be able to finish one drink.

When she and Matt got to the bar, they met up with some of his friends. They seemed to

be alright, though she noticed right away that they had already been drinking pretty heavily that

night. She remembered the thrill of it all, being able to drink. Even though it was legal, it still felt

wrong since she was only 18 but it was also exhilarating at the same time. By the end of night

they were all pretty tipsy, and definitely in no condition to drive. She would usually never get

into a car with someone who had been drinking, but since she had had too much to drink herself

she was obviously not thinking clearly. She had asked Matt if he was sure he could drive and if

they should just get a cab. He said “yeah, I’m fine, its only twenty minutes away.” She knew

deep down that he should not have been driving, but she was too tired and out of it to stop him.

She got into the car with Matt, ready to head back to the house. It was late, around four in

the morning. The drive back was fairly short, but it was clear only five minutes in that Matt

should not be driving. She remembered feeling exhausted and sick, regretting drinking as much

as she had. All she wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep for the next two days. She laid

there in the car with her eyes closed when suddenly the car swerved. She sat straight up and

looked over at Matt, all she could see was his head bobbing on his chest. She screamed his name

and tried to grab a hold of the steering wheel, but before she could the car swerved again. Then,

it was dark.

That was the last thing she remembered up until now. Now all she had was questions.

What had happened? Why had Matt swerved? Was he OK? She began to panic, frantically trying

to get up but she couldn't move, why weren't her legs moving? She was screaming, a nurse

rushed in and pushed something into her IV, then it was black again.

When she woke up, there was a man in a white coat standing next to her.

“Hi, Maya, my name is Dr. Spalding, you've been in a bad accid-”

“Where is Matt?” She interrupted.

“Maya, this accident, it was really bad. The car was nearly split in half. You’re quite

lucky to be alive.”

“Where. Is. Matt.” She said angrily, staring at him.

“I’m, I’m afraid Matthew didn't make it…I am so sorry for your loss.” She began to

cry, sobbing hysterically. She could hear the doctor saying “Your family is on their way, they

took the next available flight they should be here soon. Now…” but she was no longer paying

attention.

Later on, she found out that she was paralyzed from the waist down, and the likelihood of

her walking again was less than five percent. She was heartbroken. Her bright future, now

completely changed because of a stupid decision. Maya still thinks back to that night, she hasn't

had a drop of alcohol since. It’s been fifteen years and the sadness is still as prevalent as ever.

Now she goes around to high schools all over the country, providing living witness as to why

drinking and driving is never an option.