Chapter Text
Tommy held the Nintendo in his small hands tightly as his mother parked the car. He watched as his little Mario character jumped into the green tube and disappeared to a new realm. His character popped out of the green tube on the other end where the background scenery had changed to an underwater shipwreck.
"Alright, Tommy. Are you ready?" He heard his mother ask from beside him as she unbuckled her seatbelt.
Tommy clicked the power button on the side of his Nintendo and set it on the center console, "Yep!" He squeaked excitedly as he unbuckled his seatbelt.
His mother smiled at his excitement and climbed out of the car. He climbed out of the passenger side and stood on the curb, eyeing a glass display case on the other side of a shop window that held different popular video games. His mother walked around the car and followed Tommy's gaze to the video game display case.
"Maybe if you're good while you're getting your haircut, we'll get you a new game," His mother offered.
Tommy nodded excitedly, "I'm gonna be so good."
His mother giggled a bit, "Alright, we'll see how good you can be."
Tommy walked beside his mother on the sidewalk in front of all the stores. Some were clothing shops, some were toy shops, some were small grocery stores, some were tech shops. Tommy followed his mother as she turned to the haircut shop. It even had one of those old fashioned red and white cones that spins above the door. The fresh scent of shampoo filled Tommy's lungs as he walked in.
His mother walked up to the front desk, "Hello, I have an appointment."
"Yes, Tommy?" The lady at the desk asked.
His mother nodded.
"Okay, we are ready if you'd like to go ahead and have him follow me," The desk lady said.
Tommy followed the lady as she walked to one of the empty swivel chairs for haircuts.
"Hello Tommy, my name is Marianne, and I will be cutting your hair today. Just a trim, right?" Marianne asked as she tied the long piece of paper around Tommy's neck. Tommy nodded and Marianne tied the cover over his shoulders before adjusting the chair.
Tommy looked at himself in the mirror as Marianne began to trip his blond curls. His pale blue gaze followed her hands as she precisely trimmed his hair.
Soon after, she spun the chair back around so that Tommy could see himself again. He hadn't even realized she had turned it around. He looked at himself in the mirror and smiled.
"Thank you, Marianne!" Tommy yipped.
"Your welcome, "Marianne smiled. She removed the piece of paper from his neck and unclipped the cover. She draped the cover on the stick that held it and turned the chair so that Tommy could get up. He walked over to his mother and flashed a face to show how he thought he looked good. His mother giggled a bit and he followed her out the door.
"Was I good?" Tommy asked once they left the store.
His mother nodded, "You were spectacular, we will go get you a new game."
Excitement bubbled up inside of little Tommy as he pulled open the video game store. He walked over to the Nintendo section and gazed over all of the options. He settled on a Mario racing game and walked back to show his mom, who had been looking at stuffed animals from Pokémon. Tommy's gaze landed on a Cyndaquil stuffed animal.
"Ooh! Can I get this too?" He asked, holding up the small stuffed animal.
His mother nodded, "Sure. Have you picked out your game?"
Tommy held up the box for the Nintendo Mario racing game. She nodded again and they walked over to the register to pay.
Tommy excitedly dug through the thin plastic bag to put the Mario racing chip into his Nintendo. He grinned happily as the starting music began to play. His mom started the car and she began to drive home while Tommy played his new game. He ended the round and turned off his Nintendo to look at his new Cyndaquil stuffed animal.
He pulled the tag off and put the trash in the video game store bag. He heard a loud noise before static filled his ears. He felt himself moving but was frozen in place. His arms were over his face and his legs were curled in. Every few seconds he would feel a jerking feeling. It lasted for only a minute before the static noise left and he could move again. The only problem was that he was upside down and there was grass covering his entire window. He looked around, seeing his mom unmoving. He reached for his seatbelt to unbuckle and see if she was okay. His buckle got stuck and he began to panic, pulling on the belt aggressively. He heard a whisper from beside him and turned to his mom.
Her amber eyes were nearly shut as blood flowed down the side of her face. Her pale blonde hair was all ratted up and her tanned skin was cut all over by the glass.
"Tommy, calm down…" her voice was raspy and sounded painful, "everything is going to be okay."
Tommy reached for his seatbelt again, this time it clicked and released instantly.
"I-I'm gonna get you out, okay mom. Ju-ust wait," He said quickly, stumbling over his words as he climbed to the back of the car. He opened the door on his mother's side in the middle row and climbed out. He opened his mother's door, but she wasn't trying to get out. He heard the loud siren noises of the cops pulling up. He heard the loud stomping of men running toward him. He moved so that they could see his mother.
"Please get her out. I d- I don't know if she-e's okay. Please get her ou-ut!" He pleaded quickly. A moment later the paramedics arrived and one of the cops pulled him to the side. He watched as they pulled his mother out and laid her on a stretcher.
The cop turned him to look her in the eyes. The cop's sapphire blue eyes stared into his, "Everything is going to be okay, kid. Are you hurt? Do you feel any pain?"
"N-no. Is my mom going to be okay?" He asked.
"We are taking her to the emergency room now. You will ride with me to the hospital. Is there anything you need from the car?" She asked.
Tommy nodded, "My nintendo and my stuffed animal."
He turned toward the car to grab them but the cop stopped him, "I will get them. It's dangerous."
"O-okay," Tommy watched as the cop climbed into the car and grabbed his Nintendo and stuffed animal.
"This all?" She asked as she handed him his things. Tommy nodded and she led him to her car.
Tommy sat in the passenger seat of the cop car and the lady cop began to drive. "So, can you answer some questions for me, please?"
Tommy nodded, "Okay."
The cop began, "What are you and your mother's names?"
"My name is Thomas, and my mom is Lisa. C-creek. That's our last name."
"Do you have a father or somebody I can contact?"
Tommy shook his head, "No, my dad died when I was a baby. I never knew my grandparents."
"Okay," The cop said. "What are both you and your mother's ages?"
"I'm ten and my mom is thirty-two," Tommy said.
The cop turned into the hospital parking lot and parked. Both Tommy and the cop got out and walked into the waiting room. Tommy sat in a seat and zoned out while the cop checked him in to check for shock and any injuries. He knew that he had cuts, scrapes, and bruises, but didn't think he had anything worse.
The cop returned and sat down beside him.
"Let me introduce myself, Tommy. My name is Evelynne, and I'm sure you know, but I am a Police Officer for this area," Evelynne said.
Tommy nodded, "What happened?"
"You were in a severe car accident. A car was driving in the wrong lane, probably to pass somebody, but didn't see your car and crashed into you. You were both going quite fast and it was a head-on collision, those are very dangerous. Your car flipped and landed in the ditch," She informed him.
"Oh," Tommy's voice was just a small whisper, "is my mom going to be okay?"
Evelynne hesitated, "I'm not sure."
Tommy understood. It was just like all of the movies. It always ended this way. He waited for his name to be called and when it was, he walked to the nurse standing beside the open door. He followed her into the room without saying a word. He did all she asked him to, he sat on the bed, had leaned forward, had rolled his head in a circle, had lifted his arms, and allowed her to check his reflexes on his knees. The nurse checked things off her clipboard and clicked a few things on her computer before standing up.
"You look all good, besides something on your arm. It isn't terrible, but you will need a few stitches. It won't hurt, follow me," The nurse said, her golden locks bouncing as she walked out the door. Tommy followed her to a different room and sat on the bed as instructed. He held out his left arm for the doctor to inspect. He was given a small cup with a bluish liquid inside. He was also given a blue lollipop. The doctor had him lay down. He didn't remember the rest of the procedure. He just remembered being conscious.
He was then led to a room where he was told that he would be staying for the night. He looked around for a clock and found that it had already been ten at night. He felt too awake, and hadn't fallen asleep that night.