..02-23-2007 Melbourne, Australia 3:33 am
Chani Morgan was startled from her deep dream-laced slumber. She felt the cold clammy perspiration gathered at the back of her neck. Her pulse beat rapidly, as the darkness of her dreams drew back to the far recesses of her mind, the fragments barely there for her to hold onto. A mirror and a face looking back at her. Her face, but how could that be, she wondered. Then it was gone. Nothing left but the uneasy feeling of being watched. She shivered and opened her eyes, only to welcome the all too familiar darkness she had woken to for the past ten years, ever since the accident at age thirteen. The accident that had left her blind.
Reaching for her walking stick, Chani pulled herself into a sitting position, placing her bare feet upon the cool hardwood floor. She always looked forward to those first steps. They brought to her a sense of pleasure that she would have other-wise over-looked. Her only goal each and every day was quite simply to exist, and that was even becoming exceedingly pointless to her these days.
Deciding against ringing her live-in caretaker, old Mrs. Shadout, Chani stood up and walked the 23 steps to her bathroom. She knew she could take a shower and all that business on her own, anyhow. Besides, she really didn't want to be fussed over at the moment. Let old Nattie sleep. She was getting on in years and probably wouldn't be around much longer. It was time to start doing things for herself.
Upon entering the bathroom, Chani set her cane in the usual corner for easy retrieval, and turned on the water, setting the temperature just right. She pulled the night shirt over her head and peeled off her panties, tossing them both toward where she knew the laundry hamper to be. Stepping in to the shower, she realized she had not seen herself naked since she was thirteen. Her body had matured completely since then. She wondered if she had a desirable shape. Carressing her own skin, sizing herself up by sense of touch only, she didn't think she was over-weight or too thin. In her minds eye she saw herself as an attractive woman. A blind attractive woman.
The spray of water that gushed from the shower head hit her face and cascaded over her body. The sensation always made her feel good to be alive for another day, even if she could not see it for herself. She let her mind wander back to the time of the accident. She did not remember much, but had been told the rest by friends. There were no other family members that she could talk to. The only family friend that was still around was old Mrs. Shadout, and she didn't like to talk very much about such matters.
It all happened one Friday evening in December of 1996. The 13th to be exact. The Morgan family were on their way to spend the holidays with old friends and family in Bendigo. They never made it.
Having only turned thirteen a few monthes earlier, Chani understood things were about to change. This family holiday trip would probably be her last as daddy's little girl. Becoming a young woman was a mixture of both anticipation and sorrow. A part of her did not want to grow up, the thought of losing that special bond with her father quite saddening.
Situated in the middle of the back seat, the colorfully wrapped gifts piled on either side of her, Chani could see her father's friendly smiling eyes in the rearview mirror. He would look at her from time to time, as he manuevered the sedan along the highway, and she would smile back at him. She felt safe with her father at the wheel.
Her mother sat patiently in the passenger seat, calmly waiting for the trip to be over. Travelling long distance by car always made her nervous, but she hid it well. The mellow oldies music from the radio seemed to take her to another place, as she hummed along with her eyes closed. Mrs. Morgan never even saw what happened next.
As the Holden Statesman sedan moved along the A-79 highway, midway between Malmsbury and Kyneton, at the M-79 crossing, a raging storm seemingly blew up out of nowhere. A torrent of rain came pummelling out of the sky, making visibilaty next to nothing.
Chani saw her fathers eyes change to a look of fear as he tried his best to keep the automobile on the highway. Everything was happening so fast, but Chani saw it in slow motion, or so it seemed everytime she recalled the events of that evening in her minds eye.
"It's going to be fine, honey! Don't you worry. I have everything under control.!", her father said to her. It was the last thing he ever said to her.
A sudden flash of lightning erupted inside the car, blinding Chani as it reflected in the mirror her eyes were transfixed to, as her father lost control of the vehicle, and entered the oncoming lane unwillingly. Suddenly, a tractor-trailer slammed the front of the Statesman, and sent it carreening off the road. It went airborne before it slammed into the field and tumbled several times, end over end, until it came to its final resting place. Chani lost conciesness and the world she knew was forever changed.
Some time later, Chani barely recalled being pulled from the wreckage, as she was still dazed from the impact of the collision. Strong hands pulled her up into warm arms and a blanket was wrapped around her. She felt the drops of gentle falling rain hitting her face, as she fell fast asleep in the comforting embrace of whomever was holding her, carrying her away.
She later discovered that her parents both died at the scene, having been crushed when the semi plowed into the car. Chani was protected from the worst of the collision because of all the packages that were surrounding her in the back seat. Her life was forever changed from that day forward.
The cold water spraying from the shower brought Chani out of her painful memory of that fateful day. She turned the dials to close and grabbed for the towel she knew was hanging on the rod nearby. After towelling herself dry, she donned the terry cloth robe hanging behind the door, retrieved her cane, and went into her bedroom.
Chani found it odd that Mrs. Shadout had not come checking on her this whole time she had been showering. The old woman was always checking on her, making sure she was alright. Chani knew she meant well, but at times felt it rather annoying, the older she got.
Making her way across the room to the doorway, Chani walked barefoot down the hall to Mrs. Shadouts door. She felt for the knob and realized it was ajar and pushed it open enough to walk through.
"Mrs. Shadout? Is everything okay?", she said aloud, as she entered the old ladies room further. It was quiet in here. Dead quiet.
Chani stopped at the foot of the bed, and fearing the worst, she began to sob. Mrs. Shadout would never make a fuss over dear Chani again.
