Renee led a life that any teenager would envy. She was the treasurer of Butler High School’s chapter of National Honor Society. She was a trombone player for the marching band which was a high achievement as members must audition. She was also the starting shooting guard for their varsity basketball team. Her 4.00 grade point average was only two semesters away from perfection. And, even though she was constantly juggling activities with school, her social life was flourishing. She had a lovely boyfriend named Adrian who she had been dating for five months going on six, and she had a wide variety of friends. In addition, her family was extremely happy and almost too perfect in a way.

Her parents were lovingly married, and somehow never seemed to argue. Her father, Percy, was an architect for a company in New Castle, Pennsylvania, yet he worked from home. In addition, her mother, Bailey, was the manager of the pharmacy in town. She had two younger brothers, Harry and Drew. Harry was a sophomore and high school and was never the greatest at sports. However, what he lacked in athleticism he made up for in intellect and charisma. Her other brother, Drew, was only in eighth grade and tended to be more interested in music. When he was eight years old, Drew asked their mom if he could sign up for guitar lessons. Drew took to the instrument fondly and soon he found himself playing other instruments. As of now, Drew was just beginning to learn the banjo.

            Renee’s drive home from school was as uneventful as always. Her house included a double garage attached to the home’s main floor and a third garage made entirely for Percy’s metal shop. Percy became interested in metal working during an elective in high school. He found a certain kind of bond in his teacher, Mr. Stein, and his love for the craft grew from there. As the Latimer family grew, Percy and Bailey decided that it was time to have three vehicles and to Percy’s dismay, he had to make room for Renee’s 2009 Ford Escape. The car was a charcoal color with cream leather seats on the interior. Renee made sure to use the car as much as she could even though the vehicle was not hers quite yet. Her parents had promised her that she could take the car to college once she reached her sophomore year, but for now, the car still belonged to her parents.

            As the vehicle slowly rolled into the garage, Renee unbuckled her seat belt and shifted into park. She turned the key, grabbed her bookbag out of the backseat, and walked into her home. Renee walked through her newly renovated basement towards the staircase leading to the main floor where her bedroom resided. She walked down the hallway and burst through her bedroom door, throwing her bookbag onto her desk as she flopped onto her bed. As any teenage girl would do, she went on her phone to see that she had received a text. This text was odd since she did not hear a ring or feel a buzz notifying her. The number read 614-681-6325 and the text that followed read:

Renee, if you are reading this you are in a coma and you have been for the past 5 months. We are trying a new experimental treatment to see if we can contact you while you are unconscious. If you see this, please wake up! We love you, and we miss you. Please come home!

Renee sat straight up on her bed, frozen with fear. She reasoned with herself that the text must’ve been a joke. A silly prank sent by some weirdo who was probably just texting random numbers. That freak wanted her to react. He wanted her to freak out. He wanted her to be afraid. Renee took three deep breaths, a trick her mother had taught her when she was younger. Renee would always get worked up over the smallest inconveniences and Bailey knew that no medicine would be as good of a cure as it would be to take a step back and breathe. She swiped left on the phone to dismiss the notification, and she began to text Adrian in hopes of dousing her fear.

            Renee woke up in a cold sweat. Shaking in her dampened bedsheets, she quickly scanned her surroundings. She realized that it was just a dream and began to sob. Questions of reality tortured her mind. Even if the text was real, Renee had no idea how she would wake up from her supposed coma. Suddenly, the thought presented itself. Renee stared at her alarm clock to see that it was 5:00 in the morning. She quickly grabbed a hoodie and slowly opened her bedroom door. Moving as quietly as she could, Renee walked to the stairwell and preceded to head to the basement, where her beloved car awaited her.

            On the road, Renee contemplated her existence more and more. If the text was a cry from her real family, then what she was doing would surely wake her up and reunite herself with her one true life. She then sat in silence while her car barreled down highway 8 at 74 mph. The music was off which was unusual for Renee as she was rarely found driving without accompaniment. After her unusual thoughts died away, Renee looked at the clock which read 5:40. If her parents knew that she was making a trip to Pittsburgh at this time of night, they would kill her, if they even are her parents. Uncertainty swelled again in Renee’s mind. Reassurance was only found in herself, bargaining that what she was doing was in fact the right decision.

            After leaving the parking ramp, Renee headed towards the West End Bridge. Out of the many bridges Pittsburgh had to offer, the West End always held a special place in her heart. Whenever their family would visit their grandparents in Morgantown, their dad would always use the West End Bridge. Renee never asked why, and she never wanted to. She always loved the view of the Monongahela and the Allegheny merging together with the skyline as a back drop. Pittsburgh was by far her favorite city and it was a perfect place to rest. Renee suddenly found herself on the walkway of the bridge, staring into the illuminated night sky behind the BNY Mellon building. Renee then placed her foot on the first rung of the yellow guard rail and continued to step until her feet stood on top. At this moment, Renee could feel the cool early autumn breeze brush by. Before she leapt to her demise, Renee took a glance at her surroundings. Very few cars were on the streets this morning, and the West End Bridge was empty. Suddenly, Renee noticed the gleaming magenta that was the morning sunrise cascade over the two merging rivers. From there on out, Renee knew. Even if the text was not fake, why would she want to throw away a life as perfect as her own. She slowly stepped off the guard rail and proceeded to walk back to the parking garage.