Bang! Bang! Bang! I woke up to an obnoxious noise. After a few seconds, I heard feet hurrying across the foyer towards the door. Realizing the bangs were knocks, I turned over to see 1:13 in big red numbers on my alarm clock. Who could be at the door on a Saturday night at 1 a.m.?
I listened closely in effort to figure out who this could be. I heard deep voices and looked out my window to see red and blue lights flashing, cops. We often speak to police officers about people at the park near our house doing illegal things after legal hours.
The footsteps led upstairs, towards my bedroom, however they turned right, not left. My sister’s door opened and light went on.
My mom urged, “Maggie, wake up”.
“What’s this about a text message?” she questioned. All of a sudden, my sister burst into tears. The sound of her balling scared me. Why would she be sobbing?
“Lauren!” my mother screamed, “Wake up your father! Now!”
I jumped off my bed and ran to my parent’s room. “Dad! Wake up! There are cops here, Maggie’s crying, and something about a text message!”
He must have heard the uncertainty in my voice, perhaps he believed that this was a dream. It’s not like I was making much sense anyways.
We both ran up to my sister’s room to find her talking to the cops, their hands scribbling down every word she said.
“I don’t know. Advil...”
“How many?”
“Maybe like 10”
“What else?”
“I took some Aspirin, too. I think like 5, maybe 10.”
I was the only one confused.
“Alright Mrs. Haste, we need to take your daughter to the hospital.”
“Of course, may I ride with her in the ambulance?”
“Yes, let’s leave now.”
I started shaking my head, so unsure of what was going on. I looked at my mom, “what is going on? Where is Maggie going?”
She walked up to me, took me in her arms and said “Honey, your sister tried to kill herself”.
I felt my stomach drop, it hit the floor hard. I had to sit down because I thought I would collapse.
I wasn’t sure I heard her right, “What?” I asked.
Those six words changed me and my family. Those words would affect us for the rest of our lives.
I heard the most hideous noise in the world. I heard sobbing coming from behind me. It was my dad. I had never seen him cry before in my life. The sight is one I will never get out of my mind.
I started balling uncontrollably.
I tried to look at my sister to try to find something in her eyes hat said “I didn’t really do it, Lauren, it is all a dream. It is still me, Maggie, the girl who craves life”. But she didn’t. She just stood here, tears staining her cheeks. staring off into the distance with emptiness in her eyes.