Learning to Fall

My brother Zack died 3 days ago. He was driving his car home from a party at 1am with two of his friends. He was the designated driver, and the car was hit head on by a drunk one. If you ever want proof that life isn’t fair, there it is.

I’m standing in the middle of my kitchen. I’m being told two things that don’t really make sense together. My Aunt Mary is telling me what a great guy Zack was and Uncle Rob is saying that it was just his time to go. And I’m thinking ‘If he was such a great guy, then why did he have to go at all?’ But I keep my mouth shut, just as I have done for the past 3 days and occasionally nod to make them think that I’m listening.

“Can I borrow Stella, please?”

I look up at the sound of his voice and can’t help but feel a little bit better when he takes my hand and my eyes meet his.

His name is Alex, and he’s one of the few people I have left.