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It was a cool evening as I was driving down the highway listening to a song by Cheap Trick. I was driving about 75 mph which was about 15 miles over the speed limit. The highway was empty of other cars so I felt I could go faster and enjoy the night as I was on my way home from a friend's house.
I was a smoker back then and I was trying to get my cigarettes out of the glove compartment. I was able to reach over and pop open the compartment without any problems. I popped back up to make sure nothing was on the road. I thought I could quickly reach in and get my cigarettes. I reached and reached for them, but I couldn't locate them. I hit a bump in the road and I saw the box if cigarettes bounce into the air and onto the passenger's seat. I reached over to get the box and when I looked back up there was a parked car in front of me. I slammed right into it.

Next thing I remember is seeing the windshield cracked and with my blurry vision I decided to get out of the car in case any one comes from behind me and hits my car. I remember walking but I don't remember where I walked to. Next time I woke up, a man was holding me on the side of the road. I asked him who he was and where was I. He told me his name was Michael and that I was lying in the middle of the highway. He said he had to carry me to the side of the highway and that we were waiting for the ambulance to come. I completely blacked out from there.
My eyes opened in the hospital. I saw my mother sleeping in a chair next to me. Apparently I was out for a long time. I called for my mother and she woke up. "Oh thank God," she yelled out as she stood up. I asked her what happened and she told me I was in a car accident.
"Where's the man," I asked my mother, but she didn't know who I was talking about. I told her the man was with me after I hit something and I couldn't remember what I had hit until the next day. As I remembered more of what happened and I realized the man told me his name. There had to be some report of a guy that was with me when the ambulance came. I started asking people that worked in the hospital and eventually, I was told that when the ambulance came no one was with me. They told me I was found alone on the side of the highway.
The last day I was in the hospital my mother was gathering my things. She asked me where the black jacket came from. I looked at it and remembered Michael gave it to me. "The guy that was with me that night covered me with his jacket. It's Michael's," I yelled out. "I told you someone was with me."
My mother realized I was telling the truth. She inquired more about what happened that night and what the report said. The hospital simply said there was nobody there with me.
I didn't understand why Michael would have left me there. Why would he have gone out of his way to help me and then leave me? I never did find out what happened to Michael but I do know he saved my life. He gave me a second chance at life. I know longer smoke, speed, or reach for something in the car while driving. There's one thing that has been bugging me though about that night. How did Michael know the ambulance was coming? There would be no way he could call 911 when there were no cell phones back then. He was with me the entire time and there was no one else around.

Learn more about this author, Laura Hageman.
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