Posted on: Thursday, December 27, 2001

Trusting drunken pal shatters lives

By Megan Spieles
Leilehua High School

The party had started at 8, and Travis already had drank a couple of beers. Meanwhile, Keely was talking to her friends on the other side of the room. She was trying to keep an eye on Travis, since he was her ride home.

Travis and Keely had been best friends for seven years and were making the most of their senior year together.

Keely always worried when they were at a party because Travis tended to drink more than he could handle. Keely was never into drinking as much as her friends were, but she would have a drink now and then.

Hours had passed and Keely made her way over to where Travis was. She begged Travis, "Please stop drinking! Let me drive us home."

Travis convinced Keely that he had driven them before after drinking more than he had that night. Keely didn't want to start an argument, so she made her way back to where she was dancing.

However, she still felt uneasy about the situation.

It was after 1 when Travis and Keely were making their way to the car. Travis refused to give up the keys. Home was miles away and the hour was too late for Keely to walk home. She decided to trust Travis' judgment, so she got into the car and put her seat belt on.

They pulled out of the driveway; his driving seemed to be the same as usual. He always drove fast and a bit unsafe, so it felt normal to Keely.

Keely didn't realize that Travis' eyesight was beginning to blur. Travis figured the fuzziness was nothing and kept driving.

A pickup truck had turned out of a driveway and was coming from the opposite direction. Travis swerved his car into the lane the pickup truck was in. Before Keely could grab the wheel, they collided with the truck head-on.

Both Keely and Travis were unconscious when the ambulance arrived. The airbag had deployed in front of Travis. Luckily, Keely had made him buckle up. Although Keely had on her seat belt, she was not so fortunate. She had serious spinal injuries and bruised ribs.

Several hours later, Travis awoke in a hospital room. The doctor was talking to his parents, who were extremely worried, and his little sister sat next to him on the bed.

Travis demanded, "Someone tell me what is going on!"

The doctor explained that he was in a bad accident, and they were running some tests to make sure his injuries were stable. Travis had broken his left leg and had 32 stitches. He also had many other minor injuries. He started to think about basketball and his position on the team.

Suddenly, Travis remembered Keely. He asked, "Where is Keely? Is she OK?" The doctor explained that Keely was in bad condition. She had major injuries of the spine. She was paralyzed from the waist down and would be for the rest of her life.

Travis broke down crying, forgetting about his place on the basketball team. He asked his parents if he had caused the accident. His mother began to cry. Travis learned that he had failed the blood-alcohol test. His car had collided head-on with the pickup truck. The driver of the truck was dead.

Months have passed and Keely and Travis are still best friends, as they were before the accident. Keely is paralyzed, but Travis is by her side every day. Although Keely forgave Travis, he could never forgive himself.

Every day Travis has to live knowing that he killed a man and paralyzed his best friend for life.

For Travis, life will never be the same; for Keely, life will never be the same; for the truck driver's family, life will never be the same.

Think before you drink.