Galaxy.

I had arranged to go out for a meal with a good friend of mine, I hadn’t seen her for over a year. It was winter and cold outside. I decided to wear a thin pretty linen dress that had no sleeves but I had on a lovely warm, soft, thin, woollen triangle wrap, that I’d bought from my favourite shop, TKMaxx for a song. I’d just come out of the bath and when my Husband saw me as I was about to leave the house he said, “You can’t go out like that, you need a coat, it’s freezing cold outside!” I felt for a moment that he was my Dad! I said to Paul, “I’ll be in the car and then the restaurant, I want to show of my lovely dress.” I didn’t really have a suitable coat, that would do my dress justice, I don’t go out very often and didn’t see the point of wearing such a nice dress and then covering it up in a coat, so I went back upstairs and looked what I could wear instead of a coat, I found a fab, quirky jumper, if you could call it a ‘jumper’ it had long sleeves and it was very short at the front, high up above my belly button and at the back it was like two long triangles which was knitted together at the nape of my neck in a tiny crossover, leaving ninety percent of my back not covered, as the triangles tapered one to the left and the other to the right, I looked fabulous! I now didn’t need my thin, woollen, warm, wrap, as I had something better.

Yes, when I came out the house it was indeed very cold, I got in my seven-seater Galaxy and put the heater on, high. I drove the fifteen miles to the Town to where I was to have a fabulous catchup meal with my good friend Lois It was Tea time and I was hungry, I’d deliberately had a small breakfast and a bag of crisp for Lunch so I’d be hungry and enjoy the evening. I’d been off that day but Lois had been to work, so she was meeting me straight from her place of work. I was happy and content and warm.

 I was on a straight main road which is always busy in both directions, I have never known this long stretch of road to be anything else but. I was five minutes from the restaurant when suddenly from a side road on my left a car pulled out in front of me, we looked each other in the eyes, he was that close and there was nothing at all I could do, as I crashed into the side of him, I screamed out in fear, shock and disbelief. In a split second I am sure he was dead! I’d killed him in an instant!!!!! The impact of his little car, as my Galaxy ploughed into it. He thankfully didn’t die, he drove his car to the right where he was originally going and parked on the other side of the road. There were loads of witnesses those behind me and those on the opposite side of the road and those behind the man who had pulled out in front of me, and everyone fled! Cars sped past me and I sat in my car shaking, I put my hazardous lights on and thought, “Why didn’t I buy the cameras that Paul had begged me to buy for the car, back and front.?” I had been to Halford’s but as I looked, they were SO expensive, I didn’t see the point of cameras over one hundred pounds, but suddenly now it made sense! Proof!

The other driver came over to me and asked, “Are you hurt?” I said, “No, are you?” He said, “No.” He took charge quickly and said to me, “You need to remove your car from the road and drive it onto the grass verge, as you don’t want to be hit from behind.” I was shaking SO much first from the cold and second from the shock. It was freezing! Oh, I wished I had my coat and thin, warm, triangle, woollen wrap, now and a proper jumper! I did what the man said, SO much was going through my mind, I went onto the grass verge and was saddened to look back and see bits of my lovely car in the road and my registration plate, I wanted to retrieve it, but it was impossible and in seconds it was broken up in the middle of the busy road, in bits.

I said, to him, “That was your fault,” He was calm and cool and collective he said, “You were turning left, you had indicated,” I replied to him, “It’s not against the law to indicate, I was not turning left, nor did I indicate, I was going straight on.” I said, “I need to phone two people,” I rang Paul and said, “I’ve been in a car accident I am OK,” I could hear the fear in his voice, as he said, “I’m glad you are OK, and how is the car?” I said, “The car is OK too, the registration plate has been destroyed and there is some damage at the front.” I then rang Lois who was at the restaurant and told her the same.

The man then introduced himself and said, “My name is Christian Cotton, this is where I work,” pointing to the logo on his coat and the car is the Company car.” He went on, “Everything will be alright, accidents happen.” I was shaking a lot; my teeth were chattering and my whole body was shaking especially my hands. I felt very alone, I didn’t want to miss anything out, I tried to think clear, of at least the basics, so I said to Christian, “Can I have your Insurance Company details?” He said, “Have you got a pen and paper?” I replied, “No, please can you type all your details into my mobile?” I gave him my mobile and his fingers typed fast.

He asked, my name and insurance details, I gave him my name and looked through my mobile for my insurance details, and couldn’t find it! I wasn’t worried for a friend had helped me find a good deal on line, after she found out how expensive the insurance was that I’d got! My friend Amiee had then sat with me and looked on line and found a fantastic deal it was half of the price of what I had been offered and what I’d accepted. But now as I stood outside my car in the freezing cold, or the cold light of day, nothing! I rang my Husband Paul and asked him, “Please look on the calendar on the wall at home and get back to me.” Five minutes later Paul rang back and said, “I can’t see anything on the calendar.” I told Christian, “My husband can’t find my insurance details, but I have got fully comp.” He replied, still calm, “That’s OK, not to worry,” I reassured him, “When I get home, I will phone the details to you about the insurance.” He said, “OK.”

Christian then said to me, “There is no need to call the police.” I wasn’t sure if that was the right thing to do or not, he went on, “Neither of us is hurt,” that was a good point, but I thought to myself, from the moment of impact do we need a ‘Referee’, to determined whose fault this is? I knew it wasn’t my fault, but Christian didn’t seem to act like it was his either. So, the police could have been the ‘Referee’, and make notes, but I was confident that it was not my fault, so I replied, “OK.”

Christian then said to me, “I’m going to walk over there to make a phone call, I’m not running off, I am just going over there to make a phone call and I will be right back, you will be able to see me,” I said, “OK.” My confidence felt a bit knocked, as I had nobody to phone, who was he phoning and why? Was he asking a car mechanic or insurance person some advice on what to do next? I watched him as he walked up and down the path, confidently I was SO cold I thought I would catch my death! I thought I must NEVER leave the house again without a coat, scarf, hat and gloves! I was foolishly dressed for a summer’s day.

I walked over to his car and took photos of his registration plate and photos of the damaged done to his car. It was then I saw that I’d not crashed into his driver’s door as I originally thought, but the bit at the side before the door, I don’t know what that bit is called, the bit between the side driver’s door and the bonnet. Then I took pictures and videos of my damaged car.

It did occur to me that he might be asking advise on cheap repairs, was he asking how to fix my car up? If he was, was I to say, “OK?” Was he talking to someone who was going to fix his car, so the damage wouldn’t look SO bad? I didn’t know what to think, but I thought maybe he was up to something, up to no good, even though he pretty honest and upfront to my face, I wasn’t sure if I could trust him or not. But I was OK in the fact that I had photos of his car and registration details and I could see that he was wearing his work jacket, so even if his name was wrong, I had these other details.

After what felt like ages, he came back over to me, he didn’t say what he’d been talking about, he could have been asking the other person if there was any possibility on earth, that it could have been my fault! But fact is fact, if he’d waited at the side road where he was, there would have been no accident. And another major factor is, if I was driving a juggernaut he’d have been creamed of the face of the Earth!

He certainly was a nice person, he was never once rude or shout or not corporate, which was just as well, as I felt very vulnerable, even outnumbered, with his long phone call. I never stopped shaking. We both tried to tell my friend Lois where we were, but she actually got lost trying to find us!!! So after about an hour Christian Cotton left. He turned his car around and went back up the road he had come out from, the side road, his car sounded SO destroyed, that when he got to the side road he had to stop! It was clear to me and him, that a lot of damaged had been done underneath the car, it was worse than we both thought.

I went and sat in my cold car. It was a tad warmer than outside, my lost friend Lois had told me to “Stay where you are, I will come to you……” We rang each other a few times and after ninety minutes, I went to the restaurant, I told her to meet me there, she had gone many, many miles in the wrong direction.

I’d wanted my favourite, Fish n Chips, but by the time I got to the restaurant, I’d changed my mind and had the same as Lois, the carvery! I was very hungry now and the carvery, seemed like it would be more filling and hotter, with all that lashings of gravy!

We found a nice place to sit, in the other room, in there it was half full still with families and young kids running around! As it was getting a bit late, we knew hopefully the families would be leaving soon. They were a bit distracting, but I went on to tell Lois all about it! I was still in shock, and did wonder if I’d be able to eat without been sick, as the body and mind can do unpredictable, strange things when in shock!

I ate my meal slowly as I talked at the same time, I don’t know what time the restaurant closes, but we were there for four hours! When I looked behind me, in the main room there were others still there too, enjoying their meal and drinks.

Then, it was time to leave and go home, so I would need to make the ‘long’ journey back, it did fill me with trepidation, but it had to be done, no one else could do it for me, I said, “Goodbye,” To Lois and got in my car.