-Afterlife-

*WARNING: NOT FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE AFRAID OF DEATH~!!*

I am Lilly, and I'm 11 years old, and my best friend is Mary.

I walked to school one morning, happily skipping on the sidewalk. And of course, at the school entrance, I bumped into, who else, but Mary.

Now, let's talk about her, Mary, and her abnormal, perfectly strange, tastes.

First, she's one week younger than me, cause my birthday is March 15 and she's March 22.

Second, she really, really likes to draw, and her drawings are stupendous. Yet, they're scary, beautiful and pretty, yet scary...

I don't know if she has dark humour or something of that sort, but it's terrifying, really.

Let me describe a couple of her drawings,

1. A picture of a girl with blood-stained hands holding a knife and smiling over a dead, mutilated body of a cat, grinning widely from ear-to-ear.
2. A picture of a woman hanging from a tall tree, the ground spattered with blood, with a tanto or a short Japanese knife on the ground. The woman's neck is seen bleeding.
3. A picture of a boy crying over the dead body of his own sister, who is seen lying pale on the ground with no sign of wounds or blood.
4. A man who is bleeding in the stomach because he is laying down with a long metal pole going through his stomach, his internal organs like liver and intestines, are seen, still bloody, on the floor.

Those are just some of her drawings, and they all scare me so much, that I ask her to keep her drawings to herself, and never show them to me.

Her drawings are all also very realistic, so if she draw pictures of violence, it's like looking a real-life scene going on.

I'm quite scared for her mental health really, but every time I try to ask her mother, Ms. Turner, about it, she always brushes it off with a "She likes horror," or "It's all just a figment of her imagination."

But really, I think that this is rather inappropriate and I hope I can put at end to it soon, before the big damage is done, and as people say, better safe than sorry.

That's Mary, and even though she is quite abnormal, she is a very good friend, and is kind, understanding and quite amiable at all times.

Now, we're just walking to the front doors of our school, and chatting all the while on the way there.

Once inside our school, we made a bee-line straight for our lockers, which are side-by-side and Mary said, "Lilly, I have something to show you." She smiled sweetly and looked as innocent as ever, but I knew better, "What is it my dear friend Mary? I won't give so much as a glance to it if it is one of your preposterous drawings of savagery"

She shook her head, "It is not, my dear oh-so-motherly Lilly, it is something different than that," I nodded conventionally, "Very well then, give me a sight of it."

She unlocked her locker and took out her drawing book, she then flipped over the spine-chilling pages and found the page she wanted.

She gave the book with me with utmost care, for she thinks her drawings are her most precious belongings, and I regarded her drawing with squinted eyes.

It was a drawing of both of us, yet there was something strange about it. You see, Mary was, blue, she- she was like a ghost. And I was standing still, facing her, and normal as ever.

It was weird.

I wondered aloud, "This- This is me?" I looked at her with a questioning glance, and she nodded. I conjectured about what it meant, and so I asked her, "Whatever could this mean Mary?"

She smiled and mumbled, "It's me and you in the future," then she snatched the drawing book playfully from my hands, snapped it shut, thrust it back into her locker and locked her locker. Then she went away, leaving me standing there with my mouth a-gog and brain in a whirl.

I ran after her and went into class.

THE NEXT DAY

I walked again to school today, and again met Mary in the school grounds too. We walked to the school together again and again made a bee-line for our lockers.

Mary looked at me, a mischievous smile playing around her mouth, and I replied with an angry glare, because of her behaviour of the day before.

She said, "I'm sorry Lilly, it was just a figment of my imagination, and you added yours," She begged me to forgive her with her puppy eyes.

It was a challenge to resist when she already did those puppy eyes. And I failed that challenge. I gave in, "Yeah? Fine, I forgive you Mary, and you sounded just like your mother just now." She looked curiously at me, "I did?" I nodded gleefully, my frown turned upside down.

After that funny, awkward episode, she unlocked her locker and took out her drawing book again. She gave it to me with a look that said, ''I'm sorry, this is my peace offering''.

I hesitantly received it from her and glanced at the drawing. It was a drawing of a skeleton. My eyes widened, ''What could this mean Mary?'' She pointed at me, and I was full of shock, I couldn't take it anymore. I threw her drawing book down on the floor and ran to the girls lavatory.

I threw the door open and went to the sinks. I gasped loudly and started to cry, for I was realising what Mary meant; she wanted me to die. That was the only thing it could've meant.

My shoulders shook and I gasped loudly for air, good thing no one was there, because they would've certainly laughed at me, thinking I was being weak and some other things of the sort.

I gasped for air, then gave it up, for I saw no use in crying. So I washed my face, and as the cold water rushed through my face, I felt cold and clear again.

I got out of the girls lavatory and ran straight to class, for I had heard the bell rings just a few minutes ago.

I went inside class, acting like nothing has happened, sat on my desk, and opened my books then started writing. It was all I could do to hold on.

Though I sat quiet all through class, I made a solemn promise in my heart, that the second I arrived home, I would tell my mother all about it.

And so I did.

2 hours later, school was over and I walked home, alone, this time.

I burst in through the front door, flung off my shoes and ran upstairs. Once upstairs I threw my bag upon my bed and ran back downstairs to tell Mother all about it.

Mother was in the kitchen, cooking lunch, as usual. And she was so surprised that I went in gasping and choking for air, for I ran the whole way.

I was able to conclude the things that happened today and yesterday in a few minutes.

Mother was sitting down on the table by the time I had finished, and was looking at me with wide eyes and mouth a-gog.

She said, "My dear child, Lilly, I have to tell you something that Mary's mother had told me." She looked too scared for her own good.

And I myself was shaken out of my wits, I was almost desperate to know what was it that Mary's mother had told mine, "What is it Mother! Tell me at once!"

She said, "Mary's drawings can come true. They are predictions of the future. Mary has a psychic power to draw the future."

She handed me a Morning Edition of the Times. It was news of a middle-aged man named James Monning, which was killed by a metallic foundation pole which fell from the 15th floor of a building. It went straight through his stomach and he died on the spot.

I was shocked, because it was one of Mary's drawings.

It was real evidence of Mary's power.

I thanked Mother for everything, then hugged her for a second. Then I went to the door hall and put on my shoes, then ran out of the house, boarded a bus, which was perfect timing and pure luck, and went to Mary's house in that way.

I arrived 5 minutes later and banged on her door, and she herself answered it!

I screamed, "Mary!!!" She hugged me then said, "Come with me Lilly, this world is an illusion. Come with me to the Afterlife where we can both live happily in peace. This world is all an illusion, let us go to the real world. We belong together, and let me tell you all."

''I am a dead body myself, that's the reason behind my scary drawings. I love the dead, because they are my people and they can be yours too."

''Please Lilly, take my hand." And at that exact moment, it seemed like an invisible barrier separated us, and a bluish portal appeared right where Mary was standing. Just like in the drawing.

I hesitated, "Mary! My parents, Earth, is where I belong, one day, we'll meet again I hope!" Tears streamed down both our faces.

Mary shook her head, "You don't need to wait, come with me, your parents and mine, they will follow, when the time is right, they will follow."

I nodded but still hesitated, and it seemed to have shown on my face since Mary said, "I- You're my best friend, don't leave me alone..." She used her puppy eyes again.

And I couldn't resist.

I had no idea, of where we were going, and I hope it is a good place.

THE END