Waiting For Death

Chapter 2

"Six more days, six more days." I repeat the frightening fact to myself as I pace my bedroom. Today I'm going out to a cafe with a couple of friends. Best to keep my mind off... you know what.

I eye myself in the mirror. My light blue eyes eye me back. Smoothing my floral dress, I turn away from the mirror. Hooking my handbag over my shoulder, I leave my house and start walking to the cafe.

I live in a fairly quiet area, so it's not too busy. Then again, a lot of people will be away at this time of year, as the new year's just started and no one's back at work yet.

I spot the sign for the cafe up ahead. Treaties for Sweeties. My friends and I have always loved this cafe. They have delicious little snacks and great service. The owners also love us, what with us being regular customers and all.

Pushing my sunnies up above my forehead, I head into the cafe. I spot my friends in our favourite little corner with the couch. They smile and wave when they see me.

Smiling, I sit down next to Belle. She turns to me. "Hiya, Lani! You enjoying your holiday?"

I smile awkwardly. It's hard to enjoy my holidays when all I can think about is my death. I can't tell them though. I've never talked to them about that. I look down at my lap. "Um, yeah, I guess," I mumbled. "Haven't really done much."

I dare to look up. Belle and Jess are looking at me with concern. An uncomfortable silence hangs over us. I am the one who breaks it. "So... what've you two been doing lately?"

The two of them are still looking at me like they are trying to figure out what I am so miserable about. Jess speaks, her voice full of concern. "Something happened, didn't it?"

I bite my lip. "No, not really. I'm just not looking forward to another stressful year of studying coming up." That wasn't really a lie.

Belle raises an eyebrow, not looking entirely convinced. "If you say so, but don't think about that now. The holidays are for having fun."

I grin. "Definitely."

◇◇◇

I spent a little while at Treaties for Sweeties, enjoying catching up with my friends and sharing stories from our Christmas holidays. It was fun, as it always was with them. The only thing bothering me was the nagging horror at the back of my mind that kept reminding me how my time was running out.