1 Goodbye

"Why?" The girl whispered to herself. Her long, smooth dark hair cascading down her shoulders.

Lukewarm tears fell from her eyes, pooling on the floor beneath her.

"What did I do wrong?" She mumbled. Her back slid down the wall, her body collapsing to the ground. Shakily, she brought her bruised knees to her face.

Everything was silent, the only thing to be heard was little dripping noises from her tears splattering on the floor.

"Let go." A deep voice spoke, breaking the peaceful silence that had surrounded the girl. "Let go of your pitiful life, let go of all the impermanent things surrounding you. Letting go hurts less than holding on, so why do you still grasp onto your life so tightly? I can rid you of your pain, your suffering, your sadness. All you've got to do is lessen your hold on reality, let me in. Let us in, and we can save you."

The girl's tears had stopped falling at his words, an eery silence following.

She gripped at her arms, scratching them with her sharp nails in the process.

Consumed in her own thoughts, she sucked in a deep breath, considering the man's offer.

Could she finally be free?

Could he, no, them, finally help her?

Will this really stop the pain, the hurt, the sadness that has been eating away at her?

She clenched her teeth, narrowing her eyes at the ground beneath her.

I can't trust them.

I can't.

You can't.

We can't...

I...

Can't take it anymore.

Maybe I should..

Finally let go.

The girl lifted her head from her knees, her eyes landing on the strange being before her.

She couldn't see anything, his body, his face. It was too dark, all she could see was his smiling white eyes, they were glowing in the dark, no pupil was to be seen.

The being eyed her, realising she had been analysing his features. He couldn't help but let out a small chuckle, his eyes creasing further.

"Have you made your decision?"

She bit at her lip, a cold sweat coming over her.

"Yes, I have."

"Will you be coming with me then?"

She could sense that he was smirking, though she couldn't see. He knew, he knew he had won.

Nodding, she lifted herself up off the ground, using the wall to support her weight.

"...Yes."

The being reached out what seemed like a hand, but it was misty, almost like a black flame.

"Take my hand. I'll set you free, I'll stop your suffering."

She eyed his hand warily, before placing her hand within his.

The being squeezed her hand reassuringly, before taking some steps forward, bringing her along beside him.

She followed behind, her pace speeding up to keep up with his long strides. She could see a door ahead, it was slowly becoming more visible as his steps became bigger and she got closer.

A shaky breath escaped her lips once she stood in front of said door, butterflies started fluttering within her stomach as the strange being pushed the door open, revealing a gaping hole where flooring should have been.

"If you leap into the hole before us, you will achieve freedom. " The being stated, his attention solely on the girl.

"What's down there? Will I..will I get hurt if I jump?" She gulped, her breathing becoming uneven.

"An escape. The hole, it's an escape. If you jump into it, you shall escape this insufferable world, you will be granted freedom and you will never again experience such pain, such sadness, such hurt as you're experiencing now. It's the easy way out. You will get hurt, but it won't hurt as much as you're hurting now. It'll be a moment of pain, and then all will end, you'll feel nothing and you'll be free. It's as simple as that."

The girl took in every word the being had said, her eyes glazing over with tears.

Freedom?

The easy way?

A moment of pain in exchange for a lifetime of salvation?

Her lips curved up, a small smile now present on her face as more tears streamed down her cheeks.

I'm so happy.

I'm so relieved.

Thank you, God.

Her grip on the being's hand had now loosened, as she took brave steps towards the massive hole.

"I'll see you on the other side." The being whispered, fading away into the darkness that had surrounded her for almost her whole life.

She was now standing on the edge of the deep hole, her tears drying up and she sucked in a deep breath.

Leaning her body forward, her smile grew as she felt her feet leave the edge. She closed her eyes, darkness taking over her vision as she uttered her last words.

"Goodbye."

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Chattering filled the classroom cramped with young teens as the bell chimed through-out the school building, alerting the students that class would soon start.

Everyone took their seats, waiting for the teacher to make an appearance. A young girl, Tracy was currently texting her friend, as she hadn't shown up yet.

Suddenly, the classroom door was yanked open as a panicked girl quickly ran inside, her eyes tracing the class before landing upon Tracy.

"Are you okay?" Tracy questioned, her worried gaze directed towards her seemingly distressed friend.

"No. She's dead." Her friend stated, her hands shaking as she held them together in an attempt to calm herself down.

"What? Who's dead?" Tracy felt a bead of sweat drip down her forehead, suddenly feeling nervous.

"Lena. She's dead. She killed herself. We–we killed her." The girl stuttered, her whole body now shaking.

"We killed her Tracy! We killed her!"

Her eyes began leaking with tears, her glare directed towards Tracy.

"Abbie, calm down, plea-" Tracy's voice shook with fear as the whole classes eyes were now on herself and Abbie.

"No! Tracy, don't you understand!? Lena's dead, we killed her! We left her alone when she needed us most! And then we rubbed salt in the wound, we bullied her.. we...were the worst friends ever. I-I, I didn't want this to happen, Tracy. I just thought...I just thought it was okay, cause, no one else seemed to like her. I didn't want to be different from everyone else, you didn't...so we, we called her names, we pushed her around...we beat her for Christ's sake. We told her that she should just die if she wants all this to end. I didn't know she'd take it seriously...I really..I really didn't know." Sobs emitted from Abbie's mouth, breaking up her speech as Tracy felt her heart drop, her eyes watering as she stopped breathing for a mere moment.

"I-it can't be true, she can't be dead."

Abbie dropped to the floor, crying her eyes out as Tracy's tears began flowing down her face, her eyes wide with shock.

"Lena....I'm sorry. I'm so sorry...please, please....come back."

I didn't mean it.

I didn't hate you.

I didn't want you to die.

Please. Come back.

I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry.

Lena...I'm sorry.