Finding Life | ✓

Chapter Thirty-Five

Finding Life

Part 36 • Lily

"He came with a pale queen."

—Lily's Mom

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I shouldn't be drinking fairy drinks.

I don't know if Death ever told me what fairy food can do to you, but I'm sure it's not a big deal. I shrug, then realize that I was shrugging to myself.

Great. I'm going insane.

I pick up a second fairy drink–another blue one–and walk away from the food. While I'm here, I might as well make a friend. I never was a social butterfly back on Earth– shit.

I can be so stupid at times. I never once gave thought to my family and friends back on Earth. Do they realize I'm gone? How long has it even been since Death took me away?

I'm sure as hell that mom's noticed I haven't called her in weeks. I'm such a terrible daughter. My parents must be worried sick, while I'm here, drinking blue liquid at a fairy party.

Sometimes I can be such an idiot. Without really thinking about it, I transport myself home. When I open my eyes, I'm standing in front of my parent's door. I can't believe I was so caught up in Death's world that I forgot about my own.

I take a huge gulp of the fairy drink in my hand and throw the glass cup on the concrete. It shatters into a million tiny peices. Oops. Mom has something to clean up.

I ring the doorbell when I realize that it's pretty late. The sky is pitch black, but winter is approaching, so it could very well be only 7:00.

The door opens.

"Mom!" I scream and gather her short frame in a hug.

I'm sure my smile is the largest it's ever been. When I pull apart, my mom looks stiff. She didn't even hug me back.

She looks shocked. There's horror in her green eyes.

"What's wrong?" I ask. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Mom chokes on words. She's trying to say something, but she can't form the words. In the end she yells for dad. He comes running to the door and I see his forehead creased with worry. When he sees me, his eyes go wide. I assume they weren't expecting to see me.

"Dad, what's going on?" I say.

He doesn't respond.

"Won't you let me in?" I ask.

They don't move. They blink and they breathe, but that's all they do.

"Mom, dad– say something!" I scream.

"He said you were dead," mom finally says.

Dead? They thought I was dead this entire time?

"I'm not! I'm perfectly alive!" I say. "Wait– who told you I died?"

"That man," mom whispers, "The one with the pale hair. He came with a pale queen. Looked like siblings, but they said they weren't. Lily died. You died."