Evanescent
Chapter 1:
Cakeless Birthday
The bathroom felt cold and sterile, but at least it was far from all the unwanted action that was taking place on the other side of the door. I never wanted a large party like this, just a small get together where we could watch some old movies and have some cake. Ironically, the two things that I had asked for was not provided, there was no cake and there were no movies. What kind of party had no cake? This one apparently. My reflection in the mirror stared back at me with disappointment. I know, I know, I should have just told Anna that I didnβt want any of this. She thought it would have been fun to throw a large party and invite everyone I know and her exact reasoning was, βWell itβs your twenty-fifth birthday, thatβs like a quarter of a century! You need to throw a large party with lots of booze, people and partying and I will help you plan the best quarter-century-old birthday party!β I donβt understand why I am like this. Maybe, washing my face will help me feel better. After all, it is my birthday and couldnβt I just leave whenever I wanted? Some people would say it is controversial to leave my own party early, but screw it. It feels more like Anneβs party than my own anyway, so why not just leave. She will hate me eternally for this, but then again you only live once.
I stared at my sky blue eyes and thought of whether I should do it and risk my friendship or if I should suck it up and continue to act like I am enjoying a party that I never wanted. I turned around hesitantly as I made my way out of the bathroom. I pushed the heavy door as I left the cold bathroom and looked back one last time to see if I had left anything behind. It was time to make the great escape from my not-so-nice birthday party. As I left the premises hurriedly, many groups of people, whom I have never met, greeted me. I can only blame one person for this: Anne. Speak of the devil, there she is sipping a cup of whatever intoxicating drink with my other βfriendsβ and guys whom I have never seen before, it made me feel cold. I need to avoid her sight or else it would compromise my whole plan. As I made my way out through the fire escape of the apartment, I bumped into someone and immediately looked up to say βsorryβ, and that was when my expression fell.
βSo, itβs been quite some time, hasnβt it, Marianne?β said the person that I was hoping to never see again.
βWhat are you doing here Camden, who invited you? Tell me now!β
βOh, I thought you would like to see me here, especially after 7 years with no call, text, nothing!β
βCould you just tell me how you got here and who invited you here?β
βI donβt know, ask your new best friend Anna, she thought that maybe I would like to come to your very special twenty-fifth birthday.β
βOh, there you are Marianne! I was looking for you everywhere and wow you already found my surprise! Oh and surprise! Anyway, thank you, Camden, for comingβ¦ We are going to start singing now!β
Anne caught me. Why do my plans end like this? Why am I friends with such self-centred people? I need to leave now before I have a panic attack. Well, at least Anne smothered away Camden, this gives me the opportunity to leave. So my plan hasnβt ended in total misery. As everyone gathered around a turkey to sing happy birthday, I finally left. Itβs funny how Anne got a turkey, but not a cake. As I headed to my car to leave the mess that is my birthday party, my name was called from the window. I turned around to see who was calling for me and there was Anne racing down the steps, shouting βWhere are you going, Marianne? You canβt be leaving now!β I sped up my pace as I couldnβt stand her nonsense right now. I was neither in the mental nor physical state to deal with her. As I sped up, Anne finally caught up with me. How is she that fast?! I quickly grabbed the handle of my black car, which illuminated under the warm street light. Like a shot of lightning, she held the door with an abnormal amount of strength and gave me a fierce look, which reminded me of one a tiger would give to his prey.
βWhere do you think you are going, huh?! I spent ages planning this party for you and this is the thanks I get! This is so like you! Donβt you dare set a foot in that car and leave this birthday party!β
βWell, it seems more like your party than mine anyway. Talk about being self-centred. You are such a hypocrite, you know! I canβt believe how ridiculous you are. Somehow, you managed to even turn my birthday to be an event centred around you. The funniest part about this is that instead of a cake, which I personally asked for, you got a turkey to celebrate because it was trendy and you read it was a fantastic alternative to cake in a magazine! Who celebrates a birthday with a turkey for godβs sake?! I am going home and donβt try to apologise. Bye!β
As I forced my car open in spite of Anneβs hand, I stepped in the car only to see Camden running down the flight of stairs in pursuit of me. I quickly stepped into the car, sat on the driverβs seat, shut the door on Anneβs shocked face, and turned the engine on. I heard a loud smack on my car window and Camden iterating the words βWhere the hell are you going? Are you insane?β
βWhy donβt you ask Anne? Since she is such a wonderful and dear friend!β I said sarcastically as I flipped them off.
I am done with this. I never want to ever see the likes of anyone again. Not Camden, not Anne, nobody. Itβs time to go home and just be me for once. I will focus on myself, my studies, and my work. As I drove, I picked up a picture of my mother that sat on the sun visor of my car. What would you do mom? I missed her so much. I regret so many things in my life and I knew that she did as well. Why would Camden come today? That was the biggest shocker of my day and in fact my year. After what had happened, I thought he would never want to talk to me, and he said that he felt so betrayed that I never reached out to him. Why would I after what happened? I let him down and I donβt think it would be very appropriate to act like nothing happened and to text him every day and do what normal friends do. What does he expect? I need a nice, long sleep because this is giving me one big headache.
** ** **
I stared up at the darkness that stood above me with wary eyes. It twinkled with sparkling droplets and was complemented by the vast amount of starry lights. I drove through the stretch of highway, which stood alongside a cliff with rocks perched over a rugged valley that bloomed with different shades of green, bringing vast life and atmosphere to it. I was tired of all the weight that I was carrying on my back. Oddly, I was filled with adrenaline even though every cell in my body was thoroughly worn out. I closed my eyes for a second, or at least for what felt like a second. I missed my mom. I just want to go home. This whole night was a bad idea. I wish I had stood my place before Anne decided that it would be a marvellous idea to throw a party. I wouldnβt be in this position. Everything around me started to fade into the abyss. I relaxed my head against my chair. In a sudden flash, glints of light hit my eyes like piercing bullets. My ears were ringing with a deafening screeching sound, as I felt an immediate crash and flash from my left. The car was swirling out of control. I tried to control the steering wheel and pressed on the car breaks with an unprecedented amount of force. I opened my eyes only to be greeted by the depths of despair. The bottom of the cliff met my eyes, as I saw my last moments.
The car moved towards the bottom of the cliff. It started to tumble and flip, as my head moved in a similar motion. Everything was happening so quickly. I felt pain all over my body. I never felt this vulnerable in my life. The car finally flipped once more before it stopped. I reached for the car handle and fell onto the arduous ground. As the pain swarmed my body, I looked around the night sky and saw small figures of people staring down at me with fright. I slowly closed my eyes to the illuminated darkness that sat above me. I accepted my last moments and finally felt at peace at last. It was then that I realised that this might be the end to my evanescent life.