Cheating Life

Prologue

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It was a beautiful day. In fact, it was perfect. The sky was clear and blue. The sun was shining brightly. The grass was as green as it could get and all the flowers were in full bloom. You could also hear the birds chirping with their beautiful little voices. You could see my friendly neighbors walking leisurely or at an easy jog, waving cheerfully at each other, as if they knew each face personally.

However, as much as I wanted to, I could not appreciate the beauty around me. Why?

I was too busy thinking about my death.

Have you ever been absolutely sure of something that you just knew that you couldn't possibly be wrong? Have you ever experienced that gut feeling in your stomach that eats at you? What about that voice at the back of your head, constantly nagging you?

Well, I had this nasty feeling that I was going to die soon.

I have a perfect life. Perfect enough for me anyway. My parents are the best parents in the world. They loved me very much and we seldom argued. We were also pretty well off. Not exactly rich but we could afford an overseas vacation once every year.

I have the greatest friends that could ever exist. Carol Price is kind, caring and extremely supportive. Dave Slan is funny, hyper and protective. They are two of the most awesome people in the planet and I cannot dream of having better friends.

So basically, the only problem in my life is my name and the hunch that I was going to kick the bucket any moment now. Actually, it wasn't just a hunch. I just knew I was going to die.

By the way, my name is Odette Arenas. I know what you're thinking. You don't meet many Odettes this day or any other day before the 20th century. Besides, every time I hear someone calling me, sometimes I hear "Oh, death" instead of "Odette". Paranoia? Maybe.

I hope it really is only paranoia. But sadly, I don't think it is. Sometimes, I feel death so close that I could almost smell it. As in, a literal smell. Sometimes, whenever I was left alone to my thoughts, I would suddenly start shivering uncontrollably. All my hairs would stand up. I hated the dark. I hated rain. Those things reminded me of sadness and loss.

I have also dreamt of my death countless of times. Most of them were nightmares with some maniac chasing me. No matter how much I ran or hid, my killer would always find me. Sometimes, I dream that a terrible accident would befall me. Sometimes, it was a sickness or illness that would lead me to my death. These dreams... These nightmares would come to me now every night. Sometimes, I even saw them when I wasn't asleep. If I just closed me eyes for a second, I would see...

I could not even bear the thought of sleeping. I had the fear that if I closed my eyes, I would never wake up again. This fear of death was getting worse and worse. I was getting weaker and I could neither eat nor sleep. Even when someone was talking to me, I could not force myself to listen to them. Fear had become my constant companion with death just looming around the corner... ready to reach out and grab me.

I found myself in front of my favorite park. I knew this park extremely well. There was a beautiful clearing surrounded by trees that I love. My thoughts preoccupied, I saw that my feet had taken me to this particular clearing.

Suddenly, an overwhelming emotion rushed through me as I got to the center of that green clearing.

It was fear. I did not want to die... not yet anyway. I still had so much to live for.

Desperate, I looked up at the sky.

"Please!" I cried, tears streaming from my eyes. "I do not want to die yet! Please give me more time! I don't want to leave the world of the living before I get the chance to do something great for myself!"

My knees finally gave out and I fell on the ground, sobs wracking my whole frame. If there really was a God, I just hoped and wished with all my heart that he would answer my prayer.

After crying alone for one whole hour, I finally got up and started heading home. I felt slightly better. Just before I stepped out of the clearing, I heard a voice in my head.

"I give you more time... Enjoy it."

When I got out of the park, I just knew that my prayers have been answered.

The gut feeling was gone. The nagging voice at the back of my head was gone. I just knew my wonderful life was going to go on as it did.

After visiting that clearing, I just knew that there was a God.

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A/N: What do you think? Good or bad? Please review!