On The Edge

The Headlines

I went home that night and cried myself to sleep. The next morning, I replaced the pictures of me and my friends with pictures of my mum. I picked one up. It was the one of me on her back, practically smearing ice cream all over her hair, I must have been about 7 then. I caught my reflection in the glass of the picture frame and felt a sea of disappointment wash over me, why do all the good people die, I thought.

My letter box made a clunk and I stood up. I lay the picture frame on the couch and walked to the front door. There on the welcome mat was the daily newspaper. It was rolled up so I couldn't see the headlines and I decided to leave it there for a little bit.

I came back into the living room, put the photo on the mantlepiece and slumped back on to the couch. I grabbed the remote and started flicking through the tv until I found the dating programme. I turned the sound down to 7 and picked up my phone. After a while of pointless scrolling, I heard a knock at the door. My neighbours were outside. Weird, I don't usually get visits. I opened my door and saw James and Lily looking at me suspiciously and then down at the rolled-up newspaper.

"I'm presuming you haven't read it," Lily said to me.

"Noooo, she's obviously read it the rolled it back up and put it back at the front door," James rolled his eyes and Lily gave him a swift kick in the shin.

I looked at them curiously, why would they want me to read the local newspaper so much?

I picked it up with a shacking hand. I undid the brown string. I felt the fresh air trapped in the middle of the page as I unrolled it. I looked at the front page.

"No, no, they've framed me!?"

"Come now lovie I'm sure its just the paper trying to get a story out of nothing again, most people throw the paper away as soon as it comes through the door, probably no one's read it."

"Yes, it's happened to us all, you're not a Red Wrath resident if the paper hasn't made something up about you and published it for everyone to see, one time they published that me and Lily here were getting married, what nonsense." He chuckled but Lily didn't look amused.

"We are married you idiot."

"But you don't have a ring on, so it doesn't count."

"I don't have a ring on because it fell off after you bought the wrong size and it's the vows that make you married, obviously."

"Let me just google that, oh wait I left my phone on the side of the road because it was too big for my hand"

"Haha I'm dying laughing," Lily said sarcastically and then they both realized I was there,

"Sorry," they said sympathetically.

I wasn't listening to what they said next I was just staring at the headline of the paper

CCTV FOOTAGE OF GIRL FAKING MOTHER'S DEATH FOR HER MONEY

Underneath was a collage of pictures one of the doctor saying she has died, one of my dad and the doctor leaving the room and then finally one of me with my mum with her eyes open.

I didn't bother reading what the journalist had to say, my eyes went straight to the bottom sentence.

'Tune in at 11:30am today for a full look at the CCTV on channel 6 news'

I thanked James and Lily for telling me and congratulated them on their marriage 5 years ago that I too was unaware of. Then I rushed to the kitchen and looked at the time on the oven.

11:28

I rushed to the living room, switched on channel 6 news, and held my breath.