Death Lilly

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Nine months later

 "Good morning," I heard as I stumbled, still half asleep into the kitchen. My heart beating hard against my chest as I jumped with fright.

"You're here early. I thought Grandmamma told you that you didn't have to start until after breakfast." I informed Jude, our next-door neighbor while trying to recover. Jude was twenty-one. He had, what I pictured to be a surfer look, with golden blonde hair and big blue eyes. Another bonus was his well-built body, something I admired whenever he came over. Ever since Jude had moved into Mr. Goldstein's old apartment, he had been more than willing to help my Grandmamma and me whenever there was a job we need doing. Today he was laying down laminate flooring for us.

"It's after breakfast, sleeping beauty." He teased. "I've been up for three hours. You're so lucky I took pity on you and decided to start late." It was hard to resist the urge to poke my tongue out at him.

"Why thank-you kind sir, shall I repay your kindness by getting you a giant cup of coffee?"

"That's all huh? Just coffee after I slave over this floor?"

"Slaved over the floor. Jeez, you've only just started to open the boxes. I think you should feel lucky I'm offering you coffee." 

Jude tossed his hair out of his eyes as he gazed up at me. "And yet I have still accomplished more than you, Miss Vale." 

"That's not nice, I just got up," I replied, placing the kettle onto the stove.

Jude's blue eyes twinkled with amusement. "My point exactly." 

I didn't reply, instead, I watched as Jude brush a strand of his semi-long blonde hair from his eyes. He was dressed in dark blue cargo pants and a tight white tee. It was one of his more casual looks. I, however, was in sweats having not expected anyone other then grandmamma in the apartment. It wasn't a big apartment. Not like what you see on TV or anything, but it was nice for what we could afford considering the neighborhood. There were two decent sized bedrooms if you called a bedroom that could only fit one double and a chest of draws in it decent. For us, it worked even if it meant sacrificing a double for a single. The bathroom was shared. It had a bath and shower combo, which I knew in another ten years, would become a problem for Grandmamma. There was a separate toilet that also happened to be right next to my bedroom, making me thankful it was just Grandmamma and I. The kitchen was small and lay across the wall that had the bathroom on the other side. We had our table placed on the mismatched tile that our neighbor's grandson, Jude, had laid for us only a few months ago. On the opposite side of the kitchen was the small two-seat sofa and TV.

Thank God I brushed my hair and teeth before coming out, I thought as I poured two cups of coffee. Not that I wanted to impress Jude, we had gotten over that phase pretty quick. I was way to chicken to try to put a move on a guy who was roughly five years older than me. Plus he just didn't look at me like that. He was more like a cousin or brother that I never had. But that didn't mean I wanted him to see me in my PJs with dog breath. There had to be limits, otherwise, the world would crumble.

"Here," I passed a cup to Jude. "So, we still on for our movie night, tonight?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world. What you got planned?"

"I was thinking, maybe some kind of horror but not gruesome, more like old or funny horror, or something like that."

Movie nights were my favorite nights. Once a fortnight Grandmamma would attend bingo at the church. Ever since Mr. Goldstein had disappeared Grandmamma had been worried about leaving me alone. Eventually, after two months of not going anywhere, she had asked Jude to watch over me while she attended her church activities. That was the beginning of movie nights. At first, I had had hopes of seducing Jude, but he wasn't that type of guy. Jude was becoming more like a hot older brother's friend, who only saw me as a kid sister, which wasn't entirely a bad thing. It meant I could stop freaking out if he saw me without makeup on. Or when I was wearing a shirt with holes that were five sizes too big, paired with track pants.

"These movies had better be real horror and not some kind of trick to make me watch a sappy romance. Don't make me boycott movie night." Jude threatened as he passed me his empty cup. "I fell for that trick once, don't expect me to fall for it again." laughing at my mock expression of shock.

I snorted, "Interview with a Vampire is not sappy romance. In fact, I thought it might be right up your alley considering your love for movies made in the eighties and nineties. If anything, it should be I who boycotts movie night. Lucky for you I'm a generous, kind girl who takes pity on you and your movie choices."

"Hey," he raised his hands to surrender."I am only looking out for your best interest. My movies are classics. They're American icons. Movies with purpose."

"Oh really, so what was the purpose of Spaceballs?" I teased.

"I promise the movies will pass the Jude Curson test, if not I shall part with all movie picking rights and allow you to choose."

Jude flashed me a cheeky grin. "Fair enough. However, I might find a few to bring over. Just in case."

Shrugging off the insult, I left Jude to it. When it came to flooring, I was only good at getting him coffee and right now that would only slow him down. Plus I had to download movies for tonight. I had been thinking of throwing in one or two of the recent paranormal romances but clearly, Jude wasn't going to fall for that again. One time I had slipped in a copy of The Lucky One when it was war movie night. Jude was unimpressed but he sat through it, as he picked up every fault with the movie. The next movie night he didn't allow me to pick any of the movies. I had thought we were over that stage but clearly, he still was weary.

The movies killed about three hours of my time. It wasn't hard to lose track of time when you had the worst Internet speed in history. It was so slow that if there had been a video store over on this side of town I would have gone and hired the movies. It was sad that just under a year ago the two video stores had shut up shop. No one was hiring movies, not when you could buy them online and the places just kept on getting robbed. In truth, most of the shops were closing down around here due to the area's increased crime rate.

We were pretty lucky on our floor with our neighbors. There was Ms. Jenks a single mother of three, Jude and then there was the strange gothic looking couple a few doors down who had only just moved in. Grandmamma didn't particularly like the gothic couple, other then them, the rest were like family.

I walked out just as Jude was laying into place the last floorboard. He flashed me a smile as I watched him finish the job off. There were some instances when I wished that there were not five years between us and that Jude would see me as something other than a kid. Jude was looking rather hot right now, but as soon as that thought entered my head it was followed with the voice of reason and a groan of disgust.

"So what you got planned for the rest of the day?"

Some of his sweat had caused the shirt to cling to him in areas, leaving very little to the imagination... not that I was concerned with things like that, him being like a brother and all.

"Hmm, not much. Maybe head to the mall and pick up a DVD or two. Plus I guess I should have a look for a certain young lady's birthday gift." Those blue eyes full of mischief.

I could feel the color rush to my cheeks with embarrassment. It was cliché but I hated birthdays. I didn't do birthdays; it was a sore point for me considering that I was the reason my mother died. A part of me felt I owed her not to celebrate my birthday as it felt like the only way I could mourn for a woman I never knew.

My Grandmamma and I didn't talk about her anymore. When I was little she would only tell about how much I was wanted by my mother, yet she never said anything else. I think it was too hard for her to think about her daughter. Once I had asked about my father, which caused my Grandmamma to go into total meltdown. She lost it. Calling him vile and a sadist... whatever that meant. I never mentioned it again.

Now that I was older it occurred to me that family is what you make of it. There were kids at school whose parents were in jail or had been killed in some drive-by shooting or crime. I figured that as long as I had Grandmamma then I was pretty darn lucky. It wasn't as though I could change the past. Life is unfair, that is the way it is. Unlike in fairy tales or movies, I knew that there was no prince charming or heroic father waiting to come to save me. My future was likely to hold community college and a job at Wal-Mart. Ever since I hit sixteen; birthdays had become a reminder that I was one year closer to that future.

"Hello? Earth to Lilly? Anyone there?" Jude's voice broke through my train of thought.

"Sorry? Yes." I stuttered as I tried to figure out what he had been speaking about. "Umm, birthday presents, well...umm, I don't really do birthdays," I told him.

Jude laughed as though I had something funny. I stared at him in confusion. It wasn't funny at all.

"Aren't you a little too young to be skipping birthdays? I mean it isn't a death sentence, you're only turning seventeen."

"It's not like that. I don't skip them because I don't like my age." Snapping due to being dumbfounded by his accusation.

"Ok, then why?"

"It just feels wrong, that's all."

"Wrong?"

"Yes. Wrong." My frustration grew. "As in, I don't want to explain why I don't like birthdays and can we drop it." The words expelled forth with venom.

Jude threw his arms in the air as if to say he surrendered. "Fair enough." He said seriously. "I didn't mean to upset you.

I let out a long slow sigh. "You didn't. I just have a lot going on in my mind." I lied. Jude eyed me suspiciously for a moment before checking his watch. His large, dust-covered hand ran through his sandy hair before tucking his tools away.

"Ok. Cool. So I gotta go but I'll be back, say around six. You want pizza again or are you willing to try something different?" he asked.

I smiled. "As long as you don't cook, I'm good," I answered. Another reason to love movie night was the fact it was also take-away night. I could cook a few things, but I was no chef in the kitchen. My Grandmamma loved to cook and she loved to coupon. We didn't have a huge stockpile. Two months ago she had discovered a great deal on pasta and sauce. Since then our dinners had been pasta or pasta related. I was looking forward to something other than pasta.

"Just no Italian. Ok," I called out before he walked through the front door. Like most weekends I was alone in the apartment, with nothing to do but to wait. My friends were more the kind that I only really hang out with at school; Grandmamma was a little weird about kids coming over to her home. She had this collection of china dolls that she was fanatical about. It took me until I was fifteen to be able to even look at them without being more than three feet away. I was actually surprised she had allowed Jude to do the floorboards in our living area where the dolls sat in a nice display cabinet.

It was lunchtime; I had an hour to kill before I went over to Ms. Jenks. I usually watched her three little ones for a few hours while she pulled a shift at one of her three jobs. Even though I only made about fifteen dollars for four hours work I didn't mind, as long as I could cover half the take-away I'd be happy.

The apartment was dead quiet, only the sounds of the outside world could be heard. Now was as good a time as any to indulge in a bath. Chocolate and lavender scented bubble bath and two lavender candles I had been saving would be put to good use. Grandmamma had picked them up on a discontinued table for cheap. But they smelt so good that I had been saving them. With my eighteenth birthday next weekend, I figured now was as good as any time to use them.

Steam filled our small bathroom with the delicious scent of the bubble bath flavors. As I waited for the tub to fill I shaved my legs and underarms. Even though Jude and I were little more then friends it didn't mean I wanted him to see my legs in such an 'a la natural' state.

The water was only three-quarters of the way to the edge of the bath when I lowered myself into it. With my extra weight, there was barely an inch gap. Carefully I put my headphones on before sinking a little lower. I had set the alarm on my phone to alert me when it would be time to get out in case I lost track of the time.

I closed my eyes as the melancholy melodies played. I listened to the words, soaking them in. My head throbbing to the beat of the music as the heat took effect. Images swelled through my mind until a haze of blood red mist surrounded me. I was no longer in the bath; instead, I was clothed in a simple tee and jeans standing there in the shadows of what appeared to be a house. It seemed like a nice house with its pale blue walls and timber floors. The only thing out of place was the red mist, which lingered and the fact that there were no doors leading out of the area. Basically, I was standing in the middle of a giant box with one staircase leading to nowhere.

"I have been waiting a long time to meet you, Lilly Vale." Came a hissing voice from the mist that made the hairs on my arms stand on end.

I stood there not daring to talk. This was clearly a dream, one that I wish to wake up from. In the distance, I could hear an unfamiliar sound. Something or things was shuffling along the floor. Straining my eyes, I searched for where the sound was coming from. The mist swelled, growing in size until I could no longer see past my mid-calf. Something sharp taking the chance to pierce my ankle.

"You look so much like your mother. Your beauty is much like hers was, all but your eyes and heart deceive who you really are. To think she died speaking the truth. It is almost ironic considering she was the demon of deceit." The voice continued as the strange noise grew. I ran up the stairs, knowing that at any moment my alarm would sound and I would awaken perfectly normal and safe.

"Good-bye Lilly Vale, until we meet a..." the voice was cut short as I woke to the sound of music in my ears. I was back in the bathtub, safe and sound. Only ten minutes had passed. It barely seemed long enough, however, I was hardly in the mood to soak further. As I dried myself it wasn't hard to spot the tiny cuts on my ankle. Strange, I thought to myself as I patted over the two tiny cuts. Deep down I knew it must have come from when I shaved my legs or something. Dreams didn't hurt people. It was foolish to have such fear about something like that at my age. Freddy Krueger wasn't real and neither were dreams, I thought to myself as I walked out of the bathroom.

Four hours didn't seem like a long time considering how busy Ms. Jenks kids kept me. We did the whole bake cookies, which ended up burnt on the outside while considerably wet in the middle. We ended up throwing out the lot and settling for crafts and movies. Those were always a fail-safe when babysitting. Glue macaroni on cardstock and then set them down in front of some movie while I daydream or do something equally non-interesting.

The movie ended with the kids all emerging from their semi-comatose state at the same time. Quickly I glanced up at the clock with hung above the television. Ms. Jenks was twenty minutes late. I wasn't too worried; if she was a little late there wasn't much I could do about it. Grandmamma had already popped in to let me know she was leaving for bingo and would be home around ten.

Time ticked away at a slower rate as it was now eating into movie night. The kids were fed and bathed before Ms. Jenks arrived home.

"Lilly, oh dear, I am so sorry they made me pull a double." She declared, dumping her bag on the table along with her coat.

"It's ok," I said with a shrug, grabbing my stuff. "The kids had franks and beans then had a shower."

"You are such a life saver. Here's twenty dollars. I owe you." Ms. Jenks handed me the cash with a quick hug and sent me on my way.

"I thought you might have chickened out." Jude teased. He was dressed in dark track pants and a hoodie which had UCLA written on the front. This was Jude in his comfy clothes, looking as though he had only just showered. He hair was still damp and in his hands was some Chinese takeaway.

"Ha, ha," I replied, turning the key in the lock. "Ms. Jenks had to pull a double."

"Yeah, I figured that when you didn't answer the door."

"Sorry." I pulled two plates from the cabinet as Jude placed the boxes on the table.

"I ordered before I knew you were going to be late. It only arrived about five minutes ago, that's why I was outside your door. If I hadn't seen Ms. Jenks arrive, I would have brought it over to her place."

"You're the best," I told him as I dumped a huge pile of fried rice on my plate. "So how much do I owe you?"

"Nuh don't worry about it." He answered with a casual wave that told me he wasn't concerned about the money. Jude was probably the only one in this building who had no money issues. I often wondered how much longer Jude would be around, we both knew he wouldn't want to stay here forever.

"Thanks."

"Anytime." Jude took his plate and soda over to the couch. Following him, I placed my plate on the coffee table and plugged in my hard drive. Our television wasn't huge, but you could watch movies from a hard drive and record TV shows on a USB so I was happy.

"So what do you want to watch? We probably only have time for one movie, so you can pick."

Jude scrolled through the titles. "Hmm, Interview with a vampire it is then." Jude sunk lower into the couch, his plate resting on his knees. I curled up, the movie starting right as I took the first mouthful of dinner.

"You really have to get over your preference for 90's movies," I told Jude.

He laughed. "You're the one who downloaded it."

"I was curious. I blame you. You're clearly a bad influence. I am still trying to get over the whole Blade Trilogy you made me watch last horror night."

"Oh yeah, and your movies are so much better. Battleship was not the highlight of my movie night let me tell you that. Not that I ever really liked the game but still, don't you think they are running out of ideas. All these remakes... Nope give me movies of the 80's and 90's any day."

"Oh no, really...I think you're deluded." My protest landing on deaf ears.

"Dirty Dancing, Sixteen Candles, Night of the Living Dead... Need I go on?"

"No thanks," I answered, grabbing his empty plate and taking it to the kitchen with mine. The movie was about halfway through, not that I had really been paying much attention. Jude's mobile rang, causing us to jump.

"Hey." He told the person on the other end of the phone. The first pang of jealousy struck me as I wondered if it was a girl on the other end of the phone. He walked away out of ears shot as I pretended not to notice.

Jude hung up, quickly walking over to me. "Hey Lilly, I have to go. Rain check on the movie night." He said, giving me a quick peck on the cheek.

"Sure." I tried covering my disappointment. "Until later."

Jude flashed me a semi-sweet smile. "Thanks, Lilly. You're the best." And like that he was gone.