The Grim Reaper's Girl

The Girl

Mindy was sweating from her head, her palms, her armpits and other unmentionable parts. She had no idea how it was possible to excrete that much sweat without turning into a dried up raisin. She was nearing the pinnacle of her four-hour solo hike up a mountain, where TripAdvisor had promised a view that was 'to die for'. 

Hiking was not part of Mindy's list of things she enjoyed doing. In fact, it was pretty much at the top of the list labelled "Things I do not want to do in my life ever". However, it was the summer holidays, and she did make a new year's resolution to try to do something new and challenge herself more often. 

"You're almost there! Don't let me down now." she chirped to herself. It was one of her worst and best habits - talking to herself as if she was someone else. It frequently drew strange glances in public, especially when her inner voice forgot to remain inner and slipped out during her day. Once, she almost got into trouble when her inner stranger told herself out loud at the airport scanner that "Oooooh it looks like they might find your multiple nuclear bombs hidden in that handbag that could barely store a lipstick." 

She did appreciate the encouragement she frequently gave herself when she was challenging herself, such as the hike she was on. It made things somewhat less lonely, and definitely helped growing up as she was an only child and had few friends to talk to. 

The top of the mountain was a small plateau, sparsely populated with weeds and the occasional trash strewed here and there. There was a slight overhang that, according to online reviews, provided a panoramic view of a waterfall and its accompanying river. Mindy was an amateur photographer, and she posted her pictures under the pseudonym 'Magic The Dog'. Her pictures were generally city landscapes and portraits of random people she's seen while going about her life. It would be a refreshing change to post a picture from the top of a mountain. 

Mindy inched towards the edge of the overhang cautiously. "Don't worry, the stone won't break. I'm sure you're not that heavy despite the huge breakfast you ate earlier today." Mindy smiled to herself. She was not sure where these comments came from, but she sure appreciated their knack to break up tension and comfort her. 

A huge waterfall revealed itself to her, and a small rainbow caused by the splashing of water droplets shone across the valley, ending in an unusually circular wide pool of greenish blue river water. The view was eerily beautiful and unspoiled, bearing semblance to scenes from a movie set. Yes, it was worth the climb, she decided. 

Mindy took out her camera and set it along a flat surface near the edge. For the photo to turn out well, she had to take it from an unmoving surface and the top of a mountain seemed as good a place as any. However, the flat plane of the rock meant that she couldn't get a good angle of the waterfall which was lower than the mountain top she was on. "A couple of rocks, that's what you need, to get the angle. One in front, one behind, prop it in between and Magic The Dog has a new photo!" 

She looked around and saw a couple of rocks perfect for the situation. "Don't go away, I'll be right back," she told the camera. Collecting the rocks, she gave them a quick blow of air to dust off any loose dirt, and made her way back to the camera. 

As she neared the edge, Mindy felt a strong gust of wind come up from behind her. Suddenly, the world was rushing past her and she was falling, falling with nothing to catch her. Then, there was nothing.