Don't Worry, Be Happy

"Such a shame."

"Gone too soon."

"She's in a better place now."

Every night I keep having these dreams where I'm listening to the people at my funeral. Morbid, I know but when you're in my situation it's hard not to think about it. Death is coming for me soon, I can feel it, I feel the cancer rotting my insides, slowly making me weaker as time passes. I've accepted my fate now, I just wished it would happen quicker so I don't have to see the sad faces of those whom I care about most in the world. Short term pain is always better than long and drawn out. This has been too hard on my parents, my mother especially. I wish I could ease their pain, I don't have any siblings, it's only going to be harder for them.

My eyes get heavier, I drift off into darkness, everything around me fades and I'm standing in the middle of black nothingness. Am I dead?

"No, not yet."

A voice, distinctively coarse but spoken in a soft and gentle way.

"Who said that?"

A girl appears before me from the darkness, she looks like she's in her late teens, probably around my age. Her skin was very pale, which was a perfect contrast to her black curly hair, minimal make up and all black attire.

"Who are you?"

"You know who I am, Lina."

For a second, I was surprised to hear her say my name with her unique voice but as she approached me I finally realised who it was.

"So what is this? Why are we here?"

"Think of it as a pre meeting."

"But why? What's the point? I've already accepted my fate, so why prolong the inevitable and not just get it over and done with?"

"It's really simple, it's not your time yet, but it is soon. As for why, well let's just say 

It feels right to have a talk, I don't normally do this sort of thing but I like to do it every now and again."

"So what is there to talk about?"

"How are you feeling?"

"Not great, just want it all to be over to be honest."

"Why are you so eager for it all to end?"

"It's tiring you know, the pain, the sadness, the inevitability."

"C'est la vie. I guess."

"Say la what?"

"C'est la vie. It's French for 'such is life.' Life is filled with pain, sadness and we all know everyone will be meeting me at the end. But you know what? There's also a lot of joy and happiness in between all that as well."

"I'm dying from cancer, my days are numbered, there's no more joy or happiness."

"You're still alive. You might not be going to that rock concert you always wanted to go or riding on rollercoasters at Disney world but you can still be happy with the little time you have left."

"There's nothing left to be happy about, my life is more or less over now."

"There's plenty to be happy about, you have parents who love you, you have lived a life full of happiness, you might not have a boyfriend but at the very least you have known what love is. Even if you have nothing to be happy about you can still ease the pain and sadness for those who care for you by giving them the best thing you can possibly give them, a happy ending."

Her words hit me harder than anything I have ever felt, I began to cry. I wish I had more time. It's not fair.

"Some things can't be helped. You may not have long but you can make the most of it. Say what you want to say, do whatever you want to do. You're completely free.

"Thanks. You have no idea how much this means to me, to hear these words"

"I'm glad, not everyone understands. Any way it's about time you woke up, we will meet again soon, so until then make the most of what you have."

A tall dark figure approaches from behind the girl, he looks a lot like her but far more intimidating. His hand reaches out to mine and as he does so the world begins to form around me, I can feel the bed beneath me, I can feel a hand holding mine tightly, I can hear the sound of the people in the hospital, I open my eyes and I see my mother sleeping beside me. A song pops into my head, I begin to hum it. My mother wakes up to the tune of "Don't worry, be happy." And for the first time in a long time, we both share a smile.