12 Reasons

Prologue

Some days are just bad days, that's all. You have to experience sadness to know happiness, and I remind myself that not every day is going to be a good day, that's just the way it is!

***

  I dangle my leg across the cliff. Feeling the wind on my hair and face, my cell phone wobbling on the stone it rests on. I take a deep breath in through my nose and out through my mouth. My heart beating hard against my chest as the feeling of nausea fills my body. If I jump off the cliff, I don't need facts to know my body and bones will crash upon the impact of the hard-rocky floor below. No, not if I jump if I fall.

But isn't that what I always wanted, to fall and feel nausea take over? To take my final breath and say goodbye to the world that never needed me? To say goodbye to a world that'll forever forget me?

I just want my life to end already. Join my family up in heaven if they are even up in heaven. Not some cranky old orphanage with little kids running around. Too old to ever be adopted, because no one wants a 17-year-old. After all, we're known to be disrespectful and closed-up.

I move my other leg, making both dangle in the air. I look back at the camera of my phone, full on live at my events. The whole world aware of what I'm about to do.

If I'm unmistaken and I move a little or the wind current increases. I'll fall over to sudden death. I can do it, after all this is all I've ever wanted, right? I slowly inch my self-closer to the edge of the cliff.

A tear escapes my eyes. As it rolls down my face, I push myself off the cliff and close my eyes waiting for the impact.

I feel pushed to a rock and my back hits it and pain shoots through my behind. Making me open my eyes. Hovering over my face is an unknown boy, with black undercut hair and sweat all over. He's wearing a tank top and sweatpants with a bottle of water in his hand. He looks to be about 18.

"What were you about to do?" He shouts at me. His brown eye staring closely at me as I look away.

"What did it look like?" I answer back, and I could see his anger multiply.

"Everything was going right except your sorry ass couldn't mind its business." I hiss at him dusting the sand on my clothes away.

"Oh, I was taking a simple run on a normal day when I see dumb, stupid Josephine sitting on a damn cliff just above me. Looking like she's about to fall off the cliff and take her own life. Oh Goody, you expect me to just, oh well walk away from it." He asks me angrily.

"Yes. I expect you to just walk away from it." I say as I push him farther away from me. His legs' slip, making him fall a few inches away from the edge of the cliff. Fear, sowing in his eyes as he watches me walk back to my position.

"I think you'll want to leave," I whisper coldly.

"Except you're a creep who like watching people fall off cliffs. Oh Goody." I continue mimicking him.

He pulls on my wrist and drags me opposite the edge. "What's your issue dude?" I shout. He drags me further down, and I go down on the ground sitting on the floor.

"Why do you care if I die, you don't even know me?"

"Your Josephine Kilpatrick. The girl that sits behind me in Calculus and Language Art. "I raise my eyebrows at him challengingly.

"Wow! You know so much, want a medal?" I ask, and he pulls me forward closer to him. I look into his brown eyes, and he starts talking.

"I just don't want you to die on my watch."

"Why don't we play a game stalker?" Interested he looks at me and I finish what I started, unsure if my idea is a good idea.

"I'll give you 12 days like the book Ten Reasons Not to Die. I'll give you 12 days to give me 12 reasons why I shouldn't kill myself. If you can, then I won't. If you can't, you'll leave me alone to jump off that cliff." I say pointing at the edge.

"Deal?" I question bringing my hand out. Fully sure that in 12 days my body will be a human pancake lying next to a cliff. At least this way before I'm gone, I'll have some fun in the process.

"Deal." He answers, grabbing my hands and shaking them.