SECRETS NEVER DIE

The sky was suddenly pitch - black like someone had pulled a curtain across.
She reclined back on a chair near the pool while her friends were still inside dancing and slurping cocktails to wipe away all the reminiscence of the event they so desperately wanted to forget. All of them agreed to the holiday in Jamaica, beaches and fun, some happy memories to trade with the old haunting ones which they decided to drain forever in foamy tides of Jamaica.
How easy could this be?
So good to be true.
While the loud music vibrated through the walls, it still felt strangely calm. The silver moon hid behind the clouds.
Someone sighed behind her, she turned around, her face grew pale, she stared unblinking, her heart was pounding hard inside her chest.
This was impossible. This cannot be.
For a moment she thought it was the influence of alcohol, she drank too many glasses. She hardly remember the day or date or even recollect the event happened within the few hours.
No. She wasn't hallucinating. It was real.
The girl standing in front of her was real. And she was alive.
A shiver wriggled up her spine. She looked around there was just the two of them near the pool.
This wasn't a ghost of past, if she allowed herself to think about this, the remorse and the paranoia would rush over her like a strong wave, pulling her under,  choking her.
"What are you scared? " the girl challenged as if she read her mind.
A look of guilt washed across her face. 

There was silence for a long while. Then suddenly she heard errie sounds ringing in her earsdrums. 

"Sorry, I gotta take this. See you later? " And she saw the girl walk away.

"Didn't we all bury her? This cannot be. "
They all sat in her room, all three, appearing as scared as her.
"You saw a ghost,  Ella? " Sam tried to reassure yet she knew Ella would never lie such a thing. Such a terrible dreadful thing.
The ugliest truth of their lives which they thought they buried almost a year ago, not knowing it would wake again to haunt them.

(Image credits: pbase. com) 

It was an old resort near a beach, where they were spending their holiday.  They sat on the beds, cuddling pillows and biting nails, while Sam sipped hot coffee wetting her tongue with some taste of caffeine.

It was 1a.m and they decided to sleep, each of them knowing they will be soon haunted by nightmares. 

"Um, guys" one of them squeaked and pointed her nail towards the doormat. 

Their faces went pale and blank, fear ran across on them. 

Ella's heart began beating faster again. She picked up the piece of paper lying on the doormat, a note was scribbled, "You can never bury Truth."

No. One of them cried, "This can't be her "

"She is dead"

Ella glanced back. She felt she heard footsteps, as if she was there, standing outside her door, watching them all. 

She looked outside her window, and caught a shadow near the palm tree. 

She froze in her place, her face drawn and pale white. It was like she'd seen something awful. 

It was a shard of memory, she clung to the image now, trying hard to convince whether it really happened. 

The memory was rolling forward. 

She tried to say her name, but her lips wouldn't work. She felt she was choking.

A loud screeching sound echoed in her ears, and she heard the four of them scream. They were driving back home from a party at one of their batch mates, not so drunk, yet one could easily smell alcohol from Sam's breath. 

"No, you didn't " she pointed her finger at Ella drunkenly. 

They came out of the car and walked towards the girl, she laid on the floor unconscious, her head was hit and she was almost covered in the crimson red. 

They gasped in horror and shivered looking at each other. 

"She was our junior, I knew her, she's Jane"

"We will be charged of a homicide " one of them uttered, it was hard to gulp down the reality. They were unable to accept how drastically their lives changed within moment of time. From a sophomore to a criminal. They could kiss their futures goodbye. 

"No.  This shall remain our secret and we must bury this truth forever." They all agreed with Ella. 

The leaves rustled. Almost ten long minutes passed but no one spoke a word. 

Innocuous sounds and shadows seemed scary in the dark. 

Was it really her standing near the palm tree and watching them?  Ella didn't sleep that night after they came home burying her, what if she was alive?  She kept asking herself. And then she let her guilt lie and comfort in her ears. You had to bury this secret. 

But the secret weighed heavy for each of them. 

"We will leave this place, Jamaica tomorrow itself" Sam announced her voice rather shaky than confident. 

They slept together in Ella's room. 

It was a dark night, howling their fears in the distance. 

But the dawn awakened and the morning sun beamed brightly in the pale blue horizon. It was a new day but the memories of the previous night remained imprinted on their minds. 

The girls sat in the cafeteria, it was less crowded yet the giggles and laughs and the tales people shared on their tables could easily be heard. 

The room smelled overpoweringly of cocoa and a faint yet comforting smell of tomato sauce and garlic. 

The smell of greasy sausages wafted through the air. Sam coiled a piece of pasta around her fork and took a big, sloppy bite. 

Ella sipped her cappuccino while trying to pull her thoughts away from the memories of last night. 

"Guys, look" one of them interrupted. 

There on the table beside the door, she sat wearing a sunshine yellow dress quietly sipping coffee. 

For an entire minute they all stared her in silence. 

"Ghosts don't drink coffee. She just looks similar to her. We all uselessly fried our brains since yesterday" Sam finally spoke. 

Her conclusions might be true. While they stared her, she looked up and turned towards them. Staring them for a long ten seconds and then she smiled, a smile less reassuring but a half smile as if she knew what they discussed. She stood up to leave but turned and smirked at them. 

"Who is she? " they were left glancing each other more puzzled and confused. 

(Image credit: Google Images )

Sam stayed inside the bathroom staring her reflection. Her breath smelled slightly of rum she murmured something nervously. Then suddenly she stood frozen, her heart pacing faster, she stared, unblinking, shivering in fear. 

She looked like she'd seen a ghost! 

Maybe she had. 

"You" her voice shaky, hardly audible. 

"You can't be alive" she mouthed with little strength still shivering in fear. 

"What are you afraid? " the girl in the image challenged her and laughed aloud. 

She dared to turn, still trembling to face her but she stood there bewildered in silence and numb when she saw there was really no one, but her. 

"We all are leaving this place now. Now I think I made it clear. "She announced loud and clear to the girls. And explained what happened with her just few seconds earlier. 

"We are leaving right now... " They all agreed. 

(Image credits: Imgfave. com) 

One month later 

The loud screech of the brakes abruptly applied echoed in the silence of the night. 

"Ella, Why did you stop? "Sam sitting on the next seat screamed at her. Alcohol could easily traceable by her breaths. 

"Look there. " Ella pointed towards the black cat.  

A long tail and two yellow beady eyes glowed. She purred and scampered stealthily across the road and disappeared into the woods. 

Ella breathed out a sigh of relief. 

There was a rustle in the bushes. Moon looked so big and bright. 

"Wait. ." Suddenly Sam caught sight of something.  "This wasn't there before. "She pointed towards a note lying on one of the car's windshield wiper. 

They all jumped out of car to read the note. 

Their appearances turned pale, fear ran across their face. 

" Secrets never die " scribbled on the note. 

(Image credits: shutterstock) 

"Guys... " one of them pointed her shaky fingers her voice almost trembling. 

They all turned to that direction. Right in the middle of the road at quite a distance from them, she stood wearing the same sunshine yellow dress, her blond messy hairs set loose, she looked straight at them and smirked. She seemed a ghostly apparition. 

"Ella drive. "They shouted and jumped inside the car. 

Ella was numb and shiver ran across her spine. Yet she started the engine, the car flickered to life. 

"Ella faster. She's only a ghost " they screamed in her ears, shaking anxiously in a fear. 

The girl stood right in the middle of the road, Ella increased the speed,  two lights came beaming from the opposite direction appearing as her glowing beady eyes, as if she suddenly increased in stature seeming like a monster hungry for a prey. And they were the prey who alone could satisfy her. 

They screamed loudly as the car passed through her in speed. She stood laughing at them and just in a fraction of seconds their scream grew even more louder as the hungry claws of the monster hit them hard and held them under his paws. 

They were hit by the truck coming from opposite direction. 

 

"Truth is, a deadly secret. " The girl whispered and disappeared.