Chapter 1 · I Held My Funeral; None Believed Till I Died

I was known among my friends as the ultimate drama queen.

So, when I announced in the group chat that I was going to host a "living funeral" for myself, the replies were all over the place, but they all shared one common sentiment: "Here we go again."

My best friend Susan: [Honey, you crazy?]

Close buddy Sam: [Busy working; don't tag me; gotta hit my targets by the end of the month.]

Bro Ryan: [Awesome. What's the theme? Should I bring my own beer, chips, and bottled water?]

No one took me seriously. After all, I was just that person who was always up to something, always coming up with new ideas.

But this time, I was dead serious.

The doctors said I only had weeks left to live.

*****

I lay on the hospital bed, my face so pale I almost blended into the sheets.

Staring up at the ceiling, I spent a solid three minutes reflecting on everything.

And honestly? I couldn't even blame anyone else. This was all because I'd spent years perfecting my drama queen reputation. No wonder nobody took me seriously now.

Half a year ago, I went bungee jumping and live-streamed it in the group chat, with the caption: "One last hug for Mother Earth."

My friends panicked so much they nearly called the cops.

But in the end, it was just me pulling another extreme stunt.

Last time I "broke up" (only in my own imagination), I spent three days spamming my feed with dramatic soul-searching posts about leaving behind romance forever and heading off to join a monastery.

But on the fourth day, someone snapped a pic of me living it up at a steak restaurant way past midnight.

So, when I sent out those handcrafted "farewell party" invites, the way everyone reacted was honestly no surprise.

The invitation was simple to the point of being austere, made of pure black cardstock with silver foil lettering: [You're cordially invited to Lily Summers' "Final Chapter Party."

[Date: To be determined (depends on my mood and fate's sense of humor.)

[Location: Time's Echo Estate, on the outskirts of town.

[Leave the black suits at home. Bring your brightest smile and a great story.]

Susan nearly blew up my phone the moment she got the invite.

"Lily. What the heck is this? Is this some kind of creepy funeral invite? You scared me half to death. For a second, I thought someone was out to curse you or something."

I replied in my usual laid-back tone.

"I designed it myself. Pretty cool, right? Doesn't it give off that classy yet mysterious feel?"

Susan went silent for a few seconds, then her voice shot up.

"What are you even trying to pull now? Is this just another one of your crazy stunts?"

I took a deep breath and decided to come clean.

"Susan, this isn't some performance. It's... I'm really on borrowed time."

There was an even heavier silence from Susan.

Then she spoke, her voice lowered, shaky with disbelief.

"Come on, Lily, quit joking. This is seriously not funny."

"I'm not joking," I replied, my tone flat.

Outside, I watched the clouds drift by, slow and aimless, just like how everything felt now.

"I just wanted to say a proper goodbye," I replied quietly.

"Hey, don't let your mind wander, okay? Dinner tonight. You, me, and some tiramisu, just the way you like it." Susan coaxed.

She was basically offering dessert as a peace offering, talking to me like I was being a stubborn little kid.

"I can't really handle anything too sweet these days," I murmured.

"Fine. Then you can watch me eat it. But seriously, no more of those creepy invites, okay?"

She hung up so fast.

With the dial tone buzzing in my ear, I just made a face and muttered to myself. "Suit yourself. Just don't come crying when you regret it later."

Sam, my workaholic bestie, kept it short and to the point.

[Project crunch time, I'm totally swamped. Let's rain check the party. Next one's on me.]

I shot back a smiling emoji and a goodbye wave.

He replied with a fist bump and a flex emoji.

Guess we were just on totally different frequencies.

Ryan, my forever chill, ray-of-sunshine bro, blasted in with a voice message totally amped up.

"Lily. This party sounds epic. Are we doing a murder mystery or an escape room? The whole farewell theme. Am I supposed to play the heartbroken ex, or the super sus distant cousin?"

I snorted, "Just show up and bring your one-man comedy show."

"Say less. I swear, I'll keep the party absolutely lit."

He spammed me with a whole line of smile emojis.

Ryan was always up for anything, even if he totally missed the point.

I let out a sigh. My reputation was officially at rock bottom.

But it didn't matter. I may not have any other outstanding qualities, but when it comes to putting things into action, nobody could beat me.

If they didn't buy it, I would make this farewell party so unforgettable that even they wouldn't be able to deny it. This would be my most legendary stunt ever.

Chapter 1

I was known among my friends as the ultimate drama queen.

So, when I announced in the group chat that I was going to host a "living funeral" for myself, the replies were all over the place, but they all shared one common sentiment: "Here we go again."

My best friend Susan: [Honey, you crazy?]

Close buddy Sam: [Busy working; don't tag me; gotta hit my targets by the end of the month.]

Bro Ryan: [Awesome. What's the theme? Should I bring my own beer, chips, and bottled water?]

No one took me seriously. After all, I was just that person who was always up to something, always coming up with new ideas.

But this time, I was dead serious.

The doctors said I only had weeks left to live.

*****

I lay on the hospital bed, my face so pale I almost blended into the sheets.

Staring up at the ceiling, I spent a solid three minutes reflecting on everything.

And honestly? I couldn't even blame anyone else. This was all because I'd spent years perfecting my drama queen reputation. No wonder nobody took me seriously now.

Half a year ago, I went bungee jumping and live-streamed it in the group chat, with the caption: "One last hug for Mother Earth."

My friends panicked so much they nearly called the cops.

But in the end, it was just me pulling another extreme stunt.

Last time I "broke up" (only in my own imagination), I spent three days spamming my feed with dramatic soul-searching posts about leaving behind romance forever and heading off to join a monastery.

But on the fourth day, someone snapped a pic of me living it up at a steak restaurant way past midnight.

So, when I sent out those handcrafted "farewell party" invites, the way everyone reacted was honestly no surprise.

The invitation was simple to the point of being austere, made of pure black cardstock with silver foil lettering: [You're cordially invited to Lily Summers' "Final Chapter Party."

[Date: To be determined (depends on my mood and fate's sense of humor.)

[Location: Time's Echo Estate, on the outskirts of town.

[Leave the black suits at home. Bring your brightest smile and a great story.]

Susan nearly blew up my phone the moment she got the invite.

"Lily. What the heck is this? Is this some kind of creepy funeral invite? You scared me half to death. For a second, I thought someone was out to curse you or something."

I replied in my usual laid-back tone.

"I designed it myself. Pretty cool, right? Doesn't it give off that classy yet mysterious feel?"

Susan went silent for a few seconds, then her voice shot up.

"What are you even trying to pull now? Is this just another one of your crazy stunts?"

I took a deep breath and decided to come clean.

"Susan, this isn't some performance. It's... I'm really on borrowed time."

There was an even heavier silence from Susan.

Then she spoke, her voice lowered, shaky with disbelief.

"Come on, Lily, quit joking. This is seriously not funny."

"I'm not joking," I replied, my tone flat.

Outside, I watched the clouds drift by, slow and aimless, just like how everything felt now.

"I just wanted to say a proper goodbye," I replied quietly.

"Hey, don't let your mind wander, okay? Dinner tonight. You, me, and some tiramisu, just the way you like it." Susan coaxed.

She was basically offering dessert as a peace offering, talking to me like I was being a stubborn little kid.

"I can't really handle anything too sweet these days," I murmured.

"Fine. Then you can watch me eat it. But seriously, no more of those creepy invites, okay?"

She hung up so fast.

With the dial tone buzzing in my ear, I just made a face and muttered to myself. "Suit yourself. Just don't come crying when you regret it later."

Sam, my workaholic bestie, kept it short and to the point.

[Project crunch time, I'm totally swamped. Let's rain check the party. Next one's on me.]

I shot back a smiling emoji and a goodbye wave.

He replied with a fist bump and a flex emoji.

Guess we were just on totally different frequencies.

Ryan, my forever chill, ray-of-sunshine bro, blasted in with a voice message totally amped up.

"Lily. This party sounds epic. Are we doing a murder mystery or an escape room? The whole farewell theme. Am I supposed to play the heartbroken ex, or the super sus distant cousin?"

I snorted, "Just show up and bring your one-man comedy show."

"Say less. I swear, I'll keep the party absolutely lit."

He spammed me with a whole line of smile emojis.

Ryan was always up for anything, even if he totally missed the point.

I let out a sigh. My reputation was officially at rock bottom.

But it didn't matter. I may not have any other outstanding qualities, but when it comes to putting things into action, nobody could beat me.

If they didn't buy it, I would make this farewell party so unforgettable that even they wouldn't be able to deny it. This would be my most legendary stunt ever.