One Last Wish

It was April 30. I went to visit my friend Charlene in the Christian Cemetery in town. I still remembered that on this date five years ago, my friend, Charlene died of suicidal. She left without a word but only a letter. It was all because of Tom who fooled her six years ago. Tom was the best-looking guy in school. As Tom was the most popular guy in school, almost every girl in school admired Tom. Every girl in school wanted to be his girlfriend, including Charlene.
For months, Charlene had been working hard trying to get the attention from Tom. She would try to impress Tom by wearing the latest design of clothes and shoes. Sometimes, she would try to get a seat near Tom during recess time and talked loudly, hoping that Tom would glimpse at her. Once, she even wore thick make-up and ended up being the clown in school. She would do whatever it takes to be Tom’s girl. However, all her attempts failed. She cried for days mourning for her failure of being Tom’s girlfriend.
Finally, Tom came to her and asked her out. Charlene was over the moon when she happily accepted his invitation. She called me that night and told me her success and how happy she was. The date was due two weeks so Charlene and I busy shopping for clothes. Charlene wanted to make sure that everything would be perfect on her date with Tom. I was busy helping her picking out suitable clothes, shoes and accessories. She spent hours before the mirror, trying on every clothes she had and wearing all kinds of make-ups and perfumes to identify the best apparel for the occasion a few days before the big day.
At last, the big day arrived. At six, Charlene had ready, waiting for Tom to pick her up at seven. Unfortunately, Tom never showed up at seven but at nine. He brought his gang of friends to Charlene’s house.
“Hey, Charlene. You are looking good tonight. Want a ride?” Tom asked.
“Err…aren’t we suppose to go for dinner and movie?” Charlene asked.
“What dinner and movie?” Tom asked, puzzled. “I never say anything about going out with you.”
Tom and his friends laughed heartily. Charlene was shocked but managed to pull herself together and asked,
“Then what brought you here?”
“Just to see your stupid face after being fooled by the most popular guy in school,” Brad, a friend of Tom replied. They laughed again and left.
Charlene was shocked. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. She said nothing. I was sitting next to her, trying to sooth her feelings but she asked me to leave her alone and said that she would be fine. She needed rest. At the mean time, Charlene’s parents were back so I left, not knowing that I will lose my friend in the next few hours.
The next day, I woke up with a mixture of feelings. I felt that something bad happened. I was afraid that Charlene might do something stupid, so I called her.
“Charlene is no longer around,” Charlene’s mother said, sobbing.
“What do you mean, Mrs Heather?” I asked.
“She is dead.”
‘DEAD’ was not exactly the word I wanted to hear from the mother of my best friend. Charlene was only sixteen. She deserved to live for decades before ending her own life. I attended her funeral, and on that day, I received a letter from Mrs Heather. Charlene wrote the letter before she took her own life, that tragic night.

Dear Phoenicia,
I know I am being selfish but I cannot bear the humiliation that Tom did to me. I am sorry that I leave you alone. Please tell my parents that I am sorry for no able to repay their deeds and I love them very much. For all these times, thanks for being with me. You have been my best friend now and forever. I treasure the moments we had together and I really hope to be able to create more but I just cannot. I am not tough enough to bear the pain and please forgive me, Phoenicia. However, I have a last wish and I hope you can help me. I know you love my collections of books and magazines very much and so I want you to have them.
Love,
Charlene

Since the tragic death of my friend, I have learnt a very important lesson. Never leave your friends during hard times. Stay with them and remember to console them. By doing this, you can actually save a life of someone you love.