When I was a kid, I had this friend, Anne. If I’m being honest, she was the weirdest girl I’ve ever met, but I never had any problem being friends with the quirky kids. I was pretty odd too, so I guess it just worked.
I met Anne when I was around 9 years old. My mom is a teacher, and she was her student. We were both the same age and ended up meeting at some of my mom’s school events, which I can’t quite recall.
To describe Anne, I can tell you she was unbelievably beautiful. She had long, blond hair that fell over her shoulders and down her back in large curls. Her huge eyes were the most transparent blue I’ve ever seen; it was almost as if you could see through them or as if they were orbs filled with water. She had pale, smooth skin that looked like porcelain and tiny freckles on her nose and cheeks. She seemed so unreal that my parents each had a specific description for her: my mom said she looked like an angel; my dad said she looked like the little girls from horror movies. Somehow, they were both right.
Now, you are probably wondering why a girl like this can be considered weird, right? Well, there were two things. First, Anne was one of those people that look different when you cover their eyes or their mouth. If you only cover her eyes and look at her mouth, she looks angelic. If you cover her mouth instead… well, it’s unsettling. Her eyes always gave me the creeps.
The second thing about Anne was that she was a pathological liar, making up terrible rumours about people to stir things up.
My cousin Sophie used to join Anne and me when we were playing since we were all around the same age. Sophie had always been a very spiritual and superstitious kid, so sometimes we’d play some weird games, like those things with cards to foresee the future and whatnot. Anne was eerily correct in her predictions, which I always attributed to luck.
One day, my mom came home and looked distressed. I asked her what was wrong.
-I’m worried about Anne…
-Why?
-Well… today, she came to class sobbing, saying her grandmother had fallen and fractured her skull and that she died instantly. I called her mom to give my condolences, and that’s when I found out it was all a lie. Did you notice her lying about stuff like this before?
I told my mom about some lies she had told us. A kid who broke a leg at recess, a friend of the family falling from the roof, her pet hamster getting its leg caught on the playing wheel and being badly hurt…
-Well, but the pet hamster did get hurt, though - my mom said.
-Oh really? Sorry, I thought it was one of her lies too.
-No, it did happen. It was yesterday. I didn’t know you two talked today already. Did you meet at grandma’s?
My stomach dropped. I was so confused. I started questioning my sanity as I tried to piece together the possibilities. My mom looked puzzled at me, waiting for my reply.
-N-no…
-Oh? When did she tell you then?
-Well… three weeks ago…
-–
I started paying attention to Anne’s weird lies. Surely enough, her grandma died three weeks later; a kid fell and had an exposed fracture; a few days passed, and a family friend fell from a roof…
I can’t tell you how terrified my (then) 10-year-old ass was. I told my mom everything. As always, she tried to calm me down, said no such things existed and that I could rest assured everything was ok. She was just a kid who liked telling lies to get attention. That week, in what I’m sure was a coincidence, the priest came over to have dinner with us and bless the house. Sure, mom.
After this, I stopped hanging out with Anne and lost track of her for years. I was too terrified of her, so I actively avoided her until she got the message and, from then on, life happened. I haven’t even thought of her for years. Until yesterday…
Yesterday, I received a text message.
Hey there, it’s Anne! Long time no see. I’m not sure if you will be able to reply to this message. I was so sad when I learned about your accident and how you are paraplegic now…