I am alive. My new friend looks nothing like me. She is small but cute. Her brown hair matches her unique green eyes just perfectly. With a little redness filling her cheeks she smiles at me. Her mother, seeing we are quite attached, returns to the house to resume her cleaning, allowing time for the girl and I to bond. She tells me her name is Beth; a beautiful name for the beautiful girl who put a smile on my face. Beth holds me tight in her grasp, refusing to let go, so I stay nearby, watching her every move. Beth loves adventure-climbing trees and running about. And I am always right beside her even if she falls. As the day treads on we rest together in the grass by a tree. Beth's eyes close gently as I hover nearby. She falls into a deep but peaceful sleep, somehow still keeping me close. I watch over my Beth in the night until her mother comes to receive her. The mother kisses her cheek, asking her to come inside. However, to the mother's dismay Beth will not wake; her sleep is far too deep as she has passed in the night. The mother will not give up-she shakes her beloved baby girl. As she does so, Beth's spirit is released from her body and she lets me free of her grasp. Her spirit and I begin our ascent, both making our way to the sky above. The mother looks up, her face covered by tears. She does not see her daughter; she only sees me.
The red balloon.
We reach the stars, she and I, the girl with the red balloon.