THEY are the precious last photographs of two best friends just hours before their young lives were tragically cut short.

Posing together as they enjoyed a night out at Lyndhurst's Stag Hotel, Lily Butterfield-Godwin and Abbey Rogers fooled around taking the selfies and sending them to friends.

Daily Echo:

Today Crystal Cooper now treasures the final photographs of her friends, still in shock at the realisation that moments after they were taken, the teenagers were killed.

Crystal, 19, who also shares the same birthday as both Lily and hairdresser Abbey, told the Daily Echo: “When Lily sent the photo I never thought it would be the last. They were having such fun. I can't believe it. You never think this type of thing will happen to people you know.

“And to think it is so close to Christmas, my heart goes out to their families.

“Only the other day Abbey posted a photograph of all the presents she had wrapped for her family and friends.

“It's dreadful and to think that they were born on the same day and died on the same day, it's so tragic. They were both in their prime.”

Daily Echo:

Crystal, who owns Totton fashion store Crystabella's, had gone to Hounsdown School with both girls, and was in the same tutor group as Lily, who worked as a nanny at Teddies Nursery in Southampton and behind the bar at the Stag Hotel during the evenings.

She and Lily had met up just a few weeks ago, in Turtle Bay, Southampton, where she said they spent the night laughing, catching up and making plans for the future.

Crystal added: “It was great to catch up and that night we were just laughing, gossiping and joking around. It's heartbreaking because we were making plans to go up to Essex after Christmas but she never even made it to Christmas.

“Everyone knew Lily, she was bubbly and she always lit up the room when she walked in. She was a free spirit. Abbey was quieter but had a really loving character.

“They were both such happy-go-lucky girls who were always smiling.

“They absolutely had a sisterly bond because they had grown-up together and stayed close even after we all left school.”

She added: “When I heard the news about two girls dying in a car crash I felt terrible and went to message Lily on Facebook to find out if she knew who they were. It was when I went onto her page that I saw some of the messages and my heart just sank. I was in total shock.

“Their deaths have had a huge impact on everyone that knew them but their names will live on because they were both such lovely characters.”