Our Voice 8

by Scot McAtee

  *Thump* *Thump* I glanced towards the door and heard footsteps coming hurriedly up the stairs, I figured that it had to be the king so quick as a bullet I made myself invisible. *Thunk!* He open the door so fast and with great force that it shook the room made of stone.

  “Awaken dear woman,” the king said as he took in the sight of the gold. His jaw dropped, he scanned the room in awe of what he was seeing.

  “Pardon me, my king for falling asleep,” spoke the girl

  Sheep

  By: Aaron Stafford

  All are days are spent unquestioned.

  Behind unseen bars of greed and consumption.

  Could it be we are blind because they want us to be?

  Distractions and false society plague our streets.

  Easier to remain diseased than to fight for change.

  Fatal sickness runs through our blood

  Get this, be this, do this or you’re nothing to us.

  Hoping for acceptance we strive for the unattainable

  Ignorance is bliss isn’t it?

  Judas Iscariot, we called you friend

  King Politician, quick to promise the empty pocketed

  Like birds they flock to their newly appointed god

  Making tax sacrifices

  Nobody profits

  Only the wealthy thrive

  People like us get lost in the numbers

  Questioning procedure but never acting

  Replaying options in our heads

  Seems about time to mask up

  Take what I need to survive

  Under the influence of rage and poverty

  Vague lines separate struggle and madness

  Wanting nothing more than comfort

  Xanthic bellies drown pain out with substance

  Yellow hearts want but never try

  Zip up the body bags, the comfortable are dead in spirit

  Cats

  By: Aaron Stafford

  Every day I think of cats

  My heart fills with happiness by the railroad tracks

  Under the rails I lay the bag, toot, meow, smash there were no more cats.

  “The Zipper”

  Aaron Stafford

  Around the age of 10 I was living in Southern Illinois, every fall season we would have an apple festival. I loved the apple festival. Nothing but rides, food and games for a week straight. Like clockwork the apple fest started to roll in with the fall and this year was going to be the best one yet, because I was going to ride the zipper. The zipper is a large, clunky, metal ride. Equipped with metal caged seats that flip 360 degrees both forward and backward, but not just the seats, the entire ride is in a constant back flipping motion; and this year I was going to conquer it.

  The weather was starting to get cooler at night, and the rides were popping up all over the town square one by one. The air was beginning to smell of delicious fried food as all the vendors began to set up and cook. I remember walking up to the ride with a hand full of tickets, perfectly willing to spend all of them on the Zipper. If I made it out of my first ride alive that is. I walked up to the fairly large line and stood patiently. Palms sweating, I began to nervously look around at all the other riders when a disturbing realization swept over me. I was alone.

  The Zipper was a two seat ride. I couldn’t ride alone! All my plans fading I slowly started to sink into a state of extreme panic. However, around that very instance I hear my name called out from someone in the back of the line. “Aaron!” My head quickly snapped back to see my friend from school, Autumn. She was older than me by a couple grades, but I always thought highly of her for making time to associate with a kid my age. I quickly left my place in line and sprinted over to see her. We talked for a while and finally she asked, so who are you here with? I told her my parents had brought me but I had no one to ride with. “This is your first time?” She asked. I nodded, slightly embarrassed. “Not to worry” She replied, were going to have fun!”

  It took about five minutes until we were next in line. There I was, standing feet away from the ride I had been waiting so many years to ride. A small, sweaty man in a carnival cap came over to us with his measuring stick and placed it in front of me. He nodded, opened the gate and lead us to our seat. We both jumped up into the ride, and the carny shut the gate causing the whole cart to lean back and rock forward and backward. I immediately dug my feet into the bottom of the cart and locked my arms firmly to the grips on the metal door in front of us. Autumn looked over at me. Seeing me frozen solid she asked, “You’re okay right?”. “Yeah yeah, of course!” I replied making the best attempt I could to seem calm.

  The ride jerked up violently and without warning only to stop about 15 feet off of the ground. Each person had to get loaded into a cart before the ride began. This meant we would be suspended in our cart at an increased height until everyone was loaded onto the ride. We finally made it to the very top of the ride, where we could see out over most of the little town of Murphysboro. It was a great view, and truly increased the excitement of the ride.

  The last metal clink was heard and the ride conductor’s voice rang out through the night air. “Alright! Everybody hold on!”

  The ride quickly whipped into a backward motion; slowly building up speed I could feel the force of gravity pushing me tightly back in my seat when all of a sudden we were thrown into a backflip! Over and over we flipped backward and forward as the ride switched directions. It felt as if we were in a controlled car accident with, little to no pain. The rush was incredible! Needless to say that was the first ride of about 12 that night. I’ll always remember the feeling of getting whipped around so fast and chaotically. Not to mention the bragging rights at school that next Monday.

  The Last Train Ride

  By: Aaron Stafford

  It was just a normal day on the subway. Eight in the morning, I was on my way to work on the North side of town. Across from me sat the same beautiful woman who rode that train every day. Long dark hair, naturally curled and flowing over her light grey sweater. Her eyes were the brightest shade of blue I had ever seen, and they were quick to make my heart drop every time she blessed me with a glance.

  A couple seats down sat a strange character. He was hooded, only a small part of his tattooed face could be seen. He sat uneasy, constantly moving and repositioning himself.

  Every once in a while he would make eye contact with me, but only for a moment before he started to aggressively mumble under his breath. I turned my head and continued reading my paper. Just then the man quickly stood up as if standing at attention.

  As he did this, so did I. I felt an unknown but strong urge to challenge his mental motives and let him know someone was aware of his abnormal behavior. His face was slowly unveiled as his left hand pulled back his black hood. Tattoos and scars polluted the entirety of his face, and a quick glance over to me turned into a long, evil stare. He grinned at me, flashing yellowed and golden capped teeth.

  The man reached behind his back and pulled from his beltline a long barreled revolver. His arm shot from behind his back in a motion just quick enough to startle everyone. In the midst of the screaming, I watched the killers eyes shift from me to the blonde now standing next to me. His arm stiffened and pointed in her direction.

  I don’t know what it was, whether be it primal instinct, or an inexplicable connection with this strange woman, I knew I had to do something. I leaped over my bag and lunged towards the girl. In one quick shove I took her to the floor of the train, allowing my body to fall over hers.

  POW, POW, POW! Three consecutive gun shots rang out and echoed through the train car. With each loud shot I felt the heat of the metal pierce my lungs and back.

  I felt like I was awake for hours after that. I felt present, but mentally I was slowly fading away. My vision began to blur, and my breath slowly left my body.

  The girl that I saved held me in her arms as two big men in the row in front of me tackled the shooter to the ground.
>
  The scene was still frantic and loud, but my hearing slowly started to lessen. The girl kept screaming to me, “Hold on! Hold on!’’. I tried my hardest not to let go, but my soul had other plans. I guess that day was just my day.

  With the sounds of sirens in the distance fading, I took my last breath. I knew I had nothing left.

  Then, silence.

  What I Believe

  Aaron Stafford

  I Believe That I Have A God Who Carries My Burdens

  I remember the day my mother broke the news to me. Though I don’t remember what time of day it was, I remember her calling me into mine and my brother’s room. I had just turned five years old a week prior and my mom had married my step dad earlier that year. “Aaron, sit down.”

  I remember the seriousness in her facial expressions and the tone of her voice, but nothing seemed to process just yet. Then she said, “Someone died.”

  My heart dropped and I quickly started rambling off guesses, “Brandon? Mamaw? Papaw?”

  She burst into tears as she coughed out the words, “Your dad”.

  I don’t remember my initial reaction; I just remember storming out of the room crying. Passing my step dad and running into the kitchen. I remember his reaction. “Why’s he crying?” I don’t know if I was not fully cognoscente the rest of the day, or if my mind just deeply suppressed the memories because of how much pain I was dealing with, but that is all I remember.

  I believe my mind and emotions went into autopilot after that and just refused to process reality. Because my mother said the next day at school I seemed fine. It wasn’t until later in my childhood, mostly my pre-teen and early teen years, that I really started getting the full effect of missing out on having my biological father around. It causes a lot of problems in my behavior and my feelings towards members of my family.

  I had a lot of hostility towards what was now only the idea of my father. That might sound strange to some people. Mad at a dead man? For dying? But I was, and my anger surfaced in a lot of negative ways, and was aimed towards people who didn’t deserve to be hated.

  Something happened this past year that changed my life forever. I had an encounter. I always knew there were positives and negatives to every situation. For instance, through my father’s passing I made relationships with family I may never have made if it were not for a need to draw close and to have family comfort each other in our time of loss. I and my grandparents have become very close over the years, and I know that a part of that is from my dad’s passing.

  However, no matter how much I tried to focus on the positives, I was still angry. I was angry about all sorts of things, and all sorts of people. I was angry at my dad for passing and leaving our family and me behind, I felt alone in situations where I knew I needed a fathers love but never received it. I was angry at my stepfather, for not being who I wanted him to be.

  All this weight became such a heavy burden, that when it finally lifted it was like I could physically feel it. This happened one Sunday morning at Delphi First Assembly of God in Delphi. I remember thinking to myself, “I can’t carry this weight any longer”. I knew that if I continued in the path I was headed, I would be dead or in jail by my eighteenth birthday.

  So I made a decision, I decided to man up and realize a man can only handle so much until he has to admit he can’t do it on my own. I dropped to my knees that morning and I gave it to Christ. I remember, I sat there weeping as if some kind of emotional and spiritual purge was taking place. When I got up off of my knees and walked away from that alter, I knew things were different. I felt lighter, happier. It was instantaneous and it was beautiful. The thought that there is a God in heaven who sees me, loves me, cares what I’m going through, and is willing to take the weight off of my shoulders.

  Psalm 55:22 “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will NEVER let the righteous be shaken.”

  Zombie Confusion

  By Aaron Stafford

  “What the h$&% is going on?” Andrea shouted as we pulled off of the highway on to I42. Traffic was rampant with people. Not in their cars but in the streets! Floods and floods of people charged for the overpass in a massive stampede! As soon as we found a place to squeeze in the madness people were surrounding our car, running, screaming, beating on the car windows as if to warn us to do the same! I went into panic mode immediately, locked the car doors and drove backwards down the interstate ramp to escape the chaos.

  “Turn on the radio!” I barked at Andrea. She switched it on and scanned through the channels frantically… nothing but static. “What’s happening Daniel?” “I’m freaking out right n..

  “Wait! Go back!” I interrupted as I heard an emergency alert on the previous channel. Ignorance is bliss, and clarification can bring forth a frightening reality. These thoughts floated through my mind as I heard the horrifying new information.

  A long, audible, high pitched beep pierced through the silence in the car.

  “This is the emergency broadcast system – alert - deadly and dangerous outbreak in the White County region”

  “Do not, we repeat, do not leave your home. The Eponine virus has spread throughout the county. Early symptoms of the virus are known to be the following: red eyes, yellowed or pale skin, loss of circulation, and loss of consciousness, rectal bleeding, and finally a coma like state. When victims of the virus regain consciousness they are affected mentally by the virus. Victims to the virus have been known to have uncontrollable spasms, unable to communicate, and the immediate incentive to incapacitate, murder, and in most cases consume the flesh of fellow humans.”

  “Please do not leave the safety of your….”

  The broadcast was cut short as the static overwhelmed it to the point it was inaudible.

  My heart was in my stomach, Andrea was sobbing uncontrollably. I couldn’t find the strength to move, I just sat there paralyzed with fear. After a while a crowd started running towards us the same we came from the entry ramp. I was confused as to why they would be running in the opposite direction of the stampede. But something was off, they weren’t so much running as they were aggressively stammering in our direction. I cracked the dust covered window a few inches to get a better look at them.

  Through squinted eyes I could make out the leading runner. A large man in overalls wearing no shoes was charging straight for us. His eyes bloodshot, the front of his bibs covered in blood. Adrenaline set in and I quickly through the car into drive, slamming the gas to the floorboard we jolted forward and weaved through the abandoned vehicles.

  Andrea and I both let out a scream that I don’t think either one of us knew we had in us. The combination of both panicked yells sent shivers down my back and made me drive even faster! “G-G-God Andrea,” I stuttered. “What were those people!?”

  “I don’t know Daniel, but something went horribly wrong!” “Where are we going?” she asked quickly.

  Adrenaline set in and I quickly through the car into drive, slamming the gas to the floorboard we jolted forward and weaved through the abandoned vehicles.

  As I passed under the viaduct that overpassd the highway I read a large sign that read

  “Zombie 5k today” roads closed for race. Highway back up tomorrow!”

  Are you kidding me? I said in a low tone..

  Andrea looked at me blushing, with a look of complete doubt and frustration she just mumbled, “thank God.

  THE END.

  A Rat’s Tale

  By Ashley Marlatt

  Most people know me as Peter Pettigrew, but to the people that once called me their friend, even brother, I was known as Wormtail. I meet James Potter, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin in my first year at Hogwarts. We were all sorted into Gryffindor house. I was surprised to say the least; I would never say that I was a brave person. Most people including my dear friends would say that I was a coward.

  My story starts when I was twenty-one. The first wizarding war was at its peak. Everyone
was terrified. It didn’t really matter what side you were on, everyone was scared of the dark lord. James and Lily got married, and had Harry. I was not the least bit surprised when Sirius was named Godfather. I was always jealous of Sirius. He has everything I ever wanted. He was James’ best friend. He had the talent that I lacked.

  I will never forgive give myself for what I did next. I was so surprised when James and Lily came to me to be their Secret Keeper. For you that may not know, a secret keeper, is the only one that knows the location of a house that has been hidden with magic. I was also horrified. I knew that the dark lord would come to me for information, and I also knew that I was no match for him.

  Sirius came after me. I knew he would. He was the truest friend anyone could have. When he says that he would die for you, he means it. I had betrayed James and Lily. He had every right to want me dead.

  I don’t know what made me do it. Once again I was driven by my cowardliness. The street was covered in Muggles, I shout for everyone to hear.

  “How could you Sirius, betray James and Lily. AND BABY HARRY!” I scream.

  “DON’T YOU DARE TRY TO GET OUT OF THIS YOU WORTHLESS COWARD! YOU HAVE BEEN WORKING FOR HIM THIS ENTIRE TIME.” He screamed back. He raised his wand at me, but I was faster. I cast the spell killing everyone on the street, and I cut off my own finger and transferred into my animagus form, a rat. Running away I heard Sirius start to laugh like a mad man.

  For the next twelve years, I lived as a rat with the Weasley family. No one in the family questioned how I lived for so long. The summer that Sirius escaped from Azkaban, the family had traveled to Egypt. There were pictured taken for the Daily Prophet, because the father had won seven hundred gallons in The Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw.

  Once I had found out that Sirius had escaped, I knew he would come after me. It was only a matter of time. He came after me a few times but was caught by others. Everyone believed he was after Harry Potter. I was the only one that knew better.

  I had once again faked my own death, but then Hagrid found me and returned me to Ron Weasley. I knew I had to get away from Hogwarts, where the only man that would listen to Sirius, Albus Dumbledore, was.

  Ron was on the way back to the castle, when Sirius attacked, and dragged Ron and I into the Shrieking Shack. I knew this was going to be the death of me.

  I wasn’t surprised when Harry and Hermione came thru the door with any adults. It was clear as day that he was James’ son; through his actions that night and his looks. It didn’t take long for Remus to come.

  My last hope for life was gone with one look at Remus. They both wanted me dead. I couldn’t really blame them. I had hoped that they would let me live. After all they were the good guys.

  My memory fails me at this point; the one thing I know to be sure is that it is because of Harry Potter that I lived. My old friends clearly wanted me dead, within good reason mind you. It wasn’t that Harry believed that there was any good in me. Me being alive was all the evidence they needed to free Sirius. I knew my fate was to receive the dementors’ kiss. Which for you that may not know; is where your soul is literally sucked out of you, leaving your body soulless but still alive. Many wizards all over the world believe that this is a fate worse than death.

  Anyone with any amount of sense left in their mind would want to get away, and that is exactly what I did. Once again I was driven away from doing what was right by fear. I believe that my fear was not unreasonable. I am not saying that my actions that night were in anyway excusable. I have said it before and I will say it again: I am a coward.

  When Remus began to transform into a werewolf that night, I couldn’t believe my luck. This was my ticket to freedom, to be able to live. While everyone was distracted by Remus’ transformation, I did my own transformation; back into the rat I had been for the last twelve years. I ran from Hogwarts that night as fast as I could. I knew I had to find the dark lord.

  I knew that if Sirius or Remus, ever found me on their own, I would be dead before you can say quidditich. I went to retrieve my master’s wand, and then I travel up to Albania where he was rumored to be.

  The rebirthing of my master was not an enjoyable night of me of all people. Most people would say I have earned myself, a few unpleasant nights. I, myself, completely agree. I am however different for most, because I do not find the dark lord to be the scariest thing alive. I fear my old friends much more.

  Looking Harry in the eye and cutting his arm to use his blood to restore the body of the man who killed his parents, my best friends; was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Killing the boy that came with him meant nothing to me.

  My death came not much later. I was stationed at the Malfoy Manner. I was sent to fetch Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, who has been captured by Snatchers. When I open the door, Harry and Ron, freed themselves from the restraints, tackled me. I had begun to strangle Harry when he shouted.

  “You’re going to kill me? After I saved your life? You own me, Wormtail!” He screamed.

  All it took was the one moment of hesitation, the silver hand that my master had given to me after I cut my original off to use in the potion that restored his body, turned on me. It wrapped around my throat cutting off my breath.

  In my last moment, Harry and Ron tried to stop the hand. I was surprised but I shouldn’t have been. He was James’ son after all. I welcomed death because death is better than the guilt of a coward.

  Lucy

  By Ashley Marlatt

  I held in a deep sigh, when my roommate, Phil, told me that he was once again going out tonight. You see we usually film a video for our gaming channel on YouTube on Fridays. Now normally I would not be upset but this is the third week in a row that Phil has ditched me for his girlfriend, perfect little Lucy. Do not be mistaken, I am happy for Phil, but that girl is horrible.

  Phil and I have been roommates for a few years now, and he is my best friend. We both are employed by YouTube. We each have our own channels but we often make videos together. We also have a channel that we share called DanandPhilGames. For that channel we make videos of us playing videogames including Sims 4, Halo, and various selections of other games.

  Phil met Lucy at a show for Radio 1 we did back in September, and instantly fell for her. Lucy is a songwriter and singer. Most people love her, but not me. I don’t know, there is just something off with her. Ever since Phil met Lucy, he has changed. At first it was little things like getting up earlier, but now he doesn’t even play video games or get on the internet. It’s like the guy has completely changed.

  Since Phil wanted to ditch me I decided that I wasn’t going to just stick around our flat again. I called my other friends PJ and Chris. We deiced to go to the cinema the next day.

  The following afternoon, Phil was at home because Lucy was spending the day with her family. I decided that just because Lucy was busy didn’t mean that I had to invite Phil along. If he didn’t want to make room with his time for friends then I wasn’t going to for him.

  “Just going to get some popcorn,” I tell PJ and Chris as they go into our movie. I am waiting in the line when I look around, and cannot believe what I see. Lucy kissing some other guy! I get out my phone and take a picture of them. Not being creepy like the guy next to me probably is thinking. I already know that Phil is not going to believe me.

  I am in complete shook by this. I mean I know I didn’t like her, but I never expected her to cheat on Phil. I may not have gotten to know her that well, but I didn’t see her as that kind of girl.

  “I knew that girl wasn’t good enough for Phil,” I tell the guys when I sit down. To which they immediately groaned. I may or may not have complained about Lucy a lot.

  “Dan, I thought you were over that, she makes Phil happy. Can’t that be enough for you?” PJ asks.

  “I actually have a real reason this time,” I say as I show them the picture.

  “You have to tell him,” Chris sa
ys. “Like now, we will come too.”

  “You know he isn’t going to want to believe me,” I say gloomily.

  “It’s a good thing that you took that picture then,“ PJ says.

  We take a taxi back to Phil’s and my flat because it started to rain. How appropriate I thought to myself miserably. I already know that Phil is going to take this really hard. Lucy was the first girlfriend Phil has had in a few years. They have been together for seven months. I also know that I am going to have to fight with him to get him to realize that they have to break up. The thing is Phil has never broken up with a girl.

  Phil was sitting on the couch, while on his laptop when we got there. I was starting to get really nervous. I don’t know how bad Phil is going to reacted. I just wish that he believes me when I tell him. I took the picture as proof but I don’t really want to use it. Hearing that your girlfriend kissed another guy is hard enough without having to see it.

  “I thought you were going to see a movie,” Phil says looking confused.

  “There is something we have to tell you,” I started off wary of how Phil is going to take this.

  “What are you talking about?” Phil asks confused “Why are you being so serious? Wait, you’re joking. You’re filming this aren’t you?”

  “No, Phil I’m serious,” I say looking sadly at him. I can tell that he knows I am because he sits up and his expression changes to concern. I can feel the uneasiness radiating off of me.

  “When we were at the cinema, Dan saw...” PJ started and then looked at me to continue.

  “I saw Lucy kissing someone else, Phil,” I say looking him in the eyes.

  “You’re lying,” He said instantly, “You just don’t like her. You never have even given her a chance!”

  “I’m not lying,” I insisted.

  “Lucy would never cheat on me, Dan. I know it!” He exclaims desperately.

  “He is telling the truth, Phil,” Chris tries to back me up.

  “How do you know; when it was Dan who saw it.” Phil says, “I can’t believe you would make up something like this just because you don’t like her. You have hated her from the moment you met her. You are just jealous that I actually have a girl that wants to be with me. You are so selfish, Dan!”

  “I’m the selfish one really? What about you? You have been ditching your friends all the time since you got with that girl! You need proof then here you go!” I yelled at him feeling the anger rise up in me; while I throw my phone to him so he can see the picture.

  Phil’s entire expression changed completely. The moment he saw the picture, any anger that either of us were feeling disappeared. He had let his mask down, but sadly not for long. His hurt appearance changed into determination. I knew immediately was not going to be easy to get him to realize that he had to break up with Lucy.

  “I can fix this. There must have been something that I did wrong. Maybe we are misunderstanding this,” Phil said while trying to leave.

  “Phil, wait! You cannot be serious right now!” I say while holding his arm so he can’t leave.

  “Yes, I am. I can fix this. It’s not her fault.” He says while looking anywhere but at me.

  “It is completely her fault, and you know it.” I yell at him feeling my anger once again but I push that away. Now is not a good time to be heated.

  “I have to find her!” He yells while ripping his arm out of my hold and rushing out the door.

  I then fling myself on to the couch. I knew he was going to take it hard, but to actually say that it is his fault is absolutely ridiculous. I can’t believe we had really yelled at each other. We had never done that before. If I thought my opinion of Lucy couldn’t get any worse, I was totally wrong.

  I knew that girl could not be trusted. I wish that I was wrong, I really do. At the same time though it’s nice to know that I hadn’t just blindly disliked her.

  About two hours had past and Phil still hadn’t returned. I was starting to get worried. I had tried to call him but he didn’t answer. PJ and Chris both sure that he was still talking to Lucy. I didn’t think so.

  “I have to go find him,” I tell them.

  “It’s not our business to get in the middle of them talking,” PJ insisted.

  “But what if he didn’t go find her?” I pleaded with him. “You know Phil avoids conflict like a mouse avoids a cat.

  “We just have to wait for him to come back” Chris says calmly.

  “I can’t just sit around here and wait!” I yell suddenly irritated at their calmness. “I know Phil; there is no way he went to go find her. I am going to find him.”

  I storm down the million stairs to the ground floor of the apartment complex, which on any other day would have left me out of breath and wheezing; however today my energy was spiked by my anger and worry.

  I try to think of all the places Phil could be hiding because I knew he did not go find Lucy. I don’t know a single person that hates conflict more than Phil. I decided to check our favorite coffee shop downtown.

  Sure enough, Phil is sitting on a bench outside of the coffee shop drinking coffee and watching the rain. Jeez, his entire appearance looked sad. He was a completely different sight than usual. Usually he is a very joyful person, full of jokes, and always wearing a smile. It was then that I realized how much I have missed him.

  “Hey,” I say while sitting down on the bench with him.

  “Hey,” he replies still looking at the rain.

  “How are you doing?” I asked awkwardly. Just because he is my best friend doesn’t mean I am going to good at this.

  “Really, that’s what you ask? That’s bad, even for you,” Phil tries to joke weakly.

  “Yeah, I know, but seriously how are you?” I ask looking at him with concern.

  “I don’t know. I know I am supposed to mad but she makes me happy, Dan. I know that cheating isn’t ever okay, but there must have been something I did or didn’t do that pushed her to do it. “Phil explains looking uncertain.

  “That’s not true, but I think you know that.” I say gently. “It’s not your fault, Phil.”

  “How could I be so wrong about her, Dan?” he asks me “I thought everything was going so great. I can’t believe how blind I was. I’m sorry for being so harsh earlier. I know you wouldn’t make something like this up.”

  “I’m sorry for shouting at you. You had every right to be upset and it’s not like I helped any.” I replied.

  “I don’t know if I can break up with her Dan.” He tells me while looking away again. “Even with this, I don’t want to hurt her.”

  “It’s not you that is hurting her though. She made her choices. Like my mum would say she made her bed now she has to lay in it.” I tell him softly.

  “I know you’re right but it still feels like I am hurting her. I just don’t understand why she would do this. I thought she was happy, I thought we were happy” He says unhappily while standing up “well I might as well get this over with.”

  “I will see you back at the flat,” I tell him while also standing up. I quickly pull him into an embrace. “It’s going to be alright,” I say as I let go.

  I take my time walking back to the flat. I let my mind wonder while I text PJ and Chris that Phil was for the most part okay. I couldn’t get my head around why Lucy would do this to Phil. Whenever I saw the couple together, she did look genuinely happy. I decided that it was a good thing I did not like her. I could not imagine how Phil was feeling. He would have given up his entire world for her. I have never fallen for a girl like he did for Lucy.

  When I got back to the flat, the aroma seemed completely different. It felt sad and empty; which in turn made me sadder. Our flat has always been a place of joy and relaxation, now it just felt broken. It also looked dirty, so I decided to get some cleaning done while I waited for Phil to get back.

  After a half hour Phil came back. If possible he looked worse than when I had left him. His eyes were red a
nd puffy from crying. Now most guys would be make fun of him; calling him a sissy, a fag, or whatever. I on the other hand have always felt that it was natural to express your emotions.

  “How did it go?” I asked a bit wary of the answer.

  “She doesn’t believe she did anything wrong.” He said looking somewhat angry. “She actually told me that I was lucky to have her, and not to expect her to not get with anyone else.”

  “What in god’s name is wrong with that girl?” I questioned. “I don’t understand how she can honestly believe that.”

  “It gets worse. I told her that I would not and should not ever have to deal with that. She then told me that was why I didn’t have any other girlfriends, and that if I was a little more opened minded I would actually be able to keep someone. To which I told her that anyone like her wouldn’t be worth keeping around. She slapped me across the face then.” He explains getting angry at the memory.

  “She did what?” I exclaim with angry clearly pouring out of me.

  “She actually slapped me as if I was the one in the wrong here.” He explained, “That’s when I told her that I didn’t want anything to do with her and that you were right about her all this time. How could I have been so blind?”

  “Because you liked her. It’s the feelings that you had for her that caused you to not be able to see her for the girl, she really is instead of the girl she could be,” I tell him. I get up to and go into the kitchen to make some coffee.

  “The only other time we had fought was when she tried me get me to stop being friends with you” Phil told me as he followed me into the kitchen. “I should have seen her for who she was then.”

  “Like I said, it’s the feelings that you had for her that made you blind,” I told him.

  “I should have listened to you about her,” He told me so softly I almost didn’t hear him.

  “And I should have at least have given her a chance,” I reminded him.

  “But you were right about her,” He argued.

  “But what if I haven’t been,” I said while finishing the two cups of coffee. “Why don’t we drink this coffee and play some video games?”

  “Why, you feel like losing?” Phil said cockily.

  While I was happy to see my friend at least able to smile, I know this would not be the last time we would talk about this. I know that it will take time for Phil to completely heal from the damage that Lucy had caused him.

  While I was not happy about the way that their relationship ended; I was happy to be able to have my best friend back. I know that will be awhile for him to be alright, but I also know that he will be alright. For now I guess that will be enough. It will be nice to have my best friend back.

  Nothing is as Simple as it First Seems

  By Ashley Marlatt

  When I was six years old my brother, Tommy, was born; He was born with epilepsy. Before he was born my life was pretty simple. I had just started first grade. My grandma picked me up from school with my little sister, Rosie. Rosie is three years younger than me. Before Tommy was born; we used to fight all the time, but after he was born it brought the whole family together.

  After Tommy was born, Rosie and I’s world changed. Grandma moved in with us. My Dad picked up more hours at work, so that we would have enough money for Tommy’s medical bills. It wasn’t all bad, but some was. The first time I saw Tommy have a seizure was terrifying. Most adults are scared when they see someone have a seizure; I was only six and Rosie only three.

  Ten years later, I am sixteen and a junior in high school. I have a part time job at Dairy Queen, so that I am able to help my family cover all the bills. Rosie in eighth grade, and causes all the trouble she can possibly make. I feel like I am the luckiest sister to have a brother like Tommy. He is sweet and always so kind. Rosie on the other had feels like he takes away from the attention she should get.

  Today is March seventh, a month away from Tommy’s tenth birthday. Mom and Dad want to make it special for him. Today is also a Monday. I had to close last night which meant I didn’t get home till 11. I then spent the next two hours on Skype with my best friend, Taylor.

  “Sweetie, it’s already seven o’clock you need to get up” My Grandma says to my half died body.

  “Grandma the pillow wants me to sleep” I try to mumble, but instead it came out barely even English.

  “Elizabeth, dear, you are going to be late” She tries again. “Your bus will be here in twenty minutes”

  I then finally actually wake up and jump out of the bed nearly hitting my grandma. I had to rush to get out the door. Putting on the first pair of jeans I see and putting my hair up, instead of straightening like usual, I barely get on the bus on time.

  “Whoa, rough morning?” Taylor asks me when I sit down in my seat in English.

  “Closing on a Sunday should not be a thing” I say. “Of course, you know people could actually show up to work.”

  “Let me guess, Zach” She says loud enough for Zach, who is sitting two seats ahead of me.

  “What you talking about me for, Princess” He says with a smirk.

  “Ew, Don’t call me that. What is wrong with you?” Taylor shrieks.

  “Oh come on Baby, don’t be like that” he says slyly “What with your hair, Lizzy?”

  “How many time must I tell you not to call me that, and it’s your fault I didn’t have time to do my hair.” I say looking at him with disgust.

  “And how to did I mange that?” He questions.

  “If you hadn’t call off last night, then I wouldn’t have had to close. “ I say angrily.

  “Has anyone told you, you are beautiful when you’re mad” he says with the stupid smirk on his face.

  “Has anyone told you, how stupid you are all the time” Taylor replies.

  I have known Zach since third grade when he moved here, but the first time we talked was when I started working at Dairy Queen last year. I instantly did not like him, but lately I can’t stop thinking about him. I know he is a jerk, but he can also be funny and sweet. The other day when he thought no one was watching he gave a little girl a new ice cream, when she dropped her first one. He paid for the second ice cream himself.

  I can’t stop myself from thinking if he really does think I’m beautiful or not. Though out the rest of the day at school; I couldn’t get him out of my head. Taylor noticed my lack of attention in French, our last class. French is my favorite class, so it was unusual for me not to pay attention.

  “Are you okay?” Taylor asks me after class.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” I tell her hoping she would believe me.

  “Yeah, and I’m a queen” She says sarcastically. “You’re lucky I will wait till we get to your house before you tell me.”

  I can hear the threat hidden in her words, you better not try to lie to me again or else. I am unsure whether or not I want her to know. But, she is my best friend and we tell each other everything and if it was the other way around I would want to know.

  Taylor comes over to my house every day after school, before I go to work at five. We have been doing this every day since we were in seventh grade.

  “So, what’s up?” She asks as soon as I shut my bedroom door.

  “You can yell at me.” I tell her getting nervous.

  “Promise” She says

  “I think I like Zach” I blurt out.

  “You what,” She says and just stares at me.

  “I think I like Zach” I say again looking anywhere but at her.

  “Zach from work,” She says laughing “Jerk Zach, really”

  “I’m serious, Taylor” I tell her, “He can actually be a nice person”

  “You know nothing is as simple as it first seems” I say smiling at her.

  And it’s not, I don’t know, if we will work, but I do know that I want to know more about him.

  The Aftermath

  By Ashley Marlatt

  My mom does not look h
appy when she comes into the principal’s office. Not that I had really expected her to be. I can already hear her, “do you want to be lockup again, Daniel?” You see when I was fifteen years old; I was arrest for stealing some stuff from a store in town. Now you probably thinking I am just another low-life teenager angry at the world, but it’s not quite like that. When I was eleven years old my father was diagnosed with lung cancer. He passed away when I was fourteen years old. It was a rough time for my whole time, but I would say that I took it the hardest. I was super close to my dad. After his death I started to get in trouble a lot. At first it was little things but before I knew it I was skipping school often, fighting, and stealing.

  The reason I am in the office today is because I had gotten into a fight with this kid, Brandon. He was saying crap about people with cancer and how it’s not that big of a deal. I pretty much lost it. I am seventeen now in my junior year, and I am trying to get my life together. As you see I still have some issues to work on.

  “Thank you for coming in today Mrs. Robert” Mr. Johnson, the principal, says as my mom sits down. “We are here because Daniel was involved in an altercation with another young man. Daniel is of course aware of our strict no tolerance for violence policy. Now while I am sympathetic with Daniel’s case I cannot treat him better than any other student. He will be suspended for two days along with the other young man. “

  “I understand completely Mr. Johnson; I would like to sincerely apologize for Daniel’s actions today. I can assure you he does know better.” My mom tells the principal.

  The car ride back to our house was silent. I knew Mom was just waiting for us to get home to tear into me. We only live three miles from the school but it seems to take for us to get home. As soon as we did; she did immediately start yelling at me.

  “Why do always have to start trouble, Daniel?” Mom asked me.

  “I didn’t even start it Mom, but it’s not like you are going to even look at this from my point of view,” I tell her.

  “I have to get back to work. I won’t be home till eight or nine because of your brother’s game.” She tells me. “You are not to leave the house Daniel.”

  I watch her car pull out of the driveway and go down the street. At least I won’t have to put up with her and perfect Luke for a few hours. Ever since my dad died my brother and I had stopped getting along completely. He is known as perfect student, perfect sports star, and perfect son. In everyone else’s eyes he can do no wrong.

  With my family gone I could finally relax. It makes me so angry whenever I end up in trouble my mom just assumes I am proud of what I did. Okay, so I may have been like that before but not anymore. I am really trying to get my life together.

  My brother didn’t always avoid me at all cost. We used to be best friends until the day that I saved his life. It was two months after our father died. He had a few friends over, and they thought it would be a good idea to play chicken in the highway next to our house. I was watching them play laughing at their stupidity; then a semi was coming. My brother went to walk in front of the semi but I ran up and yanked him back by his wrist just as the semi passed. When I had yanked him back, his wrist snapped, and his friends yelled at me for ruining their fun. My mom was furious with me because of my brother’s wrist.

  From that day on Luke avoided talking to me as much as possible. Its hurts that my own brother doesn’t want anything to do with me. I know if my father were alive, he would not have let this go on for this long. My mom just blames it on me, like she with everything.

  I decide to play it safe tonight and just stay home. I put some crappy TV movie on, and heat up a frozen microwave dinner. I try to relax, but I can’t get the fight out of my head. I can’t believe the things Brandon said. Who makes fun of cancer victims, as if they did anything to them. Of course I know Brandon just what to get on my nerves.

  Later that night after my mom and Luke got home; I was headed to the kitchen to get something to drink. I stopped when I heard my mom say my name.

  “I just can’t understand why Daniel can’t be more like his brother?” Mom said into the phone, unknowing that I can hear her.

  I am surprised that her words actually hurt. I had already known that’s what she thought, but to hear her say the words. It’s like a knife to my heart. My own mother thinks I’m a failure, how pathetic is that.

  I know that I had done some things that I am not proud of but it’s not like I not trying. Everyone tells my brother that our father would be proud of him. No one has ever said that to me, ever. Not when I got my first job, not when I bought my first car with my own money, and not even when I saved my brother’s life. Should the bad really outweigh the good? Would my father be proud of me? Would I even be the same person? But, of course, these questions will never be answered. I would give up everything to have my father, my family, and my life back.

  “Hey, can you meet me at the gym.” I ask my friend, Michael, when he answers the phone.

  “Figured it would be that kind of night” He says “Be there in five”

  Michael is the only one that sees though my family’s crap. He has been my only friend since I got out. Usually on bad nights we go to the gym to box.

  “Hey, man. What’s up” Michael says when I get out of my car.

  “I’m sure you already know about the fight.” I say, while he nods his head. “Suspended for two days, but so is Brandon.”

  “Your mom freak out?” He asks.

  “Not really, she just asked why I always look for trouble.” I say not sure if I really cared. “Then she just left, saying she has to get back to work. As if we really needed the money. With the three of us working I’m pretty sure she could easily take two hours off.”

  “That’s rough man.” He says shaking his head.

  “Just now I overheard her talking to someone on the phone” I say getting mad. “She was saying how she didn’t understand why I couldn’t just be more like Luke.

  “Because you’re not a stuck-up jerk.” He hisses.

  “I just don’t understand how she can’t see that I’m trying” I say shaking my head.

  “Because she won’t let herself get over the past” he says

  Later on after Micheal went home; I started to head home but then changed my mind and headed to the cemetery. It is still hard to know that I will never see my dad again. It may have been four years ago, but it still feels like yesterday. But then again I guess that how pain is supposed to feel like.

  “I got into a fight today, Dad” I say feeling kinda silly talking to a grave. “I know that wouldn’t make you proud, but I want you to know that I am truly trying even if Mom doesn’t know. She wants me to be more like Luke. I wish you were here, Dad. You could put this family back together. We all miss you even if Mom and Luke don’t say it. Every day there are moments that you were supposed to fill.”

  “I have some good news too” I say while wiped my face off. “I talked to the counselor at school. She says that I might have a chance of getting accepted to some colleges. Everyone tells me that college is the best and only option, but to tell the truth I don’t know what I to. I don’t know what my path is yet, but I swear to you I will make you proud.”

  Just like every time I go to his grave, I have to tear myself away from it. Going home really isn’t something I want to do, but it was already two in the morning.

  The months pasted and before I knew it; it was a week before graduation. I had been working so hard the past few months. I had a 3.4 g.p.a and two thousand dollars in a saving account. Things at home hadn’t changed at all. I didn’t get accepted to any of the colleges I applied to, but I had decided to join the army. I want to get away from my family and my past, get a fresh start. I would be leaving the week after graduation, I had done everything but tell my mom or my brother. I had to do that today.

  “Mom, can we talk” I say to her as she is folding clothes.

  “Not now Daniel.” She s
ays not even looking at me. “I have to get these clothes done”

  “Mom! This is actually really important, so please at least look at me” I begged her. “I’m joining the army. So if you can put up with me for two more weeks, I will be out of your hair forever.”

  “What” She gasped and dropped the shirt she had been folding. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

  “It’s not like you ever cared what I did as long as it didn’t make Luke look bad.” I said surprised to see tears filling her eyes.

  “Daniel, it’s not like that” She said as a single tear fell on her face.

  “Mom, I know I haven’t been easy to live with since Dad died” I said trying not to cry at the sight of her crying. “I want to make him proud of me”

  “Son, you make all of us proud” She says “He would be very proud of you”

  Finally the words I desperately needed to hear. I feel like a ton of bricks had been lifted off of me. It’s like I can finally breathe after being underwater for so long. I know that just because my mom said this my life won’t change but something between us shifted

 

  Reading is Not Just for English Class

  By Ashley Marlatt

  Most people believe that reading is a horrible activity, meant only for English class. I am different in that aspect. I believe that reading serves as an escape from reality for me. Reading Harry Potter has been the best decision I have ever made. Harry Potter has had a gigantic impact on me. Though Dumbledore’s wise words to Ron’s funny comments, this series has taught about love, prejudices, and standing up for yourself. I believe when I read, I am taken to a different world than mine. I can go on adventures that I will never truly get to experience. I can know what it is like to live in the 1800’s though Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie. I can know what it like is to be an orphan with an evil man after my parent’s money though Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. I will laugh, cry, get angry, and love along with the characters. I love to be taken to another world though a book. I believe that some books have truly changed the way I think about some things. When I read, I can forget about what is going on around me. I have never thought of reading as a dull boring activity, but even I can admit that not every book I have ever picked up has been enjoyable to me. I believe that some books can appeal to some people but not to others. In that sense I believe that books are just like movies, music, or hobbies.

  The series that has affected me the most is most definitely, Harry Potter. The story its self has so much. It covers topics like losing your parents or someone close to you, prejudices against something that you are born like, and normal teenage problems. It has taught me that standing up to you friends is just as important as standing up to bullies. A quote from Harry Potter that has always stayed with me is “Happiness can be found in the darkest of times, if only one remembers to turn the light on.” This quote reminds me that just because thing are bad now does not mean that I have to be unhappy. I am in charge of my happiness, regardless of what is happening around me. Another quote that stays with me is “Dark time lie ahead of us and there will be a time that we must choose between what is right and what is easy.” This quote tells me that just because something is not easy does not mean that it is not worth the time and effort. No matter what you are dealing with doing what is right, rather than what is easy, will have its rewards.

  I believe that reading is extremely rewarding. It doesn’t matter to me how many hours you think I waste while reading. As long as the story is good, it doesn’t know matter to me how long it takes me to read something. I believe everyone should give reading a chance before giving it a bad name.

  Fear

  By Ashley Marlatt

  What is your biggest fear? The question itself causes fear in many. When I was six, my answer would have been cats. When I was twelve, my answer would have been my favorite television show being canceled. Now at the age of eighteen, my answer is failure.

  I am a senior in high school. I live with my mother, and 3 younger sisters. Ever since my father died, five years ago, I became the second parent of my little sisters. The youngest one is only seven years old, with no memories of our father; I have become that role for her.

  I am in the middle of my senior year. There is three months till the end of the year. I cannot honestly say that I will, without any doubt, graduate this year. I am currently working every day after school, and I have to take care of my sisters during the weekend. Last night I got off at one in the morning.

  “Sean, Lily took my doll” My youngest sister, Madelyn said while shaking me awake.

  “What time is it Maddie?” I ask half awake.

  “I don’t know” She said before running out of the room.

  I nearly jump out of my bed when I looked at my clock that said it was eight thirty. I was just about to yell about us being late, when I heard my sisters laughing.

  “Alright, you’ve had your fun, what time is it really?” I say amused at their antics.

  “It’s only five thirty,” My oldest sister, Chloe, told me.

  “You woke me up, at five thirty,” I say pretending like I was mad.

  “It was just a joke, Sean,” Chloe says looking slightly scared.

  “I told you, he wouldn’t find it funny” Maddie said while glaring at Chloe and Lily.

  “No one asked for your opinion, stupid,” Lily told her.

  “You’re not really mad at us are you?” Chloe asked me.

  “No, I am not,” I say laughing, while Maddie stuck her tough out at Lily. “Well, since I am already up, I might as well start on breakfast.”

  “Can you make us pancakes, pretty please with sugar on top,” Maddie, asked me with her best puppy dog eyes.

  “I guess I can. If I have to,” I say.

  “You have to,” The three girls replied as soon as the words were out of my mouth.

  This is what my life at home consisted of. I was the one to solve the fights, cook the meals, help with homework, and I was the one to make the bad dreams go away. I know most people my age would hate to live like this, but I love it. They are the base of my motivation. They are my reason for going on.

  However they are also the base of my biggest fear. Every day I am fearful that I will fail them. I am afraid that I will not be able to give them what they need, or I will somehow hurt them. I am afraid that if I don’t get into college that I will fail my mom, who works every hour she possibly can. I am afraid that I will fail my mom by letting them all down.

  Later that day, I was in English. I had this class, with my best friend, Maya. She has been my best friend, since we were in kindergarten. As I didn’t get a lot sleep the night before I was falling asleep in class.

  “Hey, Sean, wake up,” Maya said while nudging me.

  “I’m awake, I’m awake,” I say as I jump awake.

  “Sure, you seem more tired than normal,” She says laughing at me.

  “My sisters thought it would be a good idea, to wake me up at five thirty,” I replied.

  “Tell me you didn’t yell at them, you know how much they hate that,” She questioned.

  “No, I just laughed it off,” I assured her, “I even made pancakes for breakfast.”

  “Wow, you managed to not only form sentences but cook edible food that early in the morning” She says smiling at me.

  “You’d be surprised at the things I can do,” I say while smirking at her.

  “So confident,” She teases me.

  Maya is the only one I have talked to about my fear, but even she doesn’t know all of it. She knows that I am afraid of failing my dad. I would like to be more than friends with Maya, but I seriously doubt she feels that way about me. She knows me better than anyone else does, I know she loves me. However I know that it is sisterly love. I have to stop myself whenever I think about us being together, because I know that isn’t what she wants.

  There are only a
few weeks till graduation; I am waiting to hear back from the college that I want to go. Maya knows I am nervous about hearing back. I am nervous because this is the only school that I can go to and still be home to take care of my sisters. I have pretty good grades, but I have never been able to participate in any clubs or sports. I haven’t even been to a school dance.

  Which brings me to the issue of prom; Maya wants to go as friends, but we don’t have anyone else to watch my sisters. My mom can’t afford to take the night off. Maya told me that if I can’t find someone to watch them then we can just hang out at my house, but I don’t want to take her senior prom away from her.

  “Sean!” Maya yells down the hallway at the end of the school day.

  “What!” I yell back at her at the same volume even though she is standing right next me by now.

  “This is my cousin, Alex,” She says motioning to the girl staying next to her.

  “Hey,” I say while looking at Maya, confused because she looks like if she was any happier she would burst.

  “She is the answer to our prayers!” She excitedly says like that was supposed to explain everything to me.

  “To what prays?” I question because I was still very confused.

  “She is only a sophomore, so she can’t go to prom!” She half sings.

  “What does that have to do with us?” I ask still confused.

  “It means that she will watch your sisters, so we can go to prom!” She explains.

  “OH! That’s great!” I say finally understanding “Thank you so much!”

  Needless to say I was happy for the rest of the day. Maya came over after school like every other day. To everyone else this day is nothing special, but to me this is the day that I promised myself that I would tell Maya how I feel at prom.

  That night when my mom got home, I was still pretty happy. I was cleaning the kitchen up when she got home. It was alright eleven o’clock, so my sisters were already in bed.

  “What’s got you in such a good mood?” my mom asked while half laughing at me.

  “I am going to prom with Maya,” I tell her with such a wide smile on my face.

  “I thought you two were only friends?” She asks me.

  “Well, we are,” I say “We are going as friends, but I hope that changes at prom.”

  “Does she know you want to be more than friends” She asks me.

  “Not yet,” I tell her “I am planning on telling her at prom.”

  “Well, just don’t get your hopes up too much,” She tells me “She might not feel the same way. You go on to bed, I’ll finish here.”

  “It’s ok, Mom, I can do it. Go get so sleep,” I say while I can literally feel my mood drop as if a brick was thrown at it.

  I know my mom is right, but I am hopeful that Maya does feel the same way as I do. I would consider myself the luckiest guy alive if she felt the same way I do. I would be lucky because I know she could do a lot better than me. She deserves to be with someone that won’t drag her down all the time. She deserves to be with someone that can give her what she wants. I know that it is selfish to want her to be with me, even though she deserves so much more than what I can give her.

  I just can’t help but to love her. Every time she laughs. Every time she smiles. Every time she looks at me with her beautiful green eyes. Every time she helps my sisters with their homework. Every time we watch a movie together. Every minute I am with her, I fall even more in love with her.

  The day of prom came much quicker than I thought it would. Maya is going to wear a mint green dress that goes to her knees. I am wearing a white tuxedo. I was picking her up at her house at five thirty, to get pictures taken and then we are going out to dinner at the little restaurant.

  “Mr. Matthews, what are your intentions with my little sister?” Maya’s older brother, Lucas who is home from a college in Texas, asks me. “I’m only joking Sean.”

  “Hey, Dude. What’s up,” I say while laughing.

  “Not much, but seriously I’m glad Maya is going with you instead of some other guy, at least I know I can trust you,” He said sincerely. “Come on inside, I think she is almost ready.”

  When I walked in, it was like a scene out of a movie. Her hair was beautiful, she smile was gorgeous. She was flawless. I still couldn’t believe I was going to prom with Maya. I mean sure we have been best friends for years, but she could have gone with anyone she wanted. That is why tonight will be the night I finally ask her to be my girlfriend.

  We had been dancing for about an hour when we went to get so punch

  “I hope you are having fun, Maya,” I tell her.

  “Of course I am,” She says with a smile on her face.

  I was going to kiss her there but I just couldn’t. There is a chance that she will not like me, so there for I have to wait till I take her home. I can’t ruin her senior prom by making things awkward.

  I was getting pretty nervous by the end of the night. The moment I had been waiting for years for was getting closer and closer. We got back to her house around midnight.

  “Maya, I really enjoyed tonight,” I tell her.

  “I did too,” She told me.

  “I am so glad that you went with me,” I say.

  “I am happy you got to go,” She tells me “You deserve a night out more than any of us.”

  “I don’t know about that but I am happy that it was with you,” I tell her.

  Finally the moment that I have been dreaming about for years, I looked into her beautiful green eyes once more before closing mine and leaning in to kiss her.

  “Sean,” she says so quietly that I almost didn’t hear her.

  I instantly felt like the stupidest person on the entire planet. I am the world’s biggest fool if I honestly believed that Maya would like me. I cannot believe I just tried to kiss her, as if she would ever want to be with someone like me. I couldn’t look at her anymore; I bolted. I ran the entire way home.

  When I got home, my sisters had fallen asleep watching Frozen for what probably was the millionth time. I had forgotten who was babysitting them. I didn’t know if I should say anything to her cousin, Alex, or not.

  “They have been asleep for a few hours; I just didn’t have the heart to wake them,” Alex says slightly laughing.

  “Don’t worry about it,” I tell her, “I put them to bed.”

  “Maya is lucky to have a best friend like you,” She says. “How was your night?”

  “It was pretty good,” I lied “I should get them to bed”

  “Yeah, of course, I will see you around,” She said.

  The Monday after prom I heard back from the college. I was not accepted. At the moment I thought I had really failed everyone, but thanks to Maya I realized that it was not the end of the world. I finally felt like it’s okay to fail sometimes.

  What Could Have Been Different

  By Allyson VanVoorst

  Have you ever looked back on your past and thought about what led you to where you are now? It’s strange to think about. For instance, you made the decision to leave your house five minutes earlier than you normally did. This caused you to meet the person who later offers you a job in the career you’ve always dreamed of. If you had forgotten something at home and turned back, it’s easy to say you could have missed that chance all together. That simple choice put you on a completely different track. Think about all of the little choices we’ve made throughout our lives. Could every choice truly change your life forever? Do all of these chance decisions pave the way to your future?

  As I walked up to my high school, I stalled, not ready for the day to begin. One application will change my future I said to myself. I hope I was accepted. Every year the Johnson Academic High School sent out tests for each freshman student in a couple schools. If you passed the test, they sent applications to those students then picked 100 students around the whole state to attend, at no charge, for the next three years. Johnson
was an extremely expensive private school that I could never even dream of attending because of the price. Luckily, I passed the test and was sent an application that I turned in a month ago.

  The results of the applications from our school were being announced today, and I dreaded being turned down. I felt that this school was the best thing to put on college applications. I didn’t know what I wanted to be, but going to an amazing high school and college would ensure that I found the right thing for me. The bell’s ring came faster than I wanted, and I made my way into the school.

  “Here comes TAY-LOR. She’s here; ready to be accepted into Johnson Academic High and become the top professional genius that the world has ever known,” my friend Steve yelled down the hall. He stood at my locker with my two other friends, Josh and Anna.

  “Wait, professional genius is a career?” I joked once I got to where they were standing. “That’s the perfect job for me.” Anna laughed and they all moved over so I could open my locker.

  “Steve, how come you didn’t apply? You aced the test, and I know you were sent an application, so why not?” Anna asked as I put my combination. I turned around when he didn’t reply and looked at him, waiting for an answer.

  “I chose to go on strike against Johnson Academic High. They ain’t getting any of these smarts,” he said, tapping his head with his knuckles.

  “And what exactly are you on strike about?” Josh grinned, shifting his back pack to the opposite shoulder. Steve bobbed his head mockingly. I turned back towards my locker and dug around in my mangled collection of books and papers.

  “Haven’t decided yet, but I’ve got a wide variety of choices up here I’m not sharing them. I don’t want you guys regretting the choice of applying. Besides, professional genius is an okay job, but I’m shooting for something even better.” I laughed as I pulled out my things and shut the locker. We all started walking to class.

  During my first class, I was sitting in my seat and thinking about the applications. Anna and Steve had applied as well as me. The conversation at my locker brought up a thought that I’d never had. What happens if one of us is accepted? The thought echoed in my mind. Fear dropped into the bottom of my stomach. Will we ever visit each other again? Will they have time to come back home, especially since Johnson is three hours away? I really didn’t want to split apart from my best friends who I had known since elementary school. I tried to stop worrying about it and focus on class, but it just kept coming back again. Would everything change? Will Josh and Anna be upset if I’m accepted and they’re not? Surely they wouldn’t. The class dragged on and the bell finally rang.

  When I walked into my second hour class, Steve sat in his usual seat and I took the seat next to him.

  “Only one more class period until they announce the results,” He said suspenseful as I pulled out my textbook and turned to the same page as him. He leaned back and crossed his arms.

  “I know. I’m dreading it,” I whispered. Our teacher sat still in her desk as she waited for us to do the assigned warm-up.

  “Why? Shouldn’t you be excited?” Steve pulled two pencils out of his pocket, handed me one, and I slid him a piece of paper.

  “Yeah, but I’m a little worried.” I paused, not wanting to rant to him, but he looked over, expecting me to go on. What happens if one of us gets accepted, even if it’s Anna or Josh? Will we stop being friends?”

  “That’s nothing to worry about. They are our best friends. If they ditch us forever, then they aren’t true friends. I’m pretty sure that you, Josh, or Anna won’t stoop to that level. Look at all of the things we’ve been through together.” He had a good point.

  “But Johnson is three hours away, Steve. What if they try to make it out but don’t have the time?”

  “Then I will get in a car, pick up whoever is left at this school, and we’ll go there and force them to visit us.” I smiled at his confidence. “You need to relax a little bit. If it happens then it happens. Everything will be fine.”

  “What if I don’t get accepted and then can’t get into a decent college?” He turned to me with a confused look.

  “You are smart, Taylor. There is no way that you can’t get into a good college. The day you can’t get into college is the day that I forfeit sleeping. And you know I love sleeping. Do you even know what you want to go to college for?”

  “No.”

  “How do you know you’ll even need to go to a fancy, highly over expensive college? You are capable of doing anything you want. Johnson is just a stepping stone that you don’t necessarily need to go there to be successful.” The teacher jerked her head towards us and glared at Steve, wanting him to be quiet. We took the hint and kept working on our classwork.

  Once lunch rolled around, me, Steve, Anna, and Josh all got food and sat at our usual table. We were quiet for a while. I could sense the anxiety. Eventually, the principal’s booming voice echoed through the speakers loudly.

  “Students of Roadville High, we have some amazing news today, so if you could please quiet town and listen to these announcements.” We heard a few people call out and the room went silent. “We have received results from Johnson Academic High School. As you know, students from all over Ohio applied to receive one of the 100 scholarships they hand out a year. This year we had 129 students pass the first exam and 11 apply. All of the applications have been reviewed and two of our students have been accepted.” I turned to Josh and Anna. They both had their eyes shut, waiting to hear the results. “Congratulations James Grifin and Josh Fores! You have been accepted to get to Johnson Academic High School!”

  The room filled with clapping, and I’m pretty sure Josh went into shock. He sat still with a blank face. I reached over and pulled him into a hug. Anna came over and joined as well.

  “Congrats, Josh,” I said over the commotion in the lunch room. I backed away to see his face. He smiled and turned to Steve.

  “I’m so sorry you guys didn’t get accepted.”

  “Seriously, don’t say that. You clearly deserved to be accepted. Don’t worry about us, we’ll be fine,” Anna lectured. Just as I was going to tell him not to, Steve turned and started to talk.

  “Man, seriously? You’re leaving me here with two girls? Two! All was fine and equal in our group until you smarted up and got accepted. Now I’m left in the cold, defending myself against the two females. They’re taking over!” Steve shouted, jokingly. He fake slapped his hand on the table and Josh burst into laughter.

  “I had to get out before another girl came along and ruined the balance,” Josh said in between chuckles.

  “You are never supposed to abandon your teammates,” Steve added. We went back to our lunches.

  Even though I didn’t get accepted to go to Johnson, I was still set on a good path. I kept everything that Steve had said in my mind and it made me feel one hundred percent better about it. I kept working hard at school, and everything seemed to work out. My decision to apply hadn’t gotten me to go to the best high school in Ohio, but it taught me that not everything will go the way that you plan it.

  Steve, Josh, Anna and I didn’t split apart like I thought we would. Actually, we spent more valuable time together than we had before Johnson Academic High School. We really took advantage of every opportunity to spent time together and this made us closer. Once college rolled around, we all stayed local and we still get together to this day.

  When I graduated from Roadville I decided to go to college to become a teacher. I wanted to encourage kids to follow their dreams and even if they don’t reach every goal, everything will pan out in the end if they put their best foot forward. I had a feeling that my decision to apply to Johnson did effect my career decision. If I didn’t go through that, I would have never been inspired to help kids learn this as well. It took me some time to see what Steve really helped me with, and I thanked him for it. Without him and my friends, who knows where I would have ended up and what could have been different.

  Bad Luck


  By Allyson VanVoorst

  My heart raced as I slid from the safe building to the sidewalks. I felt exposed. Everyone was watching me, looking at me as if they knew exactly who I was and what I was doing. I was lucky to have made it this far. I couldn’t believe my friends had held through with our plan.

  A few years back I was put in prison for murdering a man during a bank robbery. They couldn’t prove that I was part of the robbery, but they caught me for the murder. I was supposed to be helping, but I ran into a familiar face and took my chances. Apparently they were very slim. I don’t even remember why I chose to murder him. He was just there.

  While being in prison for 6 years, I had made some friends who had plans to escape. I held hope, and did everything they had asked me to. Luckily, everything played out as we had planned. Now I was standing in public wearing jeans and a t-shirt, praying that I looked somewhat normal. If one person recognized me, it would all be over. I tried my best to hide my face.

  As I turned the corner, I saw a bus stop sign. I sat down on the bench and opened my bag of get away supplies. Inside were clothes, money, food and water, a newspaper, fake I.Ds, and a passport. I pulled the paper out and unfolded it, keeping it up in front of my face. People came and went, and every time I heard a person walking past me, my heart skipped a beat.

  Fifteen minutes later, a big, blue city bus pulled up and slowed to a stop in front of me. I folded the paper, stuffed it in the bag and stepped on. I inserted money in the box next to the driver and slowly walked back. The bus was extremely full. I spotted an empty seat close to the back and plopped down just as the bus started moving again.

  I didn’t know where I was going. I had decided on riding the bus until it stopped going farther and farther away. I found a map in the bag as well and kept track of where the bus was taking me. I decided on stopping at the next town because it had an airport. It looked like it was the only one close.

  After an hour of travel, the bus stopped. Some people had gotten off, but it was still pretty full. A short man in a green t-shirt stepped on the bus and walked towards the back. He had black hair and looked a little bit Asian. I didn’t pay much attention to him until he stopped at my seat and sat down next to me. A wave of nerves jolted through me. Could he be here to turn me in? Why couldn’t he sit somewhere else?

  “Please, don’t worry,” he said, as if reading my mind. My heart beat loudly in my chest. I didn’t understand why he had said that. Did he know who I was, what I had done?

  As the bus carried on, I tried to settle my thoughts but it didn’t help much. All I could do was sit and wait for the man to get up. He didn’t move for the longest time. He just sat there, reading from his cellphone. It felt like centuries before he finally stood and walked towards the doors.

  To my surprise, he didn’t get off the bus. He whispered something to the bus driver. She nodded and he walked back to where I was seated. The bus stayed put. He stood next to my seat and started talking.

  “I need everybody to listen closely,” he said. He had a very low voice. Everybody turned to look at him. They all gave him a look that suggested he was crazy. “I need you to stay as calm as possible. There is a murderer on this bus!” He shouted and raised his hands for effect. “One of the very people sitting on board is a murderer, and we are all in danger!” Every passenger started to scream and panic. Some stood to get off the bus, but the doors stayed shut. I don’t know who was panicking more, me or the passengers.

  My heart was racing so fast I thought I was having a heart attack. The blood ran from my face and my palms got sweaty. He had to know it was me. Why else would he sit down next to me? He even told me not to worry.

  Just as I was about to get up and make a run for it, he stopped talking and picked up his phone. He texted something, then waved his hand toward somebody standing at the bus stop. The man was young, with black hair. He stepped towards the bus, with a camera in his hands. He was part of it. He was trying to get me arrested. As he stepped on, he filmed the bus full of people screaming and rushing around trying to get away from the chaos. I stayed in my seat and hoped that I would be fine.

  Just as I couldn’t take any more, the Asian man slipped me a note. I unfolded it and inside it said, “Please, do not move. We are filming a movie and wanted a real reaction. Sorry if I scared you.”

  I wanted to jump out of my seat and punch the man square in his face. I was so scared of getting caught, I have no clue how I sat there as long as I did.

  The chaos continued for a few more minutes before he stood and clamed everyone down. He explained what was going on and slowly got off the bus.

  The bus driver laughed and started to pull away from the stop when sirens filled the air.

  “Who called the police?” she demanded. Everybody sat silently. My heart thudded, but I knew it was going to be okay. Somebody had gotten so scared that they called 911. They would be sent away as quickly as they had arrived.

  As I rested my head against the seat, an officer stepped onto the bus and talked to the driver. He looked at the crowd of people, and pointed directly at me. I stood up quickly and tried to open the back emergency exit, but a car was waiting there, and the officer pulled me off the bus and handcuffed me. I slid in the car and watched as my last taste of freedom slipped away.

  Repeated History

  By Allyson VanVoorst

  It was the summer of 1995 when my family decided to pack up and move away from our beloved hometown. We didn’t even stop to second guess our decision. My uncle had called to tell us about this amazing house that had gone up for sale in his town. He gushed on and on about how big the house was and the amazing price. The news convinced my parents to take their chances.

  We took a train all the way there. It was just me, my mom and dad, and my bother Joseph on our trip. We sat silently in two separate seats and listened to the loud clanking of the train’s movement. I only brought my most important things with me, and I kept them in a trunk I had been given for my fifteenth birthday. The trunk was light pink with roses on the outside and it held all of my clothes and things like photos and books. It was so heavy that my dad had to carry it for me, and it barely squeezed under my seat.

  The trip took a total of 4 days on 6 different trains. I tried to stay as close to my family as possible when we changed trains. There were a lot of strange people in the dark, crowded stations, and I dreaded being lost in the unfamiliar setting. Once we made it to our last stop, we all lumbered off of the train, sore from the stiff seats. We started walking and made it to our uncle’s house in an hour. The house was directly in front of his, across the road.

  “How many rooms does it have?” I asked as we all awed at the huge house.

  “Not sure yet,” my dad answered. “We know it has a basement and an attic. By the size of it I’m assuming you’ll have your own room.” I grinned and walked up the cement steps to the front door. They were in perfect shape, even for being an old house. I tried to look through the window, but the light from the sun setting was casting a glare on the thin glass. I put my face against the dusty window and put my hands next to it to block the sun. I could see the dining room and the entrance to the kitchen. My vision was blurry, but I squinted to get a clearer view. A tall, black figure popped up suddenly, screamed and threw myself away from the door. I smashed into Joseph in the process.

  “What?” He shouted. I turned to see my parents distracted.

  “There’s somebody in there,” I whispered.

  “Let me look.” He stepped up to the window, and leaned down to see. He stood about six inches taller than me, even though I was a year older. He turned around with a blank expression. “Whatever. It was probably a shadow or something. Nobody’s in there.” He walked away before I could protest.

  I quickly forgot about the instance and sat down on the steps. About 15 minutes later the owner showed up and gave my parents the keys. He didn’t seem to talk much, and he was actually really quiet. He only talked when my parents asked
a question. The only thing they really asked was “What do we do with the furniture?” He said to keep it. As the strange man pulled away, my dad dangled the keys.

  “Let’s go see our new house.” Joseph and I went back up to the door, and my dad slid the key in and slowly turned it for suspense.

  “Now when we go in,” my mom scolded, “dad and I get first choice of the rooms. You guys should pick an upstairs room, anyways, so let us have the downstairs.” We nodded and dad shoved the door open.

  We hauled our suitcases and bags into the dining room and slowly walked around the room. It was dark so my dad flipped the light switch, and the chandelier lit up.

  “How old is this house again?” My brother whispered.

  “Uncle George said it was built the year grandma was born. So it’s old. It’s been abandoned the whole time George was living here, until six months ago. They cleaned it up,” My mom said. “The owner’s daughter was going to move in but changed her mind.”

  “Why was it abandoned?” I asked. My mom shrugged. We began exploring the house, and eventually picked out rooms. We put our bags in our own rooms and looked around. My dad left to go to the store for food, and my mom set the dinner table with the dishes in the cupboards. Once dad returned, we had dinner then went to our rooms to unpack.

  The first few nights went smoothly. We all went to rooms, got rid of the things we wouldn’t need, and made a list of things we did need. A few days passed and my parents went to the store to get the things on the list. My brother and I stayed home because there wasn’t room in my Uncles truck for us to go as well.

  To pass the time I went up to my room. Not sure what to do, I sat on the large bed. The room I had picked was already styled for a girl. It had pink walls, a light grey carpet, and a mahogany dresser with a mirror, and a sturdy bed. I put my purple sheets and pillowcases on the bed. My favorite part of the room was the view of the front yard, and the hardwood rocking chair that sat in front of the large window. It was a good place to sit and read.

  I stood up off the bed and walked to the closet where my trunk was. The trunk sat wide open, when I knew that I had latched it shut earlier. Confused, I figured one of my family members had opened it. I got onto my knees and went to find my photo albums. As I was going to stick my hand inside the trunk, the lid slammed shut. A few inches and my hand would have been in the way. I jerked it back and stood up. The lid hadn’t fallen on its own. I opened it up and dug around for the album. I pulled it out and flipped it open. The photos were missing. I looked frantically for all of my pictures, but the album was completely empty. I dropped the book and spun around. The pictures were plastered all over my walls. I let out a quick scream.

  As I darted towards the door, it slammed shut as well. I grabbed the nob, and it burned my hand. I winced in pain and jerked my hand back. It was red, the skin blistering immediately. I used my other hand and banged against the door.

  “Joseph, Joseph, help me!” I kept yelling for joseph to come, but he didn’t hear me. The room started shaking and wind gusted. I spun around dizzy, looking at the pictures of my past flying around my room. Faces were missing, the burn holes being the only sign of them ever being there. I cried and the rest was a blur.

  I woke up to my dad carrying me down the stairs. I jolted, unsure of what was happening.

  “Stay calm, Sara, you’ll be fine,” my dad said quietly.

  “What happened?”

  “We found you in your room on the floor when we got home. We think you fainted, fell and broke your nose. Joseph was saying that your door knob was locked and he couldn’t get in.” I held my hand up in response and saw the terrible burn.

  “What about the pictures?”

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “The pictures in my room, they were scattered.”

  “There were no pictures.” We reached the bottom of the steps and he put me on my feet. I wobbled and regained my balance. My mom helped my get a bandage on my hand and cleaned the blood off of my face. I was scared, but didn’t tell my parents about what had happened. A few days passed, and I tried to forget about the incident. It wouldn’t go away. I got very little sleep, scared that something was going to happen. Joseph kept bugging me, asking what happened. He didn’t tell my parents about the hot door handle because he didn’t know what to say.

  After a few days of cleaning out the house, my mom assigned me to the task of sorting through the attic. I spent days at a time up there, opening boxes, sorting through the previous owners stuff and throwing it out. One morning, my mom came up with me and we sat there together, going through all of the old, dusty junk.

  “Sara, your dad and I have some big news,” my mom said slowly as she stood up to stretch.

  “Okay,” I said, hesitantly.

  “I’m pregnant.” My jaw almost hit the floor. I nodded, not really knowing how I felt about it. I smiled, trying to make her feel better about it.

  “That’s, uh, good?” I said, confused. She laughed and kept going through the old stuff.

  “We had planned to have 3 kids when you and Joseph were younger, but we just didn’t have the space in that old apartment, and couldn’t afford a new house there. This house was like a blessing. I stood up, thinking about what it would be like to have a baby sister or brother. I walked to the back of the room and pulled another box forward. When I opened it, I saw a stack of old, dusty photo albums. It had a last name pressed into the thick leather that I couldn’t quite make out. As I went to pull the album up, the box flew across the room and slammed into the wall next to my mom. Her head jerked up in response.

  “Why did you throw that?” She yelled.

  “I didn’t.” The other boxes around us started to shake, old books, papers, and other items flew through the air. I turned towards the door just in time to see the door slam. A baseball bat from the corner flew up in my mom’s direction.

  “Watch out!” I screamed. She dropped to the floor as it flew above her head and crashed into the mirror on the wall. It shattered into a million little pieces. I ran to her and pulled her to her feet.

  “Let’s get out of here, now!” She yelled, but we couldn’t. The door knob was already glowing read with heat. I started to get dizzy. My mom grabbed me for support.

  “What’s going on?” She yelled. The room shook and papers flew around the room.

  “Something is wrong with this house!” Wind gusted, coming out of nowhere. I remembered finding an axe while sorting through the old boxes earlier that day. It sat in the corner on the junk pile. My thoughts started to blur and made me feel like falling asleep. The room spun, but I rubbed my eyes and took steps towards the axe. I heard my mom stumble behind me. I had to keep moving. I felt the hard metal in my hands and dragged it towards the door. My vision was getting worse and worse. I lifted the heavy tool and threw it in the direction of the door. I missed and the metal stuck in the side of the wall. I blinked, plied it out, and threw it again, my muscles giving out. This time, it hit the knob, busted it off and the door slid open. With my last seconds of consciousness, I was stepping towards my mom, trying to wake her. I fell to the floor, praying my dad would find us up here.

  I woke up lying in my bedroom. I tiptoed downstairs and found my mom asleep on the couch, my dad sitting next to her. My dad looked at me and instantly turned upset.

  “What in the world did you do, Sara?” His face was red. My jaw dropped in surprise. I couldn’t believe he was blaming me. “You’re mom told me what happened up there, Sara. She said you went crazy. You threw a box at her and she blacked out.”

  “That is not what happened at all, dad!” The stuff was flying around the room on its own! The door was locked, and the handle was burning. Mom passed out, the room was spinning, and so I broke the door open then passed out, too. This house is haunted or something!”

  “You are making no sense! The stuff flew in the air? That’s impossible.”

  “She probably doesn’t remember, but I helped her. I think
there is a ghost living here, dad. It happened the other day when I fainted in my room. Stuff is getting moved on its own. I’m not crazy!” My mom opened her eyes, obviously listening to the conversation.

  “She’s right. I remember now. The box flew, I thought it was her but it wasn’t. I started to get dizzy. My memory was foggy,” she whispered.

  “We have to leave this house, dad. It’s going to keep happening until we leave.”

  “We can’t leave, Sara. We have no money. We spent it all on this house.” My mom replied.

  “Then we can put it up for sale and live with uncle George until it sells.”

  “Even if we do manage to sell this place, we won’t be able to find another to live in. We are having a baby, we need this place.”

  “So we’re doomed.”

  All of the sudden, a loud scream echoed through the house. It was Joseph. I turned and started running up the steps, two at a time. My dad followed close behind. As we reached the second floor, Joseph screamed again, coming from the attic.

  “Joseph!” My dad yelled. We reached the attic steps and ran up them. Luckily, the knob was broken and the door couldn’t be shut. Joseph was lying on the floor, blood streaming from his hands that were covering his face.

  “What happened?” I asked as I kneeled down by him. A box with blood covering it sat on the floor next to him.

  “That box flew up and hit me in the nose. It’s bleeding,” he said, voice muffled.

  “Stand up and walk downstairs.” My dad said, plying his hands away from his face. “You’ll be okay.” As we helped Joseph stand back up, a newspaper lying on the floor caught my attention. My dad took over and started going down the stairs slowly.

  “Why were you even up here?” I heard my dad say faintly.

  “I was looking for a box of mine.” Once their footsteps fainted away, I walked over and picked up the old, yellowed newspaper. It read:

  Multiple Fires in Family Home

  In July, 1950, the Rachel family of Minnesota finished building the home they had spent 6 years building. Sadly, two years later, the home burned down due to unknown causes. The Mother, Father, and four children all passed away in their homes that evening. After their funeral, the community took it in their own hands to rebuild the home in honor of the family. They finished the rebuild 5 years later. The house was burned again, rebuilt again, and burned again 3 times, each taking a whole family with it.

  Today, another tragedy has been discovered in the home, now belonging to the Smith family. The house was yet again burned, killing the entire family. This time, first and most of the second floor were remaining. The distant family of the Smiths are rebuilding now. Is there a curse on those who live in the home? Who will be harmed next?

  I dropped the newspaper, and started to walk to the stairs, scared to be up there alone. I heard a crackling behind me. I turned and a girl stood in the corner. A fire blazed along the far wall. I screamed and the door slammed shut, staying even without the door knob.

  “We were cursed.” The girl said, sticking her translucent hand in and out of the flames. I backed against the opposite wall and slid to the floor, too scared to think. I could hear the fire cracking and the heat burned my cheeks. The girl was in a light pink nightgown. She looked to be about my age. “Our neighbors didn’t like us. They wanted revenge for building the big house next to theirs. They thought they could easily scare us away by starting a fire. But it didn’t just scare us. It killed us.” She stepped closer to me, knelt down and looked me directly in the eyes. I could see the fire flicker in them.

  “The entire house, burned to a crisp, with my sleeping family inside. We didn’t get a chance to leave; we didn’t get to run for our lives. We tried, but didn’t make it. Imagine how that felt.” She paused, waiting for me to respond then lashed out with rage. “Nobody understands!” She grabbed a box by her feet and smashed it into the growing fire. “I am stuck here forever. Somebody new comes along and rebuilds it after I burn it. I don’t want it rebuilt. I want to be free.” I tried to think of what to say to make her let me go.

  “Burn it then.” I whispered.

  “I am! And you imposters are burning with it!”

  “Why do you want us to be harmed the way you were? If you had the chance to protect your family, wouldn’t you? You are trying to burn my life away, and are preventing me from saving mine.” She dropped the box she had picked up and looked at me. Tears slid down my cheeks. “Let me save my family, please. Think about what you could’ve been if you were given the chance. Do some good with what you have. Please, just let me go. I have a brother, a mom, and a dad who I really care about, and a new sibling on the way.” Her face lightened a bit, and the raging fire cooled down a bit.

  “Would you do anything to protect your family?” She asked, a light tone in her voice.

  “Yes. You can burn this house. I will make sure that nobody builds a house here again, if you please, just let me get my family out.”

  “The fire picked up, but the door slid open.”

  “You’d best hurry. I’m releasing all of the rage I have left. You can go.” I jumped up and ran down the steps as quickly as possible, the fire trialing quickly behind me.

  “Fire! Fire! Everybody out! I jumped off the landing and saw my mom, dad, and brother in the living room.

  “What?”

  “Out of the house, now! There’s a fire!” I ran to the door and they followed me out of it. We stepped off the porch just in time to see the ceiling collapse in the doorway.

  Me and my family jogged over to my uncle’s house to get away from the fire, and watched as the house burned to a crisp. My heart pumped with adrenalin. A few minutes later the fire apartment showed up, but it was too late to save the house. They put out the flames so it wouldn’t spread.

  I was extremely glad that I said the right thing to the girl in the attic. Any wrong word and I could’ve been gone forever. My family had insurance on the home, and due to the “wires sparking” according to the investigators, we received enough money to buy a newer, ghost free home nearby. I told my parents about what happened, and we kept the property. We went back to the lot and filled it with a flower garden in honor of the families who had been through a tragic fire in that home.

  Seven months later, my baby sister, Katherine, was born. I was happy that it was a girl, and filled my time with school and taking care of my sister. I couldn’t help but think back to that night, and more often than not had nightmares about it. I was lucky to be able to wake up and realize that it was all a dream, and my life was not in danger.

  Terror on Woods Street

  By Allyson VanVoorst

  One October night, the Dale family was settling into bed as the time on the clock became later and later. John and Lillian, the parents, were in their room sound asleep. Their teenage daughter, Teresa, was in the living room watching a Halloween movie on TV, and her little brother Ben was in his room playing video games.

  Everything seemed fine to these people. They had just moved into a new home and things were looking up. The house was nice, warm, and cozy. It was huge, and so old that people weren’t even sure of its age. This was the last time they thought of their new home as a safe place.

  Teresa jumped as a villain on the screen popped out in front of the woman. She watched him chase the woman until she was too scared to watch the rest of the movie. Teresa grabbed the remote and turned the TV off. The room was suddenly pitch black without its illuminating light.

  Teresa squinted to see, her eyes still adjusting from staring at the screen so long. As she stood up from the couch she heard noises coming from her brother’s room down the hall. Light streamed from underneath his door. “What is he still doing up?” she thought to herself. She slowly made her way down the long hall.

  When Teresa went to take a step around the coffee table, she tripped and fell to the ground, causing a loud thud. She grunted as she stood back up, and held her arm in pain. She turned around quickly, surpris
ed to see her father standing behind her. She let out a quick scream before she realized it was only him.

  “Calm down, it’s just me,” he whispered. “Are you okay? I heard a thud and it woke me up.”

  “Yeah, it was me. I tripped over the coffee table,” She replied. “Ben is still up playing video games. I was going to check on him then go to bed.”

  “I’ll go in there. Don’t worry about it. Go get some sleep,” her father said as he turned around and started towards Ben’s bedroom door. He opened it wide and saw Ben sprawled out on the floor, staring intently at the game flashing on the screen.

  “Ben, wrap it up, it’s time to get to bed,” he scolded.

  “Why? It’s Friday, I don’t have school tomorrow.” Ben argued.

  “If you want to trick-or-treat tomorrow night then you better get to sleep.” With that, Ben turned off his game and slid into the twin bed in the corner. As he pulled his comforter up he heard a loud scraping from outside the window.

  “Dad! Did you hear that?” he asked with a hint of fear in his voice.

  “Of course I heard that,” John teased. “It’s the gremlin in your closet coming to snack on 11 year old boys.” He grinned and strode over to tuck Ben in.

  “No, I’m serious. It came from outside!” he whimpered.

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s just the wind blowing branches against the side of the house. Go to sleep.” John flipped off Ben’s bedroom light, walked out, and closed the door slowly. He walked back to his own room and slid into bed next to Lillian.

  Teresa didn’t like being on the second floor alone. Sure, it was like having her own apartment with a bathroom and a bunch of spare bedrooms, but she still didn’t like the emptiness. As she climbed the stairs, the mysterious darkness made her nervous. She slipped into her bathroom as quickly as possible.

  After showering, Teresa slid into her room and changed into pajamas. She grabbed her cell phone and started to text her friend when she heard a door creak down the hall. He heart stopped. She clutched her chest as she waited silently for another sound. After a second, her heart rate sped and she breathed heavily.

  Thinking it was nothing she shut off her bedroom light and slid into her bed. “The creaking was probably just the house settling,” she said to herself. “Monsters aren’t real, they are just fairy tales.”

  Teresa slid her phone into the pocket of her pajamas then rolled over and shut her heavy eyes, ready to drift off to sleep. Just as she was about to doze off, the creaking sounded again. Her hearted thudded and she waited once again. This time, faint footsteps sounded down the hall. They got louder and louder as they clunked closer to her door at the end of the hallway.

  She peeked out from her covers and saw a shadow under the door. It came from something standing in front of the nightlight across from her door. She panicked and slid out from her bed quietly. She jerked her closet door open and sank onto the ground, closing the door behind her. Just as it clicked shut, she heard her bedroom door burst open and bang against the wall.

  She peeked through the cracks in the closet doors. A large, dark creature crept around the room. It was tall and wide, it’s head almost reaching the ceiling.

  Teresa crouched in the closet, her heart pounding, breathing heavily. Her eyes followed the dark figure in the room closely. “What am I going to do?” she thought to herself trying not to breathe too loudly. “I just have to remain still,” she acknowledged. The dark ominous figure was turning around towards the bedroom door as her cell phone rang obnoxiously from her pocket.

  The creature spun around and lumbered towards the door. Teresa shoved herself to the corner of the closet and dismissed the call, hands shaking with fear. Her back hit something hard. She turned to see a tiny door inside her closet. The creature outside the closet banged on the door, trying to open it. He would soon capture her. Teresa’s only choice was to pry open the tiny door and climb in. The creature surely wouldn’t find her there. If it did, it couldn’t fit into the tiny door.

  Teresa grabbed the nob and pulled open the tiny wooden door. She squeezed inside. Just as she slid in, she saw the closet door swing open and the dark figure stick his head inside. By the time he turned to look at the door, Teresa had it shut and was making her way through the dark passage. “Good,” the monster chuckled. “She’s right where I want her.”

  Realizing she had her phone in her hand, Teresa turned on the light and looked around the dark, dusty passage. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling and covered the wall. The passage was about four feet wide and tall enough for Teresa to stand up straight. She made her way down the musty path.

  Ben had just drifted off when he heard a door slam upstairs. He jolted upright in his bed, heart pounding. He kicked off his blanket, slid out of his bed, and grabbed his video camera. “Time to scare Teresa,” he thought to himself. He turned the door knob slowly and pulled the door open. It made a loud creak down the hall. He cringed, hoping his parents didn’t hear it.

  As Ben tip toed down the hall, he heard shuffling coming from the ceiling. “What is she doing up there?” he wondered. He reached the stairway and slowly started his climb up, being careful of the creaky spots in the old boards. He loaded up his camera and had it in position, ready to film the epic scare. As he reached the top and slid to Teresa’s door, he pressed play, turned the knob slowly, and threw the door open. He let out a loud “Boo,” then screamed in terror as he looked towards her closet. The tall, dark figure whipped its head out of the closet and lunged towards Ben.

  Ben slammed the door shut and bolted down the stairs at full speed, screaming the entire way. The monster pulled the door open and started chasing after him. It caught up quickly, pulled Ben into its slimy grasp, and tugged him back up the stairs. It pulled him back into Teresa’s room, into the closet, and it shoved him into the little doorway to the passage. Proud of his work, the monster stood up slowly and a grin stretched across his face.

  Downstairs in the parents room, John and Lillian had been awaken by Bens screaming. John jumped up and went to investigate. When he stepped out of the door, a red glow came from the living room. John slowly walked down the hall, unsure of what awaited him. Adrenaline pulsed through his veins.

  When John stepped into the hall, the glow came from a red spotlight shining up on a message scribbled out on the wall. It read, “Find your children and leave this house as soon as possible.” John went over and touched the message. It was written on a poster board.

  “Teresa, Ben, this isn’t funny!” John shouted up the stairway. “Get down here, now!” He waited a few seconds for the kids to lumber down the stairs. When they didn’t he continued to yell up for them.

  Lillian heard John yelling at the kids up the stairs. “It must be some prank,” she thought to herself. She stood up from the bed and walked into the living room. Once there, she froze still and screamed at the top of her lungs. A dark figure stood behind John, his head almost touching the ceiling. He was twice John’s size. When John heard the screaming, he whipped around and saw the dark figure standing over him. The monsters red, glowing eyes pierced his. John bolted around it, grabbed Lillian and they fled to the bedroom. The monster chased them, but they reached the room and slammed the door in his face.

  The creature beat on the door for a minute or so then made his way back into the living room. It spotted a big water cooler jug full of change sitting on the shelf. It picked the jug up with a grunt, and walked out the front door, leaving it wide open.

  Outside, his buddy, Tom, was waiting on the sidewalk. The monster grabbed his head, tugged, and revealed his human face. Tom chuckled.

  “Looks like they’ll be gone soon,” Tom laughed as the monster, named Bill, got out of his costume and steeped onto the sidewalk.

  “Yep, and I even nabbed some change.” Bill replied. He exhaled and a puff white filled the chilly air.

  “Do you think we have enough money to finally turn this house into a museum?” Tom asked.

  “Probably, the
re are quarters in here.” Bill said, giving the heavy container a shake. “Once this family moves out, we can buy it and fill people in on its historical background.”

  “I never did understand why they kept letting people move into this place. It housed so many of history’s famous figures.” Tom said, turning to look up at the large house.

  “Me either. Come on, let’s get go home. I’m getting cold.” Bill grumbled.

  “Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow at work.” Tom said.

  “Okay, goodbye then.” Bill replied. Bill turned left, Tom turned right, and they went to their own houses, one on each side of the old house.

  After an hour of waiting, John and Lillian slowly made their way out of the room. They heard Ben and Teresa rapping against the wall in Teresa’s closet, so they went up, found the door, and let them out. After exchanging stories, they all started packing, ready to leave the next morning. They were so frightened they didn’t even notice the jug of change was missing. A house a few towns over went up for sale, so they bought it and moved in, selling the house to the kind neighbors who decided to take it in.

  John and his family were glad to have left the house, and lived the rest of their lives happily, trying not to think about their experience that night.

  The Bus

  By: Christian Culver

  I shaved my beard this morning and put on my white shirt with a pair of jeans I stole from a relative and grabbed a snack on the way out as I left the house and got on the bus. When, I sat down on the far left seat next to the window, this man with glasses looked almost 5.10 and had a laptop in his hands gave me a dirty look and as I walked to the seat next to the window, in the aisle, he talked quietly and asked how my day was and I said its ok when he looked at me strangely, he said that I was weird looking when I sat down and I said that’s not really nice and I tried to be nice and friendly with him. He asked me about my tattoos and I didn’t want to tell him about my past. But I don’t know if he would keep a secret. But I wanted to try and run away from this city as fast as possible. And I didn’t need to attract any more attention.

  Then the stranger starts to sip some of his frappe that I could smell because of its aroma and he started to read the newspaper that was this Sundays that just got in this morning around 5. I glanced over his shoulder and read about the big section on the front. It said, “This Mysterious Man Has Escaped Prison and He Is Armed and Running from State Troopers” was written in bold letters. And my face just lit up like a red apple candle. And the strange man just turned over and looked at me and said, “Have you heard about this new criminal on the run?” As I whispered, “no but I don’t have any clue about it either” as I looked questioned.

  This person that was sitting next to me started asking lots of questions on where I work, and where I live and if I had any hobbies. I just spoke softly so no one could notice me and said, “I don’t do much and it isn’t really necessary to tell other people my business, I just don’t want to let you in on my personal life.” I started thinking about how I would manage to do this and there were several citizens who were on their way to school or older adults, couples and even my age. They didn’t look like they could handle the pressure given to them if they were me. I started to get lost in my thoughts and questioned myself if I should give a speech.

  Then a few mid seconds later, I cleared my throat ate my breakfast and raised my voice and said, “Hey everyone! Listen up, I’m not going to repeat myself either and I want everyone to know that I am sorry for all the mischief caused because all the police reports. I looked back at the stranger and he looked almost as if he was dazed and struck by lightning. But I continued and preached about my forgiveness. I started to cough nervously. My face started turning tomato red and I got so anxious that I started getting tears in my eyes, but I faced the challenge of standing up and giving a speech so I manned up to finish what I started and said “Can I have some forgiveness for what I did and as soon as I said that someone on the bus looking at around 6’3 brown hair stood over everyone besides me because I was 6’2 and every single one of my fights I’ve been in from prison. But none of that mattered because I just wanted to make peace not enemies. And by just simply saying I am sorry for what I have done to everyone and everything to make their lives crap. No one on the bus had any idea on what I was talking about all of them looked like they saw a ghost.

  The Different Town

  By: Christian Culver

  A cool Sunday night in Louisville, Kentucky a small town in the west and it was a peaceful town and it was a really warm welcoming town. Everyone was nice and treated everyone the same with the same amount of respect but except for this one person. Whose name is Brittany, she worked for a guy named Bob Brown. She was a 19 young blonde who just got out of highschool and has been working at a small burger joint called Burgertown. Everyone there accepted her and was really nice to her and treated her best. And she was excited to be working there and everyday before her noon shift everyone was waiting by the counter and waited for her to clock in and everyone gave her a lot of attention. But the Mr. Brown gave Brittany a lot of support because he thought she was a good worker and that she needed to be better. So she would work as hard as possible and every time the reaction was different. He gave her a raise and treated her more fairly than others. It was almost as if he liked her, he enjoyed her working there and liked her physically and mentally. He had a small crush but he didn’t want anyone to find out. Mr. Brown took her into his office and had a 20 minute conversation everyday on why he likes her to work there.

  Burgertown was important to her because she just started working there and that it was her first job. She made decent money but she got a raise from Mr. Brown and so she made 13 dollars an hour where everyone else made 9.50 per hour. She started to get worried and nervous and she didn’t want the police to be involved, because she thought there would be a stranger, but she had nothing else to do. And another worker that was there his name was Spencer Jones. He has been working there for over a year liked Brittany. He enjoyed working at the same job and seeing her every day and really liked her. He is also shy around her because of his crush. But it wasn’t as bad as Bobs’. Bob wanted to see her every second of the day and wanted to see her all the time. Spencer was always shy and worried around girls because he liked her for a long time.

  Later that day, a young Sheriff came in to grab a burger before leaving and he stopped and looked and stared at Mr. Brown with wondering eyes because he had realized that the man was a man who was a pedophile and got restraining orders from many people because he was a creep and was a registered sex offender. But it was 9 years ago and he thought it wouldn’t matter after this long and well it did because the Sheriff, whose name was Tony Starks, a sheriff who has been working at the office since 2002. He is well respected by many of the people of the town and is admired and forgiven because of what he did to save a men’s life in the past. But while in Burgertown, you could see in the back, Spencer flipping burgers and you could also see Brittany working at the cash register.

  And he saw Bob at the corner of his eye and noticed him look and stared at Brittany’s every move. But he was nervous and his face was bright red and he didn’t want to be caught. So he just turned away and slowly did his job and pretended he was working. But Spencer, he threw the spatula down and then he stood by Mr. Brown and said, “Hey, why do you pay so much attention to her?””Why does it matter? He replied. “I think its kind of weird when all the time you do nothing but stare and flirt with the new cashier.” The sheriff was up to order and said,” Can I get a number 3?” “And is there a problem with you guys?” But he didn’t want to seem nosy and just stuttered when he asked if there was a problem. If Bob was to go to jail, Burgertown would be shut down and there would be a new company. But the people who lost their jobs would get a new job at the new resteraunt. Spencer looked confident that if he was to say something to the sheriff then maybe something would change. And did they want change? No they wa
nted to keep the old smelly rundown Burgertown. No one knows but they said it felt like home when they could bring back memories of flipping burgers and they said it could have meant something. But the general manager of the store, Bob if he was a pedophile, and working for female employees and male employees then something could have been wrong.

  Later that day, Spencer left and stopped at the police department and said,” Do you know the boss, why is he so creepy”, he wondered. And he said “well the man who you are working for is a pedophile and no one knows that he has had many felonies.” The man is a weirdo, he is worse than anyone that has ever stepped foot in Kentucky. He is marked down as one of the creepiest person in Kentucky. The store would then be shut down. They went down to burgertown the next day and they started questioning Bob. Because he needs to be in jail for what he has done. Many of the employees think that they should get a new boss that isn’t a weirdo. But Spencer likes her. And after Bob was gone, he could finally talk to her. Because he thought she was beautiful and amazing. But the best thing is that Bob brown was taken care of.

  The new boss was going to be hired next week and that they hope to get a better boss. But it was all because of Spencer because if he didn’t have a crush on her, then she wouldn’t be helped by him. And he truly wanted to help her because of how much he liked her. And that the day has come to an end but has set in peace.

  The Secret

  By: Christian Culver

  It was a beautiful summer night , and the sun was setting in the distance. The clouds were reflecting off the sunset and it formed this maroonish orange color and it made a person skylight and you could hear some coyotes in the woods about 600 feet away from my friends house. The friend himself is a different more aggressive and happy, but his family thinks he is bipolar and has bipolar issues but has also been suffering with depression since he was 11. But he’s unique. He is a sporty type of guy. He wrestles he does track, football, and he likes living in this small town. But he lives on a farm and has many farm animals and also has cats and dogs. He is happy, but is secretive about his past. He doesn’t really open up to you unless you are good friends. He is nice and hilarious. He’s talented and loves doing everything right. His name is Jackson. He’s a good friend of mine. His nickname around school is Jack. Jack also did this bad thing that if anyone found out he would spend 10 years in jail. But why would someone like this do something this bad?

  Jack likes people, but he doesn’t when people make him feel bad and feel sad for making fun of him. So he decided to do something, which was risky and which he didn’t know what would happen if he got caught. So it was this very peaceful night in 2018, Jackson had gathered a few of his buddies for what he was about to do. Andrew was a senior and another buddy was Xavier, who was still in the 11th grade, and he was a brainiac at school. He was doing college level math and yet he risking everything and putting everything on the line. So they drove to Jack’s house and it was about 10:42 and it was past curfew around the town. They used Jack’s key to get in the garage, and he found the moving totes and Jack found the one tote labeled on the side was “HALLOWEEN”. He picked up the tote and walked out of the garage as Andrew shut the door behind him and turned off the light and locked the door with his key and went inside and stepped quietly through the dark hallway and as they slowly creeped up the stairs and went to Jack’s room and set the tote on the bed and removed the lid and dumped the crate on his bed. Which everything from props to orange and black lights to masks fell from the crate. Xavier closed Jack’s bedroom door and picked up which looked like a Hockey mask. Jack picked up the white mask with a creepy grin on the mask. And finally Andrew picked up a hooded mask and they all put their masks on and walked slowly out of the house because Jack commanded everyone and had a plan for them. To continue, they left the house and drove away from the house to the nearest local gas station and he had just a handheld gun which was in the baggy sweatpants. They did what they did because Jackson had a lack of money.

  The crew, Xavier, Andrew, and Jack all drove around the parking lot near the gas station Jiffy Stop waiting for Jack to tell them what to do. They studied everything the night before. From blueprints to air vents. The day went on it was 11:34 almost past curfew. Jackson and his crew were waiting for the perfect time and that was about time. They put on their masks, walked into the gas station and stopped and looked at the foreign looking man and as they all shouted “Gimme the money!” The man looked frightened and shocked. The man was scared to death and said in a whimpering tone of voice and said “Ok just give me a second.” Xavier shouted aggressively “WE DON’T HAVE TIME TO WAIT?!” And he just pushed the man to the side and opened the cash register and took several bills from the cash register and soon after he slammed it shut. With their masks on the man didn’t know who the crew was. But in the background Jackson shouted, “The police are going to be here soon you better hurry Xavier.” All you could hear was the sirens whailing. Xavier got nervous and was staggering and his hands were shaking and he couldn’t take the bills any faster. They finally got done with taking the money and the police showed up and the sirens were whaling. They then hopped out of the store and into the matte black mustang. The police shouted “Put the money down and drop to your knees with your hands behind your back.” As they got in the mustang they sped away fast and the cops were chasing them in their police chargers with the red and blue lights flashing bright. They tried driving faster and the cops corned the three. They got out of the car and tried running for it and they let their k-9s loose. There was a fence and they hopped over it and soon after the dogs chased them down. Jackson barely made it over the fence. All of them got home safe. They ran 6 miles to get out of the area and went home and never revealed their secret.

  People have many fears and worries and thoughts that have been overthought. One fear is being all by your-self, alone. People get worried when they overthink about things that might not even need any thought to it. They just do it because their mind thinks that way and its 50% good and the other is obviously bad. It could end badly even if you were out having fun with your friends it could go horribly wrong when you think the wrong way.

  Alone

  By: Christian Culver

  Some people get scared because they’re judged for who they are and how they think and how much everything doesn’t matter. Well those people are important, people leave them out and they say, “Oh, Just be your-self man.” But then they are judged for who they really are. There is only some time you can actually trust someone and not only do you trust them, you think you could be happier if that person trusted you, which in some cases it is true because the people who actually care about others and show how much they care about others really shows who you are. Being lonesome can be scarce, many people have mental issues. Where they think everyone hates them for who they are and they think no one cares about them which isn’t true because many people care for the ones who think no one does. It means a lot to that person when they are showed who really cares about them.

  They would get picked on for being different even though they were human to and it was known as bullying but no one stood up for the one being down. The one being pushed down was the one who cared about others but weren’t acknowledged for it. Being alone can really be bad, you can think bad about yourself but no one will be there to stop you from doing something stupid but you don’t need to do anything stupid because you are not alone. People care and you would know it to. For all the people who think they are alone, they might think it but are really loved and cared for. They just don’t see it because of their mental problems. Those who suffer with anxiety or anything similar are scared of finding their-self alone.

  Never judge someone for how they are or how they act. They want to be normal like everyone else and just want acceptance because of them being alone in their life. Those people are just like anyone else in the world. They are just as human as any other person in the world. They should be recognized for who they are and sho
uld be accepted like a human being. Instead of kicking someone while they are already down, help them up and kick the dirt off of them. Instead of letting someone sit in the back of the class and being called an outcast or a “faggot” or any other term go talk to them. Make new friends because those people might need someone more than you think. Don’t judge someone for how they look or who they are or what they dress in to school because they might look like a hobo but inside are an angel. Or like a preppy rich kid dressed all fancy, you think he would be nice but on the inside he’s a demon. Don’t take looks more than personality. Because think about it, you staying up all night because you can’t sleep and have insomnia or anything similar to a sleeping syndrome and staying up all night thinking about you’re worth or importance in the world but you think that person could look happy and yet they still fake a smile, I could go on about how someone would stay up all night, not get any sleep and still feel alone, because they think that, its unexplainable but can be explained with what happened in the past or even what could happen. Which is also called overthinking which could happen when you are all by yourself and everyone in your house asleep and feeling that if you even tried to talk to someone who you thought might care, but they might not really care and yell at you and tell you that no one cares. When you could prove that person wrong by saying that people do care and they think about me all the time and really want me to be here on this planet. The people who stay up all night thinking to themselves about who they really are and think about why they are existing. Those people feel alone, they feel alone because they think no one wants them or wanted them to be here anymore, which is not true; they shouldn’t think that either because it isn’t true. Some people need all the help they can get which if you wanted to help you could or probably should help that person out and care for them. Those people do matter, no matter how many times you say it they might think otherwise but you can prove them wrong.

  They must feel alone because of their past or what happened to them that had a dramatic and sudden event that really changed their life, or even how they think about life. The people who seem downed and depressed is because they probably do and you should step in and give attention to those who you think not matter but really do. Because in time of need, you could possibly need that person to care for you because you thought you were alone and that person would be there to help you out. Alone is not a phase, but more of a time period where you can only change how you think and how you feel but you’re also the person to choose between good and bad. And if it would help you, being alone feels bad because I was one of those people who think that, and do that, if you can prove yourself wrong and you can show them how better you are than how you think it could really help you. But stop judging people by their character or physical appearance. So as my mom once told me, “treat others, how you want to be treated.”

  Never Giving Up

  By: Deidra Roth

  “LOOK OUT!” someone shouted out as I was shoved to the ground. My friends Matty and Nate ran over to help me off the ground.

  “Jesus Christ, people are brutal!” Nate said as he dusted me off.

  “It’s Warped Tour; everyone’s just trying to get to their favorite band to watch them.” Matty said as he pulled me and Nate off to the side, and out of the fast moving people. We began to walk towards Matty’s tent; after all, one of my best friends, the lead singer of Memphis May Fire has a job to do.

  A few minutes later, we arrived at the MMF tent “How long until you guys go on? I need to know so I can get some of the tech hooked up.” I looked at Matty, having to squint a little because of the sun.

  “We go in an hour; if you want, you and Nate can go watch other bands or stay here. It’s up to you.” He said handing me their newest band shirt and their album labeled ‘The Hollow” with everyone’s signature on both the shirt and album. “Happy early birthday Siren, from me and the band.”

  “I told you, you didn’t have to get me anything.” I said looking at him with the shirt and album in hand.

  “Look, I know you didn’t, but I knew you wanted both of them, and you never let me get anything for you!” he replied with puppy dog eyes.

  “Ugh! I’ll take it, but only this time because you know I’m no match for your puppy eyes!” I said with a defeated sigh. “When are signings? I want to be back in time in case you need help.”

  “Right after we perform. It’s going to be beyond crazy, there are a lot of people here today.” I looked at Matty, then Nate, and then nodded.

  “I don’t know about you Nate, but I’m going to go check out the bands that are playing.”

  “I think I’m going to stay here and chill with the band,” he said, “tell me if there are any noteworthy bands out there.”

  “You got it Nate.” I turned to go walk off, when Matty grabbed arm.

  “Please be careful out there, if you get hurt, either find a medic or get back here, and don’t go off with strangers please.” He begged.

  “Okay, I promise that I’ll be as careful as I can, and I won’t go off with any strangers.” I replied as I turned to walk off.

  I began to walk around looking at the different bands performing today, and I looked at the banners. Twenty One Pilots, Juliet Simms, Asking Alexandria, Black Veil Brides, I Killed the Prom Queen, Escape the Fate, and so on. After a while, I stopped paying attention to where I was going until someone shouted “Death Wall!” I looked up and I was right in the middle of a death wall; I began to run to the end to get out. I wasn’t going to make it, just then; someone pushed me out of the way and accidentally landed on top of me.

  I opened my eyes and saw a guy who didn’t look much older than 25, he had light brown hair, and gorgeous light brown eyes. “Sorry,” he began in a voice that had a little bit of edge in it. “I saw you trying to get to the end; it didn’t look like you were going to make it, so I thought that maybe I could help.” He finished saying as he stood up and held his hand out; he looked really tall from down here, he must be around 6’4”. After I took his hand, he pulled me up and I started to brush myself off. “I’m Austin, it’s nice to meet you; minus the circumstance.” He held his hand out.

  “My name’s Siren.” I replied as I shook his hand, we began to slowly walk toward the food tents.

  “Siren, that’s an interesting name.” he said as he looked at me and smiled.

  “I like the name Austin more.” I responded.

  “Nah, my name’s so common, yours is so unique!” he said with a laugh and lightly elbowed me.

  We stood in one of the lines, and grabbed a plate; the lines were relatively short because most people were either watching bands, in a mosh pit, or participating in death walls. When we got to the front of the line, I grabbed a burger, fries, an apple, a Monster, and a bottle of water. After we had both paid, we began to eat and walk towards the band tents. After I had taken the last bite of my apple, I threw my garbage away, and looked at the time on my phone. I still had half an hour before Matty and the guys were supposed to go on. I put my phone away and took a swig of my Monster; we continued to walk for a little longer.

  A few minutes later, Nate came running up, and was out of breath. “We gotta go, the band before them had a short set so they’re going to have to go on in 15!” he stopped talking for a second to catch his breath, “Who’s this? You know Matty said no strangers.” I looked at Austin, then back to Nate.

  “He kind of saved me from having to go to the hospital though, I’ll tell you later; right now, we gotta go to the stage,” I turned to Austin, “I’m sorry Austin, thanks for saving me, but I gotta go; technical difficulties. Bye.” I turned away and began to jog off with Nate.

  When we arrived at the tent, I immediately put on my show clothes, threw my hair into two high ponytails, put in one of my earpieces, and put my wireless headset on. I rushed to the stage and began hooking up various machines backstage. After I was done, I found the band and wished them good luck; then I started hookin
g their earpieces up to their mics and station so they can hear us.

  Fifteen minutes later, they started their set by singing ‘Generation: Hate’ and I began to sing along to myself. “I’m calling out my generation. You should be ashamed ‘cuz you’re the ones to blame. This isn’t how it’s supposed be!” I sang as the song ended.

  “For this next song, I’m gonna bring out my good friends Siren and Nate to help me sing these next few songs; guys come on out!” I took off my headset, handed Nate his mic, and put in our earpieces, and ran out on stage. As I walked to center stage with Nate to greet Matty, I saw something out of the corner of my eye; I looked over and saw Austin in the crowd; I waved. “All right all right; this next one’s called ‘Jezebel,’ we hope you enjoy!” Nate walked over and grabbed his guitar to help out Kellen and Tony while I grabbed my bass to help Cory.

  As the song started, I began to strum along with Cory and sing “Just leave, just leave; we’re better off without your disease, disease! Take your pick from the willing, but you’ll never get me. It’s obvious the stage is all that you see, so take your pick from the willing, but you’ll never get me!” I began to jump around, and then walked over to Nate; before I knew it, the song was over and Matty took the mic again.

  “Thank you! And now, for our final song ‘Beneath the Skin,’ again we hope you’ve enjoyed the show so far!” With that, Tony and Nate started the song with a wicked guitar part, then Jake with drums, Kellen, Cory, and I joined in; last but not least, Matty in with vocals. “Another day she sets foot in this prison, dreading what they’ll say. So much to give, but no one ever listens…” I walk towards side stage, grab my water bottle, and take a swig; looking up to find some girls with back stage passes and Austin, I wave and walk back on.

  I walk back on stage with perfect timing too; I started singing, “No one knows all the weight she holds when she feels alone. The memories, they haunt her. No one knows all the weight she holds when she feels alone. The memories, they haunt her!” after I sing the chorus, I start dancing around again and end up standing on one side of Matty with Nate on the other.

  “Thank you, we are, Memphis May Fire; with special guests Siren and Nate!” we started to walk off stage and pack our tech, and equipment.

  Ten minutes later, I grabbed everyone bottled water and headed back to the tent. “Matty, Kellen, Cory, Tony, Jake, and Nate.” I said as I handed each of them a bottle.

  “Thanks!” they somehow all said in unison; I rolled my eyes and hopped up on the stool beside Nate. Most of the fans got the bands autographs; a few wanted me and Nate to sign the stuff as well, even though us performing was a onetime thing.

  After the signing was done, I grabbed my sunglasses, a Monster, my lanyard with ID and passes just in case. I began to walk around again to see what bands were playing this time ‘round; Icon For Hire, Flyleaf, Foo Fighters, Blood On the Dance Floor, and Snow White’s Poison Bite. I took a long swig of my Monster and kept walking.

  A few minutes later, I found myself walking past the Shark Stage; a guy’s vocals caught my attention. I turned to see Austin on stage with a mic; I looked at the band’s background “Of Mice & Men” was written on one poster, while a conch shell was on the other. I tuned to watch them for their set when Austin’s eyes caught mine. He smiled while still singing and I couldn’t look away; “I said I’d fight back, I didn’t say that I’d fight fair! I said I’d fight back, I didn’t say that I’d fight fair!” he sang. “Thank you guys so much, and now, for our final song of the night; this is our new song ‘Never Giving Up!’” as he said that, the crowd went wild; the bassist started singing.

  “Even though I can see it, in your face; I can’t really explain. Just how broken and empty and disgraced you seem to be!” then they switched.

  “You cut me out and dragged me down,”

  “Pulled me all the way to the bottom,” the bassist finished.

  Austin replied with, “I’ve done for you ‘till black and blue,”

  “What no one else would do for the fallen!” the bassist sang as the song began to pick up; the rest of the song was Austin and the other guy replying and finishing each other’s verses.

  After the song was over, I walked over to the drink tent to get another Monster. A few seconds later, I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see a sweaty Austin smiling.

  “Hey nice set, I didn’t know you were in a band.” I said handing him a Monster.

  “It’s new, but I could say the same to you.” He replied slightly elbowing me.

  “I’m not. Well, yet; I’m just Memphis May Fire’s tech and merch girl who happens to be friends with Matty and can sing.” I replied with a slight giggle. He nodded and we began to walk towards the tour buses; drinking our drinks along the way. When we got to the lot, we found out that our buses were right next to each other, so he invited me on their bus.

  After I stepped on the bus, Austin introduced me to their drummer, Tino, guitarists, Phil and Alan, and bassist, Aaron; we became fast friends

 

  A couple of weeks had passed and I had been hanging Austin, Tino, Alan, Phil, and Aaron at every new Warped location. “Are you two dating yet?” Alan asked while whining at me and Austin.

  “Alan, calm down; they didn’t meet that long ago, so stop being a pest.” Tino said looking between me and Austin and Alan. I began to feel heat rising in my cheeks as I looked at Austin; it seemed that Alan’s statement had made him blush too. “Alan come on, I’m hungry and I know you are too.” Tino said grabbing two Rockstars out of the mini fridge and handing one to Alan as they walked out the door.

  “I’ll come too, I’m starving!” Phil said as he jogged down the bunk hall.

  Fifteen minutes later Aaron came down the hall with his bag in hand, “Hey Austin, I’m going to visit my girlfriend since we have the day off.” Aaron said as he grabbed his keys and jacket.

  “Tell Ashley I said I!” he shouted as Aaron shut the door.

  “So, um, that was awkward, what Alan said earlier.” I said clearing my throat.

  “Would you?” Austin quietly asked.

  “What?” I asked not hearing him the first time.

  “Would you go out with me?” he asked again louder.

  “Oh,” I said heat rising to my face again “Of course.” I said taking a drink of my water; he looked at me with a grin.

  “Really?” he questioned.

  “Yeah.” I responded with a smile. He hugged me across the small table, and kissed my cheek.

 

  A few weeks later, I was on stage with Matty and Nate, when I felt my phone going off like a madman in my pocket; when I looked at it, I had about a billion texts from Alan, Phil, Aaron, and Tino. I ran off stage to read some of them, and they were not good. I got on the dead mic and said, “Matty, I’m sorry, but I need to go; something’s wrong.” I saw him nod on stage; I put my bass on its stand, and ran to the busses. DING, another text, I pulled out my phone and the text was from Phil, “Come to the hospital on 6th Street, and hurry.” I murmured as I read it. I ran to my bunk and grabbed my sunglasses, keys, jacket, bag, and then headed to my car.

  Ten minutes later, I pulled into the hospital parking lot, and ran inside; I saw everyone sitting in the waiting room, except for Austin. I ran up to them and asked “What’s wrong with Austin?”

  “He had another heart failure; he just got out of surgery.” Alan said in a monotone voice while staring at the ground. I started to get tears in my eyes at thought of Austin having heart problems; he seems like he wouldn’t have them, he’s such a giddy guy and he’s always up for playing around and being hyper.

  “He wants to see you,” Tino said looking up from the ground, “The nurse will show you where his room is.” I stood up and hugged all of the guys before I walked through the doors.

  I was walking down the hall and asked a nurse where his room was; she took me to his room and shut the door behind me. Austin looked over as the door shut. H
e smiled at me, but I could still see his pain from his from the procedure. “Hey,” he started as I walked towards his bed.

  “Hey,” I said as I sat on the corner of his bed, “How are you feeling?”

  “I’m okay, it was a minor surgery compared to some of my others,” He said reassuring me while reaching over to hug me. “I’ll be back at it sooner than you think babe.” Tears started rolling down my cheeks; he pulled me close and wiped the tears off of my face. “Don’t cry, I’ll be fine!”

  “I just got so worried because I was on stage, performing when my phone started going crazy, and I rushed here leaving everyone still going. I was scared to death when Alan told me what happened, and I didn’t know what to do! To be honest, I was a little afraid that I would lose you!” I was crying less, but still crying in Austin’s arms.

  “You’d never lose me babe,” I sniffled “I don’t know how many more I’ll have to have, or if that was my last one, but I’m not leaving you. We can get through this together, if you want; you don’t have to but--”

  “Austin,” I stated looking him in the eyes; I kissed his cheek and said, “I’m never giving up on you.”

  FADING MEMORIES

  By: Deidra Roth

  CRACK! I fell to the ground as lightning struck the ground no more than ten feet away from me, and everything went white for a few minutes. I got up, and pulled my thin sweater off, tied it around my waist, leaned up against the cool brick wall, and closed my eyes. I felt his aura stand next to me; I shouldn’t have dragged him into this mess, but I saved his life at the same time. How ironic; I met this boy only two days ago and I had saved his life, but at the same time I almost got him killed. I knew that I couldn’t kill him because of Broken Sky, but I don’t know anymore. I took a few deep breaths as I tried to recall everything that had happened in the last 48 hours. How could have all of this happen in 48 hours, and how could I not remember any of it?

 

  I was sitting on top of the mausoleum in the cemetery, when the fog began to set in. I pulled my thin sweater tighter over me, and reached over to grab my cloak. My black eyes turned gold so I could see better; I saw a figure move behind a mausoleum. I stood, but stayed on top of my mausoleum because whatever was out there, it wasn’t good; I had a feeling. I heard others closing in on me; I focused on the thermal energy every single one of them was expelling. It seemed one of them wasn’t focused on me, as if he was just visiting a grave. I brought my attention back to the group of men in black trench coats starting to surround me, and my heart rate went up rapidly.

  “So you’re the one everyone’s fussing about.” One of the men started talking, and began to slowly walk forward. I stood in the ready position because if you’re like me, you trust nobody. “You’re the famous Crow everyone is out to get.” He began to circle around the mausoleum while I watched his every move. Using their thermal energy, I counted that there were 10 of them, 11 counting Mr. annoying; then I sensed another body, the boy from the grave was watching now.

  “Get her!” he shouted, 5 of the men ran towards the mausoleum and I jumped to the next mausoleum over. One of the men jumped on the same one as me, and he threw a punch. I ducked and round-house kicked him off the mausoleum. I felt my blood begin to heat up, and my fang began to elongate.

  “What do you want from me?!” I shouted, trying to contain the beast within.

  “I’m Frederick, and we just want to talk to you.” The man I knocked off of the mausoleum said.

  “I don’t very well believe that,” I crouched down, and stared at one of the men coming closer “You don’t have that kind of aura, in fact, you kind of have a vampire’s aura, nice try hiding it from me.” My gold eyes flickered to the boy watching, back to Frederick. CRUNCH! My eyes flickered to the boy; he had stepped backwards onto a branch. The men turned, and began to walk towards the boy; I used my energy to cover the graveyard in fog. Within an instant, I used my hyper speed, the hop off the mausoleum and run to the boy.

  “Come on!” I whispered as I stopped for a second and grabbed him. We began to run, but didn’t hear anyone pursuing us; we kept running, until the boy was out of breath.

  We stepped out into a fairly open field, and stood there for a couple of minutes. “Who are you?!” he asked as he caught his breath.

  “You need not know who I am, for if you do, it will only bring you trouble.” I replied as my eyes turned from gold to black again.

  “What was that all about? And how can you run so fast?” he asked after he had finally caught his breath.

  “You need not know that either, all you need to know is that those are very bad men. They don’t care who you are, if you’re in their way, they will get rid of you.” I began to walk back into the woods.

  “Wait!” he said he said trying to catch up with me, “Where are you going.”

  “To finish a job, the road is that way.” I said pointing to the side as I was still walking. He didn’t follow my advice, he just kept following me.

  “Is your name Crow?” he asked trying to keep up with me.

  “I said you need not know anything about me.” I said not looking back. I just kept walking, and he just kept following me. “What’s your name kid?” I asked still walking.

  “First off, I’m not a kid, I’m 17; two, the name’s Alix.” He replied having to jog to catch up.

  “Whatever. Alix, go home. This doesn’t concern you.” He began walking forward. I could feel his energy fading away; the further he got, the safer he was. From me, at least…

  Five minutes later, I was sitting on a fallen tree positioned on the balls of my feet with my arms draped over my legs; listening to everything all at once, but at the same time one at a time. My eyes turned white as my ears picked up multiple sounds that didn’t belong in the woods. For starters, I heard a gun being cocked; then I heard a bunch of twigs breaking, and heavy breathing as if there was a chase afoot. My fangs were coming out, but only slightly; I hopped off of the tree, and began to run in the direction of all of the commotion. With my cloak whipping against the wind behind me, I was behind the group within three minutes. “Man, it comes in handy being a hybrid sometimes.” I thought to myself as I pumped my arms harder, so I could see what was causing the commotion.

  A few seconds later, I was running beside Alix; he was the reason the woods weren’t calm. “What are you doing?” I shouted as I ran beside him.

  “I was leaving like you said, but these guys appeared again; this time, they pointed a gun at my head.” He replied in between breaths.

  “When I say three, you jump forwards, okay?”

  “I don’t know about this, they’ll catch us.” He said turning his head to look at me.

  “You worry about getting ahead of me, and I’ll worry about them. Okay?” I said turning to show him that he could trust me.

  “Okay” he said it quiet enough so that only I could hear it.

  “One….. Two….. Three!” he jumped and I turned my attention to a tree beside me. My eyes turned gold as I focused all of my energy onto the tree; within five seconds, it came crashing down behind me, blocking the path of the group of men. I got up and ran to Alix as my eyes turned black again.

  “We will get you, you sneaky hybrid!” we heard a shout from the other side of the fallen tree.

  “Come on, let’s go.” I said grabbing his arm to help him off the ground. We began to run again, and I had some fog set in to cover our tracks.

  “Hybrid? Why did he call you that?” He asked once we had stopped by the road.

  “Fine, I’ll tell you, but you can’t freak out okay?” I said as my partially sticking out fangs began to retract.

  “Um… Okay.” He stated not sure if he wanted to know the answer. I took a deep breath in to calm down.

  “I’m not like you--” I began.

  “No duh! I know you’re not like me.” He interrupted.

  “If you want to know, then shut your trap,” I
paused waiting for a response; not getting one, I continued, “I’m a hybrid; ya know, half wolf, half demon?”

  “Is that how you’re doing all of this?” he asked. I nodded, while he paced back and forth. “Actually, this wasn’t too much of a surprise, my uncle was a wolf; alpha to be exact. What are you to your pack?”

  “I was my pack’s Beta, but my pack is gone now. They were all killed by the vampires chasing us.” I replied, no emotions showing on my face.

  “Wait! Vampires?” he asked sounding shocked.

  “Yeah, you honestly didn’t believe that wolves could exist without those bloodsuckers did you?” I asked looking back at him.

  “Well, I never really thought about it--” He began.

  “Wait! You said was Alpha, what happened?” I asked.

  “He was killed three and a half years ago.” He said turning away for a moment.

  “If you don’t mind me asking, do you know what his pack’s name was?” I asked with a piqued curiosity.

  “I think the pack was named the ‘Broken Sky Pack,’ why?” he asked.

  “I knew your uncle. I was his Beta, he was my Alpha. I’m the last living member of the Broken Sky wolf pack.” I said turning away.

  A few seconds later, I whipped my head around to listen. “RUN!” I shouted, but it was too late; Frederick had grabbed Alix, and bit him. Once he was done, Alix had hollow red eyes.

  “Alix, attack your enemy. NOW!” Frederick said turning away. I turned to start running, but Alix had the same idea. Now I was the mouse and Alix was the cat; the protector became the prey. He was harder to lose now that he had faster reflexes like me, just barely slower. He chased me for about two miles, and then we reached the town. He chased me up and down allies until he jumped on top of me; pinning me down.

  “Alix, stop! Think about what you’re doing!” I said struggling to get out from under him. He just used more of his newborn strength to hold me down. He looked me in the eyes, and I could have sworn I could still see Alix in him, but I couldn’t reach him until he came out of his newborn strength. Before I could get loose, he bit me right above the shoulder blade. My hybrid senses kicked in and one of my eyes went white, the other gold; it somehow protected me against Alix’s bite though. After a few seconds, he relaxed his grip a little, and I kicked him off. My fangs came out, and my beast began to come out; I growled at him, and started running down the alley to get away. All of the sudden, CRASH! Everything went white… Here we are face to face, hybrid and vampire, with a choice of the future of Broken Sky to make.

 

  The Punk & the Wanted

  By: Deidra Roth

  SCREECH! The bus slid to a stop, and opened the doors. It was a rainy October evening; I was sitting in the back of the bus to the left. No one could really see me with my hood drawn over my head. Like I wanted to be seen; it’s not every day a criminal charged with manslaughter escapes from prison, especially not a 17 year old girl. Sadly, it won’t be in the news because I did a very nice recreation of my “suicide” so nobody knows I’m still alive. The bus stopped, and a teenager stepped onto the bus, and made his way to the back of the bus. He was about 6’ 3”, fairly lanky, and dressed in a black, distressed leather jacket. Along with worn down, ripped blue jeans, red and worn down, combat boots. He had dark brown eyes, so dark, they almost looked black. He had medium length blue, black, and green hair formed into a spikey Mohawk, but those eyes, they looked as if they held all of the sadness of the world in them, they were the kind of eyes that made you feel as if they were staring into who you really are; into your soul. My eyes furrowed together because I felt somewhere deep down in my bones, I knew who this teen was. I felt as if I have known those sad and soulful eyes forever; the problem was, when?

  The bus was completely empty except for the bus driver, the tall teen, and me because it was the dead hour. No one goes out during the dead hour unless you’re crazy or you’re working. The dead hour is the hour of criminals and police; I was crazy for being out during dead hour; I’m an escaped convict attempting to hide from the police! He started walking to the back of the bus towards me; I started sinking further down into the seat. He stopped in front of my seat, and asked in a medium-deep voice “Do you mind if I sit here?” I replied by keeping my head down and not moving an inch. He let out a sigh, sat down in the seat across from me, and opened a book. I looked out of the corner of my eye to see that he was reading a book titled Shadow and Bone. He looked towards me trying to catch my eyes, but I looked away as fast as I could.

  Five minutes later, the teen stood up and started to talk about how the world was going to end if we didn’t turn green, and treat the earth better. There must be something wrong with this guy’s head, who delivers a speech on a bus with three total people on it? I look up, and the bus driver is looking at the boy through his mirror and shaking his head. I start to look down when the boy shouted, “LOOK!” and pointed out the window. I slowly turned my attention to outside the bus and saw two, black, raven feathers gliding down from the sky.

  “Boy! You’re making me lose my patience! Now sit down and shut up or get off my bus!” bus driver shouted. A phone began to ring, and the boy began to reach inside his jacket.

  “Hello?” the boy asked waiting for a reply. “I’m almost there… her? It can’t be! It’s not! Goodbye!”

  “BOY! That’s it! Get off of my bus!” the bus driver shouted. He hung up the phone angrily, put a note on his seat, and then hopped off the bus.

  The bus driver pulled away a couple of minutes later, and I put my head down again. I then remembered about the note the guy left in the seat. The bus stopped at a stop light, and I reached for the note. Unfortunately, being distracted by the note, I didn’t see the police climbing onto the bus.

  “Put your hands up! We won’t hurt you if you just comply.” I stayed sitting as if nothing was happening. One of the police men charged up to me and threw me out of the seat. Another police man grabbed me and threw me off of the bus causing me to get a busted lip.

  “I told you all you had to do was comply!” the first officer said again. He shoved me up against the hood of the police cruiser, and forced handcuffs around my wrist. I looked up to see the teenager getting back on the bus and the police man slammed me back onto the hood of the cruiser. He stood me up, walked me to the back of the cruiser, and forcefully shoved me into the car. I looked out the window to see the teenager on the corner smirking with the note tucked between his right index and middle finger as if he was holding a cigarette. I smirked back at him and he smiled back; suddenly the whole world stopped because I knew who those eyes belonged to. Those eyes knew me; they knew I’d be back out faster than he could count to 12, and he had a plan.

  As the cruiser pulled away, the boy began to smirk before turning and tucking the unread note into his pocket, and suddenly, I realized that I knew who I was dealing with.

  “Chris, you sneaky devil. I don’t see you in three years, and now you show up? And in such manner?” I mumbled to myself as I shook my head.

  “Excuse me, I need to use the restroom.” I said to the first officer.

  “Hold it, we’ll be at the prison soon.” He replied making eye contact.

  I smirked, “Look, I gotta pee.” I persisted.

  “Fine, but don’t plan on escaping he said with a wink.

  “Oh, I won’t, I’ve already escaped… nice disguise Kaleb.”

  “Thank ya very much, I try. Now let’s get you to see what Chris’s note was all about.” He said as he put the keys in the ignition.

  Broken Glass

  By: Deidra Roth

  “Boo!” my friend shrieked as she jumped out from behind a mirror.

  “Didn’t scare me Max!” I said, and lightly shoving her, I explained, “I saw your reflection in another mirror.” she made a pouty face and I started laughing.

  “Also, we’re in an antique shop, stop being dumb before
you break everything. Now help me find a present for my mom.” She sighed and started looking. After a while, I stumbled upon a mirror with a crack down the middle of it.

  “Excuse me miss, but why does this mirror have a crack down the center of it?” the owner gave me a confused look and walked over.

  “I just had that mirror fixed yesterday! How does it already have a crack in it?!” she said, her voice laced with confusion.

  “Maybe it was the cold breeze that comes through the door?” Max questioned, “It is the middle of winter after all.”

  She shook her head, “No, the breeze turns to heat by the time it reaches the back. That’s why I keep all of the mirrors back here. UGH! This has happened two times already! I hate this mirror!”

  “I’ll tell you what; I will buy the mirror and my item on hold.” I replied to the owner’s frustration.

  She gave me a look of concern as she replied while lightly giving the mirror a kick, “Are you positive you want to buy this god-awful mirror?” I nodded and went to the checkout to pay for the mirror and my on hold item. My mother’s present would have to wait to be found.

  When Max and I returned to my house, I stripped the broken glass out of the frame, and put the new glass in, then placed it in the corner of my room. Did I even realize that that night would be the start of it all?

  The next morning, I woke up, went to wake Max up, and returned to my room. I began to get dressed, and looked in the mirror; my mouth dropped open in shock, the mirror had a crack down the middle of it from top to bottom. “Are you kidding?” I asked myself, walking out of the room. I grabbed my keys, coat, boots, and said, “Come on Max, we’re going to breakfast.” Max grabbed her coat, shoes, and followed me out the door.

  When we returned from breakfast, the trunk from the end of my bed was opened and sitting in the hallway. I threw Max a confused look; only I have a key to my place. Max walked up to the trunk and screamed, then picked up something from inside the trunk; it was a dead mouse. I walked up to the trunk and saw that there were dozens of dead mice in the bottom of the trunk. I took the trunk outside, dumped all the mice out, put soapy water in it, and closed the lid.

  “Max, can you help me get the trunk in the cellar please?” she picked up her side of the trunk, I grabbed mine, and we carried it down the cellar stairs.

  When we went back inside, I went to my room, and froze. On the mirror written in red lipstick, ‘Miss Me?’ and the mirror had another crack in it, it ran the full length of the mirror too.

  “Max, come here!” I shouted down the hallway, I heard a door slam, but I didn’t know where it had come from. Max appeared in the doorway and walked over to me.

  “What’s wrong?” Max asked, confusion laced in her voice; I pointed at the mirror.

  “What?” she asked again.

  “Do you not see the cracks or the words ‘miss me’ on the mirror?”

  “What are you talking about,” she asked confused. “There’s nothing there.” I blinked; she was right, no words, no cracks, just a mirror.

  A couple of hours later, I walked back in my room; there were now three cracks in the mirror, the name ‘Mary’ and an old picture of a family, but the faces were burned out, except for a little girl’s. I took the picture, erased the lipstick, only to find out; it wasn’t lipstick, it was a sticky substance that I could only assume was blood. I took the mirror, and locked it in the cellar for years to come; there was no way I was dealing with some supernatural stuff right now.

  When I walked out of the cellar, Max questioned, “What are you going to do with it?”

  I replied, “I don’t know yet, but I’ll figure it out, I promise…

  The Steampunk Inventor

  By: Deidra Roth

  “ELIZABETH!” my sister screamed from the dining hall. I walked down the grand staircase, through the great hall, and into the dining hall; I sat in my seat at the table, waiting for dinner to arrive. After a few minutes, a tall man with broad shoulders, and a gold chest plate strapped across his chest and down his arm, with too much clockwork on it walked through the door, “Oh! Esteban! You’ve come!” Victoria cheerfully announced as he took his spot next to her, and kissed her cheek.

  “Disgusting,” I muttered under my breath so neither of them would hear me. “One of these days, I’ll make an invention that can fly me far away from here.” I continued still muttering.

  “Silly child! It’s 1882, how would you make something as stupid as that?” Victoria questioned and then began to laugh.

  Just then, the maids began to bring supper out; Esteban was given the most food, then Victoria, with a normal sized meal, and then I was given nothing but scraps and fat off of the chicken. The maids looked at me with a look of sympathy, wishing they could give me more to eat, but they were only following the orders of the lady of the house a.k.a. my sister. Victoria, without a doubt hated my guts, but I had never known why. Ever since my parents had passed away, and I came back from boarding school, Victoria had been trying to ruin my life; and I’m getting real sick of it.

  After supper had ended, Victoria had retreated to her chambers with Esteban… ‘Eww’ I thought to myself, I began my climb up the grand staircase to the greenhouse. I took my time walking passed the solars, the bed chambers, my late mother’s boudoir, my late father’s cabinet, and my bed chamber. I dug around the pockets in my dress for the greenhouse key; there was no way I was letting Victoria get into this green house, I took over tending to the plants after mother had died for a reason. I slowly unlocked the door, and it began to quietly swing open.

  When I walked in, I grabbed the watering can, and began to water the plants. I took my time carefully and delicately giving each plant the correct amount of water. As I began to near the back, I replaced my watering can with a bag of flies and sighed. “Are you hungry?” I asked approaching the traps; I rolled my eyes, “Venus Fly Traps can’t talk, so I’m basically talking to myself.” I shook my head, “I’m going absolutely bonkers… be quiet!’” I exclaimed to myself. I stopped moving as I heard a set of footsteps approaching; I held my breath as the footsteps stopped in front of the greenhouse doors.

  Whoever it was, they tried to open the doors to no avail, and I then heard a familiar, quiet voice say, “Liza? Are you in there?” I let out a sigh of relief and walked to the door. I unlocked the door and pulled her in through the doors.

  “Bridget! You scared me half to death!” I exclaimed with a relieved laugh.

  “I’m sorry! I would have been here sooner, but you know, clothes are getting more and more intricate.” She said with a sigh. I looked at her clothes up and down. She was wearing a greenish, floor length dress, a green, pinstripe corset, with matching armbands that went from wrist to elbow, a bustle skirt cover on the back of her dress, a lace chocker that connected to her corset, a decorative headpiece with feathers and a small hat.

  I giggled, “Yours might be, but mine’s not. It rarely changes, and that’s how I would like it to be.

  “Your style never changes because your mother asked you and you said you’d rather keep it than wear long dresses like me.” She replied with a smirk. I looked down at my own clothes; I like my style; I don’t care if no one else does. I always wear a white, layered, ruffle dress that comes above my knees a little, a dark brown, leather waistcoat with brown and white lace layers, a belt with two small bags to put small stuff in, leather gloves that matched my waist coat, my goggles around my neck, thigh-high, white, lace socks, and leather boots that match my waistcoat, and come down a little below my knees.

  “I don’t care if anyone doesn’t like my style, it’s meant to please me, and it does because nothing gets in my way when I’m doing things.” I said smoothing down my dress.

  “Nothing gets in your way because our mother had your style custom fit to you so you wouldn’t ruin your clothes inventing or exploring.” She said walking around and inspecting the plants.

  �
�Either way, I like it; and that’s the end of it.” I opened one of the pouches on my belt and dug out a small bottle with a piece of cork in it. I grabbed a pen off of the table and wrote ‘Dragon Lilly’ on it and handed it to Bridget. “Here, put this in your mother’s tea, it will give her more energy and help with memory loss.”

  She nodded and replied, “Thank you.” We both went to walk out when we heard footsteps; we froze. They were women’s heels clinking against the hall’s floor, and they slowed to a stop in front of the greenhouse doors. They banged on the doors and a shout followed.

  “OH LIZZIE! I HAVE A SURPRISE FOR YOU; COME QUICK!” I glanced at Bridget then looked at the hole in the roof that led to my lab; she nodded and began to climb through the hole. I waited until she was out of sight to unlock the door; I walked out into the hall and looked at my sister.

  “What?” I asked annoyed.

  “I have a present for you, come with me.” She began to drag me away from the greenhouse before I could lock the doors. She then led me through the castle; through the great hall, the kitchen, past the servant’s apartments, through the storerooms, undercrofts, and to the gatehouses. She then yanked my arm, and we went back though everyplace we had just been. Finally, we had appeared in front of the greenhouse again.

  “Why did you drag me around the castle just to bring me back here?” I asked feeling her out for her ulterior motive.

  “I just needed to get a nice walk with you before your surprise.” She stated as she began to open the door; I was confused, ‘I always lock the door, why didn’t I this time?’ I asked myself in my head ‘Oh no! She dragged me off before I could lock the doors.’ She dragged me in, I gasped in horror at the display in front of me. There were snakes all over the room, and they were eating all of the plants. “Oh no! Then again, Ireland is known for the infestation of snakes; I guess our grounds keeper wasn’t’ doing his job.” She said in sarcastic voice; she made it so obvious that she did this. I picked up a pair of garden shears from the table and began to cut off all of the snake’s heads. She walked out of the room, and I looked around at what was left of my mother’s greenhouse.

  The only thing that I could find that wasn’t harmed in some way was a Venus Fly Trap I had named Hex; the only reason he was unharmed, was because he had been in a cupboard because he was a special trap that needed darkness to grow.

  Bridget began to climb down into the greenhouse and gasped. “What happened?”

  “My sister had Esteban bring a bunch of snakes in here so they would destroy the plants.”

  “How did they get in? You always lock the doors.”

  I knelt down and picked up the bloody garden shears and replied, “She dragged me down the hall before I could lock the door. She did this to get back at me for being mother’s favorite daughter.” I signaled for her to come out of the greenhouse and to come with me. We walked down the hall a bit to my bed chambers, and I pulled out two medium sized chests. “Help me pack, I’m leaving; I don’t plan on coming back either.” I said as I grabbed a few of my dresses and put them in a chest; then returned to the closet for more dresses. She began to help put clothes in the chests without doubting my reasons.

  After everything was packed, I picked up the last trap and Bridget turned to me and asked “You’re really leaving, aren’t you?” I nodded as we snuck out of the castle through one of the abandoned undercrofts. We began to walk towards the woods and head towards her family’s blacksmith shop.

  When we arrived at her family’s shop/apartment I stated, “We have 15 minutes before my cousin’s carriage arrives.” She looked at me with a look of confusion, “You make it obvious, I know you’re going to want to come; hurry, we don’t have much time.” I began to push her into the shop.

 

  The carriage rolled to a stop as it reached the docks of the harbor and I swung the carriage door open. I stepped down and reached for the chest Bridget was handing to me.

  After the last chest was out of the carriage, we waved goodbye to the carriage driver as he drove off down the road. I took a deep breath of the sea air and picked up my chests, “Come on Bridget, our future awaits us.” We walked towards the steamboat and began to board.

  “Where are we going Lizzie?” Bridget asked turning to me. “Scotland; the Scottish Highlands to be exact.” She giggled as she turned to face the ocean.

  “Why Scotland?” she asked.

  “My cousin lives there. He can help us find a place.”

  “We’re goin’ to live in Scotland, and we can go to pubs every night.” She sang as I began to crack up with laughter.

  “That is literally the worst Scottish accent I’ve ever heard, and I’ve heard some pretty bad ones before!” We laughed for a few minutes more, and then fell asleep.

 

  DING! I woke up to the sounds of bells dinging and a male voice shouting, “Land!” I sat up and began to shake Bridget awake. I then reached into my pocket and grabbed the trap that I had put in a glass case and some dead flies in a small jar. I opened the jar and dug out few flies; I then opened the case and gave the trap the flies.

  After I had put the jar and the case away, we had reached shore, and passengers were slowly departing. I stood up, smoothed my dress down, grabbed my chests, and got off of the boat. I looked around and saw a boy waving; I got Bridget to follow me as I walked up to the man. “Good day my lady.” He exclaimed as he bowed, taking my hand and kissing the knuckles.

  “I’m taking it you’re Benjamin?” I asked as he gave a slight chuckle.

  “Yes, but you can call me Ben; you must be Elizabeth!” he bowed as I curtsied.

  “I am, but you can call me Liza." I looked at Bridget, “This is my best friend, Bridget.” She curtsied as I introduced her.

  “Well it’s lovely to meet you, but your cousin is also expecting you, so we should get going.” I nodded as we followed him to the carriage. “Your cousin has a surprise for you Liza.”

 

  After a few minutes, we arrived at the castle and began to unload; the front door opened and my cousin walked out among his king’s guard. “Liza! You’re here; Bridget great to see you!” he said with open arms walking towards me, I hugged him back, “Speaking of, I have a present for you at dinner my little Liza.”

  “Please tell me that you’re not going to tell the wicked that I am here.” I looked at him looking concerned.

  “Don’t worry, if you want, I’ll swear on an oath that I won’t tell your sister.” He raised his right hand as if he were taking an oath. I giggled and playfully punched him in the arm.

  “Thank you Chris.”

  “Now, to show you to your rooms. Ben, you show Liza her room, and I’ll show Bridget hers; we’ll meet in half an hour for dinner.” I nodded, and Ben grabbed my chests; we walked through the open doors, and began to climb the grand stairs. We walked down the hallways past the apartments, and reached my bedchambers. Ben opened the doors and set my chests down; I walked to the window and looked out.

  “Your boudoir is next door, but you can get to it through that door right there. Your cousin said something about how he’s going to make it a greenhouse/ lab for you.” As he mentioned the surprise from Chris my face lit up, and Ben continued, “I can see you like that surprise; well hopefully you’ll like the next surprise.” He set my chests down on my bed and sat in a chair in the corner.

  After looking out the window for a few minutes, I walked to the bed and opened my chests. I pulled out my boots and took them to the closet, I did this cycle over and over again until the chests were empty; I took the chests and set them in my closet. “So, you came here because your sister was a nightmare?” Ben asked as I plopped down on my bed with a sigh.

  “Pretty much, that’s why I call her a wicked. She never fed me unless it was scraps that basically wore me down to the bone, she’s been torturing me since our parents passed away, and I returned from school. What pushed me over
the edge though, was when she had Esteban release snakes in my mother’s greenhouse and they ate everything; well, everything but this little guy.” I said as I took the fly trap out of my pouch and set him on my bedside table.

  “I see. I had a brother like that once. Let’s walk to the dining hall, dinner should be ready by the time we get there.” He said getting up and reaching for my hand. I took his hand and stood up; we walked out of my chambers back down the hallways, past the apartments and down the grand staircase.

  When we arrived, dinner was laid out on the table, and there was a line of servants blocking my view of something. Ben pulled out my chair; then sat next to me and smiled.

  After dinner was finished, one of the servants announced, “Christian, king of the Scottish clan Snow has something to say.” Chris stood up and walked over to the line of people. When he returned, he had a sash made out of tartan; and asked me to stand up. He put the sash around my waist and tied it.

  “Elizabeth of Irish and Scottish descent will you be my right hand lady helping me make decisions as a member or the clan, Snow?” he asked. I nodded and he smiled, taking my hand and escorted me to the wall of people. The wall split to reveal a diadem and a charm necklace made out of tartan. “This diadem is a sign that you are my ultimate decision maker, the tartan necklace and sash show that you are now a member of our clan.” I hugged Chris, the Bridget, and finally Ben; I then looked at Chris with a smirk and said four simple words.

  “Where do I start?”

  The Puzzle of Mads

  By: Deidra Roth

  BZZZ! I jumped in my seat, shocked by the sudden loud noise in the quiet office. I was puzzled because it was midnight and I was the only one here. I walked to the door wondering who could possibly have any business at the offices at this hour besides me. I unlocked the door and opened it, but nobody was there. I looked all around outside, but there was not a person to be seen; not even a car. I looked down, and on the stoop, there was a medium sized brown box sitting; I picked it up and took it inside. I sat back down at my desk and opened it. A stench filled the room; it was overpowering and smelled worse than a sewage treatment plant. As I fully opened the box, flies started coming out. Whatever was in the box was way past expiration. I peered inside, and almost threw up at the horrendous sight in front of me; it was a partially mummified human head with a note and a metal container in the box.

  I put them on a table in the lab. I took the head and took it to the morgue for analyzing. The head was female, age 20-22, Caucasian, medium length black hair, and dark blue eyes. I took a hair and tooth sample to see if I could find out who it was. The computers said it would take two hours at the least, so I went back to my desk and read the note. The note was in long hand writing, and looked like someone from the 18th century had written it. It read, ‘the quest is afoot… you are now a part of my game! I’ve given you your first clue, now hurry up and solve it. I don’t want our game to be paused too long; also, the quicker you figure it out, the faster you save someone’s life in the end.’ I put the note down and went to grab the metal box. I opened it and saw a pair of aviator sunglasses and a necklace charm without a chain. I went to the evidence room to put the items away when the TV turned on. “AHH!” there was a girl on the TV, but it wasn’t on a channel; it was a live recording.

  There was an unidentifiable voice that said, “Have you solved the first puzzle yet? You’re almost out of time…” the voice paused and put an hour glass in front of the screen. “TICK… TOCK… TICK…”

  “WHAT PUZZLE? WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO BE TRYING TO SOLVE?” I screamed at the voice on the monitor.

  “Oh Officer Roth, I know you’re smarter than that. Here’s a little hint anyway, where is the chain?” I walked up to the TV to turn it off when he replied” You only have a little longer left…TICK…TOCK…TICK…TOCK…TICK…” I stopped listening and turned off the monitor. I looked at the charm to see if there was anything on it; there was one tiny mark on it, a zigzag. I ran to a computer and looked up where you can buy a necklace that has a zigzag on the back of it. Only one location popped up, and it happened to be a store in the downtown strip. I looked at the hours: they open at 7am, it was 1am now... I wouldn’t have enough time to wait until 7. There was an email to contact the owner; I logged onto my computer, and sent a request for the owner to come to the station in twenty minutes to ask about a piece of jewelry. She replied to my email kindly and aid she would be there soon.

  Twenty minutes later, I was sitting at my desk when BZZZZZ! I got up from my desk to open the door for the owner. As she walked in, she handed me a coffee and a bagel, “Decaf with 4 creams, 2 sugars, and 1 shot of Hazelnut, also a plain bagel with strawberry cream cheese for the officer at midnight.” She said with a smile.

  I smiled back and politely questioned, “How do you know how I take my coffee and bagel Hazel?”

  Lightly giggled and replied, “I work part time at the café; I’m there most of the time when the guys come for the daily coffee.”

  “Well, thank you for the coffee and bagel, but we need to talk about why I brought you here.” I said as I gestured to a pair of chairs sitting in the waiting room; she nodded and followed me to the seats. “I have a necklace that I need you to identify if you could.” I held out the charm for her to take. She took the charm and pulled out a pair of glasses that she sat on the edge of her nose.

  “The necklace doesn’t look like something from my store, but let me look closer.” She flipped it over and made a clicking sound with her tongue. “This has my mark on it, so it was made in my store, but I don’t sell these anymore.”

  “Can you tell me the list of people who own this type of necklace please?” she took her glasses off and nodded.

  “I can tell you. We keep them in lists at the store for financial purposes, such as making sure everyone pays their fees when they need to. Let’s go; I’ll drive.” We headed out to the car, and went to the store.

  Ten minutes later we pulled up to the corner, and walked into the jewelry store. She walked behind the desk and disappeared below to search for the papers, “They should be here somewhere, give me a second to look.” Hazel reappeared from behind the counter with a stack of paper and a plate of cookies, “Found them! In the meantime, here one of my regulars dropped these off yesterday morning.” She grabbed a cookie off the plate and took a bite out of it. I took the papers from her, and grabbed a cookie; right as I went to take a bite out of the cookie BAM! Hazel was on the ground and unresponsive; I kneeled down beside her to check for a pulse or breathing, but there was nothing. I immediately started CPR, but to my surprise, it didn’t work. I took my cookie and looked at it very closely to see what the problem could have been, but I saw nothing out of the ordinary. I smelled the cookie and BAM, there it was; it smelled like arsenic. Whoever made these cookies knew I’d be coming and wanted to stop me, even if meant spilling blood.

  I dialed the number to one of the coroners from the police station, “Yeah?” He asked with a groggy voice.

  “It’s me Raff, I know its early bu-“

  “Its 2:30 in the morning!” he interjected sounding aggravated.

  “I know it is, but we’ve had a murder, hurry down to the jewelry store on South Main Street. It’s on the corner.” Click, he hung up the phone.

  Ten minutes later, he pulled up to the curb with a police van and a body bag. He rushed up to me, “What in the name of Christ happened?” he shouted.

  “I came to the store with Hazel to get papers for a case I’m working on. She offered me a cookie while she ate one herself, and then collapsed with no pulse. I attempted CPR, but to no avail…”

  “Go sit in the van while I deal with the body.” he said as he pointed towards the van.

  “No I’ll help, it will be faster.”

  “GO!!” he yelled and pointed to the van once again. I walked out the door and hopped in the front seat of the van.

 
; A little while later, he opened the back doors and heaved the body in, then slammed the doors shut. He walked around to the front and got in the driver’s seat. “Mads, what have you gotten yourself into now?” Mads was my nickname because sometimes I act like a combination of a mad scientist and a madman.

  “I was just working the graveyard shift, when it started… I need your help Raff. Please?” I grabbed his arm gently and begged. We were at the police station now, so he shut the van off.

  “Fine, I’ll help.” He replied with a sigh. “Under one condition,” I nodded.

  “Anything within reason.”

  “You have to come help me in the morgue sometime.”

  “Any time! You know I love helping out in the morgue!” we walked to my desk. Smaller than the last one, it was a small yellow envelope package and not a box. “Not again,” I murmured to myself as I walked to pick the package up. I opened it and took out another note, a flash drive covered in green Ductape, and an inhaler. Raff came up to me, took the note, and read it out loud. ‘You got the list of names, but at what cost? You should hurry up; you’re almost out of time. TICK……..TOCK……..TICK……… you have a time limit on this next clue because you took so long on the last one. TICK……….TICK………’ the TV monitor flashed on. It was the exact same scene, except the psycho was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room.

  “This is your last chance to save the girl, or she dies. The hint is: who owns the necklace that owns an inhaler?” the screen flashed off. It flashed back on and the psycho said, “Oh, and uh, no help from lover boy.” The screen flashed off and stayed black.

  “Who is that psycho?!” Raff shouted. He grabbed something off of the desk and threw it at the TV monitor, shattering the screen, and sending glass everywhere. The shards rained down on Raff, and I got the first aid kit. I walked up to him, and started to take the glass out. After all of the glass was out, I handed him the first aid kit knowing he would want to do it on his own.

  A couple of minutes later, he said, “Let’s start solving this clue, shall we?” I nodded and looked at the list.

  “Okay, so the first name on this list is Margaret Neil, she doesn’t have any medical problems that she would need an inhaler for.”

  “Is it a kid’s or husbands’ inhaler?”

  “No,” I shook my head, “she lives alone. Next is Sam Klien, again, no inhaler. Next, aha! Finally, Alice Smith. Bingo Raff, she has asthma attacks a lot, so she needs it. The computer screen flashed on.

  “Well done, but where am I? TICK…….TOCK…….”

  “Okay, so Alice’s family used to own a warehouse on south street, but it’s abandoned now, so….” Raff said.

  “Raff, you’re a genius!” I said as I ran to my car, “You stay here!” I started driving to the warehouse.

  Ten minutes later I arrived. Right as I walked in, the psycho was holding a gun to the girl’s head. I pulled out my gun and shot him.

  I called Raff and told him told him the address because he needed to come get Alice. I walked up to the body and took the mask off.

  “Sam?” I questioned. I was looking at Sam Klien, one of the people who had bought the necklace; who is also on the police squad with me.

  “Why? You were our friends Sam.” I asked as I heard Raff pull to a stop outside.

  “You okay Mads?” Raff asked as he shut the driver’s door.

  “Yeah, I’m alright. Alice is okay too, but we need a body bag.” I hollered still looking morosely at Sam’s lifeless body.

  It was just a simple dare!

  Emma De Leon

  It was cold in the alley. A light fog crept around the buildings and into the cracks between them. I sighed heavily and leaned against the brick wall pulling my thin sweater around me. I let out a small puff of breath and thought about everything that had happened in the last 48 hours, between losing him, and me. The words kept re-playing in my head “You must complete the mission within the next 48 hours, your time starts *tick * *tick* now”. It was a fun little day in the breeze of October in Transylvania in a small town called Romania. Best known for where Vlad The Impaler/Dracula and his castle was located. It was called Poenari Castle, where you were dared to enter on Halloween night at 12am. It was the night before Halloween and my friends always dared my friend and I to go in the Poenari castle, but we never did, our excuse is always “hey you aren’t going and you are telling us to go!?”. After me and Eric had said that to them I always thought to myself how much I hate Halloween so did my friend Eric.

  Oh and my name is Sidney. Eric and I have been best friends since 2nd grade. We always stick together through all of our decisions. We have gone through thick and thin. His parents and my parents don’t like each other. We both HATE Halloween a bunch of are so called friends try to always scare us with the same stupid trick, where they knock on my house door and run and hide. The one that normally hides behind the car is named Seth, he was the one who always sat in the back of the row in class and kicked Eric’s seat, but they became best friends so it’s okay. Then there is Julie, the one who always tattled on Seth and Eric for yelling at each other about kicking the desk, Julie normally hides under the porch. Then there was Cece, the one who was always quite in the back corner, the one who normally hides by the wall near the door, she is Julie’s best friend. Eric he sits inside getting ready at my house. We always hung out at my house, putting our Halloween makeup on and putting our costumes on.

  It was October 31 when it all happened. *Ring Ring* school was finally out for the weekend as I hear behind me “Hey Sidney I will see you later” said Julie as I yell okay, I then try to run to catch up with Eric who had already stormed out of the classroom. I soon then catch him at his locker and ask him what’s wrong, he then responds with “hello tonight is Halloween” I then respond and say “yeah and” he replies back by rolling his eyes and stating how much we both hate Halloween. I reply back by asking “so the same plan as every year right!?”, he then says “yes”. So this meant he was coming home with me to get ready. We both are standing at the line waiting for the bus when we see kids running around across the street in scary costumes and then we both let out a big sigh. The kids started to get closer and closer as we are both hesitating the fact that the bus needs to get here faster. The bus finally pulled up and we got on the bus along with about 10 other people. I normally got dropped off first so I always sat in the front, so that’s where I sat with Eric. The next stop which was my house was at least 5 minutes away. The whole time there Eric or I didn’t say a word to each other, I mean I know it is Halloween, but we have to deal with this every year so what was the difference. We get to my house to find my mom home baking cookies to give to the trick or treater’s , my mom loved to cook. Eric and I walk into the kitchen grab some Capris Sun and head up the stairs to my room to start getting ready. As Eris sits on my bed to unpack his things that he brought from home I bolt into the bathroom and start to do my makeup, after all I did want to be a vampire for Halloween this year, but so did Eric, and of course everyone else because they always copy us, but except for Seth, he is planning to be a werewolf last I heard. We both then get ready and head downstairs to where we sit and wait for the doorbell to ring. *Ring ring* I look to Eric and said “well here we go”. I open the door and find no one there, and then bam all of our friends hop out of their spots and yell “BOO” then ask ne and Eric “Did we scare you guys?” Just as we are about to leave I hear everyone starting to talk about how they wanted to go see the Poenari Castle. I soon then start to flip out and tell them we can’t. After blocks of walking around the neighborhood they finally convinced me and Eric to go look at it. We then stood there staring at it for a while when all of a sudden I hear Cece say “hey Sidney I dare you to sneak in” just as I was about to reply I heard Juile say “yeah Eric should too since you are both chickens”. I then said “fine”. Shivering through my fears along with Eric we both slowly open the door to find cob webs everywh
ere. Eric and I both say hello at the same time to find no one there when all of a sudden bats come down from the sealing and exit the doors. I mean I wouldn’t blame the bats. Eric and I soon then decide to leave because we both felt very uneasy. One we walk out everyone starts to ask “what happen, are you okay!” We both described what it looked like and went home, but on the way home everyone could not stop talking about how we went in there. The next day I stayed home, it was like any other day. It was around 10pm and I decided to go for a walk by myself when I received a phone call that said from Mom I answered it and heard “So you want to be a vampire?” I then quickly fell to the ground and lost conscious, with pain in my head I slowly try to stand back up as I don’t know where I am or what I was doing. I soon then get back on my feet, and start to think about the last 48 hours trying my best to figure out what had happen as I see the light creeping around the corner I put my thin sweater around my neck and try to figure out where I was with no clue I just sit down and slowly start to fall asleep when I woke up to find all of this just a dream, but yet still a dare.

  The Time He Left

  Emma De Leon

  Fight after fight, it seem as if there fist were gliding against one another. Yell after yell, cry after cry, I can’t take this anymore says one to another.

  It was one of the first mornings of school I was in kindergarten and I decided to go tell the teacher that I needed to go to the guidance office to talk to them. I went there and the lady at the front desk asked “may I help you”? I then began to say “I need to go to talk to Miss. Evans”. She then replied saying “okay right this way” as she got up and pointed to the door. I walk in to find Miss. Evans sitting at her desk asking “may I help you”? I quietly sit down and explain to her the story and here is how my story unfolds. “Years go by as I know the day is coming closer and closer, to when my parents get divorced. Hearing yelling just about every day unless someone was asleep while the other one was at work, then therefore there was no yelling, because there was no one there to yell at. My parents would always go to some sort of reception and put on a show to act as if our family was perfect, but if one were to start to yell at the other, that’s when we would know it’s time to leave, by we I mean my sister and I. She was 14 while I was 5 but this has gone on for years. As my sister being the older one she was always the one to make sure I didn’t see any of it happen or try to make sure I didn’t hear it, why you ask, because she didn’t want me to have those memories remembered. It then became time to start getting our life’s together. My dad finally decided he was done and that he was tired of living a bad life. Sure my sister and I both loved him and didn’t want him to leave, but it was the best thing for him to do. To this day my parents don’t really hate each other anymore, but they don’t agree either. I see my dad once a year, and for me that’s the best time of the year. We go to the park and drive around. Sometimes when we drive past the park my dad took me to when I was little I get a little emotional, because I still remember the memories. There was even a time when my mom and dad were fighting downstairs in a basement and I heard them upstairs, or even the time my sister and my mom were fighting and my sister told me to go hide under the desk in her room. Those are the times I remember the most because those were the worst years of my life. Just when I thought everything was starting to get better after my dad left for a while, it turned for the worst. Finally until it was one day that my dad never came back, when I thought he would, after waiting hours sitting on the floor by the door waiting, and waiting, and even more waiting. Nope he never came. I figured it was probably for the best and I knew it was going to eventually happen, but I was expecting a little more out of the both of them. Years go by today and I still remember the times I spent hiding under the desk hearing my sister fighting with my mom or my dad fighting with my mom, but either way it all happened for a reason, and it was the best for the both of them. Sure I don’t get to see my dad that much, but when I do those are the best memories I have of him, and that’s what counts. That’s the time my parents got divorced. It made me the person I am today, to know not to always expect a lot and to not underestimate people. Sometimes my mom tells me lies to what happen, and I know she is lying because I had seen it with my own two eyes happen, but it doesn’t matter anymore, because I love them both for who they are rather they love each other or not, they both did what they thought was the best for my sister and I. So words live on and things made me who I am today, but for now on that is my story for today. Things you must say live on, and so does life. But for now on cherish what is behold and what is to come. Your future lies ahead as you’re path waits. So you may be asking “did he ever turn back?” and the answer is no he still love my sister and I but he did what he thought was best for all of us. Every summer I go to his house to see him, and he is always working and doesn’t really have time for me, but that’s okay, because having the thought that my dad is there is what makes me feel great inside and happy, and it lets me know that someone who fought for a while never gave up, because he fought to make sure he saw me sometime throughout the year.” As I stopped to end the conversation with Miss. Evans I realized that the day was over and the bell had rang, as I start to leave I sincerely thank her for listening to me. So my advice for anyone having their parents going through a divorce, your parents does what’s best for you in all reality. It was really difficult for me at first, but then you realize it’s for the better. That’s the time my parents got divorced.

  The Runner

  Emma De Leon

  There I was sitting there all alone on the bus, in the very back towards the left. In a rush is what I was, when the bus stopped a man walked on the bus. There were a bunch of seats he could pick from, but he asked if he could sit by me. I said “sure”. There I was tapping my foot wanting no one to sit by me after all I was on a run. He was about a 6 foot tall man with a beard and he had on a long brown coat. He had a newspaper in his hand. He then asked “is something wrong”, trying to act as if I wasn’t paying attention I stared at his newspaper it read “Theft On The Run” It had my face on the front cover too. I quickly stood up and tried to sit closer to the door so I could run as soon as the doors opened. When I went to go sit by the door I got yelled at to sit back down, I quickly sat back down 1 seat in front of the one I was sitting in before. The man quickly started to unravel the newspaper. As we come to a stop in the middle of nowhere everyone started to talk louder “is everything okay?” is what they were saying. Everyone slowly had risen up from their seat as the bus driver said “the bus is smoking we will be here the max an hour, no one exits the bus”.

  I quickly looked to my left and then to my right to see what their was to escape, nowhere, then I look up to find the fire escape. That was my only way out but we are in the middle of nowhere so I don’t know where I will run to I had been thinking to myself. Everyone soon then turned around and opened the windows on the bus. The driver went to look behind the bus to see if something had happened as this was happening I sat up and grabbed the man’s newspaper and threw it out the window he soon then received it once again from the bus driver that just so happen to catch it. As I continue to run as the man yells “stop”. I jump out of the window on the bus as I hear the bus driver yelling at me not to jump out the window, but I did it anyway. Once I get out the window I then see a bus quickly rolling pass on the road. I get ready to grab ahold of the bus when it swings on by. I jump and catch it “yes!” I kept saying. Then I look back to find the other bus ready to go once again, I was so distracted I had seen that I had accidently let go of the back of the bus. As I fell to the ground as I tried to get back up on my feet, I notice the bus that had just been broken down was up and running again coming straight for me. I tried to beat the bus into town, but there was just no way. Meanwhile I am thinking to myself the man probably already told everyone on that bus.

  The bus finally then gets to me and the man open the door and yelled “you have to get on the bus sir we are still miles fro
m town”. After all he was right, with each step I took to find a seat on the bus I thought more and more about how I shouldn’t have gotten back on. I finally take a seat and all of a sudden everyone starts to yell at me because the man had told all of them what had happen. I finally then started to think to myself so what they know I am a criminal I will just run when I get off as far as my legs will take me. “1miles” the driver says, I have one mile of all of this great. All of a sudden I hear one person call out “I have a gun” everyone starts to yelp as we all go into panic the man soon then says “shut up, all of you or I will shoot “ The bus driver yells “South Ave”. Everyone sits back in there seat and pretended as if nothing had just happen. The bus finally stopped and the man with the gun and the man with the newspaper had stayed on the bus. While 4 people got off. My stop was the next. One mile until

  “North Ave” the driver said, keep calm I kept telling myself.

  All of a sudden I hear in my right ear “so you like to steal?” the man said I looked in my side view from the corner of my eye to find a gun put to my head. I then look straight to find the bus driver looking in his rear view mirror and then I hear the man with the gun say “keep driving”. The man once again repeated himself and said “so you like to steal?” The bus driver yelled “North Ave” The man with the newspaper got up and gave me a look as he exited the door. I soon then grabbed the man’s gun and yelled “everyone stay calm” The man came at me with another gun and I dodged the bullet, but then the guy dropped the gun to the floor. As the cops surround the bus I slowly put my hands up and the other guy dropped to the floor and shot himself and made it look as if I did it. A few months later I was sitting on the bus being transferred to a different prison. I kept thinking to myself if only I didn’t get on that bus. I didn’t kill that man, but no one seems to believe me no matter what I had said.

   The Wish?

  Emma De Leon

  When you sit there and something comes up to you get scared and you do not know what to do, so your first reaction is to scream or jump. In this case a little thing that was like a floating ball that was yellow, scared me. I could barely understand it but it sounded like its name was “Idee”, well I guess you can say “Idee scared me. Honestly I didn't really seem to care much because I was sitting by the pond near my house wanting to make a wish, one that will stay with me forever. Knowing the wish will never come true I started to cry. Then “Idee” started to light up, as soon as “Idee” started to light up I looked at it very curiously and got up from sitting down and just stared at it and said “wow how are you doing that” I did not respond I mean I could barely understand it in the first place. So I continued on wondering what was going on, I got so scared I just ran home, I mean considering the fact that “Idee” just showed up there. While running home I had tripped on a tree branch because I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going, because I was so scared. Finally, I got to the house and there I stood standing at my house door begging for my mom to let me in. After 5 minutes I finally then heard “I’m coming” I was so tired I leaned against the door and when she opened it I fell to the ground. When I finally got back up on my feet I then seen “Idee” floating towards me from the woods where the pond was. I finally said “what do you want or need”. It didn’t say anything but, soon then I figured I had a idea. The morb or light gave me the idea to keep “Idee”. I quickly took “Idee” in and kept him/her. Every once in a while “Idee” gave me great ideas. Two months pass with “Idee” and figure out that her/his name meant idea. Which was really weird, because he/she couldn’t talk, but somehow it gave me idea’s. As time went on we figured out it was a he because he started to talk and he started to learn how to live like humans. Until, one day something came toward me like a little yellow ball and Idee started to cry and I wondered why. I soon then realized this yellow ball was here to take Idee away. As I start to run and yell at Idee to come, he wouldn’t. As I slowly stopped to turn around he looked at me and said “This was my idea, to help you think”. I yell no as Idee got into the other yellow ball and floated away. Months past as I notice that my friend is becoming a lot smarter. I start to wonder how and why and she began to tell me that there is this yellow ball of light that helps he get ideas and she didn’t know how. I then explained to her that that had happen to me and I told her Idee’s fun adventure with me. It all happened the same exact way for her too. That’s the time I had a wish.

  10 Unknown Names

  Hailey Morgan

  Twenty-four hours is the most important hours of a missing person case. I have been on many cases; none has been easier than my first. Now the case was about a 17 year old girl who went missing when walking home from school. Now that wasn’t the only thing about this case. No this case was very different.

  I pulled up into an alley way, coming upon a crime scene. It was pouring of course, so the crime scene would be harder to detect.

  “He was a homeless, there is no ID on him either, Detective Smith,” a police officer informed me as I picked up a pair of latex gloves. I nodded to him showing I heard him and squatted down to examine the body.

  A glint of sliver caught my eye. I picked up the jacket covering it and found it was a charm. I picked it up and placed it in a plastic bag.

  “We need to go back to the station.”

  “Charlie!” I pounded on his door, “I found something!”

  I went back into the board room and looked at the board about the missing girl. I got a little angry that we only had a few things on the board, as I taped the bag onto the board. Charlie came into the room putting on his jacket and looked at me, putting his hands in his pockets.

  “What do you have?” He asked looking at the empty board as well.

  “I got called into a murder about a homeless and I found this charm,” I pointed at it and looked back at him.

  “So?” He raised a brow at me.

  “So, this charm is Elliott’s because in the picture we have of her, she is wearing that exact same charm,” I said pointing at the picture we had of her.

  “What would it be doing there? That doesn’t make any sense.”

  “I know that’s what I’m trying to figure out.”

  “Did you exam it?” He questioned crossing his arms.

  “No,” I muttered. I took out the charm and flipped it in my fingers to the back. On the back of it there were engravings on it saying “507 Church Hill” and “F 71”, which brought more confusion. I wrote down the engravings on the board and looked at them.

  “What’s on 507 Church Hill?” Charlie asked confused.

  “A library,” I mumbled confused too.

  When we arrived at the library, there were only two ladies at the desk.

  “Hello, I am detective Smith and this is Detective Monroe. We had a few questions,” I said as we showed them our badges.

  “Debora Kindler, what may I help with,” She smiled back at us.

  “We were wondering if you knew what F 71 means,” Charlie answered for me.

  “That would mean fiction, book 71. I could take you to it if you’d like?” She questioned us. I nodded in response as I followed her.

  When we got to the book she said, “Tell us if you need anything else.”

  I pulled the book off the shelf, while getting a scoff from Charlie about the title, “Taken”. I opened it to the back to find a sticky note saying, “What a fun game of chase, huh?” with “111 Third St.” underneath of it.

  “He thinks this is a game!” Charlie growled in anger.

  I smacked his arm, “Don’t get angry. That’s what he wants.”

  We went up to the front desk to see who checked it out last.

  “That would be an Elliott Scott,” She responded.

  “He even checked it out in her name,” I shook my head as Charlie ripped the paper out of the book.

  “Let’s get going.”

  I called into the station to see that the address took us to an abandoned warehouse across t
own. Charlie was getting angry at the un-sub but he kept calm about it also. We pulled into the warehouse and also pulled out our guns and flashlights in case he was here. We opened the doors and checked the perimeter, checking it was clear. A single light was shown on a barrel with a sign saying, “Watch me!” with a flash drive tapped to it.

  “This is one sick guy, Natalee” Charlie said as we climbed into the car.

  “I know.”

  I plugged in the flash drive, which brought a video to the screen. It was Elliott tied up, with tears streaming down her face. She had a gag in her mouth, which made her words muffle. A robotic voice came out of the speakers.

  “Say hello, Elliott. Its rude not to,” the voice laughed. She muffled more words until the voice spoke again.

  “Detective Natalee Smith and Detective Charlie Monroe, I need money very badly. Like one million by tomorrow. Or I will take Elliott somewhere where I can make money with her,” he spoke and her eyes widen, making her scream from the gag, “Goodbye.”

  The video was off and I was dumbfounded. We couldn’t give him that money. I didn’t know what he meant by taking her either.

  We went back to the station, coming up with things and whereabouts.

  “Well, what if he was lying about it? That could always happen,” Charlie suggested.

  “No, no, he was too smart about the book, I think he is smart enough to not stay in New York,” I tapped my chin coming up with an idea.

  I looked around the room, throwing out ideas too obvious and dumb. My eyes landed on the wallpaper with the world and all of the countries listed. My eyes widen as I call our technology analyst.

  “Sam? Yes I need to know if any tickets have been bought in the last hour,” I say as Charlie looks at me confused.

  “Yes, about 50 tickets.”

  “Can you narrow that down to out of the country tickets?”

  “That would leave about 15 then,” She replies counting.

  “How about tickets for one? Or two?” I hurriedly responded.

  “5 left.”

  “Okay, girl and guy who bought the tickets.”

  “Yes that leaves a Rick White and unnamed women; they just bought them at the North Ridge airport.”

  “Thank you,” I hang up and look at Charlie, “He said that he would take her somewhere where they do that, they sell women in Europe and things, Mail Order Brides. Let’s go,” I grab the keys as Charlie calls units to the airport.

  We pulled up and jumped out of the car. We raced to gate 15 were they were boarding. I saw Elliott being pulled with man forcefully.

  “Robert White,” I called out as we raised our guns, “Walk away from the girl.”

  He looked around him to see himself surrounded. He quickly ran the opposite way as five men ran after him. I ran to Elliott and picked her off the floor.

  “Are you alright?” I asked but she didn’t speak. Instead, she handed me a tin box and snuggled into Charlie.

  I raised a brow at him as he told me to open it. I opened the box to see a list names. I gasped in horror seeing 10 girl names. This wasn’t his first victim.

 

  Rumors Can Hurt

  Hailey Morgan

  “You know it’s true,” Devin claimed as she sat waiting for me.

  “Oh yeah? How do you know?” I mockingly question her as I slid my hand through my hair applying shampoo. Devin was my best friend and this was our normal routine. She sat and complained while I took a shower or vice versa.

  “There’s a video,” she stated probably picking at her nails or something. I peeked my head out of the shower curtain at her.

  “There is?” I quietly asked afraid of the outcome. She looked at me and nodded slowly. I shut off the water and put my robe on, then wrapped my hair up.

  “I want to see it.”

  Rumors are a thing in a teenager’s life that probably ruins everything. A truthful thing goes around and someone decides that the information they got needs to be changed to make fun of that person or make them look bad. If you ask many people if there was ever a rumor put out by them, you’d probably almost have everyone saying yes. I have had my fair share of rumors and I have also had my fair share of spreading them.

  I shut my locker as I walked up to Devin’s locker. Her big poofy hair could be seen a mile away. She was wearing a cardigan once again and her “old grandma shoes” as she called them. She was still grabbing things from her locker so I waited, leaning on the lockers next to hers. I saw my other friend walking past us, putting her hair in front of her face so we “couldn’t” see her, so she thought.

  “What’s wrong with, Dakota?” I ask Devin and she turns just in time to see her. Devin shrugs and continues grabbing things from her locker.

  I hum to myself as Devin takes her sweet time, thinking about how Dakota was acting.