

Our Voice Volume 8

Spring – Fall 2015

By TL Writing Club

Editors: Mr. McAtee, Mrs. Kreiling

Cover Art by Rachel Cudworth

Published by Twin Lakes Writing Club

Copyright 2016 Twin Lakes Writing Club, Scot McAtee

Other Titles by Twin Lakes Writing Club

Our Voice

Our Voice, Volume 2

Our Voice, Volume 3

Our Voice Volume 4

Our Voice, Volumes 1-4 (Paperback Compendium)

Our Voice Volume 5

Our Voice Volume 6

Our Voice 7

For a complete list of authors in this volume, please go to the very end of the book.

License Notes

Thank you for downloading this free ebook. Although this is a free book, it remains the copyrighted property of the author and may not be reproduced, copied and distributed for commercial and non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy wherever you got this ebook, where they can also discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.

Editors' Notes

From Mrs. Kreiling:

This volume is dedicated to all my TLWC students.

Your passion for writing has been astonishing to witness and so gratifying to help nurture. I have enjoyed every single moment of our time together; it has been so memorable and so rewarding – some of the best days of my career! Your creativity, sense of wonder, and joy are incredible gifts. Continue to use them to delight your loyal readers.

Wishing you all much success and love,

DMK

Eastlawn

1-6 Snow days

Lost in a world by Jaslyn Medley 4-w

Then I went into a forest, and I found an egg. Then something flew out of the bushes. It was snow leopards; they stole the egg from me. I had to get that egg back so I decided to follow them. I ended up following them into a portal. I found myself in a block world. I had 64 bones and 64 fish. So I got myself a cat and a dog. Then, I got some Ender-pearls and I found another one but it belonged to villagers. They, then, gave me 64 eye of Enders. So I got diamond armor and diamond weapons so I went out to adventure. I went to the end and for some reason an Enderman helped. I had to fight the Enderdragon. I found the egg again. But something was wrong... it was hatching! I got a baby creeper. "I'm going to call you bomby." I said. The End?

Snow Day Adventure by Tessa 4-D

As Bella, Jayden, and my Dog dance around I say "Let's go explore with that bunny!" When we got our snow gear on we chased after the bunny and then, "Ahhh!" we all screamed when we fell in a hole. It felt like we were falling forever. Then we stopped as soon as we looked down we knew where we were, a giant river of hot chocolate. Bella screamed "What are we going to do?" "I don't know." I said. Then we fell even more and we see Else "Help," we screamed! She used her ice power to create a staircase we climbed and said thank you. As we walked more we slipped on ice and fell even more. When we stopped, it smelled so good we were in an oven of cookies. We couldn't resist, so we took a bite and we found ourselves in my Kitchen. I'll never forget about that experience with my friends!

My Perfect Day by Hallie Egall

I was in the kitchen when Jayden got an e-mail, she started dancing. I said "what is wrong?" She said "we don't have school!!" Mom came in and said "schools out what would you like to do?" I said "we could go ice skating". Jayden said "While we are there we can get apple cider and hot chocolate". Mom said "you can make snow angels and a snowman". We ran up to my room and got my ice skates and we got another pair for Jayden too. So we walked to the skating rink. After that we had apple cider and hot coco. Then we went home and made snow angels and snowmen. That was my perfect day.

The Snow Adventurer by Carl 3-t

My brother started to dance, "No school, woooo". Then my mom, dad, and brother started to dance; "no school and work woooo". "Mom can I go play with my friends?" "sure" then I went to the woods. But then, a blizzard came in and I had to dig a trench. When I woke up I saw a wizard and hobbits. "Where am I?" "You're in Hobbit land." "Ok" "so how can I get home?" then another pack came, and I was knocked out. I was back home, I was dreaming. Mom was yelling, "Carl wake up you're late for school" The End

Snow Fox Snow Wolf by Emily Felz

One day I was down stairs eating breakfast when the phone rang, "No school!" Sara shouted. "Well if there's no school I might as well go outside." When I went outside I say something on the road. It was a snow wolf and a snow fox. They had tire marks on their back. They were still alive because I could see them breathing. I carried them to the forest and I made medicine out of herbs. When they were healed, they started licking my face. I couldn't leave them now so I played with them. The Fox showed me his burrow. The Wolf showed me his den. They showed me how to hunt. The Wolf gave me a dead rabbit and I thought it was disgusting but I didn't let my face show it. But then a black wolf charged at me. But, the fox and wolf jumped in front of it to protect me. They won, but died still, I made graves for them. The End.

Ty-3-C

Once upon a time Caleb was eating bacon. Suddenly I ducked around the table like a hobo. We got the call. Me and Caleb went sledding, we got pulled by a truck, and I broke my arm. We went to sleep and went to school.

Geneveive -26 Snow Day Experiment in the Woods

I was in the kitchen eating my Life cereal. Lacie, Nolen, Gracia, and Tyler came downstairs. Then the phone rang, Nolen said, "I'll get it." He ran to the phone as fast as he could! When he got off the phone he started to dance. I said, "Why are you dancing like a monkey?" Nolen sang, "No school, no school, no school." I said with glee, "Let's go skating." Everyone agreed except Nolen, he said, "I think we'll get hurt." I said, "No we won't my neighbors are nice." So, we went skating. Nolen and us heard a weird and mysterious sound. Nolen got very scared. He said that we need to hide, so we dug a hole and covered it with sticks and leafs. My pack had five flashlights. Nolen said to dig deeper. Then Tyler started to get hungry so did everyone else. Luckily I brought snacks. When the tunnel was 3 yards long, Nolen got up. When we got out of the tunnel no one knew where we were, we started to walk. We could see houses about 2 miles ahead. I said, "How about we got to those houses and ask for help?" So we started to walk toward the houses. When we got to the houses, I knocked on a door, when she opened the door, I said, "Do you know the way back to 930 Hilltop St.?" She said that she did and to follow her. She took us as far as she could(which was the hole) where we started. When she walked away I said, "What are we going to do now?" Everyone agreed. So we started our way back. When we got to the end we smelled Chinese food. Then we went inside to eat, the next day was happy. The End.

No Name

"Oh shut your face, boo!" I said. "It's a snow day, dude!" Dakota said, "I'm a girl!" "I don't care! Dude" "I heard that! Now don't spill my oatmeal!" "Whatever." They got dressed for sledding and went outside to get their sleds. Bella had saw Tessa K., Tessa B., Jayden, Ava, Myca, Jasmin, Addy, and Emily. "Hey girls!" "Hey." They all said. The sledded for hours and hours. "Hey guys do you want to do something fun?" "Yeah! What is it though?" Jasmin said, "You'll see! He! He! He!" "Uh! Oh!" She led them to the lake, past the gym, and to Sculptures. She said, "Here we are!" "We are going to swim today in there!?" "No! we're there." She pointed at the pond in the back of Sculptures in the freezing weather. Then she jumped in, the cold, cold water. Then they jumped in. "You guys want to come to my place after we're dry?" "Sure!" they all said. When they were dry, got in their pajamas and sat in Bella's room. "Hey do you guys want to sleep over?" "Sure we would love to!" they all said together. They all called their parents for permission, got their clothes, make up, dress up clothes, and phone/devices and they were ready to go. They went outside but then... THUMP! They fell into a well! They climbed out and took a breath. They went back inside to have cocoa, tacos, pie, cookies, cake, cupcakes, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, nuts, and juice. The sleepover was on! To be continued...

Myca Hill- Snow Party... Dun, Dun, Dun

7:15 a.m.: Bella, Emily, and Jayden just got up. Yet I have been up for hours. Sorry, have to eat!

7:35 a.m.: Okay, we just had a call and Jayden answered, now she's dancing around like a fish out of water!

8:00 a.m.: We just got this spectacular idea, BUILD AN IGLOO!

2 hours later

10:00 a.m.: Oh My Gosh! Not the neighborhood bully! Ahhhhhh!

11:20 a.m.: Grrr...

To be continued...

Sam-2D- Snow Castle

One day my mom chatted on her phone and she woke us up, because it was a snow day. I ran downstairs and brushed my hair and teeth, got dressed, had breakfast, and put my snow stuff on. I got a bucket and shovel and my dog Max followed me. I gathered snow and built a snow castle, then I was done. I went inside and grabbed Elsa and came back and played for a bit until it was time to go inside. I ate dinner and then grabbed Elsa and went to bed.

Clair- Snow Day Adventure!

One January morning when Clair was eating breakfast, Parker answered the phone. He started to dance around saying, "No school, yay!" Then Clair and Parker went outside when they got their hats, gloves, and snow suit on. When they got outside they went into the woods and didn't know where they were and got really scared. Until they saw footprints and followed them! Then they noticed they were at home! They then ran inside and were so happy to be home!

Caleb Weiss- Snow Day

Once upon a time in my backyard... I was on the phone and I danced around like a chicken with its head cut off, because it was a snow day. I called Ty, Nolan, Xavier, and Lucas, they all said they could come over. When they got here, we all got on two sleds and went really fast but then a net appeared. The next thing I knew, I was in a chamber. Zekho, Zekzo, Zekro, Zekgo, and Zekdo. Tell me, where am I? Underground. I have a sled though, I thought. When they weren't looking, I used the point of my sled to cut the net. I snuck up behind Zekgo and tied him to the other sled. Ty and Lucas got Zekro pinned to the wall while Nolan and Xavier were on top of Zeckdo. Ty and Nolan got 8 ropes for Zekro and Zekdo. Now I had to deal with Zekzo. Bam! I shoved him in the jail cell and locked the door. "Okay everybody, let's get out of here." I sounded confident but I wasn't. I leaned against the wall and a door opened, so I called all 911 to take care of the 5 of them. The end.

Genevieve Stroetz

Age 7

My Treasures

I went to the beach in Hawaii with my friends Olivia and Anna. We were swimming in the ocean, when my foot kicked something hard in the water. I dislodged it and it floated to the top. I tried to tell my friends, but they couldn't hear, so I got closer. I told them to read it. They said it wasn't real. I went to the library to find the old lady. Good thing my friends didn't see me! When I got to the library, I found the old lady. I showed her the note. She said, "Go to a place where you would find a huge round rock." I thought, "Where could I find a huge round rock?" I thought and thought. Finally I had it. I could go to the park! It was around for a long time, even before pizza! So I went to the park. Then I saw it, a huge round rock! I looked at the note. It said to dig at the rock, so I started to dig. Two hours later I saw it... the time machine. I hopped inside. I looked at the note. It said to set the time limit to the year of 1888. Because of that, I said, "Let's do this!" Then I set the year to 1888. A huge bright light shown in front of me. I quickly closed my eyes. Then, the bright stopped. I had no idea what had just happened. I was in wonder! I was in shock! This was crazy! Then I heard the sound of waves crashing onto land. I opened my eyes and looked down. Could it be? Yes, I was wearing pirate clothes! I looked like Black Beard's daughter! Then, I realized how I would get Black Beard's treasure. I heard something else, something that was very strange. It was stinky, too. It was pirates! Then I heard a voice that said, "Daughter, come to the ship." I knew it was Black Beard, so I came to the ship. Then Black Beard said, "Ah, there you are. Today I'll teach you where my treasure is and the story." I thought, "This is it. He's telling me where the treasures are!" When he got done telling me, he said, "You are dismissed to play on shore." I pretended to be his daughter and said, "Thank you, father." He said, "You're exceptionally welcome!" I looked again at the note. It said to go to the forest. Is it? Yes, it's the forest! I got out the note. It read, "Find the cave." I saw the cave. It was right in front of me. Now the note read, "Go inside and dig at the X." So I went inside. Then, I found the X. I started to dig. An hour later, I found the treasures. I had an hour to get home, so I swam with the treasure and got to shore. I hopped inside the time machine. I set it to the year 2015. "I'm home at last," I thought. I showed them the treasure, and then they believed me. The end!

Daisy

The Bottle

As I opened the bottle, there was a piece of paper in it. It was a letter. It said, "Don't let them get it. They know you have it! I almost died for this, now run, go find it. They're coming!" I turned it over. It was a map. Then I saw the name Thomas J. Then Kelsie ran up to me. "What's that?" "It's a map." "What does it lead to?" "I don't know, but let's get Fletcher and Sullivan." "What do you want?" Sullivan yelled. "Look!" "Let's follow it," said Fletcher. "Where are you going?" exclaimed Mom. "Just the farthest part of the ocean," Sullivan lied. As we were walking, we fell between the sand. "Owww." We all landed with a thud. "Where are we?" "I don't know, but the map just changed and it's the right trail." Sullivan was leading the way and stepped on a button. We heard rumbling and then rocks fell, and Sullivan was trapped. "Sullivan!" Everyone was quiet. "We got to get out of here." After I said that, a door opened up. We all went out, leaving Sullivan. To be continued...

Stella

Going to Hawaii!

One day my friends Addie and Clare went on a treasure hunt, and we found a bottle with something in it. Claire said to Addie, "Do you know what it is?" "No," said Addie. Then we said, "It is probably old, because it has a cork in it. Let's try to pull it off." "Yeah, I got it," I said. "Now let's read the paper." It said- no wait, it's a map. "Hey, there are jewels in there," said Addie. Then Claire said, "Hey, there's money too." Then we got home and showed our parent, and then the next day we went to follow the map and we found treasure. The end!

Kinsey

Kinsey's Adventure

Hi, my name is Kinsey. I'm at Hawaii Beach. I found a bottle that had three things in it. I opened the bottle. Something flew out with a map. That something was Tinkerbell. I heard a bell. Something else was in the bottle. It was a hook, with Captain Hook's name on it, and it led to treasure. I followed it.

Claire Downey

At the Beach!

One day me, my family, and my friend went to the beach. My family's names are Parker, Madelynn, Dad, and Mom. My friend's name is Stella. Then Stella said, "What's this?" Then I went over there and I saw a bottle. Then we tried to open the bottle but it wouldn't open, so ten minutes later we finally got it opened. Then we saw a map. I asked my mom and dad if we could follow the map, and she said yes! So me and Stella followed the map, and then we saw the coolest thing ever. It was a pirate ship! And the pirate ship was filled with girls! Then one of the pirates saw us, and she said, "Want some jewels?" And we said, "Sure, if you don't mind." So we took some of the jewels and went back to the beach and then went home.

Wynston

A Whole Different World

I hit a green glass bottle and opened it. There was a map, and also something that froze time. I froze it and Bob, John, Jack, Cayden, Mark and I left. We got 3 miles away off shore and then the floor dropped. A dolphin swam by. I guess we had the same thing on our mind. We grabbed on and we were 42 feet under water. We found five more dolphins so everybody got their own. We were now 47 miles away from shore. The dolphins got tired and gave up. We swam three more miles and then we were surrounded by sharks. Luckily, there was a whale shark that swallowed us. We fell down its tongue and hit the vocal chords. We held on. At least it was dry in here. There were dead fish everywhere. I let go and bounced off the lung. I told my friends to drop so they did. Mark missed and I caught his hand so he didn't fall in the liquid. He slipped on a sardine and fell in the liquid. I jumped in after him. It was a way out, but tuna slapped us wildly. We were there. We fell through sand and there was a whole different world. There was gold, diamond, copper, pearls, and valuables. We said, "Wow!" He said, "You may take 3 bags of gold." We said thanks and left. Then we went back and unfroze time.

Eastlawn—Lost Bottle Stories

20—The Treasure? By Hallie Egalf

My friends and I are at the beach. Something is in the sand. I dig it out. It is a bottle. I open it. It is a necklace. It looks like a very expensive necklace. After the beach, we go to the library. We found a book about it. It says it was stolen in 1909. It was stolen by Alice Shneek. We went to the police station. He told us the whole story. Last we took it back to the museum. That night we swore not to tell anyone. The End!!!!

21—Treasure Hunt by Caleb Weiss

Not too long ago on a beach in Florida, Ty, Lucas, Xavier, Nolan, Kenneth, and I were on a beach, and it was almost time to leave. We found a bottle. We said to my mom that we were going to pack up in our hotel. We lied; we were actually going to find the treasure. We hijacked a ship and followed the compass. We followed it, and it seemed like forever until we got there. I t was a whirlpool! I said, "This was all a trick!" I said, "Put on your lifejackets and get the rowboats!" "Yes sir!" We got on the rowboats and paddled back to shore. I said, "Did you guys bring the compass?" "Yes. I told you not to bring it!" "No you didn't." "Well I meant too." Five, four, three, two, one kkkaaabbbooommm!!! That was the ship. I put dynamite on it so nothing could be left of our ship. The sea animals were okay. The ship was made that if something broke of the ship, the ship would disintegrate. Everybody then survived, except the ship. They survived by rowing far away. The End.

22—The Message Part 1 by Tessa

As Stella and I pull the cork off, a message sat inside the bottle. We read it aloud, "Alas, the year 1901, a storm has occurred. I have a feeling this is my last day." "Cool!" said Stella, but things turned not so cool. A pirate emerged with two ropes and 2 bags. He lunged for us, and then we blacked out. Fortunately, when we woke up, we were tied to a palm tree. "Help!" we yelled. A dolphin whacks the palm tree causing the rope to fall. "We're home free," I said. We saw a withered palace from the hole in the wall. We ventured on to the palace. As soon as we were by the doors, Stella reached for the door slowly. The door creaked. The note starts glowing brightly we put it down and a chest appeared. Slowly but carefully, we opened the chest, found two lockets, and a note attached to each. It said Open for Surprises. We did as we were told and.... TO BE CONTINUED.

23—The Pirate Ship by Carl

I opened the bottle, and I found a picture of Blackbeard. Then there was mist. Then a huge pirate ship was in front of my friend and me. A pirate came down called Blackbeard. "Give me that." "NO!" "AHHH!" "What do you want from us?" "That picture." "You have to try harder than that." Then, he pulled a sword to my throat. "Give me that now." "No." I took the sword, cut my chair, and got out. Then, cut off Blackbeard's head and sailed back home, and I lived happily ever after, the pirate crew, the ship, and I. The End.

24—Brayden Scott

I saw a secret shell. I lied to my mom.

25—The Bottle of Mystery by Ryan Nickerson

One sunny evening, three boys go out in search for treasure in the seaweed. The three boys were named Troy, Mack, and Tom. Troy takes it from Mack and tries to open it. He said, "This won't open." Mack tries it and says, "My dad has an atomatic bottle opener. They take it there and open it. When they do, they expect a treasure map. Then they open it and get three emeralds. They trade it for $2,000. They make treasure all over the beach. Now they look back and remember the kid's reactions.

26—Jungle Chest by Emily

One day I was at the beach with my sister, Sara. I was walking through the sand when I found a green bottle. I opened it up and found a note, and it said, "Go five steps left and nine steps right." I followed and found a chest with a wolf that had five heads and a fox with five tails. They were so cute. I had to jug them. They were as soft as silk, but when I picked them up, both of them had a scratch on both of their sides and necks. I rubbed off the blood with a big leaf and I found on a tree. I picked both of them up and carried them to the water, so they could get a drink. After that something glittered in the water, and I found two golden collars, and there were six of them. One to go with the fox, and five to go with the wolf's five heads. Then from then on, they were safe and happy. As time passed, I started living with them, so they would be safe.

The Great Chihuahua by Addy Corn

There was once a normal Chihuahua, he always wanted to help people. The people he mostly wanted to help were his towns' people. His name is Sebastian. His town always had trouble in it. So he got to thinking he could save his town one day. He went to tell his owner, but all they could hear was barking. Then he noticed that, so he went and made a mask and a cape. Then he pushed a fan to his owner, plugged it in, and turned it on. After that he stood in front of the fan. When his owner saw him, she started laughing so hard she fell over. She picked herself up, then picked Sebastian up, and called him a silly puppy. Then she put me down and put me on a leash. When we got outside I saw someone robbing a house! I tried to tell my owner, but still she only heard barking. So I broke my leash and ran after the robber and I caught him! My owner came running after me. The next thing she saw was I ran around and tied him up! He fell down and me and my owner looked in the bag. There were a lot of electronics in the bag. My owner called the cops. When the cops got there they were so happy because this was the first robber that has been caught in my town! So the cops called the news reporter and the next day we saw me in the newspaper and it said S.U.P.E.R. dog. The End.

Chippy the Amazing by Daisy

She's dark, she's cute, and she's kind of fat, but who cares! She's Chippy the dog! Started off as a puppy, and could barely understand anything. She thought she was getting a shot, when she actually got dumped on the road. Hungry, she was so very. Her only food was worms. We found her on the road, oh so very alone. We took her home and got her treated. Poor ol' Chippy. She was not having fun. She soon grew up to be an awesome pup. Cute and alone, she ran off. I'm assuming she wanted to catch the bus. She ran off, and boy she ran. It's like she sensed something, something rare. She went to a house, near the dark and noticed a car with no license plate. She sniffed and sniffed then ran inside. She saw someone and bit his thigh. He ran out screaming with a bitten thigh! Then Chippy went home knowing she had saved the day and no one knew until this day.

The Dog That Saved the Day by Alex

My biggest dog Rambo, one day we were playing baseball and we lost the baseball in the woods. We could not find it, and we called Rambo, and we looked and we looked until it was down. Finally we looked in the last spot and found the call in a deep, like 7 foot and Rambo jumped into the hole. We called the fire department and got Rambo out and we gave him a lot of treats, and at night time we brought Rambo inside and let him sleep on the couch. We feed him whenever he is hungry and give him water whenever he is thirsty, and when he is sick we will give him medicine to not make him sick anymore.

Goldfish World by Caleb Weiss

We are almost done boss. Good. I want that time machine done by midnight. Done. Okay, set the time machine to 3456, and we're off. When they landed they were arrested because they weren't wearing goldfish masks. The Goldfish jury found them guilty. They looked out the window and saw the Statue of Liberty was the Statue of the Goldfish. Then they realized they had a crowbar attached to their shirts. These people must have brains the size of eraser shavings. Well let's get out of here. Clink! They popped the bars open and got back to the time machine. Let's go to 100596. Oh no, not living and walking sharks! Advice from the boss: don't live to tell the tale!

A Super Hero Dog by Ty

Once upon a time their lived a dog named Boe. One day he got bit by a spider, not just any spider, one with magic powers. The bite from the spider burned. Boe felt dizzy and started to stumble. He fell on the ground. When he woke up he had muscles, then lightning shot out of his fingers. He hears a person in a tree and rescues the person. He saves the day and Boe saves the world. The End.

Pepper the Dog by Emily

Pepper in a miniature schnauzer super villain and his hobby is blowing things up with his laser eyes. He has teeth of steel and his claws can cut through anything. Once he destroyed a whole city just by barking. He can jump 50 feet in the air and land straight on the ground and walk away without a bruise. Nobody dared to stop him because he is so powerful, but one day a girl named Emily fought Pepper, but Pepper got away. Emily wasn't going to give up so she looked all over town, but she couldn't find him. He wasn't anywhere to be found. She decided to look for him tomorrow. The next day the dog was there and Emily was close enough to talk to Pepper.

"Why are you destroying the city?" She Said

Pepper replied, "Nobody loves me. Nobody wanted me at the pound. All they did was give me dirty looks and walk away."

"I will take you home." Emily said.

In those few words Pepper leaped into her arms and they were friends forever.

Pig Poem by Ryan

Pig you make mud,

But you aren't a thud.

You saved your friend,

From an unfortunate end.

Pig you bite,

But you are bright.

You have great digging skills,

I watch you from my window sill.

You don't have gills,

But you are ill.

You are my bud,

And you eat spud.

Pet Ideas

34 – The Rescue

By: Claire Downey

Once upon a time there was a puppy and a kitten. Their names are Rosie and Blue. The kitten's name is Blue because he has blue eyes. One day they were in their castle and Blue heard the noise, then Blue yelled, "Help! Rosie woke!" Then she went to Blue and she said, "Blue!" Blue was getting captured by a bear! So Rosie jumped out of the window and followed the bear. They got to a cave! Rosie said, "LET GO OF HIM!!!!" The bear said, "OK! But, but . . . I want to eat him!" "We'll he's my friend and I don't want you to eat him." "OK fine." So then Rosie had saved the day! When Rosie and Blue got back to the castle they had a big dinner and cherry pie for dessert. And they lived happily ever after! THE END!!!!

35 – Detective Dog Part 1

By: Tessa

Rusty the detective dog was sitting in his office when a poodle interrupted his thinking, "Help me, help. My dog treats are gone," she burst out dramatically. Rusty perked up his ears. Quickly he answered, "Dog treats eh, I know just the person." He emerged from his chair and rushed out of the door. The poodle helplessly said, "Where are you going Rusty!" He got in his car and drove to the forbidden house 7666. He knocked on the door and . . .

TO BE PAWTINUED

36 – Love Kitten

By: Jaslyn Medley

Love. Love kitten, kit-ten.

Cu-te eyes, co-ld nose. Chas-ing mice and ra-ts.

Tiny paws wreck the couch. Then you're a little ki-ty.

Your fur is black and sometimes white.

Can you be an an-gel?

So you are kit-ten cause you look like an an-gel.

You are my fluffy angel.

You are my playful angel.

And you are my cute little angle.

Related to: What does the cat say?

(Editor's note: Try singing to the tune of "What Does the Fox Say?")

37 – Hero Dog

Brayden Scott

My dog saved the bus of kindergarteners. But the bus didn't stop at the bus stop. He went to the bus stop. He found the station and got us out.

38 – My pet, Nalla

Bella M.

This song is dedicated to you, my very pet and my beautiful hue

You make me smile everyday, you get me thinking right away

Maybe I should write a song just for you, or else get you something new

I chose the song so you won't run, now I have to try and make you hum

By singing this song straight and clear, it's all for you, Nalla dear

If you're reading this it will make you sway, that's my pet that makes me smile everyday

This is my pet that I love so much, It's to my awesome pet, Nalla

She's the best, even if she's a pest

I love her so, she smells worse than a rose,

But I still love her, even though she smells gross

This letter is all for you, my beautiful hue

39 – Ice Cream Pie, Brownies, I Love You

Ava

You're my pet. And I am very grateful for you. I love you with all my might. You're my favorite pet in the world. I love you more than ice cream pie, that's from the heart. I love you more than anything in the world, even brownies! You're my favorite pet!

40 – Love

Jayden Matthews

I have a looooove!

But it isn't who you think it is!

It is a caaat!

His name is Champion!

The reason I love hiiim is because he's my friend.

That's why I love hiiim.

When I'm down in the dumps he keeps me: happy, safe, loooved, and best of all . . .

From screeeeeeaaaaaammmmmmming!!!!!!!

He keeps me from . . . screaming!!

Now this part's for my Champ:

We'll be together again soon my love.

We'll be together soon, my love.

41 – Daredevil Fish

Carl

Once there was a fish, a gold fish. He dreamed that he would be a daredevil fish like his uncle. One day the fish did a back flip in the air. The owner said, "What the?" and gave him a treat. Then the owner got a ring on fire. The fish swam and jumped and lived and jumped into the lizard bowl. The owner took the fish and put the fish in the fish bowl. And lived happily ever after.

The Worst Day Ever

By: Addy Corn

"The end" said the teacher in a very shaky voice right after the play. That was my teacher Mrs. Lobs. This was my story about why she said that in a shaky voice. Let me go way back before the paly. Let's start off with me John Lyn. I was just walking through the hallway and this is the worst day ever. It started like a normal school day. I went to my first class at 8:15. Oh, and I am in middle school. When school ended I went home and saw Max on the table with mashed potatoes on the table, the sink, and the walls. Then I saw a note. It said: "Dear John, I had to go to the store. Please watch our brother. From, Mom." Then I thought, "Why didn't she just take him with?" So I just threw it away and watched my brother. Finally my mother got home at 4:36. She picked up my brother and said hi to me. Then I went in my room because my mom was home. Then we got a phone call. It was my dad. He said his car broke down and we have to pick him up. My mom asked me if I wanted to go. I said yes. She told me we had to go to the store again. When we got to my dad, he was looking at his car with his hands on top of his head. And his car looked pretty bad. So we just called a tow truck to come pick his car up and went to the store and just to tell you, things didn't go so well at the store either. At the store we had some Max problems. What he did was he screamed all the way there and he got icing all over his hands from his cookie. Also my mom hit her head. I tripped and didn't catch myself. Also my dad had a headache. My borhter also screamed all the way back. When we got home none of us unpacked groceries. We all took naps. When we left to go get my dad it was 4:40. We got home at 6:20. I woke up at 6:30. My brother made me so tired. Then I got a call from my friend Alice. She said her parents won a trip to Hawaii but they could not go because they were going on a trip to Illinois with her sister and brother. There were 5 tickets so she asked us if we wanted to go and take her with. I said I would ask my parents if we could but it would be after the play. She said that was okay and I hung up. I came running into the living room and told my mom and dad. When I was done, they just looked at each other then looked back at me. My mom and dad whispered something to each other. The only words I could hear were "she", "was" and "her". When they stopped whispering they looked at me and said yes. I was so happy I screamed then I thought about it and fainted. When I woke up I saw a bright light and squinted. It took me a while, but I found out I was at the hospital. I sat up and saw my mom and dad then I looked at the clock. It was 7:50. I really couldn't get the numbers for a while, but I did. Mom and dad said I would probably make it to the play but not to Hawaii. I said okay and they took me home. I get home at 8:45. I told my mom my head hurt. Mom said she was sorry for me because passing out is not fun. She asked me what I was going to wear to the play. I told her to walk in a beautiful gray dress and for the play my costume. I told her, "I just hope that the play will be way better than the other parts of our day!" We got there an hour before it started. Oh, and things didn't go so well at the play or back stage. When I walked in I saw my teacher Mrs. Lobs. She looked like she was about to have a heart attack! When she saw me, she said thank God you are here and she pushed me in the girls' dressing room, and when I looked in there I saw all of the girls in the play just sitting there. I asked, "What are all of you doing sitting there?" They all said, "Mrs. Lobs wouldn't let anyone change until all of us here and you were the only one left." I told all of the girls, "I am sorry and what took us so long is that I passed out, then something bad happened... Wait, I can't tell you! Yes I can! No I can't! Okay I saw Alice!" I told all the girls what happened and they looked at each other then at me and Jane, and Jane said, "Good luck." I told her and she wasn't very happy, but she was still sorry for me. The play started and all of us stepped out on stage. When we got there a boy knocked down one of our trees. The teacher came up and fixed it when we were singing one of the songs. When we were talking, well, when I was talking one of the kids started crying. Don't ask me why. I do not know. Then one of the teachers had to take him back stage and calm him down and he went on with the play. Finally came the last song and that was a mess. After play was over my mom was the only one who clapped. Then Mrs. Lobs came on the stage and said, "the end" in a very shaky voice.

Taylor

The Oops

Once upon a time there was a boy at his house and he was playing outside when he heard a sound. It was a very scary sound! He saw it and ran over to it. Do you want to know what it is? It is a scarecrow! The scarecrow had a book in his hand. The boy said I have to school or I am going to be late. So the boy left. When he got back his family wasn't there so he went back to the garden and guess what, he was gone! So he asked a racecar driver, he asked "Did you see a scarecrow?" He said "No!" He asked an army man and he said no! He found him, he was in the garbage. He was broke so the boy put him together with super glue. He messed up and he asked an army man and the race car driver to help him and they fixed him right up.

Olivia Nickerson

Eastlawn Sports Rock!

One spring morning Olivia was going to Kendal's house for a sleepover and Olivia though this was going to be the best day ever. When she woke up and ate breakfast, when she was finished she read a book to pass the time them she headed off to Kendal's house. When she got there she knocked at the door. Kendal answered the door. Olivia asked "do you want to play sports?" "I hate sports." replied Kendal. Olivia grabbed Kendal. She took her to the gym. They played for a while and then Kendal screamed "I love sports" and she did. They went home and fell asleep on the living room couch.

Friends on the Moon

By Genevieve

One morning Steeve got a call from NASA. They needed Steeve to find a missing space robot. They next day...10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.......Blast off!!! Few days later. "Hey, wake up!" a voice said. "Bhhaaaa!" Pound, pound, pound. I opened the door. "Are you robot, Ana?" I questioned. "Why yes. How'd you know?" "I need to go back to earth with you." Click, click, click. Steeve shut off! Two days later. "Back to earth but you have to keep him," said my boss. "Okay" said Steeve. Next day. "Church Day." Four hours later. (after church!) "Let's go to the library." Said Ana. Afer seven hours of reading. I said "I need to see my teacher." After two hours of reading to her. Bye. Well she's gone.

My Hero

Katelynn

One day my dad and mom told me and my brother, "We're going to the zoo!" Can I bring my friends? Who. Aspen, Carmen, Haley, and my teacher Mrs. Wiegen! Can they can they ohh please can they. Yes only if you stop talking Katelynn. Oh you're not my boss. But do you think Mrs. Wiegen will come to the zoo. She's probably too bored because she has been here too long so she might not want to go again. She's not old brat. Aspen's here now. So is Carmen, Haley, and Mrs. Wiegen. See I told you she would come today to the zoo with use. Let's go. I love all of you especially the food. We're here. I can't breathe. Look a stackoo rhino and a stackoo bear. Sweety I don't think those are rea. They're going to bite off our face if we don't run. I'll stop them. NO DON'T MRS. WIEGEN! Don't you'll die. She got a gun sleeper shooter. She shoot the bear. It fell asleep. She shoot the rhino. Mrs. Wiegen saved the day. My brother said you didn't tell me you were going to kill them. The end!

Bob and Joe the Stuffed Bear

Maria

Bob is in his room watching tv and then heard a voice and it said, "Hi pal." Then he said, "Who said that who's they are." And the voice said, "Well I'm on your bed next to you lamp and camera you use a lot also you sleep with me." "What?" Bob said, "Where are you again?" The voice said, "Well I'm sitting on your bed. Don't you see?" "Well let me see." What are you my teddy?" It said, "Yes I am." Bob said. "I'm losing my mind." "No you aren't." Bob asked, "So what do you want?" "Well first, my name is Joe the Stuffed Bear." Bob says, "What do you want to do?" "Can you write me something like a story?" Bob says, " I hate writing. No way. It's summer. I write only at school because I have to!" "Please Bob can you write me a story. It's fun. Really you can take yourself and me to anywhere you want." "Fine!" By writing a story for the bear, Bob began to like writing for Joe the bear. Then in time Bob loved writing. The days went past when bob and Joe were writing and chatting with each other about their story. When it was the last day of summer, Mrs. Wiegan knocked on the door so Bob opened the door and she said, "Hi. I'm going to publish your books. Do you want me to do that?" Bob said, "Yes. Thank you Mrs. Wiegan." After that, Bob still truly loved writing.

By: Gracie

What To Write?

One day, I was getting a piece of paper to write on, "Oh no!" I exclaimed. I went on the couch and thought about what to write. Nothing. I heard something. "Hi, um can I help any?" I said, confused. "I said it!" Someone confessed. I looked at my mom. "Nope," she said. "Oh.

I said. "Meow you need to see me!" The voice said again. I knew who it was now! "Smokey?!" I said. He didn't talk normally but how was he talking!?! "How can you talk?" I asked Smokey. "Well, um I don't really know!!" He said. "THIS REALLY IS CHRISTMAS!" I screamed. "You need to get ideas though!" he said to me. "But how?" I asked. "B-O-O-K-S!" he spelled out. I got my book, woof, that I was reading. I read to chapter twenty one and got an idea. A dog mystery! I wrote away. All thanks to Smokey! THE END!

By: Haley Smolek

Friendship

Tommy and Hallie are best friends. Hallie is not real but Tommy is real. When he is sad he always eats ice cream, Hallie loves ice cream. Hallie is a wizard just like tommy loves his family. He is the only child. He only has one friend, which is Hallie. They are the best of friends which means they have a very good friendship. The next day tommy ate over twenty ice cream cones with dark chocolate. Didn't make him feel good so he cast a magic spell with Hallie. They healed Tommy then he made Hallie a human. She was so thrilled.

By: Alex Harker

Christmas Morning

One morning, everyone was waiting for Christmas at Jimmy and Bob's house. They went downstars and their eyes grew as big as two mammoths. Bob wanted a taco. Now we did. Now jimmy wanted that night they were having tacos, and that makes the night.

Delayma

The missing Homework ?

One day I was thinking about math but I can't do it's hard. A problem that I made up I just. When I got to school. There was a math page on my desk. It was easy; I got it down in one min. My mom was happy so was my baby brother was happy too and my dad and my sister they were all happy. I am thankful for my mom and baby brother and my sister and my dad. What are you thankful for? And I am thankful for book and my favorite season of the year, summer. And in summer I was the math master in the class.

Ty

The Talking Plant

Once upon a time there lived two boys named Alex and Ty. One day Alex and Ty were playing in the garden. All of a sudden, we heard someone talking. We were looking but no one was there. We kept on looking we got bored. Then we found him, it was a talking plant. After we found the talking plant, we played with him then we read with him and then he took a nap and we lived happily ever after. The end.

Happy Thanksgiving

Mrs. Weigand

Alexis

The Missing Homework

One day I was at school, it was the end of school. Mrs. Darnstat said I can't found our homework. Then said I just had it on my desk. I said let's make new home work. So we did then we went home. Then we did our homework. Then mom said you are good at solving problems. Then my whole family said it. Then I started reading a book for 15 minutes. Then I asked my mom if I could go to grandmas and grandpas house. Then we went back to school and Mrs. Darnstat had that days homework.

Morgan Galyen

My outside day

One day I asked Mrs.Wiegand do you want to go outside and read a book with me? Will you play games with me Bryce while Mrs.wiegand reads me my favorite book? Okay Bryce said ill you play candy land with me. Emalee will swim in the lake with me after me and Bryce play a game of candy land. Mom its hot please makes me a glass of water now. Dads take me on a Jet Ski ride now please.

Kinsey Snyden

The pie fight

Or stop fighting over a stupid pie. My mom said. Let's start to talk what happen. I went to Morgan's house to pick her up so we could go to school. School is over how and my mom made a pie. Me and Morgan wanted it but it was not cut up. So some pie got smacked in our faces so my mom made a new one and this time she cut it up and my dad and Mrs. Wiegand came and have some pie too. The pie was pumpkin and berry pie.

Samantha

The book

One beach day I heard a crying noise, but what. I think I heard it from the beach house... "What? Are you there? can you hear me?" "I'm the life guard." "Cool, what's wrong?" "I ripped a book page." "Awe, don't worry I have tape." "Yes." "Want to read the book crazy hair day." "Okay!" so it went on we read and read and read but when the week was over I said bye and left. Five years later I saw the life guard again. "Hi life guard." You're back want to eat some food and drink some water." "Sure." I'll be right back." "I'm here life guard, No!! My best friend is gone my only friend left me a note," the note said "Dear sally, sorry they took me to Kentucky. Love, the life guard." Bye life guard.

Cheyly

Huck Fin and Tom Soyer

Huck fin and Tom Soyer lived in a small town. The scary problem was a murder took place in town. All of the People were worried about their Families. There was a big lake called the Mississippi. It had a lot of water. Each year the Mississippi came to vote who the boat captain would be. One day Tom was late for school. His teacher was upset so he sent him with the girls. Tom put an apple on the back of his friend's chair. The girl sitting next to Tom gave the apple to the girl in front of her. She smiled at Tom. All the boys looked at tom. Tom had to stay after school. Then oh no Tom and the girl next to him got engaged right there dude and they kis.

Chey

One morning I was at writing club and this pumpkin body blew a hole in the top of the school roof. I had 4 spy kits Mrs. Her, Calub, Talor, and Mrs. Wegind got a spy kit. We went to follow him. He throws nuks at us I threw a boomerang at him. I knocked his head off. He fell off the roof into the trash can. We put him in jail. He was in there for 50 years after a few years his head got rotten and his body was not wet so he died. The kids lived happily ever after. And no pumpkin head.

Gracie

I picked it from an oddly colored pink vine. My brother named it "Pump." I went along with it. It was small. The farmer said "four sugar water on it." It told Logan to pour sugar water on it. "what it look like?" he asked. "white" I said, he ran in the house. Litle did I know he thought the talking potion was it... he brought it out. "POUR" I yelled. He poured it. It glittered. I scratched my head. "why is it sparling?" I asked. IT BLASTED OUT SPARKLES! I ran. Logan ran. I saw it talking "who are you?" ask Pump. AHHHHH screamed my brother " JUST STOP SCREAMING!!!" I said. "uh, we are Gracie and Logan." I stammered. It walked on into the house. "NO!" I yelled and it ran. It knocked over the table and the chairs. I then ran out. I smashed it with my dad's hammer. Lesson: Don't pick pumpkins with pink vines or pour talking potion on it. 

Kinsey

I got home went to bed and the next day my pumpkin grew legs. I don't know how and it started talking, and it started to run around like a chicken with its head cut off. I went to my friend house to pick Gracie up when we got home it grew bigger, so I call Sammy, and she brought a friend with, then we went to sleep, the next day the pumpkin grew bigger, so I called Kenzie and she brought a friend;. We all went to seep the next day, and the pumpkin grew bigger, so I chopped it up and made pumpkin pie, and Mrs Wegin ate the pumpkin Pie and everyone else.

Morgan

My mom tried to hit it with a broom to settle it down. When that didn't work m brother tried to lock it in a room but it broke the wood door. So my sister tried to put it to sleep. When that didn't work I said "lets put it outside and lock the doors and windows." They must have water it wrong in all stral yaso that is why my pumpkin is so mean and not calm and not so well behaved. So we finally got it together and everyone lived happy ever after. It still lives with us and he is now well behaved

Alexis Boer

It said; "I want to go home," so I said "You can't go home now we just bought you from the pumpkin patch. Then, we'll take you home, carve you, take you outside, and put a candle in you."

"Then will I get to go home?!"

My pumpkin got sad when I got up from bed. "I'm hungry, tired, and thirst."

"Well, then I will get you a drink, some food, and make you a bed."

Then my sister and brother were playing with my jackolatern and it broke! So we made it into a Pumpkin Pie! After that my brother, my sister, my dad, my mom, and I made a lot of pumpkin seeds too! We ate them all! Next, we went and got another pumpkin from the pumpkin patch, after bringing it home, it tried to go back to the pumpkin patch!

"What! You are not going back to the pumpkin patch!" I said

"Then what I am going to do?!" it said

"You're going into my garden with the other pumpkins." I replied

"No! I don't want to!" it replied back.

"Okay? Then what DO you want to do?" I asked

"I want to play outside!" It said

"No, it's way too cold for that and I'll get sick or my mom, dad, sister, or brother too." I said

"So what? I can't get sick! But, let's just go play in your room." said the pumpkin.

"Okay! Let's go play with my toys!"

"We can play with this!" I said holding Elsa and Anna toys.

"Let's play Elsa and Anna! You can be Anna and I'll be Elsa!"

"No!" the pumpkin said

"Okay then, let's play school?" I asked

"Okay!"

After we played for a while we ate and went to bed.

Samantha

One day I went to a vacant beach. A pumpkin rolled to me that stand's up! But it didn't have a face, so I gave him a pumpkin face anyway like 30 minutes into carving his face I got hungry. So I gave him cake cake, oh mY GOSH! IT HAS LEGS! "Where are you from?"

"The Ocean"

"I'm Bobby"

"I'm Sally" the pumpkin said

"Let's make a sandcastle and then go to my house okay?"

"Did you know I'm from Alaska?"

"Well I'm from Indiana"

"We need to go to the store"

"Okay!"

"We need milk, eggs, flower, and some more stuff"

after getting home from the store, I say "Okay! Let's get to baking!"

"I'll bake, you eat okay?"

Two hours later of cooking.

"Mmm, this pumpkin pie is really good! HAHAH"

The End.

Haley

Jack and Carla were stuck on an island in New Orleans and Carla's pumpkin started to talk. Carla found out that an ant bit her pumpkin and a witch cast a spell on the pumpkin and it jumped out of Carla's hand and Jack screamed, "Oh no a pumpkin is on the loose!" and then Jack fell in a boat that drifted out to sea. But the pumpkin got stolen from a whale and then the pumpkin flew up into the sky and said, "I'm Pumpkin the Magical Pumpkin. I'll save Jack." and he flew to Jack and picked him up and the pumpkin said, "I'm from New Orleans. I must explode in 5 seconds. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BOOM!" And Jack makes it safe to the ground.

Alex

One day me, my mom, and my dad went to a pumpkin patch and I got a big pumpkin and got home and carved it and went inside to wash up and all of a sudden we heard a voice. We went down stairs to see the pumpkin that we bought, so we scared it and it went under the couch and it got stuck under it, so we had to lift up the couch and get it. So we lifted the couch and it went running and we lost it. We split up around the house and trapped it in a net and got it but...

To be continued.

Genevieve

One week ago. "Hello mom, can I pick a pumpkin?" said Tony. "Sure thing. Ask your father. I want a nap." So Tony went down stairs. "Dad, can you take me to go to pick a pumpkin?" said Tony. "NO!! I am tired," said dad. Three hours later. "I wish I may, I wish I might have my wish or whatever," said Tony. The next day. (By the way we are VERY poor.) "Ahhhhhhh!!!" screamed Tony. "Hi, my name is PUMPKIN. I need your help," said Pumpkin Britishly. "Who are you?" Tony asked. "RONY," he yelped. "Ok then!" "Number is 596-600-9398. CALL NOW." "I don't have a phone," said Tony. "I DO!" said Pumpkin. Ring Ring Ring!!! "Hello, pumpkin is that you?" asked Rony. "Yes, come pick me up in Indiana," said Pumpkin excitedly. "OK!!!" said Tony. Four hours later. "Hello, I'm here." Two hours later. Ring Ring Ring!! "Hello," said Pumpkin, "I got back, and I am safe." The End.

Taylor

Once there lived some farmers. Their names were Lucius, Heidi, and Chy. There was some village people. Their names were Addy and Meia. Addy and Meia went to California to get a pumpkin. When they were back at home sleeping, the pumpkin grew arms and legs. In the morning it was talking! The pumpkin said "I AM HUNGRY!" So they got him some food. He said "I AM THIRSTY!" So they gave him some lemonade. He said "I AM TIRED!" So they made a bed for him. He said "I'M NOT SLEEPING OUTSIDE!" He kicked them out. In the morning he was even grumpier than yesterday. He said "I WANT BREAKFAST!" In the afternoon, he said "I WANT LUNCH!" Then he got kicked out of the house by the kids. The pumpkin ran away. He wasn't heard of again.

Katelynn

When Your Done You Just Begun

I was with 5 friends. My twin sister Kate, my brother Austin, my brother Micky, Gracie, and Lexy. We just got out of school and this weird stranger started talking to me so I screamed "STRANGER DANGER! STRANGER DANGER! STRANGER DANGER!" Then he said "Slow down. You don't need to freak out. I'm one of your mother's friends. So where is she?" Then I asked "You work with my mom? You're lying because my mom doesn't have any guy friends." The stranger said "I have a present for you." I said "What is it?" Then he gave me a pumpkin. "Ok." I said. "My mom is at Walmart. I have to go home and hook up this pumpkin to a fake pumpkin vine for the contest." One day we saw a poster for the big pumpkin contest. So I went home to check on my pumpkin and my mom told me to water it with money. "Did you water it with money?" She asked. "Yes I did." I said. "Ok." Said Mom. Then we said goodnight to each other. Then in the morning we said good morning. "AHHHHH!" I said. My pumpkin is covering my window. "AHHHH! It can walk!" Then the pumpkin started talking and said "Hi, can I please go to the park with you?" So I gave him a kiss and the pumpkin asked me again "Can I go to the park with you?" Then out of nowhere, it started growing legs. Then a fairy god mother appeared and asked me, "Do you like your pumpkin present with legs?" Thank you. The End.

Caleb

We were coming home from school, (me, Lucas, Nolan, Xavier, and Kenneth), and we were all getting off at my stop. When we came to my front door my pumpkin was as tall as me! "What did you do with it!" Lucas asked. "Oh man! I fed it Sierra Mist instead of water!" I said, smacking myself in the face. "Hey wait!" said the pumpkin. "Charlie wants sprayed with Sierra Mist too!" said the pumpkin. Charlie is another pumpkin. "Come on, Nolan, Xavier, Carson, Kenneth, Lucas, and me! Think. Wait, I got it!" "What?" said everybody. "We should put Mountain Dew on it!" I said. "Yeah Mountain Dew is the opposite of Sierra Mist." said my friends. "Okay, let's do it." When I poured it on the pumpkin it turned into a flying pig! The opposite of a flying pig is bacon with chicken wings on it. "I'll get the bacon." said Lucas. "I'll get the wings!" said Xavier. "No, I will!" said Nolan. "No I will." said Xavier. Oh here we go again. "No I will get the chicken wings." said Carson. "No I will." Said Kenneth! And it went on for a while. At the end we had a rock, paper, scissors game and I won. So I got to get the chicken wings.

Haley Smolek

Dan Dun Meow!?!

When I woke up on Sunday I had grown a cat tail. It was a beautiful tail it was furry I loved everything about it. People even loved it and cats loved it I felt like. Then it started to rain tacos!!!! It was a happy wonderful day.

Until people got jealous and then people started to call me names like Baby Kitten, Meow Pants, and Giggle Lick Lick Cat I got so mad that I made it rain tacos again but everyone was mad that I had to set out the big cat and I got my unicorn kit and said go lets go fight for love then everyone loved me. I had to set out the big guns which is a cake and I had to set out the big mouse that the cat ate still everyone loved me again. On Thursday, when I woke up I found I had grown pig ears and pigs married me.

Author Unknown

A Day That I Have Paws

On Sunday, when I woke up, I found I had grown paws. I had to walk on four legs I can not walk on two legs and hold hands too. At school my friends laughed that I had paws. When I go home my mom fainted. Then I finish my homework and do the laundry it was fast. Then I climb my favorite tree to get my stuff. I tell my family goodnight and sleep. On Monday, when I woke up, I found I had grown a giraffe neck then my mom came to my bedroom she fainted.

Alexis Boer

When I Woke Up

On Sunday morning I woke up with butterfly wings I went down stairs my mom saw me with the butterfly wings she was scared so I took her upstairs to her room then I went back down stairs to eat breakfast. Then I went upstairs to check on my mom because she was up there for 20 minutes. She was ok then. I went to play outside. Then I went inside to eat lunch. Then I went upstairs and played. Then I got my toy from downstairs then went outside. Then I went inside and ate dinner with my family. Then I went to bed. In the morning I was that I had a tail instead of butterfly wings. Then I went downstairs to eat breakfast with my family. Then I went outside with my family and friends. Then that night I was scared.

Katelynn

My Amazing Weird Day

On Sunday I woke up from dreaming that I had a monkey tail. How crazy was that. It good morning. What is that?! What is what? It's a monkey tail! What why is there a monkey tail there. Hey maybe having a monkey tail may not be bad I mean I can do different things like this I bounce on my tail. Be careful or you. Ow I knocked the counter off the wall. It it something over got it? Got it. I wonder if I can swing on the monkey bars? Look I'm doing it. Time to go to school Katelynn. Ok I got my backpack. Ok heres your sandwich and your lunch. Thank you. LOL. Ha it's monkey bottom. You two go to the principal please. Ok. Why are you here. I'm here because of my monkey tail. You're in trouble go home now. Go to bed. Ok. Look mom two heads how cool is this. Dad don't be a two headed brat.

Maria

What Happen To Me?

On Sunday Cassidy woke up and found out that she had grown butterfly wins and fainted then when she came down stairs to eat breakfast her dad fainted two times but, Cassidy took her breakfast upstairs in her room to think of a way so she can hide them so her dad won't faint again. Cassidy didn't know why her dad fainted to see her with butterfly wings; Cassidy loves butterfly wings. Now what I should do is put on a coat so, I can hide my wings for my dad. I can't help it. Weeks and weeks went by and I still had wings. I know how to fly with butterflies. With my hands and feet but, on Thursday Cassidy woke up with two mouths. It's a good thing to have two mouths. Then of course my dad fainted once again.

Kinsey

My Fake Life

On Thursday I had grown frog legs. On my way down to breakfast I bumped the ceiling two times. When mom saw me, she fainted. I ate my crispy bits and got dressed. I got on the bus when I got to my class room, everybody laughed at me. I got back on the bus to go home. Then I went to the dinner table to eat real quick. Then I went to bed. The next day I had bunny legs. When I got down stairs my mom fainted again.

Morgan

A Tail That Is Good and Bad

On Monday when I woke up I found that I had grown a tail. There are good things about having tail and bad things. Those good things are that I could chase it, make me faster, and I can wag it. Bad things about are I can trip on it and fall on my face. I would have to go to the bathroom outside, I wouldn't like that. I could sit on it; ouch. On the next Monday when I woke up I found that I had grown duck feet. Aaahhhh!

Genevieve

Heather Gets Light

On Tuesday, when Heather woke up she had grown two light bulbs one in her ear and the other in the opposite ear. She went down stairs to the kitchen. Heather looked at her dad; He fainted! The last thing he said was "The light is so bright!" Then all you hear is a thud.

She ran to her room. BOOM! CRACK! The power went out! She could see because of the bulbs in her ears. Two hours late, her mom came in. She said, "Hello Heather, dinner is ready." "What!?" Heather yelled. She smelled food. She knew it was dinner. After dinner she went to bed. On Thursday, when she woke up her family was happy to see her. Until she came in with three light bulbs (the two from the beginning are the same). The third one was on the top of her head with ducks legs.

Graciella (Gracie)

A Weird Day

On Monday, I wake up to find that I had grown a cat's tail. I picked up the plates for breakfast and laid out the food.

"Achoo!" And...I got allergic to myself...I tried to sit down but my tail was blocking the way. I mean I could lie down but not sit down.

"Gracie, help me get my little trinket down please," asked my mother.

"Ok," I said. I reached up with my tail and grabbed it.

"Thank you!" she cried. "Thank you!"

I tried to lie down and sleep, but...my tail was too long and kept wagging on my legs. I finally went to sleep though.

The next day, I was normal or so I thought. I got up and went down for breakfast. I was about to grab my fork, when I saw my hands (in this case paws). When we went to Wal-Mart, all the fish were afraid of me. I was kind of sad. When we were done at Wal-Mart, I fell asleep in the car. I woke up in my bedroom.

"Was that all a dream?" I asked myself. I went out the door. It was breakfast.

"I guess it was a dream," I said.

Cheyenne

Wings and Sharks

One day, I woke up and had wings. When I went to school, Mrs.Wegen passed out. I put her on the roof of her house when I was done. I went out flying again. I fell into the ocean and a bull shark bit me. I flew back out of the water as fast as I could. I went back to the house.

The next day, I woke up with shark teeth, gills, and a fin. I went back out to the ocean. I got in the ocean and recognized that I could breath. I could swim and I was free. Next thing I know, there was a scuba diver. I was heading towards him. I saw that he had a spear gun. He started to shoot and I was scared to death. I showed my hands and he stopped shooting. Next, I showed him my face and he put his gun away. I said, "hi" and then he said, "hi" back.

"Come on," he said.

I followed him and then got on a boat with other scuba divers on it. We started the engine. We parked on a clear island. We had the time of our life, for the rest of our life.

Caleb Weiss

A Lego Body

On taco Tuesday, Caleb had grown a Lego body. When Caleb tried to walk down the stairs, he couldn't because his leg couldn't extend. So he fell down the stairs instead. When Caleb tried to eat breakfast, he couldn't put anything in his mouth because he doesn't have a stomach. Caleb couldn't do a lot of things. He had claw hands so he couldn't pick anything up. He couldn't open anything either. When Caleb went to bed, he couldn't climb in so he slept on the floor. When he woke up, he had taco dispenser arms! Good thing I didn't have these yesterday. On taco Tuesday, you have to pay 1 cent, but today, they cost $2.50 for one taco, but the tacos are delicious.

Olivia Nickerson

Olivia's Whiskers

One Monday, I woke up and I had whiskers. I went downstairs and then my mom fainted. I thought they were pretty cool and it sounded like they were bad from my mom's and dad's expressions. I loved them. I went over to Kendal's house and she called me a cat the whole time. When I went out to dinner with our friends they laughed and thought I looked like a cat that just shaved some whiskers off its face. But I knew that I should just be myself and not listen to them. So when I laid down that day I was sad because no one was going to like me because I was a cat. When I lay down I thought about my day then drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, I woke up and I walked downstairs and my mom fainted again. I just grew a unicorn stick on my head! But that's how I liked it and that's what my friends liked too! It was great as well.

Taylor

The Girl Who Couldn't Go To Sleep

On Sunday, when I woke up I had grown chicken wings. I got to fly for a little bit. When danger came, I could fly away from the danger. I tripped over my wings a few times. On Monday, when I woke up I found I had grown frog legs. I could jump very far. I couldn't resist of putting my feet in the water. I was just a little hopping mashen. My parents told me to come in for dinner, but I jumped over the car instead. When I went to sleep my legs were sticking out of my blanket so could not go to sleep. I stayed up all night. The next day I was so exhausted. The frog legs did not go way for a whole month. I was hard to walk. Boug! I'm all right.

Delayna

When I Woke Up!

On Friday, when I wake up I had found I had grown a tail. It was not good because I would get heat and not happy. And it was a good think because I can jump and wag and get feed. On Saturday when I woke up I found I had grown butterfly wings. Then I could fly in the sky and I would be happy because I don't have to ask for help and I was happy because I can fly and I like to fly. And I love butterflies, they are my favorite insect. Butterflies are pretty and butterfly to me. Do you like butterflies? I love butterflies so much because they are butterfly to me that's why I like them so much that where not water my story end. I love butterflies so so so so so so so so because they are butterfly and pretty.

The End.

Samantha

The Weirdest Days of My Life

One morning I woke in my bed and found a tigers tail on me. When I went down stair then my dad faints. A few minutes later I went to walk in the zoo then the zoo keeper put me in a cage. Later people took pictures of me it was weird. The next day I had brown and white wings on me. I berated the cage open with my teeth for the lock on the cage and flew home. When I got home I went to sleep. The next day I went down stairs, but I had a lion's tail. The End.

Malachi

In the Woods

Jan has the most perfect tree house in the world. It's nestled in a big oak tree and we were inside. We pulled up the ladder up so no one can follow us, then we heard a noise. I saw something. Then the raccoon we saw was a playful one.

Jeronimo

The Tree House

One night in a tree house, I went camping with Radin. We heard a Bigfoot! It said stop. I finished sleeping.

Luke

Me and my best friend Sean were sleeping on my trampoline at night. I went to get a snack. I woke up my best friend Sean then it happened. We heard a spirit of fredeykooger. He took Sean and he snuck up behind me and took me. We were never seen again.

The Mystery

One night in a tree house with my friend Kaitlyn we were in our backyard. We heard noise and pointed our flashlight at the door.

"Ahhh! It was a bear! Run for your life!" Kaitlyn said.

"Stop, lets chase the bear," I said.

"Okay." At the end of the chase we were sure that it wouldn't come back because we chased it pretty good.

Machya Cearing

I love writing.

Looking around for ideas.

Out of my head ideas flow.

Vanished are the monsters.

Everyone escapes the Godzilla.

Towers fall down.

Outdoors stands a dog.

Writing is fun.

Reading isn't fun for me.

I love so much in my life.

The Godzilla is chasing us.

Everyone wants to kill the Godzilla.

Machya wina a softball game.

A softball pitcher saw me at McDonalds.

Country music should entertain people in a softball game.

Hannah is on Machya's softball team.

Your heart is full of home runs.

A home run will save the day.

Joann George

Writing Club.

Ramp.

I can spell good.

Tigers love writing club.

I love writing club.

Never copy other peoples work.

Godzilla.

I like to write.

Sometimes you mess up.

Fantastic.

Under.

Never mess up.

June.

Octopus.

Awesome.

November.

Not mad or sad.

Zarahy Renteria

I love writing.

Loudly Writing.

Only writing club is my favorite.

Vapor like blood, that's what I wrote.

Even I can write.

Tomorrow I will write.

Open your writing book.

Write in your book.

Remember you need to write.

I wrote a story.

The book is done with the story.

Even I can write fast.

Zarahy.

Apapel.

Renteria.

Anna.

Hot.

YoYo.

Noah Jansen

We love writing.

Ripping a chickens tail apart.

????????????????

Angel Renteria

We love writing.

Ripping a turkeys legs.

I am aawesome.

Tapping my foot.

Ideas in my brain.

Naming a rat.

Going to a park.

I am good at math.

Spelling the word assessment.

Fighting with my sister.

Using a pencil.

Nodding my head.

Brooklyn Gryszowka

I love writing so I can

Learn to be creative and helpful

Oh this is great

Very fun is writing club

E-books will contain our stories

They will be paperback too

Oh I learn so much

Writing helps with my

Reading and stories are

Interesting and anyone can

Try to read them

Everyone should be in writing club.

Brooklyn is a good reader

Reading is fun

Outrageous stories with

Outcomes that surprise

Kids and even our teacher

Likes books

You should pick on up and start reading!

Now start reading!

Adriauna George

I love writing

Learining to write

Open minded

Very special

Every month

Thinking

Open your imagination

When you write

Read your story

It is fun writing

Turn in stories

Even write stories

All over

Daniel

Reading

Ice Cream

Anna

U are awesome

November

Always

Lacey Parker

I love writing

Learning letters is fun

Only writing club

Vampires like writing club

Elephants can't use pencils

Tigers can't use pencils either

Open your mind up to something

Water poems are good

Remember your home work

I will remember

The book can go home with me

Even I could do it

Loves

Awesome

Caring friends

Especially

You

Stephanie McCarthy

Is too awesome

Left handed

Oh, can you do it

Very fun

Even you

Think

Overall, I love it

Write all you can

Right handed

In the end....

Tell a story

Everyday

Smart

Thinks

Everything she writes

Pretty

Has long hair

Always writing

Needs more books

Interesting

Every day she writes

Stephanie McCarthy

Write a lot

Right spelling

In session

Tell everything

Is awesome

Never stop

Goes on

In my head, I have a lot of ideas

Silly poems

Funny stories

U are having fun

Need a pencil? Lets begin

Lacy Parker

The Cat in the Garden

Mrs. Ainswoth always tells me that her cat can talk to her and I say that is not true.

Arianna Dold

Curious Chester is Hunting

He is hunting for tiger bones. "Hey what do you think you're doing you silly dog. Come here now." "Excuse you what did you just say to me you kid." I said, "Come here right now!" "No!" "I need help with something." "What do you need help with?" "I need help with hunting for tiger bones." "Ok I will help you." "Thank you." In an hour can I go home so I can get a bath, play a game of checkers and take a nap?" "Yes, but tonight you have to stay with me because Mrs. Ainsworth is getting married in Alabama." "Ok I need to put the bones in that backpack for school tomorrow." "I can read, do math, and even I'm the top speller in my class." "We had a contest yesterday and I won." "I can also fly, turn into a dog, freeze things, and win everybody at a game of tetherball at recess." "I sure do wish you go to Oaklawn." "I do because 'm in 3rd grade." The art teacher is nice, so is the music teacher, the gym teacher is really nice and the library teacher is also really nice. Time to go home.

Hailey Vogel

Chester

So I found Chester digging flowers. So I picked him up and told him to talk. He wouldn't talk. So I said, "I'll slap you if not." So he said, "I'm not in the mood." "Why aren't you in the mood?" "I don't want to get in trouble." "Well you won't if you talk to me!" "Fine I want down now!" "Nope." Why then he thought I'll just jump down in his head. So he jumped down. Then he ran all the way home and I followed him. The end.

Zarahy Renteria

The Talking Cat

Chester looked at me with big green eyes and meowed. He yawned and fell asleep in my arms then woke up and was a flying cat. He took me to Mecos. He took me to Iinder, then we went to pizza hut. We went to library. It was fun doing all those things, and we went home.

Violet Hatfield

He said, "I'm a cat not a purse put me down now, oh wait, I'm a cat. Meow, meow. Fine, I guess you know now. Will you bring me some food and take me inside?" So I got him some food I had from last week when I watched him.

Then suddenly I blurted out, "How did you get here? Where's Mrs. Ainsworth? Does she know where you are? Why are you digging up tiger lilies?"

"Fine, fine, I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to tell anyone. Promise?"

"Promise," I said.

"Okay," he continued, "I snuck out and climbed your fence. Mrs. Ainsworth is walking and no, she does not know I'm here. I was digging up your tiger lilies because I am a great wizard who was turned into a cat, and my wand is under your flowers."

"I'm going to bring you to school tomorrow. Good night." The next morning I woke up and then took him to school and showed my class. My friends liked him. I told him I was going to the library and we had a lot of fun. I told him, "I'm taking you to Mrs. Ainsworth today." We both said goodbye. Mrs. Ainsworth said thank you.

Raul Casas-Hernandez

Speak to mom. Mom said no more digging.

Victoria Mecklenburg

Chester

I went into my back yard. And what I found was Chester digging in my yard. "Where is that rat?" he says. I froze for I didn't hear any cats speak before. I asked, "What are you doing?" as I stomped my right foot. He yawned and said, "I'm hungry and tired and lost my way to my home." I smiled and picked up Chester and walked in my house. I set Chester on the counter and made bacon and chicken. He smiled and said, "Thank you." When Chester finished eating, I wrapped him in a soft blue blanket and drove him home.

Joslin Hiller

Chester is digging. Chester chased the mouse and got him. Chester went to the park. Chester gets home.

Maddox Wertz

The Talking Cat

Chester is digging up flowers he is talking. I pick him up, he said, "Take me home now!" Chester gets home. Then his paws were dirty, and Miss Ainsworth yelled at him. He had to take a bath. Chester scratched Miss Ainsworth.

Davida Kyle

Chester is digging a hole of flowers. The cat went to the store at the mall, and then began to run. His friend the rabbit, named Joy said, "It does,"

"Does not!" Chester replied.

"Yes it does!" Joy replied.

"You're a bat." said Chester.

"I am not!" he replied.

Ella gennes

Chester saw a mouse named rouse. She ran at the mouse but chester caught her head in a vase but she caught out the mouse was on a balloon but the mouse did not go up but chester did not cetch the mouse and she was going to get the mouse and she was going to get the mouse they ran and ran and chester found the home. Chester ran to the door but it rained and thunder appeared but chester caught the mouse but chester saw another mouse and ran.

Austin Rubio

The mouse is ran in time. House and they ran outside on a me dug in my yard.

Gabriella Medina

Meow Meow

Stop it Christian. Stop mengnen! Get in the tub. Hello Mrs. Manghen! Hi end Medina. Christian picked flowers for Mrs. Menghen! For me Sid mrs. Menghen! He my friend to Mrs. Menghen?

Chloe Westerbrook

The Backyard

Chester is digging up flowers. She chat him and asked me, "Are you a tomboy?" Chester gets home. Chester looked at me with big green eyes and meowed. He yawned and then asked me, "Are you a tomboy?" And Chester gets home.

Jaylee Marmolijo

Discovering Chester's Gift

So I found Chester in my backyard and I was first wondering, where was Mrs. Ainsworth? So I picked Chester up and asked him what he was doing, knowing that he wasn't going to reply. Then out of nowhere, I heard, "Put me down! Put me down! You're messing my fur up!" Then I looked around and thought I was out of my mind. Then could it be that what Mrs. Ainsworth said about Chester true? Then I asked Chester "Is it true?" Then again I heard, "Yes. It's true it's the air talking!" Then I ran inside and grabbed my bag with my phone, wallet, and gum in it. Then I headed straight for the library. When I got there, I looked up "How can cats talk?" After it loaded, it said no results. I was very confused. So then I talked to the cat someone and he answered and then it hit me. He was eating a plant. The plant was a tiger lily. Could it be that Mrs. Ainsworth was giving him something that was making him talk? So I ran to Mrs. Ainsworth's house and she explained that she does give him something to talk. She was a magical magician.

Colton Wertz

The Talking Cat

Chester is in the back of the boy's house digging flowers. The boy picks him up. The cat said, "Put me down." The cat ran away. He ran to Miss. Answorth. Chester gets home. Chester trashes the house when he got home. Miss. Answorth said, "Bad kitty. Where have you been?" Chester said, "I've been digging up flowers." She asked, "Did anyone see you?" Chester replied, "Just that boy Colton. He followed me home."

Miss. Answorth invited me in and said, "Colton sit down and have some milk and cookies. Boy do I have a story for you."

Piper Early

Chester

When I got home from school I went out to the back yard. I found Chester digging for tiger eyes. I picked him up and I took him back home. The End

Kenzie Kyle

Chester is digging up the flowers. She was mad I was bored. You better put me down. She said excuse me. I got Chester he was mad. I drug him home and gave him a bath.

He is a tooking cat. And it is a fake story.

Angel

The Dangers

I heard a sound and it was a cheetah! It ran straight at me! I jumped out the window with the flashlight. The cheetah jumped at me. I ran for my life. But then the cheetah wanted to be friends with me. We went to the beach and see two bottles and sea treasure maps. We saw boats. We went on an adventure. The first map led to an island. The key was in the bottle. The treasure was gold and diamond and emerald. The second treasure was weapons. It was a good choice to be friends with a cheetah. The End

Hailey Vogel

The Weird Night

It's midnight and me and Olivia are sleeping in my tree house. I get scared in my tree house sometimes. So we were going to eat pizza but I heard something weird. So then I thought it was just my imagination so I kept eating. Then I heard it again so I got my flashlight and went outside and saw a shadow in the front of me. So I turned around and I couldn't believe my eyes. It was a bat. I was so scared I threw my flashlight at the bat and it bled. So I got a bucket and put the bat in the bucket. Then I went to bed. And woke up in the morning and the bat was gone. And my friend was gone and I never saw them again.

Machya Cearing

The Shadow

I'm camping with my friends, and I saw a shadow. I looked out of the door and something grabbed me! I tried to get away, but I couldn't. It got me! It was a fairy. I screamed, but then it turned into a robot. I found a hammer in the dungeon. When she put somebody in there, I escaped and hit her with my hammer. I couldn't find her anymore. What? She is blood. AHHHH!!! She rebooted. Now I'm dead! Oh that's not me! That's the fairy. AHH!!

Jaylee W.

The Forgotten

I was hearing that noise, so I shined my light, and then I saw that it was just my parents checking on me.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I was just checking on you," they said.

Then, we were playing a game, and then we go inside because we forgot our pillow and extra food. We got back, went to sleep, and then I woke up with a frightful noise. It scared me. I went outside to the tree and sat on the branch. Then Ava came out and sat with me. I asked her if she heard it. She said yes. We sat outside then all of a sudden the branch shakes and something pushed us close to the ground. Luckily we didn't fall off. Then, something says a mysterious saying in a mysterious voice. It almost sounded as a ghost. It sounded like chirp whooh. We look back and there's nothing. Then, we look back and all there is a tiny squirrel. Have we been fooled again? Or was it real. The End.

Karsyn

The Thing

I saw something trying to hold on to the tree. The thing had no eyes, just holes, deep as the ocean, black as night, with rotted skin with holes all over and for a nose. I cannot tell you about the sight I saw. She could talk but in a raspy voice. I woke up Jaylee and when she saw the thing she screamed. The thing said she was from Oklahoma and her name was Jilly. She had died of pneumonia and her house was built where the tree is. Her bones are buried under the tree and we need to lay them to rest. We didn't know what that meant but she took us to her bones and she told us to dig there until there was dust. Then she told us to fetch water and pour it over the hole. We did and we saw a picture of her and a doll and a body, a small scrowning body. Then she dis appeared. The End.

Maddex Wert

I heard a scary story. I saw a cheetah. It runs at me, I push it off the tree house. It falls down. It dies, but there is a squirrel that popped up, Colton said "let's keep it", but I said "let's kill it". "No", Colton said, then Colton said "sure", but I changed my mind, so Colton hit me, and I kicked him. "Why did you do that" Colton asked, and then I said because you hit me, I said. Then Colton and I got into a fight. "Ahhhhhh" I yelled, there is a deer in our tree house, so Colton said "let's get it, it can kill you", "no, no it won't, and don't scare it" I said. I am doing it for us, said Colton, but I ran at the deer, but it hit me in the stomach, but I grabbed it's antlers, and the deer ran out of the door and it died. So I went to bed and then Colton jumped on me, and I said go to bed.

Zarahy

The Scary night

They went outside to find the thing, it was a fox. We went back inside fast and we locked the door. We all sat there quiet, because we were scared. Then the fox came closer, and all the fox wanted was to sleep.

Serena

Is it really big foot?

We heard a noise so we looked, its "bigfoot". Jan and I observed it. It was really big and harry, you could barely see his eyes, but they were red little eyes, he seemed hungry. So we gave him a peanut butter sandwich. Jan said "do not tell your parents!" "I won't, I cross my heart", I said. Jan said "we are going to hide him every weekend" I said "okay". The next weekend I came he was really smelly. "Big foot needed a bath", I said, "I know" said Jan. So we lived happily ever after.

Oak Lawn

The Sail

Noah Arter

I heard a noise! A scratching noise. I open the door and flashed my flashlight at the door and picked up my shotgun and aimed. I saw a chicken, a rooster and dinosaurs! They roared with laughter. It sounded like they were laughing. I aimed for the chicken and rooster. I shot the chicken and rooster and dodged and I shot and old man! He fell and hit his head on a tree. The old man said "stop farting bullets!" I put the gun close to my butt and shot again and blew him further. The old shouted "stop pooping grenades!" I grabbed a grenade and threw it at him. He flew to the beach and said "I'm in Florida!" then the bully came, and a spinasaurus ate him and left the butt and nut, which kept peeing and pooping. Then we slept.

Violet

I opened the door and saw a ghost. I screamed and woke up my friend. We did not see it. We said Im crazy and to go home. Then I went home and never saw the ghost again, but my friend still thinks im crazy.

Jan and her friend

Josie

November 9th

Midnight is dark. Jna and her friend got scared. My friend and I were camping but we heard a noise. I grabbed a flashlight and saw an owl screeching. Then we hid under the blankets and went back to sleep.

The Rooster and Chicken Attack

Arianna Dold

I saw a rooster and chicken. The chicken said "Bock" and the rooster said "Bock bock". I freaked out and the chicken put his head to the side and said " What!!" The rooster said "i don't care about this." "Chicken is death!" said the rooster. When he screamed what he blew up earth. Chicken said "what did you say?" "I'm not talking to you!"

Piper Earley

The Tree House

My friend and I were sleeping in my tree house tonight; we started to crawl up into our sleeping bags. And then I and my friend heard a strange sound, it sounded like scratching. I took out my flashlight from under my pillow and we peaked outside, we saw a crazy raccoon, he was nibbling the leg of our tree house. We called my mom, mom! Mom! We called and then he stopped. The end.

Colton

The cheetah kissing a woman

I hear a noise and go outside. I hear nothing at first then I see something. It did not look like a cat nor a dog. So I get on the roof and went up the tree. Then I see a cheetah, than I also see a woman. I get closer and closer and see a cheetah kissing a woman. I try stopping it at first, then I see it's not so bad. So I join and kiss with them, but then they push me out. So I got back in and pushed the cheetah off. He pushed me off the tree, so then I went all the way back up and pushed the cheetah off the tree, just like he did to me. He came back up to the tree and it took him about an hour to do so. Then we both were kissing the woman. The End.

Austin Rubio

Owl

I was camping with my friends and it was dark. An owl was knocking on my door. Then the owl was flying in my face.

Lilly Cearing

The Fox

It was midnight Makya and Machya was outside playing a game and then a fox claimed the tree and bites them and they went to the tree house and they got a bandage for the cut that the fox left.

Zodie

The Dark Night

It was a dark night. I was camping with Ran and Zodie after dark. I saw a hyena. I hit it and it ran. I did it, because I hit it so hard.

The End

Salvador

The Talking Fox

Elementary

We seen a fox and it came towards us! And said hi to it we almost broke our foot trying to chase the fox away because it scared us. The fox came back and helped us because we got stuck in the mud. The fox apologized and said I am sorry that I scared you.

The End

Camila

At Camp

It was so dark. I said goodnight me and my friend was in a tree at the campground getting ready to go to bed.

Meadowlawn

Isabeal Roth

I was eating frosted flakes in my kitchen. My sister started dancing around the kitchen because it was a snow day. So I called my friends Holly, Griffin, Alisa, Gage, Elle, Betsy, and my family. I told tall of them to meet me at the top of the small hill. We all got to the top, we all rode our sleds, and we all slid down the hill at the same time. At the bottom we all met an abdominal snowman, we all screamed and ran, and then the abdominal snowman chased us. When we all met up, the abdominal snowman found us and we made friends with him. The abdominal snowman and us all went sledding, ate snow cones, and everything turned out good.

Suri Clemons:

My brother was in the kitchen, and said we could build a snowman. We were by the door but we could not open the door. But, my dad was outside; he was shoveling and putting snow by the door. My mom was looking out the window; my dad knew what he was doing. We went outside and we built a snowman.

Karen Argon:

One day my friends and my family went outside then Taylor and Riley came. I was excited that they came. Later, Taylor got stuck in the snow. So, my mom tried to pull her out but she couldn't. Then my dad tried, he got her out. So we then built a snowman, it was fun.

Kevin Hernandez:

HI my name is Kevin! On New Year's I went to Wisconsin with my friend. Then, my brother, Victor, said "Snow day, grow day". Wahoo! School is closed! My friends, Victor, Oliver, and I played Xbox, Minecraft. Then my mom gave us snacks all day. When it was time to turn it off we went to wash our hands and eat. When it was night we played Xbox, while my mom and dad watched TV. My mom baked cooked cookies, and I could smell them. At nine o'clock we will turn it off, clean up, eat, brush our teeth, and then we have to go to sleep.

Caden Harker:

My brother picked up the phone and started to dance. I started the engine on the snow mobile so my brother and I could go get McDonalds. We got to McDonalds, and got free hot chocolate for doing a group hug. Once we left McDonalds we went to cross Tioga Bridge. We had to go slow over the bridge because it was slick. Once we got across we went over hills. The fastest I got to was 45 miles per hour. Then we tried to ramp a drift and my brother Orie flipped his snow mobile. We flipped it over so we could get home quick. I had a basketball game so we raced home but we tied and we had lots of fun.

Madalyn L:

Jenna just got off the phone with the school. It's going to be a snow day. Whahoo! Why don't you guys play outside, change of plans. What do you mean? Jackets need to be washed. No! Don't tell me again, jackets need to be washed! Ha. Ha. Ha. Not funny Sloan. Girls stop fighting, I need my beauty sleep before school. We have no school, jinx, double jinx. Sloan, Sloan, and maybe I'll say it once more at the end of the day, just kidding. Sloan! HAHA! HA! Stop that now! Jackets are ready girls! Yeah! I built the best snowman ever. Look at those sharp hills, come on, let's go. Cool. Ouch. Are you okay? Yes. I'm fine. Let's go get our ice statues. Yeah, that's a good and fun idea. Girls come and get some hot cocoa. Yeah!

Haily Phillips

My brother answers the phone. He answers the phone. He answers the phone. We asked our friend to come over then we go into the woods. He ran up and we run the my brother's pants fall down and he broke his leg then he breaks his arm and leg then he gets eaten by the angry snowman. The end.

Griffin McAtee

The Mutant Snowman Army

Gilbert cheered. He yelled something about going to build a snowman. He got on his gear, said bye, and plunged outside into the freezing cold. His teeth chattered in the cold but he got used to it eventually.

When his snowman was done, Gilbert went inside and took off his gear. He curled up onto the couch, grasped the remote and turned on the morning news. "Chemical Leak!!! Everyone in Oregon will be affected!" was the top story. Gilbert changed the channel and slept for a couple hours.

When he woke up, he peered out the tall window. There were two snowmen!. "Maybe Jackson built it." Gilbert's board game was taken off the shelf and played with several times for several hours. He checked the window. There was an army of green eyed snowmen now!

Knock knock. There was a sharp rap on the front door. Gilbert very nervously attended to this matter. His parents and brother were asleep. When he opened it, the local crazy man who lived in the forest was right in front of him! He said, "I'm here to help!"

The crazy man said, "Come with me." They headed into the forest. The snow crunched softly under their feet and a sharp "ROAR" echoed off the trees. When they arrived, there was a dragon.

Gilbert gasped, "A dragon! But those things are fake!" The crazy man said, "I know, but not this one. And I know about your mutant snowmen army. We're gonna melt those things."

On the back of the dragon, they flew until they reached Gilbert's house. Snowmen were surrounding it, all laughing maniacally. "Fire!" Old Crazy yelled at the dragon. The fire melted the snowmen and the evening was silent once again.

Gilbert skipped to his doorstep, amazed by his awesome adventure. He did not tell anyone about it because he knew no one would believe him. Gilbert lived a long and happy life after that snow day.

Addi Ward

Addison's Turtle

Do you have a turtle? Are you considering one? Well good news. I interviewed myself and I have some advice. My BFF Ryan R asked me a few questions. "Why did you get a turtle?" When I got my turtle, it was my first pet and I wanted to start small. After I proved to my mom I could handle it, now I own 1 great dane and 2 cats. "What do you wash Sheldon with?" I wash my turtle with a little vinegar and an old toothbrush. You don't have to use my method. Just be careful. I love my turtle and he's very special to me.

I got a pet turtle. He's like an immortal. He's actually pretty fast and he never comes in last. I take good care of him. Oh, his name is Tim. He swims with a buddy, a fish that's kind of chubby. They swim together and play together and never leave each other's sides. BOOM.

Gabby McAtee

To Find Cinnamon

One day, Ginger wanted to play with Cinnamon, but she couldn't find Cinnamon. Where was she? I'll check under the couch. No, not there! I'll check under the other couch. No, not there! I'll check under the recliner. No, not there! I'll check under the tables. No, not there. I'm going to cry then I'll get back to you...all better! Now to find Cinnamon! I'll check under the bench. She's not there! Hmm, she's not downstairs. Maybe she's in Gab's room! Cinnamon's not in Gab's room. Maybe Griffins. No, not there. Is she in Mom's room? Nope. Wait the bench door was open...found her! "Cinnamon, wanna play?" "Sure Ginger." "I wanna battle fight, Cinnamon!" So they played for awhile and when they were exhausted, Cinnamon said, " Wanna go and meow until Gab and Griffin will feed and water us?" "Sure." After they ate, Griffin and Gab played with them and pet them. Soon it was dark and everyone was asleep. "Wanna go wake Gab up?" "Yay. Cinnamon!" "Cinnamon where is Gab." "Oh yeah, I think she went to Kaia's and Griffin is at Grandma's. Well goodnight."

It was Sunday morning and Ginger woke up alone. Cinnamon was gone again! "Well, time to find Cinnamon." I bet this happens at least every morning. Oh wait she's under the table sleeping. Ginger was just watching birds when Cinnamon woke up. "Hey Ginger, wanna play? After awhile of playing, Gab came home. She ran all over the house. She kept yelling. "Mom I can't find Cinnamon anywhere." It was true. She wasn't where they were playing. Suddenly she saw a flicker of movement in the corner of her eye. "Cinnamon! Where were you?" "I was following Gab." "Really? I didn't see you." While Ginger was sleeping, she dreamed she was padding through a forest and found a huge camp of forest cats sitting beneath a really high rock and an orange tom cat standing there saying something she couldn't hear. Then she opened her eyes and Cinnamon was there asleep, the warmth of her body against her. Then she fell back into a dreamless sleep. When she woke up she felt so tired and it was just the crack of dawn and Cinnamon wasn't there. And what did that dream mean? Maybe some cat would just come to them then go become a forest cat. Who knows?

Keely Deniston

The History of a Doughnut

First, native americans had dough balls. They were big, deep fried balls of dough. One day, Bob decided they should put a glad on them. The glaze was made out of powdered sugar and milk. They tasted delicious!

Then George Washington tried one. H loved them. He made more icing to put on them. He even added sprinkles!

After George Washington tried them, Abraham Lincoln tried them. He decided there was too much dough. He made them thinner. For a little more prettiness, he cut a hole in the middle. That brings us to the doughnuts we know today!

Manal Khdour

My Cat is a King

My cat is a king. Oh yes, a king. He likes to make me bring his treat. He makes me do the sweeping and just likes to make me scream! But when I make him play he just forgets he is a King!! DwDwDwww. Meow. Oh you hear me. Meow meow. Yes I did not say that. So I play with him to make me happy. To see him just play with me and not be a king, but soon. You can not be a king anymore!! Mow. Mow! Mow! Okay, okay. We will make you a rich singer. How about that? MEOW!! No, ok. I am not going to make you king again. Why? Because you get all the time in the world to be king and I want to be Queen, but no you said I can't be queen! Meow meow. Breath, breath. You want me to breath! Meow meow meow meow meow me me ow me. I meant to say yes. Well, now be change. I want you to be queen. Oh my bad. So can we start over? Meow. You said yes. Okay, let's start over now. Oh wow a cat! And so the girl and cat lived their life together.

Alexander Dellinger

There was a superhero and her name was Dr. Doodly dog. She can lift a bus. She can run faster than a plane and she is the awesomest dog ever. Once upon a time, there was a villain named Mr. Cheese Puff and he had an army of over sized cheese puffs. So one day, Mr Cheese Puff wanted to take over the world, but Dr. Doodly Dog stopped him. First, Mr. Cheese Puff yelled, "Attack!" Next, Dr. Doodly Dog punched, kicked, and ate the over sized cheese puffs! The, Mr. Cheese Puff ran up and punched Dr. Doodly Dog in the face. Then, Dr. Doodly Dog thought he would die, but then he ate Mr. Cheese Puff and he saved the day.

Ryan Russell

Chloe

Oh my dear mean cat. You are a little fat. But that's what makes you a cat. I remember when you ate a humming bird. You are a little turd. You bite and fight. You hate the water and you are like my daughter in a way and I have to say, I love you Cloe, my pet.

Layni Lawley

My dog surge. You are nothing like the purge. You are nice and as cool as ice. You don't eat but you sure are fat. You love to walk on the mat. When you run out the door, I feel like you don't like me anymore.

Ariel Davis

*EDITOR'S NOTE: this story is meant to be like a newspaper

The Monticello Messenger

Recently a shark has been found in Blue Water Lake! 3 people died and 5 were wounded. A picture was caught by Bob Smith, a 30 year old whose daughter was attacked. Luckily the shark was killed. Also Sirius Black broke into a bank currently. He stole about 1.4 billion dollars. He was then spotted a week later by Ron Weasly. He was very frightened. He escaped and hasn't been found since. A bunny has been mutated into a monstrous creature in a science lab in Texas. If found, please call 3114-328-6831. Please don't freak out. The reason this story is so short is because the government doesn't want people to know the truth. The Easter egg story winner was Ryan Russell. Here is her article: I got an Easter egg from my sister yesterday. She gave it to me after she ate the candy. It was awful!! I love candy everybody should. It's what keeps us alive is what I think. The End. She was even interviewed because her story was so amazing. Unfortunately, Bob Fortunate was in an awful car crash after he won a million dollars and his daughter survived cancer. His last name, Fortunate, is the exact opposite of what happened to him on Sunday.

Kevin Hernandez

When I was riding a bike, I saw something hop past me. I decided that it was a rabbit. I followed him. He hoped into the bush. I followed him and saw baby bunnies. I put the coat in the grass and the baby bunny hopped into it. I can keep them and I can put him in my bucket. I will buy the cage and then he will belong to me. I named the bunnies Carter, Omar, Vicky, Rocky, and Danky.

Aryana Neal

Super Dog

Once upon a time there was a dog named Louie. He was the most powerful dog in the world. He saves everybody when they are in trouble. When he's disguised as a super hero, he wears a cape. On day he found a pair of lost puppies. Then we stuck them in a cage that nobody knew about. He had to open the cage with his tail. He had to hold them and take them back to their owners. The next day he had no mission to do, so he slept 40 hours straight. The next day was the same, but he played for 40 hours, instead. He was the best dog you could ever ask for. He can even see ghosts and demons. He can even warn you when they are around. He ate every vegetable and even the fruits. He was so very strong. The End.

Carter Clark

Dogs

My dog's name is Dowk dog. He saved the bus full of people of the kingdom. I gave him a big treat. They are going to fall and my dog will save them.

Madalyn Alexander

A Poem for a Cat

Cats are very cute. But they are not mute. Dogs are very dear. They make me want to cheer. Snakes freak me out. They make slow pout. Birds are very nice. They don't like rice. Fish are very great. They always have a mate. Guinea pigs are in a cage. Sometimes they eat your page. Bunnies eat carrots. But they don't eat ferrets. But of all of my pets my cat is the best one I've ever met. Simon, my kitten, has y heart. I am certain we will never be apart.

#21. A Heroic Dog

Once upon a time, a heroic dog was a superhero, which was my pet dog. His name was Lucky. I named him that because I thought it was a good name and he would grow up to be lucky. One day I was giving him a walk, we heard a kid yell "help!" Accidentally, I let go of Lucky. He ran and saw where the kid was to see what happened. Then I caught up with Lucky. The kid's ball was stuck where only Lucky could reach, but Lucky was a step ahead of me. Lucky jumped and got the ball down. Now the kid was happy and gave Lucky a hug!

#22. The Mystery of the Missing Treat

One day, Charlie the dog went looking for his Beggin Strips. He couldn't find them. He was hungry, but then he remembered. He was determined, so he grabbed his magnifying glass. Charlie went off to look in the closet, and they weren't there. He looked in the garage and they weren't there. He looked in his bed. There it was! "YAY!" He ripped them open and he ate one now and now he wants another one!

#23.

One day, a dog and his trusty sidekick saved kindergarteners from falling in the ocean so the people came to help and some awesome man and super women and super girl went to save them. They went off the bridge so Buddy and Balle could save them. They thanked them and give them treats.

#24. The Case of the Missing Chew Toy

One day, my dog lost her chew toy. That day, we were on a mystery. We were looking for it inside and outside, but later we were exhausted. Then we found it, because my dog dug it up in the backyard. When we found it, I played with him, because he deserved it. I was proud of her.

#25. My Dogs are Buddies

I have 3 dogs and they are my buddies. My oldest dog loves his daughter and his son. They play all the time and he tries to sleep together. I love when they drink out of the toilet. They like to chase each other's tails. My big dog loves to play and chase the ball with his daughter and son.

#26. My Cat

I met a dog and my cat got bit from the dog. The cat bit it back. Then the owner came back and yelled at the cat and the dog. Then the kid went to play with the dog.

The Woodland Animal Party By: Riley Miller

Once upon a time there was a little deer named Holly. She thought the woods were boring. She didn't know what to do. She was so lost that she wandered off out of the forest! There Holly found her idea of fun. She saw some people having a party! "That's the perfect thing!" She went back home and went into a secret place she had made. Nobody knew about it. Then she started to make the lace look like a party. Once she had the look down, Holly got the word out. She told everybody in the forest to tell everybody else in the forest about the party. Then she went to the party store to get goody bags and treats. Finally the day of the party arrived. Everybody in the forest was there. She had made special fake trees for the squirrels and chipmunks. She had made a special feather painter for the turkeys. The best thing about it was that the people who were decorating the feathers were fairies! The party was a blast. She had never had so much fun in her life! There was dancing and a disco ball the fairies had brought. When it was about time for the end of the party, while holly was passing out the Goody bags some people asked "Holly what are you going to do with this place?" her only answer was "You'll see." She smiled every time she said it. Years later Holly had made her special place to a party themed restaurant. Where you could dance! Holly was so glad she had made the first forest party. Even better, she now had herself a restaurant, and she was the most popular woodland creature in the forest!

The Deadly Ghost By: Grayce Noe

Once upon a time three little puppies are in their cage sleeping. My dog Thor hears a bang. He goes in the room that made the bang. He sees a demon he barks until someone comes home. He tries to fight the demon to protect his puppies. Someone comes home. No one can see anything, but in the corner one shadow looked like a girl. So the mother searches if someone died in the house. She looks in the attic when she gets up there she hears a bang. The mother called 911, she thought someone was in her house, but when the police got their no one was there. After a week things got worse. The two smallest puppies started barking. When the kids get home from school, one kid yells that there is a demon. They run outside. They stay outside for 2 hours, which was when their mother got off work. The kid tells what happened. The mom calls special people to help. He made the house free forever. The End

The Beach By: Aryana Neal

There was 5 minutes left until the bell rang and I'll be hooked up to my jet pack holding my crazy puppy heading to a beach and living in the beach house all summer. Finally the bell rings and I jump out of my seat and dash out the door. I got hooked up to my jetpack my crazy dog louie got his own personal jetpack to ride to the beach house. I'll pack food coke and clothes. When I get there I'll go zip lining. I'll have to go sell sea shells by the sea shore to be able to buy stuff. Louie will go bowling when I'm doing it. I won't have to clean my room or do the Dishes Summers over We had a party watching football and drinking coke

Our Trip to the Milky Way By: Kortney Kyser and Keeley Deniston

One summer Kortney and Keeley and their mother went to the Milky Way. They take Keeley's dog Rudy too. They flew off in rainbow rocket shoes. They brought tools, candy, cotton candy, fago, and a huge hot pink tent. Once they got there they set up their tent and watched the starts and drifted into their dreams. When they woke up they had to find jobs, they finally found jobs. The mom built ships to sail on the Milky Way and Kortney and Keeley made chocolate to put in the Milky Way. Everybody was sad because they would leave in a couple of days. But the good thing about the trip was they didn't have to see their brothers. To say good bye to their new friends they shot fireworks off the moon.

Vacation By: Caden Harker

Where I will go is Texas, what I will bring is money, candy, Gatorade, and electronics. I would bring my dad, my mom, and my brother. I would get a job at mcdonalds. I would play basketball for fun and if I was bored. How I would get to places is a car. The things I wouldn't have to do is unpack and cook is food. I would throw a Nickelodeon party for fun.

The Awesome By: Grayce Noe

My best imaginary vacation is to go to cloud cukoo land where there are no rules, except theses. There are no babysitters, no bed time, no bushy mustaches, and no negativity of any kind. There is only happiness in this world. I would bring all of my best friends in the world. My job will be only to play and eat candy and you will still get paid. I would eat sparkly candy for fun and after you eat it you will glow. I will get their by the Unikitty. The things I don't have to do is do chores and be bored because I am never tired. At the end of the vacation I will play, dance, ride every water slide, eat candy, build candy castles, and eat marshmallows. THE END

By: Peyton Duttenhaver

Saving Turtles

The best I'm aginary ever to the bach Igcan recuce baby turtles. I bring my umbrella if it rains, Aryana and mom dad to help techce turtles.

By: Addi Ward

Ryan & Addi

Addi and I had the most amazing time ever last year. I brought along with me swish cheese, loly pops, Hanna Banana Loops, T-Money. I brought light weigh air tanks helmets, and everything I could fin in my bags but... going to mars was cheap. Me and Addi has to save up some bucks. I decided to get a job at the scoop (ice cream shop) as soon as we got there we road some roller coasters, went tot the water park and surfed while eating awesome tacos. Once we were done we unpacked at the penthouse. Then we went to a midnight dance party on our flying carpets carried by elepahants guided Pegasus. We had an awesome him with no chool, no parents, and no work. Our after party was held in the clouds with Peter P. Taylor Laughtner. Taylor Swift, Jennifer and Josh from the hunger games, Iron Man Batman, Maroon 5 singing (sugar) and everyone from the hunger games. Ed Sheeran, the cast of I didn't do it, Nikii, Ricky , Dicky, Dawn Grwon hrs, Big Bang Theroy. Our party has a b-ball court and a dodge ball championship[, neon lights, dance floor, snow cone stuff, roller coaster, hot tub, fair food, movie theater, petting zoo, steaks and spaghetti, water park and fruit snack, skaty zone,cotton candy and a game room. Me and Addi had the best time ever.

By: Megan Vancleve 5th

Under the Sea

For animaginary Vaction me and my parents will go under the sea. We will take a sub to get there. We'll take scuba stuff and other stuff. We won't have to unpack or pack up. To get under sea money we'll collect seashells. Then relaz when we leave we'll have an underwater fiesta. I'll invite mermaids, fish, and seahorses. There will be a seahorse race. THE END.

By: Zachary Craig

Minecraft Part 2: The Herobrine

Me and friends we on a Vacation, but something strange happened but we didn't care because last time it was scary it might be a camera but it wasn't. Adam was scared then I said "chill out dude! It's a canera" adam responded with "Maybe, lets have fun" but it disregard then adam said "not a camera defenetly not" Because adamas move then he DIED!!! I yelled "ADAM NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" then he disappeared then Davion yelled "noo" then Yahir it was sad then Davion went "NOOO" Then He died. Then Yahir said "maybe its an owl" then he said im dying and then me and diego got mail an invitation to a pary at the city park in the woods meet me"

-Herobrine.

THE END!!

By: Suri Clemons

Vacation to Big Splash

I rode my jetpack to big splash, I brought my swimming suit, I brought my brother and sister. I was a pizza man! I went on a big water slide, I won't have to help my mom do the laundry. The last day of my vacation I ate strawberries dipped in chocolate from the chocolate fountain.

By: Haily Phillips

The one day trip

I went to floda I went to the bech then I went to the water slide then we went to bed the next day then brot briefest then I look my dog for awak then I went to the zoo then we went home.

Hannah Hodgen

The Dark Door

The door falls over, so Addi and I pick it up. All of a sudden we see a dark hole in the ground. It was sucking everything into it! Even us! We were in the tunnel, swirling around for what seemed like forever. Then we finally landed on the ground.

"Ow, my head!" Addi groaned.

"What just happened?" I asked, astonished.

Addi shrugged. Just then we heard a splash. Addi's eyes widened. I started to step forward. I saw a small lake that was as clean glass. I saw a figure in the water. It was blue and colorful. Just then a tail popped off.

"What is that?" Addi asked, creeped out.

"I'm not sure," I told her. I stepped closer. My eyes widened. It was a mermaid! It had a bright blue tail. Right then and there I stepped back.

"Don't be afraid!" it said. "My name is Danielle and I'm a mermaid."

Addi was astonished and so was I. We asked her a few more questions like where we were and how we got here. She said we were in a place called Cutopia. She said we were here for disturbing Dr. Dairy Queen so he sent us here for punishment. Just as she was telling us about her favorite kind of candy, we heard a particular noise. It sounded like geese.

"Quack quack! Quack quack!" the animal said. Then he landed on a branch next to us. "Hi! My name is Ben! I'm a goose. You see I was a pigeon before and I loved being a pigeon, but I did something wrong so Dr. Dairy Queen changed me! Dr. Dairy Queen is evil and he always will be!" quacked Ben.

"Wait, who is Dr. Dairy Queen?" asked Addi.

"He is the evil mastermind who sent us to this world! It may seem beautiful now but just wait, pretty soon you'll see alligators, poisoned oranges, and worst of all, Dr. Dairy Queen's evil monkeys," Danielle told us.

Oh my gosh, I thought to myself. Just then I felt something land on my shoulder. It was big and hairy. It was a monkey! Then I started seeing 30 or 40 monkeys. They attacked us!

"Run!" Danielle and Ben shouted at the same time. Danielle went under water and Ben flew. Addi and I followed him, stunned. We went into a small shack. Then Danielle just popped up with no water.

"Can't breathe," choked Danielle. So Addi got a bucket of water and splashed Danielle. "Aw, that's better," Danielle said.

"What happened back there?" I asked.

"Dr. Dairy Queen's monkeys happened," Ben said.

"Guys, I'd hate to cut the chit chat but I'm running out of water!" Danielle explained.

Ben went outside to see if the monkeys were gone, and thank goodness, they were. Danielle splashed back into the lake.

"So are we going to have to stay here the rest of our lives or what? I've really got to get home or my mom is going to be pretty upset with me!" said Addi.

"I don't know, but something I do know is I'm hungry. I don't know what ducks eat since I used to be a pigeon. If I can get back to Earth I will be able to become a pigeon again," said Ben.

"I want to see what it's like on Earth, too!" explaimed Danielle.

"Okay I will try and bring you guys home with me, on one condition. You help us find a way out," I told Danielle and Ben.
"No problem! We just need to get through the onion forest," Danielle said.

"The only problem with that is we will cry when we go through there," Ben explained.

"Hello, did you forget about my water situation?" Danielle asked Ben.

"No, we can cry on you," Ben told her.

"Good point," Danielle said.

So we headed that way. We brought buckets with us and cried in them. Then we dumped it on Danielle. We finally got out of there. We saw a door. We went through it and poof, we were home. I told Danielle about the pond in my front yard and how she could live there. I told Ben the pigeon about an old parrot cage I had for him that he could live in. Something I realized though was no time had passed from when we got sucked in. It was after school in the woods. That meant Addi wouldn't be in trouble. After that we lived happily ever after.

Jayden Mathews

Nothing Dull

When Bella finished knocking I smacked her arm. "Ow! What's with the sudden violence?" she screeched playfully.

I replied, "What do you expect, an invisible house?" She looked hurt.

"Sorry... I... it's just... who knows what's behind it?" I stuttered.

"S'okay," she replied.

"Uh... guys...look." We obey. Creeek goes the door. Inside the door stands a man with greased black hair and devilish black eyes, a little girl with blonde pigtails and blue eyes, and a brunette girl with amber eyes. The blonde girl said, "What do you want?"

"What?" I said.

"Never mind, Karina," said the man. He started after us.

Annabella, Hallie, Layni, Maddie, Karina, and I raced out the door. We slammed the door shut. "Guys," Layni said, "We need to bury the door." Then we raced home.

Madison Jurs

The Mystery Door

The door opened by itself, I look at Alex, and I said "Alex do we go in there?" "My gut is telling me to" said Alex. "My gut is telling me too also." I said. We both stepped inside; the old wooden floor creaked and groaned as we tiptoed over them. "Al-Alex wha-what do we do?" I said trembling "we...I don't know just walk" then we heard sad morbid music to the beat of a girl crying. "I'm scared, let me out of here". We both looked at each other, we opened the door, and a girl was sitting in a corner crying, sobbing her eyes out. "I just want to go home." There, playing the piano was a woman with a dull grey bun on the top of her hair. She wore all black as if she was sad. "Why Sarenity, Why!" the mysterious woman sloped playing the music and put her face in her hands and sobbed hard. 'Excuse me ma'am" said Alex. The old woman turned around "Who are you and why are you in my house!" the old woman yelled. "GET OUT!!" yelled the woman. "take one with you !" yelled the girl. Alex walked over to the girl "Calm down, stop crying, you can come with us." The old lady said "No you are not taking her away from me again, unless you solve this riddle" "What is it?" asked Alex "What comes up but never down?"

"Uh-I don't know." whispered Alex. Then I remembered "AIR!" I yelled. "Correct" then the woman disappeared, the door took her place. We helped the girl up "What's your name?" "My name is Marissa." As we all walked out the door I felt like if I had been hit in the head. As I woke up I was on the floor and from that moment on I didn't really remember anything.

Fin.

Addi Ward

The Wonder Hallway

The door opened, it was like magic. They slowly walked through the doorway. Boo! The boys jumped back, a little snowman walked out. He had an ice-sickle through his stomach! "Oh look at that I've been impaled" the snowman said.

"I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs." Alex looked at the snowman.

"Let me help you little guy." He slowly pulled out the ice.

"Thank You" said Olaf.

"Well let's begin our Journey"

"What journey?" I asked.

"Well you want to get home don't you?"

"Oh um oh yeah..."

"Then that's it"

They slowly walked into the hallway. It's awfully dark. Then I noticed something. There was um.. a door.

"It's a door!" I shouted

"Woohoo" said Alex.

"let's get out of here"

"Hey, hey slow down, it's not that easy. This hallway is full of optical illusions. The only way to get out of here is to solve all of them correctly," stated Olaf.

"And let me assure you, not all are really that easy. Some might make you faint, some might make you sweat. most will make you faint. And let me be assuring. I'm not here to stay. I'm also an illusion."

And Poof he was gone.

"I guess this is up to you and me" I said to Alex, hopefully sounding reassuring.

Slowly they walked forward, inching in slowly. They went toward the door they just saw. They nocked and slowly it opened. The room was very colorful like someone captured a rainbow then let it free in this very room. They walked over to a table in the middle of the room, there was a small piece of paper and on it, it read

"You have been lost, time has past, find your savvy, and make it last."

I had no idea what it meant but Alex was good at deciphering. He said this one was pretty easy. "Savvy means talent or specialty" I was already lost, I just let him do his thing. As he continued, "You have been lost. That one's obvious, find your savvy or special power and make it last, take your time to figure it out."

"Oh he said if we learn what we are good at it will help us out through this, well... whatever you call it."

"Well" I stated.

"I am good at math and football" He mentioned

"I'm a nerd, got at everything school."

"Yes, yes you are!"

So we walked over to the wall and Alex pressed some buttons and a voice read aloud "Congratulations, you've deciphered this. Go into the door and find your next assignment" We looked around what door suddenly the voice faded away and a bright green door appeared. We knocked and it opened. We walked into the small room. They couldn't dance, run, jump, do anything, because it was small. There were four buttons in the middle of the room going left to right, top to bottom, blue yellow green, red. It didn't take Alex long to figure it out.

"I know what this is" he stated.

"An optical illusion" I threw in.

"Har Har, very funny, but no. This is a pattern"

"How do you know, did you read the instructions?"

"Oh"

"We have to find all the ways we could sort these in our heads, we can't mic up the color patterns though. They always have to go in the same order." declared Alex.

"That's easy!" I replied.

"There's only four ways."

"Thanks." Alex pressed some buttons, and the voice rang over again.

"Wow. But let me say, that one was easy. But you still cracked the case. Go through the door." The boys waited patiently, a small door appeared. The boys knocked and slowly opened it, this room had a huge projector. They walked in quickly and passed a green button, bright neon colors ran across the screen. The video sucked in their minds, the video was two hours long but it seemed like two minutes. At the end of the video the voice said you will now have brains of super human alike of cats. Slowly they looked at each other.

"Meow" said alex

I meant to say "oh great" but it came out.

"purrrr.."

We stride over to the new door, we waited so patiently, for it was dark green. We knocked and it opened. A room with one window and a light shaded brown of walls, three walls. We were strapped to the wall. In front of us colors were layed out in midair, overlapping, turning into different colors. A voice over us was reading off the instructions. It was up to us to separate the colors.

"Meow." I said to Alex indicating we got this.

At the end of the instructions he told us this was the last illusion. This one would be tricky. There was an obvious one in the middle I already saw. Then the straps undid and released us. We walked over to the colors. The easy one was blue and yellow where they overlapped was green. You had to be careful not to separate them too much because there was a tad of purple right there and yellow + purple makes nothing so it would be hard to separate. Alex found another one brown and yellow with a green shaped triangle on the brown. He separated all three. I saw a pink rectangle on a splatter of maroon. Then the voice came over again. "now put them in a rainbow!"

"hissss" wined Alex.

In this order we put them, maroon pink, yellow, blue, purple. The voice said "close but not close enough" We swithed around pink and maroon and then there was a bright light and I wasn't a cat anymore and neither was Alex. I figured he was at his house when I realized I was back at mine. What a day!

Inside The Lion's Cage

By Evan Bruder

The door suddenly opens so tthen we slowly walk and there was nothing there. Then the tree by it slowly falls down so we ran away so we can dodge it. It was pitch black in there so I pull out a lighter and a good thing Alex brought a Styrofoam plate. I quickly gather some leaves and twigs so I made a pile and started a fire. I picked up a stick and melted the Styrofoam on the stick and caught it on fire. "Boom," I said as I created a fast torch. "Wow," Alex said, "That is impressive." "Thank you," I said. So then we leap into the hole and it turns out there was a lion with a golden necklace on. Then we hear a "poof" sound then the tree stands up tall and the door shuts locking us in there. I started shaking even though I had a coat on and a fire was by me. Then the lion woke up and he saw us. Suddenly he started charging at us. Right when he was about to bite us, a knight called, Albert, cuts off the lion's he not even leaving a scratch on the necklace and a door that looks exactly like the other door opens. Alex quickly staggered out. Why don't you be on our team. You would make a great addition to help us get home.

The Mysterious Door

Jillian B.

One day two girls named Jillian and Evelyn were walking home from school, when he came to an old wooden door that had a lion's head attached to the front of it. Evelyn walked up to the door and knocked three times. The door slowly opened. Inside of it, it looked like an old closet. There were empty books on the book shelf and a bunch of pages flow everywhere. The pages uncovered a message that said, "Put the pages in their right order or else." They hesitated and then started sorting the pages. It took them almost four hours. After they had finished, the message started to glow. They started to leave when they heard a whisper say, "Thank you."

Everyday after that on their walk home from school, they never saw or heard of the door again.

Shyanne

Invisible House

The door opened by its self. I teleported to the move Harry Potter! "Where is Emma?" "Hello Shyanne!" said a voice. "My name is Judy." She looked like a clown. "Now that's not very nice Shyanne" said Kaden, who could tell what people were thinking. "Do you know where Emma is?" I asked. "Who" they both said. "Emma" I said. You now the girl who teleported somewhere else. "Not a clue" Said Judy. I know said Tyler, who could see into the future. What don't mean to change the subject or anything? Where are we? I don't know, we just came with you. Ringggggg. What happened? You fell asleep again at math. Let's go home said Emma.

Stephanie McCarthy

The Invisible House, the Invisible U.S.

Then... A lady opens a door and says "Back Daisy." As a small white fluffy dog barking, while doing a little circus dance. Then the lady just shuts the door on us but, the door went right through us! I couldn't believe it! The lady went back to her kitchen and started banging pots and pans together. Then we heard this faint voice. "Mommy, mommy who is it?' then a girl running down the stairs holding her two baby dolls. "It was no one dear." "Oh, man I wanted a visitor!" Whined the little girl. I reached out the shake her hand and she yelled "Who's touching me?!?" The little girl wiggled and ran to her mom. "It's okay sweetie." The mom. (I'm guessing) said as trying to calm her daughter (I think). We started searching the house and went upstairs. We found three rooms with all the doors open. One looked like a bathroom, the next looked like a mom and dad's room, the next looked like a pink blob all we could was Pink, so we started in the mom and dad's room. There was a closet, a bed, a dresser and a closet. Wait another closet!? We decided to start there. There were books everywhere. Of course being the person I am, I organized them. When I got the books all sorted there was a hole. It was like a vacuum. It sucked us in. Then we ended up walking out of the door. We raced to the pine tree and hugged it. Then the door creaked open then a foot stepped out.

Evelyn S.

The Hidden Tunnel

One day, Jillian and I were walking through the woods and we took the same way we always did. We found a door, so we knocked on it and we fell through and landed in a secret tunnel! There was a sign that said, "There are two riddles you must solve to escape this hidden tunnel." After we read the sign we walked down the long tunnel and saw an old troll sitting in a rocking chair. "Hello, we saw a door so we knocked on it and we ended up in here. How do we get out?" asked Jillian. "You must solve a riddle for me then a door will open and send you to the old man Jenkins," said the troll. "Okay, what is the riddle?" I asked. The troll replied with, "You must solve forty-six divided by two!" "UH OH, we haven't done division in school yet, how will we ever figure this out?!" said Jillian anxiously. That's when we realized division is the opposite of multiplication, so we need to find a number multiplied by two to get forty-six. "That's it! It's twenty-three!" I yelled. The door opened and we walked through it. We saw an old man also sitting in a rocking chair. He said, "I have a riddle for you too! You must solve twelve times two!" "Oh, that's easy! Twenty-four!" yelled Jillian. The door opened and we walked through it to find another door with a padlock. "Let's put the numbers twenty-three and twenty-four in!" I said. It worked and when the door opened it revealed our houses. We ran to the front door and told our parents about our adventure.

Sarenity Inman

The Mysterious Door

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Alex. Alex takes the same path home from school. But on September Fourteenth, he discovered that there was a door right by the old pine tree. This was no ordinary door. It had had old wood and a lion that was holding a ring in its mouth. It was a ring that you used to knock on the door. "Do I knock?" I asked myself. I got over my fear and knocked. I waited a few seconds. "Is anyone there?" I said. Then the lion on the door said, "Hello, how are you this evening?" I screamed and ran as far as I possibly could. I stopped to catch my breath and I heard rattling in the bushes beside me. All of a sudden, my best friend James jumped out of the bushes wearing a scary mask. "Very funny," I told James. "Man, I can never you anymore!" James said. "You got that right!" I said as I was trying to act cool.

Emily Felz

Don't. Go. Through.

One day, I was walking in the woods when I saw a weird looking door. I twisted the doorknob and nothing happened. Stupid, old, magical door. A few minutes later, the door swung wide open. Of course, like in any other story, I get sucked into a magical portal. Not surprised. I find myself on the ground. Everything seemed normal. As I kept walking, I saw a fox. My favorite animal! It was natural for me to walk up to it, but something wasn't right. As I walked up closer, it spun around only to reveal it was three headed. Great. The three heads were chained together by a chain made of silver and aluminum. The chase is on! I am very fast, but the speed of the fox was ridiculous! I got clawed, scratched, bit and slobbered on. I finally wacked it with a stick. It ran away whimpering to my reflex. Next I saw a wolf pup on the side of a tree. Now I was careful. When I blinked, it was gone. Then with a moment's hesitation, it came crashing down on me. This time it had wings and was the size of a tiger. It struck its fangs at me! I grabbed its neck and threw it to the ground. Talk about super strength! With a flash of red and gold light, it disappeared. Next, I saw an abandoned pizzeria. I walked inside. II saw a sign that read "Kids Cove." Boss battle! There was a really big spider fox. Not really a spider, just a fox with a metal body. There was an off switch. I turned it off and the fox went down. Apparently, her name was Mangle. The name suits her. A portal opened up and I went home.

Brady

The Mysterious Trip

Eric and I were walking through the woods, we jumped over the stream and got passed the tree, then a door shows up out of nowhere. I knocked on the door three times while Eric was climbing the tree. Suddenly the tree fell over and sent Eric flying through the air and fell with a thud! I looked at the tree and found a hole that was whistling quietly. "I don't know if we should stay here," said Eric nervously. Then the hole started to whistle louder and louder and it sucked me and Eric in; falling to the bottom. Then Eric and I heard a voice, a very low voice and then it went dark! Next Eric and I heard a barking noise; it was a dog! It started to talk to us and said its name was Evil Paws and we were covered with chains. Then I remembered I can wiggle out of chains, so when Evil Paws was asleep we crawled through the vent to Evil Paw's owner, Dr. Evil. He heard us, so we got out of the vent and knocked Dr. Evil over into his trap. We found the emergency exit and carried Dr. Evil to my house and me and Eric locked Dr. Evil into my sisters room and eventually, over five years he shrank and disappeared. The next day we found another door on the sidewalk and I shoved my sister in first and slammed the door shut. At least me and Eric have never seen another door again.

Kevin

One Upon A Time

Hi, my name is Kevin. We are going with Santa in Christmas with my friends, my brothers, and my mom and dad. When we're in Santa's house I'd knock on the door and Santa says, "Ho! Ho! Ho! Welcome to Santa's house!" Santa says, "Come on in, the elves have the flu and Rudolph's nose is burned. You got here just in time, I need your help, they need help to make presents same." One needs to hold the light. My friends, mom, dad, brothers, and I are saving Christmas. We're on vacation because I wanted to stay through December 7 to January 3, then I'm going home.

The Myser Door by Yahir

Deiog and Yahir open the door and it takes them to Mars. They walk and find the door. They open the door again and it takes them to an alien space ship. The both of them find aliens and run away. They both get to the door and open it. It takes them to a room that had space suits. They pushed the button, and they were floating to Neptune. They find the door and open it. The door takes them to the space ship again. They ran to hide. They hid in a room with a door that said "Do Not Enter." They found the door and opened in and the aliens were there, and threw them through the door. They were back to the Pine tree and never saw the door again.

The Lion is Alive by Junior

The lion fur turns into twelve pieces and fly into the woods. Then the lion says "You have disturbed my 10,000 year sleep now you may pay Rus-tonl-ness! Then Alex turns into a pebble. "What have you done?!" I said. "You must find the 12 piece first, then I might turn your friend back." I started running then I stopped I heard a wimping sound. A dog fell out of the bush, and it had 1 piece of the fur, they took it, and they helped the dog. "I will name you Ames." I said. Time 10:00 pm. They heard an "Awwwhhhh Noooooo!" There were wolves and one had a piece!

The Wooden Door by Gabi Noe

Once upon a time there were two girls that are weird. One day after school the girl named Gabi yelled Madison. Madison said "Gabi what do you want? I want to go home." "Okay, go Gabi." "No come with me." "Oh yeah I forgot we talk together." She said. "Oh really you did? Whatever Madison." Gabi said. "Okay Gabi, I did know." Said Madison. "Okay Madds lets go." "Fine, if I have too." Madison said. "Well you do." Gabi said. "Okay Gabi!" "Okay now let's go over the stream." Gabi said. After we jumped over the stream we got to the pine tree. There was an old wooden door. Gabi said "Let's go in it." "No!" said Maddy. Gabi said "Don't be a baby." "Okay..." Maddy said scared. Well when they opened it they screamed because they saw a lion. After they ran they say another door. They didn't go in so they ran back to the lion they saw, but it was blocking the door. They sliced the lion, opened the door, and ran back home. They never spoke of it again.

Zach Craig

The spooky woods

One day Adam, Carter, Alex, mason and Zach went to school and mrs.brady is their teacher. Then they went home and walked the wrong way then they were in the woods then they tried to get out and it failed they tried to make shelter but then Adam, found a door they went inside then they saw allie dancing in Mexico then they are in outer space they are going to mars. Then they got to dance. Mexico is not that bad said Alex then Adam died cater died by the lion. Allie died then Alex turned into a girl.

Carter

The mystery door

One day Zach and mason, carter were walking in the woods then they went into the door and they fell in and they were at the north pole. When they met Santa clause ho ho ho said Santa here you been good kids yes good well, got presents Zach got assassins creed Adam got dirt mason got a taxi car then they found Mrs. Brady hi kids here's your homework and then they teleport to Mexico with allie they dance a while then they teleported to the muffin man they went to Santa ho ho ho me for more presents yes. Well good here Zach got dirt just kidding he got a taco salad Adam got a Zachary Manson got a legendary ship Zach got a boat then they found another door then they went back home.

Olivia Hall

ten pumpkins

Once upon a time there was a little girl and her name was Olivia and she had the most biggest pumpkins but she had a little pumpkin the littlest pumpkin in the patch she always goes but every morning to water the pumpkins but one day she went to water her pumpkins and guess what she saw there was a big bite in her favorite pumpkin and she was not going to put up with it so the next night she stayed out to see what was eating all her pumpkins but it wasn't long before she heard something behind her she looked behind her and. She saw a big fox she asked why the fox ate her pumpkins and the fox said I thought the pumpkins had no owner.

Alex

The Wolf Stole Me Pumpkins

"Alex! Zeke! Something is eating your pumpkins!" I see a wolf come out. "What am I going to do?!" "I'm sorry." The end

Kelly

The bear who ate my pumpkin

On a Dark October night, something is eating your prized pumpkins. Hide them in the tree with your friends, me, Michelle, Ella, Kenya, and Suri. You see the bear come out and take a bite of your biggest pumpkin. He said sorry he was hungry.

Kaitlyn

The Pumpkin Snatcher

A dark October night something was eating my pumpkins I hid them in the tree with my friend Alyssa. We see the thing come out. It was a bear "Please stop eating my prized pumpkins." The bear stopped.

Mylee Noe

The Night the Pumpkin was Bitten

It is a dark October night and me Kelly, Sophia, Michelle, and Suri were playing outside. We played a long time. It was ten o'clock when we heard a sound from behind us. We turned around and heard the sound again and this time there was a bite in the pumpkin. We went in my house and told my mom that the pumpkin had been bitten. She said, "what!" in a really loud voice. She looked and she saw a bunny rabbit. She said Please stop eating my pumpkins and she did.

Delton

A Dark its night when me and my friend Arian play hide and seek. I hide in the tree when I saw the ice cream truck so I left. I'm Sorry

Stephanie S.

The Pumpkin Eater

A dark October night, me and Kenya something is eating our pumpkins. I hide in the tree with Kenya. A deer is eating my pumpkins. I talk to the deer he said I am sorry for eating my pumpkins.\

Kenya

The Missing Pumpkin

A big dark October night! My Pumpkin is missing I got on the tree with Stephanie and Alyssa. Something ate my best pumpkin ou of all the pumpkins. The one who ate my pumpkins was a big scary bear! It as so hungry it ate the whole in the tiny pumpkin that I like for Halloween so my house so it could look scary. The End.

Lea Dellinger

My Garden

My Garden is huge! Everyone come out and look t see all the plants, but today something bit into my biggest pumpkin!! So today I hid with my friend Avery it was starting to get dark and that's when I heard something behind me it was Bob! There he was standing there then Avery grabbed the potato gun and he said "stop eating the pumpkins or else I'll shoot" Then we ran away. THE END

Jeronimo

The Pumpkin Patch

On a dark October night, I maked a trap, but the trap didn't work on the attacking wolf! It must be a wirwolf!

"Don't come again!" I said

the wolf did not listen. I will say stop once again to try to get it to stop.

Nicholas James Catt

The unknown pumpkin eating spider

It was a dark October night, and I was fast asleep. But a strange sound woke me up! I looked outside, and when I saw what it was (*gasp*) my best and biggest pumpkin had a huge bite in it! I had to find out how it got this hole. What caused the bite, So the next night I watched my pumpkin patch as the sun set. I watched, and waited. But then a strange hissing sound was behind me, I had to get out of there! So I hid behind a tree. I peeked out and saw a shadow. It was a JINTE SPIDER! But I wasn't scared of it. I walked over to it and said "please don't eat my pumpkin!" and he said "O.k."

THE END.

Quinn

The missing animal that accidently

"Will you please stop eating all my pumpkins?" I asked.

"Fine, but, only because I am so sore from eating your pumpkins!" the animal said.

Elizabeth

Pumpkin Patch

One dark October night Elizabeth, Sasha, and Sloan saw something eating my pumpkins! We hid in the tree with Sloan and Sasha. I see the rabbit come out.

"I am going to the fair bunny rabbit please, don't eat my pumpkins!"

"I'm sorry for eating your pumpkins; I will never eat pumpkins again!" The rabbit said

"Thank you!"

Anthony

A dark October night, Anthony and Delfino were told something is eating your pumpkin! Anthony and Delfino hid in the tree and waited and they saw something come out of the shadows, it was Defino!

Sophia

A door opened and a bear ate my pumpkin and it said "I'm sorry" and it was sad.

Lauren

A pumpkin got eaten by a fox. I ran in and told my mom and dad.

Yamileth

The bear ate my pumpkin. The bear said "I'm sorry." I said "It's okay." The bear and me went to play. We played and had fun. I was so excited. I played with the bear and the fox. Then the bear hid in a hole.

Delfino

The Weirdest Day

A dark October night, Deflfino and Anthony were in the garden. Delfino discovered bite marks in his pumpkin and knew someone was eating it. He hid in the tree to see it come out. It was Anthony. I told him to stop eating my pumpkin but he told me he was a clone. Then he stopped. He stopped but my pumpkin was destroyed. But there was a bigger one left.

Angelica

A Pumpkin Mystery

One dark October night two friends came when Angelica called, because Angelica found something ate her pumpkin. Then she went into her garden with Gabby and Makina, then she found a big fox. Then she made a giant gate, then the fox was sad. Then she got up and asked the fox why she was eating her pumpkin. He apologized and said "I'm very, very sorry." Then he didn't do it again. She won the pumpkin contest. Then the fox came back and he asked Angelica if she could have one little pumpkin and she said yes, because he said please. Then they became friends, even Gabby and Makina. The End.

Nicholas

A dark October night, something is eating your pumpkin! Hide in the tree with your food you and you see the thing come out. What do you do?

Zeke

The Missing Pumpkin

One night something was eating pumpkin! So I went to get Alex and asked if he wanted to help and he said yes. So we went to the garden. We saw a bear and I said "stop it that is my pumpkin." So he stopped and said "sorry, I was so hungry." So me and Alex went home, but the bear was eating the pumpkin again. So I went to get Alex again and we went back to the garden and caught the bear and we said "stop eating the pumpkins!" So we watched the bear go home so we slept in the garden. The bear never came back. Then the next day the bear came back.

Jillian

A dark October, Jillian, Olivia, and Sophia will spy on the one that is eating my pumpkins. Hide in the in the tree, your friend and you see the thing come at me. What do you do? The squirrel said, "I am sorry." "It's okay, please don't eat them again."

Sophia

Something Ate my Pumpkin

On a dark October night, something ate my pumpkin. I do not know who ate my pumpkin. It probably was an animal or a person. Probably at night when Jillian and I were sleeping in our beds, it came out and ate it. I looked out my window...to be continued.

Alyssa

The Pumpkin Stealer

It was a dark October night when I saw something eating my pumpkins! I hid in a tree. I saw the thing come out! I shine my flashlight on the thing. It was a bear! I tell the bear to stop eating my prized pumpkin please. The bear stopped. I was amazed! It was like the bear could understand what I was saying! One month later I brought Kaitlyn to the pumpkin contest fair! Kaitlyn and I won the contest! After that, everyone was happy even the bear! We danced and we sang it was a happy day it was!! The end.

Michelle

The Mystery of the Missing Pumpkin

I wake up in the morning and I find out here was a pumpkin missing, so I stayed in the tree with Kelly and Kenya. We heard something behind us. It was a fox. We said, "Stop eating our pumpkin!!" The fox said, "I am sorry for eating your pumpkin."

THE END

Ella

Something Has Eaten My Pumpkins

Suri, Alasya, Kelly, and I were trying to catch a skunk who was eating my prized pumpkins. Kelly, Suri, Alasya, and I hide in the big tree. Then the skunk came out. Then we catch the skunk! The skunk said sorry.

Suri

The Dark and Scary Night

One dark October night, I heard something in my pumpkin garden! I was up in a tree with Ella. It was a big fox. I lost my breath! I almost fell out of the tree. My flashlight fell. The fox looked at me! I screamed loudly. I said, "Please stop!" He said, "I'm sorry that I'm eating your pumpkins. I was so hungry." So I gave him some. I went to my house.

THE END

Jilly

The Two-Sided Key

One morning, I was enjoying my cereal, and then a key came from the box. It said, "Think Small!" The next thing I knew was that I was in my spoon. I got out of it and looked around. As I was walking I tripped over the handle of the spoon and flew into the cereal. I landed in the cheerio just like the position I would be if I was on a float in the lazy river. I heard loud stomps and my brother flew in. He went to pick up the spoon and take a bite.

"No, no, don't eat me!" I shouted. My brother stopped what he was doing and picked me up by my legs.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Long story short!" I said as he put me on the key. As I read it again, I realized it said something different than it did. It said, "Think Big!" Then the next thing I noticed was that I was normal size again.

Evelyn Scharer

I Thought Small

"Think small," I thought and suddenly I noticed I was shrinking, faster and faster by the second. By the time I stopped, I was sitting in my spoon like it was an armchair. I looked up at my milk-filled cereal bowl as big as a swimming pool. Then my dog walked by, bumping the bowl right off of the table along with the spoon I was sitting in. My mom walked in the kitchen as soon as Salvester ran outside. She thought that I spilled the cereal and didn't clean it up. She yelled my name so I answered, but she must not have heard me because she yelled once more. I didn't bother answering because I knew she wouldn't hear me. My mom wiped up the milk with a mop and wiped up the Fruity Pebbles with a paper towel that I landed in and threw it in the trash. After my mom made lunch she took out the trash and I got picked by the garbage truck that was heading to the dump. After the garbage trick dumped me into a big pile of trash I broke out of the bag and saw a key just like the one in my cereal. This one said "Think Big!" so I did. I returned to normal size and I ran home hoping never to shrink again.

Zachary Craig

When Carter was eating his breakfast, he found a key saying 'Think Small' then her grew small! When he grew small, he heard his little sister coming, "Ooh, cereal!" then he survived and his mother, Lucie put the bowl in the dishwasher and Carter got in the sewer. He came out of the sewer, and he was dirty.

An owl came and said, "Think Big" and a drone made him bigger and he was all clean.

The End

Jayden Matthews

No More Cereal!!

It was morning, and I was devouring my cereal so fast, I almost didn't catch the silver key in my bowl. I picked it up; it read 'Think Small!' Then I started to... shrink!

After I had stopped, I heard Ava, Hannah, and Lana; I saw Hallie and Daisy touch the key. They shrank too! Lana grabbed the bowl that we were stuck on, and stuck it on the counter. Jackson ran up, "Jackson!" we screamed.

After he ran passed us, we got very depressed. Just then, Jackson came back, so we jumped onto him. Well, we passed one of mom's posters, it read, 'Think Big!' Then we turned big, so never ever... ever doubt your mom's posters.

Sinai Aguibra

The Key

As I was eating breakfast one morning, I was trying to find my prize in my cereal box. I was because the box read "Prize Inside". So I decided to look inside. I then gave up so I started eating my breakfast. I then yelled, "ow!" I opened my mouth and out came a Silver Key. I started looking at it and then spotted a small word, probably the size of an ant. "Think Small" I said to myself. It kept repeating over and over in my head. "Think Small." I then realized I was shrinking really small. I landed in my cereal bowl. I was wet! I then said,"EW!" then took a sip of milk, "but still quite delicious." I saw a big big fruit loop almost the size of an elephant! I took a bite out of it. "I can have this for breakfast, lunch and dinner!" I felt the milk bowl move. I saw my mom grab the bowl, "MOM! DOWN HERE!" She couldn't hear me. Next thing I knew, I was in the dishwasher! I then yelled, "NOOOOO!" Just as my mom was about to close and turn on the dishwasher, my dog started barking to distract my mom. I found another key on the floor. I tried to get to it so I jumped off and out of the dishwasher and landed on the floor and read the key. "Think big." I suddenly woke up and realized it was all a dream.

Kevin

The Surprise In My Cereal

My name is kevin and we were at home and eating breakfast. We are eating cereal with my friends and they had 20,000 dollars. Me and my dad and my brothers and my friends were going to Lafayette going in home debt. And getting many windows for the kitchen, 28 chairs and 58 tables we cut down the tree and then we did build the restaurant.

Evan

The Mystery Key

Alfred rests in the spoon amazing about what just happened. Then ten minutes later his mom clears off the table and then throws the spoon and bowl in the sink and Alfred fell down the drain. Then he wakes up and he is in the sewer. He starts running to find an exit but he never sees on. Suddenly he notices a gate with a key hold. He sticks his silver key in the gate opens, he runs inside and he sees the rats ten feet away. Inside he sees a golden key and a weird circle he closes the gate just in time and he reads the and it said" Think Big." But he didn't want to vet. He saw a switch and it said "power" he flipped the switch and the circle lights up it looked like a portal so he jumpes in and it takes him home and his pet ferret gets out of cage and he lets him ride on his backs but as he rides him he was thinking "big" and he gets bigger and almost killed his pet ferret. He thought, "what a cool journey."

Annabella Matthews

The Key

I tried to find my way out but it failed. When I looked back uip I saw my mom reaching for the bowl. She picked the bowl up and put in the dishwasher. When the bowl was placed I jumped out. I saw a dark figure slowly walking toward me. When the fog cleared I was a girl. She suddenly said, "I'm Ashley biggs. I saw you shrink. I also shrunk from the the key." She told me that I had to find the key. I jumped out with Ashley following close behind. I saw the key instantly. It was on the table by the bowl. I jumped on the table and saw the words "think big" when we thought the words we grew back to normal. It was fun and I met a new friend the day.

Emily Felz

The Key To...

Once, I was eating cereal at the table in the morning. When I dumped some more cereal in my bowl, a small, silver key was floating in it. I picked it up; the key said 'Think Small!' "What the h—!" I started shrinking! I was getting smaller, and smaller, and smaller, and smaller. I shrunk until I was the size of my spoon.

"What do I do? What do I do?!?!?!" I was in a state of panic until I noticed my dog, Pepper (a Miniature Schnauzer) came into the kitchen. He jumped on the chair, and knocked me over; spoon and all. I climbed onto his collar, I don't know what that key did to me but, now I could talk to my dog. He told me he knew someone who could change me back to my normal size.

We walked into a forest and found a magician. Pepper stole my dad's wallet and gave it to the magician because we all know magic isn't free. He waved his hands and, POOF! I was back at my house; my normal size, safe and sound, with my dog.

The End

Alexis

The Prize in the Box

Once upon a time, I found a key, and it said, 'Think Small!' Then my sister heard my voice say "Do not eat me!" My mom put me and the bowl in the dishwasher, and I fell down the drain; I was stinky and I saw another person. Her name was Casse and she shrank too. I realized that Casse was from my class; I remember that she loves history and all sorts of stuff like that. We saw another key, but it was not small, and it made us normal. We went home and destroyed the key. It was the scariest experience I ever had, but I made a new friend that day.

The End

Tessa Robertson

Think Small

"Prize inside," the cereal package read. I almost finished the whole box and I didn't find any prizes at all. I poured myself a bowl, added milk, and started my breakfast. Then, I got interested in my book I was reading that I almost missed it. There, lying in the puddle of milk at the bottom of the bowl was a small silver key. It didn't look like the usual kind of cereal box prize. It was real silver and it seemed very, very old. I had it up to the light and squint to read the lettering across the top; Think Small.

"Think small?" I thought and suddenly I was getting smaller and smaller, faster and faster. By the time I stopped, I was sitting in my spoon like it was an armchair. I looked up at my milk-filled cereal bowl. It was as big as a swimming pool!

My brother grabs the spoon just as I leap into the bowl. My mom then takes my bowl and puts it into the dishwasher. I scramble out just before and fly onto my dog, Buster. Buster sprints outside and does his business and then runs back in. He thinks I am a flea so he scratches me off and I soar threw the sky like a bird. I landed in my spoon again. The key magically appears in my hand, and it now says, "Think Big". I repeat the words and I grow big again. My mom told me I was just in time for school, great. I wish my adventure had lasted. Maybe tomorrow I could shrink again.

Yahir

The Key

My friend Cole came over and ate the cereal, but the dog distracted him, Then Yahir's mom came and threw the cereal, but Yahir held onto the bowl. My mom put it in the dishwater. Then the dog came and distracted mom so then, I hopped on the dog, but I failed and fell on the floor. I ran to the living room but my mom was sweeping by the cabinet. I made a run for it. I made it and ran to my room but then, I flipped the key and said, "Think Big!" Then I was back to my normal size and went "WeeeeHeee!"

Malachi

In the Woods

Jan has the most perfect tree house in the world. It's nestled in a big oak tree and we were inside. We pulled up the ladder up so no one can follow us, then we heard a noise. I saw something. Then the raccoon we saw was a playful one.

Jeronimo

The Tree House

One night in a tree house, I went camping with Radin. We heard a Bigfoot! It said stop. I finished sleeping.

Luke

Me and my best friend Sean were sleeping on my trampoline at night. I went to get a snack. I woke up my best friend Sean then it happened. We heard a spirit of fredeykooger. He took Sean and he snuck up behind me and took me. We were never seen again.

The Mystery

One night in a tree house with my friend Kaitlyn we were in our backyard. We heard noise and pointed our flashlight at the door.

"Ahhh! It was a bear! Run for your life!" Kaitlyn said.

"Stop, lets chase the bear," I said.

"Okay." At the end of the chase we were sure that it wouldn't come back because we chased it pretty good.

Kaitlyn

The Night In A Tree House

I hear a noise and point my flashlight at the door to discover an animal making noises. Alyssa scared off the animal and we finished camping with our friends.

Sophia D

The Big Black Monster

We were sitting in the tree house when we heard a noise. Something was at the door. Sophia and Peyton went outside in the back yard. I caught it.

Mylee Noe

A Spooky Night In The Tree House

A dark scary night, it was 12:00. Mylee and Sophia were sleeping in the tree house in Mylee's back yard. Then suddenly Mylee heard a noise outside. So we grabbed a flashlight. We heard something scratching at the tree house. As we pointed the flashlight at the door the cat ran away.

Yemileth Lopez

I went to a bear to scare it away, and it ran to the creek. My mom, dad and I went back the next day to see if the bear was there.

Zeke

The noise I heard in the tree house

Alex has the best tree house in the world! He built it in an oak tree. We slept in the tree house one night and he has snacks and drinks for emergency. We slept for the first night. When it was in the middle of the night when I heard a noise. I turned on my flashlight and pointed it at the door. I went to the door and opened it and saw an owl and I said stop!

Stephanie

The crazy woman

When I was sleeping in my tree house with my BFF Kenya, we heard a noise from outside. I picked up the flashlight and Kenya opened the door. We saw nothing. Then there was a crazy woman and we chased her al night. The end.

Suri

The tree house mystery

One day my friends Ella, Kaitlyn and I were camping in my treehouse. When we fell asleep I woke up and heard digging. I pointed my flashlight and didn't see anything because it was blending in. then I saw it! It wsa a scruffy bear! I ran out trying not to get eaten. The next morning the bear was still there. I got some help scaring it away. I ate breakfast. Then my mom picked me up.

Ella

The night we built a tree house

First we got in our tree house. In the evening when it was bedtime we heard a noise. Next we had a flashlight. We looked at the door there was nothing so Suri, Kaitlyn and I went to bed. We heard the noise again and it was our crazy brothers.

Michelle

Once upon a time my friend and I were camping in a tree house. We were trying to go to sleep but we kept hearing a noise. So we opened the door and saw a squirrel. We yelled "Go away!" but it didn't want to go. So we chased him and he went away.

Kelly

Night in the tree house

Night in a treehouse in your backyard. You and your friend are camping in your tree house when you hear a noise outside. You hear a noise and point a flashlight at the door to discover who or what is making the noise. I open the door and I see a bear! I said please stop.

Anthony

The Scary Night

It was night and I was in a tree house in my backyard, with my friend. We heard a noise whoever was making the noise was chasing me and my friend. And was chasing us back up the tree house, and we heard something outside. We used the flashlight and pointed it at the door. It was a monster.

Ariahi

The Monster

It was night in my tree house, and I heard a noise. I point my flash light outside... the noise stops. I discover who or what is making the noise. And it was a scary looking creature.

Jonas

I opened the door and there was nothing there, but a rock. So I went to bed and I heard the same sound, but there was a different sound to it, it sounded like a snake so I went back to bed.

Angelica

The Mystery Compout

One dark night in a tree house in the back yard, Tarlen and I heard a noise. We started to go outside when I saw a deer! I asked it to stop making the noise, but I had to chase it at first. Than Tarler planned something, it was a plan. We knew it would come back.

The end

Lilly

A person spied a creature while we camping in the treehouse in our back yard.

Then we heard a noise.it was a type of creature. It flew so we ran.

Elisabeth Henderson

Who Is Scaring Me?

One time at night in a tree house in my backyard, Elisabeth, Sasha, Paten, and Jasmine were camping in my tree house when we hear a noise and then I point a flashlight at the door. I discovered that a bear is making the noise and I chase the bear away from us, and I and my friends scared off the animals for good. I finished camping with my friends.

The End.

Jillian

You hear a noise and point a flashlight at the noises I heard. I discovered that my mom is making the noise, I asked her to stop. I screamed loud it scared off the animals and my friend, and then I finished camping with my friend.

Olivia Mittal

Tree House Scare

One night Olivia 3, her friend Jillian were camping in Olivia's tree house, telling stories, eating snacks, and falling asleep watching movies. Then I heard a noise I woke up because it was so loud. I grabbed my flashlight and shined it at the door. I got up and walked to the door, I opened it and I saw my pet Oliver was sitting in front of my tree house. I toke him inside and it never happened again.

Sophia Lapiedra

Chasing

In the night with my friend, Jillian and Olivia. We got outside into our tree house. I wore up and I heard a noise I grabbed my flashlight. I think it's a raccoon "I said". And that night I never camped with my friend again because it scared me and I don't like noises.

Nick Butt

I went to my tree house and something in the night when I went camping with my friend, I heard a noise so I grabbed my flashlight and looked what made the noise it was person. He had a piece of paper in his hand that said e-d-e-s and it had no meaning to it and that night it was awkward and never camped again.

Jonas

I woke up, rushed down stairs and there was mother who said, "We need your help," so I rushed to my friend's house and told them my parents are gone, and they knew because they saw it, so we went on an adventure, and it took a very, very long time.

Mylee Noe

The Missing Christmas

One Christmas morning, it was weird because there was nothing, no presents, no tree, the milk and cookies I put out were still there. I cried, "Mommy!" She came out of bed. I was cold in my pajamas. It was dark. She said, "What?" and looked. She screamed, "Everything is gone!" I know, so me and my mommy and Lacey looked for Santa, but there was deer prints on the roof so he was here. A creak came from the door. I opened the door, and we screamed, "It was the Grinch!" He said, "Hello," at first. We thought he was just a homeless man, but I could tell what it was. Then I walked out with Lacey and we saw carrots in the front yard. We walked out. My mommy came too. We walked down the street and along the sidewalk when we saw marshmellows and big foot prints, then we heard a sound. It sounded like Santa. It was. Then, we went home, and the Grinch was there. We kicked him out.

Jeronimo

Prison

I woke up in the morning. I didn't see my tree! Maybe Santa is... in prison!!! Maybe Chucky doesn't like Christmas. I broke Santa out of prison.

Nick

How Could it Happen

My presents my tree gone I don't like it at all. Nick Tray Mom Dad Eric Pa Pa brought back Christmas.

Ella

The Grinch Who Stole Christmas

Suri, me, and Sloan are asleep. It's morning I shouted. We ran down the stairs as fast as we can go. But everything was gone. We ran upstairs and told my mom. My mom said: Christmas isn't gone, I said: Go mom and look. So mom got out of bed and got dressed and went down the stairs. Mom shouted: Where's everything! So we look at the computer and wait until it shows up. We saw Santa Clause on China St. Suri looked at me I looked at Sloan so I told Santa the problem was all over the decorations were gone. I helped Santa deliver the presents. And Santa gave me a good nice present.

Peyton

The Night before Christmas

All the presents were gone and there are no decorations what happened to Christmas is it the Grinch! No no no! Killy! Where are all of the decorations lit me go outside ok. There you are Santa what happened the Grinch kidnapped me. Me and Killy can help you. The end.

Michelle

Santa Is Gone

One day I woke up at night because I heard a noise so I went down stairs and everything for Christmas was gone! So I went to my friend's house and woke them up and then I built a tent. We all got flashlights, then we all went back in the house and tried to look for evidence. We found a green hair and we all whispered to each other, it's the Grinch. So we started looking for him. We found him "he was behind the table", Kelly said. Where is Santa? " I put him in the closet", the Grinch said rudely. We looked in the closet and there was Santa. We said, "We can help you!." Santa was so happy that they found him.

Kenya

What Happened to Christmas?

I was home in the living room on Christmas morning. I went down stairs to see that all of our Christmas stuff was gone! My parents, friends, and my dog gathered to find clues to why the Christmas stuff was gone. We began to look for clues. First we should start with who doesn't like Christmas and then find out where Santa is at. Then all of a sudden a whole bunch of crashing noises came from the closet by the kitchen. We all hurried over towards it. Once we got about five feet away from it, every little Christmas decoration and presents flung out. It was amazing how all of that fit in there. Whoever did it had to of been very strong.

Kelly

What Happened to Christmas?

It was Christmas morning; I was in the living room. Our Christmas disappeared and it was astonishing because we have so much decorations. I gathered the family crew and we I told them we need to find out where it all went. So we started to look for more clues. As we followed the clues- we were narrowing in where it all was. The only person that didn't like Christmas was the Grinch. We need to find Santa and help him deliver presents and cookies. Also give him a nice present for all the hard work.

Sophia

The Scrooge Stole Christmas

It was Christmas. The presents are gone. What happened? The Scrooge stole Christmas. I found him. It was hard but we got them out. We still had to find Santa. It was intense, but we found him. The end.

Lauren

We're at Christmas

Among that, was no Christmas tree? Where is Santa? I went to Emma's house and Kerin. I found Santa. My friends and I yelled, "Let's go find Santa!" I look for eating apples and Kris. I found Santa. I ask him if I can have a cookie, my friend and I.

Anthoney

Christmas Morning

It was Christmas morning. Most of the presents were gone. Santa was kidnapped. We need to save Santa at night who stole our presents. There was a note. "I stole the presents," the Grinch said on the note. We need to take the presents away from the Grinch before he rips the presents. We took the presents away from the Grinch and we went home.

Suri

Crazy Christmas

When I woke up on Christmas morning, I sprang from my bed! I went downstairs, but all I saw was... Nothing! There was no tree; no Christmas stockings, no candy, and the cookies were not touched! The reindeer's foot prints were there! I gathered my friends and we found where Santa was seen, but it was last seen at my house! I looked all around my house, but he was nowhere. One place we didn't look was my garage! When I went to my garage I heard somebody yell, "Help me!" I followed the noise the sound and opened the door to see Santa and his reindeer! We were trying to find the one who did it. Scurvy did all of it! I nearly fainted. I helped Santa deliver the gifts and I helped him eat the cookies of course. Then I went to bed. He gave me a great present.

Zeke

The Night before Christmas

It was Christmas morning. I ran down stairs, but there was nothing there. I called Ryan and we went to find my mom. When we found her, Ryan, my mom, and I thought about who could have done this. I said, "I know who it is. It's the Grinch!" My mom and Ryan agreed. We went looking for Santa. We looked on the roof and we saw what looked like reindeer footprints. We looked and looked, and then we got to New York and found him asleep. I woke him up and we helped Santa deliver the presents. He said thank you. Then he gave Ryan, my mom, and I a gift. We gave him milk and cookies. Then he went back to the North Pole.

Alex M.

The Grinch and Chucky

The night before Christmas I was scared because Chucky came inside my house to steal my presents. He went outside and there was the Grinch, still the presents went outside and all the presents were gone.

Yamileth

One upon a time Christmas was gone. We need to save Christmas. I have to save Christmas. Then I did. I saved Christmas.

Jillian

Christmas morning everything was gone. My crew, Olivia, Alix, and Alan helped track down Santa. Everything was returned and Christmas was good again.

Alyssa Lawley

Grinch Stole Christmas

One Christmas morning in my living room I woke up and ran down stairs. Everything was gone! But I knew there was someone in here! So I gathered my friends, Miley, AJ, Sadi and sasha to get on the internet also we looked up how to track santa. It said that santa was last at Illinois St. of the path of Illinois st. We saw marshmellow that has to be from the reindeers, Miley said. Said said again how are we going to save Christmas Sadi said for now lets test follw the clue. I said. So we kept on looking on the path. About 20 minutes later we actually found santa! He said what are we doing! Sun looked at miley, miley looked at sasha, looked at aj and aj looked at me! What FINE! Ill tell him what we want to have him save Christmas sir. I said nervously oh thank you. Santa said come ride in my sleigh. I said sure! So we went back ot the my house how do you know. So we or say all my friends kicked him and pushed him out of the door!

Nick

The Thief Who Stole Christmas

Its Christmas, and I rush down the stairs to open my present but the revealed a surprise by noticing everything was gone! The Christmas tree was gone, the presents, and the stockings . SO I called my friends and guess what they said. All of there things were gone too! So then I told them "okay!" come to my house to begin operation save Christmas. And so that's what we did. While we were outside looking for clues, I found a reindeer tracks. We folled them but when we got to my neighbors house, the trail split in to 12-15 parts. But how could that be? There is only 8 reindeer that pull santas sleigh. So we looked up where he was last seen. It said he was last seen right around the corner. So whats the point of riding my bike? We could just walk there. When we got there, the trail stopped. Which made perfect sense actually, because that's where he was last...... Wait. I already told you that there was another trailthat looked like a robbers foot print. Suddenly, we saw a robber wearing santas clothes! We put him in jail and gave santa his clothes back and helped him restore Christmas and everyone.

Aj Ramsey

The Mystery Kidnapper

It was Christmas morning, and I was rushing down the stairs, but when I got there, there was nothing. Nothing in the stockings, nothing under the tree, but the cookies and milk were left untouched. I know what happened, Santa was kidnapped; I told my friends, we did not tell our parents. We traveled to Florida, we found him in the airport; we grabbed him, delivered the presents, then took me home.

Sophia Davis

Saving Christmas

On Christmas morning, there were no presents under the tree; there were holes in the stockings, and carpet pieces were inside the house. "Santa was here." I said to myself, I must save Christmas, but first I have to call my friends Jillian and Olivia because I can't do it alone. I will look at the GPS on the computer. Ding Dong! "I bet it's my friends." I say to myself.

"Come in." I said

"Hi Sophia, it's me, Jillian." she responded.

"I'm glad to see both of you because I came down stairs this morning, and there was nothing under the tree, and nothing in the stockings. We need to save Christmas because now nobody in the world has presents, not even me!"

Me either." said Jillian.

"Or me." Replied Olivia.

"Let's save Christmas! I know we can do it!" I said joyfully. "Let's go!"

"I'll check all around the house." Jillian said.

"I will check the roof." I replied. "Okay guys, I found Santa; he's on top of Olivia's house. Now, he's going to Jillian's house; now my street, he's about to get to my house. I'm going to the attic to get to the roof. We have to help him."

We all went to the roof. "We're here! It's Santa, we will help you!"

Brandon

Once Brandon was coming down the stairs, there were no presents under the Christmas tree because there wasn't a tree. Mom said, "We forgot to get our tree. Did you go to sleep last night?" Brandon said, "No, I was trying to tell you we didn't get our Christmas tree." "Check the chimney." "I forgot to check there, Mom," Brandon said. "I found him new was stuck in our chimney," Mom said. "Let's get him down right now, so you can get your present." Then Santa said, "I am not Santa." "I am Evil Santa." He shoot laser the mom got near turned Evil Santa to good Santa Claus. "He is back," said Brandon.

Yahir

Then I get a ladder and I see reindeer, but the sled was gone. I go to the park and find my friend Cole. We both look around and find the sled in the wire, but it is stuck. We pull it out and find Santa's hat. We hide the sled and look for Santa. We see his footprints in the snow but the trail disappeared, but we saw a foot. We ran over to see and it was Santa.

I ask Santa what happen and he said a rock hit the release button that let go the reindeer and the sled hit the river and I flew out. I started to walk and that was the time I realized my hat was missing. I gave the hat to Santa and I asked him if I can take the sled for Aspin and he said yes with a Ho Ho Ho. Then he let deliver the present. I was tired so I fell asleep. Then next day I open my presents.

Madison

Christmas is Missing

It's Christmas morning. Cristel goes downstairs, but everything is gone. Nothing is there, no presents. Cristel said, "Where is Santa? What if he got stuck in our chimney? We need to find him. Her parents said, "We can't dear. What if he is in the North Pole?" "I don't care. We need to find him for the kids who believe in him. What if the Grinch took him? "Don't talk about him, people will hear." "We have to find him." Cristel made puppy eyes... "Ok." "Yay!" "Where should we look first? The basement? The Grinch! I found him, the Grinch took him, get the shotgun." "No! Please don't shoot me, I won't do it again, you swore, I swear." Ok the end.

Evelyn Scharer

Who Stole Christmas

I woke up on Christmas morning and ran downstairs to find nothing; no presents no nothing. I decided to call Addi and I asked her if hers were gone too, but she said no. Addi suggested we try to find clues around the house and on the roof we found some footprints. While we were on the roof we realized that the footprints were too small to belong to reindeer. Next to the footprints was a small red string, so we picked it up. We walked back to the living room and spotted a long green hair, then more, then a whole pile. We walked back outside and glanced up on the roof to meet eyes with the Grinch! He jumped down from the roof and ran after us. Addi called 911 and there was a police chase, but eventually they caught the Grinch, but there was no sign of Santa.

Tessa Robertson

Will Christmas be Lost Forever?

Christmas morning came upon us quickly. I shoved my covers off and raced my sister down the stairs. I came down last and I expected Emily to squeal in excitement. All I heard was an ornament rolling around the room. "Where are all of our presents and decorations?" I asked Emily. "I...I...don't know," she replied.

We ran to our parents' bedroom. Where were they? I thought. My brother, Cale, stumbled down the stairs rubbing his eyes and yawning. "Hey guys! Where are our presents?" He questioned. "We don't know, but we'll get to the bottom of this!" Emily said firmly. We made a "game plan" and split up. Emily was going to ask our friends if their house was the same as ours. Cale was looking for Santa, and I was going to find clues. I got out our walkie-talkies and we were on our way.

I was walking along a snowy path and heard a high pitch cry. I looked behind a snow drift and there was an elf sitting behind it! I squatted down next to him and asked, "Why are you crying?" He blew his nose with a tissue that he pulled out of his pocked and answered, "I can't remember it all but I fell out of a white Crysler mini-van." I thought, my mom and dad have a white Crystler mini-van. "My name is Bobby, what's yours?" he asked. "Tessa, nice to meet you!" We shook hands and I asked if he wanted to help me and my siblings save Christmas. He took my had and we disappeared. We arrived at Sants's sleigh next to my friend Evelyn's house. We got in and he turned it on. "You will drive," he said. "Wh-wh-what?!" I exclaimed. "You are driving," he repeated. I took the wheel and I floored the gas petal. We got off at my Aunt Kasie's house then we went inside the house and found Santa. Tied up against their couch. "Mmmmmmmm!!" I couldn't understand him but I untied him and he took us to my parents. "Mom! Dad!" What are you doing?" Mom looked guilty. "We actually kidnapped Santa so we could get you what we wanted to get you. And if Santa got you a tablet you wouldn't get to have family time." "We forgive you, but let Santa do his job. Do you guys not realize that you let down kids all over the world?" They nodded. We had a group hug and we opened Santa's presents.

Emily Felz

Santa I'm Coming to Save You

One time I woke up on Christmas and ran to the living room only to find nothing. Everything was gone! I ran and picked up my dog. I went outside and I found Santa's hat, so I wore it! There was on it that said, "If you want Santa Back, we're at you're school!" I don't know who wrote that, but they seemed really dumb. I went to my school and the kidnappers were... The teletubies! So my dog bit them and they died so Christmas was saved!

Shyanne

Where's Christmas?

My name is Shyanne. It's Christmas morning and my presents are gone and my tree and decorations are gone too. Santa's cookies have not even been touched. "I'm going outside" I yelled, but there was no answer. "Bye!" I yelled again. "Oh well." I ran outside. I saw a hat. "Oh, a clue." I pulled up the hat and I saw an Elf! "Ahhhhhhhhh" we both yelled. "Hi, I'm Fred." He said. "Ahhhh," I yelled again. "What?" "Who are you?" I asked. "I just told you!" He said. "No, I mean where did you come from?" "Oh, that's easy, the North Pole." "Why are you here? What happened?" Where I came from used to be fun and happy and then Santa got sick and the only person who had a cure was evil elf so now Santa has to do whatever evil elf says." "Wow, that's sad." "I know." "Honey, wake up, it's Christmas morning!"

Addi Ward

Jillian woke up. "I had the worst nightmare!" She ran down the stairs. "Nooooooooo" "It was gone!" Jillian ran to the corner and started to cry. "Where has Christmas gone" There was some white hairs on the floor along with scratches on the wall. Jillian was puzzled. She thought "hmmmm..." the burglar must have taken him away. She went to the bathroom and saw some red drips. She then turned her head to find wrapping paper moving across the ground. She went closer to the wrapping paper to find her dad wrapping presents. Jillian then began to ask her dad what he is doing. Her dad then began to explain that he was trying to not let her mother see the presents he was wrapping for her. Jillian then began to ask "then what explains the white hair?" Then her father reply's with "well your mother wanted me to look nice for Christmas photos and well I shaved so that explains the white hair and there is blood because I was shaving in the dark". "Then explain the tree" said Jillian. Her father then quickly replied and said "go to bed now", as I turn to look at my watch to head to bed it was 12:57 and I thought maybe Santa hasn't came yet.

Zachary Craig

The Return Of The Owl

The tree and presents are gone and I saw an owl print on the roof and Santa's hat. Then I found a elf on the bottom of my foot, and Santa gave me a IPad and I finished in time.

Kevin Ranetez

Santa and I

We were dressing up like Santa, and we were going to Mexico to with Reindeers. My family and I were going to Mexico to buy Santa's sleigh. We then bought the slay and saved the day, because Santa couldn't deliver the presents.

Taylor

Santa, I, my dog, Thomas, and Rudolf were sleeping. Then we played games and eat again but this time we were eating tacos. Around 8 hours after we ate tacos we herd crying. Then santa gave us all presents to cheer everyone up. After all that Jack Frost came in and started to sing jolly old saint Nickolas, just like nickelback.

Stephanie McCarthy

How the Blank stole Christmas

I was in my bed waiting unpatiently for the clock to stuck 5am.but I just couldn't wait any longer; I got outta bed and headed for the Christmas tree just to discover that every single present was gone. I then noticed that the cookies were untouched. There was a note lying next to the cookies that read

Dear Stephanie,

I'll be back next time.

From T.S.

But the only thing I could think was who was T.S. and why did he steal my

Christmas.Alexis

The Christmas Stealer

Imagine you go down stairs on Christmas morning just to find out that all of your presents and all are missing in thin air. You know Santa was there because there are reindeer footprints on the rooftop. But the cookies you left him are untouched and not even one thing is outta place. A couple hours go by and once again there is no sign of him. I go searching for him, and within a minute I see him. I scream for help and in return to me helping him. He gets me the x box with some games and everything I wanted for Christmas.

The End.

Jilly

The Solved Christmas

On Christmas morning, Tessa, Addis, Evelyn and I awoke and ran downstairs as fast as we could. When we got downstairs, all the decorations were gone! "Where is everything"? "Asked Addi. " I don't know?." Let's go tell our parents "I said". We ran to their bedroom and told them all about it. They said that we should look for the clues around the house. The only things we found was the reindeer prints on the roof and my brother was sitting in a strange and guilty way on the couch acting like nothing had happened. My brother had admitted that he shoved Santa up the chimney and helped him get back on track. Anyway my brother did this, because he was jealous that I got more presents then he did so he threw all the decorations away and put Santa up the chimney.

Evan

Saving Christmas

First I got out to the town square and check to see if I see Santa anywhere and all I find are lumps of coal and everything frozen and can't see Santa anywhere so I go back home and go to my computer room and find only one old rusty computer so I turn it on and it takes about five min to load up its pretty slow to turn it on. After that I get on my noradsanta.org which is a real website and it tracks him down to find that he is still on my roof so I got on the roof, and find that he is tied up and had tape on his mouth so I recused him and he told me " hurry we don't have much till Christmas is over" so we find marks that went to the sleigh and it led to a dark cave and we stepped on the trap although it was just the lights that we entered nd bear the ninjas by poisoning their food and I hurt Santa for not giving me gifts this year.

Matthew

Saving Christmas

Jingle bells, Jingle bells! "Yawn!" 7:00 I read on the clock "Mom Dad! Its Christmas I been waiting all year for this day to come. I run down stairs to my surprise, "where are they!'" what happened to the presents that were under the tree? So I was had been working with my friends, and that one I liked, I just don't know how to her? But anyways "so If Santa was kidnapped who would have done it? Reed asks Jack Frost "well I have a friend who works for the secret group called The Joes, The G.I Joes. I had called him and he said not to worry they said. But he also said "this is big, but what is the "Baby Jesus". Yes, but there's more? Do you truly believe? These questions circled my head all day drinking pop and enjoying Christmas. Finally I was able to answer those questions? Christmas Baby Jesus Christ. And yes I believe but there real questions is do you?

Madison Jurs

Prize Inside

As I got smaller and smaller I landed hard thump, "Ouch," I said "What happened?" I look around as I stepped out of the spoon I fell hard, again. I looked up my sister was sitting at the table looking at the bowl that I was just eating out of. I looked in my hand and in my hand was a key that said "Think Small!" all of this was confusing to me. Suddenly, I climbed into the spoon. "Olivia, Olivia!" I screamed, but she didn't hear a single word I said; so as I was yelling, I knew this was going to be it. I closed my eyes and waited for her to eat me, but she put the spoon in the dishwasher instead.

I looked around, "What am I going to do?" I said.

A voice said, "I know what you can do."

"Who's there?" I yelled looking around; sitting on a glass was a girl with pink hair, a blue dress, and green wings.

"Hello, little boy, what shall your name be?" she asked.

"My name is Alex." I replied.

"Hello Alex, my name is Trix." The fairy said, "How did you get in here?" she questioned.

"There was a key in my breakfast that said 'Think Small!'" I answered.

"Can we trade?" Trix asked. She mumbled something and a key popped up out of nowhere. "Touch this key, and say 'Think Big!' three times." Trix said as she handed me the key. I did as she said, and I was my normal size again.

"I need to tell you something Trix!" I said as I looked into the dishwasher; she was nowhere in sight "Aww man!" I sighed.

When I looked over at the table, there was another 'prize inside' the open cereal box. I looked in the box, there was a spoon, and in the spoon was my sister.

RMS

Throwback Thursday to the 1980's

Maleah Bradfield

Valerie Flores

Valerie and I were playing X-BOX when she shot me down (in the game). "Dang it Valerie! You suck!" I screamed. When I finished my sentence, I was already in the kitchen making myself food and loathing the fact that I had to restart my entire game. As I was dwelling on the past, I started stomping around. Wrong idea! My house is so old; some of the other parts of the floor are old and rotten oak wood. When I was almost done rampaging my foot broke through on my last stomp and I yelped for help. Valerie came running in the room but it was too late; my entire leg was in the floor and I could feel the multiple bruises forming already. My ankle was bleeding too. Valerie had to help pull me out of the hole and by that time my heel was dripping blood. As I cleaned it, I realized it was only a little cut above my ankle. I still wanted to know what was in the hole to make my floor so weak. I knew the wood was old, but not that old. After putting gauze over my ankle to stop the bleeding, I went to check out the hole in the middle of my kitchen. I took my phone out and put on the flashlight and saw a chest. My first thought was "ummmm, what?" So with Valerie's help, I got the chest out of the floor and opened it. Inside I found family photos, some old clothes, Atari's, and lastly, glow worms. After looking a little closer at the photos, I noticed that one of the girls in the pictures looked A LOT like one of my teachers, Mrs. Wrede! Then I thought of her range of age and realized these things had to have been from somewhere in the 1980's. Valerie and I snooped some more then went to bed since she was spending the night at my house and it was 1:30 A.M. Once we both woke up the next day, we went to the school with the items and brought them to Mrs. Wrede's room. When she saw what we were holding, she gasped and just started smiling the happiest smile I've ever seen. She then gladly took the parcels. Valerie left because the bell rang, but I wasn't going anywhere until I got some answers! Mrs. Wrede demanded I told her how I found the chest. When I was done telling my story, I had some questions for her, like "When, why, and how did you put those things there?" All she answered with was, "I once lived in that same house and I also had a temper. One day I accidentally broke a hold in the floor and decided that was good as good a time as any to make a time capsule... Now get off to class. You only have 10 minutes left!" Off I went, riddled with confusion and the satisfaction of knowing my teacher used to be a hot-head.

The Silver Key

Selene Sanchez

And then I gasped "How did I shrink?" I asked myself as I got off the now giant spoon. I walked around the table. How am I going to get off the table? If I jump off the table I might break a bone. I took the risk; I jumped and landed on my knees. I still had the silver key in my hand. I looked at it and the words were white saying "Think small." What does it mean? I stood there trying to figure it out; then it clicked, Think Small! Think small, I thought. I have to think while I'm small! Why did I not notice that? When I go back to my original size I will sue the cereal company. I walked towards the kitchen. It looked so different, the walls were no longer bright blue; they were a light salmon color, the dark wooden table was now a white glassed table along with black cushioned chairs. There was a woman with dark brown curly hair that went pass her mid back. She turned around, shrieked grabbing a pink sandal, chasing me around with it. I got to the white wooden door "How am I going to reach the door" I looked around; a window was open in the living room. I climbed the chair that was next to it. I climbed out the window; there were no trees just mushrooms and water streams. I looked around there was a woman the same size as I am crying. I walked closer. She stopped crying and started laughing the hair on the back of my neck stood up; the mushrooms turned black and the water was no longer water, it was filled with bones. My heart raced, I let out a loud scream; I ran and ran, I could still hear the woman's laugh. I stopped and looked around a white old house was in front of me. I walked inside the house, it was my house. My parents were sitting at the table eating veggie soup. I screamed "Mother, father. I am right here" I said as I waved my hands. They continued eating, something was wrong. My mother was holding a purple scarf of mine while she cried. My father was talking on the phone, he looked so frustrated. "You still don't get it do you?" a voice said from behind me. I turned around, it was a man who had a grey shirt and black jeans, and he had crystal blue eyes and brown hair. "What do you mean?" "I want to go home!" I said. My eyes were watery; I was on the verge of crying. "Eleanor, you are dead, the night you were eating your cereal was the night where an unknown man shot you." The man said. "Nonsense, I'm still alive." I said, tears were streaming down my cheeks. "You haven't accepted you are dead, just accept it Eleanor!" the man screamed at me. "Your mother still feels your presence, because you haven't accepted it" the man says. The house soon destroyed and now I was at the kitchen, a scene played. I was sitting at the table eating my cereal and reading, a man entered the house and he shot me. I somehow didn't notice him. The scene replayed and replayed. "No, this can't be true!" I screamed. I dropped onto my knees. I touched the back of my head. I felt the hole where the bullet went through. "I accept it now!" I screamed to the man. "Ok say one last goodbye to your parents." The man said. I walked over to my mom "Goodbye mom" I said as I kissed her cheek. "Goodbye dad" I said as I kissed his cheek also saying "I love you guys." Then I soon saw a light. I walked closer to it and saw the man who made me accept that I was dead motioning me to come closer. I walked closer to him and held onto his hand as we walked inside the light together.

What Were you Expecting?

Kayla Bonner

Upon arriving in the ship's bowels, Kenny pulled out his weapon and pointed it towards me.

"Alright, let's do this quickly. Unlock the door and you are free to go," he grunted.

I considered it for a second. No, I couldn't do that. If his soldiers got the uranium, thousands of people would die. I was prepared to see this to the end, when suddenly, in a beige blur, Kenny fell to the ground as a result of being hit over the head with a wooden plank. Attached to the end of it was Zander. He looked disgustedly down at Kenny, and then his black eyes darted back up to me.

"Are you okay?" he stood back up into his full height, lowering the plank he held. I nodded.

"I'm fine. You came just in time." I heard myself say. I brushed the long, curly, brown hair out of my face. Zander once again looked down and went to pull something out from his backpack. I watched as he pulled out rope. He started tying the unconscious, dark-hearted human up. After he had finished, he looked back up at me.

"Let's get out of here," he said with urgency. Before he even stood all the way up, he had a hold of my wrist and was pulling me away, and towards the opening in the bowels. Once on the second floor, he handed me the same gun Kenny had had pointed at my face only a few minutes ago. I took it without question. Frankly, I was still finding it hard to believe anything that was happening. Just yesterday, things were normal and I was even sitting next to Kenny in Study Hall, like normal. I was lost in thought when I was pushed to the floor. Zander held me down.

"What the-" he covered my mouth as I tried to speak. His eyes were fixated on something else. I followed them. Two guards were standing in front of our escape. He looked at me with demanding black eyes. He took his hand away from my mouth and slowly crept back. I watched as he silently stood up and grabbed an extra oar to the escape boats, which were still on the deck, thankfully. He was as silent as a mouse... no, even quieter as he snuck up behind the guards. With a single blow to the head, the first guard went down. The second guard barely had time to react.

"Hey you litt-" Zander smashed the oar into the guard's face. I looked away, shaking my head. Suddenly, I felt someone snag me and pull me up. I let out a small yelp. A gentle thunk to my head followed.

"You're gonna get us caught, Ryeliee. Just shut up and stay with me." Zander looked straight into my brown eyes. He looked intense, and he remained unsmiling. He seemed so cold. Although I just nodded outside, on the inside, I couldn't help but feel some bit of sadness. It was only the beginning of the year when he started acting the way he had. He had tension whenever he was around anybody, and seemed cold and distant. He was not the Zander I had grown up knowing; he was not who I had befriended. He used to smile and be at ease pretty much wherever he was. Now days he would withdraw from anything and everyone, scanning the area with freezing, black eyes of distrust and disapproval.

Zander read my face. His eyes softened. He pulled me into a hug. I stared up at the starry sky.

"Rye..." His tone softened. He hugged me tighter. I buried my face into his shoulder and brought my arms up to hug him back.

"You're not you, Zanny..." I felt tears collecting. He pulled away. He looked me straight in the face. We stared at each other in silence for a while. Finally, he shook his head, his black hair flapping back and forth.

"I'm sorry Ryeliee, but sometimes you have to change to protect those you care about most." He turned and pulled at my wrist towards the front of the hallway.

"We've spent enough time dilly-dallying. We've wasted time." He was suddenly serious again. With the silence that followed, I had time to think while we headed towards the exit.

...change? To protect those...

I wondered. Had he known since the beginning of the year? Why didn't he do something while he had the time? Did he know about Kenny? A stab of betrayal came through me, feeling as though he had known this, and wasn't sharing the information- that had ultimately threatened my life- with me. Especially since my father was the captain of this ship and the one responsible for the uranium. Anger built up, and before I knew it, my body stopped. No matter what my brain said, my body wouldn't listen, and I stayed in that one spot. Zander slowed to a stop and looked back at me. He was oblivious to what I might be feeling. He narrowed his black eyes and stared at me.

"Ryeliee. C'mon!" His voice strained. I stared straight back with equally narrowed eyes.

"You knew." I looked down at the ground. Zander loosened his stance. His face relaxed a little, but he still had narrowed eyes.

"My father and my family were in danger this whole time... and you-" anger cut me off. I was furious. All at once, everything came to me in a blur. Kenny, Zander, Mom, Dad, Kristy... everything. I couldn't take it. My hysteria turned into grim face. I fell to my knees, sobbing and gasping for air. Zander stood before me, unmoved.

"M-my LIFE! Who are you Zander? Who are you? You used to be my best friend, and now... you're just another stranger!" I yelled at him. I was still for a few moments. It felt like hours. My tears streamed down my face and I held my breath in attempt to be quiet. A hand on my shoulder startled me. Zander fell down next to me. He put his jacket sleeves over his hands and tried to dry my face. His face was twisted, his black eyes glassy.

"Don't- please don't cry," his voice cracked. He pulled me back into a hug.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," his voice was uneven and unstable. He rocked me back and forth.

"Ryeliee- please don't cry. I'm so sorry. I've only been thinking about protecting your family... I haven't been paying attention to the way anyone has felt. I've been shutting everyone out. I don't want you hurt." Zander had his own warm tears coming down his face.

"Everything is changing. Did you guys... really think I could be that implacable?" A mellow voice sounded out. Zander and my's head shot up. We looked around. Silence followed. Nothing.

"Don't you guys have legs? Can't you walk around and see what it is?" The voice sounded again. I would recognize that sarcasm anywhere. My eyes widened. Zander recognized it too. We got up and walked over to the ajar door leading to the cell area of the giant ship. Zander held my hand as he pushed open the door. He wiped his face before he looked in the dark room, illuminated only by the entryway. The light fell upon scruffy blond hair. A man turned around. His face looked like it hadn't been shaven in a few days and his blue eyes were outlined by dark circles caused by sleeplessness. He looked into the light. He squinted and rubbed his eyes when his eyes made contact with the light. Zander and I stood speechless. He rubbed his wrists; it was a familiar thing that he did.

"Well?" his voice dipped and again reached the volume it was previously at. He looked at his wrists as he rubbed them.

"Are you going to stand there and gawk at me? Or," his voice dipped again, "are you going to get the keys and help me out?" he cut off the end of each of the words as he bobbed his head as he looked back up at Zander and me with expecting eyes. We still stood there, amazed.

"...Kenny?" I spoke out. He rolled his eyes.

"No, it's Oprah." He snapped back quickly, "Of course it's me! Are you blind?" He asked out of annoyance. Zander ran over to the office door inside the cell room. He opened it and went inside. I ran over to the cell and gripped the bars. I couldn't believe that this was Kenny. He looked up at me from where he was sitting and gave me an arduous smile.

"Kenny?" I asked again. He still wore the smile, but widened his eyes, looked around, looked back at me a slowly nodded his head in his sarcastic way.

"Wha-what happened? About 20 minutes ago... you had a gun pointed towards me, and you were threatening to kill me unless I opened the door. You were cleaned up. What happened, did you... run through a pigsty?" I shook my head in confusion. Kenny crossed his arms and leaned his head back chuckling.

"Oh gosh- I've missed you." He said to me as he rubbed his eyes.

"Not exactly. You see-" he cut off as he looked back up. Zander came back out with some keys. He started fitting the keys into the lock.

Kenny started muttering. "Gah... geez... this sounds so stupid." He rubbed his face.

"Twins... it's so cliché sounding, I know. The 'evil twin.'" Kenny looked up at Zander as he opened the cell door and helped Kenny up. I couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"'Evil twin?'" I mocked.

"You know how my parents were separated when I was little?" Kenny asked. I nodded.

"Steven, my brother, went with my father. He's not completely mentally right. Only someone with his mindset would do something like this." Kenny sat silent. Each one of us was silent for a while.

"What do we do now?" I asked aloud. Kenny and Zander looked at me.

"First, let's get out of here." Zander answered. As we headed towards the door, we heard Kenny chuckle. We cautiously looked at him. Kenny covered his mouth, and looked at the floor while he laughed. Zander and I were uneasy. But Kenny just looked up at us.

"That bastard's got some nerve coming here and pretending to live my life. He never even knew me until he came here." Kenny was headstrong and usually had strong control over his emotions, but even I could see a lustrous look in his eyes. Kenny looked at me and gave me a small, fragile smile. Zander grabbed my wrist and pushed me out of the room and signaled with his head for Kenny to follow. The three of us went out of the room and past a porthole. I happened to look out of it. Slightly above the boat's window, I saw the bottom of an emergency boat.

"There's our ticket out of here." I said, pointing to it. Zander quickly looked out the window.

"Alright." He nodded. Kenny started to chuckle again. Again, we uneasily looked back at him.

"Were you really crying, Zan?" Kenny teased. Zander frowned and headed towards the door. Kenny and I followed him. But, Zander opened the door and...

"BAM! Dozens of agents surrounded the trio! They were outnumbered and hopeless. That is, until, Ryeliee pulled out the gun my evil twin Steven had earlier and started going secret agent on all of them!" Kenny exclaimed as he added to the story. I just laughed, thinking of myself acting like a secret agent. Zander poked the fire we were sitting around and shook his head while he too laughed.

"However her impressive skills, though, more and more guards came to contain us. Then, all of the sudden, Steven came out! Zander spoke out, 'It's all hopeless, we're done for!' But, when we thought Steven was here to destroy us... RYELIEE! It's your turn!" Kenny pointed at me. I thought of the predicament in the story for a second, and then I spoke out.

"He actually came to save us!" I exclaimed. Then I tried my best impression of how I thought this made-up character Steven would sound.

"'Kenny,'" Zander lost it, and almost fell out of his camping chair. I continued, "'I've realized how crazy I've been, and that all this time I was just missing you, and I was wanting my brother back.'" Kenny's face was red and his eyes were watering. His laugh following was loud and strained. Zander had his face covered and his body was shaking from laughter. I myself was finding it hard to remain serious through this part of our progressive campfire story.

"Steven pressed a button and all the guards, who were actually robots built to do his bidding fell, and were unmoving. Then Kenny turned to Steven." I took a deep breath, prepared to do a Kenny voice.

"'Steven, my dear brother!'" This time, Zander did fall out of his chair. Kenny's face was still red and his eyes still glassy and watering. The three of us chorused in laughter. I had to wipe tears from my eyes, as well. Still, I continued.

"As they embraced," a pause for Zander to quiet down, "we all thought it was safe, when suddenly... identical Zander and Me showed up! It was the evil twin versions of us! Molly and..." I stopped for a moment thinking, but I wasn't coming up with anything, so I just continued. "Xander with an X." Kenny, Zander, and myself actually, had to stop to laugh again. I couldn't continue with the story, so I decided to pass it to Zander.

"Zand-der!" I laughed while I said his name and pointed at him. He was still lying on the ground, and he lay on his back and finished the story.

"Then they all fell into acid and died. THE ENDDDDD!" Kenny was laughing hysterically and Zander was pointing straight up. I had to clutch my sides and bend over, my long curly hair grazing the grass.

"Wha-wha," Kenny started to talk though his laughter. "where-where did the ACID come from?" The emphasis Kenny put on the word "acid" just made us all laugh harder. Zander had to shout over the loud sound of hilarity.

"I DON'T KNOW!" With that, we sent out another guffaw. We're just three friends who're crazy enough to think up such a goofy story and to keep laughing. They always say that laughter is the best medicine, but it's the pharmacist who distributes it that's the most important. Without them, you don't have laughter as well or as often... I'm glad that I've found my pharmacists.

TLHS

Battle of the AutoCorrect

Michael Sundy

Mark went to California for his summer vacation of 2015. He has always wanted to go to California, but never had the chance to go. Disney Land was his main objective for the trip. His friends have always told him things like "You have to at least one time in your life." Or "It's the happiest place on Earth." Now, Mark was no ordinary teenager. He was always filled with crazy ideas. There wasn't a mean fiber in him. You would rarely see him mad in public. All of that would change this one summer of fun.

Mark was at the airport about to get on his flight when his phone starts acting up. He was trying to send a text to his mother telling her he was about to board the plane. He tried to send "Love you mom, but I have to board the plane" but the message that sent was "Love you mom, but I have blood on my plate". He tried to delete it before it could send, but it was too late, the message had already sent. He also wasn't able to text her back to tell her the mistake because he was on the plane and was not allowed on his cellphone. His mom went a full 2 hours that day thinking her son had blood on his plate.

Mark's plane finally lands and it's 11:30pm. All he wanted to do was get to his hotel. When he actually got settled into his room it was around one in the morning. The next day he planned to go to Disney Land. He needed to get as much sleep as possible so he could enjoy Disney Land from the time it opened until close. The next day rolls by and he finally made it to Disney Land the most magical place on earth.

Mark had his eyes set on the Tower of Terror! The whole park was crowded with snotty faced children and fed-up parents. The crowd made it almost impossible to navigate to his sought out adventure. He was almost to the massive hour long line when a man accidently shoulder checked him. He could not believe who it was.

The man turned to say sorry, but Mark was left in awe. Mark realized he had bumped into the genius behind Apple Co., Steve Jobs. Before Jobs could proceed with his day Mark thanked him for his work and brilliant idea to come up with Apple products. Jobs then asked him about the products and what he thought of the latest iPhone. Mark had nothing bad to say about the product. He loved his phone. Mark even took out his phone to show Jobs his favorite thing about the phone, but stopped and thought of something he didn't like. He took one glance at the messaging app and knew exactly what he was going to kindly criticize Jobs on. The AutoCorrect.

Mark went on to say that the "Autocorrect is pointless to have as an automatic set for the device". He thought it should be optional to turn on. AutoCorrect is already programmed to be on upon devic

e startup, there is no option to shut it off. When Mark said those words to Jobs it only made him furious. The words hit him like a semi-truck carrying an oversized haul. Jobs asked him why it was a pointless idea and Mark said "AutoCorrect has only ruined his texts and not helped". Which was true in his case because it never once autocorrected for the better.

This argument went on for at least a half hour only being interrupted by the occasional bump by a bystander or a whinny child. Jobs was so upset and ticked off that he said "I'm done with this ****". He stomped away giving no sign of remorse for screaming at Mark. Jobs could only take a few steps when at that point he had collapsed. Mark ran to him to make sure he was okay. When he arrived all he saw was a sweaty man clenching his chest with fear. He was having a heart attack.

Mark immediately called 911 and then park services. The ambulance arrived and Mark was allowed to ride in the back with him. They arrived at the hospital within minutes and got Jobs set up in a room where he was monitored. The room was painted with a depressing, pale blue color. Mark apologized for setting him off at the park and told him that he never meant any harm. Jobs also apologized for screaming and they both went back to the mutual feeling they had before the argument. Mark went back to his hotel only to find out on the news the Jobs had died from respiratory arrest.

Mark felt bad and good all at the same time about Steve Jobs. He was shocked that Steve passed away. Even though the autocorrect won't be changed, Mark was glad to have known Steve Jobs.

The Apocalypse

Michael Sundy

All over the United States there have been thousands of counts of infections with multiple deaths due to them. Jason was a fighter pilot and he had created a plan to leave Maine, the area infection started, in hopes to find refuge in a safer non-plagued area. He is going to fly to Indiana in hopes there won't be infectious creeps. There are rumors going around that its beautiful and is without infection.

Jason had to get to Eastern Airlines, the place he works, so he can get a plane ready for his escape from Maine. The plane takes a while to fill up with jet fuel and is going top take a while. The Airport is filled with zombies everywhere, and is going to have to maneuver perfectly around the port so he doesn't slip up and get infected. He is with his best friend Aaron who is a retired United States Marines. Aaron has been taught to survive in many situations, but not in a zombie apocalypse. Aaron is Jason's only chance for survival.

They are on their way to the Airport in a beaten up blue bug that screeches every time it turns. Jason jokingly said that "This is the most annoying part of this hell hole." They finally make it to the airport after an hour. The trip would normally be an easy 10 minutes, but there are abandoned cars scattered throughout the streets. Most of the planes are taken because people have already fled country for the same reason. The only thing the two friends could find was a simple training crop duster plane that only holds one person. The trip would not be easy

Aaron is six foot four and 200 pounds. The Marines has formed into a gigantic beast that hardly made him able to walk through doorways. If you think him and fat boy Jason can fit in a one person plane then you have some rethinking to do. The plane couldn't hold enough jet fuel to get them to Indiana, so they are planning on flying as far west as they can with the fuel they have.

They are finally on their way westward when something goes wrong with the engine. The weight of the plane is bringing itself down. Jason is able to land the plane but without damage. The only thing that is stopping him is Aaron. His weight is affecting the engine and is forcing them to crash. He has to jump. Luckily there is one parachute aboard otherwise it would have been a scary way down. As Aaron is jumping out the plane, he throws Jason a GPS with coordinates already set in it that way they would be able to meet up when they land.

Jason followed the coordinates all the way to Aarons location and endend up finding a survivor camp. The infection did not spread to their area and ended up infection free.

The Tortoise and the Hare RRRRReeemiX

Michael Sundy

Now the way I see it, most of you got it wrong. I'm a down to earth kind of hare who only wants to make people happy. If you were to ask any of my friends they'd say the same! I spend most of my time running in marathons and races to earn money for charity, but one day the whole situation got turned around and got put against me.

It all started one day when I met Toby the Tortoise. The tortoise was a kind fella and he insisted on racing me being that I'm undefeated and was the National Champ 4 years running! I agreed to the race to make him happy and to show him how amazing racing is and how much of a thrill you can get from racing. Now he is a tortoise so I decided to make things fair.

The day of the race came by and I decided to have some fun with Toby and do some funny jokes to make him feel welcome. One joke I did was I offered to shake his hand, but quickly took my hand away as he put out his. I thought that would be pretty humorous and make him have some fun. I think he was having fun at that point!

When the official starter shot his gun I was off! I ran so fast that within the first few seconds of the race, I was already one third of the way finished! I could barely see Toby, so I decided to let up and relax. I guess I relaxed a little too much because I ended up falling asleep. Most people took that as a sign of me showing off, which is not at all what I meant to do.

When I woke up Toby was a ways in front of me, so I went ahead and speed through the track again and went right on by him. Along the way there was an orphanage of hare right next to the track. I decided to stop by and say hello because I had such a lead on Toby I figured I could spare a couple of minutes talking with some of the kids. Again the people took that as a sign of me showing off. I just wanted to make the kids feel good about themselves and not to make myself look bad in any way.

After about five minutes at the orphanage Toby took the lead again and he was almost to the finish line! I didn't want to lose because that means bye-bye Undefeated record. I figured since It would have been a close race no one would mind. I ran as fast as could and then some. We were neck and neck at the very very end, but Toby ended up winning. I was so shocked because I have never lost before, but at the same time I'm super happy for Toby because he persevered and beat me in a race.

The people began to hate me because they thought I was being rude and cocky for making so many stops while I was racing. I never wanted to be hated or be thought of as a bad person. All I wanted to do is help people and make them feel good about themselves. Most people don't understand that and because of their hatred I can't go anywhere without being scolded. I hope that one day Toby will forgive me along with the rest of the nation. All I want to do is help and make them feel good.

Caleb's Entry #32

Michael Sundy

9/23/13

I believe that everyone has their "ups" and "downs' no matter who you are. Every day I try and I try to make my day an "up", but at the end of the day I find myself thinking of you. I can't possibly believe that there is a day filled with enough "ups" to compensate for the loss I had to take. All of the "ups" in the world can't fill the void I have when I think of the "ups" we could be having at this very moment.

Sometimes the pain feels unbearable and I wish I never had feelings for you so that way I wouldn't have to feel the way that I do now, but maybe it was worth the pain. Somehow I always find myself knowing that the pain was worth it and the fact that we broke up leaves me with the realization that we weren't meant to be. Now we are able to find the true person we are meant to be with instead of just wasting time on each other.

This whole experience made me realize that even though we have to go through that level of heartbreak, it's all worth it in the pain. No matter how bad you feel and no matter how bad you think it might be, in time you'll find yourself better than ever. No matter what it's going to be worth the pain.

ABC POEM

Michael Sundy

All together we work as one

Being the group we should be

Connected by our own literary works

Deciding how to put it all together

Everyone with a say in the decision

Finding our true abilities within the writing

Getting the satisfaction we deserve

Having friends we didn't think we'd have

Identifying our friendship through words,

Justified by how we write

Killing away all the standards

Letting the friendship grow

Memories being created

Never forgetting them ever

Opening up to our friends without fear

Pouring out to them through our words

Quickly knowing we're safe with them

Reminding each other that we can

Secured in friendship

Treating each other fairly

Utilizing the advice given

Visioning what we could write in the future

Writing as one group alone

Xerarch to the class

Yearning to be the best writer

Zeroing in on how to do it together.

Bicycle kick goal

Michael Sundy

It was my first official Varsity soccer game ever during my sophomore year. My freshman year I was only on JV which only made me strive for Varsity. I already knew I wasn't going to play as much in the varsity games because I was new and I didn't have the talent to perform as well as the starting XI.

The "pump up" before each game is almost always the same; music, terrible dancing to funny songs, and trash talking the other team. This happens before every game on the bus ride to away games. The build up before each game is ALWAYS needed.

We played the Rossville soccer team that day and they were always an easy target. They were never a good soccer team. In previous years we would beat them by at least six goals to zero. This game though turned out to be an enormous blow out.

During the first half of the game we had already scored five goals and we had shown no signs of letting up. Usually when we are winning by a great amount of goals Coach Painter puts in his non-starting Varsity players to see what they can produce for the team. Coach looked at me and called my name. I was going to be in the game.

6 goals in I was going into the game. It was an amazing feeling to be in my first varsity game. A few moments go by when Jon Blankman kicks the ball from behind half all the way to me. I was in front of the 18 yard box when the ball came to me. The ball hit off of my thigh and on to the ground. I then kicked the ball back up into the air and it was above me. Leaping into the air I swung the foot I jumped with at the ball. It was a miracle had actually hit the ball and not the defenders face behind me.

The crowd became lifeless and the moment seemed to last an eternity. The ball was moving slowly through the air and towards goal. When the goalie finally made an attempt to punch the ball away he missed the ball. I couldn't believe it. He had actually missed the ball and I scored a bicycle kick. I ran to my teammates who were cheering me on after such a surprising goal. I was screaming like a girl and my voice was cracking with every scream I screamed.

The memory of the bicycle kick will forever be in my head as the best goal I have ever scored. I will see it every time I think of soccer and I will see it every time someone tries it.

Dr.Drawn vs. Devon and Markus

Jason Wisinski

Dr. Markus Bottomsworth is a scientist who wants to create a new way of electricity. But something goes terrible wrong when he was fixing a power line on a bridge. It started raining and he slipped and fell in the water and the cable he was working on and fell in with him and electrified the water. Which electrocuted him and shocked him so much that the electricity gave him the power to light himself up in other words made him glow a light green. One man saved Markus that day that man was Devon O'Donnell took Markus to his house and would help Markus control his power and told Markus there will be a man trying to kill because he wants your powers.

Steve Beckman will come after you Mark he will try and drawn your power because he wants to take all super human like us. So that he is the most powerful human being ever." Why does he want all of the powers to himself Devon ". "He wants the powers because he is a scientist that has a really dark and dreaded past and will stop at nothing to get are powers". "Are powers Devon you never told me you had a power how did you get your power". Well Mark I got my powers when I was a scientist working with Steve Beckman we wanted to see how twins could read each other's minds. So we did testing after testing should good sings I told him to try the experiment on me and he did. He hooked me up to all of the wires and I closed my eyes and when it was done I could read people's minds.

But Steve got too carried away by knowing some people had powers and he wanted to take them away so he started with me. One day I came home and he was standing there in my house telling me to give up my power I told him there was no possible way for me to give up my powers. He reached for something that looked like a gun but he shot a laser out of the gun the laser hit me and he started a fire in my house. He got out and was perfectly fine I tried to save my wife but she was trapped in by the fire. She told me to leave before the fire took my life I left my house and as I was running form the flams I heard a high pitched scream. That scream was my wife screaming for her life know I want to stop Steve that's way I am saving people with powers and showing them how to use them for good.

So what you are telling me Devon is that I am a super hero and there is a crazy man on the loose trying to take my powers. In a way yes you could be considered a super hero. So you are telling me that we are supposed to protect the world but it's just you and me all I do is glow and all you do is read minds that's not really a super hero team. What if I call for some back up and they help us take down Doctor Drawn. Nice super villain name did you just make that up Devon. No he gave himself that name right when he put on that mask but it is catchy right. Yes it is very catchy it has a nice ring to it. So who are you going to call for some back up Mind control that is going to be your super hero name and my will be the Glow. Devon where will we find Doctor Drawn he knows where we are. How does he know that? Because he has a tracker on me so he should show up any time. Knock Knock who is at the door Devon I don't know open it. Markus went to the door he opened it and standing in the door way was Doctor Drawn. Doctor Drawn had out his laser gun and shot it at Markus and Markus flew through the room stopping by hitting the wall. Devon could not believe what he just saw he tried to fight Doctor Drawn but Drawn shook him off and punched Devon and then shot him in the shoulder with his laser gun.

Doctor Drawn looked at the two on the ground and then he yelled come and get them so I can drawn there powers. After Doctor Drawn said that four large men came in and took Devon and Markus. They took them to an old abounded lab that has not been used for years. Well I am glad you are awake for this. Awake for what? Awake so that I can see the pain on your face when I drawn both of your powers then I will be the most powerful human being a live Ha ha ha. I am supposed to be laughing because that was funny at all drawn head? Your right Markus it needed a punch line didn't have one since I am a nice guy I will give you a punch line. Devon gets free and punches one of the big men that help Doctor Drawn. How how did you escape that Devon? Because you forgot that Markus can project the light and bent your metal bands so know we can fight. Then way is Markus still hanging by the arm bands. So I can do this Markus drops down from the arm bands and hits another one of Doctor Drawn's sidekicks. Know it is fair Doctor Drawn. You two really think you can stop me I am going to have ever super power in the world. Not for long because where ever you go there is always someone for good that will try and stop you. You can't stop me because I have my laser gun. You mean this laser gun in my hand then he shoots Doctor Drawn but Doctor Drawn vanishes out of thin air.

Super bowl poem

Jason Wisinski

All people stop to watch the super bowl

Brady starts to warm up his arm

Cheering the crowd is going wild

Directing there attain to the tunnel that the players run out of

Every one noticed the players getting ready to play the game of their life

Fans of every team watching the super bowl

Generations of football stars trying to submit their legacy

However one team will lose this game

I cannot sit down watching my favorite team trying to get the victory

Julie eldlemen grabs the ball flying from the air and scores the touchdown

Knowledge of the game will give one of the teams an advantage

Lose is what neither team wants to happen

Marshaw Lench scores a touchdown and gives the Seahawks the lead

Never giving up until there is nothing else for you to change

Over time the score is changed by the player's fate

Pleasing the crowd and the fans while you are playing in the biggest game is hard to do

Quitting is not an option for the patriots since they are down by three points

Rob Gronkowski scores the touchdown giving the Patriots the lead

Striking back with every once they got the Seahawks try to win

Time never stopping only the players can slow it down

Under presser the Seahawks are making a comeback

Victory knocking on the door

Wilson throws an interception

Xos Jay catches the interception never letting go of the ball

Yelling all fans as one voice as the clock ticked to the end

Zigzagging through the crowd to go up and hold the Lombardi trophy and getting that super bowl ring put on your finger

The Beetle key

Jason Wisinski

My friends were telling me about this new pawn shop that just opened up a couple of weeks ago. It's called Donnie's pawn place since my friends were so egger for me to go check it out. I did and I am glad of it; right when I walked into to that store my whole life would change. I parked my Nissan skyline and walked down the street where the store is. I grabbed the door and gently pushed it opened right when I stepped in there it was like walking into a time machine. See all the old antiques there and taking the entire breath taking items in at once. The man behind the counter asked if he could help me find something and I told him I was just looking around. He said just let get my attain if you need anything. While I am looking around I find a New England patriots super bowl ring from 2004 when they won the super bowl back to back that year.

Being a patriot's fan I asked how much it was and the price totally caught me off guard. The super bowl ring was only 500 dollars and it is an actual super bowl ring that the players get when they win. So I walked away from it wondering if I was going to buy the ring while I was looking around I found this really old glob. The globe had a look of character to it and I was intercede by it. So I told the man behind the counter that I would take that globe and he said he would put it up by the checkout area while I look around some more. When I was finale done looking throw the rest of the store I went to the counter ready to pay. But the man stopped me and said there is an old story that goes with that globe it is rumored to be king tuts when he was ruler of Egypt. When the man was talking about it there was a stone cold look on his face. Like this globe caused that man some kind of horror in a way I paid my 6 bucks for the globe and put it in my car and drove off to my house.

I live out in the country with no one to bother me at all because I live by myself and the closes house to me was down the road. While I headed down the gravel covered road I saw something shining when I looked in my mirror to see if the glob was still standing up straight. Whatever was shining was it was a bright blue and gold color and I thought for some strange resin the shinning object was on the globe. When I got home I took the globe out and started searching for the blue and gold shinning peace but I could never find it I searched that globe over and over but I couldn't find anything. So I thought maybe I was just seeing things so I forgot about it and went on with what I was doing I picked up the globe so I could put it in my work room as something to make the room more notice able. When I got done luging the big globe up to my office room I put in the corner where I wanted it to go. When I was half way out of the room the globe suddenly just falls and hits the hard tile floor I rush to go pick the globe up and there are secret doors that fold out. While I was scanning the secret doors I notice there are also little draws that pull out. The main thing that caught my eye was this blue and gold beetle looing thing there was a piece of paper next to it that said Tutankhamun you are know the pharaoh of Egypt treat your people well and take care of the beetle key it will unlock the door to the other side. Wow Tutankhamun that must be king tut the dude from the pawn shop was right this was king tuts but were does this key go to.

I know what I need to do sadly it means flying all the way to Egypt. I pack up my bags and I make sure I take the betel and the note that was meant for king tut. On the plane all I could think about is what does this lead me to I am I going to find something of king tuts and be filthy rich. But lots look on the realistic side of things someone just put it in there to make a joke or something put it was to late to change my mind because the plane had already landed in Egypt. When I get off the plane I thought I should go to the pyramids and when I arrived there I saw a picture of king tut and in his pocket was the beetle. So that means that the beetle did belong to king tut know I have to find where he is buried at. When I got to the pyramid that king tut was in I was looking for an entry way. I found this door or at least I thought it was a door because it had a place to put a key in but this key didn't look like an average key. By this point I was rattling my brain wondering what would fit in the key hole then I remembered I had the beetle. So I thought I would try it was my best option so I put the beetle in the key hole and to my surprise it the beetle fit. Then I slowly twisted the beetle and the pyramid door slid opened.

When I went into the pyramid it was really dark so I took out myself phone and put the flash light on so I could see. When I was walking throw the pyramid I saw a bunch of hieroglyphics and as I was reading the walls one said king tuts resting chambers. I didn't know what I was supposed to do once I got in to the pyramid but the beetle kept pulling towards king tuts chambers. So I went in there and that's where I saw the king tuts casket and the beetle was pulling me closer to the casket. As scared as I was I took the beetle out and there was another key whole that looked very similar to the first one I saw. The beetle was inching its way to the key whole. So I put the beetle in the key hole and I turned around because I didn't want to see some dead kid. When I heard the casket open up I looked at it and to my surprise there was a living man in the casket sitting up. Who are you I said to the dude in the casket I am king Tutankhamun. I looked at him and said there is no why you are king tut he died thousands of years ago. I am back known because the one who has the beetle can bring me back to life and you did thank you kind sir. I am not a sir my name is Michael but everyone calls me mickey. Thank you Mickey from that day on I took king tut under my wing and he became my brother I showed him how to live in the 21st century and how to survive in the world that we live in.

Caught by the glare of the fire

Jason Wisinski

Fear is just a mindset it is just a feeling that people get when they know they can't face something. But when something hits you like a train it is kind of hard not to be scared, or afraid. For that amount of time you are stopped in your tracks and you have know where to go. This has happened to me when the two people you don't think can get hurt and it doesn't just hurt them it huts everyone around you. They are hurt by something they couldn't control something they didn't see coming at all. That day my biggest fear was right in front of my face. I am a third generation firemen and smoke jumper. The two people you don't ever seeing get hurt is your grandparents, your dad and you close uncle. My uncle and my dad are both firefighters so when it was my time to decide if I wanted to be a firefighter there was no hesitation in my mind.

When I got put on the same department as my two heroes' I felt like nothing would stop us at all. Until my uncle went to a regular checkup the doctor noticed a knot on the side of his neck but the doctor thought it was just a strained muscle. But the doctor wanted to take an x-ray of his neck just in case. So my uncle took the x-rays and was sitting in the doctor's office waiting for the results to come and then go home. When the doctor came in to give my uncle the news the doctor had a blank look on his face and that is when he told my uncle that he had throat cancer. My uncle was truly stunned at what he just heard my uncle didn't believe the doctor so he looked at the x-rays and the cancer was indeed on his throat. When I came home that day my parents were sitting on the couch looking teary-eyed toward my uncle. They told me to sit down and told my sister to get started on her homework.

They said "Joey we need to talk to you" so I walk into the living room and sat on the couch. They looked at me with tears in their eyes and for the first time I saw my beloved uncle trying to fight back tears. When he was ready he looked at me in the eye that's when he told me that the doctor found cancer on the side of his thought. This super hero figure to me just told me he had cancer that absolutely crushed me. I felt like I was in a burning building with no one there to help you and the flame is just inching to you getting closer and closer until you back into a wall. Know you can't run from the fire you have to face it head on because it has you backed up in a corner. That's how I felt with my uncle having cancer I thought that was going to be the most difficult thing I had to deal with but man was I wrong. Everything was just now starting to fall apart and I had no control of what was going to happen I was just along for the ride. Like a leaf floating in the air by the wind the leaf has no control where he will land. Just like me I was just another leaf caught by the wind.

When my uncle told me I just had a blank look on my face the whole time I had no clue what to say to him. I looked at my parents and they asked me what I was thinking. I told them how can someone like him get cancer know when we needed him the most he gets cancer. He is at the peak of his life and he has a lot more to live for. My parents told me that it might not seem far right know. I responded with when is it ever going to be fair it's not fair and both of you know it and I went to my bedroom. I was in my room when my parents called for my sister to tell her about are uncle having taught cancer I heard my sister and my mom crying. Then I heard a knock at my door I said come in a rude tone. To my surprise it was my uncle who was coming into my room. He told me that no matter what happens stay strong he had tears in his eyes and in his heart.

Before he left my room he told me he brought me something. To my surprise it was are family crest I always asked him and my parents what are family crest was because my family is originally from Poland so we have a family crest that stands for a symbol of your family. Know that symbol that represents are family is know it is in my hands. I glanced up at him and asked him what it stood for he said courage and pride. Those words and that crest would carry me throw this whole emotional roll coaster. 4 months he fought that cancer and one day the cancer spread throw him like a fire does to a house. Know every time I go into a fire I feel like I have someone watching my back even if my life is in danger or not I feel like he is there so I thank you for that. Rest easy down there because you did your job up here. On his tombstone is are family crest and his fire number.

Dog wonders

Jason Wisinski

Steven can you tell me the answer to my question. There I was in the middle of class not paying a bit of attain and Mrs. Russell calls on me. I looked over to my right and my best friend Zeke was wording the answer to the question to me. I tell Mrs. Russell the answer to the question and she says very well and says next time to pay more attain in class. She goes and returns to her desk then she gives us homework and all of us are waiting for the bell to Ring. Here I am talking to you and you don't know anything about me my name is Steven Bold I am in the eighth grade. My best friend is Zeke Brady yes the same as Tom Brady that is his dad. Hey Zeke thank you for saving me back there in class. It's no big deal you do the same for me Steve. After school I have to go home usually I am very happy to be home but my parents don't think I have enough friends.

So they took me to a counselor and told me stuff we could try well so far nothing has worked that my parents like. But know we are down to are last option to get a dog. I love the idea of getting a dog I have tried before to get a dog but it hasn't worked but when this counselor lady says a dog is a good idea they go try it. I am hoping today we get the dog because almost every one at my school has a dog but me I kind of feel left out some times but not to the point to get upset of the matter that I don't have a dog. When I first walk into the door this is what I hear form my mom how was your day sweaty. Yes I am 14 and my mom still Calles me sweaty is it a problem yes but who doesn't have problems. My mom also asked how school was and if I have any home work when I am done answering all of those questions I asked if we were getting a dog today. My mom and dad just looked at me then my dad broke the silence yes we are going to the dog shelter to find a dog but if you don't see one there we will keep looking.

I was so happy finale I am getting my best friend besides Zeke. We got in the car and went to the main shelter in our town. We walked into the shelter and there were just a bunch of animals locked in cells like prisoners but only for animals. My mom pointed out some dogs and cats but no animals caught my eyes until they told us a dog just had puppies and they asked us if we wanted to check out the puppies. We went into the back area and there were five little puppies just roaming around and one puppy caught my eye. His fur was black on his back and on his belly was white and his nose was black his eyes are ocean blue. I knew that dog was for me when me and him looked in each other's eyes it's like we understood one another and knew what each other were going throw. I picked him up and I told my parents this is the dog I want we signed some paper work then we got out of there and went to the vet to get his shots and that's when I had to name him. So I named him Punisher because that's who he reminds me of and that is my favorite super hero so it fit with him.

Then after going to the vet and getting Punisher all of shots he needed we stopped at pet supplies plus to get him a collar and food plus a couple of toys to keep him busy when I am at school. After we got all of that we were finale home and it was a round 5:50 mom said she was going to start on dinner so me and dad watched TV. Punisher tried to jump up on the couch were I was sitting but his legs were too small to jump up on to the couch because his legs were not long enough. So I picked up Punisher and looked him in the eyes and told him I know what it feels like to be short. Because I am not the tallest kid in my grade by a long shot. I was very happy to get a dog finally but the next day I didn't want to go to school at all. Why don't you want to go because mom I want to stay home with Punisher and hang out with him because he is knew to the house and we just got him yesterday and I don't want him to be along? He won't be along he will have me and your dad to look after him. Ever since I got my dog everything has change I have been making friends. Also Zeke and I went to a patriot's football game and I got to meet Tom Brady and my favorite player of all time Randy Moss. That dog has changed my life around and I wouldn't be who I am without him.

Summer's Poem

Haley Ziolkowski

Ants, ants, everywhere

Butterflies flying in the air

Crickets chirping loudly at night

Dogs howling with all of their might

Everyone walking when it's warm

Flies flying in a swarm

Grandmas tending the garden

Hurrying before the ground hardens

Igloos nowhere in sight

Just the fresh grass smell all day and night

Klondike bars melting in hands

Lakes filled with boats and people on the sands

Mischievous children running when the sun goes down

Neighbors crying when grass turns brown

Ostriches roaming around in zoos

Pink flamingos flicking poo

Quilts being made in factories

Relatives buying them for satisfactory

Strawberry popsicles staining clothes

Tom helping mom in the garden, using the hoes

Under the rain appears a rainbow

Violet colors putting on a show

Warm weather all around

Xeric legs prancing on the ground

Yearly flowers starting the fall

Zoris sandals being hung on the wall

My One True Love

Haley Ziolkowski

As I picked it up, I realized that I really do love it and I need to appreciate it more. This thing that I'm holding is what life is really about. I have the urge to go tell everyone what my newfound love is because I'm so excited about this. At this moment in time, I realized that I am completely and utterly in love with this Chipotle burrito.

Now I know that you are probably confused about what is going on right now. I was too, at first. The story goes like this: One day I was walking down Main St. and noticed a sign that caught my eye. I couldn't make out what it said so I decided to venture over and see what this gleaming beauty really was. As I rounded the corner of 5th and Main, there it was. A rather large sign that read in big white letters: CHIPOTLE. I had always seen tweets from basic white girls about how "chipotle is life" but I never understood how a Mexican subway could be equivalent to life. Beats me, I thought to myself. As I looked up at the Chipotle sign, my stomach growled like a momma bear would growl if you were standing too close to her cubs. I guess now would be a good time to eat, I thought to myself, and since I'm standing in front of a very delicious-smelling restaurant I guess I can eat here.

As I walked in the front door, I honestly do believe that I got a face full of Heaven. Before I even made it to the line to order my food I knew I was destined to be here. I proceeded to the line of only a few people to order my food. Almost everybody in front of me ordered burritos, but one girl ordered a bowl. I wasn't exactly sure about which one I wanted, so I came to my decision by using 'eenie meenie miney moe.' I landed on burrito so that's what I was going to go with. Nearing the front of the store, I glanced down the endless bar of beans, rice, toppings, sauces, etc. It was like I was in Heaven's main buffet. I started to listen to the choices of the people in front of me just to get an idea of what everyone else enjoyed. Still in awe of this profound institution, I stepped up to the plate. "Hi, welcome to Chipotle. Have you been here before?" the lady behind the bar said to me with a rather large smile on her face. "Nope, this is actually my first time" I explained to her. Barely being able to hide my excitement I waited for her to reply. "Awesome, a newcomer, let's get you started. Would you like a bowl or a burrito?" she asked me. Remembering the outcome of the 'eenie meenie miney moe' game, I ecstatically proclaimed "burrito, please." "Awesome," she said then turned away and picked up a very large tortilla and placed it in a big metal press which, I assumed, was the warmer. After it was warm she took it out and placed it on an even bigger sheet of tin foil. Then she slid it down the bar and asked "Next comes your base. Would you like white or brown rice?" Not mentally prepared for this question, I stopped and thought about it for a second. Every aspect of this burrito MUST be utter perfection and nothing less. I then told her that I would like white rice followed by black beans. "Okay, next you get to choose your toppings. There are several that you can choose from, so this may take a couple minutes to think about." She chuckled after she said this but I didn't find it funny at all. I stood there and stared at her in all seriousness because this isn't a laughing matter. I could tell that she didn't know if I was being serious or not because she just kind of stood there staring at me, the grin slowly fading off of her face. I then decided that she wasn't worth wasting time on so I began to ponder the bar of toppings that I could choose from. They had all kinds of stuff: lettuce, tomatoes, a mixture of corn, some type of liquid and cilantro, sour cream, black beans, brown beans, guacamole, salsa, and more. Looking at all of these toppings was like looking into the gates of Heaven. After pondering my decision a little while longer, I finally came to my conclusion. "I'd like everything." I told the lady behind the bar whose nametag read Helga. Helga? I thought to myself. Whatever. I didn't care what the employees names were, I cared about my precious baby that was being loaded up as I we speak. I thought about my decision in my head. I knew it was the right one. After Helga fully equipped my burrito with everything I could ever desire, I paid the overpriced total that my meal came out to and sat down in a table by the window. I just stared at my tin foil wrapped burrito. My mouth was salivating more than I thought was even humanly possible. This is it, I thought to myself, this is the sole reason you were put on this Earth. I unwrapped the tin foil as gently as possible from the warm burrito. Being as big as my left arm, this burrito was a lot heavier than I thought it would be. Once I had it in my hands, I said a prayer really quick just thanking Jesus for being that dude. He's awesome. I mean, he created Chipotle, this burrito, and he knew that I was supposed to be here at this very moment. Thanks J, amen. Next, I took the biggest possible bite of this oversized burrito. I chewed, stopped, and wiped a tear from my eye. This thing that I'm holding was the best thing that I had ever eaten. Was it actually a burrito? No, this wasn't made by any ordinary chef, a complete mastermind. I should go thank him, I thought to myself. I am in love. Not with a woman, or a man, or an animal, but with this Chipotle burrito. I looked up at a sign that read "You are exactly where you are supposed to be." True that.

The Rings

Haley Ziolkowski

There was an old house that I passed every day I came home from work. I couldn't tell you what it was about this house but something intrigued me. I looked at it every chance I had. It was a big 3 story Victorian home with bushes and a fence on the outside. There was a rumor going around town that the old lady that used to live here committed suicide after having horrendous nightmares night after night. I never actually knew what the real story about it was but I didn't care. I needed to figure out what it was about this old, mysterious house. On the final day, I decided to stop and try and see what was inside.

As I neared the house, I became very uneasy. I felt as if there were butterflies fluttering around in my stomach. I had no idea why this house made me feel this way but I wouldn't stop until it made some sense. I pulled into the driveway, shifted my car into park, and got out. I started to walk up to the house when I heard a quiet thud inside of the house. At this point, I was terrified, but I felt that I needed to see what was inside. I walked up the steps only to find a doorbell. Unsure whether I should ring it or knock on the door. After some contemplation, I decided to ring the doorbell. After I did, I realized that it might not have been the best decision I've ever made.

Shortly after I rang the doorbell, I heard what sounded like loud footsteps creeping slower than I would've liked down the stairs inside of this mysterious house. None of this made sense to me after hearing all of the rumors about the homeowner passing away from hanging herself. I thought about it for a second: maybe her spirit stayed inside the house. After thinking about the whereabouts of the old lady that used to live here, I remembered the footsteps. They've stopped. Seconds later, the door creaked open ever so slowly and stopped when it was a little over halfway open. I didn't know what to do, so I peeked my head inside and, not to my surprise, there was nobody there.

I removed my head from this unknown house. I needed to think about what was about to happen if I actually went inside of this house. I had no idea what was inside, I had no idea who even owned this house. Eventually, I came to the conclusion that going into the house was a good idea, so I proceeded, not knowing what to expect next.

As I took my first steps into the house, my heart was practically beating out of my chest. I walked further and further into the front hall. There were butterfly doors leading into the room right next to me so I decided to walk in that direction. When I entered the room accompanied by the butterfly doors, there was a winding staircase that led to the dark, unlit upstairs. Eh, why not go a little further, I thought to myself. I continued up the winding staircase and when I got to the top, I couldn't believe what was before me.

I couldn't believe what was before me because I actually couldn't see what was up there due to the fact that it was pitch black. I found a wall and followed it until I came across, what seemed like, a rough patch in the wall. It felt sort of like something had been spilled and dried. I chose to ignore it and continue my search for a light switch or something that would provide me with some guidance. I finally came across a light switch and flipped it up. Surprisingly, the light turned on. I glanced behind me to see what I had felt on the wall. You'd think that the sight of dried up, splattered blood across the wall would send me into a state of shock or fear. However, it didn't even phase me. I decided to move on and find whatever else I could in this mysterious house.

There was another room to the left of me so I walked into it. This room, unlike the rest of the ones that I've seen, seemed to be a bedroom. The master bedroom, I thought to myself. In the corner sat a huge stand-up wooden piece of furniture. This piece being the only thing that actually stood out to me, I walked over to it and immediately realized that it was a jewelry box. I moved out of the way so that my shadow wasn't covering it anymore and noticed that there were no knobs or anything to open it, there was only a keyhole. I searched on top of the box and there was nothing. I turned around to search further for the key and accidentally kicked something that rattled across the floor and landed underneath the master bed. I walked over to the bed and lifted the bed skirt to find what I thought would be the mystery key. Instead, there was a dusty ring. I picked it up, wiped the dust off, and examined what I was holding. It was a band with 4 pearls all arranged in a row surrounded my diamonds. In awe of its beauty, I put it on my middle finger. When I opened my eyes, I wasn't in the mysterious unknown house anymore; I was standing by a table in the middle of, what seemed like, an old pizza parlor. Sitting across from me at a table for two were two people that I had never seen before. Sitting all around me were people that I had never seen before. The boy across from me was talking about something that I was unaware of and then the girl started talking. I wasn't necessarily paying attention to what they were saying because I was in shock about what was going on. I looked down and my feet, legs, and the rest of my body were still attached and my hands were still here too. I then noticed that I still had the ring on that I had found in the mysterious house. Was this ring able to transport me to different periods of time? I thought to myself. I started to remove it from my finger and suddenly I was back upstairs in the mysterious old house.

I had no idea what was going on. But was I did know I was sure of: this ring had powers and I wanted to find the rest of them. The first step in finding the rest of them is finding the key to this jewelry box, I thought to myself. I didn't care that I was in some mysterious old house anymore; I cared about finding the key. I searched all around this upstairs room and finally, hanging on a wooden post by the entrance, I found the hidden key. Running over to the jewelry box, I slid the key into the hole and turned it. The first door opened up with the second following. There was nothing inside of the box except 4 more rings lying on the first shelf. They were the most beautiful pieces of jewelry I had ever laid eyes on. I couldn't wait to try these on and see where they take me.

They were all arranged in a line, so I decided to try the one on the far left on first. It was almost as if it were an engagement ring: a simple band lined with sparkling diamonds and one huge diamond in the center. I picked it up and started to slide it down my middle finger. Again, I opened my eyes and I wasn't in the old house anymore, I was on a yacht in the middle of the ocean with the same guy and girl that appeared with the first ring. Only this time he wasn't sitting at a table in the middle of a pizza parlor, he was kneeling down on one knee proposing to this hysterical woman. I'd never seen someone cry as much as this lady cried. I wanted to know more about what was going on so I walked into one of the doors on this magnificent yacht and searched for something to tell me what on Earth was going on. Hanging on the refrigerator was a calendar that ready July 1952. "1952??" I yelled aloud. This was crazy! I could not believe what was happening. I then decided to remove the ring from my finger and again ended up back in the old house. I thought for a second, this can't be all there is to these rings. I mean, there's no real significance. I was determined to find out what these rings actually meant. I came to the conclusion that the only way to find out what these rings' significance was to continue trying them on and see what unfolds next in the story. I placed the engagement ring back on the shelf where it was when I found it. I then took the next one in the row and slowly placed it on my finger. This time I wasn't on a yacht or in the middle of a pizzeria: I was standing on the beautiful, sunny sands of a beach that I didn't recognize. What, or who, I did recognize was the girl that had I had seen in the past when I put on the different rings. Another clue: these rings must've belonged to this girl because she is in every single one of these flashbacks. I ran to catch up with her and find out what information this flashback contained. As I neared her, I realized that she was walking a little too fast for it to be normal. Something was up. I followed her into the resort lobby. As soon as she got inside she ducked behind an indoor tree. I looked around to see what, or who, she was hiding from and there it was; her husband was standing in line with another woman, holding her hand, kissing her cheeks, laughing and smiling like there was no tomorrow. All the while his wife was hiding behind this tree, watching everything go on. I had no idea how she was keeping her cool. After her husband bought his and his mistress's room, they were hurriedly on their way to their room, I'm assuming. His wife ran out from behind the tree and followed them for far enough behind that they could not see her. I followed right behind her so I wouldn't miss out on the events that would soon follow. We followed them up to their room and before the door shut all the way, his wife stuck her shoe in the bottom so she could get in when needed. She waited a couple minutes for them to get situated and then barged into their room. Unexpectedly enough, they were already in bed together. As I was following his wife into the room I noticed that she had stuck something in the back of her pants. However, I couldn't tell what it was. When she ran into the room screaming, her husband's mistress jumped out of the bed that contained this horrified woman's husband. I then knew what the object was that was tucked in the back of her pants for she whipped it out a started viciously stabbing the mistress, then her husband. I did not expect this at all. I had no idea what I had just witnessed. After she brutally stabbed both of the people in the hotel room, she ran out; down the hallway, down the stairs, and out of the hotel. I was still standing in the hotel room, in shock of what I just witnessed. I hurriedly took the ring off and placed it back in the cabinet. After I took it off, I collapsed to the ground. I didn't know what to do. There was one ring left but after seeing what came with the last ring, I was positive I wanted to see this last one. I decided that I couldn't stop now. I stood back up and slowly reached for the very last ring. I placed it on my finger as I had done several times before, not knowing what to expect next. I opened my eyes and I was standing outside in the rain at somebody's funeral. The only person I recognized was the man's wife that was in every other one of these flashbacks. She was standing under a black umbrella, in a long, black dress, black shoes, and a black hat with netting over the face. I walked closer to this woman in black. I didn't understand what was happening. Did she not get caught after what she had done? Did anyone even know about what happened? I got close enough to her face to where I could see her expression and it wasn't sadness. It wasn't sorrow. She wasn't sobbing or even crying. She was standing under this black umbrella in her black outfit smiling. This was it. I was done with these rings. I was done with this house. I removed the ring from my finger faster than I had any of the other ones. I threw it back on the shelf and ran down the stairs and out of the house. I got in my car and sat in my seat staring at this house, thinking about everything that had just happened. I sped out of the driveway and drove home as fast as I could. When I got inside I went straight to my computer. I typed in "husband and mistress homicide 19." I clicked on the first entry that showed up and read. "Man and mistress murdered in California hotel. Suspect never found. Wife in deep sorrow." That's it. They never found out that it was his wife that murdered these people. 4 people knew about the homicide and 3 of them aren't alive anymore.

A Life Changing Surprise

Haley Ziolkowski

"WATCH OUT" a voice loudly shouted from behind me as I ran further into the blazing house. As I glanced behind my shoulder I watched a log as red as a fire truck fall to the spot that my feet had just left. When I turned back around I noticed a cry of help and a flailing arm coming up from a pile of collected debris. There was only one thing on my mind from that point forward: rescue, rescue, rescue.

I ran to the burning pile of debris and frantically started to remove it from the helpless individual. He appeared to be a teenager when I removed the debris from his body. When I got it all off, I noticed that he had a face that looked very familiar to me. However, I couldn't remember where I'd first seen him or what his name was. There was just something about him. I finally got all of the debris off of his helpless body and heaved his body onto my shoulders. I then proceeded to run out of the burning building, getting this kid to the ambulance as fast as I possibly could. When I got this unknown kid onto the stretcher, he opened his eyes and looked at me with panicked eyes and frantically asked "Have you seen my mom??" It had then occurred to me that I hadn't checked the rest of the building before getting this kid to the ambulance. Somewhere from behind me I heard another fireman yell "We got another one" then ran out to the ambulance beside me and set a middle-aged woman down on the stretcher. The paramedics began CPR on her and but a mask on to help her breathe but after what seemed like 3 hours, they pronounced her dead. I came to the conclusion that the woman was the mother or big sister of this teenager that I rescued from the burning house.

I walked into the firehouse the next day exhausted just like I am every time we have late calls. I then proceeded to walk to the chief's office to follow up with the survivor of last night. Chief told me that the kid that I rescued was in the hospital and that he's doing tremendously better than the doctors thought he would. Chief told me what hospital he was in so I went to visit him. As I neared the hospital, I began to feel an uneasy feeling in my stomach. The strange resemblance this kid had to someone that I had met before was still puzzling to me. I walked into the hospital and found this kids room. Once I got up there, I noticed that he was awake so I walked into his room and introduced myself. "Hi, my name is Ada-" I was then cut off by the kid. "Adam Syms, yeah I know who you are," he said, leaving me surprised "thanks for saving me last night but you didn't get to my mom. I would've much rather had you save my mom than me." Answering my question of the other victim in the house being his mother, I said back to him "I'm sorry but I don't get to just pick and choose who I save and who I don't save, I saw you first so you were the first person I helped. What is your name?" I asked him. "Cooper, and I'm your son."

My son? I thought to myself as I paced around my house. I sat down on my bed, feeling a bit dizzy from the news that was just delivered to me. This isn't possible, no way is this possible. It then hit me: Barbados. 1998. Long story short, a big group of my senior class decided it would be fun to take a big senior trip for our last Spring Break together. Sara Styles, one of the prettiest girls in our class, went on that trip. It then hit me again: Chief said something about the woman dying in the house, and her name was Sara. Everything these past few hours had been one big blur. Nothing at this point made sense.

Several weeks after this encounter with my 'son' I found myself driving to god knows where at 4:12 a.m. Suddenly, my car came to a slow stop. I tried to start it over and over again. Nothing. Noticing a brick post to the right of my car, I got out to see what it was. At the top, it read Edgewater Cemetery. Knowing that my car wouldn't start, I thought it was a good idea to take a walk through the cemetery. I noticed a kid sitting in front of a rather small tombstone. As I neared him, he turned around and it was Cooper. He shot me a glare of disproval, rolled his eyes, and turned back around. "That was an inviting look. Thanks, I guess I'll have a seat next to you." As I sat down, I noticed the name on the tombstone, Sara Styles. He was visiting his mom. He then proceeded to ignore me for the next 20 minutes and finally spilled his feelings out like a glass of spilled milk. He told me about his whole childhood. Then he told me about how hard it was growing up without a dad. I felt guilty as he was saying this, but also not too guilty due to the fact that I didn't know he even existed until a couple weeks ago. I explained to him that I didn't even know about him or his mom. I told him that I would've been there for him in a heartbeat if I would've known about him. We talked about the events that would follow all of this unexpectedness. After our talk, we got in my car and went to pick all of his belongings up. We then went to my house and moved all of his stuff in. I decided from that day on that I would be the best dad I possibly could to my son, Cooper.

INEVITIBILITY

Haley Ziolkowski

I walked into class, unprepared as always, on Monday morning and sat by my friend Derek. Now, I was unprepared for several reasons. First, because my mother didn't wake me up on time so I was running 15 minutes late. Second, I went to pick out my outfit for the day and I noticed that absolutely none of my clothes were clean. Finally, I found clothes and went downstairs to eat breakfast because you know, it's the most important meal of the day. By the time I got downstairs to eat it was already 15 minutes past the time that I regularly leave.

Now as I was saying, I walked into class late and sat down. I glanced up, noticing that my teacher had written something on the board. "All things happen for a reason." Being an English teacher and knowing how argumentative children in high school are, I came to the conclusion that my teacher wrote this for a reason. However, it got my mind going. The first thought that came to my mind was inevitability. I turned to my friend Derek and asked "what do you know about inevitability?" Still looking at the board, he whispered "One thing comes to my mind, I read this book once on inevitability and there's one quote that has stuck with me since reading it." He then took out a piece of paper from his notebook and wrote Without change there is no innovation, creativity, or incentive for improvement. Those who initiate change will have a better opportunity to manage the change that is inevitable (William Pollard). I thought about it for a moment and was in a state of denial. You cannot manage the change that is inevitable, I thought to myself.

Just then, my teacher walked in the room and recited the morning routine: How was your weekend? What did you do? I bet you're all so excited to be back in school! Then smiled really big. I couldn't ever figure out if she was oblivious to our hatred for school or was being sarcastic. Nevertheless, her questions made everybody in the class groan like always. Mrs. Kreiling walked over to the white board and wrote one simple word: inevitability. Ironically, I knew exactly what to write.

I removed a piece of paper from my notebook, thought for a second, and started writing.

There are physical things that I fear on this Earth and there are mental things that I fear even more. One of the scariest mental aspects, in my opinion, is inevitability. Inevitability is defined as "certain to happen; unavoidable" and after thinking about the definition and what follows inevitable outcomes, I was intrigued yet terrified. Intrigued for many reasons, and terrified for many more. You go through life thinking that you have a hold on the reigns but think about it: do you really? I believe that the answer to this question is no because no matter what you think you have control of, the outcome will be the same. At this point you're probably wondering what 'the outcome' actually is. It might be death, it might be life beyond death, failing your English paper or even passing your English paper. You never know what the situation will actually be and that's the terrifying part.

I put my pencil down and thought about examples of inevitability. I began to write again:

Death. Dying is inevitable and everyone knows that. Some people go through life waiting for the inevitable, slacking around, contributing absolutely nothing to society. These people find no purpose in life, causing them to not care about when the end is for them. Contrary to those people, you have the 'determined' human beings. Instead of moping around and remaining sullen all their lives, there are people that know the inevitable. Some people know that inevitable outcomes are real and will happen sooner than later. These people make the most out of their lives here on this God forsaken planet. They do what they love the most. For example, one of my really good friends died doing what he loved the most and that is an amazing concept to me. Yes, inevitable outcomes are bound to happen, that's why they're inevitable, but you can do so much to avoid terrible inevitability.

Once again I put my pencil down and thought about what I had just written, thinking back to the quote from the book that Derek had read." Without change there is no innovation, creativity, or incentive for improvement. Those who initiate change will have a better opportunity to manage the change that is inevitable" (William Pollard). After thinking about it, I changed my mindset. "You know, inevitability isn't so scary after all." Everyone in the class swiveled in their desks to stare at me. I looked up and asked "Did I just say that out loud?" The whole class started laughing. I glanced at Mrs. Kreiling and she was looking at me, also laughing. Alright, I thought to myself, that's probably enough for today.

Cinderella: Revised

Haley Ziolkowski

Before Cinderella's father died, he spoiled her rotten. He spoiled her more rotten than a banana being left in the cabinet for 3 weeks. While all of this spoiling was going on, he paid zero attention to me. I was always the bad guy for trying to correct Cinderella's hellish ways. I was only trying to be the mother she did not hace. All the while, my two daughters and I were paid no attention to, and the attention that was paid to us was negative because one of us was always 'doing something wrong.' I thought this was very unfair. We did nothing to be treated like this so when Cinderella's father died, it was time to straighten her attitude back up.

I didn't know how to even begin cleaning her father's mess up so I started with chore, lots and lots of chores. I didn't know how else to teach her how to be in the real world on her own because obviously her father didn't properly teach her. I made a list of chores for Cinderella to do day and night. However, I didn't make my two daughters do any chores due to their treatment from Cinderella's father. Obviously Cinderella didn't think this was fair, but she was going to have to deal with it. I told my daughters to be stern and strict with Cinderella, as would I. I explained to them that this is the best mechanism for us to use in teaching Cinderella how the real world actually is. At first they didn't think it was fair, they thought that it wasn't fair to Cinderealla, they felt very sympathetic for her. Don't get me wrong, it was hard for me at first too. However, I knew that this was the only way for Cinderella to actually survive out on her own.

Days, weeks, months passed by and Cinderella continued to do her chores like always. I just didn't feel as if this was an effective procedure. She still had a bad attitude towards me and my daughters all the time. Something more drastic had to take place. Suddenly there was a knock at our front door. We rarely got visitors so this was a surprise. I yelled for Cinderella to get the door, and Anastasia and Drizella followed. After they opened the door, I could hear an older man saying something so I got up and accompanied them at the door. "Hello," he said "I am the messenger for the royal family and they have sent me to give you an invitation for the royal ball that is taking place in a couple of days." He then handed us the invitation he was speaking of. The girls were ecstatic, and by girls I mean all three of them. However, something told me that this might be the thing that Cinderella needed to get her act together. I deemed it necessary for her to skip this ball. Besides, maybe one of the girls would get a chance to be something more to the prince.

The next morning the girls wanted me to take them into town to buy fabric and make dresses for the royal ball. I agreed and we headed to town. When we arrived back home, Cinderella was acting abnormally joyful and happy. She was dancing around the house singing songs and smiling. She doesn't usually act like this so it was a little unusual. "Why are you so happy?" I asked Cinderella. She went on explaining how she was so happy to go to the ball. "No, you're not going to the ball. You have too many chores to do." I said to her. She stopped dancing, "excuse me?" she asked. "Yeah, you heard me. You're not allowed to go to the ball. You'll have too many chores to do and they have to be done." Cinderella ran away, hysterically crying. I didn't feel sorry for her one bit. I ran to Drizella and Ana's room and told them to rip Cinderella's dress to shreds. They agreed, knowing that they might have a chance with the king's son if Cinderella wasn't attending.

The next night was the night of the ball. Ana and Drizella looked beautiful as always in their ball gowns. Before they left for the ball I made them make sure that Cinderella was still in the basement scrubbing the floors. They told me she was so I wasn't worried. I had no doubts that she would leave the basement. Because of this confidence I had, I went to bed, tired from making the girls' dresses and keeping a close eye on Cinderella all day. However, I should not have had this sudden surge of confidence for when I woke up at 11 p.m. to get a drink of water, Cinderella was gone.

I knew she would go to the ball! She deliberately ignored my orders. I decided that the only thing to do was to stay up and wait until she got home so I could deliver her repercussions. She arrived home at 11:59 p.m. I had a lot of time to think about her punishment so I came to the conclusion of her staying home for the next 6 months, doing nothing but chores. I then sent her to her room.

The next morning there was a knock on the door. I answered it and there was a man dressed in royal attire holding something in a silk bag on a pillow. "Hello?" I said to him. "Good morning, madame, I am from the royal palace. The prince sent me to find the young lady that owns this glass slipper." He then took a beautiful glass slipper out of the silk bag and asked if I had any daughters. "Yes!" I exclaimed. "I happen to have 2 of them." I invited him inside and called for Anastasia and Drizella to come downstairs to greet this kind man. Ana sat down first and sadly, it did not match. Next, Drizella sat down and again, it didn't fit. Suddenly, Cinderella came up from the basement to get some cleaning supplies. "Miss!" the servant shouted to Cinderella. Cinderella turned around quickly and asked "Yes?" "Did you attend the royal ball last night?" he asked her. Oh no.. I thought to myself. "No! She actually wasn't able to attend. Sorry for the inconvenience! I hope you have better luck somewhere else!" "Wait!" Cinderella exclaimed to the servant. "She's lying. I was at the ball last night." I was livid. How could she do this? Cinderella sat down in the chair and the servant slowly slipped the slipper on her foot and it was a perfect fit. His mouth dropped open along with everyone else's mouths' in the room. I couldn't believe it. The prince hurriedly tucked the slipper away and left with Cinderella. Right before she walked out the door, she turned around and blew kisses to Drizella, Anastasia, and myself. I couldn't believe her. I was just glad that she was gone.

I Believe in the Power of Kindness

Autumn Clark

I was 8 years old when I learned the nature of human kindness. I was only a second grader when I learned how people can band together and work toward a common goal. I didn't even know basic algebra before I'd already had my biggest lesson in the strength and power behind humans once united.

I was at my babysitter's on the evening of December 16, 2005, eagerly waiting to go home to a quiet house. Then the phone rang. My sitter answered the phone as per the normal, but the atmosphere change instantly and my babysitter hung up the phone quickly, pale and shaking. Something was very wrong. And then she called me into the kitchen, and I started crying before I even knew what was going on.

"Your mom has been in a really bad car wreck, Autumn," she said, kneeling down to look me in the face. "Your daddy will be here to get you soon. But, for right now, why don't we go into the living room and pray. Your mom is going to be just fine. The good Lord will take care of her, I promise." And so we went and sat in the living room, holding hands with kids of all ages, crying and praying together until my dad was in the doorway.

On the scene, a paramedic approached my dad and me as we stood on the highway, staring at the wreckage. The paramedic knelt down and placed his hands on my shoulders. He pointed towards my mom's black blazer and said, "You see that red spot of hair right there?" I nodded, trying to wipe my tears and look brave. "That's your momma, and she's going to be just fine. We're taking really good care of her." He squeezed my shoulder and gave me a gentle, encouraging smile.

The few months after that night were Hell, to put it bluntly. My mom had 11 broken bones, most of them in her legs, and there were promises from her doctors that she'd never walk again. She was hospitalized for nearly a month and all the money that had been put away for my Christmas presents was spent on her recovery. But that Christmas was more special than any other Christmas; the doctors let her out of the hospital for a few hours to come spend Christmas at home. I had never been more thankful than I was that Christmas afternoon, sitting on my living room floor, watching my mother open her presents in her hospital gown.

When she came home, life was difficult. My dad had so much on his plate, he became Superman, but he wasn't alone. People stopped by almost every day. Aunts and uncles, family friends, my teachers, my mom's coworkers, firemen and police officers, my classmates and their parents, and members from churches I had never even heard showed up on my porch that year. They brought us casseroles and pineapple upside down cakes, chocolate chip cookies and pots of soup, baked chicken breasts and every kind of pie you could imagine. We would come home to a plowed driveway or a salted sidewalk or a mowed lawn and have no idea who did it. When my dad was building handicap ramps all over the house, the whole town of Burnettsville turned up, offering to hammer that nail or lay that board. The cards and letters didn't stop for a year. People brought us crossword books and jigsaw puzzles and novels, but the best things they brought us were smiles, hugs, and a sense of community.

I learned more in those 4 months about human nature than I had in all my 8 years before hand. People are innately kind. You don't know how wonderful other humans are until you must lean on them for support. The tight grip of my babysitter's hand as she prayed, the compassion in the tone of that paramedic, the thoughtfulness of the doctors who granted my family a real Christmas, and the random acts of kindness from strangers every single day for months will stay with me for the rest of my life. Many people choose to focus on all that bad people do nowadays. It's become a popular opinion that humans are growing more and more evil by the day. You see headlines and stories about school shootings and terrorist bombings and double homicides, but to completely understand these stories, you must also see the teachers that shield students from bullets, the paramedics who jump into burning wreckage and the communities who cry at candlelight vigils. There are far more people who give all they have to make the world a better place than there are who do the opposite, and that's what humanity is really about. When somebody needs your help, no matter how tired, hungry, or poor you may be, you give them your last smile, your last slice of bread, or your last dime because that's what you're supposed to do. When everything is going wrong, you do all you can to help make it right. We humans are a beautiful, compassionate, kind species and this I believe.

By Sam Craig:

Thick, thick is the air

Sliding sickly over your skin

Flicker goes the light

And so the trembles begin

Piqued is your interest

Though cynical this looks

Perhaps if you moved forward

The light would wait for you

Closer, closer the walls feel

Surrounding you on either side

Uncertain and a little afraid

But I promise you they do not bite

So come, come and go to the end

To the place where

The hallway ends

Take Me with You by Maggie Milligan:

Wash over me.

Drown my bitter memories.

Sweep away my sorrows and guilt.

Leave me with a shining slate.

Take my confusion.

Take my painful thoughts.

Drown them in amber waves.

Let them be crushed and long forgot.

Burn away my sadness.

Take my abnormalities.

Wash the differences from my tongue.

Blur the lines that stain my love.

The light will always fade.

At the end of all days,

Sink my sins.

Beneath the old, black tide.

Drown my confusion.

Asphyxiate my guilt.

Spare me all my bitter pain.

Take the unknowns in ripples.

Take my secrets.

Take my pride.

Take me with them, if you must.

There's nowhere else to hide.

Drown my love.

Dissolve what may.

Let the ghost that haunt me,

Sink beneath the waves.

Modern History

Max Crawford

I'm strolling down a sidewalk,

Seeing pigeons who are starting to mass,

Around the carriages drawn by a horse who have stopped their walk.

The horses can see their reflection off the cars' glass,

As the rain goes drip.

I try not to trip.

For seeing our past,

Makes me dream oh so fast.

Of a time where we can all,

Live from winter to fall,

Remembering to find,

Our history in modern times.

By Ben Getz:

We all become emotionally troubled.

Our difference is in how we take it.

Some push themselves far away,

Much like a cabin deep in the woods,

Full of life while the inside inhabitants are satisfied,

But what happens when those usual creatures can't last on their own?

They find themselves far from help, nobody to turn to,

Without comfort, without life.

The cabin is then without life.

Forgotten is the structure once used to protect.

You must care for and satisfy your creatures,

For without them you become an empty carcass on its own.

By Gabby Ploss:

As I look out across,

The sea of yellow grass,

I see an emptiness,

That no one else seems to notice.

My friends all look on,

Content and feeling jovial,

But I do not feel happy like them.

I feel calm and at peace,

As I listen to the things around me.

The waves crashing on the sand,

Rumbling in the background as the,

Wind whips through the dry, brittle grass.

I hear it all, feel it all, and see it all.

I am calmed by this serene beauty.

Untitled

By: Amy Lyons

What path will you choose to take?

It is your choice to make.

You can reach any goals and dreams

No matter how far away they are

How you will get there is your choice

Just follow your voice

Hard work can take you anywhere

Always remember to do your best

Remember that you are free

You can be anything that you want to be

Do your best

It will lead you to success

Life

By: Anna Marvin

Life. What a fragile thing.

So fragile that it can be taken away by a block of C4.

All of your feelings and memories,

Simply gone in the strike of a match.
Now. Sitting here. I'm in so much pain.

I wasn't ever in the building when it happened.

But now, crying between two strangers on the curb,

I mourn my friends.

Within 2 seconds their entire history is gone,

And they no longer feel pain.

But not me.

I'm left with the burden of their unfinished years.

Watching their remains blow away in the wind,

I wonder who has suffered the most.

Untitled

By: Macie Voss

I see the sadness on her face,

As he comforts her in her seat.

He holds her in a loving embrace,

While the sound of cars buzz down the street.

The tulips she holds in her hand

Are a kind of gesture out of sympathy.

She sits and grieves, not able to stand.

He cares so much due to his empathy.

The sadness may come from a horrible tragedy

Whether it be a break up, accident, or death.

He gives her these pretty flowers gladly

As she takes their beautiful scent in one single breath.

I am a Building

By: Vanessa Ford

I am a buiding.

That's all I can think as bullets fly past

With shattered windows and broken walls

I trace the thought as I grip my gun

Two friend lie still beside me

Like the cracked sidewalk beside my lawn

With crimson flowers flooding the cracks

I brace myself and raise my weapon

I could feel the metal hit my neck

Like a brick thrown through my glass

Ripping my screen and ruining my floor

I begin to fall like the dripping water off my overhang

I am a building

I draw the air from inside my furnace.

I close my eyes like my closing curtains

Refusing to die like a skeleton structure after a hurricane.

I hope one day I will be repainted.

Untitled

By: Colby Combs

The man, the angel

Going for the light of success

The light, the light of creation and success

He hopes, he dreams

He plots, he schemes

For a plan, for a plot

Hope, determination, loss

All in one loss

Of the coin of chance, of life

Hope to be successful

Determined to get to the light

Loss of previous dreams

He is:

A god

A light

But above all

The man with a dream

Maddie Greear

The score is tied; 4-4

And the pressure is on to make the next goal

I run for the ball as fast as I can

As I feel my sweat dripping, I take a deep breath

Kicking the ball back and forth

Then here comes the opponent charging at me

I see the sweat dripping on my forehead

I hear the crowd cheering and chanting

Then here is my moment

My wide open shot

I take a leap and hit the soccer ball towards the goal

The crowd starts cheering and we win the game

Carlie Cornett

Love is like glass

It's shiny and smooth

And sometimes pretty to look at

But what happens when it breaks?

It's rigid and sharp

It can cut and hurt you

And make you bleed

When it's put back together

There's still pieces missing

There's parts gone and cracks

And it will never be the same

So love is like glass

Emily Timmons

Love is a bond that can't be broken

It is built over time

You can't see it, but you can feel it

It is two people that are inseparable

Two people that would do anything to see one another

It is when a guy comes up to the door to get you for a date

It doesn't have to be a luxurious date either

As long as it's with him

Nothing else matters

Hannah Robbins

The old green door

once spewing with life

once letting people in

green like waves

dirty and cold

once new, is now old

The old green door is now broken

it sits as a reminder the past is gone

it sits lonely and broken

just like fragile souls who never had spoken

once spewing with life

The old green door.

Lauren Hardebeck:

A boy

Thirteen Years old

Lives on the wrong side of the tracks

He doesn't know his daddy and his mom doesn't love him

He can't read

He hopes to be a doctor

A tree

Two months

Planted in the ground next to a mighty oak

It hopes to grow to be tall and wise like it's neighbor

It grows

It is bigger and stronger than any tree in the forest

A boy

A flower

A little bit of hope.

Bailie McCall:

The children are cheering as the fireworks explode

Parents are cooking and having a relaxing time

Others are off fighting for our country

Wishing they could be with their children

At home the air smells of hamburgers and hot dogs

On the battlefield it smells of death and burning flesh

We're happy that we're free and independent

Yet we don't realize the sacrifices being made to make that possible

On this day that we celebrate

We need to remember those who made it possible

Be grateful, Be thankful, Be appreciative

If it weren't for the sacrifices, we wouldn't be

Independent today

Anthony Reyes

You are the light

You are the light inside the bag

And life is the trail you travel

Your light ignites the night sky

To see where you are heading

The twists and turns the path takes you

It's all where he takes you

He sends wind to put out your light

That ignites the road you travel

The farther you travel

The less we see the light

And the more we look back

At the beginning

And where we've been

One day the wind will put out

The light you use to set your path

Just travel for enough

So when the light goes out

You have enough to dream about

When you can't travel anymore

Max Bottoms

I feel the cold nervous sensation

I feel it because I'm at the starting gate in the Olympics

I made it

I worked and now I'm here

But 'm not done yet

For I have not finished

In a quick matter I get the green light

We're off in a quick speed

Zigging and zagging around obstacles

I get more and more tired

But I will not quit

For I have made

I win not quit

Now I hear the crowd

Knees now shaking

As I cross the finish line I crash receiving first place

I'm greeted by my teammate

I've done it, I won

Kristy Stoll

It was a Saturday,

When the lad came to greet her

The compliments were given thoroughly,

Along with his handsome smile.

Suddenly a golden ticket he grabbed from his pocket,

Made its way to her,

With confusion in her eyes, he explained

That he wished for her to accompany him to the circus.

Her heart blossoming like a rose blossom,

She skipped to her home

Her mind wandered to what would happen that night

Until a quiet voice gave her a nasty thought.

"The young man with a nice smile,

Doesn't want anything to do with me."

Realization struck as she tore that yellow ticket,

Knowing that his offer must've been a joke

Her eyebrows furrowed

As she willed for the tears to stop

Her heart wasn't made for tricks and games,

All she wanted was someone to love.

Seven miles south,

The lad stood with a gleam in his eye.

With flowers in hand,

He waited for her to arrive.

As the minutes ticked by,

His grin began to fade.

The opening act began,

But he stood outside in the pouring rain.

He racked through their conversation,

Wondering what he said wrong.

With a heavy heart,

He found himself back at home.

The flowers were stared at,

Until his strong hands tossed them away.

He climbed into his bed,

As a single tear flowed from his eye.

He looked towards the ceiling,

And let out a prayer.

After all,

He only wanted someone to love.

What I Never Knew

By: Hope Dodson

Today is June 31, 2015, and I am going on my first vacation out of the United States, I have never been so terrified in my life. I was going to Denny's Beach Resort in Honduras for 5 days. My friend Kelsey has been there before and it was a good cheap get away for a college student, like me. Kelsey kept telling me, "Sophia, it is one of the most interesting places I've ever been to, your Mom liked Honduras why don't you just try it." She finally convinced me after three months of telling me over and over. The terrifying thing was going out of the country, by myself. It was a pretty crammed flight; I had a guy that looked maybe 32 sitting to the right of me and a lady maybe 45 on my left. I just kept to myself the whole flight not wanting to pester anyone, round trip it took 18 hours, 9 hours each way, so I was trying my best to sleep the time away.

By the time they brought around the last snack before we landed the guy next to me started talking, "So, where are you from?" he said to me just trying to start a little conversation.

"Vermillion, South Dakota. I go to the University of South Dakota. Where are you from?" I said with curiosity.

"Well I am about 30 minutes out In Yankton." He looked down at my ring and then said, "Oh you're married that's neat. How long has it been?" He said.

"Well we are legally married but we haven't done a big ceremony with our friends and family yet. It's only been 7 months but we have been together for 3 years. Are you in a relationship with anyone?" I said not really caring if he was or not.

"Well since you asked, I've been in a relationship for about 8 months now, it's truly amazing." I didn't respond because I just spent the rest of the ride wondering about what my husband might be doing.

Jake has been my "lover" for nearly 3 years. I never thought for one second I wouldn't marry him. He is perfect, his family is perfect and nearly everything about him I love. It's crazy considering we only see each other 15 days out of a month due to his traveling for his job and my career taking a start but somehow we do, we manage to love each other from a distance. He wasn't too thrilled about me going to Honduras; it took a lot of convincing but I knew he would give in. He paid for my flight and dropped me off at the airport. I never thought someone could love me so much.

As I was thinking the plane jerked a little bit, causing me to lose my train of thought, we started going down. It was hectic being such a busy plane; no one knew where to go. As the guy next to me was getting off he turned to me and said, "It was nice talking to you." Then he smiled and walked out. As soon as I got up to get my stuff, I realized he dropped his phone in my lap. I panicked trying to return the phone to him; he was gone there was nothing I could do. I darted towards the bagging area to hopefully finding the guy next to me so I could return his phone. I then walked all over the airport and still no sign of the guy that just left his phone behind. I spent over an hour looking for a guy who obviously was long gone. I got my bags and headed towards a cab. Luckily I took 4 years of Spanish so I could communicate with the cab driver. As he started driving I looked at the phone and decided I would spend a day or two looking for the guy. I turned on the phone and it just came up with a picture of the beach, it had a passcode. I tried to put my thumb in the thumb print because if our thumbs were anywhere close to similar it would hopefully turn on, but no luck. I just decided that if I didn't find him here, I could always go to the phone company when I get back to North Dakota. I spent my first day relaxing on the beach, met some people who were from Florida, Illinois and Missouri. One good thing is South Dakota and Honduras were on the same time zone. I slept a lot within the first three days. I hardly ever got any sleep in South Dakota between school and work. On my second day I did some assignments for school since I was taking off more time than what was given. The third day went by smooth sailing, I went shopping, and learned new things, and stayed outside most of the day getting really sunburned. Jake called me every night during dinner to tell me good night. I didn't have great cell service unfortunately so I only talked to him a little bit.

"Hey, how is it going? Having fun?" Jake said with a little concern in his voice. "Yeah I am having a pretty good time. What's going on you sound a little occupied? Do I need to go?"

I said "No, you're fine; I just want to make sure you are okay. I have a lot going on so I should get going, I'll talk to you tomorrow." He hung up.

He never just hangs up. I was concerned that something was going on that I wasn't aware of so I called his work phone. No answer. I just decided to sleep on it. I woke up at about 4:30 am and just felt like something was just wrong so at six I called his office.

Janice his secretary answered and said, "This is Jake Withers office, this is Janice speaking.

"Hi Janice, this is Sophia. I am concerned, Jake called me last night and just seemed a little bit off do you know where he is?" I said with curiosity in my tone.

"Yeah, this week he is in Honduras at Tegucigalpa Marriott Hotel." Janice said with confidence.

"Um, great thank you Janice. Goodbye now." I said not trying to be rude and cut her off, but to end the conversation.

I sat up in bed, astonished. He came to Honduras to surprise me! I never thought he would do that. I got all dressed up to go to the hotel and surprise him that I knew. I called a cab and they came and got me within 10 minutes. The hotel was so fancy, something someone in high society would stay at. I walked up to the receptionist and simply told her my husband's name and she gave me a room number. I pushed the elevator button with my phone and the stranger's phone in my back pocket. Then before the elevator door opened one of the phones started vibrating, I pulled mine out of my pocket and it wasn't mine. I grabbed the other phone and it was his phone. It was somebody calling under the name "Boyfriend," and a picture of the guy was on the phone. It was Jake. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I got in the elevator in shock and went up to the floor then I got to the floor I wanted to be in and sat on a chair that was in the hallway. I was amazed that I was so stupid, so blindsided, betrayed and hurt. I had no idea what to do next. I decided to do what my broken heart led me to do.

I walked up to room number 784 and knocked loudly on the door. Then to my surprise he answered the door and I said. "Honey? What are YOU doing here? This isn't right is it? Can I talk to your boyfriend?" The guy from the plane walked up to the door and said, "Hey you, thanks for returning my phone. I am surprised you found me. This is Curt, my boyfriend I was telling you about." I cut him off responding, "Oh, well this is my husband Jake, otherwise known as Curt." He turned to Jake and saw the look on his face, he was purely shocked. I threw my wedding ring at him and walked away. You could tell he didn't have much of a reaction. I got the first flight home, packed all my things when I got home, even though it was three in the morning, and took my stuff to my Mom's and told her everything. Within the first couple months of the divorce, Jake was arrested for Identity Theft, three different degrees. Nothing was ever the same but I eventually got all of my belongings and graduated law school. My life was flipped in a matter of seconds and if I wouldn't have ever gone to Honduras I would have never known my whole marriage was a lie.

The Dancing and Singing Chicken

Hope Dodson

I don't know why I remember this but during the hot Buffalo Indiana summer we went on a boat ride and had a fire with our friends Paul and Kim. Buffalo was a small town that I loved. I could ride my bike without being afraid of getting hit by a car, we could walk with our parents or ride our bikes to the ice cream shop that served the best twist (chocolate and vanilla) ice cream out there. There was also a bar that no one that I knew went into down the road called," Dobson's," which I thought was awesome because it was super similar to my last name. I thought they might have just misspelled it being an egocentric little kid. Summer of 2002, our third year of living there, my parents, our neighbors and my sisters and I went out on the neighbor's boat quite often, it was basically a ritual. My neighbors (Paul and Kim Kleber) had lived next to us since 1999 when my twin and I were born and basically were our grandparents of Buffalo. We often spent time with them since we had no family in Buffalo or even close to it. Kim was my Mom's best friend she helped constantly with us and was always around when we needed something. I liked growing up with Kim and Paul because they were always like family to us as soon as we moved in during 1999. They were like my 3rd set of grandparents being so close and being a little bit older in age. They are one of the reasons I liked growing up in Buffalo, because we always had a good time and memories to last a lifetime. Kim and Paul were around my parent's age, or maybe a couple years older. My mom was about 42 or 43 and my Dad was 45.

As the night started off we had a fire that lasted an hour or two before we went on the boat so we could eat and then have full stomachs to be able to enjoy ourselves on the boat. We had a typical fire, hot dogs and s'mores over the fire. Sometimes my Mom would even make us some pudgy pies which are pie filling of apple or cherry and put in the bread into the fire. We set the container over the fire and you have a nice warm desert. My favorite was the apple pudgy pies with no crust on my bread. We decided after our delicious meal, we would just enjoy a smooth ride over Lake Shaffer. Lake Shaffer was basically in our backyard that we didn't go on too often. It was pretty neat because we had never lived in an area with a lake in our backyard. The ride was maybe an hour or two. We had our swim suits on to enjoy the water and they took us to the little sand area across from our house to play in the sand with our toys and to enjoy the day. It was maybe 9 or 10 at night in July, the weather was in the 70s to 80s, and July was the hottest time of the year for us. Faith and I were only two years old. Grace was only one so of course we had to bring some toys and little shovels and buckets for the sand.

Our absolute favorite toy was a stuffed mechanical chicken that musically sang, "I don't want to be a chicken, and I don't want to be a duck, so I shake my butt." It danced and sang to the song, it was most likely our favorite toy because we loved the song and we loved the way the chicken danced. Also little kids generally like the most annoying toy that sings and dances and makes weird noises as it moves and sings that the parents eventually just take the batteries out and say the toy broke. Anyways, the longer the ride got the bumper it got. We ran over more and more rocks as far as we got, considering it was a mucky lake that was coated in rocks, jewelry, clothes, swim goggles, sunglasses, beer bottle, and the more common things you find in the bottom of the lake. Then while Grace was sitting on the edge of the boat holding and playing with our beloved toy, one of the bumps made Grace lose ahold of our toy and the toy fell into the lake, then began the two year old screaming.

Our neighbor Kim a great friend who would do anything for us girls, the ones she treated as her own children, insisted to jump into the cold summer water to get the stupid chicken that the little children insisted on having. My parents were most likely not thrilled to have the annoying baby toy back that we played nearly 100 times a day, per child. After a cold dip, she climbs back into the boat and she starts doing chest compressions and mouth to beak CPR, on the chicken to make sure the chicken is breathing right for the precious children. The chicken could never sing again, or dance. The memory always lasted forever, considering we got it all on our video camera and we had it in picture form too. We also have the chicken in our house still; I don't think that we will ever give it away. The night was just an overall blast.

The memory forever has stayed in my head because it was with the people who I grew up with the most and it was always something that got brought up when we hung out with Paul and Kim in the years later. Paul and Kim still remain in our lives and so does the chicken that's in a box in the attic. It was a great feeling for my parents that Kim was willing to jump into the cold lake water for her beloved "children" she loved us as her own and it showed she would do anything for us. It's a family memory too because everybody was basically in spirit and the video showed them what had happened and the pictures were always something funny to look over and see how much fun we had in small town Buffalo Indiana. I had a lot of memories in our Buffalo Log House but that memory of the dancing and singing chicken was probably my favorite, not just because of the CPR but the fact that we can still joke around about it to this day.

The Mysterious Flight

Hope Dodson

One early day in New York City, Lady Gaga was getting her crazy attire packed for her upcoming tour that started that afternoon. She had done this kind of trip a thousand times and knew the routine, get up, eat breakfast, start packing, make sure the alarms on the house still worked right, get into the limo, driven by her chauffeur to the airport to get onto her private jet. She knew that she would miss New York City, but she also needed to make this new album a hit in order to make the top 20 and hopefully make a couple million dollars. She really regretted leaving for so long, an 8 month trip without seeing family friends or anything was kind of challenging. At 9 am, she got a call from her pilot of the private jet saying that he just got a bad case of pneumonia, so he is hospitalized for a couple days and would miss the flight today.

Lady Gaga replied," What am I supposed to do then! I have two hours to get on that jet and 5 to be in Germany! You need to have some kind of backup. Is there anyone you can think of?" The pilot said," Well I know this woman who is pretty good for being a beginner and I talked to her this morning and she would be willing to fly you at least to Germany you can discuss with her about whether or not if you want her to fly you throughout the rest of the tour."

The setback was kind of scary considering she had no idea who this new pilot was going to be. She took her chance though, even more terrified because she had no security guards that day. Lady Gaga packed her gun and tazor, because you never know if they will be a crazy obsessed fan. She braced herself. She started to settle into the limo as best as she could without showing any fear. While pulling into the runway for her flight she saw the pilot, pretty young redhead with long hair put back into a braid. She was dressed in black dress pants and a blue polo. She however did not speak to Lady Gaga. The pilot escorted her onto the jet and tried her best to make her comfortable.

About an hour into the ride, Lady Gaga realized how hot it started to become on the inside of the jet. She slowly got out of her seat, went up to the pilot's area of the plane and knocked on the door and no reply. Then she was knocking on the door saying," What is going on? Are you trying to kill me? You are going to make me have a heart attack! Is anyone in there?" Then the pilot opened the door saying, "Ma'am this is not my first time flying a plane! Have a seat and calm down!" Lady Gaga, ticked off beyond belief angrily slammed the door and sat down. Confused and scared she took a short nap and never would've thought something so dramatic was about to happen.

The plane was jolting back and forth so much it woke up the celebrity. Then she opens the window and was absolutely terrified. She didn't see a sky, no ground nothing, pitch black everywhere. She started screaming as if someone could hear her, "HELP THIS LADY IS TRYING TO KILL ME I NEED HELP SOMEBODY!" Then the pilot came out from the front and said," Ma'am I can explain, this isn't the first time this has happened," cutting her off Lady Gaga replied," Where are we I need out of here now you have to get me out of here. Please land this plane and get me off before I have a panic attack!" Ma'am I cannot do that, my name is Amelia Earhart. I disappeared July 2, 1937. Somehow someway I came back to life last week at the age of 39, how old I was when I disappeared. I need to find my plane. It's somewhere close to this location." Lady Gaga then passed out.

Ten minutes later, Amelia was laying over Lady Gaga with a wet washcloth saying," Ma'am are you awake?" Lady Gaga started screaming petrified and confused she screamed, "You are not Amelia Earhart she was pronounced dead July 5, 1939 there is no way that you can just come back from the dead. You are crazy. We need to leave this location immediately." Amelia tried her best to calm her down because she panicked for a good thirty minutes after that, but nothing helped. "Okay I am going to try my best to explain this to you, I disappeared into the Bermuda Triangle when I was 39 and I died within the next couple days, it was crazy hot and I was really dehydrated, I had no water because of my plane crashing which will happen in about 30 to 45 minutes which is why I need you to put this jumpsuit on and get out of the weird meat dress. We will jump but there is no way to know if we will land together unless you want to be strapped together. We need any kind of weapon, food supply, or anything you have. We don't have much time, so start moving." Lady Gaga listened for once changed clothes and gathered as much supplies she could find.

About 32 minutes after, the wing on the plane fell off and Amelia ran out of the bathroom on the plane screaming and jumping up and down like a kid, "Are you ready." Lady Gaga scared out of her mind held onto Amelia with her huge backpack. The air impact was crazy, with all the gear on it still scared Lady Gaga while Amelia was giggling the whole way down. When they landed on the ground Lady Gaga ran away as fast as she could being afraid that this crazy lady would try to kill her or something that she didn't even want to imagine. Lady Gaga's journey by herself was fascinating; with nowhere to go and nothing to do she just walked and jogged. She tried to find a shelter but there was no sight of anything. She ran a couple miles trying to find a sign of humans but it was just like an area with no end, and no humans. About three hours later Amelia found her miles away from where she left her and said, "Hey friend, why'd you run away like that? I was really worried that something might happen to you." Lady Gaga just shrugged her shoulders and walked a little bit. She noticed a bunch of very strangle looking animals and creatures on her walk farther and farther away from where they landed, that were running, walking, and galloping. One was a monkeys head on a pigs body that was flying, then another one was a penguins waddle on a horses body with an ox's head. She couldn't believe the different patterns on animal body parts. This was a new fascinating discovery that she could use to become more famous, she decided to get out a camera and take pictures.

In Lady Gaga's mind it was like 14 hours in that weird area, that they think was the, "Bermuda Triangle," she just kept praying to God that some miracle would happen. Unfortunately, she just thought to herself the whole time she was in the pit of darkness that she would never see light again. Eventually, but not to her knowledge she would see lightness again but not the way she expected it to be. About 5 hours later she starting becoming numb, her face, her toes, her legs, everything went numb. 4 hours went by with numbness and all of a sudden this big spaceship came down from above and took Amelia and Lady Gaga. She was in all shock when she saw the purple headed alien she just slowly got into the ship. No thoughts just peace.

On the space ship the aliens told them that they were starting a new life, they could not go back to Earth, it was too dangerous for them to go back to Earth. The first alien said, "This is the first time in history we have taken any humans. Don't worry you will fit right in." The second alien then began to talk, "We will take good care of you but you may never have a chance to go back to Earth." Lady Gaga then asked, "Where are you taking us?" The first alien then said, "We live on the planet Jupiter, population of 34,000." Then their new life on Jupiter began.

They never had publicity in their new lives. They were pronounced dead within 2 years. No one had any idea where the area was that they went missing at. They just identified Amelia as a suspect, considering her name wasn't really her name no one knew anything about her coming back. Lady Gaga was a celebrity and they just had no idea what had happened. Lady Gaga was now known for teaching the aliens what music is and how to sing she was an inspirational role model to the younger aliens. Amelia, still pretty crazy learned how to fly the space ships and was a pilot taking aliens all across Mars.

Moesville and the unfortunate events

Hope Dodson

A quiet early Monday morning with the sun rising seeming so peaceful in such a small town named Moesville, but that's not the whole truth. Moesville had recently had many tragic events happen with the town's people, they were all a bit strange. Drugs had taken over most of the town. After twenty years of living in Moesville the police realized there was no changing this town. The people didn't tolerate it and the local people who wanted a change contacted the state and they still had no assistance on what to do. It was just a downward spiral. No one had any control anymore, most police had quit after months of getting nowhere with all the citizens, not much authority. Most kids were in some sort of predicament with their parents, alcohol, or drug use messed up the future generations. Some sane citizens wrote letters to the state complaining about the people but they saw no reason to take over because of things. Most people went into hiding when the state arrived to inspect the town and nothing really happened. The whole town knew how badly it had fallen apart. There was no remorse. Mayor Jackson took a deep breath as he sat down in his car, he knew today was just some of the few adventures days considering it wasn't even 9:30 am.

When Jackson arrived to his office, his secretary was standing at the front door, she opened the door and said, "Good morning Mayor. Would you like any coffee?" "Sure Susan, thank you. Is there anyone in my office?" replied Jackson. "Yes, it's Sheriff Smith. I let him in about 2 or 3 minutes ago." Susan said. "Sheriff Smith? Not even 9:30 and there is already an issue," Jackson thought to himself. He walked towards his office walked in and said, "Sheriff." Shaking his hand. Jackson sat down, and then Smith said, "Sorry to call you in so early, but something strange is going on with the cocaine users. I noticed this morning that most of them are making circles around the town square. It wasn't even 8 when I noticed it. I got a couple calls about robberies early this morning around 5 am. I didn't put the two and two together until another officer mentioned them coming around really early. I just need some advice on what to do. They are getting worse."

"Well Sheriff, It is always your call, whatever decision you make I will back you up and support you. I suggest you keep a couple extra officers around just in case you get another call. They are just trying to scare people that something might be approaching, please investigate the houses and make sure that there is nothing hidden in the houses, bombs, knifes, guns, etc." The Sheriff shook his head and took some notes and then nodded his head "thank you" to the Mayor.

The Mayor Jackson was never blamed for any accusations of not keeping the town calm and at easy. The issue was that the criminals became way to out of hand, the police were all quitting or they just gave up overall. Jackson wanted the town to change desperately but there was no way to do it. The state tried but people made it impossible for questioning when the police were in town, cleaned out the drugs, cleaned houses, made it look like a generally nice town but when the big dogs came there was no proof of destruction.

The longer the day the more events, crisis, murders, drug deals, fires, political issues, he just had to review those types of things, but they were getting high in numbers. The worry for the town had increased over the past six months with the new residences moving in. The drug increase escalated in the past 18 months, nothing they really could do considering you need someone to call in for an investigation or for anything to really start to take place. At around 3 the day started to come to an end for the Mayor and he got a call from the Sherriff's Department. "Code 366, extreme animal violence in the town square, suspect is 5'9,male, dark brown hair, blue jeans red tie dye shirt currently tranquilized, started foaming out the mouth eyes are very dilated, seems like cocaine meth mix, not positive on identification, suspect bit dog and the bite made the dogs hair start falling out within 23 minutes. Requesting back up." The mayor rolled his eyes. He was beyond tired of the weird stuff going on in the town that he once was in love with. Sitting back in his chair he pulled out his resignation.

At about 4 he went over to the town square, paparazzi flooded the place so badly you couldn't even see the police. He walked over to Sherriff smith, "So any leads on what's going on?" "Suspect OD at a quarter till 4. The dog has been treated and is doing okay, this town is nuts I need a vacation." Stopping what he was saying because he saw the Mayor looking past him. "I am turning in my resignation this afternoon this job isn't for me anymore; I can't spend the next year doing this anymore. Thank you for all that you have done for me while I have been the mayor I appreciate your friendship, I just can't emotionally handle this anymore."

A couple weeks after the Mayor quit, they already had a new person in line for the role, and the Federal Government became aware of the events that were taking place in Moesville. Step by step they were getting through it together as a town. Citizens understood why he resigned but at the same time they felt bad since he no longer had a pay check. Moesvillle eventually became a better town for the better. Moesville eventually a couple years later charged a majority of the criminals that were causing issues, and the Mayor became a Mayor of a different town.

The Sapphire Ring

By Hope Dodson

"Was this really happening? I can't go through with this. This cannot be happening to me. Is this real life?" I thought to myself during the brink of panic. Let me tell you the events that led to that day. One early October morning, Jess my roommate and I were buying antiques for our new 1847 house. I wasn't into the "old junk," that people liked to call "antiques," but with our new home being such an olden layout and Jess begging me for four weeks I decided we could decorate it the way she wanted, unfortunately. I was already in a pretty horrid mood considering it was 40 degrees outside, 9:45 am, and we had already cruised through 4 stores and there was nothing that Jess wanted for the house. I just kept thinking, "Why did she drag me along?" As we were driving towards our next destination Jess could not shut up about all the cool things she could put in the house. "Clocks, tables, dressers, dinner china, lanterns, vases! Think about it Kayla, it will be way better than you think it will be. Everyone will adore it I already know." I slid down in my seat looking out the window ignoring everything she was saying. Then we turned on Bridle Lane, and I saw an antique shop Jess said, "Yes, this one looks perfect!" As we walked into the store you could just smell all the antiques. It was disgusting. I took a glance, and turned to Jess and said, "I am done let's go home." Turning around she grabbed my arm and made the comment, "Not so fast."

I rolled my eyes and sat on a chair that looked semi stable. I watched Jess as she looked around amazed at all the antiques. She was looking into a jewelry box and gasped. "Kayla you better come look at this I know how much you love Sapphires." I walked slowly over to her expecting some ugly ring with some beautiful sapphire in it. Jess was pointing into the box. It was actually a lot prettier than I thought it would be. I looked at the tag and it said, "$12." I walked over to the cashier and said, "Can you unlock the cabinet so I can try this ring on?" she followed me and handed me the ring. Perfect, it fit so perfect. I turned to the cashier grinned and said, "I'll take it." The following week I wore it to all my classes and someone always complemented the ring. I finally decided that I would take it to a jeweler and have it looked at, one little diamond in the design was missing and I figured even with the minor missing pieces the ring would be a good investment.

The jeweler looked at my ring and his eyes got really big. He looked at me and said, "This is one of a kind, I have never seen anything like it before, I am truly amazed." I just went along with what he was saying. Then he looked up at me and said, "The little diamonds are real, so would you like it filled in with a fake or real diamond. My estimation for the whole ring is $300,000." He said it like it was no big deal but my heart instantly dropped. $300,000 this can't be just an ordinary ring. I looked at the jeweler, he looked experienced, but he had to be lying. No way would I buy a ring that was sold for $12 and its worth would be 300,000. It simply wasn't possible. I looked at him and chose the right words to say, "Sir, I don't mean to seem rude, but your judgment has to be wrong. I bought this ring for only $12 at an antique shop, this just isn't right." He looked at me with a bit of confusion and held up on finger signally me to wait a second. When he came back from the back room he was holding a paper it read, "100,000 reward for anyone that finds this ring and returns it to this address." It was my ring. I looked at him and said, "Where did you get this?" He looked down at the paper and said, "A friend of mine who works for people in Manhattan had a client who had that ring stolen from them a couple months ago, I believe it belongs to Jenna Bush Hager. I thought about it not thinking it was possible. He looked at me and put the ring in my hand. "I know this may seem hard to believe but if you would like I could call my friend and see if you can return that ring to her. I nearly fainted.

I went outside for a moment to call Jess and tell her how my day dramatically changed. I explained to her the opportunity I had been given and what I was going to do next. Jess was amazed I was going to meet the one and only Jenna Bush Hager, President Bush's daughter. I got off the phone and walked back inside the jeweler was smiling and said, "My friend said he could have you fly out tomorrow morning to Manhattan. You will meet Jenna tomorrow and he will have you home in 3 days." I shook his hand, grabbed the ring and was on my way. A limo picked me up at 9:30, two hours before my flight. I was surprised that they knew my address the body guard took my bag and said, "You've got the ring right?" I nodded and got in the limo. By the time we got to the airport it sunk in that this was real. I got on my own private jet with body guards. The ride wasn't as long as I expected and when we landed my heart sunk to my stomach when I found out we were already on her property.

They had their own airport basically outside their house. I walked with the security guards into mansion, gold doors, modern and olden decorations, pictures of the family all around the house. It was truly a house that I would imagine for her. I took a seat at the dining room taking in my surroundings when I heard heels walking across the floor, I watched her walk in I stood up and she shook my hand. She looked at me as she sat down and said, "I heard you found my ring." I nodded scared to have much of a reaction. I pulled the ring out of my pocket and handed it to her. She looked down and smiled. "Thank you for returning it to where it belongs, it was my mother in laws, and it was a present for me, all the diamonds and the sapphire are real so that's why it's very valuable, may I ask if you know who previously took the ring?" I nodded my head no and said, "I am sorry Ma'am, I bought it at an antique store in Virginia. I had no idea it was yours. I just admired its beauty." She slid an envelope across the table. I assumed it was the money. I was flattered. I couldn't believe I was holding, one hundred thousand, dollars. It didn't seem real. I had so many different organizations I could donate to but I couldn't choose just one, I had a game plan in my head. I smiled and started to tear up and she grabbed my hand and said, "Use it wisely. I admire you for doing the right thing and returning it. I just wanted to simply say thanks to the person who returned the ring. Thank you. I will show you the guest house where you will be staying." At that moment I knew my life had changed forever.

The Queen's Side of the Story

By Hope Dodson

Snow White was always a common story that was all about how Snow White was the fairest of them all. They also talk about how Snow White was such a good pretty young lady and the Evil Queen almost took her life. It's not as simple as it seems, she isn't the Princess everyone thinks she is. I'll tell you the true side of the story and skip through all the lies, since I'm the "Evil" Queen. It all started when I grew up. I had so many guys that had become interested in me but being a servant my parents chose who I would marry. I always had a dream of being the Queen of my village, but the prince was already destined to marry another Princess; he chose her. They ended up getting married and I stayed single for a couple of years just staying dedicated to my craftsmanship. I was good at art, I knew how to make things to make people become more presentable, and I was good at making clothing items.

When I turned 30 I gave up all hope of having a family, kids, everything. I simply didn't want to at that age, I was turning too old. By the time I was 31 I had different people from different villages approaching me with issues with their clothes that they needed me to fix. I felt pretty comfortable helping people in that sense because I got paid. Like I said, I was over the fairy tale ending until one day I was approached by Mr. Right himself. The King came to my front doorstep. Yes, my front doorstep. He asked for my hand in marriage. He hardly knew me, but I said yes, it was always my dream. His wife the Queen died when Snow White, the King's daughter, was born. The King and I had a great relationship. In the start of our marriage everything turned on the upside for me. He was happy and so was I. He got me a magic mirror telling me who am the fairest of them all, and of course I was always the answer. He spoiled me with everything I ever dreamed of. Then he became ill, it wasn't long into our marriage that he passed, Snow wasn't that old either. I gained guardianship of Snow and I was to raise her.

I raised Snow White giving her the essentials she needed to survive while she did the things I needed her to do for. The things she needed to get in order to do the choirs of the house. I showed her what it was like for me to grow up. As Snow White grew older she became strange. Caring for outdoors animals and trying to make it seem like she wanted to be their mother. She sang to the animals, nourished them, and talked to them. One morning I caught her with one of them at the dinner table and another time at a family gathering with her father's side of the family. She was spending more time with the animals then her chores. I was the best mother she could've ever gotten. The mirror always told me what I needed to know about her work and the slacking off and what she was doing in the time she wasn't doing her chores. The towns people agreed with me with how I handled what was going on, since most of them lived the same way. When Snow White became old enough she became a little less handy. She slacked off on cleaning the castle like she was to do, she lacked sewing her own clothes she wore the same dress about every three days she would switch. One early morning I woke up with a horrid dream, the mirror told me I was not the fairest of them all. I didn't understand, I got up out of bed to test it and it said that "Snow White is the fairest of them all." My heart sunk to my stomach. How could she possibly be the fairest of them all? She never took care of herself, wearing raggedy clothes, unless I made her take showers or wear nice clothes. To me she was ugly, but maybe people saw her as beautiful or kind? Who would think she was more kind then myself! I wasn't jealous of her like other people began to think, I was just mad that her somewhat, "beauty" was outnumbering mine. Snow had what was coming to her due to the fact that she knew how much it meant to me that I was the fairest of them all. I was always the fairest and she knew I would do anything to keep it that way. She basically put herself in trouble. She just had some sort of evil plot to make my title diminish slowly and fade into her because she knew how much it would make me resent her.

I sent henchmen to go and kill of Snow and to make it look like an accident, take her deep into the forest. He was very hesitant but followed my instructions. When he came back with a heart, I thought the work is done, when I asked the mirror to show me Snow White I got an unexpected surprise. She was living and sleeping on some little beds. Dwarfs I thought to myself. I knew exactly where to find her. I realized I just needed to get the dirty work out of my way with no in between people. I ran down to the potion chamber and gave myself a couple potions that made my appearance change so she wouldn't recognize me and went her way. I finally found where I thought she was located knocked on the window offering her the apple but the stupid animals felt as if I was threatening her so Snow invited me into the house away from them not knowing what was going on. She gave me a glass of water and then I persuaded her to eat the apple. Finally, she was into a sleeping death. The apple put her into a coma that would only be revived by loves first kiss, the others thought she was dead. The plan was indeed for her to be buried so there was no waking up for Snow.

Eventually I guess that a prince that Snow White met revived her. Unfortunately my plan didn't appear as it was supposed to be. I am not as evil as everyone makes me out to be. Snow had it coming for her, people agreed with me, it was the right thing to do. I used my power the way I am supposed to. My side of the story is the truth.

Ms. Alabaster

Emma Samuels

When the old crow died at the age of 92, the town went on like it would any other day. Mrs. Williams still baked her homemade rhubarb pies, Olivia Brannagan still sold flowers to the townsfolk, asters and bachelor's buttons and little forget-me-nots. Old Man Robinson continued yelling at the children noisily playing kick the can in the street. It was as if no one noticed that Ms. Florence Ruth Alabaster was dead. Either that, or they noticed and didn't care.

When I was younger, 6 years old, I moved to Moesville with my mom and my little brother, Andrew. Andy was 3. We played outside on the summer days so hot that the heat created ripples in the asphalt. Our favorite playthings were the hose, Andy's red Radio Flyer wagon, and my baseball set. One day, I swung the bat and hit the ball with all of my 6-year-old might, and it smashed through Ms. Alabaster's window with a deafening smash. I paled and began to tear up. The little girl down the street had told me how mean she was, that she was a witch and would turn me into a toad with lumpy warts and webbed feet. But I wanted my ball back, so I went next door to her house.

I knocked on the door, nervously. A dog's shrill bark made me jump.

"Pierce, sweetie, stop your barking!" a woman's voice came from inside the house. When she opened the door, I backed up a little bit and fixed my hat.

"Hello?" She opened the door. She was a thin woman with pursed lips and too much neck. She held a small dog, a Yorkie, in her frail arms. Her eyebrows knit in a scowl and though she was fairly short, she loomed over my small frame. Her skin and hair were as pale as her name suggested.

"I-I was playing baseball and I broke your window." I teared up, scared out of my wits. The corner of her lips curled up, but I couldn't tell if it was with acceptance and sympathy or with malice. She invited me into the house to find the ball. Pictures lined the halls, pictures of a little boy, about my age, with bright eyes and a wide smile. Her son, I assumed.

"He died when he was 9." She spoke. I didn't realize that she was behind me, and I jumped out of my skin.

"I'm sorry, ma'am." I continued looking for the ball. I came across a room with glass shards everywhere and sunlight streaming through a shattered window. The ball lay in the middle of the room, under a table. Her dog, the Yorkie named Pierce, took the ball and ran around me, settling down to give me the ball. I found Ms. Alabaster in the den.

"Ma'am, is there any way I can repay you? I don't have any money." She turned to face me and smiled, a real smile.

"Come visit me every day. I need someone to talk to."

I did exactly that. Every day until I turned 30, I visited Ms. Alabaster and Pierce. Yes, even Pierce. Even though 24 years had gone by, Pierce was still alive, and hadn't aged a day. The same could not be said for Ms. Alabaster. She made fresh macadamia nut cookies weekly, but her chronic pneumonia had made it harder for her to move around the home.

On June 2, I entered her home, with a rhubarb pie in one hand, and flowers in the other. She was sleeping in her bed. I made her some coffee and walked Pierce, and when I came back in, she was still asleep, lukewarm coffee on the bed stand beside her.

"Ms. Alabaster, it's noon." I gently shook her shoulder. She did not rouse. I shook her a little more vigorously, to no avail. I teared up, just as I had the day I first met her, but for the exact opposite reason. I realized that she wasn't an old crow. She was a lonely old woman with only her dog for company. Perhaps it was fate that I broke her window that day. A note was on the bed stand next to the coffee.

"I, Florence Ruth Alabaster, leave my entire estate to Pierce, my dog. The estate totals over $100,000,000. I leave the dog, and the book in my top left desk drawer to Alex, my best friend." Her elegant signature was underneath. I found the book and took the will to the courthouse, crying softly.

When I went home that night, I read the cover of the book. There was a note.

"Alex, this was a test of your patience and caring. Every day, you would come to my home to keep me company. You never once raised your voice to me, and you always made sure to come, even when it was inconvenient.

I leave this book to you. You are the only one who is to know this. I was trained as a witch by my mother, who was trained by her mother before her. Pierce was the only person who I had ever taken care of, and you were the only one that had ever taken care of me. Pierce is my adopted son, the one who I told you died when he was nine. He didn't die, but he was too weak to live for much longer. I turned him into a dog to keep him alive until I could get him back to health. When the time came, I couldn't turn him back. I just didn't have the patience. I hoped that you could, so I'm giving you my book of spells. Read the one on page 394 every night to him. I want you to take care of him, like you did for me."

And I did. Every night, for 39 days, I read the spell to the dog, and on the 40th day, it happened. A healthy nine-year-old boy woke up on the couch in the pajamas that he was wearing when he first changed and looked at his hands in disbelief. He jumped up and hugged me tightly. That day, I learned that nothing is what it seems to be. Angels

Emma Samuels

Always watching, hanging

Between the clouds and the Earth

Carefully planning their

Descent upon our realm.

Every night they

Fly above us

Grasping for some understanding of the human ways of life

I lay awake

Just

Knowing,

Listening to the sounds of these shapeless

Masses of eyes and wings

Never fading,

Omniscient and always

Present in my mind, telling me to

Really sleep.

Sleep so that my

Troubles will fade and my

Unrest will calm, and the

Vicious cycle of life that

Wreaks havoc under the

Xanthic

Yellow stars will become more

Zenic.

Child of Light

By: Emma Samuels

Based on True Events

A young man walks through a park in Budapest, Hungary on his way home. Suddenly, he experiences a tremendous flash of light, brighter than anything he had ever seen. In his mind, he sees a perfect blueprint of an engine, one that would revolutionize power as we know it. In that moment, he knows exactly what he needs to do.

The crowd bustled around him as he stepped off the steamboat. Mothers and fathers hurried their children and young couples with stars in their eyes disembarked from the ship and onto the land where they would get the chance to start their new lives. The air was thick with the summer heat and the anxiety of being in a strange country. It seemed like every family spoke a different language, a few of which he understood. The young man felt that he stood out—being more than six feet tall and thin like a bean pole, not to mention impeccably dressed—though no one seemed to really notice him. He was just another face in the crowd. But it wouldn't be that way forever. He was sure of that.

He graduated from high school in three years, could do integral calculus in his head, and was fluent in eight languages, but this 28-year-old, dark haired man arrived in the United States with only four cents in his pocket, some mathematical computations, some drawings of an idea of a flying machine he had in a dream, and a letter of introduction from Charles Batchelor, introducing him to Thomas Edison, a business associate of his. THE Thomas Edison. He had been working for the Continental Edison Company in France since 1882, two years ago. Not only was Thomas Edison known as the greatest engineer in the world, he was this young man's hero. He had come to the United States from Serbia hoping to gain a position under Edison and learn what really made him the Wizard of Menlo Park.

He walked into the city, nearly bursting with excitement, but when he saw the rough buildings and dirty streets, he stopped. He had worked in Paris and Strasbourg, improving the generators that powered these cities, and had come here to realize his dreams, but how was this a place to realize anything? Everything he had left behind in Europe was beautiful, fantastic, and fascinating in every way! But New York was rough, mechanized, and unappealing. He looked up at the street lamps, which consisted of single poles with dozens of crossbeams trying to support drooping, loose wires. Not only was it ugly, it was dangerous! He had heard that the citizens of Brooklyn had become so used to avoiding death by electricity on the railways that they had named their baseball team the Brooklyn Dodgers!

Something needed to be done about this. Wealthy people were rushing to have this kind of careless, hazardous wiring put in their homes, with their children! Even J.P. Morgan, banker extraordinaire, was one of these electrified consumers.

He walked around the city, coming across a vast, square building with a sign that sprawled across the front with the words EDISON MACHINE WORKS emblazoned in large, black letters. This was it! This building was the key to his success! He hesitated, then walked past the building. He walked completely around the block. He walked around the block three whole times, finally coming to a stop in front of the edifice, both thrilled and terrified to meet his idol. The receptionist smiled at him. She wore her hair in a tight bun on top of her head, and a necklace made of...pearls? Were those pearls? Goodness, did he hate pearls. He smiled back at her, though he was afraid that it looked more like a grimace.

"Why, hello, sir! Do you have an appointment to see Mister Edison?"

"Yes, I do, but I think I'm a little early." He stumbled over his words a little bit, checking his watch. He was, in fact, 6 minutes early.

"Don't worry yourself, dear. Worst case scenario you'll have to wait a little bit. I'll go get him. Have a seat, Mister..."

"Tesla. Nikola Tesla."

Tesla remained seated, waiting on the receptionist. Five minutes later, she returned.

"You're in luck! He's free right now. I'll take you to him." Nikola stood up quickly. The receptionist, Marcia, smiled at him again as they walked. "So, Mr. Tesla, where are you from?"

"Serbia, originally, but I lived in France and Germany for a while."

"Wonderful! I've always wanted to go there. What's it like in Europe?"

"Absolutely beautiful." He followed up three flights of stairs, with fifteen stairs per flight (he counted them) then to a grandiose laboratory with dozens of bookshelves, and scientific equipment everywhere! Edison sat at a desk, furiously writing something in a journal.

"Done!" He smiled. "I've been trying that experiment for months! Well, I've been writing it down, but..." He was a middle aged man with dark brown hair and kind eyes. "Who's this?" He stood up to look the young man in the eye. Nikola was surprised that Mr. Edison was at least four inches shorter than he was. Mr. Edison grinned and reached out his hand. Nikola slid the letter into Edison's outstretched hand, making Edison's smile falter for a mere second, as if put off that this young man wouldn't shake his hand. He cleared his throat and opened the letter. He glanced up at Tesla, and began to read:

"My Dear Edison: I know two great men and you are one of them. The other is this young man!" Edison folded the letter neatly and put it back in the envelope. "Great! Tell me a little about yourself."

"I was born and raised in Serbia, I went to an esteemed technical school—"

"You know, that's great and all, but what have you done?" Nikola was a bit taken aback at the sudden interjection.

"I-I went to school in Austria, where I studied mechanical and electrical engineering, and when I graduated, I moved to Budapest and started working for the telephone company, where I came up with the idea of a motor that uses alternating electrical current to power homes and businesses. There I invented the induction motor. Then I moved to France and Germany to spread the idea of AC power and make their electric lines more efficient."

"I don't really know what alternating current is, and honestly, it just sounds like competition to my direct current, so I really don't care to know, but you know what? There's something different about you. I think that you will be a great asset to my company. How's about you start tomorrow? You can start by fixing up those generators. There's $50,000 in it for you, if you can!"

"Wonderful! Thank you so much, Mr. Edison!" This time when Edison reached his hand to Tesla, he took it with a smile.

"You can call me Thomas."

When he got to the hotel in which Mr. Edison had rented a room for him that night, he didn't eat. He also only slept for three hours, but that's just how his brain ran. He spent the rest of the time until work the next day mentally fixing up those behemoth generators.

Nikola Tesla worked day and night, every day, sleeping (if at all) for no more than three hours per night. Those generators were super noisy, inefficient, and not to mention eyesores. He worked in his office from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. the next day, making sure each piece of his ideas was absolutely flawless before even considering moving to the construction stage. He had been working for roughly eight months, when finally, the pieces came together. With no diagrams, no drawings, without even writing one note to himself, he had done it. He had created and built the perfect DC generators.

He returned to work, absolutely ecstatic. All he had to do was find Edison, show him these generators, and he would have $50,000 to start his own lab!

"Thomas! I have done it!" He said, gleefully.

"Done what?" Edison mumbled, writing the data from his most recent experiments down.

"I fixed your generators! Take a look!"

"Oh, brilliant." Edison mumbled again, clearly uninterested.

"But, Mr. Edison, I'm sorry to ask, but I could really use the money." Tesla stopped smiling. Edison looked up, mouth slightly open, and took off his reading glasses.

"Niko, my boy!" He said, surprised, then the corners of his mouth turned up in a slight smile. He chuckled lightly. "I was joking! Did you think I was really going to pay you $50,000 to fix my generators? I could have done that myself!"

"B-but I worked so hard, for so many months!" Nikola said. He felt his heart drop into his stomach.

"Tesla, once you become a full-fledged American, you will understand our jokes." Edison smiled, almost pityingly. "But you know what I will do? How about I give you a raise? Your salary is 18 dollars a week, so I will raise it to 28 dollars. How does that sound?" He raised an eyebrow. Tesla looked at him, a fire building in his chest. He was shocked! He had worked so hard on these infernal machines!

"Do you really want to know what I think about that, Thomas?" Tesla's light grey eyes narrowed. He began to fumble with the buttons on his lab coat. He removed his coat and threw it on the ground in front of Edison's desk. "I resign!" He shouted, shaking with disgust.

"Suit yourself, Tesla. You're not going to do any better than this with that alternating current. It's too dangerous. Don't believe me? I'll prove it." Tesla held his tongue, turning on his heel and storming out of the office. He was now determined to prove him wrong.

Tesla spent many sleepless nights alone in his room, staring at that little light bulb above him, just thinking, perfecting ways to spread his ideas throughout the world. He started working again, spending his nights digging holes along New York City's streets to lay Edison's wires for $2 a day, trying to make ends meet until he could find some sponsors for his own research lab. He lived in a hotel until word spread that a foreign man with enormous talent was digging ditches to stay alive. Eventually, investors came to him, asking him to improve a method of arc lighting. One of these men was George Westinghouse, owner of the Westinghouse Company. He met Tesla one day on his way to work.

"Excuse me, aren't you Mr. Tesla?" The mustachioed man asked.

"Yes, yes I am." He nodded. Westinghouse let out a hearty laugh, and then took Tesla's hand in a firm handshake.

"Of course! George Westinghouse. Good to meet you, son! Many people talk about you, you know, and they say such good things about you! They say you have so much talent!"

"Well, I guess you could say that." Nikola smiled.

"It's such a shame that you're out here doing manual labor while you could be improving the world! I've been meaning to talk to you. Come with me."

"But I'll miss work! I won't be able to eat tonight."

"Bah! I'll take care of them." Westinghouse clapped Tesla on the shoulder. "This is no job for you, anyway."

Westinghouse took Tesla to his office and sat him down. He proposed the idea of starting his own company. They made a partnership, and soon enough, the Tesla Electric Light Company was born! Through Westinghouse's help, and the help of a few other investors, Tesla could finally afford his own workspace.

Tesla, the proud owner of his very own laboratory, got to work on a beautifully designed arc light. Unfortunately, all of the profit went to the investors. It all worked out, because a Mr. A.K. Brown asked to invest in an AC motor. Finally! He could produce his motor. But how was he going to sell it?

He filed for seven patents on his alternating current. He had made a line of generators, transformers, motors, and lighting. They were accepted without a challenge! George Westinghouse bought his patents for $60,000. He spent half of this newfound wealth on a new laboratory. So many things were going great for Nikola Tesla. He thought back to one of the stories his mother, Djuka, had told him. He could remember her voice, clear as day:

"Niko, the day you were born, a fierce thunderstorm shook our house. I remember the midwife wringing her hands and crying, saying that the storm was a bad omen, that you would become a child of darkness. But you know what I said? I said "No. He will be a child of light." And that you are. I can tell, from your bright mind, there is so much light in you."

The world was electrified by alternating current! It was becoming more and more common. Meanwhile, Edison caught wind of what was happening, and he was shocked. He came up with his own campaign to turn the world back to his direct current. He built a stage outside his lab, and on this stage he set up some of Tesla's motors and wiring. He started paying neighborhood children 25 cents a head for live cats, dogs, and sheep, and old horses. He was talking to audiences about the dangers of alternating current. Tesla attended this event, listening as Edison besmirched his work!

"My direct current is like a river flowing peacefully to the sea. This alternating current, this dangerous, unpredictable creation, is like a torrent rushing violently over a precipice. It's just too hazardous to have in homes! I have Professor Harold Brown here to demonstrate these hazards. Professor Brown?"

At this moment, a man with thinning brown hair and a thick mustache stepped over to a platform. In one hand, he carried a cat. In the other, two clamps connected to the motor. Tesla knew what was coming. He, like most of the audience, averted his eyes and cringed as the cat's screech echoed through the air. After the deed was done, children cried and women fainted, but Tesla just looked Edison straight in the eye. Edison acknowledged his presence with a slight smile and a head nod. This was sabotage!

It only got worse from there. Just a few weeks later on August 10, 1890, a convicted ax-murderer named William Kemmler was sentenced to death. The means? Electrocution using Tesla's alternating current and Westinghouse's AC motor. Edison referred to this as his "ultimate demonstration" of how hazardous the alternating current is. People called it "an awful spectacle, far worse than hanging."

Soon after what was the first execution in an electric chair, Westinghouse came to Tesla with some excellent news; a beam of hope in this dark time. His corporation had won the bid to supply all the electricity at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893!

May 1, 1893, the time had come. The now 37-year-old Tesla and his assistants worked day and night to build up their light display, tension and excitement building in their chests. This display would be the way Nikola Tesla would show the world what he could do. He strung lights on the buildings, the trees, columns, statues, and he was even going to introduce his newest invention: neon lighting. The neon display was a maze of diamonds, squares, and a big blue sun with the word 'Light' in yellow in the center. Not only was it absolutely gorgeous, it was all powered using AC. It had to be! There were just too many lights to power them all with DC. He would let people know that alternating current wasn't really dangerous, after all.

He waited a while for night to fall, then went to take his place to give a speech. A familiar face showed up in the crowd. It was a man with dark brown hair, though a little grayed now, and kind eyes. Edison. Simultaneously the last person and the only person he wanted to see. Upon seeing Tesla, he approached him. Oh, how the tables had turned.

"Niko, my boy! It's so nice to see you. Lucky your friend Westinghouse outbid me. I know you couldn't afford it, and..." Edison laughed.

"Right. I'm sorry, but I have a speech to give." Tesla replied.

Tesla gave his speech, and it was wonderful. He spoke eloquently and fluently, with only a little bit of anxiety about being in front of the world. Okay, maybe it was a little more than a little bit. He was petrified. But he didn't let it show. He switched on the lights.

The lights gleamed as brightly as the sun. It was absolutely astonishing. Their radiant beauty lit the streets of Chicago. The people clapped and cheered, the city sparkled, and Tesla had never been prouder. He shone almost as brilliantly as his beautiful display. His mother was right. He really was a child of light.

His fame soared after that. He became an international figure, a household name. He created a high-frequency device known today as the Tesla coil. It created sparks that could be transferred to a receiver. The higher frequency made lamps glow brighter and was generally more efficient. He showed them how it was less dangerous by letting it pass through his body without incident. Famous people from all around the world would come and watch him do experiments with the electricity. He proposed to his investors the idea to build a few of these towers, giant ones, across the world, and spread free electricity through the air!

None of his backers liked the idea. They thought the idea was preposterous! Spreading power through the air? For free? No way! So Tesla kept the coil in his lab. He tried to develop it for other purposes, like transmitting signals across distances like today's radios do, but people viewed him as a "mad scientist", an "eccentric", "crazy", an "outcast". His fame started to decline.

Two years after the World's Fair, on March 13, 1895, Tesla stood in front of a smoldering pile of rubble. A large crowd gathered around him as he looked at the scene. Their sympathetic coos rose around him. The charred debris and glowing embers that lay before him were once the laboratory he called home. The lab that he stored his radio-wave research in was reduced to ash. He stepped cautiously through the remains, scanning them for some sign of hope. One lonely thing stood in the middle. The high-power oscillator, the rumored "earthquake machine" that he kept on the fourth floor, had fallen to the ground. He placed his hand on top of what was left of the oscillator and sighed deeply.

He made his way to the hotel room where he had been living, immediately concocting new plans, plans that he could try to sell to businessmen and potential investors. He walked to the park and tried to find people that would be interested. He grew tired. He was tired of a lot of things: The strange looks he received when working in public, the lonely, sleepless nights, the scoffs he would get when proposing an idea, but most of all, he was tired of Edison. Why did Edison have such resentment towards him? Why did he spend more time sabotaging Tesla than actually working? That same year, a young Italian man named Guglielmo Marconi took out two patents on the radio. The same radio that Tesla had been working on before his lab burned down.

He found a park bench and sat down, resting his tired legs. Pigeons gathered around him. Some people say that if pigeons appear to you, something is wrong with how you are living.

Tesla decided to pick up and move.

In 1899 he moved to Colorado Springs. There was more room for his high-frequency experiments there. His associates were willing to help him, no charge. He thrived, transmitting signals from Pikes Peak to Paris, studying lightning, studying the Earth itself, even creating artificial lightning that could be heard 15 miles away! But eventually, he moved back to New York, where he built a laboratory called Wardenclyffe. Construction took many years, and he faced foreclosure before it was done! During that time Marconi had sent a message—a single letter "s"—from England to Newfoundland.

"Looks as if Marconi got the jump on you." Otis Pond, an engineer working for Tesla, said.

"Marconi is a good fellow. Let him continue. He is using seventeen of my patents." Tesla replied.

"You know that Edison bought his stocks, yes?" Otis questioned.

"W-what? But he knows I've been working on this radio!"

"Do you think he cares? The more famous Marconi gets, the richer Edison gets." Otis raised an eyebrow.

"Never mind that, I have the American patents."

But no patent is safe. In 1904, the Patent Office gave them to Marconi. In 1911, Marconi received the Nobel Prize. Tesla was furious. He tried filing a lawsuit, to no avail. He was in no condition to sue a major corporation! Marconi was now a wealthy man, and Tesla was penniless.

He began visiting the parks more often. He rescued pigeons, taking them back to his hotel room to heal. He asked the hotel chef to make a special kind of bird seed. The aversion to germs that he developed as a teenager became worse. He started to wash his hands even more often and only ate boiled food.

He still had wonderful thoughts and ideas; in 1914, he described a way to detect ships. High-frequency radio waves would bounce off the side of ships, and return, like a bat hunting its prey. Edison, in turn, told Navy officials they would have no use for it, and the idea was cast off. In 1928 , at 72 years old, he took out his last patent, the "Apparatus for Aerial Transportation", the flying machine he depicted in the drawings he brought with him from Europe, but he didn't have the means to create it.

His body may have been growing old, but his mind was still full of light.

An old man, 86 years old, broke and alone in the NYC hotel room that he had been living in for the last decade, living off of milk and Nabisco crackers, lays on his deathbed. He looks out the window into the city. On the windowsill sits a pigeon. A pure white pigeon with light grey tipped wings—his pigeon—the one that he built equipment with the last of his money to nurse back to health. Lord, did he love that pigeon. Suddenly, a tremendous burst of light comes from the pigeon's eyes. As he looks into the light, Tesla thinks to himself that he will never invent anything worthy of a pigeon. He never knew just how wrong he was.

Just a Little Stuck

Emma Samuels

When I was younger, probably eight or nine I'd say, my niece and nephew would come over for periods of time while their mom was doing something, and hang out with my brother and I. My niece, Mahala was just a baby, and my nephew, Jeryn was about six, so he, my step-brother and I would play outside while my mom watched Mahala. We lived out in the country with a huge yard and a woods out in the back. (We weren't allowed to go past our fire pit, because that's where our land ended, but we did anyway.) We had a small pool, and an old red barn that the door was broken on one side, and a little pond that we would catch tadpoles in.

We would run around and climb trees, pretend we were pirates and superheroes and all the things little kids do outside, and we had a whole lot of fun. Once, in the summer, we were playing outside and Jeryn, Vinny and I were playing with this thick, yellow rope that my grandpa tied to a tree on the far left of our yard, and we would climb the tree, grab the rope and Tarzan swing down to the ground.

"My turn!" Jeryn called and ran to the tree after Vinny landed on the ground.

"Do you need help getting up there?" I asked him as he put one foot in the tree.

"Nah, I got it." But he stopped.

"You okay?" I laughed.

"Yeah, I'm just a little stuck. I can get it."

Ten minutes later, He was still 'just a little stuck'. He grew more panicked as time crawled on. Eventually, after 45 minutes in this stupid tree, he was crying, and we were trying to help, then Vinny, who seemed to be the sane one of the three of us, realized that there was no way that two children under the age of ten were going to be able to liberate this panicked child, and decided to go inside and seek adult intervention. He got my mom, who tried to free him, to no avail. She went back inside to get my step-dad, who also failed to get him out of his woody prison, so they finally went back into the house. By this time, more than an hour had elapsed.

My mother decided to call my grandpa. Now, my mom is by no means weak, my step-dad was just full of stories about how he used to 'flip cars' and 'carry whole vehicles over his head', (riiiiiiighht...) And my grandpa used to be in the Navy, so all three of these adults should have been able to get a 6 year old boy's foot out of a small tree. It took about fifteen more minutes for my grandpa to get to our house, and by that time, poor Jeryn had spent an hour and a half with one foot about 12 inches off the ground. I guess his foot was just small enough to get it wedged perfectly.

At this point, my brother and I went off to continue our game without him like the heartless creatures we were, but I mean, come on! It took two whole hours to free this boy. We were losing valuable daylight. It was probably about four o'clock, and there were plenty of other trees that didn't contain a six-year-old boy.

Looking back on it, It was probably one of the funniest things that happened in my childhood. It's definitely one that will stick with me for a long time. It's already stuck around for seven years!

To be honest, I don't think that Jeryn was allowed to climb trees until he was eight. Milk Girl

Emma Samuels

As the bell rang for lunch I hung back through the stampede of wildebeest-like students rushing to be first in line. I waited for my friend Audrey to gather her things so we could head to the cafeteria. When we got there we were laughing about some joke she told, and Audrey pulled out her phone to check her hair.

"Aw, man. I've got this big honkin' glob of mascara on my cheek, and you didn't tell me?" She laughed. I let out this primal sounding guffaw, like some sort of animal in distress. It was embarrassing and caused a few people to turn around in shock. She looked at me as if I had three heads. "What was that?"

"Who uses the word 'honking' like that?" I couldn't stop laughing. She led me forward. When I calmed down enough to open my eyes, I noticed this boy staring at me. He looked scared, then smiled really big. He was pretty cute. He had messy brown hair, green eyes and a wide smile. He shook his head and walked farther into the lunch line.

As we got our lunch and sat down at the table the same one we sit at every day, we kept using 'honkin'' in different ways and laughing like maniacs. I opened my milk and raised it to my lips to take a drink. Then it happened.

"Tara! Listen to my Hulk Hogan voice!" In that moment, the worst impression of Hulk Hogan I've ever heard emerged from Audrey's lips. I felt it in my bones and I knew what was happening, but I couldn't stop it.

A laugh built in my chest, and forced its way up into my throat. Milk shot from my nose like a geyser. It was absolutely disgusting, yet so hilarious. I was covered in milk and tears from laughing so hard. I gasped like a free diver surfacing. It was an awful sound. I looked up, already mortified, and saw him there. Those green eyes were filled with something like fear. Maybe worry, but probably fear. His mouth formed a perfect 'D' shape, but the corners twitched like he was forcing back a smile. I stared him straight in the eye. My heart skipped like, 5 beats. I thought, no, hoped, I would die right there. I hoped the world would open its magmatic maw and pull me into the depths of its molten core. He put his lunch down at the table and started my way. I averted my eyes and waited for the inevitable laughter. Is there a word stronger than mortified? Super-mortified? Über-mortified? No matter, that's what I felt.

But no, The boy took me by the arm and escorted me out of the cafeteria, still stifling a snicker, but with good intent. He spoke.

"C'mon, Milk Girl, let's get you cleaned up."

We walked into the hallway and he led me to the corner near the water fountains. He walked away to get paper towels, leaving me alone and embarrassed. When he came back, he handed me the paper towels and his hoodie.

"You can wear this if you don't want to wear those wet clothes. Sorry about the size. You're awful tiny. I'm Theo."

"Thanks, Theo. I'm Tara." I took the hoodie and the towels and went to get cleaned up. I changed into the pull over hoodie that was at least two sizes two big—a plain grey hoodie with a tall green symbol. I figured it was a band or something.

"What's this?" I pointed at the symbol.

"Oh, it's from a webcomic I'm reading. It means life. Sorry, that's really dorky."

"Well, I guess if you call me 'Milk Girl', I'll call you 'Nerd Boy'." I smiled.

"Well, Milk Girl, do you want to go get coffee sometime?"

"Sure, Nerd Boy. Thanks for the hoodie." I waved at him and walked back into the cafeteria.

That day, I learned two great lessons. One, any time you laugh so hard that milk sprays out your nose will be the exact moment a cute member of the opposite sex will walk by and see it. Two, sometimes that cute member of the opposite sex is just as dorky as you are.

Auntie Ursula

Emma Samuels

What's the problem? She had something that I wanted, and she was willing to give it to me for something that she wanted. Fair trade, right? I don't see the big deal here. She was an angsty, hormonal teenage mermaid who was "in love" with the first human she'd ever seen, and I wanted to help her see the truth. I guess I just got a little carried away. I mean, she is my niece, after all. I care about her and I want her to be safe. I wanted to be Auntie Ursula, a confidant, someone she could talk to, but my 'tough love' attitude got the better of me. Let me tell you how it really went down.

Ariel came to me, upset, and asked me to trade her fins for legs so she can go woo this guy. I think she said his name was Eric? ANYWAY, she comes to me and says:

"Ursula, I need legs."

"Why?" I asked.

"Whale, there's this guy, Eric..." At this point, I tuned out. Oh boy. I've heard this one a million times. I didn't need to hear the rest. Under normal circumstances, I would have just said 'whatever' and given her legs, but this was different. Ariel was family, and I wanted her to learn a lesson from being on land. So, I did it a little different.

"I'll give you legs for three days. After that, if he's not totally in love with you, you'll turn back into a mermaid and live here, with me." (I didn't mean with me with me, but that's what they thought I meant.) "Oh, and you need to trade me your voice." That part was for two reasons: One, I know how human males are. They don't even need to hear your voice. In fact, a good portion of the population doesn't care. Two, Ariel has the most beautiful voice of any mermaid I know, and (yeah, it's a little shellfish) I wanted to use it for three days.

To be honest, I kinda did it for the halibut.

Now, my pets, Flotsam and Jetsam, have minds and ambitions of their own. It was their choice to break the kiss. When they came back to tell me what they had done, I was angry at them, not Ariel. But, I did realize that there was a lesson to be learned here. If this Eric is so easily dissuaded, he won't be there for Ariel forever. I decided to convey that the way I knew how. I became Vanessa. I used her voice to let her know that he was in love with her voice, not her. He was in love with the idea, not her. I guess I took it a little too far, and we ended up almost married.

After Ariel realized that Vanessa was me, she got her voice back. I figured my lesson had gone through when she became a mermaid again, but I had forgotten that I had only given her three days. After a little scuffle with her father, he returned her human form; the one he wouldn't let her have in the first place.

She ended up killing me (After all I've done for her!), and marrying that Eric anyway. Oh, well. At least she's happy.

Between Two Minds

Berenice Orozco

"I told you I knew the way," Anne Frank squealed out.

"That's the same thing you said last time, this is the same spot we have been passing all day. Don't you recognize the path?! Even our footprints have left marks on the path." exclaimed Edgar.

Edgar Allan Poe and Anne Frank had had the misfortune of getting lost together after a meeting they had attended at Lexington for poetry. They were far off from their trial where they had originally began. Edgar was using familiar sights he had seen earlier, both had just met each other for the first time and you can say they didn't get off to a great start. To begin with Edgar temper wasn't the best but when it came time to converse Anne brought up a chat.

"Well maybe if you hadn't stopped to admire yourself in the pond we would have gotten somewhere by this point", remarked Anne. This wasn't the best time to argue as the sun was setting and soon night would fall upon the forest. Little did Edgar and Anne know what was going to come out of the woods.

"You know what Anne I've had it with out," he annoyingly proclaimed. The two knew that fighting was not going to solve anything at all just cause more confusion on where to go. Time passed and they had to promptly rest so that they could sleep for the night. Edgar surprisingly managed to start a fire for warmth which lasted until about sunup. Then the two embarked on their lost cause for a second chance to get out of those horrific woods.

It was only a while longer until they found and used path which they figured was leading out towards some roadway or at least a house. At last they heard some motor sounds. It turned out to be a man with a chain saw cutting down a rotted tree. He wore knee-high black leather boots, with faded blue denim jeans, and a red somewhat tattered flannel shirt. He had a brown Chuck Norris looking beard on his face that added a meanness to his face. Both Anne and Edgar looked hesitantly at each other not willing to make the first attempt to start a conversation with the guy with the chain saw. They didn't need to turn around for they we soon seen by the man who turned off the chain saw and let it down.

"Heller, y'all, musta be alost isn't you," his accent was hardly recognizable but he was very nice in his tone as if though this were his catch line. "Sorry, ma'am, sir, I didn't properly introduce myself, I's Henry Brown. And you two are....?"

"Ohhhh excuse our rude manners," exclaimed Anne, "I'm Anne Frank and this is Edgar Allan Poe. We were here in Lexington for a poetry meeting and we somehow got lost on our way back home to Boston, Massachusetts," all this said Anne mighty happy to have finally found some sign of civilization for once.

"Yes, like my partner here said, I'm Edgar Allan Poe. It's very nice to finally see someone's face that is this woman," he chimed in happily.

"Well's yours names asound mighty familiar, but scant aput a finger on it. Say is y'all from round' here or is y'all city folk," was all mustered out. "Well anyhow that don't matter just as long as y'all is safe, ya know these woods have astrange acreatures. Mighty surprised you two made it this deep into these woods here," he was just about to start walking away somewhere.

"Well actually, it was Edgar who made us lose you way when he stopped to look at himself in the pond. We do have a map but these woods don't seem quite to match up with the map that I have," said Anne with the hope that is red-neck would help them out.

"Sure s'not a problem, y'all just head in that direction," he pointed in front of his path, "wells if y'all wanna g'on ahead it shoulda take but three hours, just be acareful for night when dem critters are out. Wouldn't want to nice afolk getting hurt," he was admiringly calm in his tone of voice with compassion.

"Ohhh well, me and Edgar stayed one night alone here just last night and we were not bothered by any creatures, it was mighty silent for these woods," said Anne with a bright smile. She sure was hard to upset.

"Tis' true in these woods night's is aquiet cept' for them critters likes I said", Henry sang out.

Edgar by now was getting flustered by the irrelevant conversation Anne and Henry were having. By the words of Henry he already knew with way to head out of the woods and into modern civilization. He stood next to Anne and nudged her a bit to get the point across to tell her that it was time for them to be on their way. Anne quickly picked up the hint and was abruptly silent.

"Well if I do say so myself I want to say thank you Henry for your service to us, I'm really gratified for your help to us. We were very lucky to have come across you. Now if you don't mind I would be best if me and Edgar get going before nightfall just like you said," exclaimed Anne as politely as she could sound.

"All's right y'all just stay safe and the same it was a pleasure meeting two new faces," said Henry. The three shook hand and Anne and Edgar went in the direction that Henry had told them.

"I really don't feel like dealing with you right now Anne," said Edgar as they were making their way out of the woods, so he just came behind Anne and followed in her footsteps.

"We sure were lucky to find someone that could help us out," said Anne happily trying to lighten the mood up some from what Edgar was letting on to her. It came to no avail as the Edgar remained as silent as a candle. Honestly, there was no harmony in between Edgar and Anne. Two and a half hours had gone by and the two didn't seem to even notice each other. Edgar began to feel somewhat ashamed for how he had been treating Anne since all she wanted was to make things easier. The woods they saw were getting less and less dense with every step, until at last they were on the roadway. Edgar thought to himself it's time for me to apologize to her before I don't ever get to see her again.

"Errrr, Anne, I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry for the way I've been treating you the whole trip. It's just that I don't have the best temperament at times and can get easily flustered." He said with honest remorse towards Anne.

"It's alright I understand that you weren't meaning to be that rude with me," said Anne. The two just nodded their hands and gave each other a respectable handshake. Afterwards, both headed their separate ways never to see each other, though both reconciled with their differences.

Don't Expect a Thing

By Berenice Orozco

Moments turn to memory

Love turns to hate

Your lies were my truth

You left the same way you came—as a stranger

I betrayed you—at least I admit it

But then again there are many ways to be unfaithful

You know what you did,

stop denying it

We are better off alone,

then with bad company

Don't expect something from someone

who repeatedly let you down.

You knew without a doubt you were meant to be together

Wake up—it wasn't meant to be

Walk away while you still have your pride

Don't expect to teach an old dog new tricks

It was an Almost Perfect Day

By Berenice Orozco

I don't know why I remember the time my younger brother ran over a kitten with a lawnmower. This happened when I was about 11 years old during summer at my aunt's house in the country, my brother then was only a year younger than me. My aunt and uncle of course had quite a bit of space outside to run around and play. What I really enjoy doing was turning on the hose and soaking my cousins with it as entertainment. There is this particular event that happened during one summer day stands out to me the most out of the rest. My cousins had cats that they kept outside and we would play with them on a daily basis, also the had a lawnmower that my younger brother would from time to time turn on and use to play around with or to actually mow the lawn. Since there was plenty of room to keep many things outside they also had a mini pool (the ones that you blow up with air). Well since sometimes my cousins were mischievous; often they would submerge the kittens' heads in the pool from time to time. The kittens in turn would cry out and try to twist their little bodies towards the hand that was carrying them, but the good thing was that they weren't underwater for long. At least not long enough to drown them I mean.

I am not quite sure on which day it was exactly but I was with my brother, and cousins outside playing. In other words, we were just running around doing things we weren't supposed to be doing. It was breezy and sunny that day so we were able to go outside. We got a little bored so we decided to find the cats that were in the side of the house. The kittens were fairly easy to find. Honestly those kittens were just adorable, well any how we just took the kittens outside and petted them while also messing with them. One of the kittens scratched my brother, since he had the bright idea to dunk them into the pool, then he put one of the kittens down on the grass. The little kitten just sat there as if nothing had happened and remained sitting there. The lawnmower was already outside and ready to be turned on so my brother just yanked the cord until it turned on, which of course only took a couple of seconds. I had honestly thought that my brother was going to scare the kitten but instead he went directly towards the kitten. All you heard was a screech of "rawrrr" which was abruptly silenced by the blades, what I saw was the kittens' head fly out of the lawnmower and heard the body being mangled under the blades. While all this was happening my hands were just cuffed over my mouth as I watched in horror what my brother had done. I shuddered when I heard the ripping noises that came from within the lawn mower already contemplating the immense pain the kitten must have felt. I just felt my heart skip beats inside my chest. I thought to myself for sure my aunt or uncle will be furious by what my brother had done of murdering a kitten. To my surprise they didn't seem to take notice since they weren't interested in the kittens. My stomach could only churn by the sight I had seen.

Right after running over the kitten my brother shut the lawnmower off abruptly after seeing the kittens' body parts flying outwards from it. Seeing that his mission had been accomplished he just left the lawn mower in the same spot. All I thought was " Are you kidding me?", "What had I just witnessed". You're such a horrible human being I wanted to utter. My cousin didn't seem to be upset with what my brother had done but I knew I felt bad for what he had just done to a cute kitten. There would be one less kitten in this world I thought to myself. I went to see where the body parts had landed and it wasn't a pretty sight to see. Only seemed like and internal parts clumped together

"Edwin why did you run over that kitten with the lawn mower, what were you thinking?" I managed to say looking directly at him with a straight face.

"It scratched me", he said in a tone that seemed unsympathetic and not worrisome.

"I'm telling on you", I said narrowing my eyes to see what his response would be. I had expected him to automatically give me a darting look but instead just a glance in my direction.

"Don't tell on me", was all he could say seeming a bit worried.

"Fine I won't, but only if you give me money," I flatly said waiting for his response.

"Okay but I only have 15 dollars," he said.

"Well I guess that will do with me," I said. He got his wallet out and handed me the money which I took as a vow of silence, at least for a while in other words.

Since the grass had the length of about 4 inches and the kittens' body was small the body parts of the kitten weren't easily seen. In the end I don't recall if I did tell on him or not but that memory of the kitten being run over will stick in my head and be replayed over and over throughout the course of my life. As I can still hear the kitten screeching from the pain of being dismembered by the blades of the lawnmower. The rest of the day it seemed to pass by as normal just that incident that had happened briefly. My brother eventually put away the lawn mower, being honest with you that kitten was not greatly missed because there were about 4 other kittens that were in the side of the house. Summer passed without any more incidents as the one that had happened with the lawnmower.

I Believe

By Berenice Orozco

I believe that bad things happen for good reasons that we don't know yet. When I was little I would always find a way of getting into trouble one way or another. I was often hit for this reason but I never really learned not to pay much attention to it. When I was in 3th grade during the summer I was climbing on top of a stationary boat and constantly jumping off it at my mother's friend's house. The boat was probably about 8 feet high. On one of my attempts I got caught on one of the latches on the side of the boat and I used my hands to fall on the rocks. I good up and noticed that my left arm was crooked.

"MOM I think I broke my arm," I stammered out. I looked from my mother to my arm and stared at its weird shape as I wondered whether it was sprained or broken. The hospital ride was decent my mom's friend took us there. They have me Ibroprophen and bandaged my arm up. It would be a week for me to get it into a cast. The cast color that I choose was green. At school I did have a little trouble with my tray for lunch but was manageable. I was still able to do my homework. After the cast got off my arm got a weird smell and washing it hurt. My left arm was really sensitive but over time it came back to normal. From this little adventure of mine I became less active due to being a bit traumatized though this is better now. I believe this incident helped me be more responsible of what I did and about listening to adults when I was told to do something.

Indecisive

By Berenice Orozco

"Hey!" shouted Alexandra. The cement stairs on the side is where Samantha was seated with her phone on her lap patiently waiting for Alexandra. Samantha glanced up quickly and quickly set her phone on her side directing her attention to where she heard her name called. Sure enough just a block to the left she saw Alexandra trotting along the sidewalk. Alexandra had an orange tribal looking top and denim blue shorts on with her black hair in a ponytail, smiling from ear to ear. Her slender body trotted effortlessly and her gladiator orange sandals made little popping noises on the concrete floor. Alexandra only needed to cross the street and she would arrive since her house was in the corner of the street. This is it Samantha thought as Alexandra got closer.

"Hey—so what was so important that you needed to tell me, sorry that I took a while to arrive I had to finish up a few chores and my phone didn't vibrate when you sent me that message half an hour ago." Samantha said to Alexandra.

"Oh no worries Samantha, it's nice fresh weather today anyways, and you know that I love when there is this type of weather." Alexendra said.

"Hey, I'm really just thinking of dropping out and moving in with Anthony, we've been talking for a while and I'm sure he would offer me to move in with him," Samantha said to Alexandra. Samantha had had trouble with school for a while now and she thought the only way out was to drop out. She decided that she would not deal with school by just leaving it all together. Her best friend Alexandra didn't want Samantha to drop-out because she knew that it would not lead to anything productive or useful. Alexandra was what Samantha would call a "prodigy", since their childhood Alexandra had always excelled in everything she did in school. It would seem that these two girls of all people would not end up becoming best friends but it did happen and they got along just well. What made Samantha such a pessimist was that her family had always seen her as the black sheep of the family. She out of all her family was the nicest but was most taken advantage of by others so she was always left feeling lonely. This is when Alexandra would come in and lift Samantha's spirits up whenever she could, Alexandra was always her reason to continue school but now she felt on the fence of things. Not to mention the fact that even though Samantha liked Anthony quite a bit she still had feeling for her ex-boyfriend Emiliano whom she had dated for almost a year. Samantha had broken up with Emiliano because she had kissed Anthony, though she did tell Emiliano that she had kissed Anthony. Emilano's reaction wasn't the least bit happy, but Samantha knew that Emiliano had treated her badly but never would admit it. Emiliano had tried to get with other girls while he was still with Samantha, while Samantha had just stayed with Emiliano because she was madly in love with Emiliano. Even though he had hurt her, Samantha was always willing to turn the other cheek.

"Samantha, you know well that if you at least don't get a high school diploma that life will just get harder from here on out. Yes it may seem an easy fix but in the long run it won't do you any good at all. You can't let other people's action always bring you down, I know that your situation hasn't always been the best at home but try to see that it can only get better from here," was what Alexandra tried to get through to Samantha. Samantha looked long and hard at Alexandra's eyes, Alexandra saw despair and sorrow in Samantha's chocolate brown eyes with a tear starting to form on her right eye. Samantha noticed she was getting emotional and wiped the tear away from her eyes not trying to show that she was about to break down.

"It's just that every time I have tried getting ahead there is always something there knocking me down to the point of just being done with everything. You know my mother signed the drop-out papers last night and I just could not find a way to tell you until now," mustered out Samantha attempting not to make eye contact with Alexandra.

"But... but .. how could you?! All you needed was one more year and you would have been done with school. You had enough credits to make it to graduation. I thought that without a doubt that was what you wanted to graduate on time with your class. Why would you blow it all of just so that you can go live with some random guy?!" Samantha's words felt like shards of glass against her ears.

"You know what Alexandra, I did what I did, it was my choice to make I hope that you can respect it. Even though I didn't meet your expectations you were truly always there to support me, but now I feel that it has come time to just break away from all that was holding me down, school in all doesn't help you with anything. Beside Anthony isn't just a random guy Alexandra. Why don't you see that? Okay, Alexandra thank you for always supporting me in what I do and not giving up on me, but Anthony has given me the love that I have longed from somebody. My parents have enough with my siblings and it's too hard to make sure that every single one of us gets taken care of. I haven't felt what love is really like and I'm just now beginning to see what it feels like and Anthony is the one who has made me feel like I actually matter. He has been understanding with me, genuinely cared about my well-being and is determined to give me a place so that I can feel free from all this mayhem. Sometimes I feel like it would be better for the world to just swallow me whole then to deal with these problems." Samantha exhaled out.

By Berenice Orozco

Rumpelstiltskin

Being able to have magic powers isn't always as fun as you think though over the years I have used it to my advantage in order to gain a couple few possessions. I sure do know how to make a deal. Well there was this one particular night I heard crying coming from the castle and sure enough I secretly made my way to the room to see why there was weeping. And sure enough there was this beautiful girl sitting on a stool. Her blue dress was poufy and a bit tattered with dirt.

"What is the matter with you beautiful young lady," I asked her. She looked up startled that someone had gotten into the room.

"Well my father told the king that I could spin straw into hay when I am not able to do so," she spoke quietly to me. "The king will have me killed in the morning if I am not able to spin the straw into hay," she said desperately. "Could you please help me in any way, please I beg of you here, I will give you my necklace," she quickly blurted out and handed me a necklace.

"It's nice of you to have given the necklace, I'll spin the straw to hay for you so that your life may be spared, "said trying to sound compassionate.

"Oh thank you so very much for your kind help, I will be forever grateful of you kind sir," she squealed out as if it had been her plan to make me spin the straw but I just disregarded it guessing her nerves were getting a bit out of shape. I sat down on the floor and readily begin to spin the straw into gold using the wheel. Spinning, spinning, and spinning it trying to get as much done before daybreak. After hours of spinning the straw I was able to finally make it into gold. I took a deep breath, I looked at my hands and saw that they were a bit swollen. By this time the girl had fallen to sleep and so I left as not to disturb her sleep.

*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 says. "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 and 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 happy 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 says 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, surprised 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, there 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 wanted 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 should 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 hooking 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. He 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 everywhere. 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 from 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 town. 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.

~

Class goes by fast, strangely, and I go back to Devin's locker to wait for her since she gets a ride from me. Like always she takes her sweet time, so I decide to look down the hall to see who was there. I saw Chad but it seemed like he did the same thing Dakota did and pretended he didn't see me. I frowned and looked back at Devin who was now finished.

"Does everyone not like me today?" I groan to Devin who shrug once more and we began to walk towards where my car was.

"Did you hear the rumor?" Devin questions when I pull out of the parking space.

"What rumor?" I put the car into drive and began to head to my house.

"So you know how Dakota had the party last weekend, but we couldn't go because of the concert?" She didn't look at me when she talked; she looked down at her phone. Devin not giving me eye contact worries me more.

"Yeah..." I trail as worry bubbles in my system as she slowly tells her story about the rumor.

"Well, I guess a lot of people were at the party, including Chad and all of his... friends. Then I guess someone brought alcohol to the party. Then that's when things got crazy. Like people called parents and parents came and everything-"

"Devin," I get her attention, because now she is rambling and trying to avoid the point.

"Fine, okay so Chad I guess drank some and one thing lead to another. Supposedly he and Dakota slept together," Devin said fast to get it all out.

I slammed on the breaks and turned off to the side of the road.

"That can't be true. She knows how much I like him. I bet someone made up that stupid rumor for fun. People are idiots," I rambled on and on. I pulled back on the road after apologizing for my actions.

I can't get the stupid rumor out of my head as I'm driving. I don't believe that Dakota would do that. She was such a nice person and she knows I have been talking to him and that I like him. The drive was silent all the way home, which did not help me with my thoughts.

"I'm trying, Olivia," Devin mumbled. She was probably getting irritated about how I was being impatient.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled back to her, sadly.

She sighed and apologized too, while turning the computer towards me.

I take a breath as I press play. Noises came from the computer, which were music and a bunch of yelling. The video portrayed Chad having his arm around Dakota. I gasp as I see her snuggling into him. He pushed back her hair back behind her ear and took a drink out of his cup. Dakota kissed his cheek and I stopped the video.

I looked at Devin who had the face of sympathy to me. Tears fell and I wiped them away quickly and smiled. Devin put her arms around me and whispered so many kind things into my ear. I hugged her back as I sobbed into her shoulder. I am glad I had a friend like Devin. I couldn't believe this.

~

Devin left after we ate ice cream and watched a movie together, because her parents were going out to eat. I haven't looked at my phone thinking maybe one of them would text me. But I couldn't stop wondering if they had, so I decided to look at my phone. I had about 5 messages from Chad and about 5 from Dakota. Debating if I should open them, but my heart choose over my mind and opened the messages.

From Chad they read:

"I'm sure you've heard and I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. Please answer."

"Olivia, I know you have your phone."

"I'm sorry."

"Please Olivia"

"I know I don't even deserve to have you text me but I need you. I just don't know what to do. I have no idea why I did it either. It's my fault. All of mine. Don't be mad at anyone else. I'll be here whenever you want to talk."

He was right, I didn't want to him, at all. I don't know how he thought that I'd have the slightest chance in wanting to. I will let that conversation rest, while I move on to read Dakota.

From Dakota they read:

"I'm sorry. I wish I could apologize more or show how sorry I am. But I feel like you understand maybe, I don't know."

"I love you, Olivia. We have been best friends since like 5th grade! I wasn't thinking straight, I had something in my system. Please forgive me."

"I hope you will respond."

"Don't forget I love you please."

"The Three Musketeers."

The last message sent from Dakota made me bawl like a baby. That was the nickname Dakota, Devin, and I were called. I decided to text Dakota and Chad telling them to both come over so we could talk. They both responded gladly and said they'd be over soon.

I went to the bathroom to fix my appearance before they came over. Me crying did not help either. There were pink around my eyes and a little bit of swelling too. My clothes were just sweats and a tank top. I was about to change, but I thought... Why should I cover up for them, I should show them what they did to me. How they broke me.

A knock at the door, broke me from my thoughts. I ran back into my bed, covering myself with a blanket before letting them in. The door opened letting a cool breeze hit me. I never realized how warm my room is in the winter. Dakota had her purple coat on, with a pair of uggs, and a beanie. Chad was wearing his letterman and his normal attire.

"Come on in. Make yourself comfortable," I say as my voice is hoarse from the lack of talking for the past hours and crying. They looked at the ground before sitting down in chairs.

"I'm-" Dakota started to say, but I put my hand up.

"Before you two start apologizing and what not I'm going to explain how I felt about this whole situation. I felt so betrayed. I mean, come on did you think I wouldn't find out? I mean I just would think my best friend would not try to do that, especially if she knew I liked him. Chad, you kept talking to me and calling me sweet names. Then you asked me to Winter Formal. You kept talking about dating and everything, this just makes me second guess everything. I know you are sorry and everything, but I believe I will be able to forgive you, but I cannot forget."

Dakota keeps opening and closing her mouth while Chad has his jaw tight, rubbing his hands together, looking anywhere but at me.

"Let's just become new friends and try to put this behind us?" I say as they nod, "Alright let's watch a movie or something. I'll text Devin to come over."

Dakota came and sat on the bed with me, while Chad took a beanbag chair. We made popcorn and picked out the movie "Ice Age" and waited for Devin.

Now rumors can ruin people and tear them down, but as for me? That was one bad rumor that brought me and my friends closer through the years.

Looking Into the Eyes

Hailey Morgan

October 30, 1940

I pulled down at my dress as the wind tried to yank it back up. I put my carry handbag up my arm. Holding onto my hat at the same time I tried to whistle for a taxi. Luckily, I got one. The yellow taxi pulled up as I opened the door to smell a cigar and flowers. The man looked into his mirror, from where I was sitting; he looked like a middle age man, with a ruff chisel of hair on his face.

"Where to?" an orange light of a cigar lit up his face, while blowing out the smoke causing me to cough.

"Corner of 9th and 10th, sir," I replied setting my bag in my lap; peering out the window.

He pulled onto the side of the road, passing buildings and very few people. We stopped at lights as I noticed the time of night, 10:52. I bit my lip noticing it was almost past my curfew, feeling my stomach getting nervous. I gripped onto my hand bag and peeked at the man.

"What's a lady like you doing out here?" He questioned, he must've noticed me looking at him.

"Oh, I'm just trying to go back home, sir," I smiled at him looking away.

"Well, tomorrow is All Hallows Eve and you know that's when the dead rise up and become part of the living for a night right?" The man smirked at the mirror, "You should be careful."

"Will do, sir," I smiled back and looked out the window once more. I noticed that we were passing 9th Street which caused me to speak, "Hey, you missed the turn, sir," I politely informed him. He gripped at the stirring wheel causing his knuckles to turn white. Fear began to bubble in my stomach. "What are you doing?"

"Shh," he whispered as he locked the doors. I tried to move the lock up but it wouldn't budge. I started to bang on the window and scream for help. But it was useless, no one was in sight.

October 30, 2015

"Autumn! It doesn't take that long to put on a costume!" My best friend Rick yelled from the hallway.

"Fine, whatever," I huffed as I opened my bedroom door to show him. I was wearing a costume from "The Incredibles"; I even put on a dark wig to look like Violet.

"Man, we look so awesome," Rick stated while laughing. He also dressed like me except his blonde hair could be spiked like the character Dash.

I put on the mask and looked at him and said, "Let's get to the party." I put my arms in the flying position and ran out of the room; hearing Rick laugh, he followed behind me.

-

When we arrived there we were one of the first. The party was at a girl named, Morgan Greene's house. She was one of my "friends". She always said she was but didn't seem to act like it. We got ourselves some punch and sat on her couch waiting for others to show. Morgan was dressed like a cat of course, like every other girl on the planet.

"So are you guys ready?" Morgan walked to us wiggling her eyebrows. She took a sip of her punch and sat in the chair next to us.

"What do you mean?" I asked confused.

"Why do you think no one is really in my house? It's because I have a haunted house in my back yard!" She squealed with excitement. I looked at Rick as his eyes widened with excitement.

"Let's go!" He grabbed my hand and took me back through the door to this humongous house sitting in back yard.

"I don't know if I want to," pulling my hand out of his grip and rubbing my other arm nervously.

"Come on, Autumn, you'll be okay. I'm going to be right here the whole time," he smiled at me with one of those smiles you couldn't resist.

"Oh alright, but I swear if there are any spiders," I trailed off as he laughed at my actions.

A man stood at the entrance of the house and said in a deep voice "Welcome to All Hallows Eve" and opened the door in the slowest yet creepiest way. Rick squeezed my hand reassuring me he was still here as we walked into the house. There were cobwebs everywhere we turned and there were black lights making the scene even more eerie.

We turned a corner as a man with a mask popped out making me scream. Rick wrapped his arms around me as I cowered into him. He rubbed my back, to soothe me from the scare. We continued in the house, getting spooked by the little things until suddenly a man stood between two tunnels.

"One must go the left, the other right," a low whisper came out of the man. I looked at Rick and he smiled at me, mouthing "you'll be fine." He went down the left tunnel. I took a breath and went down the right tunnel. There were "cobwebs" all around the tunnel getting stuck in my hair. I finally got to the end of the tunnel but I was in a room full of mirrors, as creepy circus music played in the back ground. I turned all around, to look for Rick or anyone else, but there was no one.

One mirror was farther back the others; I soon realized this was a mirror maze. Every time I turned a corner or looked into the mirror I could see my tear covered face and terror in my eyes. I saw a light underneath a mirror, confused; I pushed it back to see if it would budge. The mirror opened to a white room, with a single chair in the middle. The wall in front of the chair was covered in newspaper articles from 1940-1965. As I looked at all of them, the door creaked behind me making me jump and turn around.

It was a man. Smoke came up above him as I understood he was smoking a cigar, at least it smelled like it. He smiled as he shut the door and blocked the only way out that I knew of. He walked slow, taking in my appearance as I took in his. His face had a little facial hair, the kind that looks like he hasn't shaved for a week. He had brown hair that was pushed out of his face, and surprisingly he had green eyes that could pierce through mine. He pointed to the chair, I pretended I was confused, but I just didn't want to sit, I had no idea who this man is or what he wants.

"Sit," his voice is a whisper, but it was still deep and husky. I looked into the man's eyes once more and saw they were dark and looked like there was no life inside of this body. I did what he pleased this time, just in case anything happened. When I sat the man walked in front of me peering at me once more.

"You look exactly like her," he whispered once more, "you look exactly like Amanda Daring."

I gave a confused look of course. I knew Amanda Daring. She was my great- great grandmother, but she was killed by a taxi serial killer in the 1940s. I peer at the wall behind him to see the newspaper clipping from the time. As I look down the wall I see that this was all of his victims. He was caught in 1965 because he let one girl escape by accident.

"What does she have to do with me?" I manage to squeak out at this man. He gives a little smirk as he bends down to my level. He takes one more puff of his cigar before throwing it across the room.

"It has everything to do with you. Did you know it is the 50 year anniversary of when he was caught and sentenced to death? No? Well, I thought since he didn't get to finish his last victim, I could finish for him, so why not be a decedent of his first victim?" He smiles once more at his words as I feel my stomach churn. I wish I never left Rick.

Just as I wish for him, I hear a creak of the door again. I turn around to see Rick standing there with a confused face.

"What's going on here?" I hear the concern in Rick's voice. The man grabs me quickly and holds me while putting a gun on my head.

"Leave now," the man growls at Rick. Rick puts his hands up as he gulps.

"Help," I manage to say to Rick before the man tightens his grip.

"Hey we don't have to do this," Rick tries to calm him down.

Rick gives me wide eyes as I begin to think of what I can do. I realize my right leg is between his. I know what to do. I kick up as he lets me go, groaning in pain. Rick runs over to us as he picks up the light metal chair and hits his head, hard. I pick up the gun as I point it at this man. Before what I think of what I'm doing, I pull the trigger.

The blood ran down his neck and with one last gasp for breath he was gone. I dropped the weapon as I was left to take it all in. Tears fell from my eyes and down my cheek. Death truly had been forgiving. I was only left with one thought, "Why?".

Rick walked over to me and picked me up; putting his arm around me as we walked out of the room, wondering what was going to happen tomorrow on All Hallows Eve. He called the police as he sat me down on a rock. I look back at the building as I see a figure. I fell as I am imaging this figure. But I also feel like this is death. Waiting and watching. Rick tells me they are coming as I turn back to where the figure was, to see it was gone. My mind was swarmed with everything, but I knew one thing for sure. I don't think I'll be going out next Halloween.

Welcome Home.

Hailey Morgan

She walked down the hallways not caring what anyone said about her. Her hair, which was black, was cut down like most guys. Her nose piercing stuck out since she was the only the one in our grade, who has it. She only wore T-Shirts, skinny-jeans or sweatpants, even though she was a girl. This is Jensen Orcky and she was my best friend.

"Hey Jensen!" I shouted to her.

She ran to me and jumped on me, making me fall into the person behind me. Laughing, I turned around to see I only fell back on Trent. Trent was the captain of the football team, which was surprise since he wasn't that big or anything.

"Sorry, what did you need, Trent?" questioning, as I moved a fallen hair out of my face as I reached for a book.

"Just to see my beautiful girlfriend," he smiled at me, but saw a couple of football jocks coming. He kissed my forehead and caught up with them.

"So why were you hiding behind my locker?" I laughed asking Jensen as she moved the door.

"Because since you told him, he is always awkward around me."

I gave her a sympathetic look, feeling the regret rush over me. She shrugged and began to walk away. I closed my locker and caught up with her.

"Do you want to hang out after school?" I held my books closer to my chest and looked at the floor.

"I guess," Jensen stated, walking away to talk to others.

Sighing, I walked into my last class of the day.

~

"So where do you want to go?" I questioned buckling into the car.

"I don't know, you suggested hanging out," Her tone was very plain. I wondered what was getting her down.

"Are you okay?"

She slammed on her breaks. The road wasn't very busy so she stayed in the road. Jensen ran her hands threw her hair and hit her forehead on the steering wheel. I sat there not sure of what to do. She turned her head to me, then back, and then sighed.

"You know my secret?" Jensen sat up staring at the road, probably because it was easier than to look at me.

"Yes," my mouth was dry; my voice came out as a whisper.

"It drove him away, I did it. It's my fault. I sat down with my parents. I explained it to them. My mother started crying. My father said, "You're not my daughter. There are no sinners in my house," and got up and walked out. I tore my family apart," she put her face in her palms and began sobbing.

I didn't know what to do. My tongue couldn't move to make words. I couldn't process what she said. I leaned over to turn her to me, so I could hug her. She sobbed on my shoulder and hugged me tightly. I petted her hair and shushed her soothingly.

"I know nothing seems okay now, but it will be. You cannot apologize for you being you," I held her tightly so she knew I care and always will.

"Thank you so much," she muffled into my shoulder.

"Hey, of course! How about I come over tonight so it won't be so awkward?" I suggested and smiled at her. She nodded her head and started the car again.

~

"So? Who do you like?" I wiggled my eyebrows at her. She laughed and threw a pillow at me.

"Well, she has brown hair, blue eyes, and the prettiest smile. She is just... perfect," Jensen smiled at the ground, and then shook her head," but what about you and Trent?"

"Well, everything is going good. I make him smile, he makes me smile," I laughed at how I explained our relationship.

We sat in silence, until we heard the front door slam. I sat up and looked at Jensen with an eyebrow raised. She jumped up and was out her bedroom door, with me behind her.

She stood in the middle of the hallway frozen and her back was facing me. I peeked over her shoulder to see it was her father standing in front of the door, soaked from the rain.

"What... What are you doing here?" her voice cracked as she spoke. I knew she began to cry.

"I'm so sorry, baby girl. I love you so much. I'm sorry for what I said," Mr. Orcky said crying also.

"Oh, dad," she ran into his arms crying.

They both said they loved one another. Crying and hugging as they stood there. The image brought me to tears.

That was the day I saw what true love was. Loving the other, no matter their differences.

"The Fall of Humanity"

Hailey Morgan

There are many smart people in the world. I mean look at Johann Wolfgang, Leonardo Da Vinci, or Isaac Newton, those guys had IQ over like 150. Except there was one person, who was way smarter than anyone in the world, his name was Wyatt James. I am his best friend, even though it is very difficult.

Most friends you could joke around with or have a funny conversation, but I could only dream to do that with mine. He was serious all the time but I couldn't blame him why he was like this. The way me and Wyatt met wasn't the best way to meet your best friend.

It was October 19, 2014, I only knew the date since Wyatt had an identical memory and he could remember anything. It was only 5 months after my mother died of cancer. I wasn't getting any better; my mother was my best friend. I wouldn't eat anything, I wouldn't come out of my room, and I was very depressed. My father was tired of it. He took me to a support group.

I was scared. I had no friends, and to be honest I had no desire to be here, even live. It all changed when Wyatt stood up and introduced himself. He described everything just like how I felt. He lost his father to lung cancer a little over a year ago and decided to put everything he had into finding a cure. He explained his memory and his IQ. He was 14 and I was 13. I decided to talk to him after the meeting. Maybe befriend him. It has been three years since. Wyatt was like a brother to me now. I was either always at his house or he was at mine. I wouldn't change it for the world.

"Wyatt, I know you tell me the chemical balance of the earth every day," I laugh at him as we were walking to the bus stop.

"I know, but if you take that balance and add some other equations into it I think. I think, I could get closer to finding it. I just have to find the other part of it," He stated as he read the pages in the book he had. He could read very fast too, more than I could comprehend.

"Well, it's probably right in front of you," I shrugged knowing that's what usually happened when he was stuck.

He began looking at the ground in front of him and around him. I smacked my forehead at him thinking I was being literal. He looked at me and shook his head.

"Sarcastic?" He sighed and began to walk with me. I laughed at him and climbed onto the bus. He followed behind me as we sat down, to embark to what I know the worst place on earth. High school.

_

No one understood Wyatt like I did, that's why we were best friends. I went over to his house that day to talk about his experiments. His mother was one of the kindest people I knew. She had brown hair that came to her shoulders, blue eyes, and a smile that was friendlier then any I've seen.

"Hello Mrs. James," I smiled as I sat at their countertop. Even though it was four years since Mr. James passed, she hasn't gone on one date.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Ann, please call me, Dawn," She smiled at me and handed us a plate of sliced apples and water.

Wyatt took me back to his room and opened his closet doors, to reveal them covered in papers from cancer victims to science experiments to his own research on the topic.

"Woah," I set down my bag on the ground and went to inspect it, "are these all from the web or what?" I touch the paper and read to see he had one about our own parents.

"Yes, well to be exact there from, https://cancerneedstostopletsfindacuretoday.com and https://amentothesepoorfamiles.org , and finally https://donatetodaytofindacure.com ," He took a sip of his water and looked at his closet proudly.

"I'm surprised you don't have a secret lab in your house either," I laughed, until I turned to him and he looked serious, "You're joking right?"

He went out into his hallway and down into his garage. He turned on the light to show a bunch of science things I didn't understand. There were liquids all kinds of colors in little bottles and big bottles. The garage used to have an old sports car and tools in it, but now it feels like I stepped into Dexter's Laboratory.

"How did you have money for all of this?" I walked around amazed at everything he had.

"Well," he watched and smiled about how amazed I was, "remember my dad's old sports car? Well my mom definitely did not want to drive so we sold it and my mom gave me the money since I told her about my idea and she thought it was great."

"That's great," I smiled at him. I was actually proud of him; he actually put his great mind to an amazing use.

"Wyatt!" His mother screamed at the top of her lungs. Wyatt looked at me with wide eyes and sprinted out the room. I followed right behind him, scared of what was happening. She was in the kitchen on the floor with her phone in her hand. Wyatt got down next to her and held her; confused about what was happening.

"Mom! Mom, are you okay? What happened?" Wyatt definitely had worry in his voice. Tears were streaming down her face as she touched his face and smiled. I stood at the ready to sprint for a phone just in case.

"They accepted it," Wyatt hugged his mother tightly and began to laugh with her. I stood confused as ever as they just laughed. Wyatt looked over at me and smiled.

"Ann, they have accepted my experiment, my cure. They're going to test it. Ann, I did it," Wyatt began to have tears in his eyes. He worked so hard for this. He put three years of his teenage year into this project. I began crying in happy tears for them as Wyatt pulled me into the hug. I couldn't believe it.

-

"Right this way," a tall man in a suit, pushed a door open and led us down the hallway. Wyatt got a phone call today, for us to go to the CDC with his cure. The hallway had many different doors along the way. Of course the windows on the door were blacked out so you weren't able to see inside.

"I can't believe this is actually happening," Wyatt whispered as he smiled brightly. I squeezed his hand and smiled back at him. He held the brief case tightly in the other hand to cause his knuckles to turn white.

"In here," the man opened another door, which was a lab room with three people with lab coats and masks, but the another person in a gown.

"Wait, you're testing this on a human?" Wyatt said with worry in his voice.

"This is a cancer patient with brain cancer. She only has days to live. She said "She rather die of an experiment then a disease. That's why we're allowing this," a women in a lab coat explained. Wyatt nodded and handed her the brief case. She took it from him and examined the chemicals already in syringes. She took the cap off the needle and injected it into her inner elbow. The woman in a gown winced at the pain and passed out from it.

Wyatt turned and hugged me instead of watching. I couldn't imagine what was going through his mind right now. He hugged me tight as I watched the patient. She began to twitch, then began to shake as if she was having a seizure. I gasped as Wyatt tighter around me even harder. She stopped shaking and laid there, but still had a pulse. The woman doctor began to whisper into her ear.

"Lily? Can you hear me? Lily?" She stood back away from her.

Suddenly she sat up, gasping for air. I jumped back from the sudden action as Wyatt let go of me to turn around. The doctor hurried and rushed the table into another room, telling us to wait in the waiting room.

Wyatt paced the room, even though it's only been 20 minutes. Wyatt was mumbling under his breath and I couldn't understand. I called Dawn to tell her we may be late dinner and explained what's happening.

"Mr. James?" the same lady came out into waiting room. I stood up by Wyatt as we waited for the news.

"Yes?" Wyatt stressed the word.

"She doesn't have cancer," the lady exclaimed to us.

Wyatt turned to me and hugged me. He picked me up and twirled me around. I began crying for him. I couldn't explain how happy I was for him; he has been working on this forever.

"I did it. My idea worked. Thank you for believing in me," Wyatt smiled and wiped away my tears for him.

"Of course," I smiled at him.

I put down the paper and took of my glasses. Tears brimmed in my eyes as I looked around to the room full of young children and adults, dirty and sad faces. Tears seemed to stream down others faces as they now knew the story.

"Now, I knew Wyatt James since I was 13. He is not the Anti-Christ, nor the worst person in the world. He had an idea and tired making the world better by helping families. He had no idea this would happen; "the apocalypse"," I sighed and looked at my hands. I thought about everything I have heard many stories about Wyatt and his creations. I missed him every day since he had been locked up, for causing the "end of the world".

My Portfolio

The Plan

Jacob Reagan

Inmate IDLast nameFirst NameEye ColorHair ColorHeightSex

#1545HobkinsJasonBrownBrown5'9"Male

I had been in prison for two years now, and I have had enough. I got put in jail for killing a man with my bare hands. I plead non-guilty, but I lied. I killed a man because he was trying to hack into the president's security system. He was a terrorist and a waste of space to our planet. The man had a gun, but I was able to sneak up behind him. To make a long cruel story short, I protected myself and the world, yet I still got in trouble. I was done. The escape-plan was a simple and old fashioned one, chisel a hole in the wall and to cover it up with a poster. The poster was of a 2012 soft tail Harley Davidson motorcycle. I made the chisel. It was made out of a stone handle, from the recreational area, and had a stone pointed end for chiseling, a shard from on the prison bars.

When we leave to go to our recreational area, we have the choice to stay in our cells. I then will get in the hole and hang the poster up. I then will follow the tunnel. The tunnel was going to lead to the sewer tunnels under the prison. I would follow them to New York. There, I would meet someone and receive directions on where to meet my friends. After that, I will fake my own death and go to one of the best lawyers in the world down in Texas. Then, he will reopen my case and help me prove I'm innocent.

Today's date is Friday, August 16, 2013. Today is the day I am going to pull off my escape. I have the hole chiseled out perfectly. The bell rang to tell the guards it was time for us to be released for recreational time. The guards started walking down the hall to let us out of our cells. When he came by mine, I told him that I was going to stay in today. He walked away after locking back up my cell. I waited ten minutes to make sure everyone was out and that the people that were in couldn't see. I got up and headed towards the hole. After pulling the poster up, I crawled in the hole. I couldn't see so I felt my way around. It didn't take too long before I found light. I knew that's where the tunnel I was in met the sewer tunnels. The stench began to get strong. The sewer tunnels had lights at the top. It wasn't very bright, but it helped.

Two hours and forty five minutes passed before I found the exit that I was supposed to take. I climbed up the ladders and lifted manhole cover, or sewer lid. It was in an alley. I quickly ran to a nearby house. There wasn't anyone home. I busted the window and looked around. There was a room that had men clothes in it. I took some and went to the bathroom.. After showering, I dressed and made sure to bring the inmate suit with me. Then, I messed up the house and took some jewelry to make it look like a robbery. I exited through the window I broke. The bus stop I was meant to go to was up ahead. I had roughly three to four minutes before the bus would arrive. I went there and waited. The bus pulled up, and I got on.

I was on the bus. I had finally pulled off the escape from prison. The next bus stop was at the corner of the new apartment building at the corner of North Main St. and Washington St. We stopped to pick up the passengers. Well, I guess passenger. He was a tall Caucasian man. He was dressed in a black trench coat, a plain black fedora, and black boots. He entered the bus and walked all the way to the back to my seat, which was the third seat from the back on the left.

He sat down without even asking. I began to get nervous. He slipped me a note and then stood up.

"You all need to move away. Run! The end is near!"He started yelling about how the end as he read out of an old black journal. The man started to point towards a dark figure out side. He walked towards the rear emergency exit and walked right out of the bus while it was still in motion. I read the note, and it explained everything.

You have two bus

stops ahead. On the

third one, you need to

get off. I'll be there.

Wait,

The Instructor

Jacob Reagan

That's the man I'm supposed to meet. I sat on the bus. We went through two more bus stops. The third stop was next. I was looking everywhere to find the man. When the bus stopped, I got off. The man was nowhere to be found. I walked about a half a block to the nearest gas station. I was in need of a nice cold Arizona Sweet Tea. As I walked into the Family Express, I saw something. It about made me drop to the floor. The cashier was the man. He was dressed in nice clothes. The man looked totally different, but I knew it was him. He gave me a reassuring look so I knew it was him for sure. He clocked out as another cashier clocked in. Then, he made me follow him to his apartment. The whole time we walked he only talked through letters. Any time I would ask him a question, he would pull out a small pad of paper and write a note and tear it off, then hand it to me with his answer. I had a feeling he didn't want his voice to be known, which confused me because I had already seen his face. Maybe it was that he couldn't speak. I wasn't for sure.

About twelve minutes passed before we arrived at his apartment. At his apartment, he handed me a four page packet that explained what was going to happen and how he was going to fake my death. The packet described, in great detail, about four steps that we were going to do to pull off my death.

After I read the packet thorouhly, he took me into a room. This is where he was going to make a mold my body for the casket. I assumed this because of all the paint and clay things in the room. He confirmed my assumption when he handed me a note saying, "the body mold process begins here." The process was very interesting. It took about three hours. He layed this plastic rubber over my body that copied every little detail about me. I had to lay there for about fifteen minutes, which by then the mold hardened. He took it off and I flipped over so he could repeat the process for the other side of me. When both sides were done, he clamped them together and then filled this liquid inside the full body mold. After that, he gave me a fresh suit of clothes, razors, shaving cream, some hair dye, and fake glasses. Lastly, he gave me a note that told me to go shower. I went into the bathroom, which was really clean and nice, and dyed my hair, shaved, and showered.

After I got out of the shower, I found him in a spare room. He was making a lot of noise. I looked into the room, and he was building something. It turned out to be a casket, my casket. This spooked me, but in a way, it was interesting. I watched. He put a lot of detail into the casket! After about four more hours, he was done, had the mold of me dressed and in it. I was creeped out by how much it looked like me and even felt like me. After helping him finish the details, he gave me a note that read, "Good luck! Go out my door, turn left, follow the road four blocks down and you will come to a car. You will know which one." I said thanks and handed him money. With that, I left the apartment never looking back.

I met the car four blocks away down an alley. The car was blue and looked really nice but very expensive. The driver did not talk either. He had a dark blue suit on and a mustache with dark sunglasses on. The two hour long trip took me to my destination where I met the lawyer. He was in a gray suit with a black tie. He looked real intelligent, as you would imagine a lawyer to look like. I got out of the car after handing the driver some cash. The lawyer pulled me into his house to start the investigation.

"Sorry for the rush out there. I didn't want anyone seeing you. Now let's get down to business," he pulled out a lot of folders, "My name is James by the way."

I didn't introduce myself. He already knew. I have been talking to this guy for three months through letters while I was locked up. We talked for a while. He told me how I was to stay there at his house till the court date.

After four months of me hiding and James fighting, I was a free man, and the charge was off my background. I don't know how he did it, but he did!

Hurray!

Jacob Reagan

In a Small Town

In a small town of Hickinsonburg, there lives a young girl, age is seventeen. She goes by the name of Brittany. She often has the problem of money shortage. She needs to get a job. It's the summer of 1998; she needed money to save up for a small apartment this winter. Today, she hopes to solve her problems by going to apply at a little no-name fast food restaurant. Working there, as a starter job, she will save up money to get a better job. The only thing that worries her about this interview is that she talks a lot when she is nervous.

"Beep Beep Beep Beep," went Brittany's alarm right before she shut it off. It was eight a.m., and time to get up. This was her day. She got up, rubbed her eyes and headed to the coffee pot in the kitchen. After that, Brittany headed to the bathroom to shower. Moments later, poured her cup of coffee in a to-go mug and left out of her house. It was eight thirty. Her interview started at nine, but she thought that being ten minutes early would be a good thing. She got there and went up to the counter.

"How may I help you?" asked the cashier noticing from his nametag that his name was Spencer.

"Well, Mr. Spencer..."

"Jones. Spencer Jones," he filled her in. He spoke in a nervous-like voice. Brittany had blond hair and blue eyes. "Gorgeous Blue Eyes!" he was thinking.

"Well, Mr. Spencer Jones. I am here for an interview. I am here to see Mr. Bob Brown."

"Uhm...Just one.. uh just one second and I will get him." Spencer ran off in the back. A few minutes later, Spencer came back and a larger man was following behind him. Brittany began to feel uncomfortable as she felt his eyes attacking her.

"Well, hello! Hello!" Mr. Brown said. He noticed her beautiful young body and her sweet blue eyes.

"Uhm. Hi, I am here for the interview." She declared. Brittany felt real uncomfortable and out of place, but she knew she had to take this job.

"Yes. Of course! Follow me if you will, right down this way. This is my office."

He pulled out a seat for her. Brittany sat down, trying to ignore the fact that he kept staring at her. He then walked around her and took a seat on the opposing side of the desk. He sat in a big office chair.

"You're hired."

"Excuse me? Shouldn't you ask me questions and stuff?"

"Well, Uhmm, you just seem qualified for the job. Uh, can you start today by chance?"

"Sure," she answered.

Brittany was thinking, "Why? So you can stare at me all day?" She responded with sure because she knew she had to get this job. "Just for a couple months," she thought. She only needed to get this job to build up her name so she could go get a better job.

Mr. Brown stood up and walked out the door. Brittany followed. He stopped by a door. He opened it and then handed a uniform to her.

"The bathroom is this way. Change and then report back to me."

Brittany nodded with an understanding look. She headed back to the bathroom. She felt Mr. Brown's eyes staring at her as she walked down the hall. Brittany entered the bathroom, changed, and then met Mr. Brown back by the cash register. He showed her how to work it, how to make the food, and then how to run the dish washer. He gave her the assignment of doing whatever wasn't being done.

Brittany went to look for Spencer. She kind of thought Spencer was handsome. Spencer was over by the oven in the kitchen.

"H-hi Spencer," she mumbled.

Spencer looked at nervously. He has trouble talking to pretty girls. He is really nervous. He managed to respond, "Hi. Brittany, correct?"

"Yes. How are you?"

"Okay. Are you? Mr. Brown is a creep. I don't like him."

"He spooked me a little. He kept staring at me."

"Yeah. I saw."

The two then started to work together because Mr. Brown came back around to check on them. They worked together for the rest of the day. Spencer continued to show her the ropes.

.

The next day, they two came in and went right to work.

"Good morning Spencer," Brittany greeted, "I have a question."

"Good morning, what is it?"

"Where are the other employees?"

"They quit. Mr. Brown scared them off."

"Oh."

They got to work. They stayed quiet for the most part. The two were pretty busy. When lunch came around, which for them was around one thirty, Spencer went over to the door and switch the open sign around so it read "On Lunch." Spencer turned around and walked over to the microwave.

"Are you uh.. Hungry? I made these ten minutes ago," Spencer said as he pulled to plates out of the microwave, both with a cheeseburger and French fries on them.

"Yes, thank you!"

The two sat down and started eating. It didn't take long though until Mr. Brown came to interrupt them.

"Brittany, we need to talk. Come back to my office, please."

"What's it about?"

"About your job."

Brittany grabbed Spencer's hand out of a fear instinct. Spencer didn't get nervous. He stood up and approached Mr. Brown.

"There are only two of us out here. We are on lunch break. Brittany doesn't mind if you say what you have to say in front of me."

"Sit down. This doesn't involve you. Brittany and I need to talk."

"Why? So you can harass her too, just like all the other women?"

"You're fired! Get out of my restaurant."

"Brittany, hang on. I will be back. Bob, you aren't done seeing me."

Spencer left the restaurant. Brittany took a half day and caught up with Spencer. They went to the police station. Spencer knew the small town's sheriff. His name is Tony Marks.

"Hey Tony, we have a problem. You know how I have been trying to prove to you that Bob Brown was a pervert and that he harasses his female employees?"

"Yes. What about it?" Sheriff Tony Marks asked.

"I know how to get him. We have to use her, Brittany. She just started working there. He tried to get her into her office today. I stood up for her and he fired me. Then, she took a half day to come down here with me and so she wouldn't be there alone."

"What is his reason of firing you?"

"Because I stood up for her."

"We can take him to court for that."

"Or, we can wait for him to harass her more and then take him to court for harassing her and firing me for no reason on top of it."

"Look, I can't help you with that. But, if that does happen then I can help you."

"Okay." With that said, Spencer and Brittany left. For the next week, Brittany worked as usual. She waited for Mr. Brown to make his move. Soon enough, he did. One afternoon, during lunch break, he went out to where here and four other new people were eating lunch.

"Brittany, I need to see you in my office."

Brittany got up and followed him. She texted Spencer, who was waiting outside with Sheriff Marks close by, and then she entered Mr. Brown's office. She was nervous. She sat down in his chair in his office. Mr. Brown sat down on one knee right next to her.

"So, how do you like your job here?"

"It's okay, I guess."

"Okay. You know, I have been watching you work. You do an outstanding job. I would like to make you manager, if you think you are up to it." Mr. Brown then put his hand on Brittany's leg and slid it upward a little.

Suddenly, sheriff Marks busted in the door, "Hands in the air, dirtbag!"

Mr. Brown threw his hands in the air. He had a confused look on his face. Brittany jumped up and ran into Spencer's arms. He held her.

Sheriff Marks put Mr. Brown in the cop car. They put a closed sign on the resturaunt door. They headed to the courthouse. They had direct evidence and even with a lawyer, Mr. Brown couldn't have done much. The judge took his resturaunt away and somehow Brittany managed to get a small settlement out of the whole deal.

Brittany bought Mr. Brown's old resturaunt. Spencer became the manager. They renamed it. And finally, Spencer finally asked out Brittany. She said yes.

What is It?

Jacob Reagan

"Alexander Dyme is his name. He lives over on Heritage Road, here in Monticello. I'm telling you. There is something off about him," introduced David, who studied business ethics.

"How do you know? What if he is the one that is right and we are all the ones who are wrong?" questioned John, who studied biology.

"I'm not for sure. I just know there is something different about him. Whether it is good or bad, we will soon find out. He is in five of my classes this year."

"Mom, please don't make me go. None of the kids like me here. I'm different and they don't like it," negotiated Alexander with his mom.

"All I'm asking is that you please give it a chance. If things don't change, we will figure something out. But, you must try. Now come on we are going to be late!" demanded his mom. Alex's mom, Susan, grabbed his arm and rushed out to the car. It was Alex's fourth day of ninth grade. He just started. He wasn't sure of the school's name. It was a private school. His mom must have told him about a million times. As he wondered the name of his school, his mom tried to imagine how bad his first day was. He was very quiet when he came home yesterday; this worried her. She felt bad for making him go, but they needed to start new over here. She just got a new job as a CEO of the new factory that was built just outside of Monticello.

"I'll pick you up after school right here all right bub? Try to have a good day! I love you," said Susan as she dropped him out in front of the school.

"Sure," answered Alex. He wasn't happy with his mom at the moment. He wasn't enthused for school either. He had to start his first assignment in science today. He was partnered up with some kid. He couldn't remember his name. Alex seemed to think he didn't like him though. He thought about this while he tried to find his locker. He always got lost with this task. He didn't mind though. Alex's first period was P.E. or Physical Education as Mr. Beamer stressed, Alex's gym teacher. Alex chuckled as he remembered his first interaction with Mr. Beamer and the whole "Physical Education" idea; that it is Physical Education, not P.E. He could see his locker down the hall. He also could see something by his locker. As he got closer, he realized it was a person. But who could it be? He had no friends here. As Alexander approached, he soon realized that it was his science project partner. What did he want?

"Alex is the name, right?" questioned David.

"Correct. What's up?" asked Alex who was full of wonder.

"I want to know why is it that every time I go past your house at night, it looks like you're welding something. It shows through your basement windows."

"How do you know where I live? Why do you want to know?"

"First off, I live down your street. Second, you live in my neighborhood; I want to make sure my neighborhood is safe."

"I have to get to class," answered Alex while walking away.

Alex didn't know how to take this. He had a huge secret and he didn't want David to find out. He was scared. If anyone found out his secret he would be made fun of. He had an idea actually, not so much a secret. He had been making something in his basement.

"Good morning Alex. Why are you so late? Do not use the locker excuse again. Take your seat." demanded Alex's gym teacher.

I don't know what to do. Is David going to do something? Is he going to investigate the problem? Will he keep sneaking around my house? I'm scared. He can't know. If he finds out, it will all fall apart and maybe even worse things. Jail time even? I'm not supposed to have this, so would I get in trouble?

All Alex could do was think about this distraction all P.E. class. He kept getting in trouble for not paying attention. He couldn't help it. He was constantly worried. After P.E. he went straight to the nurse's office. All this worrying made him feel sick to his stomach. He went to the bathroom that was connected to the nurse's office and made himself get sick. He made himself plenty loud to make sure the nurse could hear him. When he came out, Mrs. Smiley, the nurse, was already on the phone with his mom. He waited for her. When Mrs. Dyme got there, she asked if he was okay and then took him home.

"I have to go back to work. Are you sure you will be okay here alone?"

"Of course I will be mom," said Alex. He had been home alone dozens of times before. After his mom left, he immediately left to continue downstairs to the basement. He took a prized look at his masterpiece. It was almost finished.

What am I going to do if this goes downhill? How is everybody going to take it? My mom doesn't even know. I could take it all the way if everyone accepts it and gives it a chance. But what if they don't? Do I get taken away? Do I get in trouble? What will they do to my mom for having this thing?

"Knock, knock, knock. Anyone home?" yelled someone at the door. Instantly Alex felt his stomach drop. Who would be knocking on his door? Everybody knows that nobody is home. He drew himself the courage to go upstairs to look out the window. As he pulled back the curtain, he saw David standing at the door! David must have found out that Alex went home, and he must have done the same thing. Alex didn't know what to do. Without much thought, he went and opened the door.

"What are you doing here? You were perfectly fine when I saw you this morning," questioned David.

"Uhmm... I uh... Felt sick. I left. What are you doing? How did you get here? How did you know I came home?" asked Alex.

"I followed you. It's not important. I want to know what's going on with what you are doing in your basement." With that being said, David pushed his way in the door and went straight towards the basement. He knew his way around the house. His cousin used to live there.

"Wait! You can't do that. Stay away from there."

"Why? What's down there?" asked David while standing at the edge of the stairs.

"Well uh. It's dirty and stuff."

David proceeded down the stairs. Alex followed really quickly behind him. David couldn't believe what he saw. It was a mechanism made of metal. It was just plain metal. No paint. It had gears and pulleys and springs. He knew right away this is what Alex was working on. But what was it?

"What is this?"

"It's my idea. It automatically makes knives. It shapes them, sharpens them, paints, and assembles them! I'm making the control panel now. You can't tell anyone. This could get me in trouble."

"Or this could make you rich."

"What if people don't take it that way?"

"Then you get in trouble. But it's worth the risk. This machine is genius! We need to get it noticed. How did you come up with this?"

"Well, it sort of just came to me. I have had the idea for a long time. I finally took the drawing and made it happen."

"Does it work?"

"Almost, I have the control panel made. I just need to install it to the device. Then, I'll set it in sync. It should work then. I have about a half hour left of work."

"Can I watch? I promise I won't touch anything."

"I guess."

David took his seat. He was full of excitement. Alex took the control and bolted it on. He connected the wires to the ones on the machine. He then did something that involved pushing buttons on the control panel and the remote. David figured this must be the sync part. The gears started to move. After about twenty minutes of this, Alex took and inserted a flat piece of metal into the machine and some red fabric and thread into the machine. Then, he put the guard over the machine. It covered the whole thing. It was made of metal and was painted black. The cover had white letters painted on it that looked like this

"What's that say?" asked David.

"Alexander Dyme's Knife Maker. Forever Making Easier, that's my slogan."

"Nice!" David nodded with an understanding look. The machine then started making noises. Alex pushed buttons on the remote. After about roughly five and half minutes of waiting, the machine spit out a sword-like figure. It had a black blade with a padded red handle. Alex and David both stared at this is shock.

"Dude, you are a mastermind! Why haven't you told anyone about this?"

"I don't know. I have made many other inventions, but nobody else seems interested and I am afraid no one will like them."

"You need to tell people. You are a genius. I mean, look at this. Your machine made this!"

Alex didn't know what to think. David made him feel confident. He went and picked up the sword. It was forty inches long. Alex and David made three more.

"It's already three o'clock. I need to be getting home. But hey, stay home tomorrow and fake being sick. We will go get this noticed" with that said David ran home. Alex didn't know what to say. He decided to take the chance and do that with David. He gathered the stuff for adventure tomorrow and waited upstairs in the front room for his mom. When she arrived, they ate dinner and went to bed.

"Alexander. Good morning. How are you feeling?" asked Alex's mom.

"Mom, I'm not feeling the best. Can I stay home?"

"Yes. Call me if you need anything. I'm going to go to work. Have a good day!"

After the door shut, Alex got up, showered, dressed, and then answered the door. David was right on time. They hauled up the machine and supplies to the front yard. They then locked the door and carried the items to the bus stop. They got on the bus and went and hour and forty minutes north to a manufacturer that David had found online last night. After arriving they stopped at a small family owned restaurant for lunch. Alex had a deluxe cheeseburger with French fries and a coke. David had tacos with nachos and a coke to drink. Then, they continued walking four blocks to the manufacturer. Alex and David eventually found the building and walked inside to the front desk.

"How may I help you?" asked the woman at the front desk.

"I need to see Mr. Longfellow." said David.

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Yes. I spoke to him yesterday evening."

"What's the name the appointment is under?"

"Alexander Dyme."

A bellhop came to greet them. He took the machine and Alex's bag and set them on a cart. He motioned for them to follow. They continued down the hall and into the elevator. David watched in shock as the bellhop took them to the thirty-second floor. They proceeded down another hall to the office with the tag labeled "Ideas for Construction: Mr. Longfellow." The bellhop opened the door and pushed the cart in and left them alone in the room. There was an older man, about the age of his early forties that was sitting behind the desk in a black suit, white undershirt, and a red tie on.

"Hello. I'm Alex. This is David. This is"

"I know. David, your friend, has told me everything. You should thank him. From what he said, you seem like a very smart kid." said Mr. Longfellow in a deep voice, "Show me how it works."

Alex got right to work. He set up the machine. David assisted him. They made a forty inch sword. It had a black carbon steel blade with a blue and white padded handle with white stitching. Mr. Longfellow was amazed. This made Alex and David smile. Mr. Longfellow took the sword and swung it around. He tested the quality and weight. He was amazed at how well this sword was built, but he wondered how the machine could do this that quick. He knew he had to have it.

"I want to buy your machine," pronounced Mr. Longfellow.

"No, you may buy the product, not the name. You can be our sponsor and your company can produce them. You can put them on the market. You may not buy the idea and name. It belongs to Alex," smarted David before Alex could respond.

Mr. Longfellow was surprised by this remark. He clearly knew business was David's favorite subject or he had someone in the family with this skill.

"I suppose, but first I need to talk to your legal guardian for a contract. You are under age, and I cannot make this contract legal without your parent's consent."

"Deal, I already called my mom. She is one her way. "

The boys showed Mr. Longfellow more details and made more knives and swords to pass the time. About two hours later, Alex's mom showed up. Mr. Longfellow took the time to write up the contract. One hour later after all the business discussing was done, the family took the contract and left with the idea of Alex's machine being on the market in two to three weeks. He was shocked. He couldn't believe that just happened. The mom took the boys to dinner to celebrate and to figure out exactly what happened.

Two weeks later the boys saw Alex's invention being advertised on the television. Three weeks later, Alex became noticed and not long after that, famous. The money started rolling in after about four weeks. The family decided to put the money in a savings bond for safe keeping and only used it when necessary. And lastly, Alex and David became best friends!

The Race's Lesson

Jacob Reagan

Friday. The day was about seventy-six degrees. There was a slight, cool breeze. It was a perfect day for a race. The smell of exhaust filled the air. Everyone revved up their engines. The race was about to start. There were people everywhere. This was a big annual event. Fans traveled to see their racers. However, most people were from close by. This was the first race of the day. There will seven races to make up this race tournament. Today's race takes place in Goodland, Indiana. Goodland isn't that big of a town, but it's big enough to host this race. There were racers from all over the globe. Some were from Goodland themselves. Others were from close by places like from Remington, Rensselaer, and Monticello. Then, there were also some racers from farther away. The race consisted of a total of three hundred, sixty-seven racers. Out of many, there was only one who really stood out and caught many people's attention. It was hard to tell if it was him that stood out or if it was his bike. Maybe it was both.

Number ten, he goes by the name Night Rider. His real name is John Seimore. He is eighteen and weighs one hundred sixty-four pounds. He has a custom bike he built from scratch. The bike has an eighteen inch bike tire and a front end, both from a mountain bike. He has the front guard off of a crotch rocket to help with aerodynamics. The gas tank is wide and wraps down the frame. The frame is slouched down at an angle, high in the front angling down towards the back to a twelve inch tire that is three inches wide. The bike is all black. It has a top speed of forty-eight miles per hour on a flat paved surface which is where this race happens to be on. Night Rider is in race one.

The flagger whips the green flag up and down. Green means go! The racers took off. All the racers were doing well and staying together until the first bend. Three racers took the lead leaving the rest in a group behind them. Number twenty-seven, fifty-two, and eighty-three were leading the rest by a close hundred twenty feet. Number ten, Night Rider was catching up. He started getting mad. He shifted wrong putting him behind. Twenty-seven is in first place. She is also Night Rider's enemy. Her name is Samantha Tryne. She goes by the name Speed Demon. Her bike is pink. It's the fastest bike there topping a dangerous speed of sixty-two miles per hour! Night Rider was whipping through the crowd after recovering from the bad shift. There were only two people ahead of him before he would be leading the big crowd landing him a fourth place spot.

He was catching up. Things were starting to look good. "I got this!" thought Night Rider trying to boost his confidence as he passed another bike. It was bike number twelve. His name was Jimmy Mine. He drove a blue and green bike that was a mix between a dirt bike and a crotch rocket. Jimmy's bike could reach a top speed of thirty-two. He had the perfect bike for this race, but he needed more experience with it. As Night Rider passed Jimmy, Jimmy flipped him the bird, which was not very sportsman like. John just accepted it with a smile under his helmet. He understood Jimmy's frustration. He had one person to pass before he could be in fourth place which means he would move onto the next race. You have to be in the top four to move on.

John is catching up. He is riding fourth place's tail. Fourth place, Andrew Dickson, looked in his mirror seeing Night Rider catch up. With an evil smirk, Andrew let off the gas slowing down and caught the front of John's tire. Andrew then turned right bumping John off track and caused two riders behind John to wreck. One person sped up taking fifth place as Night Rider got onto the track. He wobbled. He wasn't happy. John looked up as another rider passed him. This made him furious. John looked as sixth place rider sped off. He couldn't tell who it was. He squinted, but he couldn't see. Night Rider began to grow angry. He twisted the acceleration grip on his handle bars back. He sped up fast and quick. This was dangerous to do on a small track in a crowd of racers like where he was.

John's act of rage threw him forward quickly. He almost hit the sixth place racer. Instead, he whipped around him almost side swiping him. This put him in sixth place. He whipped side to side making sure to miss any potholes or misshaped pavement faults that would slow him down. He still never let off the gas. However, he didn't speed up. John was keeping his constant pace. Before he knew it, Night Rider found himself in fifth place. As he looked ahead, John could tell Andrew was looking in his mirror just like the first time. Night Rider took good note of this. He rode up behind Andrew just like the first time. The only difference is that as John got close to Andrew, he turned sharply to the left and sped up! John did it! He left Andrew in the dust. Night Rider was finally in fourth place as long as he stayed in fourth or better, he was able to get to race two of the seven.

John was full of excitement. He had done it! He still was flying through the track. Night Rider was sure he had this. After catching up to the other riders, he realized they were just cruising. They weren't stressed at all. However, they were surprised to see Night Rider. The riders kind of panicked. The third place rider tried to cut John off. John swerved to try to avoid the accident. John ran off the road a little. The gravel jerked the wheel pulling the handle bar out of Night Rider's hands. In a swift moment, John slammed to the ground. All he could do was think "Be quick, but you have time." What seemed like a miracle was needed had happened without much thought but all adrenaline. John picked up the bike. He could barely walk.

Night Rider threw the bike up. He was filled with rage. John jumped on his bike. Somehow it was still running. Night Rider stretched to his handle bars. It hurt, but it was possible. He pulled the acceleration grip. Wasting no time, John gunned it. The other riders weren't too far ahead. He had fourth place by a long shot. However, he wanted third. Night Rider caught up quick. All three riders didn't look happy, especially third place rider. John sped up to the left. As soon as the third place rider went to cut John off, he slowed down and whipped around him. Night Rider stole third. The finish line wasn't far ahead. He believed he could do it. First and second place riders sped up ahead of him. John saw them finish. He decided to do the same thing.

John did it. He finished third! John knew he would be racing in race number two! After he finished third, he proceeded to his pit and camp area. His pit crew immediately took the bike to get it ready for tomorrow. John walked into the camper. He changed and got something to drink. He came outside to racer Andrew Dickson standing there. John was thinking he was here to fight.

"Hello, Mr. Dickson," John greeted him.

"I want you to know what happened out there on the track was totally unacceptable of me. I am very sorry. Anyways, good luck on the next race. You deserve it!" Andrew apologized.

John fought to keep his jaw from dropping from shock. He couldn't believe it. After that, Andrew left. John was happy. He sat in his lawn chair with ice on his bruises. He needed to get rest. Most importantly, he did it. John was going to be in race two!

The Neglected

Jordan Owens

The fur was matted down, the leash was chewed up, and the collar was broken. The eyes were popping out and the strings were loose. It was surrounded by worn out and old objects that all have a story. This animal however, has a story too.

"Mom!" I yelled, "I need my backpack!"

"Be right there!" she yelled back to me. Today was the second day of school and I couldn't find my backpack...again. What a way to start the school year.
"Here sweetie," mom said. I look in my bag and find my old stuffed animal from when I was in kindergarten. "Mom? What did I say about putting him in there?" I was getting tired of reminding her to stop putting the stuffed dog in there.

"I'm sorry honey," she said. "I thought you would want it for good luck."

"I'm not a kid anymore," I argued. "I'll see you later," I sighed, "I'm going to be late." I headed out the door and into the place I like to call "The Dungeon."

Getting lost in the halls of Rochester High was my specialty. I have been in this school for three years, and I still can't find my way around. As I open the doors into school, I see big crowds full of a lot of people. I'm the type of girl that would blend into crowds with my long brown hair, green eyes, and fairly skinny figure. I start to maneuver through the crowds.

"Ow," I mumbled as someone ran into me. I was about to get to my locker, but then, I tripped. I squealed on the way down, but before I smacked my face on the ground, someone caught me. I looked up to find a petite girl who looked to be about my age.

"Thanks," I said.

"No problem. I'm Amy," she stated.

"Lauren," I replied.

"Pretty name," she said. "I'll walk you to class." I knew automatically that she would be my friend. She seemed nice. I put my books in my locker and started to walk towards my class with Amy.

The first thing I saw on my desk was my stuffed dog. I ran to get the dog, ran out of the class and into the girls' bathroom. I threw the dog in the trash. As I was walking back to class, I was hoping that no one saw.

After school, I asked my mom if she brought it to school.

"Honey, I told you I didn't take it," she said.

"Sorry," I said. "I just want to know who took it." I did my homework, and then I went to eat dinner. I also forgot to mention that I'm very slow at homework so I don't get it done until at least six o'clock.

The next day, I saw the stuffed animal again. This time, I tried to rip it up and cut it. I was trying to figure out what was going on. I promised myself that I would catch whoever was doing this, I set up a trap. This time, I didn't take the animal. I just left it. I would get there early and see who came to class.

Finally, it was the day to put my plan into action. I went to school early and stayed outside the classroom. Everyone was giving me strange looks, but I didn't care. No one came. I walked into class and the dog was still there.

After school, I went to the thrift shop to drop off the animal. Hopefully it will torture someone else. I know that's mean but I can't let it do this to me anymore. I'm done with it. It's torn and matted but I know someone out there will want it. They may fix it up. They can even get rid of the smile that is starting to grow on its face.

Scar

Jordan Owens

The worst thing that could happen at school is probably embarrassment or bullying. My situation is bullying. I've been known as damaged, scar, ugly, broken and many more. I've only had one friend almost all my life. Her name is Olivia, but she hates it so she demands that everyone calls her Liv. She has been my best, and only, friend since the third grade. My name is Avia, which isn't short for anything. It's been that way since I was born. My life has been good until my little mishap. When I was younger, I had a dark blue stool made out of wood. The corners were sharp and pointed. I usually had it by my bed. One day, I fell out of bed and woke up with my chin on the stool. My chin hurt and my neck stung. I felt a little trickle going down my neck. I ran to the bathroom to get a look at what happened and my whole neck was covered in blood.

"Mom!" I yelled. She came running up the stairs. She came into the bathroom and stood there in shock. I turned to her crying. I thought that I was going to die. She then called the hospital and we rode in the back of the ambulance. They held a cloth to the wound and were shouting orders at everyone. When we got to the hospital, the doctors told me that I wasn't seriously injured but unfortunately, it was going to leave a scar.

This is how I ended up getting bullied. The scar on my neck caused me to earn all of my hateful nicknames. The scar ran from the bottom right side of my neck to underneath the left side of my chin. It was large and very noticeable. Most people were a little frightened of me because I guess it made me look tougher. Other people were a little happy because now they have a reason to tease someone. It's not a very good reason if you ask me. Really, any reason is a dumb reason but what do I know? The only person who stuck with me was my family and my best friend Liv. Even some of the teachers gave me strange looks. Now it's almost a normal routine. I would wake up, go to school, get bullied and receive strange looks, go home, do chores, do homework, eat dinner then go to bed. My routine really hasn't changed. Every year there are new teachers and a few new students that have to know what happened. They don't ask they just hear it from the extremely wrong gossip that travels around the school.

"Bye Mom!" I yell after I eat breakfast.

I grab my backpack and head out the door.

"Have a good day!" she yells back.

I head out to my Jeep Wrangler. This is my most prized possession. I don't name it or make sure that there aren't any scratches or faults. I'm just very happy that it's mine. I'm 16, so it's not illegal for me to drive. I do have my license, so don't worry. I'm not a reckless driver. I do sometimes get a little angry if some idiot tries to cut me off, but other than that...it's all good.

I look at the school doors knowing what's going to happen as soon as I walk in. I take a deep breath and step inside. At first, everyone goes silent and is staring.

"Hey Scar!" I hear someone say and then laugh.

That's when it all started. Profanities were being shouted at me; people were looking, pointing and laughing. Nicknames could be heard as I walked closer to my locker. I see Liv standing there, at my locker, with a towel and a water bucket from the janitor's closet.

"Another one wrote your name on your locker," says Liv.

"Another one" is referring to the Monroe twins. Vanessa Monroe and Bethany Monroe are the two most popular people in the entire school. Their mother is the principal and their dad is an owner of a worldwide company. I grab the other towel that's hanging in the bucket and start to scrub.

"Hey," I say. "Thanks for helping me again. You're the best. I'm sorry I had to drag you into this."

Liv stops scrubbing and turns to me. "Don't be sorry. You're my best friend. I'm the one who decided to stick with you." I hug her and say thank you.

"Get a room lesbians!" I hear someone yell.

I sigh as Liv shouts at them. "Hey! You gotta problem buddy?" When they don't respond she yells, "Yeah, that's what I thought! Keep movin' before I come after you!"

She turns to me with a big smile on her face. We both break out into laughter. A teacher walks by and tells us to get to class. That's when we notice that the hallway is almost empty. Great, I think. We're going to be late, again.

At the end of the day, I start heading to my last class which happens to be art. This is my favorite class. My art teacher is sort of, spiritual so she she's the beauty in everything. She's the only teacher who doesn't give me weird stares in class.

"Avie! Darling! How are you on this, glorious evening?" She asks me enthusiastically.

I chuckle and say, "I'm doing fine Miss. Birdie. How are you?"

"Splendid! Splendid," she says.

I take my seat on the stool in front of my easel. I tie my hair up in a ponytail and put on my apron. I grab my brushes, a water bucket and some paint. I go back to my seat and sit. I'm ready to paint.

"Ok class. Today is a feelings day. Paint what you feel. Make your emotions come to life on your canvas. Remember that there are no mistakes. Only different ideas," Miss. Birdie says.

I sit staring at my art work. My color pallet consisted of black, white, and gray. I put it near the window so it can dry. I start taking off my apron and taking my hair out when the bell rings. Other students are walking around and rushing to get out of class. I also forgot to mention that Bethany takes this class. As she passes by me, she bumps my shoulder.

"Watch it!" she spits.

I just walk around her and dump the bucket, full of my brown paint water, in the sink. Bethany starts to clean up too. She carries her red paint jar over to the window. I curiously watch her. I don't realize what she's about to do until after she's already done it. NO! I think. She just spilled the paint on my canvas. I sit there shocked.

"Oops," she giggles.

She then walks, no, sashays out of the class room. I run over to my painting knowing that there is nothing that I can do about it. I start to feel tears falling down my face. I will not cry. I think as I wipe the tears away. Miss. Birdie then walks out of her office and notices my ruined painting.

"Oh my goodness!" she says. She walks over and says, "This is magnificent! Great work dear. I want you to present this to the class tomorrow."

She gives me a smile and then goes to her desk. That's when I realize that other students are running in the hallways with their backpacks. I gather my things and head out the door.

At home, I set my backpack on the dining room table and then head towards the kitchen. I open the fridge and find nothing good that I want to eat. I then open the pantry and find Oreos. Yes, I said it, Oreos. My one true love, my soul, my reason for living. Maybe I'm exaggerating a little but I really do love Oreos. I grab the package and head back to my pack. See what I did there? Get it? Backpack? Back to my pack? No? That's alright. I'm not the best joker. Anyway, I unload all my homework and then stare at the pages. I'm going in for the kill.

About an hour later, I'm packing away my backpack. Then, I go and put my Oreos away. I look at the time and see that's it's around 4:45p.m. I think I'm going to watch some T.V. But first, (no I'm not taking a selfie) I head up stairs and take a quick shower. When I'm done with my shower, I put on a fuzzy pair of pajamas, grab a warm fuzzy blanket, and head downstairs. I turn on the T.V and look for a good channel to watch. I stick to watching the Vampire Diaries.

When my mom comes home, she sits on the couch and looks at me. I hit the pause button. Yes we have a pause button. We have the fancy company that lets us do that.

"Honey, your father called."

If you didn't know, my dad left our family for a better one. His 'wife' is supposedly super rich and really pretty. One day, I came home after school with my mom and my dad was sitting at the dining room table. He stood up and handed my mom divorce papers. He then walked out of the house and said, "They're due next week." Ever since then it was just my mom and I. I like it this way better. If my dad didn't love us enough to stay, he doesn't deserve the love that we should be giving.

"What did he say?" I asked.

I didn't really care. It's more out of curiosity.

"He wants to meet me tomorrow for coffee," she said.

"Are you going?" I asked.

"I think so. Just to see what he wants."

I gave her a questionable look and she just sighed.

"It's alright Avia. I'll be fine," she assured me.

"As long as you're alright with this," I sighed.

She got up and gave me a humongous hug. "I love you. You know that right?" she asked.

"Of course I do," I said. "I love you too."

The next day, I sit in art class waiting for my turn to present. The red paint has dried since then and now it looks as though someone was murdered on my painting. I know, that's a little morbid but it's true. The red definitely stands out. I'm just going to have to make something up since the red isn't part of my feelings. Maybe I can make it into a feeling. I have it! I know what I'm going to do.

"Avia, it's your turn Dear," said my teacher cutting off the rest of my thoughts.

I stand up and go to the front. I don't get nervous during these types of presentations. There are only a few people who take this class.

"Um, this is my painting," I start.

"Yeah, we know that." Someone says.

The class starts to laugh.

"Alright everyone," Miss. Birdie says. "Calm down and let her finish."

I point to my painting and tell them about what the colors mean.

"The black stands for the tragedies that have happened in my life. The grey is for the bad memories that start to fade with time. The white represents the good times in my life." I look to the class and they all look at me with interest. "The red is for a new event that's happening. The dark red that's swirled with the bright red is the decision. This could be a good memory forming. That would make the paint be bright. If it turns dark, the memory is bad."

I finish with my presentation and the whole class looks at me shocked or confused. It's hard to tell. I look to my teacher and see that she is smiling.

"That was wonderful Dear. You can go sit down now," she says.

I go back and shrink down into my seat, trying to hide from all the studying looks. She calls on the next person and the class seems to pass by in a blur.

When I go home, my mom is at the counter in the kitchen cooking dinner.

"Hey mom," I say.

She looks to me and asks, "How was school?"

I reply with the usual "fine" and go sit at the dining room table. I'm about halfway done when my mom comes in. When she sits down, I put down my pencil and give her all of my attention. She usually leaves me alone to let me focus on my homework.

"Yes mom?" I ask.

"Well, I went to go get coffee with your father-"

"Don't call him that," I say. "He hasn't been my father since he left," I finish.

"Alright, Kyle and I had coffee today and he told me a few things," she says. "He wants you to go live with him."

I open my mouth but she puts her hand up. I close my mouth and wait for her to finish.

"His reasoning is that he wants to show his wife how good of a father he can be. He lied and said that he still talks to you. He wants you to live with him for a year and show her that he can be a good father. She doesn't want children, so she's still skeptical."

I sit there staring at her. Finally I open my mouth.

"So he wants to use me is what you're saying," I say.

"Yes Avie, he wants to use you," she sighs. "It's your decision. Honestly, I don't want him to have you. I can't stop you from not going but, I am able to keep him from you if you don't want to go. I'll find a lawyer and we will settle it," she says with confidence.

I look at her and say, "I don't want to go." My dad is the last person I want to see.

"He's filing a lawsuit if I don't agree," she tells me. "Don't worry though. I'll handle it. You just focus on school."

She gets up from the table and lets me finish my homework. I can't help but think about what's going to happen if we lose. I don't want to live with Kyle and his wife. Why would he want children anyway? He has-had me. I don't want him, them, to have any part in my life. I'm fine without them. My mom is better than any other. She doesn't deserve to be left again. When Kyle left, she handled a job, a child, bills and most of what couples handle together. She kept me in school, fed me, and gave me clothes. My mom didn't leave me so I'm not going to leave her.

The day of the lawsuit.....

"Order, Order!" the judge yells.

Today is the day. The lawsuit is in session. My mom is now standing at a podium; Kyle is standing at the other podium in front of the judge's podium. I am currently on the bench behind my mom and Kyle's wife, Sophie, is to his left on the bench behind him. My friend, Liv, is sitting in the audience section because I needed her support.

"Ms. Rose, you will continue to have full custody your daughter Avie Rose," said the judge.

"NO! AVIE IS MY DAUGHTER TOO! I DESERVE TO HAVE HER!" my dad explodes, yelling at the judge. "DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW TO DO YOUR JOB?"

Present day......

Let's just say, that my dad was escorted out by the police and the security. I was still living with my mom and I continue to go to school. The bullying still continues. I'm just waiting for the time when I leave high school. I tired of getting teased but I'm getting used to it. My mom tried to talk to the principal a few times but he doesn't do anything about it. My life is almost perfect now. I know nothing is perfect but, I don't care. I have my best friend, my mom and my Oreos. Life is good.

Fangs

Jordan Owens

I felt a warm hand on the small of my back as I browsed through the numerous shelves of books. Surprised, I gasped and turned around, shocked to see the pale face staring back at me and even more amused at the self-satisfied smirk it bore. The face had perfectly sculpted features. His bright green eyes stared at mine; acting as though they could see right through me. I broke away from the trance and took a step away. His hand slowly fell to his side.

"Sorry to startle you," he said. "I'm Sebastian, and those are my friends Rose and Mark."

He turned and pointed to a table in the corner of the library. I take a look and see that there's a girl with long blonde hair sitting on the table. In the seat next to her, is a boy with brown hair that's been spiked with gel. They both look like they should be models. The green eyed man's voice brought my attention back.

"We have a history paper to write and I was wondering if you would be so kind as to show me where the books are."

I told him to follow me and started heading to the back of the library.

"Thank you," he said with a smile that showed perfectly white teeth.

"You're welcome," I said and started to turn around.

"See you later," he said as I was leaving.

I walk into my house and find that my mom hasn't been home yet. I take off my shoes and set them on the ground next to the door. Then I take off my coat, scarf, and gloves. It's fall, and the wind is chilly. These are a necessity when going outside. I take my backpack and run up the stairs. I want to get a start on my homework so I have the weekend to hang out with my friends and do whatever I want before school starts on Monday.

As I'm finishing up my last assignment, I hear the front door open and close. I look at the clock next to my bed and see that it's close to 6. Looks like mom's back home from work, I thought to myself. I put all of my books and binders into my back and set it on the chair in front of my desk. I race down the stairs to see if my mom brought home dinner. As I rush into the kitchen, I see two plates set out and some boxes from the Chinese restaurant. My favorite, I think. I start to pile my food onto my plate when my mom walks in.

"How was school today?" she asks me.

"It was fine," I reply.

"Learn anything new?" she asked as she sat down across from me.

"I learned that I don't like school. Actually," I said "I already knew that I didn't like school."

She sighs and smiles at me. "Yeah, I didn't like school when I was your age either. But now, I would rather go to school then have a job."

When dinner was over, I helped with the dishes and walked into the living room. I found a nice warm blanket and took it with me to go sit on the couch. I pick up the remote for the television and try to find something good to watch. As I'm flipping through the channels, my mom walks in and sits down beside me.

"Hun," she said. "I have something to tell you." I stop flipping and turn to face her.

"I met someone," she happily said. If you didn't know, it's only my mother and I in this house. My dad left my mom after she had me because he found someone else half his age and went off to be with her. I've never missed him because you can't miss what you don't have.

"I'm happy for you mom," I say. She starts to tell me everything she knows about him. We sit there for about 20 minutes. I look at the time and tell her that I should get to bed. "We'll talk more tomorrow," I say with a fake smile.

"Ok," she says. I can tell that she really likes this guy. I head up to my room and get ready for bed.

As I lay in my bed, I start to think about the green eyed man. He was strange I think to myself. I shake my head trying not to think about it. I probably won't see him again anyway I think. I try to rid my thoughts of him and think about tomorrow. I'm going shopping with Stacy tomorrow. I can't wait. We're going to look for costume ideas for the party next week. I'm super excited. It's going to be blast. I easily drift off to sleep thinking about the party and what to wear.

BANG! I quickly open my eyes and sit up. What the heck was that!? I thought. I slowly get out of bed and tip-toe over to my closet. I slowly open it, hoping to not make a sound. I reach inside and grab my old softball bat. I tip-toe back over to my door and slightly open it. I lean over and peek into the hallway. I don't see anything so I open the door wide enough for me to fit through. I head out and move toward the stairs. I walk around slowly and silently with the bat held up poised to swing. I head down the stairs and hear rustling around. I take a right and head towards the kitchen. As soon I turn the corner, I let out a scream.

"Ah!" I yell. Someone else is screaming too.

We both stop. "Mom!" I say. "You scared me half to death. I just lost five years." She looks at me and smiles.

"You always over exaggerate, sweetheart. Why do you have a bat?" she looks at me curiously.

"I heard a bang," I say. "I thought someone was in the house."

She looks at me apologetically and says, "Sorry about that. I dropped the pan. I was making pancakes." We go to the table, sit and start eating. When we're done, I help clean up and then head over to Stacy's house.

"LINDSEY!" I hear a screech as soon as I get to Stacy's driveway.

Stacy is bolting towards me. I brace for impact but it doesn't come. Instead, she is bending over with her hands on her knees, panting.

"I...am so.....excited," she says in between breaths. She looks up and then stands up straight. She lets out one final breath and then says, "Let's go shopping." I look at her oddly and then we climb into her car.

When we get back to her house, I help her with her bags. I left mine in her car so that way when she drops me off I'll already have them packed in the car. We head up into her room and place the bags by her closet. I plop down on her bed and sigh. Shopping with Stacy takes a lot out of a person.

"So guess what I heard?" she says.

"What did you hear Stacy?" I ask.

She always has the latest gossip. She has her own website that updates students on what's going on in the school. When she hears something juicy, she posts it on her website. She then goes around and interviews people in the school to get more input.

"Well," she starts. "There's new students starting school on Monday and I heard that they were all hot. Their names are Rose, Mark, and Seb-"

"Wait!" I say as I sit up. "Sebastian?"

"Yeah," she says. "How did you know?" I stare at her with shock. They're going to our school?

"I met Sebastian in the library yesterday and he was with Rose and Mark."

"Why didn't you tell me?!" she shouts.

"I was going to but, I don't know." She looks at me sternly.

"Were they as hot as everyone says they are?" I burst out laughing.

As soon as I'm done with my laughing fit, I wipe my eyes. "Yeah," I say. "I guess you could say that." I think back to when I saw them. They all look like models. I didn't like the feeling that Sebastian was giving me though. It felt uncomfortable. It was giving me the willies just thinking about it. "It's getting late and I'm tired. I'm going to bed," I say. I yawn and get up to brush my teeth and put on my pajamas. I head over to the closet and pull out some blankets. I make a bed on the floor and lay down. I instantly fall asleep.

The next day, I head back home. It's now Sunday and I have chores to do. When I walk into my house, I see a note on the refrigerator. My mom left for work already. I go up the stairs and take a quick shower. When I come down I look at the list of chores that my mom has left me. Vacuum, dust, do the laundry, and do the dishes. I'm not usually someone who complains about chores like most teenagers do because this is how I pay for my phone bill. I get $20 a month for doing my chores. Basically, my mom hands me a list of chores every Sunday. If I don't do them, then I don't get paid. If I don't get paid, then I can't pay my phone bill. I would look for a job, except I'm too busy with school and with my volunteer work at the animal shelter. I know how cliché that sounds, but hey, I like doing it.

After my chores are all done, I head out to the animal shelter. They've already decorated it for Halloween. Oh! Halloween is in three days. If you didn't know, Halloween is my favorite holiday. I love being something that you're not for at least a night. Ding. I hear the doorbell ring. I walk over and look out the peephole. What is he doing here? I thought. I open the door. "Hello?" I ask.

Sebastian looks at me and says, "Sorry. I was driving around and saw you go into your house. I wanted to ask you to go the party with me this Friday."

Um, that's not creepy, I think sarcastically. "Um...sure," I say.

"Ok great," he says with a smile. "I'll see you then," he says as he walks away.

"Ok," I reply a little confused.

"Lindsey, it's Friday," says Stacy.

"I know," I say happily.

"My costume is amazing. " I push open the school doors and head into the parking lot. I look around for my car and as soon as I see it, I head toward it.

"I'll see you tonight," says Stacy excitedly. When I get home, I do my homework and get my costume and makeup out. I want to look really scary. This year, I'm going as a vampire. My dress is a short form fitting red dress that goes about mid-thigh. Over the dress is a long half sleeve black lace dress with a black vest. I also have black lace sleeves that go from my wrists to right above my elbows. I matched it with black heels and a blood red necklace. After I put that on, I check the clock and see that's it's almost 7. Jeez, I thought. How long does it take me to put on a costume? I walk over to my makeup bag, grab it, and hurry to the bathroom. I start to layer my eyes in black. I put on my black eyeliner, my black eye shadow, and my black mascara. Then, I apply dark red, almost black, lipstick to my lips. I then place the fake vampire teeth on. I bought the expensive ones so they look real. I take one last look in the mirror then head out the door.

As soon as I get out of my car, I hear the loud blaring music. I text Stacy and tell her that I'm here. I start to head into the party when I see Rose and Mark. I don't see Sebastian though. Oh my goodness! I totally forgot that I was going with him. I decide that I'll just wait it out and see if he shows up. Then I need to apologize. I look around and find Stacy on the dance floor. I decide to go over and join her. I started to dance to Monster by Meg and Dia. Fitting, I thought. When the song's over, I go to get some water. I grab a water bottle and feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around and find Sebastian there.

"Hey," I say. "I'm so sorry for leaving you. I totally forgot that I was supposed to come with you." I look at him apologetically.

"It's alright. As long as you came right?" he jokes.

"Yea," I say a little relieved that he isn't upset.

"You look great," he says.

"Thanks. So do you," I say. He's also dressed as a vampire. "Those look so real. Where did you get them?" I ask as I reach up to touch his teeth. He hisses and leans back before I can touch them. "Sorry," I say as I shrink back.

"No I'm sorry," he says. "It's just a little weird to have someone's hand in your mouth."

I look at him, laugh and say, "yeah, I guess it is."

"Hey. Do you want to go to somewhere quieter to talk?" Sebastian asks me.

"Sure," I say. We head into the office. I sit on the desk and he sits in a desk chair.

"It's good you're sitting down for this," he says. I look at him in confusion.

"Is everything ok?" I ask.

"Yea," he says. "I just wanted to tell you something. "

I look at him and say, "Go ahead."

He takes a deep breath and says jokingly, "It's funny you dressed up as a vampire tonight." Now I'm really confused. I look at him waiting for him to explain. He looks me in the eyes. I stare captivated. "Lindsey," he says. "I'm a vampire."

I start laughing hysterically. "You're kidding me right?" I ask a little out of breath.

"I wish I was," he says. I look at him a little worried. His eyes turn red and his fangs are already out. "Wha-What-Oh my- ahhhh!!!" I yell as I turn to run for the door. I try the handle but it won't open. I turn around right as he lunges for me. I quickly dodge him but not quickly enough. His nails scratch my arm and I scream in pain. "Ahhhh! Someone help me!" I know the music is too loud and no one is coming to help me. I hide under the desk and find a pen. I reach around and stab him in the foot. He barely flinches. He bends over to take out the pen and that's when I head over to the wooden chair. I break the leg off of the chair and make a stake. He's already up and moving toward me. I use my martial arts skills and sidestep him. Then I reach around his leg with my foot and kick him behind his knee. As expected, he falls to the floor. I jump on his back and pull his head up by his hair exposing his neck and chest. I shove the makeshift stake into his undead heart. He then disintegrates into black ash. "Aw man," I say. "I really liked this costume." Unfortunately, the sleeve on my dress is ripped. I guess it gives my costume more affect. Especially, since it has my blood on it from the scratch.

I walk out into the party and hope that no one has seen my disheveled appearance. I start looking for Stacy but instead find Mark and Rose. "Hey guys," I say. "Enjoying the party?" Hopefully they don't suspect anything. Mark smirks at Rose and then in a flash, is behind me, covering my mouth with his hand, and is dragging me backwards. I struggle and try to get free. I know it's not working so I try to pry his hand away so I can scream for help. It's no use. I get dragged into a dark room. I feel the hands slip away. I then feel a little pinch on my neck. I reach up and feel a lock of spiked hair. Oh my gosh! He's a vampire too! He's drinking my blood! I struggle free and put a hand to my neck. I look at it but it's too dark to see. I can feel the sticky substance though. I place my hand back on my neck.

I run around the room trying to stay away from Mark. "Please," I say. "Just let me go. I'll leave you alone."

He hisses at me and says, "You killed Sebastian. You're not getting away from here alive."

My face pales. I start to back up when I run into a desk. I feel around and find that it's the desk from when I was with Sebastian. I'm back in the office! I know exactly where I put the stake. If only I could get to it. Mark lunges at me and I jump out of the way. I'm closer to the stake and start to run towards it. Something tackles me from behind and I fall to the ground. He latches onto my neck again. Good, I thought. This will distract him for a while. I reach for the stake. I can feel myself weakening. I scratch it across his face and he jumps off. I turn around and lay on my back. He grabs my wrist and tries to take the stake. I drop it into my other hand and stab him in his cold, probably black, heart. He instantly turns to ash that falls all over me. I close my eyes as it falls into my face. Yuck, I thought. I wipe my hand over my face and feel the ash on my hand. I get up and go out to the party again. This time I find Rose alone on the couch talking to her friends. Oh great. Am I going to have to kill her too? She looks at me and I can tell she knows what the ash is from. She stands up and runs, at human pace, out the door.

Now, I go home and hope that she'll leave me alone. I know that's not going to happen. I killed her family, or friends, whatever you want to call them. Now I just have to wait. This time, when she comes for me, I'll be ready. I just wonder how they got here. Then it hits me. Vampires are real. This is insane. They are supposed to be scary Halloween characters that people talk about around the camp fire. I should stark writing down these questions that need to be answered. I'll do that when I get home though. Right now, I'm just going to enjoy the fact that these vampires are gone and dance.

Please Believe Me

Jordan Owens

Why is this idea so bad? I would like someone to tell me. It's not every day that you hear something like this. It's only an idea. I say it would change the world. No one believes it's true. Only I do. I'm all by myself in this. Some days I'm fine. Others I'm not. If only I had a friend with me, someone who knew what I was talking about. I need a person on my side. I need them with me through all of the bad days. I need someone who believes me. If only they were real.

I'm Dayton. My friends call me Day. The thing is...I only have one friend. Her name is Zoë. She is my best friend, my only friend. I'm a sophomore in high school. I'm the kind of person that people don't want to be friends with. I sort of, blend into the crowd. I'm not very tall. I'm around five foot six. I guess I would say that I am fairly skinny. People don't whisper about me or anything like that. I just don't get noticed. I'm like a chameleon. I blend in to my surroundings.

I walk into school and immediately find Zoë. She is waiting by my locker. She always gets to school early. I don't. I like to have a little bit of freedom before I come here. I absolutely hate school. "Hey," says Zoë.

"Hey," I reply.

"So," she says.

"I was wondering whether you wanted to go to Mason's party this weekend."

Before I get to say my answer she hurriedly says, "You never go to the parties that people have. You don't want to go and I want to go with you. You always complain about school and how you have to come here. This party will get your mind off of school. Do it for me? Please?" I shrug my shoulders and say I'll think about it. I know that I am already going to say no. I always do. I'm just worried that Zoë will leave me alone to hang out with her other friends. She is the only person I would talk to. I am very anti-social.

At the end of the day, my idea pops into my head. I still haven't told Zoë about it yet. I'm afraid that she wouldn't want to be my friend anymore. I know I shouldn't think like that but I just can't shake the feeling of nervousness when I think about telling someone. I am actually going to tell Zoë tomorrow during lunch about my idea. I'm really nervous. I know she would believe me. I don't actually believe in my idea. It's just a silly little idea. I'm not going to do anything about it. It's just that I have been thinking about it a lot lately. Zoë is my friend she would understand. She'll help me figure it out.

"Zoë," I say.

She turns to me and says, "Yeah?" "I have to tell you something," I say nervously. She can tell.

She shouts, "Oh my goodness! You're pregnant!"

"No, no!" I say. I tell her my idea and analyze her reactions. She only has one and it's a blank stare. Then she smiles at me and then looks down at her food. She takes a bite and looks at me again.

"That's great," she says. "I wouldn't think too much on it though." I am so glad she is still my friend. I look down, relieved.

The next day, I heard everyone whispering and laughing as I passed by. I was trying to think back to the days before and see if I did anything wrong. I didn't do anything drastic except for tell Zoë my idea. She wouldn't. I ran to go find her. I look around frantically and find her talking with a group of girls.

I approach them and say, "Zoë? Can we talk for a minute, privately?"

"Why would I go anywhere with you, freak?" she says with disgust.

"Did you tell everyone my idea?" I accused.

"Of course I did. I just didn't know how much of a freak you are," She says. I go to class with the murmurs and laughter following. People part for me. At least I can get to class faster, I think with sadness.

It's just me. My friend ditched me. Why would she ditch me like that? We've been best friends for a long time. I just can't believe that she would actually do that. For the most part, everyone made sure to steer clear of me. I am once again alone. Just like when I was little. My parents died in a car accident. That's what the doctors say at least. They were alive until they got to the hospital. That's where they died. The doctors couldn't save them. The cause of death was listed as a car accident. I know that's not true. The cause of death was really failure to save. I don't blame the doctors. They did their best. I have a feeling however that if it was personal; they would have tried even harder.

After my parents died, I went to live with my aunt. She had a family of her own and didn't want me. That is how I ended up in foster care. I wouldn't call it care though. No one likes me there either. I don't know what I did, but I do know that I would be sorry if I knew. I know I'm not a bad person. I guess no one has taken a liking to me.

The next day, at school, I sit at lunch thinking of my idea. Maybe I should do it. Maybe I shouldn't, I don't know. I do know that it's crowded here and I can't think. I get up, dump my tray and go through the glass doors. I start to head to the park. I find a spot under a shady tree and park my butt down.

It's just me and my idea. Everyone knows what it is and disagrees with it. I don't care anymore. I finally made my decision. I think about how I can start. It's going to be hard. I just need to know how long it's going to take. I know I won't want to do it anymore later. I want to start now. I'm going to make a house for kids who are in foster care. It's going to be big and available for anyone in foster homes. If people don't like the house that they are staying in, they can come to my large house. I sigh and lean back on the tree. This is going to work. Trust me.

Find Him

Jordan Owens

I sit rigidly in the bus seat. My leg is shaking up and down. I have my bag packed next to me. It has everything I need. I have some money, clothes, and my fake ID card. I look out the window constantly, trying to find police officers. I don't think they suspect anything yet, but when they do, I'm not going to be there. We stop and I look up suspiciously, hoping it wasn't a police officer. Instead, it's a man with worn down clothes. He walks down the aisle and stops right by my seat.

The man looks strange, dressed in dark green and black. He looks around 6 feet tall. His faced is aged, and I can tell that he is at least around 30 years old.

"Yes?" I ask nervously. I'm hoping he doesn't recognize me. He just stands there staring. I turn slowly and look out the window. I hear a rustling noise next to me and when I look, my bag is on the floor and the man is in the space next to me. I look at him strangely. I'm still fidgeting.

"What are you?" I ask. "Some sort of detective?" He still stares blankly at me. "Well if you wouldn't mind moving, it'd be much appreciated," I say snidely. He still looks at me. I huff and turn to the window again.

We pass a few towns and he is still here, in my seat, on the bus. He pulled out a book about a mile ago. I glance at the cover and see that it has an alien on it.

He caught me looking and gruffly says, "They're coming you know."

I look at him strangely and ask, "What?" He says again, "The aliens, they're coming."

I look around and find that we are the last two on the bus. "Um, are you alright?" I asked.

"I'm fine," he says. "Humanity isn't." He stands up and looks around. He sees that the bus is empty. "I told you," he says. "It's already started." He then goes to the front of the bus and talks to the driver. This man is crazy, I mutter to myself.

He goes to the back of the bus and starts rambling.

"They're coming," he says. "The aliens, they wanted to colonize here first. Humanity took over Earth and they are coming for revenge. I have a message." He looks directly at me. I see that his eyes have glazed over. "The demons will rise on the 5th of October. Beware, the fire will fall, the screams will be heard, and the blood will be spilled. The smoke will be black. The food will be gone, and the water will be scarce. No one is safe. No one can help. Everyone will die. Your bodies will rot and they will take over. Humanity will die." He walks up to me and I start to tremble. He bends over and looks me in the eyes. The glaze from his eyes is gone. He hands me a note. His eyes glaze over again. He stands up straight and walks to the front of the bus. He talks to the driver again. The driver pulls up to the curb and opens the door. The man looks back and nods his head at me.

I open the note he gave me. His handwriting looks like scribbles. It's barely legible. The red ink is all over the page. It looks like his pen exploded. I try to make out the words. It says, don't harm the savior. Solve the problem. You're haunted by your demons, you run from safety. They're coming. No, they're here. They watch. They study. They plot. It's only him, The One. Find him. Don't let him get away. He's your last hope. I look out the window as we drive by. The man is frantically yelling into his phone. He then stops talking midsentence and turns toward me. His eyes are wide, his mouth is open, and he looks frozen in place. I get a sinking feeling in my gut and watch him as we continue to move forward. The man then starts to talk into the phone, his eyes still on me. The bus continues to move and the man gets smaller and smaller until I can't see him anymore. I take a sigh of relief and lay my head against the cool window. That was weird, I think to myself.

We stop again and another man comes on the bus. He is wearing a black police officer suit. I take a peek and make sure he didn't see me yet. I'm pretty sure he didn't so I slink down under the seats, making sure I don't make a lot of noise. He walks to the back of the bus and I slide forward, still under the seats. I continue until I am near the entrance. I find that the driver didn't close the door yet. I'm grateful for that. As I'm about to bolt out the door, a hand grabs me from behind. I let out a yelp and try to scramble away. I turn around and see that the man isn't a man at all. He looks...terrifying. My heart beat speeds up even faster and the blood drains from my face. Mason, I hear in my head. We've come for you. I try to break away from his hold but his grip is like iron. I close my eyes and pass out.

As I sit up and open my eyes, I notice that I'm moving. I take a look around and find that I'm on a bus. I look over the seat and towards the front. No one is there. The driver and all the passengers are gone. I take my bag and start to get up. This is a perfect time to make a run for it, I think to myself. I get up and bolt to the door. I run down the stairs and hide behind the bus. I peek around and make sure there aren't any cops. When I make sure it's clear, I bolt to the other side of the street. I hear something rubbing in my pocket as I'm running. I reach in and pull out a note. It's the one that man gave me. I look around and find a trash can. I run towards it and throw the note away. I look around again and start to run. Mason............

Missing Assignment

Jordan Owens

"Alright team. Gather anything worth looking at and name them as evidence," says the chief.

He looks around the scene and finds the body under a white tarp. The paramedics are here and have already named the body dead. The chief looks around the room and finds many things wrong with it. Some of the desks are turned over and the pictures are ripped. Pens and pencils are all over the floor. He looks around some more and finds the investigator standing in the corner surveying the room. The chief walks over to him.

"There are signs of a struggle," says the investigator.

"My team is picking up some evidence if you want to go look at it. But remember; don't touch it, "says the chief.

The investigator looks back and says, "I know."

"Please. Please don't hurt me," the girl cries. "I'll do whatever you want, but please just don't kill me."

The investigator feels discomfort and holds his head in his hands. He looks around hoping that no one saw. They didn't. For that, he was grateful. No one needs to know what he can do. If anyone saw him, he would have to lie. He can see glimpses of the past if he is in an area of a recent death. The oldest death he has seen was someone who has died a week before. He doesn't know how to control it. It just happens unexpectedly and on its own. He learned about his curse around the age of 11. The woman, who lived in the apartment under his, was murdered. Her name was Mrs. Feller. About two days later, he could see her screaming and struggling. It was like it was his own memory and he had lived it.

The investigator walked over to the body under the tarp. He looked at the space around the body. There was blood spread out around the body. It looked like she was dragged. A few feet away, there was a necklace charm. The chain though, was missing. He assumes it was somewhere else in the room and someone picked it up for evidence. He finds a pair of sunglasses on the ground by the teacher's desk broken. He looks around the room and finds one text book with indents in the cover. It looks like it has been used as a shield and something has been smashed into it repeatedly. There is a broken red ruler on the floor. The investigator looks closer and finds that it isn't a red ruler. It's white. It must be blood covered. He looks at the body again. The head isn't fully covered and he finds a hair clip on the side of her head broken. It looks like she was hit there. Someone must have tried to knock her out.

The chief looks at the scene. Man, it must have been some struggle, he thinks. The whole room is destroyed. He looks at the investigator to see if he sees anything unusual. The investigator is supposed to be the best in the world. He is trying to figure out how. He must have gone to the same school as someone else who wanted to do the same job. Shouldn't they have gotten the same training? He sees the investigator wince. That was weird, he thinks. He must have gotten a little headache. It's probably nothing, he thinks.

The investigator starts to write these clues into his journal. He walks to the desk and takes a look around. Why would someone kill in a public school? What was the motive? He takes out a pair of white gloves, puts them on, and opens the desk drawer. He digs around to see if anything can give him more insight of what happened.

"No one is supposed to know where this is" says a man's voice. "How is it you know?" The man advances toward the girl.

She backs away. "I-I was looking f-for a pencil and saw the bottom of the draw open. I-I'm sorry. I won't tell I promise," says the frightened girl.

" Of course you won't," says the man. "You'll be dead."

"Ouch," the investigator mutters.

That one hurt. He takes a minute to fight the pain. He then opens the bottom of the drawer and finds a flash drive.

He holds it up and says, "Can someone get me an evidence bag?" Someone walks over to him with a bag and opens it. The investigator puts the flash drive in the bag and then walks over to the chief.

"I think I found the motive, depending on what is on the flash drive."

"Good work," says the chief.

Later that week, the investigator sits in his office with the flash drive. He takes out his laptop and turns it on. He plugs in the flash drive. A sign in screen pops open. He has to put in a password. He doesn't have it yet but he has an idea of where he can find it. He has to go talk to the teacher. The flash drive was in his desk anyway. Of course he would have to know how it got there. If it's his he knows that he killed the girl. The investigator just has to have real evidence to show because he has the visions but other people don't. He has an advantage. He just has to prove it.

The investigator walks into the classroom just as the last student is walking out.

"Are you Mr. Tompkins?" asks the investigator.

"Yes," said the teacher.

"This is detective Shay, do you have a moment to talk?" asks the investigator.

"Uh, sure," says the teacher.

"Can you tell me where you were the night that Julia Crass was murdered?" asked the investigator.

"I was at home sleeping," said the teacher.

"Can you tell me what this is?" asks the investigator as he holds up the flash drive. Surprise shows up on the teacher's face that is quickly replaced with a smile.

"Why that's a flash drive," he says.

"Don't get smart with me Mr. Tompkins," said the investigator.

The teacher then walks around the investigator and says, "I wasn't being smart. I just was saying that it was a flash drive." Before he fully finished his sentence, he bolted through the door.

The investigator was chasing him through the school. The students in the hallway were screaming and moving out of the way. The teacher was fast, but not fast enough. When they got out of the school and into the parking lot, the investigator tackled the teacher.

"I am taking you in," said the investigator. As soon as the teacher was brought in, he was questioned. He thought that if he confessed to killing the girl, he would get less time in jail. He was wrong.

"Nice work," said the chief. "How did you figure out it was him?"

The investigator looked at the chief and wondered if he knew something. "The flash drive was in his desk," he said. "All I had to do was ask him what was on the flash drive."

No one knows what is on the flash drive. That is the one thing that the teacher wouldn't say. The investigator hired some hackers to look into it. The flash drive should be the motive. If the teacher confessed to the murder, why wouldn't he say why? They couldn't take him to jail yet because they don't know if it was self-defense. The investigator knows it wasn't self-defense, but that is one secret he will never tell.

Later that day, the hackers came and talked to the investigator. "Detective Shay," one of them said. "We cracked the code. These are the files that were on the flash drive in order." The hacker hands him a stack of papers.

"Thank you," said the investigator. "I appreciate the help." He walks down the hallway and goes into his office. He sits at his dark mahogany desk in his soft black office chair. He starts to go through the files. What he sees doesn't surprise him in the slightest. He knew the teacher was strange and disgusting. The only thing that was surprising was that he kept all of this information in the school in his desk where anyone could have found it. On the flash drive were files of young girls that were in his class. He had almost all of their information. You may think that it's what all teachers have. They all have a file on their students. The school may have a file on all of their students but the teachers don't have personal files. They definitely don't have pictures of them in their houses like these files do. This is disgusting, the investigator thought. I'm glad he's in jail now. He won't be able to do this again for a long time.

Liz Frazier

Paintings

"911 what's your emergency?" The operator announced.

"Everyone's dead! Oh God, please hurry!" A panic came over the phone.

"Ma'am could you please Calm down. How many are dead?"

"I don't know. I can't go back in there." She breathed in terror.

"Alright ma'am. Can you give me your location?"

"10050 Cello Drive. I don't know how long they've been dead. She's pregnant and they killed her." The women panicked.

"Alright. Police are heading your way." She reassured her.

"Have them hurry!" she shrieked before the line went dead.

Three police cars pull up to Cello Dr. at 9:23 A.M. They get out of their vehicles and are greeted by a hysterical maid. "There's blood everywhere! Go quick! See if they're still alive!" She screeched. As the police step to the scene, the CSI unit van pulls up along with the detectives. Before they get to the house they identify a mangled female with blood all over her nightgown on the lawn. They see no movement so they continue to the house. On the door step was another mutilated man face down. They enter the house and find two others. A women clad in a negligee nightgown with a rope around her neck joined her body to another victim. Both victims repeatedly stabbed. Bullet holes filled the ceiling and blood covered the floors. No movement from inside. They continue to search around the house and find nothing. They exit the house and hear a dog barking from a small guest house. They break in and find a man sitting on a couch with his dog. "Freeze! Don't move!" They shout. " Wha-a-at what happened." He asked confused. They arrest him as a suspect and take him into custody.

They take all evidence from the crime scene to the LAIS lab for testing. Detective Hernandez is assigned the case and heads over to the scene. Once he enters the house he pulls out his notepad and starts investigating. He walks into one of the bedrooms and the bed sheets are on the ground. "They must've been a struggle to get out into the living room." He commented. He walked out of the room and heard a jingle at his foot. He looked down to see a set of car keys. '1969 GTO' it read. He headed to the garage to see if they had such a car. Two car garage was occupied by two Plymouth Roadrunners. "No Grand Torino here. Hey Elvis, come here." He shouted into the house. Elvis tromped over with his mop of curls bouncing with every step.

"What's up boss?" He questioned.

"I found these in the house, near the room on the left." He showed him the set of car keys. Elvis took them in his hand and looked at the engraving on the key.

"GTO. Do you think they have that somewhere around here?" He said while looking around the garage.

"I was thinking the same thing but there's only Plymouths here. We will have to see if there's one around. Maybe these belonged to a guest." He said while turning around.

They went back into the house to check if the coroner had arrived yet. When they walked into the living room Officer Newman entered the opposite side of the room.

"Hernandez, you need to see this." He breathed.

Hernandez and Elvis followed the officer to the other side of the house. Officer Newman stopped at the bathroom and pointed to the shower. The shower was painted with blood and on the wall was written 'Die pigs'.

"Suppose they took a shower before they left?" Hernandez assumed.

"Last week we found a guy with his ear cut off with 'piggy' written on the wall. Guessing these murders are related?" Elvis figured.

"But we found a guy driving his car the next day and we took him in and found the man's blood on him. He said he was staying at Glowen Apartments with friends." Elvis added.

"Find where that is and get them out of there." Hernandez announced.

Officer Newman hurried to his car and located Glowen Apartments and headed south. Elvis found a flash drive in the kitchen sink that was soaked in watermelon juice and half eaten watermelon slices. "Looks like they also grabbed a bite to eat." He looked around and saw a police officer marking the fridge that had bloody hand prints covering it. On the counter was a water bottle filled to the brim with blood. This had to be the most horrific scene Elvis had ever seen in his time being a detective. Elvis took the flash drive to the CSI unit van and told them to get everything off the flash drive.

" Report back to me as soon as you find out what's on it." He demanded.

When he returned to the scene the two bodies inside had been removed. The blood stained floor gave Elvis the chills. Hernandez came into the living room "You ready to go to the office?" He asked.

"Yeah, let me make a quick run through first then I'll head out." Elvis answered.

He walked into the master bedroom, into the bathroom, around the corner and into a closet. He looked to his right and saw two dogs huddled together in a small dog bed. "C,mere puppy's." Elvis bent down and put his hand out to the dogs. One dog cautiously walked to smell his palm, then went straight to his feet. He picked him up and softly pets him. The other dog started moping towards him and he picked him up with his free hand. He walked out of the house and put the dogs in the back of his Cadillac. Hernandez was in the driver's seat waiting for Elvis to arrive. Elvis buckled up and they were en route to the station.

When they arrive they went to Deputy Ronsick's office. Ronsick takes photos of all the evidence and inspects all the information they accumulated at the scene.

"How's everything going Ronsick?" Hernandez greeted him.

"Not to good. The killers left no evidence of DNA. So we will have to just go off of whatever's on that flash drive and the GTO. They didn't have their keys if it's theirs so they couldn't get too far" Ronsick announced.

"Do we have scouts searching the radius of the area?" Elvis questioned him. "Yeah, Don has a crew looking for the car." He proclaimed.

Just then, Hernandez got a call on his office phone saying they found a women sleeping in the car off of 16th and the crossing and had been brought into custody.

"One down. They found a women sleeping in the GTO off of 16th street." He announced.

Right as Elvis spoke, Roger Banks busted through the door in a panic. Everyone turned his direction waiting for him to speak when Newman came beside him and said,

"You guys have to come and see what they found on the flash drive!" Everyone followed right after he left the room to the computer lab. When they entered investigator Turner spun around in his chair with anxiety on his face.

"Prepare for what your about to see gentlemen. It's violent, vulgar, and gory. "Turner spoke.

He pressed play and the screaming began. Multiple times the person filming would show his face. He had shoulder length dark brown hair, a grizzly beard, and menacing eyes. There were two others. They couldn't make out their faces but they were females. They could tell by the giggles and the high pitch singing.

"These people are insane!" Hernandez exclaimed.

"Yeah no kidding. Do you hear them laughing and singing like it's a game?" Elvis choked.

They finished watching the tape and printed 500 copies of the murderers face under the caption 'WANTED' and had them hung up all around the city of LA and broadcasted on the news.

"How stupid can you be to leave proof at the scene of a homicide?" Elvis questioned.

"Maybe they were drugged up or under the influence, who knows." Hernandez added.

"Well, that might explain it. We'll find out in no time. The whole city is on the lookout for these fools." Elvis said before he exited the room.

The next morning everyone was astound at what was on the news. 'Couple murdered in their home.' No one knew what was going on. Hernandez barged into the office yelling "Haven't we found these lunatics yet people!" He screamed.

"Sir we don't even know if these murders are related." Officer Mindy whispered to him.

"Of course they are! I just left the scene, and guess what I found there." He announced. "Blood paintings and a letter this time."

"Great, what did it say?" Elvis asked.

"'Have a nice day you dirty pigs.' That's what it said." Hernandez spoke.

"What was the scene like? Shot wounds? Stab wounds?" Newman asked in his thick southern accent.

"The husband was stabbed 42 times in the living room and had carvings in his stomach. The wife was in the bedroom with a lamp cord tied around her neck, stabbed 27 times in the back. A total of 69 stab wounds." Hernandez preached to the people.

"What was the blood painting?" Elvis questioned.

"'Death to pigs.' I guess they have some weird fetish with pigs. But this can't go on any longer. These murders have to be related. There's no way it's a copycat murder because the details inside of the first crime wasn't aired on television. It's impossible for anyone to know about the paintings." Hernandez announced.

"Newman have you had any luck with Glowen Apartments?" Elvis asked.

"Funny thing is, there is no such thing as Glowen Apartments. There's a ranch with the name of Glowen, but it might be a dead end." Newman stated.

"Find it and search it anyway. We're looking for murderers here people! If you get any information take advantage of it!" Hernandez exclaimed.

"Yes sir, I'll get right on it." Newman said while exiting the room.

"We might have found em' by now if it wasn't for that fool." Elvis laughed.

Later that day they entered the second crime scene. It almost looked the same as the other homicide but there were more blood paintings than the other. Smiley faces and hand prints were illustrated on the walls everywhere.

"My gosh." Was all Elvis could say.

The place reeked of blood and death. They collected all evidence and returned to the office.

When they returned Newman ran to them both with a smile. "Come ere' boys. Got something for ya." He said as he led them to the confession room. They looked through the glass and saw the shaggy man they had wanted. As they studied him, the man turned towards the men and gave them a sly smile.

"How can he see us?" Newman asked confused.

"He can't, this is a one way window," Elvis stated. "He's probably just crazy." He snickered.

"We arrested five others. When we got there they were washing their clothes and grilling. It's like they had their own community or somethin'." Newman stated with a strong accent.

"A bunch of hippies is my guess." Elvis said while entering the interrogation room and received a ghastly look.

"I'm detective Khuen" Elvis spoke as he adjusted his tie.

"Ah, and you must have some questions for me." He spoke in a manipulative tone.

"I most definitely have some questions for you." Elvis stayed calm.

"Proceed then." He gestured toward Elvis.

"What's your name, huh?" Elvis spoke to the stranger.

"You'd like to know that much, wouldn't ya?" the man answered.

"I need to know why you killed those people and taped it like some savage. What was your motive?" Elvis kept a calm tone. He wouldn't answer Elvis. He just stared at him with empty eyes.

"Who are you?" Elvis said slightly irritated. He stared at Elvis with a blank face. Then without warning he jumbled his face in bizarre expressions.

"I'm a tramp, a bum, a hobo. I'm a boxcar and a jug of wine and a straight razor... if you get too close to me...Nobody." He whispered with a foolish tone.

"Cut the nonsense, what's your name?" Elvis said quickly before snapping.

He chuckled before he continued. "My name is Chauncey Grey, son of Charles Grey." He finally answered.

"Now Chauncey, why'd you do it?" Elvis eased onto the topic.

"You should be asking me what I didn't do." He began his rant. "See, I'm just a musician trying to get a name and I happened to pick up a few folks on the way. I'm just trying to be a decent human by giving them a home, a family. We've all affiliated over the years we've been together; you could say we're the Grey family..." He bantered before being cut off.

"Chauncey, I don't know where you're going with this. Why don't you just answer my question?" Elvis told him clearly irritated. Chauncey sat there motionless and silent, not giving him an answer. Elvis waited a few more seconds for a reply before he exited the interrogation room.

"He is definitely crazy." Elvis said to Hernandez, who was watching Chauncey from the window.

"And what a name," He chuckled, "Let's ask the others some questions." Hernandez said to the detectives in the room.

"Wanna go to room two and talk with her?" Elvis held up a mug shot of a tired looking female with thin hazel hair.

"I think I'm going to write a few statements then I'll be in to watch." Hernandez said.

"Yeah, give me all the work." Elvis laughed heading to the other interrogation room. Hernandez returned to his office and continued the statements. Suddenly, Newman slammed through the doorway frightening Hernandez.

"Newman, you really need to work on your entrances." Hernandez breathed.

"Sorry boss, but you won't believe what's happening." Newman gushed. Resulting in Hernandez standing up and rushing out the door and down the hall to room two. He looked through the glass window and saw the female was a chatterbox. Giving Elvis detailed information left and right. Thrilled, Hernandez chuckled aloud.

"This case is done and closed." Newman said all smiley.

"This case has just begun. Yes we have insight but that's all we got. There could be another accomplice, we never know. But this is a great start." Hernandez smiled. Elvis thanks the girl so kindly for her honesty and exits the room.

"Wow, I cannot believe that just happened." Elvis looked stunned in the doorway.

"You did great in there man. I wonder why she was so truthful." Hernandez speculated.

"She was definitely doped up. She said before the murders they took the legendary trip. Chauncey brainwashed all of them saying he's God and what not." Elvis sighed. Hernandez sat there chuckling at the women through the window and said, "Well all is done my friends. Our work here is done."

Liz Frazier

Strange Encounter

It was a chilly October night when I ran to the local bookstore. I was looking for a copy of The Grapes of Wrath for my American Literature class. I walked into the store to be greeted by an aged woman with sock curls and a wool vest. "Hello honey, anything particular your searching for?" she questioned sweetly. "Um yea, I'm looking for The Grapes of Wrath novel." I said with a questioning tone. I have always been the awkward-shy girl that says everything as a question just because. She nods her head and leads me to a room in the back of the store that had an aroma of old books. "So many books I'm in heaven." I laughed. "Are you looking for a job darling? I would be glad to give you one. You seem like a decent gal." She offered. "I might actually take you up on that offer, but I'm so busy with school at the moment. Maybe in December?" I asked. "Sure thing darling." She said as she handed me the novel. "Oh thank you so much Mrs. "I trailed off hinting for her to tell me her name. "Call me Ada." She smiled. "I'm Violet, pleasure to meet you Ada." I said as I turned around. I started to walk to the front of the book store until I looked to my left. There were stairs to a basement covered with books. "What's down there Ada?" I shouted. "Just more books, you can take a look if you'd like." She said. I made my way down the noisy steps and into a dark room. I felt the walks for any light switch but didn't succeed. "Oh, you'll have to walk a few feet and there will be a string for the light." Ada shouted for me to hear. I walked forward and stepped on a pile of books. Almost falling I regain my balance and continue for the string. As I'm waving my hands in the air like a maniac I finally find it. The room is illuminated and I flinch at the brightness from the one light bulb. Down the row I see more strings. Me being scared of the dark goes down the row to turn the lights on. The isles are filled with books most on the shelves but also on the ground. I slowly creep down the last isle and at the end there is a black curtain. Curious I walk towards it. So much agitation is building up in me as my heart beats at its peak. I place my hand on the curtain and rapidly move it to the left. I couldn't see anything. I take out my phone and turn on my flash light. More rows of books is beyond I could see. I search for the string for the light again but couldn't find it. Maybe there was a switch for this room I thought. I went back to the wall and feel for it. Still not finding it I decide to be brave and just use my flashlight. Walking down the aisle I notice these books seem much older than the other older books. Intrigued I stop and got closer to one book on the shelf.

I slide the book off the shelf and brushed the surprisingly massive amount of dust off. Diamond Sutra was the title. I flipped through it but was unable to understand any of it. I closed the book when a cold hand settled on the small of my back. Terrified I froze in my skin. "And who might you be?" A grizzly voice uttered behind me. My heart is beating at its peak frightened with curiosity of what will happen next. "W-who are you?" Was all I could mutter out. "That's not important." He spoke in a husky voice. I felt my hair sweep off my left shoulder to my back. Then I felt a sucking sensation on my neck. I dropped my phone but the flashlight luckily still laminated the room. This can't be happening. Who is this freak? Why is he doing this? So many questions are running through my mind I have no time to think of what to do to get out of this situation. Ada is too far to hear my screams. "She won't hear you." He read my mind. I yanked my body forward but only to be turned around to face the monster. Surprised, it wasn't a monster, it was a beautiful boy. His brown ash hair swept over his for head and his pale cold complexion radiated off his skin. I gasped for breath forgetting to breathe. "What are you doing down here Violet." He spoke. "How do you know my name!" I silently screeched. "I know everything," he smirked "you need to get out of here." He muttered. I tried moving but was held down by his ice cold figure. "Then let me go!" I shoved his chest with my hands, but was still. He was strong as an ice berg. "Who are you?" I questioned. "I'm Tate, nice to meet you. But seriously, you don't know what lives down here. Get out while you can." He said as I pushed through is hold and ran for the door. "Tate my phone!" I yelled back in the dark. I saw a dark figure come toward me praying it was Tate. "Here ya go darling." He handed me my phone chuckling. "What happened to you? Why are you down here?" I asked. "I live here Violet, don't you get it?" he asked. Confused I didn't answer. "Get out!!" Tate screamed over and over. I stumbled over all the books in the aisle running for my life. I finally reach the stairs and hurriedly stomped up the steps into the main book store. "Aye Violet, you okay down there? Interesting down there ain't it." She asked. Gasping for breath I spoke "I'll take the job."

Liz Frazier

The Bus

At 8:20 the bus pulls up. I step on and make my way to my usual seat in the 6th row. When I sat down in my seat, I notice an old man with thin glasses and a white beard, in what seems the 2nd row, turned fully around in his seat, gawking at me. I decided to get a quick look at the next case I'm working on. After I open my folder, I sense someone standing over me. I look up and see the man watching me as I look through my papers. I quickly close my folder and ask "Can I help you?" He hesitantly answered "May I have the seat next to you?" he smiled. I looked around the very nearly empty bus and gave him a questionable look. "Um sir, was the seat you were just in not suitable for you?" I asked. "Nah, actually it wasn't missy. I'd like to have this seat right here." He firmly stated. "Well my stop is getting very close. So would you mind waiting until then?" I offered. "Nah, I told you I wanted this seat. That means I want this seat now!" he raised his voice. "Sir what is so special about this seat? Can you please just sit down next to me or find another seat? I am not moving." I softly mimicked his tone. He leaned in close to my face with menacing eyes and whispered "Oh missy, you're gonna wish you didn't do that." My body trembled out of curiosity of what he meant. He sat in the seat across the aisle and continued to glare at me with a sly smile. I have never been this creeped out in my entire life.

After a few minutes he stands up. Walks to the back of the bus, then immediately to the front. He hastily paces back and forth. While I watch in confusion more people catch on to his strange acts. When all eyes are on him he starts chanting some strange languages. I wish I could understand what he was reciting. But when he started speaking French I understood. Translated he said "stop the bus! Or this lady will feel my wrath!" Panic filled my body as he continued to chant in other languages. "Stop the bus please!" I shouted to the bus driver. We jolted to a stop and he sat down in the seat across from me. Not moving, he looked to the front of the bus acting like nothing had happened. "Didn't you want off sir?" I questioned him kindly, not wanting to freak him out again. He whipped his head in a quick circle then gave me a grim look. "Nah missy, I'm fine right where I am." I turned back to my open folder on my lap trying to get my head straight. What is wrong with this man? Is he crazy or mental? Does he need help? So many thoughts were rushing through my mind at this moment. The bus driver continued to the next destination. When the bus started moving the strange man leaped out of his seat and sprung up and down. I had never seen and elder so active before.

Everything you are about to read you have already read. I did not finish it. After a few minutes he stands up. Walks to the back of the bus, then immediately to the front. He hastily paces back and forth. While I watch in confusion more people catch on to his strange acts. When all eyes are on him he starts chanting some strange languages. I wish I could understand what he was reciting. But when he started speaking French I understood. Translated he said "stop the bus! Or this lady will feel my wrath!" Panic filled my body as he continued to chant in other languages. "Stop the bus please!" I shouted to the bus driver. We jolted to a stop and he sat down in the seat across from me. Not moving, he looked to the front of the bus acting like nothing had happened. "Didn't you want off sir?" I questioned him kindly, not wanting to freak him out again. He whipped his head in a quick circle then gave me a grim look. "Nah missy, I'm fine right where I am." I turned back to my open folder on my lap trying to get my head straight. What is wrong with this man? Is he crazy or mental? Does he need help? So many thoughts were rushing through my mind at this moment. The bus driver continued to the next destination. When the bus started moving the strange man leaped out of his seat and sprung up and down. I had never seen and elder so active before.

Liz Frazier

Think Before You Speak

I was sitting on my bed that had newspaper covering every inch. I was finishing my art project last minute. I always put school related things aside. When I didn't try, my art turned out really nice most of the time. Luck I guess? I was finishing the lily pads that I put my own twist on and my boyfriend Zac walks into my room, almost resulting in me jumping into the wall. "Hey what's up lady" he laughed as he saw my reaction. Catching my breath I tried speaking. "You scared the air out of me" I started laughing. He went to my television and flipped on Netflix and put on our favorite show, Bob's Burger's. He quietly sat on the ground while I continued painting. He always comes over to watch my TV or sleep. When he's bored he comes over to eat or whatever. My mom really likes him so he does whatever.

He gets up and walks out. Confused I look at my door and watch him turn up the stairs. A couple minutes later, I hear him tromping down the stairs laughing to himself. I have very good selective hearing. He walks in and hands me Mt. Dew and sits back down on the ground. "What were you laughing about?" I asked him wanting in on the joke. "Your mom is nailing your bro with questions, and when I walked in she got all sweet and nice. God, I love your mom. She's so nice." He peeked over the bed and I giggled. "Are you almost done with that?" he asked me sweetly. "I'm trying to add as much detail as I can. This is due Tuesday and I just started." I sighed. "You always push your assignments till the last second." He said. "And you never do your assignments, so shut up." I snapped back. "Whoa there, I was just saying." He said defensively. "So was I." I spoke.

He continued watching Bob's Burger's and finished about four episodes. Zac started talking about his weekend he had with his friends and I was so into my painting I blocked him out. I love listening to him talk but I wanted to get this project done soon so I could actually spend time with him this Sunday night. I didn't say a word the whole time he spoke. Maybe a few "mmhmm's and yeah's" but nothing serious. I got up and sat my painting on my easel so I could go to the bathroom. While I was walking to my door he said something. I didn't think anything of it so I continued walking to the bathroom. When I got back, he was in the same position he was when I left him. He also started his rant about his weekend were he left off.

I crawled back on to my bed and pushed all of the newspapers to the floor. He spoke in a questioning tone and I looked towards him. He gave me a look and I snapped into reality. "Did you ask me something? I awkwardly questioned. "Yes Liz, I've been talking to you the whole time! Have you even been listening?" he heatedly asked. "No, I just want you to shut up." I whispered. When I looked up at him he just stared at me with hurt in his eyes. "Zac I didn't mean it. I'm just so tired, I'm sorry." I pleaded. "No, it's fine. I should get going anyway." He said while putting his jacket on. "Zac please don't go." I called after him, but he was already up the stairs. I ran after him " Zac lets relax and watch a movie or something." I said as I grabbed his arm. He wasn't having it so I forced him to hug me goodbye. "I'm sorry..." I muffled into his neck. "Bye Liz." Was all he said before he left. I stood in the foyer heartbroken by what I had done to him. He would've never said anything to me like that. I watched as his car pulled out of the driveway and a few tears escaped. I thought of all the ways I could apologized but nothing kept away my guilt. I was so mean. Were supposed to be best friends. I'm supposed to listen to what he has to say not push him away. I put my issues before him and it wasn't even a big issue. Sleepiness gets the best of us I guess. But what I had learned from my mistake is that you always need to think before you speak. Or else the people you love will be hurt and upset with you.

Lauryn Romero

One cool October night

One cool October night I was getting ready for a good night's rest. Just as I snuggled under the soft down comforter, I heard a noise. I quickly darted out of my bed and crept toward the door. As I slowly turned the knob and gently pushed the door open, I shrieked with horror when I saw.....

A guy dressed in all black with red power shot eyes holding up a fake bloody knife I said "can I help you with my door cracked half way open? '' he said trick or treat with him standing up tough and bold. " I don't have any candy why did you come up to my house anyways if my porch light isn't even on. I was getting ready to go to sleep until you had to come up and knock on my door? "It doesn't make sense do you have anything to say while I'm standing here. " I knock on houses that don't have porch lights, because I like to go out at night on Halloween and scare people because it's funny to me and its funny seeing people's reactions on their face.

"Well I don't see anything funny about this there are some people who are trying to sleep you know Halloween is a night where people dress how they want and go to peoples porches that actually have lights! So go and get out of here I'm trying to sleep you don't understand you literally scared me half way to death when I was snuggled up and finally getting comfortable.

Soon after I told him to go he said I will be backing you watch it miss? "oh really don't come back because for one I don't even know who you are and who you think you are coming up on my porch scaring me while I am getting ready to go to sleep it's not right Halloween is about going to people's houses to get candy they bought for all the people not scaring people because there are kids around and I'm pretty sure they would appreciate if you gave them nice manners.

"The next day I got a call from the lady and she asked if I would volunteer handing out candy tomorrow night at the local church I said sure I would love to but I have to go tomorrow to buy a load of candy for the boys and girls I will be there by 6:30 pronto. "Okay thank you said the lady on the phone".

That day has arrived and I was getting the butterflies in my stomach because I was so excited to give these kids candy and see what they are for Halloween this year I had a big smile on my face because the time has gone really fast and it's time for people to come out and start going trick or treating I was sitting on a chair with my legs wrapped in a blue fluffy blanket all cozied up.

"a kid came up to me dressing in an all-black suite, with red power shot eyes my face was shocked because I knew that a guy dressed up in this suit had the same colored of eyes came knocking on my door yesterday around midnight I quickly asked "excuse me but is your father around and did he dress up for Halloween this year?

"Yes mama, he did and he likes to go around and try to steal peoples stuff, also he likes to scare people to no one likes him because he has no manners or respect towards any ones property.

"okay, I see your dad was the one who came up to my door at midnight scaring me and he told me he likes to scare people now I'm scared that he's going to try to break into my house and steal all the great and good things in my home I'm scared to go back to bed now because of him, "but thank you for telling me I just thought I would have to ask because you looked very familiar to me."

The night has gone and over with I had a really good time passing out candy to the little boys and girls and that night I went to my car there wasn't anyone around just a dark night out on the second day of Halloween and I was scared because I might see something spooky I don't want to see but I was fine getting into my care and driving home.

I grabbed my house keys to open my front door I heard a strange noise so I creep about and didn't see anything I was starting to get scared so I hurried up into my house and turned on all the lights in my house so that way someone knows I'm home and won't try to break in I tried to stay up as late as I could but I couldn't because I kept hearing noises I started shaking really bad because I'm scared something is going to happen to me tonight and even when I go to bed I won't be able to go to sleep because of what that little kid told me and people told me everything bad happens on Halloween.

I decided I wanted to go to bed so I left some of the lights on in my house and I left the television on in my house because I felt more comfortable that way so I went to bed and someone was knocking on my window my heart started pounding and I was so scared I wanted to burst into tears cause I didn't know what to do. I cracked open my curtain and there he was standing with a fake bloody knife. I thought to myself I have to go out and tell him to leave me alone so I put my shoes on and opened the front door slowly I closed my eyes and open them there he was.

"Can I help your sir he didn't reply so I repeated it again "can I help you sir? He started walking towards me and I'm here shaking really bad and in panic.

" he started yelling out me and told me I better pack my things and move because I don't belong in this house because he told me his once loved on use to live in this house and he doesn't want anyone living in this house because the evil spirits could haunt me I just started laughing and told him I didn't have to because I pay rent on this house and I don't have to move out if the land lord says I have to move out then that's only time I have to move out.

"he stared at me in silence I said I would appreciate if you would leave me alone because I can call the cops for being on someone else's property and trespassing so I would really appreciate if you would back up and leave me alone because basically you were trying to scare me and tell me mixed signals about me moving out because you loved on lived here he decided to put his house up for rent so basically you can't do anything about it.

"He turned away with low shrugged shoulders and dragging his fake knife on the road and until then I have been sleeping safe and sound and no one has hear or seen him again because I confronted him about it.

The final day, of the ending week of October I ran into this lady at a local store shop she looked at me and said "mama" where you the one who was harassing my husband on Halloween. " I stared at her as if she crazy and she didn't know what she was talking about but while I was staring at her I was thinking maybe she is talking to me about the guy who told me to pack my things and move." I said who mama who is the person's name you're trying to tell me that I have confronted...??

" his name is Daryl Harrison he is my husband and every Halloween he likes to come out and scare everybody and he likes to take things out of peoples home I'm certainly from the nursing home "mama" they let me out to go buy some food to take back to the nursing home every Halloween or holiday but I don't come out as much because I been depressed there last couple of 15 years because my husband that use to live in your house died from a brain tumor he couldn't no longer handle it because he couldn't take care of himself he has passed away in the home your certainly living in and our son was 12 years old when he passed away he had passed away from cancer.

"Oh so you're telling me that your husband and son are dead but when I see them they looked like normal human being so I was communicating with spirits you can't see is I right mama.

"Yes you are certainly right I could tell it scared you I communicate with both of them because they like to do things around the house to let me know that they are still around here.

"Wow! That is just creepy I was communicating with two ghost spirits on Halloween and they are messing with me because he loved one us to live here which was you but why did you move out for?

"Because we go a divorce but we got remarried again so were together so next time you better watch on the next Halloween for you little lady there is more to come for you and have living in that house where ghosts will haunt you until you move out.

"I walked away from the lady who looked possessed there has to be something wrong with this family I have to get out of here because if I wait too long there ghost spirits are going to keep haunting me because I live in a haunted house and I can't take it anymore and the scariest part is I was communicating with ghosts on Halloween who looked like normal human begins.

A month later I moved out of my apartment upstairs I decided to live in a small town outside of Texas it's so much better now but I feel like I keep seeing ghosts spirits but I don't want to think too much because maybe I'm wrong.

That night I got settled in bed. I dozed off and I had a really scary dream. I had a dream that no anyone can imagine, but I had a dream that I became one of the spirits because I lived in a haunted house.

I woke up with my heart pounding I can't take it anymore so I watched some TV to get stuff out of my mind so I don't have to think about it anymore it helped a little. I thought to myself let me go to bed and try this again. I got in my blankets and dozed off again I didn't have any dreams I was just over reacting all I have to say is wow! what a Halloween this year and never again will I go back to that house or even see that house ever again I don't want anyone telling me what's going on in that house because trust me I once lived there and I'm never going back because the people who lives in there now can deal with the ghosts because I already got away with it and then they are going to realize that, maybe that house isn't haunted to them but when they see that it is then they are going to want to move out of it and not live there anymore.

The Day It Changed My Life

Lauryn Romero

Someone who was later important to me would be my aunt and my uncle who are from Minnesota they come recent to visit us every holiday. I don't really get to see them at all because I am really not around to visit them.

They came around in the summer, and I got to meet them and I was so happy because they are really important to me, and they have been there for me when I was just a baby. I love them with all my heart, and when they around I feel like a big piece of my heart is going to explode. They mean more to me than what they did when I never knew about them until my grandma told me that they are coming to town to visit the family.

When they come over they spend the night at my grandma's house for 2-3 days , because they have to get back to their grandkids who need them but every time they leave I always miss them like crazy, because sometimes they can't make it down here on time and I'm only wishing one day my whole family can go take a trip down there and visit them, because they are always coming down here sometimes every few years to visit us and it's about time we do something for them in return, because they do so much for us and they appreciate what we do for them and we appreciate what they do for us.

They are a piece of a puzzle to our family. They are the ones who keep our who family smiling during the holidays, because they are always having stories to tell us about what they do down in Minnesota. It's always a funny story but then sometimes it's a sad story, but mostly funny stories. When they are here we like to eat out with them and go to the stores and buy some cookies take it to the house and bake them and then we eat them. We watch movies curled up in our blankets and watch them all day and night with the family.

When it's time for them to go home we like to celebrate as in take them out to a nice fancy restraunt and just sit around eat, talk, and laugh about how they are going to spend their Christmas down there with their grandkids. My uncle and my aunt have become important to me since the day I have met them, they have meant a lot to or the past 3 days I have spent with them. It's been a while since I have contacted them or talked to them because they like to come on the most random days or holidays because the last time they come here would have been during the summer and they had only stayed here two nights, and they had to go back home because they had their grandkids to worry about and they come here to out Monticello and to visit us and to keep in touch with us.

They always ask how we are doing and every now and then she will call my grandma and ask how we are doing and set up a date to where her and her husband can come down here to see us and the rest of the family because they Aare family to and they want to visit us all the time but sometimes they have the time to do that because they are always busy but I love when they come down here it just means everything to me and love them with all my heart and it's never going to change even if can't see them when I want to or talk to them when I want to.

My Bus Adventure

Lauryn Romero

I was the girl who sat in the back of the bus and I was looking at the window and seen a guy in a marine suit, it gave me an idea that he just came back from the marines. He started walking in the aisle of the bus looking for somewhere to sit at on the bus he was walking towards the back where I was sitting, and he came up to me and he was nervous but after all he looked at me and said " May I sit with you if you don't mind. I said "of course why not and smiled really big showing my white teeth. He appeared to be 200 pounds and smelled really nice he was good looking but he was only 6'2 he was very tall. He took a book out it was stacked with pages in the book it was titled "Marine Course 2015" I couldn't believe how big it was he turned and looked at me and asked "have you hear or seen this book"? I said "no sir I have not why you ask?"

He looked at me and smiled and said " oh okay I was just wondering" he told me the book was about America and how we get our freedom to American and how we even face the struggles in American such as difficulties and how we solve them. He told me they solve it and I just sat there and listened to him knowing it brought tears to in my eyes; because I could listen to him talk all day about the marine course of America. I said "why won't you stand up in front of everyone on this bus and give a speech about your book and tell them about America who cares what anyone is going to say or thinks about you I think you will do a good job. He stood up tall and bold and toke a big deep breath out and in about 4 times and he looked over at me. I smiled and told him "you can do it I know you can just stand up and talk to them about your book and how it progressed America.

He told everyone if they can give their attention for about a couple of minutes before anyone gets off they all looked at him and smiled, because they knew he was a marine and he told every "Hi my name is James Over Meyer and I'm here today because I just came back from the war in Iraq and I want to tell you guys a little about my adventure and about the book that I brought alone with me in my luggage.

"James continued his speech and he finally ended he told everyone thank you for listening to him give his speech everyone was wiping tears, and clapped loudly, because they are thankful for a marine like him in our world who would share anything with anyone. As soon as he sat down, because we was almost at our destination he looked out of the window on his right and seen a big sign it said "WELCOME HOME JAMES!" he started crying and we continued on the bus route and here came another sign it said " You're getting closer to seeing us"! He was excited he was feeling happiness in his stomach.

We arrived at the route and he handed me a note before he got off it was a note that he had wrote me from those times I wasn't paying attention to him on the bus while we was writing but he wrote about his adventures of being in the marines it was about his everyday thoughts and what he was doing everyday it was pretty much a diary that he wrote he looked at me and "smiled". "I want you to have this because you are a very nice young lady who let me sit with you and treated me with full respect and all honesty I truly trust you and I want you to read what I thought it was like every day being a marine and how had we worked as a marine to fight for our freedom for American and all the families that are in America thanking us for what all we had done for the,. I looked at him and said "thank you so much I will read this when I get home I appreciate your time and your speech you gave us all you are very well nice man with full honest respect. Again thank you so much I appreciate it. As of them he continued to walk to his family with a big grin on his face, as I left his family looked at me and waved at me and that day is when my life turned into one big happy ending.

Investigation in Russia

Lauryn Romero

Once upon a time there was a guy named Norman West yes that's me! I am 20 years old really tall about 6'2 really buff and bald and I wear glasses. I am a young executive for an internet company meaning that I work in the police office and guy who detects what is going on in a servaliance camera outside the buildings and other places in town such as local stores or local supermarkets.

I work for a guy who is about in his late 30-40s he's big, has brown short hair appeared to be about 5'7 tall. He's really nice his name is Mike Ford he is a chief of police of a large eastern city located in Russia in the far east the town seems to be about a big wacked out town, named Vladivostok the population seems to be about 594,701 of people.

It seems to be that mike ford has another partner who works 2 jobs one he works a job like I do checks to see what people are up to in the town/city the other job he works at a bread bakery making less money than what he does when he works in here with us making more money than his other job.

Shawn Harmon is about 30 years old but is known to be a petty white-collar thief who has robbed mike several years but mike doesn't know any proof that he did it so he still works here but me and mike were having a simple conversation between and among the both of us were going to put cameras in his office and where Shawn sits to see if we think it's true about the things we have heard about him.

But I haven't mentioned another thing about mike he has a k-9 dog she appears to be trained, tall, mean, and her name is Penelope she is about 7 years old she is really grown from the last time we seen her but she is a crazy dog who loves to hunt down the bad boys and the thief's.

But the next day when I got done introducing the characters to the new people in the office, me and mike sat down in his office around 7:30, because he hasn't had any calls yet, but when we looked over there was Shawn who walked in with his suite/gear on and went to go sit at his desk me and mike looked at each other as if there was something going on with him because every morning he would come up to us and say "good morning my dear fellows. But we let it go and see what else happens today with Shawn me and mike have a feeling that he kind of knows what we think he is and he has some guilty conscious about it.

Penelope we usually let her out because she was to go use the restroom outside so I take her out while mike toke a phone call at his front desk I seemed to see that Shawn went out to take care of personal business.

I heard a strange noise in the back of the police office right where Mike sits but behind the building. I might see something I'm not planning on trying to see I kept thinking to myself maybes he trying to break in mikes office and steal something, maybe he's just angry and taking his anger out on something that might be going on at home I have no clue I have to go check this out and not make it obvious to where he can see me creeping or spying on him.

So I leave Penelope on her leash and I slowly start walking towards the noise and I'm getting closer as I go and my hearts pounding because I don't know what to expect when I'm trying to see what Shawn is up to I slowly creep over the corner! And I can't believe what I was seeing..........

I closed my eyes and opened them back up because I thought it was maybe a dream and I was over reacting! But I wasn't I ran and got Penelope! And I told her go get him! She quickly ran around the corner and Shawn was lying on the ground scared and in a panic mode.

I looked at Shawn and said "that's what your wanting to do are you serious? Who does this and why in the world would you want to do that in the first place and just know that I'm going to tell Mike and be scared since you are already, because I don't think you're ever going to come back and are you serious for not thinking that we have cameras everywhere and we can see the footage of what you was trying to do I hope you really know that right?.

I toke Penelope and I grabbed Shawn by his collar of his jacket and went inside and mike was in his office mike looked at me and told me " what in the world is going on" I looked at Shawn and told him to explain he refused to .

Mike looked at me and I said if you want to know what was going on I don't know if you want to hear it cause you will be disappointed in Shawn and I'm going to tell you one thing Mike I don't think he's ever going to come back here and I'm going to tell his other job what he did here and he's going to lose all privileges of even having a job anymore because I don't think anyone wants to trust him after what he did thinking he could get passed us about being sneaky in the back of the building huh!.

Shawn looked at me when tears have dropped to the floor. "are you going to tell him Shawn because if you're not I will tell him and it's not going to be pretty either, Alright Mike I was standing outside with Penelope because she has to take care of business . I heard a strange noise and I went to go check it out but Penelope was on her leash in the front of the building and I went to creep over in the corner and there was Shawn.

I ran to get Penelope and when she went around the corner she started sniffing something as if someone was being sneaky she toke him to the ground and I told him what in the world was he thinking.

Now I'm going to tell you what he was doing he was breaking in your back office with a huge hammer and beating and busting private property and when I went to go ask him questions he was refusing to why he was breaking in your back office for?

Next day was gone by and Mike called the bakery and told them what Shawn was trying to do because he was trespassing private property.

The bakery said that they are going to fire him because they don't put up with that kind of stuff anymore and why in the world would they want a guy like working for them and they told us that it wouldn't be the first time he has done that to mike because someone told her that he is a thief around here and everyone watches and keeps a close eye out on him even the cops do to because people have reported him stealing money from all his bosses when he works at a job.

Shawn hasn't come around for a while but a girl said that he seen him with over 100, 0000 dollars and mike went to go check his drawers and it wasn't there he had called the undercover cops and told him to go catch him because he had toke off and robbed mikes money that he had kept there under some reasons but he doesn't know how he knew where the keys were unless he had some of his own that fit the drawer.

The cops finally caught up to him and they told him to not move I was watching this out of the window of the front office and he refused he started to take of running but he said it wasn't worth it no more he's already in deep trouble.

He slowly started walking towards the sheriffs and put his hands on the cop car they pulled out the money and gave it back to mike and mike was upset that Shawn had been robbing him over several years now and mike said it made him wonder how many times he tried to get away with it but he couldn't cause either him or I was around.

The cops finally arrested Shawn and we didn't have to worry about him anymore we kept the office secure and safe so that way no one will try to break in and mike doesn't have to worry about his money being stolen. I was the one who still works for him and the rest of the people in the office who are only there during the day time but this happened at night time.

This was on the new and they said that he has no current bond on him and will serve several long miserable months in jail for breaking and entering private property.

Of All Things

By: Kellyn Harrison

I was sitting in the second seat from the back on the right side of the city bus, staring out the window trying not to pay attention to the mold growing underneath my purple paisley converse shoes. It was when I was getting ready to pull out a book from my Panic! At The Disco bag that we stopped and he got on. He had a button up plaid shirt tucked into faded blue jeans and cowboy boots peeking out underneath the bell bottoms. He had a face that could open the gates to heaven; it was pentagonal with cheek bones that caved in like the Grand Canyon and eyes that sucked you in to their blue depths. But his smile was nonexistent. It was almost as if all the joy was ripped out and laid out on a silver platter. Noticing that the seat I was sitting in was the only seat left open he sets his duffle bag on the ground and sets down almost defeated not before giving me a curt kind smirk. He then pulls out a book from his bag named The Tale of Two Cities. It was then that I noticed the looks of his duffle bag; it was a camouflaged bag with an army seal adorning the side pocket. There is a name plate sewn underneath the seal with the name. N. Blackthorn labeled on it. After studying the name for a few seconds I became curious and wondered what this mysterious man's story was and why in the world is a man like him reading a classic by the most gruesome Charles Dickens.

"What's your name?"

"Nathaniel Blackthorn. Why?" he asks without looking up from his book.

"No reason just wanted to know why you are reading Charles Dickens."

"He explains my past and my present." he said almost as if he recited it from a script.

"What is your story?" I ask with my returning curiosity.

"My story?" he asks while looking up at me with slight caution and uncertainty.

"Yes your story. Like who are you and how did you get here?"

"Why do you want to know?" still using caution.

"Well take it from my perspective. You are a handsome man that does not smile, is reading a Charles Dickens novel, and has an army duffle bag. I'd say your story is much more interesting than mine. Plus we are sitting on a bus layered with mold and nothing better to do. It is your choice whether or not you want to tell this time worthy story." I answer with impassiveness.

'What is your name?" he asks with new found interest.

"I am Celeste Mary-whether and you handsome are not going to change the subject." I answer with a smirk.

"Fine I will tell you my adventurous and explicit story, but I warn you it can get gruesome; I will try to skip those parts-"

"Oh, please don't, I wouldn't want to miss a single detail" I interrupt him.

"It was the year of 2013 and my family was living in poverty. We were living paycheck to paycheck trying to keep the house and everybody fed. I being the oldest had the biggest responsibility. Since my single mother worked night and day shift only having three hours of sleep, I had to wake up my little sister, make breakfast, do her hair, get myself ready, make her lunch, and get dinner ready for that night. In case you were wondering, I did have a job; I went while May, my little sister stayed after school for a few hours. We ran a tight schedule and stuck together through thick and thin. It was five days before I graduated that the army recruiters came to our school and set up their stand. I had decided that night that to really provide for my family and bring home the extra cash we needed was to join the army, so that day I had signed up and got my pamphlet for sign up and training. It was a two days before I needed to leave that I had told my sister and mother what I was doing. My mother being the overprotective person she is forbid me to go and cried her eyes out in my arms while my sister being the strong one in the house, stood in the doorway giving me the evil eye. I knew I was going to get the smack down later that night. And let me tell you I did. It was the hands on the hips and stern tone that had me smiling and laughing. She didn't take it too well, of course, but she understood my motives and made me breakfast, lunch, and dinner the next two days, me complaining and arguing the entire time. Sometimes I forgot how old she actually was and how fast she had grown up. She was 13 at the time. When I left I made sure to make mother and May breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the entire week. I would have left May something to remember me by, but I couldn't afford anything.

Throughout the 2 years I had sent and received many letters between both my mother and May but suddenly they stopped coming 4 months into my second year. I had grown anxious and worried so much that it cost me. My team and I were riding in one of our Hum-vees when we ran over one of the land mines. I woke up in a hospital with a new leg and three other deaths. It was when I got home four weeks later that I had found out why the letters had stopped coming and why they weren't at the hospital. They were ran over and killed in a car accident."

"I have been floating through life ever since; going back to Iraq every year." He finishes.

"Wow, I was right your story is more interesting; although you skipped over the explicit parts." I say with mock disappointment pouting my bottom lip.

"I guess. I just wish that it wasn't interesting in that sequence. Plus it was bad enough talking about my deceased family." He answers suddenly dejected and tired.

"Well know you can build off of that and make a happier story. I would say sorry for your loss but a man like you probably doesn't like to accept pity." I answer while placing my hand on his shoulder.

"I guess. Thank you by the way I needed to get that out-"he says, getting interrupted by his cell phone.

"Hello"

"Yes"

"No, I am sorry sir I just got back; you are going to have to contact somebody else."

"Ok yes, I understand perfectly."

With that he snaps his phone shut and lays his head on the back of the seat. I cringe remembering how dirty the seats must be.

"What happened?'

"They want me to go back but I declined."

"Good for you." I answer proud.

"Stop 47" the bus driver announces through the intercom.

I look over to the mysterious and selfless man beside me not wanting to get off.

"This is my stop." I say.

"Same." He says.

He then slides out of the seat and turns around to grab both his bag and my bag effortlessly.

"Thank you." I say, with scarlet cheeks.

I then climb out of the seat and off the bus. When we are off I turn around and look up to see a sincere smirk gracing his face. My breath catches and his smirk turns into a small smile. He then hands me my bag and turns around to walk the other direction; without another word. Standing there until the stop is deserted I finally go home.

It was when I unpacked my bag that I found the note.

Let's meet again. A cripple like me needs a girl like you in his life.

Call me: XXX-XXX-XXXX

So I pick up the phone the next day and call the mysterious man that will share and build his story with me; however long our stories may last.

Sometimes you are the nail

By: Kellyn Harrison

When I wake the first thing I notice is being strapped to a dark mahogany chair. The leather straps cutting into my arms and legs, making ringed marks on my skin. As I look at my surroundings, I notice that I am in a dark room with only a large steel door in the far corner of the room. In front of me is a dainty little table holding a long lit candle and an ancient looking book flipped open.

All the sudden I am pushed toward the table and when I turn around to see who did it, there is nobody there; only the shimmering of the air enveloping the empty space behind me.

"Do it", I jump to the sound that is projected so close yet so far away. Confused I ask the mysterious voice, "Do what?"

"Do it" It states again, almost monotone. After he says that the book is pushed closer; the candle following.

"I don't know what you want me to do!"

All the sudden a hologram appears next to my head; showing my family knocked out and strapped to chairs.

"If you don't they will die", the monotone persists.

I then take a look at the book, noticing that it is titled Binding Spell first.

Not knowing what it is for and not caring, I close my eyes and pretend to do some weird magic junkie thing. When "done", men in black leather jackets, sunglasses, black jeans, and matching shoes march into the room. At the same time the same men walk into the holograms picture and unbind my family and I. Instead of giving me a plate of food like they did to my family, I am shackled by the arms and dragged against my will to a white sterile room. When we walk into the room I am then again strapped into a chair; a tray piled with different colored needles. A man wearing scrubs grabs one of the needles and before I can say let alone do anything, the needle is plunged into my left arm; the man all while giving me a confusing small nod. I then look down to see myself losing oxygen, my whole body turning purple, and before I go, I hear "You've seen and heard too much."

-

Potent smell was what woke me up. The stench of moldy food and rotting bodies invading my nostrils. I leaped up and took in my surroundings, but the only thing I saw was rust and green paint, and garbage layering the ground. When I hear three loud bangs on the side I gasp and then quickly stifle it.

"Hello? Hey blockhead I know you are in there and awake. I hear you moving." an unknown voice says almost bored. With that I slowly and silently peak out and see a teenage boy sitting along the wall his legs crossed one over the other. He was wearing dark jeans, vans, a leather jacket, and a maroon shirt underneath. His face was almost triangular; eyes as blue as the ocean, and hair a dirty blonde color; hanging over his tan forehead. He was looking at the ground concentrating on something across the alleyway.

"You know I can see you right." After I don't say anything he gets up while saying, "Alright I think you have been in the dumpster long enough." He then picks me up like I am a toddler instead of the eighteen year old I am. So when my feet are finally on the ground and I go to take a step, only to fall; I say thank you when he helps me up.

"No probs. We better get you to headquarters anyway. You need a shower badly."

"Thanks." I answer sarcastically; failing when it comes out hoarse because of the lack of speech over the last couple of days. But in response I get a tiny twitch of the lips.

-

When we stand outside the "building"; I become very on edge because it was then when looking at this shack without one single non rotting board placed correctly, not to mention located in the middle of the desert that I not only question my motives but the boy's. I mean I wake up in the dumpster with a mysterious looking boy waiting outside to take me to a shack that can barely stand upright. When he walks up to the door I hesitate because I don't feel comfortable going with him alone in a dark place where nobody can hear me if I scream. Sensing my discomfort, the boy turns around exasperated and gives me an impatient look all while letting out a puff of air.

"Are you coming" he asks.

"Why should I?" I answer defiantly.

"Because if you don't come in by sun down the coyotes will eat you alive and then the vultures will be there by morning to clean up their mess." He answers almost bored.

"Then I will turn around and go back the way I came." I shoot back crossing my arms, lifting my chin, and turning my back toward him.

"Fine, I could care less. It's not my life you're putting in risk." he finishes while turning around and going through the slightly ajar door.

Instead of giving in and following him; I huff still keeping my arms crossed and sit down, leaning against the one board that looks stable.

-

It was sun down when I let the fear take control of me. The mysterious yet infuriating boy's words circling inside my thoughts and what finished it off was the every so present howl of a nearby wolf calling to its pack. When I hear another howl for the sixth time I jump up and stealthily slip through the door.

The inside was as empty as it looked on the outside. There was a water basin on my right I am guessing for showers and a large pile that looked to be food on my left beside a ladder leading to the top floor. Still suspicious and cautious; I carefully place my foot on the first rung to see if it really as sturdy as I thought it was. When I didn't go crashing to the floor I tentatively climbed the rest of the way till I reached the top. The next floor had the same darkness and layout as the bottom only there where different sections with a make shift "bed" placed in the middle. The only thing that stuck out was the small dim light at the end of the hallway. So when I walked quietly and carefully toward the light I started to hear hushed voices; one male, two females, and the other was the boy who brought me here.

"Is she still out there?" the man asked.

"Last time I checked she was." The boy answered bored.

"When was that?" he asked exasperated.

"Probably an hour ago."

"Miles! We need her to get rid of them. You know this and yet you don't want to help. Don't you want to get revenge for what happened to your mother or did you not care then like you don't care now."

After that the place was left in silence, not even the slightest hint of breathing. That is until something soft came up and startled me causing me to scream and tumble to the ground right in front of the door making my presence acknowledgeable. This causes everybody to whip around and stare at me shocked except for Miles.

"See I told you she was okay. Nothing to worry about." He said.

"Shut up." The other man said. When I take a closer look toward the man I feel as if I know him. He has brown slightly grey hair pulled over in a comb over and small round glasses over his hazel eyes. It was then looking at the way he holds himself that I realize I do know him.

"Hey I know you!!" I start while pointing my finger at the middle of his chest. "You were the one that knocked me out making me wake up in that stupid dumpster while having this doof over here waiting on me doing who knows what."

"Okay first of all I am not a doof and second I was actually patiently waiting there from the very beginning." He says slightly proud of himself.

I then whip towards him feeling my anger rise. "Then couldn't you at least grab me out of the dumpster!"

Miles than raises his hand and backs off feigning surrender. After that one of the girls I had not noticed before comes up and grabs me by the shoulder carefully and leads me out of the room saying,

"Come on, let's get you washed; then we will talk about this whole scenario from the very beginning."

-

After I get washed, dried, combed, clothed, and relaxed I am ready to face the jerks that decided it would be a good idea to knock me out, throw me in a dumpster, and bring me to the middle of nowhere. So when I walk into the room to see Miles leaning against a post; one leg propped on the wall; smirking at his nails I become annoyed again. But deciding that he is not worth it I stifle my frustration and walk over to the table the other guy was sitting at and pull out a chair.

"Ok, let's get this over with. I don't plan on staying long." I say.

"Well let's start from the very beginning before you were born." He starts.

"Before the great WW III the United States gathered people from all over the states and tested to see if they contained a certain gene that would help end the war and keep everybody in peace afterward. Your grandparents were tested and came back positive. After that they were trained for 6 months to become stronger not only mentally but physically. They were the leaders; they kept everybody sane and pushed everybody to do better for the sake of their country. But little did they know it was all a hoax. The groups called "illuminati" finally finished their training and were ready to change the sake of human kind for the best. When they got on the platform and started; they realized that the force was a lot stronger than they anticipated not 2 minutes into it the weakest died, so they tried harder. When your grandparents realized that there was no hope, your grandfather pushed your grandmother off of the platform; without knowing he save your mother's and your grandmother's lives."

"How do you know this?" I ask.

"I was the one running the program and stopped right after your grandfather not realizing till then that it was stupid trying to stop the war through supernatural forces." He said with disappointment.

"How do I play into this?" I question.

"There were men in my group that did not want to stop the force thinking that your grandmother could finish it and were not happy when I let her go. So they want to retry and decided that they would test your mother and you. Your mother passed, but you- you passed the test at a score of 110%."

"So they wanted to use me, for something I didn't know I had and could most likely kill me?"

He nods.

"So why is he here?" I ask pointing toward Miles.

"His grandmother was also tested and died. She had his mother before she went to finish the mission. His mother was tested but died when he was 13. Two years ago, the same men barged into his home; killed his father and almost took him, but Miles took karate and knocked the guy out before he could get to him. We took him in when he proved his worthiness."

"Why do you want me?"

"You are more powerful than your grandmother and grandfather was you are their weapon and we cannot let them get their hands on you. We are going to get your help and destroy them and stop them from actually ruling the world and killing everybody in their path."

"And how will I do this?"

"We are still planning that out. Miles can you go fetch Missy and tell her to get dinner ready."

I then looked over to see Miles push himself off of the post and head to the first floor. Deciding that I have no reason to be in the room and also because I felt like punching someone or something; I leave in a hurry, only to be stopped right when I jump from the ladder by two large hands on my shoulders. It turned me around and I screamed before it pushed me against the nearest wall, and when I look to see who it was I get even more angrier and bite the hand he has over my mouth.

"Miles! What the heck!"

"Shhh, I wanted to talk to you."

"About what" I say rolling my eyes.

"Don't listen to him or anybody else. I am getting you out of here and we are heading north. These people just want to use you the same way as they used your mother. Trust me I have been with them for 4 years and I know that what they are planning is nothing good."

"And why should I trust you, you have been nothing but rude to me."

"I know, but listen remember when he said that when those men came to my apartment and was going to take me, well when I looked in their pockets they had a card with the same organization as these people and the others. I was going to leave, but when I heard about you; I knew I couldn't leave you like I did my mother." He says, and at that moment I see a flash of something; the first emotion besides indifference since I first met him.

Feeling pity, I answer "Fine but we have to destroy these people first, because there is no way I am going to run for the rest of my life."

"Don't worry about that I am already devising a plan and it involves you and an air shaft."

"Oh really and where are you going to be through all this?"

"Right behind you; saving your butt when you fail."

"Yea, Ok, more like I will be saving your butt with my bad mind skills."

"You don't even know how to use those." He says teasing me.

"You wanna bet?

"No I don't want you to hurt yourself."

"More like you don't want to get your butt kicked."

"Ha-ha, funny." He says while moving out of the way. I follow him only to trip on a bucket; and before I hit the ground he catches me; and it was at that moment that I realized how gorgeous he really is. The sunset reflected through his blonde hair, almost making it look translucent. He then leans closer, our lips only centimeters apart, but it was the clashing of pans that broke us apart, and then my body hit the ground except for my head; Mile's hands where still clasped together underneath it just inches from the dirt layered ground.

"Jerk" I say.

"You weren't saying that a few moments ago." He retorts while helping me back up on my two feet, smirking like he stole a cookie out of the cookie jar.

"Shut up" I answer with scarlet cheeks and a slap to his chest.

-

That night when snores fill the shack; I sneak out of my cubby and scurry across the hallway towards the door at the end of the hallway that Mr. Smith the older man uses as an office. When I get in; I quietly jog over to the desk in the far corner and search the drawers; it wasn't till I met the third drawer that I found it. There in the middle were newspapers, photos, and symbols that were hard to decipher. One of the symbols I did recognize though; it was a triangle with an eye in the middle, and just from that one detail I knew that the people I was working with were liars because Miles was right and we are too late because when I hear a loud knock from the door I know that I have been caught and there is no way out.

"What are you doing in here?!" Mr. Smith hisses at me.

"I just wanted to find more information about my family" I say innocently, but it ended with a squeak because two large men clad in ran in and charged towards me. When they were only from me I grabbed all the documents I could hold and ran right under their arms only to have one of them grab the back of my jacket, but not caring I keep running; causing the jacket to rip and me to follow, falling to the ground. When one of them grabs me, Miles and Anne (the maid) run into the room to take in the scene before them. Not thinking twice, Miles runs towards me only to be pulled back by the other man; Anne running from the room screaming bloody murderer.

"Okay know that everything has calmed down. You are coming with us and if you try anything I that is one slash on the wrist." Mr. Smith says.

But right after he finishes that sentence, I see out of the corner of my eye Miles grab the man holding him tighter and flip over onto his shoulders resulting in the bigger guy getting his neck twisted. After this the guard lets go of me to take control of Miles; this lets me run out of the room with the papers in my hand. When I am outside of the shack, I stand there for a few minutes to see if Miles is coming; it isn't till after 5 minutes that I see him waving at me, urging me to back up. When he finally reaches me, he grabs my arm and leads me further away. When we are about 7 feet away he stops and ducks behind a large rock.

"What are we doing" I whisper

"Wait" he answers with concentration, both eyebrows pointed downward. It was then that I felt the explosion; its blast incinerating the shack and shaking me to the core. When we are stable and the Earth stops shaking; Miles stands up and walks away from the now nonexistent building. Following him; I ask,

"Where are we going now?"

"I don't know." He answers with all seriousness, and after that we walk to the future. Whether it is for the best or it gets worst who knows because whatever it is we will fight through it together.

The Introvert By: Kellyn Harrison

Sitting in a closed, bright room without a window makes me uncomfortable. How many of these people in this room feel intrigued by me? How many feel pity? I don't want their pity.

Let me tell you about myself. I am a short brown haired, blue eyed seventeen year old girl floating through high school. I read classics and I listen to Fallout Boy. I don't do drugs and I don't party. I live with my single mom and because of that I am afraid of falling figuratively and literally. The only people I will ever love is my cat, mother, and deceased father.

So sitting here in this cold and bright room not only makes me feel uncomfortable, but exposed. Especially when you have a senior staring at you like you're the last bucket of water in a hot desert. So after taking several glances so it doesn't look like I am staring back; I see that he has a rather pentatonic shaped face with cheek bones caving in like the Grand Canyon. Not one single blemish was scarring his face and I swear his eyes were pits of gold. The only question I have is why would this gorgeous man be staring at me?

͠

After the bell rings I quickly gather my things trying to get out of the class as fast as I can, only to drop my English notebook. Before I can pick it up a large calloused hand grabs the book. When I look up, I am met with and lost in dark gold pools. Startled, I jump back knocking the rest of my books off my desk, resulting in the guy to chuckle. He then leans over to pick up the rest of my books. Grabbing my books from his out stretched hands, I mutter a quick thanks and leave without giving him a second glance.

Later during the day, at lunch, I go to stand in the line only to have golden boy stand behind me, talking to his friend. I turn back around quickly so I don't have to face him and his friends; however he notices me and smiles. Seeing that smile reminds me just how easy it is for him to charm any girl and teacher. His perfectly white straight teeth could light the entire world if he wanted them to, but I can see right through the act. That one chip on the corner of his right front tooth proves to show that even the perfect things are damaged. Smiling back for a change, I get an eyebrow raised and a brighter smile. Turning around to hide my blush, I scold myself for being so clumsy and foolish.

͠

Of course after 3 weeks of drought the skies decide to open up the one day I had to walk home. Normally I would drive home or catch a ride home with one of my friends, but my car is in the shop and no offers were made. Even though the thought of my books becoming ruined with watermarks should make me worry; it doesn't. Instead golden boy himself has invaded my thoughts. He has staked his claim in my brain and I do not like it. How he could break all my walls with only one sweet, innocent smile is beyond me. So as I am lost in these thoughts I did not notice the Ford Pickup pull up beside me and the owner roll down its window. Turning, suddenly startled by the interruption, I look to see the last person I wanted to acknowledge at this time.

"Do you need a ride?" he says.

Staring at him slightly hesitant, I answer with a, "No, my house is right around the corner."

Not taking a hint, he states, "Well... I can drive you there; wouldn't want you to catch a cold."

Finally, letting up since he has a point, knowing my mother would not be too happy if I got sick, I answer, "Sure."

I then walk over to the other side of the truck and climb in. He looks over smiling and then takes off, all while I am in the passenger seat getting frustrated with all that has happened. Finally, when we pull in to the driveway I blurt out angrily, "What's wrong with you?!"

He looks over slightly startled and asks, "What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean! Before today you not once even glanced at me and now you are staying after class to help me and smiling that annoyingly sweet smile! Is this some type of joke formed between you and your friends because I do not think it is funny."

For a few minutes we are staring at each other trying to figure the other out like wrestlers before a match. Then he finally speaks, saying something that catches me off guard, "Maybe I just saw a very beautiful girl and decided I wanted to get to know her. I didn't think you would get offended."

Not knowing what to say after that, I simply say thanks for the ride and leave the truck; shutting the door a little more loudly than I had planned. Cringing, I stalk up the stairs and turn around only to have those metallic pools staring at me with remorse. Before I know what I am doing, I jog back to the truck and lean over the open window to place a soft delicate kiss to his cheek saying, "Thank you for everything. See you tomorrow."

Then I jog up the sidewalk, unlock the dead bolt, and enter the house. After setting my stuff down, I run over to see golden boy still sitting there with a pleasant smile on his face. He then backs the truck down the driveway, not before waving at me; him catching me staring.

͠

The next day at school, I leisurely walk to my locker only to find a note lodged in the door. Confused, I open the note reading the fine script.

Dear Melanie,

If you ever need a ride home text, call, or simply stop me in the hall.

My number is XXX-XXX-XXXX

Jay

I then stuff the note in my back pocket not planning on using it. Grabbing the correct books needed; I leave for class.

When I walk into the classroom the first thing I see is Jay sitting in the very back. I didn't mean to look his way it is just that he is staring at the door like the door was the biggest present under the Christmas tree and you were forbidden to open it. When he sees me he smiles that torturous grin all while waving me over. Looking around, I notice that the only seat open is the one next to Jay. How ironic. Not wanting to look like an idiot, I stalk over to the chair set my books in the tray below and take out a pencil from my pencil bag. It was then that Jay decides t he wants to start a conversation by saying, "Did you get my note today."

Not wanting to engage in a conversation, I say a simple and curt, "Yep."

Still not taking a hint, he asks if I need another ride home. Not wanting to be rude, I answer with an, "I don't know" and, "if I did I would use the note." (not likely). The teacher then walks into the room and starts class.

Throughout the day, I notice the one mop of dirty blonde that has become so attached to me; look/stare at me. Sometimes I will look back, raise one eyebrow, and smile, but then I will ignore him and pretend I don't notice. Not one word is spoken between us till the end of the day when the sky decides to cry again and I don't have a ride home. So I am standing right outside the door that leads to the vastness of the world that has become drenched in rain, holding the one piece of paper that has my future written out on it. Finally, realizing that it is a waste of time just standing here and I am acting like a coward; I pull out my phone and dial the number. Surprisingly, he picks up on the first ring and we listen to each other breathe for a few minutes. Finally, when he is about to hang up I snap out of my daydream and finally say something, "Uhh... hey... I need a ride."

"Melanie, is that you?" he asks.

I take a deep breath and then answer, "Yeah, do you mind, the clouds seem really sad today and it is really depressing."

He chuckles and then answers with a "Yeah, sure I will be there in a second." Then he hangs up.

After twenty minutes Jay pulls up as close to the school he could get. I climb into the truck all while giving a small thanks. He takes one look at me, smiles and then drives off towards my house. The whole drive there it was not awkward or uncomfortable, but it was the type of atmosphere where two people know they need to talk, so when we pull up into the driveway I break the silence with a "Why?"

He glances at me and then at the staring wheel not to surprised that I asked him something so vague and startling. Instead he asks, "Why what?"

Suddenly becoming flustered and aggravated, I answer, "You know what. Why all of the sudden do you want to offer a girl like me a ride home and get nothing out of it? Why are you staring and smiling at me for no reason? It is confusing and aggravating. If you want something from me, I am sorry but I am not up for being used and tossed aside. So if that is what you want, I will be on my way and do not expect me to talk or acknowledge you tomorrow." At that I start to get out of the truck, only to be grabbed by the sleeve and pulled back in.

Jay is shocked and does not know what to say, but when he does, he replies with, "Do you not want me to smile at you? I thought that's what friends do; not scowl or glare at each other. And about the staring thing, I am sorry, I couldn't help it, when a beautiful girl walks in the room or talks to me for the first time in 5 years; sure I am going to gawk and stare."

Not missing a beat I say, "You think I'm beautiful?" and forgetting that he probably has an ego the size of the solar system, I add, "Have you looked in the mirror lately?"

He laughs and says, "Well that's not the first time I have heard that, and yes I think you are gorgeous."

Unconditionally, this one statement makes me blush and look away. He then adds, "And by the way, I am not trying to use you, I am not that type of guy."

I think that over, saying, "I may or may not have overreacted. But you can't blame me, a jock like you, it is almost stereotypical."

Jay snorts and then we sit there in his ford pick-up with the rain pounding on the hood. Then he surprises me by suggesting, "Do you want to go get dinner at the diner on Main Street?"

Then what surprises me most is my answer, "Sure."

͠

It is 10:30 pm when Jay pulls into my drive way again. While we walk up the sidewalk to the front door, we laugh about how ironic it is that in the Hunger Games, Buttercup the cat had a greater chance of surviving than Prim did in a bombing. "So I guess it is true that cats have nine lives." He states.

I snort and turn to face him. Realizing that the night is over and we need to part ways, I say thank you and turn to leave, but Jay grabs my sleeve and pulls me into a hug. His large arms envelope me into a big cave of warmth, myself not wanting to leave this bizarre feeling. Jay noticing this too pulls me in tighter; if that is even possible, and says, "Thank you tonight was the most amazing night, partially because I spent it with the most amazing girl."

My cheeks redden and I snuggle my head into his neck. He then lifts my chin and kisses me ever so subtly. Not only are these golden boy's arms warm but his lips are too. When we finally pull apart I kiss him on the cheek and walk into the house with a smile on my face. Only when I am pulling up the sheets and turning off my lamp beside my bed with a pleasant smile on my face, I realized that I have lost and Jay has won. This boy with the dirty blond hair, gold eyes, and gorgeous smile has helped me get over my fear. I have fallen figuratively. «

A tragedy waiting to happen

By: Kellyn Harrison

The blood ran down his neck and with one final gasp for breath he was gone. She was left to just take it all in. Tears fell from her eyes and down her cheek. Death truly had been forgiving. She was left with only one thought...

͠

It was a Monday morning and when you walked outside you could feel the thin layer of fog stick to your clothing. There was red, orange, and yellow leaves suffocating the ground and the ever so childish hallows eve decorations adorning front yards and porches. My favorite was looking at all the overly comedic pumpkins lined up on the porches, missing the days when I would carve intricate designs over the orange shell and grope the intestines out of its center until it was left hallow and lit at night. But realizing that it may never happen again I walk by and make my way into my death sentence. (A.K.A school)

I am a well-known introvert that knows her way around town. I live a mystery and no one has yet to figure it out let alone myself. My parents and brother died by an "animal attack" while I was at band camp; making me an orphan at age 12. At age 13 I was moved into my single Aunt Jessie's modern house on the edge of town beside the ever so famous Epping Forest. Old folks around Main Street will tell you that there used to be an old highwayman and his sidekick living in a cave in the woods and now whenever people go up the hill that leads to the cave their car is said to be pulled up the hill. Now I don't believe in the supernatural and paranormal activity, but it is fun to scare the little pipsqueaks that ran as fast as they can with their little midget legs past the woods.

When I walk into the school and to my locker; the first thing I notice is my 1 year of a boyfriend splayed against the red metal with his leather clad arms crossed over his chest and sunglasses adorning his face. So after ogling him for a few moments around the corner; I walk over as smooth as I can, roll my eyes, pull off his sunglasses that he thinks makes him look cooler than everybody. When I am met with his blue irises I am also greeted with that overly cocky smirk that everybody except me loves.

"Hey" he says while encircling his arms around my midsection.

"Hey, how long were you waiting here?" I ask with little to no concern.

"Not long." He replies.

With that I turn around and reach down to grab my books for SpanishI which causes his arms to plop back down to his sides. When I get everything he takes my books and splays his hand on my lower back to urge me forward.

"What are you doing tonight?" he asks.

"I have cheer practice." I answer.

"Ok, do you want me to drive you home after football?"

"Would you mind?"

"No, but it might be later before we leave; I am going to take a shower instead of waiting till I get home" he says while turning to face me and pressing his forehead to mine. I pull away with scarlet cheeks and make my way to class smiling a small and short smile.

"Thank you for the ride." I say before getting out of the ford truck.

"You're welcome; do you want me to pick you up tomorrow morning." He asks with concern while giving the woods a quick glance.

"No, I'll be fine." I yell from the front porch. He then pulls out of the drive way and drives away from the woods when I am in the house and the door is locked.

It was later, at about 2 in the morning when my cat decided she wanted to go use the restroom outside. So here I am in my red and blue plaid pajama bottoms, black shirt, and pink slippers sitting on a bench watching my cat hunt the tall grass by the woods. But it was when I turned around for one second hearing a crow nearby and turned back around that I saw Chairman Meow missing.

"Chair?" I ask weakly while slowly rising from my seat. After I get nothing I walk closer to the woods and call for her again. When I still don't get an answer I realize that I will have to inspect the scene and follow her. I then look down at my attire and groan realizing that my pink slippers are not the ideal hiking gear, but I suck it up and follow my stupid cat into the stupid trees.

When I walk a few feet past the tree line and kick a few fallen limbs, I hear a little moaning behind me. I then turn around sharply, but there is nothing there only the wind and the trees, so I turn back around to look for my cat; only to hear the light moaning again, but louder this time. Not wanting to stay in this dang forest anymore; I run through the brush and hanging limbs only to trip over something. When I look over my shoulder to see what it is, I am greeted with the dead eyes of my cat. A long gash of red on her stomach and two puncture marks on her arm. I sit there to soak in how someone or something could hurt and kill a small, stupid, and adorable cat in a few minutes. But it isn't long after I sit there in the clearing for a few minutes saying good bye to my cat that I hear the rustle of brushes and sense the unwelcome presence of another organism.

"Well two meals in one night. I am one lucky man." The person says while moving my hair aside with its cold and pale hand. Not wanting to make a single move, I just sit there and take his taunting trying to think of an escape plan.

"Oh come on sweetheart... I won't bite...too hard." He says with a chuckle and sniff of my neck. My hand then inches toward a fallen tree branch, but of course he sees my hand and kicks the branch out of reach.

"Now I didn't want to do this out of force, but it looks like I am going to have to." He says, but not taking any chances; I bolt up and run out of the clearing, not caring whether or not I have scratches on my face from fallen branches. It was when I was three feet away from the exit that I was grabbed by the neck and thrown into the bushes being knocked out by the sheer force.

When I wake up there was a heavy pounding in my head almost to the point of breaking my skull, a dull throbbing on the side of my neck, and metallic red liquid staining my right breast. I then slowly move my hands and lift myself off the ground, wanting to get out of these tortured woods.

"I am surprised you slept so little. I thought I had knocked you out hard. Note to self: Throw girls harder into trees than cats. Note noted." The strange man finishes with a nod and wink toward me. I can't help but shudder barely remembering what happened before I was supposedly thrown at a tree. When I go to stand up, I abruptly fall back down. He then flies up into the tree line keeping his face hidden.

"Ya, you might want to lay down a bit; you lost a lot of blood." He says with a chuckle.

"What... are... you" speaking for the first time since getting home.

"That's for me to know and you to find out" he says mockingly.

I then groan and lay my head back on the rock. Trying to make sense of what is going on.

"Oh come on! Your depressing mood is so brooding" he groans.

"I am sorry my pain bores you to death."

"Not possible."

I look up quizzing him and when I don't get a glance or an explanation, I start to get nervous; knowing that silence is deadlier than the noise. When I move a little feeling uncomfortable with the circumstances, he looks toward me and I finally get a full glance of his face.

It was heart shaped with cheek bones that could cut your finger at one touch. His lips where pump and red; almost stained with plum juice. His hair finished the bad boy personnel; it was dark brown color with blond highlighting some of his roots; there was gel making his bangs stick up like the hair of a black cat. The one detail that caught the most attention was his eyes; they were as if the sun handed the angel some of its light and the angels gifted him with the suns light. I was entranced for a second until I remembered that he attacked me.

After he gave me that one glance, in a flash he was by my side and covered my mouth with the sleeve of his black leather jacket. I sat there not knowing what to do and more afraid of what he had to hide me from than him himself. But it was when another strange man came flying into the clearing that I became afraid of the vampire behind me. The other man took one look at my compromising position and then flew right at me, but never touched me. He pulled my kidnapper off and flung him across the opening causing him to hit a tree. I snicker to myself thinking that karma can really come back and bight you in the butt.

"Where have you been, and why are you torturing this kid." He asks with exasperation.

"I wasn't torturing I was just...hungry."

I then decide to interrupt, taking my chances to say, "Ahh, have you know I am seventeen. Pretty sure I qualify as a young adult." But I don't even get a glance so I sit there to listen to why and what they are bickering about.

It was after a five minute stare-down and a few growls included that the one standing up finally acknowledged me.

He only gave me a glance at the neck and said, "I want her in her bed at her house in five minutes. I will be watching." He then flew off in the direction of the hill.

"Jeesh, what's got his knickers in a twist?" I ask.

I only got a small smile in return and was lifted off the ground being carried bridal style. He seemed to be an entirely different person than the one I met 15 minutes ago.

"So am I going to turn into a vampire or something?" I ask slightly curious.

"I hope not because then I will have to carry your dead weight around." He answers with mock struggling. I just slap him and say shut up.

"How did you figure it out anyway?"

"Ohh come on... it was plainly obvious." I answer while laying my head back in the crook of his elbow and flourishing my hand.

"Well you're taking it better than most would." He says surprised.

"Well I am not like most people; I have lived next to these stupid woods for gosh sakes. By the way thank you for eating my cat she was a pain in the keister. "I say as we near my house.

"Well your welcome I guess, but all joking aside if you hint anything weird just press this and I will be there. "He then hands me a necklace with a blue gem on the inside.

We are on the front porch steps when I say, "Ok, but remember I still hate you." And with that I jump out of his arms, kick his shin for dramatic effect, and close the door; locking the dead bolt.

The next morning I wake up to a hunger. It wasn't the normal growling in the stomach hunger, but a hunger of a need. The more I lay there the more it grows as does the tingling sensation evolving in my nose. After lying there; I smell the cinnamon bun scented candle, the light dust layering the bookshelf, and the potent smell of a dead and decayed animal lying maybe three miles away. So out of instinct I fly out of the house still in my pajamas and pink slippers to the decayed.

When I get to the place I realize that I was tricked by my own annoying urges and compulsions because what was left for me was nothing but a stain of red leading into the woods. Suddenly curious I follow the trail into the woods and up the hill. When I reach the top of the hill I am surprised to be met with a cave. It was in the middle of a small circle of scraggly trees. There is a leaves scattered in front of the cave and when you walk up to it cob webs are strung in the corners. I light a match to get a closer look and see that inside there are all kinds of animals strung up on the sides; from deer to squirrel; their necks bared. I walk closer and smell their potent smell, but stop and lean over in pain. The pain flares through my jawline and the only thing I can focus on are the animals and their blood soaking through their flesh. So I slowly crawl over to a small dainty squirrel and dig my piercing canines into its thin furry muscle. When the sticky metallic juice runs down my neck and throat I feel instantly better and the needle sharp points slide back into my gums.

When leaving the dark cave suddenly satisfied I climb down the hill and stop to see a man in camping gear shaking next to the tree. He has a tree limb grasped in his hand and its sharp end is pointed at me. Without thinking I run up to him and plunge my teeth into the vein popping out of the side of his neck. When finished I look down at the body and notice the blood running down his neck. He takes one final gasp and is gone. I fall down to my knees tears trailing down my cheeks; left to take it all in. Death truly had been forgiving. I was left with only one thought... 'Where were the smelling salts?', and with that I fell into a deep oblivion.

When I wake I am in a mysterious dark room and the same man that threatened me is sitting in the corner of the room in an old rickety chair. His head is flopped over the back and he has his arms crossed over his midsection; his eyes closed. He is still wearing the same attire as from the other night the only difference is the small green ring that is circulating his middle finger. When I look down at myself I see that I am in different clothes and my hair is damp; all traces of blood are gone from my body.

Curious as to where I am I get up and out of the bed and move toward the door. When I peak my head out I see that there is nobody around and all the doors in the narrow dimly lit hallway are closed tightly. With one look back at the boy in the room and then at the hallway I take one attentive step out of the room, testing my grounds, and when it comes out soundless, I keep moving forward into the hallway. I had made it all the way to the staircase when a cold pale hand clamps down on my shoulder, causing me to scream and punch my attacker in the face, but instead he catches my fist in mid swing.

"What is wrong with you!?" I yell at the boy.

"Shhhhh. You don't want to wake the dead while they are sleeping." He says.

"What are you talking about?!"I say, but I am too late when the hallway fills with vampires.

"What is going on Jay?" a tall lanky boy says.

"I found her covered in blood beside a dead hiker" Jay answers.

"Have you gone in front of the council?" the boy asks.

"No, she just woke up."

"Then where are you going on?"

"To get some food." He finishes.

"Well before she eats she needs to be inducted. I am not sharing with a thief."

With that Jay grabs my arm and leads me down the stairs into a large corridor. With that we pass through a series of hallways only to stop at a large set of double mahogany doors. Jay then leads me into the room and what I see is a large room almost congress like that has a chair in the middle. When we get farther into the room, I see 5 men sitting in front of the chair and one bulky on the ground in front of them. After taking several looks I notice that it was the same person that threw Jay off of me the other night. As we make it to the chair I am shoved down in it and shackles are placed around my legs and arms.

It is after an hour of bickering back and forth between Jay and the other men that I wake up to Jay unlocking my restraints.

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"Congrats you're not going to die." He says. Then after that I am taken to my room where new clothes are laid and a vile of the dreaded red metallic liquid is waiting for me. But I forget all about it and flop onto the bed tears already making tracks on my white ashen face. I am going to get home one way or another.

William and Juliet By: Kellyn Harrison

There was an umbrella still clutched in her hand and a broken necklace with its pendant lying in the other. She had a compact mirror and a folded up fan in her right back pocket. Lastly and the most confusing of all she had a pair of large round sunglasses gracing her forehead.

It was later on a Wednesday afternoon at about 3:00 when I got the call. I wouldn't say that I was busy. More like I was busy thinking about what I was going to eat later that night, so the call was both annoying and relieving.

When I got to the scene I was instantly confused, not one trace of blood, hair, or DNA regarding anybody else to cause this harm. The only thing I could work with was a broken necklace and compact mirror. All the other things she had on her had her DNA on it. How this young pristine woman ever came in contact with death is a mystery to everyone.

-

"Hun what has got your mind reeling?" My wife asks.

"Oh you haven't heard? There's been a murder down on 13th street. The girl looks like she got in the middle of those brawls down by the tavern. The only puzzle piece missing is the black eyes and bruises. Real mystery I have got in my hands right now."

"Oh well a woman has no right walking past the taverns! What on earth was she thinking! Was she an erotic dancer?"

"No I don't think she was drunken ma, and I agree she should not have gotten close to that place."

"Was there any other DNA adorning her?"

"No there was not, but I did find a mix of hers and a young fella's on the umbrella she had clutched in her hands."

"Do you know what the gentleman's name was?"

"Yes, it was a man by the name of William Hansforth, but he was buried a week ago in Highgate."

"Interesting, do you think she caused his death?" she asks with sudden interest.

"And then kill herself by guilt; I somehow doubt that." I say, waving off her suspicion and finishing my dinner of pigeons in white sauce.

The next day I sit in my office looking at all the evidence splayed across my desk. The only thing that I have gathered was that Juliet Allen did commit suicide and it was by a powdered poison kept in her compact mirror. Whether it was intentional or unintentional is questionable. That and if the death of William Hansforth helped.

Deciding that I am getting nowhere, I decide to start asking questions. I end up standing in front of a large and sheik gothic house that could easily house 8 people. When I walk up the stairs leading to the front door I notice the ring that should be bitten between the lion's two jaws is missing. That's strange. So instead of using the knocker I just rap my knuckles against the burgundy oak door. After a few seconds, I think that nobody is home, but an older woman with a tight grey bun on top of her head and piercing green eyes opens the door. She is wearing the typical maids outfit and has a feather duster clutched in her hands.

"Good day, how may I help you?" she asks.

"Yes good day. Would Mr. and Mrs. Allen be home at this time? If they are not I can come back later. I just need to ask a few questions about their deceased daughter."

"I will go ask them. They should be awake and around now. I know Madame Allen was supposed to have tea with Mrs. Newman at 6. "

She moves out of the doorway letting me in and closes the door behind me before seeking out the house owners. While she does that I look around taking in my surroundings. To my left there is a family room and to my right is a dining room. In the family room a fire place mantel is flush against the far war and a couch set with chairs is placed in the middle of the room. The couch and chair cushions match the curtains with their rosy floral designs and intricate white stitching. In the dining room a long mahogany table is stretched throughout the room and dark plum chairs line the side of the table. An expensive glass chandelier hangs in the middle of the room. It was when I heard the subtle clip clopping of heels and stomping of shoes that had brought me out of my calculation and I bring my focus to the older couple coming down the stairs with the maid towing behind.

"Ahh Mr. Graymark, what can I make of this surprisingly welcome of a visit?" Mr. Allen asks, expanding his arms in a wide motion pointing out everything in the room. When looking both Mr. and Mrs. Allen over I notice that there is no sign of grieving in either of their faces.

"Well Mr. Allen I had a questions surrounding the upbringing of your late daughter's death." I answer with slight suspicion, wondering whether make up is covering the mourning or there has been no sadness making up this house at all

"Very well then what would you like to know?" he answers while sitting down in one of the plum dining room chairs, showing slight indifference.

"Well I was wondering if you knew what your daughter was doing the few days prior to her death. Was there anybody that looked shady?"

"All I know is that she would go out at about 4 o'clock every night and not come back till about 9 o'clock." He says almost limiting the amount of information to give.

"Would you happen to know what she was doing between 4 and 9?"

"Yes she was out having tea with Ms. Withrow." Mrs. Allen answers.

I look at Mr. Allen seeing a look of disgust and anger flash across his eyes.

"Mr. Allen would you like to add anything?" I ask him with slight suspicion.

"No that would be all." Mr. Allen answers with dismissal.

With the new found information I have; I decide to talk to the very girl Ms. Allen was supposed to meet every day. When I get to the sweet rosy pink house I notice that every burgundy curtain is pulled taught against each other. As I walk up to the house and knock on the plum mahogany door, I see a small finger pull the curtain away and a small red head peak one eye out. Then when she closes the curtain I hear the pitter patter of feet and a series of dead bolts being unlocked; the same red head woman opening the door.

"Hello?" she squeaks.

"Hello. Would you mind if I come in and ask you a few questions regarding the death of Ms. Juliet Allen?" I ask with all the gentleness I can muster.

"Umm.... Yes.... Yes... sure. Come in I will make some tea."

After she sets down some tea and chocolate chip cookies on the small delicate coffee table in front of the couch there is finally a word spoken between us.

"What would you like to know?" she asks obviously trying to keep the anxiety out of her speech.

"I have information that Ms. Juliet Allen would come over every day from 4 to 9. Is this true?"

"Well... yes and no. She would only come over let's see Monday and Wednesday from 4 to 5. We would talk about everyday things like the weather and Sunday services." She answers

"Is that all? Would you happen to know what she did after the visits?"

"Oh yes she said that she had to make a visit to the street corner market. The funny thing is she said it with tomato cheeks! I would always tease her about it guessing there was a fine gentleman in the equation." She answers after clapping her hands in a gleeful manner.

"Is there anything else?" I answer leaning forward.

She answers by leaning forward and whispering, "Watch Mr. Allen I believe that there was hidden turmoil in that household for quite some time."

And with that I packed up, thanked Ms. Withrow for the tea and cookies, and headed home to ma.

The next day I head to the street corner market that Ms. Withrow said Juliet went to everyday after their meetings. When I walk in I notice that there is only one employee working the front register and decide to start there. The kid had a brown comb over and blue overalls on, a small rose gracing his front pocket.

"Good evening sir, how may I be in your service?" the kid asks.

"Oh I just need to speak to your manager. Is he here?" I ask.

"Yes, but he is in an interview. We lost our best worker, died three weeks ago. Our best costumer died recently, too." He says while shaking his head mournfully.

"What was the young man's name?" I ask with sudden interest.

"William Hansforth." He answers.

"Thought so, I am doing a case on Juliet Allen, heard she used to come here every Monday and Wednesday." I say.

"Oh that's right. I think there was something brewing between those two. It was kind of uncertain because there was a thing about daddy daughter troubles and different classes."

"Ok thank you. I don't think I will need to talk to your manager. Is there anything else I might need to know?" I ask needing more information.

"No that is it, but if I find anything vital I will make sure to call you or stop by on my way to work." He answers with a smile.

Before I exit, the young man asks, "Sir we have a discount on all toiletries."

Not needing any and having limited time I say thank you and leave with the chime of the bell above the door showing the way out.

The next day, after sitting in my office gathering up all the information I have, I notice the little white label stuck to the bottom of the compact mirror.

David & Son's Co.

XXX-XXX-XXXX

Serving our society for the greater good.

When I get to the warehouse I notice that several windows are busted open and the wood bordering the outside needs replaced badly. The front door is ajar showing slight shadows coming from the inside. Pushing the door open, I peek inside only to come face to face with machinery and flipped over chairs. I notice that there is a small piece of paper lying across every surface and pick up one reading the fine print.

Caution! Poisonous

Stay away from the primacies!

Ignoring the sign I put on some latex rubber gloves and face mask making sure I don't inhale anything. Noticing small vials filled with the same powder as what was in the compact mirror, I place one in a plastic bag and put away for testing. Knowing that the powder is poisonous and very deadly I make my way upstairs to the office and start looking around for any receipts. It was the first paper in the filing cabinet the catches my eye. In his very own signature is Mr. Allen's name. All the sudden it makes since. The evil eye he was giving me and the weird sentence that Ms. Withrow told me right before I left her house. It was almost like she was pointing me in the right direction. How she knew, I had no idea. With this new found evidence, I make my way to the police to have Mr. Allen and his wife turned in for testimony.

After I contacted the police and they got Mr. and Mrs. Allen into custody, they had a short testimony that involved them telling their side of the story and me demolishing their last non- guilty pleas. Later after they were hand cuffed and put behind bars, Ms. Juliet Allen was finally laid to rest after two long weeks of tiring investigation. The only question I have is what was William's story?

Juliet's POV

It was a sun filled yet windy day and I had decided to pick up the groceries mother forgot to pick up this week, after visiting with Ms. Withrow. When I walk into the small street market, the small ding of the bell over my head signaled my arrival, the first thing I notice is the tall and lanky brunette running the front register. When he turned and said hello to my arrival, I immediately blushed and turned away muttering a quick good morning. Whenever I would turn down a different isle I could feel the cool kindness of his blue eyes. What in the world?! How could this one man have this much of an effect on me?

It was when I was done shopping that I dreaded the most. Of course by the time I walk up front, he happened to have the only register open. Why?! But being the sophisticated women I know my father would want me to be, I suck it up and deftly walk up to his register and place the groceries on the counter trying to avoid his hopeful gaze. But of course I went against what my brain told me to do and looked up only to be met with his smiling blue orbs. We stood there looking at each other with only the soft bleep interrupting the tension. Then he said something that left me puzzled and startled for a few seconds.

"Would paper be okay?" he says pointing to the stack of paper bags.

"Huh...oh yea...Sure" I say immediately blushing afterward.

When he has everything totaled up and packaged. I grab my things and hurry out of the store, not realizing that I had left my change pocket behind.

Later that night when I am getting ready to pull down my covers I hear the light ticking from my window. At first I thought I was hearing things, but when they started getting louder and more frequent is when I started to investigate. When I open the shutters I see the boy from the register.

"What are you doing here?!" I ask.

He lifts up my change pocket and says, "You left this and I thought that you would need it tomorrow."

"How did you know where I lived?" I ask.

"First of all everybody knows where you live and second, you wrote your address in the inside lining."

"Oh", I say somewhat flushed.

"How would you like for me to deliver this?"

"Can you climb the siding?"

"I can try."

So after he climbs the siding and steps into the room, I grab my pocket out of his hand and set it on my dresser.

"Um...I guess we haven't made formalities. I am Will by the way. It is short for William."

"Oh yes... I am-"

"Juliet Allen", he says interrupting me.

"How did you know me?"

"Again everybody knows the Allens."

"Oh right...Sorry"

"I better get going."

"Yes I suppose so.", I say with slight disappointment.

I help Will climb out of the window, but before he gets his other leg out he grabs my left hand, kisses my knuckles, and asks if we can see each other again. I of course still in a haze answer with a yes. Writing both our death wishes.

It has been three heart throbbing blissful weeks of sneaking out to see Will every day and night. I love how he doesn't judge me based on my parents and accepts me as I am. I love how one touch sends tingles up my arms and legs. I love how when we hug he is easily able to engulf me into a world of only Will and I. So yes I am in love with Will and when I wake up on Saturday. I am a ghost, barely eating and only staring at one spot in the wall.

Was it only days before that Will and I became one. How hard did I fall for this blue eyed brunette only to have it crash down? Was it only yesterday that I got the call? How could one gunshot ruin both of our perfect worlds?

But I knew exactly who did it. It was plainly obvious the way he would anxiously look at everybody figuring out whether or not they knew. The way he came home only hours before, a slight splotch of brown on his shirt and the gun plainly visible through his belt loop. The only problem is that I have no proof and it is worthless with the amount of lawyers lined up on our door step. The only thing to end this long charade is to end it all.

So with that I grab my umbrella, sunglasses, compact mirror full of mysteries and take a walk.

The Wonders of the Unsolved Murders

Kyra Allee

It was about the 1990's when this whole thing started with the killings in New York. The very first time it happened it almost looked like an accident, but as me and my team went farther into looking at the evidence it didn't look like such a good accident after all. We spent about 4382.91(6 months) hours looking for this monster. It was hard linking them to anything because they were very clean about their dirty work.

It was about mid-January in the 1990's when the killings started. I was a new detective in the field but I did know a lot for a new comer. I was originally in Boston, Massachusetts but I wanted to be on the unknown killing case. My boss called the other boss head boss in New York and asked "if he could use anyone else on the case"? And without any hesitation he replied "of course we could, we need as much help as we can get". So like any so called traveling job I left my home in Boston, Massachusetts to go and hopefully make a difference in New York. When I arrived everyone was very friendly and the crew I had was just wonderful, they all welcomed me like I was there in the first place. Any who time flew by and it was about a month, that I was there. I started to go over the cases of the unknown killer and I started to look very closely at the way they all died and how they had a symbol on the back of their necks. It almost looked like a star with a diamond in the middle of it. They were about 3 or maybe 4 murders.

The next day I asked my whole team what they could and knew about the killings that had been happening. One replied" two of them have been killed behind dumpsters". Another said "and the other ones have been found by the waters on the east coast". Our research went on and on for days. But still we had no luck.

"RING, RING" it was the police, he said "Sir Can you come down here by Chapel Road". I said "why? Is there a problem"? He said "we have murder here and we would like for you to come down here and check it out".

As I approached the scene there was so many items that were yellow tagged. There was a flash drive near the water, a mountain dew bottle near the body, and a five dollar bill in the man's mouth.

The police officer came up to me and said "so you see looks like he might have got hit by something and all his stuff went all over".

I replied" yes, but why is his body so perfectly straight if he got hit? And why does his face looks so old I suppose?"

One of my lead investigators comes up and says "did you know that there is a drop of something in that's bottle?"

Looking confused I said "really?"

He says "yes, but there is only a drop of it in there"

I said "well let's get all this evidence in bags and begin to see what happened"

It was about mid-day and the police officer goes you got it from here right?

I replied yes, thanks for calling us.

He says "anytime"

By the time we got everything bagged and the body moved to the medical inspector it was time to start seeing who was doing all this cruel stuff.

When we got back to the lab I ordered all of my team to get all the evidence and give to Sam which was the medical inspector. A couple of hours went by and Sam calls me down for the results of what she found on in the bottle and what was on the flash drive. As I went into the lab, she said "well here's the thing the flash drive has a password on it that won't let me get into it , But on the other hand the reason our fellow passed was because there was an acid in his drink"

"What kind of acid may I ask" I replied

She said "that's the thing I can't figure that out because there are so many in here"

I said "well keep trying, you're doing great"

I walked out of the room with the flash drive and called a buddy of mine and asked " do you still do computer things"

He said" well yeah, of course I do, what do you need?"

I said "well, and then explained everything"

He replied "yes, just bring it on by"

When I arrived at his house, it looked just like the way his mom had it look when we were kids. Anyways I walked up the steps and he was waiting for me up there. "So detective what is it you would like to find out" he says

"Well I would like for you to get anything you can off of this drive".

"Alright I'll get to work" he replies

A couple minutes later he says "alright well it seems like there are some documents on here and that's about it" his friend says to him.

"Wait a second" his friend says

"What" I replied

"There are some pictures and a name here" he says

"What is the name" I asked him

"Molly" he exclaims

"Alright, thanks bud we will have to have lunch soon as I run out door" I replied to him

I hurried back to the station and said "everyone go look on Chapel Road for a house"

A guy say "I'll do it boss"

Minutes later there was a call and it was the investigator he says "there is a house here it about a couple steps away from where we found the body".

I raced to the street and we both went in the house because it didn't look like anyone was home and it was about to be condemned anyways. When we walked through the living room and there was a can of acid and a picture that said for my love molly.

We walked through the living room and there was a wallet on the floor and a necklace charm lying on the table. We bagged the items and went back to the station.

When we got there I right away gave the evidence to Sam. Within seconds she says "the wallet has a woman's figure print on it and her name is molly, that's what my scanner said it was" she says. "And the charm goes to a marches foundation chain" she also added. " and If I know anything about these types of chains they are very rare to find" she implied.

Right about that time I came out the room where there was a woman with blood all over her and crying at my desk. I asked her "what had happened"

And she said "my name is Molly Crin and I killed my boyfriend of 5 years, because he was having an affair with my sister".

Looking shocked that she just came in the station.

I say to her "we are going to have to test the blood on you and take some figure prints"

She looks at me and says "okay"

And sure enough we tested the blood and her figure prints and it all added up. The time the trial came it was already too late the judge already saw everything and sentenced her to life in prison without the right for parole.

The bus ride

Kyra Allee

I usually sit in the back of the bus because I'm not much of a talker. But out of nowhere this boy sits next to me. He seems nice but has an emo side to him, he looks about 6'1 and he has a southern accent; he smells so wonderful like the axe cologne from the mall. He then looks at me and says" do you have any chips in your lunch bag"? I'm just curious. I replied with a simple no. the boy pulls out a book titled "The Notebook". Within a few minutes he rises from his seat and starts giving a speech about love and how it conquers all. Majority of everyone looks to the back of the bus and starts smirking. And the rest of the people who aren't looking at the back of bus looked like they kind of understood what he was saying. He then just gestures out the window with his hand up and waving it back and forth to a little girl who looked about 7 years old.

Just as soon as he got done waving at the little girl the bus stops and he gets off. I was questioning myself and was like who is that. I look out the window and see the man pick up the little girl and hug her; she hugs him back with a smile that is going for one side of her face to the other. The bus doors close and we're back on the road. The next stop that the bus stops at is my house. I get off and wave goodbye to the bus driver, the bus driver yells "you have a nice day now, and stay out of trouble". I just smile and shake my head.

The next day came and like always I was the first one on the bus. The bus stops at the same corner it did yesterday to drop off the boy. Within seconds I see the kid run towards the bus and get on. He makes his way back to where my seat is and sits down.

"So how's your day so far" the boy asked me

I said "pretty well, and yours?"

"Umm mine is not too bad" he says

"Well that's good" I replied

Then he gets out what looks like homework from math class and starts to hurry up and do it.

"Did you not do your homework" I asked him

"No, I feel asleep way too early last night, I was really tired." He said.

"Oh okay then" I replied.

We were about half way to school when a deer came out form the fields and just sat there like a bump on a log. The bus driver honked the horn hoping it would move but it didn't. By the time the deer moved it felt like we were on the bus for like an hour but in reality we were only on there for about 10 minutes.

When we finally arrived at school and started to get off the bus the boy that was sitting next me when out the door first.

But to my surprise he stops and waits for me as I get off the bus. As soon and I get off.

He says "is it alright if I walk with you, I don't know anyone here?"

"Sure, I don't mind". I said.

We walk into to school together and everyone just kind of looks. I show him how to open his locker and where his classrooms were. I walked him to his first period and then that was the last time I saw him until we were back on the bus.

I run to locker and get my books and rush to the bus stop. As soon as I get there I see the boy and the bus just about to pull up. On the bus, I ask him "the girl you wave at and hug when you get off the bus, who is it if you don't mind me asking?"

"It's my sister" he said.

"Oh" I replied course.

The bus came up to his stop and just before he got up to leave and go home.

I asked "would you like to be friends?"

"That would just be wonderful" he said.

And then my day after school was the same. The bus dropped me off and I say my good byes to everyone.

The end.

Boy Crushing

Kyra Allee

It was the first Monday morning in math class, and there he was sitting in the third row Michael Hayden. My best friend Alexia has had a crush on this boy for about 2 years now; he's all she ever talks about. For this one year in all of school history Alexia and I where finally in the same math class together with him. Right before the bell rang he just happened to slip on in the room. Right then and there my eyes went from the board to totally just focused on him. But then I quickly looked away when I saw that Alexia was staring him down as well. I mean how could anyone not stare at him, with his khaki skinny jeans and his yellow shirt with his colored shoes and oh I can't forget his brown sparkling dazzling eyes that just stuck out when he looked at you or his strawberry red hair that just made him even all more adorable. As I sat there quickly, taking glances at him I realized very fast like that I was kind of maybe crushing on my best friends crush. My mind and all just went from looking at him to thinking how wrong and rude of me it was to like Michael mentioning that it was Alexia's boy crush. I just couldn't help it though his everything made me crush on him, for an example the way his laugh is and how it's high pitch at times or the way his smile is. Anyways I really wanted to just look at him one more time and try and maybe find something that I didn't like about him so I would hopefully stop having a crush on him, but it was pointless I couldn't find one thing. As class went on I finally worked up the nerve to pretend I was looking at a poster that was behind him, but in all reality I was just looking at him. I did this several times and then the very last time I looked at me and smiled so big. I hurried up and looked away. After class was over Alexia goes OMG! Guess what just happened? I looked at her blankly for a couple of minutes than she says "He smiled at me!" I replied "really that's great". The next couple of days where rough, my mind was focused on one thing and it were who was Michael really smiling at me or Alexia? Time flew by and I couldn't bear it any longer I finally told Alexia that I kind of liked Michael too. First her faced looked like someone just stole her favorite t-shirt than she says "wait what?!" So I told her again and she says what did you think that I didn't notice..? I see you looking at him more and more each day. She says I'm not offended, well much that is, after that whole conversation with her. We walked to class and this time Michael was already in his desk and before the bell rang he came up to me and asked "hey, sometime do you want to catch a movie or something with me?" Looking stunned I said "who you are talking to", because at the moment Alexia was still beside me. His face lit up and he smiled from ear to ear and said "you". Looking and feeling surprised I looked over at alexia for confirmation. She just shook her head yes at me, and I replied to him with a simple "yes I would love to". Right about than the bell rang and it was time to start class, he wrote a note to me and said is tomorrow in the Moring good for you? I wrote back and said sure why not, let's meet at the coffee shop on stamp road. When he opens the note and reads it he just looked back at me and smiled. Time went by fast in class and before I knew it, it was time to leave. I woke up at around 7 like I always do and got ready and left for the coffee shop. Honestly I wasn't expecting him to already be there, but he was. I sat down and he goes "you look beautiful today". I just smiled and said "well thank you". We ordered our coffee and talked for a little bit than as we were walking to school he says "do you want to go out with me?" Thinking hard I was silent than replied "I would love to". When we walked in the room I told Alexia and she goes "that's great!" And then she replies "hey I have something to tell you to", she said "I'm not single either". Looking stunned I said" wait what?" She says "I'm dating Michael's best friend Brandon". Then I said "oh that's great!"

And just like any teenage love story they lived happy ever after.

The Blood scare

Kyra Allee

The blood ran down his neck and with one last gasp for breath he was gone. She was left to just take it all in. Tears fell from her eyes and down her cheek. Death truly had been forgiving. She was left with only one thought... how could anyone be this cruel to do such a thing?

As he lay there dead in the street it starts to rain, his face becoming whiter than a sheet of paper. Her tears become heavier and heavier, she grabs his hand and says "please get up; I don't want to lose you too". Still there is no response at all. She looks up and sees a car coming for her. She quickly tries to get up and run but she slips on the sidewalk and falls. She looks over and sees the car stopped, the headlights still on where it was lighting up the man that lay in the dark on the street. The driver window rolls down and a man that looks about 37 or so says "get in now". The man gets out and puts the dead man's body in the trunk. The lady sits in the front feeling nervous and scared. She quickly looks at the man and says "I didn't kill him, if that's what you think, and where are you taking me? Who are you even?" The man just looks at her and says "I know who did this and gosh, for one person you sure ask a lot of questions". He then reaches his hand across her and opens the clove department and hands her a napkin. "Here you go, so you can wipe off you face and all" he says. The lady replies and says "thank you". The man stops the car and the woman starts to look around. He gets out and says "well, this should be a good place for the police to find him". Tears run down the ladies face and she replies "yeah, it should be". He opens the trunk and just rolls the dead man's body to a nearby tree. The woman looks back stunned to see what this man is doing; he gets back in the car and says "right that's the first job". The lady looks at him and says "what do you mean?" He replies "Did you realize how it's only his neck that is bitten." "Yes," says the girl. "Well, back in the day this town was taken over by witches, who caste spells on the men who turned them into creatures that have fangs and that can only survive on the blood of humans".

"They are called vampires" the woman says.

Looking stunned at the woman's response he replies, "How did you know that?"

"My great grandfather was a hunter," she says.

"Oh well then" he says.

Then he puts his hands on the steering wheel and puts the car in reverse. "Where do you live?" he asks the woman "I live about a mile or so up the road." For almost the entire way in the car there was nothing but silence. "That's my house!" she yells. ERR... the breaks lock up trying to stop fast, he puts the car in reverse and pulls in the drive way. She gets outs and shuts the car door. "If you need anything then you know where I am" he says. He looks out the window as she gets goes up to her house and opens the door. She goes upstairs in her bed and lies down within a few seconds she starts to cry. "Why!" she screams. The woman ends up crying herself to sleep.

The next morning comes and she hears the phone ring she runs down stairs and answers it.

"Hello" she says

"Yes, hi is this Mrs. Clyde?" says the voice on the phone.

"This is she" the woman says

"Hi, Mrs. Clyde I am Mr. Stone a detective of the agency for the police, and I would just like to know if you can meet me anywhere right now?" says the person on the phone

"Yes, where at? And what is this concerning if you don't mind me asking" she replies.

"Just meet me at the old café down by the fire station at oh let's say 10?" Says the detective

"Alright sounds good" she says.

It's about 9:30 am and she goes and gets ready. Mrs. Clyde gets up at the café at exactly 10am.

"Mrs. Clyde over here," a voice calls out from a nearby table.

She walks over, and they introduce one another again. They shake hands and then sit across from one another. The woman than looks at the detective and says "so cut to the chase, what's this about? "Well, he begins to say" "we found a body near a tree by Dale way."

"And?" she replies

"It's your husband, I'm so sorry" he says.

Looking stunned and dazed all at the same time, she starts to cry. The detective quickly runs to the woman's side and says "I'm so sorry for your loss" and hugs her so tight.

"Are you positive it was my husband?" she asked.

"I'm afraid I am" he replies with a sincere look on his face.

The biopsy people checked him all out and found his wallet in his pocket with his ID and all of his credit cards.

The woman just gets up and walks straight out of the café and on her way back to her home, all the way there she was slowly breaking with every step she took. The woman gets up to her door and twists the door knop to open it, she walks in and goes straight for the couch. She lays there for a while and falls asleep. When she wakes up and goes to check her mail she sees that she has a voice message and goes and checks it.

"Hello, Mrs. Clyde its Mr. Stone here again if you could just swing by the office and verify that this is your husband it would do a great deed."

The woman then picks up her purse. And walks out towards the police station. When she arrives the detective is already out there waiting for her and says "are you okay to do this?" she replies with a "yes."

They then go in the building and go to where the morgue is. As she approaches the dead man's body she starts to cry. When they remove the blanket from his face, she without a doubt says yeah that's him. The detective looks at her and says "I'm sorry for your loss". A tear runs down her cheek and then she asked "when can I give him peace?" the detective looks at her and says "if you want you can do it next week." "Alright than next week it is" she says.

A WEEK LATER....

Today is the day that she has to be a good wife and put her husband to rest. She nervously goes into the church where than she sees him laying there in the coffin and all of sudden a memory flashed to her, it was the day that she ever met the man that she loved. She walks up there to where he lays and says "I will always love you my dear". By this time the funeral was just about to start and everyone was getting there and walking in and taking their seats. Than it started and just as it began she started to cry and when it was all said and done, she was left up by his coffin as everyone got up and was making their way up towards his coffin to pay their respects. One person says "he was a great man" and another "he truly was a man of respect" the words of comfort kept coming. And at the end of the line was the man who helped her that one night. He approaches her and says "he was truly a great person" and then just walks away. Within days Mr. Stone calls and says "Mrs. Clyde I'm sorry to tell you but we could not solve the case with your husband, and we have no idea how he died". She replies "alright thanks for your time." As she is in her living room she whispers I know who killed him though.

Alayna Plummer W-3

Journey to a Beautiful Night

" Liv its time to get up for school!" My mother called up to me on a dreary Tuesday morning. I sat up in bed, and stared blankly at my walls that were slowly coming into focus. I was trying to decide if I actually wanted to force myself to go to the prison like building called High school or if I was going to fake sick and convince my mother not to make me go.

It's not that I really have a problem with the school itself, I love my classes and my teachers, I'm not unintelligent, I just don't really have many friends if you could call them that. I lack the motivation to get up and go because I don't relate to anyone in any of my classes except for a few teachers and why would I force myself into a situation where people are constantly disrespectful and rude to me. In more simple terms why would I want to go to school and have to deal with those who are so immature they find pleasure or entertainment in bullying me. I don't, but after many moments of thinking about it I decided getting through another day and another step toward my future is better than skipping and being afraid of what's to come.

To follow through with that decision I stood up pulling the blankets off and pushing them aside and feeling the rush of the freezing cold air after doing so. It's funny how it's hot when I'm trying to fall asleep but turns into the frozen tundra when I need to leave my bed. After taking a minute to adjust to the temperature of my room I shuffled to my closet to pick an outfit for the day. After the usual morning routine I ran to my car through the pouring down rain started the car and turned up the radio. I reversed out of the drive way and them made my way to school.

I pulled into the first available spot I could find that wasn't one of the "I'm more important than you" spots because I've made that mistake before and trust me getting your car keyed is not a great thing to deal with. I locked my car and walked into the building and met up with my acquaintances outside of the auditorium as we usually did and listened to see what the topic was today.

"You really think Elizabeth and Braxton are going together." Elizabeth and Braxton were people who went to our school that both liked each other but never in a million years would ever tell each other. I cut into the conversation.

"I saw them in the hall when I was walking over here and they looked pretty serious, oh and Grace, nobody says going together anymore."

"Well I do," She argued so then the topic changed to phrases that are never used and old phrases that were hilarious and the conversation went on until the five minute bell rang and we all hurried to our lockers to get our books for class. I slowly approached my locker seeing as usual there were sticky notes posted all over it saying very immature and insulting things. I just pulled them all off not paying any attention to a single one. I opened my locker and took out everything I needed for Algebra 2 and then closed it. As I looked up to walk to class I saw a beautiful creature walk toward me only to pass to get to his class. His name was Riley Cooper He wasn't like many of the others.

He was on our schools hockey team and he was pretty well known for it. Some of his team mates were the ones that would put the awful notes on my locker and he would play along but he'd always whisper his apologies as the group walked away. He was genuinely a nice guy.

After taking a moment to stare but trying not to be obvious I looked away and walked to algebra 2. I walked in right before the bell rang and slid to my seat, Just then our teacher Ms. Upton started to take attendance.

"Olivia nice to see you made it today," she said smiling.

"Wouldn't want to miss your class again" I said with a slight grin. Someone snickered and Ms. U glared at the back of the room. I know she was trying to help but I don't think she realizes when she sticks up for me it makes it all worse.

She went on and taught the lesson, something about parabolas or something I really wasn't paying much attention. Forty minutes later the bell rang.

"Have a nice day Olivia." She called as I stood to leave.

"I will!" I said back to her. "I won't," I whispered to myself. I then left holding my books to my chest and hurried to my locker. To my surprise there was a beautiful yet simple gift taped to my locker, a single red rose with a note attached. I figured it had to be a joke. Did someone really want to give me a rose or was it the wrong locker? I gently took the rose off of my locker and read the note.

It read 'I've truly been a jerk to you and this is my way of apologizing. I'm very sorry Olivia.' I was so shocked this was really for me.

I opened my locker and stood on my toes so I could reach the top of it and carefully set the rose down in a spot where it wouldn't be smashed. As I began to take out the things I needed to for my English class I felt a presence behind me. I turned and saw none other than the Gorgeous Riley Cooper.

"Hey Olivia," His voice was soft and sincere.

"Hello Riley, how are you?" I said smiling at the ground.

"I'm fantastic. That's a beautiful rose, who's it from?" my heart sank. If he didn't know that meant it wasn't from him. I suppose that was ok it's not like he was the only nice male in the school, just the cutest.

"I'm not sure," I said then continued with. "I found it taped to my locker it was an apology but no name." He smiled then looked apologetic himself.

"You deserve it, the way your treated, it's not fair, I came over while I knew I'd be alone so I could apologize myself." He smiled then rested a hand on my shoulder. "Have a wonderful day Olivia." He moved his hand, walked a bit, turned around and smiled at me, and then walked away. In that small moment I actually believed I might have a good day.

I shut my locker and turned around. I knew this was too good to be true.

"Hey Olivia," The guy smiled.

"What Dylan?" Dylan Lane is the big jock in our school like captain of the football team big jock. Aka number one idiot jerk at our school.

"Come on liv don't be like that, I see you found my rose." My jaw dropped.

"That was you?" I asked. He smiled and nodded.

"My sincere apologies, and I had a question." He smirked

"What would that be?" I asked still not totally trusting him.

"Would you let me take you to formal?" He asked.

"Sure." I said hesitantly He smiled and it almost looked like he was trying not to laugh or smirk but I didn't think twice about it.

"Awesome I'll see you there liv, Friday night at 8." He said then walked away.

I can't believe this was actually happening I was having a fantastic day this never happens. I went through my day smiling through all of my classes.
When I got to my car this afternoon there was a sticky note on my window but this note wasn't rude it was a simple smiley face and the words see you at formal!

I gently took it off my window and smiled. I unlocked my car and drove home.

"Mom I'm home!" I shouted "and I have wonderful news." My Mother ran down stairs that led to our kitchen and sat down at the island.

"Okay talk," she said very excitedly.

"I was asked to formal today," I said very calmly and she got even more excited.

"Who asked you?"

"Dylan Lane."

"Isn't he the one that...,"

"He also gave me a rose and apologized for everything he's done, but yes mom the Dylan that's rude."

"What did you say?" which was a fact I just now realized she didn't know.

"I said yes, well I said sure, but same difference," I smiled. She jumped out of her chair and hugged me.

"That's great honey! Oh my goodness, we have so much to do we have to get you shoe's and a dress all before Friday!" she said

"Mom your kind of squeezing me, and I can't breathe." I said, and she laughed and let go.

I ran up to my room and did my homework. Later mom and I discussed shopping and other things that would need to be done before Friday.

I went through the rest of the week quickly Wednesday night buying the dress and shoe's, and Thursday night figuring out all the little things.

Soon Friday night was upon us and after getting home from school I laid out the mint green sparkly dress we bought and the silver heels and started working on my hair. Hours later I was driving to the school where Dylan told me to meet him outside of the gym.

I pulled into the parking lot and got out of my car saying hello to a few people and got a few compliments and looks of shock. I waited outside of the gym for a while hoping Dylan would be there soon. After waiting for a half hour I decided to go into the gym where I found the same group of people I talk to every morning. Some had dates others did not. I was with them for a while and continued to look for Dylan.

Eventually I did find Dylan. Dancing with his Ex-Girlfriend and laughing with his group of friends when he saw me. That's when I realized it was a set up, and that I had been stood up.

I walked out of the Gym and to the bathroom and started to cry. I Knew it was all too good to be true. I heard the door open and Elizabeth another acquaintance of mine had walked in.

"Liv are you ok?" she asked concerned.

"I'll be fine." I told her while I started to walk toward the door keys in hand.

"Olivia where are you going,"

"Home," I said determined to leave this awful situation.

"Don't go, get back in there and have a good time. You can dance with Braxton and I."

"So the two of you are together,"

"Yes," she said smiling "but that's not the point," You look amazing you can't just go and let it all go to waste. You have more friends in there then you think. You don't need all of the jocks and the preps to make something of yourself. You've had a group of friends all along. We care about you Olivia and we want you to get back in there and have a good time."

And she was right. I did have a group of friends that were great. I didn't need Dylan Lane. He definitely didn't need me.

"Okay lets go." I said terrified. Elizabeth and I walked back into the gym and back to our group.

Except this time, no one was laughing. I was invisible to them but. It was a good thing. They had there joke but they didn't care anymore and I was fine with that.

We made our way back to the group and had a great time.

Later I felt myself being tapped on the shoulder. I turned around and saw Riley standing there smiling.

"Hey Olivia," he said

"Hello Riley,"

"You look amazing." He smiled.

"Thank you so do you." He smiled and the song switched from a fast paced song to something much slower.

We stood there awkwardly and then Riley finally spoke. He cleared his throat and extended his hand.

"May I have this dance?"

I took his hand and smiled and the rest of the night created beautiful memories I will never forget.

Aylana Plummer

Screams always heard

My daughter won't stop crying and screaming in the middle of the night. I visit her grave and ask her to stop but it doesn't help.

I was only 17 year's old when I found out I was pregnant with Scarlet. Many would think at that age it'd be the typical story and believe I was alone without the father, but it was nothing like that at all. I was going into my senior year of high school and the father of the baby, my soul mate was starting his freshmen year of college. I was afraid to tell Andrew in fear he'd leave like every other man does in this situation. I wouldn't blame him; I just wasn't ready to lose him.

To my surprise he was ecstatic there would be another little Hollingsworth In the family. Andrew was so sweet to me through the whole pregnancy and when Scarlet was born he was the perfect father. I perfectly remember the day she was born. It was 6 am and I told Andrew it was time. We rushed to the hospital and I went through 8 hours of labor. Andrew never left my side.

As Scarlet began to grow we noticed she started to get sick. She would cry out in pain through the night. We felt awful. We took her to see her pediatric doctor and she didn't find anything wrong with scarlet right away. The doctor decided it was in our best interest to let her run a few tests and scans on scarlet to make sure the problem wasn't bigger than expected. Of course we agreed. Within a week from her appointment, our worst fears became a reality. We were two young parents with a two year old that was fighting lung cancer.

We immediately took Scarlet to the Children's hospital where we were told they could take the best care of her in her current condition. After she was settled into the room she'd be in for a while to undergo many surgeries and radiation. We met with the Doctor and his staff that would be taking care of Scarlet while she was there. He was an excellent doctor and I trusted him to be able to accomplish what he told us he could to the best of his ability.

That he did. Scarlet was in the hospital for a month and I never left her side. Andrew had to stay home and work to provide the funds to help us pay for the procedures being done because we had already used all of the money we had saved for our wedding. It was nowhere near enough, but eventually Scarlet got better and we paid off what we could.

Two years later Scarlet is healthy. Everything is wonderful, until one night.

We put Scarlet to bed and told her a story. We told her about a prince that married a beautiful princess and they had a beautiful daughter who grew up to be an actress. It was her favorite story because she helped us tell it. After we kissed her goodnight we turned out the light and went to bed ourselves. When I woke up that next morning I knew something was wrong. Scarlet always ran into the room and woke us up in the morning because she wanted our attention. This morning she didn't.

I rushed to her room to wake her up but she was gone, we called an ambulance to try to revive her but there was nothing they could do. They drove her to the hospital to do an autopsy. They came to the conclusion that her death was due to her lung cancer.

"Doctor I thought it had gone away" I cried.

"Cancer can come back and unfortunately we didn't catch it" he stated.

I got sank to my knees sobbing. I lost my baby girl what am I going to do with my life now.

Months went by I hadn't left the house, not unless it was necessary. Andrew would come in everyday after work and come to our room and lay there feeling just as empty as I did. Somehow, though neither of us was great at coping, our marriage survived. It was so hard though. We fought constantly, over things as stupid as what day of the week it was. It's not that we were angry at each other, not at all, it was just our only way of getting through this.

One night as we laid awake staring at the ceiling. I heard a crash come from Scarlet's old room, then a child crying. I jumped out of bed and ran down the hall. I flung open the door and screamed. Andrew had ran in behind me shocked the words stuck in his throat.

There was a shadow or a ghost maybe that looked just like Scarlet sitting on the bed crying, struggling. I ran out of the room scared to death, but it followed me.

"Mommy don't be scared it's me." It moaned.

"Andrew!" I screamed.

He tried to run but tripped over the rug and fell.

"Daddy why are you so afraid of me? I'm your little princess remember." It spoke again.

I ran to him and pulled him up by his hand and ran to our room him following behind, I slammed the door and started sobbing in fear.

"What was that?" I screamed.

"I think it was Scarlet". He stated through heavy breaths.

"No it can't be Scarlet, She's dead Andrew!"

"Well I hate to break it to you honey but that ghost is our daughter!"

I froze and slid down the wall with my head in my hands. She continued to scream and cry all night. Neither of us could sleep.

The next day Andrew and I drove to the cemetery and visited Scarlet's grave.

"Baby girl please stop this we love you and miss you too, but you can't continue to do this to us. Please stop I'm begging you."

Unfortunately she didn't. Every night for the next few months she would scream and cry through the night. I went to her old room one night and sat there waiting for her to come out.

"Oh hello mommy."

"H-hello Scarlet, honey what is it you want from mommy and daddy?" I asked her as calm as I could. Andrew stood in the doorway just in case something went wrong.

"I want you to hear me. You didn't the night I died. I screamed and cried for you. The man wouldn't stop and you wouldn't come save me!" she exclaimed.

"What man?" Andrew asked.

"The man that put a pillow over my head that made me not able to breathe. That's how I died."

"No Scarlet the doctor said it was your cancer." I told her.

"Well the doctor was wrong. I was killed, and you didn't save me." She said and she started to get angry.

"Honey we didn't hear you."

"No that's impossible you heard me when I was sick with cancer but you couldn't hear me then, you heard me you were just too wrapped up in each other to care!"

"Scarlet Princess that's not true!"

"Oh Shut up Andrew!" she screamed. "You two didn't care about me and now you're stuck with me until the day you die!" she angrily screamed.

"Scarlet!"

"What Mother."

"You don't have to do this."

"You didn't have to ignore me when I was suffocated, but you did. Deal with the consequences."

Scarlet never stopped screaming through the night. Andrew took his own life because he couldn't deal with it. Now here I sit haunted and alone, and looks like it'll be that way for the rest of my life.

Alayna Plummer

Tale as old as time

The Christmas music permeated through the house as Grandma and I decorated the tree. A string of light's here, some ribbon there. We pulled out the individual ornaments and hung them carefully on the tree. Some older than I was, some brand new, some were homemade, other's bought off of store shelves. I pulled one particular ornament out of the box that made me smile. It was small, silver, and round with a picture of a young couple in the middle with the words 'Our First Christmas' painted in red underneath of the picture. I delicately hung it on the tree and then looked at my grandmother.

"Grandma could you tell me again how you met grandpa." She placed the small reindeer she was holding on the tree then looked at me and smiled.

"Of course, I'd love to. " She said as she sat down on the couch and I sat down on the floor in front of the tree.

"It was a normal day in late November in 1950. I was 20 years old. I was waitressing at a Steak N Shake in Hammond Indiana. A man came in he looked like he was in his late 20s maybe earlier. He was tall and very handsome. He sat in my section.

I took a menu to him and asked him what he would like to drink.

"I'll take a cup of coffee dear." He said smiling at me.

"I'll be right back with that honey." I said to him and walked back to the counter to pour his cup of coffee.

I brought it to him and he thanked me, I took his food order and turned it in and put on a smiled while waiting on the other tables. I took him his order and when he left he thanked me for being such a wonderful waitress.

He walked out to a big semi-truck and left. I stood staring out the door for a few seconds smiling to myself.

"Don't get hung up on him honey, the chance you'll see him again is slim." Another waitress who was a friend of mine told me.

"I know Sandy. I just thought maybe..." I stopped and sighed.

"You thought maybe he was the one. Honey you can't fall in love with a guy just by being his waitress, I've made that mistake before." She said as another customer came in. "Just take my advice and be careful hon." She said then walked away.

"But he just seems different." I whispered to myself.

But as much as I wanted to believe my heart, Sandy was right. I'd probably never see him again, and if I did I couldn't let myself get hung up on him. I had to remember why I'm here in the first place. My parents are sick and I have to keep this job to help pay the bills. I can't get distracted.

I'm sure one date wouldn't be wrong though. Would it?

A week later I was going about my normal duties as a waitress and as I turned to help my next table, my heart skipped a beat. It was him. I shyly walked over to the table.

"Hello, my name's Marion and I'll be serving you today. Can I start you off with something to drink?" I said my voice slightly shaking. He smiled.

"Well hello Marion, I would like a coffee please." He said. I smiled and walked behind the counter to get his coffee.

"Sandy, he's back." I whispered, and her eyes got wide.

"Then forget what I said Doll, and go for it." She said, and walked away leaving me so confused as to what to do. I walked back to the table with his coffee and he asked me if I could sit. I looked back at sandy who had just walked past and she nodded. So I sat with him.

"Is there something I can help you with?" I asked him.

"Not really, I would just like to get to know you," He said smiling at me.

"There really isn't much to know," I said shyly.

"I'm sure that can't be true." He said looking at me curiously.

"Okay, my name is Marion Lawrance. I live in Hammond and I'm working to help pay the bills, and take care of my parents and my other siblings. That's really all there is to it I'm a pretty simple girl."

"You have the pretty part right" He smiled, "If you're going to introduce yourself I should probably do the same. My Name is Cyril Doyle, I'm a truck driver and I live in this area. I'm recently divorced and I have 5 children." He said and his face got red as if he was embarrassed.

"Oh," was all I could say. I didn't have any more words, because I wasn't sure what to say.

"Maybe I should go I didn't mean to..."

"No, You seem very interesting Cyril Doyle. I would love to do this again, but right now I need to get back to work." I said smiling at him.

"Well where can I pick you up to take you out?"

"Meet me here and we can go from there." I said as I got up and started to leave.

"I'll see you here Marion." He said then winked as he got up to pay his bill. He walked out and I went about the rest of my shift with a smile on my face.

I felt like I was in love with a stranger, No not in love, madly in love. I told my parents that sometime soon I would be going on a date with a lovely gentleman that I had met while at work. They were okay with it, but also demanded that eventually they needed to meet him. Which of course I was okay with, what could they possibly find wrong with him.

A few days later as I was finishing my shift Cyril pulled up in a station wagon. I walked out to greet him and he opened the car door for me. He drove to a park nearby where we sat under a tree and talked for hours.

That's how a lot of our dates went, we'd go to the park, out to dinner, or even roller skating, and we'd talk about everything under the sun. We fell in love quickly and after only a few months of dating I decided it was time for him to meet mom and dad.

"I'm a little nervous about this Marion."

"Oh Cyril, don't worry they'll love you. I know I do." I said gently, but I was so wrong.

My mother didn't like him at all nor did my father. It was awful. They couldn't accept the fact that he had been married before and that he had children. Cyril asked my father for my hand in marriage but my father said no.

Cyril and I still went together. We wouldn't let anyone tear us apart.

"Marion I'm crazy about you Darling, I know you father doesn't want us to marry but I can't stand to be away from you."

"Cyril what are you trying to say?" I asked him curious as to where he was going with this.

"Let's elope love no one can say no. It'll just be the two of us!" he begged.

"Oh darling, that's a perfect idea but when will we go?"

"I'll come get you tonight, then we'll marry tomorrow."

And that's what happened that night March 19, 1951 we drove to Jeffersonville, Indiana. The next morning we went to the courthouse and met with the justice of the peace and we were married. I was now officially Marion Elaine Doyle, and I couldn't be happier, for our love that started off with a simple up of coffee and a conversation.

"That story always makes me so happy grandma."

"I know sweetheart."

"Ah there you are my love telling stories again." My grandpa said as he walked into the room.

"Only one of the sweetest love stories of all time," grandma said smiling at him.

"If you're in it, it's perfect." He said smiling back. With that I stood up and we finished decorating the tree, singing with the music, and talking about all the beautiful times they had together, and how the first Christmas led to some of the most beautiful Christmases throughout the rest of their lives together.

Alayna Plummer

What I do for you

What do you see when you think of girls that our big fans of boy bands or a lot of the bands in today's music. You see someone that is loud, screaming for absolutely no reason, crying for absolutely no reason, and people who plan weddings that are never going to exist.

I however am the opposite. So why is it that tomorrow I'm going to a concert where I am going to be surrounded by those people? It's because I am good friend.

My best friend Zach happens to be a big fan of this new band that's supposed to be sort of punk rock and they seem cool but I'm definitely not looking forward to it. Especially because the only reason I have to go is because Zach's girlfriend Emma wouldn't go with him.

I was in my room sitting quietly trying to decide how I was going to make it through tomorrow, when Zach ran in.

"Audrey! The show is tomorrow!" He said excitedly and then jumped landing in my chair.

"Yes Zachary, I know the show is tomorrow. Why else would I be writing last minute excuses as to why I can't make it?" I said then moved so I was lying upside down on my bed and hanging off the side. "Do you think if I lay like this long enough it could kill me?" He laughed and then pushed me back up.

"Maybe, but don't try it because you're going."

"But I hate people," I whined.

"Get over it," he said mocking me.

"Ugh, fine I'll be there, but don't plan on me being happy about it."

"It'll be fun Audrey, I promise," He said and then stood up. "Now what's for dinner I'm starving?" I just got up and rolled my eyes and followed him out of my room.

"I don't know let's look." We walked out into the kitchen where my parents had prepared some delicious looking spaghetti. We sat down as a family including Zach who might as well be my brother, I mean he's here enough, and we ate.

My mother asked us about the concert she seemed very interested. She also pointed out how much of a different environment it would be for me. She's always encouraging me to get out of the house and interact with people, but it's just not my thing.

Later about an hour after dinner Zach left and I sat in my room the rest of the night thinking about how awful tomorrow was going to be.

After being awake for most of the night I finally fell asleep at 2:30 in the morning. Only to be shaken awake at 7:30.

"Audrey ! Wake up we have to leave in 3 hours!" Zach yelled still shaking me.

"Yes and I planned to sleep for at least 2 more of them so bye." I tried to roll back over and fall asleep but I knew he was staring at me. I sat straight up and rolled my eyes. "Fine let's go. The sooner we can get this over with the better."

"Would you stop being so negative about this?" He begged.

"No Zach I won't. You're dragging me to an area that I'm going to be extremely uncomfortable in. I hate big crowds I can't stand loud people, except for you sometimes, and to top it off the stupidity of the people there is going to be off the charts. I have no reason to be positive about this."

He was quite for a minute. He was contemplating what he could actually say to that and finally just said, "Okay I see your point. I'm sorry Audrey. This concert is just a really big thing for me and you're my best friends so I thought I'd share this amazing thing with you." I hate it when he does that. He's making me feel guilty for being unsocial to talk me into something I didn't want to do.

"No I'm sorry, let's go maybe this will actually be fun." He ran up and gave me a hug.

"Thank you! This is why your my best friend." I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever you say Zachary," we walked out to, as he likes to call it, The Zach Mobile, and he started it then put in a CD of the band and turned the stereo all the way up. He reversed out of my drive way switched gears and then it was official. There was no way out of this.

I had to scream over the music to talk to him "Zach what's the name of your stupid band again?" He rolled his eyes and screamed back "Okay first of all Audrey they are not stupid, they write and produce amazing and mind blowing music. Second the name of the band is Halestorm and the lead singer Lizzy is very attractive." He stated.

"Right so are we going because you like the band or because you want to try and hit on the lead singer." I laughed and he made a very annoyed face.

"The band is amazing Lizzy Hale being not bad looking is just a plus. Besides I could never leave Emma." That last part was true. He and Emma were very close, I don't think anything, or anyone, could separate them.

About 20 minutes later we arrived at the Venue. You could tell this was a Rock venue, the place was very torn up the stage had a lot of wear and tear, but the sound system was insanely awesome. Zach forced me into the building after he literally dragged me out of the car. The place was filled with provocatively dressed girls who were trying to get the drummer or guitar player's attention, people who pretended to be fans to impress their actual significant others, and people with ridiculous and unrealistic dreams of meeting and being with members of the band. It was awful, and it was ridiculously loud. Every time I tried to turn and run out Zach would drag me by the arm back to our seats. I just did not want to be here at all.

We waited through a few opening acts, they actually weren't that awful for just starting their careers. After the last opening act we had probably waited about 10 minutes for the band to come out and people started being even more idiotic and chanting for the band. I stood silently trying to imagine myself anywhere but there, but it didn't help considering Zach had bought front row seats and there was constantly someone shoving trying to get closer to the stage.

Finally the band came on and everyone started screaming, Even Zach. They played the first song which was actually really good; I think I may have heard it on the radio once. Zach was having a blast, which was great, seeing him have a good time made it all worth it, especially since I wasn't. I mean the band was great but these people were nuts. You wouldn't believe half of the things some of these people were doing. It was insane. They played for at least another hour. The set list was pretty long but the songs we're pretty great so that wasn't a problem. Finally they left the stage after an encore and a freakishly long drum solo.

I ran out of the building the first chance I had. I was trying to find the Zach Mobile in the sea of cars in the parking lot but I got lost. As I was trying to find the car I accidentally ran into someone.

"I am so sorry I didn't see you there." I mumbled.

"It's fine it was a pleasure to run into someone as pretty as you." The stranger said smiling. I blushed.

"Well, thank you."

"Would you want to meet for coffee sometime? You look like someone I'd want to get to know."

"Sure," I answered shyly.

"Can I have your name?" He asked as he started to write on a piece of paper.

"My names Audrey," I answered and shook his hand. He handed me a piece of paper with his name and number on it.

"I'm A.J." He smiled. And just then I heard a car honk behind me. It was Zach.

"Well A.J. I better get going. That's my ride." I started to back up toward the car.

"Ok well call me anytime ok? I'd love to meet up with you, It was nice to meet you Audrey. "

"Will do, it was nice to meet you." I got in the car and Zach was beaming with excitement. "What idiot?"

"Audrey that was A.J. Hale,"

"Oh like the name of the band?"

"Yeah, also as in the younger brother of Lizzy Hale, Aka the Drummer of the band."

I paused in shock then smiled. "Well looks like this concert was actually a good thing."

"I told you it was worth it."

"Yeah, I guess you did." I smiled and stared out the window. I couldn't wait to get home and call A.J. little did I know that was the start of a very long relationship, and the rest of our lives.

New York

Alyssa Johnson

It's that time of the year again! Stacey will be taking her annual trip to New York City. This year her mom will be allowing her to take on friend along with them. Stacey isn't really social so she doesn't have a wide variety of friends to choose from. However, she has a few days to make a final decision.

The few days have passed and it was time for Stacey to decide what friend she'd be taking with her to New York City. She has chosen her friend Lottie. Stacey feels that Lottie will bring a great contrast to the trip making it more enjoyable.

Stacey, her mom, and Lottie are all boarding the bus to head on off on their way. Along the fourteen hour ride they decided they would use the time to decide what they'll be doing on their days in New York.

"I really want to go out at night and see what it's like." Said Lottie.

"I don't think my mom would approve of that, plus we are young girls. It'd be dangerous for us to be out at night." Replied Stacey.

"Your mom wouldn't have to approve of it if she didn't know we were going to do it. We could sneak out while she's sleeping, we both know she'll be tired and want to sleep after this long bus ride." Lottie whispered to Stacey.

"I still don't think it's a good idea Lottie, what if something bad happens?" Stacey whispered in a worried tone.

"Nothing bad will happen." whispered Lottie

"We are going to New York! Let's have some fun!" Lottie exclaimed.

A few minutes after the discussion both Lottie and Stacey fell asleep and they ended up sleeping for the rest of the ride. Stacey's mom was unable to sleep on the bus so the entire ride she made an itinerary for the girls and her. The time has come and they arrived at Grand Central Station, well below it actually. Stacey was woke up by her mom and Lottie.

"Don't forget our plan for tonight.." Lottie whispered to Stacey.

"I'm not doing it." Declared Stacey.

The girls and her mom fond the escalators and began traveling upwards to get to the main level of the station. When they finally got up there they all gasped in awe.

"It's beautiful." Lottie said.

After they finished looking around at the station they headed out to catch a taxi to go to their hotel. They arrived at the Jolly Madison and were greeted by the doorman. They got their key and went to their room to take quick showers and figure out what they wanted to do first. They decided to spend their day walking around to learn the roads of New York City. Most of the time Stacey just gazed at the beautiful buildings, looked at all the detail of the city, and admired the bright lights shining above. Meanwhile, Lottie was all over the place leaving the two behind. She was going in and out of stores, not paying attention to crosswalks and Stacey's mom got fed up with it and decided to call it a night heading back to the hotel. As soon as they got back Stacey's mom fell asleep.

"Come on! Live for once! Let's go out!" exclaimed Lottie.

"It's not a good idea; it isn't save for us out there." Stacey replied.

"What if I buy you buy something special at one of the stores?" asked Lottie.

Stacey, thinking back to the watch she saw in the window of a store was very hesitant. She thought to herself "well.. it isn't that far.."

"Fine! But just that one store!" declared Stacey.

"Yes!" Lottie yelled, almost waking Stacey's mom.

Both girls managed to sneak out of the hotel room and remembered that the store was just around the corner.

"We have to make this quick!" Stacey said as they ran over to the store.

Once they arrived to the store they quickly ran to the watch. The price was a lot but Lottie had finally got her prude of a friend to go out and do something rebellious so she thought it was worth it to buy it for her. As they were checking out a man with a mask ran in yelling. Everyone in the store was freaking out, both Lottie and Stacey jumped to hide behind one of the post card stands. The man never seemed to look over them at all, he kept his gun pointed at the man working the register. It's like he only wanted him. He started screaming things that the girls couldn't understand, then BOOM. They watched the owner of the store get shot then the man ran out of the store. Lottie pulled out her phone and called 9-1-1, meanwhile Stacey called her mom on her phone. Stacey's mother rushed over there as soon as she could and when she arrived the store was surrounded by cops. She explained to the cops that she was the parent of one of the children in there and that the other girl was her daughter's friend. When she walked in the girls were giving a statement to the police. The girls were let go and they all went back to the hotel. Stacey's mom was furious and told them they weren't going anywhere the next day but she was glad they were okay. The rest of the trip neither Stacey, nor Lottie were allowed to leave her mom's line of sight. However, the girls enjoyed the rest of the trip and were thankful they weren't harmed.

Her

Alyssa Johnson

After a hard day I came home to see my girlfriend cradling our child. I didn't know which was more frightening, seeing my dead girlfriend and stillborn child, or knowing that someone broke into my apartment to place them there. I stood there in shock, my body felt as lifeless as the two sitting before me. My emotions and feelings were running wild, I felt completely numb to what I was seeing. Today was the one year anniversary since the passing of Whitney and here she is sitting in the rocking chair holding our son. I could not determine if what I was seeing was real. I looked at our baby boy, Caiden, he was so beautiful, and his mother, just as beautiful. This made me wish he could have seen how stunning his mother was.

Whitney gave birth to Caiden a few months before her death but our little boy decided to go with the angels rather than stay with us. I don't what it was that made me walk up to the bodies but I did, and the scar was still there. I remember her eyes being so full of life, so full of color, and now they hold a glassy, empty stare. A year ago today we were happily together with our son. I had the whole night planned for the two of us, I was going to take her to her favorite pizza place, Pizza Al's, then we were going to go for ice cream after. However, she didn't know the plan, all she knew was that she was to dress nice for when I got home so we could go. What really happened that night is not what I intended. We were all in the car, listening to music, laughing, having a great time then my phone rang. The Caller ID showed it was my boss calling me, he never called unless it was urgent, I turned down the radio so I would be able to hear and as I was swiping my phone to pick up the call that's when it happened.

She appeared running at the front of the car so I swerved to avoid hitting her. The car flipped over the guard rail into a huge ditch. I was in no pain, but I could hear Whitney screaming, oh the noise was unbearable. Shortly after the wreck I saw flashing lights coming towards us, but I no longer heard Whitney, she had gone silent. I started yelling to get their attention, to help get Whitney out first, but they refused and got me out first. I watched the men and women tear apart my vehicle to save Whitney from the crash and as they pulled out her lifeless body, in the background back by the ambulance car that thing was standing there. It was the thing that caused the wreck! I was so frustrated yelling at the paramedics to get her but no one else saw her. The woman stood there tall, scrawny, wearing what seemed to be only underpants and a torn up shirt, she had very dirty blonde hair, nails that seemed like they could pierce your soul, how could no one see her? As we got into the ambulance in a rush to the hospital, I looked out the back window and there she stood at the scene of the crash, waving. I tried once again to tell the paramedic there was a woman out there but no one believed me. I kept seeing this woman everywhere. She was standing next to Whitney's hospital bed, she was present at her funeral, and sometimes I even saw her in my dreams. This was a reoccurring thing for me and when I tried to get help no one believed me. Eventually doctors had enough and diagnosed me with schizophrenia, putting me in an insane asylum. I had stopped seeing the woman within a year and they released me just last week.

My first week at home alone was tiring but relaxing. It was my first day back to work, I was glad to be back, but it was also the anniversary of Whitney's death. When I got to work I got my office set up and outside the window she was standing there. I began to see her everywhere I looked at work. I figured I was just seeing things due to the amount of stress at my first day back on the job so I just brushed it off. While sitting at my desk I decided to do research, describing the woman and many similar articles appeared. Many people have seen the woman, her name was known as the "people reaper" She appeared to let family members know that she was the one who took the life of their loved ones. She did this as an act of revenge for her beloved one taking her very own life. After a hard day I came home to see my girlfriend cradling our child, and standing behind them was that woman.

Terror on France

Alyssa Johnson

It is November 14th, I walked down to the local shoppe to get the daily newspaper and in bold font the headlining story was "La France a été attaqué" which translates to "France has been attacked". In the story following the headline they had a full name list of all the victims even his. It also said how France was to fire back today on Raqqa, Syria. Reading all this caused me to have a flashback of the day, and all the terrible events in our lives that lead up to it.

When I was five years old my mother, my friend Zan, and I stopped by McDonald's in Quévert. We were just pulling up when we heard a loud crash. As we were trying to see what happened we saw a bunch of people run out of the restaurant. My mother then quickly drove out of the establishment. We brushed off what we just saw, even though we knew something had gone wrong. After a while of contemplating we finally decided a different fast food place to run by to get food from. When we got home we all sat down at the table to eat our food. My mom turned on the tele for background noise like she usually did. As we were eating we overheard a faint conversation about a McDonald's restaurant. Both my mom and I quickly turned to look at the tele, and Zan being Zan just continued to eat, off in his own world. The headline along with the story read " Aujourd'hui 19 Avril 2065 une bombe explose tuant un" which translates to "today, April 19, 2065 a bomb goes off killing one". My mom and I looked at each other shocked, we were there. If we had got there just a few minutes earlier that one person could have been one of us.

At the age of seventeen Zan and I were officially dating. I remember during the month of March he would come over almost every day after school to have a snack and watch tv with me. On March 11th we skimmed past the news and heard something terrifying. An attack occurred, one that was soon to be the first of three. A Muslim French Paratrooper was shot dead. On March 15th two other Muslim French soldiers were killed and another injured in the shopping centre in Montauban. The final attack occurred on March 19th, four people were killed. Three of those four people were young children attending school. The news then declared a man hunt for a man named Mohammed Merah that lasted from March 19th to the 22nd. On the last day of the hunt they had found the man's apartment and did a live cover of the police outside his building on the news. While watching the news I distinctly remember the man calling in, and until this day I can still remember his voice and those words he said. That day at 10:30 you could see the police rush in to get the man, you could hear tons of explosives and shooting, and that's when we saw it. Mohammed Merah jumped out of the five-story building in hopes to get away, but that's when a police sniper got him. It wasn't until the next day that he was pronounced dead. I don't know how I remember this dates so well after three years later. I guess all the panic and fear across the nation lead to me being able to remember it all.

Now that I am twenty I thought I had seen it all, I thought the attacks would be done. On January 7th, 2100 I went to a gathering in France to see the well-known Charlie Hebdo, he did the art for the newspaper. I was to meet Zan there and while I was waiting there were two gunmen came running at us. We were all confused as to what was going on so scattered, forgetting about Charlie. As I was running, I ran into Zan, who asked what was happening. Before I could get the words out we heard a few shots and screams. When the paramedics arrived twelve people have been left dead, and twelve have been injured. A day later on January 8th a gunman took hostages then the next day their location was tracked. When the police arrived at the location the men shot at them, killing them. During the month of January we lost twenty people, one of those who were Charlie, and twenty-two were injured.

Just this year, for my Zan's birthday I got him tickets to go see France VS. Germany at Le Stade De France, however the date of the event wasn't until a week after his birthday, on November 13th. The week passed quickly and we were now walking up to the stadium, he was excited as can be! As we started to get closer he said he had forgotten something. The walk back to the vehicle was at least a 10 minute walk. I then told him to go ahead, that I'd go in the stadium and wait for him.

I walked into the stadium; it was just as big as people have said it was. I noticed the French President was also here as well, what an honor it was. When I found my seat I sat down and I wonder what he had gone back to the car for. I'm sure it was just something simple that I'd find out soon. He should be back within twenty minutes.

"I can't believe I forgot it, how stupid of me." Zan said to himself.

I finally got to the car after a ten minute walk and couldn't find what I was looking for. What did I do with it? I searched and searched for at least five minutes. She texted me saying the game was about to start and that's when I found it! I began to rush back to the stadium and when I got there a security guard, whose name was Zouhier, was in a slight altercation with a young man. He told the man he was not allowed in the stadium. I wasn't sure why, but something told me to continue listening. I texted Chanel to tell her something odd was going on outside the stadium that I would be in there soon. I watched the man continue to take steps backwards as he was yelling and that's when it happened. It was all in slow motion, the man blew himself up. Something happened to me in that moment, I saw a great flash of light and my whole life flashed before my eyes. I tried to yell for help but it was like I couldn't get my body to do anything, I just laid there. Was this it? Was I dead?

He told me he was on his way back, and that he'd be here soon. The game had been going for at least twenty minutes and I heard a loud boom. At first I just thought I was imagining things but the whole stadium noticed, even the soccer players. The announcers said it was nothing so the game continued. I had a really bad feeling so I snuck out of the stadium and called Zan. I must have called a hundred times and no answer from him. I then got a call from the hospital saying that Zan had been injured outside of the stadium, that I should come to the hospital immediately. When I got to the hospital I asked for his room and the nurse stopped me before I could go in, they wanted to tell me in person. They pronounced Zan dead due to a suicide bombing outside the stadium outside then she said they found something in his pocket and she handed me a tiny box. I opened the box and it was an engagement ring. I was already in so much shock as to what happened and what was currently going on. My knees buckled dragging me to the floor, my tears flooded the hall. As I left the hospital for the first and last time I headed to the local shoppe and saw a newspaper with a bold headline.

On The Road

Alyssa Johnson

It's a few weeks before Sophia's birthday; the day tickets for her favorite band go on presale. She has been waiting for this day for months. As an early 16th birthday present her dad lets her buy a floor ticket next to the stage. She was so excited to see her favorite band next year, she told everyone about it. As the next few weeks progressed things went downhill. Her parents had one of many court dates hastily approaching, which lead to persistent fighting between the two. She noticed her parents were financially struggling. In spite of this she got online and put her ticket u for sale. With the money she would get from selling the ticket she would help pay bills.

A few weeks later the heartbreaking day came, when her ticket was sold. However, she wasn't too upset about this. Sophia believed that whoever bought the ticket deserved way more than her anyway so she was glad she was able to give someone the chance to go. Once it was sold she told one of her best friends that lived another state that she was no longer going to the concert.

Some months passed, and it was now tax return time. Sophia didn't have a job at the time, however her best friend, Tori, told her when her when her mom got the return she'd be buying tickets to one of the concerts on the tour Sophia was supposed to be going to. Sophia was beyond happy her friend was going to be able to go see such great people.

Sophia got a job in hopes she would be able to save enough money for a ticket to the tor. However, one day at work she was lifting something heavy and twisted her wrist really severely. Since she was at work she continued to work thinking it was a small sprain. A week later she still had excruciating pain so she finally went to the doctors. At first they told her it was broken but they refused to put a cast on it because they weren't 100% sure. After that appointment she had to wait three weeks before her appointment with a specialist and to get an MRI. For Sophia an MRI was one of the most painful and terrifying thing ever experienced. However, the results showed she had torn the ligament in her wrist, meaning the muscle that holds both the radius and ulna together was tore making it so they weren't aligned. This left Sophia in a full arm splint for seven weeks.

With the splint she faced many daily difficulties. She was unable to get dressed properly, fix her hair, do her makeup, write in school, etc. Along with those difficulties she was also in constant pain, because of this she would get easily irritated. That also caused her to get easily upset with the simplest things.

While all the complications with her arm were occurring her parents didn't make matters any better. Every time they saw each other in public or when dropping her and her siblings off at another's house they always yelled. It would be over the simplest things but they have so much hatred towards each other all they'd do is yelling. Every time something went wrong between her parents she'd receive a text that expresses how it's her fault for not standing up and taking sides.

One day Sophia's phone went off while doing homework. Expecting to have received a text from one of her parents, she didn't view it until she finished her homework. After she finished she pulled out her phone and it was a text from her best friend. It was a picture of three tickets to the tour, with a caption saying she was allowed one friend. That's when Tori broke the news to her that the extra ticket would be going to her. Not to mention the seats were two sections from the stage!

It's August and Sophia is heading five hours to meet up with Tori for the concert, poster and all. She finally gets to the hotel and gives the guardian money for the ticket. The girls are getting in the car heading to the venue; it hasn't hit them that they will actually be seeing their favorite band in a few hours. They arrive at the venue and find the gate entrance for floor ticket holders. While in line for over an hour they make some friends, get compliments on their posters, and get excited for the concert.

After a few hours of waiting they are finally permitted into the venue. They run down to the floor to find their seats, they get to their section, section M. They then find their row, but when they get to it the seats start at seat four not one. They have seats one through three so they call one of the security guards over to figure out what they do. He took the tickets and left to ask someone with greater knowledge on what to do. While he was doing that Sophia and Tori ran to take pictures of the stage, etc. They see the guard come back so they run back over to the parent to find out what they're supposed to do. This is when they realized how lucky they are. The security guard is sure to inform them that the seats listed on the tickets do not exist, however, they will be getting upgraded. Sophia ans Tori look at each other thinking "how can you possibly upgrade this view".

They get to the ticketing tent and tell the workers why they are there and they're informed they will be receiving a different coloured wristband meaning they will be in a different floor section. As they are putting on the green bands the workers express to the girls that they will now be in section B. Both start crying realizing this meant they would be RIGHT next to the stage.

The concert is about to start, the lights dim, and the trailer plays, then fireworks go off. Following right after the fireworks is the first note to one of the songs "Diana" then the boys come running out singing. For Sophia it was such an adrenaline rush, the moment is here. She had gone through a lot to get here. Not to mention she still held that poster up even with the full arm splint and through all the pain. The feeling of being there is just incredible. It's like for once all her fears, all her worries were washed away. She could be herself, she felt content with how she was and she felt loved. The concert showed her what it was like to let go and be carefree and happy. Seeing the boys live caused her to realize that her whole world was standing in front of her and that no matter what happened at home they will always be there to lift her spirits up.

Ashlie Horn

Better to have loved and lost

Just like anyone else, I have experienced tragedy. Everyone eventually does, unless you completely shut yourself out of everyone else's lives and that's not a healthy way to live. Tragedy usually strikes unexpectedly, but sometimes it is expected. People can be sick for ages and not have much long left, but when they pass you will still be shocked. Tragedy is not only losing people, but other things can happen too.

My experience with tragedy showed me that it's better to have loved and lost, than to have not loved at all. Honestly, everyone hates losing friends, family etc. but it happens to everyone. The experience I had with having love and losing was with my close family/ friends. I lost one of my best friends, Analeis (Leisy) and my mom's best friend Carlos (Papaw). With all of my heart, I truly did love them. It sucks that they're gone but I appreciate the fact that I got to meet them, know them my whole life, and grow close to them.

Analeis was Carlos's granddaughter, so I considered Leisy as a cousin, or best friend. As for my papaw Carlos, I considered him my Papaw and he always referred to me as his "white daughter" since he was Hispanic and I am white. What happened was when I was really little, only a couple years old, my mom and Carlos worked together at Ball. Eventually, he talked to her and said things like "Hey Becky. I'm coming over!" or "See you at your house at 8." Even though my mom barely knew him. Secretly, he had a crush on my mom. But I always ignored that and so did my mom. It was kind of adorable actually. But that's how I met both Leisy and papaw. Leisy and I would always play together when we were younger and my mom and Carlos would always talk and do adult stuff. Leisy and I grew older and we still always hung out.

A few years down the road when Leisy was about 11 or 12 she was diagnosed with Leukemia and she was sick for a long while. In all honesty, I only got to see her in the hospital once, and I regret not making an effort to have my mom and Carlos take me to see her in Indi. When I was in 7th grade, my papaw Carlos called my mom and I when I was getting ready for school one morning, and Leisy had passed away... I was heartbroken but the loss just drew me closer to the family. After that loss, I became really close to Leisy's cousin, and Carlos's granddaughter, Racquel. That was awesome, but after a lot of spending time with Racquel and papaw, last year he was diagnosed with colon cancer. He had a long fight taking chemo and other treatments. It was hard seeing him so sick and weak, and out of his normal state of mind. I took every chance I had to visit him though, because I learned from my experience with Leisy that I want to spend and see my loved ones as much as possible. I always went over to his house to go visit him and talk to him, even though he stayed sort of quiet and said as much as he could. I also took lots of pictures with him on my iPod and phone. On my phone, where most of the pictures were, I had an SD card. When I got a new phone and got rid of my iPod, I had all of our cute little pictures on the SD card. Around December or January of 2014, I had the SD card in the pocket of my brand new North Face jacket, and I happened to leave it somewhere at school. The next day I checked everywhere and asked teachers if they had seen it or if it was in the lost and found. I lost all the pictures I had with him. I remembered that on some random day, I printed a picture off of me and him that I had, and framed it and gave it to him. Papaw Carlos always had it next to him on the table, the whole time he was sick. He passed away on November 10th, 2014, and at the funeral was the picture that I had for him, it was on one of the poster things with pictures of him and friends and family. Even though I don't have it, I know his daughter Julie still has the picture so I know it still exists. It just sucks that I don't have it for myself.

It sucks to go through all the loss, but it's better to have loved and loss rather than to not love at all. I don't regret any of it at all and I'm so glad I got to get close to the family.

Ashlie Horn

Tripp and Adeline

I heard a slight ringing in the back of my head, I was not really sure if I was unconscious or conscious. I took a second and pried my eyes open and looked around without moving. I saw my phone flashing across the room and realized what I was hearing was my alarm. I wiped the sleep out of my eyes, sat up, and slid off my bed to turn off the obnoxious alarm. It was 7:31 am. Why? Why do I have to go to school? I stretched and started getting ready. I threw on a Rasta drug rug, some American Eagle Khakis and my vans. After I walked into the bathroom, I looked at my shoulder length, curly, blonde hair. I combed it out and threw on my snapback and big black framed glasses. I'm a stud, huh. I grabbed my longboard and an apple on my way out the door.

As I arrived at school, I picked up my board and jogged inside. I ran upstairs to the Junior lockers and there she was, Adeline. Adeline is one of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen. She had silvery blonde, wavy hair, clear down to her butt. She was pale, skinny, and had light green and blue eyes. She was always talking to new people, making friends, and being so friendly. She was such a people person. I imagined myself making my way across the hall to go talk to her. As I walk up, she stops talking to her little group of people and smiles at me, with that beautiful white smile, and huge dimples. I felt my face get red.

"Hey, Adeline. Right?"

"Yeah! That's me." She giggled.

"Uh yeah I knew that. Haha" I struggled, trying not to sound like an idiot.

"TRIPP! What the hell are you doing man? You look like you are drooling." I snapped out of my day dream as my buddy Jess yelled at me.

"I uh, must have been day dreaming that's all Jess. I'm a little tired from hanging out so late last night you know."

"Tripp, you do NOT have to lie to me boy. I know you're day dreaming about her." He pointed a finger to some dark haired girl, named Trinity.

"Haha, no. Well, I have got to get to class. I'll catch up with you later dude."

No way. I knew there was no way could I tell Jess that I have a gigantic crush on Adeline. She's like the most wanted girl in school, why would she go for a hippie like me? She wouldn't. Maybe I should just find someone else to drool over. Like... Trinity. Yeah, Trinity. I tried to clear my thoughts and slow things down a bit while walking across our huge school just to go to Algebra 2.

While I was sitting in that terrible math class, the announcements came on about halfway through the class.

"ATTENTION, ALL STUDENTS REPORT TO THE AUXILARY GYM FOR A MEETING. ALL STUDENTS REPORT TO THE AUXILARY GYM FOR A MEETING"

Oh great. I thought to myself. A stupid meeting. Probably about cookie dough or something. I stood up with the rest of the class, and we walked down to the auxiliary gym. Thankfully, my group of friends were sitting at the top of the bleachers calling my name.

"Tripp! Tripp! Up here dude!"

There were probably about 20 guys sitting at the top waiting for me, it was honestly pretty welcoming. We all sat in silence as everyone in the school got sat down. We all stood up for the Pledge of Allegiance. In unison, we all said, or some mouthed, the words to the

Pledge of Allegiance without hands behind us or placed on our chest. We all sat down after the moment of silence, and Brittany Newman stood at the bottom of the gym with a microphone.

"Hello fellow students. I'm sure you're all wondering why we're having a random meeting. The reason behind this is because we wanted to introduce a new course you can take this year. It will be called People Skills, in classroom 102, with Mrs. Jenkinson. The purpose of this class is to enhance you're people skills, and help you to interact with people you are not necessarily comfortable with or used to being around. This class can help with Job interviews, and maybe even meeting your significant other."

A lot of people cheered at the last remark, meeting your significant other. After all the drama was gone and everyone's excitement about the new class course had died down, we went to class and finished our notes and homework. At the end of class I sat in my desk, using my pencil to draw a little doodle on the smooth, wooden desk. I was thinking about everything. My friends, my divorced parents, how attractive I was, and how somewhat unhappy I was. I didn't know what I was missing; I mean this should be normal for any 16 year old. To feel like you don't fit in, or you're not exactly sure what you need to be happy. I mean, I do have everything I need. I have an IPhone 6+, straight A's, nice clothes, friends, family, and good looks. Yet there was still something missing from my life... Maybe it's love? Psh, that's a stupid thought. How could love seriously be that one thing I'm missing from my life? I have to be joking myself.

As the bell for lunch rang loudly through out the school, everyone got up and raced to the cafeteria to be first in line. I was like the 3rd person in the 1st lunch line. Suprisingly enough, as soon as I went to the area with the condiments, like ketchup, ranch, mustard ect, someone smacked my plate all over the front of my comfy rasta sweater.

"Dude, of course. My luck! Watch where you're going!" I crappily said as I looked up and saw that the person who had done this was Adeline. She had the most embarrassed and shocked look on her face. I saw bright eyes fill with tears, and I quickly apologized.

"Oh my god, uh Adeline. I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to yell like that..." She giggled a little bit and looked at me for a moment.

"No, don't apologize, I'm the one who should be sorry. I seriously didn't even see you walking this way, my head is so full right now. I feel like I'm about to overload."

"Oh, well you're fine. This must mean something right?" I smiled, expecting a smile back. But she didn't smile. She looked at me with a straight face.

"You uhm... should come get coffee with me before school sometime. We could meet here first and I can drive." She said.

"Dude! Of course!"

And that's how Adeline Jean, and I began our life together. Even though we were polar opposites, It still happened.

Ashlie Horn

Different perspective Rapunzel

As I was trying to escape from the authorities, I ran into a tangled up area of vines, grass, and bushes. I had no clue it would be a tunnel though. I fell backward into this little cave, tunnel thing. I began running, the opposite way I came in. I emergered in a little meadow. In the middle of the meadow, was a tower. The tower was extremely tall, the bricks were falling apart and there were vines growing up the sides. In the front of the tower toward the top, was a single window. As I was trying to get a good look and see if there was light or anything coming from the window, something whitish in color, came falling. It hit me in the face and knocked me right to the ground. I woke up, and this long, blonde, rope like stuff was all over me. I took a second and realized I was tied to a chair. In front of me, stood a beautiful, blonde babe. She looked kind of messy, but that's okay because she has a beautiful face, dress and... hair? I followed where her hair started and it ended on me. The rope that had me tied to a chair was not rope... it was this psychotic girls hair.

I screamed.

"What are you doing to me!? I was only trying to find somewhere to hide, I had people trying to kill me!"

She stood shaking, holding a frying pan as a weapon.

"You... you've come for my hair. And NO! You cannot have it!"

"Like I said, I only came looking at the tower for protection. I don't mean any harm, I swear."

"Hm, okay. How do I know that you're not lying?"

"Grab my satchel over there... Reach in it and open it. There should be a paper on top with my name and face on it. It says I'm the most wanted. They think I'm a criminal but I'm really not."

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Let down your hair!"

"Oh my, that's my mother!"

The last think I remember was Rapunzel taking the frying pan, and knocking me out. When I awoke, I fell out of a closet, still tied up. There she was, still standing there waiting for me.

"I'll make you a deal. If you take me to see the floating stars that I see every year on my birthday, tonight, I'll give you back you're satchel, which I hid, and let you go."

"No, no, no. That's way too dangerous for me. Sorry about your luck but I just need my satchel and I will be on my way out of here, I promise you'll never see me again."

"Come on, I need to see those floating stars and what they mean!"

"Rapunzel, don't you mean floating lanterns? They let them go, hundreds of them, every year on the lost princess's birthday."

"But, it's my birthday..."

After a while, it was only like 2 pm, and this crazy girl had gotten me to give in. I needed my satchel and to get out of here. I knew it would be risky but, it was worth it. We both got out of the tower, and we started on our way to the palace. She acted like she'd never been outside before, playing with the animals, dirt and water. Come to find out, she HAD never been outside before. I felt bad for asking her why she was playing outside like a child. She was innocent like a child though

"So, you have this evil mother, that locks you in a tower, and doesn't let you go outside, or do anything?"

"Yup, that's what I've been dealing with for 18 years now. The only reason she is so strict is because of my hair. It's special you know."

"Yeah, its special im sure. Just long."

On our way to the palace, I was helping Rapunzel up a steep hill, and I slid and cut open my hand.

"Damn it!"

"Hold on, don't freak out, okay?"

"C'mon, put some stiches or something on it!"

Next, she started to sing. Her hair lit up like a yellow glow stick.

"Flower gleam and glow, Let your power shine, make the clock reverse, bring back what once was mine, heal what has been hurt, change the fates design, save what has been lost, bring back what once was mine, what once was mine."

I felt my face grow red and my eyes grow large. I yelled, and she covered my scream with her hand, and uncovered my hand with her hair, to show me my healed hand.

"Your hair... Really is special. Isn't it?"

"Yes, that's why mother is so picky."

After being shocked for a while, we continued on our trip. It was about 7 pm now. We were almost to the bridge that led to the kingdom. When we came to the outside of the woods, a small town was visible and then a bridge. We darted through the little town, and came upon the bridge. There were hundreds of villagers all over the bride, waiting on the sun to set, to see the floating lanterns. We got a boat, and paddled out into the middle of the little lake. It had become completely dark, and everyone let the lanterns loose. Rapunzel had a glow in her eyes that I've never seen before in anyone. She looked so happy. And in that moment, I realized she was the princess. Rapunzel was the lost princess. Of course, everything added up, she was blonde haired, big blue eyes, and lived with an insane old woman who kept her locked in a tower all her life. Today would've been the princesses 18th birthday. And it was Rapunzel's 18th birthday. It all made sense. We stayed on the boat for a while longer and I explained everything to her... she seemed like she thought I was lying.

"I believe you."

After all that was settled, we got that crazy old witch arrested, I gave back the crown that I had stolen, Rapunzel had met her real parents, and we got married.

Ashlie Horn

The Unhappy Amish Community

I opened my eyes and took a moment to realize where I was. I looked around, and saw the Pasteur and some mountains of course. A lavender butterfly floated by and landed on my wooden chair. I just stared and wandered, what will I will do today? Probably nothing exciting, maybe gather some more wood and set up more traps. I thought to myself. I got up, shook the dew off my hat and took a few steps. I couldn't believe I fell asleep outside of my tent last night. I sat back down, and could smell the fresh dough being baked in houses for breakfast. A half an hour of sitting and watching the sun rise went by and Suzy came running up to me.

"Hey Tripp, How's your plan going?" She said.

"What plan exactly?"

"The one that you've been telling everyone, except me. You know, about how you want to move into the mountains?"

"Oh yeah, that is going to happen soon. You should come with me... I don't like to be alone and you know that."

"Tripp... I'd love to. Most people don't make it when they're living up there... but we could try together. We just need the right tools and recourses."

Suzy and I spent the day packing our tents, saying goodbyes to our friends, and getting all of our belongings gathered. We had to take all of our traps with us, and things like that. Suzy ran home to make sure she had packed everything. I was thinking about how much of a sin it is to live with her if we're not married. Thinking of a plan, I decided I would propose to Suzy when we were on our way. When Suzy's father came running toward me, I was shocked.

"Tripp! What do you think you're doing? How dare you ask my daughter to go to the mountains with you?! We are clearly happy down here in the beautiful pasture. Look at what we've got! A church. Crops. Homes. A great community, an amish community. Why would you want to leave that all behind, and steal my daughted away too?! If you leave, we are shunning you both."

"I had been planning on leaving for a while. She was the one who came and confronted me about leaving... so I invited her. I'm sorry. I also knew you would shun me, so I made sure it's really what I wanted to do. I've been considering it for quite some time now. "

"Be gone! You piece of rubbish."

"Ha-ha! Okay, well just in case you were wondering, Suzy and I are going to get married. If we are being shunned I technically don't need your blessing."

He glared at me and scampered away. See, that was one of the reasons I wanted to leave my home that I've had for 21 years. People like him. All my life all I've heard is, "this is a sin, that's a sin, you'll be shunned!" Blah, blah, blah.

Shortly after my encounter with Suzy's father, Henry, Suzy returned with a few things she had forgotten, and a sad look on her face.

"What's wrong love?" I asked.

"My father says we will be shunned, if we leave. I don't know if I would be able to live with myself..."

"It's either be happy and be shunned, or be miserable and be not shunned." I said.

"How would you feel about getting married...?" I gave her a smirk.

"Tripp... that sounds amazing... but we need my dad's blessing and we can't get that if we will be shun-"

"Shhhh. I've got it all figured out. Your father knows I want to propose, so he knows he cannot shun us. He would never want to miss out on his daughter's wedding and maybe grandbabies being raised in the lord's name"

"Oh, how clever. Shall we be leaving soon?" Suzy grinned.

"Yes of course, now."

The evening landscape had become cooler, and the buzz of mosquitoes and the chirp of crickets had begun. The sun sank behind the horizon and left the sky periwinkle. Suzy and I started off. We were strolling up the hill, and once we got to the top of the hill we had to start climbing the steep mountain. It was going to be difficult with all of our gear and things with us. Hours went by; we were mostly quiet with the occasional "This is peaceful." or "Are you doing okay darling?" When we were almost up the hill, at the bottom of the mountain, Suzy twisted her ankle. She cried out with a loud scream, so I came toward her.

"Suzy! How could you be so foolish, so clumsy?"

"I'm hurt Tripp, and you're yelling at me for it? If you couldn't tell, I slid on some loose rocks."

I apologized. And replied, "Alright, I'm sorry. We can take a brake here, set up the tents, a fire, and let you rest overnight. We're almost to the plateau."

The next morning, Suzy and I woke up and fed on some hard biscuits and sipped on fresh water. About this time, we were mid- mountain. She said her ankle felt better so she insisted we kept going until we got to the flat part of the mountain, the plateau, where we planned on spending most of our time at. We went all day, stopped and took breaks, getting a drink and talking, and enjoying each other's company. We had a conversation about how we were both unhappy down at the Pasture.

"Tripp?"

"Yeah Suzy?"

"Were you unhappy down at the pasture?"

"Yeah, I have been for the longest time. All those boring rules and nothing to do. Always struggling to survive because no one wants to help you. I was tired of everyone telling me that almost everything I wanted to do and enjoy was a sin. That's why I became obsessed with trapping animals, so I always had food and it was a non-sinful hobby. I knew my sister and her best friend had traveled up here to the plateau and loved it. They rarely came back to visit me."

"I'm so sorry Tripp. I have to agree with the boring part, and it got annoying living with my father. It's going to be nice to be able to spend some alone time with you on this adventure. We will have the best time." Suzy smiled.

Nothing could fix that unhappiness, except a little adventure. This had been the adventure that we had been longing for, living in the mountains, and getting away from our strict community. I was glad we weren't going to be shunned, so we could come back and show off our children and visit. We wouldn't have to share with anyone; there would be fresh streams, new grass, wild flowers and all kinds of things. That's what we figured would bring us happiness.

After a day and a half of taking breaks and climbing the hill, taking the easiest ways possible, we reached the plateau. It was a flat area with steep slopes all around. We could see the Pasteur, thousands of feet away down the mountain. There was a crystal clear stream, bright green grass, bugs and soil, flowers and other little animals thriving. This place was so beautiful. It was so worth being unhappy all that time for.

Autumn Clark

Bubble Wrap Fashion

"Congratulations Giorgina! You are now the official owner of this building," the realtor bubbled with feigned excitement as she thrust the deed into my hands. The realtor was very good at stretching her plum-painted lips over her cigarette-stained teeth in an unsettlingly inauthentic grin; her voice was chipper and bright, but far from happy. As I grabbed the deed out of her hands, I was thankful that I wouldn't be dealing with her any longer.

"Thank you for everything ma'am," I said politely, shaking her hand one last time. I couldn't remember her name; I had never cared to learn it because something about her was so troubling, I didn't want to involve myself with her any more than I had to.

She smiled her tight-lipped smile once again, and I shivered slightly. "You are welcome! Good luck, Giorgina, and call me if you need anything or have any problems!" I nodded and smiled slightly at this, and with that, she was off. She turned quickly on her heels and strode away, her mauve pantsuit rippling ever so slightly in the wind. I noted, though, how her hair was so hair-sprayed that it seemed almost plastic. I shook it off and turned to look at my new place.

I've been designing and making clothes ever since I was a child. The covering of a body has always fascinated me, and so I made it my life's work. When I was 20, I dropped out of medical school to start my own brand. Lila Rose (named after my sister who passed due to leukemia when she was 8 and I was 13) launched on my 21st birthday. In the beginning, I was selling solely through the internet and making all my clothes by hand with a small team of investors/co-founders/employees/relatives and friends. Our first year (2012) we did $112,000 in sales, which sounds like a lot, but after the cost of materials, bills, and my "employees"' salaries, I hardly came out ahead. The next year, though, we spent a lot of time advertising; thank the Lord for Facebook, because it's the cheapest and quickest way to get the word out. In 2013 we nearly tripled our sales ($302,000). Our profit margin was impressive that year, but it was hard for my "employees" to balance their real lives and real jobs with my now booming business; after all, most of them were just my college friends or my cousins who I'd conned into helping me with this. So, I finally hired actual employees. We were still working out of the basement of my parents' house, but at least we were closer than ever to being a real company.

I paid my employees well, and tried my hardest to be as accommodating as possible; I paid myself simply what I needed to survive, then put the rest away in the "saving for an actual store/warehouse" fund. Now, finally, 2 years later, Lila Rose was bigger than ever and I got to say that the first official store would be opening in just a few months. I traded in my small group of employees in my basement for mass production overseas, but I kept them around to help repackage and store my merchandise, and many of them were on the list of potential sales associates for my store once it opened.

Clutching the deed like it was a lifeline, I turned to face my new store and smiled broadly. I was a store owner. Lila Rose finally had a real physical location. My smile grew even wider as tears dripped down my cheeks and I rushed inside to start planning where everything was going to go. My best friend and co-founder Alyssa, was waiting inside, sketching out the floor layout.

"Is that what I think it is?" she said, smiling knowingly and pointing to the manila envelope in my hand.

"We're store owners!" I screamed and rushed over to hug her tightly. After a few moments of embracing, squealing, and a little crying, I finally let go. "Okay, show me what you've got so far."

"Okay, I want you to go stand right in front of the front door over there," she instructed, sniffling and wiping the tears off of her freckled cheeks. I followed her instructions diligently, excitedly smiling the whole time. "Now you're a customer; you walk in and laid out in front of you are racks and racks of beautiful clothes. There are mannequins displaying our favorite pieces for that season on both sides of you, and some of our other favorite pieces are on the racks directly in front of you. Above the racks are signs advertising sales and clearance racks, so you know you'll get a good deal. Up the walls all around you are more of our most popular items, displayed so that you can see things you will be interested in from all angles. You are torn just trying to decide where to start because you are being bombarded by adorable things from all around you. A friendly employee shouts out 'Hi, welcome to Lila Rose! How are you today?' You answer 'good' as the employee approaches you, smiling, and asks if they can help you find anything. You tell the employee that you are just looking and they reply cheerfully, 'Okay, well let me know if you need any assistance or need a dressing room or have any questions.' The employee smiles and goes back to work. The cash registers are all the way in the back, so that if you find a piece of clothing you want, you have to wade through dozens of racks of other clothes so that it's likely you'll spot something else you want." I started to cry again and Alyssa stopped talking to run over and hug me.

"I just can't believe my dream is real, Alyssa," I sniffled into her shoulder. "It's been so much hard a work, but it's finally real." She rubbed my back while I cried with joy and relief into her shoulder for a few minutes. Finally, after I was finished blubbering, I stepped back to address directly. "It's getting kind of late; you should probably head home, Alyssa."

"It's only 4 Gi! If you think that's late, you belong in a nursing home! We have so much to do!" She laughed and gestured to the empty store around us.

"You have a baby at home, Alyssa, and she needs you. You go on and get home to her."

"What are you going to do?"

"Well, Susan had a bunch of mannequins locked in a storage locker from when she had that, um, magic shop, and she said she was going to bring them over this afternoon, so I suppose I'll just hang around here and wait for her." Susan was my parents' friend. She was a little eccentric to say the least; when I say "magic" shop, I really mean occult shop. Susan ran a shop for a while that sold all sorts of black magic items and spiritual stuff. I never went in there because it freaked me out, but free mannequins are free mannequins so I took her up on her offer to give them to me for my shop.

"What are you going to do until then?" Alyssa worried about me too much. I was small and frail from my anemia, and she was very protective of me, constantly making sure that I wasn't in danger of being mugged or anything like that.

"Alyssa, I will lock the doors and keep my pepper spray close at hand," I said, sarcastically. She gave me one of those I'm being serious looks and I sighed. "I'll probably just do some sweeping, maybe go sort through those old boxes in the back. I'll probably invite Max to come chill with me; his office is just a few blocks from here, I think. I can see if he can swing by and hang out for a bit after he gets off work. Maybe I can even convince him to pick me up something to eat on his way over."

"Okay. I do feel a lot better knowing Max is going to be here. He's pretty buff, he'll fight off any murderers that come looking for you." She smiled knowingly and elbowed me in the side lightly. "So, when are you going to ask him out, Gi? I know you want to."

"Alyssa, you know we're just friends," I sighed. She rolled her eyes as if to say yeah, right. She was right, of course, I did want to ask Max out. I was too afraid though; he was older than me and so much smarter, so I figured he'd never see me in any way except like a little sister. We were good friends, too, and I didn't want to ruin our friendship.

"Okay, well, if you're going to be okay here, I'll head home then," she said, picking up her coat and purse. "Text me when Max gets here. And, text me when the mannequins get here; send me some pictures of them so I can start thinking about how to style them!" She started to back towards the door, keeping her eyes trained on me, waiting for my response.

"Of course," I replied, trying to keep the joy in my tone. Secretly, I really didn't want Alyssa to leave until Max was here. I really hate being alone, especially in strange, empty places. I knew Alyssa needed to get home, though, and I was a grown up, now, so I let her go. "Have a good night!"

"I'll see you bright and early tomorrow to start unpacking things here!" She waved and, with that, she stepped out into the chilly October wind. And, I was alone.

The shadows on the wall seemed to grow a little longer, and the silence pounded against my eardrums eerily. I was definitely not good at being alone. I decided I should call Max now; the sound of his voice would calm me down a little. I dialed his office phone and waited as it rang and rang.

"Paulson Paper and Print Company, Maxwell Paulson speaking," he said into the other line in his best business voice. His father owned an office supply company that supplied for some of the biggest office buildings and companies in New York, and Max was set to take over the business sometime in the next decade or so.

"Hello Maxie," I said back in my best fake business voice. He laughed.

"Gi! To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I just got the keys to my new store!"

"Congratulations!"

"Thank you!"

There was an awkward pause. I scuffed the toes of my sneakers on the bare concrete floor; I could hear him shuffling papers around on his desk.

"Is that all you called for?"

"Well, Alyssa left me here alone and the mannequins aren't supposed to be here for another couple hours and I thought if you didn't have any plans, you might want to come chill with me until they get here." I stumbled, worried that he would only come because he didn't want to turn me down. "You don't have to, though. I'll be fine by myself if you're busy or don't want to come or something."

"I'd love to come hang out with you for a bit, Gi. I can leave work here in a few minutes, I just have to wrap up a couple things. I can grab some champagne so we can celebrate your new store." I grinned into the phone like an idiot.

"Could you maybe grab some food instead? I haven't eaten all day and I don't think drinking on an empty stomach would be a good idea," I chuckled. He laughed with me.

"I'll grab both. Just text me the address and I'll head that way here in a little bit."

"Okay! I can't wait!"

I hung up the phone, smiled, and went back to sweeping, waiting anxiously for Max to get there.

Time passes quickly when you're with those you love. Eating french fries and drinking champagne with your best friend makes the clock spin wildly. Hours of laughing and storytelling feel as though they pass in just a few short minutes. Time with Maxwell always felt like this, like the world suddenly decided to spin faster just for the time we're together. We'll sit down to talk and after a bit realize it's been 3 hours. It's a blessing and curse. It took no time at all until Susan was banging on the door, her truck idling out front with mannequins stacked haphazardly in the bed. Max and I pulled on our jackets and rushed outside to help Susan carry them all in.

"Thank you so much for giving these to me, Susan," I said, grabbing a whole mannequin. They were wrapped in bubble wrap which made them far bulkier and more difficult to carry than expected. "It really means a lot. It's a huge help and a weight of my shoulders knowing I have these already taken care of." The three of us shuffled indoors, our arms full of bubble-wrapped plastic people.

"Oh, it's no problem dear," Susan replied, setting a mannequin down on the concrete floor gently. "They've served me well, and I always felt so terrible leaving them in storage, but I knew I couldn't just let them go to anyone. I had to make sure they were going to a good home with somebody who would take good care of them." She winked at me. I chuckled uneasily. It was a little strange how she spoke of them as if they were her pets or something, but I chalked it up to her eccentric nature and left it at that.

After all the mannequins had been hauled in (a task that was a lot more tiring than one might imagine), I gave Susan a hug and my best wishes, and sent her on her way. Max and I decided it would be best to store them in the back room until the floor was tiled, so that they wouldn't be in the way. And, so, together we hauled all 25 of them to the back room. Finally, they were standing in a big group, wrapped in bubble wrap dresses and pantsuits.

"You know what, Max," I said, leaning on the wall, looking the mannequins up and down. "I think the bubble wrap fashion line we have here is pretty genius. Maybe I won't even put my clothes on them. I might just leave them like this."

"I have a better idea. What if you just stop designing actual clothes and only design bubble wrap clothes now? This whole bubble wrap fashion could be the next big thing!" He walked up to a mannequin and straightened the bubble wrap so it covered her up a little bit better. "I can see it on the runways already."

"Okay, genius, let's get out of here," I laughed, grabbing him by the arm and guiding him back to the store front.

"What are your plans now?" He asked, leaning on a counter that was to become a check-out counter eventually.

"Like, for tonight?" I asked, blushing slightly. My heart feebly hoped he'd ask me to go out with him, or invite me back to his apartment for homemade dinner and a movie night; my brain asserted that he was probably just being polite and conversational and didn't actually care about my plans.

"Yeah, I mean, you weren't planning to stay here and sweep the floor all night were you?" He asked, and lifted his champagne glass to drain the contents. "Oh! I bet you're planning to go back and style those mannequins. Your new fashion line depends on those bubble wrap clothes being nothing but perfect!"

"Actually," I said, giggling sheepishly. He turned me into a boy-crazy teenage girl all over again, but I kind of liked it. "I don't--"

"Wait!" He cut me off; his smile slid off his face suddenly, leaving furrowed brows and a slight grimace. I opened my mouth to question, but he held up a finger, motioning for me to remain quiet for a moment. I shut my mouth promptly and watched his face intently as he closed his eyes; he was listening for something. "Did you hear that?" He mouthed to me, and pointed back towards the store room. I shook my head; all I'd heard was our conversation. We had just come from the store room, too, so I knew nobody could be back there.

"You probably just heard a car or the wind or something," I whispered, but I noticed that his hands were shaking; he was gravely serious. He shook his head violently and shushed me again, motioning for me to listen again.

And then, I heard it.

Pop!

It was faint, a little popping noise coming from the back of the store.

Pop!

Again, it came. Quiet, but familiar. I knew that sound, I just couldn't put my finger on it.

Pop! Pop-pop!

This time it was accompanied by more pops. I thought through everything stored in the back.

Pop!

It couldn't be the brooms...

Pop! Pop! Pop!

It couldn't be the boxes of old comic books from the last owner...

Pop!

It couldn't be the mannequins...

Pop! Pop! Pop-Pop-Pop-Pop!

And then I realized why I knew that sound. I looked at Maxwell, and noticed the pure terror in his eyes too.

The bubble wrap.

"That sounds like bubble wrap popping, Max," I breathed. Goosebumps raced up my arms and I felt hot tears of fear well up in my eyes. He nodded solemnly.

Pop! Pop!

"Do you have a weapon here?" He asked in a soft whisper, a wild, panicked look in his eyes. I nodded, wiped my eyes with my sleeves, and pointed to the broom leaning against the wall next to us. "That's not going to stop an intruder."

Pop! Pop-Pop-Pop-Pop!

"That's all I have," I mouthed back, shrugging. I was quivering, and terrified to even breathe. He nodded and grabbed the broom, holding it by the straw end so he could club whatever crazed lunatic was popping the bubble wrap in the back room. He motioned for me to stay where I was and then crept towards the back room, wielding the broom like a weapon. The popping was growing louder and more intense by the second. I knew Maxwell was trying to be brave, but his legs were quivering vigorously.

Pop-Pop! Pop-Pop! Pop-Pop-Pop-Pop!

The popping began to echo around the empty store, and a new shuffling noise joined the popping. I wondered if a wild animal like a raccoon or a family of rats had somehow crawled in. I thought maybe a homeless person had made their home in the back and hadn't been noticed until now. I even considered the possibility of a poltergeist; I don't even believe in ghosts, but in that moment that popping noise could have been coming from anything. I tried not to think a crazed murderer had wandered in to kill us and decided to play some sort of demented mind game by popping the bubble wrap.

Pop! Pop-Pop-Pop-Pop-Pop-Pop!

Max's steps were growing shorter as he drew nearer to the doorway to the back; I knew he was balking at the thought of facing the unknown threat. His mind was probably racing like mine, starting with the most gruesome possibility and working through the list. With each shallow breath I took, the popping grew even louder and faster. My heart raced and my lungs rattled in my ribs, praying to every deity I could name.

Then, it stopped.

The popping stopped, just as suddenly as it had started.

Max paused, just feet from the door.

We waited, shaking, praying.

The newfound silence was more assaulting than the popping had been.

Then, all at once, a slight frame filled the doorway to the back room. The person who had been popping had finally come to face us. I stared at this person for a few moments blankly, terrified, knowing I was looking my demise in the face. Only after a few impossibly long seconds, did I notice the person's lack of facial features. They had the shape of a human face, but they had no nostrils, no eyeballs, and they were pale as new-fallen snow. Their skin was smooth, perfect even, with a sheen almost like plastic.

Plastic...

And it dawned on me all at once that, standing there, bubble wrap free and staring emptily at us was a mannequin.

Max dropped the broom and stuttered in terror, trying to find the appropriate words for this situation and shrinking away from the body in front of him. Max, always so trimmed and well-kept, looked like an entirely different person in that moment. His pressed, white shirt had come untucked and his tie was askew. His hair, usually neatly combed, was an untamed halo framing his wild eyes. As he scooted backwards, tripping over himself, his pants pulled up to reveal his socks--red with little Christmas trees on them. Even in that moment of shock and terror, I couldn't help but allow myself a little laugh; only Max would wear Christmas socks before Halloween.

"Gi..." he choked out, daring to rip his eyes away from the monster for a quick second to look at me pleadingly. I wanted to help him; in my mind I pictured myself leaping up heroically, grabbing his hand, pulling him to his feet, and bolting out the door to disappear in the crowd of people outside, but no matter how my brain screamed to get up and help him, my muscles were stubbornly cemented in place. I could only watch helplessly from my spot curled up on the floor a few feet away.

The mannequin monster's plastic lips parted in a sickening smile, exposing rows of razor sharp teeth, as its friends joined it in the doorway. Max turned his attention back to the threat standing confidently in the doorway in front of him. And, abruptly, the lead mannequin monster lunged at Maxwell, its comrades not far behind. I shrieked and squeezed my eyes shut, knowing this was the end, for both of us. I sat there on the floor with my eyes frozen shut, paralyzed by fear for an eternity. I tried not to listen, but after Max's screams stopped, the slurping and ripping noises were too loud to ignore. I choked back vomit and tried to keep my mind from imagining what they might be doing to my Max's perfect body to elicit such horrifyingly repulsive noises. Suddenly, cold, smooth plastic ran softly across my cheek.

My hands started to shake even harder, and I struggled to not vomit from fear alone. I had no other choice but to stare death down, so I slowly opened my eyes. The smooth, featureless face of a mannequin was inches from mine. It's head was cocked at a curious angle. I stopped breathing. It reached out and stroked my cheek once again, so careful and gentle. It smiled, stretching its thin plastic lips over its once pearly fangs that were now dripping with blood and stained a sick, rusty pink color. Tears poured down my cheeks and I could feel the blood pumping rapidly to every inch of my body. I opened my mouth to scream, to beg, to offer my final words, to do something, but nothing came out. It smiled wider. I tried to shrink back away from it, to morph into the wall, to drop off the face of the earth, but there was no way I could distance myself from it any further, as if the fangs hovering inches from my nose were my whole world now. I stared at them in horror and dread, unable to tear my eyes away from the instrument of extermination floating mere centimeters from my face.

As I stared unblinkingly at my own death, I realized that I'd forgotten to text Alyssa. It was such a trivial thing to think of, but it was all my brain could conjure up in these cold, petrifying final moments. I wanted to relive my fondest memories, or list my regrets, or at least think of something meaningful, but instead I could only think of a text message that should have been. I should have told her that Maxwell had showed up, that I was safe, that I was fed, that I was happy. I should have texted her when Susan arrived, telling her that there were so many mannequins and that our store was going to be a success and that they looked fabulous in their bubble wrap clothes. But, I didn't text her and my phone was long gone and so was my life. Alyssa, who was probably peacefully sleeping next to her baby at this moment, would never even know how happy those final hours were. I was a really bad best friend.

The mannequin monster's smile never wavered in those seconds. Those seconds were the opposite of the seconds I had spent with Max. He made the clock hands spin uncontrollably, forcing hours to pass in minutes. The seconds I had with this mannequin forced the clock hands to slow down to almost a dead stop, turning mere seconds to endless hours.

It reached up with its little plastic mitten hands, its still fingers molded together, and shut my eyelids gently. I allowed it to shut my eyes and tried to calm the chill running up my spine.

I inhaled slowly and thought, I really wish I had texted Alyssa.

And then, it all went black.

Autumn Clark

A Physicist and a Conspiracy Theorist

"Come on, Maggie!" Kelsey cried. "You're telling me that you don't have even a little bit of faith in the unknown?" I shook my head firmly. Kelsey was a wonderful girl, but she was too much of a dreamer for me to handle most of the time.

"Kelsey, you need to start living in the real world. I mean, books are nice, but they're just made up. They're all just products of late nights and a little too much beer, or something else, you know. I bet if you smoked enough cigarettes and cooped yourself up in a tiny New York apartment and didn't sleep for about a week and a half, you'd have some ideas just as good." Kelsey looked away, crestfallen. I know she's just a kid, pretty much, and it's not so nice to crush her dreams like that, but it really gets on my nerves sometimes. She's smart for her age, almost genius level. She helps me with my college English homework and reads the newspaper everyday, for fun, and she's only 14. Her biggest downfall, though, is that she's naive. She believes in all that stuff she reads: magic, aliens, fairies...I used to be like her, when I was in elementary school, but she's in highschool now and I'm just trying to give her a reality check.

"Maggie?" She asked, looking up carefully at me. "Could I maybe tell you about this episode of Ancient Aliens I watched? It's not something I read, and there were scientists talking about how real it is." I sighed heavily. She will never change. But her big brown puppy dog eyes were too pitiful, so I nodded.

"Okay, so, just think about this," Kelsey said, getting all excited. She gets extremely animated when she talks about this stuff, waving her hands and talking incredibly fast. "What if the moon was hollow?"

"Kelsey," I sighed. "The laws of gravity say that the moon acts the same way all other solid objects do." She wasn't even phased.

"Yeah, but what if science is wrong and the laws of gravity are wrong? What if the moon is something we don't understand because we haven't encountered it yet?" I didn't even try to argue, mainly because I didn't even understand what she was trying to say. "So, the biggest reason that some people think that the moon is hollow is that one time this satellite was trying to land on the moon but it came in too fast and hit the moon too hard and the moon supposedly rang like a bell for, like, hours after the impact! Plus, what are the chances that..."

I stopped listening. I don't care to hear her conspiracy theories. The moon isn't hollow, the earth isn't hollow, there are no secret societies running the government. Yeah, we don't know everything about the world, but everything we do know is backed up with facts and there's no use sitting around, making stuff up, and trying to dispute the facts. Maybe it makes me a bad sister for not listening to her while she talked, but to be honest, I'd probably just get angry at her for questioning some of the most important scientific discoveries of all time. It's times like these I wonder how I, a very left-brained individual, studying to become a physicist, ended up with somebody like Kelsey for a sister? She is the complete opposite of me. She's irrational, emotional, and an idealist in the most annoying way. I mean, I love her to pieces, but she just doesn't understand the world the way I do, and no matter how hard I try, she just can't see things through my eyes. Trying to teach Kelsey the facts of the world is like trying to teach a potato to read.

"Kelsey," I said, interrupting her and standing up suddenly. She was saying something about the flat bottoms of the moon's craters (which I know isn't totally true), but she quickly shut up when I stood up. "I need to go work on a paper. Could we maybe talk about the moon being hollow later?"

She smiled. "Tonight after dinner?" I rolled my eyes internally. She wasn't going to let this go, but I could definitely put it off as long as possible.

"I really need to spend some quality time with this paper I'm writing. It's due in like a couple weeks and I'm hardly started..." There they were again, those big puppy eyes. I sighed heavily again. "Okay, how about tomorrow morning? Mom and Dad will be at work and you and I can sleep in, then I'll make you breakfast and we can sit at the table and eat scrambled eggs and toast and you can tell me all about the hollow moon. Sound okay?"

She grinned and threw her arms around me. "Yes yes yes! Thank you Maggie!" I smiled and patted her back. "Maggie, I've really missed you. It's not easy being an only child. Mom and Dad won't let me talk to them about conspiracy theories and my friends all think I'm a loon whenever I bring it up. You're the only one actually cares enough to listen."

And, I am a terrible sister. Here she is, pouring her heart out to me about how nobody cares about her and will listen to her, and I'm lying about having to write a paper to get out of listening to her. I'm the actual worst sister on the face of the earth. I promised myself to wake up early and make Kelsey the best breakfast ever and listen to her talk about the hollow moon and maybe even ask her about the hollow earth too.

That night, I had possibly the strangest dream ever. It started with me laying in my bed at my parents house, as I actually physically was. Then, suddenly, the room started to glow a beautiful, ethereal white. I sat up and looked around, trying to find the source of the light. I honestly couldn't tell even what part of the room it was coming from, and so, startled, I hopped out of bed and looked frantically around the room. And then, there was a voice.

"Margaret..." the voice boomed. I jumped. The voice was deep and pure, almost sing-songy even, and so loud it rattled my fillings a little. I backed against the wall, trying really hard to think of a logical explanation for this. "I am the ghost of Christmas past..." the voice rumbled.

I sighed, relieved. It was only Kelsey playing a stupid prank on me again. I can't believe she thought I'd fall for this one. "Ha ha," I said, mocking Kelsey. "Good one. You got me. Now give it up and let me sleep, okay?"

"No Margaret, I'm being serious..." the voice came again. I laughed and laid back down in bed. "Fine, if you don't believe me..." And the glowing grew unbearingly bright quite suddenly; I shielded my eyes with my forearm. Then there was a slight popping noise and the glowing stopped altogether. I sighed happily and shut my eyes, snuggling back into my bed.

"Hello Margaret," said the voice again, but this time it was right next to me, not booming all around me. I opened my eyes. There was a strange man leaning over me, so, naturally, I began screaming bloody murder.

"Oh my God!" I screeched. "Who are you? Why are you here? Please don't hurt me! Oh my God!" He stood there calmly chuckling while I tried to hide under my pillow.

"I have already told you, Margaret, I am the ghost of Christmas past." I hugged my pillow tight to my body and tried to think of a logical explanation for this. I must be hallucinating, I thought, or dreaming. And then it hit me. I was dreaming, of course. I took a deep breath and smiled at the figure standing over me.

"Okay ghost of Christmas past, what are you here to tell me? Where are the present and future? I mean, the holidays aren't my favorite time of the year, but I'm no Scrooge, right?" I was rambling excitedly, laughing maniacally in my head at my stupid dreams.

"It is just I tonight, Margaret. I have come to grant you one wish." The man was in a long cream-colored dressing gown, which would have been stylistically appropriate for the 1800s probably. His dark hair was cropped short.

"I wish you'd call me Maggie," I said comically.

"Maggie," he sighed impatiently. He obviously wasn't amused with me. "Listen carefully and think long and hard about this one question. If you could get any one item from your past back, what would you choose?"

This caught me off guard. I'm not materialistic in the slightest, and I put very little value on objects. I would much prefer to have a lost person back than a lost object, but from this guy's tone, I could tell he was serious about his question. None of the things I'd ever lost meant enough to me to want them back. I tried to think of something my mom had lost that she'd want back, but nothing came to mind. I could only think of one thing, and it was a really stupid thing, but I just couldn't get it out of my head.

When my sister was 5, I was 11 and totally over her nonsense. Four year olds are annoying, especially when you're a cool fifth grader and your kid sister is a kindergarten baby who keeps following you around on the playground at recess. Kelsey had this cheap little doll that my grandma had picked up for her at a dollar store somewhere, and she was so attached to it. She carried it everywhere, constantly talking to the stupid doll. I was tired of it. She was in kindergarten now; she needed to grow up and stop embarrassing me and the family name. One day, in the car, I snapped. My sister was sitting on her booster seat, talking to the thing. My mom was on the phone, paying no attention to us. I had been trying to read a chapter book, but Kelsey kept singing loud, made up songs about her doll and it was giving me a headache. Finally I reached over, snatched the doll out of her hands, and threw it out the window before she or my mom could protest.

Of course Kelsey started screaming, crying, and trying to kick me from the other side of the back seat. I was laughing at her because I had finally won and I was finally rid of the dumb doll, but I did feel some remorse. I hadn't seen Kelsey cry this hard in a really long time, not even when I pulled her hair; I felt kind of bad for making her so upset, but my joy at the idea of never seeing the doll again won out my regret. My mom snapped her phone shut, pulled the car over on the side of the freeway, and whirled around to face us, her eyes wild with anger.

"What is going on back here?" she demanded. Her eyes were narrow slits and her tone was pure ice; I suddenly felt a lot less happy about the deed. I looked down at my feet and clamped my mouth shut.
"She... she... she threw Allie out the window!" Kelsey screamed between sobs and hiccups. I hunched my shoulders even further over so my mom couldn't see my face. Hot tears of anger and frustration rushed to my eyes. I quickly tried to think of a cover story. Maybe I could convince my mom that Kelsey had accidently thrown the doll out of her own window, or I could just say that I had been reading the whole time and I didn't know what happened. But, I knew that lying to my mom was always worse than coming clean about the dirty deed itself.

"Margaret Josephine Susan Fischer..." I flinched at my full name; my mom only used my complete full name when I was in triple big trouble. "Did you throw Allie out the window?" I hung my head even more and shrugged, tears now streaming down my face. "Don't shrug at me young lady! Did you throw Allie out the window?" I nodded quietly. My mom sighed heavily. "Margaret, apologize to Kelsey right now and we'll talk about this more when we get home!"

"Sorry Kelsey," I mumbled incoherently. My mom demanded another, better apology.

"And look up when you're talking to somebody! Honestly, Maggie, I thought you knew better than all of this," she said. I could hear the disappointment in her voice, which caused me to cry even harder. I looked up at my mom first; she was looking at me sternly, an angry frown planted firmly upon her face. There was no sympathy for my tears this time. I looked over at Kelsey, who had stopped crying so she could relish in my punishment.

"I'm sorry, Kelsey," I said. She was smiling smugly at me.

"You're sorry for what, Maggie?" My mom pushed.

"I'm sorry for throwing Allie out the window, Kelsey," I said. My mom finally turned around and left me alone.

"Kelsey, we'll get you a brand new doll tomorrow after school, okay honey?" My mom said sweetly as she pulled back onto the freeway. "I know it won't be Allie, but sometimes it's a blessing to make new friends." Kelsey began to chatter nonsensically about something else entirely, completely forgetting about the lost doll. I couldn't believe I was in trouble for losing a doll she had already forgotten about. I tried to read the rest of the way home, but my tears blurred the words too much.

"Maggie?" came the deep voice from my dream man, snapping me back to the present. "You've been staring off into space for, like, five minutes. I'm glad you're thinking carefully about this decision, I just want to make sure you're okay..."

"I'm fine," I responded quietly. I chewed on my lip for another minute or so, hugging the pillow to my body. I really wished I could think of something important that I had lost, but that stupid doll from 10 years ago was the only thing coming to mind. "I think I know what I want back..." The dream guy smiled, knowingly.

The next morning when I woke up, I laughed at myself for having such silly dreams until I noticed what was sitting on my bedside table. There, staring right at me, was a little blonde doll, just like the one I had throw out the window 10 years ago. I tried not to freak out, or question it. I'm a physicist and a firm believer that everything in life has a logical explanation. But, as Kelsey bounced into my room, too happy to be normal for so early in the morning and already babbling about the hollow moon, I realized that maybe it's best to just leave some things unexplained.

Autumn Clark

Finding Yourself

"James, you're not going to leave us again like this," Elizabeth begged. She rubbed the back of the child on her hip and heaved a weighty sigh. James continued to load suitcases and bags into the back of his green Jeep. "James, please. Think of the kids. Think of me. I go nuts without you." James continued to sift through his luggage, unmoved by her pleading. She walked over and slammed the Jeep door shut angrily; James finally looked up at her.

She was a mess, James thought. Her short blonde hair was twisted back in a wild ponytail and her mascara was dripping down her cheeks. James wondered when she had stopped wearing lipstick. She had always been angry and wild, he knew that, but she had never been messy. Now she was messy. She was a beautiful, gorgeous, perfect mess, the greatest mess he had ever seen, but still a mess. James suddenly realized she had been talking this whole time and the only thing he had heard was his only thoughts.

"James?! Are you listening to me?" Elizabeth was saying. "Of course you're not listening. You never listen to me." She set the child down on the grass and watched it toddle away.

"Of course I'm listening, darling." Elizabeth was shaking her head. James quickly changed the subject. "When did you stop wearing lipstick, Lizzy?"

"Lipstick, James! Lipstick! You are concerned about my lipstick of all cotton-picking things! I haven't worn lipstick since our second child was born, James. But you wouldn't know that because you haven't been around." She was angry again, but she was always angry. Elizabeth was always angry and James was always flighty, that was their dynamic. James looked at her tear-filled eyes and swept her up in a hug.

"Liz, my darling, why are you crying?" She didn't answer; she would never answer this question. She instead sniffled into his shoulder for a few quiet minutes longer as he rubbed her hair. The more she sniffled, the tighter her hug around his torso grew. He didn't push her to reply, he simply comforted her until she was no longer upset.

As Elizabeth cried into his shoulder, James watched their son, Tyler, toddle through their grassy yard. The grass needed to be cut, but James hardly had time for yard work now. Tyler pushed his toy vacuum cleaner through the yard, imitating its sound. Their cocker spaniel, Danny, ran in circles around Tyler, barking playfully. It made James smile, seeing Tyler and Danny play together like best friends.

James looked at their mailbox. Each family member had a hand print smacked on it in a different color of paint; even Danny's paw had made it on there. As he stared at the mailbox, his eyes drifted to the little pink handprint on the side and he thought of Josie, inside watching cartoons. She was old enough now to understand that when daddy left, he was going to be gone for a long time, and that her life was going to be harder. She cried and cried every time she saw James's suitcase. This past time, she begged him not to go, telling him that her homework was really hard in first grade and that she needed him to stay because mommy never helped her right. James only shook his head and hugged her as she cried, unable to respond.

James then thought of how when he had returned from his last trip, Tyler didn't even recognize him. He was a simple being though, and smiled when Elizabeth informed him that James was daddy. Tyler then said, "Okay bye daddy" and left to go do his own thing. It hurt James to not be remembered by his own child, but he knew that the older Tyler grew, the better his memory would be and that he wouldn't forget James again likely.

"James?" Elizabeth snapped James back to reality as she lifted her tear stained face from James's shoulder and looked into his eyes. "What are you thinking about?"

James sighed. He released Elizabeth from his embrace and dropped to sit on the curb. After a moment, Elizabeth joined him, sitting cross-legged on the sidewalk beside him.

"I was thinking about the children," he said softly. Elizabeth perked up a little at the mention of the children, as if the fire in her belly had leapt to life suddenly again. "I want Tyler to remember me this time. Do you think he will?"

Elizabeth sighed this time. "James, he's awfully young. I doubt it, honestly." James rested his chin in his left hand and stared at his feet. "It really just depends how long you'll be gone, James..."

"Liz, you know I don't know that. I never do. I'm not going on vacations--"

"You're going on journeys," Liz finished for him. "I know, James, I know. But it's all the same to the kids and I. It doesn't matter where you go or why you go; the only thing that matters to us is that you're gone." She looked over at James and he wanted to dive right into her ocean irises.

"I know, hon, but it's important to me. I know that I'm out there somewhere, and I'm going to find myself in a sunset or in a starry sky or the depths of an ocean and then I'll be done. I just have to find myself, Elizabeth. It's a journey of self-awareness and once the journey is finished I will never leave you again." Elizabeth looked away, her eyes dropping. James grabbed her chin and pulled her eyes back to his. "That's a promise, Elizabeth."

"Yes, James. But, when will that be?" James opened his mouth to respond but she cut him off with a hand. "I know, James. You don't know when that will be. But I'm tired of waiting. I don't know why you can't find yourself here! I did! I know who I am, and that person is here with these kids in this house!"

"But you're not me, Elizabeth."

"Fine, James. Go. Go on your journey to find yourself while I stay here." She pulled her hair out of her ponytail and ran her fingers through it meticulously.

"Liz..." James said, but she cut him off. He knew the best thing for her was space right now, so James kissed the top of her head, then got up and walked back into the house.

Just inside the door, he stopped to look at Josie. She was laying on her stomach, coloring pictures on the couch. James walked over and knelt down to get a closer look. Josie looked up at James, smiled sweetly, then returned her attention to her picture. It looked like a night sky full of yellow stars and planets and a big crescent moon.

"What's this picture, Josie?" James said, pointing at the night sky beneath her crayon.

"It's my ceiling. You know how you and mommy put those glowing stars and stuff on my ceiling? Well I see them every night when I go to sleep and they make me happy so I drew a picture of them for you and mommy so you can know how happy they make me." Josie drew in a final star, then sat down her crayons and beamed proudly at her dad. James, taken aback at his daughter's sweet gift for him, reached over and hugged her tightly.

"Well, thank you Josie. That's very sweet." Josie kissed him on the cheek and he kissed her on the forehead. "You know what we should do with this picture? We should hang it on the fridge so everyone can see the stars like you see them." Josie nodded enthusiastically and ran into the kitchen. James helped her pick out a magnet shaped like a pig and then stuck it to the fridge. Then he got Josie a cookie, as per her request, and sat her on the counter so he could talk to her at eye-level.

"Josie, you know daddy is leaving for a while again, right?" Josie's eyes grew serious and she nodded quietly. "Well, I need you to help mommy with things like the dishes and taking care of Tyler, okay?" Josie nodded again. "Thank you, daddy's big girl. You're growing up so fast." He hugged Josie again tightly and whispered that he loved her. Josie whispered it back.

"Okay, let's go outside to mommy so daddy can leave." He scooped her up in his arms and carried her outside, tickling her so that she would giggle so he didn't cry. Elizabeth was waiting outside in a lawn chair, with Tyler on her lap. She looked at him as he sat Josie in the lawn chair next to Elizabeth.

"Goodbye, James," was all she said. She wasn't crying, she wasn't angry, she simply seemed tired. James couldn't blame her for being tired. James gave his final round of goodbyes. He let Danny lick his face, he ruffled Tyler's hair, he kissed Josie's head, and he tried to kiss Elizabeth, but she pretended to be too busy with Tyler. Then, with a final wave and an "I love you all so much", James climbed into his Jeep and drove away.

As James drove down the block, he squinted into the sun setting over the trees and neat little rows of houses in his neighborhood. The sky was painted with watercolor paints in beautiful colors ranging from fiery oranges and reds to pale pinks and purples that blended into the darkening blue behind him. The wispy clouds stood in dark contrast of the light canvas behind them.

At the stop sign at the end of his street James paused to gaze into the sunset with wonder, thinking about how the beauty of the earth never cease to amaze him, right in his own neighborhood. James turned right and continued to think over all the beautiful sunsets he'd seen in his life, comparing them to this one. James soon came to the conclusion that this sunset was the most beautiful one he'd ever seen. James made another right turn and thought about the drawing hanging on his fridge as little twinkling stars appeared overhead. He then looked back on all the starry nights he'd ever seen. There were some spectacular night skies out there, but he decided that one drawn in crayon was a million times better than any sky he'd seen in Alaska or some remote African country. As James made another right turn, he couldn't keep his thoughts from drifting to oceans. He'd seen the bluest waters on the planet, next to rocky cliffs and white sand beaches and brimming with coral reefs, but he was convinced that the most inviting blue he'd ever witnessed was in his wife's eyes.

And, finally as James made his last turn and slowed to a stop back in his driveway, he decided that the best place in the world was his house right here and that he had been looking for himself in all the wrong places for so many years. As James stepped out of his Jeep and wrapped his whole, happy family into his arms he announced out loud that he had finally found everything he had been searching for and then he silently vowed to never leave himself again.

And James was finally whole.

Autumn Clark

Support in All the Wrong Places

The first day of the New Love, New Life: Children of Divorced and/or Remarried Parents Support Group, my mom pulled up outside of the hotel/restaurant/church/convention center where the group was held and just looked at me sadly for a few moments as I gathered my things. Just as I was pulling my hat over my ears, I noticed her pitying stare and sighed.

"What?" I said, resting my hand on the car door handle, anxious to get out. She reached over and rubbed my back, obviously trying to be soothing. I just felt extremely uncomfortable. My mother never used to try to be so comforting but ever since the divorce, she had really poured on the sappiness.

"Just, try not to hate it, okay?" I didn't say anything. I mean, I wanted to say something snarky like no promises, but I loved my mom far too much to hurt her feelings like that. She leaned over and kissed my forehead, then smiled sadly. "You had better get going; you don't want to be late to your first meeting." I tried to smile, but grimaced instead. Then I jumped out of the car before she could say anything more.

The winter wind hit me in the chest and ripped the breath from my lungs. I pulled my coat tighter around me and scurried into the front doors of the building. I had to follow little red signs that had the full name of the support group and big black arrows printed on them all the way to a conference room in the back of the first floor. Outside the doors labeled New Love, New Life: Children of Divorced and/or Remarried Parents Support Group was this little lobby with two ugly striped sitting chairs and a table with fake flowers in a dusty vase next to neat little stacks of business cards and pamphlets for the support group. A young girl was perched on one of the green and purple striped parlor chairs reading a pamphlet, so I sat in the one opposite one to rest as I stripped off all my layers of winter gear.

As I was pulling my hat off and trying frantically to smooth my frizzy blonde hair, I noticed the girl sitting across the table from me looking me up and down skeptically. I blushed furiously and tried to hide behind my armload of winter wear. She continued to stare, but, embarrassed, I said nothing to her and stood up to go into the conference room.

"Hey," she said standing up and following me, "My name is Teddi Carmichael. Are you here for the sad kids group?"

"Am I here for what?" I turned to face her. She was standing behind me, smiling eagerly. She had discarded the pamphlet back onto the table, just slightly off of the stack, so now she clutched nothing in her gloved hands.

"Sad kids group. It's what I call this hellhole. I mean, it's supposed to be a great support system for kids who come from 'broken homes'", she used finger quotes around these words and rolled her eyes dramatically, "But, it's a sap fest and totally lame."

"Oh, okay." I said awkwardly, and turned to walk into the door. As I reached for the handle, I could feel her behind me, so I scuttled through the door and resigned to sit as far away from her as possible to avoid further conversation.

In the room, it was a stereotypical support group. There were four long tables set up in a big rectangle and chairs all around. Just inside the door was a cart with cookies and carrot sticks and cups of lemonade. A man, standing at the little cart, held out a cup of lemonade as I tried to walk to the complete opposite side of the room. I accepted it and sipped it as I settled into a seat next to a stranger who didn't bother to introduce themselves. And, suddenly, the chair on the other side of me was filled with the small frame of Teddi.

"This place blows," she groaned. "What a waste of time. There's so much I could be doing right now. I mean, the snow outside is perfect for snowmen, but instead I'm cooped up in here talking about feelings and junk."

For the first time, I actually replied. "I think it's good to talk about your feelings sometimes, especially with people who understand."

"Oh no, you're lame too. When I saw you, I thought you were going to be cool and we could blow this whole thing off together, but you probably came here because you wanted to. I'm really disappointed in you now." She stared at me openly for a long few moments after she spoke. I had just met the girl and she was accusing me of being a disappointment. I was aghast.

I stammered for a few seconds before gathering my thoughts into coherency. "I'm not lame. I just like to talk about my feelings and really listen to other people, you know. It's good to be kind of introspective sometimes, I guess is all I mean." She was rolling her eyes wildly.

"You are like really boring. I can't stand all that thinking and feeling and stuff. It's pointless. It's not accomplishing anything real. Like, honestly, we could be like doing something real but we're not." As she spoke, I glanced around the room, which was quickly filling up with kids ranging from probably 10 to about my age, 18. Some of them looked sad and lonely, some of them filled the room with their raucous laughter. But eventually, they all settled into their seats and made small talk with those around them and sipped their lemonade.

A man slid over the tables at one corner and walked to the center of the table square. "Here we go," Teddi whispered to me and dropped her head into her hands dramatically. I scooted a little further away from her and sat up attentively for the man about to speak.

"Hello everyone," said the man in a gentle voice. I could tell he had practiced for a really long time to ensure he had a voice that made you want to spill your guts. As if reading my mind, Teddi whispered, "He makes me want to barf."

"I'm Neal Sklar. Please call me Neal, Mr. Sklar is my father." He looked around like he expected us to laugh, but not a single person chuckled. I smiled politely when he looked my direction, Teddie put her head on the table. "My parents got divorced when I was 9 years old and it was a confusing time for me. I was sad and lonely and I only wish that I had had somebody to talk to who actually understood the situation I was in like all of you guys do. But, I grew up, as we all do, and I went to college to be a physical trainer and got married and had kids. It wasn't until I had been married for about 10 years, when I realized how truly troubled I was still about my parents' divorce. My marriage was falling apart, all because I didn't truly understand what a real, loving marriage was. And, so I sought personal counseling and my wife and I sought couples counseling and it's been another 5 years since then and our marriage is going strong. I love her, and I'm so glad I got help so that I could save what we have." Next to me, Teddi was making gagging motions. I scooted a little further from her and tried to ignore her by putting my full attention on Neal. "4 years ago, I started this support group because going to counseling helped me remember all those feeling I had when I was a child of a divorced family. I was sad, lonely, scared. I felt helpless, unwanted, and even unloved." I could see some people nodding as he was saying this, hanging on to each word. "I never wanted another child to feel like that again, and so New Love, New Life was born!" He smiled widely and the room broke into polite applause.

"For anyone who is new here, the way tonight is going to work is that we will go around the room and each person will state their name and explain their situation a little, if they like. Nobody is forced to talk here though. This is a comfortable environment, and I don't want anyone to feel pressured in any way. I might prompt you with questions, or another member in the room might prompt you. If you don't feel comfortable answering a question, just say so and we will understand wholeheartedly. Now," he clapped his hands together excitedly, "Who wants to go first?"

A boy I guessed to be 14 years old raised his hand, and Neal slid back out of the table square to a seat, and it began. It was an incredibly sad, process. Each person who wanted to talk told their story in turn, and although each one was about divorce, each one was different but equally heart-breaking. Some people couldn't even finish their story because they were crying too hard. When that happened, usually the person sitting next to them would wrap an arm around the crier's shaking shoulders and offer them tissues and soft support until everything calmed down. By the time it was my turn, I was a little shaky and my eyes were already puffy from crying.

I stood up and said, "My name is Prue." Teddi snorted and I looked at her, shocked. She was giggling and whispering my name over and over again. I tried to shake it off and continued. "I'm 18 years old and my parents' just got divorced about 9 months ago. I think the hardest part of it has been the change. I mean, I'm an only child and I lived with my both my parents for over 17 years. That's a long time. It was just really hard to adjust to life without it being us 3 versus the world, I guess." Everyone was nodding and smiling encouragingly. "And, my dad..." That's all I got out before I lost it. I started sobbing and, embarrassed, I sat back down to hide my face in the sleeves of my jacket. The strange boy to my left asked me if I'd like a hug and I politely declined, through my hiccuping sobs, but took the tissues he offered me with gratitude.

The group moved on to the next person, who wasn't Teddi because she refused to speak. Eventually, everyone had had their turn and Neal stood up in his seat to request us all to join hands in prayer. Teddi grasped my hand tightly and whispered the prayer as Neal said it. I was startled by her solemn approach to religion, considering her dramatic approach to everything else.

As the group was dismissed, Teddi grabbed my arm and pulled me aside. "How much time do you have before you have to leave?"

"Well, my mom is probably outside waiting on me right now... Why?'"

"Let's go swimming in the hotel pool!" Teddi exclaimed pulling me towards the hallway.

"That's for guests only! We can't do that! We'll get in trouble! Plus, I don't even have a bathing suit with me and my mom is waiting on me!"

"You know what, you're right. We'd probably get arrested." She shrugged and looked around, as if looking for another misadventure to jump into. Then, she looked at me and smiled broadly. "You know what, I like you."

"What?" I said, taken aback at such a bold statement. I mean, I had spent the entire support group resenting Teddi.

"Every crazy girl like me needs a prude to keep her from going to jail every now and then right?" She elbowed me, still smiling like crazy.

"Did you just call me a prude?"

"You can't deny it though. You're practically named Prude." She laughed wildly and leaned against the wall.

"My name is Prue. Not prude." She shrugged. "But, it's true, in a way," I admitted. "And sometimes, it's not a bad idea for a goody-two-shoes like me to have a crazy friend to keep them on from getting too stale or boring." Teddi grinned widely and me and threw an arm around my shoulders.

"Prue, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." She made a wide gesture with her hand as she said it.

"That's cliche," I said. She shrugged her shoulders and dragged me out the door and into exactly what she said, a beautiful friendship.

Breeann Caldwell

Losing My Wings

They figured I was evil the moment I took my first breath. They assumed I was always malicious and hateful. They looked at my wings as weapons. They tried to take everything from me because of their assumptions. What they didn't see was my love, my curiosity, my thirst for adventure. They didn't see that I was once playful. They didn't see that they were the ones who made me this way. I, Maleficent, was finally worthy of my name.

The kingdom was never a place for people like me. I kept to our quiet meadow, protecting the creatures that lived within. They were all I had. They were why I had strength after it happened. The people of the palace were never too fond of the Moors and sought to take it as their own. It was my job however, to ensure that this never happened. As the barbaric figures stormed the fields and made their way to where I was perched I readied my army and fought with everything I had. We had won, I had won, or so I had thought. Everything seemed fine until they stole what was most precious to me: my wings. The loss of my wings broke me. I was seeing life in a new vengeful light and would enact my revenge accordingly.

I waited for my chance to even the playing field against the king. It wasn't until he had his daughter, that my plan finally came together. Since he took away what I loved most, I vowed to take something from him as well. I arrived at the christening appalled by the fact that I didn't receive an invitation. That goody, goody fairy Merryweather informed the king that I was not wanted in the castle. He of course tried to throw me to the streets, but not before I could work my magic, I was only trying to bestow a gift upon her of course. I cast a spell on his daughter, Aurora. In doing this I ensured that she would be fine, that is until her sixteenth birthday. On that day, she would make her way up to the castles attic and prick her finger on a silver thimble, causing her to fall into an everlasting sleep. It's not permanent I assure you, as long as the princess has found her prince charming, all he has to do is kiss her and she shall awake. In the long run, things changed as they so often do.

I found that not long after my departure the girl no longer resided in the kingdom. They had hidden her from me, thinking that everything was fine as long as she was out of my reach. After years of searching, my dim-minded companions still couldn't find her. I turned to my faithful Raven to get the job done, and just like every other time, he succeeded. It was my plan to place more harm on the girl, but instead ensure that my magic was doing as it was told.

Aurora was a beauty that I had never met before. Her blond hair and curious eyes made her a living depiction of innocence. It wasn't just her appearance that made her compelling it was the way she walked as if behind every bend in the forest was like turning a page in a book to find a new, more exciting plot twist. I decided I could never actually hurt a child like this, and would like to dispel any rumor that said I, myself, was the spinning wheel. It wasn't me who captured Prince Phillip, but my minions. They were only doing what they thought I wanted, not following any real orders. I told them they had made a mistake, and it was I that freed him not the other dull fairies.

Phillip made his way to Aurora and actually saved her. So overcome by joy, I was taken aback when the price approached me. He was trying to kill me! I had no choice but to take another form. I choose a powerful dragon. I put up a good fight but the betrayal was too big, Prince Phillip struck the sword into my heart and I came crashing down. Betrayed in the beginning and in the end.

Breeann Caldwell

Not My Mother

Opening my history book I grudgingly began my homework: twenty pages of reading. Twenty pages! I swear that my teacher hates us. He himself probably hasn't even read the damn book. I had only read "The civil war was a tough time for many . . ." when my mom called me.

"Megan! Could you please come downstairs for a moment? I need to speak to you."

"Can't it wait? I'm doing my homework." Not that I was actually going to retain any of this crap.

No response. That's strange, from past experience she would've jumped at the chance to yell a tad louder, emphasizing just how important her words really are.

"Mom did you hear me?" I called as I started down the upstairs hall. "I said I'm doing homework," still, no response.

To my left I heard the closet door creep. From within a faint whisper erupted.

"Don't go down there honey, I heard it too."

"Nice impression of mom Lindsey. I thought you were at practice. Anyway do you know what she wants?" I asked, ignoring the fact that my 12 year old sister was hiding in the closet impersonating our mother.

Suddenly a hand emerged from the closet grabbing my arm and pulling me into the darkness.

"Hey! What's your deal?" As my eyes adjusted I realized it wasn't my sister but instead my mom. "How'd you do that? Wait why are in the closet? Weren't you just downstairs?"

"I have been upstairs this entire time!" she stuttered as she whispered. "It wasn't me that called you."

"Very funny, ha-ha. But seriously I have homework what did you want to talk about."

"Megan, I'm not joking." For the first time I heard the seriousness in her voice.

We both jumped and cowered into the corner as a knock erupted from the closet door.

"Guys what are you doing? Get out of the closet." It was my sister Lindsey. Both startled by the fact that she was home AND she didn't see anyone downstairs it took us a minute to pull her inside with us. "Seriously what are you doing?"

"Didn't you hear that voice? Or see anyone downstairs?" I stammered.

"Oh, the mom voice? Yeah that was me, I just messing with you. Also practice was canceled today so Jamie's mom dropped me off. Now come on you weirdos. Mom I'm hungry, can you make me a sandwich?" And off she went, without a care.

My mom and I looked at each other in astonishment.

"You know she would make a good impersonator. Better watch your back." I joked with my mom, pretending that not just three minutes ago I thought our house had been invaded by aliens. My mom smiled and replied: "I'm going to take a nap. Tell your sister she's grounded." And we parted ways.

As I walked back towards my room my phone began to ring. It was my sister.

"Ha-ha you were very funny. I have homework Lindsey. What do you want?" I was getting annoyed.

"Funny? What are you talking about? Never mind. Can you tell mom that practice was canceled and I need someone to pick me up? I've been calling for like fifteen minutes."

I stood there for a few seconds confused by what she was saying.

"Lindsey. You've had your fun. If you're going to call me make sure it's for something important, I've had enough of your tricks today." As I began to hang up I heard her pleas continue from the receiver.

"Megan, seriously! I need a ride. I don't know what you're talking about and mom isn't answering! Megan you're being so rude. Hello? Megan . . ." I listened to her and began believing that she was telling the truth.

Before I could decide whether to answer her, my door creaked open revealing what appeared to be my sister.

"Megan? Aren't you coming downstairs for a snack? Mom made sandwiches." It looked so much like her. She must be playing a trick on me.

"I thought mom took a nap? Also I'm not all that hungry."

"No she's in the kitchen. What do you mean you're not hungry? You always have room for food."

Lindsey's voice rang from the phone, causing both I and the creature to move our gaze

"MEGAN! Where are you? Fine I'll get my own ride. You're going to be in so much trouble when mom finds out!" My phone clicked and Lindsey hung up.

The creature and I looked eyes once again, but this time something was different, more menacing.

"Who was that?" The figure asked.

"Um, just a friend. Why don't you go downstairs I'll be down in a minute," hesitating to even speak.

A smile crept across the creatures face and just as I thought it would attack me it said: "Okay," and shut my door.

I'm not sure what to do next call 911 or address the feet I see standing still on the other side of my bedroom door. As I turned to reach for my phone, I heard my door swing open one final time. The last thing I saw before everything went black was my sister's face contorted into a form of wickedness I didn't think was possible.

Breeann Caldwell

Revival

Her goal after high school was to be a doctor, a cardiologist to be exact. Both of her parents were in the medical field and how could he not follow their lead? Her path was basically written from the point she was merely a thought in his parent's minds. They would be known as the family who bred scholarly, life changing, doctors. Who wouldn't be proud of that title? Harvard was always in her sights, or even John Hopkins. The grades were there. She had been trained for this career. Medical classes had come in an abundance and after school studying was required, nothing could interfere with the plan.

The problem with this was that she had never even considered anything on her own. Did she even like the idea of becoming a surgeon? The sight of needles didn't excite her and the knives were definitely not a favorite, but she loved helping people. She was good at what she trained for, she was precise, and she was following the plan to a T. But did she really thoroughly love the idea of the medical field, if one were to watch her and listen to her talk about it you'd see more of a robot reciting information than a person enthused about their future.

Her parents pushed her to be the best in this specific field, always filling her mind with terms such as catheter, diastole, and hypertension. By this point she could probably perform an angioplasty in her sleep. If everyone was so proud and happy of how hard she was work, then why wasn't she celebrating with them when she had been offered a summer internship at IME?

"Not everyone is so lucky as to be accepted into a program like this. This will put you ahead of the other students. Not every junior is offered this opportunity," said her mom when she expressed her fear of leaving her family and friends for the summer. "College is soon anyway, we won't be there will we? You're going to have to learn how to be on your own Natalie."

I wish I didn't even have this internship, she thought to herself, It's so much pressure. What if I'm not as good as everyone else? These things often crossed her mind. She was the top of her class and was still worried about impressing others. It was how she was bred.

She wasn't even allowed time to think about the internship before her parents had accepted it.

"I study all year, every night. Summer is supposed to be my break from school." She said, attempting to appeal to her father, "No one even asked if I wanted this!"

"Natalie it is an honor to even be considered. And you've been accepted! Do you know how many students would kill to be in your position?" exclaimed her father. "You're going and that's final, this is your future we're talking about. Your mother and I believe that the path you're on is right for you, just trust us. We've been successful haven't we?"

"Well yes, but . . ."

"Then it's final, your mother and I know what's best for you. You're going this summer. You shouldn't be so worried, as long as you work hard you'll beat out the best of them." Her father walked away without leaving time for a rebuttal.

He had only spoken one line but she knew what she thought was going to be an open conversation had ended before it had really even begun. They had always been like this. They were loving, but they had a tendency to push the limits of Natalie's patience and sanity. If she received a 97% on a test they would ask why not a 98%. If she completed her studying within two hours, they would smile and "suggest" she went upstairs until she reached four. So she knew from past experience that the internship was in her near future just by the tone of her father's voice, and that she was expected to be in the top five students who excelled.

The day had finally arrived for her to conjure up the willpower to load her bags into her family's, almost uncomfortably clean, SUV and head to IME. It was 9:00 and the sky was partly cloudy as she stood in her driveway sulking, but as the car took its first turn onto the highway, it was like the weather had read her emotions for dark, gloomy figures took place of their white fluffy counterparts. Natalie stared out the tinted windows and watched as her school, the hospital, the local grocery all passed her by. They of course weren't as taunting as the small ice cream shop, the shopping center, the skate park, each one giving her a reason to hate this forced decision.

"Don't look so upset Natalie, you see your friends all year. This is your chance to show everyone up."

Words she had heard a million times. Just go away. Natalie put her headphones in and let the music drown out all the excuses her parents were giving for stealing away her vacation.

At 11:47 the sign reading "Institution for the Medically Elite" finally came into view and Natalie snapped back to reality. I'll probably need to be mentally institutionalized after all this is over, she thought glaring at the too big and too bright sign. She opened her door and was welcomed by the sound of dozens of other families swarming around to find the correct dormitories.

"Natalie, I have a surgery scheduled for 3:30, you remember don't you? So we won't be able to stay very long." her father said, reminding her that she wasn't abandoned yet, but would soon be.

"I didn't expect you to stay long anyway, I'm old enough to be independent remember."

"There's no need to be disrespectful, you'll understand," said her mother.

"When I'm older, yes I understand that one day you want me to trade time with my future family in order to spend all my time working. It sounds like a riot. How could I not understand," interrupted Natalie. She put her headphones back in and they went to find room 207 in silence.

Her room was small like most dormitories, and there were two, not one, but two beds. Two beds? Oh no!

"Wait so I'm sharing this room with someone?"

"It appears so. You were complaining about not having friends, maybe it's time for you to make a new one," stated her father a tad too formally. "Now that you've seen your room, I'm afraid your mother and I will have to be leaving. I'm sorry Natalie, truly I am, and hopefully you'll understand after this why we do what we do. You know your stuff and at your age you're quite impressive and have a technique. It comes naturally," Yeah if naturally is studying six billion hours a day and practicing until my hands are numb, "that means you'll learn to love it, even if you don't see that now." Her father was, for the first time in the last three hours, showing sympathy toward her.

Wrapping her into a hug her mom whispered "We love you sweetie. I'm so proud of you, I hope you know that." Her mom let go of her and for a second, a tear may have been visible in her mother's eyes. "Try to enjoy yourself as you learn. And remember to call us whenever you're feeling lonely." With that she watched her parents walk out of the room.

Final check in wasn't until 2:30, therefore she had another possible two hours before she would meet her roommate. Until then all she could do was wait.

Kellan Worth appeared in room 207 at approximately 2:27. Kellan was the roommate that people weren't exactly sure if they hated her or if they loved her, but either way she grabbed their attention.

"So you're Natalie right? I ran into our RA in the hallway and she told me you had already arrived. Have you met that lady yet, I mean someone needs to tell her that poor personal hygiene is a thing and she's infested with it." That was the first thing Kellan had said to Natalie and half of it was insulting someone. To be fair Bridget does kind of smell like month old cabbage.

"Umm, yes. I'm Natalie Haxon."

"I'm sorry was my introduction rude, excuse me. I'm Kellan Worth, as in I'm worth a lot more than spending my summer at this school."

"Wait? So you don't want to be here either?"

"Half of me does, and half of me doesn't. I love the way the heart works and I appreciate the beauty of what surgeons do, but honestly who wants to fill their summer with more school?" Kellan is insane, but even she was able to figure out that she loves medicine. Should I lie and tell her that I love it too, that I just feel like I'm wasting my summer?

"I'm not really sure if I love the practice or not, I'm only here because apparently I'm good at these things so my parents are forcing this upon me." Well you didn't lie. Point for Natalie.

"Well if you're good at it then why don't you like it? I mean don't most people enjoy things that come naturally to them," Kellan paused for a split second contemplating her own words, "you know on second thought, if you were naturally good at killing people without anyone finding out, I wouldn't recommend you to be a murderer. That's not your alternate life plan is it though? Because if it is then I may need to request a room transfer."

"If you're asking if I plan on killing you, the answer is no. However I am dying of hunger. Do you want to check out the cafeteria?"

"Awesome idea! I'm starving. Also this will offer the perfect opportunity for us to get to know each other a tad better. I really want to survey you and see if you show any psychotic features. Not that I suspect to find any of course." Kellan finished sarcastically.

"Great. I think it's in the west hall, let me just grab my money." Natalie dug around in her bag searching for her old, worn down wallet. "Alright let's go."

They walked in almost silence as they made their way to the west hall. A few words were exchanged but it was really just to note the birds flying. Despite, the quietness, it wasn't awkward. Kellan had an openness about her. Her personality radiated and she didn't even have to say anything.

When they finally reached their destination, Natalie's stomach growled as if on cue. Well I guess something finally filled the silence.

"You weren't lying about being hungry! I wonder if there is anything good here. It has to be better than regular school food." Kellan lead the way into the lunch line and began searching for her meal. Surprisingly enough, there were a multitude of options. "This food has color and it was created in a school kitchen. I'm not sure if this is real life."

"The options are definitely refreshing compared to the usual slop we're fed." They continued down the line admiring their many options. Both girls settled on a burger and fries.

The mess hall was modestly filled with students, each one seeming to look a little distant and lost. The new friends sat at a table near the center of the room near close to others but just out of hearing distance.

"So your parents are forcing you to be here? Why?" asked Kellan between periods of stuffing her face.

"They say they know what's best for me. That I'm good at it and one day I'll understand."

"So I'm guessing you don't see it that way."

"No, not really. I had always just accepted the fact that being a cardiologist was a right fit. But then my parents enrolled me here without even asking, just assuming it would be okay. The thing is I was devastated at the thought of losing an entire summer to studying."

"I understand the last part. I contemplated whether I was willing to give up fun in the sun for arteries and scalpels. As you see I came to a conclusion. As for the parents part, I can't really relate. My folks are the non-college graduate parents hoping for a better future for their daughter."

"Did they persuade you into going into a specific field?" Someone is really here by their own free will?

"Not really. I mean they just want me to go to college, as for what I'm studying it's up to me."

"So why did you pick to become a surgeon?"

"It fascinates me how the human body works, but that's only a small fraction of why I love it. If you want the bigger overall reason, it comes down to what we're actually doing, and that's saving people. I have always watched the shows on TV depicting doctors. I mean have you seen Grey's Anatomy? It's fantastic." Kellan paused for a moment waiting for Natalie to respond. "No seriously have you seen it because it's a really good show?"

"Oh, I thought it was a rhetorical question. Well I've seen commercials, but most of my time is spent studying, so I don't really get invested into television shows."

"Well it's full of a bunch of great doctors who can connect with their patients. That's what I want, the ability to connect, and if needed, comfort my patients. Doctors have the power to change lives. It's scary but oh so amazing." Natalie let her words sink in. I've heard most of this from my parents but for some reason, hearing someone my own age say these things makes me question my questioning. Kellan continued with "so my question is why do you hate it so much? The practice I mean."

"I don't hate it. It's just I've never had the option to choose anything else. Both of my parents are doctors and I was raised to become one too. I just wish that they had left me room to breathe when it came to choosing my life path."

"Well you're at this school meaning that you worked hard and always talk about studying. That shows that you care."

"I work hard because that's what my parents expect."

"I don't think so. The kids here are the best of the best. People don't become this good at something they hate. I mean I know that I've earned my spot here just as you've earned yours, our parents didn't do this for us. You worked for this even if you didn't know it."

Maybe she's right; maybe I do actually care about becoming a cardiologist.

"You're a glass is half-full type of person aren't you?" Natalie questioned.

"Well of course! There's no better way to see things." exclaimed Kellan.

"So about that show, Grey's Anatomy was it? Can you explain the premise to me?"

"You'll be spending the summer with me, and I own all the seasons on DVD."

"Of course you do."

"No parents to keep us from binge watching the show! You'll have plenty of time to learn the premise."

Breeann Caldwell

The Strengths of Dialogue

"No, no, no! We're cool, we're good, we're going to make it on time." I said aloud as I was stuck in traffic, already running late for school. "This will be the third time this week!"

I always did this. I sleep until the last possible moment and then begin panicking as I run to gather my things and ready myself to look at least half way presentable. It's not like it's my fault, I was up all night doing homework. Granted yes I did have two hours after school, but that's my time to relax, you can't just be continuously connected to school and then have the only break be that short eight hours. I mean a girl needs her downtime.

"Three minutes until the bell rings." The parking lot was almost full and I was near the back like always. I would have to speed walk to make it on time. Oh well, whatever happens. There's something different today though. As I'm walking I'm surpassed by Emily, going one million miles per hour, looking frantic as she heads to the door. We're going to the same class. She sees me walking as well, why then doesn't she just walk in with me and own it, instead of running until she's about to collapse?

"Hey Emily!"

"Can't talk. I can't afford to be late to class like some people!" That was all she said to me before she dashed down the hall and bounded up the stairs.

I made hast, as I followed her path and walked into the classroom a mere seven seconds before the bell rang. I watched as Emily sat nervously at her desk, this was clearly not the look of someone who has always been running late. I slid into my seat about two people away from her and went about my business.

Class was definitely not interesting we were talking about how to accurately display emotion when performing a dialogue. Public speaking wasn't really a problem for me, well as long as someone else was writing the script, as for my own work I was a tad self-conscious when releasing it to the public. Tuning back in I realized that Ms. Gates was announcing a partner project.

"You will all have this class and the next to prepare a three minute speech about whatever you want as long as it's either a drama or a comedy. You'll present these with a partner on Friday. And since I know you all so well and the last time we partnered up and you chose, zero percent of your class time was spent actually working, so I'll be choosing someone for you." Ms. Gates always had a way of making things more interesting . . . or annoying. "David and Sarah, Michael and Kyle, Emily and Sabrina, Daniel and Charlotte, Chance and Oliver, Hanna and Natalie. Please get with your partners and commence working."

Charlotte turned around and stared at me with big eyes, whispering in an aggressive tone.

"Daniel! Why do I get stuck with the worst people! I'm going to end up writing the whole thing. At least you have Emily; she's actually willing to do all the work."

"What do you mean do all the work? I'm going to be doing stuff too. "She was acting as if all I did was sit around and let others do my work for me.

"I don't mean it in a bad way, I just mean that if you don't want to do anything you at least have that option and still won't fail. I on the other hand will be screwed." Charlotte turned away from me and stared down Daniel. "I hope you don't expect for me to move seats." Daniel got up and pushed a desk against Charlotte's, sitting down heavily.

Emily was already approaching my desk before I had the chance to move. She moved quietly but not timidly.

"Sorry, I would've come to you, but Charlotte distracted me."

"It's fine. I'm used to it. This is going to be an interesting mashup." Emily wasn't exactly rude, but she said everything sort or auto-toned so it just felt harsher.

"Why do you assume that?"

"It's just you're very out there, and, well, I'm not. I prefer to be reserved."

"I'm sure we'll be fine. Do you have any ideas about what you want our scene to be about?" Hopefully she doesn't choose something really boring about the environment or war.

"Not really, do you?"

"I was thinking we could do a drama and a comedy, you know how a drama is so bad it's funny? One of those."

"I have a feeling I'm going to be doing most of the writing and I have to warn you that I'm not necessarily good at performing or coming up with ideas. I don't like being in front of people."

"Just because you're a good writer doesn't mean I can't be, but, you probably will. Not because I'm lazy, I just get distracted with too many ideas to actually be a fluid writer. I do love performing though, so maybe we can help each other."

"Yeah, maybe. Do you have any character ideas?"

"What if the lead character is named Penelope? Or Sam? Or Tammy? You know what? I don't actually think that names really matter. For now let's just have her be an aspiring actress who doesn't know where she's going in life but dreams big, and the antagonist that wants to give her a reality check." Emily stared at me for a moment before responding.

"Sounds familiar. Don't you want to be an actress when you're older?" She asked in a semi-sassy tone.

"Yes, and I'm assuming that you think that's impractical." She didn't make things that easy did she.

"Great, we're writing a play based on ourselves."

"I guess you could think of it like that."

I watched down as Emily wrote down the characters and the premise and began to work. Writing seemed to come so easily to her, I've read some of her stories from peer review and they're marvelous. Why wouldn't she be proud to stand up in front of people and deliver them?

"Okay, I have the intro between the two, but what else happens?" Emily asked

"Maybe the two of them get into a heated debate. You know over what's fun about being practical versus having a safety net in life."

"All right, this is actually kind of easy. I mean you kind of have the plot ideas, it all writes surprisingly well."

"Thank you, I think? Personally I don't see how you're even writing that fast. You already have a page and I've barely given you anything."

"Like I said, writing is my thing. What scares me is going in front of everyone and reciting it. You always put actions and emotions into your scenes. How am I supposed to do that? I always feel stupid?"

"When you watch everyone else do their actions what do you usually do? Like for a comedy skit for example."

"Laugh, because it's funny."

"There you go. I understand why the speech giving part is uncomfortable I absolutely hate it, talking in front of people reciting something I've written is terrifying to me. I feel super embarrassed at times too performing actions but I just have to remember that people are usually just going to laugh because I'm being funny, not stupid."

"That's actually really good advice. I've never thought about it like that. I guess I just assumed that since you're such a people person, talking in front of crowds comes naturally. It never crossed my mind that you were nervous, you always look so at ease. I agree with you on the whole 'reciting something I've written' part, it gives the whole situation a degree of vulnerability that I'm not comfortable with."

I paused for a second while Emily kept writing. It's weird how we can be so different, but yet we have such similar insecurities.

"I think we actually lucked out with partners on this project. We both have strengths that the other can learn from." I finally let out.

"I agree. It looks like class is almost over. If you want any writing tips don't hesitate to ask. I'll upload the script so you can see what I've written and add to it. I think this is going project won't be a complete failure." Emily ended sarcastically.

"I agree."

Chrystian Hall

Shaking Hands With Death

My Grandmother was always telling me stories she used to hear when she was younger. Most of the time they'd be about every day, you know? Those stories that mothers told their children ended up giving up them a bit of a life lesson. Those were the stories she told me and I'd always smile and listen contently because they in fact did have good life lessons in them that I, myself, could use one day whether it be something about helping someone in need or just treating others with kindness. Then suddenly she told me a story that I wasn't really prepared for at all and it struck me with a magnitude of shock at first that ended up turning into acceptance and agreement with the same idea.

Well anyway one day my grandmother looked at me and in a calm voice said, "It's a gift to see the angel of death in front of people's houses and to know that he'd be collecting someone there soon." That scared me, I had no idea what made my grandma say this, what sprung it up, but it shocked me. Indeed it shocked me a good jolt. As I kept staring at my grandma who was now smiling and I smiled too and thought "You know, she's right," and I said "It sure is Grandma, it sure is." Finishing my sentence I started to look away when I suddenly saw a corpse like look scrawl across her face. I blinked hard. When I opened my eyes slowly it had long since disappeared and the same old welcoming face that is my grandmother's was what was left in its wake. I felt a moment of panic. Just enough to make me take a step back and I was now positioned in front of the main window of my grandma's house. The window itself looks out the front door into the yard and neighborhood. My grandma began to ask what was wrong, to which I replied with a simple nothing as I turned and looked out the window.

Outside standing in the middle of the lawn was a tall figure. The figure was black as night and almost transparent enough that you would miss it if you weren't looking for it. In one hand he held a book, the other he held what appeared to be a weapon, a scythe looking blade. He was draped in a tattered old cloak, but what the strangest part was he had black, tattered, worn wings, wings that looked like a raven's. My eyes widen, I started shaking, and sweating. I did a double back and looked again at the spot where he was perched staring at the house, rocking back and forth from left to right. I closed my eyes, and made an audible sigh and looked down. My grandma walked over to where I was standing and hugged me, she whispered "its okay, I know you're not okay." I hugged her back, I wasn't really sure what to do with myself, I didn't have a clue how to process the information that I just witnessed.

When I get home that night I try to contemplate what happened, what I saw, what happened, WHO WAS THAT?!, WHAT WAS THAT?! I still couldn't process exactly what it was after that. I couldn't get to sleep that night, so I was awake almost night thinking about it.

The very next day she was found dead in her bed, died in her sleep.

At the funeral the rain was falling from the sky at a light drizzle and the sounds of soft sorrow filled the air. I looked up from staring at the casket holding my grandmother whom I just saw yesterday. What I saw next shook me, standing in the distance the figure that I had seen outside of my grandma's house just yesterday. I attempted to stifle my gasp but it wasn't 100% successful. Others around me looked up, but before they could see anything it had vanished. What I could make out was him having his hood on his robe down this time, I didn't see a face though what I saw was a deformed, twisted almost blob of skin-like mess where his face should really be. He had just random locks of hair falling down and what seemed to be horns. Everyone turned and stared at me blankly, wondering what was wrong and what I had seen. Following my response brushing it off as mere nothing was met with my own mother coming up to me to tell me that I was being slightly rude and disrespectful at her own mother's funeral. "No, y-you don't understand...I don't understand it myself fully" I tried explaining to her but she just turned her nose up to me and in a low growling whisper she told me that I should just leave. Suddenly I felt like a pincushion, my knees felt weak, and my stomach dropped. The color in my face drained completely.

I left in flash, tears almost swelling into my eyes. I didn't live too far away from the cemetery, so I could just walk back home. As I arrived back at my humble abode I stopped right before placing my hand on the door knob, I felt flustered, and then I felt angered. She had no idea what it was like to just have just seen yesterday before she had died...to hear what she said to me before I felt, I looked up at the door to see a note had been taped onto the inside door. So, I proceeded to open the screen door between the note and I. Slowly opening the note, it appeared to have dried tears within the bounds of the papers, scrawled upon the page, in shaky cursive letters, read

"It's okay, I saw him too. -Grandmother"

It was like time slowed, the sound of the rain pattering against the house, against the ground, the windows, and trees echoed away into a far off ringing sound. She knew, and didn't say anything. She knew and I couldn't do anything. Suddenly I heard a shattering sound and everything snapped back up into place. It was me, I shattered, I was watching my grandma die right before my eyes and I didn't realize it. I was watching her give up and give in just before I had left her that day. It was a Metamorphic shattering of my entire life, I had spent so much of my time with her, it felt impossible, these feelings, these words, that day it didn't make sense.

I heard the sound of wings flapping behind me. I didn't move, dreading what was going to happen if I turned to peer at the source of the sound, several seconds pass. Finally after gathering up all the nerve I could muster and fighting tooth and nail through this angst I feel. I begin to rotate slightly, so I can just look to see out the corner of my eye, standing there, menacingly, was a bunch of crows. I nearly jumped out of my skin, I leapt backwards like it was one of those cartoons where the character gets moved by an immense force and not all of him follows at first. Yeah, that happened, I almost threw my screen door off its hinges and smashed through my door getting through it. The entire house shook as I used all my strength plus my body weight, to slam the door. There with my back to the door, I stood, panting heavily like a dog on a hot day, the sounds of my heart beating at an accelerated pace filled my ears, almost as if it was echoing around the room.

I chuckled and shook my head, to which I proceeded to go and shower to take my mind off the events of the day. After a hot shower I decided that it was a good idea to go apologize for my actions earlier and just before opening my door I stopped on the door knob, I had forgotten I dropped the note my grandmother wrote me before she died, I picked it up and decided to put it in my pocket. On my way to my mom's house something unusual started to happen...stopping just before getting into her neighbor I pull my vehicle to the side. "No. No no no no. NO!" I thought to myself "This can't be right, what is what's going on here, I can't be the only one seeing this." Panic and adrenaline filled my body; instead of stopping at my mother's house I pulled up to her house then pulled over to the curb and got it. There it was standing over there this fiendish being, who took the lives of my Grandmother, my father, and now my mother. I couldn't stop asking myself why, why was it taking on all these forms was it toying with me?

I was pissed, I couldn't let this happen, I will not let this happen, and I couldn't take it anymore. I began to sprint at it, but as soon I took a step forward, my entire body tenses up and I freeze. Without warning and almost instantly, it turns. Staring at me, this time a face had formed...I couldn't make it out from the spot at which I was standing, but with a snap almost like the world just went into static, and you could almost hear the buzz of the pilot lights lighting up like in the movies when an electrical switch is flipped in an old place, for 3 seconds and went back to normal the being was right in front of me. Wings out stretched it started to lean towards me, the hood upon its cloak fell backwards with a gust of wind, the image of my not even a day buried grandma's face appeared. My jaw dropped, I tried to move but couldn't, I tried grasping for air but the presence of this being was utterly terrifying, that I couldn't manage to do anything, after standing in utter terror for a couple seconds I was able to close my eyes.

I tried to force them to stay shut but I needed to open them to get away, what I saw next was the face of my father who died in an automobile accident. The image of his face had his jaw broken, a large shard of glass portraying out of his eye other bits of glass littering the rest of his face and a huge gash on his forehead running from his temple to the bridge of his nose, just like how he looked immediately after the accident. My lips started trembling, tears were swelling into my eyes, and my face was getting extremely hot. I force myself to look away.

As I looked away I suddenly felt a hand grasp the bottom of my chin to my jaw with a tight grip, it felt like it was going to crush my jaw, and force me to turn my head. It had its palm on my chin as it turned my head, the face had transformed into my mother, it cracked its head and constantly tilted its head to a different position like a demon, the face of my mother disappears, and the face devilish like man with hollow black eyes appears. "Why? Why are you doing this to me, what's going on?!" I tried asking it.

It smiles a toothy smile, teeth that you'd see in like a beast mouth's sharp, pointed, and jagged. He let's go of my head, raises his hand, and snaps his fingers.

Suddenly I wake up in my bed to my phone ringing confused, I reluctantly answer the phone to hear that my mom had died yesterday. Sshe died by slipping falling and cracking her neck, I was also informed that she had a note in her hand, a note that was written on by both her mother and I. I chucked my phone at the wall and the screen shattered leaving an indent in the wall where it had impacted. I ran out into my living, I didn't know what to do or what to think. Everything seemed like a blur, but in the midst of it, I looked out my window that points down the neighborhood. There, more...every house, each house.

Not moving.

Standing.

Staring blankly.

I started backing up slowly, I slipped and fell. I saw several seconds of stars as my head bounced against the floor before getting up. I groaned loudly, shook my head, and slowly got up looking at the front door window; it was covered up with a black cloth curtain. I slowly crept up towards the curtain like an animal stalking its prey. I grasped the curtain and began to move it. Slowly, ever so slowly I inched it out of the way and finally as I moved it leaned forward to look outside and saw my life, flash in short bursts from beginning to end and it ended with me, leaving my grandma's house, brushing past the angel of death not realizing it with him grasping at my hand, and going to sleep not waking up.

Chrystian Hall

Finding Strength

Kon'nichiwa (Hello), My name is Sadamitsu, General Sadamitsu is what I go by to be exact. I am one of the great generals of Japan. I serve under Lord Minamoto-no-Raiko. He, my Lord, has sent me on a very important task. I am to transverse the lands of our great country in search of boys who give promise of remarkable strength so they may be trained as soldiers for his army.

I have been searching far and wide, until one day I arrived at a small logging village. To find out rumours and/or any other information I proceed to go to the local tavern. When I arrive to the tavern I walk in, and sit at an empty table and a barmaiden proceeds to ask if would like anything, I tell her that some sake would be lovely and she leaves to obtain my drink of choice. As the barmaiden comes back to the table that I am sitting at, I ask her if she will sit and chat with me for I had been traveling alone, and very much appreciate the company. She was silent as she started to pour to pour the drink into the ochoko, when she stopped pouring she looked at me and with a pleasant smile said "sure."

She sat the tokkuri filled with the beverage down on the table she proceeded to sit across from me. As she sits I proceed to tell her my name, but leave out the fact that I am a General of Lord Raiko's army. I pick up the bowl like glass sitting in front of me and proceed to drink the alcoholic beverage that rested within. As I finished the drink and set the glass down she introduced herself as Akiko. I made small talk with her, asking her what it's like to live in this village, what's like to work in this tavern the works. 30 minutes and 2 more glasses of sake later, I ask her if she's heard any rumors about anything odd anything under the sort of a boy that is displaying large promising amounts and unusual amounts of strength. The look she gave me after asking was very questionable but the response that followed was like a sigh of relief. She spoke about a boy living with his mother in the woods named; Kintaro, the Golden Boy.

She told me she what she had heard from the woods men that go and collect lumber in the woods nearby. The rumor goes; there was once a brave soldier named Kintoki who lived in Kyoto, he fell in love with a beautiful woman and eventually married her, but, not long after and through the malice of some of his friends, he fell into disgrace at Court and was dismissed. The misfortune was taken so heavily that eventually he died leaving behind him his beautiful young wife to face the world alone. Fearing the enemies of her husband she fled to the Ashigara Mountains as soon as her husband died. Living in a lonely forest where no one ever came except woodcutters. She, then, born a child and named him Kintaro. The child was remarkable with his great strength, and grew stronger and stronger as he aged. By the time he was of eight years of age, he could cut down full sized trees as quickly as the woodcutters. His mother gave him a large ax to use to go out in the forest to help the woodcutters, who nick-named the child "Wonder-child" and his mother "Old Nurse of the Mountains".

I was astonished by the thought of a mere child, chopping down fully grown trees at the age of 8 years. I thought to myself I must find him, but wait... this, it's only a rumor so there is no way it could be true, which led me to feel very disappointed, which then led me to ask if there was any place that of which I could stay the night. She told me that they have a room available for rent, which I gladly accepted and paid for this nights' stay and the drink, which I proceeded to drink the rest of. Feeling tipsy I carefully make my way to my room for the night.

I awoke in the morning feeling slightly hung over, but nonetheless, I go and bathe and got scared a little bit but soon chuckled because I had forgotten that I had dressed in a woodcutters attire to not draw attention to myself. I bathe, and leave the tavern, to go in search of the "Wonder-boy" I vaguely remember hearing about last night. It seemed like it was really early since the sun wasn't exactly out yet. I search the forest for most of the day. Worried that I wasn't going to find anything I come upon this hill that I haven't seen before. I start to ascend the hill when suddenly, I hear animal noises on the other side of it so I quickly crouch down and quickly sneak my way up the hill, as I reach the apex of the hill I see a river, some animals and a single boy standing by a tree. I looked questionably down at the animals, it seemed odd that they were together, each one was a bear, a monkey, a deer, and a hare. Then, I looked over at the boy who proceeded to grab the trunk of the entire tree and pull on it towards the river, he pulled once, he pulled twice, he pulled three times and the tree finally gave in and the roots gave way and the tree fell down across the rushing river. My jaw dropped, I was in total shock and awe at witnessing such an event. The boy then turned toward the animals and said something and the animals got excited. "I must follow him." I thought to myself. I followed him for hours as he walked back him. He lived with no one other than his Okaasan (mother). I hear him talk to his mother about why he was out so long, he said it was because he was having a contest with his friends, the animals, to see who was strongest and he talked about how he didn't compete because he already knew he was the strongest out of all of them. He finishes and I speak up saying, "Hey, next time you go out how about you take this old man with you to join the sport?" I slipped off my clogs and entered the cottage.

They asked me who I was, to which I replied, "That isn't important, but what is important is the difference of strength in this boy and I, how about let us see who has the strongest arm?"

To which the boy replies with "As you wish but don't be upset with whoever comes out victorious."

I thought to myself; "Yes!, this could be my chance to see if this is the fabled wonder child, if he is then he will be able to best my strength for I am the strongest General."

The boy extends his right arm, and I extend my right arm and grasp it and the test of strength begins. Eventually, I had to declare the match a draw. He is the one, the one I had been searching for. I turn to the Kintaros' mother and tell her how strong of a boy she has and how not many people have boasted the strength of my right arm. I tell Kintaro about how I first saw him on the river bank and I tell him about how I followed him home to see if my eyes had deceived me. To which I then turn back to his mother and ask her if she has ever thought about taking her child to the Capital and teaching him to carry a sword as befits a samurai.

To which she replies that her son is too wild and uneducated and she fears that it would be very difficult, and she kept him in the woods to keep him from hurting anyone, but she said that she had wished that she could one day she her son wield two swords, but fear her hopes will never come true as she has no influential friend to introduce them at the Capital.

I told her she need not trouble herself about that. I reveal myself and my intentions to her. I tell her how Kintaro shows promise, and that I would like to take him back with me to the Capital so he can train to be a Samurai. To which she responds that she entrusts me with her son. Kintaro gets excited after hearing this. And we set off to the Capital after Kintaro says goodbye to his mother.

Upon reaching the capital I immediately take him to my Lord, and tell him about Kintaro and how he found the child. Upon hearing the story the Lord became delighted and demanded to have Kintaro brought to him so he could be made into one of his vassals. As Kintaro grew up into a man his master made him Chief of the Four Braves, Lord Raikos' Army warriors who were chosen by himself from amongst the bravest and strongest of his soldiers. After the events of Kintaro becoming Chief of the Four Braves, news arose about a nearby city that a cannibal monster had taken living not too far away from and were scaring the people, so in order to prove himself, Lord Raiko ordered Kintaro to rescue the city. And he did so with great triumph, bringing the monsters head back to his master as trophy.

Kintaro rose to be the greatest hero of his country, with great power, honor, and wealth that ensued. And keeping his promise he once made to his mother he had built a comfortable home for his old mother, where she lived happily with him in the Capital to the end of her days.

Story based off the Japanese Fairytale: The Adventures of Kintaro, the Golden Boy

Chrystian Hall

The Wrongful Right

Honestly, wasn't it even that bad or worth it?

Those were the first words that kept mustering to the surface of my mind. I stare up into the corner where the ceiling meets the wall, it's so plain, bland, and flavorless, humdrum, so unstimulating, it was like there was still wet white paint on the wall and I was sitting here, watching it dry even though the hospital has been around for ages.

Am I doing the right thing here?

You see, my name is Emilio, I'm a high school senior student and I'm friends with pretty much everyone, well "friends" more acquaintances than actual friends really, but I get invited to go out a lot by my "friends" to go to parties and all but I've always declined them because I didn't really feel like going out and also, I need to focus on my school work and getting my GPA up and my homework done. Well, this year it was different. This is the one year I did decide to go to a party, I thought:

"Well, why not? I've been doing good the past 3 years I think it's time to treat myself a little bit," and yeah I had been working hard ALL 3 years with almost no play, the only time I ever got away from my work was when I didn't have any to do, or my REAL friends invited me over the weekends or something like that. Well, apparently that was a big mistake on my part. It's not often that I will really want to attend a social event considering I feel awkward a lot in social situations when I get left out and it makes me feel a bit sad and unwelcomed and unwanted, it's like coming to a nightclub and everyone there knows you and likes you but they don't look at you talk to you or even attempt to interact with you in any means whatsoever.

Flashback, School's is starting to become in session it's day one, we're all gathering together and getting our schedules for the year and I'm standing there in line, looking off in the distance because nobody is talking to me or I'm not bothering to notice if anyone is even trying to talk to me at all either way I could care less really, I just wanted to go home or at least get out of there real fast. Suddenly, I felt a prod in my arm, someone was attempting to get my attention or trying to play a joke on me by trying to get me to look for whoever did it and have a laugh together. It was like a cold static shock shooting up my spine. Turning my eyes to look to the side without moving, I creased my eyebrows down; I felt panic pulse through me and sending shockwaves of fear. I turned, to my relief, I saw a girl that was just a year under me, she likes to talk to me and I've heard rumors that she has like this school girl crush on me or something I'm not sure it's probably not true because you know it's me. She had her hair up in pigtails, it was pretty adorable actually. I sighed, that was like a heavyweight that I didn't have to deal with lifted off my chest and it felt good. She was smiling and I was awkwardly standing there staring at her, I didn't notice I was doing that until after a couple seconds.

"Hey." I said.

"Haiya!" she said.

Her name is Sara.

I guess that's a pretty unique name, She's always been nice and friendly to me. She knows a lot about me too, like my panics and my urge for avoidance to large crowds or just crowds in general really. I guess you could call it Social Anxiety or something like that. The scary thing on top of that is that I've been diagnosed with Depression so the fear of embarrassment or judgment isn't helping when I feel like I've just committed an act of social fop a, I think it's mostly because of my parents both have Depression so the genetics for that are still there plus my brother also has been diagnosed with it which raises the chances of me having it even higher than what it was before.

Anyway, she's a nice gal, not self-centered, nice, friendly, out-going, self-determined, self-motivated, hard-working, in the top of her class. The weird thing is, she likes to party. Yeah, she's always telling me about the parties she goes to. Picture it for me, you have that nice, sweet, friendly-looking girl that has a good home, nice parents, and nice friends, everything she needs, and is #1 in her class. Now take that picture, add the hidden deep down risqué personality she has. And this time she invited me to a party.

"The party's at my house tonight. Around 8ish and I would really REALLY *REALLY* love it if you could come!" she informs me.

I stopped; I was considering the pros and the cons. But after the first pro I thought why not? My first deciding pro; it's at Sara's house with Sara. Yeah, I'll admit I do have thing for her but I'm doing ,my best to keep it on the down low and to brush it off as to not make things awkward between her and I, so I agreed and she get really excited to FINALLY get me to agree to come to her party, after that she told me that she'll see me later and walked away, I didn't see her after that for the rest of the day.

I got up from the chair I was perched in, walked straight across the hospital corridor put my hands open palm against the wall and locked my elbows. What was I thinking? It was kind of stupid of me to go, but I did it for her, I'm doing this for her, I'm here right now because of her, why do I feel like this is all my fault then? I felt a spark of rage ignite a fire inside me that really pissed me off. My eyes started to blur with the coming of tears into them. I was so worried about her and so mad at myself for going I knew it wasn't my place to be. I turn toward the chair I was sitting in slump down in front of it my face buried in the seat tears pooling the dip of the seat, it was one of those chairs you'd see in the elementary schools the ones with the sitting bars coming down into an 'L' shape and it had the 3 holes in the back, I grasped at the curve of the chair the part where the back of the chair is meeting the seat. I grasped it so tightly, I thought my wrists were going to brake, I didn't notice how overwhelmingly I had been shaking. I jerked my body upward to the left bringing the chair with me. Upon, doing so I thrust my arms forward and threw the chair down the hall, yelling the first thing that came to mind; "I'm sorry!" The chair flew pretty far considering, It skipped on the ground a few times making loud sounds as it banged plastic against tile and metal against tile. It slid for a few seconds making a grinding sound like a sword on a whetstone as it stopped.

"I'm sorry, Sara."

I looked at my watch, it read "7:55" I was on my way to Sara's place, jamming out to the music on my phone I turned down the road towards her house, it only took me a few minutes to reach her house and I parked outside. I looked up at the house and remembered all the time's Sara asked me to come hang out or have dinner with her family, I smiled, she was just the type of person that can make friends and make anyone happy in a snap. I raised an eyebrow, she said the party would start at 8 but it seemed like the party had already started, I shrugged my shoulders and proceeded to walk up to the door. Extending my hand towards the door, when suddenly the door slams open and standing in the doorway was a bubbly, rosy-cheeked Sara. Suddenly a scent that seemed all too familiar to me filled my nostrils, alcohol. That and out of control hormones. What a pleasant sight and smell this was, teenagers being stupid, making bad choices, it was a miserable sight.

"Uh, hello?" I reluctantly said unsure if I made the right choice coming to this party.

"You're finally here! Hey!" She excitedly calls out throwing her arms around me; she too had the essence smell of alcohol.

What a night this is going to be, I thought to myself, sighing I hugged her back and went inside.

An hour passes and every 15 minutes I would find Sara trying to offer me a drink, but I declined because I needed to keep my wits about me. Every time she found me she would always ask why I'm alone and not talking to anyone. I didn't answer though because she'd walk up with a drink in her hand and offer it to me, when I decline though she would drink it.

Another hour passed of her doing this.

By the first 15 minutes into the next hour she finds me sitting alone in a room. No one else around, she comes in and closes the door I look up worried and a bit scared. But I calmed a bit knowing it was only her, but it was obvious she was drunk.

She comes and sits down next to me and keeps smiling and looking at me like she wants something from me. I looked at her questionably. She starts to nervously giggle and laugh.

"What are you laughing about?" I asked.

"You, you know I love you right?" She blurted.

Shock pulsed through me.

"You're drunk." I said blushing.

Suddenly her head hits my shoulder and she is out cold.

She won't wake up or respond to anything.

Someone from outside of the room yells that the police are here.

I stayed with her, and told the police that she won't respond to anything or wake.

And now I'm here, thinking back wondering if this is my fault that Sara is now in the hospital because of the alcohol. You see Sara, she's in the hospital because she had too much to drink because she kept on offering me drink after drink after wretched drink and she would drink them after I refused. Should I have gone to her party knowing this was going to happen? She could die now, and it's my entire fault.

Chrystian Hall

The Journey

Once every great while there lives to be a great, beautiful butterfly. But, before this butterfly must live it must develop through its' life cycle as a caterpillar and this is where our journey begins. Life's a journey not a destination.

Our journey of fate begins with the start of the life cycle of Mike the caterpillar. Mike, our dear friend, begins his life emerging from an egg. Mike takes a slow look around to get his senses together, his sight comes and his eyes are filled a strange new light and color. Mike tries to vocalize for someone, but he can't make out any words. He crawls forward and begins to take in his environment. He looks down only to see that he is in a spot in a high place. "This must be a tree." Mike thought to himself. "Oh! So this is what talking feels like, how brilliant!"

"Yes, that's a tree you are in right now. And everything you're seeing and hearing is the world around you."

Mike stops in and looks up. Perched right above him looking sinisterly at him was a black hawk.

"My name is Star Lord; I see that you're, to say, new to this world."

"Yes! I am! I sure am hungry too." Mike squirmed around to get a better look at the hawk, but suddenly, a shadow blacker than a moonless night, passes quickly overhead. Mike feels a rush of wind in his face. Mike feels the ground go out from under him. He was picked up by the hawk in the Hawks beak.

"What are you doing? Help! Put me down!" Mike thrashes about and is able to come free. Mike falls and lands delicately on a leaf that slowly falls down.

"That was really scary, I didn't know what to do or how to act." Mike was scared beyond his dreams. As if on instinct Mike hunched his head over and munched down on the leaf.

"Mm. This leaf is delicious!" Mike became excited

"They are really good aren't they?" Mike became less excited and the energy was drained from him.

"Oh no! Please! Don't hurt me!" Mike cowered in his fear when he heard another voice.

"What do you mean hurt you? I'm like you, I can't hurt a brother"

Mike turned to another caterpillar just like himself was inching its' way up towards him. Mike was becoming eager to see another caterpillar just like himself.

"Oh! Hiya! My name is Mike!" Mike eagerly stated.

"Some call me Tim, but my name is really Timmy, you can call me Tim if you please." Tim recited. Tim inched his way onto the leaf next to Mike and started nibbling down on the leaf as well.

"Tim, this world is a new and scary place for me. I haven't been here for very long."

"Me either Mike, I just hatched not too long ago but it feels like days have passed since that moment of time, you know Mike, on the other side of the cocoon world I think we can be friends great friends you and I will be."

"What about right now Tim? Aren't we friends now? Can't we be friends?"

"In another time, perhaps we could have been friends but for now I must go my time is drawing near and the sun is setting."

And with that Tim started inching away. Before leaving entirely Tim stopped and turned to look at Mike, and with a smile said:

"Catch you on the flip side."

Mike wished Tim a farewell, and began to ponder what Tim meant by his time was drawing near. He wasn't quite sure what to make of it, what did he mean? Mike asked himself over and over again. Mike closed his eyes and suddenly realized what Tim meant. His eyes shot open.

"It's almost that time, time to become a butterfly!" Mike shouted out in excitement.

Mike hurriedly began making his way down the leaf that he was sitting on. When he began to slow down, realizing he had no clue on exactly what he was beginning to do.

"What exactly do I do?" Mike asked out loud.

"Why, you just fall off of this here branch." an unknown voice said.

Mike looked up to see a snake coiling down the trunk of the tree.

"What?" Mike asked.

"Just, fall and everything will become clear." the snake said.

"I don't really think that's going to help..." Mike started but then the snake lunged at him making him jump and move away from the branch.

"Oh no!" Mike called out.

He began falling.

"I'm never going to become a butterfly now...this is it this is where it all ends." Mike sadly stated.

But then, he stops falling. Something catches him, he looks down. To his surprise he was caught in a web like substance.

"Whoa, what's this?" Mike asked aloud.

"It's called a web you dingus."

Mike looks down to see a spider.

"Web? What's a web?" Mike asked.

"Webs catch and hold things you should know this, you're a caterpillar after all you make these to become butterflies." the spider said.

"We do?!" Mike exclaim.

"Yes." the spider sarcastically stated.

Hearing this Mike got really excited, and started to hurry off.

"Whoa! Before you go thinking you produce the web-like material like a spider does, I must tell you, you most certainly DO NOT make a web like a spider does it's not produced the same." The spider started.

"Wait, really? Then how do I create webbings." Mike said starting to feel distraught.

"Use your saliva! You wrap yourself up with the material, but don't forget you should probably be hanging off a stick or at the base of a limb on a tree."

"Oh! Thank you for telling me this!" Mike yelled.

Before waiting to hear a reply he dashed off as fast as he could. Within minutes Mike found a cozy spot between a base of a branch and the trunk of a tree and began trying to produce his web. He tried, and tried until finally, he began wrapping himself up all snug. Mike wrapped himself from head to toe in his web cocooning himself from the world. One day passes, and Mike the caterpillar hasn't yet emerged as Mike the butterfly. Another day passes, and finally; Mike becomes a beautiful Monarch Butterfly.

Connor Cain

Portfolio

1. Three Billy Goats Gruff: The Real Story

It's been a rough, miserable life that I have had to go through. Discrimination, jokes, and all around rude people making my life terrible is what I deal with on a daily basis. This is the life of a troll. Ever since those darn billy goats gave me a bad reputation way back when, I've been the laughing stock of the village. Little do most people know, I adopted those three billy goats and raised them as if they were my own when I was just a young, twenty-two year old troll. I saw those three adolescent billy goats floating down the river on a raft with no parental guidance, and I pulled them to the side of my bridge and wanted them to be safe and sound. No one believed in a troll like me. The whole village thought a troll like myself was an unsuited parent for these three adorable goats! So, you know what I did? I proved them wrong! I was the best darn troll father that existed in the surrounding villages. Nurturing them, teaching them how to live a healthy lifestyle, and how to be the best billy goats they could be. Then the day came. The goats turned on me. They had grown up and realized that trolls just weren't the most suited creatures to be their father, so they accused me of trying to eat them! Claiming that I was going to eat everyone of them, but waited for the fattest one?! This was deception at its finest. My life was ruined. Everyone from other trolls, the giants, the whole billy goat community, and even the bottom feeder elves were on my case about attempting to murder three, baby billy goats. Everyone was wrong. So, so wrong.

It was the warmest day of the year. Approximately one hundred four degrees fahrenheit to be exact. The billy goats were young, but could most certainly fend for themselves at this point of their life. I let the goats off to go fetch some food and water for dinner. Little did I know, while they were gone, they had an elaborate plan to have me thrown out as their father, so they could hopefully find a new, better looking one who wasn't a troll. I was not expecting this by any means. There they were, on the hillside just hanging around, conversing with one another. I noticed that they called over a couple of llamas and some of their elf buddies. This wasn't too peculiar, as they had all been companions for quite some time. As I laid underneath my bridge to catch some shade on that miserably hot summer day, I hear a sudden, startling pounding up from above on the bridge. I look up and yell, "Hey! Who goes there?!" As soon as the words come from my mouth, I saw my three little billy goat children being run down by an ogre from the village right next to us. Then I set off as fast as my troll feet could move! The ogre chased them all the way into our village and I followed. When we made it about hundred yards from our village, the ogre turned directions and headed west, the opposite way. "Thank goodness!" I exclaimed to myself. "My little baby goats are all okay and safe now," I said aloud. The little guys headed to the town square for some odd reason, but I kept on pursuing. As soon as the four of us were all near one another, and a smile was across my face, the fattest billy goat claimed, "Dad?? Why would you try to eat us? What did we do to you to deserve this?! We're just little, baby billy goats and you wanted to eat us. You're our father! How dare you." My troll face was indescribable. "What are you talking about, son? All three of you know I would never do such a thing!" I said. By this time, most people that had shops and stores in the square were out of them, listening to all of these falsehoods unfold. "Yes, father. You wanted to eat us for your own good. How could you?! You raised us to be great, successful goats, but you're trying to murder and eat the only three creatures that have ever cared about you!" Shouted my other goat son. After this was said, the town all looked at me and wanted my head. Who were they going to believe? An ugly troll like myself, or these three, adorable billy goats? The crowd surrounded me and carried me to the village court house, shouting, "OFF WITH HIS HEAD," the whole way there. I knew then that I had not much more to live for. The judge of the village heard my case and my pleas. Thank goodness he hadn't sided with the rest of the village, or I wouldn't be here to tell my story. He sentenced me to be exiled and sent way, way out into the mountains. Knowing I would never get to see my three billy goat sons, or my friends and troll family anymore hurt me incredibly, but I realized how lucky I was to be alive. The village officers and the judge followed me to my bridge so I could claim all my belongings and head to the mountains for my exile. Tears rolling down my face, I notified my family what had occurred and they said to me they would fight for me, and get me back here. As much as I wanted to believe this, I knew that those backstabbing billy goats got what they wanted and there was no coming back for me. My exile to the mountains had begun and I was shipped nearly two hundred miles away into the center of the mountain range. This would be unbearably difficult for most, but this hurt me so, so, so unimaginably. I claimed those three little goats as my blood and wanted nothing but the best for them, then they go and spread such slander. It was time to move on though. I have nobody but myself, and I need to make a living for myself, rather than slump down and die. Therefore, I gathered myself and built a new bridge. I was eventually welcomed into a new village as the local troll. A village where I was embraced and loved, rather than have fiction spread about me and be hated by everyone there. It was hard at first, but here I am. I've moved on from those three darn billy goats, and have a beautiful troll wife, with two perfect troll babies. No matter what those goats were trying to do, they weren't ever going to bring me down to their level.

Connor Cain

He's Still Doing It

The date reads February 14, 2021 in my IndyStar newspaper. I've been in and around the Indianapolis area ever since I was a young boy, and The Star has always been one of my favorite sources of media. Twenty three years ago, my childhood hero had been born. His name? Peyton Manning. Far, far away, the greatest quarterback to ever step foot on a football field. Coming from New Orleans, Louisiana, he's always had that likeable southern charm to him. As an avid Indiana sports fan my whole life, I grew up watching "The Sheriff." The way he could lead a group of young men to win games and how he could just manipulate the way a defense plays has always been fascinating to a sports fan like myself. March 7, 2012 will always be an infamous day for the beloved Colts fan. It was the date that Jim Irsay decided to unfortunately let go of the greatest quarterback of the century and officially move on. I remember my father, a grown, forty five year old man, shed real tears the day that Irsay cut ties with Manning. But that was then and this is now. Today, February 14, 2021 the IndyStar front page reads "Manning Is Still Balling: Claims ANOTHER Super Bowl For Indy." Of course I stayed to watch the game! I haven't missed an Indianapolis Colts game for the last seven years. There was without a doubt that I would miss a Peyton Manning Super Bowl! I'm still in disbelief of the way he got back to Indy and how much he really has done for not just the community, but the whole state of Indiana. It truly is mind boggling.

That sorrowful date nine years ago still haunts Colts fans. Why would our owner and leaders of the organizations ever let someone so influential to a community just go like that. Someone that damn good just walk right out the doors. Yes, many did think Manning was just going to be some washed up, has been if he ever attempted a comeback after that fourth neck surgery, but like he's always done, he prevailed and proved them wrong. He went to a Super Bowl his first year back and ended up claiming the most wins at quarterback for two different organizations. Who does that?! The guy has been balling since the 1990's for goodness sake! Yes, surgeries have always bothered him, but with the treatments in today's day and age, he keeps producing these MVP like numbers. After eight long years playing quarterback in Denver for the Broncos, Peyton's contract finally expired and once again he was let go by an organization he did so much for. The Colts were a struggling team these days after the trading of Andrew Luck, so they decided to do something right for a change and dialed up Peyton and his agent. It was officially time for "The Sheriff" to come back home to the town that he built.

In the offseason of the 2019 season, and quarterbacking in doubt for the Colts, a push was made for them to resign the man that built this place into a football town. The push succeeded and Manning was drawn back into retiring in his true hometown. The Colts kept winning more and more games and were becoming one of the true turnarounds after such a few dismal years of miserable football. Like he did when he first joined the organization in 1998, Manning was turning around a football team that had many struggles. He was turning mediocre players into Pro-Bowlers, and turning Pro-Bowlers into great players. Not only was he selected as the first unanimous MVP since 2016, he was leading the Colts into the playoffs with the best record in the league and was riding the longest streak of most consecutive starts by a single player. Our beloved Colts rolled into the AFC Championship against the most hated New England Patriots. Like many times before, Peyton was not going to fall to these scrubs. Instead, he threw for four hundred twenty seven yards and four touchdowns, and led his team to a thirty one to seven win over their arch rival. Peyton was back in a blue uniform and playing for the Lombardi trophy. This sight could bring real tears to almost any grown man.

After another stellar performance behind the trophy arm that Manning had, the Colts won a Super Bowl for the town of Indianapolis. I knew work was going to be rough that next morning, but it would be forever worth it. Now here I am, sipping on coffee at my kitchen table, reading the headline about my childhood hero leading my favorite team to the greatest accomplishment in all of sports. On this chilly, but stunning February morning, I sit here and reminisce about how grateful I am that I was able to watch "The Sheriff" bring another trophy back to Indy and restore the football tradition that he once created.

Connor Cain

The Day It All Changed

After working a hard day I came home to see my girlfriend cradling our child. I didn't know which was more frightening, seeing my dead girlfriend and stillborn child, or knowing that someone broke into my apartment to place them there. Here I am today, still traumatized about that horrific evening. My loving wife and baby, right there with no pulse, no heartbeat. Who could commit such a disturbing, horrendous act? My first thought was to check their vitals, but it was far, far too late. Immediately, I sprinted to our home phone and dialed 911. As I sat there waiting for police cars and ambulances to storm our block, tears were pouring down my face as I slowly comprehended what had just happened to the two people whom I loved the most. My heart hurt. My body hurt. My everything hurt. "This doesn't happen to normal people. Why me?" These thoughts poured through my brain. After a seven minute wait, the local police crammed into our small, blood ridden apartment. The police officers soon turned their sprint into a slow, dreadful walk into the apartment. They immediately noticed the blood soaked carpets, the knife used for the killing, and then my two deceased loved ones. Tears still rushing down my face, the police attempted to talk to me. I could not be calmed down for the life of me. "These guys really want to talk to me about what had just happened? Are they freaking kidding me?" I thought to myself. Finally, I pulled myself together and answered the questions that the cops shot at me. As I was sitting in the kitchens with the officers, I noticed a small group of policemen talking to one of the detectives. It seemed as if they were in some serious thought and had something urgent on their mind. After my short glance over there, the group began to walk over to me. The detective questioned me, "Sir, are you sure you were at work this evening? We just called downtown to the electric store you're employed at and they told us that you left work around eleven o'clock this morning." That's when I realized I was done for. The look of disbelief and disgust on my face said it all. "Sir, you are under the arrest for the murder of your wife and child. We are going to take you into the station for immediate questioning. Take him out of here, boys." My act was caught. All of the unhappiness and distress these past few years had finally caught up to me and created a boiling point. No, I never wanted a child, nor did I want to be with her any longer. I knew about her frequent acts of adultery and how she would go run off with other men. Was I perfect? Not by any means. I wasn't ready for a baby, or settling down and having a life with these two. What was I to do though? I couldn't just leave her and our child. This was the only solution in my mind. But here I am now: locked up in federal penitentiary doing hard time. I've lived in this town for all twenty four years of my life. I was loved by many, admired by tons of local townies, I was the high school all-star, but now I'm here as the most infamous criminal that has gone through Bone County.

My girlfriend and I had been together since we were sophomores in high school. Ever since the young age of fifteen years old, we were madly in love. Yes, we had our ups and downs like every other couple out there, but we made it through the adversity and still loved one another a tremendous amount. Then the first of many run ins with other men began. We were still young; around twenty one years of age. I was out at the bars with my buddies for a night out and I began my trek home around two in the morning. I came into our small, one bedroom apartment around three A.M. There she was, right in our own bed with another man. The disgust hit me hard. I didn't know if I could ever love her again, but I unfortunately went running right back to her. Then the incidents just kept happening more and more often. About a year and a half ago, she announced her pregnancy. Now I really couldn't ever leave her. I refused to be my dad. I would not allow myself to runoff and forget about our child and her, no matter how much our love kept falling off the edge. Then finally, I had my final breaking point. The morning of the murder, she expressed to me that she had found someone else and her and our child would be gone by the evening, so I better say my last goodbyes. My anger took over my whole body. As I slammed the door out of our apartment and headed off to work, I put together a diabolic plan so they could never, ever leave me, no matter the circumstances.

It was about ten A.M. when the idea came to me. I could just frame their murder and I would easily get away with it. So, that is exactly what I was going to do. I never express much detail about the actual murder, but I'll just say it was a terrible, terrible act of violence. After I was done with it, I thought about ditching the framing idea and running out of town as fast as I could, but I realized the stakes would be much too high for that. I'd be caught pronto. So, I put it all together. I would just wait it out a couple hours, then call the police and explain that I walked into a murder of my two "loved" ones. As you can see, it didn't all fall into place. I am currently serving a term of life in prison as I write this. Was it worth it? Of course not. Do I regret it? Yes, I most definitely do. But was it the only way out? Unfortunately, yes it was.

Connor Cain

Opposites Don't Attract

There we were! Setting off on the road trip of a lifetime. My Uncle Keith and I were ready to take on the western states of the U.S.! I didn't plan on leaving until roughly 7:30, but Keith had us up bright and early, ready to take off by 5:15 in the morning. Keith tends to do this to me all the time; dragging me out of bed, much before I need to be! He kills me every single time we set out on our trips like this. As I'm dragging, attempting to get the camper ready, Keith is bright eyes and bushy tailed, full of energy, shouting out orders at me, while I move around like a snail. "Ugh!" I groaned. "Keith, I love you, man, but you have got to take a chill pill, it's waaaaay too early for this." He just smirked and said, "Hey, the early bird gets the worm, bud!" The morning dragged on slowly, and we finally had everything together. Time for the trip to officially begin.

We set off with me beginning the drive from our hometown of Chicago. While driving in the car on the interstate, Keith made sure I stayed all the way in the far right lane the whole time and kept his eye on the speedometer so he knew I wasn't going one mile over the speed limit. When I drive, I like to get to the destination as quick as I can, but nope, Uncle Keith wasn't having any piece of that. "Boy, oh boy, you have got to slow down! I do not want to have to worry about a state trooper on our tail, pulling us over. Just play it safe and don't speed like an idiot," Keith told me. Already, I was getting frustrated by Keith's actions. "Okay, Keith, just please be quiet and let me drive. Thank you." Hopefully this would finally shut him up and have him stop nitpicking me for a little while. Our road trip to the great west continued, until Keith informed me that he was hungry. Me, being on a somewhat strict diet because of sports, I virtually ate little to no fast food, so I was not all that interested in stopping for any food. "Hey bud, do you mind if we grab a bite to eat over at the McDonald's at the next exit? I don't think I've ever been this starving in my whole entire life," Keith informed me. "C'mon, Uncle Keith. Can't we wait a little bit until we get to our hotel? Just snack on something small for a couple more hours then we can go out for dinner." Keith was relentless though. "I'm taking you on a roadtrip across fifteen states and you can't even stop to get a burger for me? I'll even buy you a sandwich or two, too!" Keith persisted. "Okay, whatever," I said. We finally pulled into the drive thru of the nearest McDonald's and Keith let the worker know what he wanted loud and clear. The guy was practically screaming into the microphone, like he didn't think the lady could hear him. I thought to myself, "What did I get into? He's literally so embarrassing to take out in public sometimes." Then my thought process was abruptly interrupted. "HEY, BUD, YOU HUNGRY AT ALL?? I GUESS I'LL BUY FOR YOU!" The beligerance in his voice made me cringe whole heartedly. "I'm good, Keith. Don't worry about me." As I attempted to get that sentence off with a smile. Finally, our order came and Keith shut up. Back on the road again for at least another two hours. I can do it. "Power through anymore annoyances and make it to the hotel room," I told myself numerous times. Before we even got on the interstate, I begin to hear a loud noise coming from the passenger seat of the car. Keith is knocked out cold already, drool covering the side of his mouth, and snoring obnoxiously loud. My least favorite thing in the world is when someone can't control their very, very loud snoring habits. I kept on driving though; getting to speed since Keith was passed out. After traveling through Iowa and Nebraska, we were finally to our hotel in Colorado. I awoke my uncle, and we checked into our hotel. When I first pulled in, I was a little shell shocked at what I saw. There were what looked to be two homeless men out in front of the hotel, sharing one cigarette between them. The roof of one side of the structure was leaking profusely and looked as if it could cave in at any time. I shot a look at Keith, wondering what we were doing at this rundown hotel, and why he booked a room at this place. Keith noticed and told me, "It sure is pretty, isn't it?!" The look of disgust on my face said it all. "Hey, there's not a single thing wrong with a little adventure! I looked at the rates and this was the best one in town! Can't beat it, buddy." I was still in disbelief that we were staying at such a makeshift hotel for the night. I knew Keith was a little cheap, but not this bad. "Uncle Keith, I'm going to do us a favor and look online for a hotel, just for tonight. I really don't want to stay here. It's kinda grossing me out. Heck, I'll even cover the two of us for the night. You won't have to spend a dime." Keith responded with, "While I'd sure hope I wouldn't have to spend a dime! You know I'm a little stingy with my money. As long as it has a place to sleep, and a place to wash your body, I'm set!" My face was blank. I didn't realize my uncle was so cheap. After much persuasion, I eventually hauled my uncle back in the car, and I drove down the road for about four miles until we found a decent looking Hotel Eight. The both of us went up to the room, and clocked out for the evening. It's hard to spend a whole day with someone who is your polar opposite, so I was ready to get a little peace to myself. "Goodnight, Keith." I said. All I got for a response was a loud "Snnnnnnnnnnnnoooooooorrrrreeeeee." "At least he's asleep I guess," I thought to myself.

Once again, the morning was started with Keith waking me up at the brink of dawn, telling me to get ready. Today, we are off towards Denver, Colorado. By 7 o'clock, Keith and I were off towards the capital city. We decided to go to a Colorado Rockies game and check out Coors Field. We made it to Denver with just one fast food stop, and only a tad bit of annoyance. The game started at noon, and of course around 11:45, Uncle Keith got hungry again. So, as we show up late to the game, which is one of my biggest pet peeves, we missed the opening homerun by one of the Rockies players. The day had barely begun and I wanted to strangle Keith. Our day progressed, and the seven inning came around. The Rockies were up to bat and one of their players knocked a foul ball into the stands right next to us. The ball ended up whacking the fan sitting directly in front of us in the head, and putting him in his seat immediately. I rushed down to the fan to make sure he was alright, as Keith sat there and just laughed at the poor man. "Keith, quit laughing, the poor guy needs some help!" My words didn't help, as Keith just continued to laugh at the guy. This was the breaking point for me. After attending to the man, I told my uncle that we're getting out of here and going to get a new hotel, because I couldn't take him any longer. As we were exiting the stadium, a homeless man was asking for money, so I dropped him two or three dollars. Once I did this, I had never seen my uncle so flabbergasted in his whole life. "You know they're just faking it, right? They don't actually need that money. All they want is attention." This drew the absolute farthest line for me. Keith and I got in the car and I got on the interstate going east. Keith was clueless of course, because he didn't know how to simply look at compass. After twenty minutes of silence in the car Keith asked where we were going, and I simply stated, "home." Nothing else was said the rest of the ride home, and I drove nonstop until we finally made back to Chicago. As I pulled into my Uncle's driveway I told him, "Uncle Keith, I do love you, but man, I never thought that our trip would be that miserable. You and I are just too different to be doing anything like that. I'm sorry it had to end like this, but I'm just ready to be home, and I couldn't take someone who thinks nothing like me, for almost two whole weeks." He responded short and simple. "I love you, too." From there on, I drove home, took some aspirin, and headed for bed. I guess the saying opposites attract isn't always true.

Danielle Meiggs

Glowing

"I can't handle this anymore!"

"Emeri, please, I can help you."

"No, Callie, you just need to go back inside. Go be with the family."

"I can't knowing that my little sister is out here all alone. I know you aren't okay. What happened with you and him?"

"Nothing."

"Emeri..."

"I can't do this anymore. Please just leave me. I'll be back in five minutes."

"You promise?"

"Pinky swear."

"That was the last time you saw your sister?" the therapist asked.

"Yeah, that was the last thing she ever said to me before she left that night," I said, remembering that five years ago my sixteen year old sister went missing.

"Do you think that she would want you to be sitting here upset about her, or do you think she would want you to be living your life to the fullest?" my therapist asked, clearly not helping at all.

"Actually, you know what, you're right, I'm going to head out now," I said plastering a fake smile onto my face.

"That's very good," she said in a bored tone probably not caring anymore, not like she even did to begin with though.

I basically ran out of that room. I hate therapists, but my family says I need it. I've had a hard time ever since my sister disappeared that night. I was only eighteen when she had left. I was the last one to talk to her too. I could have stopped her from running or being hurt. We still don't know what has happened to her. A kidnap, running away, murder, suicide. We don't know. She was my best friend. I never thought she would be gone one day. I let her go too. I left her outside that day. I knew I shouldn't have. I knew somewhere in my head that she was never going to come back, yet I still left. It's all my fault. For the first two years, I put my life on hold. I didn't go to college. I didn't get a job. I didn't go anywhere. I lived at home with my mom and my stepfather. He seemed irritated by my presents, but I didn't really care enough. He didn't seem irritated when his son stuck around, and better yet, his son was three years older than me. Anyways, I eventually realized that I wasn't living my life how I thought I should, so I applied to college and looked everywhere for a job. And now, I finally feel like I have my life back together, clearly my mom doesn't though. She sends me to a different therapist every week. It annoys me more than it helps me. I mean these people think they know my life and are helping me. They know nothing about losing a sister, and I bet half of them only wanted money. I just really wish I knew where my sister was.

I decided to go pay my mother a visit. I want her to understand that this is just hurting me more than helping me. On my way to her house, I sat and thought about my sister. I don't think she's dead. I don't know why, but I just have a feeling. Sooner than I thought, I had arrived at my mom's. I decided to sit in my car for a little while just to get all my emotions in control. I don't think she understands how hard it is for me to talk about Emeri. I just...I can't.

"Callie, did you walk out on your session again? Why are you here so early? Actually, why are you here?" my mother asked like she really did care, but from past experiences, I know it's just an act.

"I came here in person to tell you to stop setting up these sessions for me because clearly you didn't understand over the phone," I said somewhat irritated.

"Oh Callie, I was just trying to help you," she said again very distant like her mind was somewhere else.

"Mom, since Steve and Marc came into our lives, you stopped caring, so tell me this, why do you keep wasting your money when you don't care?" I asked her hoping to get an answer unlike every other time I ask her this.

"I don't understand why you keep calling Steve, Steve. He has been more of a father to you than your real dad has," she said avoiding the question.

"I'm going to leave mom. Just please promise me that you will stop making sessions for me," I begged her.

"Fine, pinky swear."

I don't think my mom realized what she had said to me. That was what Emeri always used to say to me when we made promises.

While driving away from my mom's house, I saw the strangest thing. I thought I had saw Emeri in a passing car. It must have just been my mind though. There is no way that she would come home now, after all these years.

After randomly driving around for a half an hour just clearing my mind, I decided that I should go talk to my best friend, Alec. I drove to the one place where I knew he would be.

"Cal, why are you here on your day off?" Alec asked me.

"I need someone to talk to," I said feeling exhausted even though it's only twelve o'clock.

"Okay, well, I'm on break right now, so tell me what happened."

"It's my mother again. She thinks she's helping."

"Callie, I think you should keep going to these sessions though. I think that you should talk to someone who could help you move on. I can only do so much."

"Alec...you were supposed to be on my side."

"Please, just consider-" Alec was cut off by my phone.

"I'm so sorry. I need to take this," I said looking and seeing that it was my mom who was calling.

She normally never calls me, so I was somewhat concerned.

"Mom?" I asked answering the phone sounding confused.

"Callie," my mom said almost sounding like she was crying.

"Mom?! What happened?!" I asked feeling more panicked than I already was.

"She's been fo-" she said but got cut off in the end by me dropping my phone.

"Alec, I have to go. I'm so sorry," I said apologetically collecting my things.

I knew what she was going to say. I had to see for myself to make sure. I drove super fast hoping to get there sooner. I need to see her. I needed to get there quickly.

Eeeeeeeeeeee BOOM!

I need to get there...I need to see her...And then it went black.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. What is that beeping noise? Where am I? I tried opening my eyes and quickly shut them realizing how bright it actually was in the room.

"Someone shut off the lights! She's waking up," I heard a familiar voice yell.

"I'll go get the nurse," a feminine voice said.

I tried opening my eyes again, succeeding this time. I looked around the white room, realizing that I was in a hospital.

"Why am I here?" I asked my mom, who I realized was the familiar voice before.

"You were on your way to my house, and you got into a wreck," she said hesitantly.

"How long have I been out?" I asked looking outside and seeing the dark sky.

"About...five or six hours," she said looking at the time on her phone.

"Did anyone else get hurt? Was I the cause?" I asked panicked not wanting to be the reason for someone else's pain.

"No, you were not the cause. Someone ran a red light, hitting you," she said taking the weight off my chest.

"Are they okay?"

"They are in a coma right now, but they look like they are doing well," she said looking at the door.

"Who else was in here?" I said remembering the second voice.

"Oh, that was no one. Don't worry," she said looking back at the door again.

"Okay?" I questioned not quite understanding what was going on.

"Hello Callie, how are you?" questioned the nurse as she walked in with a clipboard.

"I feel fine. When can I go home?"

"Well, we are going to keep you here for a few days just to make sure you are okay, okay?"

"I guess it's fine," I said not really wanting to spend another minute in there.

"Alright, very well then. If you need me, push this button," the nurse told me while motioning to a button on the side of the bed.

The nurse left, and now I was in this room just staring at my mother. I want to know what she is hiding from me. I can't remember why I was going to her house in the first place. Sometimes I jus-

"Callie, I'm going to head out, alright?" my mother asked interrupting my thoughts.

"Yeah, that's fine. Will you be back though?" I asked as she was walking out of the room. My only response was the slam of the door. I don't understand why she tries to act like she cares when it's very clear to see that she doesn't. As I was thinking, I didn't realize that someone else had come into my room.

"Callie..." the voice trailed off. I didn't want to turn around and look at the door because I knew. I knew that this was the person who left me so long ago.

"Callie, please, just look at me," she pleaded. I just couldn't. After all this time, I started to actually think that she was dead. I couldn't believe that she was here. I turned around, surprised at what I saw.

"Emeri? Are you...glowing?" I questioned, somewhat frightened at what I was seeing.

"Callie, I have to talk quick. I have to go soon. I died that night. The night that you thought I left, I died," she said so fast that I didn't even have time to process.

"What? How?" I questioned scared to get an answer.

"You remember Warren, right?" she questioned. Warren was her old boyfriend. He was the reason why she was going to leave to begin with. He was abusive to her, and when she left him, he threatened her life. He said that if he couldn't have her, then no one could. Our whole family was planning on moving the next week. Emeri kept saying that she was going to run, but we just needed her to wait. She couldn't be out there by herself. I just we waited too long.

"He did this...didn't he?" I asked just to make sure that my assumptions were correct.

"He did. When you left to go back inside, I heard someone walking towards me. I thought it was you again, so I turned around to tell you to go back in, but instead of meeting your face, I was met with a knife," she said starting to tear up.

"Emeri..." I said, not knowing what to say. I couldn't believe this. I couldn't believe any of this.

"It's okay Callie. I'm fine now. I just came back to tell you that it's okay for you to be happy. I want you to live the life that you would have if I was still in it," she said with tears running down her face.

"But that's just the thing Emeri. You're not in it. Things will never be the same," I said with tears starting to stream down my face too.

"Oh but Callie, I'm always going to be there with you. I'm going to be looking out for you. I can't wait until I get to see you fall in love or have my little nieces and nephews. I'm always going to be here. Always," she said trying to stop her tears.

"I'm going to miss you little sis," I said when I realized that our time was done.

"Goodbye Callie. I love you," she said as she started to fade away. She looked so peaceful with a smile on her face and happiness in her eyes. I know that she will never be with me physically, but she will always be there. She will always be my rock.

"I love you Emeri," I whispered looking at the spot where my little sister once stood.

"Callie, wake up," I heard as I felt myself being shaken, "Callie! You need to wake up to take your medicine." I knew that it was my mom trying to wake me up, but I didn't want to. I didn't want to wake up until I realized something. I need to live my life for Emeri. I need to do things for her. I need to have a life for her.

"Mom?" I asked as I opened my eyes.

"Oh thank the lord! I thought you were in a coma or something," she said almost looking relieved that I was awake. I looked at her, like actually looked at her. Her face was worn from her tiredness. She had big, black bags underneath her eyes, and her hair looked like it was starting to turn gray. I never realized how much Emeri's disappearance had stressed her out. I always thought that I was the victim. In reality, our whole family was a victim. I turned my head to see Steve sitting in the chair by the window looking at me with a worried look on his face. And right next to him was Marc, looking like he was happy that I woke up. I've been so blind by my hurt that I didn't see that I had a caring family and support.

"Mom, Steve, Marc, I love you guys."
"Oh honey, we know this has been rough on you," my mom said with a happy look on her face, "We love you too."

"Mom!" I said just remembering that I needed to tell her about Emeri.

"Yes?" she looked at me shocked that I basically just screamed at her.

"It's Emeri, mom. She's...she's..." I stuttered not being able to say that word.

"We know Callie. I called you because her body was found in a lake," she said with her eyes filling up with tears.

"Mom, I saw her. She loves us all. We're going to be okay," I said with a bittersweet smile.

Danielle Meiggs

The Work in Progress

Let's start off. I don't like people. Basically that's all you need to know about me. I love the school aspect of school, but I hate the social aspect of it, so you could probably feel my joy when Mrs. Phillips told us we were going to be doing a group project. Scanning my eyes around the room, I found that we had an odd number of students in our class, so I was thrilled that I may have a chance to work alone. I zoned out as she was talking about the guidelines and the due date, already knowing that I was going to read them by myself later. All too soon, I realized that everyone was paired up. I scanned the room once more in hope that I would be able to do this project on my own. My hopes were crushed as soon as my eyes landed on the group of three girls smiling like crazy because they got to be paired up with each other. And then the realization hit me, I had to work with someone. I hoped that maybe the person would just allow me to do all the work because honestly I was okay with that.

"Finn!" my teacher yelled, almost like she had been calling my name for a while. I looked up to the front of the classroom where Mrs. Phillips was standing, and I came eye to eye with my writing partner. Suzie Bryant.

"Finn, will you please come up here with Suzie so you guys can pick your topic together?" Mrs. Phillips said after she realized that she had my attention again.

"Yeah. I'm sorry Mrs. Phillips," I said keeping my head down as I walked up to the front. I looked up once I got there, trying not to make eye contact with anyone. I guess I'm really shy too. That's another thing you should know about me. Anyways, I took a quick glance at Suzie. She looked happy as ever. She was a fun, bubbly person who everyone adored. I don't understand why she was unpaired. I somewhat feel bad about the fact that she has to be paired up with me.

"What do you want to choose?" Suzie asked looking at me. I didn't even know what the project really was, so I just shrugged hoping that she would choose a fairly interesting one.

"Um okay," she said looking very concentrated at the page, "I think we should go for this one." She motioned towards the longest line on the paper. I looked at the page, and in italics, it read a girl who has found herself in a life changing event. To be honest, I thought it sounded interesting. I nodded my head, not saying a word as all these amazing story ideas started to flow through my mind. Her dad has cancer, no. She was kicked out of college, no. Her boyfriend of five years cheated on her, no.

"Finn, Finn, FINN!" I heard Mrs. Phillips say as she was waving her hand in front of my face, "Finn I think that you need some better listening skills." I got the feeling that she was annoyed with me, and I felt bad. I guess I should stop daydreaming so much.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Phillips," I say looking at the ground, "I was just thinking of some stories that would go alone with the topic we picked."

"Well, go start writing guys," she said as she shooed us away. Suzie led us to a pair of desks that weren't occupied at the moment. Sitting down in the desks, Suzie looked at me expectantly.

"So what were your ideas that you came up with?" she said. I didn't know what to say. I all of a sudden felt like my ideas weren't good enough, so I panicked.

"Um...you see...well I...uh..." I stuttered out knowing for sure that my face was now the color of the red apple sitting on Mrs. Phillips desk.

"Don't worry, Finn. Trust me, I will love your ideas," she said as if she believed that statement to be true.

"What if she realizes that her boyfriend of five years is cheating on her?" I asked feeling somewhat better in my ideas.

"I like where you are going with that. The whole relationship thing, but I'm not too sure if we will have a bunch of dialogue to go along with the actions," she said looking at me like she wanted me to realize something.

"Oh! I've got it," she basically screamed in excitement, "what if we have the girl, right? And she meets this guy in school, and he is kinda closed off, and she tries to make him open up because she thinks that she may really like him, and-" I look at her expectantly as she just cut her words off. She was looking at me with this glint in her eye. I think she thought that I had zoned out because I wasn't looking at her when in reality, I thought her idea was amazing. It was a little girly not going to lie, but with a few twist and turns, I think it would make a great story.

"I'm sorry," she continued, "I'm talking way too much."

"N-no, you're fine," I said cursing myself because I was a stuttering mess.

"Oh, okay," she said looking down at her paper that was in front of her, "Do you have any ideas?"

"Actually," I somewhat whispered, "I like your ideas. I think that we could put a lot of turns in it."

"How about this," she said, "how about we write our each verse and then combine them later?" She looked at me making sure that I agreed with her, and with a nod of my head, Suzie went on writing. I had no solid ideas. I couldn't think of something that would actually be good. That was a struggle for me this year. I couldn't actually think of good stories to write. It was almost like all of my imagination just went poof. The class went on writing away, while I was just stuck, and soon the bell rang. I had no idea for this story, so I really hope that Suzie will pull us through.

As soon as I entered the hallway, I knew I should've stayed in the class just a minute longer. You see being the "nerd" at this school, you tend to get picked on a lot. I hate it, and I hate the people who pick on me. I don't even understand why they have to put others down, like why can't you just be happy about who you are. I just don't understand why people have to make others feel bad just so they can feel good. Anyways, when I walked out in the hallway, I was face to face with Burt, the jock of our high school. He is the quarterback, he plays an ungodly amount of sports, and the most important, he is dumb. Actually the teachers give him modified tests just so he can play sports. He's my bully. No one sticks up for me because they don't want to feel the wrath of him either. I understand. I wouldn't want anyone risking their life for mine.

"What are you a sissy? What boy takes writing class? Huh, Finn?" he questioned while laughing obnoxiously with his meat head buddies.

"Yes, Burt, only a sissy would take a writing class. You're right. Can I leave now?" I questioned back. I have learned throughout the years that if you just agree with him, he will not hurt you as bad.

"No you can't," he said shoving me. I knew where this was going to end up. I was going to end up missing AP Chem because the "almighty" Burt decides he wants to beat the crap out of me. And I was right. I felt a sting on my left cheek. I knew that it was already going to start bruising. I couldn't run because then everything would just get worse. Also, I knew that no teacher would come to help. I know that it's their job, but most teachers are scared of him. Well, I guess his dad. His dad is one of the main funders for the school, and with just a sign of his name, a teacher could get fired. I guess I had zoned out because the next thing I knew, I was on the ground with my stomach being kicked in. All of a sudden, I started feeling dizzy. I don't think I'm going to make it much longer. My vision started becoming spotted, and before it went completely black, I saw a pair of red converse running towards me, and I could faintly hear the word stop. Then there was nothing.

"Finn, you have to wake up," I heard being said. I felt stiff. My whole body felt like it had been hit with a truck.

"Finn, school is ending. I'm going to take you home. Will you please wake up?" I heard another voice say. That voice sounded like it belonged to Suzie, but there would be no way that she would bring me home. There is probably no way she even knew I was in here, and with that, I fell back to sleep.

I woke up, and the room that I was in was completely black. At first, I was scared. The last place I remember being was in the room with Suzie trying to write our paper when the bell rang. I looked around the room, and to my relief, I found myself to be in my own room. Now, how did I get here was the real question? I mean the obvious reason was probably because Burt decided to beat me again, and with the bruising on my arms that I can see, I'd probably say that that was the cause.

"MOM," I scream as I come out of my room.

"IN THE KITCHEN," I heard back. I knew that my mom would know the reason why I was here, so I walked downstairs to where the kitchen was.

"Mom, do you know how I got here?" I questioned.

"Burt," that was all she said. I know that my mom wants to file charges against Burt, but honestly, it will just make everything worse.

"Oh, well, I had an interesting day at school today," I say with a hint of sarcasm in my voice.

"Finn, I AM so tired of this. I am tired of you coming home injured and almost dead. You're safety means everything to me. I don't understand how you can just live your life like this," she said almost in tears. I understand that she is worried about me, but with Burt's dad's money, we have no shot.

"It is honestly no use. You know they have money, and you know there will be no way for us to win," I said hoping that she would understand.

"Fine," she said as she walked out of the room.

The next day at school, I hurried to my first period, which coincidentally is my writing class. I don't want to deal with Burt and his goons early in the morning, so I get to school probably earlier than most teachers. As I sat my stuff down at my desk, I see that the only other student in there is Suzie. She was looking at me with that glint in her eye again. I don't understand girls.

"Hey Finn," she said waving enthusiastically.

"Hey Suzie," I said sitting in my desk.

"How are you?" she asked sounding like she is getting closer.

"I am fine, you?" I asked just trying to be nice.

"I'm very good. Do you want to talk about our story?" she asked sitting down in the seat next to me.

"Actually, I didn't get a chance to work on it last night," I said just remembering our story, hoping that she would see the fact that I didn't really want to talk to her right now.

"Oh that's no problem; I actually got it done last night. Of course, you will be able to edit as you please, but I think this is very good. I think-" she continued as I zoned out. It's not that I don't like Suzie. It's just that she is so... I don't know. She is just so happy and talkative, and I would just like to relax in this free time and write.

"Suzie," I said cutting her off, "if you want, you can leave your story here, and I can read it."

"Oh okay," Suzie said as she got up and left the class room with her head down. I didn't mean to be mean, but I just don't like people. As soon as she left, I started to read the enormous story she had placed on my desk.

Let's start off. I don't like people. Basically that's all you need to know about me. After reading about five pages, I finally had gotten to the end. I love this story. It actually sounded a lot like my life except for the fact that the names were changed and that the boy and girl roles were switched. As I read the last line, I finally realized what this story was.

And in the end, he never noticed me. He never saw how I looked at him. He never knew I loved him, but now, I guess it's too late.

I need to find Suzie. I'm not one hundred percent sure, but I think this is Suzie's way of telling me that she likes me, I think that Suzie was the one who saved me yesterday, and I think Suzie was the one who brought me home. As I ran down the halls of the school, I couldn't find her. I had looked everywhere, and she was nowhere to be found until I turned the corner. There she was hugging Burt like her life depended on it. I guess she was right. It is too late.

Danielle Meiggs

Not All About the Fella

Once upon a time, we were wrongly accused. You see it was not my sister and I who despised Cindy. It was our mother. She made us do all the wrong we had done.

Ana and I were outside on our big, old farm. We had loved the peace and quiet of the country. We loved helping our father with all the work. We would plow the fields with him, we would feed the animals, and we would harvest the crop when the time came. Our mother, however, hated her life. She was always so hateful to our father even though he was a kind, loving man, who had cared very deeply for her. Even though he cared, she did not. As we grew up, it was quite clear to see that she wanted to leave our father, and the only thing that was stopping her was the thought of her reputation being ruined. She didn't even think to care about what we had thought.

And alas, she did what I most feared. It was late at night, and my father said that he had forgotten to blow out the lantern in the barn. Quickly, he went out, not wanting the barn to go up in flames, and quite suspiciously, our mother went out there with him. I didn't know what to think, but I went and took my sister, Ana, to get ready for bed. Being the oldest, I just felt like it was my job. As Ana got ready for bed, I went outside to see what was happening. As I crept around the barn door, I heard them arguing. Arguing about money, about love. I knew then that it was not my right to listen, that I should not know these things, but my curiosity got the best of me, and I could not turn back. I look just around the door, not thinking anything major of it, but I should have thought again, for when I looked around it, I saw the most horrific thing. My mother had shoved a knife into my father's stomach. I saw his eyes widen as the blood started to soak the once white shirt. As he looked down at the cause of his death, he mouthed one word. Why? I didn't know what to do. I felt that if I had run to him, I would be met with my untimely death too, so I ran back to the house, hoping no one saw me. Before I could get in, my body collapsed. I couldn't bear the thought of my father dying. My tears soaked my shirt in the thought of my father no longer being there. I worried about where we would go. I didn't want to be left alone with my mother, especially now that she has committed the most awful offense. I had to be strong, though. I had to be strong for Ana. Pushing myself off the ground, I snuck back into the house. My mother had yet to come out of the barn, most likely trying to get rid of all the evidence. I went up to Ana and I's room just hoping to fall asleep and wake up tomorrow with this just being some horrid dream.

"Ella, why are you crying?" my little sister asked probably hearing my heartbreaking sobs at the thought of our deceased father.

"Nothing is wrong, Ana. Please go back to sleep now," I said with my voice shaking betraying my body. I felt as if a part of me was dying along with my father. He made every day worth it, and now...now I have to go through life protecting Ana from our wicked mother.

"Alrighty," Ana said with a tired but cheerful tone. If she only knew...

I heard banging going on downstairs, but I was too scared to investigate it. I have a feeling that it was our mother cleaning up after herself, probably making it look like a suicide. I listened to the banging and clanking until the late hours of the night, and at some point I fell asleep.

"ELLA!" I heard as I was abruptly awakened from my sleep. I saw an orange glow outside of the window and knew exactly what had happened. Our mother got rid of any suspicion that she killed him. Now she can blame the lantern that was lit. It was a perfect story. After a few seconds of pondering about our mother's ambition, I grabbed Ana who was just waking up from her slumber and hurriedly pulled her outside our home far away from the barn that was soon to catch the house on fire. As Ana and I watched our memories burn away in the fire, our mother came behind us placing a hand on each of our shoulders. When I looked back, she had a sadistic smile plastered on her face, and at that moment, I knew that what I had thought was the truth. She covered her tracks.

"Girls," she said sounding not the least bit upset, "I have some horrible news to tell you. Your father ran into the barn to try and stop the fire, but it spread too fast. He was trapped in the barn. Girls, your father is dead." Looking at Ana, I try not to break at the broken look on her face. She looks just as I had felt last night. I had to be strong for Ana, so I did not shed one tears as I hugged her, trying to comfort her in any way possible.

"We will be leaving to a new house later on today, so get yourselves ready. I have placed some dresses in the car for you two to wear. I expect you to look your best," our mother said acting as if our lives were not completely ruined. I dragged Ana to the car and looked inside to see one green and one pink dress. They were the big, puffy kind that only rich people wore. This threw me off a bit. I could not decipher what my mother was planning, but I did as I was told and fixed my sister and I up. She looked lovely in the pink dress that was picked out for her.

"Oh Ana, you look absolutely gorgeous," I said speaking my thoughts as she twirled around having the best time she could based on our situation.

"You should look at yourself, Ella. You look absolutely stunning," she said looking at me in awe. We had never worn pretty dresses like these, so we had loved the feeling of getting all dolled up even though we have not figured out why we have to wear them.

"That'll have to do, I guess," our mother said coming up to the car eyeing our dresses.

"I'm going to explain everything on the way to our new home, okay?" she said not really wanting an answer to her question, "Get in." On the way there, our mother explained to us that we were going to live with our "new" dad who was very wealthy, so we had to act prim and proper in order to impress him and be liked by him. Also, she told us that we were to ask for jewels and expensive gifts if we were asked what we wanted. I did not want to go along with this deceiving plan. We were not proper girls. We enjoyed working in the mud, not sitting around demanding gems.

"And don't you two even think about acting out of line because you will regret it," she said sensing our hesitation with the plan. Her voice had an underlying promise in it, which chilled my bones. I knew what she was capable, so I had to make sure Ana and I acted like the little brats we were supposed to.

Once we arrived there, Ana and I were shocked at the size of the humongous house. Sitting on the steps was a pretty girl around our age, and I was so excited to have another sister added to our family, but apparently our mother did not share the same feeling as me, for when she looked out the car window, she whispered to us that we were not to be nice to the spoiled brat sat upon the steps. She told us that the little girl would try and hurt us because she didn't want a new family. I did not think this to be true, but the fear of my mother outweighed my doubt. As we left the car, I locked eyes with the little girl. I wanted to smile, but I remembered what my mother had told me, and so, I glared at her while complaining about the dirt that had dirtied my shoe as I dropped out of the carriage, and I knew that this was wrong. This wasn't me, but I had to stick with it for the safety of my sister and myself.

"Cindy, sweetie, please say hello to your new family," her dad said to her, having a weary smile on his face while he looked at me.

"H-Hello," she said putting her hand out towards me. I desperately wanted to shake it, wanting to be friendly to our new family, but I could not.

"Where's my room?" I said, brushing past Cindy like I didn't even notice her making sure to hit her shoulder as I marched into the house.

"You and your sister will be sharing the attic," our "new" dad said to us. Honestly, I had no problem with that. I was excited to share a room with Ana, especially being in a new environment.

"That simply won't do," our mother said as she shook her head looking at him, "There has to be rooms on the second floor, right honey?" I had stopped after entering the door really hoping that he would say no. I hide just inside waiting for his answer.

"Well yes, there is, but it's Cindy's room and her mom's old stu-" he said getting cut off by our mother.

"Perfect! We can just move all that stuff to the attic then," she said starting to walk in behind me. I quickly ran up to the attic, following Ana's steps feeling completely defeated.

"Ana, are you okay?" I asked walking in seeing Ana's tears roll down her cheek.

"Yes, I'm okay. I just wish we were home now," she said looking down. I couldn't agree with her more. I wanted this to all be a dream, but sadly, this was our reality.

"Hey, it could be worse. It seems like our step-father is a nice man," I said trying to keep a smile on my face.

"Or we could be forced to be mean to our new family...wait, we are being forced," Ana said with a hint of an attitude. I understood where she was coming from though. We typically weren't mean children, and now we have to act like we are just so we don't end up like our father.

"I'm so sorry, Ana," I said in a hushed whisper as I heard heavy footsteps coming up the stairs to the attic.

"I'm sorry girls. There must have been a mishap. Your rooms are on the second floor," Lord Treman, our step-father said.

"Good I felt like I needed a better room than this crappy place," I said feeling my heart breaking as his face fell with every word.

"Well I hope you find your new rooms to be up to your standards. Now if you'll excuse me," he said turning around and walking out of the room. As soon as he left, my tears just started to come down uncontrollably. If my father saw me right now, he would be so disappointed in my behavior. I really just wish life was easier.

It's been six years since that day, and everything has just gotten worse. My mother is so mean to Cindy, and behind closed doors, she is mean to us too. Ana has gotten worse. Since she was only eight when this happened, she now has grown up believing that she is mean and thinking that it is okay to treat people like that. Cindy's life became horrible. My mother found every way to abuse her mentally and physically. Cindy wasn't allowed to sit and eat dinner with us, mother took away all her beautiful clothes and gave her a nasty, old gray smock and wooden shoes, and she would give her chores upon chores, even some which made absolutely no sense. Her favorite one, though, was scattering a bowl of lentils into the ashes in the kitchen, and she always framed Ana and I for her crimes.

One day around two or three years ago, Lord Treman went to the fair and asked us what we had wanted. Remembering our mother's words, we asked so beautiful dresses, pearls, and jewels. It felt wrong. I didn't actually want any of those things. I didn't want anything from him except the stories of his travels once he got back, but that to my mother was foolish. After hearing Cindy's answer, I felt even worse. All she had asked for was the first twig that brushed against her father's hat on the way home. It was an odd gift I give you that, but it must have meant something to Cindy.

When he got back, he had a load of the dresses, the pearls, and the jewels put in my sister's and my room, but staring at the pile, I did not get any sense of joy or happiness. My sister did however. You could see the joy on her face, and it was because she had been brain washed by our mother. She thinks that this is okay now and that we should live our lives mean and greedy, and honestly it makes me sick.

Cindy had gotten her gift. She had received one hazel branch that had brushed her father's hat. Her joy was indescribable. She had thanked him and then scurried off. I was very curious to see why she had wanted such a tiny thing, so I followed her, and quickly we had arrived at a graveyard. I stood behind a large oak tree so that I could watch her from a distant just to see what she was doing.

"Mother, it has been so hard," she sobbed into the palms of her hands. The tone of her voice made me question everything I had ever done to her, but I shook those thoughts away because I was doing this for my sister's, Cindy's and my safety.

I watched silently as Cindy started to dig a small hole near her mother's grave and planted the branch. Every day, I followed Cindy as she watered the tree and wept at her mother's grave, and I wept with her. I cried for my father, my sister, Cindy, and all the wrong that I had done. Every time she had gone there, there was a little white bird that would be perched on one of the branches, and every time Cindy wished for something, the bird would throw it down from the tree. The first time this happened, I could not believe my eyes and thought that I had to tell someone, but knowing my family, I decided to keep it a secret, so Cindy could at least have one joy in her life.

And now two or three years later, it is the same routine. Cindy goes to the grave, I follow and stay behind the tree, and we both weep about our miseries. Something was different this time though, for when we got back, my mother had informed me of the king's proclamation that there would be a festival for three days in order for the prince to select his bride. At first, I was hopeful that he would choose me, but after a few seconds, I realized that I wanted to marry a farmer and retrieve my old life back. That was my real dream, not to marry a prince, which my mother did not find practical. She wanted one of us to marry him just to gain his wealth, not for love.

When the day that we were to attend the festival, our mother ordered Cindy to come and comb our hair, brush our shoes, and fasten our buckles. With everything going on, Cindy couldn't keep strong and so she wept as she helped us get ready. After everything was said and done, she begged our mother to attend this event.

"Cinderella, do you really think that a girl like you should go to such a proper event?" my mother said with a smirk on her face. I knew that she would not let Cindy go because she knew that once the prince saw her beauty, he would immediately fall for her, and that just wasn't okay with her.

"Please, ma'am. I will do anything," Cindy was on her knees begging showing her actual desperation to go.

"Under one condition," she said shocking all of us, "I threw a bowl of lentils into the ashes for you. If you pick them all out in two hours, then you can go with us to the festival." Everyone knew that that was impossible, but there was a look of determination in Cindy's eyes that made me believe she could do this. She sprinted to the kitchen hoping to make the time requirement. I followed her just watching to see what she has up her sleeve. She opened the windows and called to the pigeons and turtledoves to come and help her pick out the good and bad ones.

"The good ones go into the pot, and the bad ones go into your crop," she told them, and within an hour, she had successfully picked out all the lentils. She started walking to the door with a proud smile on her face, and I backed up out of sight hoping not to be seen. I followed her to where my mother sat and as Cindy gave her the bowl of lentils, her face scrunched up in an unpleasant way.

"You still have no clothes, and you don't know how to dance, so despite your thoughts, you will not go to the festival," our mother said giving a wicked smile. With those words, Cindy's tears started to flow down her face.

"Fine, Cindy, if you pick two bowls of lentils out in one hour, then you can go," she said clearly knowing that it was impossible. And yet again I followed her to the kitchen, and she called the birds. Within a half hour, the lentils had been picked out. Cindy started walking to the door again, and I backed up making sure that I wasn't seen. As she took the bowls to my mother, her jaw dropped. I don't think she could believe that she had sorted the lentils in that amount of time.

"Cindy, you need to get this through your head, you are not going to go with us to the festival," she said glaring into Cindy's eyes, "You will just be an embarrassment. That's it." With that, Cindy ran away crying. I knew that she really wanted to go, but alas our mother was being her wicked self. I don't know where Cindy went after she ran away because I was forced by my mother to go get ready for the festival.

A few hours later, we arrived. Our mother kept a close eye on us making sure we looked presentable enough. After a couple of hours being there, a beautiful girl walked through. I knew exactly who it was as I looked into her sad, glassy eyes, and I knew exactly where she had gone. She visited her mother's grave and asked the bird for a chance to attend the festival. A collection of gasps ran through the room as everyone laid eyes on her. Apparently, the prince felt the same way as everyone else because he walked over to her and offered her a dance. Obviously she accepted after feeling the pressure of a million eyes on her. They dance all night laughing and talking. I felt so thankful that Cindy got this chance. She could escape my mother and live her life exactly how she pleases.

At midnight, the clock rang out, and all of a sudden, I saw the flash of a light blue dress rush past me. I looked up to see Cindy running up the stairs to the doors. I followed after her along with the prince. I stayed a few feet behind them though hoping not to be seen. We ran and ran eventually ending up at our house. I saw her jump into the pigeon coop and lock it from the inside. The prince ran up to the door and knocked so loud that I thought he was going to break down our door. Lord Treman opened the door, and from what I could tell, he was getting his axe, so he could break apart the coop. They quickly destroyed it only to find that no one was in there. Somehow, when we entered the house, Cindy was dressed in her smock washing the kitchen floor from the ashes that were spilled around.

The next day, it happened all over again. Cindy came back with a dress that was a beautiful silver color, and it was even extraordinary than the one from the night before. And again, the prince claimed her as his dance partner, and they danced together all night. Once again, the clock struck midnight, and Cindy made her escape. The prince seemed to catch on quicker this time because he was right on her tail, and soon I followed after. We followed her to behind our house once again. This time, however, she bolted up our pear tree. I had stayed in the shadows, so no one could see me. I wished that Cindy would just show the prince who she was, so they could live happily ever after.

Eventually, Lord Treman came out and cut the tree down at the prince's request. To the prince's disappointment, Cindy had eluded him again. Once everyone entered the house, Cindy was in the exact same position as the last night: gray smock, ashes all on her skin, and her hair a mess from the work she had done.

The next day was the final day of the festival, and everyone had gotten ready to go except for Cindy, but this night, she didn't look at distraught about it as the first night, which probably was because she went anyways. Once my mother and sister left, I snuck away to follow Cindy just to make sure that my theories were true.

I had stayed a few feet behind Cindy as she left the house going in the direction of her mother's grave. I hid behind the same tree once we arrived at our destination. Cindy sat at the grave for a while, and I was starting to doubt that it was actually her. Then all of a sudden, the white bird flew and sat on the tomb stone. I heard Cindy whispering to the bird, and suddenly, a beautiful, gold and silver dress landed in front of her. She looked up, and her hair and make-up was all made up and looked absolutely perfect. When she stood up, glass shoes were revealed as they were hidden by her fluffy dress. They were so unique and beautiful. As she slipped her foot in, it looked like a perfect fit from where I was sitting, and I was happy that for the last night she would breathtaking.

When she arrived at the last day of the festival, the prince ran up to her and wouldn't let her out of his sight. Soon midnight had come around and the prince had learned his lesson, for he kept his arm securely around her waist not allowing her to run away.

"I have to go," I heard her tell him in a panicked voice.

"Let me take you home," he said leading her to the giant doors that would lead them to the outside.

"No you can't," she denied him, "My parents are very strict, and they don't know that I am out this night."

"I am the prince, you know? I'm sure they won't have a problem," he said turning to look at her in the eyes, and as his arm slipped from her waist, she sprinted down the steps making a run for our house. I watched as she lost her footing on the last step and had slipped out of her shoe. She turned around to grab it but saw that the prince started to head her way. With only thoughts of escaping in her mind, Cindy ran leaving the prince with her glass shoe. This time, the prince did not run after her. He grabbed the shoe and walked back into the castle muttering something about whoever's foot fits this shoe should be his bride. I couldn't believe my ears at what I had overheard, and I ran back home with the joyous thought of Cindy making her life better.

The next morning, the prince showed up at our house with the shoe in his hand.

"No one shall be my wife except for the one whose foot fits this glass slipper," he said looking directly at my mother making it known that he meant business.

"Oh yes, prince," she said bowing, "I do hope you find what you are looking for." She looked over to my sister and I as she said that looking like she was about to do something that may ruin our lives.

My mother had requested Ana to try the shoe first, for she has always been my mother's favorite. They went into the kitchen, and when they came back, they had announced that it fit. At first, I was shocked. The shoe looked way too small to fit Ana's foot, but apparently it was not.

Not even two hours later, the prince and Ana returned with shocking news. I looked down at Ana's feet and saw that the glass shoe was filled with blood, and as she took her foot out, I saw that her toes were chopped off. I couldn't believe she would do something like that just to be with the prince.

"Would you like to try it on?" the prince asked me with a little bit of hope shining through his eyes.

"N-" I started to say when my mother interrupted me.

"She would love too. Wouldn't you, Ella?" she said in a sickly sweet voice giving me a tight smile.

"Yes, prince, I would love to try on the slipper," I said knowing that the small shoe wasn't going to fit on my enormous feet. Once I got into the kitchen, I sat down and started to put on the shoe. After failing with it a few times, I stood up to go return it saying that it wouldn't fit.

"Where do you think you are going?" my mother asked me walking into the kitchen. She pushed me back into the chair.

"Mother, what are you doing?!" I asked panicked as she started walking towards me with a bloody knife.

"I suggest you should be quiet Ella unless you want your sister and Cindy to die because of your misbehavior," my mother said bringing the knife to my toes cutting one after one off. I held my fist to my mouth trying to muffle the blood curdling screams that escaped my mouth once in a while. I couldn't have Ana and Cindy die because of my mother's issue with me, so I was going to just go through with this.

"There you go, Ella. I'm so proud of you. Now, we can get all the money and power we deserve," she said. I wobbled my way out to the living room where everyone was sat, and the prince looked at me with such love in his eyes as he saw that the shoe fit. I felt my heart break for him because I was not the one who he has fallen in love with, and as soon as we were far enough away, I was going to tell him that I was not his love.

He took me on horseback to the way of the castle. As we headed there, I noticed we were passing Cindy's mother's grave. I noticed that the little, white bird was sat on the grave, but Cindy was nowhere to be found.

"That's not her! You have the wrong girl! Look at the shoes! Look at the shoes!" the little white bird squawked as we passed by, and slowly the prince turned his head to see that the once beautiful crystal shoes were now a dark crimson color.

"You fooled me," he said looking upset because he did not really find his love.

"No, you are right. I'm not her, but I do know who it is. It is our step sister, and I want her to be with you. I was going to tell you once I knew that my mother could no longer hear us for certain. You need to go back for Cindy," I told him trying to make everything wrong right.

"Then why cut off your toes if you were only going to tell me the truth?" he asked making me feel very stupid.

"I was threatened by my mother, you see. She threatened my sister's and Cindy's life if I did not go through with her horrid plan," I tell him as we arrive back at my house. As we enter the house, I feel the burning glare of my mother on the back of my head.

"What seems to be the matter, prince?" my mother said seeming like she is very worried.

"This one does not seem to be right either. Do you happen to have another daughter?" he asked already knowing the answer.

"Oh, only the disgusting Cindy, but she cannot possibly be the girl you are looking for," she said with a frown on her face, "Are you sure you have not just made a mistake?"

"No, I do not make mistakes about what is proven to be true. I would like to see this Cindy," the prince ordered. She went to fetch Cindy, and when they arrived in the room, the prince stilled, for he knew that she was the one even if she was covered in ashes and ratty clothing. Cindy sat down in the chair in the living room, and after the shoe was washed, the prince placed it on her foot. Right away, you could tell that it was a perfect fit.

"This is my bride," the prince said looking at Cindy with love in his eyes. Once he said this, my mother and sister stormed out of the room angered with the events that had occurred. I, on the other hand, watched as the couple road away on horseback. As the road off into the distance, the birds start to gather into the sky crying out as loud as they can.

The wedding happened a month later. I was thrilled when my mother told me that we all were going, and we were going to make everything up to Cindy, but I obviously knew that our mother just wanted the money that Cindy would be married into. When we arrived, we met up with Cindy outside of the church. Cindy was so happy that we wanted to become like a real family, so she allowed us to be in her wedding. I thought that it was surprisingly kind of her that she allowed us that honor, but I guess that was just Cindy. As we walked in, I was on the right side of her while Ana was on the left. Right before we walked through the doors, the white bird swooped down and ripped out one of my sister's eyes. I looked in horror as Ana's piercing scream ran throughout the church. I looked to Cindy and saw that she had a creepy smile, much like my mother's, that was plastered to her face. All of a sudden, the little bird came towards me, and I ran not wanting to have my eye picked out. I tried to lose the bird by going down a plentiful amount of hallways. Our run came to a stop though when I had reached a dead end. The bird swooped down pecking my eye out. I let out a scream that I knew could be heard throughout the church. At this time, I realized that this was Cindy's revenge. She had asked this little bird to do this, so it was done. I walked out of the church holding a towel to the eye socket that no longer held an eye. Ana had joined me, and as we were about to enter the car, a flock of pigeons came and ripped out our other eye. This time, our screams were combined making it sound like a mass murder was happening in the church parking lot. Our mother had run out of the church and looked to see both of us having tears of blood run down our faces.

"Dear lord, what happened?!" our mother screeched.

"She did this to us!" Ana screamed as she pointed to Cindy who had just exited the church with everyone else to see what all the chaos was about.

"I-I would do no such thing," Cindy said with an innocent look on her face. Everyone believed her knowing that she usually was very trustworthy.

"I don't understand. Why would you do this?" I asked her not really knowing where to look. I had assumed that everyone left because it got very quiet. All I knew was that Ana was right next to my side. Other than that, I was clueless.

"You see sisters," Cindy said in a menacing tone, "You put me through years and years of torture. Because you could not see the pain you were granting me, I thought that you should not see at all. You two will always be wicked no matter what."

I felt crushed. I thought back to the time when I would help Cindy without her knowing, I thought back to the times where we would cry together at the cemetery without her knowing, and I thought about the fact that I had cut off my toes just to save her from my mother. I had helped her and loved her as a sister from the beginning, but I didn't show that, and now I'm being punished for my mother's crimes.

"Cindy... I did not do those things to you. It was our mother. I admit towards the end, my sister and I started to torture you because our lives were threatened. Our mother was going to kill us if we did not go through with her plan. Cindy, it was not us," I said fully knowing that Cindy had left because I had spent a good amount of time thinking back to the past years.

Throughout the years, I have regretted my decisions and even more so now, but we have to live with our choices and die with the decisions we have made.

Danielle Meiggs

The Room on the Right

As I turned around, I saw the person who ruined everything. The person who killed her and who killed him. I thought I could trust her, but apparently I was wrong...I was so wrong.

"HILLARY, IT'S TIME TO GO! WE'RE GOING TO BE LATE!!" my mom screamed up the stairs just as I finished packing my bags.

"I'm sorry, mom. I didn't realize what time it was," I said running down the stairs while trying to get my left shoe on my foot.

"It's okay. Just make sure you don't forget anything, and remember I have a business trip all weekend, so call my cell if you need anything. And please just be safe with that loon of a father you have," she said quickly checking her phone and looking back up at me with tears in her eyes.

"Mom, it's going to be alright. It's just two days," I said giving her a hug.

"I know. I just don't like having to leave you with your father. I'm going to miss you," she said breaking our hug.

"I'm going to miss you too...Crap, mom we need to get going so you won't miss your plane!" I hurriedly rushed out as I looked at the clock situated behind her head. After packing the few bags I had into the car, we headed off to my father's house. As you obviously can tell, my mother and father got a divorce when I was really little; I don't even really remember a time when they were together. Anyways, my mother thinks that my father is crazy always trying to fill my head with false accusations of her, but honestly, I haven't spent enough time with him to know if this is true or not. Actually, I don't really remember the last time I even talked to him.

At first, I was kinda terrified of staying with my father while my mother was away because I haven't seen him in so long, but now I have accepted the fact since he was the only one available to watch me because my mom clearly thinks that I need to be babysat at age seventeen.

"Mom, you missed the turn," I said as she sped right passed his street.

"Oh, you're right. I was just thinking about the meeting. I'm sorry," she said looking at me for a split second. I knew that there was something else that was wrong because she seemed so distracted.

"It's okay. I just don't want you to miss your plane," I said looking at her trying to determine what was wrong with her. Within a few short minutes, we were pulling up into my father's driveway.

"Alright, Hillary...I will see you in two days," she said giving me a short side hug as I exited the car. I went to the back and unpacked everything that was mine. Here we go, I thought as I knocked on the door.

"Come in the door is open!" I heard my dad scream from the other side. I tried to turn the knob, but it wouldn't budge as it seemed to be locked. I knocked again, and slowly the door crept opened with every hit of my fist. I looked down at the door in disbelief that that had actually happened.

"Dad!" I screamed as I walked in, "Where do you want me to put my stuff?"

"Just set it in your room," he said from where he was, "Just go up the stairs, and it's the first door on the left."

"Okay..." I said trying to search for the stairs. After five minutes of trudging around the house without any help from my father mind you, I found the stairs. I hurried up them feeling tired of carrying my bag. As I reached the top, I realized something. I had forgotten what side my room was on. Guessing, I walked through the door to my right and was disturbed by what I saw. It was a bed room, but the weird thing was is that it was set up exactly like my room at mom's house with what looked like a person sleeping in the bed. I didn't get a chance to get a closer look because before I knew, my dad was right behind me.

"What did I tell you?!" he said in an angered tone, "I told you that your room was the one to the left not the right!" He stood in front of me, so his body would block the view of this mysterious girl.

"Who is she?" I asked. The girl looked to be exactly around my age and had very similar features.

"She is no one," he said determined to drop the topic, "You need to listen to me if you want to have a peaceful visit this weekend. Don't go back into that room." He was looking into my eyes like he was trying to tell me to believe him. I wanted to, I really did, but I need to know why that girl is here in a room exactly like mine.

"Okay, dad," I said turning around heading for the room on the left. As I closed my door, I saw my father walk back into the room with the mysterious girl. I only caught a glimpse of the girl starting to sit up. She had long brown hair with bright green eyes, just like me. The only difference I could tell was that she looked like she hasn't seen the sun in her life while I have a light tan. The door quickly closed before I could see anything else. Storing this information in the back of my head, I started to unpack. My room was a dark red, which was a really beautiful color, but for some reason, it felt offsetting to me.

It wasn't until it turned dark out that my father left the room with the girl.

"Dad, is everything okay with her?" I asked putting emphasis on her hoping that he would answer my unasked question.

"Yep everything is ay-okay!" he said with a big smile on his face, "What do you want for dinner, Hillary?"

"Oh, um, whatever you have. I'm not picky at all," I said curious as to why he changed the subject so fast.

"Alrighty then, I'll be in the kitchen if you need me," he said walking off. As any person would do to fill their curiosity, I went to the door of the room. To my surprise, I heard a voice behind it.

"Hillary...open the door..." the girl said in a soft whisper. I was scared, yes, but I wanted to know who this girl was, so I would no longer have to fear anything in this house. As I went to turn the knob though, it was locked.

"Try harder..." she whispered again. With all my might, I turned the knob hard to the right and still nothing happened. I tried to listen for another whisper, but alas there was none.

I walked down to the kitchen to meet up with my father.

"What were you doing?" my father asked.

"Um...just unpacking...settling in..." I trailed off not wanting to be suspicious, but I knew it came off that way.

"Okay..." he asked looking at me like he knew.

Later that night from my bed, I heard cries, cries of desperation.

"You can't keep me in here for forever!" the girl shouted from the room, and then there was a large crack as if a door had just been broken. I ran to my door hoping to lock it before anything could come into my room. I was scared, and I didn't know what was out there.

"STOP THIS!!" I heard my father scream downstairs. I didn't know what to think. I didn't know what to do. I heard things breaking and words being shouted for the rest of the night. I didn't sleep that's something I do know.

It's now late Saturday. I only have to make it tonight, tomorrow, and then tomorrow night I get to go home and never see this awful place again.

"Hillary," I heard my father say as he knocked on my door, "Can you open the door please? We need to talk."

"Um...yeah hang on a second," I said as I got out of bed and unlocked the door.

"How are you? You look exhausted," he said very bluntly.

"Thanks dad...I feel it too," I said sarcastically.

"Did you not get a good night's rest?" he questioned. At this point, I didn't know if I should tell the truth or lie. He has clearly shown that he doesn't want me to know anything about the girl in the other room, so I should pretend that I heard nothing just so I don't get a lecture.

"I slept fine; I just had a nightmare," I said looking around the room...aka my nightmare.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Hopefully tonight you will get well rested," he said getting up ready to exit the room, "I'll be downstairs if you need anything." He was gone, and I could finally let the breath out that I was holding in.

"What's wrong?" I heard in a whisper from my door way. I looked up and to my surprise I saw no one.

"Who's there?" I questioned back.

"In here silly...I'm your sister," the voice whispered again. I realized then that the voice was actually coming from behind the mysterious door.

"If you're my sister, then why don't I know about you?" I asked hoping to get a full response.

"Because mommy killed me," she said then let out a hysterical laugh. I ran downstairs fearful the mysterious girl in that room. There is no way that my mother could kill anyone. She just isn't that type of person.

"DAD!" I screamed throughout the house trying to get to the bottom of this.

"IN THE KITCHEN!" he yelled back. I sprinted to the kitchen not feeling safe anymore.

"We need to talk now!" I said with great urgency. This mystery girl is insane; my mom couldn't kill anyone.

"Alright, what do you want to talk about?" he asked nonchalantly as he was cooking dinner.

"Who is that girl?" I said getting straight to the point. I couldn't waste any more time with something so... so...life changing.

"W-What girl?" he said stuttering over his words.

"The girl that was in the room that was exactly like mine! The girl who looks like me! The girl who just told me was my sister!! The girl who said MY MOTHER KILLED HER!!!" I said getting louder at the end as I began to get frustrated.

"Hillary don't believe anything that girl says," he said looking shocked.

"Why won't you just tell me then? Why does she have to be a secret?" I asked not understanding why my life has change so severely in just a day.

"You will never understand. She isn't someone to mess with though. Please, just never talk to her again," he pleaded with me.

"Whatever," I said turning around heading back into my room.

"He's lying to you. You can trust me. I'm the only one who wants you safe. They want to kill you," I heard a whisper from the door the first one since I went to talk to my dad. It's around eight o'clock at night the next day, and all last night and today I have been sitting on my bed staring at the door of the room that contains my so called sister.

"YOU KNOW NOTHING!" I screamed as I threw my hairbrush at the door resulting in a big bang.

"Help me out, and we can escape. We can live freely together without the fear of anyone," she told me.

"N-No, I can't do that," I stuttered starting to fear the person who was just few feet away from me.

"You can. Please help me, please," she begged.

"I can't. Even if I wanted to it's locked, remember when I tried yesterday?" I asked trying to convince her that I couldn't do it.

"You just didn't try hard enough," she whispered again, but this time, it sounded as if she was crying.

"Look, I'll try again, but I can't make any promises," I said knowing that I would be able to do it, so I would stay safe. I walked up to the door and tried to turn the doorknob, and to my surprise and horror, the door opened. I saw the girl sitting against the wall next to the open door.

"You did it!" she said as she hugged me. I shivered as she came in contact with me as her skin was as cold as a blizzard on a December day.

"Why are you locked up?" I asked her as she seemed very much like me.

"Because they didn't want me to get to you," she said sneering at the word they, "They don't want me to ruin their plan."

"Their plan of what?" I asked genuinely confused.

"Their plan to kill you just like they did to me," she said looking at the ground.

"How can I be sure that you are telling me the truth? Why would they kill me now? How did I not even know about you? Why-"

"There's no time now. You just have to trust me," she said looking behind me at the door, "We need to leave." At that time, it sounded like a car was pulling up in the driveway.

"We need to hide," the girl said as she looked out the window, "It's going to happen soon." Trusting her, we ran to a little compartment underneath the stairs that I didn't even know existed.

"I found this place a couple of months ago. I don't think our father knows anything about it," the girl whispered as she kept her ear to the door trying to listen. I went up next to her trying to hear who was outside. I didn't want to be kept out of the loop any longer.

"Where is she?" I heard my mother ask my father.

"She's upstairs in her room, and before you ask, no she has no idea what we are planning to do," this statement from my father shocked me. They were really planning on killing me. Why? I don't know, but it was going to happen. I felt the tears of betrayal slide down my cheeks silently as I continued to listen.

"Do you have everything...especially the bleach?" I heard my mom ask.

"Yes, yes. Everything is in my bathroom," my father responded. I heard their footsteps go up the stairs as my mother called out telling me that she was here.

"HOW COULD YOU LOSE BOTH OF THEM?!?" I heard my mother scream.

"THEY HAVEN'T LEFT THE HOUSE! WE JUST HAVE TO FIND THEM!!" my father screamed back probably angry at my mother for blaming this all on him.

"HOW COULD YOU BE SO STUPID?!?" my mother responded. I heard running steps all over the house knowing that they were frantically searching for us.

I looked to my sister and whispered something I never thought I would ever say, "We need to kill them." At first she looked shocked, but then realized that it was the only way we were going to make it out of this house. I looked around the room and saw no useful things.

"Do you have anything we can use in here?" I asked her hoping to get a positive reply.

"I have a baseball bat over here...um...and here's a golf club..." she said sorting through the large amounts of junk.

"They have to be here somewhere. You guard the front door while I go search the top floor again," my mom said in a rush as she ran away.

"We can kill him first. It will be quick," my sister whispered to me.

"Okay, on three. One...two...three..." I whispered as we pushed opened the door ready to kill.

"THEY'RE DOWN H-" the words of my father were cut off by the golf club concaving his skull in. With little effort, he was dead. We looked up to the stairs and saw our mother with a face full of shock, and she ran. We followed her fairly quickly, and we got up there just as a door closed. With a swift kick, Molly, who is my sister, had knocked the door down. In the corner, we saw our mom cowering; you could tell that she was crying probably realizing her mistake in trying to kill me.

"Hillary, why are you doing this? Your father told you not to listen to her," she sobbed out.

"Why did you want to kill me?" I asked back with rage filling my eyes as I looked at the person who I thought I could trust the most.

"What are you ta-" and with one hit from Molly, our mother was dead.

"What was she going to say?!" I asked Molly, who looked at me with a murderous glint in her eye.

"It doesn't matter anymore," she said as she came towards me.

"W-What are you doing Molly?" I asked backing up towards the door.

"You've helped me do the hard part. Now, I just have to kill you," with that I ran as fast as I could out of that house, but to my horror no matter how hard I turned the lock, it wouldn't unlock. I was trapped with a ghost, who killed my parents.

As I turned around, I saw the person who ruined everything. The person who killed her and who killed him. I thought I could trust her, but apparently I was wrong...I was so wrong.

"Looks like you've lost," Molly said with a vicious laugh, "You should've listened to your dad shouldn't you've." By this time I couldn't even respond because I was crying too hard.

"You think you're perfect, but you're just as bad as me," she said getting closer.

"And guess what Hillary? It's over," she said just as she raised the bat.

"HILLARY," she yelled. I looked up at her in confusion as she continuously shouted my name.

"YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE ME LATE FOR MY PLAN. HURRY UP, WE HAVE TO GET YOU TO YOUR DAD'S," Molly screamed in my mother's voice.

"This is just a dream..." I said as I stood up, waking up in real life, "It wasn't real." My mother stood over me looking panicked as I had not been getting ready.

"Okay we need to get going, and then I need to drop you off, and then-"

"Mom don't worry everything will be okay," I said to her trying to calm her down.

After about twenty minutes, we were all packed and ready to go, and after about ten minutes of a car ride, I was standing outside my father's house. I knocked not sure if I should just walk in or not.

"COME IN," I heard my dad yell from the other side.

"Where do you want me to put my stuff?" I asked as I walked in.

"Just go up the stairs, and it's the first door on the left. That's your room," he said.

"Okay..." I said trying to search for the stairs. After five minutes of trudging around the house without any help from my father mind you, I found the stairs. I hurried up them feeling tired of carrying my bag, just remembering not to go into the room on the right.

Danielle Meiggs

Only Sleep Can Tell

"Cindy, why don't you come up here and present your idea?" Mrs. Kouffman, the most horrid person in the world, asked.

"Uh...oh...um...okay," I stuttered out uneasily. You see, I am a good student, top ten in our class actually, but presenting terrifies me. I'm the girl who everyone defines as weird. I keep to myself, I never talk unless I'm forced, and I don't have any friends. I'm a loner, a misfit because people see me that way.

"Ohhhh there goes the weirdo," I heard being whispered throughout the class. Everyone laughed as I started to walk up to the front of the room with my boring looking poster.

"Everyone quiet! You may start now Cindy," Mrs. Kouffman said looking down at the rubric in front of her.

"Alright, so my-y topic is over d-depression and the effects of the different medicines to cure t-this awful disorder," I said presenting this to my health class.

"Of course she did it on that..." I heard a boy whisper again throughout the class.

"Well...um...I suffer from depression, so I thought that it w-would be i-interesting to hear from the point of view of m-me," I stuttered out focusing my eyes on the notecards that I had wrote weeks before.

"We all know you do! That's why you're weird!" the same guy from before shouted.

"That's enough, Drew!" Mrs. Kouffman yelled. Curious, I looked up to see her glaring holes into Drew Chasar's head. The Drew Chasar. The one that is the best at sports, academics, and girls... The one who also makes my life a living hell.

"You may carry on," Mrs. Kouffman said giving me a encouraging smile.

"I-I have been prescribed m-many different t-types of medicines," I said trying to keep my voice from shaking, "Some have a-actually worsened my s-symptoms, believe i-it or not."

"I don't believe it," Drew said looking at me. I don't understand what I ever did to him to make him feel this hatred for me.

"DREW! OFFICE NOW!" Mrs. Kouffman screamed clearly annoyed with his juvenile behavior.

"Why?" he asked nonchalantly as he kicked back and put his feet on the desk, "I'm pretty comfy here." Everyone around the class chuckled with the exception of me, of course. I don't find him amusing one bit just an a*s.

"Because you have been disrupting the class ever since I called on Cindy to present her project, and not to mention that now you are disrespecting my classroom," Mrs. Kouffman said clearly losing her patients fairly quickly.

"Oh I don't mean any harm, Mrs. K. Just playing around with an old pal. Right Cindy?" he said looking at me as if I would be killed if I said the wrong answer. This was my time. This was my time to end all of the bullying and harassing. I had a chance, but was I going to take it?

"Yes, I know he's just kidding. We're friends," of course I wouldn't. His hard glare made it impossible to tell the truth. I knew he hated me, and I didn't need any more pain on top of what was already given to me.

"Are you sure Cindy?" Mrs. Kouffman looked at me suspiciously.

"I-I swear," I said stuttering starting to get annoyed with myself.

"Fine, just no more interruptions or you will be gone," she said signaling for me to keep going with my presentation.

"Depre-"BBBRRRING BBBRRRING. Mrs. Kouffman's phone went off as I was beginning again.

"Oh I'm sorry dear," she said as she answered the phone, "Hello."

It was going on ten minutes, and I didn't think that she was going to get off anytime soon because it sounded important as her answers seemed very thought out and formal. I went to go sit down and collect my things because class was about to end, and I knew that I wasn't going to be able to finish my presentation today.

"Way to go Cinderella," Drew said with disgust, "You're absolutely disgusting. No one would ever love you." I ignored him because what else was I supposed to do? Fight back? I didn't want any repercussions. Tell the teacher? Again I don't want anything more to happen.

"Cat got your tongue?" he asked me getting right in my face. No, you idiot, I thought as I looked down at my desks.

"Pathetic," he said backing up a little. I don't know what happened in me, but I just grew so tired of all this constant bullying. I'm not pathetic; I'm just a girl who didn't want to be beaten up. I am just a girl who is just as insecure as everyone else.

"I'm not," I mumbled still finding my desk the most interesting thing in the world.

"What did you say?" he said in a hate filled voice.

"I'm not," I said much louder looking straight up into his big blue eyes.

"You're not what?" he said almost daring me not to say any more.

"I'm not pathetic. YOU ARE! You think that you're all big and bad. You can't run everyone. You aren't in charge. You think you are the coolest thing ever, but what happens after high school? What's going to happen then? It won't be about your name; it's going to be about what you bring to the world, and so far, it hasn't been very pleasant," I said looking him dead in the eyes feeling good about what I just said.

"You're going to regret that," he spat out as the bell rang signaling the end of class.

"Goodbye students," Mrs. Kouffman said waving from behind her desk as she covered up the mouth piece of the phone, "Oh, and Cindy, we will finish up your presentation next class along with the rest of the class, so be prepared."

I felt good about myself, at least until I stepped into the hallway.

"Where do you think you're going, Cinderella?" Drew asked with a group of his friends standing behind him. I never understood that nickname because if I'm not mistaken Cinderella was beautiful and actually turned into a princess, so honestly I never really cared about the name.

"I'm going to my locker Drew. Care to join me?" I asked very sarcastically. I liked this new found confidence that I had. I felt like I actually controlled my life, and it was a good feeling.

"Why would I want to be seen with you?" he asked looking appalled by my offer.

"Who would want to be seen with you? You tear people down, and I bet all your friends here are just scared of you or are using you for you looks," I said motioning to the jocks and then the platinum blonde barbies that stood behind him.

"Why do you feel that you have the right to say this?" he asked clearly fuming by my bluntness.

"Because I'm Cinderella apparently," I said starting to walk away, "And princesses do as they please."

"It wasn't meant to be a compliment. I meant the Cinderella who was disgusting before all the bipity bopity boo," he said making me laugh at his odd behavior. Never in a million years did I ever think that I was going to hear my bully Drew Chasar say bipity bopity boo.

"Can I ask you a question?" I said turning around quickly almost making him run into me.

"No," he said looking in my eyes.

"Okay...well why do you hate me? What did I ever do to you?" I asked not paying any mind to his answer.

"I don't hate you..." he said looking away, "If I never bullied you, I would never get to talk to you." I was horrified by his answer. He bullied me for years because he wanted to talk to me?! I ran away from him and eventually out of the school just wishing that this day would have never happened. Cindy...Cindy... I heard being whispered throughout the trees around me. Cindy...Cindy... and then everything went black.

"Wake up Cindy," I heard. The blackness surrounded me, and I didn't know where I was, but with just a few moments everything cleared.

"You're going to be late to work," and with that sentence, the black faded to become what I know as my room, and I came face to face with my husband, the one and only, Drew. That dream was the past, and he's so very lucky that I'm a forgiving person.

Life as we know it

By Jacob Walton

"You woke up, she didn't...."

I usually try to stay away from sketchy situations but sometimes stuff just happens and I have no control what so ever over it. This is one of those tragic situations where it doesn't end well for either party. I run a little store on the corner of downtown Chicago, its one of the stores that the big companies don't worry about but it still brings in a large amount of business. It one of the best spots and I have been offered so much money that I could retire ten times over, people see the value in the spot and I keep telling them that It's not for sale, for god sake I even put a sign in the window. This man though, he was something different, he was strong headed, a trait that I share but this man also seemed to be the type with evil intentions, he was bald with a scar on his right eye, the type you don't get from a normal day to day life, he stood a bit shorter than me, around 5'9, he dressed well enough to get the point across that he meant business. By his demeanor I could tell that he didn't want it to start a store or a restaurant, he wanted it for something else, that something I did not know but it couldn't be good.

"I can make you one of the richest men in the world, up there with Trumps and Gates, a mansion in the Hollywood hills with enough to make Hugh Hefner jealous" was his new sales pitch, still didn't convince me, he never would convince me.

"This... this store, this house, this place," I said as I slammed my hands on the table "Is all I want, I don't need a giant mansion, I need you to get the hell out!" I yelled at him.

With the dirtiest look ever he got up and opened the door, before he left he turned around and shouted "You'll regret this, you love this store, and well I hope you love it more than anything else" and with a grunt he slammed the door. After him leaving I immediately locked the door and put the closed sign up. He was trying to spook me, I wasn't going to have it, I walked up stairs and sat on the couch. I sat there thinking, wondering, arguing within my head on what he meant, what he was trying to say. It was around 12:00 when Nicole came upstairs.

"Hey is bed-time big guy," she said in a seductive voice.

"I'm not in the mood, sorry I'm just a bit concerned," I said in a apologetic voice, "He came by again"

"Again, that *&^%, why haven't you called the police on him yet, I starting to get really irritated, he comes by every month like you are gonna magically change you mind."

Now Nicole is one of the nicest people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting and when she says she hates someone, she means it.

"he, said something that rattled me, I was too angry to think about it when he said it," I said with my head down in shame, "He got to me, I know it shouldn't, it's just words but I don't know why, he got to me."

"Well try and forget about, I'm heading to bed, it's been a long day," She said as she ran over and gave me a kiss. "Goodnight" She yelled from the bedroom. I finally headed to bed after a while. I laid down next to her but it didn't help. I couldn't sleep.

"Why are you still up, go sleep" is what Nicole said, it was 1:20 and she had work, I felt bad but I couldn't sleep knowing that guy out there had his evil plans. Nicole was a simple girl but I had known her forever and only around 2 years ago I built of the courage to ask her out, she is a shorter girl, something that I always preferred.

I responded with "Sorry, can't sleep, I got too much on my mind, it's like my mind can't rest."

"Well tell your mind to calm the hell down and sleep." Is how she responded, she defiantly needed her sleep so I did my best to lie down and put my mind to rest. Within minutes I was asleep, it wasn't a strong sleep but it was sleep no matter what. I woke up tomorrow to something that would haunt me forever. I went to the shop early in the morning, around 6 or 7am. It was normal for me to get there early as I normally have to tidy up and get ready to open at 9am. When I arrived the sight I saw was horrifying, the whole shop was torn to shreds , it looked like someone went crazy with a chainsaw. Glass and all other materials were on the floor, and on the wall it said "You'll regret this" those words spoken by the persistent man. I immediately turned it over to the proper authorities but they had no evidence to convict him.

I kept the shop closed for clean up, I thought a week was enough time, Nicole even took some time off to help, on Friday the shop was finally back up standard and we were able to re-open Saturday. I went home and jumped straight into bed.

"What has you in such a good mood?" Nicole asked as she slid into bed and gave me a kiss.

"I don't know, I guess I'm just excited to start the day tomorrow." I responded.

"Good, I don't need my big man getting all scared by a little bald man." She said as she laid down.

The day went as smooth as planned, we got even more customers than normal since it was the grand re-opening , got comments from everyone saying that though we were done for good but I kept telling them that "I'm gonna keep truckin'," no matter what bald headed prick says. After a good of selling I went home and to sleep.

As I fell asleep I felt un-easy but I decided that I shouldn't worry about it, and that I should get my rest. It was around 3am when the fire woke me up. It had engulphed our entire house, all I could hear was Nicole screaming, it wasn't the scream of being the scared it was one of the loudest things I have ever heard and it would haunt me for the rest of my days. My door, a blockade of fire and rubble, blocked any change of a normal escape, my best bet was out the window. The window didn't look like the best way out but It was the quickest and speed is what I needed, I tore off most of the window but it was still covered in flames, I had to jump. I kept telling myself "im not gonna burn in here, this isn't the end of the road for me!" I jumped, all I remember seeing was the ground coming at my face in slow motion, it felt like the world was revolving completely around me, not as if I was special but as if my life flashed before me. In an instant I was out.

A week later

"Oh look who's finally awake, you barely got out of there" Said a voice as I woke up, the light was blinding and confusing but as my eyes adjusted I saw a doctor in front of me, it didn't take a brain surgeon to realize I was in hospital. I looked around and saw an empty bed next me.

"how long have I been out?" I asked the doctor

"a week" he said in a sad voice, "Your girlfriend..." I didn't let him finish

"what happened to Nicole, WHERE IS SHE" I asked

"you woke up, she didn't" he said in a calming voice. I started crying un-controllably.

"Someone did stop by to drop off this note, I didn't read it because it might have been personal," said the doctor

The note said this "Your girlfriend, you livelihood, your health, all over some dumb store, how does that feel, your life as you knew it is over"

Power Trip

By Jacob Walton

Power, something desired by everyone, it has caused murder all the way to love. The allure of power is overwhelming and if you don't control it you can be under the grasp of the thirst for power. The thirst, the greed, the clawing for power starts with young Acacisus in Ancient Greece. He was one of the many men who have succumbed to greed, a greed for power and he intended to get it one way or another.

His first thought was to overthrow the leader of his village but he then decided that this was not enough.

"No.. he is too weak, the source of his power is what I seek, the Gods of Olympus, those are who deserve to be overthrown, they have held their throne's for too long." He thought to himself. Mount Olympus, the home of the gods, is not an easy place to reach, it is a long journey that only few have made but those who have had a purpose very similar to Acacisus, they wanted to reach the gods, some for worship and some for power. Acacisus realized this and found out quickly that his journey would be impossible without the help from his village. His first idea was to tell the leader of his village what he needed the help for but soon realized that he would never help him overthrow the gods.

"I am going to go get help from the gods for our village so we can be prosperous and live like those in Athens and Sparta." Is how he decided that he would trick his leader. He thought this would work perfectly and they would have no problem with this. It worked better than he ever thought it could.

The leader responded to his request "For the benefit of our village I would be stupid not to help, if there is anything else you need? We packed you food, water and extra clothes." Acacisus responded with "I could use some armor and maybe a sword." The leader responded with "why would you need these tools of warfare on a peaceful mission, you aren't lying to me Acacisus because if you are there will be more than a thunderbolt waiting for you!"

Acacisus responded quick "no no no, I need them to defend myself from all the deadly animals and creatures and this is a very dangerous journey that I am embarking on to help the village."

The leader now calm said "fine, if you say so, Nikandreos! Bring Acacisus the best shield, xephos and armor we have."

Acacisus wondering what a xephos is said "what's that? a special type of sword?"

the leader surprised by this question answered "it's a sword meant for hero's, it blade cannot become dull, they are blessed by the smith god Hephaestus."

"You're your giving it to me? Really just for this quest?" He responded.

The leader then said "no you can keep it, its your early reward for helping the village."

"thank you so much leader, I'll put it to good use." He said and started walking away from the village thinking that he fooled the old leader but in secret the leader knew his true intentions.

"it's a long journey to Mount Olympus" he thought to himself as he started climbing up what seemed to be a mountain that went on forever.

3 Months Later

With the help of his village and a lot of resilience he was able to trek up the infamous Mount Olympus finding himself inside the Agora; the home of the lesser gods Apollo, Artemis, and Hermes. His eyes were on Apollo the God of Music and Light. Acacisus knew this was going to be his only chance to gain in power, his plan was simple.

Request for the gods power to be placed within his sword, he had thought this "if all my power is within my sword I will be able to kill a god and take my place among them just as Kratos did when he murdered Ares and took his place as the New God of War." But before any god killing could take place he had to get something to eat, even though they packed quite a bit of food they didn't pack enough for a 3 month long trip. He traveled to the Agora Market to pick up some of its famous ambrosia that has the ability to heal all wounds. After his quick trip to the market it was time for him to face to god of music and light.. Apollo. His temple was far above all the others within the Agora, he felt that this put himself above the other gods in the Agora, especially his sister Artemis.

When Acacisus finally reached the temple, which seemed to have a thousand stairs leading up to it, he was halted by 2 guards which had swords and shields that glowed like the light.

They stopped him and said "You! Who comes to visit the god Apollo? state your name and reason!"

Acacisus responded "I come here to ask for help from the best god, my village is In dire need of help and Apollo is the only one that can help us."

The Guard Responded with "That is an appropriate request and you have been given admittance to the Temple of Apollo."

Walking through the temple Acacisus only thought one thing, "Power will be mine" When he finally reached the throne of Apollo he was dumbfounded when he saw the size of the god. He had always know gods where bigger than men but he stood 12 feet tall.

Apollo addressed the mortal "What do you want from the true leader of the gods"

Acacisus responded with "I wish to gain power and I believe you are able to give me that power, I want for you to infuse your power within my blade so I could have to ability to slay Zeus and Give his power to the world"

Apollo stood up and responded "I agree that Zeus has led the gods for too long, but how do I know that you won't just keep all the power to yourself and not release it to the world?"

Acacisus responded "I swear by the power within my blade that the power will be released to the world with only a small amount for me and some going to you so you may become the new king of the gods."

Apollo laughed and said "Apollo the new king of the gods, I like it and what god would you be young mortal?" Acacsisus hadn't pondered this yet but he did have an idea in mind that would please the god of light.

He said "Well I would take your place as the new god of light, you would take the powers of Zeus and you powers would be of no use to you anymore."

Apollo nodded his head and laughed "I love this idea, give me your blade and I will give it enough power to kill the king of gods." Acacisus handed over his blade with no hesitation. Apollo grabbed it and inspected it

"You think this thing deserves the power? Ha... how about I give you a real weapon. A blade with the power to match that of the King of the Gods, My blade." Acacisus thought and nodded his head no words were need, Apollo broke the xephos in half and summoned his holy blade in front of Acacisus. With the power within this blade Acacisus left the temple and headed to kill the king of the gods.

The king of the gods had always feared a revolt and his day had came but Apollo forgot to tell Acacisus one thing, that the king of the gods is always listening and as soon as he stepped out of the temple and lighting bolt with enough power to kill a god came rushing down at him.. killing him instantly. Acacisus with a whole through his chest grabbed the blade of Apollo and hugged it.

"My greatest source of power" He said with his last breath.

War... War Never Changes

By Jacob Walton

WWIII, the Great War, the End of Civilization, these are names in which the war of the world has went by, but you cannot name something who's only purpose is to destroy. The war between the Republic and the Control. These are the countries that control over 90% of the world with the rest being divided up into smaller countries. Nobody in this war wins; it is a story that only ends in total destruction with both parties ending in a pile of radioactive goop. Total Nuclear Destruction, is how the world ends and it ends with nobody on top.

2020 and the great war is coming to a close, and everyone is worried on how it will turn out, whether the Republic will win or not, the Republic is the result of a mass alliance between all of America and Europe. The Control is the Result of Terrorist gaining support from most of Asia and Russia, enough to where they are more powerful than any country by themselves. They gained this support over many years of taking over and building treaties, they soon went from being a terrorist group to being a straight up country and they had developed one of the greatest militaries of all time. China and Russia were the first to ally themselves with the new powerhouse of a country.

The major battle's occurred mostly in the United States or the land formerly known as the U.S.A, but the final one, the one that caused the dropping, was in Russia or the area that used to be known as Russia. This was the ultimate battle, both forces through threw everything they had at each other. General White was leading the Republic and Supreme Maxon led the Control onto the battlefield. They were both considered to be the leaders of the Alliances.

At first there were missile barrages, and then the heavy's dropped.. the MOABS, mother of all bombs, a man death machine that would rain down hell on the battlefield but those by themselves could not end the war. The mother had been used, but the father was still in the shed, The atomic war was started and the Republic threw the first shots, but it wasn't long till the control fired back and they hit hard, the third world war had ended the same way the second had, complete destruction. As the bombs were falling you could hear the screams and yells of people on the battlefield.

"GET DOWN! GET DOWN!" was shouted out by the field generals and captains, but they knew that the best hiding spot in the world wouldn't protect them from the hell that was about to fall upon them. The place they were fighting was no simple battleground, it used to be homes, where families lived and now they either lye dead or have evacuated but if they would of stayed they would of died what so ever.

"Life, the power to live is a strong one in this world" are some of the words spoken by General White before heading into battle, he did not know that this battle would be his last but he knew what it would be... a blood bath, both armies where heading straight for each other in the climax of the greatest war of all time. Over a million men and women, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, vaporized in an instant.

"Fire every damn thing we got, those bastards are going to pay" Shouted General White. From missiles to the famous nuclear bomb everything in their arsenal was fired but they were just late. It was almost the same exact moment when Maxon ordered the complete arsenal of the Control to b fired. These two individuals decided the fate of the world, and it wasn't a good one.

Nuclear Destruction was the end of the world. There had been some survivors but they wouldn't survive the fallout.

The Diary of a 8 month long relationship

By Jacob Walton

April

He rode my bus, he made fun of me, he did all he could to make me laugh, he was an interesting little combination of rude and charming. When I first met him I really didn't have any feelings for him but it seems in these closing months he has done everything to impress me.

If I learned one thing from my friends is that when a boy asks "how was your day?" he likes you...

Every day we walked home together he seemed to be nicer and nicer doing all he could to make sure that I wasn't mad at him, at times he went over the line but he would realize that quickly and apologize.

May

Well I guess my friends were right... well better said they were extremely right. After walking home together on a Monday he stops me at the corner of his street and says

"Are you single?" he asked confidently.

I responded with "of course, why?"

"Well I bet you can guess what I'm alluding to, do I have to say it?" He said in an awkward way.

"yes.... Yes you do!" I said while giggling.

He sighed "fine, do you want to go out?"

I laughed at him and said "I was wondering when you would ask"

June

With us living a block away from each other we were able to hang out quite a bit. I'm shy so I kind of had to wait for him to take a lead. He is a natural leader, a cocky one at that but still a leader

July

We were able to hang out over the 4th of July; we went down to his family's campsite down by the lake. It was cold out but he gave me his jacket.

When he gave it to me I chuckled and said "wow which movie you got that move out of."

He responded sarcastically as normal "Every single cheesy love story made, do I need to lay it over a puddle nest? Or will that me enough my Queen" We laughed. My parents wouldn't let us sleep in the same tent, my father being over protective and all. I love my parents I do but sometimes they go too far.

Shelbie. I still can't believe that your parents wont let us sleep togeth... sleep in the same tent, sounds less provocative." He said

"wait did you just call me Shelby? You never call me Shelby anymore, its always baby, bae, Queen." I said dumbfounded."

"I felt like being formal, is there a problem?" he said with that grin he gets every time he is up to something.

"what are you plann..." I couldn't finish my sentence before he had kissed me, I wondered how long he had planned that out, I bet he knew I would ask that. He plans everything, sometimes I wonder how far ahead he is.

August

As I guessed he had everything planned, school started around the middle of the month, he is a clever one, he got to school around 10 minutes before me so he was able to find my locker ( we keep the same lockers) and he pasted a note on the door.

The note read "you didn't think I would forget with all the beginning of school stress, happy birthday baby." It didn't help that my friends had already grabbed it off my locker and started reading it so the surprise was ruined but he expected that. When I opened I found something interesting, a not tapped the inside of the door.

"Just in case you friends suck" He had a locker 5 down from me so he was at his laughing his butt off, he had a stupid sense of humor but I liked it for some reason.

He turned and said "guess my back-up worked" he then turned to faith and said "also you need to stay out of other peoples business before you ruin everything." I hoped that he was predicting anything.

September

Walking home with him had become a challenge with my parents starting to insist that I get a ride home due to the cold weather... its 60 degrees out. I could school was starting to stress him out, we started hanging out less, he was less creative, but he was still the same Jacob. He had taken AP World History and Journalism, kept asking to pick one, not both but he insisted. I knew that his AP class would be filled with all the smart girls that I couldn't even compare to.

October

As I guessed he has to start cancelling plans, the late night texting stopped and, what saddened me the most was the cute names stopped, now I was just Shelby.

November

I guess all the best things must come to an end and this was one of them, on Friday we go into an argument walking home and it was because of the stupidest thing, I wanted to go hang out over the weekend but he has studying and all these things to do. After it was over we walked away later that night he sent me this

"I've been thinking about this for a while but I think we should take a break, school should be our number one priority but right now it isn't." He then said "I still wanna be friends though" that is when I knew that the end had came. 8 months, 12 days, and 3 hours, that Is how long it lasted.

Jason Wisinski

Last chance to see him

There is 5 minutes left in the quarter when those five minutes are over so is the game we have the lead we just need to control it. Are couch was very happy that we were winning but he wanted us to end the game with a win. Are couch took a time out so we could have a breather and there was 3 minutes left I want you guys to run time off the clock then I want you to go for the easy shot. We are up by 10 points let's not make any mistakes and it would be nice to leave here with a win tonight right team. We all screamed right when we got back into the game we did exactly what he said to do take time off of the clock and make the easy shot. We did we went for easy shots we increased are lead and at the end of the game the score was 57-43. We won and that was are 5th win in a row we were doing really well so far when we were done shaking the opposite teams hands. We went to the locker room changed and went on to the bus wear we were all glad we won we got back to the school and are parents picked us up because we were in the 8th grade we couldn't drive. Couch told us that we would have practice and we had a game on Thursday. My mom picks me up and she tells me how good I did and that the team was looking really good then my grandparents called me and told me how good I did and all of that good stuff. When we got home I went into my room grabbed some pajamas and took a shower. When I got out of the shower that's when things took a turn for the worse. I could hear the phone ringer but my mom got to it before I could get out of the bathroom. But when I got out of the bath room that's when my mom told me my papa joseph just had passed away. I was kind of shocked but yet I knew him but I didn't really know him all that well.

She asked me if I was ok and I said yes but it didn't really hit me till the next couple of days. Today was only a Monday but the whole week we had family come over because the funeral was going to be on Friday. I was going my sister was going to stay at a friend's house I just wanted to be with my dad since it was his father who had passed away and getting to miss school that was just and extra thing. Tuesday we had practice just like couch said after practice my parents talked to both of the couches and told them I would not be at practice on Friday but I would on the game on Thursday. My head couch new my parents pretty well and he did tell my parents if they needed any thing just let him know and he told me I was more than welcomed to come talk to him. But when I was walking into the locker room after practice that Tuesday the 7th grade couch told me he was sorry about my loss. That night I asked my dad if he knew him and he said yes because I saw him go over and talk to my dad it turned out that he was my uncles best friend. That night my uncle Ricky came over and hung out with us but Wednesday night my dad's 4 brothers were all over and so were there wife's and kids. We were all talking about my papa Joseph and all of the adults were going throw thons of pictures of my papa Joseph. Then they told me and my cousin chance to go in my room and paly my Xbox if we wanted to and we did we were the oldest kids there he was in the 7th grade and I was one grade ahead of him. But we went into my room and we played football and then we played a racing game because we got bored of playing football.

Then all of my family members went home and they said they would come over on Thursday and my parents told then I had a basketball game so instead of coming over and hanging out they. Went to my basketball game to cheer me on and there to support me and that game believe it or not brought my family closer together but what happened that game was unreal. I can't exactly explain what happened at the game but I am going to tell you what I thought was going on. We went to the locker room to get are basketball uniform on while we were putting on are shoes and focusing on what the game plan was. Are couch came in and he said get on your knees bow your head and lets pray there has been a lot going on this week so let's pray. That's when it hit me that's when me losing my grandfather really hit me because when he was praying he said lets pray for the skies they had a family member pass away this week. Then he looked up at us and said lets go win this won for Jason and his family then we went out of the locker room and the A team that game they were on fire and yes there is an a and b team and I was on the b team. When we went into the locker to get ready for are game passing the bleachers I saw a bunch of family and friends there supporting me and my family throw this hard time. I didn't start that game but I did play a lot and when couch put me in we shot down them so they couldn't even score against us we were up by ten points we had the ball and I got fouled so I went to the free throw line and my couch told me to slow down and focus on the free throw shot the first one I made and the whole place went crazy my couch called a time out to tell me how good I was doing and pointed to the score board and said those are your points. Then I got ready for my second free throw and when I looked over at my family I bounced the ball and I thought I saw my papa joseph on the basketball court clapping and telling me I am proud of you. That was the last time I will ever see him and that win was for him.

Jason Wisinski

Finding a way out

Markus get into my office we have another mission for this time you are retrieving something for me and I need it back in one piece. What do I have to retrieve for you and where is at. See Agent Harm this is way I wanted you to do this assignment for me no questions asked you just do the task at hand. It's my job sir I don't ask any thing I just go get it done. They thought you very well when they started your training you are probley the best spy agent I have ever seen. Thank you sir I was 6 when they started my agent training know I am 17 and almost at the top of the food chain. Well you are defiantly earning your respect here Markus I want you to listen very closely on what I am going to tell you. There is a building in New York City and there is something in that building that I need and I need it back here pronto and it can't be harmed. When does the plane leave sir and where is the file so I can read up on it before I am in there getting it for you. The plane leaves in 30 minutes and the file is on the plane.

Alright sir then I will be on my way heading for the plane. Markus don't break or destroy what I am sending you to retrieve because if you do you will regret it. I won't sir you can trust me I will bring it to you whenever I get back and is Shawn driving the plane and will he be helping me on this assignment. Yes he will be helping you with this assignment I will never understand way my oldest agent and youngest agent like working together so much. Markus there you are I was about to call the chief to ask if you were coming. Is the plane already Shawn and do you know what is so important to the chief way he wants whatever's in this building so bad. Yes Markus the plane is already to go just let me make some minor adjustments and we will be on are way. I don't know what is in this building but it must be something that chief really needs because he wants nothing to happen to it. Take a set Markus cause this is going to take a while and you might want to read the file that chief sent it is on your set.

New York- Markus we are on top of the building right know are you ready to enter. Yes I am ready to get whatever this is chief wants and get out of here in the file it says that security is really tight around here. Markus be careful and try not to get yourself caught because this case is really important to chief. I will Shawn I will call for you if I need back up. As I get off of the airplane I get straight towards the door on the roof and I open it up and think about what I need to do. As I am heading down the stairs I see a guard so I creep down and then I lean toward him and knocked him out. I grabbed the walky talky so I can hear if they are sending any guards my way because they are going to find out that one of there men is down. Once I sneak past some other guards I start heading to the room that the file is in. But when I get close to the room I hear two voices talking about this project they are working on so people will for get about who they really are. I wonder if that's what they did to me when I was 6. After thinking about all of that I rush in to the room and I was holding a stun gun and told them to get down I shot one of the doctors with it. The other looked at me and said son you don't want to take this file you are working with the wrong people we are the good side not the people you are working for. I grad the file and tube I looked at the other doctor in the eyes and I said when did you start testing this on people. About 11 years ago you're not going to hurt me are you son. No I am not this stun gun doesn't hurt Shawn are you there. Yes I am right here is everything alright Markus. Yes I got the file but the file is how to brain wash people so they don't remember who they really are and when they started testing it is when they started training me to become a spy. You don't think they used that one you do you Markus. Shawn I don't remember anything from before I was 6 so I am thinking they used it on me. Well come up to the airplane we will take the file to the chief and see if we can figure this out because if you have another life you should live that one not this one. Alright I will be on the roof in about 3 minutes. Alright Shawn lets live New York and go see what chief has to say for him self. Will do we will be there in 6 hours you can go set down and think about this. Markus we are hear grab the file and the tube so we can go ask chief some questions. Markus you are back all ready and you have the file in hand so I take it you have it. Yes I have it but I have a couple of questions for you to clear some stuff up for me. Did you use this on me when I was 6 or younger because if you are using the brain wash thing it is all wrong they should know what they are doing? Yes we did use it on you Markus and its just so they don't have think about the stuff they have don't. But chief Markus is just a kid don't you think he should go live his own life. No he should not chief pulls out a gun he shoots Shawn it the arm but Shawn drops a tear gas bomb and it fills the whole room up. So I grab Shawn and since that happened I live with Shawn and we are both out of the whole spy game.Jason Wisinski

Robin Hood's side kick

Everyone knows the story of Robin Hood how he stole from the rich and gave it to the poor. Well there is one person that usually does not get the credit he deserves and that is me little john. It kind of makes me mad I was with Robin Hood the whole time when he stole the king's money and gave it to the poor but do I get the popularity that he gets no I do not. But I am going to tell you the story how I remembering it happening know mine and Robin hoods story are going to be a little different. Since he changes up the story so he could be the main hero and get recognized for his heroic deed. The story I am about to tell you is the true story how Robin Hood got famous and it not because he gave to the poor. Back when I was younger and better with an bow and arrow I never got a long with the king and all of his people underneath him. I wasn't exactly on their good side then I saw a young man stealing trying to make it on his own so I took him under my wing and thought him everything I knew. That young little man turned out to be Robin Hood and he became my side kick and we stole from the rich to give it back to the poor.

But when we were going to steal from the king that's when he wanted to go out on his own. But I knew he would not last on his own but of course as stubborn as he was he never listened to me. The king is smarter than what Robin Hood thought because when he went to the archery commotion he dressed up as an old man and who ever won got to marry the kings daughter which is the princess and robin hood was in love with the princess. I knew that robin hood could not pull off winning the commotion without me so I dressed up as an old man as well and I help my student became the best archer he could but I still didn't think he could beat half of the commotion so I had to help him out a little bit but when he goes and tells people that he won that all by himself and he was considered the top archer in the land but know body knew the truth except for me. But Robin Hood knows who the best is and it is me I never had any kids but Robin Hood is the closes I have had to having a kid. Everyone thinks I am his side kick and that's not at all how it is it's not even close.

The one time when he was not my side kick was when we went to take the kings money because they started arresting innocent people. The king found out that someone was going to try and steal his money so instead of stealing all his money we took all of the prisons out of his prisons. Because no one should be arrested for something they didn't do but we still ended up stealing some of the king's money. But neither one of us cared about the money it was all about saving people from the king who was very unfair in how he ruled his kingdom. But the way the story ends is totally different because Robin Hood goes on to marry the princess and they are know ruling the kingdom and is running it very fairly. As for me on the other hand I was known as Robin hoods side kick who was called little john but was really tall. Every time I try and tell my side of the story no one believes me I just want people to know what actually happened back in my glory days. But I wouldn't have it any other way because Robin Hood has always gone in front of me he was my number one priority.

Jason Wisinski

Attack of the Wax People

Hey Jack are you ready for the new wax mannequins for are wax museum. Of course I am ready for the new wax mannequins maybe that might come to life or something like that. Well I will see you tomorrow to help you unload the mannequins from the truck. Alright and drive safe Jack I will see you tomorrow then. I put my work clothes in my locker and headed to my car but if I knew what was going to happen with those wax mannequins I would not have told my boss that I would be there early on Saturday to help him. I get into to my ford expedition and I go pick up three of my best friends to go get something to eat since I got off of work early. I picked up my best friend Tom and then Chris and the little brother of our group Drake who is the youngest one. We went to are favorite restaurant Buffalo wild wings were we eat almost every Friday we go there so much that the waiter knows all of us by names and knows what we want to eat. While we are waiting for are food we talk about the new wax mannequins and that's when Tom, Chris, and Drake said they are coming to the wax museum to see the new pieces. Then we talk about the new movies that are supposed to come out this summer and the ones that we are really excited to see because we are already making plans to go see them at the movie theater. When we are done eating I go and drop off all of them and neither one of us would have guessed what was going to happen on Saturday.

My alarm clock goes off at 6:40 so I would have 20 minutes to get dressed and take a shower before I have to go to work to help out my boss with the new wax mannequins. I leave my house and I am heading to work when I see the wax truck pass me so I just fallow it into town I thought I saw the back of the truck move but I thought it was the road. I should have seen what was actually happening I pulled in the parking lot. Get out of my truck and I walk up to start unloading but for some reason the guy driving the wax truck look filmier and he was really scary looking. But I just stopped thinking about it and I just went on doing my job because I figured that I was just being weird. When I brought in the last wax mannequin in I went to the brake room and I just saw Tom, Chris and Drake all walk in the door but then I heard bubble wrap popping so I run over to see what the deal is and there was this little kid playing with the bubble wrap on the was mannequins. I told the little kid you can't play with the bubble wrap and him and his mom went on with their day. Then I went back to the brake room and that's when I heard bubble wrap unwrapping aging but this time it was not a little kid playing with the bubble wrap this time the was mannequins were unwrapping them self's. Once they got the done with the bubble wrap they started to head for the people that were unaware that the wax people were going to move and start throwing people around like a rag doll. Everyone in the wax museum was screaming and everyone was trying to get out of the building but the wax mannequins. Got in front of the door to block it while all of this was happing I was trying to find my three best friends I finally found them on the other side of the museum.

Tom said dude what is going on the mannequins came to life or something. I know Tom they are attacking people plus they have the main entrance blocked off but there is a back door we can go to. But it is down stairs and we are going to have to cross where the mannequins are if we want to get out of here. Well Jack if we are doing that then we might as well bring something to protect us with just in case something goes wrong. I agree Drake and if anything goes wrong do not go back for any of us at all don't come back for any of us. There is some supplies in the room next door lets go there so we can get something to protect are self's with. So all for of us went into the room next store to see if we could find anything to help us escape form these attacking mannequins. We did find a mop and a flash light then I found a night stick that one of the guards must have left. Me and my best friends we were already to go down there and face are fears and get out of this wax museum. But when we are heading down the stairs to meet the mannequins the FBI was there and they had all of the mannequins in hand cuffs and they were being loaded into police cars. An agent came over and asked us if we were alright we all said yes then I asked him what was going on. He said the 8 mannequins where bank robbers who have been on the run for more than 4 years and they have finale been caught. Good because we all thought they were real life mannequins attacking people but that would be crazy. At least that's what I thought until I didn't see any one of them take off their mannequin custom or there mask so that makes me believe. They were real and the government is trying to clean up the mess because they don't want anyone to know that stuff like this can really happen.

Julie Blissitt

The Heist

"Austin, hurry up! I don't have time to wait on your helicopter. The heist is going down right now and you either bring me my escape chopper or you don't get any of the cash!" I yelled at my friend as we played Grand Theft Auto V.

"I'm trying! I can't get to the airport! This car won't go fast enough, Owen!" Austin yelled back. "I'm almost there! Just give me two minutes!"

"I'm timing you. I'm scoping out the place right now. Let me know when you're on your way. By the time you get here, I'll have the money and I'll have thrown the sticky bombs so we can get away," I explained.

"Alright! I've got it. I've got the chopper. I'm heading your way right now," Austin shouted.

I stormed my character into the gas station and held up my gun. The man at the counter started to panic before he started loading all of the money into a bag for me.

"Owen, I see the police. They're gonna be there soon, but I'm almost there!" Austin warned me.

"I've got the money, just get on the roof and once I'm in the chopper and the cops get here, I can throw the sticky bombs and blow them all up. We can easily get away then," I shouted excitedly. I ran my character out the door and waited behind the building for Austin. "I can hear the sirens, Austin. Hurry!"

"I can see the building and I can see you. We've got this," Austin reassured me. "I'm here! Get in, get in, get in!"

My character climbed into the helicopter and Austin began to take off. I threw the sticky bombs as the police pulled up to the gas station and blew up literally everything. There was so much fire. It was so bright. By this time, Austin and I had four stars and were highly wanted criminals. So far, our heist was going just as planned. After flying around and shooting at other police helicopters for about five minutes, our wanted level finally went down. Our heist was successful.

"Yes! Finally! Oh my god! A successful heist with my best friend! Let's split up the three grand I stole! I'm so proud of you, Austin! You didn't screw up and we made it," I screamed entirely unashamed. Austin and I split the three grand and celebrated our heist with bowls of vanilla ice cream. I shut off my Xbox and sat back in my chair.

"Today, was successful don't you think, Owen?" Austin asked.

"Very," I replied. "I wish we could hold heists like these in real life. We'd be so rich!"

"Yeah, that's probably not a good idea at all. That's why they made this game. So we can do illegal things, but not actually break the law," Austin explained quietly.

"Oh come on, Austin. Live a little. Rules are just guidelines anyway. I don't follow them and look where I am! I've yet to get in trouble with the police," I retorted.

"I still don't think it's a good idea, Owen." Austin said meekly.

"It wouldn't even have to be a big heist. Our own heist could be stealing a pair of headphones from Walmart. It's not like we robbed them of sooooo much money. They only cost seven dollars. Face your fear, Austin. Live on the edge for once! It's such a rush!" I yelled. "I've stolen makeup for my girlfriend, headphones, food, even some clothes. It's not hard. Alarms don't go off unless you steal expensive electronics that have security devices on the side. It's so easy to get away with. Just try it with me once. You won't get caught. I promise."

"Ugh, I'll do it once. Only because you've done it so many times and you haven't gotten caught. However, if I do get caught and I get arrested, I'm going to kill you," Austin agreed. "What are we gonna take from Walmart?"

"Hmm, just a coloring book. I don't want it to be too intense for my little baby, Austin," I teased.

"Shuttup, I'm not a baby. You want me to steal something bigger? I will. I'll go in and steal a t-shirt. It's better than a freaking coloring book," Austin said aggressively.

"Deal. I'll drive you. Let's go," I smirked.

Austin and I hopped in my Jeep and I drove the ten minutes to walmart. I could tell he was nervous. He was shaking in the passenger seat. I don't know what's got him so worried. Even if he does get caught he'll just get kicked out. He won't get arrested for something as small as a t-shirt, but I wasn't about to let him know that. The fear was pretty funny to watch. I might let him know after it's all done with and we get back to my house. For now, I'm just gonna sit back and relax and watch how this all unfolds.

We arrived at Walmart and sat in the parking lot discussing our "heist". I was going to wait in the car while he went inside to get the shirt. I told him to pick out something he likes. I also told him not to run because that doesn't look suspicious at all. He got out of my car and walked inside the building. All I had to do was wait. I assumed he was going to try and hide the shirt in his pants, but I'm honestly not too sure how he plans to take it.

About five minutes later, he walked out of the building. He didn't have anything in his hands which was good, but I couldn't tell if he took the shirt or if he chickened out. He climbed into the passenger seat of my jeep and proceeded to pull a Jurassic World t-shirt from his pants.

"Heyyyy, look who grew up and decided to live on the edge," I smiled.

"Shuttup, Owen. That was stressful. Honestly it was a rush too, but wow, that was stressful. Never again," Austin said.

"Alright, man. Let's go home, haha," I laughed.

I drive the ten minutes back to my house and we climbed the stairs back up to my room. I sat on my bed and he sat at my computer desk and proceeded to put on his new shirt.

"You seem mighty pleased with yourself," I laughed again.

"Oh I am, trust me," joked Austin.

"By the way," I added, "Even if you did get caught, you wouldn't have gotten arrested. You would have just gotten kicked out of the store. It wouldn't have gone on your record."

"Why didn't you tell me that before I almost had the miniature heart attack?!" Austin shouted angrily.

"It just wasn't as funny," I laughed.

Julie Blissitt

Into the woods

To start things off, my name is Yuri. I'm two years old and I am a Siamese cat with a fear of abandonment. I feared my whole life that I would get abandoned by my fantastic family. That's exactly what happened. I grew up with that family and I was born in their house. My mother was raised here and my father lived next door. But they moved and had too many pets so I'm sitting in the backyard of my old house, that's now abandoned, wondering what to do. How could you just abandon someone like that? Cat have feelings too, you know. But, I'm alone now. In the wild. I'm not a wildcat though. I'm domesticated. I'm a house cat. Do you know how hard it will be for me to survive out here without anybody's help? I don't know how to hunt. I never learned that skill. I've been fed from a bowl for as long as I can remember. I can pounce and I can run pretty fast, but I've never actually had to put that skill to the test. Now is my chance apparently. Things usually happen for a reason. Maybe CatGod has something big in store for my future. I hope so. I don't want to eat trash forever or even be alone forever for that matter. I feel so low. These are such intense emotions for a cat.

I walked toward the fence gate and crawled under and through the small gap in the bottom.

"Is this the alley?" I asked myself in Catspeak, "Does this mean I'm an alley cat now? This is so much to process." I stopped outside of the fence just before the alley and I waited. I looked to my left and I looked to my right. Both ways extended for miles it seemed and I didn't know which way to choose. After a few minutes of contemplating, I began to walk down the right side of the alley. I walked slowly at first, then quickly once I began to feel like someone was watching me. I looked around for a pair of eyes but saw nothing. A loud shriek let out from some sort of creature and I began to sprint. I passed my neighboring dog, Stud, and I startled a small squirrel, but I kept running. After making it to the end of the alley, I came to a harsh stop at the edge of the highway. I looked both ways before running across the street and into the woods beside it. I sighed with relief after entering the woods. I had never been so scared. Other cats were out to get me. Cars were out to get me. What else was out there? Who knows? I just knew that I needed a catnap. I nestled under a log and fell into a deep sleep from exhaustion.

I awoke a few hours later to something lightly tapping at my nose. My eyes flashed open and I hissed. I backed away and arched my spine.

"Who are you and what are you doing on our grounds?" Asked a solid grey cat with a deep voice.

"M-My name is Yuri. I didn't know these were your grounds. I'm so sorry. I was left alone and I was so tired with nowhere to go. I didn't me-."

"Silence, child. I am Rain. You've done no harm by sleeping. You said you were alone?" Asked the black cat.

"Yes, Mr. Rain. I am alone," I said solemnly, looking up to Rain and the tabby cat approaching behind him.

"This is Fire. He is my second lead. I am first lead in our glaring. Would you like to join us?" Asked Rain.

"Join you in what?" I asked.

"Join our glaring. Become a part of the team. It's survival of the fittest in this world and you'll need all the help you can get. We can provide protection," explained Fire.

"How do I know you're not lying to me? How can I know that I can trust you?" I asked.

"You don't know. You can't know unless you risk it and give it a try. Follow us. We'll take you to our village. We can be your new family. You'll never have to worry again" said Rain.

"Family? That sounds...nice," I smiled.

Julie Blissitt

Alice's Apocalypse Friend

"Alice! Hand me my sword!" the Mad Hatter exclaimed. I threw him his sword and grabbed my own. It had been blessed with holy water and had been blessed by an elven princess. It was the most powerful sword in the world and I was wielding it. I spun and slashed through the manic rabbits. The apocalypse had just begun and a form of rabies had gotten everyone sick. People and all animals had been infected through their wounds, but the Hatter and I had been lucky enough to avoid that gruesome fate. I whipped my sword and so did the hatter as we stabbed through dozens of the infected.

"Run, Hatter, run! Follow me through the woods! We can escape!" I yelled at the Hatter as the number of infected rabbits diminished. He ran after me as I was slightly faster and my sword was lighter than his. We ran through the woods and approached an old hut that I used to play in as a young girl.

"Will we be safe here, Alice?" Hatter questioned.

"We will be for now. There's no knowing what will happen. This is our only hope until a plan is set," I replied. Hatter sat on one of the dusty rocking chairs and coughed profusely as the dust scattered from his movement. I rummaged around the hut to look for provisions and I had found a few. There was fresh food so someone had been here before us and someone had left it here. Oh, I hope they didn't meet a tragic fate. As I noticed someone had been here before, I walked to the front to lock the door to make sure that person wouldn't come back. "Hatter, there's food back here if you're hungry. It's still fresh so don't worry. Eat as much as you need. You're much bigger than me, I know how you feast."

"Alice, you are kind, but you are a growing young girl and you should eat first. You need it more than I do. I can wait until you're finished and I can keep watch," argued the Hatter.

"Well, I've found a can of soup that I would really enjoy eating, but there seems to be no bowls," I said solemnly.

"Here," said the Hatter, "Take my hat. Put a cloth on the inside and you can use it as a bowl for your soup."

"Oh, but Hatter, your hat will be ruined. I know how much it means to you," I refused.

"Take it, Alice. You mean more to me than the hat," Hatter insisted. I took the hat and started to make a fire to heat up my soup that would go in my new "Hat-Bowl". If I could have any companion on this horrible journey to survive the apocalypse, I would choose the Hatter. There is simply no one better.

The Witch

Julie Blissitt

The last thing I saw was my alarm clock flashing 12:07 before she pushed her long rotting nails through my chest, her other hand muffling my screams. I sat bolt upright, relieved it was only a dream, but as I saw my alarm clock read 12:06, I heard my closet door creak open. I quickly lied back down and ducked under the covers. I was terrified. The door continued to creak and I continued to sink into my bed.

The door eventually stopped and I heard nothing but my heavy breathing. Then, I began to hear heavy footsteps. They were slow and they sounded like hooves. I slowly peeked from a small crack between my blanket and my bed to see a tall, wispy, ghost-like woman standing in my room. She had to be taller than 6 feet, her eyes were red, she had horns and hooves, but she stood on her hind legs like a human and had normal hands with rotting nails. I believe hell was in my bedroom.

There was nothing I could do. I was paralyzed. I was so scared that I was in tears. I wanted to make a run for the door but there's no way I would have made it. It would catch me before I could even get down the stairs. I slowed my breathing. It was 12:07 now. If I tried to run, my fate would surely be that of my nightmare. I waited another minute. It was now 12:08. I peeked out from under the blanket once again and the figure was no longer standing in the middle of my bedroom. I sighed with relief and took the blanket off from over my head to find the scary woman hovering over my bed just below the ceiling. She lowered herself until she was floating just above me and her mouth opened four times wider than any normal persons' could. She sucked in and I felt myself drain immediately. She was eating my soul and soon I would be no longer. My life was flashing before my eyes but slowly as she carefully sucked in every bit of my soul. I remembered summer picnics with my family, date nights with my girlfriend, holidays, birthdays, concerts, and just everything that made me happy and made me who I was. I was content with how my life was, but I never thought my life would end like this. I never thought I'd die so young, but here I was, slowly falling apart and there was nothing I could do about it. One minute passed and everything turned black. This was the end of me, the end of my world.

Maria Mecklenburg

The Hypnotizer Who Stole My Man

"She's coming!" I yelled to myself. Ugh! I hated that girl. So annoying. So whiny. So unfashionable. So dirty. So unsophisticated. So low-class. So mean. Too picky. Too neat. Too cheerful. Too full of herself. Too demanding. Too ungrateful. Too... weird. Let's face it. That step-sister of mine...sucked. I hated living with her but I had no choice. She always tried taking me for granted, told all these lies to the adults, and always acted as if she was better than me. And her name? The obnoxious girl's name was Cinderella.

Cinderella was always asking for things. Can I take a break? Who was that at the door? Are you feeling alright step-mother? It was SO annoying. Well, one day, Miss Curious went over the line. She got the nerve to ask...my mom...if SHE could go to the grand ball. HA! Can you believe it? That would be social suicide. Oh, but she wouldn't understand. After all, the girl thinks that me and my sister are the mean ones instead of her. I mean, she's always spinning things around to suit her. Always making it seem like we're the bad guys and she's the innocent one. Well, I'm here to tell everyone the facts.

It was the beginning of summer, and everyone was making themselves useful. Everyone, except for Cinderella. My sister was outside helping the neighborhood kids with their community service for the elderly.

"Why do we have to rub your feet?" asked a little girl. My sister, being the sensible one, of course, tried to reason with her.

"Look ya little brat," she said, "Do you want me to sign your paper or NOT?!"

"But you're not even an elderly person." Complained the annoying child.

"Oh, why thank you. I KNOW! I don't look a day past 20." My sister gushed, flipping her hair over her wrinkly shoulder.

Meanwhile, I was putting on my makeup. Not that I needed any, of course. Even my mom was making herself useful. She was teaching Cinderella how to properly go about her everyday tasks. Like the amazing mother and teacher she is.

"CINDERELLA!" said my mother in a calm, soothing voice. "How many times do I have to tell you how to clean the fireplace? Are you an idiot? You can't do it right unless you crawl in there and SCRUB!"

Cinderella, on the other hand, was doing nothing but agreeing with my mom on everything to be a total suck-up.

"Alright, step-mother." Replied Miss Brown-noser. At that point, I came walking into the living room, dressed to impress. I looked ravishing. Everyone said so. Then, my knees gave way and I found myself on the floor. Cinderella started running, wait no. She came CHARGING at me. Yeah. And with a horrified look on her face, as if her face wasn't already hideous enough, and started shouting in my face.

"My goodness!" Cinderella screamed at the top of her lungs. Then, as if she wasn't already way out of line, she started asking all these personal questions that were NONE of her business.

"Are you okay step-sister? What did you trip over?"

"Ugh, how DARE you interrogate me like a criminal?!?" I calmly asked her. But it was pointless. Cinderella decided to play the innocent game. Like always.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just trying to help." She replied.

"YEAH RIGHT!" I politely corrected her. Then she started bossing me around. Like always.

"Perhaps you should put some ice on it." Cinderella demanded. "That was quite a fall."

I rolled my eyes.

"Puh-LEASE! I didn't fall. I purposely decided to do a random gravity check."

Who gave her the right to talk to someone like me?

Anyway, after that, the mail came and my mom said it was an invitation to the biggest event of the year. The prince was having a grand ball! Oh, it was so exciting. And his purpose? To select an eligible lady to be his BRIDE! OH! Oh, it was so exciting! Of course, he only meant for the upper-class people to go. Why would he want to marry a low-life peasant girl? Well, apparently, Cinderella thought he was into that kind of embarrassment, because the next thing we knew, she started going all hay-wire. It was RI-diculous!

"Wow! Am I allowed to attend?" she snarled at my mom. Just then, I noticed my sister in the doorway. She had probably just came in and heard everything, because she looked disgusted that Cinderella would speak in such harsh tones.

"Mommy," asked my sister, "How dare you let her speak to you like that?!!"

"I agree!" I joined in.

The rest of the night was horrible. My mom agreed to let the brat go if she took out the trash, cleaned our rooms, did the dishes, laundry, sweeping, dusting, mopping, scrubbing, organizing, gardening, make us hot chocolate, and make us all dresses for the night. I mean, that's it? That's all she has to do? Come ON! So not fair. Well, guess what? I finally forgot about it once I got to the castle. What a relief. The place was absolutely stunning. And the prince? Well, he was gorgeous! What a hunk! We locked eyes for a moment, and I knew just then that we were meant to be together. But unfortunately, some girl in a ginormous dress showed up and hypnotized the prince into falling in love with her. He went crazy! At the end of the night, the mysterious girl lost her shoe, so the prince went around seeing whose foot fit. I tried it on and it fit, but like I said the prince was hypnotized, so his thoughts were way out of wack. He married...Cinderella instead! Worst night ever!

Maria Mecklenburg

The Last 10 Minutes

Go LEFT! My mind screamed. I sighed, confused as I groped the count-down capsule in my hand. I looked down reassuringly to see 56 years printed across the screen. There was something calming, knowing I had that much time left to live. I turned my head left to see a paved road, running straight to school.

"Time for some change." I mumbled as I veered my Jeep to the sharp right, straight into a wooded forest on the way of town. Crisp air raced through the windows and for once I felt free. After a few miles, I put pressure on the break and flipped off the engine. This was the first time I've ever disobeyed the strict rules of my supervised, gated, run-down community, and quite frankly it felt amazing. That is, until I looked down at the count-down capsule with horror. Printed on the screen was 10 minutes. 10 more minutes to live...

What happened?!!? I thought. I had 56 years left. 56 YEARS!!! This cannot be happening. Am I really going to die in 9 minutes and 52 seconds, 51 seconds, 50 seconds?

"Isn't time precious?" Whispered a voice from behind. Goosebumps fanning out over my body, and gasping for air, I jumped in my seat, startled and frightened. Nobody was in my car other than me. Or so I thought, up until now. As I slowly turned my head around to face the backseat of the car, my lip trembled and my teeth chattered in fear. I was waiting to see a horrific image. I was prepared to see a hijacker, an armed robber or burglar, a murderer even, someone wearing dark apparel and an evil grin. Instead, a woman sat, legs crossed with a simple smile, wearing a white gown, white shoes, white tiara, and a white pearl necklace.

"Who are YOU?" I snarled.

"Well!" she exclaimed. "Hello to you as well. My name is Savannah. I'm here to guide you."

My head started to hurt. The inside felt like it was scrunching itself into a tight little ball of confusion. Temples starting to thump, veins pushing against my skin trying to get out, and knuckles turning white as I dug my nails into my palms, I tried to get some answers from the woman.

"What?!? What does that even mean?"

"I said that my name is Savannah." She replied. "It means that I have a name and I'm called Savannah and-"

"NO!" I interrupted her. "I meant, what do you mean when you said that you're here to guide me? How'd you even get in my car? WHY are you in my car?"

She smiled at me, showing her pearly teeth. She leaned forward in the seat closer to me and said sweetly,

"I meant that I'm here to help you change your past to alter the present. To answer your question 'How'd I get in your car?' I simply opened the door and sat down. Why? Because I'm here to help you change your past to alt-

"Alright, alright." I interrupted. "I heard that already. Listen, nut job, I don't know who you think you are, or where you came from, but I'm not taking you with me. All I wanted to do is bust out of the gates of this hell hole and run away. And now all of a sudden I only have 9 minutes and...27 seconds left" I finished, looking down at the count-down life capsule.

"So, if you could get out and hike back to whatever insane asylum you broke out of, that would be great. If they catch me, they catch me, but I'm not going to bring you down with me. I just want to know what's GOING ON!!!" I yelled.

"Right." Savannah said, nodding her head in agreement. "And I can help you. But you have to help me."

"Help you?!? I'd rather kiss a toilet seat." I told her.

She sighed and smoothed out her white dress. Then Savannah raised her fingers to her head and started to rub the sides in frustration.

"Oh, Caleb, this is going to be a challenge. But I'm not going to let your comment ruin this for me. I've been waiting for an opportunity to get my wings for a long time."

"How do you know my name?" I asked. I shook my head from side to side. It doesn't matter. Just get rid of her. My mind whispered.

"Get OUT, LADY!! I've only got 8 minutes and 35 seconds left before I die, for some reason, and I don't need you adding to my problems and wasting my last 10 minutes of life. Unless you have an explanation as to why one minute I have 56 years and the next, I have 10 minutes, then beat it!" I said.

I had to get out of here. Maybe it was because I tried to escape. But our time-life didn't automatically take away 56 years for trying to break out. Does it? I'm not sure. I just hated it so much here. Hundreds of soldiers and security guards, constant supervision over us, our lives planned out for us. We didn't get a choice of jobs, or how long we were allowed to do things, and we only got a limited amount of food. We had stupid rules. Girls weren't allowed to have tattoos on their shoulders or they would get fined for being scandalous. Guys weren't allowed to arm-wrestle. We had to have our hair a certain length. We weren't allowed to have phones or gaming systems. We had dumb laws saying you had to always sit down from the left side of a chair. Adults were only allowed to have three children, any accidents would be aborted. Children were forced to get up for school at 5:00 in the morning. We were assigned classes, had to wear certain clothes, and weren't allowed to leave town, or you would pay the consequences.

It made total sense to drive off. Get away. Have freedom. So, instead of taking the usual path to school on the left, I had steered right. My thoughts were interrupted by Savannah.

"I do have an explanation. You see, after you drove off into the woods 56 years ago, the towns-

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." I stopped her. "I wasn't even alive 56 years ago."

Savannah pointed a finger in the air.

"Ah," she said. "But you were. The townsfolk were worried after you didn't come to school, the town meeting, or return home at your 8 o'clock curfew."

I got out of the car and looked around. Savannah got out of the back seat and stood beside me. My attitude toward her went away. My face softened. The time capsule read 4:03, 4:02, 4:01. And that was it. 4 more minutes is all I had.

"Well, what happened?" I asked quickly. I rushed the conversation so I could know what was going on as quick as possible.

"I mean, I don't think I would forget 56 YEARS of my life." I continued. "It feels like just a few minutes ago I made the decision, to run away."

Savannah nodded her head, her white tiara bobbing along with her.

"Right, right, I'm getting to that. After you drove off into the woods, you were about to run into the tree. So you slammed on the break, trying to stop your car, franticly trying to turn the wheel, but it was stuck. And then you crashed. Fortunately for your Jeep being made out of hard recycled material, not a scratch was made. But you had hit your head on the wheel when the force of the smash jerked you forward. You fell into a deep sleep."

"I don't understand." I said.

Savannah took a step closer and looked deep into my eyes as she continued to explain in her sweet, beautiful voice.

"Caleb, you still look like a teenager even though you are 56 years older because a lumber jack was walking through the woods and found you the night after you crashed. He happened to also be a doctor. He used you as his guinea pig to experiment with human preservation. He sprinkled a salt-like material on you and you stayed young even as you got older. Even as the time on your life capsule went down. He left, thinking that it wasn't going to work and later died of natural causes. He didn't have the chance to tell the people in the village about how he found you. Caleb, you went into what is now called a 'coma.'"

"For 56 YEARS???" I asked.

Savannah nodded her head.

"I'm afraid so. You just came out of your coma a few minutes ago. I was told to come down to earth to help a teenager in need. A boy named Caleb. You. I was told that if you learned a lesson that not only would I get my wings, but your life would also be changed."

I looked at Savannah in shock.

"Y-y-you're really an angel?" I asked. She then nodded her head and motioned for me to follow her. Walking through the thick-wooded forest, my spine stiffened as a cold breeze whipped at my body. I looked down at the capsule in my hand. In 2 more minutes I would be dead. What had been the point in having so much time to live, if I spent most of it in a coma? My mind was going crazy. Little clips and videos of my life played like a CD in my head. Pictures and images were thrown at me. I didn't want to die!

"I can help you." She said.

"HOW?!?"

"I can send you back into the past. You will have your life back, as well as 56 remaining years. I'll send you to back a few seconds before you turned right. Before you went into the woods." Savannah said.

We arrived at a tiny little shack. When we entered the room, dust and spider-webs greeted me. In the middle of the room was a single chair.

YES! My mind yelled. DO IT! LET'S GO!

"Okay." I finally answered, nodding my head in agreement. "What do I do?"

She gestured towards the chair. Confused, I walked over and sat in it.

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. Went the time capsule. I looked down in horror. Only 20 seconds left. Man, she better make this fast.

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. Only 17 seconds. This is it. I'm going to die.

"LISTEN!" Savannah yelled over the time-capsule. "All you have to do is go left!"

"RIGHT!" I agreed.

"NO, I said LEFT!" she shouted.

"I meant right as in okay!" I told her.

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. I didn't bother looking at my life-capsule. I knew it read 13 seconds. Head darting all around the room, knees shaking, my breath suddenly became restrained. I started gasping. It was getting hard to inhale.

"ALRIGHT," Savannah yelled. "Here we go!" she started throwing sparkles at me and waving her arms all about.

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. 10 seconds left. Oh no! I wasn't going to make it. My hands started turning pale. I grabbed my throat that felt like it was being squeezed. It was as if there was a pillow over my face, strangling me.

"GOOD LUCK, CALEB!" the angel yelled.

"WHAT?" I hoarsely said.

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP.

"GOOD LUCK!"

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, this is it.

All of a sudden, I found myself in the driver side of my Jeep. I was sent back in time. I let go of my throat. My breathing came back normally. I looked to my right. There were the woods. I looked to my left. The prison. I mean school. I had to turn left, or I would be in the same place that I was. And so left I turned.

Maria Mecklenburg

Dream or Reality?

"You dumbass!" I cried as he tied me to the rails. "Don't you know this line has been abandoned for years?!?"

"Of course I know," he replied, giving me a little smirk, "no one comes here at all."

Just then did it sink in. He didn't intend for me to be ran over by a train. He wanted me to be all alone where no one would think to look for or find me.

"Mason, come on." I tried reasoning with the guy. "You're really going to leave me here? Not even going to kill me properly?"

Laughing, he said,

"Nah, I think I like the idea of you suffering." He turned his back to me and started to walk away into the darkness. It was late. 2:30 in the morning.

"Ya know once I get out of here, I'm coming for you!" I tiredly yelled after him.

"Well, there goes another death threat." Mason said. He turned back around to face me and added, "How did that work out the last time, hmm Kristen? Didn't you hit me in the head with a brick, and then left, thinking you killed me?"

I thought for a minute. "Well, if you would've died the first time I came after you, my boss wouldn't have told me to bash your head in."

For some reason or another, Mason smiled at that. It was like he thought it was funny that the both of us, being trained assassins, were assigned to kill each other. And they just had to assign the killing Friday. Yesterday. The day we were celebrating our one year anniversary of dating.

YESTERDAY...

I had just got home from a failed mission. I had been so close to my taking out my target, when a tourist got in my way. I couldn't make out who it was, but that wasn't important. I knew the rules. No witnesses. I tried killing him with my sniper, but he dived behind his car. I lost sight of him. Next thing I knew he tried killing me. This wasn't any ordinary person. I didn't know him. I figured he was probably from some other agency that I hadn't heard of and was after the same target. Well, that wasn't going to happen. What I needed to do was take them both out and I needed to do it quickly. I still had to clean myself up and go back into character for my one-year anniversary with Mason tonight.

I always had to lie to him about my job as a cover-up and I had been running out of excuses lately. I needed time. I wanted time. But time isn't what I got. What I got was competition. I don't remember how many grenades came hurling at me, but luckily, with all the training I had, I was able to quickly get rid of them or dodge them. I hurriedly got back on my feet and with a handgun, I ran down the hill that I had set up camp on. But when I got down there he was gone. I took a step closer to where I had last seen the strange man, and I heard a crunch under my foot. I bent down to take a closer look and I saw that it was a necklace. It seemed as if it had snapped off in all of the commotion. I took a closer look and realized that it was Mason's. He never took it off. Not even when he went to sleep. The only time he took it off was when he was mad at me.

After telling my boss about it, he told me to bash his head in. I had to get rid of all thoughts and feelings about my boyfriend and get the job done. It's how these things work. But when I got home he noticed his necklace in my hand, and gasped.

"Kristen..." he slowly backed up, one step at a time then quickly turned around, jumped over the kitchen table and darted into our bedroom. I knew he was going for a weapon when I heard the creaky opening noise of our nightstand where we keep only a handgun in. I took a brick out of the fireplace and waited for him to come back around the corner.

"Kristen!" he yelled. "Come out come out wherever you are!"

"Never!" I yelled back. His footsteps got closer and closer.

"No hard feelings, babe. I got to kill you though. You know how these things work."

"Yeah, I do." I replied. "One of us is going to end up dead after lying to each other about our lives for a year."

Then I jumped out and bashed his head with the brick. But Mason hadn't died. He came back for revenge.

Now I lay on the tracks, not able to move. I jerked my body from side to side and somehow, after much wriggling and squirming, I broke free. I felt myself falling. Then BAM!

All of a sudden, I woke up. What? I woke up! Oh my god, it was all a dream. I'm lying on the floor next to my bed. My body aches really bad. I must've rolled off the bed in my sleep. It was scary to think that I have dreams of me and my boyfriend trying to kill each other. I propped myself up on my elbow, and then cautiously stood up. It took me a minute to regain my balance. Ugh. What a horrible way to start the day. With a sore back and fresh bruises. After rubbing my eyes, I squinted at the clock. To my disappointment it was 2:30 in the morning. Huh, just like in the dream, I thought. I tiredly crawled back into bed and looked to my left, relieved to see Mason. All the noise I made while falling off the bed must've woke him up, because he looked wide awake. My boyfriend was looking in my eyes, completely okay. What a relief. But he wasn't wearing his necklace and I saw his hand quickly reach for the nightstand where we keep the handgun...

Maria Mecklenburg

The Brat Learns a Lesson

Abigail plopped down on the leather couch after shuffling her feet across the hardwood floors, sad because she was all by herself tonight. Abigail saw it as a disappointment that someone as glamourous as herself didn't have a friend to have movie night with tonight. She often wondered, "Why not? I'm awesome...and hilarious. And just last week I donated a whole quarter to St. Jude's. I'm a great friend! They just don't see it."

She convinced herself that her loneliness was everyone else's fault, and turned on the TV. It didn't take long to load and in the meantime, Abigail started complaining about how small and crappy her 52 inch plasma HD LG flat screen that she won in a contest was.

"Those cheapskates should've given me a TV that works!" the screen came on a few seconds after wards to which she sighed annoyed at.

"Finally." It was ridiculous that Abigail thought she should have a million friends with the attitude she had.

Abigail continued to flip through the channels, trying to find something to watch. After she scrolled through the whole guide several times, she pressed DVR and looked through all the movies and shows that she had recorded. Ten minutes later she picked the Hunger Games. Halfway into the movie, Abigail was hugging a bowl of popcorn to her stomach and yelling things at the TV.

"Kaedo!" she screamed, as the character was killed. "NOOO! Don't let him die! He's hot!"

Abigail woke up a few hours later on the couch. She got up to go look in the bathroom mirror. There must have been something wrong with the mirror, because her reflection was totally opposite. Abigail's hair was flipped to the left, but her reflection had hair flipped to the right. Abigail had a black t-shirt on and her refection was wearing white.

"What the hell?" Abigail said, at the same time that her reflection said,

"What the heaven?" Abigail gasped.

"Who are you?" she asked the girl in the mirror. The mirror replied,

"I'm Liagiba."

Abigail rolled her eyes and said "Isn't that just my name, but backwards?" Liagiba nodded her head ye. Abigail shook her head from side to side in disbelief.

"This is a dream, right?"

"This is a nightmare, right?" replied her opposite. Liagiba then adjusted her glasses as Abigail repositioned her contacts. Abigail couldn't believe what was going on, so she asked Liagiba what happened last night.

"Well, I don't really know. I remember I was watching a movie called the Game Hungers, and this ugly guy named Odeak was brought back to life. So I whispered at the TV, 'Nooo! Don't let him live! He's ugly!' and then I woke up under the couch."

"WHOAH!" Abigail yelled. "You really are my opposite." Abigail didn't care how weird the situation was. She was just glad she had someone to talk to.

"Do you like dogs?" she asked.

"NO way." Liagiba said. "I'm a cat person."

"Oooh, I love chocolate ice cream." Abigail continued. "What about you? Vanilla?" "Yeah how'd you know?" Abigail started grinning from ear to ear, happy that she was talking to someone so opposite from her. Literally. Of course, as this was happening, Liagiba was frowning suddenly, Abigail thought of something.

"Wait, so I don't have a boyfriend, so does that mean that you do?"

The reflection answered with a head nod.

"YES!" Abigail yelled.

"No." Liagiba whispered.

"This is so weird."

"This is so normal."

"So," Abigail said, "Since I live in a huge house that means..."

Liagiba finished the sentence. "It means that in my world, I have to live in a box under the bridge." After she said that, Abigail started chuckling. To her it was hilarious. She thought everything was funny. Unfortunately, in a parallel universe, Liagiba thought everything was boring, and so instead of laughing she either just stood there with a blank expression, or she cried.

Wow.

Abigail closed her eyes and thought to herself.

The only time Liagiba's life is great, is when mine sucks. The only time she's happy is when I make fun of her. I mean, is when I'm not being mean.

She opened her eyes and she wasn't in the bathroom looking at her in the mirror anymore. Suddenly, she found herself back in the living room with a blanket wrapped tightly around her shoulders. The bowl of popcorn kernels was on the coffee table and the credits for the Hunger Games were still rolling on her TV screen.

Oh my god.

She thought. Or was it "Oh my devil" Abigail jumped up and ran to the bathroom. The reflection was moving with her. The reflection was wearing a black t-shirt, just like her. The reflection was saying and doing exactly what she was. The reflection was just simply...Abigail... she sighed in relief and started laughing.

"I was just a dream." Abigail said out loud. Then she started thinking of Liagiba and the fake parallel universe that her imagination had created in her sleep. But just in case, Abigail changed her wording for once.

"I mean...it was just a nightmare."

THE END

Happy Valentine's Day

Meaghan Hitz

"Isn't this just adorable?" I asked excitedly as Larisa and I entered the school hallway. The pep club, myself included, had spent hours the day before decorating the halls with the Valentine's Day theme. There were red and pink hearts taped to the walls, doors, and lockers, along with matching balloons and ribbons taped to the ceiling. "We plan on adding more after school today, since we didn't get to finish everything, but what do you think of what we have so far?"

Larisa was silent for a moment before quietly responding with, "It's sickening."

I gasped dramatically, pretending to be hurt by her predictable reaction. "Why on earth would you say that? What is so revolting about getting people to show their love for one another?"

She rolled her eyes. "We're high schoolers. None of you guys are actually in love; you just think you are." Of course she would believe that.

"Why are you always so negative?" I asked as we finally reached our lockers, which were conveniently placed side-by-side.

"The same reason why you're always so positive," she replied, dropping her backpack to the floor before ripping off the paper heart stuck to her locker. She quickly opened the metal door while I was still fiddling with my combination, and out of the corner of my eye I noticed that she stuck the cutout onto the inside of her locker door, instead of just throwing it away like I thought she would.

I was going to comment on it, but as I opened my mouth to bring it up, I noticed a piece of paper fall onto the floor when my locker door swung open. If it had just been a piece of notebook paper I would have thought nothing of it, just assumed that it was a crumbled up note or something, but it was pastel green construction paper.

"What's this?" I asked out loud, catching Larisa's attention. She didn't say anything, just watched me as I picked up the page and unfolded it. The handwriting was a bit difficult to read, and after scanning over it a few times, I just sighed in defeat and handed it over to Larisa. "What does it say?" She was always able to read hand-writing, no matter how sloppy it was.

She smiled as she took the note and skimmed through it, but as she read she grimaced, annoyance clearly in her tone. "It's a sappy love letter."

"Really?" I lit up with excitement. "That's great! It's so cute that someone wrote me a love letter for Valentine's Day." I couldn't help but blush at the thought. It was so sweet and thoughtful that a boy was willing to take the time to do such a thing, especially with their 'manly' reputation on the line.

"I find it stereotypical."

"What does it say, word for word? Is it just something off the internet, or did they actually write something personal?" I pestered her with questions as I hovered over her shoulder, our passing period and first class forgotten.

"I'm not reading this thing word for word," she bit out through clenched teeth, seemingly terrified of the thought. "It just goes on about how they love your attitude, smile, laugh, and how you've brightened up their life."

Seriously, I love Larisa like a sister, but how could she be so indifferent about all of this? "This is so exciting! Who is it from? Does it say? Are there any hints if it doesn't say?"

I kept pestering her with questions as she handed the note back to me. "It's signed Tris, but that doesn't look like his hand-writing..." She trailed off, like she was getting deep into thought.

My thoughts came screeching to a halt at the name Tris, my brain not registering the rest of what Larissa said. "Tris? Tris Loret from study hall? The one with dirty blonde hair and pretty blue eyes?"

"That's the only Tris I know of," Larisa murmured, distractedly getting the books she'd need for her first class. "He wants to meet up with you today in the park behind the school, apparently."

I could barely contain my enthusiasm. I actually bounced once or twice, causing me to receive a strange look from a lone passerby in the hall. I didn't care. "Oh just wait until the others hear about this! I'm going to have a date for the dance after all."

Larisa gave me a strange look. "This doesn't sound weird to you? I don't think he even knows your last name, much less where your locker is."

The warning bell rang out, and it was only then did I notice that we were almost completely alone in the hallway. "We're going to be late!" I exclaimed, ignoring Larisa's comment, and I quickly tucked the note into my jean pocket. Larisa had already finished at her locker, but just she waited patiently for me to grab my things before we walked down to first period together.

Unfortunately for me, the entire day dragged out a lot longer than it usually did. Minutes took hours to go by, and I was starting to get seriously impatient. This was the first romantic thing to actually happen to me outside of my daydreams, and I didn't want to wait much longer to make it a reality.

Finally, the last bell rang, and I practically ran out of the geometry classroom. I was getting butterflies in my stomach, the anticipation killing me, but I tried to keep my cool as I grabbed my backpack, waved goodbye to Larisa and my other friends, and headed off to the meeting place.

Did I look alright? What would he want? As cute and nice as Tris was, I never really got to talk to him. Now that I thought about it, he wasn't really the kind of person to write love letters, or letters in general... I immediately shook the idea from my head. I wasn't even going to bother with Larisa's theory. I was going, whether Tris was there or not, so what was the point?

I eventually reached the park, a small little sanctuary with a few saplings planted here and there among the giant oak trees, with a fountain in the center. At first I was worried because I didn't see anyone, but I eventually spotted a figure a few feet away, leaning against one of the trees.

"Tris, is that you?" I called out, coming closer.

The person wasn't who I thought it would be. He was pale, short, and slim, so definitely not Tris. His face was covered with freckles, and if it wasn't for his dorky, thick black glasses I wouldn't have recognized him. "Wally? No, it's Wayne, right?"

He smiled shyly, seemingly confused. "Wayne Fuller, yeah. That's me. Keren, hey, uh, I didn't e-expect to see you here. Um... is Larisa with you?"

"No," I said, immediately realizing that something was wrong. "Are you okay? You're acting really nervous."

Wayne shrugged, pushing up his crooked glasses so they wouldn't fall off his face. (Apparently, that happened a lot.) His expression turned disappointed at my response, and suddenly it made sense.

"You wrote the note, didn't you?" I asked, and I couldn't help but narrow my eyes when he nodded. Great, that means I've been spreading a rumor all day about that note. The irritation bled into my voice. "Seriously? I thought Tris was going to be here! Why didn't you sign with your own name?"

"I thought Larisa wouldn't come if I signed with my own name. I guess it didn't really matter, though..." He shuffled nervously and looked down at the ground. He was embarrassed, dejected. Rejected, I realized.

"She didn't come because the note was in my locker, not hers. We both thought this was for me!" I explained, and his head shot up.

"Really?" he asked hopefully.

"Do you think I would lie about this? Now come on; if we're quick we should still be able to catch her!" Before he could protest, I grabbed the sleeve of his hoodie and started running, dragging him along with me. "We should be able to beat her to her house, since her bus has a few stops before hers, but..."

Wayne yelped as I jerked around the corner of the sidewalk, tugging his arm, heading onto Larisa's street. Her house was the third one on the left, with the all of turtle statues in the empty bird bath. I stopped at the driveway, letting Wayne go. He caught his breath as I took the note from my pocket and handed it to him. "Here," I said, making him take it. "Now you tell her what's up and get yourself a girlfriend. Got it?"

He smiled brightly, nervously. "Okay, I'll try my best."

At that moment, the bus rounded the corner of the street, and I gave him a thumbs-up before I took off again. It was times like this when I was glad I was in track during freshman year. I was able to hide behind a neighbor's car before Larisa noticed me, and I slowly peaked up from behind it to watch. There was no way I was missing this.

I was too far away to hear them clearly, but I could still figure out what was happening. I saw Larisa walk tiredly to her house, and become visibly surprised when she noticed Wayne in her empty driveway. He nervously started speaking as he handed over the note meant for her. He was most likely explaining.

They talked for a little while, and finally Larisa laughed and shook her head. I assumed the worst, until I realized that Wayne was blushing and grinning. She probably told him that she didn't like Tris anyway.

The two of them were out there for a while, just talking to each other, before Larisa nodded and kissed Wayne on the cheek. I smiled.

I wasn't getting my date like I wanted, but seeing Larisa actually smiling with some boy made it worth it. My work here was done.

Family

Meaghan Hitz

"Dashiell, can you come here? I need to talk to you," Everett said, catching my attention along with my partner's. I hadn't noticed the blond approaching, which was a bit embarrassing, since I was supposed to be guarding the village. Thankfully, in the dark of night, he couldn't see my startled expression.

"Oh, okay." After glancing back at my partner worriedly, I followed my superior out of earshot and into the privacy of the woods. Besides the moonlight shining through the tree branches, it was completely black. We stood in silence for a short while, and I began to worry that I had done something wrong. "Is everything alright? You look nervous."

Everett took a deep breath. "Drake attacked the east river settlement yesterday."

Immediately, fear struck me. "What happened? Are they okay?"

"The village was overrun and raided, and the message wasn't clear on all of the damage. It sounded bad." Everett took the time to brush the blond hair out of his eyes. "I understand that your family lives there, so I figured that you could escort the messenger, and go check on them when you get there. The messenger knows the path well, and although she can take care of herself, it won't be hard to convince the others that she needs extra protection, with the recent attacks in that area."

I went quiet for a moment before I replied. "Thanks, Everett. I really appreciate it." Still, my worry was drowning my gratitude.

He seemed to understand, for he had been in the same position before with his sister. He had been a nervous wreck after she had gone missing. "After all you've helped me with, I owe you. You'll leave tomorrow morning at dawn, and if all goes well, you should arrive by nightfall." I nodded silently. He turned to leave me, but then stopped, as if he suddenly remembered something. "If the others ask about your sudden change of duty, don't mention your family. That'll get us both into trouble." With that, he was gone.

Knowing that dawn would come faster than I'd like, I went to my shared hut instead of back to my post. Everett would probably grab someone to take my place, anyway.

Nightmares plagued me throughout the night, haunting me with the possibilities of what had happened to my village, and I eventually gave up and started to prepare for the journey ahead. It turned out to be fortunate that I started to pack so early, because by the time I had finished, morning light was starting to reveal itself. Although it probably shouldn't have, that fact made me embarrassed. After lifting my bag's strap over my shoulder and slipping my sword into its scabbard, I left the hut and stepped outside.

It wasn't hard to spot the messenger, for her fiery red hair was difficult to miss. She was standing in the center of the village, with a sword of her own strapped to her back. She stood impatiently, giving me an irritated look as I approached her. "Don't tell me you're the one that's supposed to be 'protecting' me." Her harsh tone broke the silence loudly.

"It wasn't my idea," I replied truthfully, walking passed her. "Now come on; I want to get there before sunset."

"Trust me," she muttered, "you'll be the one that we wait up on." With that, she turned and started down a different path, and my face turned red as I backtracked and followed her.

She seemed content with not speaking, and I understood. Although for now, we were safe in our own territory, Drake's army or his spies could still easily be anywhere. It was best to be careful.

We traveled in silence for most of the morning, following the slim path through the trees and the underbrush. Darkness started to fade away as the sun rose, making the trail easier to navigate. Thankfully, there were no attackers, but the peacefulness of the forest quickly faded to boredom.

My stomach was starting to growl when I noticed the faint sound of rushing water. "Where are we?" I asked. When I first travelled to Everett's village, there was no stream.

"We're almost to the Silent River. All we have to do is jump across the stepping stones, and then we're out of here." She looked up, and after deciding which way was west and comparing it to the sun's position, the messenger smiled. "We're right on schedule."

She went quiet again, but not wanting our conversation to drop so easily, I asked, "Why is it called the Silent River?"

"You don't hear it until you've found it." She pushed a low hanging branch aside, revealing the waterway. I was shocked; it had sounded like we were nowhere near it. The trees grew about a stride away from the muddy bank, and even now, when we were on the water's edge, it still just murmured rather than roared.

"Wow," I whispered.

She grinned at my response like she was taking personal pride in it before she turned and started following the bank. "The rocks should be down here, unless the river is flooded. Then we'll have to wade across. I wouldn't worry about it though, since it's been about two days since it last rained." After glancing over her shoulder to check that I was following, she continued. "I'll watch the river and find the stones. You watch the other side of the shore. If you see a break in the underbrush, that's the path."

"Okay." I was glad that our walking had noticeably improved her mood. I followed her instructions and scanned the other bank of the river, and after a few moments I spotted a hidden path on the other side. "Is that it?"

The messenger nodded before racing ahead, making squishing sounds from where her feet splattered into the mud. For the first time I noticed she wasn't wearing shoes, which must have been uncomfortable, but she didn't seem to mind.

She stopped in front of the stepping stones, which were large, but barely visible rocks nestled in the river. They were all different shades of pale gray, and although I had yet to touch one, I could tell that they were smooth and probably cold. The water was almost high enough to cover them completely, and that bothered me.

"Watch your step," she said with the cockiness of one in their element, before skillfully stepping onto the first stone, then the second. Given the fact that her feet were bare and muddy along with the rocks being wet and slippery, it was amazing that she had the grace necessary to not slip.

In no time at all, she was completely across, and after hopping off the last rock, she turned and grinned. "I'm waiting." Her tone was more teasing than taunting.

I carefully stepped onto the first rock, and immediately I started to slip. I could hear the messenger start laughing as I quickly caught my footing before I fell off. My face grew hot with embarrassment as I carefully made it to the second rock. When I reached the third, my shoe lost traction on the wet stone and I crashed into the water with a yelp.

I was soaked to the bone, so I didn't bother with the rocks as I just waded across the rest of the river, drenched, blushing, and irritated. She was still giggling as I climbed onto the shore, but she said, "Don't worry about it. Everyone falls off the first time." That only made me feel a little better.

She insisted that we eat while we walk, in order to save time, and I didn't complain. "If you're walking, you'll stay warmer, and your clothes will dry faster," she said.

It was almost past noon when I heard something rustling in the underbrush beside us. I stopped immediately, scanning over the area. We were in a small clearing, surrounded by giant oak trees, and I was put on edge when I noticed how many hiding spots there really were. The underbrush, the trunks, the branches; anyone could have been easily sheltered from view.

The messenger noticed that I wasn't moving and stopped as well. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

Everything was quiet for a moment, and suddenly the clearing exploded with at least five Drake warriors, who were surprisingly young. My sword was out in an instant, and blocked the attack from the first soldier. I heard the messenger draw her sword as well, and we stood back-to-back.

I kept my feet firmly grounded and calmed my breathing as the warrior tried to strike again. I once again blocked his sword and was able to twist my weapon to rip his out of his hands. He immediately jumped back, not wanting to face me unarmed. I was able to slice the next one's shoulder, and when he got too close I used my left hand to punch him in the face. Not very sportsmanlike, but I didn't fight to play fair, I fought to win. Still, I was careful to not seriously injure them. That would cause more problems than it would solve.

We fought for a few more minutes before one of them ran off, and the others started to panic and retreat one by one. I put my sword back in my scabbard, and I couldn't help but think that these people must have been rookies. If they were trained, we would have gotten injured.

"You okay?" the messenger asked as she looked me up and down.

"Yeah. Are you?"

She nodded. There was an awkward silence for a moment before she said, "My name is Lexus, by the way." Her tone was different, and I realized that she was speaking with a little more respect than before.

"I'm Dashiell," I said, now with a smile of my own.

The rest of the trip was uneventful, with only a few false alarms. Since no one came back to finish the job, I suspected that the Drake trainees from before had snuck off on their own. We were a bit jumpy for most of the afternoon, but by evening we had calmed down.

The two of us continued down the hidden path, which was getting harder to see as the light started to fade. Lexus was much more willing to talk, now that the sun was setting and her task was almost complete. "My little sister is always trying to lead my younger brother around by the nose, which causes some interesting situations," she rambled. Ever since she'd started talking, she hadn't stopped, though I didn't mind. I liked talking to her more than just awkwardly following in silence.

Still, with the sky getting darker, I asked, "How much longer until we get there?"

Lexus seemed to snap out of her rant, and suddenly she was herself again. "The village should be just up ahead."

Before we made it to the clearing, Lexus said, "Hey, uh, thanks for listening. If you hadn't guessed, it's been a while since I've talked to someone about something other than business."

"No problem," I replied, and that was when I saw the village.

It was horrifying to see my home, my real home, almost completely burned to the ground. All of the buildings were destroyed except for the stone church. The farms were gone. The buildings were gone. Almost the entire village was gone.

Cold fear surged through me. I had to see if my family was okay.

I ran to the church, momentarily forgetting about Lexus. I was relieved when Declan was at the door of the church. The scar across his face looked like it had been reopened, which probably wasn't good. He was battered and bruised, but seemed to be mostly alright despite that. "Where are they?" I asked, not wasting any time.

Declan had known me long enough to know who I was talking about. He sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry, Dashiell, but..." He didn't know how to say it, but I already knew what he was going to tell me. Dread and grief started to form in my stomach. "Amunet didn't make it." I knew it. The love of my life was gone.

But then I realized something. "What about Mirai?"

Declan smiled weakly. "She's in here."

I followed him into the church, ignoring the people inside. There were more survivors than I had dared to hope for, and I was glad, but they weren't my priority. Not right now.

The church was small and simple, with a few chairs that were pushed off to the side, against the wall. People were mostly huddled together in small groups, families sticking close to one another. Most of them had blankets, for it was surprisingly cold in the old building, but I barely registered it.

Mirai was in the corner of the room with a person I recognized, but couldn't name. She was sitting in his lap, and she looked up when she noticed me approaching. She reached out, making a grabbing motion before clapping excitedly, bouncing up and down happily.

"Hey Mirai," I said gently, picking up the one year old. She smiled and giggled, trying to wrap her arms around my neck. I sat down cross-legged, holding her close to me. She looked up with her big lavender eyes that she got from her mother. I had been so close to losing her, too...

When Lexus found me I was still on the floor, holding Mirai close as I started to tear up, the weight of the situation finally crashing down on me. She said nothing, just put a hand on my shoulder and smiled sadly at my daughter, who looked so much like the one I lost.

I didn't care what Everett said; I was going to stay here, where I was needed. My best friend Declan was one of the only protectors left, and he'd be overwhelmed too quickly if someone attacked again. If I lost him or Mirai, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. I'd also grown very fond of Lexus, despite the fact that I've known her for only a short time. I wasn't entirely sure why, but I knew I'd be really upset if she was hurt as well. I already lost Amunet.

I wasn't going to lose them, too.

I Wish I Didn't

Meaghan Hitz

"I want to see Rae," I said, my voice still hoarse and breathy from the vocal cord paralysis. It was Saturday morning, a little over a month after the car accident. I was standing at the entranceway of the dining room, and my parents were sitting at the table. They looked up, concern appearing on their faces. They didn't expect me to be up this early.

"Ross, honey," My mom started, her voice strained, stressed, but I wasn't listening to her little speech again.

"I want to see Rae," I repeated, trying to raise my voice, but only managing to choke at my sister's name. "Why won't you let me see her?" I had to stop and take a breath in between before I ran out of air, "You see," another breath, "her all the time."

My mother watched nervously as I walked over to the table and sat down with them, worrying that my shortness of breath and my broken leg would do me in. However, my father wasn't as troubled over my condition. "Ross, we've been over this. Someday you'll understand, but right now, you just have to trust us, alright?"

"Why should I trust you if," I gasped, "You never trust me?" My parents took a moment to register what I had said. My mother struck first.

"Ross, you know that's not what we mean," she insisted, but I was already getting up, adjusting my crutches and preparing to leave. We've been having this conversation since the night after the accident, and I was sick of it. I was frustrated that they kept cutting me out. My mom, sensing my mood, quickly tried a different approach before I could go. "Hey, how about you go visit Ty? You two could spend the afternoon together."

She'd been trying to get me over there for weeks, insisting that I 'needed a friend to help me through this,' as she phrased it. I didn't want to go because Ty lived in a two-story house and his room was on the second floor. Still, after a moment of thought, I said, "Okay, fine." Maybe if I went were they wanted me to go, they'd take me to where I wanted to go.

She dropped me off an hour later, and Ty's parents left a few minutes after she did. I was a little confused at first, but Ty reassured me that his older brother Jackson was there, so we'd be fine. "Dude, what's wrong with your voice?" he asked me, hopping onto the couch to sit next to me.

"Vocals paralyzed," I choked out, starting to regret my decision about coming here. I didn't want him to see me like this; it was weird and overall embarrassing.

"Is that why you didn't call? Texting only?"

Before I could answer him, his older brother walked into the living room, carrying a large cardboard box. "Hey, I'm gonna go see Gran and give her the stuff mom made for her. You comin'?" Jackson asked us as he passed us, heading towards the front door.

"Heck yeah, sure! Come on, Ross," Ty said, helping me back up. "Don't worry, my grandma's awesome. She's in the hospital because she tried to fight the neighborhood bear again." He way he casually said this scared me a little.

Jackson helped me and my crutches into the backseat, and Ty rode shotgun. He was talking to me the entire time we were in the car, deciding that if I couldn't speak well, then he'd just talk enough for the both of us. I didn't really mind, though, because that gave me the chance to block him out and think. Rae was at the same hospital their grandma was. Could I see her? Would they mind?

When we got there, I was embarrassed to find out that the lady at the desk personally knew both my family and Ty's. "Hey, Jackson," she said visibly brightening as we approached. "Hello Tyler, and Roscoe; how are you? How's your leg?"

I smiled sheepishly, glancing down at the cast. "F-fine," I whispered, feeling odd about talking to a stranger who acted like she knew me.

"Voice still bothering you, huh? Did you come to see your sister?" she asked, typing on the computer to pull up some information.

My heart stopped for a moment. Could I? I glanced over to look at Ty. He immediately understood, since I've texted to him about this little 'Rae problem.' Ty said, "He is, but we're here to see our grandma. We were heading to the same place anyway, so we gave him a ride."

The woman chuckled. "Do I even want to know what your grandma did this time?" she said as she wrote down a room number onto a piece of paper and handed it to me. "Here, Ross. I'll be down there in a second. I just need to take care of some things."

"Okay," I breathed, and I started down the hallway, finding it somewhat difficult to carry the piece of paper while using my crutches. Finding the room took longer than I thought it would have, and I may have gotten lost on the way, but I eventually found it. However, it didn't look like a normal patient's recovery room, and that worried me.

"There you are!" I heard the lady from the desk's cheerful voice as she came up from the left hallway. She opened the door for me, smiling, and gave her a weak thank-you before cautiously entering the room.

"Rae?" I called out quietly. When I saw her, it took me a moment to realize what I was seeing. She was there, lying on the bed, hooked up to multiple machines with unknown purposes. She was pale, covered in healing cuts and bruises. She looked weak, fragile, and that scared me. She was the oldest; she was always strong, brave, lively, and just plain happy. Seeing her like that was... unnerving. But there was something else, too. Although she appeared to be asleep, I could tell something was off.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked the woman, though my focus stayed on my sister.

It was only then that she realized. Her voice became soft. "They didn't tell you, did they?"

"Tell me what?" I whispered, a sense of foreboding taking over me.

"Your sister is in a coma."

"...What?" I tried to scream it, but I ended up choking on that single word. No, no this couldn't be happening! I limped over to Rae's bedside, and although I tried to stop them, tears started welling up in my eyes. It couldn't be true. There was no way! How could Rae be in a coma? She was the most determined and powerful person I knew, even outdoing my father. How long was she going to be like this? A cold fear surged through me when I realized that she might never wake up, ever.

I heard the woman leave the room, probably going to call my parents, but I didn't care. In fact, I barely noticed. I just held onto Rae's too-cold hand and started sobbing.

My parents didn't want me to see her, and now I know why...

I wish I didn't.

Snow White and Rose Red

Meaghan Hitz

I thought only the damsels in distress were supposed to be cursed with some terrible spell. I believed that in fairy tales, only the monsters, trolls, and giants were stolen from. Because I was a prince, I figured that I would be fine to go off into the world with no one but my brother, Auburn. We were only exploring for a short period of time. We could handle ourselves, couldn't we?

On that particular week we had decided to go visit the cabin, an old building that was often used while hunting, just to get out of the castle for a while and have some fun. We'd brought some of our gold, just in case, along with the Trinket. The Trinket was a cursed object that had to be with the youngest of the royal family at all times or else some 'terrible fate' would befall the current owner, blah blah blah. We figured that as long as it was in the building we were staying in, it would be fine. After settling in, my brother and I left to explore.

While we were outside, wandering deeper into the forest, we spotted a dwarf. He was short and mean, like most dwarves are, sporting filthy clothes and a long white beard. This one in particular had language that could have made my grandfather blush. Despite that, Auburn, who's always been more social than me, politely said hello.

The dwarf gave us a glare, grumbling and cursing us under his breath. He looked us up and down before recognizing us as the princes. I expected him to apologize when I saw his eyes widen, but he didn't. Instead, a wicked grin spread across his face a moment before he ran passed us and disappeared, following the path that we came from. Within seconds, he was gone. "What's up with him?" I asked, but with Auburn's shrug, we kept going.

Not even an hour later, I felt it. I wasn't sure what it was, exactly, but I knew I felt it. I looked up at Auburn, and he appeared to be nauseous too, so whatever was happening to me was also happening to him. The tingling, sickly sensation began to travel, sending a pins-and-needles feeling through my body. My knees suddenly buckled, and I blacked out.

When I woke up, I was terrified shocked. (Princes are never scared) Both my brother and I had been turned into giant, black bears! We weren't sure what had caused the transformation, but we had our suspicions. We slowly stood and turned around before following the same path as the dwarf took before. Surprisingly, we didn't have much trouble with moving around our new forms.

We soon arrived at the cabin that we were currently staying in, and immediately we saw what had happened. The door was wide open, even though there was no sign of a forced entry anywhere. Inside, every piece of gold we had brought was gone, and so was the Trinket. I knew it had to have been the dwarf; not only had he known that we were here, but he had also been extremely questionable earlier. He had stolen the Trinket and triggered the curse.

"We have to get the Trinket back," Auburn growled, and I was amazed to hear that he still spoke English. That was probably really weird to see. "How do we find him?"

"Well, we are bears. Can't we just sniff him out?" I asked. It sounded reasonable to me. With my new nose, I could detect much more than I could before.

Auburn managed to roll his eyes. "We've only been bears for a few minutes. We can't tell one scent from the other. We're gonna have to go look for him." We argued for a few minutes before we came up with a solution. I would search the woods on this side of the river, and he'd search for the dwarf in the south. We'd try to find his house, because that'd be where he'd hide the Trinket.

Auburn and I split up, and for weeks, we couldn't find anything helpful. The days were starting to get colder, and we just knew that the kingdom would be panicking over our disappearance. There was no sign of the dwarf or the Trinket anywhere. I was beginning to lose hope that we'd ever get turned back into people.

I had lost track of time long ago when I first found the cottage. I was excited, a shimmer of hope forming. Maybe the dwarf lived there? If not, maybe it was somebody who knew him? Without hesitation I bounded up to the door and, with some difficulty, managed to knock like a normal human. There was no way they were going to answer the door to a bear, after all.

Instead of an old dwarf, though, it was a pale and delicate girl with silvery white hair. She was about my age, though she couldn't tell that due to my current appearance. Her pale green eyes widened with fear, and she let out a scream.

"No, wait!" I called, and she stopped trying to shut the door when she heard my voice.

She looked at me with confusion and fright. "...Who are you?" Her voice was quiet and soft.

Before I could answer another girl walked up behind the first. She looked like she was the same age, but the similarities ended there. She had a strong build, with fiery red hair and tanned skin, and her burning brown eyes looked me up and down suspiciously.

"I-I'm Roan," I answered honestly, leaving out my title as prince. I felt like they wouldn't believe my story anyway, especially the redhead. "Can I come in? I'd like to ask you some things."

"We're not supposed to invite strangers into the house," the redhead said bluntly. "Bear or otherwise."

The albino smiled sweetly, ignoring the other. "Sure, come on in." She opened the door wider, so I could get out of the cold. "I'm Snow White, and this is my sister, Rose Red." Snow seemed pure and Rose seemed prickly. I wondered if their mom did that on purpose.

I murmured a thank-you as I stepped into the room, trying my best to avoiding knocking over anything. I sat down on the floor near their fire, looking around the single-room cottage. There were three beds pushed into the corner together, and there was a kitchen to the left, with a small table and three wooden chairs that didn't match. The floor was mostly covered by an ancient rug. There wasn't much furniture or belongings, so it didn't feel cramped, despite its size. Overall it was small, cozy, and best of all, it was warm.

Snow shut the door quietly before walking over and sitting down beside me. Rose followed, but decided to watch from the bed instead of on the floor with us, still reluctant about the possibly dangerous animal in her house. "So, what did you want to ask us?" Snow asked as she looked up at me with doe eyes.

"Well," I started, not sure how to start. "Have you two seen a dwarf around here? He's a bit average in appearance, pretty rude, and-."

Rose snapped her fingers in realization before saying, "Does he have a dirty beard and a bad attitude? We met 'im a few days ago. Why, is he your friend or something?"

"Not exactly," I murmured. "Do you know where he lives, or where he was going?" Rose shrugged as Snow shook her head.

"He chased us off as soon as he could," Snow replied solemnly, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "If we meet him again, we can tell him that you asked about-"

"No," I said too quickly, but continuing with, "It's fine; you don't have to do that for me." In reality I would have loved their help, but if the dwarf knew a bear was looking for him, that would make my job much more difficult. "I appreciate the offer, though. Thank you for the help." At least now I knew that he was in this area.

As I stood to leave, Snow's expression changed to hurt. "You're leaving already?"

"I don't think I'm really welcomed."

Rose looked away guiltily, and as Snow turned to face her, the redhead mumbled a quiet, "Sorry. You can stay if you want, and if our mom is okay with it."

Snow jumped up excitedly as she brushed off her pale yellow dress. "I'm sure mother would love the company! We rarely get visitors, being out here on our own."

They treated me like a guest after that moment, and when their mother returned, she didn't seem surprised to see me. That made me wonder what was considered 'normal' in this particular cottage, but I figured it would be better not to ask. Their mother was a frail woman, with strain and age on a face that was too young for it. She was completely okay with me being there, and before I left, she invited me to come over whenever I wished.

I visited them every night afterwards. Sometimes I'd even sleep over, for they didn't mind, and it was getting extremely cold outside. Snow especially seemed to enjoy my presence, and Rose warmed up to me after a while. We'd talk, explore, and even play together on occasion, like we were kids. Time started to fly by, and I began to forget what I had set out to accomplish in the first place.

However, when winter started to lessen its grip and the chill began to fade, my worry made itself known once again, and it was harder to truly have fun with the girls. It had been months since my brother and I had left home and gone missing, and our family probably suspected that we'd been killed by something. I was thinking that I was going to be stuck like this forever.

It was mid-spring when I finally found the dwarf again. It was an accident, really, but I had been out with Snow and Rose. The two of them had gone off by themselves, Snow chasing after Rose as she ran ahead. I followed slowly, becoming submerged in my own thoughts.

Snow let out a fearful gasp up ahead, and her cry caused me to snap out of my musing. I subconsciously let out a snarl as I charged ahead, ready to attack whatever had put them in danger enough for her to be scared. Bear or not, I still had the princely instinct to help the damsel.

I charged through the forest, coming to an open clearing. The dwarf was there, with his beard shorter than before. His jacket was ripped, and he was carrying a knapsack, gripping it tightly as if to protect it. He had been in the process of cursing the girls when he noticed me.

He let out a screech and grabbed onto Snow, shoving her towards me and causing her to hit the ground with a yelp. He jumped back and begged for me to eat them first, and that just irritated me further. I let out the most animalistic cry I've ever made, and I launched, giving him a blow that knocked him unconscious immediately.

Rose and Snow watched in amazement as I suddenly started to glow, and within moments, I was human again. I looked down at myself and started to laugh happily. I was back to normal!

"Wait..," Rose started as I dug through the dwarf's knapsack and retrieved the Trinket. "You were cursed?" I nodded, turning to face them. "Who are you, then?" she asked, her and Snow's face both showing hints of betrayal, confusion, and worry.

"I'm Prince Roan," I answered with a smile. When they didn't say anything, I continued. "I haven't changed. The only reason I didn't tell you was because I didn't think that you'd believe me. That, and I was starting to think that I'd never get turned back anyway." I approached Snow cautiously, helping her get to her feet. Much to my horror, I realized once she stood up that she was just slightly taller than my human self.

Snow accepted my help, and after she stood, she hugged me. "Thank you," she said softly. "And you're right. This doesn't change anything."

She pulled back, holding onto my shoulders. She smiled sweetly, and I knew that I was forgiven.

"Anything else we should know?" Rose asked a bit heatedly.

"I have a brother," I said casually, but then my eyes widened. "Auburn! I need to find him. He was cursed too, and who knows where he is right now. Come on!" I called, and much to my surprise and relief, both Snow and Rose followed to help.

We were able to turn Auburn back to normal as well, and when he and Rose saw each other, it was love at first sight. Auburn and Rose will both deny this. My brother and I were able to return home, and our parents were especially happy to see us alive and well. Not soon after, I actually married Snow, and my brother married Rose. Both they and their mother moved into the palace with us, and we still live there to this day.

I Do.

Rachel Cudworth

I looked around my empty room. White walls surrounded me; the only furniture in this echoing space was an antique metal twin bed, positioned under a worn wooden window; as well as an old dresser, with chipping white paint. I have been here longer than I can recall. My only memories I can think of flash by in my head like an old film, no sound, just pictures in time that I can't place. The only glimpse I get of the outside is through that window. It looks out and down about six stories. Trees all lined in perfect rows hide a dense forest behind them. Their leaves have started to turn into the colors of autumn; reds, oranges, and yellows fill the space between the dying green grass and the horizon. This view changes from season to season but nothing more. This place must sound like some sort of prison, on the contrary- it is actually a mental hospital (is there really a difference?).

Suddenly there was a slow, steady knock on the white metal door that separated me from the room and the halls of hell. Three knocks came and then the door opened. Two men walked in: one being my doctor- more specifically a physiatrist who has been trying to treat me to cure something going on in my head. They won't tell me what it is; whenever I ask they just look at each other and whisper something to one another. This irks me. I want to know what is wrong with me, how I got here, and why I have to stay. I want to get out; maybe on the outside I will find these answers. Going back to the other man who walked in with my doctor, he is all too familiar, he is one of the repugnant guards who works here; I have no idea where they find these men but it must be somewhere unpleasant.

"Please," my doctor requested with a gesture of his hand, "come, we are taking you into the commons room, I believe it would be good for you to converse and intermingle with other patients."

This has never happened before; I can't even recollect the last time I spoke to people other than my doctor and occasional guards that were a little too gossipy. I followed willingly. I was escorted down halls lined with doors identical to the one that locked me away in the room of white. As we passed each one I wondered how many other people were actually here; how many people were occupying the identical room with the tiny window.

We continued down a handful of corridors until we entered a large room lined with tables facing a long stage with dirty, pale looking curtains overhanging, covering whatever was behind. I saw several other patients sitting at the tables, many staring off into space; a few mumbling under their breath. They all looked so lost as if disconnected from reality. As my eyes continued to scan the room, I felt a light tap on my shoulder, bringing me back into reality.

My doctor looked at me as he gestured behind me; I turned to see a soft eyed woman looking at me. She put her hand up a waved it, motioning for me to come and sit. I gradually made my way over to her. I stopped as I neared the table she was seated at. I cautiously pulled out a chair and sat down. She looked at me; her eyes looked old and gentle. I examined my hands and wrists; this is something I did unconsciously at times when I felt uncomfortable. I played with the white hospital band on my wrist, with my name and what I'm guessing is a patient number below it. Eventually she was the first to speak.

"Hello miss, I've been told to talk to you by your doctor, he thought it would be good to see a new face," she paused, thinking, "So how have we been lately?"

I thought about this for a bit and eventually answered, "I've been better."

"That doesn't sound very encouraging..." she spoke with a pensive tone laced behind her voice.

"Yeah well when you're stuck in a place where no one tells you what the hell is wrong with you it's a bit hard to be hopeful lady." My words came out a bit more venom filled than what I had intended. "... sorry, I've just..." I paused to think of a way to remedy the look on of inquisitiveness plastered on her face. "I understand, you don't need to explain yourself, I can sense the pain and stress in your voice underneath the anger."

"So why are you here?" I questioned, knowing that this wasn't a place people came to without reason.

"Truthfully I can't explain right here, or else they may stick me here and trap me just like you, however come to the commons at midnight and we can talk then, the guards will be distracted don't worry and I know the doctors by then have made their rounds and gone home." She spoke fast, and in a hurry, which caused her to muddle her words together. I understood the gist and nodded to indicate.

She then smiled and brought her bag up to the table top. She fumbled around with the zipper for a moment before finally getting the purse open. She dug around in the various pockets before pulling out a leather bound book that looked like it had been through hell and back, and a pen. She uncapped it, fitting the cap on the opposite end of the pen and began to write in the book. He hand moved fast into curly letters scrawled across the page. She closed the book and smiled once more.

"So I'll see you when I see you huh?" she spoke as if I wasn't about to meet back up with her in a few hours.

"Yeah." A simple and short answer was all I gave back as she gathered herself and the bag to her shoulder. She nodded as if confirming the unspoken plan that was set in motion before lifting herself out of the chair and gently pushing it back into place. She turned and headed for the exit to the commons. I watched as her figure became smaller as the measure of dirty tiles grew larger between us.

My doctor came up to me and placed a hand on my shoulder, disturbing my observation of the lady. I looked up at him and saw his indication for me to follow. I did, with another guard at my back. This time it was a bigger woman, I have seen her a few times, all the times she talked my ear off about body building and being healthy, even though her idea of healthy was a protein shake for breakfast and lunch and a muscle builder pill for dinner. Kept her 'lively' she said. Luckily today she was not as talkative and it was silent the whole walk back to my room.

When we arrived in front of the door to the echoing white room that I was all too familiar with the doctor opened the door with a key that I had never seen before, it was tiny and polished; hanging from a silver chain, that I watched him put back around his neck and carefully tuck into his shirt.

He pushed open the door with one hand and I ambled into the room. Before closing the door I heard a quiet remark from my doctor. As I turned to face him I questioned, "What was that?" he quickly answered back, "oh nothing I was just saying how it was good to see you talk to someone for so long." I looked at him with a quizzical look, as he turned to walk out.

It is true that I don't talk much but this wasn't cause for comment. Does he know? Surely he couldn't have heard the lady and I's conversation? No... I'm fine. Just remember the plan and keep to that.

I padded across the scuffed tile floor to the bed. Setting my body onto the bed was much more of a laborious task than it should've been. My body felt weak, I usually don't exert myself so much...

I waited for the sounds in the hall to stop indicating that the doctors had finished and were heading back to wherever they laid their heads at night. The lady said the guards would be distracted, and since I don't have any compelling reason to think the doctor is on to us, I followed through with what I was instructed to do.

The door proved to be much heavier than what the doctor and guards made it look. My frail arms struggled under the weight but I managed to crack the seal to the hall. Once the crack in the frame was large enough for me to slip through I made my way into the cold corridor; hugging my arms to myself in an attempt to keep not only warm but quiet.

I moved my feet, on in front of the other, down the hall following the path I took earlier to the commons. Each door I passed daunted me with thoughts of whom or what lied behind them. Were they empty, waiting for someone to fill the space with thoughts and delusions, or were they already occupied by some poor soul? Was the furniture just as pale as the ones in my room? Did the door make the same noise when the doctors came to check on their residence?

My thoughts and questions were interrupted when I entered the commons. The lady sat at a lone table placed in the center of the room. He back hunched as in thought, a cigarette hanging on her lips taunting me of the habit I once had before I came. The smell of must and newly light nicotine wandered in the air. She didn't look up, obviously aware to my presence as she took the cig out of her mouth but still unmoving, giving me no indication of what to do.

I padded my way across the cold tile floor, each step more daunting than the last. He hand suddenly whipped up from its relaxed position to bring only one finger from her delicate hand up, indicating for me to wait. I did, stopping in my tracks and became a statue in the room. She slowly looked up, something was different in her eyes, I couldn't tell what, but I knew her mood had shifted from when we had spoken earlier. Her eyes held an emotion that I hadn't seen before or at least in some time.

I became frightened, my mind said to run, run far, run back to the pale room where I had put my thoughts for so many nights. However, my legs wouldn't respond to my mind obvious terror about the situation.

The lady began to rise from her sitting position, bringing a new wave of fear over my body with each nearing step she took. Her face morphing into one of disgust

"Why are you here my dear?" Her voice coming out like nails on a chalkboard. My mind spun. Why was I here? I don't know? How do I not know? Do I want to know? What the hell is happening???

The lady's presence crept closer and closer almost at the rate of my pulse.

My mind went numb. I knew the feeling. I was looking in on myself. "MOVE!" I screamed at my body idle on the floor; but I knew I Couldn't reach my idle body.

The world went silent and the only thing I could see was the woman screaming at my emotionless face. Fragments of words began to tumble through the air, drifting by my face.

"How don't you know?!" How many times do we have to go through this!?" immediately everything kicked back in. I heard her forced voice and strangled screams. She looked pained but also terrifying.

"What do you mean, 'how many times'?" I managed to get out once my mind could process what the lady had said. A look of fury came over her face. She quickly turned and headed for her bag back on the table. As soon as she reached her destination, her hand shot inside the leather bound bag and struggled, again like she had at our earlier encounter. Finally she pulled out the book once more and forcefully strode back over, cigarette at a nub with a mass amount of ashes waiting to fall from the end.

"That's what I mean when I say, 'how many times'." she managed to get out before handing me the book with tears weld up in her eyes ready to tumble down the hills of her face.

I held the book in my hand for a moment before slowly making my way to the cover. It looked old, very old. I finally opened it to find scribbled notes across the first page, and the second, as well as many of the others, all dated from many years ago. Most had notes like 'showing progress,' before drearily coming down to the numbering of days in ascending order on a numerous amount of pages.

I finally got to the last page. No date, only a scribbled note. Do you even want to get better?

The words resonated in my head, memories flooding my mind.

"What..." was all I managed to get out before lifting my head up to see the lady had vanished. no bag, no table, nothing to even hint at another being existing with me in the musty room, only the faint smell of smothered nicotine faintly in the air.

The words resonated with me as I made my way back down the hall, this time only having my thoughts focused on myself rather than the possibilities that lay beyond those doors.

I found myself back at my door much faster than I had anticipated, my head still running in circles. Who am I? What have I become? How did all this happen?

My hand touched the cold door as my legs froze. My head hit the door as more and more thoughts came into my mind. The contact with the door triggered something and not only thoughts were flooding in but memories along with them.

I remembered coming to the hospital, my face puffy and dark; my body frail and covered in markings. What had I done? I watched as my mind lead me through events that seemed so foreign to me. I moved in stiff motions through the check in process. The next scene that passed was one of me in a chair in my doctor's office. He was asking me questions and I could see myself getting more and more aggravated at his incessant inquiry. I snapped at him a few times, he surprisingly kept his composure.

His voice came through and it was the same question posed before. Do you want to get better? My body didn't respond to the question, as if the phrase passed through the air and over my head.

Why wasn't I responding? I do want to get better. I do.

A hand gently touched my back and jolted me out my daze. I lifted my head from the door with a blank stare. The hand tapped me once more. I finally responded and turned my weak body around to see a nurse. A concerned look on her young face.

"Are you okay?" her voice gentle but concerned. "No, but I will be."

A few months later I was released. My head finally felt like it was put on the right way again. I just needed to embrace the help I was being offered. I needed to want to get better. I needed to help myself.

What Really Happened

Most people when they think of Little Red Riding Hood, they think of a small girl just running an errand for her grandmother out of the goodness of her heart, when she suddenly gets attacked by a big mean old wolf but is saved by a heroic huntsman. This story has been tumbled along in and out of so many ears and mouths that everything is all messed up! I'm not a small child with a red cape, the wolf isn't big and bad, and the huntsman isn't a hero! Not to mention my so called grandmother who is supposedly the victim of this crime...

Let me begin this with saying that I'll be telling you what's really up in these parts of the wood, no magic and heroes come along here, oh no. just some good old bounty hunting with lil'red and the big but not so bad wolf.

Sounds funny doesn't it, a small child hunting out criminals with a scary predator of the night? Well I hate to burst your bubble but it's not like that. I may look like a child but let me assure you, I am not. As for the wolf, he can be scary at times but scratch his neck in the right place and he becomes the biggest baby you'll ever see. My apparent red cape in all of these telling's of my tale is not actually that. In my earlier days I sported some feisty long scarlet locks that probably looked like a cape; I've since chopped them off to end that little misunderstanding.

That huntsman I talked about earlier? He isn't a hero. No really, a much as your girlish fantasies want him to be, he's not all the story makes him out to be. He interfered with official business and prevented the capture of a criminal long on the run. So, on that note it would be great of people could stop calling him a hero for "saving me." He didn't.

My "grandmother" is also not the sweet little old lady people have come to enjoy hearing about, she is in fact a criminal, and we are definitely not related. People are lucky I'm tough-skinned; many other would take being misconceived for the criminal's granddaughter as an insult worthy of harm.

So now that I have who's really who in this whole charade, I can get down to the business of what really happened that day.

I was on my way through the woods to take down that infamous and deceiving granny, she had been on my list for years and every time I tried to get close to finding her she manages to sneak off once more. But not this time, or so I thought. I had inside information. Her daughter had caught wind of her mother's crimes and told me where she was hiding.

The woods were cold that day and I had my hair down, it was unusual for me, since I've had numerous problems with my hair being down, however it was just too cold to have it up. Enough about my hair though, you're probably wondering about the wolf? He's my Helper of sorts, being an animal he has an advanced method of tracking, I don't want to catch the wrong person or lose my bounty, so I bring him along sort of as a backup to help me out. He stays quite a bit behind me so that most likely where the part of him following me came from.

I like to stay sort of "undercover" when I'm traveling on my way to find a bounty. So I like to keep my weapons either under my clothes or in a basket, I like to go for the innocent look, that way people don't suspect I could snap their neck in about three seconds if I want.

Eventually the wolf caught wind of her scent and he made his way up to me to tell me about where he thought she was in relation to our position. She was straight north to us and I sped up my pace.

Now about the lumberjack... He always poses problems when it comes to me catching this little granny. He is her idiot assistant, I know that sounds a little cliché but it's the truth. I kept the thought that he could possibly mess up all of my plans but I figured if he hadn't intervened already he wasn't going to be a problem later.

Oh how wrong I was... idiot.

We finally reached the old lady's door, I could feel the heat radiating out of the cracks in the wood. She was cooking. I had the wolf go around the back and find a way in, hopefully taking her by surprise. I knocked on the door once the commotion stopped. Wolf answered the door wearing one of her knight gowns, snickering to himself in the process. I told him to stop goofing around so we could get to work.

I followed the wolf into her bedroom and saw her tied up, I proceeded to question her about her crimes but I didn't get very far when that oaf, the Axeman clamored his way into the house. I hid with the granny in the closet and held her mouth shut. The wolf positioned himself on the bed, hoping to trick the Axeman into leaving. We knew he was quite gullible. He fell for it until the granny decided to bite my hand and let out the most blood curdling scream for the Axeman.

He proceeded to attack myself and the wolf; however the wolf being a bit more of a coward ran away as soon as there was an opening. I had to fight off the Axeman as long as I could before his meaty arms grabbed me and carried me out of the house. I squirmed and he finally released me. I was pissed. I didn't want to waste more time with another failed attempt so I turned after giving him a death glare and stalked my way back to the bounty office to report back to the granny's daughter that he mother is still loose.

Now that you know the story it's a bit disappointing right? No lessons, no knight in shining armor saving a damsel in distress. I've put it all behind me though. Next time there won't be any mistakes.

Just Exist.

Life is inherently absurd. The things we go through in life aren't designed by some divine being. It's all random occurrences and each one after depends on how we handle the first. Our actions in this life don't determine how we end up in the next, if there even is one.

We're all drifting, just taking the punches as they come. We think we have a plan but in reality life is just one big tumbling mountain of opportunities sticking out of the cracks like branches. All we have to do is reach out and grab one. Just one. And that on branch will lead to the rest.

"To swallow mortality is enough of a task, and leaving your mark is just too much to ask."

We don't all need a plan; we don't all need to need to leave a mark. We just need to exist. We need to live, to interact, and to experience. Life is one big absurdity.

The people who you think you'll have until the day of your passing won't really be the people there for you when you take that last breath. You're family isn't always a family, and your friends are often filling that gap. That's a bit absurd right?

The least we can all do is try. You don't have to shoot for the stars if you can't find them through the clouds. At least you're looking.

Getting mixed up in what life has to give and take is all part of living. Getting caught up in friends or school or just yourself isn't a bad thing. It's how humans operate. We're all social creatures but also quite selfish without even knowing it. How absurd.

People push you to go to a university, and have a set plan when you can't even plan out what you're going to wear the next day. Everything happens at random times, there are not fixed variables in this game. We are not fixed variables in anyone's game.

We all want life to mean something. So take the irrational leap of faith off the mountain. Let the branches fly by. Reach out and give your life opportunity.

Organization is a way of living for some but it's not a way of making life. You will never fit your life into categories, black and white. It's all grey. And we all need to learn to love the in between, because that's all there is most days. Absurdity is always around us.

Life must be lived, not understood.

We become guilty and regretful of the things we once wanted. The things that in one point in time we were so sure of. We hurt without thinking because we don't see how the pain could come. Failures and achievements. We believe that's what makes us. But nothing makes up who we are. Nothing can compare or explain or even being to define human life in this universe.

Every life won't stay the same.

We give our hearts out to the people we believe we love and get them back worn and experienced, ready for the next endeavor. It's our brains that can't handle the change.

Maybe death is the best option for this absurd life? But then again it's also the more irrational decision one can make. There is no purpose to this existence. There is no reason that we should all be here. As cruel as that sounds it's the reality of this life.

We make our own purpose. We live for the people and experiences we encounter, we try and grab onto some sort of meaning to this life when there is none. Our purpose is to find meaning, but it's impossible to find meaning in something so absurd.
I won't push clichés into your mind of how this life must have meaning. That's a little too easy.

After all this I still find myself questioning, if life is this absurd then why are we here, why are we conscious? I can't credit this to some divine being. That's even too absurd for the part of me that's writing this. No, I can't say someone planned my life out for me and know my every step.

I control my own actions, no one else. I control my own reactions, no one else.

I'm not here to make anyone question their direction in this life, I'm not here to plant doubt into the minds of people teetering on their own epiphany for living.

I'm here to speak. I'm here to breathe. I'm here to question. I'm here to love. I'm here to help. I'm here to live.

Death, Me.

My grandmother told me it was a gift to see the angel of death in front of people's houses, to know that he'd be collecting someone there soon. I thought it was a gift too, up until the day I began to see it in front of every house.

It was a cold day, leaves brushing across the sidewalk. I couldn't tell you how long I've been walking. He's everywhere. His breath follows me. Its warmth doesn't help, I'm still shivering yet the bumps on my skin still aren't from the cool air.

I see him and I wonder who's soul he's come after. I dread the day that he'll come for me. It won't be a day like this. It won't be a day where my passing will be a welcome sight. It'll be a day that I want to live for that he'll come knocking. I won't be ready, not like I am now.

This isn't a gift, this is a nightmare. I know when people are about to have the worst day of their short lives. I'm filled with sorrow for the ones I've never met.

They weep in their homes while he watched through hollow eyes. He laughs, feeding off their pain. Deep down I know he can't enjoy taking people's hearts away from them. Although his deep chuckle coming from a place unknown pushes me to think otherwise.

I'll say this again. There is no gift in knowing the sight of death. The shadow casted across steps and doors is haunting. The knock that brings a souls breath to their last is sickening.

Some scream. Some don't even notice. Those are the souls I feel for, one ones forgotten. The one's that no one it there to mourn for. The souls that die like they live, alone.

The world gets colder for the brief moment after the knock. The souls return to their resting place after gathering the new. They pass me and I see their faces of greed. They would die again to harvest just once more. No remorse is shown for the passing. Only hungry faces and toothy smiles of want.

I want to run and hide but I know my day will come. When those bony hands will come to my door, knocking for my soul. There's no escape.

His skull turns in the dark cloak draped across his bones. The gaping holes where eyes once resided look at me. He always notices me, he knows I watch. I've learned so much from this routine.

I walk my empty roads for hours each day to see who will come next. The good days are the ones where he is absent. Most days I'm not so lucky.

The worst days are the ones where he comes to a hospital. A place that many are taken from but many also hop to recover in. I can't imagine the family who has their loved one taken away when recovery is in sight.

Death is not what people believe it is. They imagine a white light at the end of a dark tunnel or even demons damning them for the rest of their days. It's not. When you pass, you pass. There are no angels to take you away, no demons to torture your soul.

I don't think people can comprehend that death comes and you just don't exist anymore. You aren't conscious anymore. You can't ever stop thinking when you're alive so death seems like something that has to happen in some sort of spiritual way.

I think that's why people are religious. They can't handle the thought of a life with no meaning, no reason at the end. Giving up on a meaning in this life is scary but for me is the cruel reality.

The day death stood at every door was the day I knew my time had come. I live through other lives. I don't have my own to grow from. How can I when I know the saddening truth?

He came for me when I was low, which came as a surprise to me. But the empathy in his eyes told me he was not the one in control. The lost souls came with him, which was unusual. However the fact that he was at every door and in front of me was also unusual.

I saw relief and pity in the sockets in his face. I was confused. Why? Why had he come for me in this manner? He bowed his head and the souls surrounded him. Tearing apart his cloak until all that was left was a pile of bones at my feet. Their empty eyes looked at me and they swarmed my small body.

I was wrapped in the cloak and I felt my skin begin to fall. I was becoming death. This was my purpose. I looked down at the souls cowering at my feet. How could they be afraid of me when they decided when my time was up?

I felt my body move and I had no control. I shifted over to a home. My home. Oh no. My hand moved to the wood on the door and as I began to knock I stopped. I didn't want to take a life. Especially one of my family's.

My hand moved again and finally made contact with my door. There was no scream, no weeping. The souls came and raided my home. My body was dragged out, and I watched as they carried me away.

I awoke from my dream in a dead sweat from a knock on my door, everything went black. I knew I was dead.

Racquel Garcia

Beaner-Family Mafia

It's really crazy if you sit back and think how different other families are and what they do and go through, but my family is a different story. My name is Adam Garcia and I am 19 years old and I happen to live with my old man, Carlos Garcia and my ma, Connie Garcia. I don't have any other brothers but I have plenty of cousins to make up for it, my oldest sisters name is Julia Garcia and my little sisters name is Monica Garcia. Each and every family is so different, it just awes me. My family on the other hand is just extraordinary.

I remember now like it was yesterday, it was just my dad and I sitting out back by the pool.

My father looked at me with a look I have never seen before, "Adam, can we talk?"

I laughed and sarcastically said, "Noooo dad, yes of course, what's up?"

My dad smiled and took a good breath, "You know how family comes first right, you know what this family is about right, you know exactly what we go through and the things we wish we didn't have to do, but do it anyway right?"

Seriously I looked at him, "Yeah dad, I know all this, learned it by you when I was only 8."

He chuckled and grinned, "Well we may have to leave for a little bit, we have a threat to ruin the business."

I looked puzzled but serious, "You know I will be here for you, where we going and for how long?"

Very focused and serious he took another breath, "We have to go back to Ohio, the Black Nics took your Grandma Dora."

I stood up with mad rage, "What, we will get your mom back dad, no way are those slim balls gonna get away with it pain free."

I went straight to my room, packed my glock and some other things I may need when Julie walked in and asked me what I was doing and where I was going. I couldn't take it anymore so I told her everything going on. Julie was just as mad as I was, but we heard cries from the hallway when we noticed Monica had been listening.

I kneeled down next to her, "Sis, everything will be okay, dad and I are going to get her back, I promise."

Crying she mumbled, "I know you guys can get her but what happens if you or dad dies?"

I guess I never really thought about that, "Well sis, yunno me and dad, we get things done, may be messy but we get it done."

I grabbed her face and looked straight into her eyes, "I will call you every second I can, I love you, don't worry yourself, it causes wrinkles."

Monica stopped crying and chuckled a bit while I hugged her and Julie joined in to.

My ma came up the stairs very concerned, "Adam, I'm guessing they know what's going on?"

I looked up at her, "Yes, they deserved to know, but I reassured them that dad and I can handle this one."

Later that day dad and I packed and got ready to head out around midnight and start our way to Ohio to go stay at one of my cousins' hotels. I decided to drive so my dad could get some rest while I listened to some Tupac and called Monica every so often. About 4-5 hours later and we were in Bono, Ohio; we decided to go to Grandma Dora's and see how everything was left and to feed her birds and cat. Her house was trashed; the Black Nics sure did destroy a lot of things. Dad and I were both furious on how they disrespected the family.

Angry I spoke up, "I don't care what it is dad, I want blood when were done with them!"

My dad looked me dead in the eyes, "There will be plenty of blood son, and don't you worry."

After we tried picking the glass and other broken things and reorganizing the house how it used to be, we headed to my cousins hotel.

Sally my cousin smiled at us when we arrived to the hotel, "Hola family, we've missed you guys!"

I gave her the biggest hug since I haven't seen her in a couple years and dad spoke to her about what was going on I think because she busted into tears.

I walked back up to her and held her, "It will be alright Sally, we will get her back home safe, I promise you that!"

After catching up and cheering up my cousin, dad and I headed to our hotel room to shower and get some rest.

"Hey dad, their only like 30 minutes away so around noon we can head out and scope out the place then do what we gotta do."

My dad nodded at me before he started dozing off, I on the other hand decided to call Monica and check in with everyone back at home.

I couldn't really sleep, just with the family back at home without dad and I worry me, the fact my Grandma Dora is being held captive and who knows what has already happened or what's going to happen, and that my dad and I are risking our lives. I can't lose my dad, neither can Monica, Julie, and ma, they would break and the family bond would probably fall apart. I ended up getting a few hours of sleep but woke up around 8 in the morning and made some coffee, showered again, and got ready for the day to make sure everything was packed and loaded. I woke my father up around 10:30 to drink some coffee and be awake and ready by noon. Half hour before we headed out, we stopped by and talked to Sally and Rita, both my cousins.

Rita smiled and hugged me with tears in her eyes, "You got this Adam, and do what you need to do to bring Dora back home."

Sally looked at me and grabbed my face, "Be safe cousin, and make sure your father knows his limit."

I looked over at my old man, then back at Sally and Rita, "There is no limit, and we will have blood, a lot of it."

Dad drove this time and drove 30 minutes to get to the place they were hiding grandma at. All day long we scoped everything out, found all the cameras, guard dogs, security, etc.

My dad nudged me, "I brought these pills for the dogs, within 45 minutes they will pass out, the security guards we can just kill them quietly, and the cameras, we shoot em with the pistol that has the suppressor attached, got it?"

I nodded while loading a pill in each hotdog for the dogs to eat. When the guards weren't paying attention, dad and I threw the hot dogs over one at a time, until all the dogs had ate one. While dad was going to shoot out the cameras as I went in further, I was going to head towards the guards and complete what I had to do. As I approached closer and closer, I was finally right behind one of them. I grabbed the wire from my jacket pockets and slowly raised my arms and then quickly pulled it over his head and strangled him until he collapsed, I proceeded to do that 5 more times. Finally the dogs were knocked out; I finished all the guards, so I went and got my dad and the rest of the equipment. Before heading in I made a phone call to Monica and dad and I told them we loved them and to not worry. It was time; we slowly headed in toward back door.

Once dad and I reached the back door we slowly pried the door open and headed in quietly. I made sure to have my assault with me and my dad had his submachine on him while we slowly crept through the building. We came across some people socializing and we knew this is it. I quietly ran up on one guy that left group that was headed somewhere and put my gun to his head.

"Where's my grandma?"

Gasping for breath he stuttered, "Hola, I... I don't know man!"

I got angry and grabbed my blade out, "Now tell me now or else I'm slitting your throat!"

Panicking he busted, "She's with Julio! Not me! He has her, over there!"

He pointed up a flight of stairs, "Thanks, bye!"

As I removed gun from his head I slit his throat, "Maybe you should of told me when I asked the first time."

As I crept to the stairs I seen my dad smiling at me, I knew he was about to have a blood party. As soon as I reached the top of the stairs to hallway that led to my grandma, I bumped into another guy.

He looked at me and kept walking but then he turned around, "Hey holmes who are you?"

I smirked, "Your worst nightmare 'holmes!'

I put the gun to his head and said, "Now walk in where my grandma is an act normal or I will blow your brains out!"

Shockingly he stuttered, "Okay, don't kill me, I have a wife and kids and another on the way."

I laughed, "Yeah I have a whole family, and you took the main guys mother, you screwed up not me, now do what I say!"

He walked into the last door in hallway and started a normal conversation then I rolled in and shot him in the head first and seen him, The Julio, The Boss.

Julio had a gun to my grandma's head, "Don't you take another move Adam, I will blow your precious grandma's brains all over you."

Angrily I shook, "Don't touch her!"

Thankfully my gun was already pointed at Julio and I was froze so he didn't kill my grandma.

I waited a moment, "Hey Julio, how's the family?"

He laughed and gave me attitude, "Obviously better than yours!"

I laughed with him, "Yeah it's gonna suck when they no longer have Mr. Julio to take care of things!"

Right after saying that POW; I shot Julio all over his desk and unfortunately my grandma.

I hugged her and cleaned her up as much as I could, "Come on grandma, dad and I came to save you!"

Grandma Dora just kept crying and kissing me when I heard my dad's submachine gun rolling fire, so I had her hide while I went to go help pops. I went slammed the door and put chairs in front of door and took off down hallway, then down the stairs. As soon as I hit the top of the stairs and started heading down I saw my dad spraying the submachine all over. I started shooting everyone when I saw a gas tank and got a whole new plan.

I yelled out from across building, "Dad, can you handle it? I have an idea!"

My dad nodded at me smiling so I looked around and found a huge metal bin. I grabbed it and ran back upstairs, moved chairs, smashed door open, and grabbed my grandma.

I yelled, "Let's go! As soon as you see the big bin you get inside of it! Alright?"

Grandma Dora nodded and seen the bin and hurried inside of it. I started pushing it on a cart and shooting while my dad was doing the exact same. I rushed my grandma to the door while my dad slowly was coming our way and as he reached us I aimed at the gas tank. Very steadily, I held my aim then as soon as I got the chance, I shot it and we took off running. The whole building exploded into flames as we ran back to the car.

We all made it back safe and sound. I called Monica as soon as I got in the car and got situated. Dad drove us to Grandma Dora's house so we could visit and make sure she was alright and had some family there. I decided to drive to hotel to pack and drive all the way home so my dad could rest.

Out of dead sleep my dad rolled over smiling, "Enough blood?"

I laughed hysterically, "For sure dad, we did it, and more blood to be shed!"

Racquel Garcia

My Cousin's Suicide

I remember it all like it was just yesterday, in reality it had been almost 15 years. My best friend and my cousin, Alexis had been only 16 years old and had been through more than any teenager should ever go through. I, Danny was 18 at the time, and honestly never seen such thing coming. My cousin and I have always been total opposites but somehow managed to not kill one another. I always thought we were just normal crazy teenagers. Alexis and I had always been really close but since it was our older teen years, we would party and stay at each other's houses frequently. One day I was just laying on her bed and she was smoking a cigarette out her window so her mom didn't find out and I wondered why she smoked, was more quiet, and always happened to have her body covered. I always knew Alexis was depressed because she lost her dad when she was only 9 years old, and that messed her up pretty bad. That's when I saw it later that night, she was passed out and her sleeve must of came up because all I seen were fine red lines horizontally on her wrists. I didn't know what to do but lay there and think and ask myself questions and try and put it all together, it just wouldn't add up.

I laid there and under my breath repeated, "Was she suicidal?"

"How long has she been harming herself?"

"Did I ever say or do something to make her hurt herself?"

"How depressed could she really be?"

"Why?"

That morning I noticed Alexis looked tired, but she slept more than me. We were always so different, so I didn't know how to come out and try and talk to her. We went downstairs and I made her some pancakes for breakfast, while she went for a morning smoke.

I smiled at her as she walked in, "Hey! I made your favorite!"

With dark rings around her eyes and a sad face she managed a small smirk, "No thanks Danny, I'm not hungry."

I was pretty hurt and just sighed, "Alright, I'll sit them over here just in case?"

Aggravated, "You don't need to freaking do that Danny but whatever!"

She took off to the bathroom and I waited for her to come out to talk to her, but 10 minutes later and she was still in there. I decided maybe I should go in and see what she's doing. As I slowly cracked the door, I noticed her on her knees bent over the toilet. I thought she was maybe just not feeling good from the day before but why would she be sticking her fingers down her throat to make herself puke?

"Alexis, are you okay?"

She quickly turned around, "Why are you in here!?"

I quickly got worried, "I just was checking on you, and I saw you forcing yourself to puke. What's up? You okay?"

"I'm fine Danny! Why do you care so much!? Jesus go back to your perfect little life, you have everything you want, you always have it going right. Just go okay!? I'm fine!"

I snapped but with tears and pain, "No that's not how it is Alexis! I care about you more than anyone, even myself. Tell me what's going on with you. I saw your wrist last night when you were asleep, now this. I may not be able to relate but I am good at advice and I'm family, I'm never going to leave your side. I promise you, my life isn't perfect; I just try every day to be better than who I was yesterday and push myself so I feel good enough. I never feel good enough though, never."

"You don't give yourself enough credit, you are the smartest, prettiest, funniest person I know Danny. I'm shy, quiet, sad, hurt, depressed, failing at everything. Look, I'm even failing at trying to lose a few pounds and also failing at opening up to you and talking. I've never been good for anything."

We sat there for a good minute until Alexis just broke down completely; she spilled her heart out for an hour straight while I just cried. I never thought my cousin would be going through these things. She wasn't like me, or the family, but I still was going to help her best I could even though she told me she didn't want me dragged into it.

Few months passed and I noticed Alexis getting worse, I tried being there for her and she would freak out on me, but I still never quit. Every day I stopped by, seen if she wanted to hang out, talk, whatever, but she just sat in her room upset with mascara stained cheeks. She was almost like a zombie, depressed and I didn't know how to get her out of it. My cousin was slowly losing touch with reality and getting worse day by day. Every day I tried more and more to just try and be there and talk to her but she was shutting me and everyone else out. A few days later and her parents seen her arms, and her mom insisted she go get help. From listening and trying to be there for Alexis, I knew that would make it worse. I begged and begged her mom and she wouldn't change her mind, but her step dad didn't want her to go, he agreed with me. I decided to just lie in bed all day and try and figure something out when I heard a tapping noise at my window.

I walked up to the window and seen Alexis standing there, "Alexis, are you okay? You look sick!"

As Alexis climbed through the window she didn't say anything but break down into hysterical sobbing. I helped her to my bed and just held her there in my arms until she cried herself to sleep. I noticed she wasn't who she used to be, she had dark bags under her eyes, no make-up, hair thrown up and you could tell she hadn't washed it in a few days. A few hours passed and as I was starting to doze off Alexis started moving around a bit.

As she put her arm around my stomach she whispered, "Danny, are you awake?"

I cleared my throat and sat up a little bit, "Yeah I'm here, how are you feeling?"

I could tell she was crying again because my shirt started to get damp again and I wasn't going to force her to talk so just rubbed her back until she calmed down and stopped shaking. She was so beautiful and unique and I don't understand how she could feel like this.

She coughed and sighed a minute, "Danny, why are you still trying? I'm nothing but a lost cause, why do you think my mom's done and sending me off?"

"Alexis, you are my cousin and quite frankly you are my best friend, even if we have absolutely nothing in common. You are my rock and if I ever lost you, I don't know what I'd do. I sit and constantly think of ways to why and what and how to cheer you up."

She sat up and looked at me puzzled, "Danny, you need to quit trying, please, I love you and I don't want to hurt you, nobody cares, but you, but I can't hurt you."

"We will never agree on anything right," I said then chuckled a bit which caused her to smirk a little bit.

"Nopppe, never, besides on food," Alexis said with a bit of excitement.

I had passed out a few minutes after our conversation but started to wake up and Alexis was whispering to me, knowing I was asleep.

From what I caught she said, "Man Danny, I hate how you care so much and won't give up. I love you more than anything, but I won't be around much longer and I'm sorry I have to do this to you, you were my best friend that never agreed with anything, but always wanted the best for me and I really appreciate that. If it wasn't for you, I'd probably be dead from the pills I got hooked on, so thank you. I wish I could have been more like you, happy, planned for a future, good listener and good at giving advice. All I'm good for is shutting people out and well, being me. I love you Danny, thanks for being here since the start and I'm sorry I'm going to be going soon. Never give up though, for me."

I fell asleep with tears running down my face after hearing what my cousin thought I didn't hear. I had to change her mind about leaving, I just had to. I woke up and rolled over to see Alexis but she was gone. I had to do some school work and go to work but I knew afterwards I'd be sneaking into Alexis's house, with her favorite candy, a movie, and a teddy bear. As I was making my bed I noticed a piece of paper under the pillow she had used. It read, Thank you for last night Danny, I love you so much.. I smiled and put it in my little box of memories which was a thing Alexis and I started back in grade school.

I got off work and picked up the things I needed and went and changed into a t-shirt and sweats and headed to Alexis's house. I tapped on her window but nothing, I kept doing it for 5 minutes but still got no answer. I decided to let myself inside instead. She was passed out on her bed so I decided to try and scare wake her. I put on her old zombie monkey mast from few years back and tapped her, but nothing.

"Alexis, I'm here to eat your brains," I whispered while doing monkey noises.

Still she didn't respond, so I put her stuff I got her on table next to her bed and accidently knocked something over. I found her lamp switch and flipped it and looked around for whatever it was I dropped. I felt around under her dresser, table, and bed, and under her bed I felt something. I grabbed the object and noticed it was an empty prescription bottle. I looked at it and seen what it was and that they weren't hers but her moms. I looked around and found another bottle which was her step dads.

Still on my knees I started panicking, crying, and repeatedly shaking her, "Alexis, wake up! Don't be doing this right now, please! Wake up! Common cuz, be joking, wake up.!"

I sat there holding her crying when I noticed she had a note by her head that read, I'm sorry Danny, don't be mad please, please understand, you've always been understanding. I called her mom and told her to come to her room and she knew something was wrong because I couldn't even talk straight; I was all mumbles, slurring, and stutter. Her mom walked and her husband following and they just froze there and got goose bumps. At once they both just started balling while Jen, Alexis's mom fell to the ground, blaming herself. I couldn't let her go, I was so numb and it all happened at once. Her funeral was the hardest thing to sit through. I cried and cried while I was getting hugged by a bunch of family and friends. I was trying my best to hold myself together but it was so hard. After going up to see her I laid the candy and bear I got her right next to her and put a note in there which read, I'll never be mad at you, I'll forever love you, and I am going to move forward for us. RIH my beautiful cousin. Alexis may have been depressed and suicidal but she was family and I still loved every moment spent with her. We may have been total opposites but we managed to have the strongest bond. She will forever be in my heart, opposites do attract and I see that now. I wish she would have seen how wonderful, beautiful, funny, and just how unique she was. She was perfect but went through too much and couldn't take it.

"I'll see you one day cuz, save a spot for me."

Racquel Garcia

Peter the Chameleon

"Lucy, come downstairs to blow out your candles!" screamed my mother from downstairs.

"Hold on mom! I'm putting another dress on!" I yelped down the stairs while falling over one of my heels.

"Quit changing every 5 minutes Lucy or you won't be getting your Birthday present today!" my mom threatened me but I could sense the sarcasm.

After I heard her say that, even though I knew she was somewhat fibbing, I booked it downstairs because I was wishing a hundred times I got the husky I wanted! As I hopped down the last step, all the lights were off and there was a glow coming from the kitchen so that's where I headed.

Out of nowhere my family all at once sang, "Happy Birthday to you x2, Happy Birthday dear Lucy, Happy Birthday to you!"

My cake was covered in sprinkles and pink and black cheetah print and read, 'Happy 7th Birthday Monk.' I closed my eyes and wished that I got my puppy, I wished super hard that when I opened my eyes, after blowing my candles out, there was a box laying right beside my cake. My heart was pounding super hard and it was wrapped all nice and pretty with small holes in it. The box looked a bit odd though, I figured it was a bit small for a puppy, but if that's what my mom wanted to do, oh well. I opened it slowly so I didn't hurt it, and as soon as I started to open it I noticed there wasn't any fur, more like bumpy, scaly skin, and it was green!

I screamed so loud, "Mooooom! What is that ugly thing?"

All my mom could do was hold her stomach, laughing, "Monk, that is a chameleon."

Disgusted at this creature and my mother I started whale crying, "I just wanted a husky, not this ugly thing, it's hideous, and get him away!"

I ran to my room and didn't talk to anyone for the rest of the night, because I was so upset with how MY Birthday had to end crappy. I slept longer than I usually do but as soon as I hardly opened my eyes I seen a new tank and things and I knew it was for the chameleon. Not even wanting to think about him, I rolled over and tried going back to bed. I just couldn't sleep so as I opened my eyes to this fat thing sitting right in front of me. I lost it once he licked my eyeball, I was beyond furious.

At the top of my lungs, I screamed out, "Mom! This thing just licked my eyeball! Come and get him now! I don't want him!"

"Honey, he is in his tank, he didn't lick you." My mom said from other room.

I looked this thing dead in the eyes, "How are you right here when you're supposed to be in your tank ugly?"

His eyes were so creepy but he stuck his long tongue out and then out of nowhere, "Because I can appear wherever I wanna toots."

All I did was started screaming and rolled straight off my bed, all I could think was how in the heck did this chameleon just talk to me?

My mom came running into my room, concerned as ever, "Lucy are you okay? What happened?"

I just pointed where the chameleon was or where he used to be. My mom looked at me all angry and shook her head and just walked out. I couldn't even understand how this thing was talking to me. I just laid there on my IPad and played some games for a few hours.

"Hey you. Whatchu playing?" came from that chameleon that happened to be peaking over my shoulder.

"How are you even talking, I want answers now, or... orrr, I will drop you from my window!"

The chameleon's eyes had gotten even larger than what they were, "Callllllm down kiddo. I will tell you, I am just a talking chameleon and too bad you look crazy to your mom and whoever else you tell."

I had it, I grabbed this thing for the first time, "gross you feel nassssty!"

As he wiggled his way out of my hand he yelped, "That hurt jerk! You were gonna throw me out the window weren't you?"

"Okay, you got me. So uhm what is your name?"

He stuck his nasty tongue out and slapped my cheek with it and joyfully said, "My name is Peter, Peter the chameleon!"

I couldn't help but laugh a little but Peter and I sat on my bed for hours until my mom decided to come in.

"Lucy who are you talking to?" My mom concernedly asked.

"Oh, I am talking to Peter, Peter the chameleon!"

She was so puzzled at me, I could just see it, "Uhm, okay monk, you like him then?"

I gave Peter a look like hmmm and then looked at my mom and said, "Yeah, he isn't that bad, guess I have to deal, right?"

My mom just smiled then walked back out of my room and Peter and I stayed up forever just chit chatting with each other.

I started noticing new things about Peter like, whatever he eats, he turned that color, his tongue was super strong, I hang on it and swing sometimes, and he was probably better than a husky anyway. We did everything together and I absolutely considered him my best friend. One random day he was acting really weird so I kept bugging him to figure out if he was okay.

"Hey, Lucy can I be honest with you?"

I looked at him very concerned so sat him up on counter, "Yeah, what's wrong Peter?"

"Well, uhm, Lucy I am supposed to grant you 3 wishes and I have been nervous because you are only 7 and I also don't know what happens to me afterwards."

I was silent for a good minute, "Really... I get to wish for anything?"

Peter stared at me and I can see the sadness in his eyes, "Yeah..."

I wanted to get his mind off things so we just Netflix and chilled the rest of the night.

I woke up pretty early and I couldn't seem to find Peter anywhere, so I started panicking.

I ran down the stairs hyperventilating, "Mom, have you seen Peter!?"

She gave me a look that she knew where he was, "Yes I have, and he is gone now."

I couldn't help but start balling, "Where is Peter!?"

"I took him to the pet store, "I figured you wanted it that way Monk."

I looked in my mother's eyes, "You are horrible," and took off back upstairs.

She yelled up the stairs, "I'm sorry, you just haven't been yourself since Peter came into the picture!"

I threw on some boots, shorts, and sweatshirt and ran out the door not even caring what my mom would say. I needed to find Peter before he was gone forever. I walked to town and thought to myself about these three wishes. I wondered if I could make wishes still even though Peter wasn't next to me.

"Peter, if you can hear me, I have my first wish, "I wish that I can hear you think and see what you're seeing so I can find you."

For a good 5 minutes, I didn't feel any different then out of nowhere a weird foggy image showed up and I could hear Peter thinking, a lot. I walked around while listening to Peter then once he said something about Joe's Pet Store, I knew where he was. I started running not even caring about traffic or people; I just needed my pet chameleon back.

As I finally got to the shop, I just barged in, "Peter! Where are you?"

I could hardly make out where he was but then I heard him thinking saying he was in the corner getting stared at by a big ball python. I ran over to where Peter was and went to go grab him when some big guy got in my way.

He looked at me rudely, "Ms. This is not your chameleon anymore, so I am going to have to ask you to not touch him. Plus he changes colors and have you seen his tongue?"

I looked this fat guy dead in the eyes, "I wish you would listen to whatever I say!"

I then stomped on his foot as hard as possible and said, "Now can I have Peter back now?"

Dead eyed the man calmly said, "Sure can lil lady."

I grabbed Peter and said, "Hey sir can I have whatever I want here? And I know he changes colors and has a strong tongue, but there is another thing if you listen."

Peter opened his mouth, "Hello I am Peter."

I laughed, "Too bad you won't remember any of this."

I let Peter walk around and find things he wanted for himself and threw it all into a shopping cart for him. I figured since my mom thinks I am still missing, I could just sneak Peter and myself up into my old clubhouse. Instead of using the ladder, Peter thought it would be fun if he went first and shot his tongue out and bungee shot me into the tree house. We sat up there all day and just enjoyed each other until Peter had something on his mind.

"Hey Luc, you still have one more wish..."

"Oh yeah, you ready?"

Peter climbed up to my lap, "Yes... but be super wise about this and I want you to know you were great, and... I love you."

"Peter, I wish that you stay forever, be my best friend, and never leave my side, ever."

Peter smiled at me and nodded and after that Peter was forever mine, so we just sat there and watched our favorite show on Netflix while he tried on the little clothes he got from the pet store.

Racquel Garcia W3

Ugly Miracle

It was just an average Monday morning, tired and half dead. I hated school with a passion, only reason I went was because I was star athlete on the football team and I was a ladies man. I guess you could say I pretty much got whoever and whatever I wanted. I never got turned down so had a new girl every other week. I use to get away with dipping class or coming in really late or still hung-over. I walked over everyone and owned Great Shark's High School and everybody knew that. I roll over and don't even remember inviting Tessa over, but their she was lying in my bed. I rolled over quietly to get ready for school so I wasn't late like usual. Today was our scrimmage game and hard core practice coach was talking about so I figured I'd shower now and later.

"Is that you Wesley?" softly whispered Tessa coming into the bathroom.

I got kind of mad she didn't just leave so arrogantly said, "Yea, what's up that you had to come in here?"

"I figured I would just say good morning before you headed to school, so uhh... good morning."

"Ha. Yeah good morning to you too, now if you will leave because I am about done in here."

I packed all my football equipment and threw some pizza rolls into the microwave while I gelled my hair and put on my outfit.

Walked in and headed to my locker and what do you know, there is Iian my best friend and Emily and Sarah that are always breathing down my back wanting to talk and flirt with me. I had a few minutes to get to class before I was tardy so I straight ignored these decent looking girls and jogged up the stairs to class. A loud shatter, cracking sound echoed when I hit the top of the stairs and I turned around and there was my phone in a million little pieces. I was beyond mad and now late as ever to class. As I walked in all eyes were on me, but I was extremely mad so the glances weren't calming me down or making me feel any better. The teacher just looked at me and shook his head and walked over to me and just stared at me all crappy.

He sighed and whispered, "Wesley, you're tardy."

My temper just shot even higher, "What!? Really, you wanna give me a tardy now? After like a hundred times of warnings and crap!?"

Mr. Borty the History teacher just shook his ahead again and muttered, "I'm sorry Wesley, you should be here on time like everyone else."

I was about at my breaking point; could this Monday get even worse than it already is? I was ready for school to just be over with so I could take my anger out on playing and practicing during football. The rest of the day, I just sat there and listened to some rap and took naps.

Finally 3:15 hit and that meant practice! I rushed to the locker room and their stood outside the locker room, Summer Hall. Summer was the hottest and most popular girl in school and she was there, totally checking me out.

"Hey cutie. Whatcha doin by the locker room by yourself?"

Summer smiled and giggled a bit, "Well actually I came here to see if you were coming to my Birthday Party on Friday?"

"This Friday? Yeah, I will be there for sure. I best get some time with you since I am coming in all."

While she smiled with a sparkling look in her eyes she said, "We will see how you play your cards Wes."

My mood did a 360 and I walked into the locker room with the biggest smile on my face, thinking this is the best looking and most popular girl ever. Of course I didn't want to date her, just wanted to be able to tell everyone I had her, I never do relationships because it's just way too much commitment. I played my butt off during practice just thinking about the week flying by then Friday, Summer's party. I drove through town after practice and all the ladies eyes on me and all the guys' eyes on my Audi R8, felt great knew I was so handsome. I drove home and mom already had dinner made, my favorite Spaghetti! Decided if I jumped in shower than ate it would be better than being all dirty and eating. My dad must have been thinking about me because I noticed after my shower I had the latest best-selling cologne around, Hollister and Abercrombie boxers, and the most recent J's. After I downed all my spaghetti and eating 3 plates of it, I went and did my homework while listening to some music. It was around 1 am when I decided it was time to call it a night or I wouldn't make it to school.

(Few days pass, now it's Friday)

Woke up and did the usual thing I do every day before I head to hell. I got ready as fast as I could, considering today was the party and I needed to talk to Summer. I grabbed my keys and rushed straight out the door. While I was pulling out of the driveway the neighbor kid left his bike in our driveway and go figure, I ran it over and popped a tire, just my luck. It was still pretty dark out and muggy, but I had to hoof it unfortunately. The walk to school seemed to take forever and I decided to hit the alleys to make it there quicker. I was passing this old abandoned trailer park when some creepy guy that looked like he was on some sort of drug came out from around one of the trailers. He crept up to me and stood there for so for a good minute I just stopped and stared back.

Finally he spoke all low and jittery, "Hee...eey... Do-oo yyooo-u haaa-aaave annn-yy smooo-keees?"

Shockingly I had like 2 in my bag from Iian last weekend, "Yeah, give me a minute to grab them."

I noticed he was slowly moving closer and closer to me but I just tried to give him these cigarettes and go to school.

"Yo—uuu seeeeem ss---oo allll aboou-tttt yoooo—urrselfff."

I stopped in the process of taking my bag off, "Excuse me? What the hell are you tweakin on dude?"

He stepped closer and muttered, "I ammm me-eeee. Youuu wiii-ll finnn-dd yourrrsellll-f soon friennddd."

"You are nuts yo. Get the hell away from me," as soon as I spoke I bent down and grabbed the pack in my bag.

As I was pulling them out he straight lunged at me and attacked me. I don't remember much but he bit my lower right side. I don't know how long I passed out for, but I know I was late for school.

I finally got to school at 9:10 and decided to go to bathroom and check my body out since I was attacked. I stood in front of the mirror and I sure did look sick. As I lifted my shirt I seen it, I was horrified. This bite was so disgusting; it was puffy and looked like black liquid was pumping through my veins. I was not telling anyone, especially Summer. I went to my locker and their she was. She looked so beautiful, she just smiled at me, and it was so seductive.

"Still coming to my party," she said while grabbing my arm.

I was like awed by her so stumbled by saying, "Definitely."

She walked off and left me so speechless. Even though this nasty wound on my body hurt and I felt like I was getting a cold, I was not missing this party and my chances at getting with Summer. School went by so slow, I almost left, but I stayed and just dealt with it. Finally school was finally over and I got really stoked so walked home pretty fast. I held my side the whole time because it was starting to leak whatever that black liquid was. I made it home and made a pizza then planned on taking a quick shower and get ready for tonight. I knew I had to look the best from every other guy so I needed a few hours.

Right before my shower, I stripped and checked myself out in my mirror and noticed I looked really sick; this black stuff was all through my side now and looked like it was shooting through every little vein. I looked gross, there was no way I was going to look the hottest. I found my best outfit, nice jeans with holes and a blue button up with my black vans. I was dumb and snuck into my mom's room and grabbed her make up to try and hide my veins. I looked like a ghost with my mom's foundation blotched all over because she is paler than me. I figured it's going to be dark, nobody will even notice me. I totally spaced my car wasn't usable at the moment so at the last minute I asked Iian to swoop me up before the party. As soon as Iian pulled up, he seen me from my door and jumped out of his car and just looked at me.

He threw his hands up and yelled, "Bro, you look sick as hell!"

My self-esteem just went from lower than it was to nothing, "I caught something."

Iian started laughing and jokingly said, "Yeah, Gonorrhea!"

Tonight was already starting off horrible. I wasn't the hot one anymore; I got bashed left and right. I wondered how Summer was going to take it. Iian and I finally arrived at Summer's party and it was pact, biggest one I've seen all year. I felt like all eyes were on me, but not in the good way. Everyone looked shocked, happy, and cracking jokes about me, I didn't know how to feel because this has never happened to me before. I see Summer and walked straight to her. Just as I thought she looked disgusted.

"Ew Wesley... You look super gross."

"I'm sorry, I am sick..."

Summer just laughed and looked at me and hesitated, "Uhm... Sorry Wes but I'm gonna go see Jake. You just aren't attractive anymore."

I just stood there, even as Summer walked away from me. I was ugly, alone, and hated myself, how could anyone feel like this? I grabbed a bottle of Jack and went and sat in the pavilion by the water thinking to myself. Thinking how anyone would want to be alive and listen to everybody talking bad about you.

Half the bottle down and I'm crying thinking really bad. I thought I heard footsteps approaching but figured I was just hearing things.

"Hi... you looked a little depressed, my names Grace."

I was shocked and really drunk, "What do you want, I'm doing fine."

Her smile quickly faded and she stiffened up and put her hand on my knee, "You just looked depressed and alone, I know that feeling and I was just trying to be there for you, you looked like you needed someone."

"I don't need anyone!"

She got up and just looked at me and started walking away, away from me. My mind was racing, the first girl that seems to actually care?

"Hey, wait; I'm sorry come back..."

She spun around and smiled and she was so beautiful, "it's okay, I planned on checking back up with you in a little."

After that she came and sat next to me and it was weird, never had I ever believed in love, relationships, opening up to people, but for the first time, I felt it.

"I'm ugly, why are you even here...?"

Grace just looked at me, "You're handsome Wesley, I've known you since we were in middle school, I knew besides the looks and everything, that there was something about you."

I just smiled at her and I did it, I moved the hair out of her face and leaned in and kissed her. I never felt this feeling when I kissed anyone, but I felt it with Grace. I pulled away and wanted to tell her about my bite but when I told her I needed to show her something, it was gone, completely gone. I looked like me again. I spent the rest of the night sitting and talking to Grace, hearing about her past, I never wanted to hurt her. I honestly don't see why anyone would hurt her, even though she told me I was someone who bullied her 6-7th grade. I wasn't letting her go now, ever. We walked back up to the party and leave so I could walk her home.

"Hey cutie, you look like you did a 360!" Yelled Summer.

"Thanks." I said while grabbing Grace's hand.

Summer ran up to me and grabbed me, "Wanna go to my room?"

I never thought I'd do this but I pushed her off of me, "No I'm with Grace, so go find another guy."

Summer ran off all mad while I looked over and Grace just smiled at me and I smiled back. I never knew I would fall in love like this, never knew I'd ever be this soft hearted, under a few hours. I walked Grace all the way home that night and seriously felt like my life did a 360 for the better.

Marissa Jennings

The Miracle

October 31, 2010, was the night a tragedy happened. It was cold and windy. Tonight was the night, one of my friends down the road was having a Halloween party. I was so excited because it was my very first one I have gotten invited too. The party started at seven o'clock. It was about a half an hour until it started. At this moment I was at Riley's house getting the party set up for her. "I will be right back, I'm going to run to my house and get my costume on", I told Riley hurriedly. She shook her head up and down to let me know that it was okay. She yelled out the door, "you can take my bike, it will make it a lot faster." So I went ahead and took her bike. It was a little small for how tall I was, but I knew it would be a lot faster to ride it to my house. As I was riding my bike down to my house, my other friend, Taylor, was heading to her house to get dressed too. I was about one-fourth of my road away from my house. Then I felt it, my knee got caught on the handle bars and I flew over the front of the bike, my head going towards the pavement. I began to tear up and as soon as I opened my eyes I saw Taylor trying to help me get up. She asked me if I was okay, and I told her that I was fine. As we both began to head to our house again, I got this really bad migraine. I walked through the garage and went straight to my room. I was still crying at this moment. My stepdad, Tracy, came into my room because he heard whimpering. "Are you okay?" He asked me worriedly, "How did I get into the house?" I replied. His face went into shock like a deer in head lights. Then he asked me what happened to my foot. I looked down to see there was a bunch of scratches on the top of my right foot. I told him I don't remember. That's when he knew that something was not right. He began to call my mom while rushing me to get into the truck. My mom was going into shock because she had no clue what was going on. We both met up at the middle school, because that's where my mother was to pick up my sister from swim practice. Once we got there, we switched vehicles in the matter of like thirty seconds. It was crazy; my head was spinning and everything. The crying wasn't helping as much but the pain was too intense. We finally got to the hospital. The emergency workers told my mom to sit down and fill out this paper work. She told them she will as soon as my daughter is getting x-rays. They looked at her like she was on crack. So after my mom flipped out they took me straight to the room to get the x-rays done. Not even five minutes later the doctor came to my mom and told her there was a helicopter on the roof for me to be life lined to Indy for immediate head surgery. I had bleeding on the brain; the size of a quarter. My dad finally got to the hospital when the doctor was telling my mom. Another thing the doctor said was that, "There is one seat open, if you would like to ride with her." My mom knew she should go but then my father does not have his license and would have no other way of getting to Indy to see me. She told my dad to just go ahead and go with me. It was just all a big rush. I finally got into the back of the helicopter. My father was in the front passenger side. I remember seeing him looking back at me and he was just crying with me. Then the next moment, I got sick all over my body. It was so disgusting. The only reason why I started to puke was because of all the pressure from the blood between my skull and brain. Usually it takes about an hour and a half to get to Indy. Well it only took the helicopter about twenty five minutes, I guess. As soon as I got there, they put me into surgery. All I could remember after that was me waking up in a room crowded by all of my family. I was so blessed to have all of them. I was so scared at the moment because I had no memory of what was going on. After that I stayed in the hospital for a couple of days. I remembered both nights I had to get up at two in the morning just to get this injection. I would say this was the worst experience I had ever had. The very last day in the hospital, one of my nurses took me around the hospital and showed me how I got here and everything. It was pretty cool. Two weeks later, I was still out of school because I couldn't take all the pressure on my head still. Even once I got back to school, I had to take naps in the nurse's office during recess.

I was told this was a miracle. The doctors told my mom after my surgery, that they almost lost me in surgery because the bleeding was getting too much. If I had waited any longer I would have been gone. I am so thankful for everything in life now. If it wasn't for God being with me I wouldn't have the loving family I have now. Overall, the fact of me getting into an accident wasn't the big effect, but it reminded of how much those around me care. My older sister, Nakia, was in the waiting room of the hospital very distraught and crying her eyes out. She was afraid that I would not make it through surgery. It showed me that she will always be there for me no matter what. That is what has changed my views toward life. I was always told, "Don't take life for grant."

Marissa Jennings

~ Pelicans Can Save a Life ~

While sitting on the back of the bus, this blonde hair and blue eyed young lady hopped on and sat right next to me. All of a sudden this nice lady said to me, "Do you like pelicans?" I didn't know how to respond to that question really well so I replied, "Yeah, I guess". About a minute later, she pulls this handbook out that was about pelicans. A speech came upon the young lady's mind and she just started to blabber about how to save the pelicans. During that speech she looked straight out the window and started to cry while pointing at the sick looking pelican on the side of the pond. Everyone was so dumfounded when she started to weep. After the young lady was done crying she sat back down and waited for her stop. Few minutes later, the lady looked back and said "Have a nice day, hope all is well". I didn't really know what she meant by that, but I looked down to make sure she didn't leave anything. I didn't see anything, until I saw this little white corner of a piece of paper sticking out between the seat and the back rest. As I grabbed it I hollered at her and said, "Hey you forgot a piece of paper!" She looked back and gave me a little smirk. As I was opening it, the bus started to move forward. The nice young lady stood on the side walk and looked for me as the bus went by. She still had that smile on her face.

That note said, "Hi, my name is Madeline. I wanted to inform you about the sickness of pelicans. I feel if all of the pelicans here get well, my mother will get better too. Pelicans are her favorite animal in the world. Secondly, every Sunday when my mother was younger she and her mother would go to the parks and just sit there all day to feed the Pelicans because they all were so friendly. They gave both of them such great happiness. Also, that they were stress relieving to them. Then I have noticed when my mother got really sick with her leukemia, so did the pelicans around here. I know I needed to do absolutely anything to get her back to normal. Because of this, I thought of an idea to get a large group together on the 6th of July to go around the town of Thira, Australia and help pick up the sick pelicans. Then, we would take them to the animal center to return to normal health. I would really appreciate it if you would show up to help. Do this for me please."

I couldn't believe what I had just read. I knew I needed to help her. I know if I take a stand in this, it will make me a stronger person in the future. Since I am a social worker, I am going to do whatever it takes to help this lady and nothing will get in my way. I'm sticking with this all the way through. I have also had a family member die of leukemia so I know how it feels and I will not let that happen to her.

About a month later, I was heading home from work on the bus and as I looked down the aisle, I noticed a flyer. This flyer wasn't just any flyer. It had a huge picture of a pelican and a picture of an older woman. It reminded me of that young lady named Madeline. I had one more stop until I got off but before my stop, I had to get a closer look of the flyer. As it turned out, the flyer was to help the save the pelicans on the 6th of July. Immediately after I read all the descriptions on it, I stood at the front of the bus and chanted, "Save the pelicans! Save the pelicans on July 6th at the family center at the city park in Thira at 11 a.m.!" I could see every one's facial expression change from bored to shocked. My stop came and I had to get off.

It is now six in the morning on July 6th. I was so motivated and determined to help with this event. I had so much time until it started, that I decided to go to the donut shop and buy ten full boxes of donuts for everybody that shows up.

It was ten minutes from the time everyone was supposed to be at the park. I had all the donuts set up and everything was ready to go. I saw Madeline come over the hill. As soon as she reached me, she gave me this huge hug and said, "Thank you so much, I cannot explain how happy I am to see you here!"

A minute before 11 only a few people had shown up. Madeline said confidently, "It's time." Madeline was a little disappointed that there weren't as many people she thought there would be but she did not let that get her down because this was going to help her mother. As soon as Madeline began to tell the instructions for what to do, an immense group of people walked over the hill. She burst into tears at this sight. I could not help but give her a hug and inform her that everyone is there for her and her mother.

As soon as everybody got there Madeline began to explain the instructions again. The instructions were pretty clear and precise. So right after Madeline got done, she said, "Let's do a prayer real quick before we start this up. May God be with us today and support all of us to helping my mother get out of this horrible sickness. Be faithful. Amen. Now let's begin." Everybody started to run in different directions.

The clock struck 3'o'clock and everyone went back to the city park. The groups of families were totaling up all the pelicans they took to the animal center. After everyone got their totals, Madeline added them all up. She wrote it down on a piece of paper. As Madeline got everyone's attention, she started to cry a little. "546 pelicans were helped today", Madeline said happily. Everybody began to cheer and clap. After quite a bit of people left, Madeline was telling people that she will be sending thank you cards. I was just so excited to see that this event was such a turn out.

About two weeks later, I got this call from a strange number. Of course I answered it because it could be an emergency. The strange number turned out to be Madeline. "I have the best news to tell you! My mom just got out of one of her treatments and the doctor said she is free from leukemia! Can you believe it? My mother survived, and so did the pelicans. I wanted to especially call you because I don't know where I would be right now if it weren't for you", She has said in great excitement. I told her I could believe it because we all believed in this miracle happening. I am glad I was a part of this. Being a part of this miracle will stick with me forever and ever and remind me that anything is possible.

Marissa Jennings

Once In a Life Time

On my way to Detectives Do It for You, which is my work area, today I saw this strange man walking down Bourbon Street with a big brief case. This guy wasn't just any other business man, he was really suspicious. Long black sweatshirt with grey sunglasses and a nice suit and tie on. Here in New Orleans, Bourbon Street is the strangest and busiest street. This man was rushing through it like it was the game of Frogger. Nobody really noticed him because of how big of a rush it is on that street. The only reason why I noticed him was because he was just a black figure walking down the street. Also, he had this inhaler that had a weird smell. How did I know it smelt weird? There was a brief breeze of wind that blew towards me and the scent of inhalers liquid came to me, as he inhaled it in his throat. I wasn't curious why he needed it because it was obvious he had asthma. With him rushing through there like that didn't surprise me either.

About a couple of hours later, I went on my lunch break. I was really feeling some tacos so I went to Taco Bell and had myself a nice Strawberry Starburst Freeze and a Doritos Taco. On my way back from Taco Bell I saw this caution tape. I was really curious of what happened. All of a sudden I got this feeling it was involving the guy I saw earlier this morning.

Next thing I knew, I saw a black brief case lying on the ground next to this black figured body. I couldn't believe it, it was the man from Bourbon Street. He was lying dead, not even ten feet away. I was so curious as in what happened? So I decided to ask my co-worker that was investigating this crime scene. She said, "This gentle man was just walking down the street and he just fell right to his death."

No one understood why he just fell straight down until, this bottle of pain killers fell out of his pocket.

Soon to come was the end of my lunch break. I knew if I was late back to work, I would get in so much trouble. The reason is, is because I have my own criminal case to work on. My case didn't even interest me anymore, not after what happened to this man from Bourbon Street. Maybe I can trade with my co-worker. My co-worker is a pretty kind person.

As soon as my co-worker got back for the night, I was so eager to ask her. "Hey would you mind switching me cases just this once please."

Her reply, "Um, sure if you really want to, then go right ahead."

"Thank you so much, you know that person in that case I saw earlier this morning. I was so shocked because I just saw that guy about two hours ago."

"Oh wow, that's crazy no wonder you really want to find out what happened." She said astonished.

It was around midnight that I knew I needed to get to bed, because if I didn't I wouldn't have a lot of energy to investigate everything tomorrow.

"Cockadoodal doooo,"while the rooster hollered, I was getting ready for the big day to investigate. As soon as I got to work I told my boss that my co-worker and I switch cases last night, he had no clue what to say but, "Okay, be careful doing that, you can easily get stuff mixed up from your other case."

"I understand, this is going to be the only time we do this I promise." I said back to my boss. Last night, I guess they brought his body back to the office already. That was pretty quick for our workers; usually they take nights to get the body back to the office. Luckily I had all my equipment in the same room he was in because it's such a struggle to carry it all to another room.

Finally, I get all settled in. It was time to empty his pockets and undress him from his black clothing. Once I got everything off of him, I noticed there was a bulge in his pocket. What I found was an inhaler of course, like I saw earlier that morning. Then there was a wallet, with a license of the name of Harry Getz. I assumed that it was his wallet because it was in his pocket, but then after I did a DNA test from his skin. Come to found out, the guy from Bourbon Street Name was Justin Mickey. I was so confused at first. To come to think about it, he was being really suspicious that morning. That is probably the case. Justin Mickey stole someone else's wallet. The thing I'm curious about is why he took this wallet. It had absolutely nothing in it besides an ID and a picture of Harry Getz family in it.

After finding the wallet, I was still wondering through his pockets and I find this piece of paper. The paper was a letter that said you have a free ride to Africa. This letter was allowing him to escape from the wrong doing he did.

The real question is why he took this wallet and a letter allowing him to get to Africa. Later in the day, I was inspecting this letter. All of a sudden, I saw this name on the top right hand corner. Also a phone number to call if any troubles have come up.

About an hour later, I decided to call this number and pretend that I was back up for Justin Mickey. "Hey I called to know exactly what the plan was, Justin has had something come up and he can't make it" I said to the speaker from Africa.

"Okay, the plan is for you to come to Africa with that wallet he has taken from Harry Getz. After that I will pay you $10,000 in cash for bringing me that wallet." The caller replied.

"So, what is this wallet going to do if I get it to you?"

"That wallet has an identity that can control the whole web world. Do you realize how much power that is?"

"Yes I do, I will get that to you as soon as possible, sir."

"Thank you."

As soon as I got that information from the guy from Africa, I hurried to call the police and had them locate that phone number and tell them that this guy is a thief. That was the first thing I needed to do in this situation because he was still alive. Unlike, the other person that is was not able help. Next thing I did was to get Justin Mickey cleaned up and everything.

Finally, it was to the point of the end of this investigation. Justin Mickey was the man walking down Bourbon Street the other morning. He was a thieve of a wallet that belonged to this guy that could control the world web. On Justin's way to give Harrys' wallet to this guy in Africa, Justin died of a drug overdose.

Once I got this whole story figured out, I went and told my boss. "I'm done." He was so surprised that I determined this crime scene out already. My boss was so proud, that he gave me a five dollar raise. I couldn't believe it; that was the first raise I have ever gotten here during my investigation job. I was so stoked that I took my boss and my co-workers out to eat.

The next month at work, everything was so different for some reason. A lot of things I did, I didn't mind doing. Usually I complain about some stuff I have to do at work. I don't know what it was but ever since I figured out that case and got a raise, everything changed. So did my views on everything else.

Marissa Jennings

The Dead Killer

One October night, Gracie was brushing through my long blonde hair while I was getting ready for a good night's rest. Just as I snuggled under the soft down comforter, I heard a noise. I quickly darted out of my bed and crept toward the door. As I slowly turned the knob and gently pushed the door open, I shrieked with horror when I saw, my black, fat cat, Dreamer, staring right at me while lying down in the top of the couch. I was still curious of what that noise was though. I continued to look around to find something that had fallen. As soon as I took one step into my kitchen there was a box of "Boo Berry cereal" lying on the floor. It was probably just my stupid cat trying to get to her food in the cabinet behind all the cereal. So I went back to bed hoping I could still get a long night of rest in.

Morning came and I woke up to my new roommate moving all of her stuff in. Her name was Fiona. Fiona has just moved here from Monticello, Indiana. The reason why she moved here was because her parents has just died in a very tragic car accident. Fiona didn't talk that much. I thought I scared her a little when I woke up with my bed head. My bed head is very alarming to others. "Hi, my name is Fiona. I am so thankful that you let me stay here. If you have any problems or questions just go ahead and tell me, I'll try to change or answer them as best as I can", as she said smiling. Surprisingly, she just came up to me and just started talking. Usually it has to be the owner of the house to step up and say something.

It has been a couple of days after Fiona has moved in. I have noticed some weird habits that she has, and I am a little grossed out by most of them. A couple of them are leaving her hair in the drain of the shower, eating with her mouth open, and the worst one of all is leaving her trash where ever she last uses it. It is so disgusting. The thing is, after like a day the trash starts to smell horrible and, have to pick it up myself.

Today was the day, I told myself I needed to tell Fiona that she needs to pick up after herself more. Fiona gets off work around 12:00 p.m. today. I was actually really scared to tell her because of how she reacts to being told what to do. The other day there was this old man across the road and he told her that she needs to keep her music down when coming home because people are sleeping. Fiona flipped out and got so mad that she made her dart board into a knife throwing target. At that moment it hit me, my roommate was chaotic.

Fiona came in the apartment and sat right down in front of the television, threw her shoes to the side of the couch. Then grabbed a big bag of potato chips and started to chow down. I stood up from the chair next to her and exclaimed, "Fiona you need to get your stuff together and be organized! I can't take it anymore!" As soon as I got done saying what I had to say, she got up and went straight to her room. I thought it was a little odd because I assumed she was going to go flip ape on me. Instead she went to actually clean her room.

Next day I went to see if Fiona was okay because she had missed her bus to get to work. I knocked and there was no answer. So I opened the door really slowly. The first thing I saw was a full table of chemicals as in acid and a lot more I couldn't even tell what they were, that were not there yesterday. There was no sign of Fiona; I was paranoid but I said to myself that she is a big girl. She can take care of herself. Right when I turned around, to walk out of her bedroom she comes around the corner from the kitchen. I didn't want her to see me so I closed her door really fast and ran across the hall to the bathroom; Pretending that I was just about to get out of there from using the restroom. Thank God she didn't see me. She probably would of flipped out on me for just touching her door.

I was a little concerned about what she was trying to do in her room the other day. About an hour later, after she got home from work the next day, I asked her what she was doing in her room the other day because I heard something explode. She said, "Oh it was just my pop can being opened. Why did you go in my room or something?" I stopped and just sat there blankly because I could of sworn she knew I went in there. I started to stutter, "I-I-I went in there just to make sure everything was okay because you had missed your bus yesterday."

Few days later, Fiona came out of her room with this big smile on her face for some odd reason. I was a little freaked out. Then all of a sudden she got into the refrigerator and grabbed this pineapple upside down cake. Fiona said, "Here try this. It's my first time attempting to bake; I really hope it's good." About an hour after Fiona left for grocery, I started to feel a little light headed. So I went to my room to lay down, with a cup of water.

All I heard was Fiona yelling my name really loud. "Gracie! Gracie! Are you okay? Can you hear me? We need to get you to the hospital as soon as possible."

October 31st was the night Gracie died. That pineapple upside down cake had poison in it. The case behind this incident was, Fiona and her dead mother's spirit had a connection of getting back at Gracie for trying to tell Fiona what to do. Fiona just had an idea to put glue on one of the chairs and ruin a pair of her pants. Instead Fiona's mother took control. Fiona's mother asked Fiona if she would help make this cake. Fiona was a little confused to why her mother couldn't do it herself, but anyways she did help her. When Fiona wasn't watching at one point in time, her mother slipped in a tablespoon of Phenol, which is a poison that the Nazis used in WWII, inside the mixture of the batter of the cake mix. This report was coming all from Fiona and her mind. The real question is, how Does Fiona have communication with her dead mother.....?

Maya Garringer

Off the Trails

"Em, did you hear about the bike trails?" my older sister, Faith, asked me.

"No, what bike trails?"

"They are only two blocks away!" she answered excitedly.

"Really? Where are our bikes?" I asked

"I'm not sure. Go ask Dad."

We just moved in to our new house. It isn't much, but it'll do. It is a mess right now; we haven't unpacked much because our dad's been busy with his new job.

I found my dad unpacking dishes in the kitchen. "Hey Dad, where are our bikes?" I questioned him.

"I don't know, sorry Pumpkin," he said right before his phone began to ring, and I started to leave so he could talk alone. "Emma!" he yelled when I made it to the other room.

"Yes?"

"I have to go to work real quick. Can you finish unpacking these, please?"

"Sure," I said disappointed. "When I'm done, can Faith and I go to the bike trails anyway?"

"Just remember to lock the door! There is a spare key on the counter," he answered.

"Thank you!" I said before he rushed out of the door.

Fifteen minutes later, I ran up to get Faith. "Dad said we can go to the bike trails!"

"Where are our bikes?"

"He doesn't know, but let's just walk there instead," I suggested.

"Okay, let's go!"

It was late October and the trees around the trails were beautiful at this time a year. The trails looked like new. We walked the trails, examining the wonderful scenery. We passed running streams and sloping hills. We walked for hours, studying the trails and their turns and what they led to. We walked until we were exhausted, and we decided to go home.

On the walk home, our dad called Faith to see where we were.

"We are on our way home from the trails," she answered.

"Okay, hurry. I brought home a pizza! It will be our first dinner together in a while," he said excitedly.

"We will," she giggled.

While we ate dinner, we told him all about the trails.

"They sound awesome!"

"Mom would have loved them," Faith said.

"Yeah, I bet she would have," he answered solemnly.

My mom died about 3 months ago due to a shooter on the street. My dad had to get a new job to support us, so we moved here. He hates his new, demanding job; it is owned by the government, just like everything now. He never has time for anything else, and he can't trust anyone there.

"Maybe you could come with us sometime," I said breaking the silence.

"I would love to! The next chance I get, I'll go. I'll try my hardest to get some time off," he responded sincerely.

Faith and I went straight to bed after dinner because we were tired from the day's hike. The next day, after we were done with our homework, we decided to go back. After about ten minutes of walking again, I noticed a creek that curved around to where we couldn't see. "Where do you think that leads to?"

"I don't know," she said. "Wanna go check it out?"

"It's off the trail, though."

"I know," she answered directly.

"Okay," I said thrilled she wanted to see as well.

Cautiously we followed the tiny stream. The forest got even more stunning as we went. We saw tiny fish in the stream, birds in the trees, and squirrels merrily hopping around in the layer of dead leaves on the ground. There were a few trees that fell down over the stream, so we could go from one side to the other, or we could walk across the larger rocks in the creek. We took rests along the long walk and skipped rocks or looked around.

"We should start heading back," I said.

"Okay. Are you hungry?" Faith asked.

"Starving!"

"Sometime we should eat here, like a picnic!" she suggested.

"Good idea! We can do it this weekend."

As we walked home, we made our plan. We looked around for a cool spot to eat, and then finally found the perfect spot. There was a cliff on the side of a gigantic hill overlooking the main trail. The hill went all along the trails and you can't see over it anywhere. The cliff's two sides are steep, but not enough to make it so we couldn't climb. The very tip of the cliff has a large tree, and then it drops straight down in the front. The tree's roots intertwine the entire cliff.

"That's the spot!" I said.

"It's perfect," she agreed.

***

It was Saturday at 11:32 a.m. and we packed our basket and were ready to go.

"Hey Dad! We are off to the trails again. Do you want us to call you when we are coming home?" Faith asked our dad.

"Just text me; I'll be at work," he responded.

So with that we were off. Faith and I followed the trail right to the cliff.

"I'll go first, so you can catch me if I fall," she said holding the basket in one arm and climbing with the other.

We scrambled up the cliff, heaving ourselves up by the roots of the large tree. When we made it to the top, we stopped and admired the beautiful place. Then we walked carefully to the tip of the cliff and set down our stuff. First we set out our blanket and put the basket on top so it wouldn't blow away. We settled down on some roots that resembled chairs.

"The wind is really strong up here," I said.

"Better hold on to our stuff tightly!"

Then we began eating our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and apples. Faith asked, "Can you hand me a napkin?"

"Sure," I said digging in the basket, and then handed one to her. As I handed it to her it began to blow away.

"Hey!" she said to me.

"That was all your fault," I argued.

"Whatever! Go grab it!"

"You!"

"Oh come on," she said getting up and dragging me up the hill to fetch it with her.

It kept blowing up the hill, so we followed it. The dead leaves covering the ground made it slippery. Sometimes we would get close, and then another burst of wind would blow it higher.

"Let's just give up," she said.

"Look how high we are. We might as well keep going now."

We climbed the enormous hill until we could barely see the trail.

"Okay, this is ridiculous," I said. "How did we not get it by now?"

After that, one big burst went by. The napkin went up and then straight down, but we didn't see it land on the ground.

"Where'd it go?" she asked frantically.

"I don't know."

Faith and I continued to where it went and then we stopped dead in our places. The entire hill drops off; the ground was nowhere to be seen, just darkness. Astonished, we could not say a word. We just stared.

Eventually, I had managed to say, "What is it?"

She just stared and shrugged. I reached out my hand to put it over the hole but there was an invisible wall. Touching it gently, I followed it with my hands with no signs of an end.

"Emma, I think we should leave," she said terrified, "and I'm going to text Dad." She checked all of her pockets for her phone. Nothing. Then she looked at me.

"We left them down in the basket..." I said. "Let's just try to walk around it and see how big it is."

"Okay. I'm marking an X in this tree so we know where our stuff is."

Then we began walking. After walking for a while, we gave up.

"How is this going to solve anything?" Faith yelled at me. "There is still a giant hole!"

"I don't know! What do you want to do then?" I responded frustrated.

We stood there, looking around for any kind of answer. Just then, a man walked up from behind us and said, "Waiting for something?"

"Hello?" Faith said confused.

He grinned and said, "I see you found our home."

"Who's?" we asked.

"Our's," he said nonchalantly. He walked to the hole, pulled a card out of his pocket, and held it on the wall. Then he walked toward us and pushed us in.

***

Screaming, we reached for each other in the darkness until we held hands. It was a long fall. It felt endless. We eventually stopped screaming, but we didn't speak to each other; we were too afraid. Then we saw a light. It was a lantern hooked on the side of the hole. Then there were more, until the entire thing was lit up. The hole got smaller and smaller as we went down; the sides were closing in at a fast rate. We could see the bottom and we started screaming again because we thought we would die. The giant hole ended up as a smaller hole, still at a decent size, though. Suddenly the sides of the hole were gone, and there was a whole new layer of land. It was dark and lit up only by a bunch of lanterns. There was a small village below us, and we were still falling straight for it. We noticed some people below and they were standing around a giant tarp held up by long poles, which was placed under the hole. We were close now, we looked at each other, and then I closed my eyes prepared for the landing. We fell right into the tarp and bounced several times until we were settled. Stunned, I sat there not wanting to face the situation. Then I opened my eyes and looked at Faith also laying here flabbergasted. We got on our knees and climbed out of the tarp. People of all ages were crowding around.

"Welcome!" shouted many from the group.

In disbelief, I could only say, "What?"

"What is happening?" Faith questioned softly.

"Welcome to A New Life! We hope you enjoy it here," said a lady seeming to be about 80.

"I don't understand..." I said out of breath.

"Can someone explain to us what is going on? What is this place?" Faith asked.

"This is A New Life. It is our home, and it can be yours too."

"Why are you guys down here?"

"Thousands of years ago in 2021, a group of people, sick and tired of what was happening to the world and society, just started digging. For many years, people joined in in secret. They spent the rest of their lives digging a hole to escape reality. They made a big, invisible wall to keep out others. We make cards to scan and access it. When they were satisfied with the hole's massive size, they stopped and started digging this whole new layer to build a town. It is a good size, but we are still digging!"

"How do we get back out?"

"We have a helicopter but we only use it when we need to, but we grow our own food, run our own school, and we even have a doctor. We all just take trips up there sometimes to see above ground. We also have people who live up there sometimes; they have part time jobs and apartments up there to raise money for if we need it, but they live here most of the time. We only have a few phones down here; we try to keep away from them because they easily spread the corruptness of the real world. We always welcome new people."

"Well...it's amazing," I said.

"And crazy," Faith added.

"We know, but we have witnessed how people can tear apart a world already. So with that knowledge, we know what mistakes to avoid. We are starting over," the old lady said.

"Can you take us back up?" I asked.

"Are you coming back?" she asked back.

"We need to talk to our dad."

"Here," she said pulling a card from her pocket, "in case you decide to join us."

"Thank you."

"I'll get our pilot to take you up, just wait here," she said walking away.

The group of people around us watched us for a while, talking to each other, and then went back to what they were doing.

***

When we got back up, we went straight to our stuff and grabbed our phones. We called our dad, who has been trying to contact us because it is starting to get dark. We called him on our walk home and told him everything that happened.

As we walked in the door, he ran up and hugged us then said, "Pack your bags."

"Why?" we asked him.

"I thought it over while you were walking; we are joining them," he said with a stressed smile.

"Seriously? I mean there are a lot of things to consider..." I said before he cut me off.

"I'm sure. This is our chance to break away from everything that has happened lately," he said completely serious.

We rushed to get our stuff, still baffled by his response to all of this. Then we hopped in the car and drove to the trails which led us to A New Life. Faith and I led him to the hole and showed him the X she carved in the tree.

"Are you ready, Dad?" Faith asked.

"I'm ready to do anything to get away from this place."

We hugged, picked up our bags, swiped our card, and jumped down the hole once again.

"What's wrong with him?"

Maya Garringer

Riley hid 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 making his way to the door when her cell phone started to ring. She almost screamed, but she caught herself. It was her mom. "Bad timing", she thought. She declined the call and silenced her phone. She noticed the dark figure grunted and started looking around. She knew she had to think quickly or it, whatever "it" was, would find her. Then, although risky, she made a plan. She went to the camera on her phone and turned on the flash. She turned on a video and slid it across the room. "Maybe it won't know what it is", Riley expected. It quickly followed the bright light. It picked it up and laughed. Its menacing laugh caused her to shiver.

"I know you're here! Don't try to hide," it said. Its voice went up and down at an extreme rate making it hard for her to understand. She couldn't tell if it is human or not, it spoke English but its voice was too strange. Maybe they are using something to change their voice, but who would go through all that trouble when breaking in to someone's house?

"Riley, come out here!" it said.

"How does it know my name?" she wondered.

"Seriously, it's Jack."

"Jack? What's my little brother doing here?" she questioned in her head. She was hesitant to come out. "Is it actually him?" She waited for him to speak again before leaving the closet. Jack is a kind-hearted 22-year-old, starting his 4th year of college. He and Riley have always been close. He was constantly there for her because it was in his nature. Jack was tan, short, and wide, as they would call him.

"Riley! I am worried about you; you didn't answer my text earlier!"

"It must be him," she thought remembering the text she forgot to answer, that said: Are you alright? because she was sick the week before.

"Jack I'm in here!" she said trying to get out of the mess on her closet floor. "You scared me so much! What's wrong with your voice?"

"I think I am sick now, I'm going to the doctor's tomorrow," he answered pulling her out of the closet. When they stood up she noticed how strangely tall he seemed in the dark, and his hands felt huge and cold holding hers.

"Let me turn on a light real quick," she said trying to find a light switch.

"No, that's alright!" he said. "I am leaving right now; I just wanted to check on you. Get some sleep, alright?"

"Oh, okay. See you at church tomorrow morning?"

"I'll try to make it if I feel better, goodnight," he said sneaking out the door.

"Goodbye..." she answered as he rushed past her. She felt he was in a hurry, which is strange for this time of night. "Maybe he's eager to get to bed," she thought.

***

When the morning came and she was getting ready for church, Riley noticed blood on the hand he helped her up with. "That's strange. I wonder where that came from." Later she also noticed Jack wasn't at church. "He's probably still sick. He did not sound good last night," she thought. She went home thinking about visiting him. She made him some soup that their mother taught her to make, that they always eat when they are sick. "Maybe this will help, if Mom didn't already bring him some." When she got to his house, his back door was locked, which was unusual. She went to the front door and knocked.

He came to the door and responded with his eerie voice again, "Who is it?"

"It's Riley, let me in! I have something for you."

He hesitated a moment, moving around behind the door, and then opened it. She now looks up to him, like she noticed last night. She has always been taller. "He shouldn't still be growing," but she put that thought out of her mind quickly. He was pale and stood awkwardly. And his face...something was different. "Maybe it is the nose," she thought, "or maybe his face is thinner." Actually, all of him looked thinner.

"Hey, are you alright? You must be really sick. Have you seen the doctor?" she said breaking the silence as she walked in.

"I'm fine. I will see him later today," he answered bluntly.

"I think you should see him right now!"

"No! You're here and I can go later. I'm serious, I'm fine. Sit down," he said gesturing to the kitchen table. "What do you have for me?"

"Some of Mom's soup, but I made it."

"Well Mom already brought me some, but I'll get you a bowl. You made it so you should enjoy some."

He went to get a bowl in the cabinets. He searched the cabinets for a bowl.

"There in here..." she said grabbing a bowl from one of the unchecked cabinets, where they always are.

"Oh! I must have forgotten," he said uncomfortably.

"You sure you're alright?"

"Yes."

Jack rolled up his sleeve to pour her the soup.

"I thought you had a tattoo on your wrist!" she said, noticing it missing.

"Umm, no. You must be thinking of someone else."

"I'm SURE you had a tattoo, right there," she said pointing to his wrist.

"Well, I don't obviously. Maybe you're the sick one."

She thought about how strange he is acting. "He's so different," she thought.

That night she tried to figure out what the problem was. She searched the internet for similar situations. She found articles about a woman from years ago who had the same symptoms at first, but then she started to look normal again after about a week. Later on she started killing people in the community. They could not find a connection between her and the victims. The police found her after one of the murders and killed her when she tried to escape, or "fly" as the officer said. All of the people she killed died by the same mysterious gas that the forensic scientists could not recognize. A week after she was buried, her body was assumed stolen from her grave, but the evidence looks like she dug her way out. They never figured out who did it, because there were no human finger prints, or where the body went. People said that they saw strange lights in the sky, near the cemetery that night. The police never did any following up to the mystery, after finding no evidence. Other people wrote their own theories on the story. They say her body was taken over by an alien, and even though she died in her human form, she survived in the original creature. Each and every theory ended with the same thing, that one will come back some day, and try to finish what they started.

After doing the research, she was petrified. "There has to be another explanation," she thought.

***

The next day she went to ask Jack what the doctor said. She knocked on the door, timidly. She saw him look through the window. When he noticed it was her, he left the window for a moment again and opened the door.

"Hi! I just wanted to check on you again. How are you feeling?" she said trying to sound casual although she was nervous to talk to him.

She examined him. He was shorter than yesterday, but he was still taller than her. She noticed his face was getting closer to how she remembered him.

"I'm feeling even better today!" he said with false excitement. His voice was surprisingly backed to normal already.

"What did the doctor say?"

"Well, I decided not to see him. I'm getting better quickly. Don't you see?"

"Yes, but I really think he should check you out. Just in case, you know? You could have anything, and you still don't look your best," she said almost begging him to go.

"I told you I'm fine!" he yelled lashing out at her.

She stopped talking, fearful he might yell again. Then he got her a cup of coffee, and once again, rolling up his right sleeve. She glanced down to his wrist once again. The tattoo was there this time, but it was faded.

"See! I knew you had a tattoo. Why couldn't we see it yesterday? Why did you lie about it?"

"You were looking at the wrong wrist. I don't have one on this one see?" he said pushing back his other sleeve.

"I know we talked about this one! You're right handed, and I remember you using this arm!"

"Please leave; I don't have time for this! I'm busy right now."

"Okay, but..."she began.

"But what?" he answered aggressively.

"Never mind," she said too scared to finish. She could not believe how he was acting; she remembered how gentle he used to be. "What's wrong with him?" she kept thinking.

After a few weeks of trying to avoid the topic of Jack, she heard news on the Facebook that his neighbor died. They were still trying to find the cause of dead. Riley had a constant thought of the woman said to be possessed by an alien, but kept trying to push it further back in her memory. Then the deaths kept coming. In that time she remembered trying to take a video of the dark figure in her room. That was the first day she realized something was wrong with him. The video was still somewhat dark, but enough to see clearly what was in front of the phone. The thing recorded was tall and slender. Whatever it was, was so discolored and deformed. The video captured the entire conversion when he was there. It was perfect evidence of the alien that possessed her brother. She knew the truth, but she couldn't turn him in. She couldn't do that to him. "Or could I?" she questioned. She spent hours thinking about what would be right. Riley knew he would keep killing if she didn't speak to the police, but he was family, or at least used to be. "Is there a way to kill the alien and not Jack?" she wondered, but she doubted she'd find an answer. Then she made a decision...she needed to tell someone. She put all of the websites where she read about the lady onto a flash drive and went to the police station.

They were stunned, confused, and in no mood to reason with her. They told her they need to stop it from killing more people, and didn't know how to kill it without killing him. Then the police went on their way to his house, and Riley sat in the back of one of the police cars. Then suddenly out of the darkness a creature ran out into the road and got hit by the car. Everyone darted out of the cars to investigate. It was the alien from her video.

"He must have left Jack's body!" Riley yelled. "Hurry we need to check on him he might be in trouble. Why else would it try to find someone new?"

After the alien possessed Jack for so long, it drained the life out of him and it needed to leave his body before it died as well. A few police cars went with her to Jack's house to find him lying on the ground. He was not breathing. They called an ambulance and brought him to the hospital.

***

"How do you feel?" she asked.

"I feel better, thanks for asking," Jack said softly.

She looked at him thinking about everything they have been through. "He's back to normal," she thought. She was happy to see him back to his regular self. He was always someone she could trust, but she lost that at the beginning. Like she couldn't believe it was really him.

"So, what happened to the alien?" he asked.

"It disappeared," Riley answered. "They lost him when they were trying to find a way to get him safely away to be examined."

"So they will be back again, won't they?"

"Yes...someday."

Rob's Gift

Maya Garringer

His grandpa gave it to him for his 36th birthday, May 27. It was ivory, the shape and design of a grandfather clock, with the black hands of the clock at 4:47, and a golden screw-on top. The glass, antique cologne bottle was beautiful, but he didn't know his grandpa well anymore and felt weird about taking the gift. Noah took the present anyway because he had fallen in love with the strange object. Later on, he noticed it couldn't be opened.

Noah used to visit his grandpa, Rob, every weekend because they lived very close. They quickly developed a close relationship and respect for each other. One summer, though, when Noah was spending the night, he awoke to two gunshots. His parents quickly ran into the room, brought him out of the window, and back home. That morning, they packed and moved three states over. Noah often asked about what happened and if he could visit Rob, but his parents never answered. He eventually moved on but never could forget.

Now that his grandpa has entered his life again, he assumed he might finally get the answers to all of his questions. That night he went to visit his mother and tell her Rob came to see him really quickly, but didn't tell her of the present. She told him she didn't want to hear about it, so he asked for his number and address. His mother kicked him out without giving him either. HIs mother, Lilly, has been very touchy ever since Noah's father shot himself on July 19, 28 years ago, when he was 36. No one knew his exact reason, but he left a note that read:

When the time runs out, so does his life.

I will give him 7 weeks.

The thing about the note was, it wasn't in his handwriting, but nobody thought anything of it.

Noah went home that night, after the visit to his mother, and looked at the bottom of his present. It had a little shred of paper taped to it that said, "Open quickly." Suspicious, Noah tugged and pulled on the lid, but it wouldn't move. His suspicion soon changed to anger. Why would Rob give him a present after all of these years that he can't open? He thought if he tried any harder, he would break it, so he put it on his dresser and tried to sleep. The next morning, his mother called saying Rob died in a house fire. They didn't find his body, but his neighbors saw him go inside right before and never came out. He told them before he was a heavy sleeper, so they called to wake him up, but they assumed it was too late.

After a week of the mysterious gift haunting him daily, he decided to go back to his mother and show her the present.

"Mom, I didn't think it would matter, but here is the gift Grandpa gave to me," he said handing her the delicate bottle.

Lilly stood in awe at what he had given her. She looked as though she would faint, so Noah tried grabbing it, but she was holding on so tight.

"Did he speak to you?" she asked softly.

"He only said, 'Take this, hurry!' and rushed away. I think he was busy."

"Rob gave that to your father on your birthday 7 weeks before he committed suicide, and it was stolen after his death. What's inside?"

"I can't open it. There was a note on the bottom that said open quickly, but I gave up."

There was a long pause while they tried to collect their thoughts.

"Mom, what happened the last time I saw him?"

"We need to tell the police about this," Lilly said changing the subject.

"Please, Mom..."

"Come on."

"I'll drive."

They arrived at the police station and told them the entire, creepy story, except what happened 30 years ago. The policeman told them they couldn't do anything now because it could be a different gift, they can't question Rob anymore, and there isn't anything threatening them. On their way out, they noticed the, now old, man that helped them investigate Noah's father's suicide.

"Excuse me, Mr. Bright?" said Lilly trying to get his attention.

"Oh, Lilly! Noah! How nice it is to see you guys well," he said with a big smile on his face.

The next couple of seconds was a time of handshakes and hugs.

"Thank you, but not all is well," responded Noah. "We have some weird news, I guess. Do you remember the cologne bottle stolen from my father? Well, my grandpa gave it to me for my birthday just like he did for my father. We were wondering if this had to do with my father's death. Do you think you could look into it?"

"Could I talk to your grandpa?" asked Mr. Bright.

"He died in a house fire about a week ago," answered Lilly.

"Well, I don't think there will be anything to investigate. I'm sorry, but I don't see a problem now. Remember you can always contact me if anything happens."

"Okay. Thanks," said Noah.

Five more weeks passed and Noah's suspicion was at its highest. The past six weeks were the most stressful and uncomfortable weeks of his life. Why can't he open it? What's inside? Who is his grandpa? Why did he do this? The more he thought about it, and it's all the time, the crazier and more obsessed he became.

That Monday, Noah got a letter in the mail that said:

One week left.

He went to his mother's house and they immediately went to see Mr. Bright.

"That's strange. I remember the note your father left before he committed suicide. There could be a connection there, thanks for contacting me. Well, I can't imagine who this could be if it isn't Rob," said Mr. Bright.

He brought them to a computer in the police station and he looked up a picture of the note Noah's father left.

It was in the same handwriting.

"Please help us!" cried Lilly.

"It's obviously somebody who knew your father," said Mr. Bright. "Do you have any ideas? Anyone you've talked to about it?"

"I can't think of anyone," Noah replied.

They discussed the strange situation and stayed there for hours, but they couldn't fit the pieces together.

Four days later it was July 18, one day before the anniversary of Noah's father's suicide. It was late and Noah has been terrified for the next day, and doesn't know what to expect. He sat on the floor of his room, gripping the cologne bottle, crying.

The early morning came, 4:47. Noah woke to the creaking of his front door. He jumped up and turned on the lights to his living room. Rob stood calmly in front of the door with a gun in his hand and a smile on his face.

"Have you been expecting me?" Rob said.

"What are you doing to me?" yelled Noah.

"I see you haven't opened my present, that's rude," said the old man stepping slowly toward Noah as he chuckled.

"Stay away."

"Do you have anything to say first, then?"

Noah thought for the right words to say, but blurted out, "What happened 30 years ago?"

"Your parents didn't tell you?"

"No."

"Smart. Your parents think I'm crazy," laughed Rob. "That night you were over, your parents came to check on you, and they saw me making what is in that bottle. So, your father took one of my guns and shot at me, and I shot him back, naturally. They ran out the door. I came to look for you, but you were gone."

"What's in here?" Noah questioned fearfully.

"It's too late for that now!"

Rob shot him in the leg and leaped toward him. Noah threw the present at him, shattering it. A black fog began to rise, along with Rob. He shot Noah in the chest and set the gun in the young man's hand. Noah's last glimpse was of his old grandfather picking up the pieces and a small object. As he lifted it up the thing, it shown so brightly, all he could see was the white light engulfing his room before he died.

Trying to Change the World

Maya Garringer

"I want to make a difference. Nothing I do seems to matter," said Kate glumly.

"It does Honey, you just have to try harder for someone to notice," her mom, Amber, answered.

"Ugh," she responded with a sigh.

Kate and Amber were making hamburgers and veggies on the grill for dinner. That day, Kate tried putting up fliers (from her church) in her high school about how anyone could help the community, but the principal, Mrs. Rossel took them down because it is "school rules."

"I don't see how this would affect anyone. Well...only in a positive way. That's the point. Does Mrs. Rossel even care about the community?"

"Kate, don't be rude. She is only doing her job."

"Mom, but they've never talked about this rule!"

"Okay, I'm sorry, but rules are rules," her mom said trying to be understanding.

"I say put them back up!" her dad, John, said entering the room where they were setting up the table.

"Don't say that! She'll get in trouble," Amber said to her husband fiercely. "Don't listen to your father."

"You said to try harder, and Kate said she wanted to make a difference," answered John.

"I didn't mean go against the rules John," Amber said offended.

"It doesn't matter anyway, she'd just take them back down," Kate said breaking the argument.

"Cheer up, you'll figure it out," John said. "Let's eat dinner already."

The next day came and she got more fliers. Should I put them back up? she thought. There's no point.

She went to school, regretting she isn't spreading the word. It is so important to do help the community; it doesn't matter if the fliers were from a church! She decided to do something else, hand out the fliers somewhere else...outside of the school. Like where the students get dropped off or Walmart. There are always people at the doors. What about at the park? She kept trying to find new places to do it. Tomorrow I'll do it in front of the school.

The next day her dad dropped her off early to hand out fliers. She got them out of her backpack and then started to think, nobody will care about this; I should just give up now. So her thoughts got the best of her and she went inside.

"How did it go?" her mom asked.

"I decided not to do it. I don't think it would matter."

"Well whatever you think is best. Do you want to try somewhere else?"

"No, I should just forget about it, I think."

"Okay Sweetie," her mom said trying to comfort her. "Whatever you want."

"No!" her dad said. "Do you want to make a difference or not?"

"Yeah, I guess," Kate answered.

"Then keep doing this, it's a great start! Start doing something that will make a change!"

"I don't know, I think I was just being stupid earlier. I don't need to 'change the world.'"

"Okay, but I consider thinking it over some more. You might change your mind."

That night Kate stayed up for hours debating whether she should do something or not. Is Dad right? Should I try something? She couldn't comprehend her feelings. She wants to do something, but she didn't want any of her friends to think it's dumb. Maybe I'll start at Walmart...there is always people there asking for donations and stuff.

That Saturday, her dad took her to the store to hand out fliers. People seemed to appreciate what they were doing. She felt kind of proud, but also a little embarrassed. Maybe I should do more than just this.

The next day at church she asked her pastor if there is any other way she can spread the word about the community. They talked about different ways she could help until she had to leave. I think this might work!

The next afternoon, after school, she started baking with her mom. They made brownies, chocolate chip and sugar cookies, and cupcakes with strawberry icing. Every item had a note attached with a different way to productively contribute to the community. Then they went in their front yard and tried to give them out. Many people took them and said they might actually try to do what the notes said. Kate was surprised with the feedback, and was excited about continuing her idea of making a difference.

She was fully engaged now. She was ready to start changing the world. I can do much bigger than this now.

She got a group of friends to help her in her next step, which was to get the word out in her school. They made a banner that said: Come on students, let's do something awesome! (The banner had pieces of paper on it. Each had a dare on it things like: Give someone a compliment, or, Pick up 7 pieces of trash off the ground.) Kate loved seeing the smiles the students had when they read the dares.

That afternoon Mrs.Rossel announced that whoever hung up the banner needs to come to the office.

Should I go? What will she say? What if nobody confessed? Then what will she do? I should just admit it. I didn't do anything bad. After school, she went to the office and there was a line...that's strange, she thought.

When it was her turn she took a deep breath and said, "I put up the banner."

"Okay, okay, I get it! 'Everyone put up the banner!'" said the secretary furiously and sarcastically.

"What do you mean?"

"Basically the whole school came to tell me that they put up the banner!"

"Really?" she responded. Wow, I can't believe this.

"Yes!" answered the frustrated lady.

"But I actually did, it was my idea, too. My friends helped me with it, but I'm responsible. I think Mrs. Rossel believes it is me anyway."

"Whatever...I need to talk to her about the whole situation anyway. What's your name?"

"Kate Hass."

Kate went home anxious and proud. All of those people, who don't even know me, took a stand for a class mate! She was so appreciative of their boldness.

Her ideas worked. She made a difference.

Living a Double Life

Maya Garringer

I went over the facts over and over and over, but they were missing something. I didn't know what it was...I guess that is what the investigation is for. We are going to investigate tonight, as soon as we get everything prepared.

Just this morning was the murder of 17-year-old Jared Part. His parents contacted the police after they did not see him after school, and he didn't respond to their phone calls or texts.

"He didn't tell us he was going anywhere and he usually answers his phone," said his desperate mother.

I was always one to pick up on things quickly, but I was very confused. For once I was almost excited for the investigation.

***

The house was dark and eerie. Mr. and Mrs. Part haven't been in the house since his death because they have been staying this Mr. Part's parent's house.

Jared's room looked as I expected it to look. Some band posters here and miscellaneous objects there, nothing weird. I thought that we wouldn't find anything, but I was wrong.

We began searching the room. We looked everywhere.

I began looking under his mattress. Nothing. I looked in his lampshade. Nothing. My partner, John, found his iPhone in the bottom drawer of his dresser.

"That's a weird place to keep it," he said.

"Check the messages," I said while checking his closet.

It had 12 new messages: 5 messages from his mother, 4 from his father, and 3 from an unknown number. The first message from the strange number was a link that went to a website that was a black screen, except a box requiring a username and password. The second message was a date: November 7, 1991. The next was a name: Nathan Harper.

The Battle Within

Nicole Stachelski

Fear is something that almost everyone has. If you fear something, you are going to more than likely try to stay as far away from it as possible. Fear is a very ancient and universal emotion in man. It can be defined as the sensation that you are in danger, that something bad is about to happen. Sometimes, you need to face your fears. You may be scared at the moment, but the experience afterwards will be priceless. They can often times cause you to panic in the occurrence.

A few weeks after shark week, my family and I went on vacation to Virginia Beach. There had been a few attacks that happened during shark week in the same body of water that I would be swimming in, and that terrified me. We enjoyed the view from our hotel balcony. There were a few parasailers here and there out in the water from a distance. My mom started becoming interested and started to look up ticket prices and places close to us. She thought it would be a neat experience, so she booked all of us parasail times. She did not tell us about any of this. She wanted to keep it a secret. The day next day, she finally told us that she had a surprise for us, so we all got in the car not knowing where we were going. As we pulled into the parking lot, I knew exactly what she had planned. I did not want to do it. My mom wanted me to have the experience, so she forced me to go, even though I did not want to. I refused to even get on the boat. After about an hour, my mom said to me, "Nicole, it won't hurt you. You need to at least take the boat trip and you can decide if you want to go up or not." So I replied, "Okay mom, I'll only take the boat ride"

As I was getting on the boat, the captain asked me, "Why are you so against this idea?" I answered with one word. "Sharks." I said. The captain's name was Brian. He put all of our life jackets on us to make sure they were on right, then he started the boat and we headed off to about a mile away from shore. He stopped the boat and asked, "So, who wants to go first!" I very quickly started to panic because I did not want my mom to strap me down to the bar, but that's exactly what she did. She walked me over to the end of the boat, and they harnessed and strapped me to the metal rod connected to the parachute. They immediately started the boat on full speed and watched as I drifted up in the air. Within 2 minutes I was 1000 feet up in the air, looking over the vast ocean and the beautiful sunset. I could see the hotel windows reflecting the sun's radiant orange rays.

I looked below me, and saw the water a thousand feet below me and I started to panic. Words could not describe the fear I was feeling in that moment. I then looked back up at the sunset and started to calm down, because if I panicked, the parachute would move and I could possibly fall. They kept me in the air for about fifteen minutes. I was really enjoying the stunning view of the beach sunset. That was the most peaceful thing that I had ever heard, all you could hear was the birds chirping above you and the wind blowing your hair back as it wisped by your ears. That was better than any other relaxation on vacation. As they reeled the rope back in, I was sad because of how short the ride seemed. The closer I got to the boat, the more nervous I became, because I definitely did not want to be dipped in the water. Brian was trying to dip me into the water by letting me almost fall into the water by going slow and speeding back up when I was submerged, but I dodged all three times he tried. I held onto the bar with my hands and pulled by feet up doing an upside down plank and held my body parallel with the waves of the ocean. I did not get wet because I did this. I approached the boat landing and unstrapped myself from the bar and the harness that I was wrapped up in. I carefully made my way to my seat so I wouldn't fall while the waves were crashing into the side of the boat making me unbalanced. Everyone was asking me, "How did it go? Did you like it?" I just didn't say anything and I let them find out for themselves.

Fear can hold us back from things that we want to do. Unfortunately, I had to learn this the hard way. Parasailing was definitely worth the time and money. It calmed me and it was very relaxing. It ended up being my favorite thing I did on that vacation. You should always take advantage of the opportunities given to you, because you might not get to do them another time. You never know, you might surprise yourself and enjoy something you thought you would hate. It won't hurt anything to just try. Fear is something that almost everyone struggles with sometime throughout their life. It is an internal conflict that we have to learn to overcome.

Another Day, Another Mystery

Nicole Stachelski

Anything can happen when you least expect it. Life is taken for granted by most people, until something happens to someone they love. Life lessons are learned by the smallest things in life. Riley Smith is a sophomore in college at Vincennes University. She lives off campus in an apartment of her own, about 20 minutes away from school. Every weekend, Riley is always hanging out with at least one of her friends. Her best friend's name is Cierra Hart. Riley and Cierra spend almost every weekend with each other.

One Halloween weekend, in 2008, Cierra and I went out to a haunted house in Indianapolis. This was a well-known, best rated haunted house in the state of Indiana. We were terrified, but excited to go to this haunted house. Indy was about an hour drive from where we lived. We started heading that way at around 7 o'clock P.M. I planned with Cierra that we could meet some of our friends that live in Indy at the haunted house. We pulled up to the parking lot and the line was almost two miles long. We waited and waited. Finally, 3 hours later we were at the front of the line talking to the people around us. We were next in line to go. The tour of the haunted house took us 20 minutes to walk through. We screamed almost the whole time through. They had people in there that jumped out at you with chainsaws and axes. Cierra started to talk back to the guys who were trying to scare the victims that walked through the haunted house. Cierra said to the men, "I'm not afraid to punch you guys!" and we all headed back to the parking lot. When we got in the car to drive back home, Cierra turned to me and said "That was the best haunted house I've ever been in! I just hope nothing happens like that in real life." I said reassuringly, "Oh, nothing will happen. You have nothing to worry about, Cierra." We saw someone following us, but didn't think anything of it since it is Indianapolis and there is a lot of people going to close places. I dropped Cierra off at her house. We both live by ourselves by our college campuses. Cierra got out of my car and said, "Thank you for this amazing night! Drive safe and I'll talk to you tomorrow. Text me when you get home," as she started walking toward her house. When she got inside, she didn't realize she forgot to lock the door behind her. After I left, the car that had been following us the whole time, pulled into Cierra's drive way but I thought it was our other friends, so I didn't get out to say hello since it is almost midnight.

The next morning, I called Cierra to make sure she got in okay. I started to get worried when Cierra didn't answer three calls in a row, but I figured she was still sleeping. I left her a text that told her to call me when she could to make sure she was okay and wasn't scared still just in case something happened. When 3 o'clock P.M arrived, I left Cierra a voicemail on her phone that said "Hey Cierra, I'm getting really worried about you, so if you could contact me as soon as you can I would appreciate that. I hope nothing happened to you."

A whole day passed by, without getting any contact from Cierra. I needed to drive to her house to make sure everything was okay. When I got there, I ran up to an opened door. I started panicking when I saw one of Cierra's high heels on the floor with a red substance on it. I looked all around the house, and couldn't find Cierra anywhere. When I got to Cierra's room, I saw her phone was lying in a pool of blood with the number 911 typed in but never called. By this time, I thought she would be lucky if she even saw Cierra alive again. That's when I heard a muffled scream coming from the closet. I opened the closet to see Cierra with her mouth duck taped looking like someone was trying to suffocate her. I immediately untapped her mouth crying tears of relief. Cierra started crying and hugged me as she told me the whole story. Cierra said, "All I remember was walking inside and getting into my bathroom to take my contacts out and wash my make up off. When I got into my bed, I could feel someone watching me. I reached toward the side of my bed and grabbed one of my high heels because it was the closest thing I could use for defense just in case anything happened to me. Then, out of nowhere I heard someone breathing really heavy right beside my ear, so I grabbed my heel and stabbed the "air" toward where I heard the breathing coming from. A man screamed with a muffled noise, and I ran across the room to turn the light on. I saw a man with my shoe in hanging from the side of his cheek, and he ran toward me with a fork in his hand. I slammed the door behind me as I darted out the door toward the kitchen, where I hid. He pulled his inhaler out of his pocket and started to use it, but I accidentally coughed. He dropped his inhaler and started scavenging through the mess trying to find me, but ended up finding me. When he found me he tied me up with a sweatshirt that was in my closet, and duck taped my mouth closed. He stole my wallet and fled from my house. I'm just glad that I'm okay." "I'm glad you're okay too. I was really starting to worry when you weren't answering your phone," I said. We called the cops immediately. I wanted to find the man that tried to murder Cierra. The cops showed up and I said to the main police officer, "I need you to try your best to at least find a fingerprint. This man is dangerous and will likely kill someone else."

In life, there are people that will come into your life as blessings. These blessings in your life should not be taken for granted. Anyone's life can be taken away from them when they least expect it. You won't truly understand what it's like to be in a situation like that, until you are actually in it. When you are, you will understand how precious your life is, and that you should make every day count.

My Dilemma

Nicole Stachelski

"The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there." – L.P. Hartley. My past has been a bit bumpy these past few years, but that's normal for a high school student, right? Like all people, I have learned from my past. I think every high school student has been or at least seen someone be in a relationship and knows how it works. Also, I'm sure that everyone has kept a secret from their best friend in order to save them from being hurt. I have been in that stressful situation. Nobody could ever imagine the stress or guilty pain of how it feels to lie to their best friend until they have been in that position.

My best friend is Olivia Copeland. Olivia and I both go to the same school, so we see each other every day. Also, my cousin, Ethan Crawn, goes to the same school as us, but he is a grade older. Ethan and I have grown up together and we always used to be with each other. Olivia has been my best friend for the past four years. We met on the first day of our sixth grade year when our lockers were right next to each other.

Before I met Olivia, Ethan had never talked to her. After Olivia and I started hanging out, he started to notice her. He came up to me and started asking me questions like, "Does she have a boyfriend? Does she know who I am? Can I talk to her?" "Go for it, E" I said. They started talking and hanging out a lot more than they used to. I called Olivia and said "Hey liv, did you still want to go see that movie that we've been talking about? It comes out tonight." And every time I asked to do anything with her, the response was always, "I'll go only if Ethan can come." As time progressed, I noticed that they were both wanting to hang out with me more individually. They spent less time together than they used to. I was wondering what happened, so I went to Ethan's house to talk to him and make sure everything was okay. "Hey Ethan, is everything okay with you and liv?" I said as I walked in the door. "Yeah, we are just fighting over something stupid right now, it'll be fine." He answered. "You need to call her and tell her to come over so that you guys can talk things out then," I said. She came over and I made sure they worked things out. The next day, they were back to their inseparable ways.

One day close to the end of the school year, I went shopping with Olivia. As I was talking to her, she seemed like a different person. She used to be such a bubbly, free-spirited person, but now she barely gave a real smile or laugh. I knew something went wrong somewhere. "Is there anything that has been bothering you or something that happened recently?" I asked worriedly. "Can we go back to your house and talk about things?" she replied. "Of course." We got into my car and I drove us back to my house. I sat down on the back porch with her at 1 a.m. "Is everything okay?" I asked concerned. " No. Ethan and I have been fighting a lot lately and it is really upsetting me."

The next day at school, I walked behind them to listen to what they were saying. As I walked my distance, all I could hear was back and forth arguing with each other. They argued about everything you could possibly think of, so I came up to Ethan's locker to hear his side of the story. "What is causing all of this fighting?" I said. "She is busy all the time, I understand that she is on a nationwide softball team, so she travels all around the United States, but she never has time for me so I get mad." He replied angrily. I walked away because I had to use the bathroom. As I was in the stall, I heard Lillie Smith, the school's most popular cheerleader, and her clique walk into the bathroom. "I am so excited that Ethan finally asked me to go to that party. We are going to have so much fun." I overheard Lillie say. "What if Olivia finds out?" said one of Lillie's friends. "Trust me, she won't." Lillie immediately fired back, "Got it?"

Dismayed and in shock, I waited until they left to come out of the bathroom so they wouldn't see that I was the one in the bathroom. I knew I had a decision to make. I could either keep it to myself and avoid breaking Olivia's heart, or I could lie to her and not tell her the full truth and let her find out on her own. I don't know what to do. I am going to go approach Ethan. I walk up to Ethan's locker and slam it shut, looking at him with disappointment and infuriation. He knew exactly why, and I could see it in his face. "Uhh, what's wrong?" he said. "Are you kidding me right now? I know what you're doing and you can't hide it from me. I can't even believe you." I fired back at him. "Okay, I know it's wrong but please don't tell Olivia." He answered. "I have to since you won't." I said as I walked away in anger. I could hear him yelling behind me and I just ignored him. I walked to my class and sat down in the seat next to Olivia.

The last day of school, I told myself that I was going to tell her, because that's what she would want me to do. I went to her house to pick her up for school, as I did every day of the school year. When she got in the car, I turned to her and said, "Liv, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you earlier but I was trying to save you the heart ache. I overheard Lillie in the bathroom, and Ethan is cheating on you. They went to the party together last weekend. I wasn't planning on telling you but if it were me, I would want you to tell me so I am telling you." She looked at me dumbfounded and speechless, like a deer in headlights.

I still remember what a gut wrenching feeling it was when I had to tell her. My heart was torn into pieces and shredded. I was scared for her and didn't know how she would react. I felt guilty knowing my cousin was hurting my best friend and there was nothing I could do about it. Secrets aren't my favorite things by far. They put me in the most difficult situations.

The Mysterious Haunting

Nicole Stachelski

One cool October night I was getting ready for a good night's rest. Just as I was snuggled under the soft down comforter, I heard a noise. I quickly darted out of my bed and crept toward the door. As I slowly turned the knob and gently pushed the door open, I shrieked when I saw my name written on the wall across the hall. As I peeked out the door, I caught a glimpse of a red substance on my wall. I opened the door all the way and made my way over to the wall very slowly and carefully watching all the way around me. The wall said "Be careful, Anna" in red lipstick that was drug out from my bathroom.

My dog, Marshmallow, and I, Anna, just moved into this apartment a few weeks ago. I went from a beautiful blue house with a lake view to a small, run-down apartment complex five thousand miles away to the town of Lincolnshire, England. I moved here for better schooling and more college studies. The apartment I chose was definitely not the best by any means, but it could get me by for a couple years while I finish getting my degrees. I started getting concerned about the place because of all the noises and creaks I was hearing, so I went and knocked on my landlord's door. I heard his footsteps coming to the door and saw his eye through the peephole. He opened the door saying in a soft voice as if he was sleeping a minute ago, "Yes, what do you want." I replied, "Sorry to awake you, Sir, but is there anything that happened in my apartment before I moved in?" He instantly went pale and in a shaky voice answered, "Is there any particular in which you are asking this?" "Well," I said, "there has been some strange things happening in this apartment. I heard a strange noise, like the slamming of a window or a door, so I darted out to see what it could have been. To my surprise, there was a tube of my lipstick on the ground that had been used to write Be careful, Anna on the wall. I don't know how someone would know my name, I don't know anyone here. I just thought that was out of the ordinary. Do you know of any previous activity in this apartment?" He immediately turned ghost white and hurriedly said, "Uhhh, I think I hear my phone ringing" and sprinted inside locking the door behind him.

I could hear him breathing heavily as he had his back against the door. I just went back to my apartment and started to get ready for the day, since it was only 9 o'clock in the morning. I washed my face, put my contacts in, and as I was brushing my hair I hear a noise coming from the kitchen. I walked out of the kitchen to see a box of Life cereal laying on the ground with my dog sniffing around it. I knew my Marshmallow hadn't knocked the box over, because he was laying on the floor in the bathroom as I was brushing my hair beside him. I put the box back on the counter where it was, and didn't think it was a big deal because it was probably the wind. The window is open and blowing in pretty hard right behind the box of cereal.

I had just moved here, so I am still trying to find a job to help pay for my expenses. Today, I have an interview for a local business that starts paying at $10 an hour. The business is called Silver Cone. It is a family ran small business, but since it is the only ice cream shop, it gets a lot of attention. The boss is short with strawberry brown hair and green glasses that match her glowing green eyes. I, on the other hand, am a taller lady with bleach blonde hair and blue eyes.

A few days later, I got a call from the owner saying that I got the job, and I start in a week. I was very excited to hear that I finally found a job that I would actually like, and get paid fairly decently. During the week, I only had 2 college classes to attend. Those classes are biology and photography. I finally found a full time job that I would actually like. They are flexible with hours, too.

That night when I was lying in bed thinking about how my future could possibly turn out, I heard a knock at my window. It couldn't have been a tree because I heard three slow, loud knocks paced with the same amount of time in between them. I got up and hesitantly looked outside to see a dark ominous figure standing there glaring at me, the only think I could see was his eyes. His eyes are a deep dark brown, almost black. I screamed and ran to the kitchen to grab my phone to call the police. By the time I got to the kitchen, he was already standing there guarding my phone. I screamed "WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME" I heard him chuckle. He wasn't walking, he was floating. His feet were not on the ground, they were hovered over the ground. He flew over toward me when I realized that I went right through him. This was not a man I was dealing with, I had a spirit on my case. I headed to my room and started to pack up my things. I convinced myself that I was moving, because this apartment is not a good complex to live in. There are ghosts and spirits in these apartments.

"During the fall was Halloween time, there is no way I am staying in this house with spirits on Halloween. I am moving out in the morning," I thought. I found a note on the ground as I was packing my things to move out. The note contained a threat. The thread was that even if I move, he will follow me and torture me. This torturing would include taking over my body. This man/spirit was the one writing me notes and leaving threats on my wall. If I left, he would kill me, follow me and take over my body to the point where I was fighting to kill myself. This was not a good spirit, it was a demon. I had to stay, I had no choice. I want to live. I have to stay here"

"Okay. Write the information down, put in a bag, and we'll bring it to the lab," I said.

"Already doing it," John answered.

We continued searching for clues. Below a large band poster on the wall, I noticed some pieces of his painted wall on the ground. I took off the band poster to find a hole in the wall.

"Hey! Bring me a flashlight," I yell to John.

We shone light into the hole in the wall. There was a gym bag sitting on a wood beam.

"Can you reach it?" I asked swinging my arms toward the bag.

He reached in the hole and successfully grabbed it. We opened the bag very cautiously. Inside was a stack of passports, from all different countries. They were Nathan Harper's, with birthdate November 7, 1991.

"What relationship does Jared have with this guy?" I said frustrated.

"I don't know. I think we need to do some research..."

We continued looking around the room.

"Eve, look at this," John said.

He held up an antique metal box. He opened the lid revealing a very expensive looking necklace charm.

"Maybe we should ask his parents about those. I suppose they would know what they are from." I said. I expected it was something passed down through the family.

Again, we carried on with the investigation. I noticed one of his shoes had duct tape on the heel. I took off the duct tape and a flash drive, labeled #1, fell on to the ground.

"John, this was hidden in the heel of his shoe," I informed him while showing him the flash drive.

"Okay, bag it up and check the other shoes."

I found nothing else, and we didn't find anything else suspicious in his room. We ended the investigation and went to work. We had so many questions that needed to be answered. Who is this kid? I thought.

***

We brought the evidence back to the lab. Again I was back to questioning everything, and while I did, I heard many conversations. Everyone was talking back and forth trying to find answers to their own questions. Rushing around in their rubber gloves excited with the new information.

"Can we hack into that website?" someone asked.

"I'm not sure..." someone else answered.

"Look up that name!"

"Plug in the flash drive."

"Check the fingerprints on those passports first!"

I began to join in the research and walked over to the computer where they were about to install the flash drive. When they inserted it, it began reading the flash drive. We hovered over the computer, anxious for the results. On the screen gave a list of the files downloaded on the flash drive. There was a file for pictures, and one for different documents. Before I got to see them someone interrupted me.

"Agent Eve, come look at these fingerprints! They match up with Nathan Harper and Jared Part. How could we not have noticed they have the same fingerprint?" said the man scanning the passports.

"Well that's impossible! Try it again," I answer.

"Agent Eve! We hacked into that website, and it is just a list of names," said someone else taking my attention.

"Look up their names!" I yelled in response as, once again, someone else spins me in a new direction.

"We contacted his parents, and they can come in later to see the box and necklace charm."

"Great, keep me updated," I said.

Then John came up to me with some surprising news.

"Eve, we looked up Nathan Harper. He is a criminal...nobody has been able to figure out his crimes, how he does it, and how he gets around like everyone else. It says here," he said pointing to the computer screen, "they lost sight of him again just last week."

"That looks like Jared!" I yelled.

"Everybody, come look at this!" he exclaimed getting everyone's attention.

Jared Part is Nathan Harper. How does he do it? I wondered.

Everyone was talking in a group, things like, "He lives two lives. Wait. Who killed him then? Was it the police in secret or someone he worked with?"

"The parents are here!" I heard someone say from the other room.

"Okay I'll be right there."

The depressed parents were sitting awkwardly in their chairs. I thought to myself, they don't really know their son at all.

"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Part. Please come in here, we have a few more questions than we first thought."

They walked into the small room holding hands, almost in tears. They sat down at the table and looked at the metal box then the necklace charm.

"Have you seen these before?" I asked them.

"My mother gave him that box," said Mrs. Part, "but I have never seen that charm. It looks expensive! Why would he have that?"

"What about you Mr. Part?"

"I haven't seen the charm before either..." he answered.

"Okay. We have got some information that might explain some of this. We have not figured it out, but I will try to tell you all I'm allowed."

"Thank you," they both said.

"Has your son ever left home for a long while?"

"Yes all of the time. He was very independent," said Mr. Part.

"Did he say where he went?"

"Not exactly. I think he usually just went to hang out with friends," Mrs. Part responded.

That was enough for me right now. I led them out and went back to the lab to be bombarded by people.

"The names of people on the website are people Nathan has victimized."

"The pictures on the flash drive were of people that matched up to be the victims."

"What did the parents say?"

"Can you explain this, Eve?"

We spent all night looking at the facts. Jared, or Nathan, was a criminal. We pieced everything together. How he lived his double life and how he finally stole the priceless necklace charm. The last question we had is...who killed him? We have no evidence of that. We found no fingerprints in his room to help us. We are stuck with this question...who killed him? We didn't wonder for too long before we received a dramatic confession.

***

We were working when a brick burst through the window. It had a letter on it that said, "Nobody should have found out." I read it aloud right before I heard gunshots coming from outside.

Everyone ducked down and hid. We all had our guns and vests on already, so we began carefully moving toward the window. Nobody was there, so we looked further. There laid a man with a gun in his hand and blood dripping from the side of his head. We made sure there was no one around and we went toward the man in the grass. He had a note in his other hand that said, "I killed him. Nathan was my partner, but he went too far. I still regret it, though. No one will ever be a better criminal that Nathan Harper, and there is no point of getting myself out of this now." What they did last may never be known, but what evidence we have of past crimes is morbidly phenomenal. We don't know if they had allies or plans that will come through after their deaths, so now we are back to the beginning with no ideas or evidence.

Writers and Teachers Involved

There were 212 Writers for this volume, covering Spring and Fall of 2015, so some kids moved from elementaries to middle school or middle school to high school. Nearly 12 percent of students in the TL School Corp were involved in this edition. Mrs. Kreiling's Creative Writing 1 and 2 classes typed and compiled the Elementary schoolers' work so you can read it, and edited most of the rest of the book.

TLHS Writers

(Mrs. Kreiling)

Michael Sundy

Jason Wisinski

Haley Ziolkowski

Autumn Clark

Sam Craig

Max Crawford

Ben Getz

Gabby Ploss

Amy Lyons

Anna Marvin

Macie Voss

Vanessa Ford

Colby Combs

Maddie Greear

Carlie Cornett

Emily Timmons

Hannah Robbins

Lauren Hardebeck

Bailie McCall

Anthony Reyes

Max Bottoms

Kristy Stoll

Hope Dodson

Emma Samuels

Berenice Orozco

Aaron Stafford

Ashley Marlatt

Allyson VanVoorst

Christian Culver

Deidra Roth

Emma De Leon

Hailey Morgan

Jacob Reagan

Jordan Owens

Liz Frazier

Lauryn Romero

Kellyn Harrison

Kyra Allee

Aylana Plummer

Alyssa Johnson

Ashlie Horn

Breeann Caldwell

Chrystian Hall

Connor Cain

Danielle Meiggs

Jacob Walton

Julie Blissitt

Maria Mecklenburg

Meaghan Hitz

Rachel Cudworth

Raquel Garcia

Marissa Jennings

Maya Garringer

Nichole Stachelski

RMS

(Mrs. Wrede)

Maleah Bradfield

Valerie Flores

Selene Sanchez

Taylor Moeloa

Kayla Bonner

Eastlawn

(Mrs. Weigand)

Jaslyn Medley

Tessa

Hallie Egalf

Carl

Emily Felz

Ty

Geneveive

Myca Hill

Sam

Clair

Caleb Weiss

Genevieve Stroetz

Daisy

Stella

Kinsey

Claire Downey

Wynston

Brayden Scott

Ryan Nickerson

Emily

Addy Corn

Alex

Bella M.

Ava

Jayden Matthews

Taylor

Olivia Nickerson

Katelynn

Maria

Gracie

Haley Smolek

Alex Harker

Delayma

Alexis

Morgan Galyen

Kinsey Snyden

Samantha

Cheyly

Chey

Alexis Boer

Delayna

Malachi

Luke

Oaklawn

(Mrs. Mengler)

Machya Cearing

Joann George

Zarahy Renteria

Noah Jansen

Angel Renteria

Brooklyn Gryszowka

Adriauna George

Lacey Parker

Stephanie McCarthy

Arianna Dold

Hailey Vogel

Violet Hatfield

Raul Casas-Hernandez

Victoria Mecklenburg

Chester

Joslin Hiller

Maddox Wertz

Davida Kyle

Ella Gennes

Gabriella Medina

Chloe Westerbrook

Jaylee Marmolijo

Colton Wertz

Piper Earley

Kenzie Kyle

Angel

Karsyn

Serena

Noah Arter

Josie

Austin Rubio

Zodie

Salvador

Camila

Meadowlawn

(Mrs. Deniston)

Isabeal Roth

Suri Clemons

Karen Argon

Kevin Hernandez

Caden Harker

Madalyn L

Haily Phillips

Griffin McAtee

Addi Ward

Gabby McAtee

Keeley Deniston

Manal Khdour

Alexander Dellinger

Ryan Russell

Layni Lawley

Ariel Davis

Aryana Neal

Carter Clark

Madalyn Alexander

Riley Miller

Grayce Noe

Kortney Kyser

Peyton Duttenhaver

Addi Ward

Megan Vancleve

Zachary Craig

Hannah Hodgen

Jayden Mathews

Madison Jurs

Evan Bruder

Jillian B

Shyanne

Evelyn S

Sarenity Inman

Emily Felz

Brady

Kevin

Yahir

Junior

Gabi Noe

Zach Craig

Carter

Olivia Hall

Alex

Kelly

Kaitlyn

Mylee Noe

Delton

Stephanie S

Kenya

Lea Dellinger

Jeronimo

Nicholas James Catt

Quinn

Elizabeth

Anthony

Sophia Davis

Lauren

Yamileth

Delfino

Angelica

Nicholas

Zeke

Alyssa

Michelle

Ella

Evelyn Scharer

Sinai Aguibra

Evan

Annabella Matthews

Alexis

Tessa Robertson

Jonas

Elisabeth Henderson

Olivia Mittal

Sophia Lapiedra

Nick Buttercup

AJ Ramsey

Brandon

Kevin Ranetez

Taylor

Madison Jurs

