A Love Away From Home by Jess G.

She had moved five times in the last year. Every time it was the same, she would go to a new school and just start to make friends when her dad would have to leave for work and she would get dragged along too. This time was different though. She met a boy and had become really close.

“Maddie, wake up.” My dad shouted out of the kitchen.

“I’ll be right down.” I yelled back.

I sat up and looked out of an unfamiliar window. I missed Jason so much. We had started off as friends and then as we got to know each other, we pushed are friendship a little further. All around my room there were pictures we had taken together at cotillion, the movies, and everywhere else. We were always together. My dad didn’t like him very much though. He though Jason was the kind of kid that would be arrested 20 times before he graduated. I knew that it wasn’t true, and he had to get to know him a little. The fact was that Jason was on the varsity basketball team, starting point guard. He was on the varsity soccer team too, starting center halfback. Polite, smart. He was the guy every girl wanted to call her boyfriend. Jason was the only guy that didn’t do drugs at our school. Didn’t drink. This also made all of the girls crazy. He always said that no one had to be drunk or high to be the life of the party. All you had to do was be yourself, and if they didn’t like that then screw them. I loved Jason for saying this. It said that he wasn’t like all of the other guys at school. It said that he wasn’t interested in being cool of it meant not being you.

The bell rung, it was time for first period, art. I got to the class and found out that only the weird kids were in it. They all drew about either death or fairy tales about themselves and their “future” husband. I sat there, thinking hard, about what to draw. I started with a face and then moved on to the body. Tall, dark, handsome. As I finished the picture I realized I had drawn Jason. Just then I felt a tear run down my cheek, and a hand on my shoulder seeing if I was okay. That was when I first time I met Gracie.

“Why hello there.” My dad said in a cheery mood to the new girl in our home.

“Hello, I’m Gracie.” She said in almost a whisper.

“Hey, dad,” I yelled as entering the door, “this is Gracie; we are just going to go up in my room and listen to music or something.”

“Well, if I can get you anything just holler.”

We ran up the stairs and into my room. She looked around at all of the pictures.

“Who is this?” She asked.

“That’s my boyfriend Jason.” I said getting a little teary eyed. “He lives pretty far away.”

“Oh.” She said felling sorry she even asked.

“It’s okay.” I said lying on my bed.

She came and sat next to me and starting talking about how she thought she was in love but really wasn’t. I knew I was in love though. Every time I was with Jason I got butterflies in my stomach. It always felt like we were talking to each other for the first time. Gracie didn’t understand how I felt, no matter how much she wanted to.

“It starts in my toes
and I crinkle my nose
where ever it goes I always know
that you make me smile
please stay for a while now
just take your time
where ever you go…..”

I hear playing on my cell. I pick it up and hear a voice I hadn’t in what felt like forever. Jason.

“How’s it going there?” he asked with a little giggle.

“Sucks!” I said back.

“I called to tell you that for your birthday I am going to have a surprise shipped to you.”

“Really? What is it?” I asked wanting to know the answer as soon as I asked.

“If I told you then it wouldn’t be a surprise now would it.” He was laughing now.

“But my birthday is tomorrow so, how is anything going to get here in time?” I asked hoping it would get the answer out of him.

“Oh believe me it will be there in time.” He said and hung up the phone.

The night went by as slow as it could have possibly gone. I got up probably 40 times in one hour. I wanted tomorrow to come and for me to get whatever it was that Jason shipped me. What could it be, what could it be, I kept thinking to myself. Whatever it was I knew I would love it.

Knock, knock. Who could be at the door this early in the morning? I walked down the steps and opened the front door. It was the present Jason got me! It wasn’t what I thought though. It was him! I screamed at the top of my lungs and jumped in the air at him. Just then my dad came running down the stairs with a baseball bat. He looked so stupid standing there not knowing what the heck was going on.

“Dad, dad, dad it’s Jason!!!” I yelled.

“Well, I can see that.” My dad said sounding a little grumpy.

“So do you like your surprise?” Jason asked.

“I love it sooooo much!” I said, still not over the fact that Jason was here with me. “I’m glad you like it. Now hurry up and get dressed. You have to show me around this town.” Jason said looking at my dad seeing for his approval.

I ran up the stairs and into my room closing the door behind me. What could I possibly wear? I shuffled through all of the clothes in the closet and then in my dresser. I had nothing. I’ll wear this I finally decided. A light pink sundress with white flip flops. Perfect. I walked down the stairs and saw Jason’s reaction.

“You look great.” He said with his jaw dropped.

“You are going to make me puke if you don’t go now.” My dad said kidding. He always knew how to ruin the moment.

I showed Jason everywhere around town. Where I went to school, where I hung out with friends, where the cool spot was to hang, and all of that good stuff. When he had to leave it was really hard on me. I didn’t want him to go. That’s when he asked me the question I had been waiting for since we said hi.

“Will you marry me?”

Short Story by Erika D.

Granny was walking down the street of her new town in the dying sunlight. This was entirely new for her because she never tried to move into a small town before. She liked the open country, where she could be far away from other people. Since her husband had died, the openness seemed more lonely than comforting. Her granddaughter convinced her to move closer to her, and this time, Granny was going to try and stay in this town for a while. She usually moved around a lot-once or twice a year, but she was getting older, and was sick of everyone getting on her nerves because they didn’t really know her well enough not to judge her.

As she came up on her house, she turned into her driveway and walked up her front steps. She closed the door behind her and walked into the warmth of her house. Although it was mid-January, she still took a daily walk around the square. She refused to be one of those old women who sat around knitting because it was too hard for her to walk. She loved to feel the cool air as she pressed on through the aches in her legs. This was her way to escape from everyone and just have some time to think.

She walked into the hall and put down her coat, simultaneously pressing the button on the answering machine to check for new messages. She smiled when she heard her granddaughter’s voice play. “Hi, Granny, just calling to check in on you…wanted to see how you’re doing. I found a great job for you if you’re interested; I think it’s something you’ll really love. Give me a call back. Thanks.” A loud beep left Granny in silence. She grabbed the phone and sat down on the couch, dialing the familiar numbers.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Jenna I just got your message.”

“Granny!” Jenna replied excitedly. “Ya, I know some people who live in your town who are looking for someone to look after their son. His name’s Doodle.” Granny was thinking quietly. She hadn’t worked for almost 5 years, when she was nursing, and she hadn’t even thought about working since her husband had died. Still, this was the chance she’d been waiting for. A job right in town, doing something she could easily do, and she would be helping someone out.

Sensing her grandmothers uncertainty, Jenna quickly said, “I don’t think they want you to do anything major, they’re just looking for someone to spend some time with them when they’re gone. The boy, Doodle, is crippled, and needs help walking. I know how much you enjoyed nursing, and I thought you might want to do this for the family.”

“Ok,” Granny finally answered. “I’ll do it.” They spent the next twenty minutes discussing the details, Granny assuring her that she would call them the first chance she got.

The next morning, Granny picked up the phone and called the number her granddaughter had given to her. A kind woman answered the phone, and Granny started up the story about Jenna telling her that they were looking for someone to care for their son. Granny told the woman about her past nurse work, and how much she would appreciate this job.

The woman laughed kindly into the phone and said that she would gladly hire Granny and that she didn’t need to persuade her any more. Her son needed someone to just be there with him, to take him for walks, to strengthen him a little. Both her and her husband worked full-time to try and keep up with the medical bills, and she couldn’t have him sitting around all the time because it was too risky for him to be out alone.

“I just want Doodle to have someone be there for him when I can’t,” she finished, somewhat breathlessly. Granny smiled and assured her that this would be a perfect job for her, and she would start whenever they needed her. They agreed on the next morning, and Granny put down the phone feeling much better, and looking forward to the following day.

Granny spent the rest of day thinking about what she would as her first day on the job. It was nice to actually have something to look forward to. She didn’t know much about Doodle’s disability, so she wasn’t sure how she could help him. Granny only knew how hard it was for him to walk, and she planned to change that. She wanted to show the boy that he could do this; that even someone her age could work that hard. She went to bed that night hoping that she would be able to help Doodle.

The next morning Granny woke up at 7:00 and got ready for her first day on the new job. She dressed warmly and laced up her walking shoes. She finished getting ready and walked out the door and, following her granddaughter’s directions, she arrived at the house where she would be working. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

Doodle’s mother, dressed in a suit, welcomed her graciously into the house. Granny walked in, relieving Doodle’s mom, and met the boy she had heard about. Doodle was sitting in an armchair reading a book. Granny walked up to him and sat next to him without saying a word. The boy looked up curiously and Granny smiled warmly. “Want to go for a walk?” she asked. Doodle smiled back at her and nodded.

Granny worked with Doodle all through the year, every day walking a little farther and longer. By the end of the year, Doodle could walk for almost a mile without having to stop and rest, or without limping at all. Granny came every day to help him, and they became very close. Granny was always welcome for dinner at their house, and she spent most of her time there. Though Granny was used to walking every day, she was also getting older, and it started to get harder for her. Doodle was helping her as much as she was helping him.

One morning, Granny didn’t show up. Doodle knew, then, that she was gone. Granny had spent the last of her life doing something that she enjoyed. She had helped someone else, and, in turn, had helped herself. Granny was finally content, and she left the world happier than she had ever been. Doodle lost his best friend that day, but smiled, knowing how much happier they had been together, and how much Granny would have wanted him to keep going, to improve himself. Doodle walked by himself that day, walking farther and faster than he ever had before. Granny had succeeded, and Doodle knew how much that meant to her.

The Chaotic Meeting by Emma H.

Jennifer sighed as she sat down at the kitchen table, sipping her morning coffee. God, Monday mornings could be so chaotic. Elizabeth was always put up a fight to go back to school after having the weekend off for fun and games. But Jennifer had managed to get her onto the bus, and Jim had been able to get off to work on time.

Jennifer settled her hands on her growing stomach, already 6 months pregnant she was really beginning to show. And it was continually getting harder to do things she was used to, and to just move around. She was off of work now for a while, and loved having the mornings to herself.

The phone rang and Jen smiled, it must be Granny of course, that was one of Jen’s favorite moments of the mornings. Granny would call and ask about Elizabeth and Jim, and of course the pregnancy. Thinking about the pregnancy made Jennifer feel as though her life was finally something to be proud about. Six years ago, it had been a different story.

When Jennifer had been pregnant the first time it was when she was 19, she hardly knew the father, though it didn’t matter when that dirt bag left her. She was working a waitress job at the local diner, which was hardly enough to support herself, especially with a baby on the way. Thankfully she befriended a kind old woman, the kindest woman in the world, in Jen’s opinion. That was Granny, her real name was Elizabeth, which Jen named the baby after. Without Granny, Jen would have never been able to survive on her own, Granny provided food, shelter, and especially love. And then of course there was Jim, Jennifer had never loved someone the way she had loved Jim, she remembered the day she met him. It must have been fate.

“Grannnyyyy…” Jennifer called down the hallway, “I’m going to take Elizabeth out for a walk at the commons.”

Granny had just begun to knit a new blanket for Elizabeth at that time, “Alright dear,” she replied. “Just be careful it will be getting dark soon.”

“I will, don’t worry.” Jen smiled, she loved how much Granny cared about her.

Once Elizabeth was strapped safe in her stroller, Jen started walking down the sidewalks leaves underneath her feet crunching as they strolled along. Fall was approaching now and the auburn and burnt orange colors were becoming more frequent. The moon rose, and cast an illuminating shadow down on the sidewalk. The scene took Jen’s breath away, and she noticed, standing under one of the tall oak trees, a man was standing. He had set up a tri-pod and he was taking photos, snapping shots of the foliage. But the calmness was broken when Jen heard Elizabeth squirming, and whining in her stroller.

“Alright, alright,” Jen said to her, “but if I let you out, you have to promise you’ll be a good girl, and stay close to mommy.”

“I promise,” Elizabeth said in that little innocent child voice, which always put a smile on Jen’s face. But as the Elizabeth heard that “click” when her belt was off, she took off running.

“ELIZABETH!” Jen screamed, her complete fear showed on her face, and could be heard in her voice. And then, Jen saw it, Elizabeth was heading straight for the man’s camera, and then…CRASH! She collided with the camera straight on. But before the camera collapsed on to Elizabeth, the man grabbed her, pulling her out of the way.

Jen caught up, out of breath from the chase, and teary eyed from fear.” Thank you so much, it was so kind of you to save her like that,” Jen said hugging her daughter. But she glanced down at the heap of chaos which Elizabeth had created. “Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry about that,” Jen bent down to help while keeping hold of Elizabeth. “I will pay for any damages done.” She told that man.

The man just laughed, “Oh no, don’t worry about any of that, that camera has seen damage than anything else in this world.” He held out his hand, “I’m Jim,” he said.

“Jennifer,” she replied “and this little runaway is Elizabeth.”

He laughed and said, “Well hello there Elizabeth, that wasn’t very nice to run away from your mommy like that was it, you won’t do that again will you?”

“No,” Elizabeth said, sounding tired.

“Well I need to get her home and to bed, maybe I could take you out to coffee in the morning, as a thank you,” Jen suggested.

“That sounds great!” Jim said.

Jen smiled, the rest of the story was history, the two of them just clicked, and two years later they were married. Jen glanced up at the picture on the wall, it was of Jen and Jim, and they were standing in the town commons, under the big oak tree, the place where they met, and the place where they fell in love.

Fatal Love by Emma M.

It took only one shot, a scream echoed through the woods. The lifeless body hit the ground with a thud, the only sound in the now silent forest. Then, there was a laugh. A long, shrill laugh that bounced off every surface and scared away the few birds left in the forest. Next, silence again, except for the dull crunching of footsteps walking through the leaves.

“Who can I call?” Diana wondered aloud as she slowly paced her bedroom floor. “Eric!” she said softly. “Eric? Is that you?” Diana whispered as she held the phone closer to her ear. She heard a muffled reply on the other end and assumed it was a yes. “I am so sorry to call you this early in the morning, but I really need your help. I’m running away. I can’t take this crummy little town anymore.”

She heard Eric breath in deeply as he replied, “What will your grandmother say?” but when she didn’t answer, he asked “What can I do?” She explained to him that she was leaving the next night after her grandmother fell asleep. He didn’t need to worry about what her grandmother would say, she would explain everything in the note that she was leaving for her. After a while, Eric agreed to come and get her that night and agreed to let her stay with him for the duration of her senior year.

Sitting around anxiously was the hardest part, she thought to herself, trying to calm her nerves and make it seem like nothing was wrong as her grandmother said goodnight and slowly made her way up the stairs. Diana quickly went up after her, pulling her into a tight hug at the top of the stairs. Her grandmother gave her a bewildered look, but just shrugged and shut her bedroom door. Diana grabbed her two bags from her room and snuck down the stairs. She took the note from her pocket and put it on top of the television remote, the first thing her grandmother would see the next morning.

Eric was sitting in the driveway at midnight, the planned pick up time. His house was an hour drive from hers and she had brought a pillow to sleep with in the car. He said hello and she climbed into the back seat, softly crying herself to sleep.

“Diana, get up.” Eric was shaking her awake, frantically looking behind him as she slowly opened her eyes. “Come on, get up!” he shouted as she rolled over and sat up.

“What’s wrong, Eric. Are we already there?” she asked, trying to stretch in the tiny car. She wiped at her tear-stained face and looked up at him, searching his face for a smile.

“No, come on, we need to get out of here, now.” She looked out through the front windshield and saw two small lights coming towards them.

“Who are they?” Diana asked as Eric pulled her out of the back seat and onto her feet. “What are we doing Eric; this is the middle of nowhere. Why aren’t we at your house yet? What’s happening?” Diana tried to pull away as Eric tugged at her arm, trying to pull her behind the tall embankment separating the road and the forest.

“I’ll explain later,” he whispered as she finally gave in and went along with him. The two lights slowly grew bigger as Diana peered around the wall, trying to figure out where they were coming from. Suddenly, she saw them. Two figures in long, black trench coats were walking down the eerily quiet street. She tried to gasp, but Eric covered her mouth, shaking his head and trying to pull her back to the hidden side of the wall. She shook loose and continued to watch the men who were quickly approaching the car shining what seemed to be flashlights on the license plates and on the inside. When they reached the car, they slowly picked their way through the backseat, making note of the makeshift bed on the floor. Eric was tugging at her arm again, pulling her back farther into the forest.

“They have to be around here somewhere,” the taller one began, “he wouldn’t just leave his car.” He kicked the tires and pulled out Diana’s bag. “He’s taking the girl with her. Is she going willingly or did he take?” he asked the second man who was walking toward the embankment. Diana didn’t understand what all of that could possibly leave. She knew her grandmother couldn’t have found the note that quickly, she never got up in the middle of the night. What could those strange men mean?

“Diana!” Eric whispered at her, still tugging insistently at her arm. She turned and followed him, deeper and deeper through the trees as the conversation between the two men died away.

“Explain Eric, now. Why’d you wake me up in the middle of nowhere! We are not even close to your house! Who were those men? Were they talking about me going willingly or unwillingly? What is happening here Eric!” Diana’s voice was getter louder with each word. Eric covered her mouth again and sat her down against a tree.

“Stay here,” he whispered, “and be quiet. I’ll be right back.” He walked back toward the road for a few minutes as Diana tried to calm herself down, thousands of questions running through her head. As she began to calm down, Eric reappeared behind her, trying to pull her up off the ground.

“Eric! I’m afraid. What are you doing?” Eric was pulling her deeper into the woods, looking behind Diana every few steps. “Eric! Answer me right now or I’m turning right around and going back to the car! I don’t care who those men are anymore! I want to go home.” Diana sat down on the ground, crossed her legs, and began to cry. “I want to go back, Eric. I want to go home. What is going on?”

Eric stopped, peered around the nearest tree, and finally looked at Diana. “Look, honey. There’s something I need to tell you.” He walked around Diana and made a move to sit down, but stopped himself. “I’ve been lying to you.” He turned away from her, looking off into the dark forest. “I’m not who I said I was. I wasn’t the football star in my old school, I wasn’t the scholar, and I wasn’t class president. I.” he paused for a moment, turning to face her. “I was the loser. I hated everyone in that horrible town. There was one though that got to me, Tommy, and,” he paused again, looking directly at Diana, “I killed him.” Diana gasped and struggled to her feet.

“Wait, what? You killed him? Does that mean that those were police officers back there? Do they think you took me and killed me?” She took a step backward, stumbling over a root. Eric took a step toward her.

“Yes, but they are somewhat correct. I didn’t take you, but I am going to kill you. You know too much now, you know where I am, what I’ve been doing, and what I’ll be doing next.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small revolver.

It took only one shot, a scream echoed through the woods. The girl’s lifeless body hit the ground with a thud, the only sound in the now silent forest. Then, there was a laugh. A long, shrill laugh that bounced off every surface and scared away the few birds left in the forest. Next, silence again, except for the dull crunching of footsteps walking through the leaves.

In Memory Of Serena by Danielle L.

It all happened so fast… the big truck, the blaring horns, the blinding headlights, and the ear-splitting sound of screeching breaks. The drunken truck driver was driving too fast and soon lost control of the wheel. The truck sped up and rear-ended the little car in front of him. The driver, who was in the car, wasn’t wearing her seatbelt, and was thrown through the windshield, head-first. Her mangled body lay in the middle of the road, motionless. She was my best friend, Serena.

All of my thoughts had swarmed in my head, like angry bees after the scent of honey. My head had throbbed, and I felt as if I were going to pass out. No. I knew I had to stay awake. I needed to know if she was going to be okay. I had sat there, in the ER, for what seemed like forever, just staring at the blank, white walls. Just when I was about to doze off, I’d heard a voice. It was a soft voice, the kind of soothing tone that was meant to comfort. Then, I’d heard my heart pounding hard in my ears. I’d looked up and knew. It was written all over her apologetic face.

● ● ●

One month later

“Starr, come out of your room and get some fresh air,” my mother sang out from behind my closed door.

“I don’t feel like it,” I called in an annoyed voice.

I hadn’t felt like doing anything for the past month, not since the accident. I just couldn’t get over what happened to Serena. The images haunted me every day. The sadness, mixed with anger and rage, swelled up inside my chest, refusing to leave. I couldn’t get rid of it. My only friend was gone.

“Starr,” my father called, “come out here. We have a surprise for you.”

“Commminggg,” I groaned as I rolled out of bed, passing by the mirror hanging on my wall. My hair was a big, brown mess, I had bags beneath my glossy, green eyes, and my already pale face was flushed. I looked so weak that I didn’t recognize myself.

I opened my door, and there stood my mom and dad wearing these goofy grins across their faces. Dad was holding something that I did not recognize at first. It sat in the palm of my father’s hand, looking like a small rat. But, no, it was a puppy; a cute, little puppy. I was beginning to get excited when the fact hit me - my parents were trying to replace Serena. With what? A dog. Nothing could replace her – nothing! I suddenly became filled with anger.

“You can’t replace her!” I screamed and slammed my door.

No one understood.

It isn’t that bad staying in my room all the time because it’s so nice. Before Serena had died, she helped me redecorate it. My walls are painted a soft lilac that is just barely visible under all the posters of different bands that are taped to my walls. I have a polished, wood floor with a carpet to complement the walls. My bed is a bunk bed. The top was meant for Serena when she slept over. There is a full bathroom branching off from my room. It is equipped with a shower and the usual things found in a bathroom. There is also a small, wooden desk and a big book shelf full of books to read. Reading is what I normally like to do.

My mood continued to stay dull, but my mind was on over-drive every minute of every day. My mom and dad kept trying to make me happy, to will me out of my room, but it didn’t work. I would not go near the dog. She was just another part of my life that I pushed away, and chose to block out. I didn’t sleep well, and if it wasn’t for the food my mother delivered to my door, I wouldn’t have eaten, either. This all went on until one day something miraculous happened.

I opened my door to get my food, as usual, and closed it. I was so preoccupied that I didn’t notice that the puppy had slipped in through my door. So, when I turned around, there she was, sitting on the small rug of my wooden floor. She just sat there, wagging her little tail and looking up at me. I cautiously crept over to her and gently pet her head. Her fir felt like silk, and was entirely brown. As I pet her, she licked my hand.

I sat there petting the puppy for hours. She actually made me feel better. I was happy. All the while that I was petting her, I didn’t think about what had happened. This was so amazing.

What should I name her? I pondered this to myself. Then it came to me. I’ll name her Serena, in honor of my best friend. By doing this I won’t be replacing Serena, but keeping her memory alive. Serena, herself, will never be forgotten.

The Return of David Stone by Chloe S.

The sun slipped lazily beneath the horizon as Jim Stone strolled across the town common. He was out for a walk that evening, like every other evening. The air was fresh and a soft breeze whistled by his face. Faded golden light bathed the area around him. Times like these were, in Jim’s opinion, the best times in the world. When the earth seemed to stand still and everything was silent. Until the silence was shattered by a man’s voice.

“Excuse me sir!”

Jim turned to see who had called out to him. It was a young man, maybe twenty, with dark hair and eyes.

“Yes?” Jim squinted at him through the sun’s rays. The young guy laughed and opened his arms wide.

“What? Don’t you recognize me?”

In truth, Jim did recognize him, he had from the beginning, but he didn’t want to.

“What are you doing here David?”

The man put his arms down and shifted uneasily on his feet.

“I can’t visit my own father?”

Jim glared at him for a moment.

“Three whole years,” he replied through gritted teeth. “Three years without a phone call, a letter. You really expect me to welcome you like nothing happened?”

David glared back.

“I came here because I wanted to apologize. I wanted to see you.”

There was a long pause. Then Jim spoke slowly.

“Well. Here I am.”

David laughed again.

“Aren’t you even going to let me see the old house?”

Jim sighed. He was still angry.

“Alright. Let’s go.”

They turned and began to walk the way home. The leaves crinkling beneath their feet were the only noise that could be heard, neither of them was talking. Then David cleared his throat and said,

“I’ve been in Wyoming, working on a ranch.” Jim did not acknowledge him. David picked at his fingernails and continued.

“I wasn’t alone, I had friends.”

The silence continued. They arrived at Jim’s old brown house, with peeling paint and a dead front porch that looked as if it were going to cave in. Jim half wished that he’d fixed it up a little, just so he wouldn’t seem so pathetic. But then he remembered that he was angry at David, and didn’t really care what his son thought of the home he’d abandoned three years ago.

“Looks exactly the same.” David remarked, kicking dirt between his feet.

They went inside. Jim watched the news as David explored the rooms he’d once lived in. David could sense the anger from his father, and was leaving him alone. Jim didn’t know what to do with the situation. Part of him wanted to forget the past three years, but the rest of him knew that he would never forget.

He flipped to a different channel in time to see something about a murder case. A man had been killed in a fight in Wyoming, in the town where David had been living the past three years. There was one suspect. He was twenty years of age and had dark hair and eyes. Jim turned quickly to the stairs and saw David standing there just as the reporter on television said, “The suspect’s name is David Stone. If anyone sees David Stone of Wyoming, please alert the authorities.”

Jim gaped wordlessly at David for a moment. Then he said in a hoarse, strangled voice,

“What did you do?”

“Hold on.” David held up his hands. “Hold on, okay? It was an accident. He attacked me. I was just defending myself. But he had a lot of friends. Okay?”

“No it’s not okay!” Jim yelled, clenching his fists. “Do you understand that you are wanted for murder?!”

“Of course I do!” David yelled right back. It sounded just like old times.

“Is the only reason you came back here because you wanted me to hide you? Because I can’t do that.”

As soon as Jim had spoken these words, there was a knock at the door. Jim and David froze. It was terrifyingly silent for a moment, then Jim breathed,

“Get upstairs.”

David backed up the stairs as Jim went to the door and opened it. Two men in suits were standing there.

“Jim Stone?”

Jim nodded slowly.

“We’re detectives, here looking for your son David. He is a major suspect in a Wyoming murder case. Have you seen or heard from him?”

Jim regarded them blankly. There was a lengthy, quiet pause. Then he said,

“I haven’t seen David in three years.”

Later, long after the detectives were gone, Jim went upstairs to find David sitting hunched over on his bed, face in his hands. Jim sighed.

“I think I might help you.”

David looked up sharply.

“Why?”

“Because I’ve decided to forgive you.”

David said nothing for a moment. Then he smiled sadly.

“Thanks. But there’s only one way that you can help me.”

So they went outside, and got in the car, and drove for a while. And then stopped.

Facing forward, with his hands gripping the steering wheel, Jim said,

“You don’t have to do this. I could bring you anywhere else.” He watched the wind ripple across the trees.

“I know.” David still had the sad smile on his face. “But I do have to do this.”

He got out of the car and closed the door. Jim drove off and looked back only once. David had been waving. Then, he’d turned and walked slowly up the police station steps.

Jim’s Betrayal by Alex H.

It had been twenty years since Doodle had died. Alexandros looked at his grave, and walked away. Ever since his brother died he had made the promise to destroy the Scarlet Ibis species. They had brought misfortune to his brother so they will pay for it, he laughed at the thought. To end the line of a species that would be the greatest scientific achievement.

He went to his basement, made sure that his girlfriend was asleep and typed in his code to enter his clandestine room. Once inside he went to work. He turned on his computer and checked the cameras. He noticed a guy snooping through the window. He smiled then electrified the window. He turned the sound on and heard the guy scream. The guy ran away and Alexandros laughed. He put in the code to his computer and went on his DNA program. He checked his data and noticed that some of the numbers didn’t add up. He ran some more tests on it and found that he needs a sample of DNA. He sat there for a moment, and then he remembered that he had a sample in his safe. He went to go get it and stumbled onto something. He looked down to saw a piece of cloth. He thought someone had been in here. He went to his computer and saw that the door was opened at 2:00 pm two days ago. He knew that he wasn’t here and had locked it up. He went through the list of possible suspects and he saw that either Jim or Della was his best guest.

$$$$$$

Alexandros called Jim and told him to meet him at the local coffee shop. As soon as Jim saw Alexandros he said, “How have you been old friend?”

“I have been well; I am close to my objective of avenging Doodles death,” replied Alexandros.

“You know that wasn’t your fault; there was nothing you could have done.”

“I must do this, it will be the last time I see a Scarlet Ibis,”

They drank their coffee in silence when Alexandros asked, “how is Della Jim, is she recovering from her sickness?”

“She will be fine” said Jim, “in time she will be back to normal.”

$$$$$$

Later that night Alexandros went to go visit Della in the hospital. She looked like a skeleton, but he saw the signs of her body starting to take nutrients from her food. After the visit he we went into his lab. He finished up his calculations and started to work.

$$$$$$

In the morning he had finished the chemical and set out to find A Scarlet Ibis. He found a bird that resemble the bird, but couldn’t find the actual bird. He went home defeated and retired to the couch. As he was watching The Bourne Ultimatum he heard a noise out side he looked out the window to see the ANBU BLACK-OPS coming up his to door. He ran down to his clandestine room. It was too late they were already in his living room. He sealed it off from the rest of the house. He said,” why have you come here?”

We are The ANBU BLACK-OPS, you have been recruited,” they said

“And if I refuse,” said Alexandros.

“We will kill you,” they said.

“Return in three days at 2:00pm, DON’T BE LATE!

$$$$$$

Jim stared at the house; he wondered how close he was at finding the airborne virus. He knew what he had to do. After he took the virus he would sell it to the highest buyer. He hated to do this to his friend, but he had to do it.

$$$$$$

He walked up to the house and rang the door bell. At the second ring Alexandros answered, what is Jim? “I have come to talk about the virus,” replied Jim.

“You finally agree with me?”

“You could say that I’ve come to your way of thinking,” Jim replied.

Alexandros simply said, “Follow me.”

They went into the basement and Alexandros said,” You are the first to see this room, I expect you to keep it secret.”

“I will, don’t you worry about that.”

Alexandros put in the password and walked in the room. As they walked around Jim noticed another room. He asked,”What is in that room,”

“That is my lab” Alexandros replied

Jim saw the case and immediately knew that it was the poison, as he reached out for the case he heard a shot. “I knew if I left it out in the open you would steal it,” Alexandros said calmly,” You knew that my rage blinded my vision, but I now know that It wasn’t my fault. Doodle’s weak heart would have shown up sooner or later. You shouldn’t have tried to steal the virus you would have been alive, your wife needed you. You let her down Jim you let your vision blind you.”

“How did you know I was going to steal the poison?”

“You ripped your shirt when you came in he last time. You ripped it again on the same spot. Good Bye Jim your wife will be taken care of.”

“Don’t kill my wife”

“Oh it’s too late for that; my men are already at the hospital”

$$$$$$

Two people died that night. One of their greed and one of innocence. Alexandros sat in his office laughed at the thought. His two best friend’s were dead he was good. How many more people would he have to take out for his vision, he didn’t know but he would do it.

GSL by Sabrina M.

Gail and Lizzy have known each other since 6^th grade. They weren’t really friends then but they became friends as the year went on. By the beginning of 7^th grade they were best friends. And from then on it was best friends forever! Then in 8^th grade Gail met a girl named Sara. They were kind of friends and had two classes together. They started to hangout and eventually Sara met Lizzy. They were friends. But never best friends. But at the end of 8^th grade they really started to hangout a lot. And then during the summer Sara went away to France and didn’t get to see them for the most part of the summer. But when Sara got back, Gail, Sara and Lizzy hung out basically everyday. And the best part was, was that they were going to start high school together.

Gail, Lizzy and Sara were best friends now. They did absolutely everything together.

A few months had gone by. And Gail had a crush on someone. Lizzy and Sara didn’t think that they were going to date, but they still supported her in liking him. But once Gail and Chris kissed, they really started to have feelings for each other. And he finally asked her out. But before they had gotten serious, Gail had asked Sara and Lizzy to make a promise. The promise was that if they see any change in Gail that they would let her know. Sara and Lizzy highly doubted that Gail was going to change but they still promised they would let her know if she did change.

A month has gone by now and changes have happened to Gail. The big change was that she was always with Chris, and never with her friends. Her friends still invited her to things but Chris would have to come along. This was a problem. Gail wouldn’t even pay attention to her friends. Her focus was on Chris the whole time. The one place that really got everyone aggravated was the movies. They would sit in front of everyone and make out the whole time, and frankly, they got very sick of it. One time, we decided that we wanted to go to the movies and invite Gail. But Gail said Chris had to come along and for once Lizzy stood up for what she believed in. she told Gail that she didn’t want to watch her and Chris make out the whole time, so she uninvited her. So they stopped inviting Gail to activities that they did. And soon enough Gail didn’t really have any friends. But Sara was always there for her. Sara understood that this was her first boyfriend but also agreed with her friends that Gail shouldn’t forget about them.

I think you can guess that there was a little fight going on. Gail was against everyone. I mean her friends still talked to her but they didn’t talk to her like they did before. And soon enough Gail broke down. Sara was with her at this point. They were out to eat for lunch. They talked about the whole situation and Gail had said to Sara,

“I feel like I have no friends, Sara. No one ever invites me anywhere anymore and the only people I talk to is you and Chris.”

Sara didn’t know what to say. Because it was true, Gail had lost all of her friends. So Sara had given her some advice.

“I think you should just try to hangout with your friends again. Invite some people over and have a sleepover like the good old times. And then maybe things might start to go back to normal. And oh yeah, when we invite you somewhere and Chris comes, don’t be all kissy and huggy with him. Talk to your friends more than you talk to him.” Sara advised to Gail.

But there is one thing that I left out. Lizzy was done with Gail. She didn’t even talk to her. All they would say to each other is a “hi” in the hallway and that’s it! Lizzy used to go over Gail’s house every day during the summer because they had softball together. They told each other absolutely everything. But that has changed a lot. Having Gail and Lizzy not being best friends anymore, made Lizzy and Sara come closer to each other. Whenever Lizzy and Sara hung out, all they would talk about was how much they missed Gail. Actually it was Lizzy most of the time because she knew Gail a lot longer than Sara did. And Lizzy would keep telling Sara how much Gail had changed. But Sara couldn’t agree with Lizzy because she didn’t know Gail for that long.

Sara was never annoyed about this because she loved Lizzy to death, and no matter what she was always there for her.

***

Before they started high school they revealed each others secrets with each other. And we promised never to tell anyone! But thanks to Gail secrets had gotten out. Gail would tell one person something and then another and then those people would tell more people. But Sara and Lizzy knew that she revealed their secrets but they continued to tell her stuff. But then one day Sara had told Gail a big secret and she specifically told her not to tell anyone and she took her word that she wouldn’t. But the next day at school about three people had come up to Sara and had asked her if the secret was true! Sara was furious. She wasn’t going to just let this happen again. So she decided to confront her about it with texting. Sara had texted:

“Why would you tell my secret to someone?” Sara texted.

“I don’t know, it just happened I guess and I’m sorry!” Gail texted back.

“Well I’m not mad at you or anything but I just don’t trust you anymore. But I still love you as much as I did before. But I got to go so I’ll talk to you later byee.” Sara texted back.

Sara had to end the conversation because she was about to cry and Gail had told her that she was crying.

The next time they saw each other in person, they talked about trusting each other. And Gail had said that she was going to try really hard to keep secrets. Sara didn’t believe this at first at all. So Sara started off by telling her a little secret and waited about a week to see if it had gotten revealed. And it didn’t. So Sara continued to tell Gail almost everything when she got the chance to see her.

It was now Gail’s and Chris’ two month anniversary. And they were really in love. Things had gotten a lot better now. Lizzy and Gail were friends again. So Gail, Sara and Lizzy were back to their trio. They actually had a name for their group of three friendship, it was called GSL.

Shark Bait by Lorna M-R

It moved swiftly and slowly causing gentle ripples to emerge beyond the surface. Its sharp turns and quick movements were graceful and beautiful. This creature was a monster. Its beauty would fool no sailor. 22 feet long, your worst nightmare. It never sleeps nor does it stop searching. It is a cold-blooded killer and whatever it sees becomes its prey.

“Come on Astrid! The boat is getting ready to leave!” Apollo screamed at his younger, more naïve sister. “Hold on, I’m busy doing business over here!” She yelled at her impatient brother. She was trying to get a merchant on Nantucket to lower his price on a handmade beaded bracelet. Apollo dashed over to her and grabbed her by the hand. “You are 13 years old, not 2, now let’s go!” He dragged her over to where the boat was loading. It was a quaint, blue fishing boat that would be taking Astrid and her family fishing for the next 8 days. The horn wailed loud and scared a few seagulls from the deck. Astrid rushed into a small room below the main deck and claimed her bed. Apollo didn’t care what bed she wanted, he wasn’t planning on sleeping for the next few days anyway.

“I want all ye people to gather ‘round,” Said Captain Kramer Sullivan. Astrid’s mother Marianna and father Tucker gathered their children and held them by their shoulders. Astrid squirmed, she didn’t want to feel like a kid anymore, she wanted to feel free on the boat trip. Her parents would always know where she was, but she would be able to roam free without her parents or her annoying older brother by her side. “I want you to listen and listen carefully. There is a monster lurking out there. He’s big enough to bring down this whole boat. If you see a fin, or any murky water while we’re out here, you let me know. I want to go home with all of you in this here fishing boat. You hear me?” Captain Sullivan looked very serious, and Astrid was all of a sudden very scared of this trip. She wanted to go home, but she knew her brother would kill her if she ruined his fishing trip. “Dad, let’s go bait our rods!” Apollo yelled to his father. “Sure son, let’s go,” said Tucker to his over-excited son. Tucker had been on these waters before and knew first hand about the beast that was lurking.

Later that evening, Astrid was dangling her feet over the edge, yelling at her cell phone to get reception. “Sweetie, you better bring your feet up here, the sharks might nibble your toes, feeding time is soon you know,” Marianna said sarcastically. Tucker had told Marianna that there was a Great White Shark that had been terrorizing Nantucket for longer than he could remember, but she didn’t believe him. “Mom, let’s go watch Jaws, and pretend like we actually believe that crap about sharks eating whole boats and stuff,” Astrid spoke jokingly to her mother. “I wouldn’t want to sit out here and get eaten whole!” On the other end of the boat Tucker and Apollo sat quietly feeling small nibbles on their lines. All of a sudden, Apollo saw a huge dark spot appear on the surface, and the nibbles ceased. “Dad, I think I should go get Captain Sullivan, I think the beast is here.” Apollo ran into the Captain’s cabin, “He’s here, isn’t he? I knew he would never stop terrorizing me. We need to make sure the women are inside, and you should get inside also. Your father and I will take care of this mess.” The Captain had terror in his eyes, and Apollo saw past his tough exterior.

Astrid decided to see what the racket was about, while Marianna slept inside, she eased out of her cabin and on to the main deck. The Captain and Tucker were too busy to notice her hanging half her body over the edge, staring into the dark water. Out of the rippling cloud rose a head of tremendous size and jaws larger than her poor helpless body. She let out a whimper as he engulfed her whole and left only a large pool of blood for her family to see. Tucker heard a cry as he found Marianna bawling over the blood splattered all over the deck. “Where is she?! My baby, she’s gone,” Marianna cried out over the boats rumbling engine. “We need to get off of here!” Apollo screamed at the top of his lungs as he lost his balance and tumbled into the dark water. The black cloud reappeared and as quickly as Apollo surfaced, he was swallowed just like his younger sister. Marianna sat on the edge of the boat bawling and Tucker stood in silence with the captain.

“Let’s get this thing out of here before there’s no one left,” Captain Sullivan said to Tucker. Tucker frantically started the boats engine and directed it back towards the shore. My grandfather used to tell me that story often, and told me to be aware of the beasts that lurk beyond the surface. If you are smart you will be more cautious than Astrid and Apollo were.

The Cave by Caulien C.

"I don't think we should go in there!" Jason whined to Mike as he watched his best friend stand in front of the cave. Jason didn't like this idea one bit. "Don't you remember what happened last time we came here!" Jason said feeling a little nervous. "Ahhh, don't be a wimp." Mike said as he looked around the cave. He was very interested in these kinds of things. Jason sat on a rock with his head in his hands. "Why can't we just go back to my house and play some Halo or something." But Mike just ignored him acting like Jason had never said anything. Jason started biting his nails as he remembered what had happened when they first found this place. They found this place about 2 years ago and had never been back since. Jason could remember the huge bats that chased after them, he felt like the bats were still there waiting for them to enter the darkness of the cave. Just thinking about it gave him the shivers. Mike shined the light straight into the cave following the light with his eyes till it was too dark to see any further. He then started to walk into the cave with his flash light. Jason watched with fear as his buddy walked into the cave that had death written all over it. "Mike? Are you still there?" Just then he heard Mike screaming and running out of the cave straight at Jason. Mike ran by Jason, made a u-turn and charged at Jason with his arms in front of him. "No, don't you...." Jason was cut off by Mike pushing him into the cave. Mike was tickling Jason as he pushed him into the cave. Jason was terribly ticklish. He couldn't do anything to stop from going into the cave.

Darkness surrounded both of them. They couldn't even see their hands even if they were holding their hand right in front of their faces. Jason was practically having a panic attack. Mike whipped out his flashlight and said, in a reporter kind of voice," So Jason, how do you feel right know? Hmmm, are you happy, sad, angry?"

Mike then pointed the light at Jason face which he saw was totally white. "Awww, I think someone needs a hug!" Mike quickly embraced Jason with a big bear hug. "I'm seriously going to kill you." Jason said as he started to calm down a bit. "C'mon man, do you think I'd ever put you in a situation where you couldn't handle yourself?" Mike hooked arms with Jason and asked," Now how should we travel through this cave today?"

"Skipping?" said Jason confused.

"Alright then, hipti-skepte hipti-skepte hipti-skepte." Mike sang as they skipped down deeper into the cave. It wasn't long before they ran into a wall because they forgot to turn their flashlights on while they were skipping. They weren't hurt too bad. Finally they took out their flashlights to see if they could look around. They flashed their lights at the wall that they had run into. There was really nothing interesting about this wall unless you were like a bugoligist or something. The wall was crawling with bugs. They both hated bugs so much. They quickly backed away from the gruesome wall.

"I hate bugs!" Mike screamed as he checked him self for any creepy crawlers on him. Jason did the same and then they checked each other. Just then something wet and slimy fell onto Jason’s shoulder. He quickly tried wiping it off his shoulder. Mike shined his light at the roof of the cave and let out a little whimper.

"Awww, geez, great i just washed this hoodie this morning and now I have to........" but he was cut off by Mike tapping on his head. Jason saw Mike was looking up and followed his gaze. As he saw what was hanging from the roof he started to shout," OH, SH...." But Mike covered his mouth still looking at the thing. There hanging from the roof was this giant bat. It seemed that it was as tall as both of them and they were 5'5. It looked huge.

"When I count to three we're going to high tail it out of here in... that direction." Mike said as he pointed behind Jason.

"Oh my god we are going to die, oh my god..."

"One..."

"We are going to die, oh my god we....."

"Two..."

"We are so going to die!"

"THREE!" they started running full throttle into the darkness not knowing where in the world they were going. As they were running they heard wings flapping behind them and they pushed themselves even harder. Jason lost control of his feet and stumbled to the ground bringing Mike down with him.

"Awwww, you klutz," Mike said as he helped Jason back onto his feet. From where they had fallen they could see the entrance of the cave. Suddenly something huge rammed into Mikes back knocking the wind out of him. The bat was clawing at Mikes back as he tried crawling away. Jason was knocked to the ground by the bats giant wings. Jason quickly got right back up, came behind the bat and started throwing punches at its back. The bat let out loud screeches. The bat turned around and went at Jason. Mark jumped on the bat and started beating on its head. He tried breaking its neck, he tried bashing in its skull. the bat was flailing itself everywhere. Jason quickly started beating on the bats stomach with kicks and punches.

"On three we run for it!" Mike yelled over the screeching.

"One…two…THREE!" They both jumped away from the bat and ran towards the light. As they hit sunlight they shielded their eyes. They soon collapsed onto the dirt in the warm sunlight. They both were breathing very heavily and they felt like their heads were throbbing. They both looked at each other and started chuckling.

"Whoo..... that was scary,......... how about....... next time we're bored............ you pick the fun activity!?" Mike said as he took deep breathes in between his words. Jason just nodded his head in agreement and they both just rested there happy to see the sunlight again.

Short story blog assignment comment criteria

I would like your short story comments to answer the following five questions:

I - Describe your personal reaction to the story. How do you feel after reading it? What do you remember? What images do you see? What concepts or ideas are in your head? What did the story make you think about?

II - Does the main character change over the course of the story? If so, what is his or her great insight or epiphany? How is this change important to the story? How would the story be different if the character didn't change?

If the main character does not change, explain why it was important that he/she remain static throughout the tale. How was the story arc dependent on the main character's personality?

III. What was your favorite part of the story? Did it occur in the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, or resolution? Pick a line that you liked, copy and paste it into the comment box, put quotes around it, and explain what it was about it that stood out to you.

IV - Overall, what is this tale's best quality? It could be its characters, the conflict, the resolution, the description of the setting, the story arc, use of dialogue, etc. Use specific details and references to the story to explain why you thought this was its best strength.

V - What is one piece of advice that the author might consider for future writing assignments? This should be phrased constructively (try doing ------- next time, consider --------) or inquisitively (what do you think would happen if you -------------?)

Comments should be two to three paragraphs (8 to 12 well-written, informative sentences). Your comments should appear below the story you are responding to. When asked to choose an identity, click "nickname," then sign your comment with your first name and last initial. Comments not posted according to these instructions will be deleted.

I would like you to respond to a minimum of two essays per class (6 total). The essays will be up by the end of school on Thursday, Jan. 31st.

* Please bring a printed copy of your comments to class on Monday, Feb. 4th, as I will check them then. Your classmates and I thank you for your valuable feedback.

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