It’s just not fair. Why me?
I am walking around trying my best to survive. “Would you like a hand with those groceries?” I asked a man hoping to get some money to buy some food.
“Buzz off kid!” he yelled. That was the tenth one. I don’t think I will be eating today as well. People are not as generous these days. I watch customers coming in and out of the Safeway.
“Would you like a hand with those groceries?” I asked again this time to an older lady.
“Why isn’t that sweet of you,” she smiled. “Yes, I would. She hands me her paper bag of whatchamacallits, and we both walked over to her car. I hand the bag to her and she offers me a dollar bill.
“Thank you. ma’am.” I was delighted to get one dollar. I just hope I can get a few more.
I saw this couple come out of the store, I ran up to them. “Would you like a hand with those groceries?”
“No thank you, we can handle it.”
I have had enough. I sat on the curb next to my bag of clothes and my teddy bear and pouted. A young woman saw me sitting down on the ground and dropped a quarter at me. I looked down at the quarter and then up at her. She was heading down the street. A man came up and dropped some change at my feet as well.
“Thank You,” I Squealed. The store manager saw me begging for money and came out after me.
“Young lady,” he growled. “I would like it, that you would stop hanging around here. Go somewhere else. I looked at him with my mouth open. How could he be so cruel. I had enough money to buy a sandwich from him, but because of that, I am not, I left the store and walked down the street.
My stomach was growling and I needed food. Having to spend all day begging to get money, My stomach was now begging for attention. There was a sandwich shop near the Safeway, It was the only closest place to me. I walked over to it pulling my bag and holding my teddy bear with me. My bag and my teddy bear was all I have in the world. I worry I might lose it.
I would cry the most, if I lost my teddy. He is what I hold onto at nights, when I feel scared. He is also the only one I mostly talk to. He is just a bit torn and has a missing eye, but I still love him. I didn’t like carrying all my stuff with me, but where was I going to put it. It would get stolen, If I didn’t.
“Can I help you miss?” a man at the front counter of the sandwich shop asked, looking down at me.
“What can I get for only $3.32?” I asked the man.
“Um… maybe potato chips?”
“Oh.” I pouted. I knew I wasn’t able to live on just potato chips. I walked out of the restaurant and headed down the road.
It was like it everywhere I went. I had a hard time finding food for the amount of money I had. One place told me I couldn’t order, unless I had a grownup with me. That made me sad, because it was the cheapest place I could go to, All I wanted was a happy meal.
I settled on going to a bakery and buying a small loaf of bread. . It cost me every cent I had, but at least I was able to eat. It just meant I had to work again tomorrow. The bread lasted the whole night. I wished I could have saved some for in the morning, but I was very hungry.
When I went to bed, I looked for a place I could protect my things with. I found a large cardboard box, that I was surprised wasn’t taken yet, with all the homeless living in San Francisco.
When I woke up to something falling on the cardboard box.
“Great!” It’s starting to rain. Nothing like trying to stay warm and dry, when it’s raining outside. It’s already cold, I don’t want more of it. As I lay on the ground, I watch the rain fall. It was falling faster each second.
I heard thunder crashing and if there is thunder, there may be even lightning. Not the best place to be, during a thunderstorm. Plus there could be a flood, from all this rain pouring down.
The rain was starting to come through the shelter I made. I cover up myself with my blanket, trying to stay warm. I am shivering, while snuggling up to my teddy bear and hoping the storm would pass soon.
I have no idea what day of the week it was or even the month, but I have been on my own for quite some time now. I learned for quite some time now, I can not predict San Francisco’s weather. It’s not like I can watch TV.
I hear a car coming towards me and I keep still, hoping whoever it was wouldn’t see me.
*Splash*
Water from the road hit me, when it drove by. I was drenched to the bone now. So much for keeping dry.
Cold, wet and shivering, I get up and start down the road. It must be morning, because businesses were open. It’s hard to tell during a storm , what time it really was. The smell of the fresh baked muffins made my stomach growl. I wished I didn’t use up all the money yesterday on bread. I felt disappointed. As always, I don’t have any money and I hate stealing
I was standing in front of a coffee shop looking at the muffins and watching people going in and out. No one even bothered to help me. I’m guessing, because I was homeless and I was soaked from head to toe, from the rain. I walk away from the coffee shop with tears in my eyes. It seems like this is another day without eating. I thought to myself.
I walk into a building and sit down on a bench. I can’t be there forever, since security would kick me out eventually. Looking outside I wonder when the rain will stop.
“Achoo!” I sneeze. I feel like I starting to get a cold.
A little girl and her mom were walking passed me.
“Mommy, what’s wrong with her?” the little girl said, pointing at me.
“I’m not sure,” the mother answered. “But we better hurry up, you will be late for your appointment.”
It hurts me, when I see people pass by and not stop to see if I was okay or not.
“Achoo!”
I see a security guard come up to me. I start to panic.
“Hey kid, you can’t stay here.” the security guard yelled.
“But it’s raining out,” I cried.
“I don’t care if there was a hurricane outside, you can’t stay here, take your things and skedaddle! “
I grumble and grab my bag.
“And if I see you around here again, the police will be called and you will be charged with trespassing.”
I head outside again, in the freezing cold rain. I am still sneezing, and the security guard didn’t care.
As I walk down the street, I cry. It wasn’t like anyone could see me crying. I had to find a place to stay warm and also I had to find a way out of San Francisco.
As I hold my teddy, and my bag, I stop at the coffee shop I was at earlier and hoped that the owners wouldn’t mind me staying there to wait out the storm. I started sneezing and shivering when I got in. The lady that worked there saw me come in.
“Welcome to The Coffee… oh you poor thing, come over near the fireplace and dry off.” she helped me over to a seat. I sat down on the ground next to the fire took out my blanket to try to stay warm. It was soaked like I was. I believe everything I had on me was soaked.
The fire was wonderful and I was glad I found a place to stay inside. The lady came over to me with a cup of hot cocoa. “Here take this, it will warm you up.”
“Thank you,” I shivered and took the cup.
“What’s your name?” she asked me, while I took a sip of the cocoa.
“Ashley,”
“Nice to meet you Ashley, my names Emily. Do you live around here?”
I didn’t know where I lived, Being eight, I should know, but my family moved a lot. I kept quiet. I was worried what would happen, if I told her where I have been staying. I sneezed and wiped my nose on my sleeve. A man came inside the building.
“Hold on for just a minute, I’ll be right back. Gotta take care of this customer.” She turned to the man. “Welcome to The Coffee Bean... She hops over to the counter and makes a coffee or something for the man. It sure made a lot of noise. It looked like she made it with milk chocolate mix and coffee. Then she topped it off with whipped cream. I took a sip from my cup of cocoa. I was starting to get warm, but was extremely wet.
“When she was done serving him, a few more people came into the coffee shop. It just got busy all of a sudden. I stayed snuggled up next to the fire and watched every order she made.
I felt a little out of place sitting on the ground. Everyone sat at a table or in lounge chairs. I clothes I was wearing. An ugly gray shirt and blue jeans. Everyone else there was in business suits, skirts or dresses. I wish I had a dress, at least then I would look more like a girl, instead of a cross between a boy and a girl in these clothes.
Another worker came into the store, I can tell she worked here, because of the uniform she was wearing. Emily and the new lady were talking a little bit. I wondered what she was talking about. I played with my teddy, which was soaked. I squeezed out the water. I looked back up at the two of them. I felt a little scared. Worried that I would have to go out in the rain again.
Emily walked over to me. “Ashley, where are your parents?”
I didn’t want to say. I just looked at my teddy and started to cry.
“Did you run away from home?”
I still didn’t say anything. I just hugged my wet bear.
“Emily smiled. “You hungry?”
“Depends?” I said softly.
“Well, I asked Carmela to watch the store, while I took you out for a bite to eat. I can bring you to a restaurant and we can talk there.”
I smiled.
At the restaurant, we sat at a booth and I got a hamburger and fries.
Emily had a salad. “So, Ashley, where is your family?”
I looked down at my food. I started crying. “My dad is dead. I miss him so much. I wish he was still here.”
“What happened to him?”
“He was on train heading home last year and...” I was crying now.
“I hope it didn’t crash?”
I shook my head yes.
Emily gave me a hug. “I am so sorry about that. Your mom, was she on it as well?”
“No she wasn’t,” I sniffed.
“Where’s your mother?”
“I dunno.”
“You don’t know?”
I took a sip of my soda. “A few weeks ago, not sure when though, but mom said we were going on a trip. So we packed up the car and drove here to San Francisco. Mom drove us to the airport and asked me to wait outside with my bag, while she parked the car.”
“Really? that’s not safe,” Emily looked surprised.
“I waited for her for a long time. She never came back,” I looked down at the partly eaten burger.
“Can you hold on a second.” she took out her phone and started dialing a number.
After we were done eating, We went back into the car. I wasn’t sure who she was talking to, but she said that she was going to bring me to he house. It was still raining and I was wondering when it was going to stop. This was going to be very hard for me to get money. All of a sudden, we pulled up to a large building. Was this her house? I was surprised on how big it was.
“Okay Ashley, you get out of those wet clothes and into the bath I will get something dry to wear and be in there to get things ready for you.”
I hesitated. I didn’t want her to see what I had down below.
“Don’t worry, We’re both girls, it’s not like I haven’t seen what you have.”
I started to cry.
“What’s wrong, Ashley?”
“I...I am … Not like you at all!” My tears were falling down my face like waterfalls.
“What do you mean?”
“I… was born... a boy!”
Emily was surprised I was born a boy, but looked like a girl. “Oh… um… your a boy?”
“I’m a girl!” I protested.
“Sorry,” Emily apologized. “You’re the first transgender I have ever met in person that looked like a girl.”
“What do you mean?” I cocked my head to one side looking into her eyes.
“Because everyone I have seen, usually still looks male and doesn’t even put on makeup.”
“You might be surprised. One of your customers, may be transgender and you won’t even know it.” I put my hands on my hips. “Don’t think that everyone acts and dresses the same. Besides, you don’t have to wear makeup to look pretty. I’m not wearing makeup.”
“Of course not, your too young to wear makeup. You got to be…What? Eight or Nine years old?
“I just turned eight on July 6.”
“So have you been transgender all your life?”
“Ever since I can remember, I have known I was a girl. and I was scared to tell my mommy and daddy. I do know that my daddy had accepted me, because he has a lot of gay friends, I’m not sure about my mommy. She wasn’t happy with my daddy hanging out with those guys.”
“So, you mom was homophobic?”
“What’s homophobic?” I never heard of that word.
“Homophobic or homophobia is the fear against people that are gay and lesbian. It can also be fear of people that are bisexual and transgender as well. But with bisexuals there’s also biphobia and transgenders there’s transphobia.”
“I guess my mommy was that way...” my eyes started tearing up. I have a feeling she hated me being transgender and was trying to find a way to get rid of me. That may be why she left me at the airport. All this time, I thought something happened to her.
Emily hugged me. It’s okay, I will find a place for you. I will try to find a place here in San Francisco for you if...”
“No!” I screamed.
“What is it sweetie?”
“I don’t want to be in San Francisco.”
“Why is that?”
“Because I have been miss treated here. This is where I was abandoned. I have been trying to leave this city for a long time now.”
“Don’t worry Ashley, I will search for a good place for you to go to.” She looks at me and smiles. Well, enough chatting and get out of those wet clothes and into the bathtub.”
I giggle.
As I got out of my clothes I put a washcloth over my hated spot of my body and stepped into the big bathtub that had bumpy holes on the sides of it. I was very interested in the holes. I wasn’t sure what it was.
Emily saw me inspecting the tub. I could hear her giggle or something. I looked over at her.
“It’s known as a hot-tub or a Jacuzzi. It shoots air out of those holes and makes bubbles. But the only bubbles that will be making in your bath will be from Mr. Bubble.” She takes out a pink bottle out of the cupboard, turns on the tub and pours in the soap. As soon as the soap hits the water, it makes a lot of bubbles.
She notices the wash cloth between my legs. “Why do you hide your penis?”
“I don’t have a p… p… that thing.” I cried.
She shakes her head.
“Okay, how about I call it your vagina?”
“It don’t look like a vagina.” I giggle.
“It’s either a vagina or it’s a...”
“Okay, it’s a vagina!” I giggle.
“I’ll be right back, don’t touch anything while I am gone. I sit there playing with the bubbles and making boobies out of them. I was having a lot of fun. Emily came in, saw me making boobies and laughed.
“You know, most kids try to be Santa Claus.”
“But I don’t want a beard, I want boobies.”
Emily chuckles and hands me a bucket. “Here are some toys to play with.”
“How come you have bubble bath and toys?” I asked her.
“Well, for your information, I am a grandmother and have taken care of my own children in the past.”
“You are a grandma?” my eyes were open wide.
Emily chuckled. “Yes, I am. I am old enough to be yours. My children are in their twenties and my grandchildren are about your age.” I watch as she takes out another bottle from the cupboard. “Hold on, while I wash your hair”
She takes a bit of shampoo and pours it in my hair and starts scrubbing. I don’t know when the last time I had it washed, but I am glad it was getting washed.
“God girl, your hair is so dirty, how long were you out there?” she rinses my hair and adds more shampoo to it to scrub it again.
“I don’t know. It feels like a few weeks, but it may have been a month. I don’t have a calendar. Ow!”
“Sorry!” One last rinse and I am playing with the toys. “Oh you’re a blonde.”
“Duh!”
“With all that dirt, you looked like a brunet.” I looked up at her confused. She looked back at me, figuring out I didn’t know what she meant by brunet. “A person with brown hair.”
“Ooh” I smiled. I went back to playing with the toys. I have never played with Barbie dolls before, but have been dying to. Mommy never got them for me and it always made me sad. “Where are you going Barbie?” said Ken
“I am going swimming with my sisters Skipper and Stacy,” said Barbie
At least this Barbie doll isn’t singing that dumb Barbie girl song.
I ended up playing with Barbie for a long time. Barbie went swimming like she said, but while she was at the beach, she met this guy named Wolverine that was hanging around in the bucket. They fell in love and Ken got jealous and then started fighting with Wolverine, which didn’t end well.
I’m not sure how everything went, because I had to get out of the tub. Emily came into the room with some clothes, which she had folded up. I wasn’t she what she had for me, but it would be better than the clothes I was wearing. Anything was better than the clothes I was wearing. I had been wearing those clothes for God knows how long.
I got out of the bath and dried off. I hated drying off the dumb thing below. I wish it would just fall off or disappear. When I was done drying off, I went to the counter and grabbed the clothes. It was light blue. I picked it up and cried.
It was a dress.
A dress and a pear of panties that matched.
After I wiped my tears, I put on the panties and then for the first time in my life, I put on my first dress ever. It made me very happy to finally wear a dress. I walked over to the door mirror and saw how I looked. I looked pretty. I looked like a girl. Not just any girl, a girly girl. I didn’t look like a tomboyish girl anymore.
I stepped out of the bathroom and out in the hallway to be greeted by a smiling Emily.
“You’re so adorable.” Emily cooed.
“Thank you, “I blushed and ran over to hug her.
“Double mocha latte with extra crème,” said a man at the counter of the coffee shop.
I watched Emily make coffee while I colored a picture. She and her workers were busy today. I found out that Emily is the owner of the Coffee Bean and that’s why she left yesterday.
The one known as Carmela is a single mother that needed the extra hours so, she didn’t mind working late. I just wished that her children were here. I am lonely being here all alone. I keep thinking that this one man is staring at me. It’s freaking me out.
I sipped on my hot cocoa while coloring a mermaid. I love mermaids. Sometimes I wish I was a mermaid. Why do I wish I was a mermaid? Well, because mermaids and mermans look the same below the waist.
“Ashley?”
I look up from my picture and stare at Emily.
“Could you be a dear and help me.”
I shake my head, yes.
“We are running low on coffee creamer, would you go over to the Shell Building across the street, to the office and pick some up.” She hands me the key to the office and also a sheet of paper. “This is for if you have any problems.”
“Okay.” I happily skip out of the cafe and head across the street. But then I stop dead in my tracks.
The building she had me go to, was the same building I was told never to go back in to again, or the police would be called. The security guard might see me and recognize me. I start to panic.
I look back at the cafe and promised Emily I would get the creamer and I slowly walk towards the building.
As I walk in, I walk passed the seat I usually sit down on. I try not to look at it, trying not to draw attention to it. I am very nervous. I look at the number on the key, which helps me find the location to the office. It’s on the second floor. I head toward the elevators. I am cautiously looking for the security guard, knowing that he could be catching up to me at any minute.
I make it to the elevators and press the button confused on why the guard hasn’t come to me yet. The door opens and I hop on and press the number 2 button. As I go up, I breath a sigh of relief, but wonder why I am. I still am in the building. The door opens and I jump. That same security guard was right outside the door of the elevator.
“May I help you young lady?” the dumb security guard asks.
I hand him the papers that Emily gave me. My hand was shaking the whole time. He grabs it, opens it and reads the papers. The next thing I hear was him chuckling.
“Like always, Emily runs out of something. Follow me young lady.” He walks down the hall towards her office, where I stand there looking dumb. “Well, aren’t you going to open it?”
“Oh.” I grab the key and open the door.
“Grab some Stevia as well, just to be safe, it’s her most popular sugar substitute.” he chuckled. “Oh and say hi to her for me, will you?” He walks off. I grab a box of the coffee creamer and some Stevia as well and locked up the office and head back to the cafe. I am relieved he didn’t recognize me.
When I got back, Emily took the creamer from my hands. “Thank You so much” She noticed the Stevia. “Oh, how’d you know we needed some more Stevia? I felt a little silly sending you there for creamer and no Stevia. Did you have any problems while you were there?”
“No,” I giggled. “No problems at all.”
Gotta hurry up. If I don't, I'm not sure what's going to happen if I am found out. Dad will be home in like a few or so minutes and I'm still in a dress.
Now normally, for some people, wearing a dress is fine. But in my case, I was born a boy. According to my dad, dresses are for girls and boys should never wear girls clothes. I don't live with my mom. She had left dad a while back and didn't bother bringing me with her.
I was only a block away from home and panicking the whole time. I knew I should have brought an extra pair of clothes to school with me, but I didn't know that dad was going to heading home early from work.
How do I know he's coming home early? A friend of mine called me up and told me, he saw him fueling up at the station or something like that. That's where I started running home.
I can hear my dad's car a few blocks away. Panic really struck me now. I see the house and run to the back yard. Dad was just pulling into the driveway. I struggle to unlocked the back door but finally get it open and ran in. I could hear the front door open. The stairs to upstairs were in between me and the front door. I was going to get caught.
Just then, dad shut the door and went back to the car to get something. I took a big sigh of relief and ran to the stairs, straight to my room. I changed into some new clothes and hid my dress in the back of my closet. I was safe, for now.
I hear dad come into the house and go to the kitchen.
“Noah, get your butt down here!” I hear him holler. I wish he didn't call me Noah. To me, I believe I was born in the wrong body and should have been born a girl. To me, my name is Kiara.
“Coming!” I yell out my door. By his tone, I must have been in trouble. What did I do? I quickly check myself in the mirror to see how I look and head downstairs.
Dad was sitting at the table drinking a beer. This worries me. When he drinks, he gets abusive. I wish mom was still living here. She wouldn't let him drink. I'm guessing the beer is what he went back to the car to get. I always wonder why he drinks in the first place. I thought we were a Christian family? Doesn't God say not to drink, or something like that? I don't read the bible, so I have no clue. I guess, it's fine to drink, as long as you don't get drunk. Jesus did make wine from water.
“What is it dad?” I ask, slowly walking towards him.
“You left the back door open again!” He yelled “We are not heating the outside!”
“Sorry dad.” I looked towards the floor.
“Sorry isn't going to cut it, I've told you a hundred times to keep that door closed!” He had bloodyshot eyes. “Come over here!” He snarled.”
“No dad!” I screamed “No!”
“You get over here now, or it's the hanger!” he grabbed me and pulled me over his legged pulled down my pants and underwear and spanked me as hard as he could. I was bawling my head off. Screaming so loud, I believe the neighbours could hear me down the street.
“Now stand in the corner and think of what you did!” He pushed me in the nearest corner squishing my face right into the wall. “And don't you catch me see you looking away, or its the hanger for sure!”
I put my hands on my swollen, red, blistered, butt. I was still crying. I really hate him. I wished I was dead. I wished I was never born.
Dad sat back down and drank his beer. I can tell he drank another, because I can hear another can open up. I didn't know if he was watching me or not. I didn't dare look. I just stood there with my nose in the corner.
The phone rang. Dad answered it.
“Hello!?… No There is no Kiara living here...”
Oh shit! I hope he doesn't find out.
“No, I only have a son!” He was getting angry. “No I don't have a daughter, you have the wrong number!!” He slams the phone, which made me jump.
I couldn't stay here all night, I had things for school to do. “Dad, I need to get my homewo...”
“Did I ask you to talk!” He interrupted me. I didn't answer.
For the next hour and a half, I was stuck in the corner. Dad went in the living room and watched TV. It sounded like some boring sports game between the Oakland Raiders and I believe the Denver Broncos. I really can't tell. I'm not a sports fan. My dad always has to cheer with the Raiders. Why do people always cheer for the team of where they live? Can't they choose some other state as well? Why should I care? I hate sports.
The doorbell rang and a bunch of dads friends came over to watch the game with him. I can smell pizza as well. I'm guessing the pizza guy came as well. My stomach started growling. I wanted a slice, but I didn't dare get out of the corner.
I started crying. I wanted out of this corner. I was hungry and tired. I had homework to do as well. I could hear the guys yelling at the game in the other room. I really wished someone came in here and found me.
Eventually the game was over and all the guys had left. Dad came into the kitchen for who knows what and saw me.
“You're still here?” He barked. Get upstairs to bed.
“But I'm hungry!” I complained.
“There's some pizza in the living room. Have what's left. I'm going to bed.” Dad went to his room. I walked into the living room to find a slice or two. All I found was the crusts. No cheese or sauce. I took them and went to the kitchen to see if we had anything else. As always, we didn't. Dad hasn't been to the store for food in weeks. Always just orders out. I take the pizza crusts and go to my room. A lie on my bed and start to cry. I hate it here. I wish mommy was still living here. I eat the now stale pizza crusts and eventually fall asleep.
I wake up. Like always, nobody in the house. My dad doesn't even wake me up for school. He's to busy at his “so called” business. All he does in the business is, he takes a rubber product about the size of a fruit loop and cuts into one end of it. Very exciting. Not sure what the business is and as much as I know, I don't want to know. He said that he wants me to work there, when I turn sixteen. Hell no. I would never work there when I get older.
I get out of bed and rush to the toilet. I always sit down to pee. I have always done this my whole life. My dad would be upset if he knew I peed like a girl. I always lock the door to the room. But one time I forgot and dad came into the room and saw me sitting down. He yelled at me. I made an excuse that I was pooping, which I didn't need to. But because I lied, I had to make myself poop, because my dad was not going to leave, unless I did.
I am smarter now and always lock the door and double check, to make sure I locked it. Dad does get upset when I do and has threatened to take the lock off the door. He never does. I believe it's because he doesn't want to spend the money to pay for a new door knob or something, to replace it.
I finish up by taking a little tissue and wipe. I know, I don't need to, but girls do and I am a girl, so I choose to. I wash my hands and head out of the room. I run downstairs to the kitchen. To my surprise, my dad was still home. I thought he would be at work. He was siting at the table drinking another beer like he did last night. I am so glad I didn't get dressed first.
“Aren’t you suppose to be in school?” He growled.
“School doesn't start until eight-thirty,” I answered.”
Dad jumps out of his chair and walks towards me. I slowly back away. “It's seven twenty-eight, you get your butt upstairs and get some clothes on.” He pushes me across the room, where I hit the wall at full speed, hitting my head. I start to cry. “And don't you be crying! I didn't raise no girl!”
In a way you did, but I won't tell you. I ran upstairs to my room and started looking for some clothes. I'm a little upset that he was home. I wanted to watch my favorite show, like I always do before school. I dug through the top shelve of my dresser and chose the best I could, some gender neutral pants and shirt. It wasn't easy finding any since dad always buys my clothes for me.
My girl clothes I stole from clothes lines. But not all of it was stolen. Some of them I payed for. I sold some of my own stuff to buy my clothes, like that dress. I really wanted that dress. Every time I wear it, I feel like I am a princess. A princess like those from Disney or something like that. If I lost that, I wouldn't know what I would do. I love that dress so much.
Dad was standing outside my bedroom, drinking a beer and watching. So I couldn't put a set of girl clothes into my school bag. What I was wearing was the best I could do for today. I was worried that he would catch me.
“You better make it to the bus boy,” he snarled. “If you miss it, you're walking. And I better not hear that your tardy from class or causing trouble in school again.”
I looked outside. It was starting to rain.
“Can I have an umbrella or something?” I asked.
“An umbrella?!” Dad hollered. “Umbrellas are for girls.”
“No there not,” I explained. “I see boys use them all the...”
SMACK!!
I got hit in the face, which made me start crying.
“Don't you get smart with me. And what did I tell you about crying!”
I continued crying and ran out the house. I don't care what dad said. I can't stop crying. His hand was strong. I make it to the bus stop and stand under the bus shelter to stay dry. A little late for that. I was drenched.
When the bus finally came, the bus driver looked at me and shook his head. I sat down on the first seat I was able to find. Every kid on the bus wouldn't let me sit with them. This hurt my feelings. I wish that sometime, I would have a day that I would be treated like everyone else.
When I got to school, my teacher Mrs. Tupy had us take a math test. I wasn't really good at math and was worried that I wasn't going to do well. I started to tear up.
The test was hard all the questions were confusing to me.
'Lisa lives on the ninth floor of a building. There are thirty-six stairs between two connecting floors. How many stairs does Lisa have to climb to reach the ninth floor, starting from the first floor?'
I looked at that problem for a long time. I thought to myself. “Okay, if there were thirty-six stairs...”
Just then, I felt my hair being pulled.
“Ow!,” I cried. “I turn around with tears in my eyes and look at a boy named Mark. He has been picking on me since the first grade “You idiot! Why did you pull my hair?”
“I didn't do anything,” he lied.
“Yes you did,” I bawled”
Mrs. Tupy walked over to us. “What's going on here?!”
“Mark Plantz pulled my hair!” I cried pointing at Mark.
“I did not!” Mark argued. I kept crying. My head was hurting.
“You did pull my...” I looked around the room. Everyone in the class was staring at me and I was feeling a bit embarrassed. I choked on my words, threw my test and ran out of the room.
“Noah, get back here!” Mrs. Tupy demanded. I kept running. I ran down the hall and hid in the girls room in one of the stalls.
A few minutes later, I could hear the principal, Ms. Stone calling for me. She was just outside the girls room I knew I was going to be in big trouble. I couldn't stay here forever I left the stall and slowly walked out the door. Ms. Stone was at the door when I got out. I looked up at her.
“Noah, you know better than to walk out of class and even worse walking into the girls bathroom,” she scolded. “Come with me to my office.” I quietly walked with her and sat down on a chair. “Noah, I'm going to have to call you dad...”
“No!” I cried” “Don't tell him I went into the girls room!”
“I won't tell him you went in the girls room,” Ms. Stone promised “But I have to tell him, you disrupted class and ran out of it again.”
I looked down a my shoes. I knew I was going to get it when I got home. I sat there quietly while she called my dad. I looked out the window. The ocean was pretty. I wish I could go there and swim in it. I use to go there a lot when mom was living with us. Now that she left us, we don't go there anymore.
I miss my mom. I look at my shoes again. I wonder what she is doing right now? I want to be with her, instead of dad. I don't know why she left me. She didn't even say goodbye. I feel tears falling down my face.
I look over at Ms. Stone, she is talking on the phone. I wonder what dad is thinking. Most likely thinking of taking out the belt or something worse. I look outside again. The rain had stopped. Why hadn't it stopped earlier when I was heading to the bus? That's a bit annoying. The sky is pretty. A beautiful blue. It's my third favorite color after pink and purple.
Out in the distance, there's a rainbow. Make that a double rainbow. Those ones are very rare to see. I have only seen one of those once before. I wish I had a camera, I would love to take a picture of…
“Noah?”
I looked away from the window and back at Ms. Stone. “Your dad was not at work and I didn't get through to him at home. I left a message for him at his work... For now, I want you to head back to class and don't cause anymore problems. You understand me?”
I nodded
“Okay, you be a good little boy and I don't want to see you in here again today.”
I hate it when people call me a boy. I headed out of her office.
I made it back to class, but the test was over, which means I failed. Dad was not going to be happy with me. I quietly sat down at my desk and lied my head on my hands. I knew Mark planned on doing something again, but what was I suppose to do?
Mrs. Tupy was teaching English. She could tell I wasn't really happy. But I listened the whole class.
When lunch came along, Everyone went in line. I sat down at the table like I always do. Dad never pays for lunch for me and he makes too much for free or reduced lunch for me to qualify for those programs.
I can't even bring my own bag lunch to school, since dad never goes grocery shopping. None of the teachers even notice. And if they do, I don't think they even do anything about it.
One week last year, dad didn't even come home from work. There was no food at home, like always and there was no money. That was the hardest week for me. I had to beg for food. School wouldn't give me any and sometimes I'd end up not eating anything for a few days. The only thing I was able to do, was drink water. That filled my stomach enough to make it feel full.
Mark on purposes sat down at the table I am sitting at and starts eating his food in front of me. He makes sure I am watching every second. He even plays around and tries to give me some and then takes it away before I am able to get it. It makes me mad that he does that and sometimes I wish I could stick his tray up his butt.
During recess, I don't do much. I just swing on the swings or jump rope. I don't have friends to play with. The only friend I have is Jeremy, the gas station attendant. He's twenty-six years old, but he's really nice to me. He doesn't mind me being transgender. If it wasn't for him calling me yesterday, I would have been caught from my dad for wearing a dress. But I have no friends my own age. All of them think I am a freak. They don't want to be friends with me because I am transgender.
The rest of the day was okay, I guess, but when it came to Phy Ed, or Physical Education. I didn't like it. Mr. Garrington the Phy Ed teacher, was very strict. To him, all boys were suppose to do sports. Girls could do sports if they wanted to. For me, I knew I was a girl, but to Mr. Garrington, I was a boy and I was forced to do sports.
I told him I was transgender, but to him, he thinks like my dad. A boy is a boy and will never be a girl and a girl is a girl and will never be a boy.
Every time I would refuse, he would force me to do push ups, until I agreed to do the sport he chose for the day. Today was football. I hated football a lot. It's a rough sport and makes me sweat. The boys are rough on me and would purposely plow me over because I am the weakest one on the team. I hate being in Phy Ed.
When school was over, I went back on the bus and sat alone. I wish my life was better. But it seems like it's not going to change.
I hated taking the bus home. If I were able to, I would walk home. I live two and a half miles from school. In fact I can see the school from my front lawn, if I look in between the neighbors houses across the street. It may look like a little dot, in a way, but it's still not far.
If I were able to walk to and from school, I wouldn't have to deal with the kids teasing me on the bus. The worst thing is, the bus driver doesn't even do anything about it. He just shakes his head and keeps driving.
I am sitting in my seat, hearing the kids whispering. I wish they would just talk normally and not about me.
It feels like always, right on cue, everyday Mark Plantz would walk up and sit down next to me. Today, he started squishing me in my seat.
“Ow!” I yell. “Stop it! That hurts!” I start to cry.
“Oh, look at the dickless wonder. He's crying.” Mark laughed, which made everyone else laugh as well.
I hate it when he calls me that. I have been called lots of names, but being called dickless wonder, is the most humiliating thing anyone ever calls me. I continue crying. Not because he called me names, but because he kept pushing harder. I was starting to run out of breath.
I look outside, trying to get my mind off the pain. I pray that someone or something could help me at this moment. I almost start to pass out, when I hear a crash which made me, Mark and I'm guessing the entire bus jump. That stopped Mark from squishing me and now everyone was screaming.
The crash came from the front of the bus. There was glass all over the place. On the floor A seagull was laying dead. It crashed through the front window of the bus. He must have been flying pretty fast to be able to break through that type of window.
I could see the bus driver had pulled over to the side of the road and was talking on the CB Radio. I couldn't hear anything, because everyone was talking at once. A few minutes later, The bus driver got up from his seat and looked up at us.
“I'm sorry boys and girls,” he said over the mic from the radio. “But because of this accident, the bus will not be able to bring you home. We are working on getting another bus at this time.” He started walking toward the back. He was away from the mic and started yelling. “Because of all the glass, I want all of you to start heading through the back door and wait on the side of the bus near the curb. I do not want anyone playing around out there. Highway 212 is unsafe for pedestrians.”
He takes out flare and a cone. He then opens the back door jumps out and sets up the flares and cones on the road. Everyone starts heading out of the bus one by one. When I got off, Mark and another boy named Bradley, tripped me and I fell on my face and started crying. Everyone started laughing, including the bus driver.
On my hands and knees, I looked up at the group watching them laugh. Tears were falling from my face. My hands and chin were scraped up. I looked away from everyone and noticed my house was just down the road. I got up and started running. I didn't care if the bus driver was yelling my name, I was not going to deal with them anymore.
When I got up to my house, I noticed that dad's car was still in the driveway in the same place he had it this morning. He didn't even leave for work. I could see smoke in the backyard. Was he grilling? This was new. He hasn't grilled since mom was living with us. I ran to the back of the house and saw in horror, dad had my girl clothes and was burning them on the grill.
“NOOOOOO!” I screamed. I ran over and started hitting him. Dad took out his belt and started beating me with it.
“I will not have a fagot living in my house!” He yelled, while beating me.
I don't know what got into me, but at that point, I had enough energy in me and so much anger, that I pushed him as hard as I could far across the lawn where he just lied there. I stood there looking at him. I was scared. I didn't know what I did. I think I killed him.
I looked at the grill and saw my clothes on it. Not all of my clothes were on the grill. It looked like only two or three were. The rest were still on the ground. I must have gotten here just in time. If I stayed near the bus, I wouldn't have any clothes.
I looked at my dad on the ground. I was very mad at him. I walk over and scooped up my clothes from off the ground and noticed my dress was not with the collection. It looked like just a bunch of my dresser clothes. My dress must still be in the closet. I ran up to my room to look for it.
To my shock, my room was torn apart. He must have been looking for more girl things. This was not a good sign. I broke open my closet and started panicking. I didn't see it anywhere. It was not hanging up the way I put this morning. I pushed the clothes aside and breathed a sigh of relief. I found my dress. He did not see it. It fell on the floor. I sighed again. I took my dress and the rest of my clothes and stuffed it all in my backpack. He was not going to find them now.
I sat down on my bed and cried. I can't believe he would look through my things. I continued to cry, but then got up quickly. In the air, I can smell smoke. It smelt like wood burning. I looked out the window and saw that dad was not lying on the ground. His car was gone. On the corner of the building I could see flames. He set the house on fire! He was trying to burn me alive!
I grabbed my backpack and ran downstairs. The smoke was in the air. I was coughing a lot. I ran to the door and tried to open it. But I couldn't. He had locked it from the outside. I could see a padlock was locking the door shut. I tried to run to the backdoor, but the fire was already in the kitchen. I screamed.
Choking on smoke, I had to get some air.
I ran back upstairs and went to my room. I tried to open my window, but it wouldn't budge. It was nailed shut. Dad had nailed it shut! I was coughing so hard. I look behind me and can see flames coming from the staircase. I couldn't go down the stairs. I ran and shut my door.
The air was unbreathable. I was suffocating I had to break the window, but how? I looked around my room. On the floor, I saw my lamp. I grabbed it and started hitting the window breaking the glass. I stepped outside and didn't have much time to think, I had to jump.
Screaming, I made it to the ground, where I landed on my backpack. I was very lucky I didn't break my leg or arm. Very lucky I got out of the room when I did, the roof to my room collapsed in. The whole house was engulfed in flames.
I watched it burn, but started panicking and began to run. I didn't want to be near the house. I didn't want to be there seeing the house I grew up in get burned to the ground. I kept on running. I didn't look back.
After awhile, I stopped running and sat down on the curb. I could hear sirens in the background. I knew they were heading to my house. I started crying again. I wiped my tears and looked at the smoke in the sky. It was really dark. I can't believe dad would burn the house down. And with me in it.
A man, walking his dog went by me. He didn't even ask if I was okay. He was to interested in the fire. This just shows how much people care for others. I got up and start walking. I had to keep my mind off the house. I look up in the sky. It was still light out. I had plenty of daylight left in the day, before it got dark. I wasn't sure where I was going to go tonight. I had no home.
My stomach growled. I haven't eaten anything since dinner last night and even then, that wasn't enough. I had to find some food. I walked down the streets until I found a park. I wish I went to parks. Dad never brought me to parks. He always had me do work around the house. I was never allowed to leave. If I did, then it was the belt or the whip. The park I found had two baseball fields and a play area. There were lots of people there. This complicated things.
I felt a little embarrassed looking for food in the trash. People were staring at me. Because of that, I had to leave the park. I couldn't handle people watching me look for food.
I walk down the road and start looking through garbage in alleys. Dogs kept barking, which made people look out their windows. I will never be able to find food. I wonder how the homeless find food? I 've seen homeless in Brookings many times, but they seem to be well fed.
I walked down the road to a nearby diner and checked the trash there. A lady, which I believe was a waitress came out of the building with a bag and saw me.
I froze.
We both stared at each other for a little while and then I started running.
I run until I'm out of sight of the diner and start walking down the road. My stomach was still hurting from no food. I suddenly hear the sound of police sirens. I start walking faster. The sirens were getting closer, I begin to run. I see lights behind me. My run drops to a jog and then to a walk. I stopped and waited. I knew that they were after me and I couldn't do anything about it. If they wanted me, I would just end the chase here.
The police car suddenly sped past me. They were in a high speed chase with a car, which scared me when they were speeding by. They weren't after me after all. I walk over to a nearby pond and look at my reflection. I'm shaking.
After about a minute of breathing, I continue walking down the road. A moment later, a car pulls up next to me. The passenger window rolls down. To my surprise, the lady from the diner was in the car.
“Hi there,” She smiled “I believe you need some help.”
I look up at the lady in the car. My eyes start to water, which I fall to the ground. The lady gets out of her car and runs over to me. I put my hands to my face to try to wipe the tears away. She picks me up and cuddles me. This makes me stop crying. I have not been held like this in years. Last time I was cuddled, was from my own mom. I put my head on her shoulder.
She brought me to her car and set me down on her seat. When she shut the door, she stood there for a minute and started talking on her phone. I wasn't sure what she was saying, because the radio was on in her car.
“...in Brookings, Oregon this afternoon, where a fire broke out at a house. Luckily there was no one at home the time the fire started. Fire fighters believe this was done on accident. They found a grill in back still burning. The Brookings Fire Chief had this to say. “When you leave your house for any reason and you are grilling, please make sure your grill is put out entirely.”
I stopped listening to the radio. They don't know what happened. The nice lady got into her car. I didn't even know she was done with her phone call. She sure talked fast. She did not start driving. She stayed put.
“So little girl, what's your name?” she asked. I was surprised. No one ever called me a girl. I was about to cry again. I looked back at her again. “How about this, I will tell you my name, then you tell me yours. Is that alright, sweetie?”
I nodded.
“My name is Nikki.”
“My name is Ki… Kiara.” I was a little nervous, but that was the first time I ever mentioned my name to anyone, besides my friend Jeremy.
“How old are you?” Nikki asks with a smile.
“I just turned ten in November.” I am starting to feel a little relaxed. I get more comfortable in my seat.
“Where do you live and where are your parents?” She asked me. I start to cry again and looked out at the smoke in the air, coming from my house a few blocks away. I looked up at her, I can see the concerned look on her face.
“Are you hungry? Of course your hungry.” She started the car. “how about I take you to a restaurant and we can talk a little more, is that alright?”
I nodded with a smile. I still had tears running down my face, but I just wiped them away. I start kicking my feet up and down in my seat. I am excited. I haven't had anything good to eat in days. She waited until I buckled my seat belt and then we pulled away.
I wonder what restaurant we were going? We drove a little ways up to all so famous McDonald's . As we pull into the parking lot, I started screaming. Nikki stopped the car and tried to calm me down.
“What's wrong, Kiara?” I kept screaming and pointing to a vehicle in the parking lot.
“There! There!”
What I was pointing to, was my dads car. He had parked it there and had gone in to eat. I could see him inside the building eating a burger.
“Whose car is that?”
“My dad's car!”
She looked closely towards the car and then at dad inside. I hope she doesn't go in and talk to him or something. I start crying and try hiding myself from his view.
“Let's find a different place to eat,” she said and started driving away. I hope he didn't see me. As we drove, she kept looking towards me a few times. We ended up going to the KFC down the street from where we were.
“You stay here for a second, I need to call someone quick, then we can go in and eat.”
She hopped out of the car and started calling someone on her phone. I couldn't hear that well. She had the radio on still. I turned it down so I could hear her conversation.
“… a white, Dodge Omni. Not sure what year…yes in the McDonald’s eating a burger…she's with me at the KFC here in Brookings…I believe she is a victim in a house fire…oh really?…wow!…poor girl…”
She looks at me. I jump and look away. After a while, she gets back in the car to see me. “You ready for some food. My tummy starts growling at the word of food. Which makes me giggle. “I believe so,” she laughed.
We held hands walking into the KFC. I kept looking around my shoulder. We ended up ordering a chicken bucket with drumsticks, mashed potatoes with gravy, coleslaw, potato salad, and some biscuits. When we got to the table, she helped put the food on my plate. She didn't even finish putting everything on the plate, I was already devouring the food.
Nikki wasn't surprised that I was eating so fast. If you haven't eaten any food for days, you would be eating fast too. A family in the table next to us was watching me eat. I wasn't paying any attention to them.
“What a pig,” the mother of the family barked.
Nikki looked at her angrily.
“Hey, give her a break! She hasn't eaten in a few days. Her dad has neglected her and according to the police, she has just become homeless, because her house was burned down this afternoon! If you have a problem with her, find another table!”
I stopped eating and looked at Nikki and the family. I felt ashamed for the way I was eating. I took another chicken and started eating slower.
“I'm sorry,” the mother apologized. “We normally don't see anyone act this way.”
Just then, about five police cars were speeding down the road with their lights and sirens on. The children of the family including I were all looking out the window. They were heading into the McDonald's parking lot. One police car drove into the KFC parking lot where I am. A police woman and man walked in, Nikki walked over to them and started talking. I continued eating. The police woman walked up to me and started talking to me.
“Hi there,” The police officer knelled down next to me. “My name is Officer Judy. What's your name?”
“Kiara,” I answered.
“What's your birth name?”
I started crying. How did she know? Nikki didn't know… or did she?
“Don't worry, we will use both names in the report and I will continue calling you Kiara.”
I started to smile. “It's Noah,” I looked at the family next to us. They were a bit surprised to know that I was a boy.
“Where do you live?” The police officer asked a lot of questions. Some were hard, especially since I don't have a home and my relationship with my dad. She said that some company called Child Protection Services has been notified? I was a bit confused.
While I was being questioned, I continued eating. Eventually, she left and joined Nikki and the other officer. The family had left a while ago. They seem to be a little upset when they left, but I was glad that they were gone.
After a while, Nikki came back with the two officers.
“Well Kiara, we were talking to Nikki here. She has stated to us that she is a foster parent for people like you.” the male officer spoke.
“What do you mean?” I tilted my head to one side.
Nikki sat down next to me. “I run a company down in Crescent City, California that helps with LGBTQ youth that are neglected, abused and or are runaways. I happen to be up here today, to help my little sister with her cafe, when I saw you looking for food in the trash. I'd like it if you would move in with me in my foster home. There will be lots of other children there as well.”
“Are you okay going with her?” Officer Judy asked me.
I nodded.
“Any questions, please give me a call,” She hands Nikki a card. And as for you Kiara, I wish you best of luck.”
I watch the police officers walk away. I had finished my food awhile ago and was ready to go, Nikki helped me clean the table and we headed out to the car.
While walking to the car, I had something on my mind. “What happened to my dad?”
“He was arrested and is going to be locked up in county jail in Golden Beach. If he is convicted, he will be in prison for ten years to life.”
I hopped in the car and buckled up. “Will I have to see him again?” I whimpered.
“Yes, but you will be speaking to the judge and the jury in court, you don't have to talk to him.” She started the car and headed down the highway towards home, or where I will be calling home. During the ride, I looked out the window. It was dark outside now and there was nothing to see. Eventually I fell asleep, even though it was about a thirty minute ride.
My life is going to be better from now on.
I hope
The smell of the ocean filled the air. I had the window open. Nikki was listening to some country station. She was waiting for a song she requested. She wanted me to hear it. I looked out the window and see a boat on the horizon. It looked like a cruise ship, or something.
“Kiara?” I heard Nikki call for me. “It's on next.”
I look away from the window and at Nikki. I hear on the radio a man speaking.
“This next song is a request, from a local resident that helped out a young child from Brookings, Oregon from an abusive father. She almost died from a fire this afternoon and would have become homeless, if it wasn't for her help. She is safe at this moment. The songs name is Concrete Angel, by Martina McBride”
♫“She walks to school with the...”♫ I was surprised. I never knew that there was a song similar to what just happened to me. While we drove down the road, We listened to the song. I can't believe she wrote this song. It was like she was writing my life. It made me cry a lot.
I could have been an angel right now, if it wasn't for my courage. Talking about angels, I wonder if I have a guardian angel? They usually help out people that are in trouble on earth, or so I have heard. I look all around me. Nikki looked over at me and started chuckling.
“What are you doing?” she asked. She was just about to turn off of 212 onto a side road.
“I'm looking to see if I had a guardian angel.” I answer, checking the back seat.
“You can't see your guardian angel, they are invisible. And everyone has one. They are with you in good times and bad. Guardian angels serve to protect whichever person God assigns them to.”
“Do you believe in God?” I look up at Nikki.
“In a way, I do. I might not see him, but he is there.”
I look down at my feet. “I sometimes do, but sometimes don't believe God exists.” I look out the window at the buildings passing by.
“Why do you say that?”
I sigh. “First of all, I always wonder, if 'They'….” I quickly look at Nikki. “Um, you can't just say God is a man, God, could be a woman as well.” Nikki smiles, almost like she agrees. “But if God really was real, why would They have me live in an abusive home with my dad? Why would They have it, I don't eat for days? Why would...”
“I completely understand what you mean.” Nikki interrupted me. “Children that go through trauma believe God has abandoned them or God is punishing them. Some lose their faith in God and...”
“I haven’t lost faith. I believe in Heaven and Hell, I believe in Jesus,” I start to cry. “But sometimes I believe I am not wanted. I can't even...” I couldn't finish my sentence. I continued crying.
“I know you just ate almost thirty minutes ago, but would you like an ice cream before we get to the house?”
“Yes!” I perked up. I stopped crying, wiping my tears away, I saw Nikki pull into a parking lot with a small diner.
“Crescent City Diner and Ice Cream is my favorite place to go for ice cream here in this city.” Nikki mentioned.
“What about Dairy Queen?” I asked, hopping out the door of the car.
“They have one back in Brookings.” Nikki spoke to me through the car before we shut the doors.
,As we were walking to the door a lady was starting to lock up.
“I'm sorry, we have just closed.” she announced.
“Awwwww!” I whined. That wasn't fair. I really wanted an ice cream. I started to pout.
Nikki looked at me and then at the lady “Is it possible you could make an ice cream for her, just this once. She had a bad day today and I just promised her one.”
The waitress looked down at me. She can tell I was disappointed. “Okay, come on in.” She opened the door and with a smile, I skipped over to the counter. “What kind do you want. We have vanilla, chocolate or swirl?”
“Um...” It has been a long time since I had ice cream. Last time I did, was when mom was still with me. “Swirl!”
“Swirl it is.” She takes a plastic bowl and fills it up. She looks at Nikki. “Because she is still under age, please help her with the toppings.” She points to a counter of goodies.
I was so excited. “I want gummy bears and M&Ms and peanuts and chocolate fudge. \” Nikki filled my bowl. “Oh, and chocolate chips on top.” When we were done, Nikki paid for the ice cream and we left the diner. I kind of wished we could have stayed, so I could have eaten it there, but she was closing.
I ate the ice cream in the car, while Nikki drove. The first bite was like heaven. When you haven't had ice cream four almost four and a half years, it would be the best tasting treat a girl, or boy could ever have.
“We're here!” Nikki announced. I looked up from the cup, with the spoon still in my mouth, I look out the window. We were pulling into a drive way. A sign near the road read 'Crescent City Home for LGBT Youth'
I pull out the spoon from my mouth. “Why does the sign say LGBT?” I asked Nikki, while we passed it. “Why doesn't it have the Q?”
“We have it as LGBT, to shorten the abbreviation. If not, it would be LGBTQIPA, short for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning or Queer, Intersex, Pansexual and Asexual. There's another abbreviation that could have been used which is...”
“Forget I asked,” I mumbled. I was a little confused with all the letters. Nikki chuckled as she parked the car. An older woman came out of the building and headed toward the car. When I got out of the car, she was there to greet me.
“You must be Kiara,” she barked. My name is Ms. Whiswall, I am one of the night time staff here at CC House. Your bedroom is ready for you. You have forty-five minutes until you have to be in your room for the night. You will be sharing a room with another child. I do not want any problems with any of you two. You understand me?”
I nodded.
She seemed to be a little mean. Not sure if I will like her. I watched as she headed back into the building.
I took my backpack of clothes out of the back seat and walked slowly to the house. I was as nervous as a chihuahua.
“Are you the other night time staff?” I asked Nikki.
She chuckled. “No, I am a full time staff. I live here. Ms Whiswall and Sarah, which I'll be introduce you too, are the night time staff.”
“Is Sarah mean like Ms. Whiswall?” I shivered.
“Again Nikki chuckled. “Ms. Whiswall is a very nice woman. She just acts like a mean, strict person. Once you get to know her, you will like her. She is very protective of everyone.”
When we got into the building, I saw a girl looking at me from one of the rooms. She must have been about nine or ten and very pretty. A younger woman about the same age as Nikki came out of the office. She was very cheerful.
“Hello Kiara,” She cooed. “I'm Sarah. I'm guessing Nikki mentioned me.
I nodded.
“Do you want a tour of the building?”
I nodded again.
Nikki told me she had to go to the office to fill out paper work, or something like that. I wasn't sure exactly what she was talking about. We went through the whole building in less than ten minutes. There was a living room the dining room and kitchen. The kitchen was off limits to the children. Which wasn't fair. I wanted to make my own food. There was the entertainment room, in the basement. That room they had a pool table. Some teenage boys were playing that. There was a TV with a Playstation and Nintendo game systems, I glanced at some of the games. They had exercise equipment. Two teenage girls were exercising and talking to each other. I think they are a couple, not sure. Next to the room there was a library with lots and lots of books. There was a boy on the couch reading. The bedrooms were on two levels. The second floor was the boys floor and the girls floor, was the third floor.
We went up to the third floor to my room. I was so happy to know I was on the girls floor. This didn't bother anyone at all. There was a young girl sitting in the hallway when we got up the stairs. She saw me and waved. I waved back. I wanted to introduce myself, but Sarah was ahead of me and already heading to my room. I decided to introduce myself later.
When I got to my room, no one was in it. I was surprised.
“I thought I had a roommate?” I looked around the room some more.
“You do. She will be up soon,” Sarah clarified. She usually stays downstairs and watches television until nine. That's when everyone must be in their bedrooms or at least on your assigned floor for the night.” She looked over at an empty bed. “This bed is your bed. Your dresser is right next to the bed and you have to share a closet with your room mate. There is a bathroom across the hall and one in the room as well. There is a shower in both rooms. I recommend you taking a shower tonight.” She heads towards the door to the hallway. “Well, that's the end of the tour. If you need me, I will be downstairs. I hope you enjoy your stay.” She turns around and heads down the stairs.
I walk over to the staircase and watch her. Once she was not able to be seen, I turned around to see the girl that was in the hallway was now in her room. I didn't want to disturb her tonight, so I went back to my room and started to unpack my backpack.
Inside my bag, I had my dress, which I hugged. I am so glad that dad didn't see this dress. I went to the closet to put it away.
When I opened the closet, I saw tons of dresses. The girl in this room had more dresses than I have ever seen in my life. I look at my dress and then at hers. My dress wasn't as pretty as her dresses. I started to cry, which made me fall to the ground.
Just then, a hand touched my shoulder, which made me jump in shock and look. The girl I saw downstairs when I first came into the building was standing next to me. “Are you alright?” She spoke in a sweet voice. I just kept staring at her. “My names Ashley, what's your name?”
“My…” I wiped my tears from my eyes. “My names Kiara.”
“Why were you crying?” Ashley asked. I can tell she was worried about me.
“I only have one dress,” I explained “And there are lots of dresses in this...”
“You mean my dresses?” Ashley giggled.
“Their yours?” I was shocked. “Than that means… your my…”
“We're roommates!” Cheered Ashley. “And because we are roommates, if you want, you can use some of my dresses.”
“You do know that I am transgender, don't you?” I asked looking straight at Ashley.
“That doesn’t bother me,” Ashley giggled. “So am I.”
“You're transgender too?” I gasped. “But how can someone as pretty as you..?
“You're pretty too!” Ashley smiled.
“I am?”
“C'mere” Ashley took me to the bathroom to check myself out in the mirror. She looked pretty. I guess because she had cleaner hair. I looked like I haven't had a bath in weeks. Which is true in a way. I decided at that time, that I should take a shower. That was the only thing I dreaded. Every time I took a shower or a bath, I had to see something I didn't want to see.
My penis.
I wish I didn't have it. I wish I didn't have to look at it. I wish I had what girls had. I wish I was born a girl.
When I get out of the shower, I was freezing. Ashley gave me one of her sleeping wear to use for the night. It had Snow White on it. I believe she gave it to me, because Snow White was the fairest one of all. I blow dried my hair and for the first time, I had my hair brushed, which Ashley volunteered to do for me. It had lots of snarls in it, which I kept complaining.
It was almost midnight when my hair was finally brushed and was fully dried. I looked beautiful. This made me feel special. I never knew I could look this pretty. When it was time to go to bed, I hugged Ashley good night.
I wonder what tomorrow is going to be like. I wonder if everyone will like me as mush as Ashley does.
Also, what about school?
I wake up with confusion. Where was I and what happened to my room? I look around the place and see another bed in the same room and it hit me, I was not living with my dad anymore. I look at the bed and notice it was empty. I remember that I had a roommate now and her name is Ashley. I was in a foster home or something.
I look at the clock on the wall. It said it was 9:08. The sun was out, so it must have been morning, which meant I should be in school. I knew it wasn't the weekend yet, because yesterday was only Thursday.
I jump out of bed and make a mad dash for the bathroom. I really needed to pee badly. While I did my business, I didn't hear the door to my room open up. I was still sleepy and really wished I had someone to talk to when I woke up. I could go down and see Nikki. I quickly finish up.
Looking in the mirror, I look at myself and see I had bed head. Time to brush my hair. This didn't take long to brush, since I brushed it last night, or should I say Ashley did. I giggle.
When I got out of the room, I notice there was a tray on my bed with food on it. I wondered how it got there. I start to cry. I have never had breakfast in years. Well, I have, but it was usually just something small and cold. This was a hot breakfast. This was the works. Scrambled eggs, bacon, pancakes with maple syrup, orange juice and toast with jam. It made my tummy growl.
I ran to the tray to eat it. I took my time eating, not like the KFC I had last night. I felt more comfortable now that I was able to eat a meal and not worry that I won't have another meal today.
While I was eating, I notice a card on the tray as well. I open it up.
“Kiara,” I read. “When your done eating, bring down the tray to the dining room and come to the office. - Nikki”
I wonder what she wants? While I was eating, I got a better glance at what my room looks like. On Ashley's side of the room, I notice she has a small flat screen TV on her dresser. I jump off my bed and take a closer look at it. I have never seen a flat screen television set before. At my dad's house, we had an old 1969 RCA television set. It was so old, we didn't even have a remote, just the old switches. The only way we were able to watch TV was dad stealing cable from the box located in our yard. It was usually just basic TV stations. I'm surprised that we never got caught.
As I look at the small Sony flat screen TV, I wondered if Ashley would be mad if I watched a show on it. I didn't think she would. I looked around and saw the remote on her bed and decided to turn it on.
I wasn't sure what channel she had it on, but there was a cartoon and I sat down on my bed and ate the rest of my breakfast and watched it.
After I was done eating, I continued watching the show. I didn't want to leave in the middle, even during the commercials. I must have laughed a lot, which was not something I ever did, because dad never let me. After the show was over, I headed down with my tray to the dining room.
I looked around the room, not knowing where to put it.
A lady was sitting at a table knitting a sweater. I walked over to her. “Where do I drop this tray off?” I asked her. I never met her before, but I believe she was staff. She looked at me and then just pointed towards the kitchen. It was kind of rude. Why didn't she speak?
As I walked towards the kitchen, I got a little worried. I knew I wasn't supposed to go in it. I knocked on the door. No one answered. I was about to turn around when an older lady opened it and saw me.
“You know your not suppose to bother me while I am cooking!” she growled.
“I'm sorry, I didn't know,” I quivered. “I handed her the tray, which she snatched out of my hands. I ended up running out of the dining room crying. I ran half way down the hall and sat down with my knees and head together rocking back and forth. I must have been there for a quite some time, because Nikki came looking for me.
When she found me, she knelt down next to me. I looked up at her. With tears in my eyes, I hugged her, which she gave me a hug back. Nikki got up off the floor and picked me up. It might look babyish to some people, but I felt comfortable being with her.
“Kiara, I would like you to see our building social worker.” She said, looking me in the eyes. “She is expecting you.” I was confused. “Don't worry, she's a very nice lady.
We walked down the hall to a room which was not on the tour last night. Inside the room, there was a young lady sitting at a desk, talking on her phone. She noticed us come in and put up a finger like she was saying one second, or something.
I sit down in a chair, where I looked around the room. There were many things, cabinets, posters, picture frames with words in it, but no picture in it and even some toys in a corner of the room. I was interested in the toys.
When the lady got off the phone, she looked over at us.
“Hi, Nikki and this must be Kiara?” She looks down at me.
I was a little shy.
“It's nice to meet the young girl that everyone is talking about,” the lady smiled at me. I gave a weak smile back.
Nikki headed to the door. “Thanks for taking her on short notice Ms. Reinhold.” She looks over at me. “Kiara, once you are done, please head to my office.” As she walks out of the room, I wave to her, which she waves back.”
Ms. Reinhold looks back down at me. I was sitting in the seat my feet were moving back and fourth. I was very nervous. “First of all, before we start talking, I have a few things to talk about.” She takes out a sheet from a cabinet. “As you have heard my name is Ms. Reinhold, I am a Social Worker here at Crescent City Home for LGBT Youth.” She hands me the sheet of paper. “Everything we talk about in this room is strictly confidential, I won't speak about it to anyone, unless you give me permission to do so or if you plan to hurt yourself or someone else.”
I was a little fidgety in my chair. She noticed and went in a cupboards in the back of the room. She grabbed some paper and crayons. “If you want, you could draw me a picture. Draw me whatever you want. Whatever is in your mind.” She hands me the crayons and paper. “While you draw, I would like to ask a few questions. If that is alright?”
I nodded and started coloring.
“If I ask a question and you don't want to answer it, please let me know.”
I nodded again.
“How do you like school?”
“Uh,” This was a little weird. Why would she ask me about my school. “School is fine.” I continued coloring.
“Is there anything you liked or disliked about your school?” Ms. Reinhold added.
“Well,” I continued coloring and Ms. Reinhold looked at it. “Well, Phy-Ed. I hate it. The gym teacher thinks of me as a boy and not a girl. I am forced to do what the boys do. The girls don't have to do the tough stuff, but the boys are told they have too.” I am scribbling my frustration out on the drawing. Which Ms. Reinhold notices. “I am always called a boy in the school. Even if I use girls clothes, they still call me it. The Principal is a dumb ass and so are all the teachers. Since dad never gave me money for food, I would never be able to eat lunch and would end up hungry for the whole day. Sometimes…”
“Whose the boy in your picture?” Ms. Reinhold failed to change the subject.
“He's Mark Plantz,” I grumbled. “He's a bully in my class. I hate him so much.”
“Can you explain him to me?”
I got away from my picture and looked up at Ms. Reinhold. She looked sad. “Ever since I was in Kindergarten, he has been picking on me!” I yell, which I was told to calm my voice. I speak softer. With a sigh I continue. “He pulls my hair and calls me names all the time. I always get in trouble because of him. He never got in trouble, except that one time when he swore in front of the principal. But besides that time, he is the teachers pet and I am the class clown.”
I went back to my drawing, but I was crying a little. Ms. Reinhold was writing down what I say.
“Tell me, whats your favorite color?”
“It's pink.” I smiled. “And purple. I also like baby blue. I have a dress upstairs that is those colors. It's my favorite dress. In fact its my only dress. I wish I could go shopping for more clothes. My clothes I have are all worn and ugly.” I look at my clothes I am wearing. It was Ashley's sleepwear. “These are not my clothes. I am borrowing them from Ashley.”
“Ashley is your roommate, is that correct?”
“Uh Huh,” I started drawing Ashley. I can't wait until she is back from school. Well, That's where I think she's at.
She changes the subject again, which I wish she didn't “What is your relationship between your father?”
I didn't speak. I kept coloring.
“You can tell me if you don't want to talk about it” There was silence in the room. I continued coloring. She watched me color. She finally broke the silence. “Did he try to hurt you?” I didn't speak.
Ms. Reinhold wrote more things down. After a few minutes, Time was up and she let me leave. I headed to the office, which Nikki was waiting for me.
“Hi, Kiara,” she greeted me. “I'm so glad you made it.” She takes something out of her desk. “As a special treat for entering the CC House, everyone is given a $200 gift card for shopping at the Walmart here in Crescent City.” I was overjoyed “If you hurry up and change, we can go shopping right away, if you want.”
I was so excited, that I ran up to my room to take my favorite dress out of the closet. I knew this would be the first time, in public, besides school and the walk home from the bus, that I would be in the dress. I got to the closet and stopped.
Ashley's dresses were prettier than mine. Should I wear one of them? I looked at mine and then at one of Ashley's. I felt a little ashamed. I wanted to use hers, but mine was special. It was my first dress and my favorite, but hers would really make me prettier. I couldn't decide. I looked at mine and was sad. Dad almost destroyed this dress. If he saw it, I wouldn't have it right now.
I think of the other clothes I lost in the barbeque grill.
I sit down on my bed and notice Ashley's TV was still on. I forgot to turn it off when I left the room earlier. Just like before, it was on a cartoon I have never seen, but looked very interesting. I sat down on my bed and watched it.
Nikki came up to my room and noticed me watching the show. I didn't know she was there. She walked into the room watched the show with me. Well, I'm guessing show was, because she wasn't saying anything. When a commercial came on, I got up off my bed to get ready and saw her, which made me jump.
“Don't hurt me!” I cried. I put my hands to my face.
“Oh, sweetie,” she started walking over to me. I backed away. “I wasn't ...”
“No! I don't want the hanger!” I started crying.
“Don't cry.”
“Stop it! Stop it!” I screamed. I ran into the bathroom and locked the door. Nikki walked over to the door and knocked. “Leave me alone! I hate you! I hate you!”
Nikki grabbed her cellphone and called someone on it. “Hello, Dr. Frank, This is Nikki from Crescent City Home for LGBT Youth I have a young child here, that is having a mental breakdown. Is it possible you could come over?”
Two years ago is more of a memory to me now, but I can remember like it was just yesterday.
It was dark out, but I hear the sound of the garage door opening and closing and the familiar sound of the White Dodge Omni when it rides down the road. That car can he heard for blocks. With it being dark out, I could see the lights of the car shining off the house across the street.
Before the car drove away, I look out the window and see the red lights from its rear. I wonder where he was going? I watch until I don't see the lights anymore.
I look at the clock on my bedroom wall and notice that it was only 4:50am. Why so early? Where was dad going at this time? My bedroom door was open. It was strange, because I normally keep it shut when I sleep. I was scared of what was outside in the dark and I quickly shut the door. The house can be creepy at night time, especially when there isn't anyone around, or asleep. I ended up going back to bed, which I fell asleep a few minutes later.
When I woke up, it was my usual time and the house was quiet. Opening my door to my room, I notice a very gross smell in the air. Almost like rotten eggs. I couldn't understand why the whole house smelled like it. I shut my bedroom door. I didn't want it in there.
As usual, I did my normal thing like I do in the morning and went potty.
While I was in the bathroom, I had a headache and I was starting to get dizzy. Not just that, the smell of rotten eggs, was making me sick. I finished up. As I try to flush the toilet, I notice it wasn't working, which was odd. I stumble out of the bathroom and head down stairs.
While heading down, I could hear a strange sound coming from the kitchen. It was like a hissing sound. The closer I got to the sound, the rotten eggs smell would get worse. I ended up putting my shirt over my face, trying to cover up the smell. It stunk so bad. When I reached the kitchen, I notice the gas stove had been turned on, but there was no fire coming out of it. That's what was making the smell and hissing sound. The natural gas has a smell as a warning that it is on. I ran over to it and turned off the burner..
Dad must have forgotten to turn off the stove when he left. He's going to be angry with me and blame me for the huge gas bill. He always does things and blames it on me. I start to cry.
I couldn't handle the smell of the gas and run to open the kitchen door to let some air in and let the gas out. The smell was so intense, that I ended up going outside myself. I started throwing up.
I wasn't sure how long it took for the gas to leave the home, but I hope it was soon. Its freezing out here and I didn't have my coat or shoes on. I was still in my pajamas. When it's freezing outside, it means the house was getting cold as well with the door open. Dad told me a hundred times to keep the door closed in the winter. I am going to get it, when he come back later today.
I'm just glad it' not snowing. It doesn't snow to often in Brookings When it does snow, their may be an inch or less and then it melts. What we normally get is rain and as of right now, I am glad it's not raining.
I was freezing and wanted to go back in the house, but I remember my friend Jeremy telling me that I should never go back in until the gas has left the building. He also told me to open all doors and windows. Which reminded me to open the front door as well. I wouldn't be able to open any windows, because that would mean I would have to go back inside the house.
As I open the door, There was a build up of the gas, which was really awful. I started coughing. I was feeling really sick, fell to the ground and blacked out.
I woke up to the sun going down. Was I outside on the ground all day? Why didn't any one help me. Didn't they see me lying here on the ground? Did any one even care about me? I sit up and look towards the house. It was dark inside. I climbed the front door staircase and into my now freezing home.
The smell was gone, which I was glad and I shut the door and headed to the kitchen to shut the other door. As I did, I noticed something odd about the house. There was something not quite correct about it, like something was missing.
My tummy started hurting. I haven't eaten anything in almost twenty-four hours.
I open up the fridge and all we had in there was a gallon of water and baking soda. I looked in the cupboards for something. I felt like Old Lady Hubbard. Because when I checked in the cupboard, It was bare. There was no food in the house. Dad didn't buy any groceries and didn't leave any money. I hope he gets back home soon. I am starving.
I start to cry. My tummy hurt a lot. If there was only some way to make it stop hurting, like make it feel like it was full.
Feeling thirsty as well, I decided to get some of the water from the fridge. As I started to drink the water, I spit it out all over the table. This wasn't water. Well it was, but it was salty. Extremely salty, like someone filled it up with lots of salt. I went to the faucet to get a drink. The water didn't turn on, which explains why the toilet upstairs didn't flush.
My tummy was hurting really bad and had to find some way to get rid of the pain. I look in the fridge again. Like before, there was nothing in it and I was not going to eat the baking soda. I was starting to panic.
I sit back down in the chair in the kitchen. I hope dad gets home soon. My tummy has a pain like I ate pins and needles.
I head to the living room and turn on the TV. I just hope that watching a show will get my mind off of food. There was nothing on but adult shows and News. Late night TV sucks. I sit on the couch and watch an old western movie. It was very boring and made me fall asleep.
During the night, I must have woken up. The TV was still on and one of those infomercials were on the screen. It was a cooking show. This made me think of food again. I went up to the TV and switched the channel. I hated going up to the television set every time, just to change the channel. Why can't we get a new TV with a remote? Not only that, the set was so old, that the screen messes up a lot and I have to get off the couch just to hit the side of it to get it working again.
I click through the only few channels that we had. They were mostly infomercials and boring sitcoms that made me hungry. I went back to the kitchen and checked the fridge. I was starting to get annoyed. I went back to the living room and sat there pouting and watched the boring sitcom on the screen, which again made me fall asleep.
I wake up in the morning. School started in a few minutes and I had to get ready. I went upstairs, took off my pajamas that I have been wearing all day yesterday and changed into some clothes for school. I ignored the fact that we had no food in the house and headed right out the door to the bus.
The next few days were the hardest for me. It was the weekend. Dad still didn't come home and I again there still was no food or water in the house. I would end up stealing food from the school, neighbors gardens, or the store and was glad I never got caught.
One evening, while I was watching TV, dad walked in from backdoor. I didn't know he was in the house. He saw me sitting on the couch and stood next to the doorway. I looked up at him. He looked mad. In his hands was a hanger.
I started freaking out. I knew what the hanger was for. He's used it before. I started crying.
“Where the heck is my stereo?” he yelled.
“I don't know?” I whined.
He went over to me and started hitting me with the hanger. I was screaming my lungs out. I wish the neighbors would call the police, but they never do. With each hit of the hanger and all the pain, I end up going into complete shock and everything goes dark.
My eyes went into focus. I look around to my surroundings. I was confused. I know the last thing I remember, I was looking through my closet for my dress to go shopping with Nikki. Next thing I knew I was in the bathroom lying on the floor. I don't know why I am in the bathroom and I am really, utterly confused.
I get up off the floor and look at myself in the mirror. I looked like I was crying. My hair was a mess. I also still had the nightwear on. I have no memory whatsoever. As I walk out of the locked door of the room, Nikki was sitting on my bed. It was like she was waiting for me.
“Um,” I was surprised that she was there. “Did I do something wrong?”
I was sitting at a table looking at a strange man. Nikki was in the hallway sitting. I could see she was reading a magazine or something. What looks to be a police officer was standing next to the door outside. I looked at the crayons next to the strange man, wishing I could color with them.
“Hello Noah, my name is Dr. Frank. I am a psychologists. I'd like to ask you a few questions. First of all, is it alright if I record our conversation?”
I nodded.
Dr. Frank takes out a small hand held tape recorder and presses a button.
'Click'
“Today is Friday on Day 23, the month of January in the year 2004. I am here with ten year old Noah Foster...”
“My names Kiara!” I screamed, interrupting the recording.
Nikki looked up from her magazine, I'm not sure what the police officer was doing, but I guess I was loud enough for others to hear me. I wonder if Nikki could see me through the window? I look out at her.
'Click'
Dr. Foster stops the tape recorder. “Don't worry Noa… I mean Kiara, No one can see you through that window. Its a one way mirror window. We are the only ones that can see out no one can see in. But I can close the blinds, if it bothers you.” Dr. Frank gets up from out of his chair and closes the blinds and then sits back at the table. “Would you mind if I continue?”
I thought for a second and finally nodded my head yes.
'Click' goes the tape recorder.
“I am here with Kiara Foster But for the records Noah Foster...”
This bugged me. I don't like hearing that name and wished no one used it anymore.
“…since that is his real name. So Kiara, do you know why you were brought here today?”
I shook my head, no.
“Please speak your answer, either yes or no.”
“No,” I spoke shyly. This was true. I don't know why I was here. I don't have any memory of what happened from the time I got into my room and the time Nikki was sitting on my bed, once I got out of the bathroom. I hope I can answer the questions okay.
“While you were at The Crescent City Home for LGBT Youth, you had an outburst, which caused a disturbance to others. They would like to help you with that.”
I sighed. I don't remember that at all.
“I have a few questions to ask you.” He took out a sheet of paper from a folder. “Okay… I would like to know a little bit about life at home.” Dr. Frank explained. “And what I mean is, your former home, before you were sent to Crescent City. How did your mother treat you?”
I sat there for about a minute crying. I didn't say a word, just cried. Dr. Frank watched me and wrote things in a notebook.
“Was your mother abusive?”
“My mom was nice to me when she lived with us.”
“Us? Are you talking about you and your father?”
“Yes.”
He writes it down. “Go on.”
“She was the only one that tucked me in at night time. Dad never did. And the one thing I liked about her, was she supported me when it came to me being a girl. She and me chose the name Kiara after watching The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride. Kiara is Simba's daughter in the movie, did you know that?”
“I never watched the movie, but it's a pretty name.”
“Thank you,” I smiled starting to cheer up.
“So what happened to your mother?”
“I don't know what happened to her. I remember mom and dad fighting a lot and the last time I saw her, she and dad were fighting as well and the next day, she was gone.”
“Do you know what her name is?”
“I'm not sure. But I think it's Carmela, or something close to that. I remember hearing something close to that name a few times.”
“Do you have any siblings?”
“Siblings?” I was confused. I never heard that word before.
“Brothers or sisters? Do you have any brothers, or sisters?”
“I have one brother and one sister.” I explained. “Mom was able to get them, but not me. Dad refused to let me go with her that night.
“Oh, what are your brothers and sisters names?” Dr. Frank took took out another sheet of paper and wrote down moms name.
“Calvin and Lauren,”
Dr. Frank wrote that down. I looked at the papers he was writing on. I couldn't understand a word he was writing. It was all scribbles. How can he read that?
“Did you hear where she went to?”
I shook my head no, then I remembered he was recording me “Oops. Sorry… No, I didn't hear where she went.”
Dr. Frank looked up from what he was writing. “Any phone calls from her?”
“No,” I looked at my feet. “I think she would have called to talk to me, but dad had the phone number changed right away. I did get a letter from her once, but dad stole it from me before I got to open it.”
About an hour later, we were done talking. I was asked to sit in the hall, with the nice man that looked like a police officer, while he talked to Nikki.
Inside the room, Nikki and Dr. Frank talked, while I sat looking at the walls at all the posters. There was some posters that said things like Depersonalization, Dissociative Identity Disorder, and Schizophrenia. Not sure what they were, but they were scary pictures on them. I had to get my mind off of them. I looked up at the police officer.
“Hello” I said with a smile.
“Hi there,” he said. “You must be Kiara, I'm David.”
My smile went away. “Uh, how did you know my name?” I was confused.
“While you were in the room, I talked to Nikki. She told me your name. She was worried about you.”
“Why are you here?” I asked. Am I going to jail?”
He chuckled. “No sweetie, I'm not a police officer. I work for Child Protection Services. I am kind of like a police officer. I am here, to watch over you, kind of like a personal body guard.”
“Why?” I asked.
“To protect you from your father.”
“Why? He's in jail.” I was getting a little nervous.
“I'm sorry to say this kiddo, but your father posted bail this morning. They had to let him go.” I was freaking out. “But don't worry, he can't touch you, as long as I am around you. Plus, we have put a restraining order against him.”
About that time, Nikki and Dr. Frank walked out of the room. I guess we were heading back to the house, or something. I was told that I will have to come back and see him again in a week or so. This was going to be boring. I walked along with Nikki and David followed right behind us.
When we got back, it was almost dinner time. I didn't even go shopping and get some new clothes yet. I hope we have time tomorrow. Ashley was in the TV room watching a show, but when I walked into the building, she screamed and ran over to me.
“Kiara! I missed you.” We both hugged.
Nikki went back into her office and started writing on some papers. I was not interested in that. I did notice that David was was standing nearby. I kind of feel like royalty. Having a body guard.
“Hi David,” Ashley said, waving her hand at him.
“Why hello Ashley, how's life treating you?”
I was confused, how does she know David?
“I am doing very well now. I even got a new friend.” She was pointing at me.
“That's wonderful,” He chuckled.
Ashley looked at me and then back at David. “So I see you're with Kiara now.”
He shook his head.
She would have continued talking, but the dinner bell rang and we were all sitting down at a table together.
Waking up to my new bedroom was still strange to me. I wasn't use to a big room. I stare up at the ceiling wondering what today was going to be like. How will I act like today, compared to yesterday?
I sit up and look around the room. The clock on my nightstand said it was 7:36 why did I wake up this early? Ashley was still sleeping in bed, she looked so cute. I would never have guessed she was transgender, like me. Today was Saturday, so she didn't have to wake up for school. Talking about school, I wonder when I will be going to my new school?
I stretch my arms, yawn, hop out of bed and head towards the bathroom. Trying to keep it quiet, so I didn't wake Ashley up. I would feel terrible, if I woke her from a beautiful slumber. I smile, as I walk passed her. I could hear her softly breath. It was so cute.
As I used the bathroom, I noticed that the sun was just waking up as well. I couldn't see it, but it was making the ocean view outside look pretty. From this window, I could see the sunset over the horizon of the ocean. While I was sitting, and looked outside at the water. I saw many seagulls flying around. It reminded me of the ones from Finding Nemo. 'Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine' I was giggling while thinking of it.
I left the bathroom and was about to leave the bedroom, but to my surprise, Ashley jumped at me and gave me a big kiss on the lips. Yo would be surprised too. For some reason, I liked it, but I just wasn't ready for it.
“Sorry, I really wanted to kiss you ever since we first met.” She apologized.
“That's okay, but next time please ask me.” I shrugged.
It was 7:43 and according to Ashley, on a weekend breakfast was at 8, so we ran downstairs to eat.
Kim, the morning cook was making us omelets. She was a bit cranky. I guess it was because she had to wake up early to get here. With the omelets, we could choose our own toppings to put in it. I chose olives, onions, green peppers, mushrooms and of course cheese. There was ham, but I am allergic to pork products, so I had to eat the veggies.
“You know that olives and green peppers are fruits, don't you?” Ashley asked me. I didn't know that. I guess I learn something every day.
A few more people came into the room and got an omelet. Micheal, is a fifteen year old. He is very nice. I thought he was cute, but he wasn't interested in me. He liked boys. Julie a girl about my age came into the room. She likes both boys and girls. She thinks I am adorable. Well, she thinks that both me and Ashley are adorable. She is twelve. I kind of wish that All three of us had a room together. We could have so much fun.
There was this one boy that sits all by himself at a table. He doesn't want anyone to sit with him. I'm not sure why. I call him Bob, even though I don't know his name. I could ask, but every time someone trys to get near him, he leaves the room. Ashley has tried as well.
After breakfast, as I was putting my dish away, Nikki came into the room.
“Want to go shopping now?” She asked.
I looked over at Ashley “Can she come too?”
“Can I?” Ashley cried, jumping up and down. “I can help her find the most cutest clothes.”
“Why not,” Nikki chuckled. Ashley and I giggled. We both went to our room to get ready to go. Ashley let me borrow one of her dresses and a pair of leggins. I was a bit worried. I never wore one in public, except when I was at school or heading home from it. We grabbed a coat. It was cold outside. Of course, there was no snow on the ground, but it was a bit chilly, almost forty-four degrees.
As we got to the car, David, gets out of his and walks up to greet us. I wonder where he stays during the night? Does he sleep in his car or does he leave and come back early in the morning?
Seeing him, made me think of dad. I wonder where he is? He has no home to go to, since he burned it down. I wonder if he knows where I am, or if he really cares.
Us children sit in the back of the car, while Nikki and David sat up front. It didn't take long for use to get to the Walmart. We were chatting a storm in the back seat.
“Wow! You two are a bit talkative today.” David said looking back at us.
We both giggled.
“Aren't all little girls talkative?” Nikki laughed. “I was when at their age.
When we got out of the car, we were told to stay together and not run off.
As we walked into the building, we saw a poster that was advertising a movie. I wasn't very interested in it, but Ashley was. She was so excited. “Another Harry Potter movie is coming out?” I wasn't surprised.
“The author, did write five books.” Ashley told me “And right now, I heard she might write another.”
“What is Azkaban?”
“Haven't you read the book?” Ashley looked away from the poster and at me.
“No, my dad never let me read or watch the movies. He always said that witches and magic was from the devil himself.” I looked at Ashley. “What? Why are you staring at me like that?” She had her mouth open like she was very surprised.
“Azkaban is a really prison on an island in the middle of the Sea.”
“So, kind of like Alcatraz.” I smiled.
“Yes, but Alcatraz isn't a prison anymore.” Ashley looked up at the poster again. “We've got to watch the first two movies when we get back. I want you to see this one with me when it comes out in June.”
“Come on girls,” Nikki sang.
As we went shopping, I picked out some very cute shirts. Mostly pinks and purples, but Ashley said it would be best to get other colors as well. After that, we picked out some dresses and skirts as well as shoes and socks. Also some panties, we couldn't forget panties. I wanted a bra, but I am still too young for it. Instead, I got a camisole. Ashley wears one. I'm not sure what I need it for, but I think its kind of like a bra, for younger children. I might be mistaking.
As soon as we got home, she grabs me and takes me to our bedroom, where she goes to her book case and grabs a video tape and hands it to me. “This is the first Harry Potter movie. The Sorcerers Stone.”
“Why don't you get them on DVD?” I asked. Looking at the video in my hand.
“I would get DVDs, but I don't have a DVD player. They are expensive.”
“They are cheap right now.”I pointed out. “At Walmart, I saw they were about $99 or less. It's the new BluRay machines that are expensive.”
“I'll stick with the VCR. I doubt they will go out of style.”
I shook my head and looked the other way.
She turned on her TV and we started the movie. I felt a bit ashamed, while watching it. But after a while, I ignored the feeling and started enjoying the movie.
“Hermione is cute.” Ashley sighed. I had a feeling she liked girls. She did kiss me after all.
As the movie ended, we had a little time left to talk before lunch. I was lying down on my bed. She went over and sat down.
“I wish I were a girl.”
“You are a girl,” Ashley giggled.
I sat up and looked at her. “Kind of. But I have a penis.”
“So do I,” She giggled some more. “Why does it matter what you have in your pants. Your gender is between your ears and not between your legs.”
“But it's hard,” I start to cry and Ashley gives me a hug. “Can I tell you a secret?”
She nodded.
“A few years ago, I was so disgusted with having a penis, that I tried to have it removed. I used a scissors and a knife, I even tried using a rubber band, so it would fall off.”
“Ow!”
“Yeah, it was painful.” I lied down on my pillow. “There were lots of things I tried, like freezing it off with ice, but the knife and scissors were the worst things I tried.”
“I'm glad you didn't succeed.”
“Yeah,” I sighed.
The lunch bell started ringing. This made me very happy. I just wonder what they made.
As we walked out of our room, we pretended the stairs moved like in the movie. We laughed and giggled, but eventually, we made it down stairs to the dining hall.
Barbara the kitchen lady, was handing out soup and sandwiches. There was ham or turkey sandwiches and for the soup, it was homemade lentil soup. I was told that Barbara was an excellent cook. She also makes dinner on the weekends. I wonder what she is planning tonight?
While we were eating, Ashley and I were saying some jokes to each other.
“What does a nosey pepper do?”
“I don't know what?” Ashley smiled, while taking a bite of her ham sandwich.
“Gets jalapeno business!” I laugh, and so does Ashley.
“Oh, oh, I got one!”Ashley squealed. “Why do fish live in salt water?”
“Um, I don't know,” I start to giggle.
“Because pepper makes them sneeze! Achoo!” We both laughed.
Just then I heard a crashing sound from outside the building. I can hear David yelling at someone, but I wasn't sure who it was. Nikki came running into the room.
“Kiara,” She looked panicked “Your father is outside, trying to break in.” I can now hear dad outside the building.
“I want my son!” Dad shouted “Give me him!”
“You can't have HER,” David was yelling “SHE belongs to the state of California now!”
I was freaking out and Barbara brought me and everyone into the kitchen and locked the door. Dad was pounding and kicking at the front door. I just hope he doesn't break in.
“Drop your weapon!”
“I am here for my son!” My dad was yelling at an officer.
“I don’t care, drop your weapon, now!”
“These people have kidnapped my son and...”
“I am not going to ask you again! Drop your weapon or you will be tased and pepper sprayed!”
“Are you serious? They kidnapped my...
I could hear something fall to the ground. “What the F-aaaaaaaa!” I heard my dad screaming and then things went quiet. I can just imagine seeing his reaction. ‘He stumbled backwards with wide eyes’ or something like that. I couldn’t see anything that was going on, because we were all still locked up in the kitchen I was hungry and the food we had was going to waste.
Ashley and I were terrified and crying. Dad had broken down the door to the building and was inside looking for me. He must have checked the upstairs first, because after the crash of the door, there was a huge silence until the police showed up and we heard them in the room next to us. I’m guessing he barely made it to the cafeteria, when the police came in. They most likely were pointing guns at him.
As for David, I’m not sure what happened to him. He would have stopped him from breaking the door down. I hope dad didn’t kill him.
It was a bit quieter than before, but we could hear them again I’m guessing it was outside.
“Stop resisting!”
“Goddammit!” Wow, I never heard my dad use those words before.
“Put your hands behind your back! I told you, stop resisting!”
My dad was not giving up. If he keeps it up, He’s going to get shot. To me, I really don’t care if he does or not. He deserves it for what he had done to me.
With all the action outside, Ashley and I continued crying and Nikki tried comforting us. I’m guessing a few others were crying as well.
Things went quiet once more. All we could hear was a siren in the distance. Sounding like it was heading towards the house.
God, it felt like hours before everything was done, but eventually a police officer came in and helped us out of the kitchen (or in my way of calling it, a hideout since dad never did find us). A police officer started talking to Nikki. As we got out, I looked at where we were, before we got locked up. Our food we were eating was still on the tables, but it was cold. The delicious lentil soup was cold now, which makes me feel bad for our cook Barbara. I can tell she was a little sad, but I guess she got over it. We can always microwave it.
I looked out at the front door, where dad had broken in. There was bits of wood all over the ground. The door was shattered almost like it was glass. Dad must have been strong to break that down.
Looking out the window, I could see a police officer putting up crime scene tape around the whole area of the building. I wonder if it was the same at my house in Brookings?
News reporters were outside reporting on what happened. I just hope they are not mentioning me. I don’t want the whole world to know about me. Ashley walked over as well and looked out the window. David was standing out there talking to one of the reporters. I still wonder what happened to him through out the whole time dad was in the house. He must have been knocked out, because he was holding something up to his head.
That night the house was on lock down. No one in or out. It’s a good thing all the residents were already in the house. There was tight security all around. Mostly just the police.
I watched my dad’s White Dodge Omni get towed away. I hope that would be the last time I see that vehicle. By the looks of it, it was totaled after he ran it into David’s red Ford Ranger.
I’m guessing by now, my dad is in his jail cell or something. I have never been to jail, so I don’t know what it’s like. There was a time I almost went to Juvey. It wasn’t even my fault. Dad call the police one day saying I damaged property. I was in handcuffs and was in the back seat of the squad car, but there was no evidence of damaged property, so they let me go.
Dad was pissed off after that night. I was not allowed to eat dinner. Because of that day, he started using food against me. If he felt I was bad, I was not allowed to eat that night and was sent to bed.
Now that I am glad I am away from dad, I can have dinner all the time. That’s why I am glad I am living in a home, where meals were always made for me. Tonights meal is Shepherd's pot pie. I never had it before.
The next morning, was Sunday. Ashley was up before I was. I would have slept in, but she went up to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek and ran back to her bed. She was acting innocent like she didn’t do anything.
I giggled.
“Hello, Ashley. Anything new today.” I ask, while stretching.
“Besides the news of your dad’s arrest and the fact the police and news reporters are still outside, I guess everything is just peachy. “
“What do you want to do today?”
“Well, the house is not on lock down anymore, but we can’t really leave, without an adult with us.”
“That sucks. How come?”
“Who knows, its been like this as long as I have been living here.”
“Oh,” I sighed. “I thought it was because of my dad yesterday.”
“Ashley giggled.” I thought the same thing when I moved here.”
The breakfast bell rang, which was a good thing, since I just woke up. We both got dressed and headed down to eat.
After breakfast, we ended up watching the second Harry Potter Movie. Like we were planning on watching yesterday. I didn’t really like it, because I hate spiders. I was hiding the whole time the giant spiders were on the screen.
“So you ready for your first day of school here in Crescent City tomorrow?” Ashley asked.
“Not really?” I said nervously. “But I think I will be fine with it, since you will be in my school as well.”
“Yeah. Sixth grade is the best.”
“What?” I cried “Your in sixth grade? I’m only in fifth.” I started to pout.
“Oh, I didn’t know you were younger than me. I’m ten years old and will be eleven on July 6.”
“Wait, I am ten as well, but I will be eleven on November 29. How come you are a grade a head of me?”
“I’m not sure why. This is so weird.”
School was hard for me. Having to transfer all my records to my new school, which had my dumb birth name on them. The principal kept calling me by that name as well. The secretary was very nice and would call me by my chosen name. When I was introduced to my Homeroom teacher she was happy to meet me and didn’t care if I was different from everyone else.
“Hi Kiara, my name is Mrs. Stockhold. I will be your Homeroom and Geography teacher.”
“Hello,” I said shyly.
“Let me help you to my classroom.”
The secretary handed me a my list of classes I was taking and a map of the school and I followed Mrs. Stockhold
As we walked in to the classroom, there were kids all over the place. I followed slowly behind. I was nervous as a Chihuahua.
“Good morning class.” Mrs. Stockhold announced. This is Kiara. She is new today.” She looks over at me “Would you like to introduce yourself a little more, Kiara?”
I looked at all the kids. I was scared. I walked up to the front of the class.
“Hello. My name is Kiara … I lived in Brookings, Oregon, until my dad did something bad to me and I was taken away to this city.” I looked over at Mrs. Stockhold worried I said something I shouldn’t have. She smiled. I was nervous. “I have never had friends before and I really hope I can have some here.” I finished what I wanted to say.
Mrs. Stockhold crouched down and whispers in my ear.. “Isn’t there something else you want to tell the class?”
“Do I have to?” I started to cry with fear.
“You don’t have to tell them if you don’t want to, but its best to say it before someone finds out.”
I look over at the class. “Also… I am.. Transgender.” The last part I spoke softly.”
A few snickers came as I took my seat nervously. A boy who was sitting next to my desk, fake-coughed while gently moving his seat away as Mrs. Stockhold went to the board.
“I don't want any trouble with anyone picking on her. Let's just get back where we left off Friday. Ava, do you remember?"
"Mountains of the World." Ava answered.
"Right, great job. Now everyone knows Mount Everest..." Mrs. Stockhold turned and began writing on the board while babbling off.
A boy from behind me nudged me. "Hey, what did they do with your dick?" he asked, smirking.
"Leave me alone." I replied, frowning.
"Hey, it's a legit question, Dickless Wonder." the boy next to me asked.
"Leave the kid alone, Lucas!" Another boy came to my defense.
“Shut up Jayden!”
"...I have a name." I said softly.
"But it isn't your real name, freak." Ava said naively. This made me start to tear up. I wasn’t a freak.
A girl in front of Ava turned around. "Leave her alone." She hated seeing any one cry.
"But he's not a girl." Ava said.
"She is just as much a girl as you or I, if not vastly more so because she made a serious, risky, important decision to be who she feels. It required courage, Ava!" Zoe said angrily.
I smiled a bit that someone understood me.
Mrs. Stockhold quickly turned around and put a stop to this annoying discussion.
"Shut up, or I'll fail all of you. Leave Kiara alone and focus!" She said, slamming the chalk down. It broke in two, but no one cared.
"But how can we focus?” the boy behind me pouted “Kiara is dressed like a total slut."
“Dude, Ryan, what the hell?" a boy across the room exclaimed, genuinely surprised as to
why Ryan was looking at me.
"Ryan, stop undressing transgender girls with your eyes and Matthew, watch your language. Now where were we… oh right, Mauna Kea. Mauna Kea is the highest point in..." Mrs. Stockhold turned back around, not noticing Lucas putting on a medical mask and scoot his desk a bit more, hitting a girls desk next to him. “Lucas, what are you doing?" the girl asked.
"...making it the world's tallest mountain from base to summit, beating out even Mount Ever - Lucas, what the hell are you doing now?" Mrs. Stockhold said, turning around.
"I don't wanna catch the transgender disease." Lucas said honestly.
Ava began laughing madly and I put my head down on my desk.
Mrs. Stockhold rolled her eyes with annoyance, "Lucas, it isn't contagious or a disease. You can take the mask off."
"That's what they said about H1N1 and now people are dying. I'm not going to get no vagina." Mrs. Stockhold quickly approached Lucas and ripped the mask off.
"This needs to stop. Kiara is just as much as person as you or me. You all will respect Kiara's life choices and leave her alone." Mrs. Stockhold
said.
"Thank you, Mrs. Stockhold." I smiled, almost on the verge of tears.
“Your welcome" Mrs. Stockhold turned to the board.
"Since none of you are paying attention, I guess we can just have a test on all the mountains. I myself need a break from all this." The kids groaned.
"Shut up! I don't want to hear it.
When the test was over and the bell rang, I immediately went to my locker, opening it and put a notebook inside, before a boy from another classroom approached me.
"So I heard that you have no dick, is that right?"
"Can you pleas-" before I could finish, some more boys pulled him away and began whispering something. I merely shrugged, put the rest of my things away and went walking to the cafeteria.
I got in line for my lunch, noticing Ryan and Lucas whispering things with some other boys and laughing. I started to tear up. I am getting tired of being picked on. This reminded me of my old school back in Brookings. I got my plate of food from the nice lunch lady and went
by the girls' table.
”Uh, excuse me, this is the girls' table." Ava said,
"Yeah." I replied
"So, you can't sit here." Ava said
"But-"
"My dad doesn't like me being around boys." Another girl on the table chimed in.
"Yeah, no gender queers!" said the girl that sat next to Lucas back in the classroom.
“Good one Jenny” Ava giggled.
"I'm not a boy!" I said aggressively as I walked away, hurt by the girls' non-acceptance. I sighed sadly and went over by the boys' table.
"Whoa there Dickless Wonder, once you make the change, you can never come back. The table a lifetime membership deal and once you let go of that, there's no money-back guarantee." Lucas said much to the joy of the other boys, who joined in with the laughter that erupted.
"Beat it, weirdo." Ryan said.
I sighed and left to sit at a table by myself. “Just like it was in Brookings.”
“Alright class, today we will be playing a game of dodge ball,” our gym teacher spoke to us.
We all cheered.
“I know some of you might know the rules of the game, but some might not know yet, so I have to explain before we begin.”
Everyone groans, but me. I have never played it before, so I feel like I am the loser here.
“The objective of dodge ball is to take out all the players of the opposite team," He begins. “A player is declared out if you either hit an opponent with a thrown ball. Before it hits the ground and below the shoulders, you catch an opponent's thrown ball before it makes contact with the ground or walls or you cross over any boundary lines.” He looks over at me because he can tell I am one that doesn't know the rules. “Now remember to win the game you must take out the other teams players, before time is up or have more players when the time is up than the other team.”
One kid comes over to me. “Thanks a lot, jerk.” He says.
“Now everyone line up while you are chosen sides.” the gym teacher said from across the room. I walked over with all the other classmates.
Lucas sees me. “Get away from me; I don’t want to catch the transgender disease.” He was pretending to be scared. I can tell. He was laughing with his friends. I kind of wish I could punch him in the nose, but I don't want to get in trouble. What would be worse getting suspended on the first day of school because I was being bullied.
I was chosen on the opposite team of Lucas and his friends, which was a good thing, but not the best, because I ended up not having fun. I was out immediately when the game started. All the boys went after me right away, and it was really hard on me. They all teamed up for the purpose of making me sit out.
I hate dodge ball.
The alley was dark and deserted. I was walking home from school, even though I could have taken the bus home. But after dealing with the bullies all day, I couldn’t handle seeing them again. As I walked, I contemplated going back to school the next day. I kick a can against a building which makes a cling clangy echoey sound. I was trying to take my frustration out.
I know I will get in trouble for not taking the bus home. Nikki or one of the staff at CC House will lecture me on walking home. “It’s not safe to walk home” Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah. It's not even dark out. Es the alley is dark, but it's not dark outside. It’s like what? 3:35? 3:40? Somewhere around that time? The sun is still out, and at least it's not raining.
I hear a cat meowing in the distance which sounds like it was in heat or it may have been hungry. I was starting to feel hungry at that moment because my tummy was growling just thinking of it. I thought about home and wondered what we were going to have tonight for supper. I also wonder what Ashley was planning on doing for fun. Probably a movie or something similar. She always thinks of something fun to do. We never did get a chance to finish watching that Harry Potter movie.
As I was walking along, I noticed places I hadn’t recognize from earlier today, heading to school. Was I going the right way home? Looking around, I saw a library. I defiantly wasn’t going the right way. I decided to run over to the Library to ask for directions or maybe even ask to use the phone.
While I headed inside, I noticed it was starting to get busy for this time of night, and the woman at the front counter was checking out customers. Was it always this busy at this time of night?
“Scuse me,” I asked.”
“Please wait your turn young lady. The woman at the counter told me. I looked down to the ground, not knowing what to do. I started walking around the library to the kids' section to find a book to read, while I waited.
As I turned the corner of one of the aisles, I had a big surprise… Ryan, Lucas and a few other boys from my class were there. They looked like they were up to something; Something not so good I could say.
I start to slowly walk the other direction, hoping they don’t look my way. I didn’t want another problem just like what they did at school today.
I make it to another aisle and keep looking back. My heart is beating fast. I turn different directions left and right hoping they didn’t see me and was about to hide under a table when...
“Well if it isn’t the Tranny!” Lucas said popping out of nowhere. I jumped. I wasn’t expecting him to jump out in front of me like that. He must have seen me.
“Hey guys, look at the Dickgirl we have over here!” He said to his friends who were coming up from behind him. They all were laughing.
“Dickgirl,” Ryan repeated because he says he is a girl and he has a dick.”
“Stop it!” I cried.
“What’s the matter pussy; afraid of us?” Ryan laughed
“What are you doing in my part of the city, in fact, my city of all places?” Lucas growled.
“Aren’t you suppose to be with that queer family of yours?” Ryan spoke up. I looked at him surprised. “That's right I know you live at that Queer Home For Queer People here in Crescent City. That’s where all the freaks live.”
I didn’t say anything. I was starting to cry.
“Look at the baby cry!” Lucas pointed at me to the boys. “Waaaaaaaaaa!” He imitated a baby as well as pretended to wipe his eyes.
Other people in the library walked by and didn’t stop to help. They just went on with their lives as if this was normal or they didn’t want to get involved. Some people were reading a book or listening to their iPods and walking the other way.
Lucas kicks me in the private area which makes me fall to the ground. I almost hit my head in the process. “I guess the he-she does have a dick after all” Lucas laughs, which has the other boys laugh as well.
“Well at least balls,” Ryan pointed out.
“Come on guys, let's get out of here.” All the boys walk away still laughing and left the library. I am still sitting on the ground crying holding my private in pain.
People walked by me not stopping to see if I needed help. Some most likely thought I was just a bratty kid not getting what I wanted and was throwing a tantrum. Eventually, I got up and walked over to the counter. There was still a big line. I couldn’t believe it. How could such a small place like this library be so busy?
Finally, when it was my turn, I saw the woman at the counter and froze. I was a bit shy.
“Can I help you young lady?” she asked.
I was still scared.
“If you don’t need anything move aside,” she growled.
Finally, I spoke up. “Where is CC House? I asked.
“CC House?” She looked confused?.
“Yes,” I tried again. “I am lost, where is Crescent City Homes?”
“I’m not sure what you mean?” She said looking at the line and then at me.
“Excuse me, Miss,” A young man in line spoke up. I looked over to him. “Crescent City Homes is a bit far from here. Here let me check out my books, and then I will write down the information for you on some paper.” He gets his books checked out and as he promised he writes down the directions.
“Thank you so much,” I say looking at the paper.
On the paper it said to Head southwest from the library toward Front Street, Turn right onto Front Street, Then Turn right onto B Street. Turn left onto Second Street, and I should see Crescent City Homes on my left.
I smiled. I skipped out to the door and
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP
I quickly stopped because the alarms went off at the door. I looked back at the woman at the front desk.
“Hold Up!” A security guard yelled at me.
“What did I do?” I cried?
“It must have been the boys that did it. I didn't even get a chance to look at any books when I was in the library. I just wanted to go home.” I cried. “Look at the security tapes!”
I was sitting in a chair in the office of the Library waiting for the police and Nikki to show up.
A security guard was standing next to me making sure I didn't leave the chair.
I was scared and crying.
“I didn’t do anything. I didn’t steal anything.” I was crying and wanted to go home. I was caught with a DVD in my backpack. I don’t know how it got there; I was holding my bag the whole time except when I was kicked. The security guard wasn’t listening to a word I was saying.
Eventually, I heard that a police officer came into the building and Nikki came in a few minutes after him. This was where I was starting to panic. I didn’t want to go to jail.
The police and Nikki talked to someone right outside the room I was sitting in. I see that they were talking, but couldn’t hear what they were saying. I was hungry, and I wanted to go home.
A few minutes later a policewoman and Nikki came into the room. Some man stood outside the doorway with his arms crossed.
“Please let me go, and I won’t come back here again! I Promise!” I cried.
“Hello Kiara, Don’t be afraid. my name is Officer Chill,” the police officer crouched down at my eye level. “It seems like you have gotten into a little trouble tonight.”
“I didn’t do it!” I cried.
“I know you didn’t. We all saw the surveillance footage. A bunch of boys about your age did it to you.”
“Yeah, Ryan and Lucas and his friends…” I grumbled. But then I spoke softly. “...And now I’m a squealer.”
My name is Riley Johnson, and I'm a nine-year-old living in the small town of Summer Springs, Minnesota. I have an older sibling named Bailey, who is just two years older than me. Being the youngest child in the family, I often rely on Bailey's help and guidance.
Today is an exciting day for us because we're getting ready for our long-awaited trip to the Grand Canyon. We've been planning this adventure for weeks, and now the day has finally arrived. The anticipation is almost too much to bear!
As I struggled to pack my bag, feeling overwhelmed by the task, Bailey came to my rescue, just like they always do. They have a knack for helping me out when I need it most. Whether it's tying my shoelaces or reminding me to grab my toothbrush, Bailey is always there to lend a hand.
With Bailey's assistance, packing became a little less daunting. They patiently guided me through the process, making sure I had everything I needed for our exciting journey. Their calm and reassuring presence eased my worries and made me feel more confident about the trip.
As we almost finished packing our bags and double-checked our list, excitement bubbled within us. The thought of exploring the majestic beauty of the Grand Canyon filled our hearts with joy and wonder. We couldn't wait to embark on this adventure together as a family.
"Dad, Bailey and I are almost done packing!" I shouted to him down the stairs.
"Great! When you're finished, bring your bags down to the camper," he replied. "Oh, and your mother wants to know if you prefer egg salad or tuna for sandwiches."
"For the sandwich? I think I'll go with egg salad," I replied, zipping up my bag after adding the last shirt.
"Sounds good to me too," Bailey chimed in.
With our bags in hand, we made our way down the stairs.
The camper was already loaded up with all the camping gear and supplies.
"So, are you two excited about the upcoming camping trip?" Dad asked us as we placed our bags inside.
"Yes, absolutely!" we both exclaimed simultaneously.
Mom came outside, holding a paper plate with the egg salad sandwiches.
"Here you go," she said, handing us the plates. "If you want more while we're on the road, I packed some extra in the fridge in the camper, along with a few tuna sandwiches."
Dad turned to us and asked, "Do we have everything?"
"We sure do," Mom replied. "I also made sure all the doors and windows are locked." She glanced at her phone. "And I set timers on all the devices, so it looks like we're still home."
"Well, I guess we're all set," Dad said with a smile. "Hop in, kids."
The road trip was an adventure. Bailey and I were in the back, chattering excitedly about what the Grand Canyon would be like and what we would see.
The drive was long but it flew by. Dad pointed out different landmarks along the way and shared stories about his previous camping trips as a kid. He was in good spirits and told many jokes about it as well. Of course, we both groaned at his dad's jokes. But besides all that, we all had a good laugh.
As we continued on our journey, the scenery changed from bustling city streets to serene countryside. Dad's enthusiasm was infectious, and his stories made the drive feel shorter than it actually was. He would excitedly point out mountains, lakes, and forests, recounting memories of his adventures in each location.
His jokes, although cheesy, never failed to bring a smile to our faces. We would roll our eyes and pretend to be annoyed, but deep down, we appreciated his lightheartedness and ability to make even the most mundane moments entertaining.
The hours passed by in a blur of laughter and shared experiences. Dad's storytelling skills were unmatched, and he had a way of making even the simplest anecdotes sound captivating. We found ourselves engrossed in his tales, eagerly awaiting the punchlines of his jokes.
As the sun began to set, casting a warm golden glow over the landscape, we couldn't help but feel grateful for this time together. Dad's joyous spirit had turned what could have been a monotonous drive into a memorable adventure filled with laughter and connection.
Eventually, we arrived at our first camping destination along the trip, tired but content. The drive had indeed flown by.
We stepped out of the car, stretching our legs and taking in the fresh air. The campground was nestled amidst towering trees, with patches of sunlight filtering through the leaves. The sound of birds chirping and leaves rustling added to the tranquil atmosphere.
The next morning, we woke up feeling refreshed and ready for another day of adventure. Mom didn’t want to make breakfast. So we decided to treat ourselves to a delicious breakfast at a local café. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee and the tantalizing scent of pastries welcomed us as we stepped inside.
The café had a cozy and inviting atmosphere, with soft music playing in the background and friendly chatter filling the air. We found a table near the window, allowing us to soak in the morning sunlight while enjoying our meal.
As we perused the menu, our stomachs growled in anticipation. The café offered a wide variety of options, from classic breakfast staples to unique and creative dishes. Dad ordered his favorite eggs benedict, while Bailey and I opted for a fluffy stack of pancakes topped with fresh berries. Mom chose a hearty breakfast burrito and a plate of avocado toast.
As we waited for our food to arrive, mom and dad sipped on steaming cups of coffee while Bailey and I drank some orange juice and engaged in light-hearted conversation. The café buzzed with activity, with locals stopping by for their morning caffeine fix or grabbing a quick bite before starting their day.
When our plates arrived, they were a feast for both the eyes and the taste buds. The eggs benedict came perfectly poached, with hollandaise sauce drizzled over a bed of English muffins and Canadian bacon. The pancakes were golden brown and fluffy, accompanied by a dollop of whipped cream and a generous pour of maple syrup. The breakfast burrito was packed with savory fillings, while the avocado toast boasted creamy avocado slices on top of crusty bread.
We savored each bite, relishing in the flavors that danced on our tongues. The food was not only delicious but also served as fuel for the day ahead. We shared bites with one another, exchanging smiles and approving nods as we indulged in this morning treat.
As we finished our meal, we felt a sense of satisfaction and contentment wash over us. The café had provided us with a warm and welcoming start to the day, fueling our bodies and spirits for the adventures that awaited us.
With full bellies and smiles on our faces, we bid farewell to the café, grateful for the nourishment and the memories created within its walls. The day was still young, and we were eager to continue our journey, knowing that more incredible experiences awaited us along the way.
After a few days on the road, we finally, pulled up to a small town at the beginning of the Grand Canyon. We were both extremely excited.
The line into the park took a while. Backed up for miles. Cars inched forward as eager visitors waited their turn to enter the Grand Canyon National Park. The anticipation in the air was palpable, with families and friends chatting excitedly and snapping photos of the iconic entrance sign.
“Look at those people,” I laughed.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, we reached the entrance gate. Dad paid to get in, but eventually, we were moving along.
We made it to the camping site. Bailey and I jumped out of the camper, we were both eager to explore the Canyon.
“Don’t wander off too far,” Mom said. “It’s getting late, we can see the canyon in the morning.
“Yeah, you don’t want to miss out on my famous burgers,” Dad chuckled as he was getting ready to start up the campfire.
“Mom,” I complain. “The best part of the canyon is at night when the sun hits it.”
“Don’t worry, we’re here for a few days, you won't miss it.”
I sighed, reluctantly accepting my mom's words. I knew she was just looking out for us, but the anticipation of seeing the Grand Canyon in all its glory was almost too much to bear. Bailey and I decided to take a short walk around the campsite to satisfy our curiosity.
As we strolled along the dusty path, we marveled at the towering pine trees that surrounded us. The air was filled with the sweet scent of nature, and the sound of birds chirping added a melodic soundtrack to our adventure. We couldn't help but feel a sense of peace and tranquility wash over us.
After a while, we stumbled upon a small clearing that offered a glimpse of the canyon in the distance. The fading light of the setting sun cast a golden glow on the rugged landscape, creating a breathtaking sight. Bailey and I stood there in awe, taking in the beauty before us.
As we watched, the colors of some of the canyon transformed from warm oranges and reds to deep purples and blues. The shadows danced across the cliffs, creating an ever-changing masterpiece that seemed to come alive before our eyes. It was a magical moment that we were grateful to witness.
Bailey nudged me, breaking me out of my trance. "We should head back," they whispered. "Mom and Dad will be worried."
Reluctantly, we turned away from the mesmerizing view and made our way back to the campsite. As we approached, we could see the flickering flames of the campfire and hear the laughter of our parents. The scent of Dad's burgers filled the air, making our stomachs growl with anticipation.
As we joined our parents around the campfire, I couldn't help but feel grateful for this moment. Even though we hadn't seen the Grand Canyon in its full glory yet, I knew that this experience was just as special.
The night air was cold and fog was beginning to form.
“Kinda eerie isn’t it,” Bailey asked me.
“This is a good time for a scary story.” Dad chimed in.
We all agreed as Dad started the story.
"Once upon a time," Dad began, a smile spreading across his face. "There was a brave man named Park Ranger Rick Marshall. He was a widower and the loving father of two adventurous children, Will and Holly."
Excitement filled the air as we leaned in closer, eager to hear the details of the story.
"One fateful day, the three of them embarked on a routine expedition on a raft, exploring a mysterious cave," Dad continued. "Little did they know that this adventure would take an unexpected turn."
Suddenly, I couldn't contain my curiosity any longer. “What happened?”
“All of a sudden, there was a huge earthquake.”
"Dad, how big was the earthquake?” I asked. “Was it like a 10.0 on the Richter scale or even bigger?"
Dad chuckled, shaking his head. "I'm not quite sure about the magnitude, but let's just say it was the greatest earthquake ever known."
As Dad continued his tale, he described how the earthquake struck while they were navigating through treacherous rapids. The force of nature caused their tiny raft to be flung down into the depths below.
Wide-eyed, Bailey gasped and asked, "Where did they end up?"
"To a place called the Land of the Lost," Dad replied with a mischievous grin.
Bailey's excitement quickly turned to disappointment. "Dad, that doesn't sound scary at all."
Dad chuckled again. "Well, I tried my best to make it thrilling. But don't worry, there's more to the story."
I glanced at Bailey and stifled a yawn. It had been a long day, and despite our anticipation for an exciting tale, fatigue was starting to catch up with me.
Mom noticed my tiredness, she smiled understandingly. "Alright, kiddos, I think it's time for bed. We can continue the story tomorrow."
Bailey and I nodded, knowing that there would be plenty of time to hear the rest of the thrilling adventure. As we settled down for the night, our imaginations were already running wild with the possibilities of what awaited us in the Land of the Lost.
We headed back to the camper, but it was really foggy out. “I can’t see anything in this fog!” I complained.
“Just get inside,” Mom said. “It will be gone in the morning.”
“I sure hope so, because it would be a lousy view of the Grand Canyon,” I joked.
Startled awake by an unfamiliar sound outside the camper, I glanced around the dimly lit space and noticed that my family was still fast asleep. Curiosity tugged at me, compelling me to investigate. I rose from my bed and approached the window, only to find the thick fog still obscuring my view. It was impossible to discern anything beyond its hazy veil.
Hopeful that the fog would dissipate by morning, I returned to my pillow, attempting to convince myself that it had all been a mere nightmare. However, sleep eluded me as I stared up at the ceiling, my mind plagued by unanswered questions.
Seeking solace in distraction, I reached for my phone to check the time. To my bewilderment, there was no clock displayed on its screen. Frustration welled up within me, and I lightly tapped the device in a futile attempt to rectify the issue. Realizing that it was futile and inconsequential in that moment, I resigned myself to sleep and resolved to address the matter come morning.
Just as drowsiness began to reclaim me, the enigmatic noise reverberated through the air once more. Startled and filled with a sense of urgency, I leapt from my bed and hurried over to my parents' sleeping forms. Desperate for answers, I urgently whispered, "Mom, Dad, there's a strange noise outside our camper."
My father's voice growled with irritation as he responded, "Riley, go back to bed! It's probably just an animal."
Reluctantly obeying his command, I turned to retreat to my bed when the unsettling sound echoed through the night once again. This time, both my mother and father roused from their slumber.
Wide-eyed with concern, my mother inquired with a tremor in her voice, "What kind of animal makes that noise?"
Dad's uncertainty was palpable as he replied, "I'm not sure, but I don't want to find out. Let's wait until morning to investigate." He glanced at his phone, only to discover an unexpected anomaly. "What the..." he trailed off, his expression mirroring his confusion.
Alarmed by his reaction, my mother pressed for an explanation. "What's wrong, honey?"
His voice tinged with disbelief, Dad replied, "There's no time displayed on this phone."
A mixture of shock and disbelief washed over my mother's face. "You're joking!" she exclaimed.
"My phone is the same," I chimed in, my worry mounting.
Bailey, stirred from their sleep, their voice filled with grogginess and curiosity. "What's going on?"
As we exchanged concerned glances, it became increasingly clear that something inexplicable and unsettling was unfolding around us. Determined to uncover the truth and ensure our safety, we braced ourselves for the challenges that lay ahead.
An Unexpected Journey
My name is Josephine, I live in Großmöllen, German Empire. I am seven years old and I am Jewish, well my whole family is Jewish, but that is not important.
.
I may be known as Josephine, but I was not born with that name. I was born Joseph. Ever since I was three years old and could talk, I knew I was supposed to be a girl. I insisted on being called a girl and with a girl's name.
My Papa did not agree with me and said I was born a boy and should act like a boy. But I would throw a fit and he eventually gave in after my Momma talked to him about it, saying that it is just a phase and that I will grow out of it. It has been four years since that time, It is not a phase.
My twin sister, Anneliese is extremely happy to have a sister of her own to play with, and being seven years old, it is the best.
We usually play jacks or hopscotch and sometimes I just feel like playing with my doll. I got this doll, (which I named Lucie) which my Momma gave to me a year ago. She is very pretty with a blue dress, blue eyes, and long red hair. I can not go to sleep without her.
In my neighborhood, all the boys got heard of me being born a boy and would pick on me and would keep calling me a freak of nature or a sissy. The girls would not talk to me. This was really hard on me and I would end up playing alone, or with my sister. I do not have any friends.
Date: Friday, The Fifth day of April 1912
Place: Großmöllen, German Empire
Time: 10:30
Anneliese and I are playing jacks outside. She is really good at the game, but I am catching up to her. A teenager on a bicycle came riding up to our front door and handed Papa something and took off. Papa got a telegram. When we get telegrams, it usually means Opa and Oma (Grandpa and Grandma) sent us one. So we both run in to listen to what they wrote.
It was not from them, which was disappointing It was from the city. It stated that we have five days to vacate our home and leave the city. Both Anneliese and I looked at each other in shock. Momma was crying and Papa just sat in his chair looking at the telegram not saying anything.
Momma did not want to leave Großmöllen. I do not want to either. This was Momma‘s hometown and it is also where both Anneliese and I were born. I can not believe we are ordered to leave town.
Anneliese ran upstairs crying and I followed her also in tears. We both ran to our room. When I got there, with tears in my eyes, I look out the window at the beautiful ocean that I see every day through it.
Date: Monday, The Eighth day of April 1912
Place: Großmöllen, German Empire
Time: 14:45
It has been three days since the telegram. We have packed up all our belongings and are ready for the move. Although, we can not take it with us where we are going.
Don’t worry about them, Uncle Bernhard and Aunt Grethe are coming over to take them back with them to their place and eventually send it to us whenever we get settled in our new home.
Where are we going? Well, Papa has chosen to leave the German Empire all together and move to a place where everything is free.
AMERICA. ‘The land of opportunity and the land of the free’ or something like that. I really can‘t remember. I believe that‘s what Momma had told me. But all I can picture it is, America is a free country, where they have a big Statue that greets us when we get there. I wonder what that means.
I just finished packing a few bags, when I hear Papa running up the stairs. He is always in a rush when it comes to these types of things. "Beeile dich. Wir wollen nicht zu spät kommen." What is he saying? Oh, he’s saying for us to hurry up. He does not speak English, which would come in handy where we are going.
Uncle Bernhard just drove up in his high-wheel motor buggy about the time that we all finished packing. He is smiling as my sister and I run up to greet him.
"Uncle Bernhard!" we both yelled, as we ran up to him.
"Hi girls," he said hugging us.
"Ready to go?" he looks at me and then at Anneliese.
"Pretty much, " I look at the ground. I knew it was time to say goodbye to this place and I am sad to do it.
As we all headed into the motor buggy, I looked back at the house for one last time. I am very sad now and really wish we could stay. I liked living there.
"Let’s get this show on the road," Uncle Bernhard said, as I shut the door and he drove away from the house, never to be seen again by any of us.
We are off to take a train to Cherbourg, France, where we will travel to America on the Titanic. The Titanic is the worlds largest ship and it is also unsinkable. Just a year ago the Olympic became the worlds largest. I can not wait to see how big the Titanic really is.
Date: Monday, The Eighth day of April 1912
Place: Belgard, German Empire
Time: 18:30
"Alle einsteigen!" The train conductor yelled for everyone to come aboard the train.
As we boarded, I sit down in a seat. Although we are not the richest people in the world and would always be in the third class compartment coach at the end of the train, we feel like we are one of the richest around. We ended up getting three seats in the far back. Since my sister and I are small, we end up sitting together. It‘s not that uncomfortable, but it saves us money.
It‘s a known fact that taking a train is the cheapest way to travel.
Papa said that we were very lucky because due to the shortage of coal, the coal miner strike caused (which recently ended), we might not have been able to get a ride at all. I am sure glad that we are able to go. Papa did spend a little more for one small room on the Titanic. He did not want us to be in a room with some strangers. I would have to sleep on the same bed as my sister (which I am used to), but at least we would not have some weird person in the room with us.
The conductor came on to the train and started asking for tickets. Papa gave four slips to him. As politely as he could the conductor looked at them, punched a hole into each of them and handed them back to Papa.
As the train started moving. Both Anneliese and I run all over the place watching the scenery go by. We are so excited about being on a train. I see lots of houses and trees and animals. With the train going as fast as it is going, we will be there in no time.
"I wish I could see the ocean," I pouted.
"Why?" Anneliese asked. "We will be seeing the ocean when we get on the Titanic."
Eventually, I start to get bored with the same thing and sit down on the chair. Anneliese sits next to me as well.
"This is fun," she says with a bounce to her voice.
"I agree," I nodded. "But I wish there was more to do, but sit around or look outside. Did you bring any games to play?"
"I brought some jacks," Anneliese took them out of a small bag she was holding.
"But I don‘t think we can play it on the train, while it is moving this fast. We might lose the ball."
"I brought a chalkboard and some chalk. We can play tic-tac-toe... but it is in the bag above us," I say looking up at the baggage department. I look over at Momma. She was talking to a man in the next seat over and I do not want to interrupt them.
According to the conversation, he is going to on the Titanic as well. I wonder how many people on this train are heading there?
I look over at Papa. He is playing a game of chess with a man across from him. I believe Papa is winning. Not sure, because I do not know how to play. I know I should not bother him, while he is playing.
I giggle to myself as I bounce in my seat. I look over at my sister the way she is bouncing back and forth also is funny, but now it is making me dizzy. I just hope I can sleep tonight, with the train moving the way it is.
Date: Tuesday, The Ninth day of April 1912
Place: Berlin, German Empire
Time: 4:45
Somehow I had fallen asleep, and as we made it to Berlin early in the morning. Papa woke us up. We had to make it to another train, which was the one heading to Cherbourg, France.
"I‘m tired," I cry. I walked off the train with my family to another train.
We could not go on it right away. Before we can get on the train, Papa is stopped by a man where he started showing some papers and little booklets. I could see our pictures are on them. Next, they started looking in my bag. I wonder why?
"Why are they looking in my bag?" I ask.
"They are looking in all our bags." Momma said They are checking to make sure we are not bringing anything with us to another country that is illegal."
"What would we bring that‘s illegal?" I ask. I did not get an answer.
Finally, everything is finished. I walk on the train and again, I sit in the back.
"I wish we were in the front," I say looking at the other part of the train. "They looked prettier and not so old."
The train starts moving again. The train conductor did not come to check our tickets. I wonder why he did not come.
I look out the window at the big city. The sun started shining again once we left the station. It makes the city look even bigger. Like it never was night time. It is huge and full of people everywhere. Eventually, The train past all the tall buildings and I see lots of smaller buildings and houses and...
"Sheep and goats!" I cry with excitement.
"Nothing to write home about," a woman next to us said, she was knitting a sweater or something. I looked at her. If only she knew, we did not have a home to write back to.
Date: Tuesday, The Ninth day of April 1912
Place: Cherbourg, France
Time: 19:55
"Did we make it to Cherbourg?" I ask Mama.
"Yes we did," Momma said. "This would be your first time out of The German Union."
I am very excited and start to squeal. As we walk off the train, and out of the train station.
"It‘s raining!" I cry. I am not so fond of the rain and I can tell that Anneliese is not in the liking of it either.
"Since we got to our destination a day
early as planned," Momma explained, "your Papa and I will start looking for a place for us to stay for the night."
We roamed around the city in the rain. Every hotel was full and was not taking any more people.
"Let‘s head back to the train station for the night," Momma said. "It is our only option.
As we walked back into the station all cold and wet, I find a bench and sit down. Anneliese sits next to me and we cuddle, trying to stay warm.
"It is not much, but it will have to do," Momma explained.
I saw a rat run across the ground and almost screamed. No one saw it but me.
"I‘m cold," Anneliese cried.
"Me too," I also cried out. "And hungry".
As the night went on, we were able to get food. Papa got some food from a vendor. As we ate, people walked by us as if we were not even here.
Eventually, a few people starting noticing us, when Anneliese and I lied down on the bench. They were whispering to each other. It was a bit shocking to see that the whole conversation was about us. The train station was now getting really noisy with all the people's conversations. Momma and Papa were listening in on them as well.
Despite all the noise in the train station and after all of the long journey we had, Anneliese and I fell asleep, almost instantly.
Date: Wednesday, The Tenth day of April 1912
Place: Cherbourg, France
Time: 18:00
Throughout the day, we all stayed near the train station and the harbor. It was still raining out, but not as bad as the night before.
After a long day in Cherbourg, it was finally the time for Titanic to arrive. The ship is due to be here in thirty minutes. Before we could even do anything, my family and I all had to be inspected.
We had to be checked to make sure We all were in good health, and that we did not have any lice, fleas or anything else that is hazardous to anyone on board the ship. I became scared.
"I do not want them to see my boy parts," I cried to Momma.
"Do not worry," Momma patted me on my back. " They will not ask to see that area." I smiled and let them do their business.
They started inspected the baggage that we were carrying. I was used to people now looking through my bag. After we got the run through and the all clear, we were allowed to enter a ferry, which was the ship that would take us to the Titanic when she came in a few minutes.
"It‘s crowded," I looked around at all the people on the ferry. "There must be a hundred people on here."
Just then, I jumped out of my skin because a huge horn blew from behind me.
"Look, Josephine," Anneliese pointed out at the sea. I turned around and saw, with my amazement, the biggest ship I have ever seen in my life.
"TITANIC!" I screamed.
All A-Bored
Date: Wednesday, The Tenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Cherbourg Harbor – Cherbourg, France
Time: 20:05
We did not head to our cabin right away when we boarded the Titanic. We stood upon the “well deck” of the ship and watched the lights of Cherbourg shine onto the water. It was already dark out. Most other passengers would walk by us and head to their cabins. A few would stand and watch just like us.
"Isn’t it a beautiful view?" Momma asked us.
"Yes," Anneliese and I both said simultaneously
We don't get a chance to watch a ship take off. When we do see ships, they're usually sailing by Großmöllen in the Baltic Sea. I think about our old house and our relatives we left back home, (or what was home). I felt a little sad, but a bit happy.
As we watched the Titanic slowly move away from land, it started getting cold. I guessed it was because the wind was made by the ship.
We started to head in to find our cabin, since we couldn't see land anymore.
I saw Papa walking away and start talking to some people. I wasn’t sure why though. I followed Momma to where we were going to stay. Anneliese followed slowly behind us.
We started walking down a few flights of stairs. I can tell by the look on Anneliese's face, that she didn't like where we were going. I don’t blame her, I also didn’t like it. I saw a few rats on the way down.
As we continued walking down the stairs, I read the letters on the walls. D Deck… E Deck… F Deck… G Deck. 'How far were we going?' I thought. When we finally made it down to G Deck, Momma opened the door that leads us to a hallway. I wasn’t surprised to see rats once we got to this level. There were at least three walking around. I was surprised that Momma wasn’t scared. Or maybe she was, but she didn’t want to show us.
"This must be it," Momma said, walking up to a room. "Cabin G-4"
Anneliese and I weren’t really surprised by the size of the room, from the looks of the hallway and all the doors so close together. In the room, there were four small beds; two on each side with what looked like a sink straight ahead. I wondered where the water closet was. Are we supposed to share it with a bunch of strangers?
“Are you sure this is our room?” I asked. “It looks like a closet.”
“Josephine!” Momma scolded me.
I walked into the room and sat on one of the beds. Looking at my sister. I can tell she was sad. She sat down next to me.
“I know how you feel.,” I told her. “I am sad as well. But once we make it to America, Papa will find us a new home and things will get back to normal.” I can see a smile on Anneliese’s face but can still tell she wasn’t fully happy.
Momma was in the hallway talking to some woman at G-6. I walked over and hugged Momma and she put her hand on me.
“Josephine, this is Mrs. Agnes Sandström.”She lives in America, in San Francisco, California.”
“Really?” I asked. I hear people moved there because of all the gold.” I wondered what they were going to do once they find it all.
“Yes, that’s true.” Mrs. Sandström laughed. “My Husband Hjalmar and I moved there four years ago. In fact, he’s there right now looking for gold. We traveled there much too late. Most of the gold was found during the ’90s.”
Looking at Mrs. Sandström, she looked to be in her early twenties. I can tell because Momma and Papa are in their twenties and look to be that age.
“Why were you in Europe?” I asked.
“Josephine!” Momma scolded me again. “It’s inappropriate for a young lady to ask questions like that.”
“That’s quite alright,” Mrs. Sandström laughed. “My daughters and I were visiting my parents in Hultsjö and some friends in Forserum.” I looked confused. I’m guessing Mrs. Sandström could tell I was because she answered exactly what I was thinking. “Sweden, my dear,” she chuckled.
I looked in our cabin and saw Anneliese sitting on the ground playing jacks.
I politely excused myself and rushed back to our little closet of a room. Momma stayed and talked to her for a little while longer.
Anneliese still looked sad. I sat down next to her. “You know, it’s not that much fun playing Jack’s all by yourself.” I laughed.
“I know,”, Anneliese sighed. “But what else can I do? I sat next to her and started playing as well.
A few minutes later, when I was up to Sixsies, Papa came into the room followed by Momma.
“Great news everyone,” Papa said in a cheerful voice.
Anneliese and I looked up at him, which startled me and caused me to lose the ball and have it fly out the door. Momma caught it just in time before it went down the hallway.
“What Papa?” Anneliese Asked.
“I got a temporary job here on the Titanic,” He began. “I start tonight.”
“That’s good Papa,” I mumbled. But what’s so great about that?”
“Josephine!” Momma scolded. “You are being very rude tonight!”
“I’m sorry,” I apologized.
“Well, Josephine,” Papa continued. “The good news is, because I am working on the ship, the captain has moved us up from third class to second class.”
“My sister and I were so excited and cheered.
“That’s really is great news dear,” Momma cheered as well. “What job would that be?”
“I will be working in the boiler room shoveling coal.” He said with a smile.
“Isn’t that a dirty job? I asked.
“Yes, but remember, we’re going to second class.”
As we left third class, Momma said farewell to Mrs. Sandström, which was pleased and very happy for us. She herself did not mind being in a small room with other people. Besides, they were Swedish as well.
Making the long walk up two flights of stairs, was a challenge. Especially with us each holding a bag. We ended up in cabin 51 on Deck E. Once we made it into the room, I lied on the bed. “This is the life,” I thought. It did not take long for both me and my sister to fall asleep.
Date: Thursday, The Eleventh day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Second Class Dining Hall
Time: 08:05
When we woke up the next day, we all felt refreshed and ready for the day… but especially breakfast. As we headed to the dining room, papa was just coming back from work in the boiler room overnight. He looked dirty and needed a bath. You could say he almost looked like a … well Papa had so much coal on him, his face and arms were all black. He made me laugh.
"You children go ahead and eat breakfast, while I get washed up," Papa told us as he walked towards the washroom. "I'll be out later."
We saw a lady, heading to the dining room. She looked like she should have been in first class, with all those fancy clothes on. As Papa passed her, she looked at him in disgust and walked away mumbling to herself.
"What is wrong with her?" I asked Anneliese.
"Beats me." She answered.
We walked into the dining room, many people were already there. Everyone was sitting at the table. It looked almost like a restaurant, with people serving them. It didn't look too fancy, but it was fine.
As we sat down, a waiter came along and handed us a menu.
"What would you lovely ladies like for breakfast?" He asked.
With him calling me a lady, it made me feel very gay inside. I looked at the menu. "Oh, you have soda scones?" I cheered.
"I'm sorry miss, we are out of soda scones." he apologized.
"Ah, shucks," I pouted. "Well, I guess I will have some buckwheat cakes instead."
"Fine choice miss," he wrote it down on a notepad. "And would you like some ham and eggs with that?"
"Just Eggs, No Ham. I'm Jewish." I pointed out " And can I also have a bowl of oatmeal with fruit."
“May I,” Momma corrected me.
I looked at Momma and then back at the waiter. “May I have a bowl of rolled oats and fruit, please.”
Certainly, miss," He smiled. He looked over at Anneliese. "And what would
you like dear?"
"I'll have the same as my sister," She said shyly."
Momma looked up from her menu. "I'd like some fish with a bowl of hominy and a cup of tea."
Momma doesn't eat much. She likes to keep her figure. (whatever that means).
"I'll have a tea as well," I added.
"Me too, Anneliese squeaked."
"I'll bring them right out for you." Our waiter walked away.
I look around and see other tables being served with their food. I guess, they got here
earlier than us.
Papa came into the room, just about the time we got our food.
He ordered a plate of Grilled Ox Kidneys, (gross) with some au gratin potatoes, fish, and a cup of coffee. He must be extremely hungry. By the time we were all done, the staff was already getting the room ready for lunch.
We could hear the horn of the ship going off.
Date: Thursday, The Eleventh day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Queenstown Harbor – Queenstown, Ireland
Time: 11:34
The horn we heard meant that we reached the final stop to pick up more passengers. I asked one of the passengers on board where we were and they mentioned Queenstown, Ireland. I wasn't sure where Ireland was. I started skipping away and headed out to the deck to checked out the view.
"Hey kid!" a man yelled to me. I looked over at him. "Shouldn't you be down in Third Class?"
"No," I shouted back at him. "I'm in Second,"
"You don’t look like a second class passenger." I heard him holler back. "Go back down where you belong.
I started to tear up and ran to my room.
"Momma!" I cried, as I ran into the room, "This mean man told me to return to third class."
"Oh, really?" Momma hugged me.
"He said I don’t look like a second class passenger." I continued to sob.
"The nerve of him!" Momma growled. "Just ignore him. You have all the rights of being in second class." She patted me on my back. Taking out a brush, she started brushing my hair, grabbed a ribbon out of her trunk and put my hair up using the ribbon. I guess this was her way to make me look more second class like. I don't know, but I liked it. Anneliese wanted hers done too.
"Now Josie, If you have any more problems with him, or anyone else, talk to a crew member."
"If you want..." Anneliese began, "...I can go out with you."
I shook my head, yes.
"Don't do anything I wouldn't do" Momma laughed. “And be back before dinner.”
And after that, we both went out on the deck watching the boats bring passenger towards the ship.
Date: Wednesday, The Eleventh day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Queenstown Harbor – Queenstown, Ireland
Time: 13:15
After about ten minutes of staring out at the water, we started exploring the ship. We found that we couldn’t go everywhere, but we still had fun. There were places second class passengers were not allowed to enter.
On the deck near the end of the ship, we saw two kids about our age hanging around. A boy and a girl. They looked happy. They were playing a game of some kind. We decided to walk over to them.
“Hi,” I say as we got closer.
“Hello,” said the girl. I’m glad there are more kids on here. My names Marjorie.”
“My name is Josephine and this is my twin sister Anneliese”
“Hi,” My sister shyly says.
“What game are you playing?” I ask looking at the boy with a rope ring in his hand.
“Quoits,” the boy says and then throws the ring to a bunch of circles on the deck with numbers in them.
“Never heard of it,” I watch him play.
“Never heard of it?” he laughs. “Where in the world are you from?”
“Großmöllen,” I answer.
“Where is that?” Marjorie asked.
“Großmöllen is located in the German Empire,” I frown. “But we don’t live there anymore. We’re moving to America, since we were forced out of our home.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Marjorie said. “My Mum and Dad and I are moving to Idaho from England to live near family.”
“We haven’t decided where we will be moving to,” I told her.” Probably…” I was interrupted by the sound of the boat horn, which made all of us jump. The boat started moving.
“I guess we are off,” the boy said. “I better head back inside, dinner is starting” He started running.
“Wait!” I yelled. “What’s your name?”
“Marshall…” He yelled. “Marshall Drew.” And then he was gone.
“I better get going as well.” Marjorie said. “Don’t want Mum and dad waiting.” She took off as well.
Anneliese and I walked to our cabin. Momma was waiting for us.
“You two have a good time?” She asked as we walked in.
“Yes,” Anneliese said. “We met some kids.”
“That’s nice,” Momma smiled. “Come on, let’s get going to dinner.”
Peter
Date: Thursday, The Eleventh day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Second Class
Time: 14:07
After dinner, I headed out to the deck to see if Marjorie or Marshall were out playing again.
They weren't.
I walk to the front of the ship and looked out at the sea. All I saw was water. No land at all. I did see a few dolphins swimming around. I watched them for a while. It seemed like they were following us. I can see how fast they were going and was surprised at how they can keep up with the ship. We must be going, oh… I would say about 14 knots. I wasn’t sure. I don’t know anything about speed. I wonder how fast dolphins can swim.
As the dolphins jumped, I notice they were in groups. Usually, three to six to even fifteen in a group jumping and having a great time. There was sometimes one dolphin jumping on its own, but usually would find its way to the others and happily jumping with them.
I really like dolphins and often wonder how anyone would want to kill them for food.
I marvel at the way they jump. When they do they must take deep breaths of air, before going back into the water.
As the ship was moving, I could see the water spraying in large waves. It made the enjoyment of the dolphins more exceptional. They always stayed ahead of the ship.
Eventually, like all entertainment, it ends and I watch the dolphins move away from the ship. I waved goodbye to them. I kind of wished they were still here.
The ship was picking up speed. I can feel the wind in my hair. I put my arms out to feel the breeze. I felt like I was flying.
“This is the greatest thing ever!” I scream.
A strong gust of wind pushed me forward a little and I had to instantaneously hold onto the railing. I almost fell overboard.
“Watch out kid,” a passenger yelled. “Don’t get too close to the edge. You might fall.”
I turn around and see a man looking towards me.
“Hi!” he says walking up to me. “What’s your name?”
“My Momma told me not to talk to strangers,” I murmur.
“You have a very smart mother,” he chuckled.
I start walking away and head back to my cabin. I look back but don’t see the man. He just vanished. I continue walking towards the cabin, not knowing that the man was following me.
Once I got back into the cabin and see mom knitting. Most likely a sweater for me or Anneliese. Talking about Anneliese, she was taking a nap. I like taking naps too, but I’m not tired. I see Papa was still asleep and didn’t want to bother him. I look over at Momma.
“Momma, none of the kids are out playing and I’m bored,” I whine.
“Why don’t you read a book,” Momma pointed out.
“I book?” I laugh. “Where can I find a book on this ship?”
“There are lots of them in the library,” mom pointed out.
“Wait, there's a library,” I questioned.
“Yes,” Momma chuckled, “It’s located on C deck near the rear of the ship, also known as the poop deck.”
“Okay,” I stutterer. I look down at the floor.
“If you get lost, you can always ask someone.”
Confused, I look up at Momma. But with her smile, I can tell she knew what she was talking about. Still, in my little head of mine, I always thought I wasn’t supposed to talk to strangers. I guess she knows I will do the right thing.
As I walked out of my cabin, I saw a shadowy figure pass by really fast. I didn’t know what it was. I shrug and I continued on my way to C deck. The hall was long enough, so I figured if I kept walking I would make it to the end of the ship and walk up two levels to C deck.
As I walked, I notice the detail the ship had. The carpet had red squares with what looked like crosses inside of them. The wood frames on the walls and ceiling were almost like the builders of the ship chiseled it. I had a feeling people will be enjoying this style of work for years to come and be amazed as much as I am.
It took a little over five minutes to walk the ship with me gazing at everything, but eventually, I made it to some stairs. As I walk up a really nice-looking staircase, I almost bump into an elderly fella. He was taking his time walking down the stairs. He gave me a smile and continued walking down. Once I made it to C Deck, right in front of me was the library at the top of the stairs. I took a breather and headed in.
I was amazed to see how many books they had and the room looked really beautiful.
I walk over to some books on the wall.
There weren't that many people in the room at the time. More likely they were either settling in or something.
I notice a few books that caught my eye. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The last of the Mohicans, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, David Copperfield. There were so many interesting books in this library. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to read. Then I saw it.
Moby Dick.
It had a picture of a whale on the cover. This was perfect since I am at sea on a ship.
I open the book,
‘Call me Ishmael’ I read. “Ishmael? Who would name their child that name?”
‘Some years ago – never mind how long precisely…’
The book is fantastic. I laughed a few times. I was about to read another chapter, when I realized that man from earlier sitting in the room nearby, gazing at me.
“Hello,” he said to me.
“Hi,” I say back.
“My name is Peter Good Man…” He cleared his throat. “Goodman.” “What’s yours? I know I asked you that before, but I figured I wouldn’t be a stranger if I told you my name.”
“My names Josephine,” I answer back.
“Hi, Josephine, that’s a very pretty name,” Peter smiled.
“Thank You,” I picked it out myself,” I giggle.
“Huh?” Peter looked at me strangely.
Oops, I almost gave away my secret. “I mean, my Momma chose my name,” I sigh.
“That’s what mothers do best,” Peter laughed. “Anyways, I can tell you are bored. Want to go out on the deck and play a few games of Quoits or Shuffleboard with me?”
“I’m not bored,” I explained. “I’m reading a book.”
“Moby Dick,” Peter was reading the cover of the book. “Oh, about a whale?”
“Yeah it’s getting really interesting,” I said happily.”
“What’s so interesting about a book,” he snarled.
“Lot’s of things. You see Captain Ahab is really into this white whale and…”
“You can read that anytime,” Peter interrupted. “You’re only on this ship for a few days. Come on and enjoy it while you can.”
“But…” I look at the book and then back at him. “Okay,” I sigh. I put the book back and head out of the library with Peter.
“You won’t regret it,’ Peter chuckled. “You’ll like the games I’m going to play with you.”
As we walked, he took my hand. Everyone that saw us, must have thought I was his daughter. I blushed a little.
Peter brought me to Promenade Deck where we used a long stick with a curved end to push a disk to a painted triangle with a number inside of it. He said it was called Shuffleboard. There were the numbers seven, eight, and ten inside the triangles. Also, there was a negative ten, where if we hit that, we would subtract ten from the points we made. We had to shoot the disk across the deck to the other sides' triangle.
I definitely wasn’t good at scooting along. I always make it halfway across the board and don’t make it to any of the numbers. Peter was extremely good and playing, and made it every time.
At the end of the first game, it was thirty-three to zero. I was the zero.
I stopped playing after three rounds and sat down on the bench. Peter sat next to me. Putting his arm around my shoulder. I felt a bit uncomfortable by his action and scooted over on the bench.
“Josephine,” he said scooting closer to me. “You don’t have to be shy. I wouldn’t hurt you.” He got off the bench and knelt down so we were eye-to-eye. I didn’t notice it, but he put his hand on my lap while we talked. “I got to get something in my room. Why don’t you come along, it won’t take long and then we can play a different game.”
I agreed and followed him.
As we walked, I notice a tattoo on his left shoulder. “Do you like doughnuts?” I ask.
“Of course I do,” Peter laughed “Why do you ask that?”
I kept looking at his shoulder. “Your tattoo.”
“Oh that old thing,” he chuckled a bit.
We reached his cabin in very little time. “E-36,” I read “Wow, your room is so close to mine.”
“I know,” he said.
“Wait, how do you know where I am staying?” I asked.
He didn’t say anything, he just opened his door and invited me in. I didn’t think of anything after that. I was interested in what his room looked like compared to mine.
Inside, I noticed it looked pretty similar. But this had only one bed and… ladies' clothes?
“Wait,” I said looking around. “Why are there so many girls' clothes in here?”
“That’s... just my… um, wife's clothes,” he stuttered. Why don’t you go sit on the bed, while I look for the item I came here for.”
I walked over to the bed. I was happy to wait for him. I looked at the bed and noticing that it was way too small for two people. I looked back towards him and saw he was standing very close to me. I was in shock.
He pushed me down on the bed.
“You better not tell anyone!”
“Tell who?” I cried. “Is this your room?”
I started to scream,
Just then the door opened up and a woman came in. Peter was staring at the woman standing at the door.
“Who are you and why are you in my room?” She screamed.
Peter in fear ran out of the room pushing the woman aside. I was still on the bed and crying my head off.
Date: Thursday, The Eleventh day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Cabin E-36
Time: 16:38
Police were there in no time. Especially when a child was involved. Momma and Papa were notified immediately and they rushed over lickity split. Well, they didn’t have far to get to me. Anneliese was with them.
I was still on the bed with a doctor checking me out.
“Hi, Josephine, I’m Officer Murdock. Can you try to tell me exactly what he did to you?” a man said walking over to me.
“I thought he was a nice guy. We played shuffleboard,” I was sobbing while explaining. I was so scared that I tried my best. “and when we got to his room… I mean her room.” I pointed at the woman who was also watching me.
“Continue,” the man said.
“He told me to sit on the bed. He said he was looking for an item of some kind and then go out to play a new game.” I started crying even harder. “Then out of nowhere, he pushed me on the bed and yelled at me.”
“That’s when I came into the room,” the woman said. “I saw man in my room He looked angry.”
“What did this man look like?” Murdock asked.
“He had a mustache as far as I could see,” the woman answered.
“He also has a tattoo a doughnut on his left shoulder.”
“This guy is not a guy you should hang around with,” Murdock grumbled.
A few men in uniforms walked into the room.
“Lowe, great timing.” Murdock said, “You and Pitman walk around the decks and look for a suspicious-looking man with a mustache and a tattoo on his left shoulder of a doughnut “Don’t try to apprehend him on your own. Moody and Boxhall, you walk the hallways and common areas.”
All four men went right to action.
“You’ll be alright,” the doctor said. “But I recommend you staying near your family or with a group of people until he is found.”
“And I’ll let you know when he is,” Murdock promised. “As for you. Miss Mabel, I would keep your door locked from now on.”
“Oh, absolutely.” the woman of the room said.
When we got back to our cabin, Momma looked over me, making sure I didn’t have any bruises. I didn’t, but I sure was scared. I thought Peter was a nice guy, but because he yelled at me, pushed me on the bed, and hurt my feelings, I just don’t know.
I just have a lot of questions, that I don’t think I will ever get answers to. One of them is, why was he in that ladies' room?
The evening was not eventful. The sun was still out and I wanted to go out to play. Papa told me I couldn’t go on my own at the deck anymore, Anneliese had to be with me at all times.
“Just because I am the youngest, doesn’t mean they have to treat me like a baby,” I cried, sitting on my bed and pouting.
“You’re acting like a baby,” Anneliese giggled. I stuck my tongue out at her.
“You two stop fighting,” Papa scolded us.
“I’m bored,” I whine. “Can’t I at least go to the library and grab the book I was reading earlier?”
“I really don’t want you out there at this moment,” Papa told me. Not with that man still on the loose.”
“Okay,” I growled.
Like always, Anneliese was playing jacks. I sat on the floor next to her and played, but ended up falling asleep in the middle of playing. Anneliese was helping Momma out with something when I woke up. I felt sad that I wasn’t apart of it.
When Supper came along, we all headed out together. I felt like I was grounded and couldn’t go anywhere. I walked slowly with the rest. I looked at the floor the whole way to the dining room.
While I walked, I kept hearing unusual sounds around me, but I shrugged it off. It more likely was other passengers leaving their rooms.
As we entered the dining room, an officer was watching men entering the room. I figured they were doing this because eventually, Peter would have to come in. He has to eat sometime.
I still felt sad for losing a friend. He was almost like a grand papa to me. Yes, he may have been around the age of either the forties or fifties, but he was a nice guy… Was. I kind of wished he wasn’t a bad guy. I had fun playing shuffleboard with him, even if I lost every time.
Yes, he was a bit weird, when it came to putting his hand over my shoulder, but it didn’t hurt me.
I lie down on my bed and sigh. Momma must have heard me because the next thing was she came over to see what was wrong.
“Nothing,” I sigh again.
“I know something is wrong,” she sat down next to me. “Because every time you sigh, it usually means your hurting inside.”
I sit up and lie my head on Momma. “It’s Peter,” I explain.
“Who's Peter?” Momma asked,
“Peter is the guy that I saw earlier,” I sigh some more.
“Josephine, he’s a bad guy,” Momma snapped. “He almost hurt you, and also got you in trouble. You shouldn’t have been in that room with him. He could have done something worse to you.”
I started crying.
“Oh baby,” Momma gave me a hug. “Why don’t you go to sleep. Things will get better in the morning.”
“I hope,” I yawn. I lie down in my bed. Momma tucks me in and checks on Anneliese on the top bunk. She was already asleep. “Momma?”
“Yes, dear?” Mom looks down at me.
“I’m sorry,” I yawn once more and instantly fall asleep.
Date: Friday, The Twelfth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin
Time: 10:14
The next morning, when we got back from breakfast, we got a knock on our door. It was Officer Murdock. They had captured Peter. He was cabin hoping a few cabins in third class. He was caught, when he was spotted by a night watchman trying to break into the kitchen to steal food.
Turns out his name is not Peter Goodmann, but Francis Hermann, a former Reverend of a church in Salt Lake City, Utah. He is connected to the murder of two females that went to his church. He is also suspected of murdering his ex-wives and two of his children. He is right now locked up in an unknown room on the Titanic until we arrive in America.
Even with Francis in custody, I still wasn’t allowed out of the cabin alone. Anneliese was okay going out to play. I guess she was tired of being cooped up in the cabin. We ended up going out to the shuffleboards.
“This is the same one that Peter and I played at,” I cheered.
“You mean Francis,” Anneliese corrected me.
“He was Peter when we played here,” I cried.
“Let’s not play this game. It gives me the creeps that a murderer was playing this,” Anneliese said.
I was disappointing, but I walked on to find another game. As we walked, we saw the two kids from the other day playing that same game of Deck Quoits.
“Hello!” I call over to them.
“Oh Hi!” Marjorie yelled when she saw us. “Want to play with us?”
“Not really,” I said as I came over. “I’d rather watch.
“Suit yourself,” Marjorie joked. “What about you?” She said to Anneliese.
“I guess,” she said.
As I watched them play, I heard a few people walking by talking. There were two men, and they didn’t seem to be very nice. “What’s this garbage doing on here,” one man growled. He was talking about the lifeboats on the deck. “Kind of a waste of space for a ship that is unsinkable.”
“I agree,” the other man said. “Not even God himself can sink this ship!” They started walking away but continued talking.
I decided to follow them. My sister was too busy playing to notice that I was gone, and I should be back before she even knows.
As I walk, I find out that these men are actually from First Deck. I wonder why they came down here. I continued walking with them. They walked for a very long time talking about nonsense. I should have headed back because I didn’t notice I was walking into a place that was forbidden for Second Class passengers.
“Hey kid!” a man yelled, running towards me. I stopped and looked at him. It was a crew-member of this ship. The two men I was following looked at me, laughed and continued on their way. “What are you doing on the First Class Promenade?”
“The what?” I said, looking around.
“Come with me, young lady,” he grabs me.
“You don’t have to do that,” another man said.
The crew-member looked towards the man.
“Captain Smith... Sir!” he gasped. “I caught her sneaking into…”
“Leave it up to me,” Captain Smith said. The Crew-Member let me go and walked back to where he was assigned earlier.
“So,” he smiled down at me. “You’re the girl that helped capture a criminal.”
“What?” I shrieked.
“Come with me,” He put his hand on my shoulder and we walked. I was surprised I was still walking in First Class. “You became a hero in a way. This man has been on the run for over fifteen years.”
“But Peter was such a nice guy,” I cried.
“Is that what he called himself?” Captain Smith pondered.
“Yes,” I answered. “Peter Good Man,” I cleared my throat, “Goodmann.”
Captain Smith laughed. “Did he really clear his throat saying his name?”
“Yes,” I giggled.
As we walked, I saw Momma, Papa, and Anneliese looking for me.
“There’s my family!” I tell Captain Smith, pointing at them. We walk down to them.
Papa scolds me for leaving Anneliese but looks up at the captain.
“Captain Smith,” he stuttered.
Captain Smith chuckled. “Call me Edward Smith.”
“We’re really sorry for what Josephine has done,” Papa said looking at me.
“Don’t be sorry,” Captain Smith said. Why don’t your whole family come up and have dinner with me this evening.”
“Dinner with you,” mom was shocked.
“We’d love to, but tonight is Shabbat…”
“So you’re Jewish?” Captain Smith asked. “Well, we can make it a Shabbat dinner with a traditional Jewish meal like matzo ball soup, fish, Challah bread and Latkes. we could also light some candles at the same time. I can have some of my own personal cooks start making them right away.”
“Let’s do it Papa!” both Anneliese and I sang.
Papa thought for a second. He looked at us and then at Momma. “Alright,” he finally answered. “It’s not like every day we get a chance to sit with the captain of a ship.”
Both Anneliese and I cheered.
Shabbat Shalom
Date: Friday, The Twelfth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin
Time: 12:30
When we got back into the room, Momma took me over to the bed.
“I’m disappointed in what you did,” she said as she sat down.
“I’m sorry,” I cried. I looked over at Papa. He had that look in his eye as he planned on spanking me. I was worried.
“Now you sit here for a while and be a good girl, Momma patted my head.
I saw Papa lying down. I think he was getting back to sleep.
I looked at Anneliese. She was sitting down reading a book.
“What are you reading?” I ask her.
“Anne of Green Gables,” she said putting it on the ground for me to see. “It's about an energetic and unusual orphan girl who finds a home with some elderly people.”
“Sounds interesting,” I giggle. “I was reading a book called Moby Dick.”
“Oh, the story about a Great White Whale that Captain Ahab has revenge on?” She laughs.
“Yes,” I squeal with glee.
“I have that right here,” she hands me the book.
“Wait!” I was surprised. “How did you know I was reading this?”
“Someone up in the library handed it to me,” she laughed. “They thought I was you and said I should continue reading it. I figured they were talking about you, so I brought it back here.”
“Thank you,” I cried. “I was reading this before I hung out with Peter.”
“Your welcome,” now next time don’t be stupid and follow older people.”
I look down at my feet. “I won’t,” I sigh.
I sit down on the bed and start reading the book.
I read a couple of chapters but ended up falling asleep. I was pooped as what my Momma calls it.
Papa and I woke up a few hours later, right about the time someone was knocking at our door. Papa went over to open it. To our surprise, Captain Smith was there. In his hands were two beautiful dresses.
“I figured your two girls would like new dresses,” he handed Papa the dresses and we jumped up to take them.
“Are you sure about this?” Momma asked.
“You’re our guests,” Captain Smith laughed “It wouldn’t be proper for two young ladies to come without being all dressed up.”
“Thanks,” I cheered. Then I looked over at Papa and Momma. “What about them?”
“Oh don’t worry, we have some clothes to fit in,” Papa told us.
“Nonsense,” Captain Smith spoke up. “We two come with me. I’ll have my maid help your daughters. I’ll help you with your attire.”
Momma and Papa left the room and a very nice woman came into the room.
“Why don’t I help you with that dress,” she asked me.
“No thank you, I can do it,” I said.
“It’s alright,” I help little girls with this all the time.” She came over to me and started pulling off my old dress. As she did, I shot my hands over my panties to cover up the bulge of my penis.
“Oh,” she looked away. “You're a boy.”
“No, I’m a girl,” I cried.
“Then why do you have a penis,” she remarked. “Only boys have penises.”
“Hey,” Anneliese interrupted her. “Some girls have penises and some boys have vaginas.”
“It’s just not right,” she growled.
I grabbed the dress and quickly put it on.
“Get out of our room!” Anneliese yelled at her.
The maid left the room in such a way, it made the room rattle.
When Momma and Papa came in they wore very fancy clothes, just like us girls were wearing.
“Where is the maid that Captain Smith sent over?” Momma asked.
“She was mean to Josephine and left,” Anneliese told her.
Papa looked over at the captain. The captain wasn’t very happy “I’ll look for her.”
Papa saw I was on my bed crying. “What wrong Josephine?” He asked.
I look up at him. “Papa,” I cried “I hate my penis. I wish I didn’t have one.”
“I know dear,” he hugged me.
“Can we have it chopped off?” I asked.
“Chopped off?” Papa shrieked, looking straight at me. “You’ll bleed to death.
“I’ve heard of people that have gotten it removed. Why can’t I get mine removed?
“Josephine,” Papa explained. “Those people had surgery to have it removed.”
“Well,” I looked down, at where my penis is and then back at Papa “Can I have mine removed that way?”
Papa looked at me got up off my bed, walked over to the small round window of our room, and looked out at sea. “Tell you what,” be began. “Once we make it to America, I will look for a doctor that will be willing to remove your penis.”
I cheered and then stopped. “But what about the rest?”
“The rest?” dad looked puzzled.
“My balls?” I say in frustration.
“When I said I would find a doctor that would remove your penis, that means he would remove not only your penis but also your balls and the little pouch they’re in as well. So that means everything.”
“Really?” I cheered.
“I promise.” Papa smiled at me.
“And I will make sure that it happens,” Momma added.”
I continued cheering and ran over to Anneliese. “Did you hear, I’ll be just like you,” I giggled.
“Well,” Papa added. “You won’t have a vagina.”
I was a little disappointed, but then looked up at him. “But I would look like a girl and possibly they might be able to make a little hole there to look like a vagina... somehow.”
Date: Friday, The Twelfth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – First Class Dining Room
Time: 19:00
We were escorted by a crew member to first class. As we walked into the dining room we walked over to Captain Smith.
“Shabbat Shalom,” Papa and Momma greeted the captain.
“Shabbat Shalom,” Captain Smith greeted back. “And Shabbat Shalom to you, little misses,” He said to me and Anneliese.
“Shabbat Shalom!” We both said together.
The captain walked into the middle of the room.
“Excuse me, everyone,” Captain Smith announced. “To all that would like to participate, we are having something special today and celebrating Shabbat, which is the Jewish version of what Christians call the Sabbath.” Almost everyone was listening, many cheered. Only a handful was still chatting to others in the room.
He then looked over at us girls.
“Would you two like to start this?”
“Us?” Anneliese asked.
“Yes, you two.” he chuckled.
We looked over at Momma and Papa. They were smiling. “Go ahead girls,” Papa approved.
We got up from off our seats.
Since this was not a normal thing for us, Anneliese and I were a bit nervous. Especially with everyone watching us. We slowly walk over to the candles on the table. The captain, my parents, and a few others watch us.
Not everyone in the room watched us. Some didn’t really care what was going on, but were polite and chatted softly. Despite those not watching many were and also very interested in what was taking place.
Anneliese took a match and started lighting one of the candles. She hands the match over to me and I light the other candle. Finally, we kindle the two Shabbat candles, waving our hands three times to welcome in Shabbat.
We cover our eyes with our hands and chant with everyone that wished to participate:
“Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech ha-olam asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu l’hadlik neir shel Shabbat.”
We always sing it in Hebrew, but what we sang was:
“We praise you, Eternal God, Sovereign of the Universe, who makes us holy with mitzvot and commands us to kindle the Sabbath lights.”
We then lift up cups of wine or in this case for us kids, juice while the adults in the room lifted up cups of wine and say:
“Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech ha-olam, borei p’ri hagafen.” Which means: “We praise You, Eternal God, Sovereign of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.”
Finally, we uncover the Challah which is the bread, and say:
“Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech ha-olam, hamotzi lechem min ha-aretz.” And that means: “We praise You, Eternal God, Sovereign of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.”
We break off pieces of Challah for everyone in the room to eat. To my surprise, there were many Jews on this ship. About twelve of them congratulated us for such a wonderful job we did.
I felt proud. My sister was as well. We both had a great time.
“Shabbat Shalom,” we said to each one of them.
We sat down at the table with the captain again.
He looked over at me and smiled. “Sorry for what my maid did to you earlier,” he whispered to me. “And just between you and I, your secret is safe.” He winked and started talking to Papa.
I looked over at Anneliese and smiled.
Supper was brought up to us in fancy plates. The utensils used in them were even Kosher. Each utensil said either Meat, Dairy, or even Pareve. Waiters came into the room and brought over a buffet of food. The captain insisted it would be severed this way tonight.
Some First Class passengers that refused, would end up having what was on the menu and served independently.
My favorite thing to eat was the Latkes. The taste of the potatoes and onions mixed with Matzo meal. Delicious. I was also fond of the Matzo Ball Soup. Anneliese ate some chicken with the soup. I ate it on the side. Momma had as usual the fish and I’m not sure what Papa and the captain were eating, they were sitting down farther down the table having a conversation.
This may be the best day we’ve had on the Titanic so far.
Date: Saturday, The Thirteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Second Class Deck
Time: 11:45
Today’s breakfast was good. It wasn’t as fun as yesterday's Supper with the First Class and the Captain. We were allowed to keep the pretty dresses that the captain gave us. It was a gift for us, so the captain refused to take it back. This made me and Anneliese very happy.
Momma and Papa still won't let me leave on my own, and I had to promise I wouldn’t leave Anneliese’s side.
My sister and I walked around the deck. There wasn’t much we could do.
We overheard a woman talking about all the toys the barbershop sold. She thought it was a cute idea. This made me and Anneliese excited. We could buy new toys to play with, instead of playing with the jacks all the time.
We head to the barbershop to check them out.
“Hey girls,” A Man said. “I’m Arthur White. You here for a haircut?” He had his scissors out. “Snip, Snip,” he said with the scissors copying what he said.
“Uh,” I looked at the scissors.”
“No,” Anneliese laughed. “We heard you have toys.”
Arthur looked over at me, hiding behind Anneliese. “I was just joking, I wouldn’t cut such beautiful hair off of two beautiful girls like you.
I stopped being tense.
“What do you have for toys?” Anneliese asked.
“Just look around,” Arthur laughed. “There are toys everywhere.”
We both look around and see toys on the walls and floating above us on strings. Why didn’t we see this when we came in. There were dolls, a few yo-yos, and cup-and-ball toys. On the shelf, there were games. Chess, checkers, dominos, decks of cards, and also some crayons. They even had Jacks, which made me giggle.
There were so many other kinds of toys. I wish we could buy them all.
“How much for the crayons?” I asked.
“For you,” Arthur smiled, “I’ll sell it for one penny.”
“Penny?” I looked confused.
Both Anneliese and I talked to each other. “What’s a penny?” Anneliese whispered.
“I don’t know,” I said. I looked up at Arthur. “Can we ask our Papa?”
“Of course,” Arthur chuckled.
We left the barbershop and headed right to our cabin. But when we got there, Papa was asleep. This disappointed not only me but Anneliese too. Mama was sitting in the room on the davenport knitting. I wonder why she never goes out and enjoys the Titanic herself as well.
“Momma, what’s a penny?” I ask.
“A penny is a coin, which is similar to the pfennig back home,” Momma explained.
“Back home?” I questioned. “You mean where we use to live.”
“It doesn’t matter if we don’t live there now,” Momma told me, “It still is our home, even if we moved away.”
“Can we have a penny?” Anneliese asked.
I can tell mom was confused. “Why do you want a penny?”
“To buy some crayons at the barbershop,” Anneliese told her.
“The barbershop?” Momma laughed.
“They’re selling toys there,” I explained.
Momma put down her knitting and got up off the davenport. “Why not we all go over there and I’ll see what you mean.”
Both Anneliese and I jump for joy with excitement.
Momma left a note for Papa, just in case he wakes up and we walk to the barbershop. Well, Anneliese and Momma walked, I skipped. With the barbershop being on level B, we ended up walking up a few stairways. We wouldn’t use the lift, Momma had a bad feeling about new technology like a lift or even a moving stairway known as an escalator.
I am fascinated by the escalator. How do those wooden steps go all the way up to the next floor and, where do they go afterwards? I do like the sound it makes. ‘Clickity Clackity’
As we make it into the shop, Arthur was working on some man. We didn’t want to bother him so we waited. Kind of. I was impatient and wanted to buy a toy. I was wiggling in my seat. It didn’t take long for Arthur to finish the man, and when he did, he came over to us.
“Well if it isn’t the two twin girls from earlier,” he said. “And who would this be? You’re older sister?”
“Hey!” Anneliese barked. “I’m the older sister!”
Momma laughed. “I’m their mother.”
“I figured that,” Arthur chuckled and looked over at me. I noticed him looking and ran over to Momma.
“So,” Momma began. “I hear my girls are wanting to buy some crayons.”
Arthur walked over to the shelf and grabbed a box of eight crayons. “Here they are,” he smiled.
I looked at them in amazement. “We’ve never had crayons before,” I told him.
“Is that so?” he chuckled. “Well, in this box, there are all the colors of the rainbow. And for only one penny, they will be yours.”
“That’s an awfully steep price,” Momma said. “But what will they color on?”
“For these sweet little girls, I’ll throw in a pad of twenty-five sheets of paper for only four cents.”
Momma handed him five pfennigs. He looked at it in surprise.
“German pfennigs?” He questioned. “I’m not sure if we take these.” He looked in a book that he had in the room. He was flipping through page after page.
I looked at Anneliese and she looked at me. I bet she was thinking the same thing as me. ‘When are we going to get our color crayons?’
Arthur came back to us. “It seems like we don’t take German pfennigs.” He told us. It’s not in our approved currencies. Do you have any other coins?”
Momma dug into her coin purse. “All I have that’s not German money is the change from France.”
“Oh, we definitely take Francs,” Arthur approved.
Momma gave him some change she had. Arthur gave change back.
“Is this American money?” Momma asked, looking at the change.
“It sure is,” Arthur said. Just look at this penny.”
We all looked at the coin he was showing us.
“This Penny has on the front of it a picture of Abraham Lincoln,” he began. “Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth President of The United States of America. You see this 1909 penny is one of the first pennies Abraham Lincoln was ever on. Before then you would only see him on the fifty-cent paper bill and the one-hundred-dollar paper bill. The truth is before he was even on the penny, they were known as Indian head pennies.”
“Indian head?” I said. “Do you mean people from India were on the America penny?”
“No,” Arthur laughed, “Amerindians.”
“Amerindians?” he kept confusing me.
“Never-mind,” he chuckled. “You’ll learn about them sooner or later.”
“Are you from America?” Anneliese asked.
“No,” he answered. “I’m from England. But I know all about the history of America from History books.” A man walked into the room. “Oh, I’m sorry girls… and Madam he looked up at Momma. Duty calls. I hope you enjoy your new crayons. Come on in if you want anything else.” Arthur walked up to the man that was now sitting down in a chair.
We walk out of the barbershop. I was looking at the crayons and paper. I really couldn't wait to color.
Date: Saturday, The Thirteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Library
Time: 12:38
We didn’t want to disturb Papa when he slept, so we headed to the library.
Anneliese and I sat down at a table and started coloring a picture. Because of how much it costs, we didn’t want to waste one sheet of paper. So if we made a mistake, we made it look like it was part of the picture.
On my paper, I drew a dolphin jumping out of the water. I wasn’t really good at coloring, but I tried. Anneliese colored a house with flowers. A girl was standing next to the house.
Momma was sitting in the room down by the door talking to a man and a woman. We continued to color while she talked. I saw Anneliese color a sun, which made me feel like I was copying her because I was coloring a sun at the same time.
After looking at the picture, I noticed it was missing something. I kept thinking of the dolphins I saw a couple of days ago swimming. I decided to draw the Titanic in my picture as well. I made it very long and added three smokestacks coming out of it. I was so proud of it, I showed it to Anneliese.
“Nice ship,” she said.
“It’s the Titanic,” I told her.
“That’s not the Titanic,” she giggled. “You’re missing one smokestack.”
“Wait,” I looked at my picture. “There’s four? I thought there was three.”
“Come on, I’ll show you,” Anneliese pulled me out of my chair.
“Hold on,” I said, taking our pictures to Momma. “Can you watch these?”
“Sure,” Momma said. “Where are you going?”
“Anneliese is going to show me something quickly.”
“Okay,” Momma smiled. “Oh before you go, I’d like to introduce you to someone. Josephine, Anneliese, this is Thomas and Patricia Otto. They’re on this ship as Newlyweds.”
“Hello,” we both said at the same time.
I looked at Momma. “Newly what?”
“Newlyweds,” mom repeated herself. “They’re on their honeymoon. Isn’t that romantic?”
“Um, Yes,” I told her a bit confused. I did not want to ask her what a honeymoon was. “Can I go?”
“Sure, but come right back when you are done,” she told us. “And don’t go too far.”
Anneliese pulled me all the way out to the deck. “Jeez Anneliese, pull my arm off will you?”
“See,” she said pointing to the smokestacks.
“Why are there only three of them going?” I asked looking at the fourth with no smoke coming out of it.
“I’m not sure,” Anneliese scratched her head. “Maybe it’s plugged up.”
We walk back into the library. Momma was still talking to the Otto's. I saw Tom look up at me and smile as I grabbed the papers and crayons.
“I really liked the Titanic you colored,” he told me.
“Thanks,” I said softly.
“You do know that there are four smokestacks, don’t you.”
“I do now,” I whined.
I walked back over to the table. Embarrassed that I made a mistake, I added the fourth one on the picture but did not add smoke coming out of it. I added waves around the ship to hide some of the mistake I made.
Date: Saturday, The Thirteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic –The Second Class Promenade
Time: 14:18
We didn’t go back to our cabin after dinner except to drop off our pictures. Papa was still sleeping, so Momma Anneliese and I headed out to the deck. Me and Anneliese played a game of shuffleboard, while Momma sat on a bench knitting and watching us play. I convinced Anneliese to play Shuffleboard, even though she didn’t want to play yesterday.
I played better than I did the first time when I played with Peter. At least this time I made it to the other end. I still wasn’t that good, but that didn’t matter, neither was Anneliese. While I played, I thought about what happened to him. Where was he? Where did they take him?
Eventually, I stopped playing the game. I lost. Anneliese was gloating that she did better than me.
I liked playing the game, but it hurt to not win. I sat on the bench while Momma played with Anneliese.
Sighing, I look over at a couple of kids playing nearby. They were not the same kids as before. They were both girls. One was taller than the other. Most likely they were sisters.
“Momma, can I go over to those two girls?” I ask.
“Stay where I can see you,” Momma told me.
I walk over to the two girls. “Hi,” I greet them.
“Hello,” the older girl said. She looked to be about my age. Her sister looked to be about two or three.
“What’s your name?” I ask.
She looks over to her mother behind her and back at me. “Winnifred.”
“Hi Winnifred, My name is Josephine.” I look down at the little girl. “Is this your sister?”
“Yes,” Winnifred said, smiling at her very shy sister. “Her name is Phyllis.”
“Hi Phyllis,” I cooed looking down at her.
Their mother walked over to us. I jump up and stare at her. “Hi!” I said startled.
“Hello,” she said. “I was just checking up on my children.”
“I’m sorry,” I wept. “My Momma was…”
“There’s nothing to be sorry about,” she laughed.
Mother walked up with Anneliese right behind her. “Hello,” Momma introduced herself to the girls’ mother.
“Hello,” she said. “I’m Jane Quick.”
They started talking. Me and Anneliese started playing with Winnifred and Phyllis. We were running around the deck.
“Let’s play Hide and Seek!” Winnifred said. “I’ll be it.”
“Okay,” both Anneliese and I said at once.
We sent Phyllis back to her mother. She was too young to play. We could lose her. Winnifred started counting to twenty and I went to find a place to hide. I didn’t know where Anneliese hid.
I found a place just in time when Winnifred said twenty. I hid inside a lifeboat.
It took a while for Winnifred to find me. She found Anneliese hiding behind some barrels.
When they found me, a crew member saw us and walked over. “Hey girls, you can’t be playing in the lifeboats.” He told us.
“They’re not hurting anything,” another crew member said “Besides, when would we ever need to use these?”
“You got a point there,” the first crew member laughed. “You three be safe.” They both walked away.
“I thought we were in trouble there,” Anneliese shivered.
We were going to continue playing Hide and Seek, but many people were walking around the deck now, and it was getting crowded.
“Come on,” Winnifred squeaked. “Let’s get back to our parents.”
Momma and Jane must not have noticed what happened with us, the crew men and, the lifeboat. They were still talking. Phyllis was napping next to them on the bench.
“Momma,” I whined. “It’s getting crowded out here.”
She looked around, and nodded her head. “Let’s get back to our cabin,” Momma said. It’s nice to meet you, Jane. I hope you three enjoy the rest of the time on Titanic and a safe trip back to Detroit.”
“You too,” Jane said. “Hope you, your husband, and your girls find a nice home when we get to America.”
We all walked back to the cabin. Papa was just getting up when we walked in.
“What have you three been up to?” He asked.
“Nothing much, just playing on the deck,” Momma told him.
“And I won every game,” Anneliese smiled.
“Not every game,” I protested. I did win Hide and Seek.
We both laughed.
Date: Saturday, The Thirteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Quick Family Cabin
Time: 16:01
Winnifred sat on the bed in her cabin. She was just finishing up a project her mother had her do. Phyllis split her dress while sitting down, so Winnifred had to sew it up. Jane was busy with a naked little girl. Her sister was running around the room giggling her head off.
All of a sudden there was a knock on the door.
“Could you get that dear?” Jane asked. Shrugging, Winnifred walked over and opened it.
“Josephine? Anneliese?” Winnifred looked shocked. She was not expecting us.
“Hello,” I said, standing outside.
“How’d you know which room I was in?” She asked.
“Your Mother told ours,” I laughed.
Behind her, I saw little Phyllis in the room running around naked with Jane running after her with a clean diaper.
“I believe we came at a bad time,” Anneliese giggled. All three of us giggled looking towards them.
“Wanna go somewhere fun?” Winnifred whispered.
“Sure,” I whispered back.
“Where are we going?” Anneliese asked.
“Winnifred looks back towards her mother and then to us. “It’s a secret.”
“As long as we won’t get into any trouble,” I feared the thought. “I’m already in trouble and have to stay with my sister whenever I leave the cabin.”
“You’re not going to get in trouble,” Winnifred promised. “As a matter of fact, we’ll be back before supper.”
“I look at Anneliese. She looks at me, we shrugged and both agreed to go.
“I’ll be back later, Mother,” Winnifred hollered back in the room.
“Be back before Supper,” Jane hollered back.
“I will mother,” Winnifred groaned.
We all went down the hallway to a door. I wasn’t sure where she was going. Looking both ways, making sure there was no one watching Winnifred opened the door to a staircase.
I notice her beginning to head down the stairs.
“Wait, shouldn’t we be heading up, not down,”Anneliese cried. “These stairs head straight to third class.”
“I thought we weren't going to get in trouble? I panic.
“Don’t be a chicken,” Winnifred chuckled. “Second Class can go down, but Third class can’t come up.”
“I don’t think that works that way,” I argued “Someone will ask us where we live, which would mean they would have to tell our parents.”
Winnifred didn’t say anything. She kept walking down the staircase.
“I got a bad feeling about this,” Anneliese whispered to me. We all walked down the stairs. As we walked through the maze of the staircase. Walking through hallway after hallway. At the end, we could see a room with many chairs and tables. This must have been where third class ate their meals. I thought. It didn’t look like the second class and especially the first class dining rooms.
Anneliese and I stop for a little bit. “This is where we would have had to eat if it wasn’t for Papa getting a temporary job here on the Titanic?” I thought. And by the look on my sister's face, I bet she thought the same thing.
“Come on!” Winnifred growled.
Both of us continued following her. I still wonder where she was taking us. As we walked, we finally made it to the Level G corridor.
“This is where we were on Wednesday,” I whispered to Anneliese.” She nodded and we kept following Winnifred, walking past the room we were in before and passing Mrs. Sandström’s cabin. I wonder what she and her daughters are doing?
At the end of the corridor, we saw a door.
“Authorized Personnel Only,” a sign on the door said.
“We can’t go in there,” I cried. “That’s a forbidden zone.”
“Only if we get caught,” Winnifred chuckled.
She kept saying that. I feel like we shouldn’t have agreed to come with her. If we get caught, who knows what will happen to us.
The door was locked, but that didn’t stop Winnifred. She took a hairpin out of her hair and started picking the lock. I was astonished at how she was able to do that.
Once she opened the door, she looked around a bit inside and then motioned us to follow.
Again another hallway, but we didn’t go all the way. We took a doorway to some more stairs. These stairs winded around a bit.
With every step, we could hear loud noises from down below kind of like people yelling. I didn’t like what I was hearing. I saw an orange glow in the distance. The noise was getting louder as we walked down.
“Where are you taking us?” I asked.
“Well right now, this would be the boiler room,” Winnifred told me and Anneliese.
“The boiler room?” Anneliese yelled. She had to yell, the noise was much louder this time.
As we walked in, we saw men shoveling coal into large machines of fire. It was like a vision of hell with the roaring furnaces and black figures moving in the smoky glow.
None of them noticed us as we walked into the room, but that didn’t take long. Men pushing wheel barrels of coal watched as three small children walked through.
“Hey kids!” a man yelled at us. “You shouldn’t be in here!”
We ran through the open door into another boiler room and fishtail around until we wind up into a dark area out of sight of the working crew. We watch the shadows of the workers in the glow of the fire. They just kept shoveling coal into the furnaces. The whole place thunders with the roar of
the fires.
We sat there for a while sweating from the heat in fear of getting caught by the man that yelled at us.
“I knew we shouldn't have gone here,” I cried.
“We’re going to get in trouble!” Anneliese whined.
“Come on you two!” Winnifred yelled. “Stop being babies and let’s get going!”
“Where can we go?” I yelled back. “The only way out, is back through them,” I pointed towards the workers.
“That’s what you think,” Winnifred said opening up a door behind us.
We all darted to the door. Once we were in, and the door closed, the noise of the workers was silenced. It was also much cooler in the room we were in.
“Where are we?” I ask, walking through rows of boxes.
“The cargo room,” Winnifred laughed.
“Cargo?” I asked. You mean the storage room where the passengers belonging are?”
Winnifred shook her head yes.
I look over at Anneliese. She was hugging herself against the cold, after the dripping heat of the boiler room.
We walk up to what looked like a fancy royal red automobile. It kind of looked like what I believed was what Cinderella used while heading to the ball to meet the Prince. But this had a brass trim and some headlamps and no horses. I wonder what the Brother Grimm would think of today's transportation?
We kept walking around looking at all the storage that was in the room. A few more automobiles were sitting around, but none of them were as nice as the one we saw.
Just then, we heard some noise coming from behind us. I started panicking. I could see a glow from what could be some oil lamps in the distance. Men were walking around. Most likely looking for us. I look over at Winnifred in anger and then at Anneliese. She looked frightened. About as frightened as I was. Winnifred looked confident enough. What is wrong with that girl?
She motioned us to follow her. I felt like it was a bad idea, but I followed. Anneliese stayed right behind me.
We could hear the men searching.
Winnifred brought us to a rope that was hanging down from some luggage crates. “Climb this,” She whispered.
We didn’t have any choice. The men were getting closer by the minute. I climbed up the rope with Anneliese right behind me. Winnifred was last and pulled the rope up. We made it just in time as the men came around the corner of the luggage crates we were hiding. We lied flat as possible under some blankets.
Eventually, the men walked past and were now in another room.
“How long are we going to stay here?” I asked. “It’s nearly Suppertime.”
Winnifred hushed me.
A glow came into the room once more. A lone man was walking along searching once more.
As he left the room, I saw Winnifred take the rope, throw it down, and climbed off the luggage crates.
We got down as well and headed the same way the men headed.
“Shouldn’t we going the way we came in?” Anneliese asked.
“Are you kidding?” Winnifred barked. “They’re most likely watching that door.”
“How do you know they aren’t watching the other doors?” I asked.
“They are, but I know a secret way out of here,” Winnifred chuckled. We walk through the storage room. Winnifred climbed up on some smaller crates and open up a vent. “Come on,” she said.
The vent wasn’t the most fun place I’ve been in, but I felt much safer here than out in the open. I hear Anneliese crying behind me. After many tight twists and turns, we finally got through and ended up in a second class hallway.
“Why didn’t we go through that way when we first came through here?” I asked.
“We wouldn’t have had such an adventure that way,” Winnifred laughed. “Besides, did we get caught?”
Once we got back into our cabin, Anneliese ran to her bed. I felt bad. We almost got in trouble. I sat down next to her. Momma was sitting on the davenport knitting like always. “You two have fun?” She asked.
“Kind of,” I frowned.
“What’s wrong?” Momma asks. “What did you do?”
“Explored the ship,” I said.
“Well as long as you didn’t do anything that would get you in trouble, I’m fine with it.” Momma continued knitting.
I look over at her, and then at Anneliese. “I’m sorry,” I whisper.
She looks at me, smiles, and hugs me.
Date: Sunday, The Fourteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin
Time: 7:55
“Hurry up, we don’t want to be late for breakfast,” Momma told us.
I was tired and so was Anneliese. After yesterday's adventure, we fell asleep quickly. But despite all the tiredness, we ended up getting out of bed just in time. I yawned and stretched. If only Momma knew why we were so tired.
During breakfast, we could hear people singing music.
O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.
Since it was Sunday, it came from a church service down the hall. The song was pretty. We respect anyone’s religion, even if it isn’t our own.
As I ate some Pan Dulcis, some eggs, and a crumpet, I sat there listening to the sound of music. The violinist that usually plays in the room is playing at the church, but I could still hear him.
I sip on my orange juice and start to daydream.
What would it be like once we were in America? We could have a farm with chickens and cows. Papa would be the man of the house and do all the hard work. Momma Anneliese and I would do house work and play outside.
“Josephine!” Momma woke me from my daydream. “Don’t spill you orange juice.”
After breakfast, Anneliese and I head out on the deck. It was cold out there today. Few people were out. The sun wasn’t shining. All I could see was clouds for miles around.
Marshall was again playing quoits. We didn’t see Marjorie. She must have been with her family. We didn’t go over to Marshall. He looked like he was having fun on his own. Besides, the game didn’t appear that appealing in the first place.
“Let’s just go back inside and color or something,” Anneliese said shivering. “It’s too cold out here.”
“I agree. We can always go to the library,” I mentioned.
“You go, I want to color inside our cabin.” said Anneliese.
“But I can’t go on my own,” I whine.
Anneliese sighed. “Fine, but let's first grab the colors and paper.”
We headed back to the cabin, where Momma saw us come in.
“What are you two up to?” She asked.
“Nothing,” I said. “We are planning on going to the library. But first Anneliese came to get some color crayons and paper.”
I see Anneliese rummage through a few things.
“Sounds like fun,” Momma laughed.
“Okay, Let’s go,” demanded Anneliese.
“You two be safe,” Momma told us
“We know,” I grumble.
As we walk towards the library, I spotted a piano on the bottom of the very large staircase. It looked like Church was over. I glance over at Anneliese and back at the piano.
“Let’s go here instead,” I pleaded. I want to play the piano.
Anneliese looked over at the piano and sighed. “Fine, just don’t be to loud.”
I hop over and sit down on the piano bench. I wasn’t the greatest piano player, but I really wanted to play it. The only songs I played were kids songs. I started playing Mary had a Little Lamb, since it only used a few notes.
I started out slow, just making a few notes play.
A woman walks by and saw me playing.
“How cute!” she cooed and sat down on a chair and watched me.
Anneliese sat on the floor and colored a picture.
I continued playing the piano, unaware that I was creating a crowd.
I started playing songs that were a little familiar to me, including ‘The Farmer's in his Den’ and 'Der Deitcher's Dog' When I stopped playing, the crowed started clapping. I look over at them with shock.
“Uh,” I sputtered. “Hi.” I was embarrassed. I started getting off the piano bench.
“No, keep playing,” the woman said.
I could hear people chanting “Encore.” Which I didn’t understand. I looked over at Anneliese which was also looking over at the group of people and back at me. I felt a bit scared, but I slowly sat down at the piano and continued playing. I was a bit nervous at first, but began playing again.
As I played the piano, I felt more confident with myself. A man came up to me and asked if I could read notes.
“Yes,” I explained, “but I am a little rusty at it.”
“Go on and try,” he chuckled. “Here play this song.” He handed me a sheet with musical notes on it.
“Swan lake?” I read. I looked it over and started slowly begin the notes. As a played, I made a few mistakes, but I can tell the crowd didn’t care. Some may have giggled a little, but I played the song all the way through.
Everyone cheered.
I ended up playing a whole concert for them. Playing songs that people requested me to play. Most of the songs requested were from Ludwig Van Beethoven and Johann Sebastian Bach. By the time I was finished, my hands were tired and I was exhausted as well. Anneliese stopped coloring halfway through my performance and started watching me as well.
When I was finished, I got off the piano bench and curtsied while everyone including Anneliese clapped.
It was a good thing I finished, because Dinner was just about to start. I was famished.
We were starting to head down the hallway when I saw Momma and Papa.
“You did a great job Josephine,” Papa congratulated me.
“We heard that you were playing piano and headed out to watch you,” Momma said Proudly. “Anneliese told us.”
I glance at my sister. “Thanks,” I smiled.
We all headed to the dining room.
Date: Sunday, The Fourteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin
Time: 16:34
When I came back to our room after dinner, I immediately went and took a nap. After playing piano for almost four hours, anyone would be tired. The nap refreshes me. As I got up, I glare down from my bed seeing Anneliese playing with Jacks. I was going to join her when all of a sudden there was a knock at the door. “Who could that be?” I wondered. I opened the door and on the other side stood Captain Smith
“So glad you're here,” he smiled down at me. “I was wondering if you and your sister would like to come with me to see the bridge of the ship?”
I became thrilled. “No Fooling?”
“Of course,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t be standing here asking you if I wasn’t.” He continued chuckling.
Anneliese got up from off the floor. “What's all this jazz about going somewhere?”
“The captain is offering you two a chance to see how the ship rolls.” Momma said.
“Oh, that would be awesome.” Anneliese cried with delight.
“Do you still have those dresses you two wore before?” Captain Smith asked.
“Of course,” Momma laughed. “They’re right here.” She grabs it off the side of the door.
“Capital,” Captain Smith said. “Why don’t you two get dressed and meet me out here when you’re done. I want you two looking your best in front of my crew members.”
As he leaves we follow his directions and get dressed. Once we were done, we head out of the room, but Momma stays back. Captain Smith did invite her, but she politely rejected his offer. “You two have fun.”
As we walk with the captain, he turned to look at me. “I hear some crazy kids went down to the boiler room and in the cargo hold last night.”
I glanced over at Anneliese. Did he know it was us that were in there? I felt horrible.
“Little children shouldn’t go down there.” Captain Smith continued.
“Sorry,” Anneliese apologized.
“Anneliese!” I growl.
“So it was you two,” Captain Smith knelt down at both of us. “It was very dangerous for you girls to go down there. You could have been hurt.”
“Sorry,” I now apologized. “It wasn’t our fault. We were following another girl that told us…”
“It doesn’t matter,” Captain Smith said. “Just don’t do it again.” He could see the worried look on our faces. “I won’t tell you parents.”
We follow the captain to a lift. This would be the first time anyone of us has ever been in a lift and it was exciting.
“Good Afternoon Captain?” a man in the lift greeted.
“As you can see,” Captain Smith began, “This is our lift operator.”
“Hello, young ladies.” the man said.
We reach our stop and walk out to see a different view of the ship.
I saw how big Titanic really was. It looked like it went on for miles. I saw the ocean on both sides. Water that never ended.
The sun finally came out and the clouds were disappearing. I hugged myself a little. It was still cold out.
“Follow me,” Captain Smith told us. We followed him to what looked like a room with wheels.
“This room, my young lassies is the wheel room. This is where we command the ship. The wheels with all the words on it are called an Engine Order Telegraph or E.O.T.”
I stare at the wheel. It appeared like a fun thing to use.
Captain Smith continued, “And over here we have...”
I was interested in the telegraph machine and didn’t follow the captain. I wondered what the machines did. I tried to read what the words meant. I knew a few, but didn’t understand all. What does astern mean? Just for fun, I held on to the lever. I pretended to be one of the crew. None of the crew members on the bridge were even watching me.
“Josephine,” I heard Captain Smith calling for me, which startled me. I accidentally pushed the lever on the wheel, which went too far to the right I tried pulling it back, but it was too hard, so I freaked out and ran out of the room.
“There you are,” Captain Smith said with a smile. “I’d like to show you something special that no one under first class would see.”
We started heading over to where he was talking about, when all of a sudden the ship started moving to the left.
“What in tarnation?” he ran back into the wheel room I was just in. “Who pulled the E.O.T. to Full Astern?”
I watched the Titanic take a quick left, but a crew member set it back to normal.
“Let’s just hope none of the passengers noticed anything,” Captain Smith said once he got out of the room. “And if they do, I’m pretty sure I’ll hear from them soon.
I felt ashamed that I was the one that did it. I was surprised the captain didn’t suspect me.
As we walk off, I glance up in a distance at a man standing inside a small structure located on a pole.
“What’s that?” I asked pointing to the man
The man stood up there looking out to sea.
“That’s the crow's nest,” Captain Smith told me. It’s a lookout point. We use it to spot other ships or massive objects floating in the water.”
“Like a whale?” I asked.
“Whales?” Captain Smith chuckled, glanced down at me. “Whales won't come near us. They stay their distance. Now an iceberg would be something to worry about. But don’t be scared, we won’t encounter any icebergs.
I look up at the man in the crow's nest. It must be a boring job. Not even having a chance to experience fun on the ship. Especially her first one. Although, he will have many years of enjoyment. He won’t always be standing up there every time Titanic sailed and I doubt he’s up there the entire time.
We continue walking as we pass one of the huge funnels with smoke coming out of it. They are enormous when you’re close up to them. The captain takes us to a large room with many people inside. I spotted a grand piano in the distance. Much larger than the one I played on earlier today.
“I heard you were playing the piano,” Captain Smith smiled. “And I would like you to play...
“Oh, I’d love to,” I told him, “But I’m a bit tired from doing it earlier.”
“Do it for me,” he pleaded.
I really liked the piano a lot. I have never played on such a beautifully huge one. I glanced over at Anneliese, and she shook her head, yes.
“Okay,” I finally said. “I’ll do it. But only for a little bit.”
I slowly walk over and sit down on the very comfy piano bench. I gaze over at the captain. He was smiling. On the piano there was a book of music. The captain must have put it there earlier. He must have known I would play.
I thumbed through the pages and picked out a song I played earlier. ‘Air (Air On The G String)’ by Bach. At least this time I may play it better.
I opened up the piano door and checked out the keys. They were glossy. I cracked my fingers and started playing.
This attracted a bunch of the people walking around or talking. They headed over and watched me play. They never imagined a seven-year-old could play the piano this good before, especially a girl. (Even if I was born a boy, in my heart I am a girl.)
I didn’t play as long as I did before, But I did go through a bunch of songs, including my favorite Beethoven song, ‘Moonlight Sonata’, which I didn’t play earlier.
After I was done, I did another curtsy and went over to the crowd of people. Everyone there gave me many compliments and some older women gave my cheeks a pinch, which I didn’t like.
I walk over to Captain Smith and Anneliese. She gave me a big hug.
“Well done,” Captain Smith said congratulation my work. You should go professional.” He checked the time on the wall behind us. “We have a half hour before Supper. Let me show you one more thing before we head back to your cabin.”
We followed him not even a few feet of where we were standing. What Anneliese and I observed was the largest staircase I have ever seen. It was sensational. On the top of the staircase was a clock with a decoration around it. The wood on and around the staircase had so much detail. Even the floors were beautiful. I’m not sure why I didn’t notice it before. I guess because I was excited about the piano.
“What kind of floor is this?” I asked the captain.
“It’s called Linoleum,” he pointed out. “It’s a really fine flooring, much better than marble flooring.”
I was confused, isn’t marble more of a luxury? This stuff looks cheap. I decided not to ask him it.
Well, come on girls, we better get going. We walked down the staircase and headed to the lift. The same man from earlier was in the lift working the controls.
“E deck please,” he told the man.
As we took the lift down, I looked up at Captain Smith, he looked down at me and smiled. I smiled back.
Date: Sunday, The Fourteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Second Class Dining Room
Time: 18:58
I stare out the windows of the dining room. It was so nice being able to sit next to one. I could see the beautiful sunset. The bright reds and oranges, the pinks and blues. What could possibly ruin this view.
As we sat for Supper, the server came up to us as usual with today's menu.
I asked for the roast turkey with cranberry sauce, roasted potatoes and some Ice Cream. They say it's American Ice Cream. I wonder what’s the difference. Momma insisted I get a vegetable. I figured potatoes were vegetables, but I was wrong. With disgust, I ordered the green peas. Anneliese ordered about the same thing as me, except for the potatoes. She had boiled rice instead.
Momma ordered a Spring Lamb which came with this weird green mint sauce and Papa ordered the curried chicken and rice. They both got Puree Turnips, which to me sounded worse than the green peas.
I wondered what the First and Third Class ate.
When our meals came, Momma told us we couldn’t eat the ice cream first. I was disappointed. Why couldn't I?
The turkey was so moist and delicious. The cranberry sauce was a bit tart. I ate the potatoes and then the worst part of them all, the green peas. I put them in my mouth and almost gagged. I hate peas. All so mushy and awful tasting. Anneliese ate them as if they were candy. I wonder how she could do it. It’s just so gross.
Finally, the Ice Cream. By the time I could eat it, it was melting. I got chocolate. I love chocolate. I took a spoonful and was a bit surprised. It tasted very sweet and milky. It was a smooth taste and not so thick. But it was missing something in the texture. I managed to eat just fine, but miss the kind I was used to.
I glance over at Anneliese. I could tell from her looks, she was thinking the same thing.
As we left Supper, Momma, Anneliese and I took a stroll outside. Papa was getting ready for work. It was a bit chilly outside. The temperature on the wall mentioned it was three degrees Celsius. Momma wanted us to wear a something warmer instead of our dresses, but not only me, but Anneliese wanted to stay in the dress we were wearing. We ended up wearing the sweaters, Momma knitted us over our dresses.
“Why did we go out here, if it's so dang freezing,” I asked.
“Watch your mouth, young lady,” Momma told me. “I just wanted to spend a little time with you. I haven't seen you all day. I didn’t believe being cooped up in our cabin would be much fun.”
“Well,” I began, “I’ve had a busy day.”
“That’s right, how was your time with the captain?” Momma asked.
“We got to check out the wheels that control the ship.” I mentioned.
“Yeah,” Anneliese added. “We even witnessed the ship turn left for some strange reason.”
“So that’s why it felt a little weird earlier today.” Momma laughed.
I didn’t say anything. I just continued my story.
“Well anyways,” I ended up playing on a grand piano and even viewed a beautiful set of stairs.”
“You got to see the Grand Staircase?” Momma was shocked. “Now I wish I could have been there. Not only for the staircase, but to watch you play.”
I noticed Anneliese was shivering, which made me feel cold as well. “Can we go in,” I asked. “Anneliese and I are shivery.”
“It’s not what I wanted, but okay,” Momma groaned.
When we got back to the cabin, Papa was just leaving.
“Bye Papa,” me and my Anneliese say together.
“Stay safe, dear,” Momma kissed him
“Ewww!,” both Anneliese and I said.
When we walk into the room, Momma spots me yawing.
“I saw that yawn,” she chuckled. “Time for bed.”
“Awww Momma,” I whine.
“There’s more to do tomorrow,” Momma scolded.
“Alright,” I pout.
“You too, Anneliese.”
“Okay Momma,” Anneliese said, hopping into bed with me.
I must have been really tired, because I fell asleep in just a few minutes.
Date: Sunday, The Fourteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin
Time: 23:39
I was sound asleep, and so was Momma and Anneliese. I was dreaming about what our new home would be like when we got to America. Papa would be milking the cows and Momma would be out with us collecting eggs and feeding the chickens. All of a sudden a minute later there was an earthquake, which caused me to wake up.
“Momma!” I scream.”
“What is it?” Momma yelled back startled as well.
“I had a bad dream” I began. “There was an earthquake, and it felt so real.”
“I don’t think it was your dream,” Momma said, “I felt something.
“So did I,” Anneliese quietly said. “What time is it?”
Momma looked at a watch she had on her. “It’s twenty minutes to midnight. Let’s just go back to sleep, and we’ll figure this all out in the morning.”
“Okay Momma,” we both say together.
I tried to fall asleep, but I was still scared. I just lied there.
I hear Anneliese breath softly. She was back to sleep. Momma was out of bed and was watching out the window. I came by and looked out with her.
“Can’t sleep,” she asked me.
“Nope,” I said, I watched out the window as well. It was completely dark out there. I couldn't see that well, but I did notice something in the water not far from us. What could it be? I squinted.
“What’s that!” I ask pointing out the window.
“Not sure,” Momma said “But have you noticed that Titanic isn’t moving?”
Just then, the door crashed open from the cabin. It startled me and Momma. Anneliese jumped as well.
At the door was Papa and he was soaked.
“Get your lifebelts on,” he told us.
Date: Sunday, The Fourteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin
Time: 23:44
“What do you mean, get your lifebelts on?” Momma asked.
“I was shoveling coal into the broiler when all of a sudden there was an enormous crash coming from the walls and water was coming out of it.,” Papa explained. “Or should I say coming in.” He grabbed the lifebelts and handed them all to us. “Here take one and put it on.”
“It can’t be that bad,” Momma tried to calm him. “Don’t they have a way to just close up the water until we make it to New York?”
“We can’t take any chances,” Papa said. “It’s best to just have a lifebelt on. It may get worse.”
He was taking off his work uniform and dressing in much dryer clothes. Me and Anneliese didn’t look his way, just in case he got naked. Which likely he did.
Momma steps to the window and looks out. “Well that explains why the ship has stopped.”
“Did we hit something?” I asked. “I did notice something huge out the window.”
Anneliese spoke up, “We may have hit a reef or giant under sea rocks.”
After Papa got dressed, he sat down on his bed and put his hand on his forehead. “It was a nightmare. First the boat starts shaking and then water and ice came out of the walls.”
“You didn’t mention ice,” Mom said.
“Ice?” I exclaimed. “We may have hit an iceberg.” I ran to the window and looked out again. From a distance I could see something gigantic in the water. It was hard to determine, but it may have been an iceberg.
“There,” I pointed.
Papa got up off his bed and looked out. “Are you sure it's an iceberg?”
“Not really,” I cry, “but Captain Smith was talking to me today about them.”
Anneliese and Momma went to the window and looked out.
“I can’t see anything,” Anneliese complained.
We should go outside and see it better,” I said hurrying to the door.
“Oh no, you don’t!,” Momma growled. It’s late and you two should be in bed.”
“But I’m not tired,” I complain.”
“Me too,” Anneliese whined.
“What if we are asleep and the ship starts to sink?” I asked.
“We haven't heard anything from anyone on the crew, besides you honey,” Momma sighed.
“Let them stay up,” Papa said sitting down on the bed once more. “Besides, if everything is normal, they’ll be asleep sooner or later.”
There was a knock on the door. Momma opened it. An older man was on the other side.
“Sorry tae disturb ye,” he said. “But did any o ye feel somethin aboot say fifteen minutes ago?”
“Yes we did,” Momma said. “Come on in.”
“Why, thank ye.” He slowly stepped into the room, using a cane.
As he walked in, he glanced over at both me and Anneliese.
“Why, hello thare young lassies,” he smiled. “Ma name is Herbert Spenser” he said after sitting in a chair. “A believe A'v distinguishit ye twa young tykes playin ootside.”
I sat down next to Anneliese. She and I just looked at each other. We didn’t understand what he was saying. His accent was strange.
“Mind gin A smoke?” Herbert asked. He pulled out a pipe.
Papa viewed the pipe and figured out what he was saying “No, It’s fine by me,” said Papa. “How about you honey? Gazing over at Momma.
“I’m not sure,” she protested. “What about the children?”
“It’s okay with me,” I said. “They smoked in the library and even while I played the piano.”
“I don’t mind.” Anneliese giggled.
Herbert took his pipe and filled it with some tobacco. I watched him. I never see many people smoke and it looked interesting. I always wondered why Papa never smoked. Grand-papa always did.
Anneliese sat on the ground and started playing with her Jacks. I glanced over and decided to play as well. I noticed that with the ship not moving, it was a lot easier to play the game.
“…Sae anyways, thare A wis sittin at the table playin checkers an aw o a sudden a huge spider walks on tae the board.” Herbert chuckled. “Now A knew it wis thare, but Fred didn’t know, an synse he wis playin as black an it wis his turn, he pickit up the spider an freakit oot.” Momma and Papa both laughed. “Yeah it wis hilarious.”
I heard him say the word spider and it gave me the shivers.
“Anyways, I’ve been wonderin. Why dae ye aw have lifebelts on?”
Papa explained the whole situation to him.
Sae that whit happened ,” Herbert puffed on his pipe. “We pure don’t hae tae worry, this ship wis capable fur hings lik' that tae happen. We’ll be back tae sailing again in a few hours, wance thay patch up th' nook.”
The continued having a conversation for a little while longer until Herbert excused himself.
“A here better head back tae ma room, ma leg is pickin up a storm a comin.”
Date: Monday, The Fifteenth day of April 1912
Place: Titanic – Family Cabin (Still)
Time: 24:09
“Everybody up, get dressed, get your lifebelts on at once!” I heard a man yell out in the hallway. It sounded like a crew member. “Everybody up, get dressed, get your lifebelts on at once!” He kept saying and banging on doors.
I started hearing people in the hallway right outside our cabin. They were complaining about the noise. Some were complaining about having to wear the lifebelts. Some were asking questions on why the ship had stopped. That was my question as well.
“There’s no need to worry, just put on the lifebelts and head up on the deck,” the crewman argued with them. “Chop, Chop!” He then started knocking on other doors, including ours.
Papa opened the door.
“Everybody up, get dressed, get your lifebelts on...” the man started saying when he noticed we all had ours on. “Come on then up to the deck.” He hurried off to the next door. “Everybody up, get dressed, get your lifebelts on at once!”
Momma insisted we all stay warm and put on most of our clothes underneath our new dress. It didn't work, it was hard to move in. We ended up putting on the dress, Captain Smith gave us, one extra dress and the sweater Momma made us.
Before we left, we all glanced back at what we had left in our rooms. If the ship was sinking, we wouldn’t see any of it anymore. I noticed my doll and freaked out. “Lucie!”
“Forget the doll!” Momma grumbled.
“But Momma, I can’t leave Lucie behind. I can’t sleep without her. And she was my first doll.”
“I can get you a new one,” Momma told me. I started to cry.
“Just let her have the doll,” Papa told Momma.
“Alright, you can have the doll,” Momma grumbled.
“If she can have her doll, I’m taking the color crayons and paper with our drawings.
Momma sighed.
As we all wandered out on the deck, many people were standing around. There was a roaring sound coming from the funnels above us. I had my hands to my ears. I could see Anneliese had hers to her ears as well. Momma and Papa were looking around. My hair kept getting in my face with the strong wind that was blowing. It was very chilly outside.
“Go back to your rooms and get dressed in warm clothes,” a crew member said. “Also bring out all your blankets you can find. And come back here.” We heard other crew members saying about the same thing elsewhere.
Momma was right. Dress warmly, but she wasn’t sure if bringing the ship's blankets was allowed. Now that we had the order, we went back inside our cabin and grabbed every blanket. Momma snuck a pillow bag full of most of our clothes. Anneliese grabbed her Jacks and I just kept holding onto Lucie.
Place: Titanic – Hallway
Time: 24:16
The hallway was crammed with passengers left and right scrambling to and from their cabins. We scooted along the edge of the walls trying to get out. We didn't even bother locking the door of our cabin.
With all the commotion, I dropped my doll. I stopped to grab it. This made me lose my family in the crowd. I started to panic. I couldn’t see them anywhere. I walked the best I could, getting bumped by passengers hurrying along.
“Momma! Papa!” I holler. It was no use, nobody could hear me in the loud hallway of people. I continued walking when a man came along and scooped me from the ground. I dropped my doll again.
I freaked out.
“Let me go!” I cried.
“Don’t worry, Anneliese,” said a familiar sound.
I stopped crying and gazed at the person carrying me.
“Peter?” I sputtered.
“It’s me,” he chuckled.
“Where have you been all this time?” I asked.
“I’ll explain later,” he said. “We have to get out of here.”
“No!” I cried. “I want my Momma and Papa and my...” Peter covered my mouth. I continued to cry as he headed the wrong way. I bit him. “Let me go! Let me go! I screamed. This caused everyone to look towards me and Peter. “Let me go!”
Peter was furious from me biting him, he slapped me in the face, which made me dry harder. He wasn’t paying attention to where he was running and hit an open door, which caused me to fall to the floor.
Peter fell to the floor. He looked like he was asleep. I darted off the way we came.
I didn’t even look back to see if he was awake and coming after me. I was so scared that he was chasing me, that I almost slipped and fell. I notice I wasn’t far from our cabin and run to it. I make it back to the cabin and close the door locking it.
Huffing and puffing, I lie on the floor sobbing.
Momma, Papa and Anneliese finally make it out on the deck. The crew were getting some of the lifeboats ready.
“That’s strange,” Momma said.
Anneliese spotted a boy holding up a doll to his mother. “Mommy, Mommy, look what I found,” the boy said.
“Momma,” Anneliese said tugging on her blanket. “Isn’t that Josephine’s doll?”
“It sure looks like the same kind of doll,” Momma said, glancing back to where I was supposed to be. Not seeing that I wasn’t around. “Josephine?”
Papa, alert on what was happening, ran over to the boy and his mother. “Excuse me, where did you find that doll?”
The little boy hugged his mother. “I found it on the floor in the hallway,” he whined.
Papa started running into the hallway. There were so many passengers roaming the hall he couldn’t see anything. He kept running. Searching on every end of the hallway.
Eventually he made it to our cabin,
and tried the door. It was locked. Thinking I wouldn’t be able to get in with a locked door, he hurried down the hall some more. Eventually he came up to a man, which was Peter lying on the ground.
“Damn drunk!” he snarled and continued searching down another hallway.
Back in the room, I was sitting on the floor next to the door. I heard someone try to open the door. I freaked out and ran to my bed. I was crying. “I want my Momma and Papa!”
I was about to head back out but decided not to. Peter could be out there waiting for me to open the door, so he could snatch me again. I decided to lie on my bed.
A few minutes later I heard the door again and this time someone was pounding on it. I look up and stare at the door. Tears were flowing down my face with horror. The pounding continued and got louder. My heart was beating a mile a minute. I wonder how many people were in the hallway watching at a strange man beating at a door.
All of a sudden the pounding stopped, and the door of the cabin opened up. I was hiding and crying when a hand came up to me and touched me.
“Josephine?” said a voice.
I looked up.
“Papa!” I cried jumping into his arms. “I was so scared. I saw Peter and…”
“Yes, I know,” Papa hushed me.
“How?” I asked.
Papa hugged me. “He’s out cold in the hallway.” Papa takes the blanket I was wearing and put it on me. We stepped out of the room. He continued to hold me. I look down and see Peter on the floor. He looked like he was sleeping, just like before.
We walk down the semi crowded hallway and out to the deck where Momma and Anneliese were.
“Josephine!” Momma cried.
“Momma!” I held my arms out for her to grab me.
“Here’s you doll,” Anneliese held Lucie in her hands.
“Thank you,” I sniffle.
Place: Titanic – Boat Deck
Time: 24:31
I could hear music playing and it was lovely. I wasn’t quite sure what they were playing, but it made being out in the cold a lot easier. I notice the crew moving around the deck. One man was ordering them what to do.
“Women and Children First!” He would say.
This caused an uproar as men felt they were being discriminated.
“What do they mean women and children first?” I asked Papa.
He didn’t answer, he was more watching the crowd.
I gaze over at Anneliese. She was sitting on the ground trying to stay warm. I walk over and sit down next to her.
“I believe you may need some company?”
“Thank you,” Anneliese hugged me. “I am scared.”
“I am too,” I hug her back.
At the corner of my eye, I notice a sinister looking man walking onto the deck.
“Cover your face!” I tell Anneliese as I do myself. We cover with our blankets.
“What’s wrong?” she asks doing what she was told.
“Peter is out there, and he is looking for me.” I explain. “You look like me, and so he may think you are me.”
“Peter?” Anneliese asked. “You mean Francis the murderer? The guy that you were hanging out with?”
“Yes,” I whine.
We both start crying.
I could hear Peter tramping up to us and stop. He was breathing heavily. Most likely looking at the blankets we were hiding in. After about a minute, he left. His breathing gave me goose pimples and chills up my spine.
We didn’t dare leave the blankets. We were both shivering, not from being frozen, but from the fear we had.
Momma came up to use and chuckled. “Why are you two both bundled up like that,” she asked. Are you two freezing?
“No, we were hiding.” Anneliese told her.
“Hiding?” Momma questioned. “Hiding from what?”
Never mind,” I said.
Once we got out from hiding, we both stood nearby Papa.
Time: 24:40
Patty Cake, Patty Cake, Baker's Man;
That I will Master, As fast as I can;
Pat it and prick it, And mark it you see;
And there will be enough for you and me.
We played while everybody stood around. It was getting boring and there was nothing else to do. Anneliese wanted to play Jacks, but she was worried she might lose the ball. She also thought we could color, but that also came up with the same thing.
Ring-a-ring o' roses,
A pocket full of posies,
A-tishoo! A-tishoo!
We all fall down.
It would be funner to play if we had more than two people playing, but we were starting to feel a little warmer and happier while we waited for what ever we were out here for.
We continued to play while passengers watched. Papa and Momma clapped along while we played. It was entertaining for all.
Eventually a few other kids joined the fun, and we all were laughing.
Ring-a-ring o' roses,
A pocket full of posies,
A-tishoo! A-tishoo!
We all fall down.
We all laughed when fell to the ground.
Afterwards, we all played a game called Anka Anka Grå Anka. A Swedish game where we all sit in a circle and one person goes around tapping on each person head, saying Anka to each person until they choose to say Grå Anka, and that person that gets chosen must run around the circle and try to chase them before they make it back to where the chosen person was sitting.
I lost a few times, but eventually won. We were about to play another game, until Anneliese spotted something out at sea.
“Look!” she said, pointing to a light in the distance.
“What is it?” I asked squinting at what she was trying to see.
Right about that time we heard, and then saw a rocket shoot up in the sky. It was very bright. It made me and Anneliese very happy to see it.
“Pretty,” I sang.
We all kept looking up, hoping for more, but were disappointed.
I walked over to Papa, who was staring out to sea. “Why did they shoot off just one?” I asked him. He shrugged and continued staring out.
I do the same thing.
Anneliese and I continued playing hand games while Momma and Papa were talking to someone.
“Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack
All dressed in black, black, black
With silver buttons, buttons, buttons
Up and down her back back back...”
I was stating to get cold and put on my blanket again. Anneliese followed. Fun and games were over.
Time: 1:08
As we sat there, we watched the rocket go off again. I wished it would be more.
We heard a man yelling. We were told to head over to one of the lifeboats. Momma, Papa, Anneliese and I started over to one. There were many women standing around with some men as well. I didn’t see many kids. A girl was standing with her mother, holding her hand. I decided to hold Papa's hand, even if it made me look like a baby.
I noticed that the music playing stopped for some reason. It became very quiet. All I could hear were the passengers talking and crew members telling everyone what to do.
I watched passengers climb into a lifeboat. I watched a crew member put in two young boys in one.
“That's all for this boat!” he said “Lower away!"
"Please!” I woman cried. “Those are my children! Let me go with them!"
“Alright,” the man said, “but she must leave.” He pointed to a girl in the boat.”
The girl steps out of the boat.
"Ruth! Get in another boat!" the woman screamed, once she got in the lifeboat, taking her place.
“Don't worry, kid, there's a boat over here for you.” the crew member told her.
We followed her and the man.
A lone woman keeping her distance from everyone was brought over to the boat. She became hysterical once she got closer.
"Don't put me in that boat! I don't want to go in that boat! I've never been in an open boat in my life!"
Officer Murdoch, tried to stop her fussing. "You have got to go and you may as well keep quiet. "
She eventually was put in the boat and Ruth was put in after her. Eventually it was our turn to get in the boat. Officer Murdoch helped me and Anneliese in and then Momma went in after us.
“Come on Papa,” I yelled.
Papa was just about to go on when Murdoch stopped him.
“I'm sorry, sir,” Murdoch said, “Only women and children allowed at this time.”
“Papa?” I started to cry.
“Can I say something to my children first?” Papa asked.
“Yes, of course,” Murdoch approved.
“Josephine, Anneliese,” he began. “You be good little girls and look after your mother.”
“Okay Papa,” Anneliese and I both said at once.
“I’ll...” Papa stuttered. “I’ll be on the next boat.” then he glanced over at Momma. “I love you honey.”
The boat was pretty much full by the time we were about to be lowered.
We both looked up at Papa with tears in our eyes.
"Bye Papa, " we both cried
"It's not goodbye," Papa told us, "It's see you later."
“Lower away,” Murdoch commanded.
Carpathia
Date: Monday, The Fifteenth day of April 1912
Place: Lifeboat 13 – North Atlantic Ocean
Time: 1:15
As we were being lowered down from the Titanic, I watched Papa from on deck. He glanced down at us, but eventually disappeared from sight. Anneliese and I were still crying, and I believe Momma was crying as well.
While we were being lowered in to the water, our lifeboat was nearly caught by an enormous stream of water, that was coming from Titanic somewhere. It seemed to be about three or four feet or so. We ended up having to use the oars in the lifeboat to push us away safely We started to move faster which caused us to drift under an oncoming lifeboat coming down.
It appeared to be lifeboat fifteen.
We all screamed in terror.
Luckily the lifeboat lowering had halted just in time, with only a few feet to spare. The falls aboard or lifeboat jammed and had to be cut free to allow us to get away safely from the side of the Titanic. It's a good thing I don’t believe in superstition, for we are all in lifeboat thirteen.
“Hey,” One woman in the lifeboat yelled. “We have no one to man this boat.”
“I may not be a sailor or anything,” said a man, named Frederick Barrett, “But I have been leading the firemen on here since the start of the voyage.”
“Anyone want to elect him to take charge?” The woman asked.
“We all agreed he should.
“Okay men,” Frederick yelled, “let’s all take an oar and start rowing away from the ship.”
It didn’t take long for the lifeboat to move away. I watched the men row away.
I could still hear the music playing on the ship. I had a feeling the musicians were not going to make it and would be going down with the ship.
I look toward the back of the ship and notice it was lifted out of the water. The propellers were showing.
I still saw rockets shooting off in the air. It lit up the sky enough to view the water we were floating on. I thought of all the fish that were under us right now. Possibly even sharks or whales. I worry a whale would come up and push us out of the lifeboat.
Anneliese was sitting talking to Ruth, the girl from earlier. She was bundled up in the blanket. At least she wasn’t going to be bored.
Momma sat there watching the ship. I bet the was thinking of Papa. I started to cry a little after thinking of him as well. Momma hugs me.
Time: 1:48
Anneliese and I were attempting to stay less bored by playing a clapping game. Some people in the boat were restless and didn’t want all the noise we were making. I sigh and look towards the ship.
With wide eyes, I saw the Titanic’s front end of the ship was deeper in the water. The back of the ship was up in the sky. I wonder what it would have been like trying to stay balanced on that ship at this moment.
The pianos I was playing on must have moved and possibly crashed. I think of the beautifully polished piano in First Class. I may also have been the last person playing on both of those pianos. I glance down at the water and sigh again.
We must be far away from the ship, because I can no longer hear the sounds of the instruments playing. It was very calming to hear them, now it was almost silent. I heard the waves of the water as we moved away. People from other lifeboats were talking or even crying.
I glance over at a young girl in the lifeboat we were in. She was fast asleep. I was getting tired too. I could see Anneliese yawning, which made me yawn.
Contagious.
Our lifeboat may have been one of the quietest boats floating. I see almost everyone watching the ship.
I look over at it. Titanic’s front end is totally submerged in the water.
I think about how only a few days ago I was standing on that deck watching dolphins swimming and playing, and how I felt like I was flying with my hands in the air. My hair blowing against the wind, and the sun warming me up.
Now I don’t even recognize that part of the ship anymore, and I am freezing.
Time: 2:09
I hear people screaming from the Titanic. Even from as far as we were, their screams were chilling. I still think of Papa. How he may still be on the ship and one of those screaming. I think of Captain Smith, how he would still be on there as well. I think of Peter and…
Why am I thinking of him? Forget about Peter. He can die in heck for all I care.
I thought he was a nice guy, until he tried to hurt and kidnap me.
I watch as the front of the ship slowly but noticeably plunge downward. I also notice the ship wasn’t tilting to the side anymore. The deck was sitting a little bit more even. Like it seemed to rise a few feet in the air, almost like it was mooning the sky. Talking about the moon, I look up in the sky and notice it wasn’t out tonight. All I saw were the stars.
All of a sudden a huge wave started to rise up and head quickly up towards the second funnel. I hear an enormous explosion almost like the sound of thunder coming from the ship and the funnel closest to the water falls over with a big splash and sinks into the sea.
The ship starts submerging faster and faster. Many more screams of panic filled the air.
The lights go out on the ship with a flash, almost like lightning, making it extremely dark and scary. As my eyes adjust from the darkness with the light from the stars above, I see the second funnel fall with a larger splash and sink into the sea as well.
Another loud explosion erupted and then the Titanic splits in half with a gigantic splash, bringing massive waves hurdling towards us.
Our lifeboat flew up in the air a bit, but landed safely back on the water. The little girl that was sleeping woke up.
Back at the Titanic, the tail of the ship starts to move upward again after it splits and just sits there in the air. I watched it and was contemplating is this the end? It was bobbling in the water for quite a time, basically about a minute or two, before it quickly sunk into the water, never to be seen again.
I sat there with tears streaming down my face. Anneliese and Momma do as well. I heard many passengers crying from the horror they had just witnessed all those people that had just sunk in with the ship.
All the men, the women, and even all the children (don’t forget the pets), still stuck on that ship as it goes to the bottom of the ocean.
Their final resting place.
Time: 3:55
After being in the dark for so long, I finally fell asleep. Most of the passengers were. I woke up in a panic and look around. Momma was still awake watching over me and Anneliese.
Frederick Barrett was also awake as he watched for a ship to show up. Many of us didn’t believe any ship will show up, and we would die out here just like those on the Titanic, but much slower. I didn’t think of it. I just know somehow that we will be rescued. I had a feeling.
“Momma, I need to go potty,” I cried.
“Oh honey,” Momma whispered. Can’t you hold it?”
“No I can’t,” I cried.
I could hear Frederick chuckling on the other side of the lifeboat.
“I won’t look if she must go,” he said, looking the other way. “And I doubt anyone will, since they are asleep.”
“Go ahead,” Josephine,” Momma told me. “I’ll hide you with a blanket while you potty.”
Worried someone would wake up and see me, I went as fast as I could. I didn’t want anyone to discover I had a penis.
As refreshing as it was, I felt relieved after going and was able to go back to sleep again.
Time: 6:21
I woke up to the sound of a ship horn.
It either was a ship horn, or it was just my dream. I didn’t know. I look around and everyone was awake.
I guess it wasn’t a dream.
As we look around, we are surprised at seeing a ship in the distance. Everyone cheered. We are being rescued. We won’t die out here in the freezing cold in the middle of the Atlantic ocean.
As the men all rowed the lifeboat to the ship in the distance, they all sang. I just sat there listening, and smiling, knowing that we will make it out alive.
“Light in the darkness, sailor, day is at hand!
See, o'er the foaming billows, fair heaven's land,
Drear was the voyage, sailor, now almost o'er;
Safe within the lifeboat, sailor, pull for the shore.
Pull for the shore, sailor, pull for the shore!
Heed not the rolling waves, but bend to the oar;
Safe in the lifeboat, sailor, cling to self no more,
Leave the poor old stranded wreck and pull for the shore.
Trust in the life-boat, sailor, all else will fail;
stronger the surges dash, and fiercer the gale; .
Heed not the stormy winds, though loudly they roar,
Watch the "Bright Morning Star," and pull for the shore.
Pull for the shore, sailor, pull for the shore!
Heed not the rolling waves, but bend to the oar;
Safe in the lifeboat, sailor, cling to self no more,
Leave the poor old stranded wreck and pull for the shore.
Bright gleams the morning, sailor, uplift the eye;
Clouds and darkness disappearing, glory is nigh!
Safe in the lifeboat, sailor, sing evermore,
"Glory, glory, hallelujah!"-Pull for the shore.
Pull for the shore, sailor, pull for the shore!
Heed not the rolling waves, but bend to the oar;
Safe in the lifeboat, sailor, cling to self no more,
Leave the poor old stranded wreck and pull for the shore.”
It was a Friday night, and mom was out for the evening. I was stuck babysitting my nine-year-old sister, Mikayla. I was sitting, playing my new video game on the Nintendo Claudette, and she was sitting next to me, watching a cartoon. Like any little sister, she can sometimes be a little annoying. Right now, she kept bouncing around, hyper as always. I glance down at the coffee table. No wonder she was hyper. There were cookies and empty bottles of orange soda.
“Where did you get those?” I asked her.
“I got them from the kitchen, while you were not looking,” she said, giggling.
I check out what she is watching on the television. As usual, she watched that weird show from Cartoon Network, 'The Adventures of Princess Panty-Boy'. I don't know why kids love that show so much. I watched it once. It's about this boy that always dressed up as a girl, as much as possible. His quest in every episode is to find some panties to wear. It's kind of corny to me, but to a kid, I guess it's entertaining. I am 12 years old, practically a teenager. I don't watch cartoons as much anymore.
The phone rang. It was mom. She said she would call every once in a while to check up on us.
“Yes, we are fine,” I spoke. “We had pizza, and Mikayla had a soda and some cookies.” I knew mom wouldn't be pleased. “Yeah, I know, but she took it without even asking me.” We spoke a little more before she had to get back to whatever she was doing. I sounded loud there, I guess she was at a restaurant.
She has been going out a lot lately. We think she is looking for a new man to be with. Our father left us when Mikayla was only two years old. She doesn’t even know who he is. I remember when he left. He never even gave us an address of where he was going. Sometimes I wondered if he loved us or not. It's been seven years. I suppose not.
Because he was gone, I became the man of the house. I still have to follow what mom says, though. So yes, it sometimes can be disastrous. Especially when she isn't around, and I am stuck at home with my sister instead of going to a friend's house, to play video games on the big screen, instead of playing on my handheld. Right now, I would still be at their house playing Bonestorm. But NO... My mom wanted to go out tonight, so I am stuck babysitting. As for playing Bonestorm, we usually keep it a secret from my mother. Because if she ever knew I played that game, I would be grounded.
“Hey!” I heard Mikayla yell. I glanced up at her, and then at the television. “We interrupt this boring kids' show for a special report. “A man on the screen spoke. “An eight-year-old girl has been reported missing. About ten minutes ago, Sandy Gordon from Prior Lake...”
“Oh no, another kid?” I stare at Mikayla. I could tell she was scared, and I knew she was. I held on to her. “I’m sorry if I frightened you, Mikayla.” She had a pouty look on her face. It was so cute.
“... the fifth child in the last two days.” The man on the television was still speaking.
I got up to go to the kitchen for some apple juice. Mikayla jumped up and followed me. For the past few days, she has never left my side. Good thing this was the summer, otherwise I would be in school, and she wouldn't follow me.
I grabbed two cups from the counter and poured us some drinks. I stare at the Pizza Lucé pizza box on the kitchen table, it still had two slices left, so I took them both and gave one to Mikayla, and headed back to the living room.
When we got back into the room, I dropped my cup of juice because of a loud crash outside our front door. This made us both jump. I ran over to the door to see what happened. It was really dark. I couldn’t see anything. I switched on the porch light. (Well, attempted to.) The lights didn't turn on. I couldn’t see anything. I could hear Mikayla freaking out.
“Stay where you are,” I told her. I kept looking out the window. The next thing I knew, I spotted eyes. Glowing eyes, to be precise. My heart was beating wildly. Should I call the police? I started reaching for the phone. The eyes were getting closer. I was panicking. But then it came into view.
A small kitten. A kitten made all the noise?
I opened the door to let it in. He walked in like he knew where he was. I shut the door and locked it. The next thing I knew, the kitten was in the family room. Mikayla spotted him.
“Where did he come from?” She asked, heading over to pick him up.
“I believe the noise we heard was from him. He was out there all alone.” I said. “Let me go get him something to eat.” I went to the kitchen.
“Bring him some milk,” Mikayla yelled. I could hear her giggling in the family room, from the kitchen.
I went to the fridge and grabbed the milk and set it on the table. Going to the cupboard, I found the smallest saucer I could find and poured the milk into it. I couldn’t hear Mikayla anymore. More likely, she is watching TV. I brought the saucer with me. The thing is, when I came into the room, I didn’t see Mikayla or the kitten. I put the saucer down on the coffee table and started searching for them both.
“Mikayla?!” I yelled. I didn’t hear her. I ran to every room in the house. She wasn’t there. I started panicking. “Mikayla!” I screamed. I ran to my cellphone to call the police. I tried to type in numbers, but the phone was dead. The battery was just full. I threw the phone on the ground. “Mikayla!” I screamed again.
I ran outside to see if she was out there. The wind was blowing extremely quickly, and it began to rain. I called for her but got no answer. I ran back inside and locked the door. She wouldn’t have gone out the kitchen door when I was in there. I would have spotted her.
The lights go out. Everything was pitch black. I couldn't see in front of me, which didn't help because I tripped over the chair in front of me. I was about to check the front door when I heard loud footsteps coming from upstairs. I ran as fast as my legs could go. When I reached the top step, the footsteps stopped. The house was silent.
“Mikayla,” I whisper. I checked her room and mine. She wasn't there. I was about to check Mom's until I heard some scratching coming from downstairs.
“Mikayla, this isn't funny, stop trying to scare me!” I shouted down the staircase. I ran down the stairs. I could still hear the scratching. It was coming from the front door. “Could it be the kitten?” I thought, “How could it be, I brought him in and Mikayla had him before I...”
I ran to the door and looked out the window. I couldn't see anything. I started to open the door, but it was still locked. She couldn't have gone outside this way, with the door still locked. The scratching began even louder. I jumped back from the door. I was freaking out even more. I didn't dare go near the door. I could hear hail hitting the roof of the house now. Upstairs, I could hear footsteps again and a creaking door. I started panicking even more and ran back into the kitchen to the back door. I had to go outside to the neighbors. I opened the door, but before I could even get one foot out the door, someone, or something, hit me in the head from behind and I was out cold.
“Where am I?” I screamed, "What's going on?”
I was running through a maze or some sort of labyrinth. I could hear Mikayla screaming. It was more of an echo. I started running towards the sound, which I kept hitting the walls. This labyrinth was getting in the way. I look up at the sky. It was pink. Which was kind of weird. “Where the heck am I?” I thought. “This doesn't appear to be earth.” I see enormous white birds swoop by me. I keep running, terrified. Those birds were twice my size. I had to find Mikayla soon, but I have no idea which direction I should go.
Mikayla's screaming was everywhere. I stop. I glanced behind me and in front of me. “This is hopeless, I can't find her if her voice is everywhere,” I complain. Just then I heard a noise beside me. I look and see a garden gnome or something. Or maybe it was a dwarf. It had his back facing me, so I couldn't tell what he was. The little creature was sitting next to a tiny pond. Maybe he could help me find my sister?
“Excuse me!” I cried. “Can you help me...”
I must have startled him because the little creature saw me and ran off.
“Wait!” I cried some more. I ran after him, but he was gone. All I noticed were a few butterfly-like creatures flying around a few bushes. I'm guessing they were fairies. I didn't want to startle them. I have a feeling they would be no use to me.
I continue to walk, hoping I could find my sister in time. I have a feeling something is wrong. Mikayla's screaming has stopped. Which makes it even harder to find her. This makes me even more worried. What would mom do when she comes home and sees us both missing?
I guess we both will be in the newspaper and the news on TV. We will if I don't find her. And once I do, where do I go? I have no clue where I am and how I was even able to get home.
I turn a corner of the labyrinth and see a magnificent mansion in the distance. It was so huge, it was towering more like a castle than a mansion. Its stone-clad walls rise three stories to the eaves, with dormers poking through the slate roofs. There was a forest of peaks and chimneys above the roof. It seemed spooky and huge, but yet it was quiet and dark.
“Could this be where Mikayla was brought?” I thought. I walked towards the building. It was a long way up. I figured I could find my way back. Glancing behind me, I stopped. The labyrinth was gone. I couldn't believe it. All I noticed were miles and miles of trees. More like a huge forest.
“How could this be!” I screamed. “This world is changing every second!” I started getting even more frightened. “I know there was that awful maze. I just got out of it!”
I turned around and hit my head on something. I couldn't have hit the building? It was still a few miles away. I looked up and saw the most horrifying sight of my life. So horrifying, I have no way to explain what it looked like. The creature in front of me started spewing gasses from its body. Breathing it in, I ended up fainting.
I woke up in a small room. I had a migraine or something. I looked around the room I was in. It was all pink. In the corner of the room, I spotted something lying there in a little bed. I cautiously walked over to it. My eyes focused. Before I knew it, I was running. “Mikayla!” I screamed. It was my sister. She was sleeping soundly. “Mikayla!” I shook her.
Mikayla slowly opened her eyes and looked up at me.
“Hi big brother…” she said. Then she gazed at me some more. “Cory? Is that you?” Her eyes opened up even more.
“Yes, it’s me,” I barked. My voice didn't sound right. I started coughing. I was kind of confused.
“Then why do you look like a girl?”
“What?” I ran to a mirror in the room, then looked between my legs and screamed. “This can’t be happening. I can’t be a girl!”
Mikayla started giggling.
“It’s not funny! I’m supposed to be a boy!”
Mikayla was still giggling. Just then, the door opened and a robot-like thing came into the room carrying a tray of some sort. It was full of food. Mikayla ran over to it.
“Don’t eat it!” I yelled at her. “It could be poisoned.” Mikayla already had some in her mouth. It was a cupcake. She put her hand out and offered me some.
“Here,” she sang, offering me a doughnut.
I walked over to it and examined it. It sure looked like food, and Mikayla is having a joyful time with it. I couldn’t help it. I was starving. I took it from her hand. I hesitated for a little bit, then took a bite. I was amazed at how well it tasted. I grabbed a cupcake. “This is delicious” I purred. You can say I was enjoying myself. My mouth was full. I took the tray from the robot and it left the room. I ran over to the wall where the door was. I couldn’t find the opening anywhere.
Mikayla sat at the table pouring a cup of milk. I sat next to her. She looked at me and started giggling again.
“Yeah, I know I’m a girl.”
“A lovely one as a matter of fact.”
“Don't rub it in,” I grumbled. I munched on the cupcake. “You have any idea how we got here?” I asked her, after a minute of silence. Mikayla pondered for a little bit.
“I was petting the kitty, you left the room, and the next thing I knew I was here and you were a girl.” She glared at me. “How did you get here?”
“I got knocked out after I opened the back door looking for you. Then I was in some weird labyrinth.” Mikayla had a look of confusion on her face. “It's like an enormous and confusing maze.”
I was just about to drink the cup of milk when an invisible TV on the wall turned on. A woman was on the screen. “I see you have finally made yourselves at home here,” she said. I ran over to the wall TV.
“Why are we here, why did you take us, and most of all, why am I a girl?” I yelled at her.
She did not answer my questions. “Welcome to Saclaurilia, we hope you both are feeling comfortable here and enjoying your breakfast. The time is 08:31,” she spoke.”
“Why did you bring us here?” I asked again.
“I can not answer your questions at this time, but I will answer them shortly.” She told me.
“But?” I cried.
“Later.” the TV shut off. I ran over to the wall. I couldn’t find the place where the TV was. This room is so weird. I glanced back at Mikayla. She had a big grin on her face and a milk mustache. I sat next to her again and grabbed a muffin. When we were done, the robot came back into the room and took the tray. I ran to the door and tried to get out. I couldn’t.
Before I could get my hand there, I was shocked. “Ow! I cried. Next thing I knew I was getting dizzy and had to lay down on the bed.
“Oh no, not again!” I looked around me. Where was I, this time? All I could see were lots of trees. This surely was not the labyrinth, like before. This must have been those trees I noticed afterwards that the labyrinth changed into. But how did I get here when I was in a locked room with an electric doorway that I couldn't get out of? I started walking through the woods. I knew if I kept moving, I could find the house again, or at least get out of the woods into somewhere else. But where exactly?
But then, I jumped. I noticed a little troll or something running past me.
“Oh, dear! I’m late!” He rushed about flustered and worried. “Oh, dear!” He gazed at his watch on his arm. He was such a panic. “Oh my, oh my! Look at the time!”
I started running towards him. I had a feeling he could help me get back to my sister.
“Sir! Wait! Please!” Being such a small little fellow, he was running faster than me. I couldn't catch up to him. “Please stop running so fast. I only want to ask you a question.
“I’ve never been this late before!” In a blink of my eyes, he was gone. I won't find my sister now.
I started crying. I was in a different world away from everyone I knew, including mommy, and now I am away from the only person I knew on this strange planet, my sister. Worst of all, I am a girl. I sat down and sobbed.
I was exhausted. I decided to lay down for a while.
I woke up and was a bit confused. I was back in the little room. “Was that a dream? It sure felt like I was in the story Alice in Wonderland. But with a troll instead of a rabbit”
Mikayla was on the floor playing with a few dolls. I got out of bed and walked over to her. She stared at me.
“Cory?” She looked surprised. “You look different.” She stood up and kept staring at me. “You look so familiar,” she smiled.
I again ran to the mirror and realized what she was talking about. “No way!” I screamed. “I look like you.”
I started crying. I loved being the oldest child. Now I am the same age as Mikayla, and we look like twins. I can't believe they did this to me. I don't want to be this way.
“Cory...” Mikayla started giggling. “Cory doesn't sound right for your name. How about a girl's name.”
"You do know that Cory can be a girl's name as well as a boy's name, don't you?" I laughed.
Mikayla started whimpering and giving me her puppy-dog face.
“Okay," I groan, "You pick a name,” I start to sulk.
Mikayla sat there for a while contemplating. I can guess she got an idea because she jumped up and looked so excited. “Well, since your name was Cory, how about Courtney!” She gleefully said.
“I guess,” I pouted.
“I found out the name of that lady on the screen. Her name is Jane. She is a nice lady.”
“Nice? You call her nice? She took us away from mommy!” I screamed.
Mikayla started crying and ran to the other side of the room. I felt sorry for her and was about to apologize, but then the television turned on and Jane was on the screen.
I was angry now. “Why did you turn me into my sister?” I yelled at her.
Jane's eyes were opened wide. “We didn't change you,” she pointed out. “I'm as surprised as you are.” She glanced at Mikayla across the room. “It might be when you tried to run away, and the electric shock, combined with your sister, when she comforted you...”
When do we get out of here?” I said, now noticing my voice didn’t sound like me. But more like Mikayla.
We are working on a place for you and your sister to go. You are both not mature enough yet and need lots of training before we can start the process of our world.” Jane said while looking at some papers in front of her.
“This is kidnapping!” I yelled, storming towards the television set. I was pissed, not because I was a girl, but because we shouldn't be here.
“I doubt anyone will find you. We are on the planet Saclaurilia, in the Truferus Galaxy, and over 45 million light-years away from planet Terra, or I believe you may know it as Earth.”
“If we are on a different planet, then why are you speaking English?” I calmly asked.
“English is the name Earthlings call it. Its real name is called Soplion. We sent a few of our kind to Terra a little over two thousand years ago, to observe those on Terra. But humans didn't adapt to Soplion for another six hundred years.”
“I'm confused,” I cried.
“Let me finish,” Jane growled. “During the time the Saclaurilians made it to Terra, we noticed that other creatures inhabited the planet from other worlds. The Japanese, on Terra, came from the planet Chichi, which is the furthest planet in our part of the solar system.
We also noticed our nemesis, the Goahiri from the planet Geolara was on Terra as well. We had to find a way to protect that planet from the worst war ever. What you call World War Three.” Jane eyed us both for a second. “The first two world wars were merely a practice war.”
I was surprised. “So does that mean, my ancestors came from another planet?” I asked in shock.
“That is true. We chose you and your sister because you both are one of the last Saclaurilians on Planet Terra. Your biological father was also Saclaurilian.”
“So that makes mommy...”
“Yes, she was a Goahirian.” Jane frowned. “That's why your father left when he found out she was one.”
“Why didn't he take us with then?” I asked.
“He wanted to bring you two with him, but Mikayla was too young at the time. She wouldn't have survived the trip. So while he was gone, he was working on a way to bring you both here.”
“oh,” I sigh. “But that doesn't explain why I am a girl now,” I whined.
“It was the only way to get the Goahirian DNA out of you.”
“What about Mikayla?” I said, pointing at her.
“That's the funny thing,” Jane laughed. “Girls don't get the Goahirian DNA. Only boys get it.”
“Okay, I get it now," I look down at my feet. “So when is this new home you are working on for us going to be finished?” I asked with a twinkle in my eye.
“Well,” Jane typed on a computer in front of her. “Your father is working on the building with a few other workers at the moment. It should be done in a couple of days. As for now, you will be staying in the guest house. You can leave the house if you want, now, but I wouldn't recommend it. You might get lost outside. Since the world constantly changes.”
I glanced at the door. I might not want to go out there yet. I can remember the shocking experience that happened.
“For now, let's turn on a few TV shows for you both to watch.”
“Is 'The Adventures of Princess Panty-Boy' on the list?” Mikayla excitedly asked.
“Yes, it is,” Jane said smiling at Mikayla.
“No, not that show!” I cried. “Anything but that!”
It was too late. The show was already playing, with a bouncing Mikayla sitting and watching the show.
My sister is weird.
It was late at night. A woman named Megan was out on a date with a man.
She was having a few drinks enjoying herself and knew her son and daughter were safe at home, eating pizza, and either playing video games or watching TV. She had no worries at all.
Yes, there have been reports of missing children in the news lately, but she also knew that her kids were smart enough to lock the door and not answer it.
Her neighbor could always check up on them if anything does happen.
Drinking her third glass of Long Island ice tea, Megan smiles at her date.
“So how are your kids doing?” her date asked.
“They're fine. Fred,” Megan chuckled. “I just talked to Cory, my oldest. He said my daughter, Mikayla, just got into the cookies and soda.”
“Typical children,” the man laughed.
A waiter walked over and handed them their food. “Here you go, Madam.” He put down a plate in front of Megan. “Gravadlax With Celeriac & Fennel Salad” He puts down a plate in front of Fred. “And for the gentleman, Grilled lobster with lemon and herb butter, and scalped potatoes.”
“Thank you,” they both say simultaneously.”
“Will there be anything else, I may get you?” he asked.
“Another Long Island?” Megan smiled.
“Don't you think, you've had enough?” Fred asked. “You already had three tonight.”
“I believe the gentleman is right,” the waiter told Megan.
“It's alright,” Megan chuckled. “I'll take an Uber home.”
“You don't have to do that,” Fred pointed out. “I can always give you a lift.”
The waiter left for her drink.
As the couple sat there enjoying their meals, Megan's phone went off.
“Excuse me,” she said and wandered off to answer her phone.
The waiter came back and dropped off another Long Island while she was away. Fred sat there and continued eating.
A few minutes later, Megan stepped back to the table and sat down.
“Who was on the phone?” Fred asked, trying to open the shell of his lobster.
“That was only my neighbor,” Megan said, putting her phone in her purse. “She heard screaming coming from our house, and was worried.” She chuckled a bit. “I told her it was likely Cory playing a trick on Mikayla like he always does.” She takes a bite of her Salmon. “She would have gone over and checked on them, but it's down-pouring outside.”
“Didn't you try calling your kids?” Fred asked.
“I sent them a text,” Megan grinned. “Cory said they were alright.” She took a sip of her Long Island and continued her meal.
It was nice to spend some time with you tonight,” Fred said to Megan as they step up to her front door.
“Would you like to come in for a bit?” Megan asked, “You know since it's raining?” They both stepped into the room. “I'd like to introduce you to my children.” She gazed around. “If they're still awake, that is.”
They both laugh.
“I'll check on them.” Megan steps upstairs. Checking every room. She was screaming. A minute later, she runs down in a panic.
“My kids are gone!” She screams.
“Now hold on” Fred tried to calm her. “Did you check every room? They could be playing a prank on you.”
“I did, they aren't anywhere to be seen.
They both start searching the house. Fred notices the backdoor was open.
“Did you open this door?” He asked.
“No I didn't,” Megan panicked.
The neighbor walked in the front door a second later. She could hear every word.
Megan took out her cellphone and called the police.
“Nine-One-One. Police, Fire or Medical?” the dispatcher says on the other line.
“Hello, my children are nowhere to be seen. I have searched everywhere for them. I believe they were kidnapped.” She screamed to the emergency dispatcher.
“Now calm down, ma'am... Did you say your children were kidnapped?”
“Yes, I got home and found the house empty. The front door was locked, but the back door was wide open! I couldn't find my children anywhere!”
“Ma'am, when was the last time you heard from them?” The dispatcher calmly spoke over the phone.
“I texted to my oldest child... My son about two hours ago, while I was out on a date.”
“Okay, we are sending a police officer over just hold tight.”
Chapter Five
Exploring
It has been a long day. I was cheerful for a change. But still a little confused. I am an alien? A Saclaurilian? How did we even get here?
I sit at the table and munch on a chicken nugget. It wasn't McDonald's. And I believe it wasn't even chicken. I wonder what kind of animal it was? What kind of animals do we have on this planet? I check outside. The sky, as I knew before, was light pink. It's about as pretty as the blue sky on earth. Yes, I know it's actually called Terra. What causes the sky to be pink?
We all know the reason the sky on Terra is blue. Blue light is scattered in all directions by the tiny molecules of air in Terra's atmosphere. Blue is scattered more than other colors because it travels as shorter, smaller waves. But what causes Saclaurilia's sky to be pink? What I like about this planet is that it has three moons. Plus, we can observe the nearest planet in the sky. Which I found out was called Teonus. It's not a habitable planet. If you look at it, many rings were surrounding it. Kind of like Saturn. Someday I will learn about all the planets in this part of the solar system.
I decided to leave the guest house. I couldn't stay in that cooped-up place forever. Mikayla was busy watching her shows. To keep it safe, I stayed near the house. I wasn't going to get lost in this world. As Jane said, this world changes all the time. I should know that, with the labyrinth. I wish I could see this place as a map.
The street I was on was beautiful. It was not made of asphalt or concrete. I look at the buildings. They looked the same as what we have on earth. The grass was green too. I step towards a wall. It was very smooth. It felt like marble. A door opened up from the wall. I gulped in disbelief.
“There was nothing there a minute ago,” I thought.
Then the huge door opened wider and a terrifying creature ran out, full speed, screaming for his life. Right behind him come two wingless creatures riding on strange animals. I wish I knew what they were. They quickly catch up with the fellow running and drag him. He was screaming piteously, back through the gate. Before the gates close, I noticed more trolls, what seems like hundreds of them. I couldn't see much of it, because the next thing I knew, the door slam shut.
I ran over to where the door was, and couldn't find the seam.
This world is becoming more of a fairy tale. All those fiction stories of mythical creatures were real here. It makes me think that the stories that are written were based on real events. Could the author J.R.R. Tolkien be from Saclaurilia instead of where he was said to be born in Africa? Could the Hobbits be on this planet? Could The Lord of The Rings be a true story?
I walk down the street. At first, I noticed it was empty, but now it's filled with people... Humans... Um, Saclaurilians. What do they call themselves? Shops were busy with... Well, let's just call them people. I wasn't sure how they got there, but I am glad they were here.
While I was walking, I noticed that a few people stared at me. I guess because I was a child about nine years old, all alone on the street. But no one stopped to see if I needed any help.
I stepped into a store and saw all kinds of food. I encountered lots of fascinating fruits and veggies. Some that looked familiar and some that did not.
Could the apple, which I saw in the store, come from this planet and was sent to Terra? If that was true, the story of Adam and Eve, eating an apple might not be exactly true. They couldn't have eaten an apple. Unless the Garden of Eden is on this planet. But that would make the Bible all wrong.
The garden must have been on Terra, and the apple could have been a different fruit.
All the fruit was making me hungry. They looked sensational. I took one of the fruit stands and took a bite out of it. It was the most delicious fruit I have ever had in my entire life. I knew I shouldn't have done it. It was stealing since I didn't have any money. I hoped the sales guy doesn't have me arrested. After a few bites of the fruit, I felt awkward. I dropped the fruit and started walking, or should I say staggering out of the building.
Again, the townspeople saw me and knew something was wrong. I didn't notice much of what was going on around me.
I head back to the guest house and lay down on the bed. Mikayla noticed me and continued watching the TV show, not knowing anything was wrong.
I woke up to Jane standing next to me. She was not on the television at all. This made me jump out of my skin.
“Hello there Courtney,” she smiled. “I'm glad you're feeling better.
I noticed I was not in the guest room. I was in a room with white walls.
“Where am I?”
“You are in a medical facility,” Jane informed. “Mr. Adrian, the sales clerk, saw the fruit you ate on the floor. He watched the surveillance and saw you eating it, and quickly called for assistance. This fruit is an adracot. A delicious fruit, that is not meant to be eaten without being cooked.”
“Am I going to die?” I cried
“No, ” Jane laughed. “Mr. Adrian got help right away, but you will have to stay in the hospital for the day for observations.”
Well, this is what I get for leaving the house. I shouldn't have left. I am a big dummy. Now, what can I do? At least when I was at the house, I could wander around and play games and eat what I wanted. Now I can't even do that.
I turn on the TV and start watching a show. I still don't know how they got Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network out here, 45 million light-years away. I watched my favorite show. It was the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Just because I am a girl now, doesn't mean I can't watch my old favorite shows.
While watching my shows, a man walks into my room and stands there for a minute. I looked up and almost jumped out of the bed. I can not believe my eyes.
“Daddy!!” I screamed.
“Working on a house for my kids to live in is backbreaking work. But because they need a place now, I have to do it,” said a man named Mr. Greenfield.
“I remember when my children were born, Cory was my first. I remember the day. When I heard them say 'It's a boy', I jumped for joy because I was a proud father.” He kept working on the building.
“It is always nice when you become a father, and a father again when you have a second,” said George, one of the workers of the house. “I believe it's about the same when you become a mother.”
Mr. Greenfield chuckled, “Yeah, but I wouldn't know that, because I am not a woman.”
They both laughed.
Mr. Greenfield sighed. “I sure wished I could have taken Cory out hiking and fishing when he turned five years old, but I couldn't do that. I had to leave him and Mikayla.”
“Don't worry about it now.” George patted dad on the back. “You have your children now. You can always take your son out fishing and hiking here.”
“Yeah, but Cory isn't my little boy anymore.” Mr. Greenfield sat down on a bench. George sat next to him. “The reason why I left Terra and the kids was because I found out Rita was a Goahirian.”
“Oh, that's got to be tough on you.”
“It's tough on Cory now.” Mr. Greenfield sighed some more.
“George was a bit confused.”
“You see, Cory had half Goahirian DNA. The only way to have it removed was...”
“Oh, I see,” George gazed at James in silence. “Hey, you might have lost your son, but you gained another daughter. Besides, you can still take him... I mean her out to go hiking and fishing. She hasn't died and she is still the same person she was before.”
They both were about to have lunch, when another man came rushing up.
“James,” the man yelled. “We need you in the hospital, it's Courtney.
“Oh dear god!” Mr. Greenfield jumped up and started running to his car.
In the hospital, I was laying in the bed watching a movie called “Space Zombies from Planet Blorp” when someone stepped into the room.
I glace up and saw my own father. I can't believe he's here. I was so delighted. I haven't seen him in over seven years. But I am a bit mad at him for leaving us. I understand now. I hated it that he didn't tell us where he went.
“Daddy!!” I screamed. I tried to climb out of bed. “Ow!”
I held my stomach. I couldn't get out. It hurt. I guess the adracot I ate causes the pain. Daddy walked over to me and gave me a hug.
“Owwy!” I cried.
“You're a big girl, you shouldn't be crying,” dad noted.
“I am a boy!” I whined.
“Sorry to say this to you, but you look like a girl to me.”
“No, I look like Mikayla,” I grunted.
At that same moment, Mikayla ran into the room.
“Courtney, are you...?” She stopped when she saw dad. She didn't know who he was. She stood there and stared up at him. Mikayla has never seen dad before. Well, actually she did, but at two years old at the time. Usually no one would remember who someone looked like at that age. I sure wouldn't. Luckily, I was five years old when he left. I remember what he looked like, even though it has been seven years.
We had a long time talking. I had to explain to Mikayla that he was daddy. It took a lot of convincing before she understood. During the visit, we played a game. It was this new card game I never played before. The game's name is called spit.
I won a few times, and Mikayla won at least twice. It was challenging, but I had fun playing the game.
The game was created by King Calvin of Bermin. He was their third king. Bermin is a small country on Saclaurilia. We live in the country of Grandi, east of Bermin.
I finally got out of the hospital a few days later. I was considered normal again. I was glad for that, because the house daddy was making was finished. Which means we can finally move in, but we didn't have any furniture.
“Daddy, where is all the furniture?” I asked when I stepped into the kitchen.
“They are being delivered as we speak,” he pointed out. I gazed out the window. No one was there.
“How can they deliver it?” I was puzzled. “I don't even notice a moving van.”
The doorbell rang. A man was at the door, which I opened. The man was friendly. He had a smile on his face.
“I got a delivery for Mr. Greenfield,” he chimed.
“Um, come on in,” I said, confused. The man stepped into the living room. “Where is all the furniture that was supposed to come?”
The man chuckled and then threw a small capsule of some sort on the ground. Right away, it opened up, and a couch came out of it. I was shocked.
“How...?”
He threw another capsule and it did the same thing, but this time it was a lamp.
“Where is the TV?” I asked? He took out a remote and pointed it to the wall, which turned on the TV in the wall. I smacked myself in the head. “Why didn't I think of that?” Everywhere I go, the TV is hidden. Even at the hospital. I guess it's an easy way to keep your TV from being stolen. “Wish they had that on Earth.”
“Earth?” the man asked. He talked into a small device on his arm. “Where is Earth?”
The next thing I hear is a lady's computer voice speaking from that device. “Earth...” It spoke. “Earth, also known as Terra, is the third planet from the Star called Sol, the densest planet in the Sol System, the largest of the Sol System's four terrestrial planets. A part of a Galaxy called 'The Milky Way' This planet is inhabited by 'Terran' or 'Earthlings' and many non-terranean, like Goahirian and Saclaurilians. It is the youngest inhabited planet in the universe.”
The man eyed me for a second, and then continued his job. I gaze at him with those capsules. Is he Merlin from Sword in the Stone, or did the whole idea come from the show Dragon Ball? I must have not been paying attention, because the man left and the house was filled with the furniture that wasn't there before.
I ran upstairs. I didn't know which room was mine. It didn't take long. On a door read, 'Courtney's Room'. I went into the room and saw the prettiest room I have ever seen. It was light blue, like the colors of Cinderella's dress. It was a princess style room. I even noticed a small cylinder thing on a desk. What was it. I touched it and a hologram screen flashed in the air. “Wow! It's a computer. I wonder if I can touch the hologram?” I thought. Which I touched it. It was almost like a Apple computer, but without a screen or keyboard attached. Plus, it was larger.
“So cool. Way better than those on earth. My friends would be so jealous of me.” Then it hit me. “My friends? I will never see my friends on earth again. I started crying. There were good things about being on another planet, and there were some nasty things. And losing my friends were some of the bad things.
I lay on my new bed. I figured out how to use my computer to make a hologram around my room. I sat there watching animals from earth roam around. It was a bit depressing. I will never see a real live elephant again, except by pictures and holograms. The elephant was one of my favorite animals. Will I find another animal that will replace it?
I doubt it.
I smelt the air. It was food. I ran downstairs and saw the table was filled with lots of foods. Well, at least the food hasn't changed. I sat at the table with my family again. Except this time, daddy. Mommy will not be with us anymore.
I sighed.
Megan Greenfield was sitting outside her house praying her children would return. There is a nationwide search for her children. The police told her they will do everything they can to help. The other children abducted a few days ago were found alive and well. So she had hope that her children would be found alive. She didn’t know that her kids were not even on the planet.
I can’t believe it’s been a little over a week since we were brought to Saclaurilia. I was told that on Terra, it has only been about a day gone by, since we got here. It seems strange due to the laws of physics, or is that time and physics? Almost like Doctor Who in his TARDIS, except we don’t travel through time.
Well anyways, I have a feeling that mom is having a melt down, looking for us. If the thoughts of mine were correct, I believe the police are in the house talking to her. I turn on my computer (which only takes a second to load) and do a Google search on kidnapping on Terra. Yes, we have Google on Saclaurilia. Google may have been created on Terra, but the founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, have ancestors from Saclaurilia.
Google results show recent news from Terra, including news from everywhere in space. If I wanted to, I could check out the planet Geolara, but I was told not to. The Goahirians could track it and think we were spying on them.
I got the news from Terra.
“AMBER ALERT: Two Children, Mikayla Greenfield Age 9 and Cory Greenfield Age 12, missing. Last heard from around 17:30 last night. If anyone knows anything about these two children, please call the Lake Barkley Police Department at 932-547-0911.
I now know mom is freaking out. I kind of feel sorry for her. She is my mommy for gosh sakes.
I am a little scared. I was told today Mikayla and I started our first day of school. When I was on Planet Terra, I was in middle school at seventh grade and only one year away from high school. Now I am back in elementary school in fourth grade.
The worst thing is, we are supposed to get a shot or something. It is to show who we are as a form of identification. They usually have young kindergarten children get it done, but since we were not born on this planet and just got here, we had to get it done. I was told it was going to be a shot with a needle. I believe it’s going to hurt. Mikayla isn’t scared. She is a brave girl. I for one have always been terrified of needles.
When we walk into the school, daddy brought us to the nurse's office. When I saw the nurse, I started crying.
“I don’t want to have a shot!” I sobbed.
“Do you believe this is a shot?” the nurse said, showing me a little object in her hand. They brought it to a hologram computer, and it was floating in the air. Daddy gave her some information, which I was confused. Then she took the little object and walked over to me.
“Don’t worry,” she calmly said. “This won’t hurt. She set it on my arm and watched it get absorbed into my skin.
“What was that?” I asked, still staring at my arm.
The principal of the school, Mr. Joe Banko came into the room.
“That, if you want to know, is your Electronic Identification Device or EID for short. You scan it when you go to each class, so the teacher knows you are here. If you are ever late, you will be marked tardy. It also is a GPS, in case you get lost. This world can change on you.”
“Yes, I kind of know that. I witnessed it change on me once,” I muttered. “By the way, what would happen if I was tardy?”
“If you are late more than three times, your parents will be called, in this case your father. Most kids don’t like that. If you were in middle school and high school, you would also be sent to after school detention. This is more of a practice for the big school.”
This kind of made me glad that I was in elementary again.
“Oh, I almost forgot, if you ever misbehave or slack off in class, the one in charge will scan your arm. It will let me know you have been a problem child, which you will have me to talk to.”
Mikayla had the object absorbed into her arm as well. We were registered as twin sisters. That made me a little upset. Yes, I know, I look like her. I even talk like her. The terrible thing is, I am starting to act like her.
Class had already started when Mikayla and I walked into the classroom. We scanned in, which made an announcement that we were tardy. Mr. Banco did an override on both of us. That made me glad. I wanted to have a good attendance. Mr. Banco introduced us.
“This is Mikayla and Courtney Greenfield, from Planet Terra,” he began.
The whole class gasped. I noticed that some children in the class didn’t look like us. To everyone on Terra, we would consider them mythical creatures.
“They were sent here as a protection from the Goahirians.”
Again, more gasps.
“Please treat them like everyone else from this planet, because this is their planet from now on.” He glanced at Mikayla and me, and then back at the class. “And if you don’t, you know what will happen?” He left the room.
Our teacher introduced herself, and then we found some seats in the back, right next to this creature that resembled a Hobbit. Thank you J.R.R. Tolkien. Now I can’t say it is one, because if I did, I might get in trouble for name calling. I want a perfect record. I will just have to ask him what kind of species he is later.
Today in class, we learned a little about outer space. It was fascinating. Mostly everyone knew the answers to the planets in our part of the system. I found out we had five planets. We also had two stars. I was glad we had two. But anyways, in this order of our largest star, we had Drora, a planet similar to Jupiter, but much smaller. Our planet, Saclaurilia, Teonus, the planet that looks like Saturn, Cucreon, which I think looks like an ginormous watermelon, and ChiChi, the city planet, I was told the Japanese came from. The smallest star was located a little ways from ChiChi. Which I believe they used, since they are farthest away from our star.
I knew I would have learned the names of all the planets some day, but I never knew it was going to be today. The day we started school. I guess they wanted us to know it, since we were new to this part of the galaxy.
After school, Mikayla and I spent playing outside. The school didn’t hand out homework. I was glad they didn’t. I wasn’t ready for it yet.
“How was your first day at school?” dad said when he came home from work.
“It was fine,” I said. “We learned the five planets,”
“Courtney almost got scanned,” Mikayla giggled.
I glanced at her in shock and anger. “Why did you tell.” I whined.
“Did you?” dad looked at me.
“It was an accident,” I pleaded. “I was talking about the Goahirians and where their planet was located. I didn’t know it was against the rules to speak about them in school.”
Dad chuckled. Then kissed me and Mikayla on the foreheads and stepped into the kitchen. We didn’t speak about it for the rest of the night. Instead, we ate dinner and watched a movie. This is something I miss doing, when it was just me, mommy and Mikayla. Because mommy never had time for us. She was too busy with whatever she was doing. But still, I miss her. I miss her smile. I miss her hugs.
Oh, why do I keep thinking about her?
Usually I am the smart one in school, but in this school, I am not. I don’t know anything about this planet or galaxy. It was like I was starting over again.
I ran into the girls room stall, sat on the toilet and cried. I felt weird going into the girls room, since I was originally a boy, but now that I am a girl, the boys' room was off limits.
I almost went into the boys room one time, but I learned my lesson and was shocked by the force field door protecting it.
The EID that was put inside me the other day knows I am female and stops me and other girls from entering into the wrong room.
I have a feeling its the same for boys as well.
I entered the girls room and ran to the stall. I started crying.
Brianna, one of the girls in my class, heard me crying out in the hall and came into the room. She had eight arms that looked similar to an octopus on Terra. I bet she could get a lot done at once. I never mentioned it to her, but I bet she would agree.
“Mikayla?” She spoke through the doorway, stepping in.
“It’s Courtney,” I sobbed.
“Oh, sorry. I thought you were Mikayla,” she apologized.
“It’s okay, I get that a lot now days.” I move out of the stall. You could still see tears in my eyes.”
“Why are you crying? Did someone hurt you?” She put one of her tentacles around my shoulder.
“No,” I wiped my tears. “When I was on Terra... I was one of the smartest students in my class. Now that I came to Saclaurilia, I am not as smart. In fact, I am dumber.”
“Don’t worry, you will catch up soon.” Brianna spoke softly and calmly. Which helped me out a bit, but I still felt unhappy.
We stepped out of the girls' room and headed to class. It looked like they were working on art. We both scanned our arms, which gave us both tardies. That made me worried. I knew two more tardies meant my dad would be called.
“Sorry for being late,” Brianna and I apologized.
“Where were you two?” Our teacher asked while we sat down at the art table.
“Potty break,” I answered, “And sorry again for not telling where we were going.”
Our teacher scanned us with a device which told her that we were telling the truth and because we were honest, she signed us in as a bathroom break, and we didn’t get a tardy after all. That was a relief for me. I want a perfect record. As for Brianna, she was glad she didn’t get the tardy. She already had two.
Today in art class, we were told to paint something special. It can be our imagination, and it could be something that you have enjoyed in our lives. Since I was a good painter, I decided to draw an elephant. I painted the long trunk and the ears perfectly. By the time I was done, I felt like adding a few trees and even a waterhole where the elephant could drink from. I even added a lion on the other side of the waterhole drinking from it, just for fun.
The teacher came over to me and stopped to gaze at the painting.
“Very nice Courtney,” she sang. “What are you drawing?”
I stopped painting and looked at it. Then up at my teacher. “It’s an elephant and a lion in the meadow. Don’t we have them here on this planet?”
“They seem familiar, but I have never seen them on this planet,” she answered and continued moving around the room. If they are not on this planet. Where could they be?
After class, we had recess. We went outside and played on the jungle-gym. I looked up at the sky.
“Why is the sky pink?” I asked Brianna.”
“I don’t know,” she said, gazing up the sky as well. “Isn’t the sky pink on Terra?”
“The sky on Terra is pink only during sunset or sunrise.” I explained. Otherwise, it’s always blue during the day and black at night?”
“Sunrise? Sunset? Night?” Brianna looked confused. “What are those words?”
I forgot. This planet doesn’t have a sunrise or sunset, and their night time is a brief minute or two. But the sun doesn’t disappear. It reappears an hour later. And with the other sun in the sky, it keeps it from getting dark.
“Well, you know when the sun...”
“What’s a sun?” she cocked her head to the side.
“The huge glowing thing in the sky?”
“Which one? Dol or Ego?” she smiled, still looking at me.
Now I was confused. I decided to show her after school at my house. We continued playing. I showed Brianna how to play Hopscotch. They didn’t use chalk on this planet, which was weird. I guess it’s only used on Terra. I ended up using a rock to make the squares. Mikayla noticed what I was drawing and joined in, which basically attracting other kids. Eventually, we drew a crowd, and everyone wanted to play the game. I guess I just introduced the game of Hopscotch to planet Saclaurilia. I wonder what other games I should introduce to them.
Before I could show them another game, the bell rang and it was time to go back inside for more class.
After school, Brianna and I were about to go to my house, but her mother said she had to go shopping and take a rain check.
When I got home, I saw dad sitting at the table looking through an old photo album. It was weird that we still made photos, since everything is on tablets and computers, but sometimes photos have better memories than the digital type.
I sat down next to dad and realized he was looking at photos of mom. Why was he looking at her? Did he still love her?
“Do you miss mommy?” I asked?
“Oh Courtney, I didn’t hear you come in,” he smiled and gave me a kiss on the forehead. If I were a boy, I normally would have thought that was gross, but for some reason as a girl, I didn’t mind.
“As I was saying, do you miss mommy?”
“Oh honey, I have always missed her. We grew up together in school. I have known her all my life, ever since Kindergarten. She has never hurt a fly. The only reason why I left her was because the Saclaurilian government told me. If there was a way to bring her here, I would.”
We sat there for a while. Which was a hard thing to do. “I wish I could talk to her,” I said after a while of silence.
“I know you do,” Dad agreed. “I know you do.”
Mikayla marched through the door. She was in a gleeful mood.
“Guess, what?” She happily cried. “Never mind the guessing, I was invited to a sleepover on Friday at my friend Lily’s house. She even invited you and Brianna over if you want to go as well.”
“Really?” I jumped out of the chair and hugged Mikayla. “Of course I want to go. I have never had a sleepover before. This will be my first time.”
“It will be my first time too,” she said, “If only...” She looks over at dad.
Dad chuckled. “Of course you two can go.” We both cheered and jumped up and down.
-Meanwhile, at the Saclaurilian Government Building-
“I’m so glad we got Courtney and Mikayla off of Terra when we could.” Jane said, watching a monitor with live video feed of Terra. It didn’t look pretty. “It’s sad to see this happening. Such a young planet, and it’s going to end in a matter of days, if it keeps up.”
“Should we warn those who lived on Terra about the news?” asked Brock Jane’s assistant, who was also watching the monitor.
“No, they will find out soon enough.” Jane shuts down the monitor. “It will be on the news in a few days. Besides, Courtney and Mikayla’s mother is still on the planet. I don’t want the children to be unhappy.”
“Why don’t we get her off the planet then?”
Jane looked at Brock. I have thought of bringing her to this planet many times. But because she is Goahirian...”
“It doesn’t matter if she is Goahirian, she is the mother of those children.”
“I will think about it, but I doubt she will be delighted to see her husband after all these years.”
“And her son, who became her daughter.” Brock chuckled. “I have one question that’s been on my mind. Why are you so obsessed with those children anyways?”
With a smile, she sat down in a chair. “Because they're my grandchildren.”
Megan Greenfield was getting ready for bed. She has been up all day waiting for the phone call about her missing children. The unfortunate thing is she won’t get a phone call. Because the world was in a war, the police were not going to search for two young children. She knew there was no way she would ever find her kids again.
She hopped into bed and lay there praying they would return. Praying that she will see them again. Just then, a loud noise came from downstairs. It sounded like it was coming from the basement.
Grabbing a bat, she stepped down the stairs slowly. The noise kept getting louder every time she stepped closer to the door of the basement. She got to the door, when it stopped. Opening the basement door, she saw nothing. This was weird to her. She switched on the light of the room and started walking down the steps. When she got to the bottom, she saw an empty room. Empty except for the washer, dryer, and dirty clothes sitting, waiting to get washed.
Just then, she heard scratching coming from upstairs. She trudged up the steps back into the kitchen that leads to the basement. “The intruder in the basement must have gotten out. But how” She thought. While shutting the door, she locks it. Making sure nothing got in or out of the room, she started searching the house, which oddly the scratching sound stopped.
It didn’t take long for the noise to start up again, but this time it sounded like it was coming from her bedroom.
She ran to the kitchen and started dialing for the police. But there was no dial tone. Nothing worked. The lights flickered and shut off. She glanced outside. The wind was blowing very fast, and it looked like it was about to rain. She was about to look away from the window, when something hit her in the head. Everything went black.
“What a game, wasn’t it?” I said to Mikayla, while stepping into the bus, heading home.
“It wasn’t that bad,” Mikayla answered. It would have been better, if the ball hadn't kept flying away from me, we would have been done faster. I hate it that I am the only one on my team to chase a stupid hovering ball.
I took my seat. Mikayla sat next to me. “That’s as bad as me trying to block the enormous ball from going into one of three rings, and not getting tackled by one other ball that comes out of nowhere.
I normally don’t care for sports, but today was different. It’s nothing like the ball games we had on Terra. This was Graviball. Dad told us we needed some kind of sport. I decided to join that game, because Mikayla did as well.
Everyone was so happy for the game, that we barely noticed the rain starting to fall. We were too busy laughing and talking to notice when the bus’s engine began to sputter. Suddenly, the bus slipped on the road and stopped. The driver tried to start it again, but it was no good. He went out in the rain and looked at the engine, but nothing he did seemed to help the situation. "Sorry everyone," he said. "I suppose I'll run down the road and see if I can find any help. Do not leave the bus. I'll be back in 15 minutes."
As the driver left, we expected help would be on its way soon. But then an hour passed, and no help came. The rain outside stopped, but the night air in the bus became freezing cold.
“Now what do we do?” I asked.
Mikayla glanced out the window, hoping to see the driver jogging back down the road. “Hey guys," she yelled. "I think I see a light out there. There, though the trees.” She pointed.
The others saw it too.
“We should check it out," I said.
The team piled out of the bus and headed toward the light. Many of them fell on the under bush, and to make matters worse, the rain started to come down again. After about fifteen minutes, we were standing in a clearing. Only a few yards away was a cabin. It appeared warm and inviting.
Mikayla knocked on the door. "Hello, is anyone home?"
A woman answered the door and invited us in.
"We were going home from a game, and the bus broke down.” I cried. “We're cold and hungry, and wondered if we could stay here until help comes."
"Oh, of course," the woman said. "Be my guest. You kids look half drenched. Stand near the fire and warm up.”
We all stepped in front of the roaring fire. It felt pleasant and warm.
"I’ll see if I can get something for you to eat." as she went off into the other room. I followed her. I believe she might need some help. There are many players. Plus, I can also phone for help.
The woman was pleasant. When I walked into the room, we talked.
“It looks to me, by your uniforms, that you are all Graviball players. Am I right?”
“Yes, how’d you know?” I giggled smiling.
“I used to be one myself.” She started making sandwiches and even put some soup on the stove.
“Is it okay if I use your phone to call for some help?” I asked.
“Be my guest, but you will have to use the wall phone behind you. I don’t have a cell phone like most people have.”
I giggle. “I am too young for a cell phone. You have to be at least thirteen to have one.”
“Oh, I see, is that the rules these days?” she continued making the sandwiches while I dialed for some help.
The phone wasn’t working. “The phone is dead,” I cried.
“That’s okay, it usually goes out during a storm. Most likely, the Internet is out. I sat at the counter watching her make the sandwiches.
The food was ready after a few minutes of cooking the soup. It was something similar to chicken noodle soup. But it was not chicken. I wonder what it was. I remember my mommy making me homemade chicken noodle soup when I was sick. I loved it. I wish mommy was here. She always made excellent food.
I believe she made this soup for all of us, because she didn’t want us to catch a cold. She must be a mother herself. I help her with the sandwiches by carrying it to the table in the next room. She brought the soup.
All the kids stepped into the room and sat at the table. They were all hungry and ate their meals in silence, watching the storm outside. It looked really strong. The wind was also very fast.
“Where Mikayla and I originally came from, we had big storms like this. Sometimes we had hurricanes and tornadoes.”
“What are hurricanes and tornadoes?” the woman asked.
“They are both deadly storms.” I brought up images from my wrist computer, which made a hologram in 3D. “A hurricane is a huge wind storm that comes from the ocean. The wind can go from 119 kilometers per hour to over 251 kilometers per hour. As for a tornado,” I brought up an image of a tornado. “It is a huge wind storm shaped like a funnel. It can reach wind speeds of 64 kilometers per hour to over 482 kilometers per hour. A tornado destroyed my neighbor's house, when she was a little girl.”
All the children, including the woman, were amazed that I knew so much. No wonder I was the smartest in my class when I lived on Terra. Maybe someday I will be as smart on Saclaurilia as well.
“Where am I?” Megan Greenfield wandered around a strange place. “'Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore.” She said talking to an imaginary dog, walking next to her. Looking up in the sky, she saw two suns and a planet that looked like Saturn. “I’m convinced we're not in Kansas anymore.”
Strolling around on a dirt path, she saw a wall, which looked like it was made of vines of some sort. On the wall, there was a door. “There has to be a village or something on the other side.” She pondered and started running towards the door. As she reached to open it, she noticed an old key on the ground and picked it up to examine it. “That’s strange? Why is this here? Not thinking straight, she tries to open the door, which was locked. “Hmm... maybe this key is meant for the door.”
She looks around to see if anyone is nearby, imagining someone dropped the key. Nobody was around, so she inserts the key in the keyhole and slowly pushes it open, slipping inside.
Megan gazes about in reverence and wonder. To her surprise, what was on the other side of the door was a gorgeous garden. It appeared well taken care of. She noticed lots of things. Flowers that didn’t look like flowers she had ever seen before, and some she had in her backyard garden. There were creatures that looked like butterflies, flying all around. Unfamiliar looking birds and other strange looking animals were also in that garden. A beautiful pond sat in the distance. She went up to it in amazement. It was very clear. You could see the bottom of the pond. Lots of little fish were swimming around.
“I’ve never seen a pond so clear before. I wonder if I can drink from it?” She was about to dip her hands in the water, when she saw this troll. He was peeing in the pond. Grossing her out, she didn’t even try to drink.
“Excuse me, sir!”
The troll eyed Megan.
“Can’t a guy have some privacy around here?” he growled and started walking the other direction. “First the little girl, now this crazy woman. Sheesh!” he mumbled.
Megan sat down near the pond and watched the troll march away. It was no use to even ask him for directions. He didn’t seem friendly. She was also confused why she even spotted a troll. “Where in the world am I, Fantasia?” She lies back and glances up in the pink sky, smiling as a golden beam of sunlight warms her face. “Where ever this place is, it’s better than at home.”
At the house of the old woman, we found out her name was Wendy. Me, my sister and the class have been here for a few hours now. I stare out the window. The rain was really coming down. It was like cat and dogs... That made no sense. I meant to say it was raining cats and dogs. I watched the lightning. It was beautiful. I am still surprised they don’t get tornadoes on Saclaurilia. But I wonder what natural disasters this planet has. I sat on the couch glancing at my teammates and sighed. I guess I will find out someday.
With the storm messing with the Internet, I can’t even get a signal to call for help. I also wondered what happened to our bus driver. He told us to wait, but after he didn’t come back, what should we have done? Sit in the bus and twiddle our thumbs?
I watch everyone sitting around the fire. Mikayla was the only one asleep. Which made me sleepy. I yawned. Wendy noticed me yawning and got up off her chair.
“Do you want a blanket?” She asked. “You look tired.”
I look at my sister. “I guess. Can you get one for my sister as well?”
She glanced at Mikayla and smiled. “You two are the first twin girls I have seen in years.” If she only knew I was originally a boy and was originally twelve years old. She grabs us a blanket, and I curl up next to Mikayla. A few seconds later, I fell asleep.
When I woke up, I was still on the floor. I could smell food in the air. Not sure what kind of food it was, since this world is foreign to me. I wandered into the kitchen. My whole team was up and eating. Mikayla was sitting at the table munching on what looked like flapjacks. I sat at the table and grabbed a plate.
Wendy saw me and smiled. Walking over, she had a plate of something in her hands. “Do you want some eggs and Fraggle strips?”
“Fraggle strips?” I was confused, “What are Fraggle strips?” I got my answer when she put it on my plate. “It looks like bacon?”
“What’s a bacon?” Joe, one of my teammates asked, while chowing down on a Fraggle. Mikayla giggled and took a bite of egg.
“Bacon is ahh, never mind, you'll never understand, but it looks like this Fraggle strip," I explained.
I sit down and munch on my breakfast, and stare outside and notice the sky was becoming clear. I wonder if the Internet is working again, so I can use the phone to call for help. I didn’t want to get off the chair to find out. I enjoyed my breakfast.
After breakfast, the rain had stopped. I was able to use the phone to call my daddy. He was concerned about us. He had been out all night searching. A few others were as well. I mentioned that we were at this farm. Wendy took over the phone.
When she was talking, Mikayla and I went outside to check out the livestock. We observed many animals that were a bit strange. The only animals we recognized were pigs. Just like the Piggies on Terra.
Wendy came out of the house and walked over to us.
“What are those?” I asked, looking at a bird on a nest.
“Those are called jorkifin [york-ifin]. They produced the eggs we had today for breakfast. As for the Fraggles over there,” she pointed to the pigs.
Wait, pigs are called Fraggles on this planet?
“What about those?” I pointed to another animal that looked like a blob.
“That is a stipolod. They make milk for us. Also, when they poop, that is the mixture that is made to make what your sister calls flapjacks.”
I almost puked right there. “You mean I just ate...”
“Don’t think of it that way. We don’t like wasting things on this planet, like those on Terra do.” Besides, stipolod poop is beneficial. It may appear a little runny when it comes out, but it makes an excellent meal, when you cook it, and add a little berries or syrup on it.”
About that moment, I heard a vehicle pull up. It was a tow truck. Behind it was the bus we were on last night. Another bus was driving behind that.
“Well, it looks like your ride is here,” Wendy said. She helped all the kids with their things, and we headed toward the bus. I looked up at her and ran over to give her a hug. So did Mikayla. “I’m going to miss you.” I cried.
“Don’t worry,” Wendy chuckled. “You can always come and visit. You were only five miles away from town.”
“Why didn’t you tell us that?” I sniffed. We could have gone home.
“I didn’t want you to catch a cold in the rain. Now hurry up and get home. Your dad has a surprise for you and your sister.”
A surprise? What kind of surprise? Now I am excited and want to get home as quickly as possible. Mikayla and I jump on the bus and find a seat. What a night. First we win the Graviball game, then we get stuck in the rain, meet a really nice lady all in one night. Now I can’t wait to get home.
The bus pulls up to the school. Everyone gets out of the bus and heads to their parents' vehicle. Mikayla and I see daddy waiting for us. We run up and hug him.
“What’s the surprise Mikayla and I ask simultaneously.” He points and waves at the car. Someone comes out of it. It didn’t take long for both of us to notice who it was.
“Mommy! We both screamed. We ran over to her, giving her a big hug.
My mom wasn’t surprised that I had changed to being a girl. After all the information between Goahirians and Saclaurilians. She was confused for a while, but it took a lot of convincing that she was on a different planet. She was still confused why I looked like Mikayla. No one knew the reason. Not even Jane.
But, now that we are a family again, we plan on having a barbecue. On Terra, we would go to a restaurant, which is usually fast-food. Saclaurilia doesn’t have any restaurants like McDonald’s, Burger King or The Banana Peel (The name Subway chose when they merged with Banana Republic). I believe it’s because we eat healthier here. In fact, there are no restaurants. If we eat out, it usually means a barbecue or at a friend's house.
My dad invited a few neighbors over. I invited the whole Graviball team, and even Brianna. I guess Mikayla invited a friend. I’m not sure who. I usually don’t like seeing animals on the barbecue, but today I was okay with it, because those Fraggles smell excellent roasting over an open fire.
Another good thing about this barbecue is its beginning to get cold out, and with a fire going, it helps us keep warm. I even suggested making S'mores. The upsetting thing was it wasn’t that easy explaining S'mores, when there aren't marshmallows on this planet.
I keep forgetting that this is a healthy planet. Marshmallows are considered junk food. As for chocolate, I gave up explaining that after the marshmallow incident.
I watched the pig... I mean Fraggle cook. None of my friends were here yet. What else could I do? I wasn’t going to be a couch potato and watch TV all day. I heard the Fraggles came from Wendy’s farm. That's when I thought of it. Did anyone invite her? I ran to the phone. I was about to call her, but stopped. What’s her phone number? In fact, what’s her last name? I can’t call her if I don’t have her last name. I can’t look it up. Bummed out, I stepped back outside and continued watching the food cook.
The first guest arrived. It was one of our neighbors. They introduced themselves as the Flandersons. They seem pleasant. I kept watching the Fraggles, but not for long. On the corner of my eye, I saw someone that made my heart pound.
The Flandersons have a child. Not just any child, a boy. I couldn’t keep my eyes off him. This was weird for me. I never had a crush on a boy before, only girls. Especially since I was originally a boy. He had gorgeous semi-short, light blonde hair, and his eyes were like light blue. He looked to be about my age.
He noticed me staring and came over to me. When he saw me staring, I looked away. I guess I am a bit shy. I have never been shy before.
“Hi,” he chirped. I looked at him again and then started blushing. I turned away. “Don’t be shy. My name is Cory. I just moved here.” I can’t believe it. That was my name. I looked at him, with my mouth open. “Did I say something wrong?” He looked worried.
I looked into his eyes again. He has the most gorgeous eyes I have ever seen.
“My names...” I began. “...Courtney. I was too shy. Why am I acting this way? It was embarrassing me. Mikayla came skipping along. She spotted me with Cory and skipped over.
“Hello,” she spoke quickly. “My names Mikayla. I see you are with my sister, Courtney. I could say she’s my twin sister. But she never was my twin sister before.... Long story. It all started when we lived on the planet Terra. By the way, I never saw you before at school. Are you new? What’s your name?”
“My names Cory,” he answered with a smile. “Nice to meet you.”
“Oh my God! That was Courtney’s name before she changed into a girl.”
“Mikayla!” I grumbled.
“You were a boy?” Cory asked, looking at me again.
“Um...” I started to cry.
"Did you go through surgery to get... your penis removed?"
“No, I didn’t," I cried, "I was forced to change my gender.” I had tears in my eyes now.
“Forced? How could you be forced?” He let go and looked into my crying eyes.
I was half Saclaurilians, half Goahirian. The only way to remove the Goahirian gene was to physically change into a girl.”
“I see." He looked down at my body. "So you have everything a girl has? That is cool." He looked back up at me eyes. "But hey, you turned into a beautiful young lady.”
I looked at my sister. She was watching us. Playing with a flower as well. “Yeah, well my looks came from my sister, when she touched me. I got the genes from her. So I guess, I am the exact copy of her in a way.” Mikayla smiled when I talked about her. I can tell she loved the attention.
I was about to continue talking, but just then, my friend Brianna came over with her parents. I had to go see her.
"I... gotta go," I stuttered. I ran off to meet Brianna. Mikayla stayed and chatted with Cory.
“So this is your house?” Brianna said gazing at it.
“Yeah, it was built two weeks ago,” I stated. I can’t believe it's only been about two weeks since we left Terra. Mom only got here yesterday. It’s a bit confusing. I wonder what the date is on Terra? As much as I know, only a few days have passed there. That still confused me. I still think we are in a different dimension or something. And I still think The Doctor from Doctor Who will show up sometime with a blue box. If it does show up, I am out of here.
The rest of the guests showed up within the hour. Brianna, Cory and I played together. I was still too shy with Cory. I would keep stuttering when I talked to him. Brianna said I had a crush. I knew I did, but I didn’t want to believe it.
Mikayla was with the Graviball team I invited. I would have played with them, but was not in the mood. I did feel sorry that I didn’t want to play. They didn’t mind. In fact, they anticipated Mikayla invited them. We do sound the same over the phone, and I didn’t mention my name when I called.
To my surprise. Wendy came to the barbecue. That made me happy. I guess she was invited when dad bought the Fraggles from her. Why didn’t I think of that?
Talking about the Fraggles, they were finished and we were all sitting down to eat. Cory Sat down next to me. That made me blush some more. I have to stop blushing when I see him. It’s a dead give away that I like him.
There were many people here. Or whatever they call themselves. I wondered if this was going to be the same as Thanksgiving on Terra? Wait, there is no Thanksgiving on this planet? Unless this is Thanksgiving, and I didn’t know it.
I had to find out. “Dad?”
“Yes, sweetie?” He answered.
“When we were on Earth... Err... I mean Terra, we had Thanksgiving. Is this like Thanksgiving on Saclaurilia?”
“In a way, it is?” He announced. “But we don’t call it Thanksgiving here. It’s The Great Harvest Festival. Every city has one. We were the lucky ones to have it at our house this year.
“Why is it so early?” I asked. “Isn’t it supposed to be in November?”
“Only in the United States. In Canada, it’s in October, and other harvests can be different, wherever they are. On this planet, the harvest comes in Onrich. That is this month on Saclaurilia.”
I keep forgetting, our months are different than on Terra.
Juna, Phrane, Milnisium, Apoach, Milneen, Jolnick, Johop, Alfrane, Solice, Onrich, Nuvent and Daphrane.
“Oh,” I acknowledged. “Thanks dad.” I sat down at the table next to my food, and... of course... Cory. I sighed. He is so dreamy. I slap myself. Stop thinking about him, in that way. But he’s so cute.
“Kiss him already!” Brianna blurted.
“I...”Cory stared at me. I gazed at him. I blushed. Without even giving in, he gave me a kiss.
I accepted it.
As I type on the computer in the computer lab of my school, I notice the news Google was showing. The main headline about a War on Earth. I didn't even know that war was going on. I read that Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and even China were evading countries. The United States, Japan and Korea, including England and Scotland, were in the battle to keep peace in the world. Israel, which borders Iraq and Saudi Arabia, is the country that was hit the worst.
"So World War Three has started on Earth," I thought. I was glad I was on Saclaurilia. It would be frightening to be on Earth right now because of the war, and I would have been in the war once I turned 18 if the world was still around.
I wonder about my old friends. They must be worried or something. I also wonder if they are talking about me. I was in the news with my sister when we were taken here.
"Why didn't you tell me Earth was at war?" I asked mom when we were sitting for dinner.
"I didn't think it was important," Megan said as she brought in the salad from the kitchen. "We're not on Earth anymore."
"Terra," Dad corrected us.
I keep forgetting that Terra is the correct name for what we called Earth. Because Earth is the ground, not the planet.
I pour a cup of milk and sit down at the table with Mikayla. I always wonder why the milk is blue and not white. It reminded me of the milk from the movie Star Wars. But our milk is from the Stipolod, and not a Bantha, like Luke had to drink from.
I put down some milk to the cat Mikayla had before we left Terra. We hadn't seen her for a few weeks after we got her. The reason was because she was still in our house. Mom had found her, and she ended up coming with mom when she was brought here.
I was worried she would have been the only cat on this planet, until we found her sleeping in the closet after she gave birth to kittens. Since cats have never been on this planet, they would be the only cat species around.
So instead of spaying and neutering the cats, we have decided to let them reproduce so they don't suddenly go extinct.
Who knows if the animals on Terra will still be alive or end up being the last of their species as well.
After dinner, Mikayla and I were sitting on the couch watching a movie, as Mom and Dad sat in another room drinking some wine made from Kitawa. Kitawa is a local plant from Saclaurilia that is comparable to the grape. It's a bit more tarty than a grape, but it still tasted good. I just wonder what wine tasted like. I never even tried wine made from grapes.
Berries on this planet are very delicious and unusual. Not all of them are made here. Some came from our neighboring planets, and a few from Terra as well.
The movie we watched was about a puppet that hates everyone. He was selfish and never shared. When he was sent to a boarding school, he would cause mischief.
"Courtney!" Mom called from the other room. "You have a phone call."
I got up off the couch to get the phone. "Hi Brianna," I say. I listen to what she was talking about. "Yes, I'd love to go." I glanced over at my parents. "Can I play laser tag with Brianna?" I asked them hoping they would say yes.
"Well," Mom glanced over at Dad and then back at me. "You are only nine years old."
"Mom, I'm was almost thirteen, and even if I am nine now, Brianna's father said he would be with us the whole time."
"Well..." she hesitated.
Dad knew I wouldn't get into much trouble. "Just let her go."
"Okay, you can go," I cheered. Mikayla wanted to go to, which was okay. The more people on our team, the better the laser tag is.
I peeked over the corner, and shot a metal rod sitting in the middle of the sky. It bounced around everywhere, dodging it when it came right at me, until it shot another girl who wasn't paying attention. She screamed, which made me giggle, moving on to find more cover.
Within the hour, I dodged beam after beam, flying over my head, and missing them, but the lasers ended up getting someone else on my team. I was getting exhausted. I shot a boy and rolled over into cover.
I gazed at the scoreboard to see how many were remaining. Blue: 2 Red: 8. We were getting hammered!" I cry.
Mikayla was out of the game ten minutes ago. I watched her get hit. She tried her best and was now watching as I played my part. Brianna was the only other player still existing on my team.
"Looks like we'll need a miracle to win this game..." I sighed as I got up. Sprinting around, I heard a laser blast. I looked behind me, and dodged red beams, left and right, jumping up and down and ducking.
I heard a slight buzz and looked up to see what it was. I saw a bright red light coming closer.
I ducked as several light beams whizzed past my head. I returned fire and managed to shoot one person, who lazily walked off the grounds. I ran to cover with Brianna, who was so scared she almost shot me!
I kept running, and running, looking for cover, until I couldn't take it anymore. I waited for them to come, and when they came, I quickly fired at them. As they did the same, I jumped, ducked and dodged, as they simply moved their head while shooting. I was panting intensely.
I shot at a metal rod, and heard what sounded like a girl's scream run away from me. I had delayed them for now, but wished I hit her. I ran to the end of the laser tag room, and sat down and stared at the game time. One minute left.
I took a breather. But after ten seconds, three kids were nearing me. I knew I wasn't going to win this game, so I figured I would just have to hide from them instead.
They neared closer, and closer. My heart started beating faster, and faster. I fire ten shots at a nearby metal rod, and three shots straight towards them. They were dodging, but they were still near me. Ten red beams flew towards me in every direction. I tried to shoot, but was too afraid to make a terrible mistake. I dodged beams, but was exhausted, and fell down panting.
"She's tired." A boy said, running at me.
"I guess this is it." I cried.
BUZZ
He almost pulled the trigger. So glad for the buzzer.
"Game over. Blue Team: 1, Red Team: 7. Red team is the winner. Please head to the Lazer Gun room to unpack your gear. Have a nice evening." The referee announced.
The Red team member that was about to shoot me moaned as he went to the door. I had survived, but didn't win the game. I still had fun.
After the game, we ended up at a local ice cream shop and got a cone for all of us.
Even though this planet is healthy, we still get to treat ourselves once in a while. I ended up getting a faylag flavored ice cream cone. Faylag is a berry that came from planet ChiChi. It tasted okay to me. I would have preferred strawberry or chocolate, but they don't have those here.
Brianna and Mikayla had a Kitawa flavored cone.
When we got home, we ended up going to bed. playing that game was exhausting, but I was so overjoyed to play a game almost like what we had on Earth... I mean Terra.
Almost a few days ago, we had a harvest festival. It was wonderful. The first festival I have ever had on a new planet. It won't be the last. But I found out that of all places, this planet Saclaurilia, has never heard of the holiday Halloween, which is weird, because they can get TV channels from Terra. They broadcast Halloween shows every year. I have a feeling they are broadcasting one right now, on some channel.
I had to find a way to show them what Halloween was.
Yes, Halloween is not exactly a typical holiday. Everyone has heard of the Yule Festival, where we sit in front of a decorated tree and open presents. And somewhere, wherever you are, there has to be something similar to Thanksgiving. Just like we had. The Great Harvest Festival. Halloween celebrates many things, including the lives of people who aren't with us anymore. Saclaurilia is one place that is strange when it comes to holidays.
I guess the reason this planet doesn't do the traditional Halloween is because there are no pumpkins, which is kind of sad. No pumpkin pie. No pumpkin bars. No Jack-O-Lanterns. Not even The Great Pumpkin. Poor Linus. I had to find a way to at least celebrate my second favorite holiday, right before Christmas.
Were there any types of squash that can be used as a replacement of the pumpkin? I had to find out. Even if I made a Jack-O-Lantern, how could I get people to celebrate Halloween? If I dress up and go door to door saying trick or treat, they will think I am nuts. Plus, no one would pass out candy. This planet is a healthy planet. Which isn't fair for me.
While I traveled through town, nothing is going on. I look through stores thinking of what I could do to make it feel Halloweenish. I passed an old building and stopped. What am I thinking. I can still make it Halloween, without all the candy and pumpkins. I bet there are plenty of haunted houses out there. Plus, we can always watch a scary movie and tell scary stories.
I rushed home as fast as my little legs could take me. I knew I could think of something. This was going to be the best Halloween ever.
I went to the home phone and called up my friend Brianna.
“Hi, Brianna, I have something fun we could do today. You wanna come over?” After getting a yes from her, I blushed, because I decided to call Cory. He may be right next door, but I am a little nervous to just go over and ask him in person. I picked up the phone and dialed his number. It rang. When he answered, I hung up. I was too nervous to talk.
I knew I should have blocked my phone number, because he called me right back. I was also stupid and answered it without even reading the caller ID.
“Hello?” I said when I answered. I started to blush.
“Hi, Courtney,” Cory replied, “You called me just now?”
“Um… No,” I lied. “It must have been someone else.
“I'm sure it was you, I saw your name on caller ID. It shows who dialed the number. You do remember that caller ID on the planet is far superior to the ones on your older planet. It knows who was using the phone and who called.”
I started crying. I didn't know he could figure out it was me. I hate these new kinds of caller IDs.
“Maybe I called you by accident,” I lied again. I was getting a little more comfortable on the phone now with him. “Anyways while I am the phone with you, would you like to come over? I have something fun we could do today.”
“Sure why not, I will be right over.” I hung up the phone and sat down on the couch, waiting for my friends to come. I knew it wouldn't take long for Cory.
When Brianna finally came over, I was already blushing. I liked Cory. It's clear that everyone knows that I do. If I was on Terra, I would be picked on at school. I can imagine all the kids singing the K-I-S-S-I-N-G song. The kids on this planet seem friendlier. I have not been picked on at all.
“I have a wonderful idea for what we could do tonight. On Terra tonight, or I guess in a few days, because they are only a few days behind us, for some strange reason, they will be celebrating a holiday traditionally for kids. We usually would go door to door asking for candy.”
Cory and Brianna stared at each other. I can tell they thought I was nuts.
“Yes, I know what you're thinking, but that's what they did. We usually would say Trick-or-Treat. We also carved an orange squash called a pumpkin. Usually it would be a scary face or whatever you wanted it to be. Well, since we can't do that here on Saclaurilia, I am bringing one other tradition. Haunted houses.”
That opened both Brianna's and Cory's eyes up. I think they like the idea.
“We have seen lots of haunted house movies on TV and have always wanted to explore one. I think this would be a good time to do that. I know my dad would allow us to go there. He is big on haunted houses and he would love to join in on the fun, especially on Halloween.”
“Hallow what?” Brianna asked.
I forgot to say Halloween when I told about the holiday. What an idiot I am. “Halloween is the name of the holiday on Terra. It's always in the month of October on the 31st. It's the most spookiest holiday of the year. Some imagine, the dead wake up on that day. Or it's the devil's holiday or even his birthday. Lots presume witches powers are much stronger on that day. There have been stories about ghosts encountered in haunted houses. That is also the reason why I wanted to go to a haunted house here on Saclaurilia.”
When I told dad what we were going to do, he was in an agreeable mood. He knew of a famous haunted building that would frighten the willies out of us. Mom wasn't into the idea of having us get scared. I wanted Mikayla to come. Dad agreed to end the whole thing, if anyone said they wanted to leave because they were too terrified. Mom finally gave in and allowed it. But she was not going to be part of it.
So Mikayla, Cory, Brianna and I all hopped into the car.
Once we were ready, dad set the GPS on the car to the coordinates of where we wanted to go. The best thing about cars on Saclaurilia is that we don't need to drive. He sat back and we took off.
I love flying in the car. It's one of the best things. We never did this on Terra. The FDA would never allow it.
I watch outside at the world. It's so pretty. I'm not sure where we are going, but I am excited. I watched the ocean. It was very bluish. I cold spot animals in it. Not exactly knowing what they were. Finally, we were slowing down and landing on an island. The island had a brick building. Not sure what sort of building, but I feel it's the building that we will explore.
It didn't appear like we were the only ones here. Others were also parked in the car park. As we walked up to the building, we noticed something. The sign on the building. “Psych Ward Amusement Park”
“We went to an amusement park?” I cheered. Everyone was also cheering.
“Not just any amusement park, a haunted themed amusement park,” dad pointed out.
We still cheered. “Why is it on this island?” I asked.
“This used to be an actual Psych Ward. When it closed, they didn't want to tear it down. Because it was so huge, they decided to fix it up and make it an amusement park. It's one of the biggest parks indoors.
We stepped up to the sales clerk. “Children under 12 only costs ₭35 today, but adults are ₭120”.
Seems like it was a perfect choice to come today. They must know it's Halloween, or something. When we walked in, the first thing we did was scream. This guy dressed up as a patient came out of nowhere. The first ride we decided to go on was the roller coaster. It looked spooky and popular. It took ten minutes before we could get on it.
“Please keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times. You will get scared. Enjoy the ride.”
The ride starts out slow. But it speeds up very fast. I'm not sure how fast it was going, but I sure was freaking out. I screamed the whole time. I can hear my sister and Brianna screaming. That was a two minute long ride, but it sure was worth the ten minute wait.
The next ride was a log chute. It sent us in a dark tunnel. It seemed like things were crawling all over me.
When we got off that ride, we were a little starved. We decided to go eat at 'The Choke and Puke'. It was their name for the cafe located in the old cafeteria that was used during the Psych ward.
I had a burrito. It was food colored green to appear disgusting, but it tasted quite like a burrito. Mikayla had something that looked like a hot dog. Again, it looked like it was rotten, and also the bun appeared moldy, but it wasn't. Brianna and Cory chose a slime-burger, a cheeseburger with slimy and moldy looking green cheese.
No, we didn't get sick. It was meant for the theme of the park. We all had fun. Dad was video taping us eating those foods. It wasn't like we were grossed out or anything. But I bet it sure would gross out mom.
After we ate, we went in the haunted house. Mikayla decided to stay out. While we were in there. She stayed and watched the undead horse race. I believe she chose to skip the haunted house, just so she could watch that.
Eventually, we were feeling exhausted and wanted to head home. We went on many rides. I believe this was one of the best Halloween I have ever had. I hope we can make this a tradition every year.
Why go out door to door getting candy? Being with friends and family is the whole reason for this holiday. That's my opinion. This is Halloween.
This is not ordinary day. You know the feeling. I woke up with as usual with my normal sigh. I really didn’t want to go to school. It’s so typical, no fourteen-year-old wanted to go to school. Well, any child these days.
I lay on my bed and stare at the ceiling. I stayed up all night thinking of what to get my friend Ralph for his birthday present today. I look over at my cellphone sitting on the table next to me. I couldn’t look fort a gift for him there. It wouldn’t get to me on time.
I sit up. Stretching and yawning and notice my dog Zelda looking at me. She must have came in to my room and laid down on my bed. Zelda was named after my favorite video game. You know what I am talking about and if you don’t ‘what world do you live on’ Even Robin Williams knows the game. He did name his daughter after the game.
My favorite game of the Zelda series is "A Link to the Past or Ocarina of Time. I haven’t figured out which one is my all time favorite.
I get up off my bed and start dressing for school. I sigh again. “This sucks.” I hate looking for clothes. It’s so boring and I can’t match, because I am color blind.
After I dressed, I walked over to the bed and started petting Zelda. “You are so lucky. You don’t have to go to school.” I pet her for a few minutes and get up off the bed. “If only I were a dog, just like you.”
I knew this wouldn’t ever happen and started laughing. Walking down stairs, I almost trips on a Barbie doll. “Karly!” I yell upstairs to my little sister. “Why do you have to keep your toys on the staircase?” Karly runs over to the stairs.
“Don’t move any of them. I’m not finished playing yet.”
I was going to yell some more, but stopped. I knew this would not get anywhere. One of these days, I am going to throw those toys away, or something.
For breakfast today, we had pancakes and bacon. I love bacon, I hate the smell of it. I wish it had a better smell. School started in an hour, so I had plenty of time. Every school morning I would eat fast and then head over to my friend’s house.
“Don’t forget, This afternoon we are going to the doctors office for a checkup, so hand this letter in to the office before school.” Mom says handing me an envelope. I finish breakfast, rinse my plate and started heading over to my friend Ralph’s house.
I start walking down the road. I had to get Ralph a birthday gift before school started because today is his birthday. But I didn’t even know what to buy. I stop in front of a storefront. Mr. Wing’s collectibles and stuff. The store said “stuff.” I laughed, thinking of an old Beavis and Butt-head episode. I wasn’t allowed to watch that show, but my mom never knew I did. I look at the storefront a little bit. It didn’t look like a store I ever saw before. I walked inside. The room was filled with lots of dragons, unicorns, and lots of mythical creatures. There were lots of other items as well. Accent swords you may have seen in King Arthur movies was one that caught my eyes the most.
I stumbled over a small stone on a shelf. I grabbed it to look at it better. It had really cool markings on it. I had to get this too. Just then an old man appeared out of nowhere.
“May I help you, young man?” he said. I was startled and almost dropped the stone. I looked at the old man. He must have been Mr. Wing. He had a long white beard and was smoking a very long pipe. He looked Asian.
“Uh, hi. I am looking for a gift for my friend. His birthday is today.”
The old man walked around the counter. “I see you like that stone in your hand.” I said pointing to the stone. “Is that what you want to get?”
“No sir, but I do want this stone as well. I am interested in the sword behind you on the wall for my friend.”
The old man looks behind him. “That is a replica of King Arthur’s sword. Would you like it?”
“How much would it be”
“The sword is two hundred and fifty and the stone, is one hundred, which brings it all up to three-hundred and fifty dollars.”
Wow that’s kind of spendy. I take my money out of my pocket. I saved it up for months. I started counting the dollar bills and found out I didn’t have enough to pay for the stone.
I looked at the sword and the stone in my hand, which I really wanted as well. “I won’t be able to buy this stone.” I put it back on the shelf.
The man smiled. “You seem to be a good lad, I can sell you the sword and give you the stone as a gift from me.”
“Are you sure about that? What’s the catch?”
“No catch. I am just a nice guy. You just remind me of my grandson. Just let me tell you a little secret about that stone.” I picked up the stone again and looked at it. “That stone, is a magical stone. It only gives out one wish. Not any wish. No, You can’t wish for money. You can’t make anyone fall in love with you. You can’t kill people, You can’t wish for invincibility and you can’t wish for more wishes. But whatever you wish, will come true. After that, it just becomes a paperweight.” He chuckles a bit.
I couldn’t believe my ears. I never believed wishes were real. I had to get it. I quickly paid for my items, thanked him and left the store. When I got outside, I ran over to Ralph’s house and rang the doorbell. As usual, Ralph’s mother answered the door.
“Hi Andrew, Ralphie is still eating breakfast, come on in.”
I walk inside and heads right to the kitchen where Ralph is eating French toast and eggs as well as bacon.
I hand Ralph the bag I bought, minus the stone. “Sorry, I didn’t gift wrap it. I just got it at a cool store down the road.”
“That’s aright, I don’t always like unwrapping gifts.” He takes the bag and opens it. He started taking out the sword. “Wow!” He cried. “Is this what I think it is?”
“It’s King Arthur’s Sword.” I said. “But I was told it was a replica. Who knows how much the original one would cost today.” They both laughed.
“That sword would really do well with your collection of King Arthur dolls.” Ralph’s mother said.
“For the last time mom, they are not dolls, they are action figures.”
“Sorry, I forget sometimes.” She said, grabbing Ralph’s empty plate and taking it over to the sink to wash it.
We ran up to Ralph’s Room and put the sword on the bed.
“When I get home from school, I am going to mount it to the wall.”
He noticed that I was holding a stone. “What’s with the rock?”
“Oh this isn’t a rock, I said. “It’s a wishing stone.”
“Cool what wish are you going to make?”
“I haven’t thought of it yet.”
“Wish for a billion dollars,” Ralph said excitedly.
“I can’t. It’s on the list of wishes I can’t make.”
“Well what can you make from it?”
“hmm…” I thought. “Well, this morning, I thought of being a dog until the end of the school year or until school starts next fall.”
“A dog?”
“Yes, They don’t have to go to school, they don’t have to do chores. There are lots of things I can do as a dog.”
“Why until the end of the school year? That’s three months from now. And why the summer? Why not be a dog for the rest of your life?”
“Yeah right a dog’s life is only a few years compared to human years.”
“You can always say a dog that lives forever?”
“I think that counts as invincibility or something. That's one of the wishes I can’t wish for.” I pointed out.
“Well before you do make a wish, make sure I don’t forget who you are.”
“I’m smarter than that.” I laugh.
I take the stone and make my wish.
“I wish, I were a beagle, just like my dog at home… but only until school starts next year.” I thought of enjoying being a dog for the summer. “My family thinks I am the other family pet. Everyone else thinks I am on vacation except for my friend Ralph. We can still communicate by telepathy.”
Just then with in a few seconds of the wish, I could feel my body changing. First my skin started itching. I saw fur start growing all over everywhere. I couldn’t stand on two feet anymore. I shrunk to the size of a full-grown beagle. My face started growing a snout my teeth started growing until I got canine teeth. Everything started growing so fast. I started whimpering, because I was still in human clothes and my tail just grew out of my body. It was hurting me. Ralph helped me out of my old clothes. He could see my private parts, but it didn’t bother Ralph one bit. All dogs are naked. Ralph laughed.
“What’s so funny?” I spoke through my mind.
“your penis hasn’t changed it still looks human like. It looks funny being on a dog. Especially a small dog. Ralph snickered.
“Ha, ha. Very funny.” I barked.
“Now that you are a dog, what are you going to do next?”
“We will have to see.” This is a new experience for me.”
“Eew!” Ralph laughed while watching me in dog form. “Do you really have to lick yourself down there?”
I was a little confused myself. I continued licking. “I don’t know why Ralph, I tried to stop, but it’s a dogs instinct to clean in weird places. Besides, I have always wondered what it would be like to…”
“Whoa! TMI Andrew. Way To Much Information” Yelled Ralph.
He looked at his clock. “Great, I am going to be late for school. And mom doesn’t know you are a dog and you know what happens...?”
“I hope she is gone to work,” I whined.
“She doesn’t have a job, she’s a stay at home wife. Dad works.”
We had to sneak through the house to outside. Ralph’s mother has a strict rule about animals in the house. Well actually the owner of the house they lived in because they were renting it. Ralph almost got us both caught because he kept laughing.
“Ralph, aren’t you going to school?” His mother started walking toward us.
“Um, yeah sorry mom.” He cried. “I forgot something upstairs, Andrew is helping me get it.”
“Well don’t be late,” she called back walking back to the kitchen. “Wait, Andrew is here? The dog, Andrew?”
We were already out of the house, before his mom could do anything. Ralph was still laughing. I was confused.
“What was so funny?” I said to him. I looked up , which was really weird, because I always was face to face with him.
“You would laugh too if you were watching a small dog drag his huge balls on the floor.”
I looked at myself down there. “I wonder why when I changed my dick didn’t shrink and look like ones of a normal dogs?”
“I don’t know, but it sure looks like one from a human sticking out of you.”
“I hope it changes soon.” I thought.
On our way to my house, I had to stop along the way. “Andrew, do you really have to sniff and urinate on every tree we go by?”
“Again, another instinct dogs do,” I said. “I don’t make the rules.”
“Yes, but it looks funny with that huge…”
“Stop talking about it for once!”
We finally made it back home where I saw mom. I was so excited to see her.
“Thank you Ralph for bringing back Andrew. He has been running away a lot.”
“That’s fine Mrs. Johnson.”
“I have been wondering with all the running away, if he got some other dog impregnated?”
“As far as I know, he hasn’t” Ralph said. “He has been with me the whole time.”
Ralph looked at the time. “Well, I missed homeroom, I am going to miss First Period if I don’t hurry up. He started heading to school but then turned around at us again. “By the way, why did you choose the name Andrew for a dog?”
“Not sure why my only child Karly, thought of that name. If I had a son, I would have named him Andrew. I’m guessing she heard me talking about that to her father.”
Mom took me inside where She handed me a rib bone to munch on. I snatched it out of her hands and ran towards a corner in the family room to munch on it. I wasn’t sure why I was so excited to eat a bone.
Later that day, I could hear mom on the phone. “Yeah, its really huge… really, you think I should?” I stopped listening. It was kind of boring and I was too interested in the bone I was given. How long does it take to eat this bone?
Next thing I knew, I saw my mom was off the phone and had leash in her hand. I could see Zelda was excited. It must be walk time. I walked over to her as well.
“Not now Zelda. I have other things to do.” She said and then hooked the leash to me. I was taken to the car and locked up in a doggy carrier. I was really confused. Where were we going? Were we going to the park? I couldn’t see out the window, so I had no clue where we were going. I really didn’t care, as long as it was a fun place. I want to catch a stick or a ball. The ride took forever, but I waited patiently.
Finally the car stopped. I was lying down at the time. When I heard the door slam, I got up really fast and started jumping around in the small carrier. Mom took me out of the car. But I was still in the doggy carrier. It was still hard to see. I couldn’t see anything through the tiny holes on the sides. I whined while looking out the small door in front.
“Don’t worry Andrew, once we are done, you will be a happy dog.”
What did she mean? Where was I? Just then I could hear lots of dogs barking in the building I was brought into. It sounded like a dog kennel. Was she sending me to the kennel? I was freaking out. I could hear mumbling in the background, but I couldn’t tell what the mumbling sound was saying. All I heard were those annoying dog barks.
I was moving around in the carrier. I could see mom looking through the little door. “Don’t worry Andrew,” she said again. Don’t worry? What is she talking about, she brought me to a kennel. I won’t see her anymore. Next thing I knew She handed the carrier to someone else. I could see mom from a distance. I barked at her. That’s where the doors shut. My last view at her.
The person I saw after the carrier was put down, was a man. He was dressed in white. Wasn’t sure who he was, but I knew I just had to get away from him.
“Hold still Andrew,” the man said. “This won’t hurt a bit.” I saw him take a syringe and stick it in my back. Next thing I knew everything went fuzzy.
“Mrs. Johnson.” The man was talking to my mom. Of course I wasn’t able to hear anything because I was out cold. “We have a few things we would like to talk to you about you dog.” He said. First of all, while he was getting neutered, we accidentally had his penis removed as well. We tried to put it back on, but the nerves were destroyed. Which now makes him sexless. Some owners don't mind that and leave them that way. So we want to know if you would like to make him a female or just keep him as a dog with no gender?”
“A sexless dog?” Mom asked. “That's just weird, no I actually think a female would be a better choice. ”
“Okay, We will work on her right away.” He started walking away.
“Doctor?” Mom called out to him, “Is it possible that she can get pregnant?”
“Oh.” He said turning back. “We can do that, if you really want to. Of course she won't be healed for at least a few weeks to a month and a half. Maybe even three months.”
“That's fine. And Thank you. Our other dog Zelda was spayed when we got her and we have always wanted some puppies.”
The doctor smiled, Don’t worry, Mrs. Johnson. We will have her out of surgery as soon as possible. This may take a few hours, if you want we can call you when she is ready to head home.”
It was really bright and fuzzy. I had just woken up. I stretched and yawned. Looking around, I could see I was at home. Was it all a dream?
I had an itch on my ear. I tried to scratch it, but for some reason, I couldn’t reach it. “What the heck.” My vision was finally not as blurry. I noticed something around my neck. It was a cone!
If it was a dream, why was there a cone on me. “Oh no! It's the cone of shame” I said. Of course no one could hear me. “What have they done to me?” I was freaking out. I walked around in circles. I couldn't see anything with this darn cone on me. Just white, white and more white. I could see in front of me, but that's it. “What were they expecting me to do, lick my balls?” I couldn't even see my balls. Well I guess that's the point. If I can't see my balls, I can't lick them.
Ralph must have told them I was licking myself down there and they were making sure I couldn’t do that. That has got to be it. I did find out that dogs think different from humans. Which is the weird part of being one.
“That stone I got from that old man, really works. I think and look like a dog. Everyone knows me as a dog. Well actually, Ralph knows who I really am. I am Andrew, a 14 year old boy.” Then it hit me again. “I am wearing a cone of shame. That means I went through some kind of surgery.” I had to think some more. “What do dogs go for surgery? I don't feel pain, so I didn't break anything. Do I have an eye infection? No, I can see just fine.” This doesn't make any sense. “Oh wait! I didn't get neutered did I?” I started panicking. “If I got neutered, I would become human and have no balls as well! I would never become a dad! 'Well maybe adopting...' But that's not the point!”
I had to get this cone off of me. I used all my legs to try to pull it off. It wouldn't budge. “This is so hopeless.” I lie down on the ground. Hours passed. Well actually a few minutes, but it felt like hours to a dog. Especially me as a dog. School wasn't even out yet. “What time was it?” I got up and walked over to the clock on the desk. It was to far in there, I couldn’t read it. This frustrated me.
I walked to the kitchen to see the clock on the stove. I jumped up on the stove to look at the time. It was blinking 12:00. “Great” I thought. “Did we get a power outage again?” There was another clock in moms bedroom that used batteries. I ran over to her door. “Oh Man!” the door was shut. “I am going to be bored wondering what time it really is” I walk over to the window jumped on the furniture. Yeah I know, dogs shouldn't jump on furniture. It's a big No No. But as I was saying I jumped up on the furniture and climbed over to the window and looked out. Sometimes the sun can tell me the time. “Dang it!” It was a cloudy day and the sun was behind the clouds. I get down from the window, but accidentally break moms favorite glass figurine with the side of the cone. For a small dog like me, I'm surprised I broke it.
I hear mom running into the room. She looked angry. “Bad Girl!” She yelled. “Get into the kennel?” She pointed toward my old bedroom. I hang my head low only able to stare at the floor while I walk to my old bedroom. Since I am not her child while I am a dog, I guess the room is the dog room. That's usually where Zelda goes anyways, in my room. I walk into the room and see a small wired cage in it. It's really weird. I never saw it there before. I walk in and lie down in it. I then saw mom lock the cage. While I lied there, I sigh. I am so bored. “Wait! Did she just call me a girl?” She must have thought I was Zelda. That made no sense. Can't she tell a boy dog from a girl dog. Especially since the boy dog has the cone of shame on him?
Time must have gone by a long time, because the next thing I knew, Karly was home from school. So now I knew what time it was. It's 3:30. Why so late? Well that's easy to explain. I know that she takes the bus. She goes to a different school than me. I'm in Middle School and she's in Elementary. She also has the first bus stop in the morning and the last in the afternoon. Which makes it a long day for her. I remember those days. I hated it. My school, (or should I say the school I was going to) is only a few blocks away from here.
I could hear Karly in the kitchen talking to mom. Not sure what they are saying, but I knew anytime she would be coming in here to see me. As I suspected a minute later, she walks in. In her hand was a leash. “Hi there Alyssa” She cooed. “Want to go out for a walk?”
I barked. I really needed to go pee. Wait, what did she call me?
Karly took me out of the cage and latched the leash on me. I ran to the door. I really needed to go pee. Wait didn't I already say that?
While walking down the road, and I started peeing. I was surprised that I didn't even lift my leg. Isn't that what boy dogs do? I was crouching down to pee. You know this sounds really freaky talking about me peeing. Let's change the subject. We were walking along when I noticed Ralph walking our way. “Hi Karly!: he says. “What's with the cone of shame on Andrew?”
“Oh she had surgery today?” Karly answered.
“She?” Ralph said with a surprised way of saying it. He looked at me a little closely.
“Did Andrew get a sex change?”
“What?” I whined.
“yes and I am so happy. When we sent her in to get neutered...” Karly began
“Neutered?” I whined some more.
“...mom decided to make her a girl doggy.” Karly gave me a pet. “By the way her names is Alyssa now and she'll be able to have puppies.” Karly sang.
“I will?” I looked up at Karly.
Ralph knew I was sad.
“When she is fully healed, mom is going to impregnate her. She knows this stud...”
I’m not sure how she knows all these words, but I wish she would stop.
“Would you mind if I took Andrew... I mean Alyssa with me for a little while. I would like to walk her.”
“It's fine with me. I have homework to do and then I am going to Brianna's house to play.”
She skips back home and I am with Ralph now.
“I can't believe you got a sex change Andrew,” Ralph said once she was out of sight.
“I can't either,” I cried. “And I am worried I am stuck this way even after I change back to human.”
“I don’t think it’s bad being a girl. I’m not really sure how it is to be one, but just give it a try. ” There was silence for a minute, while we walked. “Oh, and if you are a girl afterwards... would you be my girlfriend?
I looked up at him. “Seriously?”
That night when I got home from my walk, I lied down on my doggie bed. Yes, it's not the bed I have been sleeping in my whole life, but it's the bed I will be sleeping in for the next few months. I have this feeling I chose the wrong wish. Being a dog isn't that fun after all. Especially if you were now a girl dog, yes that's right a bitch. That's the worst thing about this so far. The second is the darn cone. I keep trying to take it off, but it won't budge. I guess I might as well wait until the two to three or how many days it takes are up from me to heal.
I could hear noise coming from the family room. I walk in and see my family watching the television. I lied next to them and watched it as well. They were watching Stranger things, on Netflix. It didn’t bother me. I watched it because I was near my family. Normally little Karly wouldn't be up this late, but it was Friday and she didn't have to go to school.
I knew I shouldn't have done it. I should have just went outside, but the scary part really got to me. I peed on the floor next to the whole family. My mom yelled at me and threw me in the back yard. No she didn't really throw me, that's abusive. She kicked me out... No wait, that sounds even more abusive... Oh you know what I mean.
Well now I am outside. As long as I have been alive I have always hated the dark. Especially after watching a scary TV show or movie. I just stood there in the pitch black yard. I didn't know what to do. Would you know what to do if you were just thrown out of the house in a scary place? I was as stiff as a board. I could hear weird noises. Mostly the wind. Yes, the wind was making some creepy sounds but I believe I saw a shadow from the bushes. My thoughts went away from the scary yard and I got really curious. Even though I was scared, I had to see what it was.
The bushes kept moving. You know what is weird about dogs and humans? Dogs can see really well at night. As for humans? It takes us a while to adjust to the dark. Now that I am a dog, I could see the bush clear. Dogs also have extra strong hearing. A dog can hear sounds from over four-hundred and forty yards or four-hundred and two meters away if you know meters. The frequencies that dogs can perceive and hear are almost twice that of humans and they can pick up and distinguish sounds at roughly four times the range of humans. You would know that to if you really loved dogs as much as me.
As I walked toward the bush, I noticed some paw prints on the ground. The looked like cat paw prints with large claws. But also some even larger paw prints. I couldn't tell what it was. It was weird. I can tell the larger prints were the back feet. If only I listened in class about the types of paw prints and what goes to what animal.
As a dog, you can smell lots of weird things in the air or on the ground. Dogs have about twenty-five times more olfactory receptors than humans do. I was smelling everything. I couldn't tell what I was smelling because I have never smelt this before. I finally made it to the bush. I could hear some kind of squealing or squeaking sound. I couldn't really tell, but it sounded spooky. Next think I know a dog came running out of the bushes wiping his head all over the grass like crazy. And boy did he smell bad. He smelled like a skunk just... I looked back at the bush and before my eyes was that skunk.
I started running, but I didn't get enough time to get away. He sprayed me as well. Oh man, did I stink. Luckily it was not in my face. I wouldn't be able to wipe my face on on the grass do to this dang cone I am wearing. Boy that would really suck if he did spray me in the face. I would get it all. I look at Boo rubbing his face. It made me laugh inside. Yes, that dog's my neighbors dog. His name is Boo. He likes to go out at night. I doubt he would want to go out anymore. As we both are trying to rub off the smell, we could see the skunk was at the bushes almost like he was laughing at us. I sure don't like PepLe Pew anymore. “Au revoir and get lost skunk!” I barked at him. It's not like he can understand me.
The show must have been over or they paused it, because next thing I knew, Karly comes out of the house to get me. With one smell, she ran back inside and cries to mom. “Mommy, Alyssa got skunked!” I hear her scream. Mom runs out of the house to check me out. I could see she was holding her nose. “She sure did get skunked and so did Boo from next door.” She walks inside and goes to the phone. I believe she was calling Boo's family. I wish I could plug my nose like mom did. I sat there watching mom.
I could hear noise coming from across the yard. I hope it wasn't that nasty skunk again. I look again and see the neighbors walking over. I believe they were mad as much as my mom was.
I sure hope I am not stuck sleeping outside tonight smelling like a skunk. I would not enjoy that at all. I hope we have tomato in the house. I sure hope we do. Good thing this cone I am wearing can block most of the smell.
Still rubbing myself on the grass, I see mom walking up to me. She grabs me and takes me to the kiddie pool, or should I say doggy pool. So I guess we have tomatoes. I struggle to stay in the pool.
I looked back and saw Boo was put in the pool as well. It didn't take long for him to jump out. I ran out of the pool as well. I could hear mom yelling for me. I stopped and looked back at her. Boo was captured and brought back to the pool. I just sat there. Mom grabbed me and brought be to the pool as well.
We ran off again. This went on for a while. It was kind of fun. Not sure why I wanted to run, I would rather get rid of the stink, but I also knew that I wouldn't like getting washed, because of the wet dog hair afterwards. I know that, because I have smelt Zelda after she gets wet. Not a pleasant smell.
To make a long story short, we finally made it back to the pool and got washed with tomatoes. I didn't like it one bit. I may not smell like a skunk anymore, but I sure smell like a tomato. The one good thing is, I did get the cone taken off of me for the bath. It gave me a chance to see what I looked like down below. I wasn't really happy to see what I did see.
Having the cone off didn't last long. As soon as I dried off, the cone went back on. I sure hope I get it off soon otherwise I am going to go crazy. I wish I could speak to them. I would tell them I didn't need it.
What a horrible first day as a dog. Now I know I regret making that wish.
I didn't sleep well during the night. I kept waking up and going back to sleep. I got up and walked to the kitchen for a drink. My eyes were still partially closed. I wasn't thinking right because when I got there I stopped. I forgot I was a dog.
“How was I going to get a cup of water?” I looked at the doggie bowl on the floor. “No way was I going to drink from a water bowl,” I thought. “Especially when Zelda already drank from it.” the thought made me grossed out, but I was really thirsty. I had to drink something. I walked over to the bowl and was disappointed. It was empty. I needed a drink.
I must have been whining, because next thing that happened was mom walked into the room.
“Alyssa?” She complained. “Do you have to make so much noise?” She took the bowl and filled it with water. When she brought it down to me. “Sorry about that girl.”
I looked at it.
“How does a dog drink from this?” I thought. I put my nose over to it and sniffed it. I knew it was water. I started lapping it up. “Eww” I thought. “But wait, this doesn't even taste bad at all.” My tongue thought it tasted like the best thing ever. Like it was a soda. I must have been thirsty, because I drank the whole thing. Now I feel like I should have left some for Zelda.
I walk back to my doggie bed. I was about to lay down, but heard a noise coming from the washroom. I walk over and see Zelda was drinking from the toilet. It was disgusting. I can't believe that a dog would even drink from a place that people go poop in.
I made a note to myself. “If I EVER drink from that, I will never forgive myself.”
In the morning, I woke up to a mess in the room I was in. Toilet paper was on the floor everywhere. Someone had tee-peed the room. I stretch and yawn. I didn't even even get out of the doggie bed when I heard a scream from the other room.
I ran out of the room as fast as I could and saw that everywhere not including the room I was in was a mess. Garbage everywhere.
“Alyssa!” yelled mom. “How could you do this?”
What was I suppose to do. I couldn't talk to her. I sat there looking at the mess. It didn't take long because I was kicked out the door. Why was I always the one to be blamed. I was blamed when I was a human and now I was blamed as a dog. It doesn't even matter if I was a dog or human.
I sat on the patio for a little while wondering who had done it. It couldn't have been me. I know Zelda wouldn't have done it. My dog never did anything bad like that. Would she have done it?
I saw Boo in his backyard. I walked over to see him. When I was a human, I went over to Boo many times. He is a good dog. Boo saw me coming. I can tell he was happy to see me, because his tail was wagging. When I got to his backyard, he walked up to me and...
“What is he doing?” I couldn't see him that well, because of this damn cone on me. He was in back of me and... “Oh you're sniffing me.” Just like any dog would do. It's like a hand shake, but dogs sniff. “Should I do that too?” This is going to be gross. I never sniffed anyone's butt. Not even mine. Oh wait... never mind. To much information.
The next thing I knew, I was also sniffing his... oh man, did he reek. Why do dogs smell each others butts. Do each dogs have a distinct smell? I wonder what I smell like. I couldn't tell because... again, the cone.
I wonder if Boo knows I was a boy dog before? Or can he tell I am a girl now? I hope he can't tell, because one, I just got out of surgery yesterday and am not healed. And two... the one I am dreading the most. mating. I don't want to get pregnant. This was not my plan when I made that wish to be a dog. I was hoping to be on the opposite end. A stud. You know what I mean. That’s the thing about dogs, they don’t have to worry about being a father. But because I am a bitch, I worry I might get pregnant.
Now that I am a girl and the vet made it that I can get pregnant, I might end up dealing with labor pains. If that does happen, I hope it isn't as painful as a human goes... why I am thinking about this?
Boy am I babbling. Or is it thinking to much. I am a dog, I should enjoy it. I am only going to be a dog for a few months, I might as well enjoy it while I can. I look back.
“Where did Boo Go?” I look around and spot him rolling around in a mud puddle. “Did it rain last night? I don't remember it raining” Then it hit me. We both had a bath yesterday because of the skunk. The ground was still muddy because of all the water. This is the opportunity I can finally do. If I were human, I would be in so much trouble if I got all muddy, I would end up being grounded and not be able to hang out with my friends or play video games. As a dog... okay, I would be in trouble, but I wouldn't be grounded. Dogs are always so lucky. I wish I were a.. “Oh Wait I am a dog.” I ran over to boo and started rolling in the mud. I was having so much fun, I didn't even know that I broke the cone.
“Alyssa!” I heard mom yelling at me. “Come here!”
I am a dog, why should I listen to you? I kept on rolling around. I can tell it was making mom ticked off. If I could laugh, I would be laughing about now. Mom got me out of the puddle. I started to shake.
“You better not do that!” mom yelled. It was too late, I shook all the mud onto mom. Again the laughing would have been great at that moment. Next thing I knew mom was swearing up a storm. She was using words, I have never heard before. But I can tell that they were cuss words. I may be a little beagle, but I sure did make a big mess. Boo was worse of a mess. I wish I could see his owners expression when they see him.
“Time for another bath for you Missy!” Mom growled at me. So far this was the best day of being a dog. And the day just started. Just wait until mom cleans me off.
Just wait.
It was morning. Like normal, I didn't want to wake up. But it was the first day of school. I can't wait to make new friends. I miss my old friends at my old school. This year, will be all new. Instead of being one of the big kids, I am going to be part of the young kids in the school. That’s right, middle school. My dad came into the room and saw that I was still in bed. My room was a little bit messy, I was planning on cleaning it up. I should have done it last night. He saw a magazine in the mess.
“What the fuck is this shit, Samantha." My dad yelled. I was awake instantly. "Crossdresser Magazine?" "Where in God's name did you get this?" "Dad I can explain?" I cried.
"No need to explain. If you want to dress like a boy, then you’re going to dress like one for the whole week.” He left the room with the magazine in his hand. I saw him rip it up.
“But what about school today?” I protested. “I can’t go there looking like a boy. Others might pick on me.”
“Should have thought of that before you decided on cross dressing,” my father barked. “Now go get dressed.”
"I have never..."
"Don't argue with me young MAN,"
I can’t believe he would do this. Isn’t this child abuse? It’s the first day of my new school. Everyone will think I was a boy. I’m so going to get picked on all year long if they find out.
I go to my brothers room and grab a pear of his underwear, some sweat pants and a shirt. I have never cross dressed before. That magazine wasn't even mine. It was my brothers. He left it in my room. Now I am taking the blame. I start to undress. But then look at my budding breasts. I have been so happy when I started growing these. The boys would go wild if they saw these. But now they won’t even know I have them, until the week is up. I used an Ace Bandage to wrap them up. At least this isn’t permanent.
I pulled off my panties and skirt and replaced it with the boys underwear. It looked flat, so I added a rolled up sock to resemble the penis. I put in the sweat pants and the shirt. I looked in the mirror. Except for the hair, I looked like a normal preteen boy. I had to brush my hair into a boys long hair style and put it in a low ponytail.
My dad came into my room. In his hands were cardboard boxes.
"Okay Samuel, I want all your clothes in these boxes and bring them downstairs when your done." I packed all my skirts, panties, shirts, dresses and bras in the boxes then brought them down.
So I know you're not cheating, I am going to put them in a self storage," dad said taking it from my hands and bringing them to the car. "Better hurry up to the bus stop, before you miss it."
I ran as fast as I could to the bus stop, where I met two boys about my age and a girl which looked a little shy. Normally I would talk to her, but I kept quiet.
<
When we got to school, we were all had to assemble into the auditorium. The school was separated by gender in the room. I almost sat with the girls, but quickly sat with the boys.
"We all welcome you to Adam West Middle School." The principal spoke. "For those who didn't get the notice, this school is now going to start using school uniforms. Girls line up at the right and grab your uniform and boys to the left."
I was a little nervous. I knew I was suppose to go to the girls side, but because I am a boy for a week, I walked with the boys. When I got my new clothes, I was asked to change. Again nervous, I went into the boys locker room and hoped no one would notice my bandages on my chest or the rolled up sock as a penis.
Luckily no one was watching and I quickly changed. When I walked out of the room, the vice principal saw me. "Please come with me," he said. I walked with him to the nurses office. There were a bunch of boys lined up at the door. they were so cute. One at a time they went in.
When it was my turn, I sat in a chair and a male nurse came out. "Hello young man," he said. "What is your name so I can see if your parents have signed for permission for this check-up."
"Um, Sam Fleisher," I said. I was a little confused. The nurse typed my name into the computer.
"Yes, here you are, but your name is spelled as Samantha, you are a boy right?" I laughed. "This happens in every school I go to," I lied. "It's Samuel."
The nurse looked at me for a second and then went back. After a minute of typing the nurse looked up at me again.
"Okay since your father signed the paperwork, he has given permission for the check-up." He went to the fridge and took out a syringe and some rubbing alcohol pads. "This doesn't hurt that bad. All this is, is some Nano-bots that I will be putting into your body. It helps young boys get into puberty faster." He said putting the syringe into my arm. "It will help your balls to drop faster than waiting a couple years. If you had ever lost your balls, which I doubt you did, they will grow back. Your voice will deepen which you will get an Adams apple. Your shoulders will get broader. Plus your penis will get bigger. This will only take a few minutes to take effect."
"I have a question?" I asked.
"Yes," He looked at me.
"What would happen if a girl took the Nano-Bots?"
"Well, first of all, a girl wouldn't even be able take them, but if she did, her clitoris would start growing very long. Her vagina would close up. She would lose her uterus, ovaries and start growing testicles and a scrotum. Her breasts would shrink and become nipples again. Her voice would be deep. Her chromosomes would change from XX to XY. This would only take about 30 minutes to change. Why do you ask?"
"Oh nothing, just curious."
"Well your done here, but don't go to far, you will need a haircut. New rule here is, boys can't have long hair. Go sit in the next room and Fred will get you one."
I was starting to panic. I didn't want to be a boy. I loved being a girl. But because these Nano-bots are in me, I am going to be a boy. I went onto the next room and Fred helped me into the barbers chair. With lots of tears, I watched my long hair being shaved off. I ended up with a crew cut. When I was done I felt sick. I asked to use the restroom. I had a feeling I knew what was going on.
When I went into the room, I sat down on the toilet and pulled down my pants and underwear. With my surprise, I saw that my clitoris was bigger. I could see my vagina was closed up. I didn't have balls yet, but I can see a pouch below my clit. My pee hole wasn't anywhere to be seen. but with horror, I saw my clit growing and on the tip a hole was forming. Next thing I felt something drop in the pouch. I put my hands up to the pouch and felt my newly developed testicles had dropped.
"Holy fuck!" I yelled. I put my hands to my mouth. "My voice was lower. Also I had a large Adams apple on my throat. I pulled off my shirt and took off the bandages. I started crying even more than ever. My prized breasts were no more. I have a flat chest again. I look down at my clit once more. It had grown into a fully functional penis. I am no longer a female. I am 100% male.
I didn't know what I could do. What will my dad do when he sees me?"
I couldn’t help it. These new hormones are driving me crazy. Since I have now just grown a penis, I can’t help but masturbate. It’s either this or find a girl in this school and have sex with her. I couldn’t do that. I am a girl... or was a girl.
Finally I sprayed my seed and was ready for class. When I walked out of the stall, I looked at myself in the mirror. My eyes were open wide, because what I saw wasn’t a girl. I saw a boy. Broad shoulders flat chested and I could even see the large Adams apple that grew. It almost looked like I swallowed an apple and it didn’t go down. No wonder my voice is so low now. I believe the bigger the Adams apple, the lower your voice is.
I ran out of the restroom. I just couldn’t see myself anymore. I went to my first class.
When I got there, everyone was talking a mile a minute. I found a seat and kept quiet. I looked around at everyone. The girls actually had large breasts. If I were still a girl, I would have had big breasts as well. This was all my dad’s fault. If he didn’t make me dress as a boy, I wouldn’t be one right now.
~o~o~
During lunch time, I saw my brother sitting with some boys. He looked o the same as he always did. I'm guessing he didn't go in for the shot yet. I doubt he will be crossdressing after that. He won't be able to look like no girl after the shot. A matter of fact, I don’t.
I thought of sitting with him, but I didn’t want him to notice that I’m his sister, or former sister.
I sat alone and ate lunch. A few boys came over to me and sat down.
“Hey dude, what’s your name.” One of them asked.
“Sam,” I said, still looking at my food.
“I’m Jake and this is Greg,” He said pointing to the other guy next to him.
“Nice to meet you.” I took a bite of my food. It was a garden salad.
Jake looked at my food. “What’s this shit your eating?”
“What’s it look like I’m eating?”
“A man doesn’t eat salad, they eat meat lots and lots of meat.” He took my food and was heading to the garbage.
“What the fuck are you doing with my salad?” I yelled. This made the whole cafeteria look up at me.
After school, I got dressed into my clothes I wore heading here. You can definitely see the bulge in my pants now. It didn’t look like a mound of sock, There was a outline of a big nine inch cock. If this didn’t scream man, nothing would.
I went home. I wasn’t ready for my dad. I didn’t know what he would say or do when I walked in the house as a boy, instead of his daughter.
Making it to the front door of the house, I walked in. My dad was at the door waiting for me. He had a big smile on his face.
“I see my plan worked,” He chuckled.
“You mean you wanted me to be a boy?” I yelled.
“Oh you even have a very low voice, just like a man should have.”
“I have a huge nine inch cock!” I screamed.
“Oh really? “ He looked down at my crotch. “Pull down your pants and underwear. I want to see it.”
“No way!” I protested.
“Do it, or I will use force and do it myself.” He yelled.
I started crying and pulled down my pants and underwear. Dad went down and examined my huge member.
“It looks to be about ten almost eleven inches now. Which is not the normal size a cock should be. That's exactly what I wanted." He smiled. "Your cock wont stop getting bigger until it reaches fifteen to almost seventeen inches long, to make it impossible to not notice it. And to make the ladies want it even more." He looked under my dick. "Oh, you have huge balls as well. Can you produce sperm?”
“Yes,” I said softly.
“I want proof, masturbate for me, I want to see you cum.”
“What?” I cried.
“Do it, or I will squeeze your balls so hard, they will pop”
I cried and started masturbating in front of him. I gave him his nasty proof, when I squirted a very large amount of semen in front of him.
He smiled. “You are 100% male.” He chuckled again. “And to make it worse, you can never become female again, unless you go through surgery. Nano-bots won’t work a second time on you to go back to female. So you will never know what it’s like to bear a child. You won’t ever have multiple organs like females get. And if you wanted to be female again, you would have the surgery to deal with. You would have to pay out of your own money. I won’t even bother helping. You will be harassed by everyone in school if you come out transgender. You won’t be excepted at any church out there. They will use the bible against you. It’s either you be a full male for the rest of your life, or suffer living a miserable life as a freak. “
“I’ll report you for what you have done.” I screamed.
“What proof do you have? All your documents have already been changed to be male. I had this planned out for months. Your name is officially Samuel. Your birth certificate says that you were born male. If a doctor took blood from you to test your chromosomes, it would come out XY. The chromosomes of male. There would not be even one bit in you that shows you were ever female.”
“Brandon knows I was born female.”
“He’s in on this whole thing as well. You will never win.” Dad smiled at me.
“The nurse at school would know. I can tell him the whole thing.”
“Oh you mean my friend George?” Oh he was in on it too. He and his friend Fred helped with the whole thing.”
“You had them shave my head as well?”
“Yes the whole phony ‘new rule’ about all boys must have a haircut, was my own idea,” He smiled. “If you look at school tomorrow, you will see some boys with long hair still. I had to make sure you looked as manly as possible when you were done changing.”
“What about the vice-principal…”
“In on it as well. Face it, your screwed.”
Brandon came walking into the house. He saw me and started laughing.
“Hello Samuel,” He laughed. He looks at my large uncircumcised manhood, which at the moment had grown another two inches. “Nice penis and testicles. Its so nice to see another man in the house. No more complaining about the seat up anymore.”
“What if I do choose to be transgender? The seat will still be needing to be down.”
“There's No way that would happen, Samuel,” dad barked. “You will be forced to start peeing standing up from now on. As long as you have a penis, the seat stays up, unless you are taking a shit. If you don’t obey this, there will be huge consequences.”
I cried all the way to my room.
“Stop Crying. Boys don’t cry, unless you are a sissy!” dad yelled up the stairs.
“I’m a girl, I was born a girl…”
“That’s not what your records say.”
“That’s because you fucking changed it!”
“Don’t use that language at me young man!”
“I’m not a boy!”
“No your not a boy, you’re a man, you have a huge cock and can shoot semen.”
I slammed my door.
I have got to figure out how to change back to a full female. But how?
I woke up earlier than usual, at 5am. I had a very weird dream. I was having sex with a girl. I never had those dreams before. Usually I dreamed about boys. Especially that hunk at my old school. I looked down at bed. It was soaked with something slimy. Did I have a wet dream, like a boy? I know I am a boy now. I don’t even want to be one.
I noticed that my penis had grown over night. It was eleven inches before, but it looks way longer. I get out of bed, take out my measuring tape from my dresser drawer and started measuring it.
“Seventeen inches?” I cried. This is going to be torture. My dad did say that girls would love how long it is, but because I was born a girl, I knew this was wrong. I would never even touch a man that had one this long. Eew, gross. There was no way. I would never want to date a guy with a seventeen inch cock. Maybe a slut might like too, but those people, are disgusting people in the first place. They might think it’s like having a very long dildo. I wish I could just cut it off.
I noticed my balls had grown too. Not much, but they are definitely bigger. This mad me sick to the stomach. It made me think of my ex boyfriend, when I told him to ‘Grow a Pear.’. He maybe didn’t but I sure did and that is not what I meant by it.
I had to look this up on google. I reached over to my night stand and noticed my cellphone was missing. “My Cell phone?” I cried “Did Dad take it?” Why would he do that? It wasn’t like I would call the police on him, since he knew who they were and they wouldn’t do anything for me. I just wanted to check Google and maybe my Facebook… Oh that’s what he was doing. Making sure I didn’t mention it on Facebook.
I lied down on my bed. I was getting frustrated. It was early in the morning. No one was awake yet. What else can I do, before I had to get ready for school?
I started scratching myself. I didn’t know I was doing it, until I looked down. “What am I doing?” I thought. I was so bored. I had to do something. I pulled down my underwear again and started examining my dick. It was extremely long. I remember when my ex and I were alone, I would give him oral. I wonder if I can give myself oral, now that its seventeen inches?
I took it in my hand and brought it up to my mouth. I hesitated for a bit, since I felt this was totally disgusting, but eventually, I put it in my mouth. I can’t believe I was able to put my own penis in my mouth. I have seen many videos of men that have done it to themselves, but they have to do it in awkward positions. Me? I just lied there, moved my head down, just a little bit and just put it in.
I know I’m saying a bit to much information, but going in and out and sucking a lot, I just couldn’t get myself to cum. My schlong was way to big to do anything. I couldn’t feel anything. It wasn’t even able to work. I was wondering why my dad even had me grow a penis or even have it grow this big. If I did have surgery and it wasn’t to become a female again, I would have a penis reduction.
I lied there on the bed and after a while, I noticed nature was calling. I got up and walked out of my room to the bathroom. I started to sit down, but it was very uncomfortable and I remembered what dad told me last night. I got up from off the toilet and stood in front of it. I grabbed my penis and started my business.
It was disgusting. It shot out like a hose and I wasn’t able to aim well. “How do boys do this?” I thought. I gave up on aiming and just lied it down on the seat and watched it flow. Why of all things, does urine come out so easy, but when you masturbate, it takes forever or never does come.
My mind went back to female mode. I didn’t want a damn dick. I want my vagina back. I started crying. I don’t know how long I was in the bathroom but it was now light out and the next thing I knew, my brother was outside pounding on the door.
“Hey Samuel, stop masturbating in there and get out!” He yelled through the door.
I looked down and saw I was still naked. I pulling up my underwear and walking out the door. “I was not masturbating,” I protested, thinking of what I was doing in my bedroom.
“Sure, then why are you blushing and why is your dick still big? Brandon was looking down at my huge overgrown member.
“For your information, its seventeen...” I stopped yelling. Dad was staring at me.
“Oh I see, your dick is seventeen inches long, eh?” he chuckled.
I nodded.
“Whip it out, I want to see what I have created.” he licked his lips, looking down at my underwear.
He created this? What does he mean by that? He didn’t stick a needle in me, he didn’t grow the damn thing on himself. Why would he say that he created it?
I looked up at dad and I hesitated for a second, but remembered what he would have done to me last night, if I didn’t obey. I wasn’t going to have him pop my balls. I pulled down my underwear and watched my cock flop out of it in mid air. I could see Brandon staring at it, with wide eyes.
“Good. Good,” he said. I looked at him like e was crazy or something. What is he, Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars? The way he spoke, he sure sound like him. I can see my brother masturbating next to me. I felt so disturbed by this. I just wanted to rip his fucking dick off of his body I can see my dad was now drooling. I was now very uncomfortable. I have a bunch of sick perverts in my family. Either that, or they are both gay. I start to pull up my underwear.
“Keep them down! In fact take them off and come into my room.” he pulled me inside his room and locks the door with a key. Pushing me to his bed, I fell over and had my ass in the air. I tried to get up, but dad held me down.
“You stay like that, or else!” he yelled.
“What are you doing?” I cried.
I heard noises coming from behind me, like he was using a camera to take pictures of me. I can feel my long cock head touching the floor.
“Stand up and walk over to the wall!” he demanded.
I stood up and walked over like he said.
My cock was high up in the air. He started taking pictures again. After a few more pictures, he was messing around on his phone. I looked at him, curious in what he was doing. Next thing I knew his phone started ringing and he answered it.
“Hello?” he said, looking away from me. “Yes, that is him.” He looked back at me. “Yes, he’s seventeen as of this morning” There was a slight silence. “How much?” I saw my dads eyes grow. “Good. Good.” There’s that impersonation again. This freaked me out so much. I wasn’t sure what he was talking about, and I wish he would stop looking at me with those perverted eyes. “I’ll have everything ready...” He stopped talking and was listening to the call. “I don’t know, maybe gulf ball, or racquetball...” More silence. “Yes, will do. See you soon”
No one knows what the future holds. Everyone has a prediction. It doesn't mean it will come true. When a strange disease happened in Argentina, the whole world finds out the aftermath of it. After sixteen year old Nathan accidentally drinks a formula called Isisraxtosa, he becomes what he feared most, a four year old girl. But worst of all she is now living in a world of zombies. Now known as Natalie, she and her friend Jack, (now Jill, for drinking the same formula) have to survive the world of the dead.
WIKIA PAGE: http://isisraxtosa.wikia.com
STORY 1: Nowhere to Run
STORY 2: Operation Zero
"We're almost there, Nathan," my mother said, driving to her boyfriend’s house on the hill outside the city. I never liked him. He was this weird scientist, just like the ones you see in horror movies. I almost feel like Dracula, or Frankenstein's monster, would come out of the building at any minute.
"Mom, did we have to move here?" I said. You can tell, I didn't like the idea of moving. Mom didn't say a word. I believe that's because I had said it about a hundred times before we even left the old house. We pulled up to the creepy building. It sure looked like the house we recognize in Transylvania. Now, where is Scooby and the Gang? I look around. Getting out of the car, I took my only bag with me. We sold most of the things before we moved, so we didn't have to pack any up and haul the shit over here. Her "boyfriend" George, came out of the building and walked over to us.
"Hi little squirt," he said in a friendly voice. He could tell I wasn't happy and rushed over to mom, giving her a big kiss on the lips. I felt like I was about to barf. I went inside the building, not wanting to watch the lovebirds. It was a hot day today, so I went to the kitchen for something to drink. Looking in the fridge, I notice there is nothing but water. Oh wait, I notice a bottle of soda. "What brand is this?" I thought. I opened the bottle, and without thinking, I swallowed the whole thing. "Yuck!" It tasted awful. But it was so refreshing, besides the taste.
I went upstairs to look in my room. It was such a big house; I hope I can find my way. I can hear my mom and George coming into the house. Mom is giggling, and I can tell they were heading into the kitchen. I think I found my room. There were many rooms in the house, but the room I believe was mine was already filled with a bed, just like the other with a bed. But mine was smaller and a twin bed. Theirs was a King Size Bed. So I figured this room was mine. I walk into the room and start unpacking my things into the dresser.
Downstairs, mom was sitting at the table. George figured she was thirsty. He went into the fridge to get her a drink. "I hope you don't mind water. I don't have any other type of drink at the moment, otherwise, I would offer you more choices."
"That's fine honey," Mom said with a sigh.
George grabbed a bottle of water and shut the door. He paused for a second and opened the door again. "That's strange."
"What's strange, dear?"
"I thought I put a bottle in here with a secret formula I was working on."
"What is the formula?"
"Well, it’s just an experiment. I believe I found a way to change the male gender into females, without surgery. This could help the transgender community. The terrible thing is, I don't have a formula to turn females into males. Even if I did, if someone takes the formula and becomes male, they can't take another and go back to the original gender they were born with."
"I hope Nathan didn't drink it."
"Well, we won't know right away if he did. It takes a few days to kick in." The first thing he will notice is he starts to feel faint. Then dizzy. Next thing he blanks out. That’s where the changes start happening. But even then, he won't even notice. Except for a few changes. If he has facial hair, it will stop growing. His hair will grow faster, and he will notice getting shorter. Eventually, he will notice breasts growing. He might think it's simply man boobs or something. His penis will start to shrink and..."
Just then I came into the room. I didn't hear the conversation. I was just going to the fridge for another drink. All they had was water, which sucked big time. I grabbed one and stepped out of the room. "Nathan, you didn't perhaps take a bottle that wasn't water earlier, did you?" I thought I would get in trouble, so I lied. "Of course not, I just grabbed water and headed to my room. Why was there some other drink in there I didn't know of?"
"No. Maybe I put it in the fridge downstairs." George looked puzzled. "Run along now. Oh, did you find your room alright?"
"Yes," I said with a snarl.
"That's good. By the way, there's a big screen TV in the family room. I bought a PlayStation 87 and many games. I hope you like the choices I chose."
"Thanks," I said. Hmm, maybe this guy isn't bad after all. I went to the family room and found a huge 3D, 16 feet tall, Ultra High Definition, flat screen TV with surround sound. I am in heaven here. My friends would love to come over and play games with me. I turned the TV on. The first thing I noticed was the old horror movie Night of the Living Dead. I jumped a little bit. You would also if you spotted a zombie about the same size as you on the screen. I raced over the phone and dialed my friend Jack. He wasn't busy and said he would come over immediately.
While I waited for him to come over, I went into the kitchen for a bite to eat. Mom and George were still there.
"Nathan, we need to talk, “Mom said to me when I walked in.
"What for you ask? Did I do something wrong?"
"We found this bottle in the recycling bin," George said, looking into my eyes.
"I didn't drink that!" I yelled.
"Don't lie to us, tell us the truth. Did you drink it?" George yelled back at me.
"Why the fuck do you think I drank it?"
"Don't use that language at me! Did you or didn't you?"
"Sweetie," Mom said in a soft voice. "Please tell us if you drank it. It's crucial that you tell the truth."
Sweetie? She has never called me sweetie? "I'm sorry, mom," I started to cry. "I did drink it. I just didn't want to get in trouble. Now I am going to anyways."
My mom started to cry as well. She walked over to me and gave me a big hug.
"I'm sorry as well, sweetie," she said.
"Why exactly are you sorry? I'm the one that drank it and lied to you both."
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. "Uh, mom, my friend is here, can I go, please? I won't lie to you again." Mom excused me, and I answered the door. Jack brought another friend of mine, Mike. We all went into the family room. The next thing you knew, two enormous eyes were staring at the TV.
"Wow!" Jack said. That is one big Mother of a TV."
Mike was checking out the games I have. "Whoa! You got the Legend of Zelda: Guardian of Time? It's not officially released yet. How did you get it?"
"Don't ask me how George got those games."
We started playing a game; we didn't want to play the Zelda game quite yet. We decided to play the fighting game Brutalmania.
After a while, we all got hungry and went to the kitchen to find something to eat. Mom and George were not in there. I found a bucket of chicken from Popeye's, and we all started munching on it. I just hope we don't get in trouble for eating this, like I did when drinking the soda earlier.
"Want to check out the house?" I said after we stuffed our faces. They all agreed enthusiastically. We ran to the stairs. Race you to the top. I said. We both ran as fast as possible. I usually was the fastest runner, but for some reason, I was the slowest. I started feeling queasy. I thought it was just because I was hot. "My room is over here," I said, pointing down the hall. We started walking, and I began getting dizzy.
"Nathan, are you alright?" Jack said, trying to keep me from falling.
"I guess so," I said. "I feel really confused. Help me to my bed."
It wasn't long until I blacked out and fell to the ground.
Beep... Beep... Beep... I kept hearing this annoying beeping sound. Not knowing where it was coming from or why. I slowly opened my eyes. Everything was bright, like I'm staring directly at the sun. My eyes begin to focus. Beep... Beep... Beep... Well, now I know where the beeping is coming from. I stare at a machine in the room I was in. It looked like a hospital room, but it wasn't. The bed was just an ordinary bed. No button to call a nurse or anything.
“Hello?” I call out. I could hear footsteps heading to the door. I expected a nurse or doctor to be coming in. Well, it appears someone was listening. He was wearing a white coat. “Who the hell are you?”
“My name is Alfred,” he said, “I am the assistant to George. I work down in his lab.”
“That explains who you are, but why are you here and why am I here?”
“Why I work here.”
Okay, this is so weird. I am not in a hospital or clinic. There must be one place I must be. Down is George's fucking laboratory. “Why am I down here?” Alfred didn't say anything. He just started typing on a computer located in the room. “What is that you’re doing?” Again, no answer. Now I was getting worried. I wanted to get out of the bed, but I was strapped down. Alfred took an IV Needle and stuck it in my vein and started drawing blood. “What the fuck are you doing” He wasn't listening to me. He left the room with a sample of my blood.
Mom came in after he left.
“Mom, why am I in here?” I cried.
Mom went over and started unstrapping me. “I'm sorry we had to put you in here. It was so George can do some tests on you.”
“Why would he want to do tests?” I said, getting out of the bed.
“I can't explain it fully, but you will find out in a few days.”
“What do you mean?” Mom didn't answer. She just laughed and stepped out of the room. I followed right behind her. I saw Alfred and George in another room. I tried to get in the room, but it was locked from the inside. I looked through the window and saw they were looking at some DNA samples. More likely mine. It didn't make much sense to me. Why me? I went back to find mom. Weird, I couldn't find her anywhere. All my friends have left. I would have hoped they would have stayed with me. I decided to sit on the couch and call them up.
Jack answered. “Nathan? What happened, man?”
“I don't know nobody's telling me anything.”
“You just fainted right before you made it in your room. They told us to leave.”
“I can't do anything at the moment over here, can I come over to your place for a while?”
“Sure man, come right over.”
I went to the door and looked for the car keys. “Damn! Mom must have taken them. I had to ride the bike. I went to the garage and took the ten speeds out. I started to pedal. I didn't go far. The bike wheel was flat. “This is not my day.” I threw the bike and went back inside to the phone.
“Hey Jack, can you come and get me. Mom took the car, and my bike wheel is flat.”
“Sorry man, my dad brought the car to the shop.”
“That's fine. I will just walk there. I went into the kitchen and took something out of the fridge for the trip, and started walking down the long hill.
I walked the bike back to the garage and put it away. Just then I noticed an old plastic sled. Well, I knew it wasn't winter yet, but this would come in handy while trying to get down the hill faster. He took it and away he went. Well, it may be faster, but it wasn't the safest way down. Every bump made him fly in the air and land with a violent crash. He made it to the bottom, but the sled didn't. Well, it did, but in pieces. “So much for my quick way down.”
I ended up walking the rest of the way. Things were going well until I started getting these pains all over. I couldn't take it for much longer. I immediately fell to the ground.
Back at the lab, George checked out the samples.
“Wow!” George said, “Nathan's blood samples are extraordinary. It is rapidly changing from the XY Chromosomes to XX Chromosomes. This isn't normal from what I noticed when I did it to that rabbit a few days ago.
“Well, he did drink the whole bottle. You only gave a small portion to the rabbit.” Alfred explained.
“We got to find him quick. “George ran out of the room, “He won't know what's going on.”
Down the hill, I was just getting up off the ground. Jack was riding his bike when he found me on the ground. He drove over. “I was just coming to see you. I knew you were going down a long hill. “Boy, you need a haircut.”
“What do you mean?” I said, touching my head. “I simply got one a few days ago. What the Fuck!” My hair has grown a few inches since this morning. I was still laying on the ground. I kept getting pains all over my body. Jack helped me up.
“We should get you to the hospital,” he said. I agreed with him wholeheartedly. If I went back to my house, they would end up putting me on the bed and strapping me down again. Besides, it’s easier to go to the hospital than climb that big hill again.
We made it to the hospital in about 3 minutes. It wasn't very hard. We went straight away to the emergency room. I was in so much pain that I collapsed immediately before I was signed in. A bunch of nurses and doctors came rushing over to help me. One nurse brought me a wheelchair so I can sit down right away.
They didn't even have to sign me in. I was immediately sent to a room. A doctor rushed in and checked me over. A nurse came in and asked me my name, address, insurance, and phone number. Since I have been there before, I only needed to tell them my name and address.
I was taken in to check how tall I was and how much I weighed. I was okay with walking for a little bit.
“Stand up straight Nathan,” said the nurse. “Okay, your 5 foot 6 and 130 pounds.”
“Wait!” I was shocked. “I'm not 5 foot 6. Last week I was at 5 feet 11. How can I be shorter?”
The nurse had to double check me again. “Wait, you just turned five feet exactly.” She said shocked, “And now you’re 102 Pounds. Doctor Wheeler, we need assistance right away.” Right away, Doctor Wheeler came over to me.
“What appears to be a problem?”
“I just recorded Nathan 2 times in a row. He claimed he was supposed to be 5 feet 11, but he was 5 feet 6, and then I checked again, and he was 5 feet, a few seconds later.”
“Let me recheck you, son,” Doctor Wheeler asked me. I got up from the chair and stood on the scale again. He checked my height. “Hmm... Strange. You are now at 4 feet 3.” I started freaking out.
“What's wrong with me?” I cried.
“I'm not sure, but let’s take you in to get blood drawn right away.”
At the house, mom was just pulling into the driveway. George came outside. “Have you seen Nathan?”
“No, I have not,” Mom said. “I thought he was still with you when I left to pick up a few groceries.”
“Well, something terrible could be happening to your son right now. Instead of a few days, He will be a girl in a matter of minutes.”
“Oh,” mom said without even panicking. “Well, he will have to learn his lesson from stealing.
Back at the hospital, I am looked at by a few doctors. I was getting bored. I twirled my hair around my finger. “What the fuck!” I yelled, “My hair is really long now?” I noticed my voice was higher now and not as low as I used to be. “What's wrong with me?” I cried.
“We have no idea of what is going on. This is a first for us.”
“Nathan,” a nurse came into the room. “We have tried to call your house, but the number has been disconnected. Do you know another number we can reach your mom at?”
I thought about that for a second. “Well, we did just move into George Russell's House up the hill today. I don't know his number, but I believe he's in the phone directory.”
Just then, a man came into the room. “Sorry for keeping you waiting, Doctor Wheeler. I got the test reports on the blood back.
Doctor Wheeler took it and read some interesting news. He stared blankly at me.
“Well, I have some Good News and Some Bad News.” He said. “The good news is, you’re a healthy little girl.”
“I'm a what?” I said I started to cry.
“Unfortunately, that's also the bad news. Your Chromosomes have turned from XY to XX. Also, you are now a preteen around the age of 10 years.”
“What do you mean? I’m not a girl!” I cry softly. “He is crazy. I got to get out of here,” thinking to myself.
Doctor Wheeler sat at a small table in the room. “We have the lab results. It shows you are now a girl.” He shows me a sheet of paper. I get nervous and start twisting my new long hair around my finger as I listen to the crazy doctor
“If you don’t mind, we would like to do some tests?” He said getting up from the table.
"Well, they're wrong, I feel smaller, but I still am a boy.” I stare at myself in the mirror. I check my baggy clothes, almost falling off me as I hold them up with my hands.
“I will set up the tests…”
“But doctor, I’m scared” I look like I was about to cry, as I play with my long hair again.
“I love your long blonde hair Nathan... or, should it be Natalie?”
“Um, I need to get some other clothes. These are falling off me.” I get scared holding my jeans up, can’t even see my feet.
“The only things we have in your size are these cute hello kitty pajamas.”
“I notice you’re getting shorter every minute.
“But aren’t they for a girl?”
“Natalie, you are a girl.” He said chuckling.
“But, but no, I’m not,” I cry softly.
“Here put these on as well. He says handing me pink panties. You don’t want to wander around with no underwear.
“I still don’t believe I’m a girl.”
“You will when you change into the panties.”
I reach out to take the clothes, and my pants and underwear slide to the floor.
I see him looking the other way and I put on the clothes. I didn't want to see it, but putting on the panties made it hard for me not to notice what I lost and gained done there.
“There you go, young lady.”
“Doctor, I appear so small now. How old are girls that wear these size clothes?”
The doctor smiles at what I said.
"The clothes you're wearing are what five to seven-year-old girls wear.”
“What? Really?” I pouted. I sat down on the bed. “I feel like I need to rest. I feel dizzy.”
Doctor Wheeler helped me into the bed.
I relax lying as my mind goes 100 miles an hour in every direction. “What’s my girlfriend going to think?” I silently thought, as I cry softly to myself.
I close my eyes as the doctor leaves me alone, lying on the bed. The doctor leaves the room.
“I can’t stay here” I open my eyes, “I need to get out of here”. I climb off the bed, noticing how tiny my feet are now. “This is crazy.”
I walk over and open the hospital door. I peer out looking both ways, seeing no one, I simply wander down the hallway. “Dang, I can’t walk home in a girl’s nightgown. I will stand out big time. I need some other clothes.”
I hear someone coming, and I slide into the hospital room closest to me. A nurse walks by with a wheelchair to another room, heading to another place.
I notice a bag on the floor of the empty room. Then a new nurse steps in. Realizing it’s that same nurse. I turn and see the nurse. Thinking to myself; I am caught. The nurse didn't stop, she just kept walking past and towards the nurses station.
I quickly put on the clothes, not noticing until I was finished that I put on a skirt. Not wanting to search for any other clothes, I head out to the hall and walk casually, trying not to be suspicious.
I noticed Doctor Wheeler was walking down the hall, but didn't notice me. He looked like he was more interested in what’s on his clipboard.
I was almost to the exit of the hospital, when I spotted mom wandering in.
I cross my legs together when viewing mom walking towards me.
I turn the other way and head straight for the ladies’ room to hide.
Mom notices me but doesn't do anything. I guess she didn't recognize me. “What a cutie.” she says still going down the hall.
Doctor Wheeler stepped into the room. I was originally in. He was getting ready for some tests that I was supposed to take. He noticed I was gone. He immediately told a nurse. Mom walks up to my room and noticed I was gone as well.
“Excuse me?” She says to a nurse. “Where is my son? He’s supposed to be in this room” The nurse looks at a chart.
“I’m sorry lady; you must have the wrong room. A little girl occupies this. Which at the moment is missing?”
Mom thought for a minute. While walking, she remembered a little girl about a minute ago. She heads to the restroom.
As hide in the restroom, I see my reflection in the mirror for the first time. I was in shock. I looked like my mom when she was little. I saw pictures of her, so I kind of knew what she looked like. I don’t know why, but I started to giggle.
Just then the door opens, and a nurse walks into the restroom looking for me.
I hide, hoping nobody catches me.
The nurse checks under the stalls, but doesn’t find any feet and walks out.
I breathe a sigh of relief and step out of the stall right about the time my mom walks into the room.
“Oh crap!” I just stare up at her.
“Nathan?” Mom said, staring down at me.
"Who?" I say.
That same nurse returned into the room.
"There you are Natalie," she grumbled. "We have been searching for you all over the place."
"Natalie?" Mom repeated my new name. "Is that what you call yourself now?"
"Yes," I cry glancing down at the ground.
"Come on Natalie," the nurse said, taking me by my hand and heading down the hall. "Doctor Wheeler wants to do a few more tests on you."
As we walked out of the hospital, mom held my hand.
"So the doctor told me you are as young as a six year old now," mom told me.
"A six year old?" I whined.
"Yes," Mom laughed. "And because of that, he gave me a booster seat for you to sit in while we are in the car."
We walk to the car. mom puts in the booster seat, and I sulk as I watch.
“Why can’t I just sit in a regular seat?”
“It’s the law of the state," Mom told me, "You have to be in a booster seat until you grow taller. Now come on. We have to make it to the airport to pick up Jennifer.
"Oh great, Jennifer," I thought. "Just what I need, my sister seeing me like this."
"But mom!" I cry as we head into the mall at the airport.
"No butts!” mom scolded, "It's dresses and skirts, no pants"
I cry as we step into the building
Your sister won't be here for a few minutes, so this gives us plenty of time to buy a dress for you to wear and show off to her.
We head into a store called ‘Just Girls’ I felt angry. I gazed down at the floor and saw a picture of a clubhouse. with a sign saying “Girls only, no boys allowed.”
“Just Girls?” I thinking to myself. "Good luck finding pants now"
We step in and find all kinds of cute clothes. A sign that says "Why wear pants?"
“Fantastic, this sucks!” I whisper.
A sales lady walks up to us. “What a cute little girl? How old are you?”
"She's six."
I look around not realizing I am still holding mom’s hand like a toddler and staring at a dress.
“Do you like that dress? I notice you keep staring at it,” the saleslady said looking at me.
“ Um, no, I wasn’t staring at it,” I lied. “Just looking around the store.”
Mom whispered to the sales lady, “I will get that dress for her.”
I see them talking, but can’t hear what they’re saying.
“Come on Natalie, let’s look for clothes,” mom says. “You pick, and I will decide.”
We make it to see Jennifer just in time. I was wearing the new dress I was looking at earlier. I didn't expect mom to actually get it.
As we walk, I see Jennifer, and I put my head down as I hold mom’s hand.
Jennifer runs up to us and hugs mom. Hi mom.” She looks down at me, “Who's the little girl?”
“This is Natalie, your sister.”
I look up at Jennifer smiling down at me.
“Welcome back sis,” I say.
“ Nathan?”
“No," I sigh. I'm Natalie now.”
“How'd you become a little girl?” she giggles.
“Long story," I'll explain in the car ride home."
We start walking towards the exit to the parking lot.
As we turned the corner, I saw Jennifer stop in her tracks.
"Look over there?” Jennifer cried. mom and I glance towards where Jen is pointing. We see a woman struggling to escape these three weird looking people with no luck.
One took huge bite out of her arm.
mom drops her purse and almost screamed in pure horror.
“Holy shit, did you see that?” I curse, but no one cares because we are watching, as one of the weird watching people takes a bite out of the woman's throat, and blood is squirting everywhere.
“Look at those other's, they are biting her too,” I say watching. The lady stops screaming as she dies, and they just pile on her, noticing blood everywhere.
We stare in shock and observe all around as we stand there watching. “This is crazy. I feel like we are in the show “The Walking Dead.” I say then turn and look at mom and Jen with their hands over their mouth’s, standing in shock.
Mom and Jen turn and see me staring at as a lady taking a chunk out of some old lady's neck about ten feet from us. She bites into her neck, blood squirts everywhere, and extensive veins oozing out more blood.
We start backing up into the store next to the restrooms and discover a security guard laying in a pool of blood with his head beaten in. “Mom, this is crazy, but on the walking dead, they shoot the zombies in the head, and they die. That security guard looks gross, but he has a gun on his side and also looks at his ankle that must be his back up like they have on TV.”
“I have no idea how to shoot a gun.” I look at each other, and mom and Jen appear more scared than me. I won't tell them that I am so scared I almost pee myself when I saw that first person get killed.
Jen turn and screams. “Mom, look, those two zombies are turning towards us, what do we do?” Jen says standing there staring at mommy. I look at mommy, and she has her hands over her mouth in shock or something not responding.
“Jen, you're closer to that security guard, grab his gun and point it at the zombie and pull the trigger.” Jen does exactly that. She takes the gun out of the security guard's holster, aims it at the zombie closest, pulls the trigger and shoots him in the chest. The zombie still keeps sauntering towards us.
Jen turns and stares at me this time. “Jen, use both your hands and aim at his head. On TV, that is what kills them.” My sister says nothing. She is acting like a robot with no feeling and quickly aims at the head.
BANG!
She hits the zombie in the head, and it drops to the ground.
“Excellent shot Jen, that’s what we have to do, shoot the other one while I get his back up pistol around his ankle.” I run over to the guard, and it is not that easy to get the gun off his ankle, but I do it and run back to mom and Jen.
Mom stares at me and then at Jen. “Natalie, you're only six years old, you shouldn’t be holding a gun.” I look at her like she is stoned or something.
“You have to be kidding mom, before I was changed into this little girl's body, I used to shoot paintball wars with my buddies. I am pretty good by the way, but do you know how to shoot a gun? Mom, these are way heavier now than when I was a 16-year-old boy.
Mom looks at me. “No, I never shot a gun or even had one in my hand,” Mom says while staring at me holding the small pistol in my hand down on my side.
BANG! BANG!
We see Jen shot another one of the zombies.
“Good shot Jen, but remember to try to go with one shot, one kill, not like a video game or in the movies where they never run out of ammo.” I notice Jen stare at me, and her eyes open wide.
I turn and just as I turn, I hear a mommy scream as a zombie grabs her by the shoulder, and he moves his blood dripping mouth to mommy's neck. I turn and lift the pistol up, and just put it under the zombie’s throat, and I pull the trigger.
BANG!
When I pull the trigger, you can see the blood shoot out of the top of the zombie's head, and my arm and side are covered in blood and chunks of brain. Way freaking disgusting, looks like spaghetti all over me.
“Great, you saved mom, Natalie.” I look at mommy and she is screaming, but no sound is coming out of her mouth because blood has landed all over her face too.
I feel a hand on my shoulder, and I turn quickly and see it is Jen. “Man, you scared the crap out of me, Jen.”
“Oh, don’t be such a drama queen.” I stare at her smiling face. “That was awesome that you saved mom, I would have never been able to shoot that far away.”
I look up at her. “I am not a drama queen!”
“Mom, are you okay? Remember, I saved you the next time you want to ground me or give me a spanking.” Jen and I notice mommy laughing uncontrollably.
Mom comes close and hugs both of us. “Thank you, sweetie. You saved my life. Thank you again, sweetheart, but there are way too many of them, we need to get out of here.”
The moment we hear the words that came out of mom's mouth, we hear a loud crash. We three turn and observe over 100 of them coming through the glass wall and glass doors into the airport. “We need to go, and we need to go now, run!” Mom screams, and we run in the opposite direction of the wave of slow-moving zombies coming our direction.
“Mom, where are we running too? There seem to be zombies everywhere. The only good thing is they are so sluggish,” Jen asks mom while we are running.
I look at mom like Jen, and mom is just staring at the slow-moving zombie. “I don’t know where to go or which way to go, all I know is I don’t want to be near these zombie things.”
“Mom, we know we can kill them, but we will run out of bullets. I think we should go to a sporting good place in this airport so we can get more bullets to protect ourselves.”
Jen looks at me. “Why the hell would an airport have a sporting goods store or even bullets in the first place?”
“Well, I know they have a sporting goods department in Pawxie. They have everything we could need.” Mom and Jen glance at me. “We are heading the right direction too.”
I can see my 14-year-old sister staring at me. “I think that is a wonderful idea. I will be in front like I am, and you stay turned to the back, and mom seems out of it, so she will be in the middle okay?”
“Sounds good.” Jennifer turned to eye contact with me, and she trips over one of the zombies, dead people, parts or blood she slips and lands on the floor. “Are you okay sis? They get pretty close to us up and hold onto mom. I am too small to hold your weight.”
I watch as Jen leans up against mom, and it looks like her ankle is sprained or twisted, or something because it is starting to swell up. “Jen, keep your shooting arm up, so if we are surprised, you can defend yourself. I guess I will lead now and you watch our backs, sis, okay?”
“Okay, I am fine, just don’t leave me here to get eaten by these crazy looking zombies.” I can tell she is crying softly.
Another 100 feet and we will be there. “We are almost there, just stay near the wall, so we only have to look in front of us. Jen, can you make it too Pawxie? Look, you can see the entrance.”
“Yes, yes I can, but don’t leave me behind.” Mom and Jen hold each other, and we are big time screwed if one of us gets any more hurt.
There is a security guard laying against the wall in a pool of blood, but he has no weapons. He is laying underneath some control cabinet with a key hanging from it. “Hey, do you see the dead security guard over there?” It looks like he was trying to turn the security on, and those steel gates come down when the store is closed. If we could get that gate down, we would be safely inside sears.”
“But there are zombies inside Pawxie too,” Jen says as mom looks to me and then at Jen.
I watch mom grab Jen so that she can hold her better. “Natalie is right, if we can lock ourselves in there, then no more zombies can come in there, and we just have to kill the ones still inside. I have to carry your sister. Natalie, you are the one that has to turn that key or something to shut the gates.”
“Okay, I can do it. Like I have a choice, I have to do it.” We continue to move, and now we are inside Pawxie, and I run from mom and Jen and discover the key. I have no idea which way or what to do, and the zombies are almost up to us. I am running out of time.
I glance quick at the stainless steel switch and dial, and I notice all kinds of letters, and one says, Code Adam. I turn it to that, and the steel gates start to come down with red lights flashing. I look farther and can see all the windows and glass doors are all being secured by the steel fence coming down. Over the loudspeakers, you can hear a voice speaking. “This is a Code Adam, there is a missing child in the store, and all the windows and doors are now being secured. The police are being called, everyone stay calm.”
“How did you do that Natalie.” I hear mom and Jen saying simultaneously, so mom lets Jen down, so they can both catch their breaths.
The gate is secure. The zombies reach the steel wall, fence, and they make weird variety of noises, but they cannot come in. “We had the police come to our school last year when I was in high school. The police told us about a boy kidnapped in a store, and they made it known that a Code Adam would lock down any store. So I guess when I saw the words on the dial that said ‘Code Adam', I turned to that and got lucky.”
BANG! BANG!
Mom and I turn, and Jen is pointing her smoking gun at a zombie behind me. I watch as it falls to the ground. “Thanks, Jen, I guess we can never let our guard down. The second we take a break, we almost were killed.”
“Let’s get to the sporting goods department and get some more bullets.” We slowly start to move towards the signs that say camping, and there is blood, guts, and a live zombie on the floor moving its head, and its only arm making noise as we pass by it.
“Man, that is seriously gross, I mean it’s bad enough that these things kill you, but they mess your hair up, and make you look so ugly and gross too.”
I gaze at her and then at mom. We both start busting up laughing. “Are you okay Jen?" I laugh, "These zombies are eating people alive and killing them, and you’re worried about your hair.” Mom and I giggle staring at Jen.
“Well, at least I'm not naked. I mean, wouldn’t that be the worst thing ever to turn into a zombie, and be naked?” I mean, is there anything worse?”
I look at Jen, and I believe she is in shock. “Your right, maybe I should get my hair done and my nails like you, so I look like a pretty zombie with my head bitten off, at least I will have pretty nails.” Mom and I shake our heads.
“Yeah, know Natalie, we are going through the girl's department.” I roll my eyes. Didn't we just go shopping for me earlier? I look around and see all the dresses. I turn around and see mom putting a dress on a hanger up to the back of me. “Oh, this will look so cute on you sweetheart.”
I shake my head. “I can't believe you, mom, one minute you’re in shock and can't talk, and the next you’re picking dresses out.”
BANG!
Mom and I both turn at the gunshot. Jen just shot another zombie. Mom continued searching through the dresses.
“Mom, are you serious? I mean those zombies could be back any second." I stop and gaze at a dress. "Oh, that dress looks pretty." I shake my head, getting my mind on track again. "I mean we are in Pawxie, packed with freaking zombies trying to kill us, and you're looking through dresses?”
BANG!
Jen shots another zombie as it falls to the ground. I glance back at her.
“Okay, let’s get out of here girl's.” We hear mom say. We start to move slowly.
All of a sudden, mom screams and several zombies are grabbing her from the back. Jen and I turn simultaneously, and we both shoot, but both the zombies fall on top of mom. “Go save yourselves, girl's, I am done for!”
The dead zombies fall over mom, and several live ones start climbing or falling over them and start coming after us. “We better run Natalie.” I glance back, and I can't even see mom anymore, as the zombies entirely cover her up after they fell on top of her, with the other's climbing over them trying to bite us.
“Okay, I am coming, you check the front, and I’ll watch the back,” I say.
BANG! BANG!
I shoot one super ugly zombie who was having a terrible hair day and is coated with her or someone else’s blood.
After I kill that one, I get closer to Jen, and we run full blast over to the sporting goods department, and the wall is packed with rifles, shotguns, and all types of weapons. We both hide behind the counter, and a notice box after box of bullets.
“Look Natalie, you are right. Look at all the bullets. Why would an airport have so many guns and bullets?” She asked me. She looks at each box. "How do we know what size we need, they're are all different sizes?”
I look at the boxes. I wasn't even sure.
"Don't worry, Natalie, I figured it out. She puts bullets into the gun she was holding.
"Here take these," she says, pushing them across the floor towards me.
I take them out of the box and open my gun. To my surprise, there was only one left. I start filling it back up.
“Wow sis, I was on my last bullet.” I continue to load more bullets.
Jen looks through the top of the counter. “I don’t see any more zombies, maybe we killed all of them.” I gaze over at her doing the same thing I am loading up. “Maybe we are safe now. I can't believe mom is gone now.” I hear her start to cry.
“No sis, don’t make any noise. On TV, what attracts the zombies is sound. We can cry for mom later when we are safe. I still think there are more out there.” I continue to load up.
Jen stops crying, and I notice her staring at the semi-automatic rifles. “Hey, little sis, did you ever shoot one of these kinds of guns?” They look like they hold a lot more bullets than these pistols.
“No, I never shot one of those, but then again, I never shot a real gun until a while ago, I only shot paintball guns before, so how hard can it be to shoot one of those rifles? I guess you just point and pull the trigger, how hard can that be.” I watch as Jen rubs her ankle moaning.
I stand up slowly, seeing a few zombies.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
“Wow, that was cool as anything. Did you see that?”
I was more surprised how fast that automatic rifle went off. I look over and see the zombie still advancing towards us, but a lot slower. “You shot him right in the balls Jen. What the heck kind of show was that? You need to shoot them in the head to kill them.”
“I know little sister, but he’s not a he anymore, he’s an 'it', since it doesn’t have any balls or a dick and it won't be making any babies.” Jen giggles, and then I shake my head, and I start giggling too.
Jen stands back up and points the rifle and shoots one shot between the eyes, it falls to the ground. We both laugh at each other until we hear lots of growling near us as we both turn. “Oh crap there right on top of us,” I say as I pick up my gun, but they're so close.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
I watched as Jennifer blew all those zombies away. My little gun wouldn't have been able to do that.
I start to pout.
"Hey, I got an idea. Why don't we attempt to call 911 and tell them we are trapped in Pawxie, and we can't get out because of all the zombies."
Hearing that from Jen makes me think, is the whole world like this or only in Mantri, Kansas?. "That's a splendid idea, Jen, do you still have your cell phone?" I notice her pulling it out of her purse and waves it to me. "I will stand guard while you call them."
"Okay, it is ringing" It is so quiet I can hear her phone ringing while the phone is up against her head. "No one is answering the phone, that's not a good sign." I hear Jen saying.
I continue to look to the left, rather than to the right, and see no zombies. "You know what Jen, maybe if we go on the roof, we will have a better reception, and maybe contact someone."
"Yeah, that's an excellent idea, Natalie." I noticed when we went through the kids area, there was a closet open and a metal ladder in it. I bet it goes to the roof." I keep looking around listening to Jen. "Okay, I will put some ammo into my purse, so we have some when we leave here."
I see how tiny her purse is. "You have to be kidding sis, that is tiny. We need something bigger." I watch as Jen picks up a small backpack with hello kitty on it, she hands it to me.
"Here you can carry some supplies in this backpack, plus it will look cute on you because it matches your dress." I take the hello kitty backpack and put half a dozen bullets in it.
I notice Jen has the same type of stuff in her backpack. "Are you ready, Natalie?" I stare at her, putting her bag on her shoulder.
"Yes, I am ready, I will follow you, and I will be watching our back so none of these zombies can sneak up on us."
We start slowly walking without making any noise, like some sort of Special Forces or recon marines. The only difference is we are two small girls wearing dresses, one with a princess backpack and me with a hello kitty backpack filled with ammo.
A few minutes later, we are moving through the kids area, and Jen stops in front of the closet. "Okay, I think this is it, Natalie. It looks like the coast is clear, so you up the ladder first."
"Okay, but you come right after me. I close the door, and the zombies won't open the door, and if we have to come back, we will know there's none in here okay?"
I look down and see Jen staring up at me climbing up the metal ladder bolted right to the wall. I hear her giggling below me. "What's so funny Jen? I can hear you are giggling from up here."
I can see up your dress. I hear her continue to giggle. "Now I understand why boys look up girls skirts. How do you feel having someone look up your skirt now that you're a girl?
I ignore her.
As I get to the top of the ladder, I push on it and the top swings open. It was dark outside. It was a bit hard to see, but with the lights still on from the airport, I could look at some things. I climb out onto the roof, looking around, making sure we don't have any unwanted visitors. "Okay Jen, it seems safe up here."
"Okay, I will try 911 again Natalie," Jen says, looking all-serious at me.
I smile at her. "Do you need the number for 911 Jen?" We both turn at each other and laugh, and we hear the cell ringing over, and over, but no one is answering. The phone must have rung forever, and still, no one answered.
"Well, little sister, we are only a few stores down from McDonald's. Let's see if we can find that roof access and climb down there and get some food. Are you as hungry as me?"
I straighten up my dress. "You bet I am starving, I could eat a horse, well, as long as it wasn't a zombie horse. I giggle."
We start to walk across a few rooftops access, Jen opens one, and bingo says McDonald's all over the boxes at the bottom of the new metal ladder.
"I reckon we struck gold, this is the one, McDonald's. Let's hope and pray we get lucky, and they have food." I watch as Jen goes down the ladder before me.
I start giggling after I close the hatch. "Why are you giggling, Natalie?" I look down at her again.
"Well, we are on another ladder, and you are under me. I bet you can see my panties again."
Jen looks up at me. "You are weird."
Jen starts to turn the doorknob slowly, and I aim my rifle in the direction in front of us. It's dark again as I watch Jen's hand reach over and turn the light switch on. "Oh crap, look there is a dead zombie on the floor, he has a hole in his head. I hate when that happens."
"That's not funny, Natalie." We both look around, not seeing anything or anybody. "I wonder how this zombie was killed?" I don't see anyone else around. We move further into the store and see no one else there dead or alive.
I sit at one of the benches and put my gun on the table, lifting my legs onto the bench. The moment I get relaxed, I hear. "Natalie wake up." I take the gun and see Jen aiming hers towards a dark shadow advancing towards us. Just as I am trying to focus, I can see better.
"Girl's don't shoot me, I am your mother after all." The second we hear her voice, we know she isn't a zombie, plus her hair still looks pretty, so that for sure makes her no zombie.
Jen and I both run over and hug her. "What happened mom? We saw the zombies climbing all over you. We wouldn't have never left you there, but we thought you were done for."
"It's okay. They must have knocked me out when they fell on me, and both of you shot them all so none bit or eaten me so to speak, so I just started to search for you both. I see you both close the door to that closet, but by the time I got there, I had to shoot my way to it, and I didn't want any following me."
We both continue to hug mom, listening to her explain her adventure. (Another Hollywood moment unbelievable)
"I am starving, and I guess since you both wanted to come here, you both must be as hungry as me. I will cook some food. Why don't you both rest up and I will cook us a little something." I smile and eyes Jen smiling simultaneously.
I go and sit back at my table, putting my rifle back on the table.
As I sit at the table, I stick my tongue at Jen, and she only smiles back at me sitting across from me at the same table. "This may take a while, so just take a nap, and I will wake you both when dinner is made, girls."
I close my eyes. A short while later, I am out cold and almost snoring. "Mom, can you hear little Natalie?"
"Yes, she must be tired, she even has cute little snores." Jen smiles as she watches me sleep. "Doesn't she look like the cutesiest laying there?"
Mom smiles.
I must have had a bad dream because Jen and mom heard me crying. Mom came over and cuddled me. I was sitting up. "Please don't cry." Mom smiled, trying to comfort me.
"I can't; I'm too scared the zombies will get us."
You don't have to worry. I checked the doors, making sure they were locked."
"I don't think I can sleep, could you sing me a song?"
"Natalie, just try to sleep."
"Please mom, just once."
"Oh, alright," I closed my eyes and listened to her beautiful voice. 'Will I sing like her someday?' I thought.
When I was just a little girl, I asked my mother, What will I be? Will I be pretty? Will I be rich? Here's what she said to me. Que sera, sera, Whatever will be, will be, The future's not ours to see, Que sera, sera. What will be, will be"
I wake up to the smell of Sausage and eggs. Mom was cooking on a strange grill. I looked around, and it seemed like I was in a restaurant. Confused, I looked around. “How did I get here?” I thought to myself. I gaze at the entrance to the restaurant. The chain fence was down. Hundreds of people were there wanting in. They were repulsive people. Looking like monsters.
Wait... those are zombies. My mind went blank for a second.
I notice Jennifer sitting at the table. I walk over to her and watch the zombies banging at the chain door.
"I hope they don't come in," I told Jennifer.
"I doubt they will," Jennifer said. "They've been trying for awhile now, the fence is like the one at Pawxie."
Mom brings over a plate of 3 pancakes, two eggs, and a sausage patty.
I slowly ate my food. I was thinking of the good old days when I would sit at home playing video games on Okra, a video game streaming service that out beat Twitch and YouTube. My friends would join in. I was also a partner and made money through subscriptions and power points.
I wasn't as popular as the famous JackTheSepticGuy, Marcuspliers or even PussyPie.
"Natalie, lets go!" Mom said, waking me up from my day dream. She had a bag in her hands. From the look of it, it was food from the restaurant.
I noticed the zombies were no longer at the gate.
Jennifer found a way to keep the zombies away. Not sure what it is.
The roof was empty. Which was good. I didn't want to see any zombies. I stayed close to mom. We looked down from the roof. As I expected, there were zombies all over the place, but they were scattered all around.
“This reminds me of the movie Dawn of the Dead, where they were on the roof of a mall, just like us,” I said looking down at all the zombies. “but in that movie, they chase us. These zombies are pretty slow. I believe we can outrun them.”
Mom was looking at her car from a distance. “We just have to make it to the car.”
“How can we do that?" I groaned. "Act like zombies like they do in Shaun of the Dead? This isn't a movie. This is real life.”
“We can find a dead zombie and smear ourselves with its stink, to smell like them. Exactly like that episode of the Walking Dead.”
“Eeew, Gross mom, I am not doing that,” Jennifer complained.
I glance at Jennifer. In her pocket was a cell phone. “How about you call someone on your phone?”
“I don't think there is any signal...” She says looking at her phone. “...Oh, wait there is?” The battery is low, but enough to call out for help. Mom takes the phone.
“I know the perfect guy to call.” She presses the buttons on the phone and walks away talking to someone on the other end. Jennifer and I look at each other. We were confused and wondered who she was talking to.
She got off the phone a minute later and sat down on the ground, smiling.
“Who did you call?” I asked.
“George.” She said still smiling. “He's on his way to get us.” We sat down next to mom and waited patiently.
“What about all that food we got in our bags.” Jennifer asked, holding up her bag.”
“Well, we can still use it at the...”
“I'm starving!” I interrupted.
“Natalie, it's not polite to interrupt people.
“Sorry mom,” I cried. Just then we heard beeping coming from under the mall walls. It was George.
“That was quick,” Jennifer said, glancing at the clock on her phone. We watched him run over zombie after zombie in his path. When he got to the building, we had to jump. The troubling thing is, he brought the truck of manure. We didn't want to jump in it, but that was the only way to get down without hurting ourselves.
“Hey, it beats smelling like a dead zombie carcass.” Mom said. We both agreed.
“But I am the first to take a shower when we get back to the house,” Jennifer said with a frown. The truck drove off and was on the way back to the house. I peeked out of the truck. Noticing zombies everywhere. Were we like the last people on Earth? I thought. Just then the truck stopped.
“What's going on, George?” Mom yelled at him.
“We ran out of fuel,” he yelled back. “I didn't expect to run out this fast.”
“What are we going to do?”
“We're going to have to run for it.”
I look back and see hundreds slowly heading our way.
BANG BANG BANG
Jennifer and George were shooting off the zombies. I didn't have my gun, otherwise I would have helped. Either I left it at the restaurant, or I dropped it somewhere. The shooting went silent. I fell to the ground and everything went dark.
I woke up from a bell.
A bell? Sounded like a doorbell. I looked around and realized I wasn't on the ground anymore. I was in my bedroom at the house.
I stare out the window. It was light outside. Must have been daytime.
“Hello Jack,” Jennifer was downstairs and opened the door. I can hear her from my room. "How are you doing?"
“I'm doing fine, is Nathan around?”
“Yes, let me get her,” she said walking to the stairs.
“Her?” he said, confused.
“Natalie, your friend Jack is here.”
“Natalie?” this time he was baffled.” He went to the kitchen and grabbed a drink from the fridge. It was in a bottle that looked like a soda. But when he drank it, it tasted nasty. Not drinking the whole thing, he puts it back in the fridge.
I came for Nathan, not a girl named Natalie.” I came running down the stairs. “Especially a little girl like her.”
“Jack!” I screamed. “So glad you made it. I am so bored.”
"Who are you?" He asked.
“Nathan... er... I mean Natalie now." I stare at the floor.
"Is this some kind of joke?" Jack laughed.
"It's a long story," I said.
Jack was confused. All of a sudden, he started to feel dizzy and fell the table and straight to the floor. It caused such a commotion, I hear George and Mommy running upstairs from the basement where they were.
They noticed Jack was on the floor.
George ran to the fridge. “Did he drink this soda?” He asked. “It's half empty.”
“I don't know. He might have. He went in here when I was getting Natalie.”
“I believe he drank the special formula, just like Natalie did.”
I was confused. “I drank that formula?” I said, pointing at it.
“Yes, you did. That's how you became a little girl.” He put the bottle on the counter. “I knew I should have put it in the fridge downstairs, but I thought it was safe here. With just girls, Alfred and me in the house.” He picked up Jack and brought him down to the basement into a little room, put him down on the bed. Jack was still laying there. He looked so peaceful. I sat down next to him. With my own eyes, I watched him slowly turn into a little girl. I started freaking out. "How could this be happening?"
“My fellow Americans. Everyone knows the Isisraxtosa virus is spreading rapidly. Every major city in the United States, including Washington, D.C. itself, has known cases of this virus. If there is any way of beating this, we have not gotten word of it. We believe they started in the country of Argentina...”
Mom turned off the TV. I was glad she did. George came into the room from downstairs. He was still watching over Jack after turning into a girl.
He didn't appear cheerful. He couldn't stop pacing. He stopped talking to everyone in the room. Too much on his head. But after a few minutes of pacing, he stopped. “How could I have done this?” he said.
“What did you do?” mom asked, putting her arm around his shoulder.
“I'm just wondering what country those zombies came from?” George said after a few seconds.
“Argentina,” I cried out. “Jennifer's plane had it on board. They are coming out of the Mantri International Mall and Airport as we speak.”
“Shit!” George ran back downstairs. We could hear him talking to Alfred.
“Honey, what is wrong?” mom said. “Is there something you need to tell me?”
We marched downstairs and listened from the stairway.
George checked through lots of paperwork at his desk. “Alfred and I have been working on a formula to help with a Plague in Argentina. This Plague was making people ill and even die. So we offered to help. I believe they called the Plague, Geocera, and the formula we made, I had named it...” He stopped for a second and looked up at mom. “Isisraxtosa.”
“You created the most deadly virus in the world?” I screamed getting off the stairs.
“It wasn't a virus when we made it. We even tested it out on a few people here in the United States. You may know them lab-rats or Human Guinea Pigs.” He looked closer to me. “In fact, Natalie and Jack had some of it when they drank that bottle.”
I stepped into the room. “You mean, that drink was the Isisraxtosa Virus?”
“No, it wasn't a virus. You did drink the Isisraxtosa, but it was also a mix of my gender changing formula.
I noticed Jack was lying on the bed playing a video game. I went over to him.
"I'm confused." I looked back at George. “If Jack and I drank the formula, how come we didn't turn into zombies as well?”
“Because you didn't have the Geocera Plague,” he explained. It's a mix of those two that caused the zombie virus. I tested out on people sick, but it wasn't the Geocera. They felt better, so I figured we could send the formula to Argentina to stop the plague from spreading to everybody else.”
“Then why are people turning into zombies here in the states?” I asked.
“Haven't you seen the movies?”
“Yeah, they are all fake compared to this real virus. “I pouted.
“No, actually that wasn't all true. If a zombie bites you, you would also turn into one after a few seconds, just like the movie World War Z.”
“So, movies can help with the Apocalypse?” I cheered.
“In a way, yes. But cutting off a body part may not work. Remember blood flows through your body very fast. If you got bit, you wouldn't even have time to cut off that part.”
“So basically we are all fucked” I cried.
“Natalie!” mom scolded me. “Language!”
“Sorry,” I said quietly.
Just then I heard some beeping coming from a nearby computer. Alfred ran over to it.
“Dr. Russel,” We have a problem!”
“What is it, Alfred?” George said heading over to him.
“Your satellite shows a swarm of zombies heading this way.”
George ran over to a huge button on the wall and pressed it. We hear lots of noise. I started freaking out.
“Don't worry Natalie, that's just the sound of the force field I have going around the whole building.”
“How long will that last?” Mom asked.
“The house is set on Solar Power. We have over a hundred of them on this house. If everything goes well, we can live in this house for many years before the power goes dead. The worst that could happen is if somehow the sun goes away and there is total darkness for more than a week, than the power could turn off.”
“What about food?” Jennifer asked.
“We have the food I brought from McDonalds,” mom said with a smile.
I look at my friend. “What about Jack? He loves to eat.
“Jack will be fine here as well, I have plenty of MRE's, George said, showing us a room full of boxes.”
"What about your parents?" I ask Jack. "Won't they worry about you?"
“Nathan... Um... Natalie." Jack corrected, "My parents went on a trip for the week. Something to do with a second honeymoon. George said it was okay to stay here with you for the week.”
I looked at him, or should I tell her and start giggling. “How will they react to you being a girl?” I asked
Jack laughed. “How are they going to react with the zombies?”
“There's widespread panic, all over the city. Most communities are without telephones, many without power, and some without water, at this time. Scientists at the CDC have released this statement. The bodies of the recently dead are returning to life. Driven by an unknown force that drives the brain to function. People trapped, or unable to get to the safety of their own homes. We are giving a list of rescue stations on the screen.”
“I am so glad we have a safe place to stay for a while,” I said while watching the newscast on kitchen television.
Mom watched out the window. The zombies are coming toward the house. The force field did its job. Just hope nothing goes wrong.
Jennifer was in the family room watching a movie. I would also go in there, but she decided to watch Resident Evil 6: The Final Chapter. Not sure why she wanted to. There were zombies in that movie. It would give me the creeps. If the zombies were not outside, I would have watched it. I believe Jennifer is watching this movie, to scare me the most. I know I have seen lots of Zombie movies and shows. I can think of some at the top of my head. I guess my favorite would be Zombieland. But nothing can beat the Walking Dead.
Jack, or should I say Jill... Yeah, she decided to use Jill. The whole Jack and Jill thing. Well, anyways, Jill and I decided to make cookies. Why do we waste food, you say? It keeps our mind off the monsters standing outside.
“So Jill, did you go up this hill, to fetch a pail of water?” I giggled.
“Haha,” Jill said. “Very funny.”
We finished making the cookies. They were Chocolate Chip. Me and my sister's favorite. Jennifer smelt it from the family room, and next thing I knew, she was behind me. I turned around and jumped.
“God Jen, don't do that!” I cried.
“Is that what I think it is?” She asked sniffing the air.
“Yes, it is,” I said, offering her one.
“I'm watching the movie. I couldn't watch it. Want to watch Cartoon Network?”
I was excited. “Yeah!” I ran into the family room and turned the channel to 176. I sat down on the couch. The next thing I noticed was the channel was not working.
“Jen!” I cried. “I can't see the show.” Jennifer came into the room. She glanced at the television.
“Oh, sorry, little sis,” she said. “It seems like all the channels are broadcasting the Emergency Alert System.
I was disappointed.
Later that night, I was lying in bed, when I heard a ruckus downstairs. I wasn't sure what it was, but it scared the living daylights out of me.
“What was that?” I asked when I ran to the staircase.
“Don't come down here,” mom yelled. “A zombie somehow broke through the barrier of the force field.”
“I thought you said it would protect us?” I cried.
I could hear George in the basement calling up the stairs. “Sometimes there are flaws in things I make. You already know that from the Isisraxtosa virus I created.”
“Don't forget it also changed Jack and me into a girl,” I yelled.
“It's Jill!” I heard my friend yell.
“So how are you doing to get this zombie?” I asked.
There was no answer. Everything was quiet. All I heard was the sounds of moaning from outside. It was getting on my nerves.
“If I had a gun, I would shoot all of them!” I yelled.
I went down the stairs. It was so quiet. Next thing I knew, I saw the zombie. It was inside the house. I screamed, which wasn't a smart thing. It saw me and started heading towards me. All the others were barricaded in the basement. I can't believe they left me alone with a zombie.
It was getting close to me. I was running, but it was quick. I didn't know what to do. I didn't have any weapons. I ran to the family room. The best thing I could do was find something to kill it with. I spotted a lamp. I threw it at the monster. It didn't do anything. The zombie is about to devour me. I wish someone could help.
I was cornered. The zombie was a few feet from me. I started crying. I was curled up in the corner, helpless. I was crying so much I couldn't even see the zombie. This would be the end of me. I just knew it.
Just then, the zombie fell to the floor.
“What happened?” I cried. I looked up and saw Jill. She was holding a bloody kitchen knife. I could see she had tears in her eyes. So did I.
She ran over to me and hugged me.
“I can't believe you saved me,” I sobbed.
“I didn't want to lose my best friend,” she cried on my shoulder.
“Who let the zombie into the house?” I asked, “And why did you and the others go into the basement?”
“Your mother kept the door open, for some fresh air,” she said. “They went to the basement, I ran into the closet for shelter.”
“So they left you and me up here to face the zombie alone?”
“Some parents you have.”
We marched to the basement door. I tried to open it, but it was locked. I pounded on it. They wouldn't even open it. They must have thought we were the zombie.
“Mom! Jennifer!” I screamed.
They didn't even open the door. I started crying.
I noticed the door was still open and shut it. I also locked it. “I can't believe mom opened this door.”
I gazed out the window. I could see hundreds, maybe thousands of zombies. I was freaking out. I just hope they don't find out how to cross the barrier, like the other one. I stare down at the dead zombie. It smells nasty. We had to get rid of it somehow. Jill and I took the zombie and moved it to the front door. Watching out the door to see if there weren't any zombies, I opened the door, and we threw him outside. Before I shut the door, I stared at the sky. From a distance, I could see dark clouds and lightning. It didn't look like any clouds I have ever seen.
”Jill looks at that,” I said, pointing towards the sky.
“Oh my God!” she said.
“What is it?” I asked.
“It's a wall cloud,” she cried. She didn't appear delighted. I have a feeling something wasn't right.
“What's a wall cloud?” I asked while shutting and locking the door.
“It can sometimes be a threatening cloud.” She explained. We looked out the window at the sky. It was a greenish color. “Now I am worried.”
“Why is that?” I started panicking.
She didn't say anything. She was still gazing at the clouds. But then, heavy hail started falling with lots of rain. The hail displayed huge, like baseball-sized hail. I could see the zombies were getting hit by them. Some were falling over.
“Look!” she said, pointing out at the clouds.
What we saw was the most frightening thing we have ever seen, besides the zombies. The wall cloud had just created a funnel cloud, and it was lowering down to the ground. It just produced a tornado, and it was heading straight for us.
We ran to the basement door and started pounding harder and screaming. Still no answer, we tried to break the door down. No luck. Being so little, we couldn't even make a dent. Mom, Jennifer, George, and Alfred were down there, and they didn't care if we were up here.
We could hear the sound of a train. We don't have trains here in Mantri. The train sound was getting louder. I doubt they will sound the tornado sirens now, due to the zombie apocalypse going on. We had to get away from the house. I didn't want to leave my mom and sister, but there was no choice.
We ran to the kitchen. Jill helped by packing a few food items, and then we were out the door. We ran to the car, and I started it. It's not easy to start a car without keys, but it's a good thing I was taught. There were many zombies out there. I hesitated to leave the house, but I had to.
“Let's pray this car can go through the force field and not kill us when we do,” I said.
Jill, under the steering wheel, hit the gas and we were off. I was kneeling on the seat. I was too little to even see the road if I was sitting. I screamed as we broke through the barrier. Zombies were everywhere. I could see lots of them hitting the car as we went. We were both screaming now. I looked in the mirror and saw that the tornado wasn't far behind. It was closer to the house than we were. I cried when I saw the house was being torn up.
All the fun we could have done if we had stayed there. My video games, the TV with lots of Blu-rays. We were far enough from the zombies, but we still had to keep going. The tornado was still heading towards us.
Just then, a part of the house flew into my path. I was to swerve to get out of the way. Lots of zombies were also flying at the car. I hope they would not get up. The sky was getting dark. It was getting to be night time. I forgot to turn on the headlights. I turned it on, but it wasn't a good idea. I merely introduced a horde of zombies. They started heading towards the car.
This was going to be a long night trying to get to a safe place. I turned the car to the left and headed away from them. I looked out the driver side window, and I saw the tornado. It was huge now. I believe it may have been an E-F4, maybe E-F5.
Luckily, it was not heading towards us anymore. It turned in a different direction.
I glanced at the fuel gauge. It was almost empty. We had to find a place to fill up, or we would have to walk. But where would we go? I turned on the radio.
“...And people have been taking the law into their own hands. If you are listening to the broadcast at this time, please contact one of the rescue stations immediately.” There was a lot of static.
The radio announcement told us to go to the rescue stations, but where was it? Jill looked up at me.
“We could try our capital, that might be a good place to start,” she said.
“No, didn't you see the show The Walking Dead?” I explained. “People tried to go to Atlanta and ended up being devoured by zombies. It's not smart to go to big cities.”
“I hope you are right.”
“So far I have been right.” I smiled.
We made it to a small town where we could fill up the gas. I only hope there wouldn't be any zombies around when I do. The rain was still falling, but the hail was gone. I believe the tornado was also far away. We stopped at a fuel station, and I tried to fill the tank. There was still electricity working on this pump. I started filling, but didn't fill it up all the way. The electric shut off, and that was the end of the free gas.
“Well, at least we can continue driving,” I said proudly. “We have a little over half a tank.”
I started the engine again, and we were on our way. But where were we going?
We made it through the night. It was daybreak. The gas gauge showed a little over half a tank, but the car kept saying Service Engine Soon. Which is a bad sign. I just hope it doesn't break down and we are stuck in the middle of nowhere.
Which is where we are right now. Where the heck are we? The GPS doesn't work for some odd reason.
"Jill, can you look in the glove compartment and find a map?"
"I would love to, but I am controlling the gas, remember?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot." Let's pull over for a little bit and see if we can find where we are."
"Good Idea." Jill gets out from under the steering wheel, stretches, and sits while I look at the map.
"Well, this is useless. I have no idea where we are, and I wish this GPS would work." Just then the car sputtered and shut down. I could see smoke coming from the engine.
"Damn It" I yell. "Now we will have to walk to wherever we are going." We get out of the car. Luckily, there are no zombies around and start walking.
We must have been walking forever. I look back and notice the car is long gone. It would have been nice to salvage the gas from the vehicle, but where would we put it and who would carry it?
Jill was not as easy to deal with. If she were still Jack, things would have been better. Thanks to that drink, we both drank. I swear at George even though he can't hear me. I know my mom and sister are dead. My home is gone, and now I am homeless and an orphan.
Just then, a herd of zombies starts heading towards us. We had to run.
“What do we do, we have nowhere to run and nowhere to go Natalie” Jill started crying. “I am so scared.
“Don’t worry Jill, we will figure something out, what are the choices?” I feel my backpack bouncing against my back, and my little dress rubbing against my legs as we run. “Okay, look over to the right, there are tons of zombies almost to the road we need to move and move fast, Jill.”
I see tears falling down Jill's face as she doesn’t say anything while we run. It is like she is just following directions, not thinking just doing.
We stop at the edge of the deep river.
“I remember in one of the episodes of the Walking Dead that if we step into a river, a zombie might get us.” Just the thought of that gave me the shivers. I hope there are none in the river. I don’t want to be a zombie.
Just then, I heard moaning. I recognized the sound. Looking back, I see a zombie sauntering behind us. I start to panic. I just hope Jill doesn't.
“I think we have a roamer,” I whispered, looking at Jill's confused face. “It's what they call the walking zombies on The Walking Dead.”
“Oh no," she whines. "Shoot it!"
“I am trying as best as possible to save on bullets. Just Hurry up across the stream. We might make it! We don’t want to waste bullets on only one zombie. The guns are loud, and it might attract others.”
“Okay, that makes sense,” We start to move faster. The water was getting deeper. It was up to my stomach.
I glance back. The Zombie doesn't even notice us and keeps going in a different direction. I start to giggle.
“What a dumb zombie,” I thought.
We make it to the other side of the river. Our clothes were soaked. If it were a deeper river, we wouldn’t have made it. Also, it was a good thing. No zombies were in it. Who knows what would have happened.
“Didn’t that zombie look like our gym teacher, Mr. Boring?”
“You mean, Mr. Bourang?” I stared at Jill with a tilted head.
“Yeah, but everyone called him Boring,” she giggled.
“Yeah, I guess I called him that too,” I giggle as well.
Isn’t he kind of far away from school?” Jill asked me while we started walking away from the river.
“Not sure. I don’t know how far we were driving. I’m not even sure where we are?” I looked around. Nothing looked like it was at home. We did drive for a long time. I doubt that was even Mr. Bourang.”
We kept walking. We knew that we had to find a place to stay for the night. It was not safe for us to be outside at night. If we had a car, we could find a place. Damn car. Wish it didn’t just die. It had enough gas to last for miles.
Jill was getting tired. I knew she was. I was getting tired too. I have shorter legs. I started giggling.
“What’s so funny?” Jill asked me.
“Oh, nothing,” I said. We kept walking. The woods we were in were creepy. It wasn’t a great place to be. Zombies could come out of nowhere and get us. But we had no choice. I had my gun in my hand. I was ready for anything. Jill has a knife. She doesn’t hold it, but she has it stored away. Ready to grab when she needs it. The sad thing is, we both are short. But we are also very quick.
Did you notice the zombies are faster outside where it is hot and slower in the cold of the air conditioning?” Jill said breaking the silence. “Maybe we should go somewhere cold.”
“Yeah, I hope we are going north,” I looked around. “It’s colder up there.”
“How can we tell we are going north?” Jill asks, stopping to look at me.
“I remember someone telling me to look for moss on a tree. It always facing north.” I scan at a few trees. “I was right. There’s moss.” I pointed at an oak tree. “We are going in the right direction. The further north we go, the colder it will get.”
“Speaking of cold, is there a bathroom anywhere near?” Jill asked. “I need to go potty.”
I start to giggle. Yeah, you're standing on it. I absolutely loved the expression on her face. It cracked me up.
“Ha-ha, funny” She growled. “I know this is the woods, but really?”
“No, seriously...”
Jill interrupted me. “I can't go pee outside," she grumbled.
“...Girls do it all the time. Just squat.” I finished my sentence. I started giggling. “Just find a suitable place to pee.”
Jill ran behind a tree, so I didn’t see her peeing. When she came back, I heard a whistle in the distance.
“Did you hear that?” I asked, staring towards the sound.
“Yeah, it sounded like a train,” Jill said, getting up from off the ground.
“I hope it's a train,” I cheered. “Let’s go find it. I really hope no zombies heard it as well.”
We walked for a while and saw a train going down the tracks. It was going slow. We could see that there were a few boxcars on it. I smiled at Jill. “Let’s hurry up. We got to take that train. It looks like it’s going north.”
Not every day do you get a chance to travel in style. Okay, this isn't a style. Traveling in a boxcar, meant for packages or whatever, isn't what most people would do, but it is faster. Especially with zombies. The train was going slow enough for Jill and me to jump on.
A few zombies also found the train. Luckily, they don't run. If they ran, like those in the movie Dawn of The Dead, or World War Z, Jill and I wouldn't be alive today. We sat inside the boxcar staring at each other. One of the doors was open, so we could see what was going on outside. We could always shut it if we needed to, but it wouldn't be a good idea, just in case we had to get out in an emergency.
I was so bored. I started looking at my nails.
"Ew!" I exclaimed. "My nails need cleaning."
"I know what you mean," Jill smiled at me. "I noticed mine as well."
I stared out the window. All we saw were many corn fields. They didn’t get plowed, and I doubt they ever will. From a distance, I saw an image of a human. Most likely a zombie. It was moving towards the train. I fear it could get us, if the train stops for any reason, while we sleep. I look up at the sky. It was a little past one or something like that. It’s hard to tell without a watch. There were scattered clouds in the sky.
I hear the train horn blowing. It was a peaceful sound. Just wished it didn’t attract zombies. Watching the train take a turn shows how long it is. It has to be about ten boxes ahead of us and seven boxes behind us.
The train passes a herd of bison. All of them grazing in the field. I hope that zombies don’t get them. I doubt it.
I wonder where we are? What state we were in? I know it's in the northern states because we are traveling north. I only hope we are heading towards the Canadian Province of Minnesota. I can’t believe Minnesota was sold to Canada only seven years ago by the United States. I was like nine then. I look at myself. I sure look younger than nine now. Thank you, George.
Seven years ago was also the time I met my friends, Andrew and Ralph, who live in Minnesota. I doubt they will even know who I was now. Me being a six-year-old girl. I stare at Jill. I can tell she is in a good mood. She is lying on the ground with her legs in the air, moving back and forth.
“What’s up with you?” I asked.
Jill stops and looks at me. “Nothing,” she smiles at me.
“I doubt it’s nothing. I can tell you are happy.”
“Well, I was thinking. We are heading north right?”
“Yes,” I said, confused.
“And it's almost winter right?”
“Yes.”
“And Snow falls in the winter right?”
“Yes, but why are you so happy?” It’s cold during that season.”
“Well, what happens to zombies when it is cold?”
I can’t believe it. Jill is smarter than I thought. “You’re right Jill! And I noticed the temperature has been getting colder at night.” Jill’s legs start moving again. I give her a hug, which isn’t easy while she is laying on the ground.
We must have stopped. All I remember was shutting the boxcar door for the night. It was pitch black in the box. What else could I do but sleep? The train was moving when we fell asleep. But since I woke up, there was a hint of sunlight coming through a crack in the door, and the train was not in motion.
“Jill,” I whisper to her. “Wake up” Jill is a sound sleeper. Even as Jack, she... Or at that time he was the same way. I crawled over to her and shook her. “Jill, it's morning, and the train has stopped.” I can tell Jill was not ready to wake up. While she was slowly waking up, I peeked out the door of the boxcar. It was silent. Not even a person, or zombie around.
I grabbed everything I had carried on with me and slowly opened the door. It squeaked loudly. So loud, I bet every zombie in the area could hear it. Jill got her stuff, and we quickly checked both ways and hopped out of the boxcar.
We wandered around. It was silent. The place was deserted. We could see lots of tall buildings. But from where we were, we couldn’t get into any of them, due to the fact we were on the train tracks. There must be some way to get past the train station. Advancing towards the front of the train, we saw a sign on a building.
“Minnesota’s Union Depot,” I read. “We made it to Minnesota.”
“ Yeah,” Jill said happily. “But what city are we in?”
“I’m not sure,” I answered while looking up. “But by the view of the tall buildings, I would say a big one.”
We entered the Union Depot slowly. I had my knife in my hand, just in case a zombie came out of nowhere. Jill had a knife as well. We would instead use a knife as much as possible, due to the fact that a gun can make a lot of noise and attract others. I learned that from the Walking Dead. I just hope this isn’t like that one episode in season two of Fear The Walking Dead.
“Nothing yet,” Jill says while we walk in the halls of the Depot.
“Let’s just hope we don’t find any Creepers” I whisper.
“Appropriate nickname for them.”
“Yeah, I figure it would be a name to call them.”
“Can we just call them zombies? The name Creepers sounds creepy.” I laughed and agreed.
We enter a tunnel to another building. It appeared a little newer, then the Union Depot, which seemed ancient. I wonder how old these buildings are. Have they even done maintenance on these buildings? The floors looked dirty. But I kind of expected it. Since the outbreak has almost been a week. No one could keep upkeep on the buildings without anyone to do the work.
There were no lights on in the building since the electricity was shut down. The only way we could see anything was from the windows. We must have been on the second floor because we went into a Skyway connected to another building. I looked down the dirty windows covered with blood and saw lots of zombies walking around on what looked like light rail or streetcar tracks. It must have been a light rail, because I could foresee electric lines above the tracks, meant to be for light rails. I knew that we shouldn’t go outside at this point. This seemed like the time Glen and Rick from Walking Dead were walking through the buildings of Atlanta, to get to safety.
Jill went ahead and motioned for me to follow. When I got to her, I noticed a few dead bodies on the ground. My instincts told me to stab them in their forehead, just to make sure they don’t come alive on us. We again went through another Skyway. It doesn’t matter where we are; zombies were below us. We were stuck inside.
“I’m hungry,” Jill complained. I had a feeling she would have said that soon. I was starting to get hungry myself.
“Well, if we look carefully...” I said, “...we might find someplace that doesn’t have spoiled food.”
We started walking the halls. Most doors were locked. Which is a good thing and a bad thing. The good thing is, Zombies couldn’t get in there, and that is also the bad thing. We can’t get in there either if a herd of zombies comes after us. What gets annoying is that some doors won’t open unless we budge them open. Because they are sliding doors, and electricity powers them.
“Hey Natalie,” Jill said excitedly. “I know where we are!”
She pointed to a map on the wall. Why didn’t I see this before?
“Saint Paul?” I muttered. “We are in the former capital of the State, now Province of Minnesota, Canada?”
Jill was confused. “This was the capital of Minnesota?”
“Yeah, I can’t believe you didn’t hear about this. When Minnesota was sold to Canada seven years ago, they had a vote on what the city could be the new capital. Many cities wanted to be on the list. Saint Paul was still on the list, including Minneapolis, Duluth, Bloomington, Rochester and Saint Cloud. But none of them became the capital. People wanted a smaller city to be the capital. Everyone voted the capital to be the city of Blackduck.”
“I sure love your history lessons, since we don’t have school anymore.”
“Yeah, but I doubt anything is the capital now,” I pointed out, “Since this zombie apocalypse happened. Besides, that sure is history. We are now in the present and future of our world. If there were some man down on the streets holding a sign, it would have said THE END IS HERE.”
I looked out the window of the Skyway. The streets were still filled with zombies. Where were they coming from? Could they smell us? I am glad I am up here, where there are no zombies, instead of down there.
“Guess what Natalie," Jill said. “I got some good news and some bad news.
“Okay," I said, still staring out the window. “What’s the good news?”
“The good news is, I found a little store we can get food from.”
“That’s wonderful!” I cried. “But, what’s the bad news?”
“The bad news is...” She pointed to a door, which is luckily an automatic door not in service. On the other side, looked like twenty zombies that wanted us as food.
In a zombie's point of view, I wonder what they think. I doubt they're saying “Braaaaaiiins.” More likely they are saying, “I’m starving, give me food.” or “Someone, please kill me... Oh wait, I’m already dead... Someone, please kill me more”. Maybe the movie ‘Wasting Away’ is what really happens. Besides the whole ‘Super Soldier’ thing. They think everyone else is out to get them, and they have to protect themselves. I bet to them, human flesh tastes like any other animal in the world.
I can’t believe it. When people turn into zombies, they end up being cannibals. It’s disgusting. I also wonder about those vegetarians and vegans out there? Do they become meat eaters as well? That would suck. So much for PETA. They can’t stop this now.
Would it be safer to live in the country, or are there lots there? On the trip up to Minnesota, we noticed a few out there, but we didn’t see much. I might say it’s safer there. Which leads me to where Jill and I are right now.
As we walk through the Saint Paul Skyway, we end up stuck with dozens of zombies on one side of the doorway and us on the other. We had to head back. But even if we did, we would end up back in the same place. There is no what out of this Skyway system. We started running, it was about time, because once we did, the zombies broke through. We could hear them break the door down.
We were now in a severe panic mode. With that many zombies and us six years old girls' bodies. We would not survive. We kept running. Well, actually, I was still running. Jill was nowhere to be seen. With Zombies trying to get out the doorway, I had to head back towards them searching for my best friend.
“Jill!” I screamed. Which was a lousy choice to scream. Every Zombie from a mile around could hear me screaming. I ran back towards the zombie-infested doors. She was nowhere around. One zombie was out of the door, which meant... I turned around. I didn't even get to blink because the next thing, the world went dark.
“I’m dead. I’m dead. I know it.” Is this what zombies thought of? Was the world always this dark to them?
“Natalie, you can open your eyes, silly girl.”
I know that voice. It’s Jill. I did what the voice said and opened my eyes. I was in a room. A spotless room. I looked around. Okay, it’s a bedroom. But where were we? I noticed Jill sitting next to me. She had a smile on her face.
“Where are we?” I asked, still amazed that I survived.
“We are in an apartment. A man named Mr. Sanders brought us here.”
I looked around a little more. I didn’t see him anywhere. I did see outside at the beautiful, but also zombie-infested park across the street. I wonder what the name of that park is? I guess it doesn’t matter. It could be Zombie Park for all I care. I won’t ever spend time there ever.
“With a big city like this, I am surprised the military hasn’t put a barricade up on a few sections of the city for communities of houses, as they did in Fear The Walking Dead.
“Oh, they did.” I jumped, a strange old man stepped into the room. “It didn’t last long. Then the zombies took over, and everyone in the community was attacked. I was the lucky one, that got away. Along with a few families with children.”
“I hope you’re Mr. Sanders and not the dead Coronal Sanders of the defunct Kentucky Fried Chicken company I heard about.”
“Oh, I am Mr. Sanders. I wish I were the Coronal, at least I would have been a millionaire until I died.”
“What good is money now?” I cried. I looked outside at the park again. “I sure wish I could go there? It’s so pretty.”
“Mears Park used to be a dump for many years. It was always full of homeless people from nearby homeless shelters. But after the city ordinance said they would fine anyone loitering in one spot in this city for more than a thirty minutes, excluding the entertainment that happens in the parks throughout the city. So the homeless stopped going to that park. Then it started looking beautiful again. I kind of feel sorry for the homeless people. I used to be homeless myself.” He gazed down at the zombies. “Now the parks will look like hell again soon,” he sighed.
I went over to a computer in the room. “Does the Internet work anymore?”
“I’m not sure,” he chuckled. “Give it a try. And don’t worry about the electricity. Galtier Towers Apartments have solar power on the roof. It helped with rent payments.” He chuckled again. “But I doubt I will need to pay rent anymore, because of this.”
I turn on the computer. While waiting for the computer to start, I went to the fridge to see what the old man had to eat. All he had in the refrigerator was chicken. Chicken? He had chicken?
“What’s with all the chicken in the fridge?” I asked, looking out at Mr. Sanders.
“Just call me the Coronal, he laughed.
I started freaking out. “But I thought you said you were not Coronal Sanders?” I screamed.
“Shush up, little girl, you don’t want the zombies to hear you. Besides, I love chicken. I have a huge freezer in the other room, also full of chicken. Everyone on this floor called me the coronal because of it. Also, because I looked like him and had the same last name. But it doesn’t actually make me the real Coronal Sanders, does it?”
“I see,” I giggled, munching on a chicken drumstick. “Oh, I’m sorry, I hope you didn’t mind me eating this.”
“No, that's what chicken is for. Besides, as I said before, I have plenty of chicken in the back room freezer.”
The computer finally booted up.
“You're not connected,” the browser said. “And the web really isn’t the same without you. Let’s get you back online. Check your network cables are plugged in. Make sure you’re not in airplane mode. Determine if your wireless switch is turned on. Restart your router.”
“Well, that shows we don’t have Internet,” I pouted.
“No, it shows we don’t have a Wi-Fi. We need an Ethernet cord to sign in.” Mr. Sanders chuckled.
“Now you tell me,” I growled. “Why don’t you plug it in.”
“Because I don’t have an Ethernet cord. The Internet is located with the lady that lived downstairs.”
“Well, let’s get it working down there,” I said, getting up from the computer.
“I would, but the apartment is infested.”
Well, that blows the whole plan on searching the Internet for information. Now, what do I do? I was about to turn off the computer, but Mr. Sanders wanted it on. He wanted to play Solitaire on it. Didn’t he have a set of cards?
I turned on the TV and searched for a show to watch. He didn’t have cable, which sucked as well. How could an old man not have cable? All there was on was the Canadian Emergency Network. If this were the United States still, we would see the American National Emergency Network.
I sat on the bed, munching on a chicken. Jill was on the couch reading a book. How could we do this? Shouldn’t we be out there getting farther away from these zombies instead of being stuck in an apartment? There was nothing to do but sit around reading a book or playing games on the computer. If only we had a cell phone or something, I could see if my mom and sister were still alive.
If it weren’t for the tornado, we would still be in that house protected from the zombies, and I would have video games, videos, and cable to watch. Yeah, like cell phones still worked. I giggled to myself. But wait, satellite phones still work. The satellites have not been taken down in space.
I had to find a way to get a few phones. If only I could find where to go to get some, without the zombies finding me.
Munch, Munch, Munch.
That’s right. I am still munching on a chicken. Jill grabbed one from the plate I had put on the bed. I guess she was also hungry. It seemed like she was relaxed and not worried at all. But deep down inside, I have a feeling she was still concerned. Hoping they wouldn’t break down the door.
I doubt they would. That door is strong. Besides, I don’t even think they are on this floor. Or are they? I put my head against the wall of the bedroom I was in. It was hard to hear because the walls were made of cement and not paper thin, like most apartments I know. I’m glad it’s made of cement. If it wasn't, the zombies could break it down easily and get us. But I still had to find out if they were in the next door apartment.
I decided to do the old cup trick and listen to that way. It doesn’t always work, but it was worth a try. I got a glass and put the rim of the glass against the wall. I still had a hard time hearing. I was beginning to get annoyed. But the last thing I could do is scrape a little bit of the top of the wall until it reaches the other side. It will take a while, but it was worth a shot.
I went into the kitchen and started looking for a knife. It wasn’t hard to do. Before I could take it out, Mr. Sanders saw me.
“What are you doing with that, young lady?” He asked.
“I... I... I was just going to scrape the wall in the room to hear if there were zombies in the apartment next door.” I cried.
“That wouldn’t be a good idea. They could smell us. We don’t want them to know we are in here.” He calmly explained. “Besides, there are zombies in that apartment. I had this floor, searched and locked up so no other zombies can get out. They are intelligent. They can find a way to get to us if they really tried.”
“What about the floors above and below us?” I asked.
“I didn’t even bother trying to make those safe. They are everywhere down there. Unless someone else living down there is alive and did the same thing I did, it's pretty much infested.” He looked at the ceiling. “As for above us, we are at the top already. All there is left is the roof.”
“What’s on the roof?”
“The pool, why you ask?”
“The pool?” I repeated. I was so excited. All this time, we were below a pool. “We got to go to the pool!”
“Who said pool?” Jill asked, running out of the bedroom. I can tell she was in a good mood now. I wonder what she did with the book she was reading?
“Also a huge television used as a movie theater.” He smiled. “The old one is down on the main level, which again is infested.”
“What about the pool location, are there zombies up there?”
“Not sure, I didn’t check when I was working on this floor, but likely yes.”
“I think we can take care of a few zombies. What do you think Jill?”
She nodded. It looks like we are going to go zombie hunting.
I stare out the window at the zombies in the park. It wasn’t a pretty sight. The park was starting to look like a war zone. Not sure where they were coming from, but I sure wish they didn’t stay there. It was creeping me out.
On the street, I could see a dog gnawing on a leg. That grossed me out.
The sun was going down. I wish the light of the city would start. Like that’s going to happen. No electricity is being used anywhere. Well anywhere but this apartment. There are so many buildings and no lights on any of them.
I go to the kitchen and grab another chicken from the fridge. I love chicken, but this could get boring after a while. Cold chicken wasn’t my favorite anyways. My sister enjoyed cold food, and Chicken was one of them. She also loved frozen pizza and cold chow mein.
If only there were a device that we could use to reheat things. I heard from my parents that there used to be something called the microwave. It used to cook lots of food fast. But it got outlawed back in 2084, way before I was born.
I went back in the bedroom with the chicken. Jill was again reading a book. If the book war and peace was here, I bet she would have read that too. I wonder what she was reading. I glance over at her. ‘Nowhere To Go... But Here’ by Natasa Jacobs. Hmm... I wonder what that story is about. I might have to read it sometime.
It was getting late, and I was getting tired. Nothing to do, but watch the emergency station on television. If only we could get the Internet working. We could get streaming to work. Shit! I forgot streaming might not work now that this zombie apocalypse has started. I guess cable wouldn’t work, even at home, if it were still there.
I lay down on the bed and tried to get to sleep. We have a big day ahead.
“Ew! Ew! Do we have to do this?” Jill cried. Mr. Sanders had a bucket of zombie's guts from killing one just this morning and was smearing it all over us.
“If you want to fight the zombies on the top level to get to the pool, you will have to,” he explained while slapping it on.
“But it’s disgusting and smells really bad,” Jill complained.
“You're telling me,” I said while holding my nose. “Don’t forget, I have had it on longer than you. Besides, in episode two of The Walking Dead, Rick, and Glenn smearing themselves with zombie's guts as camouflage. This will work as well.”
“I remember that, but didn’t it start to rain, and it washed away?” Jill asked.
“I doubt it’s going to rain indoors, silly. What’s the worst that’s going to happen?”
“The worst is, I will have to take a bath, before going swimming. What’s the whole point in swimming then.” Jill pouted. She almost barfed. “I definitely know I lost my appetite.”
I giggled. Well I guess that means more chicken for me. She won’t want to eat it. I sat down on the floor and watched Mr. Sanders put it on her. It was funny watching. She looked like she was going to be sick. Yes, it may be stinky, but I think it might work. Well, I hope it works. This may be the hardest challenge we have ever taken.
When I was in the mall, the zombies were farther away; I could kill them from a far distance. Sometimes one would get close to us, but it wasn’t like it would be in a few minutes. That's why the camouflage better works. Talking about weapons, what would we use? We can’t use our hands. This is not like Minecraft, where we can use a sword or our hands to attack. This was real life. We need a weapon.
“What are we going to use as weapons?” I asked Mr. Sanders.”
“Don’t worry about that, I have it all planned out," I said, putting the last touches on Jill. He then went into his apartment and grabbed a few things. He brought out two swords and handed one to me and one to Jill.
“Cool, I can be like Michonne.” I smiled while swinging it around.
“You sure don’t look like her, and don’t smell like her either.” Jill giggled. I stuck out my tongue.
“Don’t swing that Katana like that. You might accidentally cut us.” I stopped swinging and smiled.
“I am actually using a Katana, just like Michonne?” I was so delighted. I wanted to jump for joy, but I couldn’t do that. It would let the zombies below us know that we are up here. I wonder why the Katana was smaller than the one used on the show. Do they make them smaller?
Mr. Sanders returned from his apartment with a hatchet. He gave us his best swords, so all he had left was the hatchet. We were going to the staircase that leads to the pool when I noticed something.
“Mr. Sanders, why are you not wearing any zombie's guts?”
“I’m a professional in zombie hunting. I cleared out this whole level of zombies and a lot more in the hallways of the Skyway.”
I didn’t ask anymore. He was right. While we were walking up the stairs, I felt a little nervous. How many of them were up there? Will the camouflage work? Are we strong enough to defeat the zombies? There were many questions.
The door on the top of the stairs was getting closer. I can hear the zombies on the other side. Mr. Sanders stepped in front of us. He didn’t appear nervous. He had confidence in himself. Would I ever be that way? I am a little girl. Of course, not by choice. I am not as strong as when I was a teenage boy at age sixteen. How can a six-year-old girl like Jill and me take on dozens of zombies?
Mr. Sanders eyes us. He can tell we were scared. “Are you sure you're both ready for this?” He whispered. We both nodded, yes. I had the Katana ready. Jill had her sword ready. It was more of a cutlass. Smaller than my sword, but not by much.
Mr. Sanders slowly opened the door a crack, just in case zombies were right next to the door. It seemed like only a few were there. This was going to be easy. He opened the door all the way and started attacking the zombies. They all started going after him. None of them even bothered going after us. We got into the room and shut the door behind us. Making sure no-one got out the way we came in.
When I shut the door, a few dozen came out of nowhere and started after Mr. Sanders. Jill took her sword and began attacking a few of them. Hitting them on the side of their bodies. She couldn’t reach their heads at her height, which made me think it was the same with me. But I joined in the fun. I attacked one of them by slicing through its disgusting body.
“Die!” I scream, which didn’t do much. It was still alive. All I could do now is decapitate its legs. It sure takes longer to do it this way. I wish I were taller. But no, just because I was stupid and drank that bottle of Isisraxtosa formula, I ended up this way. Thanks, George.
This was getting boring. Slice, chop, dead. Slice, chop dead. Over and over again. Where is the excitement in it now? They didn’t attack us. Only Mr. Sanders.
Talking about Mr. Sanders, he was busy on the other side of the pool. I can see lots of dead zombies on the floor. It looked like he was doing an excellent job at taking care of them. I ran over to him and helped. The best I could at the moment was slice off their legs. Once they couldn’t move around, they fell on the ground, and I sliced off their heads.
Jill’s sword wasn’t doing a great job. All she was doing was chopping them, but not doing anything else. Yes, they might lose a few arms, but she couldn’t do much with it. I needed to help her. Give her a few tips. Mr. Sanders could manage on his own.
“Need some help?” I asked when I got up to her.
“Why not, what else can I do. This sword he gave me, sucks balls.”
I giggle and help her out. There were only nine left on this side. Who knows how many are left on the other side. That’s where most of them went. I just wonder why these didn’t follow.
More zombies start coming out of nowhere. This was getting out of control. There has to be somewhere that is bringing them in. Was there a door open that I didn’t know about? I move toward a walk space and discover the answer. The door of the elevator was open, and they were coming from the elevator shaft.
How can this be? Are they getting smarter and started climbing? How could zombie climb? I presumed they were as dumb as a doorknob. I run over to the elevator door and try to push it shut. It wouldn’t budge.
“Jill!” I scream, hoping the zombies can’t hear me, which they seem to not. She was nowhere in sight. I don’t think she can hear me either. I run back out at the pool and see her on the other side next to Mr. Sanders. No wonder she can’t hear me. I run over to her.
“I need help,” I said, pulling her arm. She stops and follows me. All of a sudden, she accidentally slipped on some zombie blood and fell into the deep end of the pool. All the zombie guts she had on her washed away.
“Help,” she screamed when she got to the surface. The zombies could now tell she was there and started going into the pool after her. I had to do something. I didn’t want to lose my best friend, just like my mom and sister.
Mr. Sanders noticed Jill in the pool and jumped in. The zombies he was attacking came in after him. Jill was still screaming. I knew she couldn’t swim. I ran over to the other side of the pool and grabbed the life preserver off the wall and threw it in, hoping Jill can get it. She kept screaming.
“Grab it!” I hollered at her. She heard me and tried to get at it. Luckily, on the third try, she got it. How come it's always three times the charm. I thought. I tugged on the line of the life preserver and pulled her in. Mr. Sanders was still in the water. I couldn’t do anything for him. He was too busy with the zombies attacking him.
What could we do? I had to get Jill to safety. She had no weapon to protect herself. That was on the bottom of the pool. I ended up putting her in the doorway heading back out of the pool area. I couldn’t save Mr. Sanders. I wish I could. I wish there were a way. The zombies out beat us. There were too many of them.
I don’t understand. I thought we had everything under control. I thought we were going to win. We could have had a fun time swimming. I started to cry. What else could I do?
What could we do?
“We got back into Mr. Sanders' apartment. Jill and I were still crying. I couldn't believe it. How could we have lost? As much as I have known, I have never seen a movie where zombies climbed. Except in World War Z, but that was zombies climbing on zombies. These zombies were not climbing on top of each other. They were climbing up a rope, or a wire in this case.
In the episode of Doctor Who called New Earth, some humans resembled zombies, who climbed up an elevator shaft, but they were not zombies, only the infected. Of course, there were zombie episodes of Doctor Who, but they were nothing like these zombies we are facing. More of a joke.
“Now that we're safe from the zombies, what do we do?” I asked
“I don't know. We don't have anyone to help us anymore. Mr. Sanders is gone and...” Jill started crying some more.
I walked over to the computer. It was still on, which was good. I checked out the Ethernet cord. It was very long. It was not getting any power sent to it. I followed the cable to where it went in the building. It brought me to a small hole in the ground. “This must bring me to the older ladies apartment downstairs.” I thought. I had to find a way to get the Internet working again.
I looked around the room where Jill was. She must have cried herself to sleep. That was good. I didn't want to tell her I was leaving. She would freak out if she knew I was leaving her alone and going down to a zombie-infested area, simply for the Internet.
If we didn't have the Internet, I wouldn't find locations in the area for items we could use. It was a good thing I still smelled disgusting. I took another glob of zombie goo and spread it on me, merely for safe keeping. It was located in the hallway.
I took my Katana and slowly opened the doorway to the staircase to the next level down. No zombies were there. It was dark though. I wish the lights worked in this room. It worked everywhere else. I'm guessing it blew out and maintenance wasn't able to fix it. Or it's not on the same grid as the rest of the building. It should be. It's a solar panel.
I made it slowly to the bottom. Stepping over the dead along the way. When I made it to the bottom, I opened the door again slowly. There were a few wandering around the hallways. It was bright enough for me to see them. Thank God, the lights were not broken here. I had my Katana out just in case one tried to attack me. Which none did.
If I were correct, the room the old lady lived in would be directly below Mr. Sanders' room. So I chose the same doorway as his, was above. It was locked. As I suspected. There were only two things to do. I had to find the master key to get in the doorway or start picking the lock.
Since the master key was on the bottom level and I was on the… I don't know forty-something-ish floor. I wasn't going to go down there, just find, maybe nothing. I started picking the lock with one of my Bobby Pins. Yes, I am using Bobby Pins. I had to find some way to keep this hair out of my eyes. I wasn't going to cut it. Maybe someday, I might get it trimmed. But not sure when. Perhaps when the whole Zombie Apocalypse is over. Phhh… like that's going to happen?
I pulled apart one Bobby Pin so that it is a long, flat metal piece. I was making a pick. I stripped off the rubber knobs on the ends with my teeth. If I didn't, they would only get in the way. I stuck the pin into the lock. I have picked locks before. Usually with a paperclip. But since I didn't have one. The Bobby Pin will do. I can always get a new one.
While I picked, I kept glancing back at the zombies. They were freaking me out. I stopped picking and ended up taking me Katana, and chopping up the only zombies there in half, and cutting off their heads. I then made sure the other doors were locked and shut. Now I can work in silence. Which was too silent.
After a while, I finally got the sucker unlocked. It was a bit challenging. I opened the door slowly. I didn't want a zombie coming after me. My luck none did. But I couldn't open it. The lady put the chain on it. Which means she is still in the apartment, and she is dead or a zombie.
I had to get in there. I was such a little girl. I couldn't break the chain by just pushing it with my weight. I had to back up and take a running start. I stepped away from the door and stood there staring at it. Then when I had the courage, I ran as fast as possible to the door.
Before I even got there, the door shut on me. I hit the door with a smack.
“Ow!” I cried. I heard the door lock on me. Someone was in the apartment. I called out. “Hello? Is anyone in there?” I had my hand to my nose. I hope I didn't break it. Next thing I heard was the lock and chain unlocking. The door opens, and a woman stepped out looking at me.
“Oh dear, I'm so sorry.” She took me into her apartment and shut the door. I wasn't paying attention, but while she took me in, I left my Katana outside the doorway.
The woman was an older woman of about in her late fifties early sixties. I believe she was the older lady that Mr. Sanders was talking about. I wonder how she lived this long all by herself? She went into her kitchen and got an ice pack and puts it in a handkerchief.
“Here you go, sweetie,” she coos. “Put this on your booboo.”
“What does she think I am, four?” As she hands me the ice pack, I put it on my almost swollen nose.
“Owie!” I cry.
She picks me up and puts me on her lap. I am so little; I can be picked up. This bothered me. But I was also a little joyful. I haven't been pampered like this in a long time. My mom used to do this, but then she met George Russell. Just thinking of his name makes me mad. If it weren't for him, we wouldn't be in this mess. There wouldn't be zombies. Thanks to his Isisraxtosa formula, which he sent to Argentina, and oh if I am not mistaken, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay as well.
“So, little miss,” the lady spoke, breaking my thoughts. “Why were you trying to get into my apartment?”
I started crying. “I only wanted to get on the Internet. Mr. Sanders said this house had the Internet he usually used, and was full of zombies, and I was only going in here to kill them off, so I could get the Internet working again.” I continued crying.
“You didn't have to come down here, just for the Internet. You could have just called. I would have fixed the problem.”
“We can't, the phone isn't working.” I pointed out.
“Oh I forgot,” she chuckled. “By the way, how is The Coronal doing?”
I must have looked sad because she looked sad. “He didn't make it. He was killed in an ambush of zombies on the roof pool.”
“That's horrible. That place was crawling with zombies. It would have been safer to go to the old pool on the main level. It may not be filled at the moment, but give it a few hours, and it would be filled.”
“Why didn't we think of that, before we went up there?” I cried again. “I saw the old pool looking out over to Mears Park, I thought it was out of commission.”
“You use large words for such a young girl,” she points out to me.”
I blushed. “Um. I'm a fast learner,” I lied. I wasn't going to tell her I was formerly a boy.
I remember Jill was upstairs. If she wakes up, she will freak out that I was not there. “I should get going. I forgot my friend Jill is upstairs.”
“How old is she?”
“She's six, just like me,” I smiled. I guess I can say I am six. I wish I were still sixteen. But being six isn't that bad. I can hide better.
“You girls, shouldn't be living all by yourself. You should move down here with me.”
“It's okay; I am good at fighting zombies. I fought off two of them out there just a few minutes ago, and also some at the pool, on the roof.”
“I still think it would be best if you stayed here. Two little girls shouldn't stay alone.”
How many times will she have to say that? I was about to tell her my secret and say I was born a boy and am sixteen years old, but there was a knock on the door.
“Who could that be?” The lady wondered. She walked over to the door and looked out the peephole. Why didn't she do that, when I was there? Maybe she did, but didn't see me because of my height. “Oh my goodness.” She opened the door. On the other side was Mr. Sander holding my Katana. I guess that's how he found me. Behind him was a mad looking Jill. I was in for it with her.
“Mr. Sanders! I thought you were dead!” I cried, hugging him.
“I would have if it wasn't for Jill dropping her sword in the pool. I was able to kill all of the ones in the pool in time and get away. Shutting the door behind me. I would recommend not going back up there.”
Because Mr. Sanders was alive, we could live upstairs in the apartment. That is where I would like to go. But the best thing is, we could go from floor to floor. No zombies are on either level. Thanks to me, killing off the only two on this floor. We worked on fixing the Ethernet cord. It wasn't surprising to find it accidentally unplugged. She must have unplugged it while cleaning up one day. The place looks like it gets clean a lot. Even now during the Apocalypse.
Maybe since we did these levels of the apartment, we could do all the other apartment levels and have the whole apartment to ourselves. It would be a safe place for all people we find. Could we kill all the dead, from all forty or so floors, and make a safe haven?
We could also work on making the pool clean upstairs and the one outside. But that will be a while. I really hope not for a long time. Since what happened with Jill and Mr. Sanders earlier today.
We made it back in the apartment, and I was able to get on the Internet to check out a few places in the area that might help us. Plus, I might check out a few videos. I haven't watched TV in a few days. I will go crazy if I don't see my favorite shows, even if I have already watched it.
Jill was again back in the room reading a book. She sure loves reading. She is also mad at me. I hope she will not be mad at me forever. I was only gone for a while to get the Internet working. I didn't think she would know. I was trying my best to get back. I believe she woke up and realized I wasn't there, and freaked out thinking she wouldn't see me again.
I stepped into the room and sat down on the bed. Jill kept reading the book. I was hoping she would look up. After a while, I started to cry. “I'm sorry for leaving you alone, Jill” I cried.
“That's not the reason why I am mad at you. I wanted to go with you when you went down to the apartment for the Internet. You should have told me.”
“Oh, I didn't know that.” I pouted, “I'm sorry.”
Jill hugged me. “You're my best friend and best friends stick together.” I was fatigued from this day, and so was Jill. We both fell asleep a few seconds later. I know we didn't eat much today, but we will tomorrow, I know that.
It was true, because the next morning, we were up and famished. I found out the lady that lives down stairs name is Beverly. She was kind enough to bring up some fried eggs, pancakes and a cup of fresh squeezed orange juice.
With Beverly in her apartment the whole time, I wonder how many more people lived in this apartment. There had to be some way to find out without the dead knowing.
I stare outside. The zombies took over left and right, from every which way. Mears Park was now entirely zombies. I wonder why they like that park so much. I am about to go crazy being here. I wish I could go somewhere. Even to a mall or something.
Mr. Sanders and Jill are in the living room reading a book. How can Jill handle reading so much? I know it's boring, but wouldn't it be efficient to find something to do?
“Mr. Sanders?” I whine. “Is there anything I can do to pass the time?”
“You could read a book,” he suggested.
I sighed. “Never mind.” I wish I could go zombie hunting or something. It was fun yesterday until Jill fell in the water. We could also be swimming. “Beverly said the pool downstairs is still safe for us. All we need to do is fill it up.”
“That pool? I don't know what she is saying, but it's too dangerous. You can only go to it by going through the Skyway. It's part of an old fitness” Mr. Sanders said. “Plus, you would have to do a lot of climbing. We would have over forty-five stories.”
“How did you bring Jill and me up here then?”
“I carried you, and Jill rode my shoulders.”
I look over at Jill. She was smiling. Lucky. I looked back at Mr. Sanders. “What about the zombies? How did you get up here without fighting them?”
“I killed all of them in the staircase. I had to find a way to get from one place and another faster. Besides, taking the elevator would make a lot of noise. I disabled it that way it wouldn't be used by anyone. I know it wasn't a good idea, but it's an old elevator, and it doesn't close quick enough. If there were zombies on the other side of the door when it opened, you wouldn't have time for it to close, before they got inside.” He gazed at me, waiting for a response. “So, still want to go to the pool?”
I smiled. If he wants to be smart, I will be smart back at him. ”Only if I ride your shoulders.”
We were in the staircase heading downstairs. Jill stayed back. She was not ready for a mission. Instead, she wanted to hang out with Beverly and make dinner. But for precaution, I grabbed my Katana. I wasn't sure if any found their way to the staircase. Anything could happen now.
I was having a fun time. I haven't had a shoulder ride since I was little. Now that I am little again, I had to take advantage of it.
I was surprised that only a few staircases had some lights blown out. Otherwise, it was bright. It was also easier to identify the dead lying there on the floor. A bit gross though. I wonder if it was possible to get new light bulbs for the missing ones. I hate the dark.
I got a lot to think about while going down these stairs. One thing I noticed was how much Jill and I changed in the last week.
I wonder about mom and Jessica. Are they safe from the tornado? They were in the cellar when it hit the house. I wonder if they are grieving over me and Jill, if they are still alive? I have to find out if they are. There must be a way to find out.
Finally, we make it to the bottom. But that isn't the end. Now we have to find a way to get to the pool. Will there be zombies in the pool area, like they are on the roof? And if they are, I hope there are not as many.
Back in Mr. Sanders' apartment, Jill and Beverly were talking.
“I understand what you mean,” Jill munched on the cookie. “I worry a lot all the time. I already believe my parents are dead. They were on a trip, but never came back.”
“Oh, Sweetie,” Beverly hugged Jill. “I am so sorry for you. What about Natalie? Are her parents still alive?”
“Her father was killed in the war of 2112....”
“2112?” Beverly interrupted. How could he be her father, twelve years before she was born?”
“It's a long story,” You might want to sit down for this,” Jill giggled.
Down on the main level of the apartment building, Mr. Sanders and I were getting ready. We were not going to be caught off guard. A dead zombie was on the ground next to us. Wait, aren't they all dead? I giggle to myself. Mr. Sanders took a zombie and cut it up into pieces. I knew what he was going to do. This part was going to make me sick.
I hate the smell of rotten flesh, but if you want to get through a herd of the dead, you have to use camouflage. I asked Mr. Sanders to put some on himself. He wasn't thrilled with the idea, but he did it anyway. I wanted to check out the pool, but after viewing all the zombies through the doorway windows, I changed my mind. We made a change of plans. Our plan is now to get out of the building and find some more weapons, or something.
“You know where the police station is?” I asked?
“Yes, but it's secured tight,” he answered.
“Damn!” I muttered.
“Watch your mouth, young lady. No girl should be swearing at that age.”
We finish up mucking ourselves. The smell grosses out me, but I know that I am safe. We then slowly, so the zombies don't hear us, walk into the lobby. We open the door and slip out. Not one of them even noticed us coming through. They must have thought we were one of them. Just to keep it safe, we did not talk.
Wandering through the Skyway, the same one Jill and I were in the other day, we followed a path that leads to the building. It looked like a bank.
“Why are we at a bank?” I asked. I was perplexed. We didn't need money? We're not going to rob a bank. Are you crazy? What will we do with the money? Buy our own weapons?
“Most people don't know this, but banks have guns hidden inside. They need them to protect themselves from bank robbers.”
We traveled through the Skyway to most of the banks in the area. It was a bit scary strolling through there with the dead trekking around us. They never even knew we were there. There were lots of things to see, but nothing was open. I wished the Apocalypse never happened. This place appeared fun to go through. Lots of places to go. Coffee Shops, lots of different kinds of restaurants. None I have ever heard of.
Even an Anime Store. I got to go there sometime. Maybe sometime when I am not so busy. I can just loot it. Mr. Sanders kept pulling my arm. He didn't want me dawdling. It was boring going to every bank in the Skyway. I still think it would have been faster to get ammo at police stations. He doesn't know that I am skilled at breaking through security.
I notice a phone store while we wander by. It wasn't just a cell phone company store. It was also a satellite phone store. That would be useful for us to use. We have to go there sometime. I studied the name. 'Twin Cities CelDirect' Very interesting. I will look it up online when I get a chance.
“This is nothing, compared to the Minneapolis Skyway system.” Mr. Sanders laughed. “But even there, you can get lost. Let's hurry up. We have a lot to do.”
By the time we went through the whole Skyway, my feet were tired. I needed a place to sit. I stepped up to a map on the wall to see where we were. We were a bit far from where we started. According to the map, we were on Wabasha Street. We traveled almost half the Skyway, and we were so close to the library. I may not like books as much, but if I went there, I could get a book on survival. And zombies. Also, I could bring a book over to Jill. She would be so thrilled to have a book of her own.
“Can we go to the library?” I asked Mr. Sanders.
He checked outside. “It's going to get dark in an hour, we better head back.” I was upset. Why would we go back? We were protected. We had weapons? I whined, but Mr. Sanders insisted we head back. I wasn't sure why though.
We hurried as quickly as possible back to the apartment. The sky was getting darker every second. All of a sudden, I heard noises coming from all around us. This was not a familiar noise. I was beginning to freak out.
The noises were getting louder. Not sure what direction it was coming from. Mr. Sanders had his gun in his hand. I had a bad feeling about this. What the hell was it?
Just then, at the corner of my eye, I could see the freakiest thing I have ever seen. This wasn't a zombie… or was it? I wasn't sure. It was chasing us. I couldn't believe the camouflage we had on was not working. This monster was more significant than any of these zombies out here. It was a mutated zombie or something.
I could say, it's almost like those creatures from the resident evil movies and games. The body was so messed up it looked like it was slime. The head looked like a demon. Arms that moved like snakes and fierce looking teeth. I wish this were a dream. I don't want to be here anymore. All of a sudden I trip.
Mr. Sanders stopped and blasted him with his gun. It didn't do much, just stun him. I was able to get up and keep running. We were about a block away from our apartment entrance, when we got blocked by another set of creatures.
These, you could say, would have been known as man's best friend, but I would not call them that. They looked a bit uglier. Remember that dog I encountered the other day. I guess it was these dogs that I witnessed. I had my Katana in my hand. Mr. Sanders has the gun facing towards the mutant zombie behind me. He was quick, but so were these dogs.
Now I understand why he said to head home before dark. The freaks come out at night.
The mutant was creeping closer to us. I couldn't see it, so I wasn't sure how far it was from me. Mr. Sanders was shooting it like it, but it wasn't dying. There was no way to kill the demon I see before us.
I was growing impatient with the dogs. When will they start attacking? I had the Katana ready. It was like they were waiting for something. All they did was growl. Zombies were coming from all over the place. They must have figured out that we were not one of them and started coming towards us.
Just then there was a loud shriek. I must have jumped a mile high. I didn't know what it was. I figured out what it was in no time. The dogs were waiting for the big one. This huge mutant… whatever it was. It was a substantial mutant animal. It looked like a dog, but it had three heads, like a Cerberus, but with razor sharp teeth and much uglier. It's tongue shot out of its mouth with sharp teeth at its ends within inches of me.
I tried swinging with the Katana, but missed. The tongue was swift. I was lucky I was quite a bit away, or I would have been bitten. I backed up a bit. Its tongue struck again. This time I got it, cutting it off. The teeth were still moving. I wonder why the Cerberus only chose to use one tongue instead of three.
I got my answer. It only has one long tongue. Strange. I feel like I am playing a game or something. Maybe it's studying me. The other dogs are watching me. I wish I knew what Mr. Sanders was doing. I could hear gunshots nearby. Doesn't sound like what he is doing is working. I wish he had this monster, and I had the other one… um maybe not
But then, the Cerberus started charging. All the other dogs came with him. I screamed. I knew I was done for. My Katana couldn't stop this fight.
…
BOOM!
“Wait! What happened? How did?” I looked around. Mr. Sanders was also standing there in shock. His mutant was killed, and so were my mutants. But how did they die and we still live? There was an enormous hole in the room. I could see outside. Zombies outside could see me. Worst of all, I could see guts from the monsters. It was a bit gross, and it smelt three times as horrid.
Just then, a child, about nine years old, came out of nowhere.
“Who are you?” I ask the child. It appeared to be a boy.
The boy came out of the hiding place he was in. Following him, there was a little girl about my age. . “My name is Hunter Ziegler, and this is my sister, Madison.”
“Pleasure to meet, you,” I mumbled, “But how did you kill those mutants?”
“You got to be ahead of the game if you want to live in the Zombie Apocalypse. I had a Bazooka.”
“A bazooka?” I yelled, which I shouldn't do in the Skyway, with zombies. “You could have killed us!”
“I could have, but I am very talented with it. I was able to point it away from you and your old man there, barely enough to kill them both with one shot.”
“What about the mutant dogs?” I asked.
“They likely ran away. They aren't far away. They will be back. That's why we better get going. By the way, where do you live?” Hunter took his sister in his arm.
We were only less than a block from where the apartment was.
“I live on the top level,” Mr. Sander chuckled.
“Fine with me,” Hunter grunted. “I love a challenge. My sister might not like it that much though.”
I wasn't ready to climb the stairs. I knew I wasn't able to get a ride from Mr. Sanders. It wouldn't be fair for Madonna?… Madeline?... What was her name again? Oh yes, that's right Madison.
As we climbed the stairs, I felt a bit depressed that we were not able to set get the pool started. Even if we did, it's October, we'd have snow in no time, which would end up being ice. And besides, November begins tomorrow. Wait, is it tomorrow? What the heck, is today Halloween? Of all days to get scared on. I had to think for a second.
It can't be Halloween. Okay, my sister came back from Argentina on the twenty-fifth of October. I remember that because she was always joking about the ticket she had. She was on plane number 1025, in seat 1025, it took off at 10:25 and would make it back home on 10-25. How lucky was that? Maybe that isn't as lucky as it seems.
Since she got here on 25th, we got stuck at the McDonald’s overnight that night, because of the zombies. The next day, we got back to the house, where the storm happened on the 26th. The storm ended up making Jill and I on the road until the car broke down, which was the 27th. We ended up riding a train, which did take a day or so, that was the 28th. Got to Saint Paul by train and Met Mr. Sanders on the 29th. The 30th, which was yesterday, we fought off zombies at the pool, failed big time and met Beverly. And now today is… Is it Halloween?
You know, it's funny when I think about things while I wander. Time goes by faster. I didn't even know that we were only one floor away from getting to Beverly's level. Hunter was always on guard, if a zombie or mutant came out of nowhere. That's a good thing.
I am a little disappointed though. I thought I was the best zombie whiz around. But Hunter, makes me look like everyone else. I could feel a tear going down my face. I watch Madison as she walks up the stairs. She isn't pleased. If only there were a way to kill all the zombies on each level of this apartment, so we could use the elevator. We would never need to climb up the stairs again.
Finally, we made it to the top. It was quiet up here. We knocked on Beverly's door. It was a secret knock, so they knew we were not zombies. Then there was a little knock as well. I could tell it was Jill's knock. I knocked one more time, and she opened the door. Of course, if Beverly had been at the door, she would have checked through the peephole, but we were too short, so we created that knock for that reason.
As we walked in, Jill spotted Madison and Hunter.
“Who are they?” she asked?”
“These are two children we found along the way.” Mr. Sanders answered.
“They helped us when some hideous monsters attacked us,” I added.
“The names Hunter,” he said, putting out his hand for them to shake, which they did. He then pointed to his sister. “And this is my sister, Madison. If it wasn't for me, she might not be around. I have been protecting her ever since the first day. We lived outside, where the dead live, we even stayed at The local homeless shelter down on a street called Dorothy Day Place. Lots of dead living there.”
“That was scary,” Madison pouted.
“I wasn't scared.” Hunter spoke proudly, “Food was there. We had the weapons. The zombies couldn't get at us.”
“You might not be scared,” I stated. “But choosing an open place, where zombies can eat you while you sleep, isn't the...”
“Shut up!” Hunter argued, “Madison and I stay in a locked room at night. We can see everything going on and can get out by a trapdoor on the roof. I know what I am doing. At least, I don't stand around waiting for a Cerberus to chase me.”
I started crying and ran to another room.
“You didn't have to be so mean to her.” Mr. Sanders growled.
Jill and Beverly look at each other and smile, but then walk into the room where I was in. I was on the bed crying.
“I don't want to see anyone,” I cried.
“What's wrong?” Beverly sat down right next to me, rubbing my back, trying to comfort me.
I spent years and hours watching zombie movies and shows, and also reading books about them. I was learning it, so when this day did come, I was ready. Now, I washed it all down, with a drink of the Isisraxtosa formula. I could have been smart. But now that I have a small brain in this girls body! I lost a lot of the knowledge that could have helped me.” I continued crying, “Hunter is bragging. He thinks he is better than me because he studied. I studied too. How about he goes and drinks the formula and see how he feels!”
After all that, I lied down on the bed again. Beverly knew it was for babies, but she handed me a pacifier. I gradually accepted it.
It's tough to be a child. I feel like everyone (but Jill) thinks I am too young to do things. I am not allowed to use a gun. I get a small Katana, but thanks to the internet, I found out it's actually a wakizashi. A Japanese sword, a slight bit shorter than a katana. I'm not sure why Mr. Sanders said it was a Katana. Maybe he was trying to give me confidence.
Sometimes I hate being six. I wish I were sixteen again. But then again, being little can get me into small places a lot easier than the others. Jill, Madison and I have been able to get into hiding places easier. We are about the same height, oh, and age.
I ran into the living room and stopped. I saw what they were watching. I was a bit annoyed now. Of all movies, why did they have to watch… Oh, never mind. I won't go there. I'll simply let it go and won't hold it back anymore. I turned around and slammed the door.
I walk into the room with the computer. I decided to go online. At least there I can figure out what to do. Jill is the only person from my past that I know is still alive. If there was a way to find out if mom and Jennifer were still alive…
Minecraft!
Of all the things to check out online, Jennifer is so obsessed with Minecraft. I typed in their website. I was in luck. The site was still up. I only hope the server is still working. Especially the server she goes on all the time. I've played Minecraft many times in my life. It's a bit old now. A little older than a hundred years. I'm still surprised that people play that game. The graphics are terrible compared to the games of today. I'm guessing that is the reason why people like it so much.
After downloading the game to the computer, I made sure it worked. Sometimes these games don't like working without installing. It's a bit annoying. When the sign in box showed up, it meant it was working.
I sign in to my account. NatTheKing. I giggle at the name. I should change that name sometime.
As usual, it takes a long time for the game to load. I don't know how many updates this game has had, but I do know this is the last update. Kind of sad though. I was so hoping they would have put in the evil bunnies in the game.
It usually takes only a few seconds to load, but this was taking longer. I hope it won't fail. I just sat there watching the screen and the logo.
When the game finally loaded, I was glad. I typed in the servers IP address. I so hoped it still worked. I was growing impatient. The internet was very slow. This is what happens when there is no one to do maintenance to the internet. Don't fail me, please don't fail.
After about a minute, I was about to give up, when the server showed up.
“It's working?” I whispered. “I can't believe it.” I just hope Jennifer was on. This was the only way to know if she was still alive. I click on the server name, and again more waiting. I glance at the clock. It took me about seven minutes to get on this game.
I stare outside while I wait to get on the server. The dead were walking around like they own the place. Pretty much, they are. We are stuck in this apartment until we can figure out what we can do. I gaze at the computer screen. “Connection Lost. Timed out.” It read.
Okay, this will take a while to get on the server. I expected this. I tried again. Which I kept getting the same message. As I was about to give up, it finally got me into the server. Why does it always do that?
Pressing Tab on the keyboard, I check if she is online. She wasn't. This made me a bit tearful. But I was surprised someone was online. A girl in fact, by the name.
[NatTheKing] Hello?
I wrote to the person, but there was no answer. I guess she wasn't paying attention or was away from the keyboard. I decided to stay on the game. It took me this long to get on it, why waste it, by ending. I went to one of my builds and started to continue where I left off. I was getting a bit carried away, last time I was on the game. I can't believe that at age sixteen, I was able to build an enormous building. Now that I am six again, I don't have the knowledge to even create anything like that.
I decided to build a little house. What else could I do? It was all I could think of. I wish I could make a castle like before. I started to tear up. Just then, the person on the server wrote back.
[JamGirl02] Hey Nathan! Haven't seen you on for a long time.
Oh crap. It's one of my online friends. I can't believe I forgot all about her. How can I explain to her that I am a girl named Natalie now?
[NatTheKing] Yeah. It has been a while. How's the zombies in your area?
[JamGirl02] Being zombies. How about yours?
[NatTheKing] lol. They are pretty much the same here. Ugly looks like they came out of the morgue. Not like those on The Walking Dead. Hey anyway, have you seen my sister Jennifer on here lately? Her IGN
[NatTheKing] Her IGN is js420.
I hate it when I run out of room in chat when I am typing. Only a two-hundred character limit. I sigh. I guess it was meant, so no one couldn't just take up a whole page. I'm guessing as spam.
[JamGirl02] Nope. This is my first time since it all started. But if I encounter her, I will let her know you're seeking for her.
[NatTheKing] Thanks. Tell her, that I will be on every day at this time. As long as I can get on. Internet connection sucks.
[JamGirl02] True. And I will. I have nothing else I can do. I was hoping for more friends. I guess they are all dead.
We chatted for a long time, but eventually, we decided to play the game. I found her making an enormous build, not far from my wimpy little house I just made. I wanted to help. She allowed me. I was a bit scared that she would find out I was actually a girl at age four. Even if she found out, I don't believe she'd believe I was six. I have been playing this game longer than six years.
I looked away from the computer. My tummy was growling. I was starved. I was going to get up from my spot when I noticed a cup right next to me.
My tummy growled even louder. I wanted to eat some chicken or something.
Talking about chickens, I don't believe I saw many animals on The Walking Dead. A few horses and pigs, a goat… Well, they all died of course. Some were deliberately, and some were not.
I went to the kitchen and grabbed a few chickens, and returned to the game. My friend was busy working on the chimney of the building. I was still sitting there on the ground. It was getting dark on the game. That is when the mobs come out. Mobs are the monsters. Why did we have to have the zombies in this game as well? We're already living it.
I ran into the building and climbed the stairs up to where she was. I knew that eventually, they were going to spawn.
[NatTheKing] If only the zombies outside would spawn like the ones on this game.
[JamGirl02] lol. And then burn and die as soon as the sun hits them in the morning. It would be a lot easier.
[NatTheKing] I think the creators of Minecraft got it all wrong when they made this game. Vampires burn in sunlight, not zombies.
I noticed a few zombies spawning. I had no weapons. JamGirl02 gave me a sword. This made me giggle. If I only had my Katana. These zombies would be dead faster. I can't believe I am killing zombies in a game. I look outside, not at the screen. I could see the zombies below. This game is so wrong. But at least, I don't have to look at the guts and smell them.
[JamGirl02] It
kind of sucks. Zombies on here and in real life.
[NatTheKing] Your telling me. I was just thinking the same thing.
We were in a battle when on the screen came what I was not expecting. My mouth dropped. I couldn't believe it. After all these days, I couldn't believe my eyes.
[js420 joined the game]
I started crying. My sister was alive. Jennifer. And if Jennifer was alive, that could only mean that mom possibly was too. And so was... George.
[NatTheKing] Jennifer!!
I wrote, but when it popped on the screen, the server went down.
On the screen, it read, Connection Lost. Internal exception: java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
“Crap!” I cried. “That was Jennifer. She's alive.”
I went back to the main page and tried to sign in to the server again. This time I read 'Can't connect to server.' I kept pressing refresh, but it kept saying it. I didn't want to restart the whole Minecraft game again. It took forever. She might not be on. I kept crying. I hope she saw my message.
I clicked on the close button to close out of Minecraft, then restarted the game. But it wasn't loading anything. Not my name or anything. It just kept saying Play Offline. I think Minecraft is gone. I can't play it again, with friends or even family. I kept crying. I put my head down on the keyboard. I didn't know what to do. I was so excited to find her alive, but can't get through to her.
~o~O~o~
I must have cried myself to sleep, because next thing I knew, I was in bed.
I had to get out. I wasn't sure where everyone was. It was dark outside. I could hear the zombies from below. We may be on the top level, but they sure make a lot of noise. Especially at night. It was creepy.
I heard a loud shriek. That sounded familiar. I hope it was not what I think it was. It couldn't be another Cerberus, could it? It seemed pretty close.
I started crying. Beverly came into the room. “Shhh,” she whispered. “Don't cry. You don't want to wake up everyone.”
“I don't think I will be the one that wakes anyone up,” I cry. I can hear the sound coming from outside. “Can't you hear that?”
“Yes, I can,” Beverly cuddled me, “They are far enough from us. We are safe.” I noticed Hunter come rushing into the room.
“I don't think we are safe here,” he whispered. “That is a Cerberus. They can dig, and it's on the roof.”
I was in shock. I knew what they can do to us.
“Would we be safe, if we kept quiet?” Beverly asked.
“We might,” Hunter continued whispering, “But we also might not be safe. If it knows we are here, it could get down to us in no time. Its saliva is like acid. It can melt through almost anything. It has a very long tongue, as Natalie found out. It also can breathe out fire. If it does that, this building would go up in flames. We would not stand a chance. We would not get out in time.”
“Let's not make a sound.” I murmur.
“Go tell the others to keep quiet,” Beverly told Hunter. I sat there, watching out the window. I can see a few different mutant creatures on the ground below. I didn't know what they were, but I sure wish they were not there.
This was not Minecraft, where the night comes by, and we could kill them easily. They can't just die at dawn. I have a feeling the Cerberus will still be there in the morning, waiting for us.
The girls were notified. They were told to keep quiet. Mr. Sanders came into the room. He quietly grabbed a few items. It looked like he was getting a few things ready. I have a feeling it was time for us to leave. I didn't want to go. This place felt like home. I grabbed my Katana, or well, the wakizashi, but I call it a Katana. The girls grabbed a sword and a few guns. I grabbed a gun as well. It was a small one. It was all I could hold. The others were too heavy for me.
Beverly grabbed some food and a few other useful items. I glanced at the clock. It was four in the morning. That meant the sun won't be up for another three hours. Even then, it would still be too dark to see. Any mutant would still be around. I hope Mr. Sanders has a plan. I sure don't.
We finished packing, and The Colonel opened the door slowly. We were lucky nothing was there. If there were any dogs, we wouldn't stand a chance. They would be on us in a heartbeat.
This was the hard part now. We had to go through the staircase. It can get a bit loud. The staircase is the same ones that led to the roof, and that was where the Cerberus is located, or so we think. It could be anywhere by now.
This would be Jill's first time downstairs since we got to the apartment. I know it's going to be hard on all of us. All the food in the house will go to waste. We could have stayed there for years. I was hoping to make this apartment a safe place. We were going to clear the whole building of the dead and make it a place for survivors. Now that dream is gone. Gone forever.
While we walked quietly down the stairs, we listened. We had to make sure nothing followed us. Nothing was in the staircase with us. When we made it to the bottom, I wondered what we were going to do. We couldn't survive over all those zombies outside. We sure can't survive over all those mutants.
I could hear the shriek of the Cerberus above. I hope it doesn't know we are here. It echoes in the staircase, which makes it sound like it's near. Gives me shivers all the way up my spine.
I moved faster, to get in front of the group. I wanted to get out of here. This place gave me the creeps. But then I stopped. I heard a clicking sound.
“Hold on,” I whispered. Everyone stopped when I did. The clicking sound sounded like it was coming from the other side of a wall. I looked around. How far did we have to go to get to the bottom? There was a sign on the wall. Eighteenth floor. I groaned. We still have a long ways to go. I heard the clicking again. But the clicking sounded like tapping and scratching.
“It could be a zombie,” Jill spoke softly.
“That's not a zombie.” I pointed out, still being quiet. “That's Morse Code. There's three taps, three scratches, and three taps again. That's Morse Code for SOS, which means someone is in trouble and needs us.” The tapping and scratching continued the same rhythm. I decided to tap and scratch back the words 'where are you?' Their message changed. 'Apt 1802 dead outside door.'
This was going to be a challenge. We didn't want to fight zombies right away. The one we were afraid of the most is the Cerberus above. We were not even ready for that. Mr. Sanders told us to move away from the door. He was going to fight them. Hunter agreed to fight as well. I wanted too, but I was scared. I don't think I would even make a dent in one of them.
Mr. Sanders and Hunter had their swords ready. They were not going to use guns. Any loud noise, like a gun, would bring the Cerberus downstairs. Let's just hope that sixty or so floors apart is enough that it can't hear us.
They opened the door, and they were in luck. The zombies were on the other side of the room. Hunter and Mr. Sanders chased them.
The hallway as always was lengthy, so they were spread out. I could say there were only five of them, but I counted wrong. There were six. Hunter killed two, and Mr. Sanders was still going down the hall, killing the rest. We ran into the hallway and shut the door behind us. With how long the hallway was, I'm surprised there were no more zombies out here. We found Apartment 1802, and I knocked. Beverly thought it was cute.
A terrified African Canadian man slowly opened the door. His chain was on, of course. He took a peek. When he saw me, he opened it all the way. “Come on in,” he greeted us. We all went into the apartment. “I'm so glad you're here. I have no idea how you found us.”
“Didn't you do Morse Code?” I asked.
“Morse Code?” He looked puzzled. “Oh, that must have been my son, Zachary.” He goes into a room and grabs a boy about thirteen years of age out. “This is Zachary. He knows so much on the old Morse Code.”
“Hello, Zachary, my name is Mr. Sanders, this is Beverly, Natalie, Jill Hunter and Madison.” We all got introduced.
“I'm Rodney,” the man said. “Rodney Jackson. My wife, Tia, and my two daughters, Shakina and Desiree, are in bed sleeping.”
We sat in their living room for a while, until Rodney finally spoke up. “So why are you up so early?”
“We lived on the top floor,” Beverly stated. “We were leaving in a hurry because, at this very moment, an enormous beast known as a Cerberus is up there.”
“Are you talking about the monsters with three heads of wild dogs, a dragon tail, and heads of snakes all over his back, which I see down below every night?” Zachary asked. I nodded. I don't know much about them, but it sure is making this city a living hell. Worse than the zombies. We have to get out of this city.”
“It could be in every city out there,” Mr. Sanders noted.
“Jill and I were outside at night before, and we never saw them,” I explained. “It was recently, when we got to this city, that we encountered them.”
We continued talking, but after a while, I felt a bit uncomfortable.
“Well, I'm not staying here,” Rodney barked. I reckon it's time we get the hell out of the city and on the road.”
“But where would we go?” I asked.
We couldn't decide. It was a challenge to decide where to go. I wanted to go back home to Mantri, Kansas. Rodney wanted to go North, but Zachary wanted to go South. Mr. Sanders and Beverly wanted to stay nearby. If everything went back to normal, they could go home again. Hunter and Madison didn't care where they went.
The time was almost seven in the morning. The sky was starting to get bright. We couldn't see the sun. There were too many clouds in the sky. I only hope the mutant creatures would hide for the day so that we could get away more comfortable. Not sure why they disappear. Maybe the light is too bright for them.
Tia, Shakina, and Desiree woke up and walked into the room we were in. They were surprised to discover other people. We all introduced each other. Shakina and Desiree were twin girls, age seven. Only a year older than me and Jill.
Tia was told to pack a few items. I can say she was not ready to leave. Shakina and Desiree only took one thing, a doll. I would have done the same thing if I had one. But toys won't protect me from zombies.
By seven-forty-five, we were all ready. The only thing we had to do now was camouflage. That was the part, Jill and I did not like. I can tell Madison, Shakina and Desiree weren't thrilled about it either.
As the daybreak began, we all started to enter the world. We were a bit terrified. With every zombie near us, we were worried they would figure out, we were not one of them. We had one plan, found a broken down light rail, and hope it still works.
“This will bring us to Minneapolis at least,” I giggled.
“This will bring us farther than Minneapolis. It goes all the way to Eden Prairie.” Hunter added. “We could stay at the mall there.”
“Wouldn't it be easier if we went to the Mall of America instead?” Madison asked. “Less walking.”
We all agreed the Mall of America would be quicker to get to. Let's hope we're not fighting off zombies when we get there.
Rodney was able to get the train working. It was a challenge to get it running without a key, but it started. We sat down. This was going to be a long ride. Let's hope we don't get into any accidents along the way.
This was the first sunrise I have seen in days. It was brisk morning, but the November sun made it feel warmer every minute. I hated smelling like a corpse, but it keeps the zombies away, for now.
Rodney wasn't that bad of a driver. The tracks seem in good shape still. Well, it's only been about a week since the whole thing started. While we travel down the tracks, I stare out the windows at all the cars sitting there and hundreds of zombies walking around. There were some inside buildings, trying to get out.
Because the train is moving, the zombies notice it and start heading towards us. Any of them in front of the train was run down. There was a lot of slimy blood and guts all over the front of the train. Splashing all over the place. Kind of gross to look at. Good thing it wasn't night time. Who knows what would come out.
We were traveling pretty slow. About ten miles per hour. We could drive faster than this train.
“Are we in Washington?” I asked, gazing at a rusty old building that looks like the United States Capitol Building.
“No, you're looking at the old Capitol Building to The State of Minnesota, before Canada took over,” Mr. Sanders explained.
“Why is it so rusty?” I was a bit confused. “Don't they take care of buildings around here, Especially old ones like that one?”
“It wasn't worth fixing up after the roach infestation of 2103. They abandoned it in 2117 when Minnesota became a province of Canada.”
I was amazed that a building would simply be abandoned.
While riding down the road, there were lots of places falling apart. Glass was all over the streets. If you think this felt like Halloween, you're correct. But there aren't any ghosts, witches, little princesses, or even a superhero costume. The sad thing is, it's only been two days since Halloween.
There were decorations for the holiday still up. Most of them torn a little bit. At a food market, there were rotting pumpkins sitting outside. Cars parked in the parking lots everywhere you go. Many of them on the streets or crashed into buildings.
Windows were broken from looters, graffiti painted on buildings, lots and lots of the dead, all laying on the road or walking around.
The farther we got away from downtown, Saint Paul, the worse it got. There were guts, and I believe I just saw some intestines hanging from the top of a doorway. I felt like I was about to vomit. In fact, I did.
“Eeeww!” Jill complained. “Did you have to do that right on the seat in front of me?” Now I have to find another seat.”
“Sorry,” I cried. “It's what I have been seeing for the past few minutes of riding on this train.”
“It's a light rail,” Madison corrected me.
“Light Rail, Train, Whatever.” I growled, “They both run on tracks.”
The light rail started to move a lot faster. I just hope there aren't any broken tracks further up. It wouldn't be fun if the train fell off a bridge or something. We passed a few more markets, and even an old McDonald’s with the sign missing an arch. The building was broken into, likely scavengers were searching for food. It reminded me of Jennifer and mom when we were stuck in the mall at the McDonald's.
I had a few tears in my eyes. My sister. She's alive. I know it. But she won't know that I am alive. There has to be a way to let her know that I am still walking around and not dead like those zombies roaming the streets outside.
But then, we were passing a pawn shop. There could be weapons in there.
“Stop the train!” I cried.
Rodney quickly stopped the light rail and got out of the driver's seat. “What's wrong?” He was panicking.
“Nothing is wrong,” I exclaimed.
“Never tell me to stop the train, unless it's an emergency!” Rodney scolded me.
I started to cry. “I only had you stop, because I saw the pawn shop back there and figured we could get a few more weapons.” I cried. “It didn't look like it was even broken into.”
“That's true,” Mr. Sanders agreed. “After all, we will stop smelling like one of them, and once we get to our destination...”
“Mall of America,” Jill added.
“Yes, The Mall of America,” Mr. Sanders grumbled. “...We would be able to fight off any zombies that are in the bus station or inside the mall.”
“We better hurry,” Beverly cried. “The longer we are out here, the faster it will be dark. And you know what that means.”
I shuttered.
We stared out the light rail to see if any zombies were around. None were in eye sight, so we opened the door by pressing on the signal. It made a beeping sound indicating it was opening.
Once we were out of the train, only Jill, Beverly, Tia and the twins stayed inside. We had to be quick at this. Who knows might be out here looking for us. When we got to the pawn shop and noticed there were a few holes in the windows, but no sign of it being broken into, like I said. I found a rock and used it to break open the door. To my surprise, the alarm started blaring. This caused nearby zombies to head toward the noise. Zachary and I ran into the shop with our guns ready, if we spot a zombie inside. The others were shooting the zombies outside.
I spotted a locked room. It had a sign written in a language I couldn't read.
“Hey, Zachary, what does 'armes et de munitions' mean?”
“It's French,” Zachary explains. “It means weapons and ammunition. You got the right place.”
“Why is everything all in French?” I asked, a bit puzzled.
“Do I have to explain?” Zachary argued, “Just find a way to open the door.” I look around for a key. There has to be one somewhere. I checked in the cupboard and cabinets at the desk and had no luck.
“Um Natalie,” Zachary said. I looked over at him. “The doors unlocked” He opened the door and wasn't looking inside.
“ZACHARY, LOOK OUT!” I screamed. On the other side, there was a zombie, which came out and bit him right on the shoulder. Zachary shouted, and I continued screaming.
Rodney and Mr. Sanders ran into the room and saw the zombie biting Zachary.
“Zac!” Rodney screamed.
With quick thinking, Mr. Sanders aimed and shot the zombie, right straight in the head, barely missing Zachary.
Zachary was in agony and needed medial immediately.
“We got to get him to a hospital or something,” Rodney yelled.
“You and Hunter take him to the light rail and get it ready. We are out of Ammo, and we got to get some or else we will die out here. We will be there in a minute. Natalie, grab as much as you can put in these shopping carts.”
Mr. Sanders hands me a cart, and I rush into the room, looking for more zombies in all places. We grab as much as possible in no time, and are on out the door to the train just about the time it was getting ready to leave.
“IF IT WASN'T FOR YOU!” Tia screamed, ZACHARY WOULDN'T BE HURT. She pushed me at a seat, where I fell violently and started crying.
“STOP!” Beverly, Jill, and Mr. Sanders yelled simultaneously.
“She's just a little girl,” Beverly barked. “You can't push her like that! You could kill her.”
“WHAT DO YOU THINKS GOING TO HAPPEN TO ZAC?!”
“I'm sorry for what happened to Zachary,” Mr. Sanders calmly spoke, “But you can't take it out on young children.”
I was still crying and curled up on my side in the corner, fearing of what was going to happen to me. I didn't mean to hurt him. I even tried to warn him.
“Where are we going?” I hear Jill.
“We are taking him to the hospital,” Beverly answered while walking over to me to see if I was okay.
“It doesn't matter anymore. He's not going to live.” I explained.
“What do you mean he's not going to live?” Tia yelled.
I slowly got up from my spot I was curled up in. “He won't be able to live because he was bitten by the infected.” I explained, “In all zombie movies and shows I have ever watched, anyone bitten will eventually die from the virus. You can't even cut away the bite marks.” I sighed and then looked up at Tia. “I would say he has one, maybe two hours to live, maybe even less if he doesn't lose a lot of blood before then. Once he dies, he will reanimate and turn into one of the dead, we have been seeing for the past few days.”
Tia and the Twins were all crying. Zachary was whimpering in Tia's arms. The train was starting to slow down. Not sure why it was. We got our answer. In front of the train was an enormous herd of zombies blocking the rails, and above the tracks, the electric wires that powered the train were broken. We were not able to get any power to the train, and we were stuck between a rock and a hard place.
We had to find another way of transportation and quick, but first, we had to find a way out of this train. Rodney got out of the driver's seat and returned to us.
“Any suggestions on what we can do?” he asked.
“No clue,” Mr. Sanders said, staring at all the dead outside.
“I know what we can do,” Zachary mumbled. Everyone stared at him. “There is only one way to get out of here alive, and it is to…” He started to cry. “You will have to kill me, so I can reanimate into a zombie and use me as camouflage.”
“No!” Tia cried
“Please mom,” Zachary pleaded. “As my last wish, please kill me, so I know you will be safe.”
“If you wish son,” Rodney cried.
“I love you, dad. I love you Mom. You to Desiree and Shakina,” With his last words, and before Rodney could take out his gun or knife, Zachary died in Tia's arms. Everyone, including I, was cried. This was the first time I ever watched someone die. Someone that I knew. I didn't know him long, but for the short time we were together, he was like family.
Rodney took Zachary out of Tia's arms and put him down on a bench and waited for him to reanimate. Outside, the zombies were pounding on the windows. Good thing there was no power, because the doors won't open without manually opening it from above. And also the windows were not easy to break. It might be almost bulletproof or something.
For the next few minutes, we waited for Zachary. After about two minutes, we saw him start to move. We knew he was not Zachary anymore. Rodney took out his gun and aimed it at his head. Once Zachary opened his eyes and got up, Rodney shot him in the head, killing him instantly. Now was the gross part. We had to use him as camouflage and get out of here. It was starting to get dark, and we had to find another way of transportation soon.
After everyone was gutted with Zachary, Mr. Sanders broke the emergency door switch and opened the door manually. The zombies near the entrance stopped pounding and started moving away. They thought we were one of them. Thank you, Zachary.
We traveled a block and found an abandoned bus parked with the door still opened. All of us piled into the bus and looked under the seats. No zombies anywhere in sight.
“We have a problem, Rodney said. “There's no keys.”
“Problem?” I laughed. “What problem?” I went over to the steering wheel, and with a snip, tug and zap, I got the bus running.
Rodney was amazed. “How could a six-year-old girl know how to hot-wire a bus?”
Beverly, Jill and I looked at each other and laughed. We all sat down in the seats and were off.
“Still wanna go to the Mall of America?” Rodney asked over the microphone.
“Yes,” we all shouted.
“Okay, hold on tight.” Rodney started driving the bus out of the area and past the light rail we were on. We all said goodbye to Zachary and were on our way. I only hope we won't have to fight too many zombies when we get there.
It didn't take us long, but when we got to the mall, it was getting dark. We were starting to freak out. The Cerberus or any other creature would be out soon, and we haven't even gotten into the mall. It might not even be safe in there. They could also be inside.
To our surprise, lights were on inside. This was a good thing in a way, but why would there be lights on? Were they running on solar, like at the apartment? We quickly got out of the bus and headed for the doors. We were so close to safety. I ran up to the door and started pushing when I hit my head on it.
“The doors are locked!” I cried.
“We may have to break it,” Hunter shouted. We all looked around for a huge rock or something. The only thing we could find was a wastebasket. Grabbing it, he charged at the door almost about to break the glass.
“DON'T!” Cried a strange voice from above.
“Who's there?” I yelled.
“Hold on, and I'll let you in.”
A few minutes later, we see two teenage girls walking over to the door.
As they let us in, we all thanked them.
“What's your names?” one of the girls asked.
“My name is Natalie,” I giggled, “This is my best friend, Jill.”
“Hi,” Jill spoke quietly.
“I'm Mr. Sanders.”
I'm Beverly.”
My name is Rodney, and this is my wife and three… I mean two kids, Desiree and Shakina.”
“What's your names?”
“My friends' name is Bloom Reinhold, and I'm Jamie Jacobs.”
It's been about a week since the outbreak. Jill and I have traveled from Kansas to Minnesota, met a few new friends, and even lost a wonderful place to live in that little amount of time. For me, being a six-year-old girl, it's hard to live in a world of the dead.
It was dark outside the mall. I was looking left and right and behind us in the parking stall, not to mention above us. Zombies or other strange creatures could come out of nowhere and get us. I look inside through the glass doors and see two girls staring straight at us.
"What are your names?" one of the girls asked, opening the doors, to let us in.
The other girl was looking around. She had a gun in her hand, ready to shoot. Not us, but them.
“My name is Natalie,” I giggled, “This is my best friend, Jill.” As we walk through the doors, I notice the place didn't even look dirty. Like a zombie had never touched it.
“Hi,” Jill spoke quietly. She looked nervous. I don't blame her. After our experience losing Zachary, it was frightening.
“I'm Mr. Sanders.”
“I'm Beverly.”
“My name is Rodney, and this is my wife and three…” I can tell that Rodney was sad, he had tears in his eyes. “I mean two kids Desiree and Shakina.”
I'm Hunter, and my sister's Madison” Hunter was proud to introduce himself.
“What's your names?” I ask.
“My friends' name is Bloom Reinhold, and I'm Jamie Jacobs.”
As we all enter the mall, Jamie locks the door and ensures the others are also locked. I look at the entries, I wonder if anything like the Cerberus could break those down.
“Watch out,” Jamie warned us.
Right after she said that an enormous metal fence with spikes facing the door came shooting down from the ceiling.
“How can a mall have those?” I asked Jamie.
“They don't,” she smiled. “I added them a few days ago, with the help of Bloom's mother Claire and my older sister Jessica.”
“That's clever of you,” Rodney was very pleased with the work, so was I.
“Are you all staying here in the mall?” I was surprised. How could an entire family occupy a whole mall? Wouldn't it be easier to use the hotels hooked up to the mall?
“Yes,” Jamie answered. And there are many more families here. I was the one who thought of making the mall a shelter for those who lost their homes.”
This made me shut up. But still, wonder about the hotel. There's got to be a reason why she chose the mall instead of the hotels. I can always ask them later. I look at people walking around the mall. I have a feeling they lost their home recently. We had lost our fantastic apartment in Saint Paul, and now we are also homeless.
Just before we started walking through the mall, a bunch of zombies showed up outside the doors. We were lucky we made it inside in time. That gave me shivers. I watched them for a little longer until Beverly pulled me away.
We started walking in the mall. There was an escalator leading down to a lower level. Looking like it must have been a water exhibit or something. I may have to check that place out sometime. Hopefully, there are no dead animals down there.
As we walk up one of the escalators, we go past many shops. Noticing many of them have been turned into little homes for families. Each one could lock themselves inside at night to stay safe, with the chain fences that come with the store. Clever idea, if you ask me.
Some homes have children playing and sleeping. Beds were set up on one side of the room, like a bedroom and a couch in another section as the living room. Some had televisions.
“Hey, look at that,” Hunter exclaimed, pointing at one of the families homes. What we observed was a few teenagers playing a video game on a television. It reminded me of the game system I had played with back at the house in Mantri, Kansas. Watching them play the game made me a little excited. I could play Minecraft with my friend JamGirl02 and maybe get through to my sister.
“It's not polite to stare in other people's homes.” Beverly scolded us.
As we walked, I noticed that Bloom was behind us. She hadn't spoken yet. This made me nervous, wondering what she was thinking.
The halls in the mall were gloomy. The only light available was coming from the families homes, or from the moon in the skylight. This gave us enough light to keep walking safely through the mall. I was glad it was that way. Zombies are attracted to light as much as smell and noise.
Even though we were talking, we kept it low.
We wandered through the mall and into a vast room, which looked like an abandoned amusement park. Well, it sure looked abandoned. Nothing seemed like it has moved for a while now. I would say about a week and a half. That's about as long as this zombie plague known as Isisraxtosa has been going on.
“Mom, we got some new arrivals,” Jamie said, stepping into a large store, or what used to be a toy store. A woman stepped out and greeted us.
“Hello newcomers, my name is Joslyn Jacobs,” she shakes our hands. “Welcome to… well, the Mall of America, but it's not much of a mall now. Come inside.”
We walked into the store. All around, you can find lots of toys. Some which were on the ground, with little girls playing with them.
“Don't mind my daughters. The toys keep them entertained.”
The grownups chuckled.
“I wondered something,” I spoke up.
“Are you wondering why we don't just put people into the hotel rooms on the sides of the mall instead of the old stores?”
“Um,” she was good. I'm guessing she has the question a lot. “Yes.” I looked down at the ground.
“We thought of that. But because some families have lots of members, almost everyone would get two to three or even more rooms per family. This way, the whole family is together. Plus, there is a backdoor if they get trapped. In a hotel, there is only one door.”
“You've got a point there,” Mr. Sanders agreed. “When we were in our apartment in Saint Paul, we only had one doorway out.”
“How'd you get away?” Jessica came out from behind us, which startled Madison and the twins.
“It was all because we were brave enough and fought our way out,” I said proudly, pulling out my Katana and swinging it in the air away from everyone pretending I was killing zombies.
Joslyn gazed at me with my Katana.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” she said. This made me worried. It reminded me of the episodes of The Walking Dead, where the group went to Terminus and was asked to remove all their weapons. Things went bad. And ended up killing everyone there. And another time, when the group went to the little town of Alexandria, where they again had to remove their weapons.
“I held on to my Katana. I didn't want it taken away.
Joslyn chuckles, “Don't worry, little one. We allow weapons here. But keep them under control. No playing with them. Only one weapon on you at a time.” I look less worried. “By the way, nice Katana.”
I smile.
“Mommy, I'm tired!” Whined Desiree.
“Do you have any rooms for us?” Rodney asked looking at his sleepy girls, and then back at Joslyn.
“Of course we do,” Joslyn walks behind a counter and grabs a few old maps of the mall and hands it to both Rodney and Mr. Sanders. Beverly looked at it over Mr. Sanders' shoulder.
“First of all, to make it easier for us, we would like the names of all that will stay with us,” she looks at the Jackson's “I'm guessing this is your family?” She questions Rodney.”
“That's right, my wife Tia and two daughters Desiree and Shakina. I had a son, but he died earlier today.”
“I'm so sorry to hear that.”
“How come you always say Desiree before my name?” Shakina complained.
“That's because my name is first in the alphabet, and I am the oldest.”
“You are not the oldest. I am.”
The twins started arguing over and over at each other.
“Girls shut the hell up. Do you want the dead to hear you?”
That sure shut their yaps, which made me giggle.
We watched Joslyn talk to the Jackson's and then hand them something that looked like an envelope. Next thing we knew, they were walking away. Well, Rodney and Tia were walking, the girls were skipping.
As I watched them leave, Joslyn stepped over to us.
“I got a wonderful place for your family to...”
“My sister and I would like our own room.” Hunter interrupted.
“Oh,” Joslyn was a bit surprised. “I thought you all were a family. I am so sorry, but we can not have minors living alone.”
“Well, then we are not staying here,” Hunter grabs his sister and starts to walk away. “Come on Madison.”
“Wait!” Joslyn cried. “Don't go. I think I know of a way for you two to be separated, but still be near one another, in case anything happens.”
I was a bit confused and exhausted. Hunter didn't have any problem when he and his sister were staying with us at the apartment in Saint Paul. Why now? All I wanted was to get a place and crash for the night. I just hope that whatever Joslyn knows of, Hunter will like it.
“Each store has a storage closet, big enough to make into a bedroom. You can lock it from the inside if we change the door handles around.” Joslyn explained, “Would you stay if we do that?”
Hunter glanced at his sister and then back at us. “Okay, we will choose that.”
She hands us a folder with a key to the store we are moving into. I am not sure how she got the key, but it's pretty cool that she got it.
We are located on the third floor, north side, almost close to the food court. Jamie helped us find the location. That was good because Bloom took the Jackson's to their destination earlier, which is on the second floor.
When we got to our place, there was a family that lived next door to us. On this side of the mall, there were gates and a glass door. The neighbors' door was closed, and lights were off, so we were not able to get to know them yet. A cat was the only thing still moving around in there.
It was cool that they had a cat. I wish we had a cat.
Our new place is located in front of a food court, or what is left of a food court. I looked like it had seen better days. Chairs knocked over, and the floors looked like they hadn't been cleaned in a while. Maybe tomorrow, Jill and I could clean up the place a bit. Bring some life back into this mall. Perhaps after the whole Apocalypse is over, this mall will run better again.
Maybe.
When we got into our new living space, we noticed it was empty. All there were were a few beds.
“I guess we have to go out and find things to add to this place?” Jill said.
“Yes, just down the hall, past the ice rink and water park, there's an Ikea.” Jamie pointed out, “You can get things there tomorrow. But remember to bring your weapons with you. The Rotties may be there, so you might have to kill them.”
“Rotties?” I asked.
“Oh, that's what we call the dead. It's like what they say on the show...”
“The Walking Dead? They called them Walkers.” I chimed in.
“That's right. Are you a fan of that show?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Amazing,” Jamie scratched her head. “For a show that's been off the air for over a hundred years, it's still popular today?”
“They can't get in here, can they?” Beverly asked.
Jamie giggled. “No. We blocked them off at the Ikea entrance and the malls. You may notice some Skyway going over to the store, but it would be easy to kill them.” She glanced at my Katana. “But before you do go over there, remember to bring a group with you when you go.” She looks at her watch on her arm. “I better get going. Our security is still watching the outside just in case we find more people like you. Enjoy your stay at Hotel M.O.A.”
“Thanks for all the help bringing us here,” said Mr. Sanders. “Please thank your mom for us as well.”
“Will do.” Jamie helped, by closing the door. I ran over and locked it. I watch her walk away. I stepped away from the door, and Mr. Sanders came over to pull down the gate to secure it.
I looked around the room. There were three beds in the room and a couch. Make that two and a half beds and a sofa.
Because we made an agreement with Hunter and his sister, we helped bring one of the bigger beds into the other room. We also promised we would not open the door tonight, since they could not lock the door from the inside until they switched the doorknobs around.
Hunter and Madison shared the same bed in their room. Jill and I shared a bed with Beverly, and Mr. Sanders Slept on the small couch. Tomorrow, we can get a few more items to make this place more like home.
I am pleased to be in a safe place now. As much as I know, it's safe. But why am I so scared?
I drift off to sleep a few minutes later, but am wakened by a loud noise. A noise I never heard before, and I have no idea where or what it was coming from.
I gaze out the windows of the shop, my friends and I are staying in. I hear people shout in the distance. The loud noise continued to screech out. I didn’t dare go out and investigate. I wanted to fight, but I wasn’t sure what to expect. I held my Katana in my hands, ready to fight if I had to. If the sound I heard came from a beast as big as the Cerberus, this Katana wouldn’t stand a chance.
The loud screeching sound was getting closer. Jill and the others woke up.
“What’s going on?” Mr. Sanders asked, looking towards me.
“Shh… Don’t talk,” I whispered.
I spotted a shadowy figure from a distance. It was huge. Appearing to be about six feet tall with tentacles or something. I couldn’t tell what it was, but I slowly backed away from the window and hid behind the counter in the middle of the room. As I looked over towards the window from the counter-top, I could see it advancing closer to the doors.
I could hear Jill whispering to the others from the bed. “Stay quiet,” I whisper back at them. I continued staring at the door as the creature stepped closer, and then turned the other direction, sauntering past our doorway, and kept going down the hall of the mall. My eyes were glossy as I spotted the creature. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it, but it looked like a panther of some sort, but with six legs and two tentacles sprouting from its shoulders. What a strange creature it was. Almost like it came from a scary movie or something.
“Why isn’t there anyone stopping this monster?” I thought.
Still hiding behind the counter, I start thinking of the Jackson’s next-door and what Hunter and Madison are doing in the other room.
When I figure the creature was far enough away, I moved quickly, but quietly over to the door and knocked on it softly. I waited for Hunter or Madison to open the door. I was certain they heard the noise. As I stood there, I looked toward the front windows and back at the door. I wonder why they aren’t answering the door. I did promise not to open it.
After about a minute, the door opened and Hunter came out. “My sister is freaking out,” Hunter whispered, “What is going on out here?”
“We’re not doing anything,” I whisper. “There’s a creature outside, in the halls.”
We heard the screeching sound again, but this time it sounded farther away. This is going to be a long night of not being able to sleep.
I held my Katana in my arms. I was ready to fight at any minute if that monster somehow got into the room.
“You know for a six-year-old, you sure are a bad ass with that, Katana,” Hunter told me.
“I’m not a five-year-old, I'm a sixteen-year-old, in a six-year-old body,” I complained.
Hunter looked confused. “What do you mean sixteen? You look like you're five.”
“She and I were originally sixteen, a week ago, around the time this whole zombie apocalypse began,” Jill mentioned, trying to help me out.
“I don’t get it,” Hunter laughed. “What do you mean?”
“It’s hard to explain,” I said. “But the whole zombie apocalypse all started, by one man.” I glance over at the whole group. “His name is George Russell. He’s a scientist from Mantri, Kansas. He created a formula that he believed would help a plague in Argentina. The people there were really sick. At first, it helped out, but eventually, it stopped and everyone that had the formula started dying. George was devastated about the whole thing. He was hoping to make millions for a cure.”
Hunter looked a little confused. “What’s this have to do with you being five...”
“Six,” I barked.
“Okay six,” Hunter grumbled. “What you're saying makes no sense on how you changed from sixteen to six.”
“I’m getting there. Just let me explain,” I argued. “George is my mom’s boyfriend. The day we moved into his house, I drank what I thought was a soda from his fridge. What I didn’t know was it was the formula.”
“Wait, you drank the formula that turns people into zombies?” Madison cried out, stepping out of their room. “Wouldn’t you also be infected?”
“No, the Isisraxtosa formula only caused those with that unknown plague, which caused them to turn into zombies when taken. Jill and I only got younger and turned into girls. It didn’t affect us.”
Wait,” Hunter laughed. “You two were boys?”
“That’s an amusing story, you were talking about,” said someone in the shadows.
“Whose there?” I yelled, glancing towards the sound.
The person in the shadows stepped forward and revealed who they were.
“Jamie?” I said in surprise. “How’d you get in here without us knowing?”
“Easy, when you were talking to Hunter, I just slipped in quietly through the door quietly. I only came here to talk about the creature you saw, but decided to listen to your story first. It’s amusing as I said.” She glanced over at the others and then back at me.
“It’s all true,” I said.
“I believe you,” Jamie smiled. “You said Isisraxtosa. I have heard of that name before. It was used for a cure here in Minnesota for a disease a while back.
“The formula came way up here as well?” I was confused. “I was told it only made it to Argentina.”
“Possibly George tried it here first, and it worked out well, that he tried it there as well.” Jamie laughed. “But I’m not surprised it turned people into zombies, because instead of being used on people, it was used in a vet.” Jamie stopped for a second and stared out the window. “Animals that took the vaccine died a few days later. But they didn’t really die, they came back to life, grew larger and mutated.”
“So that explains the Cerberus the other day and that creature a few minutes ago,” I said, stepping towards Jamie, and started looking out the window as well.
“That’s the whole point I came here,” Jamie stated. “I forgot to tell you our secret weapon.”
“Your secret weapon?” I yelled and then toned my voice. “You mean that thing is...”
“Yes,” Jamie interrupted, “She helps us out, especially at night, when everyone is asleep.”
“What sort of creature is that?” Jill asked, walking over to us.
A Dirlagraun,” replied Jamie, “Also known to those who play Dungeons and Dragons as the Displacer Beast.”
“Displacer what?” I laughed.
“Displacer Beast” Jamie looks at us angrily. We all look confused. “She’s my cat, okay!” Jamie cried.
“Oh,” I looked to the ground. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, she still knows who I am, and likes to sleep next to me at night, when she feels everything is safe.” She starts to laugh. “Although, she hogs the whole bed now. She used to only take a small spot.
Everyone laughs at her joke.
“I’m guessing everything is not safe since she is out.” Mr. Sanders clarified.
“No,” Jamie pointed out. “You heard that screeching noise earlier?” We all nodded. “That was not my cat… The noise you heard came from a small mutated bird which I call a Cockatrice, or what I believe used to be a cockatiel.”
“Is that another one of those creatures from the Dungeons and Dragons?” I asked.
“Yes,’ Jamie smiled. “We use the names from the game because we actually have no idea what they are. In fact, the Cockatrice appears almost identical to the ones from the game, which is told to be a dragon or possibly serpent-like creature with a rooster's head. That’s why we chose that name.
“I’ve always wanted to play that game,” I pouted. “But my mom would say no.”
“Wow really?” Jamie gasped. “You would have learned a lot, cause according to the game, the Cockatrice is supposed to kill its victims, bite them and turn them into stone.” We all looked scared. “Don’t worry, that doesn’t happen. Their bites just paralyze their attackers just enough, so they can eat them alive.”
Madison shivered.
“The first time I ever saw one, was just a few days ago. “Jamie continued. “I was walking with one of our soldiers when one came out of nowhere. He started attacking the beast and was bitten. He froze in his place. I was so terrified and hid from it. I saw the Cockatrice start devouring him. It was ripping him to shreds, piece by piece. There was a lot of blood and...”
“Please Jamie, children are listening,” Beverly scolded.
“I don’t mind, I like this type of stories, Jill giggled. I also agreed.
“Well, I sure don’t,” Madison argued.
“Oh, um… Well, I don’t know how they get in, but soon enough, we can fix that problem.”
“How did you get away?” I asked.
“My cat came to the rescue. For me, not for my soldier, he was already eaten.
“Oh no,” Madison cried.
“Don’t worry,” Jamie laughed, the Displacer Beast, is immune to its bite.”
“I was worried about your kitty, and now I am afraid of getting eaten alive.” Madison cried.
“Don’t worry, we will protect you,” Jamie promised. “We got better protection for the soldiers.”
“How do you know your cat is immune?” He asked.
“I had her test it out.” I was terrified that she would have died as well, but she was okay. Her tentacles are also very fast and were able to smash it to pieces.”
“Wow!” everyone said at once.
Jamie glanced at her watch. “It’s almost two in the morning, you better get some sleep. Breakfast is at eight” She leaves the room and heads off to her place.
“We might as well try to sleep.” Mr. Sanders said, gazing at me, Jill, Madison, Hunter, and even Beverly. “As Jamie said, that Displacer Beast will protect us.”
I watched everyone head to their beds, and then looked out the window, making sure nothing was nearby. I walked slowly to my bed and eventually fell asleep.
I wake up in the morning to the smell of sausage in the air, which I haven’t smelt since mom made it at the McDonald’s a week ago back in Mantri. It made me a little depressed thinking of that. I sit up in the bed, accidentally waking up Jill.
“Sorry,” I whisper.
“That’s okay,” Jill quietly replied. “I have got to get up anyway. I have to use the little girls' room.”
“So do I?” I said. “Where is it anyway?”
“I don’t know.” Jill mumbled, “This is a mall. Most likely in the halls, like they are usually.”
I got up and headed out the doors. As I look both ways, I could tell it was safe to leave the room. There was noise everywhere, as if the mall was active and ready for stores to open up. I giggle at the thought of that. Maybe someday the zombie apocalypse will be over, and this place would be a mall again.
As I walk down the hall, I could see stores. I could tell people lived in them. They decorated their windows for privacy. I could tell that some had kids by the way they painted the windows with hand prints. I think of our place. People can see inside it at the moment. I may have to find something to cover the windows.
As I walk further down the hall, I saw the washroom. Jill was right, there was the Men’s and Women’s washroom. I wonder where we could go for a shower. I sure could use one.
After I did my business, I noticed a bunch of people going down the hall. As curious as I was, I followed them. They went past our room and headed to what looked like a dining area. Some people were setting tables with cups and silverware. I guess this is where we go for meals. I wondered why they weren't setting out plates as well.
I walk over to the tables. A woman looks up at me and smiles.
“Where’s your mommy or daddy, little girl?” she asks me. I start to cry. Why did she have to bring up my mom? “Are you okay, little one?” She tries to comfort me.
About that time, Jill and the rest of my friends come over.
“There you are, Natalie,” Beverly says, heading towards me.
“This must be your daughter…um… granddaughter?” The lady said, getting up.
“She’s more of an adopted granddaughter,” Beverly says.
“My name is Martha.”
“Beverly.”
I’m Mr. Sanders, but you can call me The Colonel.”
“The Colonel?” Martha questioned. “As in Colonel Sanders, the chicken guy?”
We all laugh.
“I may almost look like him” Mr. Sanders laughed, “And I do make excellent chicken, but I’m not the real Colonel Sanders. He died way over One Hundred and Fifty Years ago.”
We all finished introduce ourselves and sat down at one of the tables.
People were starting to come in and stood in line. A man walks up to us.
“You must be new here,” he says. “You have to stand in line to get a meal.” We thanked the man and got up and head over to everyone else. By the time we do, the line is long. Why didn’t someone tell us this earlier?
By the time we got to the front, I was starved. For breakfast, they gave out bacon, eggs, and toast with our choice of jam. I chose raspberry. They also gave out grits, which was a treat for me, because I am used to having grits with my breakfast. Not many people got grits. I guess it’s not popular up here.
I sit down at the table and start to eat. A lady came along and asked us if we wanted milk or orange juice. I asked for milk and started looking out the window at all the zombies walking around the area.
It makes me wonder, with all the noise happening in the building, I am surprised by how they aren’t swarming. Can’t they hear us? I guess the zombies aren’t like the walkers on the Walking Dead after all.
“Clara!” My teacher Mr. Johnson yelled. He startled me. I was daydreaming. Wondering when the bell would ring so I could go home.
“Yes Mr. Johnson?” I perked up.
“What did I just say in class just now?”
I didn’t know. I wish I did. I usually was the good girl in class. Today I was a little distracted. My mind was on something else. During lunch today, I would look over at the boys. No I didn't have a crush on them, I wanted to be them. I want to be a boy.
Why do I want to be a boy you ask? because boys are cool. They are strong and can do more things that most girls at our school can do. I hated gymnastics. That’s what the girls have to do in gym class because we were not boys. Yeah kind of sexist. So that’s why I am daydreaming. I got to find some way to be the boy I feel inside.
“Um, I don’t remember. Sorry Mr. Johnson.”
"Next time pay better attention, Sweetie.” Sweetie? Did he just call me sweetie? I hate being called that.my dad calls me that all the time. It makes me sick thinking of it. Mr. Johnson says that to all the girls in class. No he's not a pervert, but it's just a way to make them feel good inside. I for one don't like it.
Here's another thing; Have you ever been stared at by boys wherever you go? Or have you ever been pinched on the butt? It’s not fun. I never dresses. Nope, dresses are not my thing. I am always dressed as a tomboy. Never a dress or a skirt. Always pants.
“Yes sir. I promise.” I say very quietly.” I can feel tears coming. I hate these emotions. I hate it that I am always crying. The boys in my school never cry. Unless they get hurt really bad, but even then they don’t like showing it. I’m the same way, but it’s hard to not show it. Why tears start flowing now, in the class. Some of the girls see that and feel sorrow for me. Mr. Johnson continued class and then the bell rang. I got all my things together and was just about to leave when Mr. Johnson stopped me.
“Clara, can I speak to you for a minute?” I walked over to him
“Yes, Mr. Johnson.” "I noticed you were distracted in class today. That’s not normally how you are. Is anything wrong? Something happening to you at home?”
“No sir,” I said then I started tearing up.
“What seems to be the problem?” He gave me a tissue.
“Well, Mr. Johnson,” I began. “I don't feel the same inside that normal girls feel."
"Normal girls? What do you mean, Sweetie?"
I ignored him calling me that. I looked up at him and sighed. "I want to be a boy.” “Oh Clara...”
“Your the first person I ever told this to.”
“Clara, you’re a beautiful girl. Why do you want to be a boy?”
“Because boys are stronger, and boys can pee standing up. Boys can do more things girls can’t do.”
“That’s not true Clara. Girls can do the same thing as boys can.”
“Not at this school they can’t. Girls have to go to gymnastics while boys can do sports like football and baseball. We can’t even do soccer here and that’s a sport I have seen girls play in other schools. I have seen girls play any sport, including football.”
“I understand this. Well Clara, I am glad you told me this, but I think it's best you tell your parents how you feel. I have a good feeling they will be supportive. I know for a fact that your dad will be accepting. I have known him for many years. By the way, if you had a boy’s name what would it be?”
“Cayden!” I yelled out. I had that name planned out for years.
“Well Cayden,” Mr. Johnson stood up from his chair. “I can help you with a few things. I will talk to the gym teacher and the principal and see if it is possible you can start playing sports like all the other boys. But don’t be upset if they don’t let you because you’re a girl. If you want, I can call your parents when you leave for home, so it will be easier to talk to them. Again, this is if it's okay with you.” I nod my head a little scared.
“You don’t have to be scared about this. It’s a normal thing to be transgender.”
“Thank you.” I cry. I grabbed another tissue and walked out of the room heading home.
The bus pulls up to my house. I notice my parents are home. Not something I wanted right away. I wanted time to explain to them. I walk up to the front door when my dad walks out. He looks at me for a little bit. I am a little nervous.
“Hey there pumpkin,” he finally speaks. This is new. He has never called me pumpkin before. It’s usually sweetheart. He sits down on the front steps and motions me to come over. Still a little nervous, I walk over and sit down next to him. We sit there in silence for a little bit. “So Cayden is the name you want to be now, am I right?” I smile at him.
“Yes dad.”
“Well son, if you want to be a man, you will have to do manly things. Are you up for the challenge?” I agreed. First things first, we have to get you out of those girl clothes and into some boy clothes. Before I got home I bought you a new pair of shoes as well. I hope you don’t mind sketchers."
“Can I get a haircut as well?” I said standing up.
“I was hoping you would say that. I thought of bringing you to my own barbershop. The man that does hair is really good. He can even give you a crew cut if you want.”
“Yes dad, I would.”
My name is Bailey. I am seven years old and have two brothers, both older than me. My parents are, you know parents. My dad is so happy that we are all boys. My mommy wished she had a girl. I guess that’s why she named me Bailey. Which I heard was why dad threw a fit when they chose my name. I don't understand why. I like the name, Bailey.
What my dad didn't know was I felt like I really was a girl. My mommy was so happy when I told her. She said never to tell dad. I understand why she means not to. More likely I would have been castrated by him or something horrible like that. In secret, I would dress as girly as possible. Mom loved it when I did. I loved my mommy so much. Everything was wonderful in my life. Until last year, when mommy had died. I was devastated. I lost my role model. Mainly when she was the only one that I felt safe with.
With mommy out of my life, dad took over our lives. He wanted to get me into sports. I hate sports. He put me in Football, Hockey and Baseball. He wouldn't put me in Soccer, which is funny because that's actually called Football in other countries. He said he didn't want me to play Soccer, because even girls can play it. News Flash dad, girls can play any sport.
I believe my dad is sexist and thinks women should be the ones doing all the work in the house. He bought a maid to clean up after him. No, it isn't a human, this is a robot, or an Android or something like that. I still haven't figured that out yet. Having a robot maid in the house means we didn't have to touch a thing. He said that if I cleaned anything in the house, I would be stripped down to nothing and wear girl’s clothes and treated like a woman. I wouldn't mind that. I giggle.
Just last week I got hurt at Football practice and started crying. “Lee, stop crying,” Boys don't cry; only girls do, and you are not a girl.” I hated it when dad called me Lee. I know he hates Bailey as my name, but that is ridiculous. I didn't understand why boys shouldn't cry. When he yells at me, I start crying harder. That usually makes dad angrier.
This year was an election year. Dad had tried to make sure that a man reran the white house. He failed. President Sophie won her second term. My dad hates her and says she is the worst President in the History of Presidents. The one he likes of all of them was President Drumpf. Not sure why. I heard he wasn't a great president. I bet if Hitler were around, he would have voted for him.
For the past few years, women have been running the country. This made dad pissed. I always wonder why he gets so angry. I think President Sophie is doing a great job. I heard that England had a few Queens. It was sad when Elizabeth II died. Well, my mommy said it was. I wasn't even born yet. Not even sure if mommy was. But reading a little bit on her, I learned she was a great ruler. Why doesn't the United States have Kings or Queens? Why do we have to have presidents? That is one question I haven't got an answer to.
I turn on the TV. President Sophie was talking, which I really wasn't listening. I usually listen to her, but I have another thing on my mind. Besides I could just read online in a few hours anyways. Besides, I wanted to watch my favorite movie Star Wars Episode 14. This was when Princess Lillian finally becomes a full Jedi. She defeats Darth Nazar in a colossal battle. I may have memorized the whole story, but I never get sick of it. I flipped the station, so I didn't have to hear the President speak. The movie is on SF. I understand this station has changed its name a lot since it started. Wikipedia says it was initially Sci-Fi Channel, later dropping the word “Channel” making it Sci-Fi and then Syfy. I look at the name now as SF and think it's boring. It's like they are too lazy now.
There are a lot of people making fun of that station. “Let's watch the San Francisco Channel.” They would joke around and say. I changed it to SF and noticed the show wasn't on yet. This is an excellent time to go to the kitchen and grab a little food. Looking at the machine, I didn't know how to use it. Does everything now days come in pill form? I have seen classic TV shows from around the 2010s; where they ate larger meals. I always wondered what a hamburger tasted like. But as I was saying everything is in pill form. I press a button, hoping I get something edible and head back to the movie just in time before it starts.
I made it in time to see the Disney logo. They always make this logo really cool with Star Wars Animation in the logo. I heard that a company called Twentieth Century Fox made the first six movies. Well, I guess that was the original name to the company until Disney bought them out. It makes sense because the Twentieth Century was a long time ago.
It was late at night, and I must have fallen asleep on the couch. My dad rushed in and woke me up. “Hurry son; we have to leave. Pack up a suitcase.”
“What's wrong dad?” I started panicking with him. He pointed out the window. A bunch of machine-like things were busting down doors. “What the hell are those?”
“They are Androids.”
“They sure don't look like our maid. What do they want?” I cried packing up a suitcase as fast as I could go.
“President Sophie told the nation last night, that the whole world has joined in on this new law.”
“What law is that?” I was still panicking.
“According to Sophie, all males have to report to a facility to be feminized.”
“What's that?” Now I was confused.
“It's where we would have to turn into a girl. It’s a law that makes males illegal.”
'Wow,' I thought. 'My wish is coming true. I will be a girl in no time.'
“Hurry up your brothers were already in the car. Dad went to the kitchen and grabbed bags of pill formed food with him.
“Why do we need all this stuff?”
“We won't be able to go to stores without being caught. Once all this is gone, we will have to search for food in the wilderness. I helped him take a few bags to the car, and we were on our way. But to where?
We were so lucky to get away because as soon as we left, the Androids had knocked down our front door. While we were in the car, I had a few questions to ask. “Why is the world making it illegal to be a boy?”
“How the hell do I know? Women are taking over. I have been knowing this for many years since the first woman president.”
“You mean President...”
“Don't say her name,” dad interrupted. I sat there for a while thinking.
“Dad, why can't we just give in and become girls?”
“Lee,” dad yelled. “Men have always ruled the world. Women are just jokes. Men have more power. They are stronger, and girls are weaker.”
“What if I want to be a girl?” I said without thinking.
“Why the hell would you want to become a girl?” I started to cry. “And don't start the crying bologna.”
As we flew, I looked out the window. Looking at the ground below, I could see Androids everywhere — lots of men being dragged out of their homes and taken away. I wonder how many other men were hiding away.
“Where are we going?” I asked dad.
“My boss knows this place we can hide out. He's already there. A bunch of men are there as well. We are going to hide there as long as we can.”
“What if they find out where we are?”
“Then we will have to find another hiding place.”
The ride didn't take long. With these flying cars, we can reach speeds of about 300 plus miles in just a few seconds. We made it to an abandoned place located in the desert. According to the GPS it says we are... nowhere?? “Dad where are we?” I look down and see old buildings everywhere. It definitely didn't look like a modern city. It looked like some old western movie set.
“We are located in an old abandoned town called Bodie. It has not been touched for so many years. It used to be a site for tourist to check out. I heard it was an old Gold Mining Town way back in the 1870s.”
“Wow. That's a very long time ago. Are you sure it's safe to live here?”
“My boss has already checked it out and told me it is safe.”
I look at the buildings. I am so going to miss the beach where we use to live in Santa Monica, all my friends, the boys, and the girls. I start to giggle. Now all girls, unless they got away like my family. I so wish I was still there. Where I would finally make my dream by turning into a girl. I thought of my friend Jake. He is transgender like me. He was born a girl but said he wanted to be a boy. I feel sorry for him. His wish will never happen now, I frown.
I walked around the town. Noticing there were a lot of people already there. Kids boys, girls, men, and women. I'm surprised that the men allowed the girls here. Well, I guess it makes sense. If we didn't have girls, we would just be a town of men. I walked up to this girl about my age.
“Hi,” I said. She was shy. “What's your name?”
“Tiffany,” she said softly.
“My name is Bailey,” I said very proudly.
“Isn't that a girl’s name?”
“Yes, but it can be a boy’s name as well.”
“Not common for a boy.”
“Wanna play cops and robbers?” I tried to change the subject.
“Sure,” she perked up.
We ran to a building which looked like some Saloon. Since guns were illegal in the United States, even toy guns, we had to pretend we had one. “BANG, BANG” Tiffany yelled.
“Hey!” a boy named John about three years older than us yelled. He was standing with a few more boys. “Girls can't play those games!”
“Why not?” Tiffany complained.
“Because it's the rule,” John said.
“Why can't she play?” I complained as well.
“Because she's a girl. She wears dresses. She plays with dolls. She has a...”
“I will be the girl if she can be the boy!” I yelled.
“What are you a sissy?”
“No. I think it’s wrong to be sexist.” The boys all laughed. “Yeah, we have a sissy here. Joe, go get your sisters dress and panties and bring them here. We are going to force him to be a girl, just like the world wants him to be.” Joe runs to get the items and brings them back. “Now put them on.”
“No!”
“Put the clothes on now, or your girlfriend will get cut.” He says grabbing Tiffany and putting a knife to her neck. “Don't hurt her!” I cried. I turned around and took off my clothes. Putting on the panties the boys all laugh. It was louder laughs when I put on the dress. I was embarrassed. John grabs my boy clothes.
“Hey, give them back!” I cried.
“No way!” He laughs.
“Bailey?” I looked around and saw my brothers staring me, with wide eyes. “Why are you wearing a dress?”
“Is Bailey your name?” John laughed. “That's a girl’s name.”
“It can be a boy’s name as well.” All the boys laughed — even my brothers.
“What's with all the laughing going on in...? Lee?” I looked up to see my dad. “Why are you in girls clothes?”
“They forced me to put it on.” I pointed to the boys, or what I thought was the boys. They ran away before my dad saw them.
“Stop lying to me and get back into your boy clothes.”
“I swear dad; some boys forced me to put them on.” I look around and can't find my clothes anywhere “I can't find my clothes.”
“How can you not find them? You took them off; you should know where you put them down at.
“I'm telling you, the truth. Those boys took it.”
“I'm tired of your lying. We will have to get some from your suitcase if you refuse to tell the truth.” I was a little scared because I didn't pack any clothes in there — just video games and toys. I know I will be in trouble any minute. We walked outside. I was blushing. All the people outside saw me and were laughing. We reached my suitcase. Dad opened it up. I could tell he was pissed off. “Why the hell didn't you pack any clothes?” I started to cry. “Stop that crying, or you can hit the road.” He yelled pointing to the outskirts of town. I didn't stop crying. I just started walking away. I knew I was an outcast. “Get back here Lee!” I didn't bother. I knew I didn't belong with these people. My life was meant to be with the rest of the world. The world of only girls. I was scared. But I just kept on walking. But how far was the nearest city?
I looked back at the town? I was only there for about fifteen minutes, and I was already being forced away. I continued crying. A girl ran up to me. “Give me back my clothes.” She yelled. I took off her dress and panties. She grabbed them and ran back to town. Now I was naked. This was so not my day.
For being seven years old, I have a lot of energy. I walked for a long time. I know it was far because I don't see the town anymore. About an hour went by, and I heard a car fly by. I so wish they could see me. It was getting dark. I am glad that no wheeled cars drive on the road anymore. I saw one in a museum once, which was weird. They called it a gas guzzler. Not sure what gas is. I look up and see that car fly by again. I think someone is looking for me. I am so pooped. I fall to the road and am instantly asleep.
I wake up in a weird building. I was fully clothed. I look around and see my new friend Tiffany sitting down next to me. She looks up. “Bailey! You’re alright.” she cries. She goes over and hugs me.
“Where am I?” I asked.
“You're at my house, here in Huntington Beach.”
“Why did you bring me here?”
“Mommy left the group of men because the guy she was with was a jerk. She was mad at the homophobic words he was saying about you.”
“Tiffany, can I talk to your mommy?” She nodded and ran out of the room to get her. Her mother, Mrs. White, came in the room and sat next to me.
“Hi,” I said very quietly.”
“Hello, Bailey.”
“I looked at her and sighed. “I have a feeling I will have to be brought in to be feminized. I am a little scared.”
“It's alright to be scared. “
“Will I be forced to go there just like the other men?” I cried. “I don't want to be dragged out into the streets like the Androids did to the others.”
“I can arrange it that they don't force you. They are on their way at this moment.” I looked to the floor. This is the last time I will be a boy. Will I be happy as a girl? My dream is coming true, but it seems a little scary. I looked up at Mrs. White and then hugged her.
“Thank you,” I said very softly. I cried a little.
Tiffany came into the room.
“Mommy someone is at the door.” Mrs. White walked out of the room to answer the door. Tiffany sat down next to me. So you're going to be a girl like me now, aren't you? I nodded. Tiffany hugs me. “Don't worry, being a girl isn't that bad.”
“Can you keep a secret?” I look at Tiffany, and she nods. “I have ever since I was two felt like I was supposed to be a girl. So this is a dream I have wanted for some time now.”
Tiffany looks at me for a little bit. I can see a happy smile form on her face.
Mrs. White walks back into the room with a lady.
“Hello Bailey,” The lady said. “Mrs. White told me you want to volunteer to go down to the facility. I have told the Androids to leave. I am very proud of you. You must be brave.” I cried and looked up at the lady.
“I am, but I am also scared.”
“You don't have to be scared. You’re not going to be dragged in like those non-volunteering men were.”
“Will it hurt to change?”
“Not at all. Just a small poke from a needle and you will be fine.”
I smiled as she took my hand and helped me out of bed. “Come on Bailey.”
Time was moving slowly, walking out the house I was put into a small vehicle. I looked at the world around me. I am seeing girls staring at me. Soon, I will be like them.
Soon.
The ride to the facility was a peaceful one. The lady, which I found out her name is Dr. Jostad, made it comfortable. I was told that I was one of the only cooperating children. Most didn't want to change. Well actually mostly all Transgenders agreed, but I was one that was being treated with a lot of respect. I wonder why.
I hear that crossdressers were not as happy. They lost their jobs as drag queens. Well, maybe they can dress as drag kings now. I giggle. I doubt it.
When we get to the destination, I am escorted into a strange building. I could hear lots of yelling. Most of them are men screaming to let them stay as men. I saw some men being escorted to the building like me, but they were trying to get away. There was lots of swearing as well. I noticed that when it got out of hand, they were tranquilized and thrown in a room with a bunch of other men waiting to be changed.
I was brought into a special room. Children were usually the first to change which means the older men have to suffer and panic. I walk into a room with a machine and a window where I can be watched by the women on the other side.
“Please sit down,” a robot said. I followed directions and sit. Metal bars went around my legs and arms. I see Dr. Jostad observing me from the large window. I wonder why I need to be restrained. I am a good girl. I won't get away.
The seat I sat on started getting warm. It was very pleasant. I felt a strange feeling. I hear Dr. Jostad talking. “Bailey. This won't make much sense with you. It normally would work for mature males. But because you're just seven, it will just feel warm and strange.”
“What's it supposed to do?”
“It normally would remove all of your boy juice also known as semen, but since you don't produce any at your age... well... I will explain it later.” I was confused. Just then I felt a poke in my arm.
“Ow,” I cried. “What was that?”
“You remember when I told you, you were going to get a shot?” I nodded “Well that was it. Sorry, it hurt.” If I weren't restrained, I know I would have rubbed the owwy.
The seat was still warm. It was glowing orange. I felt my hair start growing. It went past my shoulders. It was weird. Typically hair grows very slow on me. I wish I could take my hands and hold them. Because of the restraints, I couldn't even move. Still not sure why I also need to be restrained. I am voluntary allowing my change. I can feel my skin getting softer. Again I wish I could feel how soft it really was getting. Not sure what was happening, but my bones felt like they were shrinking. I notice my hands are a slight bit smaller than before. My feet stayed the same though, which was weird. I guess they are the same as girls my age. I can see through a mirror that my face was changing as well. Instead of the square-shaped chin that I was starting to get, it was now more heart-shaped. I could tell I wasn't as tall as I use to be. Last time I was checked, I was sixty inches which would have made me, I believe five feet tall and the tallest in my class, especially for a seven-year-old. But I shrunk a lot. I wonder how tall I am now. Just then my tummy was hurting a little. I am groaning. This part hurt a lot. It was like something was growing inside of me. Well, I guess it wasn't my tummy. I have a feeling that inside me I am developing the Female Reproductive System. I don't actually know what it is, but I will learn soon enough. Next but not the final change was the most exciting thing of them all. I watched as my penis started shrinking, which ended up going totally flat. I could feel something moving down there like a hole was forming. It had to be my new vagina.
The machine then moved around me. It was scanning me. How do I know? I saw a light of some kind. It was like a laser you find at a market. It went around me for about three minutes until it stopped. I looked up. This screen on the wall lit up. On the screen, I could see words.
** Patient: Bailey
Age: 7
Gender: Female
Height: 45 in.
Weight: 24 kg
Patient is capable of bearing children through natural birth in the future. Ovaries are in good health.** The machine shut off.
Wow, I am way shorter than before. I also weigh less. What's this? I can get pregnant? That excited me. I heard in the past they used Nanobot Technology and Stem Cell Research to help make Transgenders pregnant. It wouldn't be a natural birth. They would always have to cut them open to get the baby out.
Dr. Jostad walks into the room. “Hi,” I said with a smile. “How come I haven't grown...” I was moving my hands across my chest.
“Bailey the final stages will be when you go through puberty. That is in a few years from now. As for now, welcome to girlhood. You are 100% female down to the Chromosomes.”
“What are Chromosomes?” I asked I was so confused.
“ Chromosomes is DNA that makes you either male or female. Since you are now female, you have the Chromosome XX. When you were born, you had the Chromosome XY which is the DNA of male.”
I sat there for a minute not talking. Dr. Jostad just smiled. Finally breaking the silence I had a question, I bet lots to ask.
“Why has the world decided to change all males into females?”
“I can't answer that. It is top secret, even to me. But more likely in the near future, we will know the reason why.”
The chair stopped turning bright orange and turned off. The metal bars opened up, and I was able to move again. I got down from the chair, well I more like fell. I wasn't the same height as I was before. I started to cry. Dr. Jostad helped me up. “It's okay. You didn't know how tall you were by just sitting there. I stopped crying. I was checking out the machine I was just one. Looking at a small empty jar. “What's that?” I asked pointing to the jar.
“That's normally where your little boy juice would have been, but as I said before, you haven't hit puberty yet, so you were not able to produce any.”
“Why do you want that?”
“So that women can still get pregnant and re-populate Terra if we ever need to,” I remember in school we learned Terra is the actual name for our planet. For many years people have called it earth. But the earth is the land we walk on. We can't walk on water. So why would we call the whole planet earth?
“Do you have any parents we can bring you back to?” Dr. Jostad asked.
“I do, it's my dad, and he is in hiding with my two older brothers.”
“We must find them. Do you know where they are?” I looked up at her. With tears in my eyes, I started to cry. I don't remember where they are. Even if I did find them, they would start a war on all of us. He would disown me now because I am a girl.” I am bawling now. “So actually I don't have any parents. I am alone now.” Dr. Jostad hugged me.
“We will have to find you a new family. One that would treat you as their daughter.”
I was taken to a room full of children. Of course all girls.
“This is where you will stay for a while. Most of these girls, are like you. They don't have parents.”
I look at all the toys in the room. Dollhouses and dolls, dress up clothes, makeup kits. I am in heaven. There are so many things to do here. I ran over to the dollhouse. I didn't notice that Dr. Jostad left until I heard a loud buzzer from the door. 'Were they locking us in?' I thought.
I looked at the dollhouse. Another girl was sitting there playing in it as well.
“Hello, what's your name?”
“My name is Forrest, Forrest Gump.” She giggled.
“Really?” I giggle as well.
“No my name is Floyd, but since that's a boy’s name and now I am a girl... like you. I am now Felicity.” She said.
“Did you pick out that name? It's beautiful.”
“Yes, I did and thank you. What's your name?”
“My name is Bailey.”
“What was your boy’s name?”
“Bailey as well. My mommy wanted a girl and chose this name. My dad hated it. Was always angry at my mommy for choosing my name. He would always call me Lee, which I never liked being called.”
“Do you wanna be my friend?” Felicity asked after a long pause. I smiled and nodded.
It was just about time for dinner. All the girls were excited. So was I. When the food came in, we thought it would be a pill. We were surprised it wasn't. I was looking at a whole table of something I never saw before.
“What is this? I was so confused. I picked up an object. It was strange to pick it up. Sniffing it, I took a bite. “Mmm yummy” I cried out. “What am I eating? To my surprise, Dr. Jostad came into the room. Well, actually it was a hologram of her. She was in another room at the moment. “That is called a Pizza. One of the scientists named Kadee, originally a male like you had started making food. It's digitally made from a computer.” My eyes were open more full than I have ever taken them.
“You mean, I can actually eat a real hamburger?”
“Yes. If you want I can digitally make you a hamburger from McDonald's.”
I looked confused. Staring at the floor. “What's a McDonald's?” Dr. Jostad laughed.
“McDonald's is a restaurant from way back. It started in 1940 in the City of San Bernardino, California.”
“I don't understand. Which California is San Bernardino in?”
“Well at the time McDonald's was founded it was located in the state of California. When the state split into six states, San Bernardino becomes part of South California.”
“That is very interesting. Is McDonald's still around?”
“As of right now, McDonald's and all restaurants closed up when we had a livestock shortage. The last cow became extinct fifteen years ago. Chickens are on the endangered species list. I remember when McDonald's shut down. They had a controversy on killing horses to be made for replacement of beef. That would be cow if you didn't know.”
“Can I try one of those hamburgers?”
“Sure thing.” She spoke through the communicator on her shirt. “Kadee could you bring a McDonald's Double Cheese Burger some fries and a Chocolate Shake.” She looks at the other girls. “Make that enough for all the girls in this room.”
The food came over to us instantly. I was so excited. Even my new friend Felicity. For the first time in my life, I was going to experience a hamburger. I grabbed my burger and everything that comes with it. With one bite, it was like my mouth was in heaven. I wanted to savor the taste as much as possible.
I looked inside the burger. There were two weird brown flat things. Not sure what it is. Two yellow floppy stuff in between the two brown things. I'm guessing they were cheese. Not sure if I am right. I see this flat round green thing. Then something I really couldn't tell what it was, but it was white and small. On top was some red stuff which tasted sweet and yellow stuff which was kind of sour. Over what I believe was a bun. I was so glad to eat my very first burger.
With all this excitement, I went to another room and found some beds. I laid down on one. Felicity saw me go to sleep. She was too scared to meet anyone else. She laid down next to me. I was surprised she took the same bed. It didn't bother me. I let her stay. I even hugged her. We fell asleep hugging.
“Sergeant Jostad, we have spotted a small group just in the desert of Central California. They are located in an old town. I have checked out an old map of California before the split. It looks like an abandoned town called Bodie, or what use to be a town.”
“Very good private. Let me know if you have more proof on who is there.”
I heard the whole conversation. I got out of bed and kissed Felicity before I did. I think I am falling in love with her. Getting out of bed, I walk over to Dr. or Sergeant Jostad. “Are you a doctor or a Sergeant?” I asked.
“Oh sweetie, I didn't know you were up. I am both. But to you, I am your doctor.”
“The place you were talking about Bodie sounds familiar. I think that's the town my dad and brothers are in.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, and if I am not mistaking, they're armed with weapons.”
“Bailey, we have weapons as well.”
“Yeah, but they have high tech weapons. My dad and his boss are there. They worked at a company that makes Nuclear Lasers.”
“Those are illegal.”
“My dad didn't care. He was planning on using them to assassinate the President. And if he gets his way, he will do it.”
“Thanks for letting us know.” She yells to a woman. “Natalie get me the President on the phone.” She looks at me again. “I'm sorry Bailey, but we may have to exterminate your father and everyone that's in that town.”
I start to cry. “I understand. But that means I will be an orphan.”
“Don't worry sweetie we have found you a nice family that wants to adopt you.”
“Who?” I ask.
“Sergeant Jostad, the president is on line 1.”
“I will tell you who in a little while.” She answers the phone. “Hello Madame President, we have a code red on a troop of men planning on assassinating you. If I were you, I would leave Carson City. These men are located within one hundred miles from you and the White House.” She listened over the phone. I remember hearing about these old phones our ancestors used to use. I think they called the iPhone and Androids. It makes me laugh that anyone used technology like that. Today’s phones are set up through brain waves. Just press a button on our wrist, and we can talk. The best thing is, it is almost virtually impossible to listen in on someone’s conversation. Only the owner of the phone can hear the other person’s conversation. But I do remember something my dad told my brothers. It's a bad thing. Something that could have caused problems between our families in the past. Should I tell her? I must tell her.
“Dr. Jostad. I have to tell you something.”
“Hold on Bailey, this is important.”
“So is mine,” I mumbled under my breath.
After about three minutes she got off the phone.
“Now Bailey, what was so important that you needed to interrupt me?”
“My dad is a hacker. I believe he just traced your call.”
“Why didn't you tell me earlier.”
“I wanted...” I couldn't even finish the sentence. I started to cry.
That evening I heard screaming in the hallway. “You can't take me!” It sounded familiar. I looked out the window of the room I was in. To my surprise, I saw one of my brothers being dragged in by the Androids. I looked around for dad and my other brother. I didn't see them. Dr. Jostad saw me looking out the window. Hearing a buzz, I stepped away from the door. I know what that means. She was coming in.
“Hello, Bailey. I have some good news and...” she stopped speaking.
“And what? Are my dad and my other brother okay?”
“I am sorry Bailey. Your father was shot and killed by the Android Secret Service of President Sophie.”
I started to cry. “And my brother?”
“Well, one brother of yours is here as you saw, the other one...”She sighed, “he committed suicide.”
My eyes were again huge. Tears were falling from my eyes. I screamed and ran to my bed crying my head off. Felicity walked in, laid next to me and hugged me.
“I heard what happened and I am sorry. I am an orphan as well. My parents both died in a fly-by shooting.” I looked up at Felicity. Still, with tears in my eyes, I hugged her and kissed her. I wasn't shocked that she kissed me back.
I woke up the next day to a new girl. I knew it was my sister, but to be funny, I went over to her. “Hello, what's your name?”
“I don't have a name after they forcefully changed me into a girl. What's your name?”
“My name is Bailey,” I giggle.
“Bailey? I have a brother named Bailey.”
“No, you have a sister named Bailey,” I say posing myself off to her.
“Bailey? Is that you? Wow, you look different. I hardly noticed you.” my new sister said. She started crying and hugged me.
“Have you thought of a name yet?” I said.
“Hmm... Well with my name being Joseph, I could be Josephine.”
“Do you mind if I call you Josie?” I could see she was about to cry.
“I would love it.” She finally cried, hugging me.
It seems like every year, there are more children on the naughty list. Yes, I make this list and check it twice, and always know, if you're naughty or nice. That's right, I'm Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, whatever you call me, I'm always the jolly old fat man, with the rosy cheeks.
I'm sitting here on my big comfy davenport, sipping cocoa and eating cookies, pondering on what I should do about all the naughty children in the world. I usually would give them coal, but finding out that coal, can turn into diamonds. I wasn't going to waste it on children.
I get off my tush and walk over to the computer monitors to watch the children around the world. No, I'm no pervert or anything, so don't think I watch kids while they are naked. The computers are fully set up for those types of problems. Whenever a child or an adult gets nude, it blurs the areas.
Lately, I have been watching these two little children. Amanda and Trevor, both twins, age nine. They are on the good list. Have been all their lives. In fact, they have never been naughty even once, which is a surprise, because most children cause one bad thing each year or almost every day.
On one screen, I see Amanda and her brother Trevor doing their chores. I have never seen them complain once, but I can tell that they don’t like the chores they are told to do. Trevor has to rake and bag the leaves in the lawn and Amanda has to Wash dishes and Fold and put away laundry
Yes, I know this is typical chores for a girl and a boy to do, but I know the reason why they don’t like them. It is not because they are disobedient like most children are, it’s because both have gender dysphoria. In their minds, Amanda isn’t a girl, she is a boy named Max and Trevor isn’t a boy, he is a girl named Chelsea. I usually think of them as the names they chose to be.
Chelsea was just finishing up with the last bag of leaves when her father, Richard came up behind her. I don’t approve of the kids parents actions. They are, what a lot of people would call transphobic. Chelsea and Max have never told their parents they are transgender, because they are scared of what they would do, if they did tell them.
“Good job son,” Richard complimented, not knowing it bothered young Chelsea. Now being bothered, does not make someone be put on the naughty list, it’s just an emotion that some people have. Richard started walking away from Chelsea, but turned back. “Oh, Trevor, did you sign up for hockey like I asked you to?”
Now this, I knew made Chelsea nervous, for one, she didn’t like sports and two even if she did, she wasn’t very good at it.
“Yes, dad,” Chelsea answered.
“Good boy. How was try outs?”
“I didn’t make it on the team,” Chelsea looked at the grass. She knew her dad was going to yell at her.
Right on cue, Richard hollered in her face. Which made me very angry at him. I hate it when children get treated this way. “You didn’t make it on the team!? I am not raising no loser! Go to your room, I don’t want to see you out of there for the rest of the night.
“Dad, it wasn’t my fault, I tried…” Chelsea tried to explain what had happened. Which I knew. She was not as fast as the other children trying out, but Richard slapped her in the face.
“Just for that, no supper as well!” Richard yelled. Chelsea cried all the way up to her room. I know the Christmas song everyone knows says, ‘you better not cry’, but in this case, I can understand why someone would cry.
“Santa is watching you! You’re on the naughty list! You're not getting anything for Christmas this year!” Richard hollered up the stairs.
I knew that Chelsea was not on the naughty list, she was on the nice list. I felt sorry to see Chelsea cry. I had to do something about it. As for Max, he is just finishing up folding the laundry and putting them away, when Richard came up to him. He still had steam coming out of his ears and needed it take it out on someone else as well. Since Max was in the wrong place at the wrong time, he was the one that got it.
“Amanda!”Richard yelled at Max, “How many times have I told you to get out of my way?”
“I wasn’t…” Max started to protest, but Richard interrupted him.
“Don’t lie to me, young lady! Go to your room! You too will not get any supper tonight.” Now Max hated to cry, but because of this moment, he cried all the way to his room. “Also, you are on Santa’s Naughty list as well!”
What gives him the right to say, that they are on the Naughty list? I am the one that chooses to put them on the list. As far as I know, Richard is on the Naughty list. He has been on it, for many years now, which disappoints me. Now, I see both children crying on their beds. This breaks my heart, seeing two good children being treated this way. Now I definitely had to do something about this.
With a twitch of my nose and a twinkle of my thumb, I used my Christmas magic and brought those two children from their distress and they were standing next to me, a bit confused. Seeing their expressions made me laugh.
“Ho, Ho, Ho” I cleared my throat and looked at them. “I’m sorry to confuse you both, Max and Chelsea.”
Max and Chelsea now had shocked looks on their faces.
“How did you know my secret name, Santa?” Max asked.
“I was going to say the same thing?” Chelsea giggled.
I gave another chuckle. I knew this was a surprise to both of them. You see, the names they chose, they never shared with anyone. Not even each other.
“Don’t you know all about me?” I explain, pointing to my monitors, which show them on the screen next to me. “I see you when you're sleeping, I know when you're awake, I know if you've been bad or good.”
Chelsea looks down at the ground. “So, you know I have been bad.” She starts to tear up.
“Oh, no, no, no, no, no,” I chimed in. “You're both on the Nice list.”
“But, according to my dad, I’m on the Naughty list,” Chelsea explained.
“So am I?” Max added.
“Your dad does not have the authority to add you two to the Naughty list.” I explained to them. “I am the only one that puts children on the list and as long as you’ve been alive, you two have never been naughty.”
I saw that both of the children smiled. That always makes me all warm and cozy inside, to see children happy. I had to help them out with their troubles.
“The reason why I brought you two here tonight is, you two have been treated very poorly by both your parents. I am wanting to give you two very special gifts. These gifts, are not ones that you can find under the tree. But I can’t just give it to you, without getting something from it as well. Because I am using Christmas magic. For the gifts I will give to you will change both your lives forever.”
“What is it?” Max and Chelsea both said at once.
“I look at Max. For you Max, I will give you the gift of boyhood,” I smiled. “Which will become a real boy.” I look at Chelsea. “And as for you Chelsea, I am giving you the gift of girlhood, which will make you a real girl”
The two children both cheered. I can tell they were very happy.
“But what about our parents?” Max asked, looking up at me.
“Because the way they have been treating you, I have made it that they have never been your parents. You will be with a new family. This family is very supportive of all gender identities. I have been working with this family for a while now and they are excited to have you as their children.”
“What do we have to do first?” Chelsea asked? “You did say, it’s Christmas magic and you can’t just give it to us, without getting something from it as well.”
“That is true,” I smiled at Chelsea. “It’s a bit of a challenge, but I know you two can do it. There’s this kid named Jeremy.” I show them a picture of Jeremy on the screen. “He has been extremely naughty and has been on the Naughty list for four years now. I would like you two to help him change his ways and get on the Nice list this year.”
“How can we do that?” Max asked. “Christmas is in eighteen days.”
“Ho, Ho, Ho,” I chuckle. “Haven’t you ever wondered why I can deliver all those toys to millions of kids in one night? I have a time machine. I use it to go back in time and do everything all at once.”
“But wouldn’t going back in time, make all the toys you gave out, disappear?” Max asked.
“Nope, it stays there. That’s why you can go back in time the same days Jeremy causes trouble and change his future. I know you can do it.”
“I’m a little nervous,” Chelsea shivered. “What if we can’t change him?”
“Don’t worry. If you can’t change him, it’s not the end of the world. I will still give you your gifts. But I will be watching you two. I will know if you're faking it.”
We all walk into a room. Inside the room, there is the machine, I use to travel in time. Beside the machine are two bracelets. I hand one, to both of them. It doesn’t matter who presses the button, they both go at the same time, to the same place.
“I made it look like a bracelet. But don’t worry, if you lose it, I can always help you find it.”
Chelsea and Max looked a little nervous. I would too, if I were a little child, going on my first time travel.
“Are you two ready to go?” I asked.
“Yes,” they both said.
“Good luck,” I chuckled. I flipped the switch.
My name is Jamie Jacobs. I am an average boy living in the big city of Bloomington, Minnesota.
My best friend's name is Tony, and we hang out all the time. Our favorite place to go in the area
was at the Mall of America. It is the largest mall in the world, and they were still expanding it.
I believe they are now on their 86th expansion to the mall. Mom would drop us off there, and
we spent a lot of time there. The rides at Ice Village were our favorite things. I heard it was
originally a Peanuts themed park and a Nickelodeon themed park as well. I loved going on the
Icy Waterfall Ride. I am short for my age, so I finally got at the height to even get on it. I guess
You could say I am the shortest in my class, at forty-eight inches exactly.
There is a rule that we can't be at the mall at our age, without an adult. but only on Friday and
Saturday after 4PM. Since this is a Thursday, we don't care.
We always tried to do bad things. Why not, we are boys. Girls don't usually do that, unless they
were a tomboy.
If a boy did girly things, you could say they were a sissy. I would never be that way. In fact, I
would never be transgender either, since I would never be a girl. Why would I? Being a boy
rocks. I think it's weird when a boy says they want to be a girl. Or a girl wants to be a boy? Now I
won't say I am transphobic, because I am not. I believe it's fine for someone to choose their
gender. But I still think it's weird.
At school, I always pick on the girls. I always think they need it. If you are a girl, you
deserve to be picked on. That's also the reason I would never be a girl. I wasn't going to be
picked on.
One day this year, I was sent to the principal's office because I cut off the ponytail of a girl at
recess. I was suspended. I never knew that an eight-year-old could be suspended. My sister was
angry with me as well. If I had done it to her, I bet she would have kicked my ass.
I know I was mean to the girl, but eventually we became friends. Not best friends, that would be
gross. A girl? Her name was Jennifer. I found out she lives across the street from me. I did feel
sorry for cutting it off. It was just a joke. I never did that again.
I was not allowed to go out to recess for a month. I was told to stay in class until everyone came
back inside. Which sucked. What was I suppose to do the whole time. I had to clean the
chalkboard. Yes, we still have a chalkboard. The school won't bring in white boards, because the
markers used on their make people sick. Especially me. After I clean the board, I also
have to pound erasers. At least that brings me outside. But not near the playground.
When everyone came in, we had writing class. I like writing, but sometimes it can be disastrous.
Today's class was boring though. I was glad it was almost over. I glanced up at the clock.
"Alright Class,” our teacher said. “before we go, I want to give out homework for you to do over
the weekend." The whole class groaned, including me. "I know you hate homework, but I am
doing this because people have been picking on each other. Especially picking on the girls.”
Everyone gazed at me. I slid down my seat. “I want a full report about your opposite gender by
Monday." The bell rang right after he said that, and I jumped out of my seat.
I saw my buddy Tony walking out of the room, and I ran to catch up with him.
"This sucks," I complained as we went to his locker.
“Yeah? Well, we wouldn't have been in this mess, if it wasn't for you.”
“Sorry,” I almost cried. I wasn't going to because boys don't cry.
"You're lucky, Jamie," Tony said. You have a sister. You can simply ask her a few questions."
"Yeah, but she doesn't always talk to me. She's always busy. Listening to her stupid music." We
were going home, like we always do. We only live a few blocks away from the school.
"HEY DWEEBS!" I must have jumped about 5 feet. We both glanced back. Thomas and his gang
were running after us. "Shit! The Sixth Graders!" We both started running. "Why is it every day
they have to do this?" I yelled to Tony, still running. Tony was already ahead of me; he was the
fastest runner in the third grade. "And why do you have to be so quick?"
"I'll see you later!" Tony yelled back. He was already a block away. The Sixth Graders had almost
caught up to me. I ran to an alley where I was trapped at a dead end. I looked around, trying to
find another way out of the alley.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here? A Pipsqueak trapped like the mouse he is," said
Thomas.
"What shall we do with him?" Said one of the others. They started looking around and spotted a
strange box.
"We'll stuff him in there and hold the door shut," Thomas said, pointing to it. "Come here,
pipsqueak." I was crying by then. "Oh, you're a sissy, aren't you?" I was pushed into the box like
thing. It was really dark. I tried to get out by banging on the door.
"Hey, let me out!" I cried. "I want out!" Just then a light flashed on. First it was bright blue. It
was really bright and I almost couldn't see it. I put my hand over my eyes. The light changed to
purple. I stopped hitting the door, and glanced at the light when it turned to pink. It stayed pink
for about ten seconds, until it finally turned off. The Sixth Graders seemed to have left. I started
opening the door to take a peek, then I came out of the box. I started walking, but I couldn't move
far, because the next thing I knew, I fainted.
I woke up about an hour later, not knowing what happened. I slowly got to my feet and started
going home. I was only about two blocks away when I had to pee badly. "I could do this outside,
but I don't want to get caught," I thought. I ran as fast as possible to the Planet Fitness half a block away.
The lady at the front desk saw me rush in. "Excuse me ma'am, where is the restroom?"
"It's over there sweetie, you won't miss it."
"Thank you!" I ran as fast as possible. I didn't think I could make it in time. Running into the stall
and unzipping my pants, I started to... WHOOOOSH!
"What the heck?" I just sprayed all over my pants. Surprised on what I did, I looked down and saw
the scariest surprise of my life. Instead of my boy parts, I had a little slit. Yes, that's right, a
vagina. I wasn't a boy, I was a girl. "Oh My God!" I yelled. "Where's my...? This can't be
happening to me!" I was so scared that I ran out of the room with wet pants on. Ran as fast as I
could out of the store and down the street to my house. Luckily, my parents weren't home. I
didn't want them to know I was a girl. My sister was home. I knew I couldn't keep this secret
forever, so I decided to tell her. Maybe she knew what to do and say.
By the time I got inside the house, my hair was down past my shoulders. Of course, my sister was
in her room playing her favorite music from the musical group, One High-Speed. "Jessica!" I yelled
over the music. "Jessica--you gotta help me!" I was freaking out by the time I got to her
room.
"What do you want, twerp?" She yelled, turning around to gawk at me. "What the Hell?" I
started crying my eyes out.
"You got to help me. I turned into a girl!"
"Jamie?" Jessica asked in disbelief. "Is that you?"
I turned and covered my face with hands, trying to hide it from her.
Jessica continued moving around me looking closer. "Jamie, that is you!" she said with certainty.
"Why are you dressed as a girl?"
I so wanted to die! Tears began leaking out, and I scrunched my eyes tight. Jessica held my arms
and turned me around to face her. I couldn't open my eyes, my stomach was shaking as I began to cry.
"I told you," I sobbed, "I turned into a girl!" Jessica raised an eyebrow.
I knew she did not believe me. She slid her fingers into my hair and gave it a gentle tug. She
tried again further again up on the top of my head. Again, her slight pull met tight
resistance. It then dawned on her that the hair was attached to the head.
"Ow!" I protested. "That's my hair!" I pushed her hands away and rubbed my head where she
had pulled it.
"I'm sorry Jamie... I thought it was a real wig." She looked a little closer at my hair. "Your hair, it's really real!"
I wiped my eyes with my fingers and was determined to prove it to her for once and all. I pulled
down my pants to my knees, and then, more hesitant, I slowly pulled down my underwear.
Jessica was awestruck. "Jamie, I didn't know. I mean honest...I'm sorry."
"I'm a freaking girl." I started pouting and pulled my clothes back up. I felt a little uncomfortable with her staring.
"Being a girl isn't so bad, you know? I'm one too." Jessica then added, "But I don't think we can't tell Mom or Dad."
I started twirling my hair with my finger. "Well, can we cut my hair then?" Maybe they won't know."
"I dunno. You're cute this way," Jessica said with a smile.
"Cute?! I look like a freaking girl." I pouted.
"Well, you are a girl," giggled Jessica. I started crying heavily.
"I don't wanna be a girl!" I ran to her bed, throwing a tantrum. The next thing we knew, our mother stepped into the house.
"Kids, come here quick," Mother yelled up the stairs.
"Just a minute," Jessica said through her doorway.
"Now!" Mother demanded. I glanced at Jessica, and with a frown on my face, we both stepped slowly downstairs. Our mother looked at us in surprise. "Who are you?" She said, staring at me.
We glanced at each other, then back at her. I started crying again.
"It's me, Mommy."
"Jamie, why are you wearing a wig?" Asked mother.
"It's not a wig, it's her real hair," Jessica said, noticing she made a mistake, and covered her mouth.
"Her?" Jessica, Jamie is a boy, not a girl," Mother complained. "Don't pick on him."
"Mommy," I cried even harder, not knowing why I called her Mommy. My sister always said that
at my age, I always called her Mom. "I am a girl."
"You can't be a girl, you were born a boy, and--" she stops talking when I started pulling down my pants. "Oh--my--God!" She said looking at my new girl parts.
"I told you, I'm a girl," I cried.
"How did this happen? I need some explaining, young...um... lady?"
"I dunno, Mommy, I noticed it when I was in the restroom at the store. That's why my pants are so wet. I accidentally peed myself, but before that I fainted..." Then I remembered... It's the box!
Well, I think it's a box--more of a machine. It must have turned me into a girl." I started
squeaking. "I don't even remember where it is." I began squeaking even more.
"What's wrong with your voice? Why are you squeaking?"
"I don't...[Squeak]" I stop talking.
"Jamie, your voice sounds like a little girl's voice now," said Jessica. I started crying again, but this time I sounded like a little girl crying. I ran to my room and jumped on my bed, hiding under my blanket.
"Jamie!" Mother yelled, running up the stairs after me. "Please come back here sweetie."
"No! I'm not leaving this bed!"
"If you don't, we won't be going to the special place I was planning on going to."
"I don't care, I don't wanna go anywhere if I have to look and sound like a girl."
"Not even if it's ChuckECheese?" That made me jump up from underneath her covers.
"Mommy, we never go there."
"We are now."
"Well, I am not going." I went back under my covers. "If I have to be a girl, that is. All my friends will notice me."
"No, they won't even notice you."
"Yes, they will." I got out of the covers again. Mother looked at me and started laughing.
"Sorry sweetie, but you won't be noticed at all."
"Yeah, they will--you and Jessica noticed me."
"You don't look like a male anymore. Your face has changed and now appears more feminine." I
jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom mirror. The next thing I knew, I screamed a
girlish scream. I now officially looked like a girl. Jessica came into my room where Mother was.
"I heard we are going to ChuckECheese." She was so excited. "I found this beautiful dress for Jamie.
"Nuh uh, I am not wearing a dress."
"Please Jamie, for me, your big sister. I have the same looking dress. We could both look like twin sisters tonight." I thought for a while.
"Okay, I will wear a dress." I shrugged. "But I won't like it."
"Yay!" Jessica was so thrilled. I took the dress, stared at it for a minute, and slowly put it on. "I'm scared. I have never worn a dress before."
"You look so cute in it," Mother said, moving around me. "Do a little spin for Mom."
"Mommy!" I protested. Mother looked at me with the expression that bothers me. It's like a stun
ray or something. I sighed. "All right, Mommy. I spun in a circle a few times. But something in my mind triggered and I wanted to do it again. "Mommy, I am so cute."
"Oh sweetie," Mother said, giving me a hug. "Are you willing to be a girl?" I stared at myself in the mirror.
"Not really, but if I have to be a girl, I want you and Jessica to be happy."
We got to ChuckECheese and I was apprehensive. "Mommy, there are many kids in there, and some of them are my friends."
"That's okay, sweetie, they won't even notice you, as I said before, you don't even look like a boy."
anymore. You are more feminine." We all stepped into the restaurant, me holding my mom's
hand. I must have looked shy because I was hiding behind Mom the whole way into the building as we found a seat. The waitress walked over and started getting our order.
"Did you know today is girls night?" We give all the girls 20 free tokens to have as much fun as they want." She handed us both the free tokens. I was so overjoyed that I smiled with excitement.
"Mommy, now I'm glad I am a girl."
"Go ahead and have some fun while the pizza is being made." My sister and I ran off to the
arcade. I accidentally bumped into my best-friend Tony.
"I'm sorry Miss..." Tony looked at me with wide eyes. "Jamie?"
"Jamie, please come out," Mother said, standing outside the girls' stall.
"No, I won't," I cried."My friend Tony knew it was me all along."
"I know you're upset, but it doesn't mean you have to hide from it."
"I hate it. I hate being a girl!"
"Jamie, being a girl isn't so bad."
"It is, if you know someone who knew you used to be a boy."
A lady in the stall next to me came out and stared at my mom in disgust. "You gave your son a sex change? You're disgusting!" She scowled and left the room.
"I did not give her a sex change!" Mom yelled back. She glanced back at the stall. "Please come out, Jamie. The pizza's almost ready." Jessica came into the room.
"Mom, Tony wants to see Jamie."
"Tell him, I don't wanna see him," I came out of the stall.
"Jamie," Jessica put her hands on her hips. "He said he wasn't going to pick on you, he just wants to see you." I sighed.
"Fine, but if he picks on me, I am staying in the car until we leave."
We stepped out of the girls restroom. Tony was standing outside waiting. I saw him and quickly glanced down at the floor. "Hi Tony," I said softly.
"H-Hi Jamie, He appeared surprised. "Can we talk in private?" He asked Jessica and Mom. They
both left. Tony and I started walking. "Jessica told me that you were accidentally turned into a girl. Is that true?"
I started to cry.
"Oh Jamie, don't cry. I am not trying to pick on you."
"I know that, I just don't wanna be a girl." We went outside the restaurant to talk.
"You know, your school project will be a lot easier now." We both laughed.
"Yeah, but which one should I choose as the topic?"
"Hmm... excellent question. Tony looked puzzled. "At the time Mr. Johnson asked us, you were a boy. Now that you're a girl..."
"Don't remind me."
Tony looked me up and down. "Jamie," he started blushing. "You're attractive."
"Oh thanks," I said with a smile. "You think so?"
"Yeah. By the way, I won't treat you any different. We're still best friends, even if you are now a
girl."
I started playing with my hair.
"Can you be my girlfriend?" He asked after a short pause.
"Wait, you want me to be your..."
"If you want."
"Yuck!"
"Oh, you think I have cooties?" I started laughing.
"No. The reason why I said that is--" Just then, a big white van came screeching towards Tony and me. I didn't have much time to run before a man got out and took me inside.
"Help!" I yelled. Another man got a cloth and put it over my face. It smelled unpleasant, and then I fainted.
Tony ran back into the restaurant. He raced over to Jessica and Mom. "Mrs. Jacobs! Jamie was kidnapped!"
"SHE WHAT!" Mrs. Jacobs cried.
The whole restaurant heard the news, put the place on lockdown, and immediately called the police.
A few minutes later: In a small warehouse on the other side of town, I finally woke up and was confused. I looked around and saw that I was in a tiny room with no windows.
I started to cry. "Let me out of here!" I screamed. There was nobody around. I tried the door. For some reason, the door was unlocked. I walked out slowly, and I looked all around and started to
find a way out of the building. I didn't go far when a man encountered me.
"Hey you!" He yelled. I started running. I ran to a hallway and tried my best to find another door. Hoping it was the right one out. I got trapped between him and the end of a hallway.
Déjà vu, I cried. I knew I wasn't able to get away from him.
"Come on, girl," he said. He grabbed me and brought me to another man. "Hey, Lewis! She attempted to get away."
Lewis went over to me. "I see. Well, we will have to teach her a little lesson... Strip her and lock her in a different room. And make sure it's locked before you go."
I was taken to another room, and the men forcefully ripped off all my clothes, including my underwear.
I was standing nude in front of all of them crying my eyes out.
At the restaurant, the police were in back interviewing Tony.
"...Then the next thing I knew, a man in a white van took her away."
"Did you notice a license on the van?" An officer spoke to him.
"No, I was too scared," Tony frowned and stared at the ground. "Sorry."
"That's okay, son, you tried your best." He then went over to Mrs. Jacobs. "Do you have a recent
picture of her?"
"I don't," she says. But I have a picture of her twin brother that died a year ago," she lied, looking through her purse for a picture of boy me.
"We can always sketch her," the officer said, taking the picture of me.
At the warehouse, I sat naked in the room. I was so embarrassed. The men took my clothes and
locked the room. All I could do was cry. A video camera watched me constantly.
If I moved one way, it followed me. If I moved down, it followed me back.
"What do you want from me!" I yelled into the camera. Of course there wasn't any answer.
An hour later, I was laying on the floor. I was so bored that I fell asleep. I was asleep for about
ten minutes when I woke up hearing sounds of keys opening the door. When the door opened
up, I ran out as fast as possible. The man caught and restrained me.
"Just for that, you don't get dinner." He said, taking the tray of food back with him and locking the door. I started bawling. I never got to have pizza at ChuckECheese, and play in the arcade. I went to the door and listened. I could hear a TV. The news was on.
"We have an Amber Alert at this hour. Eight year old Jamie Jacobs was kidnapped about an hour ago from a local ChuckECheese. A witness reports he saw a man take her into a white van." The reporter said on the television. "Restaurant video cameras have this video that might help us look for little Jamie. Here is a sketch of Jamie."
I pouted. "Shit, now all my friends know I'm a girl."
The man from earlier returned to the room. "My boss told me I should still feed you," he growled. "But because of the latest time you tried to escape, he wants you in the same room as us. We will have to tie you up."
"Great, now I have to be in the same room as them, and naked as well," I thought.
They tied me up to a chair and took my picture. I started to cry.
"Hey, we saw your picture on TV and thought you needed a picture instead of a sketch." They all laughed.
At the Jacobs home, Mom and Jessica were sitting with the police, waiting for a phone call from the kidnappers.
"How do you know they will call--they don't even know our phone number," said Jessica.
"More likely they asked your sister for the number." One officer spoke.
"I really hope so." Jessica cried.
The next thing they knew, the phone rang. Mom answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Hello Mrs. Jacobs," a man said over the speaker. "Your daughter is fine, but we want something from you."
"What do you want?"
"We want Twenty Million American Dollars sent to a Swiss bank account."
"Twenty Million Dollars?" She started crying. "We don't have that much."
"And every hour that we don't have the money, your daughter will be beaten... Kapeesh?"
"I understand," Mom sobbed.
"What the hell are all these police cars in front of our house doing?" Our dad came into the
house after a long day at work. Of course, I didn't know he did, because I wasn't home.
"Sir, your daughter was kidnapped," a police officer mentioned to him. Dad had a worried expression on his face and stepped into the living room to sit down. He looked at Mom and Jessica.
"Wait! Jessica is right here!" He said. "She's not kidnapped."
"Mr. Jacobs, your other daughter was kidnapped," the officer explained to him. Dad was
confused.
"I don't have another daughter. I have one son, and one daughter."
"You had a son, now you have two daughters," Mom explained.
“How can I have two daughters? We have always had one girl and one boy!” dad yelled.
“Please give me a chance to explain,” mom cried.
“No need to explain,” dad yelled, while getting up from the couch. “I knew that naming our son, a girls name, was a bad idea.”
“Jamie is a gender neutral name. It can be used as both genders. I know Jamie is more of a girl name, but now it actually fits her.”
“Him! Stop calling our queer son a girl. If he wants to be one, I don't want to be here.”
He stormed out of the house and got in the car.
“If you all want to see me again, he better stop acting like a girl and more like the boy, he really
is!”
“But honey...”
Dad sped away. You could still hear his car for a few blocks. Mom stood at the end of the
driveway. You could see her sobbing.
"Mrs. Jacobs..."
"Call me Joslyn." Mom was crying.
"Okay, Joslyn, it is. But for the record, we have to use your last name. Anyways, we have to get back to helping your daughter. She is in serious trouble." The police officer was studying at
a few papers that were just handed to him. "We got a trace on the call that just came in." It is located...” He glanced at the papers and back at mom. “at the police station?”
At the warehouse, I sat with the kidnappers watching TV. One guy wanted to watch sports. I
wasn't interested. I wanted to watch another show. I hated sports, which is weird, because I used to love watching them. That was a few days ago when I last saw one watching it with my dad. Of
course it was also when I was a boy.
"I wanna watch Horseland," I cried. I didn't understand why I wanted to watch the show. I never
wanted to watch it before. But for some reason, I wanted to watch it now.
"Horseland is for girls," the man yelled back. "Now shut up!" I sat there crying. I was still tied
up. It was better in the room. At least I could move around if I wanted to. But on the chair tied
up, I couldn't even budge.
In another part of the room, I could see a man looking at pictures. He had one hand in his pants.
Not exactly knowing what the pictures were of, but I can tell they were pictures. Mom has a few
pictures in an album of us when I was little. If I could slap my face, I would. Why? Because I am little. Sometimes I don't think.
I saw Louis walking out of a room. It looked like the room I was in earlier. But I could see a desk. He didn't look pleased.
"It looks like one hour has gone by since the phone call," he said. Then he took out a pocket knife
and opened it up. I gazed at it in horror. He went up to me and cut my cheek. "That's barely a scratch, imagine what it would be like when it's another hour."
I screamed and I was crying really hard. I didn't want more pain.
"I want my Mommy!"
"Shut the hell up, little girl!" Louis looks over at the man with the pictures. “Jimmy, what the heck are you doing?” He walks over to him. “You sick pervert!” He takes the pictures from Jimmy and throws them across the room.
One landed next to me. I looked down and noticed they were pictures of me naked. The same ones they took earlier. I started to cry.
Louis took Jimmy and went to another room. “If I see you doing something that perverted again,
I will cut off...” That's all I could hear him say, since he slammed the door behind him.
I sat in the room. I was still crying, but at least the man watching TV was nice enough to change the set to a cartoon. It wasn't the greatest cartoon, since it was in black and white, but I enjoyed watching something other than sports.
It was some old cartoon called Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. It was a bit boring, since it was a silent picture, but I watched it.
At the police station, the police found the phone being used. They dusted for fingerprints. They came up with nothing. It was going to be a long night for them. One good thing they did manage to find was on their security camera. It pointed out the window recording the driver and the license plate number of the car he was driving. They automatically check the license.
"The license plate is a Minnesota license with 370H55V written on it." They checked it out on the computer.
"We have the location, but that's a car reported stolen only a few days ago."
Without speaking, they both sat there trying to figure out the complicated mystery.
"Wait! What if we checked all houses and warehouses in the area of the stolen cars owner? They must be there somewhere."
Back at the warehouse, I found a way to get out of being tied up. The man in the room
was asleep. I managed to sneak by and run to a near by room. "Yes! There's a window!" I went
over and tried to open it. It was really hard for me to push it open. Besides, I was on the second
story window. "If I jump, I would get hurt, and I am naked as well." I don't want to run around the city with no clothes on." I knew I might get caught any minute, so the next thing I thought of was to write a message on a sheet of paper and drop it out the window. "Ah, an envelope with an address of this building. I will write on this and throw it out. Hopefully someone will find it."
I finished the letter and threw it out the window, just in time, because the sleeping man caught me.
"She's trying to escape!" He yelled.
Another man ran over to me and put a cloth filled with chloroform over my face. I
blacked out.