Jake's Story

• Ellis Murray, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2014

The tanker had exploded with great ferocity letting off a mighty bang, piercing the ears of anyone unfortunate enough to be close by. As the diamonds trickled through the sky like stars glimmering in the night sky, Jake thought to himself "why me, why was it me that was involved in this attack?"
Earlier that week Jake had been a normal student at the school for gifted young ones, until one day everything changed. He had just finished school and was going home as usual when suddenly “boom!” A catastrophic event had destroyed his beautiful old home. He could smell the smoke, taste the ash and feel the burning wood lashing against his face. His tears stinging his burnt face and nothing else came to his mind but to cry. Suddenly a man swiftly ran away from the smouldering building, his muscles bulging. What had he been doing? Maybe he had blown up his house. Every bone in his body told him not to chase the man but his brain said otherwise. As he chased the man he realised that it was not a man but a young boy and the boy was limping. Jake thought, “what had happened to the boy, what was he doing around his house and had he done anything to his house at this point?” Such vital information was unknown and as Jake caught up to the boy he decided to leap at the boy and he pinned him to the ground. He screamed every tiny question that found its way in to his head right in the boy’s face. For a second Jake thought as if the boy was to cry but instead he scrunched up his face and shrieked with everything he had. Jake was so shocked he jumped back and flung his hand in front of his face as if he would strike him, but he didn’t. He just jumped up and asked him what the hell he was doing. Jake blushed and said sorry, and ran feeling extremely embarrassed, back to his smouldering house. “Thump!”
Suddenly everything went black.
Jake woke up in a pile of ash, covered in blood, his head throbbing and ankle twisted. He had been hit by something but what? A big man covered with muscles was guarding Jake. He could hear his breath and see his body covered in tattoos. Making out a strange lynx like animal he shouted “the kids up”. Three men much the same, came over and asked if he wanted to help with something. Jake tried to run but couldn’t, and they grabbed him by the arms and told him that if he didn’t help them he would end up in a
coffin! So, he agreed and asked what he had to do. They told him to take some dynamite and find diamonds hidden in a tanker, so he did.
Jake ran past the dock and into the bay. He did it, he placed the bomb and finally the magic happened…