Lea And The Old Church

• Bronwyn Gledhill, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2007

The rain was pouring down on the old roof of the church. Lea was looking for a place to get out of the rain. Then he saw the church’s doors wide open. Before thinking why they might be open, he ran inside closing the doors behind him. His parents were looking for him, but he had ran away from home, and now the only thing that was running threw his mind was ‘run Lea run and soon you’ll where you belong’ he threw his bag onto a chair beside the aisle and started to walk down towards a stand up the front of the room. There was a book that was placed in the middle of the stand, it was a bible. The page’s started to turn but there was no wind, Lea just stared at the looked to be possessed book, then the page’s had stopped and was open to a page. “It’s a drawing” said Lea in a surprised voice, but he had never reed a bible before so it was all new to him. But he had sworn he had seen one before but it looked nothing like this. He stepped up behind the stand and looked at the book properly, he kept looking at the book until a crake of thunder had scared him, He looked up to see a man standing at the end of the aisle “who are you?” Lea yelled out as his voice echoed throughout the hall, the man laughed at Lea and replied “once you’re in there’s no way out” then he disappeared. Lea looked back down at the book seeing that there was a boy on his knees begging but begging for what? The boy looked a lot like himself, longish hair a back pack and wet clothes. A hand reached out of the shadows grabbing his arm spinning him around. “What are you doing here?” asked a man that looked to be in his thirty’s. “Oh im sorry I didn’t relies I was only getting out of the rain” the last of Lea’s words were over spoken of the large man. “Yu have to get out of here now!!” “What why it’s only an old church” “He’ll get you too!!” then the man faded into the shadows from where he came. Lea felt alone for once in the hall. ‘BANG’ a door slammed and Lea jumped. “Who’s there?” no one answered. Lea walked towards where the sound had heard it came from, to see the strange man standing there, ‘The man that laughed at me’ he though. The man had his back to him, Lea walked towards him “Ehh r u ok?” asked Lea. The man turned with eyes blazing red, running towards him with the look of kill on his face. Lea ran at the door slamming it into his face. Lea ran back into the hall but the stranger broke though the door, Lea ran towards the church’s door and grabbed his bag off the chair, he grabbed the door handle and push as hard as he could but he couldn’t get it open. ‘No way out’ with the sound of hunger in his voice. A crack of thunder stuck and so did the man. Later that night Lea’s parents found his bag in the church but Lea was no where to be found all that was left of him was a drop of blood on the church’s floor.