Samantha's Story

• Samara Achermann, Grade 9
• Short Story
• 2013

SAMANTHA’S STORY – By Samara Achermann

Dear Mum and Dad,

Everyone around me is in complete and utter fear, including me. I can’t believe what is happening. Mum, Dad I love you very much and I hope that I will see you again, love from Samantha.


It had started out as a normal day at school. Talking to my friends, messing around and eating our recess. My friends and I talked about how our weekend was, boys, the usual stuff. That’s when it all started. Just after recess.

The bell rang for our next class so my friends and I headed to our classes. Isabel and I had English together so we walked with each other. When we got to or class our teacher (Mrs. Roberts) opened the door for us and we took our seats in front of the white board. We started our lesson with a spelling test. We were about to start our next task, writing an essay on a movie we watched early the week before, when we heard gunshots. Three of them followed by another ten or so. We could hear the screams of the other children in the hallway along with other gunshots. Everyone was terrified and so was Mrs. Roberts. Mrs. Roberts quickly ran to the door and looked through the small crack between the door and the frame. She locked the door and told everyone to be as quiet as possible as she moved us towards the door that led to a set of stairs that takes you up to the next floor of the building. She opened it and pushed us up the stairs telling us to go as quickly as possible in a hushed tone of voice. Isabel and I stayed together watching as our other classmates cried and hugged each other in desperate need of comfort. Mrs. Roberts shut the door behind us and took the lead.

The hallways were dark and quiet, but not completely silent. We could still hear the faint screams of the children down stairs and the thuds of their bodies hitting the ground. We were all petrified at this point and some of the kids could hardly move. Our teacher kept giving us directions where to go. She said that this was a matter of life and death and that we must follow her instructions. She told us that we all had to go hide in the staff office in one or more of the closets. She then went and told the other classes what was going on as we went and hid. It went silent. Then we all of a sudden heard loud thumping and gunshots in the hallway, where we just were. Screams sounded like they were coming from every direction. Then they stopped.

We could hear quiet footsteps coming into the room. A man in a blue uniform opened the cupboard and took us outside. In the hallways there was blood everywhere and lying there up against the wall, was the gunman, dead. In his lap laid the gun.