Tell Or Keep, Go Or Stay?

• Lauren Burns, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2013

As I looked out through the curtain, in the dark of night, I could see a dark shadow in the distance. It was getting bigger and bigger, increasing in size. I turned back, feeling the need to tell someone. As always there was that little voice in the back of my head telling me not to. My sister Melissa, she was asleep. I wondered, and thought should I wake her up and tell her? Or should I listen to my conscience and stay listening to my heart beat as loud as a bass drum. I decided to awake her from her slumber.
“Melissa! Melissa”
She wasn’t responding. I looked toward my brother Charlie, who was my twin. This was a hard decision. If I told him, he would be the one to go outside and ask them for their name on Facebook so they could chat later. As the decision went through my head … I ran out of time.
I SCREAMED AS LOUD AS I COULD.
I was getting more fearful by the minute.
“Who’s there? Hello? “No answer.
“MUM, DAD, HELP ME!”
Melissa and Charlie woke up. No surprise there. They were looking at me as if I had no right to wake them up- which I didn’t …but still it’s their job to protect me.
“Ugh, what is wrong?” Kourtney asked.
The shadow thing was finding its way around to the front door. I was panicking. Oh, no. we decided to make a plan. Charlie, the karate freak was going out straight. I was going around the back way, Mum and Kourtney were going around the right side and dad was going around from the left with his best friend: his baseball bat.
We all assembled into our places and I heard the secret call. Well it wasn’t really secret-it was a text message on my new, stunning, magnificent iPhone. Ok I was ready to go. I walked forward, not seeing anything happening from Charlie. Was he okay? Is he dead? All these thoughts were flying through my mind. I really hoped he was okay- he owed me $20. I’m getting that money if it is the last thing I do. Well, it probably will be the last thing I do.
I got the nerve to look around the corner and I saw Charlie holding the cat. I don’t remember it in my plan. Had they altered the plan without consulting me?
“Charlie, what’s with the cat? I don’t recall it being a part of our plan, go put Cfor (C for cat) away, now is not the time to be patting her.”
“Lauren, calm down. Let me explain. I walked out here and saw nothing but the cat. It must have been the big, scary shadow that you were talking about. I knew you would never catch anybody .It is just a little cat you caught…again.”
Gee! I could have sworn I saw something bigger, bolder. Looks like that little voice inside my head was right. Of course I didn’t say this to the other two.
“Oh well, an adventure is an adventure, right? Goodnight.”
I hurried off to bed and tried to fall asleep. Unlike the other two it just wasn’t happening.
Again, I looked out my window. Oh gee I must be imagining things. It looks like a big man with something in his hand. I blinked a couple more times to make sure I wasn’t seeing things. Ok. I’m not imagining it.
“Dad, someone is outside. For real this time. “I’m scared. “
“Oh don’t worry honey that is just the pizza man with my pizza.”
“You ordered pizza at a time like this?”
No more looking through that window for me.