I Can Only Hope

• Jet Jankiewicz, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2015

I laid in the bed staring at the wall. All I could see were cords. When I looked to my left I saw the same thing. Cords, cords, cords. All going straight into my body. ‘I’m like a computer,’ I thought smiling.
‘But you’re not, are you.’ whispered a small voice in the back of my head.
‘I’m well aware of that,’ I sighed. I laid there staring at the walls and through the windows. Watching the birds fly free made me smile. ‘I wish I was a bird,’ I said, ‘at least then I wouldn’t be here.’
‘But if you were a bird you wouldn’t have any friends and family,’ a nicer voice in her head said.
‘My friends and family don’t speak to me anyway,’ I mumbled.
‘Why don’t you check your phone then?’ replied the voice. I looked around and saw my phone on the set of drawers next to the bed. I grabbed it and went to into messages. I scrolled down through the names, seeing no notifications of a new message. ‘There’s one there!’ said the voice. There was. It was from my friend Maddie. I checked the message.
‘Hope you’re going well today,’ it read, ‘all of us miss you so much, we’re going to visit you tonight, all four of us,’ the message ended with s smiling face.
‘See,’ the voice said, ‘they do care.’
‘I guess you’re right, as always,’ I said.

*

Hours passed, and finally my friends came. Maddie, Adam, Harry, and Agatha. ‘Are you alright?’ asked Harry. I faced Harry and nodded.
‘Besides all the cords, yes.’ I looked at all of my friends, all looked back, except for Adam. Maddie noticed I was looking at him and stomped on his foot.
‘Ow!’ Adam cried,
‘What are you looking at?’ Maddie hissed,
‘The heart monitor,’ Adam replied. A though flew into my mind.
‘Guys?’ I asked,
‘Yes,’ they answered,
‘How are your books going?’ They all smiled after I said that. We were all interested in writing, and all began a competition to try and write the best book.
‘Mine’s going fine,’ Adam said, ‘just a few plot changes needed here and there.’
‘Mine’s going well too,’ Agatha said, ‘in fact I’m almost finished!’ I clapped after she said that. She rarely finished things. I turned to Maddie.
‘And yours?’ I asked. She smile.
‘All finished,’ she replied.
‘Could I read it?’ I asked. She nodded and handed me a book from her bag. It wasn’t long into reading when I felt a jerk in my chest. And another. All my friends stood in shock as the heart monitor became slower and softer. My family had come in just in time to watch. ‘Maddie!’ I said in a cough. ‘Please finish this,’ I said, picking up a thick book from the drawer, ‘It’s my book.’ Maddie took the book and nodded.
‘I will,’ she said crying.
The colours faded into darkness…
And I could only hope she finished it.