Volcano Eruption

• Anika Liu, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2017

BANG! I woke up and heard screaming, shouting and saw people running everywhere!
“What’s going on?” I shouted.
“No time to explain!” Mum shouted back, “get some clothes on and come outside!”
I pulled on a jumper, ran out of our hotel room and saw the most dangerous volcano in the world erupting with burning rocks shooting out of the top. I saw my parents huddled outside the wrecks of our hotel, and I saw Alissa, but I didn’t see Joanna.
We searched everywhere, trying to find my baby sister crawling on the ground but we had no luck. We searched around the burning wrecks of the hotel, pushing beds and tables out of the way. We saw burnt clothes, suitcases crushed under rocks and broken bricks but no Joanna. Dad was yelling, Alissa was frantic, mum was crying and my heart was beating.
“How could a baby crawl off by themselves?” I thought.
But my thoughts were interrupted by mum who was screaming and shouting, pulling everything in front of her apart, trying to find Joanna.
Then I felt a hand tighten on my arm and pull me around. A fireman was pulling me and mum to a bright red fire engine “I’m sorry but you have to go now,” he said pushing us into the truck, “if we see your baby we’ll bring her to you.”
They drove down the road as fast as they could but it was hard to drive the truck on the slowly melting road with burning rocks firing down all around us.
When we got to the emergency shelter mum had started crying again and refused to let the helpers clean her. We sat there watching everyone else, with the same terrified expression.
Then I heard a cry, a familiar cry, could it be? “Joanna!” I thought. I jumped out of my seat and followed the sound. I kept listening and walking, my feet taking me closer every second, until I walked straight to a door. I opened it and I saw a baby. My heart leapt, could this be? I ran forward but when I saw her my heart sank, it was another baby, not my baby sister Joanna. Then I heard another sound, a happy sound. I turned around and there was Joanna, sitting in one of the helper’s arms!
Was this really Joanna? Had she been here the whole time? A million questions popped into my head as I rushed forward. I ran up towards the helper and touched my baby sister‘s face. I picked up Joanna and carried her back to mum and dad. When mum saw us she rushed forward and hugged us, crying with joy. Dad and Alissa looked shocked that Joanna was alive and helped mum carry Joanna onto a chair. We took turns to hug Joanna. In the end we went to the nearby island for the rest of our trip and then we went back to the quiet and safety of our home.