War Life

• Eve Lock, Grade 4
• Short Story
• 2017

Bombs were flying, like birds in the sky, but none of them hit me. The trenches were damp and mouldy, covered in blood of the other soilders. I ran towards the latrine the deepest darkest part of the trenches. I cried. All my thoughts were bubbling like a volcano ready to erupt. They swirled again and again in my mind, covering my brain like poison. Why did I leave? Why can't I sleep? Why am I scared? I cried and cried and cried until the latrine was full of water. I cried until I couldn't cry anymore. Suddenly a great pain struck my head. My world started to fade away, away, away.

When I woke up, I wasn't in the tear drenched latrine or that I could make out. My eyes had blurred up and the world around me didn't seem clear. My had a stabbing in my head, like a knife slashing me with every beat my heart made. To people came over they looked mean and cruel with a evil smirk on their faces. The men whispered to each other and all that I could hear was “What should we do with him?”

That night one of the men said, “Get up lad you coming with me”. I stood up as quick as obedient dog. The man took me outside, he had brown hair with a scar running his cheek. “Peel the potatoes, NOW.” I ran to find a peeler but I was so dazed that I tripped over a stone. “Incompetent mess.” I heard the man whisper.
The next few days the man with the scar made me work my butt out. I was cleaning the latrines then was peeling stinky horrible potatoes. Then one night an idea came to me. I sneaked of my tent thing,but suddenly some yelled “Someone's escaped, catch him CATCH HIM!” I ran to my heart content, I ran until my legs were melted jelly, into a cave.

And that's where I'm now, my dear rat soon I will, I will.