The Walk

• Charlotte Evans, Grade 4, St Joseph's School -
• Short Story
• 2018

Excellence Award in the 'Write Along 2018' competition

The walk

I was shivering in fright, just the look of it gave me goosebumps. Should I go on it … Or should I wait? I cautiously lifted up my leg and I was ready to put it down, the bridge shock as I put all my weight on it. I heard a cracking noise so I looked down and the wood was breaking. I quickly jumped onto the next one, but even my tiny weight cracked the next piece of wood as well, so I quickly jumped to the start of this old and broken bridge. Now there were two slats of wood missing and I didn’t know how I would get to the third slat of wood without putting all my weight on the broken pieces. That question was in my mind for a WHOLE HOUR as I stood on the bridge.

I looked down and there was a deep canyon, the rocks were sharp and jammed together so anyone who falls off this rickety old bridge will land on the rocks, get hurt or possible die. I’m thinking I would not like this to happen to me.

To distract myself from looking down into the deep canyon below I look up towards the sky. The sky was a beautiful rich blue, with not even one cloud in the sky and the wind was whistling in the background. How can this place be so beautiful up here, but down below is really scary? I start to wonder that maybe taking the shortcut was not the best idea, because now I am lost. I should not have trusted that old man on the street to go this way, I should have gone my normal way home to our holiday house where instead of turning left I turn right. I AM DOOMED, THERE IS NOT EVEN MOBILE RECEPTION and i am so close to home!.

Another hour goes by and I finally decide to turn around and walk back to where I started as there was no way I could cross that bridge. When i turned around, the entrance that I was sure was there when I came in was not there anymore. Where is it? How could it have moved? What is going on? I’ve been coming here since I was 5 years old, it can’t have just disappeared!

I run through the bushes, terrified and lost, I suddenly hear a noise getting louder and louder, closer and closer. I run like the wind, the grass scraping my leg as I run, dodging left and right trying to confuse the monster behind me. I find myself somewhere, somewhere I remember, then a thought came to my head. Is this the street that I turned left on, but should have turned right? So I turned right and find myself at home at our holiday house. I feel relieved to be home. After that I thought about that noise I heard and it turns out that I was just hearing stuff and now I feel silly.