Lemon Tree

• Lucia Hoskins, Grade 4
• Short Story
• 2018

Prologue
My family HATES lemons except for me. I haven't told them yet but I am trying to know everything about lemons. I've got my own computer so every day when I get home from school, I can study lemons and lemon trees. My BFF Olivia lives across the road and…boy…does she love lemons. Olivia is secretly going to bring me my very own lemon tree without my parents knowing. It's hard to keep secrets from my family because they don't like secrets being kept from them. Shhhhhh… You’re not allowed to tell them about my present either…
PART ONE - It all starts here ...
Someone must have climbed the ladder near my window because I suddenly hear a muffled voice yelling "WAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD!"
I realise it's Olivia's voice, open the window and respond in a hushed urgent whisper "I am awake, the window was unlocked and please be quiet because my parents are still asleep."
Olivia crawls through the opening with something that looks like a fishing pole sized package and says softly "I have a big present for you," and as she hands it to me, she says "open it."
I slowly rip off the wrapping paper and see my lemon tree. “Oh, thank you SO much” I whisper excitedly. “But I have one question for you, where am I going to keep it?”
“Keep it under your bed or something” Olivia answers.
I carefully take my lemon tree and put it on my bed. “Thanks, you’re the best BFF ever!”
“You’re welcome but I must go before my parents find out I’m gone.” Olivia says.
I give her the strongest hugs I can and as she departs the same way she entered, via the window, I wave goodbye and watch her retreating figure. As she runs across my yard, I place my lemon tree under my bed hoping the soil wouldn’t go onto my carpet and walk over to my computer, then sit down in my chair and look up facts about lemons. As I continue my research writing down all that facts I find, I realise my annoying younger sister Milly was spying on me like she always does. I stop what I am doing and angrily go over to her and yell “GO AWAY WEIRDO!!!” And slam the door with a tremendous BANG!
I can hear Milly walking away down the corridor because her steps are slowly softening. Once her footfalls disappear, I decide to walk over to my bed, pull out my lemon tree and grab my water bottle from atop the bedside cabinet, then pour some on my lemon tree soil.
SUDDENLY…my tree starts growing. In an entangled mess. So fast I cannot see my room anymore and I feel locked within its branches. After a few moments, I realise the house has been engulfed with limbs, branches, tree roots and amazingly huge lemons.
As I sit on a gnarled wooden root staring helplessly through my branched windows, I think… “Olivia…what have you done?”