Eleven Faces

• Giovanni Cirrito, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2019

I creep into my room so no one can hear me awake that night. I slowly fall asleep as my mind wonders, and that’s when I hear a “bang!” I tiptoe cautiously out of my room, I see a doctor. As I approach the doctor closer and closer he yells “get back!” I tell him I don’t mean any harm. “I’m not talking to you!” he said. I suddenly feel a chill down my spine, as I turn around I see... a horde of faceless men. They are wearing black suits and red ties.

I immediately bolt through all ten of them leaving them flat on the floor. I ran as fast as I could, but then I saw eleven? One half of me is questioning this event, and that half is saying “why aren’t I running?” I hide in a dreaded cupboard downstairs, I watch them go by along with their eerie faces. One of them is looking inside my hiding place, I am about to squeal but then I decide that it is a stupid idea. As soon as he leaves I am filled with joy and relief, since they are gone I decide to go to bed.

The next day I wake up with a bag over my head. Luckily there are holes in it so I can breathe. I realise that I’m tied up to an uncomfortable chair made of metal. The bag slowly lifts off my head and I see the horde again. I start to hear an eerie voice coming from the middle of them. I hear jumbled letters but I made the words “do not run away” that or “run away” I decide to run because being the scared 11 year old I am, I had to run. As soon as they untie me I run, since it is really dark I can’t see anything. It took me a while to realise that I am in our gym, and I somehow got onto our treadmill! Eventually I got tied up again, but I have a plan to get rid of them. As they untie me again I will not run. I “joined” them. I follow them into the attic and I try find a weapon to fight but instead of a weapon I found a grenade from my dad’s WW2 souvenirs.As we manage to get onto the roof I ready the grenade and throw the grenade on top of the roof and destroy them all while destroying half of the house.

Beep beep, beep beep, beep beep, I wake up in hospital barely alive, hearing constant beeps. I try to call for help but then I realise that it is to late for me. I overhear the doctors talking about a patient in an explosion. They say “he will live if taken care of properly.” I think I am going to live, finally I get to be loved again.