Kept In This Prison
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Zoey Logos, Grade 7
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Short Story
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2019
Cautiously, I look to my left and to my right. “We should wait until HE and SHE are gone, so that we don’t go trouble.” I whisper. My small, timid brother nods in agreement. Bam! They’re gone! The door slams behind them and all there is to hear is my ‘best friend’: silence. Now, we wait until they come home.
Hours pass, then a wicked idea pops in my head. I get up from the hard bed covered in my dirty rags I call clothes and tiptoe to the small, cracked window covered by a sheet. Before I could touch the curtain, a dirty hand grabs me, “Ellie, don’t do it. Trouble.” Joel whispers. I stare at him blankly. I just want to see the world Outside of our dark prison, our house. I weigh the odds. No, I want to see Outside. I shake my head in disagreement, “One peek, Joel” I say calmly. “HE doesn’t have to know that we looked Outside. “Or the fact that we were exposed to the world Outside this building. I pull my hand out of his tight grip and suddenly smile. In the first time in MY life I will decide. Something that I want to do, not always what HE wants to do. As I turn towards the window, in the corner of my eye, I see Joel jumping up and down eager to see what Outside is: Real people rather than the pair of scary, monstrous people we see every day.
Whoosh! I open the curtain and it is like it transports me to world I have never seen. It’s so beautiful I gasp with pleasure and delight. Joel and I stare out the window for ages, still processing this amazing world.
So, this is what I’m missing out on.
Opening the window was no longer a pleasure but a habit. Day after day I look Outside longing to have what the Outside people have. I see a happy girl skipping down the street, she was showing her teeth. Lots of people were. I learnt this was smiling. I wish I could do that. I have a stirring envy that is growing inside of me. I wish I could have freedom. I wish I could be happy. It was worthless to keep wanting stuff when I knew I had to work for it.
I made a list of what to pack. It was short, but everything on my list was special to me. Joel watched me and stammered, “No. Don’t do it. I’ll tell THEM. I will miss you.” A big, blue blob was sliding down his face, and I knew what this was, it was tears. I’ve never seen Joel cry, but I knew I had to stick to my motives.
I was held back on my mission because I knew Joel was going to tell. I had to keep reassuring him that everything would be fine.
I will never forget last night, when I lay on the dirt floor, my brain buzzing with excitement. I was going to be free and tomorrow I was going to follow through with my plan.
My eyes flutter open and I sit up, looking to my left and right. I see the two empty spots where THEY slept last night. My mouth spreads across my face and I was smiling with delight.
Now, I just need to follow a few, easy steps:
1. Pack for Journey
2. Prepare to leave his prison
3. Walk out the door
And that is what I did.