Saturday Morning

• Nicholas Sereda, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2009

Saturday morning and I have to watch this documentary on ‘Life in Rainforests’, for a school. Why do we have to watch shows like this? They're so boring and I'm tired, where is my pillow? I may as well get comfortable.
Next thing I'm on the ground with leaves all around me. There's not much light, I can't see to well. Gosh, I don't think I'm alone, what is that noise it's coming closer. Run, get out of here, the trees, they’re moving, their roots are shifting, rising up from the ground making me fall over them. I need a place to hide; behind this rock if I keep low I'll be safe here.
I need some time to think, where am I? What is this place? I can feel the hairs on my neck, my skin is prickling, it’s coming back, something is slithering over my feet. The vines, they’re trying to wrap around me, trying to trap me, I jumped and start running as far away as possible. Now it's under the ground, it’s right behind me, it keeps changing form, why is it after me! Suddenly, I jump up to a low branch and climb up the tree, the sun was shinning in here more. I can hear water, must be a stream nearby, if I climb up a bit higher maybe I can see it. Whatever that was, it seems to have gone now.
The water was so cold and clean, I didn't realise how thirsty I was. I sat on a log near the stream and looked back at where I'd had been, it was so dark in there, all the trees were blocking the sunlight. There was no way I was going back in there, how am I going to get out of here?
What is that I can hear? Sounds like someone is crying. “Who is there?” I yelled, panic starting to rise in me again, “Answer me now, who are you?” The crying didn't stop so I got up and went closer to where I thought it was coming from.
“Go away from me” she sobbed.
“Who are you, where do you come from?” I asked.
In front of me was a girl, her body was transparent. Only her face was clear to see, yet you knew she was real.
“What do you care, no-one cares about me. They all run away from me.”
“Do you live in the rainforest?” I asked.
“Yes”
“That place scares me, the trees and vines and then the ground were after me, things moved and chased me.”
“It was me trying to play with you” she said.
“Was that you?”
“Yes” she said again.
“But how can you do that?”
“I don't know I just can, I feel things and the next thing I know, I'm apart of them" she said.
“What's your name?”
“Ezmannie.”
“Well I can be your friend but you can't change shapes.”
“Honey, it's time for lunch” mum said.