I knocked as thunder boomed. I knew I was doomed. My door was locked and rain was pouring.

All that while my roommate was snoring. Rocks I was tossing. Thunder was booming. My my a threat was looming.

The storm was scary. It’s driving me crazy. Oh why oh why is my roommate so lazy? Thunder was booming.

Dark clouds became darker. Thunders grew louder. I was the closest thing for thunder to devour.

Now we encounter. At my final hour. Where I eventually meet my end…

Oh what a day! Wait, what was I supposed to do today? Hey! Brain what the hay? Help me out today what was I supposed to do today?

Can’t remember It’s shortening my temper!

Please tell Was I supposed to sell? Probably not My brain’s like a broken bot.

Useless! Come on does your intelligence grow less and less?? Just help me! Please, I don’t have time for your idiocy!

You’re so forgetful Man, this feeling’s so dreadful! AH! The memories! They’re getting away from me!

Were they worthwhile? Well, I remember they were mostly hostile… Does that make forgetfulness a strength? Good for your mental health?

Ah, I don’t know The mysteries, hidden in the universe they glow Mysteries of life…

“You see that stranger in the casket over there? Yesterday, he was my friend. A great one. He helped me in everything. He encouraged me to follow my dreams, no matter how impossible they sounded.

He always knew what to say, and when he’d say it. If I was let down by something he’d comfort me. If it was a someone, however, he’d grab his shotgun. He was my ride or die. My partner in crime.

We planned to do great things when we were older, but alas, he is dead. Nothing can bring him back.

It was all my fault…. “ I said tearfully. All the people in the funeral looked at me in sympathy. Each one saying “I’m terribly sorry for your loss.” And I’d reply with an awkward “Thank you.” In return.

Guilt grew inside of me. He only died because of me. I wanted to cross the road because of an argument we had to get away from him. I was too angry to check the road, I didn’t notice a car coming my way.

He noticed I was about to get run over, he always notices the details. So, he pushed me out of harm’s way. Even though we were in a fight.

It should’ve been me….

“Allison, your sister ran away again.” My mother announced. “WHAT?! RILEY?!” I exclaimed in alarm. “Yes.” Replied my mother calmly. Why was she so calm?

“This is probably why she ran away. You barely notice that she’s here.” I said. “I suggest you go look for her then.” She said dismissively ushering me to leave.

UGH! The fact that she doesn’t care. Riley deserves better. I walked through the woods calling her name, but to no avail. After a while, I saw her talking to a shadowy figure.

I hid behind a tree, and tried to overhear their conversation. “Oh, genie, I need your help. I’m so sick and tired of being overlooked and unappreciated! I want to leave.” I heard Riley say.

“As you wish…” replied the genie. He took out knives and started throwing them at her. “W-what are you doing-?” She asked wide eyed trying to dodge every knife coming her way.

“You asked to leave didn’t you? So, now I will help you leave this world. Just as you wished.” He answered throwing more knives. Riley successfully dodged almost all of them, but one knife, however, was coming her way and she didn’t seem to notice it.

I wasn’t about to lose my little sister. No, no, no not today. I jumped in front of her, and the knife enters my flesh. “AL! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!” Exclaimed Riley. “I….came to look….for..you..” I replied in between breaths.

I was losing blood. The genie was still throwing knifes. “I WISH FOR YOU TO STOP THROWING KNIVES!” Yelled Riley. The genie stopped. “You have one wish left.” He says.

She looked at me with tears in her eyes. I knew exactly what she was planning to do. “Riley…no…don’t you dare!” I managed. I cough blood.

“I wish… I wish..” She began. “RILEY, DON’T YOU DARE!” I yelled. More blood came oozing out of me. “Well?” Asked the genie.

“I wish for my sister to be healthy and alive.” She says. “Hmm…” thought the genie. “It’ll have a cost.” He says. “Which is?” Asked Riley. “You’ll be in her place.” He answered.

“Riley, no…” I managed. “Okay, I’ll do it.” She said. With a snap of a finger from the genie, my wounds are healed, but my sister is laying on the floor bleeding.

“No, no, no!” I yelled. She cupped my face. “It’ll be fine…it’s okay…” She whispered. “No, it’s not! It’s not okay!” I said teary eyed. She smiled weakly. “As long as you’re okay, my death doesn’t matter.” She said.

“What? No! Genie, help me!” I said looking behind me to check if he was still there, but no. He was gone. I cried my eyes out as I watched the life leave Riley’s eyes.

I couldn’t save her……

It was all my fault………….

“El, you have to tell him! It’s now or never.” Says my friend, Alice. “I- I’m not ready yet..” I say. Alice wants me to confess my love to my crush, Al.

Al sits next to me in class, and it was love at first sight except that I don’t know if he likes me back.. I wanted to get closer to him, so I offered to do his homework.

He agreed, and I’ve been doing his homework ever since the beginning of the year. “COME ON YOU HAVE TO!!” She says. “No, I’m not-“ I try to say, but before I can even say it she pushes me towards him.

I take a deep breath, and say, “Uhhh.. hey Al..” I say. Oh my god that was so embarrassing. “Hey, Elenor. You have my homework?” He asks. I blush a little. He said my name! AHHH.

I chuckle nervously, and say, “Well, no, I just wanted to tell you something..” I can’t believe I was doing this. “Yeah?” He asks. “I- I’m uhh.. I LIKE YOU OKAY?! I liked you the moment I met you, and I hope you like me back.” I say.

I did it. I actually did it. Oh my god. Al looks at me speechless. “Actually…” he says. Does he like me? All this time he actually liked me???

“…. I never liked you. I just wanted my homework done, and I passed the class thanks to you.” He says, and he walks away. I stand there speechless. Alice comes to me, and takes me to the girls’ bathroom.

“I’m so sorry….” She says. I looked at her silently. I didn’t know what to say after that. “I shouldn’t have pressured you into telling him. I should’ve let you go on your own pace, but I was just so excited. I’m sorry. Do you forgive me?” She asks.

I did forgive her. It wasn’t her fault. “I mean… at least I know now that he was just using me” I laugh trying so hard not to cry.

“I just need some time alone. If that’s okay with you?” I ask. “Yeah, of course.” She says. She leaves the bathroom, and I got into a stall. Locked the door, and started crying.

She stared at me as if I was a puzzle she was trying so desperately to solve. “There’s something you’re not telling me, Alex, I just know it.” Says Lavender.

Lavender is my roommate, and she’s one-hundred percent sure that I was hiding something from her. Like, where’s the trust?! Okay, well, I must admit that I am hiding something.

In my defence, she doesn’t need to know EVERYTHING about me. Nosy much? “No, I’m not. Why can’t you trust me for god’s sake?” I yell angrily.

“I- you don’t have to yell…” She says. “DONT HAVE TO YELL?! YOU’VE BEEN ACTING LIKE A DETECTIVE FOR GOD’S SAKE! WELL GUESS WHAT, LAV? YOU DON’T HAVE TO KNOW EACH AND EVERY LITTLE DETAIL ABOUT MY LIFE!” I scream, and then put my hands on my mouth.

She backed away, and started sobbing. Ughhhhh I don’t have time for this. “No, please, stop crying. I’ll tell you my secret, okay? Just shut up, please.” I say covering my ear.

She wipes her tears, and says, “Okay, I’m ready. Tell me what you’re hiding.” I couldn’t believe I was doing this. “If you ever tell ANYONE, trust me, it’d be the last thing you do.” I threatened.

“Okay, I promise I won’t tell anyone.” She says putting her hands up in the classic “I-give-up” gesture. “Okay, hold my hand.” I say.

“What?” She says confused. “Shut up, and do what I tell you.” I say. She holds my hand, and we teleport underwater.

“I’m the queen of the world underwater. That’s my big secret, and now you know.” I say. I look at her for a response, and I see her struggling to breathe.

“Right…. Humans can’t breathe underwater. Whoops! Oh well, at least now I know you won’t tell anyone.” I say.

Eventually she passes out and I let her sink in the deep ocean.

That’s what she gets for not minding her own business.

I was in my space rocket with my colleagues. Our mission was to find a black hole, and try to take pictures. My colleagues, Bob and John, are talking about how funny it would be if one of us accidentally got sucked in.

“I mean if I got sucked in I’d be spaghettified.” Says Bob. “Well, you’re pretty short so a little stretch would be good for you!” Says John. “Too bad nobody will see you when you’re taller.” I added.

“Guys, I’m literally not that short. I’m literally five foot and six inches.” He replied defensively. “And the average is five foot nine.” Says John with a grin.

“Seriously?” Says Bob looking up at us. “Seriously.” Said John and I at the same time. John gives me a fist bump, and we both laugh. “Alright, laugh all you want. I’ll get my revenge.” He says. “What are you going to do? Attack my kneecaps?” Asked John. I burst out laughing. It was harsh, but the joke was so funny.

“You’re laughing now, yes, but I’ll be the one laughing when you’re begging me for mercy.” He says. “Yeah, okay, big shot. No, wait, I meant, small shot.” I say. “That was savage, bro.” He says giving me high-five.

A few hours later, we hear Bob yelling, “WE FOUND THE BLACK HOLE! WEAR YOUR mSUITS AND GRAB YOUR CAMERAS, EVERYONE! WE GOT A BLACK HOLE TO PHOTOSHOOT!” “God, we get it could you keep your voice down?” I say sleepily because I just woke up from my nap.

I wear my suit, and grabbed my camera. I go to John, and tell him that I want to speak to him in private. He agrees, and we go to my room. “Hey uhh.. do you think we were a bit too harsh on Bob?” I ask.

“What? No. He knows we’re clearly joking.” He says. “I don’t know… when he said you’ll be begging for mercy. That didn’t sound like a joke to me.” I say. “Nonsense, as I said, what’s he going to do? Attack my kneecaps?” He says. I laughed again. That made me feel a little better.

“Now, come on, we gotta go.” He says. John, Bob, and I go out of the space shuttle. “Woah, it’s huge!” I say. “Very!” Added John. Bob starts laughing hysterically.

“Dude, what’s so funny?” I ask. “The fact that John won’t be making it back to that shuttle! I’ll spare you, Greg, so the people don’t get suspicious.” He says. “NO! Don’t spare me. John is my best friend. Spare him!” I say.

“Greg, don’t. Just do what he says.” Says John. “NO!” I say. “HAHA, YES!” Says Bob. “Who’s laughing now?” Asks Bob. Bob floats to John and began pushing him.

“NO! Leave him alone!” I yell. I push John out of harm’s way, and then I jump in to the black hole.

The last thing I saw was John breaking Bob’s helmet.

OH SHOOT! I’m running late for my meeting! It’s 9:40 in the morning. My meeting is at 10:00 exactly. I just woke up!

I quickly go to the bathroom and do my bathroom things. Then, I get dressed. Quickly made pancakes, and rushed to my car.

It was 9:55. Good thing it takes five minutes to get there. Just my luck. There’s traffic. I honk my car, and open the window. “What’s the hold up?” I yelled out the window. “There’s a car accident. Someone got badly injured.” Someone responded.

Noooo now is not the time! I was already on strike two with my boss. He’s not going to believe me. AHA! I’ll take a picture of the traffic and the accident once I’m close enough. He’ll believe me if I have proof, right?

I record everything, and eventually, the traffic clears. It was 10:10. I was ten minutes late. This was bad. Really bad. I quickly get to work, and I sprint up the building to the 100th floor.

It was 10:20. I open the door. “Boss, I am so sorry there was TERRIBLE traffic. There was a car accident, and someone got badly injured.” I say panting.

I show him the video. Luckily he believes me, and tells me to sit down. The meeting was so boring. It has been 30 minutes. I’m just in another world zoning out, and then I remember.

“HOLY SHIT I LEFT MY STOVE ON!” I yelled accidentally. Everyone turned, and stared at me. “First, you come in late. Now, you want to find an excuse to get out? Really, Mr. Oliver?” Says my boss.

“No I really left the stove on and-“ I try to explain, but my boss said, “No need to explain anything. You’re fired.” “But-“ I try to defend myself. “No buts you’re fired.” Says the boss firmly.

I go to my car, and drive home quickly to turn the stove off. I am too late. My house has been reduced to ashes…

I wake up from my sleep. The best sleep I’ve had in days. I wonder how I slept well, and then I remember that my child has his first day in first grade.

OH SHOOT! I have to pick him up! I quickly get dressed, and get into the car. Jammed the key on the key hole and drove away.

I finally get to school. Just in time. My son Tristan gets in the car happily. “Hey, bud, how was school?” I ask. “AMAZING! I made so many friends and we had an adventure at recess!” He replied excitedly.

“Oh, really? What kind of adventure?” I ask again. “We found treasure.” He says confidently. “Ooo sounds exciting. What did you find?” I ask curiously.

He takes an object out of his backpack. It seems to be an overly decorated stick. I didn’t know what to say. “Is that a stick? It’s a very cool stick.” I say. “No, mommy, it’s a magic wand!” He says smiling. I wanted to tell him wands weren’t real, but I didn’t want to burst his bubble.

He frowned and said, “You don’t believe me, do you?” The question took me by surprise. I didn’t know how to reply. “I- no no I believe you! In fact, we can try it in the park, okay?” I say hoping that made him feel better.

His face lit up. “Can we have ice cream too?” He asked excitedly. “Sure, bud.” I reply.

We get ice cream, and head to the park. Tristan got out of the car excitedly, and waved the “wand” all around. Sparks came shooting out of it. “Look, mommy! Magic is real!” He yelled.

I couldn’t believe it. It was actually real. Everyone in the park was as confused as I was. Suddenly, the wand makes Tristan fly around. All the kids in the park were awestruck.

“Tristan, that’s great honey, but you gotta come down right now.” I called. “But mooooom we just got here!” He yells from above. “Tristan, we have to go.” I say firmly. “Okay…” he says sadly.

He slowly floats down. We hop into the car, and I start driving. I was scared. Really scared. “Tristan you will not use that wand in public, okay?” I say. “What? Why? You saw how cool I looked.” He replies.

“Yes, buddy, you were really cool, but you can’t do magic in public. People will get scared.” I say. “Oh… okay..” he says.

It’s now midnight. Tristan was fast asleep. I, on the other hand, wasn’t. I looked through my phone to try and forget about what happened. That definitely didn’t calm me down because there were pictures of Tristan flying all over social media.

I was even more stressed now, but then I heard a scream that snapped me out of my thoughts. It was Tristan. I sprint to his room and spot a man wearing a black mask and all black clothes.

“GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY SON!” I yelled. “Oh, I’m afraid I can’t do that ma’am. Your son stole something that belongs to me, and now you both have to pay.” He says.

He throws a dart at me, and everything goes black. The last thing I heard was the man saying, “Sweet dreams.”

I wake up tied to a chair. I feel a little woozy. What was happening again..? Oh, yeah, my son was kidnapped. OH MY GOD RIGHT MY SON WAS KIDNAPPED. I totally forgot about that.

“Tristan! Buddy, where are you?” I called. “Up already, Kate? I should use more powerful darts next time.” Says the man.

“Why are you doing this?” I ask. “Look, I’m not going to tell you my plan. I’m just going to sum it up quickly, and kill you okay? I’m in a rush.” He says.

“Why are you in a rush?” I ask. “Don’t see how that’s any of your business, but since you’re dying then sure why not? If you MUST know, I’m having dinner with the boys.” He says proudly. “At three in the morning?” I ask.

“Yeah, got a problem with that? God, victims are so judgmental these days.” He says as he rolls his eyes. Tristan wakes up in a chair next to me that I hadn’t noticed before.

“Tristan! Are you okay?” I say. “I think so… where are we..?” He asks in a drowsy voice. “I can‘t wait any more.” Says the man, and shoots us both.

Then everything went black….

I was tied to a chair. It was dark. There was a girl in front of me, but I couldn’t make out her facial features. She had a gun and a knife in her pocket. “Well?” She said. “Any last words?” She asks. I burst out laughing. She glares at me with the “don’t test me” eyes.

“Oh my god sorry I just found that really funny.” I said. “What’s so funny? I’m literally about to kill you. Is it because I’m a girl?” “No, not at all. It’s just that I’m usually the one asking if they have any last words. You see I am also a murderer.” I say.

“Wait, really?” She said. “Yeah, I can totally understand why you’re doing this.” I said. “Oh my god.” She said. “What?” I ask. She quickly opened the lights “JEROLD?!” She said. “WHAT? SAMANTHA?!” I said. “Yeah!” She said. We both burst out laughing.

We are partners in crime, and I was supposed to come to help her today. “Why didn’t you come?” She asked “Well, because SOMEONE tied me to a chair, which was quite an inconvenience.” I replied. “Oh my god you are so dramatic I didn’t even tie it that tight.” She said. “Can you untie me then?” I ask.

“Sure.” She says. She frees me from the chair and we go kill a bunch of people. Then live happily ever after.