The Black Box

2

I absolutely HATE waking up in the morning. There's always a weird thing that wakes me up in the morning and it's not the stereotypical alarm clock in my case. This morning it was well, a robin trying to peck my eyes out.

I feel this pinching all over my face and I slowly open my eyes and see a bird, at the moment I have no clue what kind it is. I open my eyes wider and see that it's a robin. How a robin got into my room I have no idea. I must've left the window open last night 'cause I was stuck in my room.

Long story short my brother Toby wanted to play DARTS with me. I don't even know why he had them in the first place and I locked myself in my bedroom so I can't get my eyes punctured by a dart.

Well apparently I AM gonna get my eyes taken out of my skull this morning. I try to think up a strategy of how I can get this bird out of my room without getting hurt. Can birds carry rabies? Only one way to find out. I'm thinking of my plan while the bird just stares at me. Just staring at me with its cold, black holes for eyes.

I thought of a plan, finally. Since I don't have school today I could've taken all the time in the world to make an elaborate plan to get this bird out.

I don't do elaborate plans. I go straight to the point.

My room isn't that big, it's like a regular sized bedroom. I have my desk and computer on the opposite wall next to a window seat where I usually read when I have the chance. On the other side of the window seat I have a bookshelf with junk on the top. On your left when you walk in is my closet and drawers. And then my bed's on the right. I have shelves above my bed with a lava lamp and more junk. But I have a window on the wall my bed's against with a little windowsill. That's probably where the bird got in.

So anyway, I quickly throw my blankets on the bird, grab my blankets, and put them over the ledge of my window so the bird can get out. I guess this was some sort of animal abuse. The bird, unfortunately was stuck in the blankets and I didn't want to kill it so I just threw my blankets out the window and landed with a thud. The robin luckily got out and flew away.

I finally was able to get dressed. I check my clock and it says,"9:30." My parents are early risers so they should be downstairs having breakfast right now. Hopefully Toby's still asleep or without dart in hand.

I run down the stairs but there was a lot of junk on the stairs and I ended up tripping on something on the stairs and plummeting to the ground. I ran dazed into the kitchen and fall into a chair. I missed the chair and fall onto the floor.

"Peter were you hit by a truck or something this morning?" asks Saige while drinking some coffee.

"No. I was attacked by a robin," I say sarcastically 'cause I know she won't believe me. Nobody does. Except my best friend Jax. He's had bad luck days, but not everyday like me.

"I didn't know robins were violent," replies Saige. "Anyway, are you gonna get up, sit, and have breakfast or stay there like a bag of bones?"

I get up and everything hurts. It's not the first time this has happened. I pull out a chair and grab a piece of toast from the middle of the table and take a bite. It's rye. I seriously don't like rye. I eat it anyway 'cause I'm starving and get up to grab some cereal.

My mom's making coffee at the counter under the cabinet that has the cereal.

"How'd you sleep Peter?" my mom asks.

"Fine. Toby threatened me with darts last night and I couldn't sleep. Did you even know that Toby had darts?!" I reply. My mom's sympathetic, but I don't think it's genuine.

"Sorry Peter, I was already in the bedroom reading my book for book club. I guess your dad was in the living room and didn't watch Toby that well," my mom says.

"Can you watch him better? I don't want him chasing me around the house with darts in hand," I tell her while getting my cereal out that I want.

"Sorry honey. I have to do the bills and the household work and your dad has to do his work. Saige has a lot of homework and Danny has to go away for college soon," my mom tells me. Danny's my oldest sibling and the oldest. He's in college and has to go back soon. Saige is in high school, junior to be exact. I'm in ninth (freshman), and Toby's four years old.

"Ugh," I reply. Pouring my cereal into a bowl. I walk over to the fridge and open it. "Where's the milk?" I ask my mom.

"We're out of milk. Toby decided to pierce it with a dart last night after you barricaded yourself in your room," replies Saige across the room, working on her laptop.

"Thanks for the info Saige," I yell across the room. Now I have to eat my cereal DRY. THAT'S LIKE THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN, I say to myself in my head. Sarcastically of course.

I walk back to the table with my cereal and Toby walks into the room. Everything comes in slow motion. I walk to the table, passing the counters, toward the table. Toby runs toward me with a toy truck in his hand. He literally tackles me in the side and I fall over, right next to the table, spilling my cereal all over the floor. Luckily my bowl didn't shatter, but it did have some cracks in it from the fall.

"I guess I was hit by a truck today Saige," I say, looking up at her with a weak smile on my face. She starts laughing and Toby has a pitiful expression, like he's trying to say I'm sorry or something to me. It's not working.

My mom just comes over and picks up Toby and walks away, like she cares about me. I clean up the mess from my fall and throw out my bowl. I decide I'm not in a breakfast kinda mood so I go to my room.

I carefully avoid the junk on the stairs. I lock the door so Toby the Devil can't get me. Then I remember that I left the window open and rush over and look down. I see my blankets on the grass and there's rips and tears in it. I unlock my door and rush downstairs to grab them. I go outside with my navy blue sweatshirt on and retrieve my blankets. Then I get to the door.

It's closed. AND LOCKED. Oh crap. I locked myself outside with my torn up blankets. I drop my blankets and bang on the door as hard as I can. Nobody comes to the door for at least 10 minutes. Now I'm getting panicked. I've been outside like a lunatic, banging on a door, and waiting for one of my deaf family members to answer the door.

Then I realized that I left my bedroom window open. Then an idea hits me. I try to climb the side of the house and get up about two feet and slip on the wall and hit the ground. Great. I really am stuck outside.

Then my sister looks out the window and sees me trying to climb up the side of the house. She rushes to the window and opens it.

"What the heck are you doing Peter?!" she yells.

"Trying to get into the stinkin' house that's what!" I yell back at her.

"Why didn't you try the door?" She asks.

"It was locked!" I reply.

"Why didn't you get the spare key?" She's really mad.

"Ohhh. The spare key. Yeah um I forgot about that," I say.

"Jeez Peter you're so annoying and ignorant," says Saige, annoyed. She walks to the door and opens it. "Happy now?" She asks.

"Yeah. Thanks Saige," I reply.

"No problem you idiot," mumbles Saige. I pick up my blankets and walk inside. I put my blankets in the laundry basket and go back upstairs to my room.

I spend a lot of time in my bedroom. One time Saige called it my "Batcave." I guess she's right.