My Power of the Pen Stories

District Competition Story: ROUND 2

LOCATION: District competition
PROMPT: The setting of your story is a treehouse
TITLE: Friends Forever
RANK: 1
QUALITY POINTS: 98
AWARDS: Best of Round, Best of Best
ROUND: 2
• •

"Come up to my treehouse, Anna!" the sandy haired boy yells from atop the rickety treehouse that his father had built for his eighth birthday. I, being fearful of heights, had already set my mind on not going up.

Twenty feet up in a multicolored oak, the brown house was very noticeable even though it was high up in a tree. The rough wooden boards creaked and squeaked with every small movement, showing off how unstable it really was -- and I was deathly afraid of the thing.

"I can't," I whimper, my body going rigid as I run my eyes over the treehouse again. I couldn't.

"Of course you can. You can do anything. You're Anna!" the ten year old Gregory Hamilton shouts into the endless twigs and branches of the woods in his backyard. I imagine the view from high in a tree would be exquisite, but I couldn't find myself to place a hand on the shaky handmade ladder.

Before I can object, Gregory practically throws himself out of the wooden abode, scaring me out of my wits. He truly was absolutely bonkers, but to me, he was quite the interesting boy. He takes my trembling hand in his, warming it from the chilly fall breeze, immediately relaxing me.

"Just don't think a thing about it," he says calmly, stepping onto the ladder while still facing me, his warm chocolate eyes boring into my ocean blue ones. The sight possesses me, his soft voice coaxing me in such an alarmingly amazing way to bring me slowly to the top of the ladder.

And I was up.

The sight takes my breath away. The autumn leaves, practically every color, it seems, jump out at me all at once, blinding me momentarily, a shock to my sense of sight. The light whistle of the birds in flight is a constant song better than anything on the radio. The scent of nature, pine, autumn, all overwhelming my body until Gregory pulls me out of my shock.

"It sure is beautiful, right?" he murmurs in my ear with a bit of amusement hidden behind his words. I nod with a gulp, momentarily reminded of my undying fear of heights. That feeling is whisked away as soon as Gregory takes my hand, pulling me to the floor with him, the chirping of many animals the background track to our own little movie. Just us.

"I can tell we're gonna be best friends forever, Anna," he sighs, a bright and happy smile pasted on his freckled face. I feel a giggle emerge from my lips as soon as the words are spoken, for I know that, too.

"Friends forever?" he asks, tilting his head to the right as if to get a better look at me. His arm extends in front of him and I shake his hand, glad to have made a lifelong commitment to this boy whom had always made me happy. "Friends," I confirm, and we fall to the floor in a fit of giggles. Happy. Young. Together.

Now, as the heartbreaking sound of beeping fills my ears, I gaze through tear-blurred vision at a sandy haired boy lying in a bed clothes in white sheets, my hand enveloping his deathly cold one. I push a stray strand of hair to the side of his face to get a full view of his pale skin, his eyes closed and his lips moving with no words coming out. I squeeze his hand as the tears explode from my eyes, dripping onto our entangled fingers.

Suddenly, the boy opens his eyes to look at me, the same eyes that gazed lovingly at me in the treehouse fifty years ago, now lying on a hospital bed, slowly dying.

A voice I know all too well lights my heart on fire as soon as I hear it, the sound soft like a kitten, music to my ears.

"Friends forever?" he croaks, managing a small toothy grin, the twinkle I've come to love appearing in his eyes once more.

"Friends," I say quietly, watching with a sob caught in my throat as the heart monitor comes to a loud and long beep, a straight red line running through it as my sandy haired boy drifts away.

• •
BOOM. I just hit you all with my favorite story. I suppose the judges thought the same, since it's being published! Honestly so excited about that. MY story being read by people across Ohio, maybe even used as an example. Sigh. Okay, I promised you guys two story updates this week, and I am determined to keep that promise! The next story will be my last story from districts, which didn't win anything but still did really well! Stay tuned. Tell me what you think of this story! The question of the chapter is: What was your favorite story from districts and why? Bye for now!

-Olivia