Take Me Back To September

Chapter One

"September!" Tyler yelled.

I could barely hear the screams as the word "shark" left the mouths of the frantic vacationers. As I was pulled further down, fear washed over me. Bubbles danced towards the surface as I tried to scream for help, nearly inhaling the brackish water. The outside screams covered my faint, weak one, leaving me unable to attract attention.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed mine from above. I held onto it tightly, unaware of what exactly was going on. Then whatever was dragging me down—a shark, I suppose—released its monstrous grip.

Three Days Earlier:

"Stop," I said, giggling as Tyler tried to put cupcake batter on my nose. He laughed, scraping the hazelnut colored batter from his index finger to my cheek. "Tyler!"

In an attempt to get him back, I grabbed flour from the white paper bag and threw it at him, successfully hitting him square in the chest. He looked down at his black flour-splattered

shirt then back up at me. I laughed and wiped the white powder that remained on my hand onto his shirt.

"Oh, you're on."

He grabbed a handful of flour, slid his other arm around my waist, and set the white, dust-like substance on the top of my head. I squealed and tried to run for cover after I wiggled out of his grasp. He grabbed more flour and threw the handfuls at me, making me laugh when I was hit. Unfortunately, I could not fight back, as I took the dirty bowls off the table and placed them onto the counter so we wouldn't make a bigger mess.

Tyler looked at me, slightly bewildered, then continued to throw more flour at me. Once I was done, I turned the table over to its side and hid. Stealthily, I grabbed more, and threw it at him,

hoping the flour bombs actually hit him and not the floor or countertop.

"You can't hide forever, September," he said.

I poked my head up from behind the table. "Yes, I can."

Before I could duck behind my make-shift shield, Tyler threw a handful of flour. It seemed as if it were flying through the

air in slow motion before hitting me in the face. I coughed as clouds of white filled the air, making the familiar mushroom cloud.

"Not cool," I said, trying to wipe away the excess flour.

Tyler laughed and came up to me. Quickly, I grabbed more of the soft white substance and hid my hand behind my back..

"Is this what junior year gym class has been preparing us for all along?" he asked.

I shoved the flour in his face and laughed. "Yup."

Tyler laughed and tried to grab me. I screamed and laughed as I got up from behind the overturned table. He managed to grab me just as the front door opened and closed. We looked at each other, our eyes wide as we heard the deafening click, click, click of shoes.

"What in the world is this mess?" Mom asked, standing in the entrance to the kitchen.

The small room was a disaster. Not only had we been baking cupcakes for over an hour (which is a mess in itself), but we just had a full out war. Bowls filled with cake batter sat on the counter, along with egg shells (in the carton, of course), measuring cups, milk puddles, and flour everywhere. Tyler and I put our hands behind our backs, stood next to each other, and smiled weakly. I tried to hold back a laugh when I realized he still had the flour all over his face.

"Um...we kind of got into a flour war. We'll pick it up once the cupcakes are done," I said, barely able to hold back my laugh.

"You better or you won't go out tonight. You can count on that, Mr. and Mrs. Anniversary," she responded with a smile.