Short Story Sunday-#16

Living Life: The Real Way

We take a lot of things for granted in life. Including life itself. This moment, right now, is never ever going to happen again. I've been living my life the real way ever since I stood on that mountain peak.
   I first had the idea of climbing the mountain while reading about it at school. The magazine the teacher gave us was about the youngest person to climb Mount Everest. Reading that really got me thinking. I want to do that. I want to do something fun with my life instead of sitting in front of a computer screen all day.
   At home, I told my parents my thoughts and they supported me fully. My dad and I started training. We ran from home to school and back everyday, and we went on long hikes in the hills. I found a book about how to climb a mountain and how to be safe about it. Dad bought all the equipment and after many months, we were finally ready.
   We decided to begin with a smaller mountain and build up to Mount Everest. We climbed Mount Hood first. It was a long, hard hike, but we eventually made it. All the training had really done some good. If we had done this before all the afternoon runs, we would have turned back before we even got halfway.
   After, that, we continued to train and climb mountains. Then we were ready for the big boy. My dad and I rode on an airplane to Nepal and stayed in a hotel for the night. Although I was excited and the adrenaline wouldn't let me sleep, I still somehow got enough sleep. Bright and early in the morning, we left for the mountain and met our group. The guide made sure we had all the necessities to climb before we made our way towards the mountain. I bounced on my heels with a never-dying excitement bubbling inside me.
   None of us knew each other, so we just climbed in utter silence. At first, it was just a rocky hill, but it soon became the steep, cold, snowy mountain that we all know it to be. Before the sun set, we set up camp and called it a night.
   The next day, we climbed down a ways then back up again. This was because in order to get used to the air pressure, we had to go up and down. Once again, we stopped for the night. We continued this for a week.
   One night, we had to stay in our tents instead of climbing on, because of a storm. Luckily, it was only a small storm and soon we were out there again.
   My dad and I felt very achieved when we had reached the halfway point. We could just go home and still be very proud of what we had done. But we had enough oxygen to take us to the top and back down, so we continued to the top.
   On the last day of climbing up, I just couldn't hold in the thrill of finally reaching the top.
   And when the guide said, "Half a mile left! This is the hardest part!" I was about to explode. He cautioned us of many things, but I only half-listened. Today, the climb was not silent and we were all talking. Everyone was jumpy and we all knew each other pretty well after all this time. I was deep into a conversation with a very nice lady, when my dad gasped and held my shoulder.
   "Julia. Look." I lifted my eyes to where everyone else was looking now. The top. I wanted to run up there and be the first one, but I knew too well that running used up more of our valuable oxygen. Instead, I walked the way a was supposed to and was very careful not to slip and ruin the whole trip.
   Then, we were there. On the peak. Staring out at the open world around us.
   Despite the oxygen tank, I still couldn't breathe.  It was as if a mystical force had pulled all of the air from my body and replaced it with wonder.  I suddenly felt so small. The world was so big. Bigger than it had ever been. I could see the curve of the earth in the distance. All around me-or more like below me-was the fluffiest, white clouds i had ever seen just floating around. The sky was all around me including beneath me! For a moment, I just tuned out everything around me except the sky, clouds and earth. I felt as if I was the only person on earth and I was the ruler. Then, it hit me.
   I might never feel this moment again.  This might never happen again. I needed to live in moment and die feeling complete because I had lived life the real way. Always taking note on how beautiful this sky is and listening to my brother instead of just ignoring him.
   While the rest of the group snapped pictures, I stood close to the edge, taking in deep breaths.
   When the guide waved his arm to signal that it was time to go, I just couldn't do it. I couldn't leave. My dad had to drag me away to break my trance. We then started the dismal trek down the mountain. No one wanted to leave.
   After that moment, I always lived life to its fullest and never took anything for granted. You only get one chance at life, so do it right.

Short Story Sunday-#15

This story is continued from last week's story. If you haven't read last week's then I suggest you do that before reading this one. :)

Lach and Hadley continued to be friends and send messages through the bottle, which was now being sent in a box. They planned to meet each other sometime and they asked their families and decided to meet in Spain in the hot month of August. Lach couldn't get over the excitement of getting out of the country and finally meeting this girl he had been speaking to and getting to know for the last couple months. He just couldn't stop thinking about it.
   As Lach and his dad boarded the plane, he kept wondering what Hadley is really like. Maybe she was different than what she said. But these thoughts did not get Lach's feelings down.
   After a long, gross plane ride, Lach got off the plane and breathed in the clean air of the airport. His dad got a taxi and they drove to Hadley's town. Lach was speechless at the sight of the Spanish buildings. The flat roofs and white walls were so different from the pointy roofed houses in Massachusetts. They found Hadley's house and knocked on the door.
   Lach's heart dropped. What if she didn't like him? What if they didn't get along? All these kinds of thoughts rushed through Lach's head in the few seconds he was waiting for someone to open the door.
   After what felt like a lifetime, but was only 5 seconds, the door opened and a girl about his age with long wavy brown hair stood behind it. As soon as she laid her eyes on Lach's they lit up and she shrieked.
   "You're here! I've been waiting! Come in." She stepped away to let them come inside. Lach came in and was amazed once again by the scene. The walls held family photos and Hadley had the same happy eyes in every one.
   Hadley pulled him into the brightly-colored living room and sat him down in a chair. She sat in an armchair across from him.
   They sat in an akward silence for a minute before Hadley hekd out her hand and said, "Hello, I'm Hadley and I love to explore."
   Lach laughed and shook the hand. "Hi, I'm Lach and I love to write books." They both laughed and fell into a conversation of books and beaches. They talked about their miracle friendship and how it just happened to work out.
   Lach stayed for three days and when the time came to leave, they both had a hard time letting go.
   "I'll come over to America sometime and see you!" Hadley yelled after them as they drove off.
   No one could bear leaving, but they knew that they would be friends for as long as they lived and maybe even after that. Fate had brought them together and they would keep it that way.

THE END!

Yay! I finished. I'm really proud of this story. It turned out nicely. 

Short Story Sunday-#14

This story is continued from last week's and if you haven't read that one, then I suggest you read that before reading this one.

Lach finished 7th grade with all As and was having an amazing summer vacation. It was still the first week of summer vacation and he was rarely inside his house. Lach was usually hanging out with his friends at the beach or playing in his front yard. Every time he was at the beach, he always took time to check for the bottle.
   "Hey, Luke! What are you always looking for?" they would ask him.
   "I said, I wanted you to call me Lach, ok? Besides, what I'm looking for is none of your business." Lach didn't want his friends knowing a bout the strange girl he was communicating with. He also didn't want the to think that he was crazy for sending letters to someone by bottle.
   At the end of the day, Lach and his friends returned home. Lach found a package with his name on it on his front step. He never gets packages! He picked it up and unlocked the door.
   It was calm and quiet, so his parents must not be home yet. Lach sat down at his desk and read the front of the box. It was from Spain. Who would be sending him stuff from there? Lach found some scissors and cut open the box to reveal something that made his heart jump both with surprise and happiness. A bottle. He pulled off the cork and tipped the bottle to one side and the note slid out. Lach opened the note. It read:

June 2, 2011

Lach,
This is so exciting! I can't believe that the bottle made it to you and back to me AGAIN! This is so amazing. It's a miracle. It's destiny. It's fate.
   Your last note flattered me. Not many people think I'm pretty. You look very handsome too. I think the way that you're red hair looks in the wind is very interesting. You look very happy in that picture too.
   As you may have seen on the front of the box, I live in Spain, but you were very close. You're probably wondering how I found you. Well, I looked up people with your first and last name that live in your town. t was very easy to find you because you have multiple social media accounts and the photos looked exactly like the photo you sent me! Now you know where I live, so we can send things to each other in a more trustworthy way. Now we don't have to worry about other people finding the bottle before we do. The same thing happened to me when the bottle arrived here. It took a while to convince the girl that the bottle was actually mine.
   I don't mean to hurt your feelings, but I do like the name Lach better, and I will call you by that, because you asked me to.
   Your stories sound interesting. Can you send me some? You can enclose one or two with your next note.
   I'm going to ask some questions about you. Do you have a pet? I have one cat, his name is Pants. He looks like he's wearing pants. I didn't come up with the name. What are some things that make you really happy? How do you like your steak cooked? Would you rather be hated by everyone or forgotten? Have you ever been in a fist fight? Have you always lived in Massachusetts?
   I enclosed a photo of Pants being hugged to death by my sister, Lisa.

Your friend,

Hadley

Lach finished reading the lengthy letter and looked at the photo. There was a little girl with the same brown hair, squeezing a limp cat. The cat was white on the top half and black on the bottom and its feet were white also. It really looked like it was wearing pants.

June 10, 2011

Hadley,
Wow, you are a very outgoing and interesting girl and I really love that. Thanks for saying that I look nice. People usually think the opposite of me.
  I can't believe you found me! You're lucky that I am on almost every social media site,
  Honestly, I like my fake name better too. I'm not offended. I also asked all my friends to call me Lach.
  Well, I do have a pet. It's a German Shepard named Ben. He's a lot sweeter than he looks. You're cat does look like its wearing pants! Some things that make me happy are rain, snow, fresh baked bread, the smell after it rains and a whole bunch of other things. I like my steak cooked medium rare and I have never been in a fist fight. I would rather be forgotten, then I could do whatever I wanted but if I was hated, that would ruin my life. I have always lived in the same town my whole life and I love it here, but I would enjoy getting out of the country once and a while. What are your answers to all these questions? Here's some more.
   What are some of your favorite movies? What kind of music do you like? What is your life like? What about yourself makes you most proud? I can't come up with questions as good as yours.
   I enclosed a photo of my house and the story about the kids who get lost.

Sincerely,

Lach

Lach slipped the letter into the bottle and found a new box. He used and old shoe box and taped it closed. Then, with a sharpie, he wrote Hadley's address and rode his bike to the post office.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Alright! I really love this story. Next week will be the last one. Then, I'll start a new story! I am super proud of this story.