Writing Contest Winners
The following pieces were submitted by John C. Kimball High School students to the monthly writing contests held by the Literary Journal, and each person won first place in their respective contest. These winning works are organized here by month and by the theme of the contest.
Worlds of Fantasy (December 2014)
Dreams
By Allyson Tiongson
Copyright © 2015 by Ally Tiongson
I dream of gods, monsters, and men when I close my eyes. I dream of the sky in shades of multi-color and the ground in flames. I dream of everything and anything, all at once.
I dream of people with purpose and worlds of fantasy. I dream of a rebel king and a brave princess along with a rouge knight. I dream of dragons, with their wings so wide and powerful they rip through clouds and soar through the never-ending sky. I dream of riders on these mystical beasts, and sometimes, I dream that I am one of them.
But something is different when I wake up from these dreams one day.
I awake with the same sun in the sky and the same birds that sing and the same family downstairs making breakfast.
But this morning, I wake with the crown of the dead, rebel king from my dreams lying right in front of me.
Oh dear, I think. What have we here?
Showcase (January 2015)
The Moon and the Ocean
By Marissa Boling
Copyright © 2015 by Marissa Boling
My heart used to beat on its own. Slow and constant. I didn’t hear it in my ears nor did I feel it when I walked. My hands used to always be dry and steady. I kept them in my pockets or running through my hair. Before you, my knees were stable, I walked without purpose, but also without wobbling or stopping at store windows to find something you’d like. You told me you were the same way before me. You described yourself as the ocean who met the moon, you said,
“I’ve met the person who makes the tides and brings me waves,” I didn’t know how to respond so I laughed and kissed you on the cheek.
There’s a constant fear in relying so much on another’s existence. There was an unspoken agreement on our coexistence. Or maybe it was spoken, I forget to listen to you when I’m distracted by your eyes, eyes that carry every color I love and every mystery I want to solve. I know with us, one cannot live without the other. If we could, we’d never dare. I remember I told you one night,
“You are the sun compared to every star. No one even comes close,” You hid your blush. I could tell you didn’t know how to respond so you grabbed my hand and kissed it softly.
Now my heart beats too fast, I can always feel yours in sync with mine. Your heart pumping blood for my benefit more than yours. It’s keeping you alive so I can see you in the morning. I can hear them beating together as one in a chorus of drums. It’s the sound I need to go to sleep. Though after midnight you get grumpy and mumble,
“Go lay over there, I’m trying to sleep.”
My hands are sweaty by the time I see you. They have a habit for always looking for yours. Even when you’re not in the room. I subconsciously reach to my left waiting for your cold, slender fingers to lace with mine. I’m quite lost without you. I feel more comfortable with your hand in mine. Though I don’t complain when I find them tangled in your hair instead of my own. One time you squeezed my hand so tightly. You told me you had a secret and when I leaned in you whispered to me,
“Holding your hand is like holding my entire universe,” I don’t remember what I said. It was something along the lines of,
“That’s silly. The universe is far too vast. It’s filled with too many stars, galaxies, planets, and space to be able to be held in your hand,” then you kissed me and I understood what you meant.
I sometimes wonder if I use the “L” word and the “F” word too loosely. Love is taboo. Forever is a jinx. But I fling them around like they’re just concepts. Which I know they are. But we gave them meaning. Which I feel they are. It was raining, we were under blankets. You used both words in a sentence. The sentence was,
“I am going to Love you Forever,” and I was terrified. The good kind of terrified that lets you know that there is something worth being scared of.
It’s hard to walk. Your smirk makes my knees weak. When I walk, I walk with a purpose. Now I walk with a cause. I walk to see you, to pick up your breakfast, or find you a holiday gift. Even though you insist you don’t need one because you argue,
“You’re all I need. Nothing else. Don’t waste your money,” like seeing your lovely smile could ever be considered as a waste of money.
You said I was the moon to your ocean. I made your tides and brought you waves. I assured you that I was always there, even during the day when the moon looks like a faint shadow. I said even then, I’d be there Forever. To let you listen to our hearts form a rock band, to let you hold the universe, or to bring you a little happiness in a box. I told you that with every tsunami tide or small wave that I would Love you. And we’re doing just fine.
Romance (February 2015)
It’s a Punderful Life
By Jase Namigala
Copyright © by Jase Namigala
Day 1:
"Hi, I'm Nell."
Day 52:
"They say that when you pick off a fallen eyelash, you place it between your finger and another person's, and whoever ends up holding it gets to make a wish."
"Is it true? Have the wishes actually worked for you before?"
"I don't know, but I think...doing it with you would be the best time to find out."
Day 8:
"Can I take you to -"
"Church? Because I really love that song. Wait, sorry, what were you going to say?"
"Never mind."
"No, really! If it was important..."
"It's fine! Don't worry about it."
Day 100:
"Your breath smells like peppermint."
"And yours smells like mocha."
"You know how I love peppermint mochas."
Day 20:
"I can't believe you would just do that!"
"What?"
"Don't play innocent, mister. How can you sabotage me like that? I was winning! On Rainbow Road!"
"I can't help it if I'm a MarioKart master!"
"Ugh."
Day 365:
"You know, it doesn't have to be like this."
"Like what? Like you keep calling me even though I told you I just wanted to be alone?"
"Because I just want to be your friend! You think it makes me happy when I hear from our friends that you just stay home and cry all day?"
"I'm done with this. You said it was over, but clearly you can't let go."
"Fine."
Day 366:
"I'm sorry, if you're hearing this. I just wanted to say goodbye, for the last time. I'm moving to New York, but you can...come visit if you ever want. Um, I guess I'll just be seeing you around. Maybe this is funny to say, but have a wonderful life."
Day 200:
"Not every person that looks at me wants to hook up! So please stop getting unnecessarily jealous. It's just going to ruin you, you know?"
"You're wrong."
"About what?"
"I'm looking at you, and I want nothing more to hold you in my arms and smell your hair and tangle my hands in you, your essence, forever."
"That's not exactly hooking up, you know."
"Agh, come on! Am I not out of the danger zone yet?"
"Fine...but only because forever is a long time."
Day 69:
"I brought you your favorite sandwich, thus not fulfilling the stereotype that girls make sandwiches for boys; they own sandwich shops - wait, never mind, that doesn't make sense."
"Hey, did you know today is the sixty-ninth da-"
"Shut up."
Day 367:
"..."
"I love you and I want you to know that the spark you lit inside my heart will never go away. You know that I love learnin
g, and I want nothing more than for you to learn more about me, and me to learn more about you. I want us to eat spaghetti on the beach and sing songs comprised of the goofiest puns that always make me smile like a moron, feet dangling off the side of a bridge. I want to kiss you at twilight because I like the way space and the stars in it match the shine and the depths of your eyes. I want to have a forever with you again."
"No."
"Okay, then..."
"Um, what I meant to say was - not a forever."
"..."
"A nellion forevers."
Day 1, part 2:
"Can I help you, sir? What kind of sandwich would you like today?"
"Don't call me sir, call me James, please...and I think I'll have the Italianell."
"That was a terrible pun, James. You should be ajamesed."
"You don't have to Nell down in my presence, you know."
"I think I just came up with a new ship: Jamesmile."
"...Does that mean you like my smile? Because we could actually make that a name of a bona fide ship, you know. What if we sail to Maine and listen to the lighthouse nells?"
"It's a date!"
"Puntastic, James."
"Punderful, Nell."
Runaways (March 2015)
Fast As You Can
By Sydney Roach
Copyright © 2015 by Sydney Roach
My heart is pounding as my arms are scratched to ribbons by passing tree branches. Distantly, I can hear the familiar braying of the dogs. The family dogs. My dogs. I can't focus on them for too long, making it through the swamp is my only purpose in life right now. But nothing wants me to leave, even the mud on the ground sinks around my shoes, as if everything here wants me to die only to be swallowed up by the mud and then the bayou. To float forever under the thick tree canopy among the frogs.
Giving up is not an option, even stopping is an inconceivable thought. My lungs burn and I have no clue how long I've been running. Even reaching back to grab one of my few water bottles would waste precious seconds. Seconds I don't have.
My quest seems futile. There's no escaping my family. The treacherous swamp surrounding our land is just as good of a barrier as the barbed wire fence around our compound. The sheer impossibility and idiocy of my escape is not lost on me. I'd have to be half crazy to just think about possibility of making it out the forest. And maybe I am, but I have to try. If I'm caught, there's a fate worse than death waiting for me.
Minutes pass, possibly seconds. It's impossible to tell how much time has passed since I left. Time slows and rapidly speeds up as if trying to catch up with itself. Time becomes fickle, the only reliable way is to count the trees that pass me with their razor sharp branches and bows that could hide a matter of creatures.
I hide behind one of the biggest trees in the swamp, right on the edge. Sinking down, I pull out my phone and send a text to my friend who should be here with the getaway car any second. Allowing myself the smallest bit of hope, I relax. My aching legs scream as the adrenaline leaves my body but I just keep telling myself one more minute. One more minute until I'm free.
Silence. Nothing reaches my ears as the entire swamp holds a collective breath. Not even the dogs can be heard and I begin to relish in freedom.
The dogs howl again breaking the silence. Ten feet away, nine, eight, seven, six. My panic rises with the volume of their wet pants. I cannot make noise.
Revealing myself would be the worst mistake of my life.
They stop again. I peek out and only the tip of my nose sticks out from the tree. Turning, my eyes meet grey ones, the owner's face stretching into a yellowed, gap-toothed smile. My entire body seizes up as he speaks.
"Caught you, darlin'."
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends