Writer’s Quill Story Submissions: Part IV

Anna Hermes, The Writer's Quill Editor

Hello, everyone! Here are a couple more wonderful story entries! Enjoy!

Prompt: “A waiter at your restaurant spills water on your napkin, so he switches it out. When you open the napkin on your lap, there is a note in the middle. You open the note and read it: “Get out while you still can.”

NASCAR Conversion

by Tim Ellis

I don’t care anymore.

It was a life. I guess you could call it that.

You were always high on adrenaline

Well, I was at least. Just the speed, the force, the physical throwing of yourself in front of the face of fate.

Definitely a bunch of adrenaline.

You never knew if today was the day to die, or if it was tomorrow, maybe even a day after. If you were lucky, you got out of it with a few bruises.

And an addiction to adrenaline

The pumping of your blood, the feel of the car, the motion, the competition, and the whole struggle to be the first person to cross that finish line alive.

Yep. I raced cars. Fast cars. NASCARs.

You’d die if you weren’t smart. Maybe that was the fun of it. The feeling that you’d just punched fate and asked for a punch back. A painful punch. A deadly punch.

Maybe I’m going too hard on the deadliness of the sport. Long story short, I wanted to die. I chose to go out with an explosion.

I failed. I won too many times. I felt like I always had to beat myself, my best time. I was too addicted to winning to consider dying. I tried so many times, back when I first started. I was the craziest driver on the course. I was the second fastest driver on the course. Second place, twice. First, never. That is what kept me alive. The thrill, the feeling that I hadn’t done anything worth dying for. I became famous, fast. Really fast. I was known for my carelessness, my love of gambling with my life.

Why? I’ll tell you why. My twin brother died when I was 14, my mother and sister in a car accident when I was 15, my dad when I was 18 from drug overdose. They were the only family I had. And people say I have so much to live for? I had nothing.

One thing I was lacking in particular was religion. My brother and Mom had a religion. They called it Catholicism. Dad was a die-hard atheist, and sister didn’t really think anything. She said her future boyfriend would choose. I agreed with my Dad. I agreed with him on most things.

But then things changed. I met this guy at a party on Saturday night. He stood out. He didn’t do the things everyone else did. He seemed to even hate being there. He began talking to me. He claimed that the only reason he was there was because he had to meet someone. Turns out, he was my competitor. He was the one that had beaten me for first place. I wanted to figure out how he did it. The car he drove was pretty much identical to mine. The only visible difference was the stickers and paint, and they didn’t affect aerodynamics. I wanted to learn his tricks. He claimed to have none, but I grilled him. In the end he admitted to one. He claimed it was his safety harness. I was going to enquire more, but he had to go meet that person he’d mentioned being there for.

I saw him the next day walking out of a Church. I found out his number from a friend of mine and called him. He picked up with a laugh and a friendly, “Hey! Wassup?” I was anxious to figure out his secret with the safety harness. Was it lighter? Did it give him more motion? He began to chuckle, “Nope. It’s the same one you have. It’s a spiritual safety harness. I’m always asking my guardian angel for protection. And Momma Mary for guidance.” That was all the spiritual nonsense I could take. I slammed the end call button on the phone and hung up. Silly foolery. He had to be hiding something from me. I began asking around, but nobody could figure anything out. Our cars were the same. Right about that time, he beat me again, him first again, me a sad four places behind. He met me after the race and offered to shake my hand. I slapped his hand and walked off, angry.

He called me later in the week after his win and asked if I wanted to go out to dinner. I turned him down and he asked if I had another night that I’d like to go out. He insisted, so I scheduled for a few days later, Wednesday night. The diner was a simple affair, and he kept talking thought. He talked about nearly everything, cars, to hunting, languages, and finally, religion. He’d found out earlier what had caused me to race. “So, you say that your mom was Catholic?”

“Yes. But I wasn’t. Never will be.”

“Why not?”

Strangely enough, I didn’t seem to mind his prying. I gave the usual answers, “Because they kill people. They force people to convert. They think that they can change bread into God.”

He didn’t even seem phased. He just smiled, “We don’t kill people. Never did. I could give you plenty of examples if you want.”

I didn’t want them. He’d already proved that he was a historical genius and I knew he’d just make me look bad, “But what about the other things?”

“Forcing people to convert? When?”

“Like in the Crusades. You were forcing innocent people to convert or you’d kill them.”

“We didn’t. We meant to kill the Muslims. They had the Holy Land, and we needed it to be free for pilgrims. We never tried to convert them by the sword.”

“Whatever. So, what about the bread into God. Surely you can’t prove that.”

“The biggest question here is how long you want this to be. I could make it very long.”

“Just make it short. I don’t have a ton of time.” I snapped, suddenly irritated.

“Alright. I’ll make it simple.” He pulled out a penny and flipped it to me, “Take a look at that. What is it?”

“A penny.”

“Right. Now, set it on the table.” I complied. He continued. “You see it sitting still?”

I answered in the affirmative.

“Nope. The earth is spinning on its own. It is also spinning around the sun. Then even then the sun is moving in a galaxy, and the galaxy is moving. That’s a lot of motion. Then, let’s look at the flipside. The atoms are moving, then you have the protons and the neutrons and the electrons all moving. And you claim that it isn’t moving? It is moving like crazy. If there is that much motion going on, and you can’t even see it, isn’t it also possible that there is something else in a host that you can’t see?” He paused and then laughed to himself, “That sounded a whole lot better in my head, but there it is.”

This conversation went on for some time. He answered every question I could throw at him. I stormed out, angry. I couldn’t stump him. Things went on like that for weeks, then months. I’d find every objection, and he’d answer them. Eventually I decided that there was no option for me but to become Catholic. I wasn’t happy about it, but it seemed to be my only option. My opinion changed almost as soon as I enrolled in RCIA. The faith was so interesting, it was so complex, yet so simple. I was accepted into the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil.

Easter was April 5th that year. By the end of April, I had decided to donate some of my time to a pilgrimage. I chose Jerusalem and then Rome. I flew out to Jerusalem and toured all of the holy places. I saw Calvary, Golgotha, the birthplace of Jesus, and I walked the streets where Jesus had walked. It took me a week. On my last day I was in a diner somewhere inside the outskirts of Jerusalem. It was a small diner, but there were decent meals. I ordered some stuffed grape leaves and tabbouleh. They were delivered on small wooden plates. I enjoyed the meal, and I ordered a refill. The waiter poured water to refill my glass and accidentally spilled some on my napkin. He was very apologetic and offered to replace the napkin. He rushed off to the kitchen and came back with two, “In case I spill on another one.” He explained. I smiled at his simplicity. While I was eating one of the stuffed grape leaves, it broke opened and split all over my lap. I silently cursed my stupidity. I’d forgotten to spread a napkin over my lap in my haste to finish eating! I pulled opened one of the napkins and a piece of paper fluttered to the ground. I picked it up. In messy handwriting there was a warning note:

Get out while you still can

Being threatened in kitchen

Big gun might shoot

-Your Chef

Though the message was mildly cryptic, I could decipher the general meaning. Someone must be threatening the chef in the kitchen. I resolved to take a look.

That was my biggest mistake.

I walked over to the kitchen and peeked inside, opening the door a crack. There was a man dressed in a white turban holding an automatic rifle to the head of a fat man wearing a chef’s hat. The man holding the gun noticed the door move. He barked in a heavily accented voice, “Get in here or I shoot!” I had no option but to obey. I opened the door and walked inside, hands held above my head. He gestured for me to stand up against a stove. My mind started racing. This could be it. I might die.

But you know what? I didn’t care. I’d lived, I had religion. I was finally happy after so many years. It didn’t matter if I won first place, it didn’t matter if I wasn’t a famous as I’d wanted to be. Nothing mattered anymore. People talk about diets and fame, being strong and being the cool kid. Some even want to be known for infamy. But it doesn’t matter. Here I was a nobody. If I died, it wouldn’t change anything here. Back at home someone would take over my car and race in it. Maybe they’d do better than I ever could have done. I mentally buckled on my spiritual safety harness and said a prayer of thanks for having had the chance to become Catholic. And then I smiled at the man.

Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another ~Ernest Hemingway

The Next Step

by Maura Martin, Grade 10

Melanie

Mel woke up that day just as she had every day for last two years. Her alarm went off at seven, and she went to the kitchen to get breakfast. She got herself a bowl of cereal and rinsed the dishes when she had finished. She grabbed her phone, turning it on to check her calendar. She smiled.

She was going to have dinner with Dan at The Bistro, a small restaurant near her. She smiled. She and Dan had been dating for almost two years, and they had known each other since they were children. They had gone to the same church, and they still lived in the same town. She smiled as she saw his text. Can’t wait for tonight, dearest. See you soon.

She closed the phone and smiled gently and went to get ready for work. She dressed fairly nicely, in jeans and a t shirt. A grocery store checker didn’t need to be fancy. She brushed her long, blond hair and braided it quickly. She grabbed her purse and her keys and went out the door.

Dan

That afternoon, Dan finished with work. He worked at an auto repair shop and was carefully scraping together enough money to pay for med school. He brushed his black hair out of his eyes. He needed to get it trimmed. He wiped the grease off of his hands and waved to his coworker, Nate, as he left.

“See you tomorrow?” Nate asked.

Dan nodded. “I’ll be here in the morning. I have night classes tomorrow.”

“Good luck with that,” Nate said, grinning.

Dan left, and got into his car. He sighed, looking at the old, leather seats that needed replacing. The car needed other repairs too. He patted the worn, duct-taped dashboard. “I’m going to get you worked on soon,” he said softly. “Once I have some money saved up.”

Melanie

Mel grabbed her purse from under the check-out counter. She glanced at the clock as she walked out the door. It was three o’clock. She had two hours until her date with Dan. She grinned. Plenty of time for her to finish her book.

***

At four-thirty, she got ready to go. She changed into a short knee length dress with black leggings. She took a second to study her reflection in her mirror. The royal blue dress was her favorite. Dan said it made her blue eyes shine like stars. She left her hair down, with a headband to keep it out of her face. She did her makeup slowly, as she wanted to look perfect. She never wore much, just a little bit of lipstick and blush. By the time she was ready, it was almost five o’clock.

She turned as her doorbell rang. She looked out the peephole of her apartment door, and smiled when she saw Dan. She quickly opened the door. “Dan!” she said happily. “Don’t you look nice!” He straightened his tie and grinned shyly.

“You look lovely, Mel.” She smiled and thanked him. He smiled and handed her a single yellow rose. Her face lit up. “You remembered!” she cried happily, taking it. He grinned. “How could I forget? They’re your favorite.” She hugged him and went into her kitchen to get a glass of water. She set it on the table and admired it for a second.

“Okay,” she said finally. “Ready?” He held out his hand and bowed, grinning.

“Ready.” She slipped her hand into his and smiled up at him. He was almost five inches taller than her, the perfect height for looking up into his eyes. Together, they walked out of the apartment and down to his car.

Dan

Dan glanced over at Melanie as he drove the short distance to the restaurant. The sun setting out her window lit up her blond hair with a gleaming halo of gold. He turned back to the road, wondering what he did to deserve a girl like her. She was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and he knew it. He wanted to spend his life with her, and he was ready to ask. He was conscious of the small box in his pocket, and suddenly felt nervous again. He said a quick prayer to God, thanking Him for Mel, and the time they spent together. He asked God to give him courage tonight, that his plan for tonight would go smoothly.

When they arrived at the restaurant, he grinned at Melanie and asked her to wait a minute. He stepped out of the car and walked over to her side. He opened her door and took her hand, helping her out of the car.

“What a perfect gentleman,” she said, laughing. “I feel like a princess.”

He hugged her. “That’s because you are, dearest.”

They went inside the restaurant, and Dan winked at the waiter, Matthew. Matthew was one of his best friends, and he was the only person other than Melanie’s father that knew about his plans for the evening. Matthew grinned and nodded at him, then showed them to a table.

Melanie

They had had a lovely dinner, and after Mel and Dan had talked for a while, he excused himself. He asked her to wait for a minute and walked in the direction of the restrooms. She waited for fifteen minutes and looked up as the waiter came to refill their water glasses.

As he poured it into her glass, he accidentally spilled water on her napkin. Apologizing profusely, he deftly mopped up the water and replaced the napkin. Mel assured him that it was fine, and he finally left. When she opened the napkin on her lap, she found a note in the middle. She opened the note and read it: “Get out while you still can.”

She turned it over, looking for an explanation to the cryptic sentence. On the back it said “There’s a cab waiting outside the front door. He knows where to go. Love, Dan.” She closed the note and slipped it into her purse. What did it mean? She knew Dan had written it, but she had no idea what it meant. Was it just another of his practical jokes?

Finally, she made up her mind. She would find out what this was all about. She picked up her purse and went out the front door. There, just as the note said, was a taxicab. The driver lowered the window. He had a nice face and looked like a grandfather. “Are you Miss Melanie Jones?” he asked her. She smiled. “Yes, I am.”

He grinned. “Hop in, Miss. Mr. Daniel Williams has paid your fare tonight.” Mel thanked him and got in. Suddenly, she grinned. This must be about what she had said to Dan last week! She had been reading something and told him that she’d always wanted to have a real adventure. He had laughed and told her that he was sure she would have her chance. She smiled and looked out the windows as they drove. The lights of the city were beautiful at night. Pretty soon, they arrived at their destination.

“We’re here. Have a good night, miss,” the cab driver said. Mel thanked him and climbed out. She looked around her and her face lit up. She knew where she was! This was the back parking lot of the Gardens! She had been here many times. It was a large park filled with flower gardens, fountains, and small forests. She sighed. She and Dan loved these gardens. It was their special place.

All at once, her thoughts were distracted as a small blue lantern caught her eye. It bobbed from the limb of a nearby tree, and she went closer to investigate. As she did so, she saw another one, a little farther off. She smiled and walked over to it. As she expected, it was followed by another. She walked along, following the path of blue lights. Finally, it ended at a large circular fountain. This one was their favorite. The lights on the tiers illuminated the water flowing down into the bowl beneath. She went and sat on the edge, reaching out to touch the water.

Dan

Dan had been watching from the tree line, and when she sat down, he went to join her. He sat next to her, and she looked up, smiling softly.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” she whispered, and he nodded, his eyes on her face. She had her eyes cast downward, watching the ripples in the fountain, and he thought that there couldn’t be a girl as beautiful as she in the entire world. He took a deep breath and began.

“Melanie?” he said softly. She looked up, a slight smile on her lips. “Yes?” He prayed once more for courage and continued. “Melanie, we’ve been dating for almost two years. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, and I thank God every day for you. I want to spend forever with you, and I’ll do my very best to deserve it. I love you.” He took a breath and went down on one knee. He heard her gasp as he pulled the small box from his pocket and opened it. “Melanie, will you marry me?”

Mel

Melanie covered her mouth with her hands. She was crying, and she tried to get out the words through her tears. She threw her arms around his neck. “Yes, yes, yes,” she sobbed into his shoulder. Everything was so beautiful and wonderful, she couldn’t help but cry. He hugged her tightly, and when she had calmed down, she whispered into his ear three words that he had been waiting his whole life to hear.

“I love you.”