short stories

A Life Change, a short story by Vaishali Andukuri, 10

Vaishali Andukuri, 10Oakland, NJ A Life Change Vaishali Andukuri, 10 I had a normal life. A slow life, sure…But it was good. I was just a regular 12 year-old who had a standard schedule. I woke up, went to school, came home, played a bit, helped cook dinner, ate it, went to bed and my day was done. Until one day when my life changed. I was going to school, and on the way, I stopped by a small corner shop, to buy water. When I came back from school, I heard the news that there was a virus going around. Something COVID? I didn’t care. Not much comes to our town. I went to watch TV. Apparently some big cities were on something called “quarantine”? Also there were some huge numbers. “The Death Toll” they said it was. I just assumed that it was a bunch of people crying because they got a cold. The next day, I was coughing more than usual. Two days after that, I felt weirdly warm. My mom checked, and said it was a fever. I was sick for a while. It wasn’t too bad. I got “get well” gifts, and my parents took care of me and gave me food in bed. Then one day while I was playing, I got tired. I took a huge breath, and it hurt. Slowly and steadily, my breathing worsened. Then it got so bad that my parents took me to the hospital, where they ran some tests. A doctor came, and took a nose swab. He then took it to the lab. He came back with the results. He looked scared and sad. He said that I was going to be okay, and that my parents would be right there. I was confused. Why would I be worried? Why was my family in a rush to come? I asked him what was going on, and he looked surprised and confused at the same time. “You didn’t figure it out? You have the coronavirus, or SARS- CoV-2.” he explained. I was mortified. “I have a fancy cough?!” I yelled. “Oh trust me, it’s not just for the fancy people. Tons of normal people are contracting the virus.” the doctor replied casually. I did not like this doctor. “What happened to them?” I asked warily. “Oh…. Some died, some got lifelong breathing problems, and some are absolutely fine.” he responded unhappily. Now I was scared. I had probably got it in that shop! I didn’t want to die, so I asked what I could do. He said all I could was wait it out and try to stay alive. I was unhappy, sad, in pain, and exhausted. I couldn’t sleep, and it was horrible staying in the hospital. I wished I had taken the safety precautions. I would have been safe. I was not the first to learn the hard way. Tons of people have ignored the precautions and gotten sick. Some had even died. I got out of the hospital alive, but I had breathing problems. I wish for everyone else to stay safe and not make my mistake again. Before, I had lived an ignorant life. Now I have changed for the better.

Something Smells Fishy, a short story by Daniella Horna-Baxter, 13

Daniella Horna-Baxter, 13Oak Park, IL Something Smells Fishy Daniella Horna-Baxter, 13 I was tired of being stuck inside with only my parents. I was itching for sunlight, and barely any clouds littered the sky. So, I decided to go to the backyard to do my e-learning. I was doing my math when I noticed how pretty the pond water was as it reflected the clear blue sky. I decided it was time for a break. I got my camera and started taking pictures. I was marveling at the pictures when I took a closer look and noticed that there were only 10 of my 30 or so fish there. Interesting . . . I got some fish food and flew outside. I counted again. 11. Hmmmm. I threw the specks of food all across the pond hoping some would come out. Nothing. If the food was in the pond, why weren’t fish coming out? I called my best friend that I had lived next to for over 8 years. Joel answered right away. “Hey Hannah what’s up?” “I think a raccoon is eating my fish.” “Really? Try setting up a camera.” I did, but I forgot to get a light and all the footage was pitch black. 9 fish. So, the next night I got my flashlight and aimed it at the pond. I was sure to catch the animal. The next morning I woke up and immediately checked the footage, the video had gone dark at 10 o’clock. I checked the flashlight, dead. 6 fish. I called Joel, yet again he answered immediately “Have you caught it?” “No, I don’t know what to do.” “Why don’t you stay up tonight? I’ll check on you each hour.” I woke up at 7. 4 fish. I called up Joel. “Joel! Why didn’t you wake me up last night?!” “I was trying to! But you sleep like a baby! I tried waking you up with a megaphone, but Old Greta across the street yelled at me for being too loud. So I tried to go wake you up but then I remembered the 6 foot rule.” “Well what am I going to do now?” “I have some motion activated lasers that send a notification to your phone when something moves.” “How do you have that? “My dad worked night security at the Art Museum” There was no movement, and now I had no fish. I Face Timed Joel. “Joel! There’s no more fish left!” “Oh no!” Then I noticed something behind him. A fish tank. With my fish.

Fishy Exterminates the Coronavirus, a short story by Mina Iqlas, 10

Mina Iqlas, 10Cupertino, CA Fishy Exterminates the Coronavirus Mina Iqlas, 10 It was May 1, 2020. Fishy Crabb the red lobster was having a normal day. He turned on the news.  There was a news anchor named Mr. Lobbie on cable, who was always so dramatic. “The new virus called COVID-19 is spreading around the world!” he yelled. “Many countries are starting a lockdown, so stay safe and always–” Fishy turned off the T.V. “This Coronavirus is not so serious as the Black Death! As far as I can see the COVID will stay in China.” He opened the front door just in time to see Doopy the mailman throw him the newspaper. He sat on his front porch and looked at the cover story. “COVID 19 GOES VIRAL” it said. Fishy groaned and turned to the sports section. After reading that he flipped to the back to see if there were any comics. Instead of seeing comics, there was a headline that read, “First Patient of Corona in LobbstreTown–Mishy Crabb!!” Fishy gasped. His favorite Cousin!? With the Corona? He decided he could not just leave this virus alone! He jumped up and hopped up in his swim mobile. He was going to find a vaccine for that hateful virus. After researching at the Zippy-Crustacean Hospital, he found out that the coronavirus is common in certain species of animals, such as cattle and camels. Although the transmission of the  coronavirus from animals to humans is rare, this new strain likely came from bats, though one study suggests pangolins may be the origin. “Bats and Pangolins, Huh?” he thought. “Well, the solution is simple.” A week later, Fishy was all over the news. Mr. Lobbie said to him,“Tell us, how did you find the cure for the COVID-19? “Well, I just knew the cause of the Corona was pangolins, and the opposite of a pangolin–is an anteater! So I hunted an anteater in Bolivia, and took a piece of it–only about a gram. I gave it my cousin Mishy, who had the COVID-19. A day later she was cured!” VS Our Hero saved so many people–he found the perfect vaccine!