Short stories - English GCSE

The Decision

A/N: Hey guys! I haven't been on here for ages, I've just seen how many people have read my last two short stories - wow! Thanks! :) We recently had another English exam (mock), half of which was a Lord of the Flies and the other half was a creative writing task. So I thought I'd put my short story on here!

I'm not completely happy with it, but it was done under exam conditions so it's not too bad considering!

(For anyone wondering, I got 39/40 for this (A*+).)

Thanks for reading!

~Alice x

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Running. Why did it always end in running? The pounding of my feet on the forest floor was a comfortable rhythm; the rattling sound of my breath was a familiar friend. Twigs snapped around me as I crashed through the foliage, desperately sprinting, never looking back. Somewhere in the distance, a wolf howled, a melancholy tribute to my ever worsening situation.

Air. I needed air. In, out, in, out. My lungs burned like fire and my legs shook like leaves in a storm. How much longer could I run for? Probably not long enough. The moon drifted in the sky like a ghostly galleon, a sea of clouds attempting to sink it. Its captivating beauty held me for a moment, unable to look away in my semi-delirious state. My vision danced and twirled before me, my eyes screaming at me to stop. A sudden, sharp noise to my left made me jump, yanking me out of my psychedelic haze. Stumbling a little, I forced my legs to move, urging myself on like a jockey encouraging a tired race horse. For that was what I was - a tired, broken race horse, who should have long since retired.

A branch snapped somewhere behind me.  Then another. Closer, closer... With a sigh, I pushed on. They could not catch me! I had to live! I repeated those words to myself like a mantra, giving me energy when my body could not. The wind howled around me, making my eyes water and the trees bow, their branches scraping together like an eerie orchestra serenading my shell of a body. Why was I not already dead, lying helpless on the floor for them to find me? Why had I continued to run whilst my comrades fell like stones? I didn't know any more.

A light began to slowly grow in front of me, a ravenous flame consuming my vision. I felt a wave of relief wash over me. This was it. Death had come. I could stop; I didn't have to fight any more. With a delirious laugh, I stumbled into it, eyes closed, arms stretched wide in anticipation of...

Nothing. Disappointed, I opened one eye, then the other, my legs staying frozen, holding me in position. There was no light. A swathe of grass lay around me, damply shining in the moonlight. Whirling around, I looked back at where I had come from; the trees of the forest were menacing guardians, warning me to carry on. Sighing, I turned back, and walked slowly forward, my feet dragging along the ground like dead weights as I tried desperately to keep upright. Mimicking the trees in the forest, I swayed a little in the breeze, feeling a sudden sensation of flying. Why didn't I just fly? Why was I bound to walk? Questions and answers flitted through my head like birds, chasing each other around and around. I did not have the energy to catch them. All I had to do was put one foot in front of the other. Just step after step, forwards, forwards-

But where was forwards? I balanced there, uncertainly, one foot extended over nothingness. With a small cry, I drew it back and stumbled away. Below, a softly twinkling sea lay under a blanket of stars, safe and comforting. The moon giggled at me as the cogs of my brain turned slowly. A cliff. This was a cliff. Where could I go from here? My training kicked in, and despite my fragmented mind I began to analyse the situation. A parachute? Didn't have one. Go back the way I came? They would be waiting for me. Lie here and try to hide? Stupid. My breathing stayed steady as I ran through my options in a detached way. I must not panic. Panic is what gets you killed. There had to be a way out of this...

The soft sound of a boot on earth assailed my ears. I was out of time. With a sense of finality, I turned slowly around.

"What do you want?" a rasping, sickly voice said. It took me a moment to realise that the voice was mine. The woman smiled, her black hair whirling round her face in the sudden breeze like a flock of ravens out for blood.

"You know what we want." Yes, now I came to think of it, I did - but the memory was hard to grasp, alluding me in my worn out state. Sleep, I needed sleep...

"Come with us, or you die. We need information - give it to us, and you will be treated well. Don't, and you will be dealt with in... a less accommodating way." The curtain whisked back from my mind as she spoke the words. Of course! That was why I was running. That was why I must not be  caught. But surely they needed me alive..?

"Come here. Now." As I shook my head feebly, a cracking noise split the air, and I fell to my knees. Wildly, I looked around. A gun had been fired. Who had been hit? Blood dripped onto my shaking hands and I looked down. There was a hole in my thigh, blood oozing from it with every passing second. I  had been hit. Numbly, my brain recognised that this was not good.

There had to be a way out! There always was! Frantically, I wracked my brains. They could not get the information! I had to protect it at all costs, with my life-

My life. I laughed, an unearthly sound, chilling and low. I knew what I had to do. I had no choice. Shakily, I went onto one knee. With a final push, I stood.

"But what if I were to fall?" I asked, taking a step backwards. "Your last lead, all gone." I saw her eyes widen in fear as I took another step back. As she rushed towards me, I looked her dead in the face.

"Oops."

Falling, falling... I whistled through the air, laughing all the time. I had made the right decision. They could not get me now. I braced for impact, and-

WHUMPH. I fell onto the crashmat as the clapperboard sounded.

"Cut!" the director yelled, "That's a wrap!"

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A/N: The ending was really rushed, I know, but the timer on the board was showing that we had 5 minutes left and I needed to get right to the end! So sorry for the lack of suspense and stuff, but sorry not sorry.

I hope you liked it - if/ when we do any more short stories I'll continue to post them here!

Anyway, for now, adios!

~Alice