The Cat's Short Stories - A Collection of Contest Entries

Flying High (scarlettjscott's Short Story Contest)

So - my job was to write a story based off of a picture. So - that's what I did. (I know the people in the picture aren't on top of the Empire State Building, but the picture inspired me to write this story, even if I may have changed the setting slightly)

Here it goes:

     The wind blew in my face. It raked through my curly brown hair, blowing it to the side, threatening to send me toppling over the edge of the tall building. Even if there was a gate to prevent something like that from happening.

     Evan told me that if I stood atop the Empire State Building, I would finally get over my consuming fear of heights. Whether he was right or wrong I had no idea, but all the same - I had a feeling overcoming that fear would take more than a few minutes. And we had been standing on the viewing deck of the building for ten minutes.

     "Alyssa, seriously," Evan whined as he leaned against the gate enclosing us in, his back to me. "You're gonna have to take a few more steps if you want this to work."

     I'd been glued to the wall ever since we got off the elevator.

     "Baby steps, Evan," I said back. "I'll come closer when I'm ready."

     He sighed, but I knew there was a smile on his young, baby-like face. "Don't worry! You're perfectly safe here, you know. There's this-" he patted the gate, rattling it "-and of course, me."

     I rolled me eyes, his words having no effect on me. "Yeah, because that makes me feel so much better."

     "It should." Evan turned around, giving me a chance to actually see the shy, sweet smile that always seemed to stretch across his face. His hazel eyes were bright, mischievous. I knew he was planning something, but I didn't know if I wanted to hear what it was.

     For the record, the whole thing was not my idea. Evan was all about taking risks and chances and living your life. "YOLO" was his motto. So it made sense that he wanted me to get over my fear of heights, which I had been suffering from all my life. Being my best friend also accounted for part of it, too.

     Coming to New York, however, was entirely my idea. My dream was to be a famous Broadway star, and ever since I graduated high school I'd been focusing on making that dream a reality. Not to say that it was easy, though. For the two weeks that I'd been there, my life consisted of auditioning for Broadway shows, filling out a countless number of papers, working out, and sleeping. And wreaking havoc all around the city with Evan. He wanted to tag along so he could see New York, which he'd never done before.

     In coming to New York, of course, he found the perfect opportunity to get me on top of the tallest building in the city, although it took some convincing, yelling, and a lot of bribes.

     He just couldn't get me anywhere near that gate.

     "I can't do it!" I shouted over the roaring wind, which had picked up a little while ago. "I'll look down as soon as I get close to the gate. And if I look down . . . . “ My stomach did an uneasy somersault. ”I just can't do it."

     To my surprise, Evan walked over to me and grabbed my hand, looking into my eyes with what I thought was gentle amusement. Soothingly he stroked my hand, which always calmed me down when I was nervous. The wind died down ever so slightly, just enough that we could hear each other without straining our voices.

     "Alyssa." He said my name with another sigh, chuckling softly. "You're in no danger here. Zip, nada, none. All you have to do is take a couple of steps, and that's it. You'll be at the edge, on top of the world, and you're fear of heights will just . . . disappear. Oh!" He snapped his fingers as if he had an idea. "I got it! Pretend like you're throwing your fear over the edge and getting rid of it for good. Do you think that would help?"

     I considered the thought for a moment, trying not to think about how high up we were. Maybe it would help, maybe it wouldn't. Maybe I would chicken out once I looked down, and this wouldn’t work after all. And then Evan would be completely disappointed in me.

     But as I looked at Evan, the encouraging expression on his face, I felt a strong surge of courage. His big, soothing eyes sent a wave of calm through me, and suddenly I sensed that I was ready.  If I didn’t think about it too much, there was a possibility I could actually beat my fear of heights.  Evan was right – all I had to do was make the move.

     Although I was still a little reluctant, I finally peeled my back off the wall.

     Evan clapped his hands, giddy like a little girl. “There you go!” He walked a little farther away from the gate, beckoning me to come closer.

     With a deep breath, I took three more steps, my heart pounding in my chest. Just a few more to go.

     But I never got to take those steps.

     Before I could even comprehend what was going on, Evan had rushed over to me and picked me up in a basket lift. After I had screamed as loud I could, he hoisted me up onto his shoulders, laughing as he did it.

     “Evan!” I squealed. “Put me down! Don’t you dare do what I think you’re going to do!” I tried to writhe my way off his shoulders, but he held me in an iron grip.

     “Alyssa, you and I both know that you’ll never get any farther if I don’t do this.” And with that, Evan brought me to the edge of the Empire State Building, where I was high enough to see everything. Up, down, left, right – at 1,224 feet above ground level, I was the highest up that I’d ever been in my life.

     And it was amazing.

     Now that I was finally facing my fear, I realized what I had been missing all these years. On top of Evan’s shoulders, it seemed like I was flying, leaps and bounds above anyone else in the world. My heart raced as I let go of Evan’s arms, which were latched onto my shins. I spread my limbs and let the wind attack them, forcing them backward – but I wasn’t going anywhere. It was like being on the Titanic, minus the fear of drowning of death.

     The skyline of New York City was outlined beautifully in the afternoon sun, reaching into the clouds. Reflective windows glistened, shining tiny spectrums of light into my eyes. Below me, a yellow sea of taxis roamed the street, and I could just make out the screech of horns and brakes. With my head so close to the top of the gate, there was nothing that could escape my view.

     I didn’t even need to visualize myself throwing my fear off of the building. Just being there, in the moment, was enough to make it go away.

     “Do you want to get down now?” Evan asked, craning his neck so he could look at me. The ever-present smile was still on his face.

     I shook my head and closed my eyes. “No. I love it up here. I think I’ll stay a while.”

     Evan laughed loudly, and it floated over the open air. I joined in with him, our voices combining in one singular sound, almost drowning out the wind. Never before had I felt so free.

     I was flying high. And I wasn’t coming back down anytime soon.

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