The Guard

  The first time I saw her, I was hiding behind a bush that had been freshly trimmed and I knew she had seen me. She wasn't as obvious as I, but theway she was staring at the bush was almost menacing. I had my left hand clenched around my gun holster and my right was against the ground for balance. I was out of breath and hoping I had lost the guards protecting her.They were very oblivious to just how talented I was then. Now I stood in almost the exact same spot, almost three years later, only as I was looking at the princess, I was glancing down. My left hand was no longer on my gun, it was covering her mouth. My right hand was holding her next to me. She was trying to get away desperately and I was giving up. I could hear her father, the king, shouting her name. No one knew how she had just suddenly dissappeared but tey did know that she was now gone. Who knew somone as kind as I could commit such a terrible deed?
I know what you must be thinking. I am insane. I said I was so kind but I just kidnapped the Korean princess. But I do it for good reason. My own queen, the queen of Spain is trying to take revenge on Korea for taking the life of our own king. Her plan is to kill the princess, but after visiting Princess Ali for two years, I could not just kill her. So I have decided to go against one of the only people I trust. Now, I must take care of Ali.
I told her two nights ago that I would be here at this time on this very night. It was now 11:30 and she was resisting. "Stop!" I hissed in her ear. Ali was trying to get away and I couldn't let her. My energy was draining quickly. I knew we had to get a ship before thay all left port at 12. It was going to be close but I knew we could make it as long as she remembered why we were fleeing. I told her again "Stop!," more meaningful this time and she did.I started walking with her in front of me. Ali was whispering something to me but it was so muffled between my fingers that I couldn't hear her. I removed my hand so that she could talk freely. Her hair smacked my face as she whipped her head around to see what was behind us. Ali's eyes got wider and a scared expression crossed her face. All she could manage to say was, "look." I turned my head sharply to see what was there. I realized what it was immediately even though i could barely see my hand in front of my face. I knew we were in danger and I knew we had to ge tout of here. Fast.
I let go of her and grabbed only her hand. I started sprinting now. I could see my breath and hear shouts behind us. Ali screamed. They were gaining on us. We reached the docks and as I looked for a boat, I noticed an opening. I jumped off the dock and I felt Ali let go of my hand. But it was too late. We were already suspended over the cold water. When we hit the water, I felt a sharp sting and I could feel her dress surrounding us. I struggled to find Ali so we could resurface but all I could find was her dress.
I found her hand in what seemed like hours later. I grabbed it and swam to the surface. When we reached it, I gasped and almost choked. I glanced at Ali and I swear she could have been dead. Maybe she was. But that didn't matter at the moment. I looked at Ali again. Her face was pale but she was alive. She was coughing as well. We moved under the dock and fell into an eerie silence. The only thing I could think about now was finding a boat to escape on. We had lost the other guards and I was pulling Ali up onto the dock now alongside me. I saw a boat a short way down the dock. As we got closer, I saw it's name. The Spanish Armada. This had bad luck written all over it but we boarded anyway and set sail.
--Karley

Fight Against Depression

Every day drags on and on. Every day, I find myself searching for the right way to lead my life. None of these days do I ever have any success in finding what I need. None of these days do I ever feel happy. I used to be one of those typical girls who is always laughing, smiling and playing with her friends. Now, I am the complete opposite of that girl. She is foreign to me, and I do not know her anymore. I wish I could return to be that girl who I once was, but she is forgotten. Now, I strive to keep control over my strong thoughts and emotions. Often, it doesn't work and I find myself in my room, crying myself to sleep. I know now that I will never be happy and that I will never find peace until the day I die. I used to think that that thought was depressing, but now I take it as an everyday fact that is no big deal. "Hey Hilary!" my brother calls from downstairs. I perk my head up, annoyed that he has disrupted my sleep. "You wanna go outside and play ball or something?" He should know better than that. I know that he only asks to keep giving effort to make me better. But I also know that each time it will never help and that he should stop trying. I will never be better. I don't respond and lay my head back down on my desk again. "Hilary!" he shouts. "C'mon, answer me!" Stupid big brother, I think angrily. I still don't say anything and close my eyes, trying to relax. "HILARY!" He bangs on the door persistently. "I hate you!" I yell finally. "Go away!" There is silence. None of us says anything as we both realize that I have finally said the words that have been lingering around the whole month, ever since Mom died. "Please, come on, Hilary. We can do something fun." I return his pleas with silence. After a while, I hear him shuffling away, his feet dragging against the wooden floor. If it had been before all of this, I would have run out and screamed that I really loved him and that I was sorry. I would have felt guilty for all of the silent treatments I'd given him. But today I have a plan that will surely make me happier. I sigh and stand up, striding towards the window. It is already open, and the delicate curtains flow gently in the wind. I stare down at the ground that is far away enough to be falling for more than five seconds. I swallow hard and sit on the windowsil, preparing to fall. Don't do it. I bite my lip and swing my leg over so that I'm halfway outside. Don't. Do. It. Listen to me. I reach a hand to my face and realize that it is wet with salty tears. I taste them. The salt tastes good on my tongue. It's refreshing. Don't do it. Please. There is more to life than this. You can make it. It's hard, but you can do it. I hesitate, but swing my second leg outside, trying to ignore my thoughts but at the same time listening to them. I am now ready to go. All I have to do is perform the last action that would send me flying. After five whole minutes, I am still sitting on the window. Finally giving up, I climb back inside and shut the window. The curtains fall still. That's it. You can make it. I promise. As my mind told myself these things, I cried harder and whispered aloud, "I'm trying, I'm trying."

The Storm

Waves upon waves strike the boat causing it to rock violently. Captain Bill was running around the ship franticly getting the life boat ready for his grandson (mark). Moments later a large wave collapsed on the boat tearing it to pieces until nothing was left but rubble and pieces of wood. When Mark arrived at nightfall it was raining and the wind speed was over 90 miles an hour. He notified the police, but they said it was too dark stormy to go looking for his grandfather. After weeks of searching they pronounced him dead. The family mourned for several days until the phone rang at their house. It was their grandfather. He told them the elaborated tale of how he survived during the hurricane. After The current pulled him under the popped back up near a large piece of wood. He grabbed the wood and saw a canteen of water floating in the water. He survived off that until he reached land and used the nearest phone possible. Later that week he was reunited with his family. - Collin

"What Happened Last Night"

Last night was eventful. The Duke TIPsters were all going to spend the night at a gas station. This gas station was an extraordinary one with a buffet and clean water. When we arrived to the gas station, we all got our luggage out. Karley, Carrington, Veronica, Abbey and Wesleigh were all spending the night. We were so excited. The rule was two to a room, and that was how it was going to be. The room pairs were: Karley was by herself, Carrington was with the counselor, Veroinca and Wesleigh, and Abbey and I. The reason Karley was by herself was because she hated being with a roommate, and Carrington didn’t want to be with anyone but an adult. After the buses reached the gas station, we all went to the rooms that the gas station conveniently had in the story above the store. We all settled in, put our luggage down, and searched the place. There was a huge buffet setting, and a pool. We were not allowed to swim, for we could not leave the 2nd floor. We all decided we were hungry, and decided to spend our money on a chocolate cake from room service! We ordered that, and the older kids decided they wanted to have a pizza party. They asked if they could use our adjoining room and I said “No,” but they used it anyway. So, we have a lot of older kids in our room talking about things we didn’t want to talk about. Karley and I went to her room. And, with just my luck, in the span of that two minutes, the cake had arrived and I didn’t get a single bite of it! There was a few little drops of chocolate sauce left and I licked those up as fast as I could when the older kids weren’t looking. We finally got tired of the whole pizza party in our room thing and we tried to push them all out. They didn’t take us seriously at first, but then we pretty much said “GET OUT”!!!!! and they left. They left and then we had our own little “pick on ‘Peanut Butter’ bash” where they sarcastically tormented me! WE all had to go to bed at 11:00 and that is what we did. We all got in our beds and all of us talked. We texted other people, and talked to our roommates. My roommate, Abbey, had a whole lot to say about the class she was in, and so did I. DukeTIP’s weekend studies was the best experience ever and I want to stay again. -Virginia "Peanut Butter"

The bat felt heavy in her hands. Her blood pumped as she crept along the dimly lit corridor. The smell of chemicals flooded her nose as she peered around the corner. In it was only test-tubes, polished floors and jet black lab counters. She dragged the metal bat along the floor and continued on past the empty room. She was wearing a blue and white striped t-shirt and ripped jeans; not the usual attire for breaking into a secret lab. Both were dirty. The flouresent lights flickered. Her eyes peered around the next doorway. He was standing by a metal sink, filling a vile up with water. She raised the mbat up off the flooor and swept into the room. Silently she creeped closeer to the man. he began to turn and barely had enough time to glimpse the girls milky silver glass eyes before he blacked out forever. She stepped back and admired her work, admired the breathless body on the floor. She had reached her goal. -Veronica

Anna's Mistake

Anna was in a ferocious fight with her mom one night. She was very frustrated and stormed out of the house and entered her BMW. She took off in a fit of rage cutting people off and turning short corners. As she approached a light it turned to yellow. Her being a young driver didn’t judge the light correctly and ran a red light. Well at the exact same moment a train was coming and collided with Anna’s car. The car burst into an inferno of fire causeing Anna to die instantly. Cops were on the scene within minuets. They called her mother and she began o wail loudly knowing that her daughters last words were “I HATE YOU MOM”.

The Event

When will

It

Begin? At once,

Over tme, In

Proportion?

Where will it

Begin? In the mind,

In

Reality, Through Vision?

Why must

It

Come? An event so huge.

Changing people all over. Mentally

Or Physically?

For some,

It is

To start

Fresh.

For others,

To go

Into

Devastation.

But either way it

Is

Life-changing.

But life-changing

how? In a

Good way?

In a bad way?

Or

Unsettling?

~Lauren

This blackboard stands in front of me
filled with words and drawings
All of which i can't begin to fully understand


Abbey

BlackBoard

This Blackboard stands in front of me
filled with words and drawings
All of which i can not begin to fully understand

Color

They are released
Not one at a time
But in a wave of color
As individuals that come together

They follow the roads
The alleys
But they don't have a destination

They keep going
Some come to a stop
In gutters or storm drains
But others go high as buildings
As far as the ocean

On the streets of San Francisco
The color is found
--Karley

The Beast

I stand staring, and the object of my gaze stares back, daring me. Daring me to walk into its mouth and sacrifice myself, for I am staring at the Beast.
And the Beast stares back.
The Beast is not large, but it is still deadly. The Beast has no claws, nor teeth, nor spines. It has no poison or stingers. It has no appendages to wrap you in and steal away your breath with. It makes no difference.
The Beast is still deadly.
After a long time, I take a breath. I take a long, deep breath and prepare myself.
And I walk into the mouth of the Beast.

-Sabrina

Escape from the Mutants

My name is Ali. Cool fact about me: I am the last human being on Earth.
I am running. Running as fast as my legs will go. My breath is coming in gasps. There is a stitch in my side, but I must keep running, running to save myself. Why am I running so fast? A pack of genetically enhanced animals that are engineered to kill humans are chasing me.
My legs are giving out. Oh, God.I can't run any more. Please, make them kill me fast. I don't want to have to feel them maul me. I can't run. I'm falling. Suddenly, the ground gives out and I fall into a pit. Bad news: the walls are too high for me to climb out. Worse news: the walls are low enough for the animals to jump IN. Finally, some good news: most of the animals run right past me. Only one is left. It is a cat, just like the one I used to have before the bomb hit and everyone was killed. Except for me. My eyes tear up and I squeeze them closed, expecting to die at any moment. It stares at me, trying to decide how it should kill me, no doubt. After an eternity, it tenses and jumps. I curl up into a ball, as if that will help me now. Wait a minute. I'm still alive. Where is it? It is at the other side of the pit. What happened? It takes me several moments before I realize that it jumped over the pit.
With a contemptuous flick of its tail, it races off. As it disappears, I sigh in relief. "Thank you", I murmur. I am safe.... for now. ~Carrington

Whirlwind

A whirlwind of color
Filling my sight.
Red, orange, yellow, brown,
All falling from great height.

They're blurring together,
Swirling around,
Traveling far
Before finding the ground.

Such a display,
It's Nature's crown.
I so hate to see
The party die down.

-Sabrina

Rain

Rain falling,
falling in turrets,
drenching everything it meets.
Rain is falling,
falling in sheets,
falling in waves.
Rain is falling fast,
bringing life
to everything.
And I stand there,
stand in the rain,
feeling it drench me,
and give me new life.