The Torch of the Flame

Mercedes Becerril-Pires

Mercedes Becerril-Pires

Age 10-12 category | Fall into Fiction Contest 2025 | San José Public Library

"It was a dark and stormy night.."
"And a boring and stereotypical beginning" Cali interrupted.
"Caliiiiii" Mey grounded.
"The only time you tell a good story is when you forget to do your homework, let us be!"
Kilja complained.
"I could tell a story, better than you guys if I wanted to!"
Cali repeated like she did every time.
I sat there eating my smore like I always do and ignored a story being interrupted once again. I was officially at level 10 of being fed up at Cali's running of our yearly fall campfire tradition.
"You do want to tell a story better than ours since you can't," I said. The rest of the small group of 5 looked at me and stopped talking. I rarely speak(It always comes out a bit odd to others to understand the reasoning). I continued "You say you never want to but anyone would want to prove that your better so give us a great story, your not shy, your not bad at giving drama and acting scared or creepy" Cali is good at acting, landed plenty lead parts, but I could see right through her that she was scared, I always had a knack for catching lies. This would most definitely be interesting. "Maybe I will, don't act like you know it all, M.J" Cali said trying to sound confident. I crossed my arm and adjusted my criss-cross applesauce pose on my yard chair (I can never sit feet flat on the ground and always have to move a bit) "Were waiting" I say flatly. Who knew I, the one with a pink bow level -3 popularity would be the first to intimate the gothy, popular, drama queen?! I was a bit too pleased with myself for it.
Heads turn clockwise on my right,, and counter clockwise sitting to my left, 6 eyes shooting smug glares and all 3 lips twisted into a smug smirk. My expression stayed flat and emotionless staring through the fire at Cali whose expression showed a mask non-chalant and a nervous wreck in the eye holes. "It was a dark and stormy night.."
"And a basic and stereotypical beginning" Shansa smirked. Everyone grinned wildly, and for the first time, I was enjoying campfire night.
After Cali spluttered some random nonsense of night of the living dummy, the rip off (not very convincingly in character BTW) Everyone took 3 minutes of smug smirks and giggles while Cali excused herself inside to "go to the bathroom" After plenty of giggles and Ellia's famous jokes, everyone looked at me and stared. I realized that's the cue to tell a story. I took a deep breath and told a story I made a while ago.
It took 10 minutes of the fictional text of mine to be finished when extra pauses and dramatic accents were involved. I finaled with a story of campfire when I lifted my marshmallow I was roasting out of the fire with my calculations being correct(I can be nerd even with smores), my marshmallow was in tall controlled flames like the haunted torch in the story, and everyone screamed at the mellow flamethrower, then I put it out and seconds passed for traumatized terror to pass and then we all burst out laughing at the silliness of being scared of the gooey treat.
Cali sat there for the first time not complaining and sulkingly damaging her eyes, blending them into the fire unblinkingly. I had told a story of a young villain who got vengeance for being laughed at by burning out the laughter out of people's souls with a haunted burning torch. When cali stood up, I feared it was true, for fire in her eyes, burning high and strong red-orange, when our dull and stubby fire was basically hot coals.
The end Cor is it?)
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