The Thing

Olivia Kim

Olivia Kim

Age 10-12 category | Fall into Fiction Short Story Contest 2024 | San José Public Library

  One: Izzabel
This whole nightmare started on February 11 at exactly 11.24 am. I checked myself! I was casually walking into the girls' locker room at Lakeside Middle for the competitive girls' gymnastics team. I started to change into the new sparkly purple leotard my mom had bought just for the occasion. You see, my mom was the Olympic gold medalist two times! So as soon as I could walk, she started teaching me gymnastics. Now I have devoted at least 10 years of practice to gymnastics. I am 11 years old, 336 days, and 11 hours old. Don't ask how I know that. Anyway, I had finished changing, and I had walked to the door confidently not knowing what was going to happen.

It was a nightmare, a true nightmare. BAM! I walked into something. I could not open my eyes but I tried feeling what I had just walked into. It was soft, furry, and a bit hairy. It was also my childhood dream. I was scared to look but here went nothing. 1..2..3.. Huh? The only thing I had seen was white. OK, take two. 3...2...1...... I opened my eyes, and there, a unicorn was right before me. My face probably looked super weird because everybody started to laugh at me! Me, the best gymnast in the whole school! Then suddenly, the unicorn poked me with its horn, YOUCH! I yelped. Everybody started looking at me as if I was crazy. " Does anybody see this?" I asked.

 "Um no." said the mean girl Charlotte. " So if you are not going to move, DOOFUS, move out of the way. You have no idea how embarrassing that was OMG everyone started to laugh at me. Everyone left the locker room except for this nerdy girl named Emily. I sighed heavily and sat down on a beach. Emily, the nerd came to me and said
'' Do you mean the mythical creature?" she asked.
" yes!" I practically screamed!
" Well, did you know, mythical creatures.... Greece.... Ancient....... Greek goddesses. " Honestly, I did not hear anything else. " But anyways, I don't see it so EXCUSE ME!" she practically yelled at me.

I was like Dang Girl you don't have to be so mean but I just said that in my head, so no one heard me. Instead, I calmed down, took 3 deep breaths, and said, " Sorry, my bad, now how about next time, you think twice before disrespecting the best gymnast in the school!" She was stunned because she just flipped her hair and executed two perfect handsprings in a row out the door. Like what is the girl doing? Trying to show off? Because it was not working.

Two: Charlotte
And she came, the school's best gymnast. Ugh! Nobody needs to know that your mom was an Olympic gymnast like bruh. Nobody cares! She came in flipping her hair and changing into her purple leotard. She came out flipping her hair and cartwheeling into the locker room. I just hate it when that girl cartwheels. Then that dang girl Izzabel bonked into something in the doorway. I expected coach Hannah in the doorway so I turned around and quickly changed into my leotard. But after I turned around, she looked like she was doing mine. She was feeling around and opened her eyes. Then everybody started laughing and so did I. Then all of a sudden, she yelped. Her face was kinda like a mad face combined with a confused face. Then everybody started laughing at her because it was funny. I started to laugh because I wanted to fit in. When I moved here at the beginning of 5th grade, I was the nerdy girl at school. But after a few makeovers and shopping sprees, I was the most popular girl at Lakeside Middle.

Suddenly, Coach Hannah yelled, "Girls, time to do your routines!". I nervously walked out and onto the soft and squishy gymnastic mat. "Hey. Where is Izzabel? I hope she doesn't quit, the girl has so much talent." Coach Hannah said. I already knew who was going to be the coach's favorite this year " But let's get started. First up is....... Emily Marinez!" I was shocked, who knew the nerd had only moved here three months ago would try out? I already knew she wouldn't make the team. Like maybe she could do a few front rolls but that was it. I looked up and I was shocked. She was the new girl, doing a roundoff back handspring into a full twist! Even I couldn"t do that! 

Ughh! What is this thing? I thought. I tried picking it up and throwing it away in the trash can, but I failed. I just walked out to pause. WHAT?! That new girl Emily was doing a full twist! I only learned that a few months ago! Oh No! I started thinking of things I could do to make her fail. Bars, rip her grips? Beam, make her slip? I tried to think but Ughh! Those quadratic equations from period 4 were killing my brain! I walked onto the bleachers, just in time for my turn. I walked on confidently and turned on my music. DUN-DUNNNNNNNNN-DUN-DUN-DUN. I started my routine and prepared myself for the hardest tumbling pass. Phew! After about a minute, I started my last pass. It was the easiest of all. Jump, and... BOOM! That white thing hit me. I failed my easiest pass because of this weird unicorn thing! I sulked onto the bleachers and I could feel the eyes looking at me. Oh, How badly I wanted to just fall into my bed. The lunch bell rang and I started heading for my next class. This was one of the two classes I had with Charlotte. She was sitting right in front of me, and she kept yelling,
 "Freak! Freak!" I finally lost it and shouted,
"Oh just be quiet now won't you?!" Let's just say, I got detention for a long time.  The next day, I woke up to expect the unicorn thing. Yup! Still there! I sighed.  I finally decided to just go along with my day. Sigh. Then,.... It was time to announce the team. GASP! Me?! An alternate? That was not happening. "I wish... I wish... I wish I was first on the team.." The BOOM BOOM BOOM! These random sparkles appeared out of nowhere. I looked around and the weird thing was gone! Just gone! I couldn't believe it! Then I looked back at the list and the #1 was wait. Wait.. me?! Huh? Just then, Charlotte came next to me and looked at the list too. 

"OMG. No there's no way! No!" She ran away crying I looked back at the list and saw her name wasn't on the list. She had done so well! I couldn't believe it! I realized that thing had just disappeared! That's when it hit me. It was a one-time wish thing! And from then on, I went to live my best life ever!
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