ForumsArt, Music, and WritingThe roof. Short story by Klaushouse! :)

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Klaushouse
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Klaushouse
2,770 posts
Nomad

This is a story I wrote for english final exam. Got a 90% on it, thought I'd share it. The end is completely rushed and bad though cause it was only suppose to be 1000 words and my story was going to be about 5000... cut it shittily to 1600 and still got a 90% though so thats good. Pasting from word so it will probably be fudged up..




If I had been approached a week earlier and been told that someone had had an experience like no other, where seagulls had squawked words, bugs could fluently converse with humans, and where this person was the king of the world and the master of his own destiny, I wouldnât have believed a word of it. No rightfully sane person would have. Some so-called experts might classify it as trickery of the mind, supposing it was just the mind fooling around to pass the time; but if you had been there you wouldnât just accept it as your brain playing a joke on you. This may sound odd to you at the moment but I would like that you bear with me as I tell you my story â" a story of wondrous proportion set upon a grand and vast place, filled with so much life and adventure to be had it is a wonder that no one has taken notice of itâs existence: the sky.
Let me go back to the beginning. My name is Ben Samson. My age is of no importance to this story, as it will only cloud your judgment of the truth; now that I have said that though, you may presume I am a child, but that is up to you to decide. As for my appearance I would like you to decide yourself as to how I look. One thing I learned about is that up there, there is no difference between black or white, big or small. All is in equilibrium; you may believe me to be white or black, six foot tall or three feet tiny. It is all up to what you would like to believe. One thing about me you will know for certain though, is my love for exploration. Whether it be a jungle, a mountain range, or even someoneâs attic, I will find every secret there is to be found, which is how I came upon the majestic land of the sky. In New York â" I live in New York by the way â" there was a building that soared so high I thought it would wrap around the world if it were laid upon its side. Ironically that was the very reason why it was empty. It did not pass safety inspections: too tall, not safe for the number of people it would employ, they said.
You will find in New York that there is no jungle to be found, so I had to make my own ways of exploration, which is where this lonely building comes in. I decided to go to the top to see the entire world stretch around my eyes and be enveloped in the wonder of it.
I could not have imagined so many stairs in my life â" more than I could count in a hundred years I presume, but I got through it. I had not brought a watch so I do not know how long it took me. For all I knew night had passed discretely into day again without my notice. Finally arriving at the top, the disappointment in my gut could have killed me; I could not see anything, I thought to myself. Everything just faded into white because of clouds. How outrageous! But before I could think any more of this I heard the distinct sound of a door shutting. Directly behind me, to my great surprise, I saw a big red iron door, rusted beyond belief. Now, it wasnât the fact that the door was there that disturbed me so much, not at all. It was more the fact that it was shut and had no noticeable latch or handle to grasp onto so that I may open it. Before I could mutter a word so horrid that would have caused even a barbarian biker to cringe, I heard a voice.
âWell thatâs a shame, isnât it?â
To my disbelief I saw a seagull, perched on a ledge at the same place from where I heard the voice. I looked around for a human speaker, but finding no one. I asked, with the hope of seeing someone come out from behind somewhere, âWho said that?â
âThatâs a silly question, isnât it?â Said the bird, to my shock. I stood silent for a moment, not able to rap my head around what I had just witnessed.
âWho are you, why can you talk and what are you doing here!â I decided to ask, getting to the point where I almost thought myself crazy. Here I am talking to a bird on top of an abandoned building.
âYou can call me Hubert. I do not know why I can talk, but I see that you talk also â" can you answer me why?â
âWell I am human, of course I can talk! When I was a baby I heard my parents speak and I slowly learned.â
âThan is it so impossible to believe a bird can speak after hearing humans speak for so long? And as for the reason I am here, I came here for vacation when I broke my wing; I canât fly away so I am stuck here, starving.â The bird yapped, and just as he mentioned his wing I noticed that he was all but well. His white feathery wing was splattered with hints of blood here and there, and several feathers were plucked out. âWatch out for Edgar!â The bird shouted as I walked towards Hubert to examine him. I strafed to the side.
âWhat are you talking about?!â I spat, angry at the panic he had given me.

âYou almost stepped on Edgar! That would have been most unfortunate, as he has been my only company here for so long.â I looked at the bird, quite confused by what he was saying. Had the bird lost his mind? Does a bird even have a mind to lose? Just as I was going to ask about this Edgar fellow he pointed with his good wing to a little roach the size of my thumb.
âHello,â squeaked the roach in a surprisingly high and springy voice.
âYou speak too? This is ridiculous! And plus you are a roach and he is a seagull!â I shouted, shaking my index finger towards Herald. âIf you are so starving why donât you eat him?â I asked, never once noticing how ignorant of a statement this was in the world of the sky. They looked at me incredulously as if I had just asked them to commit treason.
âNow why would I ever eat him? He is another creature like me. That is the most preposterous thing I have ever heard. I donât know how it works down on the ground but we respect each other here in the sky and wouldnât do something to him just because he is a bit different than me.â At this point I had given up the hope that this was a dream. It was actually the beginning of a long conversation that would eventually cause me to ask, why should it matter if I am black, white, yellow, red, or blue? We should all care for each other unconditionally and watch out for each other. And whether I am only 14, or I am 46 it should not matter because either way the message that I had received that day was an epiphany. Once our exchange had finished, I had noticed that the clouds had cleared and I saw the most amazing thing I had ever seen: the entire world. I was at the top of the world overlooking everything that existed. From the giant metallic structure called the Eiffel Tower to the ever-spanning wall of China, I had it all at my fingertips. One thing I noticed was that all the roofs in the world had different views of the world, whether a lower view, a higher view or even a slanted view. It was a different view from mine. So many roofs to explore I thought. And just as my adventure had started, it ends. The world began to rise. No⦠the building began to sink would be a more appropriate of a way to describe my situation. As the building went down, clouds of smoke started billowing from below, clouding my view once again. Would I survive to see other roofs? That was my first trail of thought as the building slowly collapsed. I would be lying if I said that the building had fallen and I was found dead, but that would make a good ending donât you think? But no, a falcon came to my rescue - the thought of that, a falcon in New York! So much I did not know, or did not bother to see. I liked to imagine that it was one of Hubertâs friends, but there were so many birds in the sky I found it unlikely. With his claw clasping my arm, and what seemed the strength of an ox, he lifted me into the sky for my last glimpse of this magical world. Depositing me on a field far from the destruction, and without a word he flew away majestically; I could not even say thanks. From where I stood the world seemed panic stricken: smoke from the building engulfing the entire city in what seemed to be a fiery hell. But that was of no matter to me, I was more concerned on my whereabouts - I didnât know that such a field existed anywhere near New York⦠but that did not bother me one bit anymore. I lay there. The entire day I dreamed: of my kingdom in the sky.

  • 8 Replies
flappybob999
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flappybob999
797 posts
Peasant

Very nice story! Very long! I can see why you got 90%.
Great work!

Carlie
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Carlie
6,843 posts
Blacksmith

Remember for future stories, as stated in the Writing Rules: "If you would like to post a story, please post a link to where the story is located. Discussion of the story can take place in the thread. The story itself should not be posted in this forum (would lead to too many large posts)."

Thanks

firetail_madness
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firetail_madness
20,593 posts
Blacksmith

Nice story! Very well written and thought over. =P

cod4man
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cod4man
7 posts
Nomad

this is awesome

skater_kid_who_pwns
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skater_kid_who_pwns
4,376 posts
Blacksmith

ver very nice. I liked it.

ManUtd4life096
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ManUtd4life096
1,359 posts
Farmer

Cool story.

firetail_madness
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firetail_madness
20,593 posts
Blacksmith

Is that all? Or is there more?

Klaushouse
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Klaushouse
2,770 posts
Nomad

Unfortunately that is all. If not for the word limit I would've kept going. I have lost the inspiration for that story so yes it will be all.

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