Oilers Online Creative Writing - Group 2 by John Klak https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx Hailey, Carson, Carlee, Ruth, Rachel, Madilyn en-us 2020-11-07 16:41:41 UTC 2020-11-10 13:41:05 UTC hello@padlet.com madi m- I'm running through the crowd of people as he is hot on my trail, I see the light! The doors to freedom! And of course there is another time I couldn't get away. I woke up in a cold dark place, there was no kind of light shining in, I'm assuming that I'm in a basement or underground because of how cold and dark it is, the smell of musty,cold,dirty after rain smell. I tried moving and feeling around but I couldn't move. I got stopped by the feel of rigged old ropes on my wrists and ankles, wow got myself in another problem of getting tied to a damn chair again! My thoughts got caught off by the sound of a door slowly creaking open and the stomp of heavy steps down the stairs so slowly I forgot they were coming down. I knew it was gonna be my last day of being alive. I just knew it, i've done this too many times and he said if I did this again i’m dead. Once they reached the bottom I felt my heart drop 6ft under where I assume i'll be next, the man's raspy,deep,disgusting voice traveled through the air slowly making me want to die at the words he spit at me. “You know you can never get away from me, all the times that you have tried to leave I alway have someone get you and bring you back, from all the things I have done to you just to keep you from running you don't ever learn”. The words processed in my mind and I knew no matter what I can't run,disappear, or anything I'm stuck and gonna die. He stood in front of me but I couldn't see his face because how dark it is but I can smell his nasty hot breath, I felt him lean down even more and some light came in so I could see but before that he rose something up and hit me I knew I was gonna die I see the light; I jump up in my bed from a deep sleep sitting in a pool sweat, I look around and realize that it was a dream but I keep getting it over and over that i'm thinking it is now true. I look over at my phone and see it light up saying 5:50 AM. I have to get up soon anyways. I got my stuff around for a shower. I got all dressed and ready and smelled bacon and pancakes being made. I ran down the steps to see my mom smiling up at me. “ Hi dear how'd you sleep?” I looked at her and covered my face with a smile saying “ I slept well like always.” I got some food and ate then ran out the door with my drink and started my journey to school. As i'm walking I could feel someone staring at me or following me so I sped up some but not at a noticeable pace, I hear the car getting closer I see the busy roads ahead and I know I could lose them if I get there quick enough. I dodge through the crowds of people and into a busy alleyway where people sell random stuff. I finally made my way into school a little late because I don't feel like getting kidnapped today. Of course I walk into class and everyone looks over like they haven't seen anyone late before. I went to sit in my seat next to my best friend Sean and I got to tell him what happened this morning but before I could the class phone rang. “Madison you're needed down in the office now” the teacher's voice echoed through the room, I gathered everything I needed and went down there confused because I'm not in trouble or anything. I walked to the back room and saw cops and my mom crying. I ran over there to hug her and the cops didn't take a minute to speak. “ so madison the reason you're here is because this morning some broke into your house after you have left for school” I pulled back from my mom with a horrified look on my face I studied her face to make sure she was okay because she's the only person I have sense my dad left use when I was little for drugs and gang stuff sadly. I see she is okay and I feel a bunch of weight lifted off my shoulders and then I think about the house not that I really care but i'm wondering and my mom says “all that was damaged was the door and a few windows but nothing else.” The cop interrupted “the thing we are most concerned about is that most of the broken windows were in your room and there was a note.”I felt my face and heart drop to the floor and I think about the people following me this morning, the cops notice and ask if i’m fine and I say yes because I don't want my mom to worry more than she already has to. “What did the note say?” I asked with clear concern dripping of each word I spoke.“Well all it says is we are always watching and have been for years, we searched for any DNA and nothing came back so we have no kind of lead right now.” the bigger cop said to me with no expression of sympathy. I look over to my mom and she looks like she has seen a ghost because now we have no clue who has sent this or is watching my every move. We have a very silent ride back home with questions running through our minds about what is gonna happen next. I spoke up and said “ So what are we going to do now?” I asked my mom. She responded back “ I think our best option is to move.” A wave of panic was sent through my body once the words rolled off her tongue. “Are you serious!” I yelled at her. “Its our only option right now” i don't even bother saying anything back because i know she has already made up her mind about this choice. When we got home i went straight to my room and slammed my door and started crying because now i have to leave all my friends behind and my whole life. Its the next day and i have to say goodbye to all my friends and get on the road to my new life ahead of me. I got in the car and started crying because I'm gonna miss my bestfriend. My mom and i walk into our new house carrying our small bags with us because we hired movers to bring in and unpack all of our stuff for us. I'm walking up the winding staircase and walk into what is supposed to be my room. As I'm admiring my room I see that I have a bathroom as well with a huge shower and tub just for me. I hear my mom yell for me so i run down the stairs to see my mom walking out to a beautiful backyard with a huge tall fence and somehow already security cameras, i look over to her and ask why we have them already and she just responded with to be safe all times. I took a tour around the house and the yard before we grabbed dinner from this small shop called “karols” The place was very warm and welcoming. An older lady's voice boomed through the room saying “ hi dears welcome! Are yall new here?’ my mother said “yes we actually just moved here from colorado.” they went on with their conversation you know mom talk, she handed us a menu and we chose just some burgers with sweet potato fries. I was looking around for the bathroom and once i spotted it i got up and made my way there but just my luck i wasn't paying any attention to anything and i ran into a very tall and what i'd say hot guy. “Oh hi im very sorry i should watch where i'm going i said as i was looking at my feet out of embarrassment. His deep voice responded back “no all my fault.” and after that he walked away and i went to the bathroom and returned to our table. We made it home and I went straight towards my shower because its been a long day of unpacking. I was out with my robe walking by my window that faces the street and i seen the same guy I saw from dinner running down the road. With that i'm assuming he lives close by and that means a score for me so i can “run into” him again. Its been a week since we've moved here and i decided to do online school because its my last year anyways. Nothing bad has happened and no sign of creep stalker people around so i think thats good. Im on my morning run and i still haven't ran into the guy from the dinner and im kinda disappointed but my thoughts get cut short by a car driving by and stopping, my heart rate is going up as im thinking its not all over but the windows roll down and to my surprise its the guy from the dinner. “Hey i remember you you're the girl that ran into me the other week” he said with a smile and me being me i simply said “well yeah its me” and went on with my run not too interested with what else he had to say because i have things i need to do very very soon. I burst through our door and yelled for my mom but i got no response so i assume that she left to do whatever.I kick off my shoes and connect my phone to the home speakers and turn on some good music while cooking some lunch because im starving so bad but i was interrupted by someone knocking on the door. Me being the person i am i get irritated and turn my music off and open it only to see the guy from the dinner!“What are you doing here?” im very confused but he said “well i wanted to talk more but you decided to leave off running ending our conversation.”“Im sorry but i have a very busy schedule today and how do you even know where i live!” I yelled very confused and creeped out.i have my ways he said with a smirk making me kinda anxious, “well im sorry but i cant let you in because i don't feel comfortable with that” he seemed to be taken back by what i said and he only said alright love ill be back some time and left in his very loud car. I shut the door and made sure the lock it because im home alone.I decided to try and call my mom but she doesn't answer so I assume she's busy or she just don't want to talk with me like always. If you haven't noticed yet my mom and i don't have the best relationship and the reason is because my dad left years ago for a girl in a different country and she just hasn't been the same since then, she is always bringing home guys and always drunk but she has a good paying job to stay in top of bills and what not so i don't have much to complain about but it hurts me seeing her drunk stumbling back home at night, i really don't know much about my dad because he left before i was able to process what had happened. I went to my room to get comfortable and do my work for the day but I heard a weird noise coming from downstairs and mom finally answered me back saying she won't be home till way later. I grabbed a bat that was in my closet and slowly walked downstairs in the dark. I saw a tall dark figure standing there and the next thing I knew something hit my head and everything went completely black. https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908184732 2020-11-10 12:41:27 UTC https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908184732 It's Over 77633 https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908189829 TRIGGER WARNING: THIS PIECE CONTAINS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, MURDER, AND A MENTION OF CHILD ABUSE. IF ANY OF THESE COULD TRIGGER YOU, PLEASE DO NOT READ.

SEPTEMBER 6, 2007
Grace Lucas is a beautiful 15-year-old girl with shoulder-length ginger curls, bright blue eyes, pale skin with a pink undertone, and a slender but nice frame. Just like her mother. She had a great childhood full of parks and songs and dances. That all changed about 6 years ago when her father, Daniel, died in a horrific car crash. Around a year later her mother met Adam Bigelow, who seemed nice at first, but slowly his true character came out and the family had been miserable ever since.
The teenage girl sits on her little sister Sophie Bigelow’s bed like most nights, holding the young girl and the middle child, a brother, named Ben. She is quietly singing “Dream a Little Dream Of Me” to them, the song her mother always sang to get her to sleep. She was trying to drown out the noise of their mother Isabel’s crying and her boyfriend Adam screaming at her, with the occasional glass breaking. Sophie is on the edge of sleep but Ben is still wide awake, all too aware of what is happening right outside the room.
“Ben, you want me to put on a movie?” the ginger-haired girl asked, knowing there was no getting him to bed before he had a good distraction.
The boy nodded, looking at his sister in the same way their father used to. A perfect mix of loving, caring, and protective. She knew he’d grow up to be his father’s double, and that terrified her inside, knowing he’d look like the work loss of her life. It would be even worse for their mother. “Curious George please.” He asked, even though his sister already knew. It was his favorite.
So she put the movie on and laid back in Sophie’s bed with him. If she woke up and they were gone, she’d have a tantrum. The three got cozy under the blanket and soon enough the two youngest were fast asleep, leaving the girl alone and awake, waiting to hear the door slam signifying that Adam had left and her mother was alone, probably in the bathroom cleaning herself up.

OCTOBER 19, 2007
Isabel Lucas sat in her bathroom on a stool she had pulled in from the kitchen. It was 6:45 in the morning. Her eldest child, Grace had been picked up by her boyfriend, a nice boy named Johnathan that treated her a hell of a lot better than her own boyfriend, had picked her up about 5 minutes earlier to take her for a nice breakfast before school.
The woman looked in the mirror and pulled her auburn hair out of her face with clips on either side of her forehead before starting to cover bruises from her temple to her neck. At first, she flinched, but it didn’t cause a fraction of the pain as getting them had, so she went on. She applied more makeup than she would like to, but she had to cover it all. She used a light blush to make her appear more full of life, and then a light pink lipgloss. The look was finished with mascara before she let her hair out from the clips and brushed it, allowing her natural light waves to be free. She put on a plain white shirt, jeans, a tan cardigan, and white socks before going to the kitchen to cook breakfast for her younger two children.
Each child came from their rooms separately and sat down, ate, and then she got Ben ready for school. Sophie stayed in her pajamas most days because she spent them at home with her mom. She helped Sophie brush her teeth, and put her own shoes on before helping each child tie their shoes, and they began the half a mile walk to the bus stop. Adam didn’t like her having a car when he wasn’t around, so she walked to most places.
Another child came to the bus stop with their mother who was dressed up. The young girl's mom looked at her and noticed a bruise on her collarbone. She didn’t want to mention it in front of the children but she took note of it. She would wait until the older children were on the bus. So the group stood and waited as more children came to the bus stop without their own parents.
As soon as the bus pulled away, the other mother, who Isabel knew as Jessica looked at her. “You have a bruise, on your collarbone. What happened?”
“Oh umm, I burned myself with the curling iron this morning.” Of course, this was a lie, she hadn’t even done her hair that morning. She had to say something though, and that was all she could think to say.
Jessica could tell that wasn’t what it was, she herself had burned herself that way and it didn’t look like that, but she left it. It probably wasn’t her business in the first place. Although if she knew what had really happened, everything could have been different. Everything that would happen in around 2 months, although no one knew it would be happening, could have been stopped right there. But she didn’t know. So the two women said goodbye and Isabel held Sophie’s hand as they started back to their home.

NOVEMBER 21, 2007
Grace was woken up by her younger sister climbing into bed with her. It wasn’t weird, this was a normal occurrence if she heard anything in the night. So, Grace did what she always did. She waited until Sophie was fast asleep, and then got out of bed. The red-haired girl climbed out of bed and went into her mom's room to find her looking at a fresh red hand-shaped mark on the side of her face. “Mom?” She said, not wanting to scare her.
“Oh, Grace...did Sophie hear something?” she knew her youngest child went to her eldest child’s room sometimes if she heard her parents fighting. It comforted her to know if her younger children were scared to come to her, they could always count on their older sister to be there.
“Yeah, but she's back asleep now. She was out pretty quickly. What happened this time?” She asked, trying to get to the point, hoping it would be the last time, but knowing it wouldn't. The older woman sighed and looked at her daughter.
“Grace, these aren’t things you should have to be dealing with. I’m fine. You have school tomorrow morning, you should get back to bed.” The older of the two stood up from the chair she had in front of her mirror and put a silk robe on over her pajamas. She kissed her daughter on the head. “I love you, Grace. I promise it will get better.”
Soon enough things would get better, but not in a way any of them expected.

DECEMBER 11, 2007
On December 11th, 2007, Grace Lucas would have her last day of her horrific life, but she didn’t know that. For better or for worse. She walked home from school, exhausted from 2 tests and a quiz that day. The house was weirdly quiet. Ben rode the bus meaning he normally was home before her. Sophie wasn’t old enough for school yet. These things combined usually meant she would come home to a noisy house, Isabel running around trying to get all Ben’s schoolwork and the housework done before Adam was home from work and the kids would be watching something while playing with toys on the floor. When she came inside, she saw an image that will forever be ingrained in her memory.
First, she saw her sister crying on the couch. Then she noticed her brother trying to clean a large cut on his eyebrow without getting blood in his eye. She of course ran over to him and asked what happened, although she was terrified she already knew.
“Adam umm, I spilled some fruit punch on the carpet because Sophie scared me. Mom and I didn’t finish cleaning it before he got home.” He said as his sister cleaned his cut and covered it with a bandage, trying to be as gentle as possible. “He slammed my head against the floor next to the stain a bunch and then he yelled at Sophie…”
Just as Grace was about to finish cleaning her brother up, she heard a noise she wished she didn’t recognize. Her mother’s cries. Before they abruptly stopped. “Fuck” she thought, knowing this wasn’t something that would usually be over so quickly.
The red-haired girl slowly crept into her mother’s bedroom where she saw Adam, holding Isabel against the wall by her throat, choking her slowly. Her mother’s face was losing color quickly but there was no way she could fight him off her alone. So, she did what she had to do to save her mother. She very quietly went over to her mother’s dresser after getting a key from the top of the door frame leading into the bedroom. She opened the drawer, got out the pistol she knew her mother kept, loaded it, closed her eyes, and shot it.
It was finally over. He would finally stop torturing her and her family. As she slowly opened her eyes she saw nothing but her mother, holding her throat and crying. Grace walked to Isabel slowly and wrapped her arms around her. “It’s over mom. We’re going to be okay now.” The younger girl held her mom's hand as they walked to the living room where the two younger kids sat, relieved to see their mother and sister unharmed. Ben ran to both girls and hugged them tighter than he ever had before. He looked at them both and knew this torment was over.
“I love you.” His mom said to him, lightly running her thumb over his bandage. “He can never hurt you again.” The older woman sat on the couch and held all her children close as she picked up the phone to call the police. She couldn’t wait to give her children a good life away from the monster that had haunted them for so long.

MARCH 14, 2008
Isabel Lucas had gotten up early this morning and got herself and her younger two children ready for the day. It was a Friday but none of the children would be attending school. It was Grace’s 16th birthday, her first in a long time she would get to celebrate with the people she actually wanted to. They would also be celebrating in their new house, one town over, but close enough Grace and Ben could attend their same school’s and be with their friends.
Ben and Sophie helped Isabel make Grace’s favorite breakfast. Enough for 5 people, because they had a guest, Grace's boyfriend Johnathan, who Isabel let in almost as soon as breakfast was ready. Perfect timing. She sent Johnathan to Grace’s room to wake her up.
Soon enough the family and Johnathan were around the dinner table, eating breakfast and talking. It was the first time that Grace felt truly happy. She had been healing from the trauma of 3 months ago. She regularly talked to her mom and boyfriend about what happened, as well as seeing a therapist. Isabel also saw a therapist, and Ben and Sophie both preferred talking to their mother, which she was more than okay with.
Everyone in that room really did feel happy and safe together. Of course, they would never be able to forget what happened, but they can move on. And that's exactly what they were working on.
“Okay, Grace, do you want to open your presents?” her mom asked, getting up from her seat at the table and going to the coat closet to get them out, knowing her daughter would say yes.
Grace nodded and smiled at her mom before looking at Jonathan as he pulled out his present for her. “Can you open mine first?” He asked, with a nervous smile on his face. 
“Yeah, of course,” she said as she took the box from him and opened it. Inside was a necklace with two beautiful ornaments on it. One was a locket that she opened to find a picture of her and her mother, father, and Ben, who was just a baby in the picture. On the other side was herself, Jonathan, and Sophie, at the mall meeting Santa two Christmases ago. The other beautiful ornament was a ring. A promise ring.
The young girl couldn't help but tear up. “I love it. Can you put it on me?” She smiled and handed him the necklace as he clasped it loosely around her neck.
She loved all her presents, but none were as special as this. It made her know something beautiful. Her family had gotten rid of one terrible man, but she knew they had an amazing one still in it. One that would be there for her whole family. Forever.





]]> 2020-11-10 12:43:13 UTC https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908189829 777432 https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908208005 2020-11-10 12:49:38 UTC https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908208005 Hailey 103423 https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908212045 2020-11-10 12:51:08 UTC https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908212045 Carlee Krueger 77627 https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908245091 2020-11-10 13:01:51 UTC https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908245091 ruth https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908271527 2020-11-10 13:09:39 UTC https://padlet.com/jklak1/uri9oudsxf1k0whx/wish/908271527