My Friend Forever

My Friend Forever

by Grace Szpila

.

This story is dedicated

to Esther Behling

Copyright 2015

Maple Leaf Writing Project

Brattleboro, Vermont

.

After I packed my school bag and rode down the elevator to the lobby, I saw Mrs. Renda at the front desk. She smiled and said, “Hi Emily, wipe off those dirty feet.”

I left the lobby and started to walk a block from Ripley Street (the Street we lived on) when I saw a poster.

At the top it said: MISSING. Then I looked a little bit closer and read: Hazel Anderson, age 12. Either there was an another Hazel Anderson or my very, very, very best friend was missing in New York City.

Someone must have kidnapped her. This is not good, this is really not good, how am I supposed to find her and will I have to run away to find my best friend! Well, if I told my mom she would just call the police. And my whole life would probably be destroyed anyways. I always do everything with Hazel.

One thing was clear. I had to run away to find my friend as soon as possible. I ran back to Ripley Street, then into Hemmerth, the apartment building we lived in. I noticed everyone in the lobby staring at me. They all must be realizing I was probably ditching school. Which I wasn’t. Well...technically I was, but for a good reason. And oh...I might be missing a lot of school.

Eventually they ignored me, so I went on the elevator, pressed 17, then collapsed from exhaustion. When the door opened, I ran to the door of our apartment and looked under the welcome mat. No key. That was just in movies. I searched everywhere for the key but not one key anywhere. I knew I should have brought my key with me. Time to go to plan B: picking the lock.

I had no choice and I had seen it in spy movies so it must be possible. So I got to work. I took a bobby pin from my braid and stuck it in the door. Then I turned it. It was a moment of life or death. Pop... I was in. My mom was at work so I did not have to sneak around the apartment. I went to my room.

Once I got to my room I did a scan of the place. What to bring when you run away? Well it had to be warm and light. Once I got started it was easy. I almost packed too much stuff in my bag. But then I realized I forgot to bring one thing, the bracelet.

Me and Hazel had made each other friendship bracelets when we were 7. For some reason I felt like it was the key to finding Hazel. Suddenly, when I opened the jewelry box, my heart froze.

When I saw the scribbles on a crumpled piece of paper next to the bracelet I was uncertain of what to do. Then I snatched the paper out of the box and read.

Turn to the east and walk to the roof.

Puff down the chimney until you reach the alley.

Walk to the left side until you get to the opening.

-Hazel

My heart stopped beating as I read it about one hundred times. I tucked the note I thought Hazel had written into my back pocket and put my bracelet on. I ran down the hall, rushed to the elevator, and waited impatiently. When the elevator revealed Mrs. Renda at the front desk, she called my name, “Emily, what are you doing?”

It sounded like she knew what I was doing and she wanted me to do it? I ran past the front doors and into the city.

As I noticed the subway I thought of the first clue. “Take the speedy van to the hotel we first met.” That was easy to decode. I had to take the subway to town square. Then to the place we first met. But doing that was not so easy. See, I am afraid of the subway. All alone, it would be impossible. But what else could I do, call a taxi? And I did pack my subway pass.

As I took one breath in, I walked as fast as I could so I would not change my mind. Once I got there I felt like a little kid unsure of what to do. Then I remembered Hazel could be in danger! Once I had gotten on the subway it jerked from right to left. “Town Square,” and the doors opened. I ran out to get away from all those people.

As I got closer to Town Square I was swallowed by one million people wanting to get to the subway. I heard bits of conversation like “Did you know?” “Mommy!” “Slow down!”

Once I finally found “America’s Best Inn” I went to the lobby and read the next line of the note. “Look to the east and walk to the roof.” So I looked east and there was the door to the stairs. I ran and ran and ran until I had made it all the way to the last door of the stairs. When I opened it, though, it was just a long hallway. I noticed a window and peered out it to see if I was at the top yet.

I saw one more floor and a rope with knots in it. When I thought about the rope it reminded me of the rope in gym classes except in gym there was a mat under me and it only went 12 feet.

Somehow I did the bravest thing ever. I opened the window, got on the rope and started to climb. Don’t look down! Don’t look down! I could not help it. I looked down. I could see little little cars zooming by! I felt like I was going to fall and fall, and then I would splat onto the street and die. So I kept going until there was the roof but I could not get up, it was just a ridge. I would have to hang from the roof until I had pushed myself onto the roof! I grabbed the edge and hung 5,000 feet in the air! Somehow I knew I should just try until I died, so I did. I got a couple inches but my arms ached as I pushed. I was getting closer! I could do it. Keep on pushing, keep on pushing, keep on pushing. I felt the roof under my legs, cold and safe.

Once I had the power to stand up I looked over the roof. I could see the whole world!

I took out my sleeping bag from my bag and fell right to sleep, even though I was unsure of who might somehow come out here in the dark.

When I woke up I got to work. I got up and read the next clue: “Puff down the chimney until you reach the alley.” I looked around the roof and saw a big black circle which had to be a chimney. Hazel would not expect me to go in there, would she? I knew I could fit in there and if that was how I would find Hazel, that is how I would do it. As I put one leg in it I felt like I put my foot in goose poop mixed together with ashes. Then I put my next foot in the black hole. Once I was ready I let go and started to move down the hole.

After 10 seconds I heard something behind me getting closer and closer until FLOP. I landed in some sort of cushion. When I sat up the thing that was following hit me in the head. When I looked back at it I noticed a plastic bag full of trash! I jerked forward only then noticing what I landed in. TRASH!!!! I jumped out of the dumpster and brushed myself off. Once I looked up I was in an alleyway just where I should be!

I pulled out my note and read the next clue. “Walk to the left side until you get to the opening.” I began to walk, and finally I made it to the opening in the alley.

I was starved so I looked around to find someplace to eat. I saw a bakery a few shops down and walked in and smelled sweet cakes and fresh pizza. At the counter I saw a man with a name tag that said Paul, so I asked Paul for a pizza in polite voice. Once he gave me my pizza I paid him and sat down at a booth. The cheese melted into my mouth and I knew why pizza was favorite. I also got a mango Snapple. It tasted good, but I knew I should be going now.

When I walked out of the bakery I noticed I had big problems. I saw another missing sign, but this one had my face on it!

I knew I had to be more sneaky now that people would be looking for me. I went over the pros and cons of going back home. I decided it would not help to go back.

I started walking around, when I realized someone could have snuck into my room and put the note there just for me to go on a wild goose chase and maybe die! But who would want me and Hazel dead?

I had to form a plan. How could I find the criminal? Well, who could it possibly be, who would want me and Hazel dead? So I made a list in my mind.

1. the trash guy? He is always glaring at me.
2. the neighbors? They don’t like how much noise me and Hazel make.
3. Someone who works at Hemmerth! We always make big messes!

Someone at Hemmerth that dislikes kids! That has all the room keys! But who would be so wicked? Mrs. Renda at the front desk, she would absolutely kill me and Hazel! She is always yelling at us and complaining. But would she really kill us?

I started running in a random direction but I stopped myself to ask a man, “Do you know how to get to the subway station?”

He replied, “Go straight down this street then take a turn on your right.”

When I got to the subway I stepped in the subway, closed my eyes and waited for the subway to call my street.

“Ripley Street,” said the voice from the speaker as the doors opened I ran out and kept running until I got to the doors of Hemmerth. Then I formed a plan. I would call the police!

I walked in the back door so no one would see me. First, I looked in a little closet then I looked in an old bathroom no one used. When I walked in I saw nothing but bathroom stalls. So I looked in Mrs. Renda’s office and I could not believe what I saw. It was Hazel, in a cage! When she saw me she yelled, “Emily it is you? Mrs. Renda locked me up, I knew you would come!”

“Hazel we have to get you out of that cage and then call the police to come and get Mrs.Renda!” I looked in Mrs. Renda’s desk and there were a set of keys on the table! I unlocked the cage. Hazel and I both called our moms and told them where we were.

Then I called the police. We waited for them to come. Finally the police officer showed up. Hazel and I told him our story from the beginning. At the end he said, “Look kids you have to have evidence.”

Hazel and I started to planning evidence I remembered the note and took it out of my bag and showed the police as I said, “Here is proof. This is her handwriting.”

When he looked at it he replied, “I need a document with that crazy lady’s signature.” I ran over to Mrs. Renda’s desk and find a document signed “Renda Fleming.”

When I reached over to hand the form to the officer, he yanked it then looked at it, compared it with the note and said, “I’m taking you girls and your wacko friend to the station to scan these papers.”

As he said “wacko friend” he glanced back at Mrs. Renda sobbing as she yelled, “You need proof to arrest me, that is foraged note. You can’t take me away I don’t deserve it, I truly don’t. These kids are the problem, I spend all my days cleaning up for these two rotten spoiled kids! Is it so bad to try to kill just two kids?”

“Mam I don’t need proof from the note, I have a recording of you saying you tried to murder these two sweet, brave, outstanding kids. You're under arrest,” the officer said.

The officer waited with us until our family came. After that my mom asked me about one million questions like, “What did you think you were doing? I am proud of you, but I have been worried sick about you!” We said goodbye to the police man and Mrs. Rena.

After we watched the police car zoom down the street, Hazel and I went out for some pizza with our parents. We talked the whole way there and back, telling how it happened from our point of view. Hazel and I agreed although the day had been a thrilling adventure we would never run away ever again.