Here is another small section from my work-in-progress novella, 21 Minutes. I’m so happy you all liked the first part of my story! This chapter begins directly after the end of the last section.
Ashley
The steam from the shower rises around me as water washes me clean of my sweat. I hate morning volleyball practices. I keep my shower short, only two Shawn Mendes songs instead of my usual five. Then I turn off the water, shivering as I wrap my towel firmly around myself. I step out onto the yellow bath mat, avoiding the blue stain in the corner. My heart squeezes as I look at the stain.
“En garde!” I shout, holding my toothbrush out like a sword. My brother giggles, whips his Lightning McQueen toothbrush from his mouth, and turns to face me. Our toothbrushes clash as we battle. Toothpaste foams around his mouth and I laugh.
Then, I whack his toothbrush out of his hands and it lands on the ground. More specifically, I it lands on the bath mat. He rushes to pick it up, but a sticky blue glob has stained the pale yellow. We look at each other, trying not to laugh.
“Oops.” I say quietly, and that sets us both off. We laugh until our eyes water. Then, once we’ve both calmed down, we yell out a single word.
“Moo-oooo-m!”
I change into my clothes quickly, eager to get downstairs and eat breakfast. Mom always makes something delicious on the weekends. As I comb my long, brown hair, I check my outfit in the mirror. I’m going mini golfing today with Hope and Thomas, my two best friends.
Hope’s freckled face swims in the mirror, her blue eyes flashing with excitement. “Thomas is finally gonna ask you out!” she shrieks. I close my eyes. That was over four months ago, and Thomas hasn’t made a single move.
All guys are idiots, but especially football players. I always warn my younger sister Natalie to stay away from the football players at Deep Creek High. They are nothing but trouble. Luckily for her, her crush plays basketball or baseball or something like that. Thomas on the other hand…
The crowd is cheering louder than ever, and the whole student section bouncing up and down like we’re on a trampoline. “Let’s GOOOO THOMAS!”I scream, cupping my hands together. It doesn’t matter; there’s no way he can hear me over the noise of the crowd. It’s 24-20 with less than a minute left. I have a particular investment in this game. Thomas said he’d take me to homecoming tomorrow if we win. He thinks we’d just be going as friends. He also thinks Fantasy Football is the greatest thing on the planet, so what does he know?
The announcer rambles on in a foreign language, so I just watch the team intensely when…
“TOUCHDOWN!” The one word I understand roars through the microphone as the bleaches shudder from the weight of jumping fans. I look over at Hope, both of us still screaming. She gives a smile bigger than the entire stadium and I hug her. This is going to be a good Homecoming.
I sigh. Thomas ended up going with a group of football friends. They acted as a barricade around him, blocking anyone not cool enough from getting to him. I didn’t even get a chance to talk to him.
I give my hair and makeup one last glance, and then I open the door. Cold air hits me as I exit the sauna of a bathroom. I hear fast-paced news anchor talk floating up from the living room. My dad’s concerned voice calls out over the noise of the TV.
“Hey, honey? You should come see this.” I head down the staircase just outside the bathroom door. The whole house smells like Mom’s cooking, and after such a hard practice I’m starved.
I stop just at the bottom of the stairs and crane my neck to see the TV screen. I freeze. The words send a shock through my body, terrorizing my thoughts and stopping my heart. I sit on the step beneath my feet and stare blankly at the ceiling.
Just this morning I was at volleyball practice with my team, who are all my closest friends, running sprints and joking about stupid things. Less than an hour ago I was talking to my best friend about our plans to go mini golfing and whether this year would be the one that Thomas finally asked me out. Just this morning I was a normal teenager.
And now, the world is ending.