BUSY STREETS//

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welcome

yo, world!

the hustle and the bustle,
between me and the city,
destitute of refuge
a turn to return.

Commonwealth Essay Competition

Friday, February 16, 2007

Commonwealth Essay Competition

It was suddenly all quiet.

How did I land here? Where was I? Questions just came and went away.

I recall …

There was not a single sound heard. Even the drop of a pin would be clearly audible. I checked my surroundings. I glanced around. There was no one, or at least that was what I thought it had been. I continued my stroll down the boardwalk, reflecting on how the days of my life pass ever so quickly, time ticking, mercilessly, and my father… How consumed I was by my job. Oh I hate that feeling.

It was a dark and serene night. The sound of my handphone ringing as clear as a bell broke the silence. It was from my home, someone called my home but there was nobody at the other side of the line. It was dead.

A thousand thoughts raced through my mind as if they were sprinting for a 100 metres race. “What if …? Could it be …?” I was worried and anxious. I swallowed my saliva, took deep breaths and chose to calm myself down. I continued to walk down the boardwalk which led me home. I was thinking deeply, of my ex-wife, when she left me because I abandoned her for my work. The final words she said still remain in my mind as if it happened yesterday. She would utter, “Work, work, work! Is that all you do?”

There was another shadow dancing on the wall. My heart skipped a beat. I glanced back, what could it be? Not a single soul, there was. All there was a dark black dustbin. I then heard crows squealing. It was an awful and sharp noise. I put on my pullover as it began to get chillier. The bitter cold wind blew on my face, holding nothing back.

I continued to ponder. The people I had worked with the previous years. My colleagues, the people who I spent the most amount of time my whole life. Oh, that feeling of nostalgia. How I wish I had not been so sidetracked on my career, and ignore my family, the people who resemble me, my ageing parents. There was another sound.

I heard footsteps. They seemed to be following me. Every time I turned back, the sound would fade away. As weird as it appears to be, I knew there had been somebody falling me. This time I was really sure, I could bet my life on it. But what could it be?

I contemplated and deliberated…

“Ring! Ring!” My phone rang. It was from my home again.

And again, nobody answered. I could feel shivers going down my spine. I knew somehow, something was wrong. But as strange as it occurs to be, I would not be able to find out what the sound was. Just when I was about to remove my ear from the earpiece, there was a sound, a faint one. I wondered what it had been. It sounded as if it were like a cry, however, it was a hushed one. My children! I dropped everything and sprinted, like the old days when I competed in sprints and races. There were sounds behind me just that, they sounded thunderous. The footsteps—they were coming nearer. I could not look back, although how much I wanted to. Too little willpower caused me to succumb to temptation.

Two huge sinister shadowy figures faced me. My feet were rooted to the grounded. I was too dumbfounded to do anything. I was petrified. It took me a few seconds before I got back to my senses. Just when it seemed like I was about to get caught and it would all be over, I felt the sudden urge to just sprint as fast as I could all the way, as if the finish line was just a few metres away. There had been a bend at the next intersection. I knew this place well as this had been my daily running route. There was a small narrow alley a few metres away. I was about to make it. It was within my reach.

Bang! I crashed and tripped over some stones. The alley was just a few strides away. The excruciating pain was too much for any ordinary person to handle. I looked down. “My knee!” I yelped. It had been so bloody. The fresh blood was just oozing out, seemingly like it would never stop. The footsteps — they were coming nearer. My life was in serious danger. I mustered the courage I had within and struggled towards the alley. I hopped with one leg as I got into the alley.

They dashed passed me. “Phew!” I sighed in relief, thinking all would go well now. Unfortunately, as the footsteps seem to fade to the surroundings, they suddenly picked up in volume again. They were coming for me! I hobbled into what I thought was a safe area. Luckily, they just scurried past me, overlooking the narrow pathway.

Now, I guess I should be safe, for the current moment at least. I punched in the three numbers onto my handphone. 9-9-…

“HEH! You have been surrounded. You can run but you can’t hide!” that figure commanded.

There was no way of escaping now. Really. No way. I may as well surrender to him now, I guess that was the best way… unfortunately. POOF!

I had a blackout. How did I land here? Where was I? Questions just came and went away. Now I think I know why. How was I going to get out of here? How are my children doing? Why am I being caught, why not somebody else? Are things going to go the way I hope it will?

The place seemed to be an old dilapidated warehouse, one that was rotting horribly, and in bad condition. It was enormous, however I was the only one there. I was troubled but I gave a little bit more thought. A realisation struck me.

The place seemed awfully familiar, just that all the boxes were gone and I was tied up all alone. It seemed to be… YES! I know what it was. It was a warehouse I used to be stationed on the outskirts of New York City. Oh that city with the hustle and bustle of life. How I have already started to miss it.

As I was plotting for my escape, the kidnapper arrived. He was the same person that carried me, into a van, if I remember correctly.

With a crooked smile, he assumed, “You must be Donald Trump Jr. right?”

His voice sounded so recognizable, as if I knew him so well. I nodded my head, tried to start a decent conversation when his smile became a frown and then he demanded silence.

“You must be wondering why I brought you here, why you got called by your phone but couldn’t answer, or hear any reply? Am I not wrong?”

Wow, he got every exact detail that I wanted. I knew this, I should have long guessed. He was my brother.

“AH. Now I know, you want me dead, so you can take over dad’s wealth, don’t you? I should have guessed. You…incorrigible man up to such intolerable tasks. You always were jealous of me being the apple of dad’s eye. So you…you became a delinquent. Whenever dad wanted to help you, you just took his advice for nothing. You totally ignored him. You were the cause of his death. After your call you made to him the other night, he just collapsed on his bed. It was entirely your fault!” I retorted.

“Now when I inherit everything from dad, you get so agitated, so jealous. Such people do not deserve to live” I added.

“Look who’s talking,” he screeched. He quickly drew a knife out of his pocket. My heart beat escalated. I was going to die. There was surely no way out. My knee, the nasty cut. It was death or life. I had to make a run. I really did. I swung around as if I were the hands of the clock, and he tripped. I tried to make a run. I thought I could make it. I knew I could. I just sprinted my way, pass all the obstructions. I was going to make it. The exit seemed near enough.

YES! I managed to get out of the warehouse. However, the exuberant feeling was only temporary. I continued to run. There was a van there. The one that cause me all these pain all these trouble. I hopped into the van, whose door was open. With the ignition on, I barely managed to escape.

Just when I was celebrating, thinking all went well, something caught my eye. In my mirror, somebody behind me, and took a knife out and …

(1483 words) Joel Yap

I doubt it would get sent in anyway, im a bit late.