Wie berichtet, hat die Klasse 9b, damals 8b, am Ende des letzten Schuljahres im Englisch-Unterricht mit Herrn Schuster ein creative-writing-Projekt durchgeführt. Dabei sind einige ganz hervorragende Geschichten entstanden. Neun dieser Geschichten werden im Februar in kleiner Auflage gedruckt und zum Selbstkostenpreis von ca. 5 Euro in einem gut 30 Seiten starken Band verkauft. Interessierte Eltern, Schüler.innen und Lehrkräfte können den Band per Email bei Herrn Schuster vorbestellen (hr.schuster@pgherne.de).
Nachstehend ist die zweite Geschichte zu lesen.
Moritz Schuster
Let’s find reality by Miana Malko
‘‘So let me get this straight,‘‘ Alex aka Flynn Constantin said, ‘‘after two months without any contact, you called me out of nowhere and said that your sister Teddy was still in the forest to summon a demon from hell so that she could kill it to show Satan that she loves him unconditionally?‘‘
‘‘Exactly! But to be fair: I’m not so sure about the demon thing. It also could have been a goblin or something like that.‘‘ Joe, also known as Jonathan Mcalley, chuckled.
He found it hilarious that his sister Teddy was in one of her phases, but he didn’t find it hilarious that Teddy was in the forest for five days now. He trusted Teddy, he really did.
It was just that he was scared because Teddy said she wanted to stay there for three days. Well, more like lied, but that wasn’t the case. They had to find her.
He would never forget what happened a week ago. This would be one of these memories you would see through your eyes before you die. Teddy wore a glamorous dress with an old army jacket and screamed out of her lungs ‘‘GIVE ME A BABY, JESUS! I WANT TO BE A MOTHER!”
Since then he would never wear an army jacket for the rest of his life. He loved his sister and all, but sometimes he wished that he was adopted. Luckily their parents weren’t home. They would have sent her to a therapist. Again.
After 2 hours they didn’t find her. They had the idea to call her, but Joe forgot his phone. Alex wanted to call Teddy with his phone, but Joe didn’t know her number. What a dork! Why had Alex a crush on someone like him?!
Someone who believed that chocolate milk was from brown cows. Someone who tried baking a cake for his birthday and ended up making a pie with meat in it! With meat! Alex hated meat! He never was a fan of its taste.
But to be fair: Flynn wasn’t the only one with a bad taste when it comes to boys. After all, Jonathan or Joe how he wanted to be called had a crush on Flynn who was also known as Alex. Like what?!
Flynn was a mess. His mood could change from being happy to being furious in no time. It was crazy! At first Joe thought Alex had a bipolar disorder, but after some time he learned more about him, respected him – and loved him.
This whole thing was cliché. Who would have guessed that it wasn’t the only thing that was cliché between the two boys? No one, and that’s why this story started.
‘‘Uh, Joe, does your grandmother know where you are? Cause I think that she –‘‘
‘‘I’m going to stop you there, Flynn Constantin. My grandmother does know that I’m here.‘‘
Joe lied. He forgot to tell his grandmother where he was. That was nothing special anymore so his grandmother wouldn’t drop dead on the floor when he left her house for a long period of time.
‘‘I wanna go home.‘‘ Alex hissed. Joe didn’t hear him. He didn’t know where to walk now.
Alex was annoyed of this and repeated himself, knowing that his crush would not pay attention to him, so he tapped on his shoulder. Jonathan’s mind stopped working.
‘‘…Did you say something?‘‘ Alex had a blank expression. Instead of saying what he wanted he made a gesture which showed to the opposite direction. Joe had to swallow. It was as uncomfortable as swallowing oil. How was he supposed to tell him his dilemma?
‘‘Just go for it! It’s not like he’s that fragile!‘‘ he thought and so he told his friend:‘‘ Flynn, my buddy! My pal! How is it going?‘‘ He wrapped his arm around the Canadian’s torso. Alex was perplexed. He didn’t understand why the American was acting weird.
‘‘We have a problem. I think we’re lost. I’m sorry.‘‘ he confessed.
Silence.
Joe felt horrible. He would have expected everything. Crying, yelling, sobbing, but not this. He hated silence. Silence was one of the worst things that could drive him mad.
‘‘…Alex?‘‘ Silence. It was so quiet that Joe could hear his heartbeat. Alex opened his mouth, he was going to speak up. ‘‘…ok.‘‘ was his respond. What? Just an “ok‘‘? Was that everything he said?
No, he also screamed after this. What he screamed was really inappropriate. How he screamed it made Joe go stiff. Alex was famous for his powerful voice. After screaming Alex went away and left Joe alone. Now Joe was the one who was perplexed. He looked at Alex, he looked at the almost Prussian blue sky and he glanced at the bridge they recently crossed.
His friend turned around and looked him dead in the eye. His eyes were vivid and represented what he felt: anger. It was too intense for Joe! His father had told him a Mcalley is always acting cool, but now he knew his father lied to him. His heart beat fast, his knees were weak, his temperature rose and he had goosebumps all over his skin.
‘‘Is this how it feels like to be unconscious?‘‘ Jonathan wondered. ‘‘Jonathan,‘‘ Flynn said softly despite his anger, ‘‘it’s getting dark. We need a place where we can rest, otherwise we’re exhausted. I’m sure we’ll find her tomorrow. Come on, I’m tired and angry.‘‘
And with that being said, they walked together. While walking, no word was spoken out. It was quiet again. Oh, what torture it was for Jonathan! Joe never wanted to be the reason why Alex was angry. But, oh well, this was nothing compared to what would happen in the tent.
As they were walking, Flynn calmed down and felt sad about his earlier action. He knew that Joe hated silence and he knew that screaming ‘‘fuck!‘‘ was a bad idea. His mother hadn’t raised a monster!
To show a bit of affection, he held Joe’s cold hand. Joe appreciated it and couldn’t help himself, he had to smile. For most people holding hands was normal, but Flynn wasn’t like most of the people.
To him, holding hands was like saying ‘‘I’m so sorry!‘‘ To him, holding hands was like showing his appreciation for the person. To make it short: holding hands was something special to him.
Joe was completely lost in his imagination. Who wouldn’t? The stars shone like the sun and the birds chirped happily. ‘‘Joe?‘‘ The cold air was as cold as his skin. ‘‘Joe?‘‘ He just loved nature and its beauty. ‘‘Jonathan?‘‘ Flynn asked, ‘‘Look! A group of hippies! Let’s ask them if we can sleep in one of their tents!‘‘
And with that he went straight to them without noticing what they tried to do. Joe grabbed him by the shoulders and pointed one of his fingers at the group of the so called ‘‘hippies‘‘. It was almost funny what they did. Almost.
The ‘‘hippies‘‘, who were actually nuns, tried to get high on leaves. Normal leaves. Crazy, right? But what else should they have done to have at least a bit of fun?
Flynn was too tired for that. For the second time he went straight to them and asked kindly if they were allowed to sleep in one of their tents. One of the nuns who wore a clowns costume gave him a leaf.
He took that as a good sign and entered one of the tents. Joe was dumbfounded…or was he speechless? He didn’t know. Actually he didn’t know anything at this moment. He didn’t even know if the nuns were high or himself. It didn’t matter, because he was too tired and scared. Scared of the idea that his sister Teddy might have met them. His sister could have done horrible things to them!
Perhaps his sister was the one who gave them the normal leaves. But that was not true. Joe would never hear the truth.
He slowly entered the green tent with blue glitter and the message ‘‘Long live our savior Winnie the Pooh‘‘. Who would have thought that it was a wrong idea: the nuns, his sister Teddy or the big plastic bear with a sword?
Anyway, he was in the tent when Flynn was half-naked right in front of him while his bare chest shone because of the cheap blue glitter. Woah! Blue glitter really suited him! His brown hair covered a piece of his face, but that didn’t mean that his light blue eyes weren’t visible. They were and that was good! He needed them to see that Joe was blushing.
Blushing as in heating up like an old computer in summer. Flynn wasn’t any better. He blushed, too, but not so hard like Joe did.
‘‘J-Jonathan? Are you ok?‘‘ Flynn was concerned about him, therefore he had to make sure he was alright.
Boom!
Joe collapsed down on his knees and could hardly breathe. A nun saw this and said to Flynn:‘‘ Oi! He needs some milk, bro!‘‘
It was almost 2 o`clock when Joe woke up. His head ached and his view was blurry. The first thing he saw clearly was a glass of milk. By the time he noticed three things.
One: It wasn’t milk. Two: He was in another tent now. It had a cleaner surface with a weirder message: ‘‘Happy cat = sad dog = World War 3 = peace! Don’t eat my shoe!‘‘ Three: He wore nothing but his shorts!
He tried to stand up and failed miserably. He hoped that no one saw that. Too sad that his hopes were destroyed by a certain person named Flynn Constantin. ‘‘Hey! How are you? Do you feel better now? You had a terrible breakdown and slept four hours straight. We tried – uh… I tried- to call an ambulance, but my battery was empty and the nuns were…how do I say this? not helpful.‘‘ The worried teenager explained. He wore his T-shirt under his army jacket which looked great with his…skirt?
Since when did he wear a skirt? Joe examined his head to check if he bled somewhere. No blood was found so he just looked at Alex’s crimson red skirt. Alex saw Joe’s confusion in his eyes.
‘‘That? Yeah, it’s bizarre. I had an accident with their campfire…don’t ask.‘‘
Alex was right, Joe really shouldn’t ask what had happened there. Some nuns came to him with burning sticks and insisted to play catch, but he declined so they played something else. Spoiler: His pants were on fire. After this horrific incident he took care of his sick friend. He wasn’t shocked at all. It wasn’t the first time his pants were on fire.
He made sure that it was comfortable for him. He checked his temperature and removed some of his clothes so that he wouldn’t sweat. His efforts were rewarded: Jonathan looked better. He wasn’t as red as a rose anymore. His breathing was normal. Was his heartbeat in a stable state? Yes, but not really. Joe’s heart was beating faster today. When he realized that Teddy was still in the forest, he felt bad: physically and emotionally.
Teddy was an odd person since she had been born. She ‘‘was‘‘ a demon, a fairy, a cow, a singer, a dancer, a mermaid, a submarine and many other weird identities. She wrote strange poems and stranger stories. The love story between a horse and a lamp was a good example to prove her oddity.
That didn’t mean she was a bad person, no, she was a good person and her brother knew that. She was a pure bean with a freaky character. That’s why he tried to find his sister instead of calling the police like something bad happened. Losing his sister was bad, that much was true, but letting his sister go in the forest was worse.
Alex was about to leave the tent. Joe grabbed Alex’s arm, which surprised Alex, and stopped him by saying: “Don’t.‘‘
It was one word, just one word, but it left him feeling broken and helpless.
He had no other choice but to stay. Actually he had another choice, but it would have been too cruel towards Joe to choose it over staying with him. And to be honest: He couldn’t have imagined something better than that. Just Joe and him. In a tent. Somehow alone.
He laid down next to him and threw a blanket which had no crazy message in it over them to have it cozy and warm.
Flynn was going to use his jacket as a pillow. Like he was going to, but didn’t do that. Why should he have used his when he could have slept on Joe’s chest? And so he laid his head on his chest, not because Joe offered him that, but because he thought his jacket wasn’t a good replacement for a pillow. That was a lie. Joe offered him that and Alex couldn’t say no to this.
Anyway, his head was officially on Joe’s chest. From now on he could hear Joe’s heartbeat which was too fast for a healthy heart. Alex couldn’t believe this! He had to listen to it again just to make sure.
‘‘What is happening?‘‘ Joe thought, “What should I do?‘‘
Without thinking about it, he pushed Alex of him. It was harsh, but fair in Joe’s opinion.
‘‘Jonathan? Jonathan, are you ok?‘‘ His question wasn’t answered. This made Alex worried.
Joe’s heart beat in an inhuman pace and if he didn’t do anything, he would explode in thousand pieces.
‘‘F-Flynn,…‘‘ he started to say. Alex wide open eyes looked at him. ‘‘I’m so sorry.‘‘
That was the trigger. His heart stopped for a moment and started to beat slower than before. It was the time his heart beat so slowly that you could go watch a movie without missing one heartbeat.
‘‘It’s all my fault. We’re lost in the forest. We have nothing but your empty mobile phone. A day passed and we haven’t found my sister. It’s a wonder that you didn’t hit me at least once! I’m a disgrace! Flynn, please hit me! I deserve it!‘‘ Joe insisted.
Silence.
Nobody made a sound. Joe saw how Alex moved his right arm. Now it was time for Joe to mentally prepare for his slap. Alex raised his arm. Joe closed his eyes and waited patiently. He hoped that this would help Alex to deal with their problem.
Suddenly, Joe felt how Alex’s hand touched his face. Instead of a hard slap on Joe’s cheek, Alex caressed it softly. Alex would never hurt him physically. Causing physical pain to somebody wasn’t one of his abilities.
Especially when it was somebody he loved! ‘‘You dork.‘‘ Alex murmured,‘‘ I would never hit you!‘‘ ‘‘But Alex-‘‘ ‘‘Shh! We have said too much! Let’s sleep.‘‘ Alex interrupted.
They lied down and tried to sleep, but it was hopeless. They both stayed awake while everyone else slept. It was an uncomfortable situation for those boys. It would have been embarrassing if one of the teenagers made a sound. Alex held Joe’s hand to break the ice. Joe tightened the grip in return. They both looked each other in the eyes.
Alex’s vivid blue eyes were somehow milky, but Joe didn’t pay too much attention to this phenomenon. Alex eyes were gorgeous in Joe’s opinion. Joe’s free hand was placed on Alex’s cheek to caress it like Alex did before. The uncomfortable situation turned into an aroused one.
They didn’t have to speak at all, because they already have spoken with their hearts.
‘‘Flynn, there’s-‘‘ ‘‘Shut up, Mcalley!‘‘ Alex warned him. He didn’t want this moment to be ruined.
Alex took matters into his own hands and slowly came closer to Joe. Joe could have sworn that the earth stopped moving for a second. Everything happened in slow motion. It felt like they were all alone in the forest.
And then it happened: They kissed for the first time. It was the best thing that could have happened to them. Finally they could show each other their pent up love for the other one. It was liberating! Now they weren’t just free, they felt like nobody could stop them.
The young Canadian had to moan when Joe’s tongue was pushed in his wet mouth. Joe’s tongue was exploring Alex’s mouth. He wanted, no, he needed to touch every single part of it!
Alex brought Joe’s face closer to his so that he could deepen the kiss. Their tongues danced harmoniously together while Joe’s hands travelled down to Alex’s lower body. Alex did the opposite of it: His hands travelled up to Joe’s head. He buried them in his soft hair.
Nothing could last forever. That’s why they stopped to kiss because of the lack of air in their tent. ‘‘Jonathan, do you love me?‘‘ Flynn began to ask.
Joe was shocked: How could Alex question that? He just kissed him passionately!
‘‘Flynn Constantin, I do love you! Don’t doubt that, for God’s sake!‘‘ Joe replied. ‘‘And so do I. Too sad that it doesn’t make sense.‘‘ Alex informed him.
‘‘What? It doesn’t make sense? But why? Is it because I’m a guy? Does he have a girlfriend? Is he straight?‘‘ Many questions went around in his head and wanted to be answered. Fortunately Alex was there to help.
He touched his shoulder. At this time Joe saw Alex in a new perspective: His eyes were milky and lifeless, his face was pale and his body was skinny. Alex whispered something important in his ear.
It took his breath away. This couldn’t be true!
‘‘It’s true, Jonathan. I’m dead. Just look at me!‘‘
His shirt was gone. Suddenly there was something visible Joe couldn’t look at: a deep cut on his chest.
‘‘It’s ok, Jonathan. It wasn’t your fault. It’s time to let go! Wake up, Mcalley, wake up. Wake up! Wake up, goddammit!‘‘
…
Joe screamed extremely loud. He fell out his bed as he continued to scream.
He brandished with his limbs and almost hit the young girl who wore a glamorous dress and an army jacket.
To end this as soon as possible, two nuns came in his room and pressed his body on the floor. After several minutes of shaking his body he calmed down even though he was confused and scared.
‘‘Oh, thank God! Tammy, go find a t-shirt! He can’t just stay in shorts. And Aneta, find a sponge and wash out those horrible messages you wrote on the wall! You can’t-‘‘
‘‘But Jesus told me to! If you don’t believe me, ask my child!‘‘ Aneta stopped the nun from ending her sentence and held the plastic bear with a sword Joe saw before.
In fact, that wasn’t the only similarity he found.
The nuns looked very familiar to the other nuns in the forest. He still wore the same shorts and the messages on the wall were the same as the messages on the tents.
But most importantly: Aneta wore the same dress and army jacket which Teddy wore a week ago.
The nun named Tammy returned with a clean T-shirt. She asked him if he was alright. He didn’t answer it so she advised him to rest while she was brewing tea.
Everything was different. Teddy wasn’t here. Flynn wasn’t here, too. He was lying on his bed. He didn’t understand anything. Aneta saw how lost Joe was, therefore she decided that it was time for him to know the truth.
She scrubbed the messages away, gave him her letters and locked up the door with her stolen key.
Having nothing to lose, he looked at the letters and started to read.
Little did he know that this was the mind-blowing answer he never would have seen coming…
————————————————————————————————
Dear Jonathan, 13 October 2010
welcome to the Santo-Louis mental hospital & lunatic asylum J I’m Aneta and I’m a nice girl. It’s your first day here and I must say: you’re batshit crazy!
While I was screaming at Jesus, you threw my army jacket away and said that I wasn’t worth it. That confused me so I tried to know more things about you and that what I heard is pretty sad.
Let’s start with your friend/crush Flynn Constantin because he’s the main reason why you’re here.
Two months ago he committed suicide by stabbing himself with a knife. It happened in a forest I think. It took the cops two hours to find his corpse. He must have had a depression according to the nun Tammy. He wore an army jacket from his dead father and a skirt from his dead sister.
In his funeral you had a breakdown when you saw him half-naked in his coffin. You were unconscious when his older sister talked about Flynn’s dream of becoming a soldier in the Canadian army (just like his father).
Kind of stupid, right? Why should somebody have a breakdown because of a gash? Anyway, you were sad and depressed. Normal reaction. Later on you were aggressive when someone wore an army jacket or a skirt (I heard that from Teddy while she said that to a nun).
You also acted like he wasn’t dead (no joke). That’s why your parents sent you to a therapist. Again. That didn’t work out well. Now you’re here with some nuns who work here.
Let’s continue with your grandma and Teddy. You never talked to your grandma since then and you always have thought that your sister was gone.
Every time you were at your grandma’s you went to the forest where Flynn died and tried to find Teddy just like back then you guys were ten years old and Teddy was eight J
So…yeah, that’s all I found out. I don’t know how long you’ll stay here, but I guess it’ll be two months. You’re crazy, but not insane! I’m bad at writing an end so I’m gonna end here. Bye J
Now everything made sense. It wasn’t just a dream, it was a message. He needed to let go. He needed to start again.
The nun Tammy wanted to open the door, but it was locked up. She grabbed her keys and saw how the young American cried deeply with some letters in his hands. Aneta came in and simply said: ‘‘Tammy, he knows the truth.‘‘ As fast as she came in the room, she left it, leaving Tammy and Jonathan alone.
Two hours later Tammy left Jonathan’s room. They talked about several topics and cleared up things. It was a big progress for Jonathan and for the nuns in general. Now they all knew how to help Jonathan with his problems.
After another week, Jonathan was allowed to meet his family members. Teddy was very proud of him and his parents, too. He learned many new things about Flynn for example that he had loved nature and that he had had a crush on him. This made him feel loved.
Jonathan knew that it would take a lot of time to come back to normal life, but he wanted to try it for Teddy, his parents, his grandmother, the nuns who helped him, Aneta, Koloshsky and most importantly for his love Flynn Constantin.
