Category: Short Story

In the sweltering heat of a summer’s afternoon, Valeria melted into a puddle while sitting on the curb of a sidewalk outside the church. Sweat ran its way down her arms and legs making her puffy pink dress stick to her body like glue. She did not want to wear this dress, she wanted to wear the purple one, but Mama said she looked better in pink. The dress was itchy and the white fabric flowers scattered along the bottom bloomed enough she could pick at them until she had enough to fill her little pocket on her heart if her Mama let her.

Valeria looked up from her sandals and watched as her Mama a few feet away spoke to the priest about grown-up things like work and taxes and how her grandma was doing. She would have told the priest Grandma just didn’t come because Ms. Carole had insulted her cooking during the 4th of July, and she didn’t want to “be in the same space as that miserable old hag until she apologized” but good girls do not speak about the family’s business. Mama told the priest she had come down with sickness but should be better enough to come back next week.

Valeria did not understand a lot of things and one of those things was lying. She always said what she was thinking and asked a lot of questions. Papa finds it funny and answers every question as best as he can, but Mama says she needs to be polite, so she does not hurt anyone’s feelings. Grandma says lying is a sin and when you lie you must ask God for forgiveness, but she has watched everyone lie at least once in her life, she is watching Mama lie right now. She didn’t see a reason to lie, and she does not know why being polite means telling small lies. God did not count politely lying as a sin. Can you go to hell for politely lying? She will ask Mama on the drive home.

Mama knows a lot about God almost like she knows him, but she says she doesn’t. Nobody knows God but he left a book a long time ago with ideas to live by and Mama believes those ideas because she thinks that they can better our society. Papa says it’s a bunch of baloney, that there is no such thing as God and that humans created him so that people could fear something enough to follow the rules and live a good life. Mama and Papa do not agree on a lot of things, but they love each other enough to compromise. Papa stays at home on Sundays to work on stuff around the house like fixing the leaky faucet in the kitchen and she and Mama dress up to go to church. They stay a while after mass to talk to the priest and Mama’s church friends, and afterward, they meet Papa at their favorite pizza place. They didn’t talk to Mama’s friends today though.

Last week Mrs. White’s girls, Mary and Sally, interrupted Valeria while she was reading a picture book about beetles. Her Papa got it for her as a reward for helping around the house and getting good grades in the spring. Mama let her bring it on the condition that she could not read it during mass and once Mama started talking to Mrs. White, she plopped down on the grass to read and try to find beetles walking in the dirt. Mary and Sally had come up to her and started hollering in disgust at the diagrams of a beetle’s body and called her a freak for liking bugs. Valeria had tried to tell them they should not be disgusted or afraid of bugs, God put them on the Earth for important reasons like pollinating so pretty flowers and food can grow, but they had run off to their mom in tears. When they got in the car to go to the pizza place, Mama had asked why she could not like normal things like other girls do. Valeria had said that she did like some normal things and asked why she could not like the weird things. Mama just told her to not mention any of her weird interests at church, she could not introduce Valeria to other people unless she started acting like a proper lady that is polite, quiet, and likes things like baking, dolls, and pretty things. Valeria told her that she did like those things, she just did not like them as much as the other girls did. She asked why other girls could not like bugs, God made things for a reason, and hating God’s creations is a sin, isn’t it? Mama did not respond, only shook her head, and kept driving.

That night she heard Mama and Papa talking about it after she was supposed to have gone to bed. She could not sleep and wanted to get some water from the kitchen until she heard Mama asking Papa why they could not have had a normal daughter. Papa had said that Valeria was normal, she just liked different things from other girls and asked what was wrong with that? Mama had said that there was nothing wrong with that, but she could not take her out without getting embarrassed. Many churchgoers already judged her for being a young mother and at least if she had a normal daughter then everyone would think she is a great mother for raising such a beautiful and kind girl. Papa started getting angry as he asked Mama if she thought their daughter was not beautiful or kind, she may not be the politest but that does not erase the fact she always does as she is told and all the older women in the neighborhood have stories to tell them about how Valeria brought them freshly picked flowers on her way to school or how Valeria offers to help bring in groceries when they are struggling. Papa said that she should not be embarrassed by her daughter when she upholds better religion-related values than most adults and that’s when Mama and Papa started a hushed argument. Valeria had left to bed by then, eyes heavy and yawning quietly.

Another thing Valeria doesn’t get is “values”. She asked her Papa once what it meant and he said it’s the standards for people who believe in some sort of God. Different religions have different standards but most of them are about kindness, compassion, and helping others. She asked him why there is more than one religion if they are all sort of the same and he said it’s about the culture and the place. Valeria still doesn’t get it though. Why do you have to believe in something bigger than yourself to be nice to people? She likes being nice to people, it makes her feel good, and sometimes she gets gifts out of it. She doesn’t think she believes in anything bigger than herself. What can be bigger and more powerful than Mama and Papa or the president? She asked her parents once what to believe in. Papa said she could believe in anything she wanted, it’s her experience and life that will lead to a decision. Mama got mad at Papa for that and told her that she needs to believe in God so that she can lead a good life and get into Heaven. People who question their faith don’t get into Heaven. Valeria doesn’t understand Heaven or Hell either, it seems simple but what if someone makes a mistake and ends up in Hell? What if she lied and didn’t ask for forgiveness, will she go to Hell? She doesn’t think she’s done anything bad enough to go to Hell but it was scary to think about sometimes.

A yawn made its way out of Valeria’s throat making her eyes water. She was getting tired and looked again towards her mom and the priest. They were still talking and a few churchgoers were hanging out on the grass behind her. She looked to the end of the street where a man was selling popsicles to kids out of a cart and she thought about how nice it would be to have one. She’d keep it in the wrapper to hold against her forehead to cool down and when it starts getting warm she’ll drink the melted ice. Valeria stretches her legs out and her arms over her head. She looked over at the stained glass windows that made up pictures of Jesus and the Virgin Mary. She thinks they’re pretty but she still doesn’t know if she believes in them.

Papa doesn’t believe in anything but he’s nice and he likes to help others. He has a big family and not all of them have a lot of money so he helps them out sometimes. If Papa doesn’t believe in anything will he go to Hell? Would God keep him out of Heaven for not believing in him even if Papa is kind? Valeria doesn’t understand the afterlife either. If God loves all humans, shouldn’t everyone be in Heaven even if they don’t believe in anything? How bad do you have to be to go to Hell? Her grandma tells Papa he’ll go to Hell for not going to church every Sunday but she’s pretty sure God says to respect people as they are. Valeria hopes Papa doesn’t go to Hell.

She hears voices getting louder and she looks away from the windows to see Mama and the priest begin walking closer to her. “And I’m sure you know about my daughter Valeria. Sweetheart, say hello,” Mama introduced.

“Hello, priest sir.”

“Hello, little one. How are you doing? I hope today’s mass did not bore you too much today,” the priest said, crouching down and extending his hand out to shake.

Valeria stuck her hand out from her place on the curb ignoring her Mama’s whisper to stand up and greet the priest politely. “I’m doing alright, the mass was pretty boring though. It was very long and I did not get a lot of what you were saying.”

The priest laughed as Mama tried to apologize for her bluntness. “It’s alright ma’am. I can’t expect a child to be able to understand something so complex when they have other priorities in life.” The priest turned to face Valeria again and asked, “How old are you now?”

“I’m nine and three months old.”

“Wow, you are getting older every day. Have you decided what you might like to do in the future?”

“I want to study bugs, but Mama says I should tell people that I want to be a nurse or a teacher so that I can be more respectable.”

Mama turned red in the face and started stuttering out an “Ah she doesn’t mean that” before the priest interrupted.

“Why do you need to be more respectable? I think studying bugs is plenty respectable. You could make some important discoveries someday.”

“Mama says I need to be more respectable so that she won’t have to feel embarrassed when she talks about me to her church friends. She thinks that some of the things I like are weird and that I need to start liking things normal girls like so that her friends don’t think she’s a bad Mama.”

“Well, I don’t think you’re weird at all. You are very honest and respectful. I think your Mama did a great job raising you but you shouldn’t let her words get to you. Sure you might like different things than most girls, but that just makes you more unique. You are your own person and God loves every type of person especially you. Nothing is embarrassing about you and you don’t need to feel like you have to change for anyone. God is watching you right now and is proud of you for not letting anyone get in the way of your goals and mission on Earth.”

“How do you know that? I thought nobody knew God.”

“I may not know God personally but I have dedicated my life to passing on his words of wisdom to others and I know for sure that God says to love everyone as they are. As long as you believe in God, God will believe in you.”

“I’m not sure I believe in God mister priest.”

“And that’s alright too. One day your faith will be solidified and God will be there every step of the way to help you stay faithful.”

Valeria thought this over for a minute. “Alright then. I’ll try to understand the stuff you say in mass until that day.”

“That’s all I will ever ask of you.”

The priest got up and wished Mama a good day. Mama was too embarrassed to say anything back and quickly grabbed her daughter so they could walk to the car. When Valeria’s seatbelt was buckled, Mama looked at her through the rearview mirror in silence for a minute and finally asked “When we get done eating with Papa, would you like to go to the bookstore and get a new bug book? I know last week you finished your other one.” Valeria grinned in delight.

In the year 2014, my father found a job offering in the far-off state of Arizona. They were offering such a great sum of money that my mother and father swept up our family of four from our home in West Virginia, where my older brother and I had lived all our lives, to move to Relic End. It was a nice enough neighborhood. There was a park with a colorful assortment of playground structures to climb and an ice cream store further down the road that we become regulars at. The school my brother and I attended had wonderfully funded programs with plenty of friendly students for us to become acquainted with over the years. All and all you would assume that Relic End would be a picturesque place to spend one’s younger years and you would be correct, that is without one small detail. Every night, as the clock strikes midnight, something makes its way down the street by every house, starting at the street sign marking the start of Relic End down the street to the point where the pavement disintegrates into the woods beyond. With this phenomenon came one rule that was followed without question throughout the street: be in your home with the blinds shut and doors locked no later than 11:59. Because the moment the clock changes to 12:00 that creature will begin its trek to the woods or to whatever its goal is that resides at the end of the street. It will creep its way down the road dragging its limbs against the asphalt, groaning and wheezing in a grotesque manner that ensures me that this thing is not from this world.
When my family first moved to Relic End we were quickly informed of the strange nature of the neighborhood. The prospect terrified my brother and me even before the sunset while it unsettled my parents. Our first night in our new home I found myself unable to sleep due to what I had been told earlier in the day. I had no idea how my brother could be passed out on his sheetless mattress–one of the moving trucks had lost its way in Oklahoma according to my dad’s frustrated phone calls. Meanwhile, I was afraid to even shut my eyes. I crept out of my room at the late hour to find my dad hunched over a bowl of cereal. He was quick to hold me in his arms, still shoveling Cinnamon Toast Crunch into his mouth. One of the few pieces of furniture we did have at that time was my grandmother’s great grandfather clock and as the clock struck twelve like some cliche horror movie my father and I both heard it. Horrible, haggard, breathing coming from outside the house, opposite from the window we watched moonlight flow through now. We heard it make its way down the street, coming closer and closer to the window we faced looking out onto our front yard and the road beyond. Just before it reached our field of view I think my father sensed it, I sensed it too. A sinister presence, something so unspeakable evil that the human psyche would shatter at the mere sight of it. At that moment my father covered my eyes with his hand and whispered in a shaky voice “don’t look, Carrie, please don’t look”. I heard something then that scared me much more than that horrible presence. My father was afraid, I could hear it in his tone. My 6 ‘3 father, a veteran football player, was scared. Then as soon as it appeared it was gone, the breathing, the dragging of the limbs, and my father’s hand over my eyes.
The following day my father disappeared early in the morning and returned in the afternoon with burgers and a vast array of locks and heavy shutters. He spent the rest of that day installing them until every window had heavy blinds with complementary locks on them. I appreciated how thorough he was. You may wonder why on Earth would anyone want to share a neighborhood with such a thing and for that there is a strange answer. Relic End is blessed as my neighbor Ms.Marina would say. Strange, unexplainable miracles seem to plague the residents of this place. When this was told to my family those many years ago my brother and I believed it immediately, being just 13 and 9 at the time. My mother was open to the idea as well as she came from a family that was always open to the prospect of forces outside our control. My father on the other hand did not grasp the idea as well. He thought such a concept was the stuff of fairytales and while he was correct in that the creature that broods in the night was of similar fictional quality and my father had been presented with unwavering proof of that. He was presented with undeniable proof when my mother became incredibly sick a year following our arrival in Relic End. Doctors couldn’t explain it, some sort of mystery disease. We watched as she slowly deteriorated, growing weaker and frailer by the day. Until one fateful day, she began to get better. Within a matter of days, she was back to her healthy state she was in many months prior. The doctors couldn’t explain it, it was nothing short of a miracle they said. With that my dad knew, we all knew this was nothing random. It was Relic End and its many blessings.
The years passed and Relic End saw many people come and go. Some for other opportunities similar to ours while others simply couldn’t stand to share the same space as such an eldritch creature. Strangely, I had become used to the presence at night. I think it was the knowledge that in some way that thing had saved my mother. However, I did wonder from time to time many questions I believe were completely fair considering my family’s bizarre situation. How did the miracles work exactly? What does the creature–I never cared enough to actually dare to look at such a thing of course–look like? Most of all, what would happen if you were outside your home at midnight? I would receive the most awful answer to that final question.
In 2019 a new family moved into Relic End. This was especially exciting for me and my brother because they had a child, a boy of similar age to our own named Michael. Unfortunately, he ended up being quite the trouble maker, always having to go to the principal’s office and staying late after class to discuss his behavior. My brother and I were always more behaved so we did not often find ourselves in his company. However, we found him in our care one fateful night in November. His parents were on a trip to Nevada, family stuff my dad said, apparently they did not see it necessary to bring him along. While my brother and I were not close with Michael our parents were close with his so upon hearing of their incursion they offered to care for Michael for the duration of their absence. The first night he was with us just so happened to be a Friday so despite our previous lack of interest in Michael we were excited to have an additional viewer for our movie night. Unfortunately, it quickly became clear that Frozen was the last thing on Michael’s mind. “Have you ever seen it? I’ve asked a lot of kids and they all seem to say no, what a bunch of babies! Do you think it’s big? By those sounds it makes it has to be at least eight feet tall!” He continued on and on, asking questions me and my brother did not even want to think about. “Can’t we just watch the movie?” my brother groaned. “Ugh, this movie is for kids!” Michael rebutted. “Well, we are kids after all” I replied, annoyed at his intrusion into Elsa’s ballad Let it Go. This back and forth continued for an hour until Michael slithered away to the bathroom, seemingly defeated. He returned with a smirk that made me uncomfortable but at least he was quiet now.
The clock on the oven glowed a dark red showing the time to be 11:55. I was filling up a glass of water from the kitchen sink when I heard my brother exclaim in shock. “Put it back!” he yelled at Michael. I made my way back to the living room to see what the fuss was about. Michael had his fist up in the air but as I neared closer I realized he was grasping something between his knuckles: a key. My parents had plans early tomorrow morning that found them in bed at an early hour tonight. Apparently, Michael had snuck into their bedroom when he went to the restroom earlier and stolen the key to the many locks my dad had placed on the windows and doors of the house. “Oh come on don’t lie to me and tell me you aren’t the least bit curious?” he said. I had to admit I was curious but I had felt that thing’s presence from afar and I never wanted to feel it any closer than that. “Come on just one little peak” he suggested. “No, our parents and your parents have never let us see it for a reason!” my brother exclaimed. Michael took in my brother’s stern face and my fearful one. “Oh alright” and with that he offered the key to my brother’s outstretched hand. Right as my brother was about to grasp the key Micheal pushed him aside and rushed for the door. “Michael, please, don’t!” I shrieked. I saw him shove the key into the hole twisting it with a satisfying “click” just as the clock began to ring with the sound of midnight. He thrust open the door and rushed outside just as my brother grabbed for his shirt. Micheal stood triumphant on our front lawn, fists punching the air in victory. Then it came just like it always does, the disgusting breathing, the dragging sound, and now, with the open door, a horrible scent like death. I watched in horror as Micheal turned his gaze from us to the street sign, far to the right. Because of the blazing full moon’s light, I could see the side of Michael’s face even in the darkness. While I could only make out half of his face, I was easily able to make out his expression: absolute, pure terror. Michael let out a blood-curdling scream that made my hair stand on end. Then in a moment I now understand was an act of desire to save me, my brother lunged for the door, slamming it shut, leaving Micheal out in the cool night to face that horrid being. Even with the massive reinforced door, I could still hear Michael’s scream. My brother held me then as I cried because I somehow knew what would follow, we both did. Looking back I think it only took a second, a single moment that will forever be seared into my mind. That thing stopped its horrible sounds just for a moment before letting out a shriek from another world, a horrible sound that the human vocal cords would never be able to fathom. One thing was disgustingly clear, however. Joy, it was a scream of joy. I deafening woosh followed, seemingly the creature moving at a speed unheard of. Then it stopped. The screaming, from either side, was silenced. My brother and I both knew what that meant: Micheal was dead or at the very least gone, gone from this place, this horrid street known as Relic End. This was it, this was the cost. A million blessings for one horrible curse.

If You Want To Change The World Start By Making Your Bed

The twenty minute empowering and inspirational commencement address “Make Your Bed” was delivered by Admiral William H. McRaven to the graduating class of The University of Texas at Austin in the spring of 2014 in front of what is known as the Tower for the purpose of inspiring future leaders. According to the speaker, who looks every important by being dressed in his high ranking officer uniform, “The average American will meet 10,000 people in their lifetime” (McRaven). This speech is effective at persuading the audience to change the world by following a list of ways to transform themselves to overcome challenges and be more successful which will also impact others. He tells the students, who are about to graduate and make their mark on the world, that if you want to change the world, start by changing the lives of ten people you meet. As a former UT student, Navy SEAL, and Admiral of the United States Navy; Mr. McRaven is a credible speaker who talked about how people in the military have made a difference by helping others which encouraged the students to go out and challenge themselves to do good things.
Admiral McRaven’s commencement address was about the ten lessons he learned from basic SEAL training which includes starting every morning by making your bed, don’t back down from the sharks, know that life is not fair and that you will fail often, among other suggestions. If you start each day with a task completed and never give up you will leave the world far better than you found it and you will have indeed changed the world.
In Admiral McRaven’s speech he talked about if you want to change the world you need to keep moving forward. As a young Navy SEAL the recruits were required to have a uniform inspection. No matter how hard they tried, the commander would find something wrong and punish the sailor. The students felt that all their hard work in passing inspection was for nothing but in reality the instructors were trying to teach them no matter how well you prepare or perform something will still be out of place. “It’s just the way life is sometimes”(McRaven) so if you want to change do not let them break your spirit or force you to quit. The speaker convinces the audience that this topic matters by using examples of his experience as a Navy SEAL having to be properly dressed.
Another inspirational suggestion the admiral tells the students is that if they “want to change the world, [they] must be [their] very best in the darkest moment[s] (McRaven). As an example he discusses one of the most difficult expeditions that a seamen has to do. One of their jobs is to conduct underwater attacks against enemy ships. This requires the sailor going to the deepest part of the ship where it is very dark. at a time like this they need to remain, calm, composed, and use everything they have learned in order to be successful. In addition “capitalize on your strengths to help you get through these dark moments” (Stemmie). The speaker convinces the audience that this topic matters because it is something they can relate to as young professionals about to make their mark on society. A lot of things can go wrong but if you do their best you can make an impact on the world.
The biggest life lesson that McRaven talked about was that in order to change the world, make your bed every morning. This might sound like a silly idea but if you carry out this one simple task each day it will lead you to accomplishing another task, and another task, and another task. If you can do this small task it will inspire you to do more difficult tasks. Even if your day is unproductive you still would have accomplished something. The speaker convinces the audience that this task is important by contilly coming back to it throughout the speech. He speaks louder and emphasizes the words “Make Your Bed” throughout his speech.
While most of these University of Texas graduates will not become Navy SEALs the lessons that Admiral McRaven preaches about will be important to them for the rest of their lives. His call to action for the students is to follow these simple rules. If they begin each day by accomplishing small tasks, try their very best even in their darkest moments, and never give up then they will truly change the world.

Works Cited
McRaven, Admiral William R.). “Make Your Bed Speech by Admiral William R McRaven.”
FixedOnSuccess, 15 October 2017, www.fixedonsuccess.com/articlesblogs1/make-your-bed-speech-by-admiral-william-h-mcraven

Stemmie, Connie. “Make your Bed 5 Lessons From Admiral William R. McRaven’s Speech.”
Develop Good Habits, Oldtown Publishing LLC, 19 December 2019,
www.developgoodhabits.com/make-your-bed/

Jonathan D. Gonzales
Austin Community College, Cypress Creek
Due: April 18th, 2021

Dead Grunge Monkeyz

Hey, I’m J.D. and I’m dead. No, not being bullied or anything just plain dead. A skeleton monkey for your information. I live an average life. I go to school, hang out with my bros, and jam out to loud rock music. I love music, it’s a huge part of my character. Believe it or not, my bros and I created a band “Dead Grunge Monkeyz”. We do covers of songs from the legends such as Ozzy Osbourne, Nirvana, Alice Cooper, Foo Fighters, Rob Zombie and etc. Anyway, enough about myself. I know what you’re thinking: How did I die? Honestly, I don’t know. I can’t remember but it doesn’t matter. The important thing about life is to go with the flow. Most people nowadays exercise and be healthy, which is good and all but the memories of all the good stuff with friends and family is the best part about living and the afterlife. That’s enough of the intro, let’s talk about my world aka the dead world. I have 4 best friends: Marky(Singer), Gray(bassist), Cody( guitarist #1) and Andrew( guitarist #2). These dudes have been the greatest metal-heads off all time, it’s insane. We all go to school at Helsing High School: Home of the wolves and I’ll be damned if it were the most mind- numbing place in the freaking afterlife. Though, ditching class is kinda an option…stay in school kiddos. For real, this time let’s begin the story of our first performance.

“WAKE UP, NOW!” J.D.s’ mother yelled with such grace. “I…I’m up….” J.D. said waking from his deep slumber. He got out of bed and started throwing on clothes that were not smelly and somewhat decent. “Were you playing video games all night again or looking at girls?” his mom said. “No, I was looking for places to play a gig with the guys,” he said seriously. His mother’s feelings changed from angst to calm, “ Have you called? Have you heard about times?” “Not yet, but we’ll find a place and show this place what we are truly made of.” J.D. said with tiredness. The time was 8:50am and J.D. was walking to the mind numbing place we call school while listening to Ozzy Osbournes’ “ I don’t wanna stop”. “ YO, J!” he heard his friend, Andrew yell with excitement. J.D. waved quietly at him as he kept walking. “What up, my dude?” J told Andrew as they fist bumped each other. “I found a place to play,” Andrew said casually. J looked at him surprised, “No freakin’ way! Where?!” “ Andrew smiled, “The mall.” The two friends were joyous and excited to tell the rest of the band about the greatest news of all time. “ WE GOT A GIG!” The whole band was full of pride and excitement down to their core.
“ What do we gotta do to perform? Like do we have to send a video or a recording of our music or what, bro” Marky said with seriousness in his tone. “ Relax, we just send the general manager a sound recording and we’ll take it from there. He asked to send it by saturday night by 10pm.” Andrew said calmly. “F@$# DUDE!” Cody yelled. “ We don’t have enough time.” Everyone was in a panic at that moment but J.D. “ Listen up! We’ll do a song we all know how to do amazing at: The Pretender by Foo Fighters.” The guys looked at each other nodding that this was the best choice. “ Let’s get going, guys. We need this gig.” as the band started setting up their equipment.

The week passed by fairly quickly as the boys kept practicing and perfecting their music and skill. As Friday night crept upon them, they guys were exhausted but proud of their work. They all took a nice break to prepare so they can record their song and turn it to the mall manager. “I think we’re ready, fellas. What do y’all think?” Gray said, tired. They nodded as they drank water and laid down on the garage floor. Cody began setting up their recording system as the band took mental note of how they wanted to make the song sound. “ We will start recording in 5” Cody said, getting to his position. The air fell silent as they waited for the light to turn red to begin recording. What felt like an hour, the light turned red and soon the music began. The next morning, Andrew was running towards the mall with their song to get the gig. J.D. was standing near the front door holding it for people walking in and out of the building. “Are you ready?” Andrew said nervously. J.D. nodded and the pair walked in and soon met with the big man. “ Well. boys, in my years of hearing bands wanting to play here…you guys stand out the most. In a good way, I mean. I’ll allow y’all to play here.” the manager said. He grabbed a huge binder and flipped through many pages. “ Let’s do next Saturday at 7:30pm. You can play 1 song and that’s it.” he said. “ That’s perfect. Thank you sir” J said. The two friends walked home and waited to tell the rest about next saturday. “We got the gig for next Saturday night at 7:30. I think we should do a new song.” J said. The band talked for an hour about what song to play. “ Revolution Radio, My Demons, Dragula there’s too many options.” Gray said with pain. “We’ll think of something.” J assured. They guys were silent for a while thinking about a song they could play. “ I’ve got it. We’ll play the one song that made us today.” Marky said. The group agreed on it as if it was a calling for them to play this.

The band began to rehearse and practice more as the week flew by again. The neighbors could tell that they were passionate about this concert. Listening to the sound of guitar riffs, the beat of the drum and bass and wonderful singing that these friends love doing, they knew they were ready for saturday night. Friday night rolled around and they boys were at Andrews’ living room planning for tomorrow night. “ The plan is to be there about 4:30 to set up sound equipment and do sound checks.” Marky said. “ J, Andrew and I will set up positions.Gray and Cody you guys make sure the sound system is working perfectly and no one messes with it. Any Questions? And no stupid ones.” The band nodded with grace and went home to rest for the big day. J could hardly sleep at all knowing he would be performing in front of a lot of people judging him. He tried to erase it from his mind but he couldn’t. As morning came, J began his morning routine and went over the plan in his head. 3:50pm, the band made it to the mall to set up for tonight’s performance. The plan went perfectly as the boys expected. “Man, it’s here. Our first gig.” Cody said with excitement like a child. One hour left before the band can play. As the guys made it onto the stage there were a hundred people waiting to see the band. “ Whats up! We are the Dead Grunge Monkeys and tonight we will be playing All the small things.” Marky shouted to the crowd. The crowd roared with excitement and the boys cleared their voices and began playing their minds out. The whole mall went crazy over how amazing the band played and were booked for another show. The guys were more than happy to play and entertain people.
That’s the end of the story. Well, not really there’s more that goes. Marky gets a girl, the guys graduate and whatever but we’ll tell that story later.