July and the June Bugs

By Aria Spencer-Carter

CHAPTER ONE: MEETING TRIXIE TURTLE

It was the first day I met Trixie Turtle (who’s a turtle). It was just like a day ago, but it felt like 500,000,000,000,000 years ago.

Anyway, Trixie decided to come to our town because she heard we have the best ponds ever. We just have okay ponds. And she randomly picked me to show her the best pond. So I did, I decided to show her Riverwater Pond (even though it actually has pond water in it). I picked that one because it’s my favourite.

We talked about how the pond’s water tastes nice and boring stuff like that.

That night I crawled into bed and went to sleep like normal.

But when I wake up, everything’s not normal.

CHAPTER TWO: TRAPPED!

When I wake up, I’m in this other place. It could be outer space, for all I know. I notice I’m laying on the floor so I stand up to see Trixie. Then, what I can only describe as the evil turtle (Trixie Turtle), magically opens up a colourful, sparkly, and bright swirling essence. I like how it’s bright and colourful.

But I don’t think it’s good.

Before I know it, it takes me (the June bug) into another room.

Trapped.

Forever.

And ever.

In this tiny all-white room (floor, ceiling, and walls, all white). Tiny to me! And remember, I’M THE JUNE BUG in this situation.

The evil turtle’s voice comes over the loudspeaker in my room, “I took you into the tiny room because you are the first June bug to be trapped. Soon every June bug will be taken to tiny rooms. So tiny, they will die, because they can’t breathe soon.”

“Why are you killing June bugs?” I shout.

“Because I want Riverwater to myself because it has the best ponds ever. You and your June bug friends take over the whole entire town, that’s why I’m taking June bugs,” she explains.

“You’re not just taking June bugs, you’re suffocating them, too!”

She stops our conversation.

I’m trapped in this tiny room.

And every other June bug’s gonna be trapped.

In a tiny room.

Soon.

CHAPTER THREE: TIME TO ESCAPE!

I need a plan. More June bugs are getting “taken” by the minute.

I’m pacing up and down my too-small-to-pace-in room, thinking, I need a plan, I need a plan.

“Also, from now on, due to a lot of requests, you get some food one time a week. But you’ll probably be dead before the second time  .  .  .   but anyway, you all get food in one hour,” the evil turtle tells us over the loudspeaker.

One hour later she opens our doors and feeds us a square ¼ centimetre of a leaf. When the evil turtle closes my door, I throw my balled-up leaf (that I did not eat, by the way) in the door, so it isn’t fully closed and locked, she doesn’t notice. When she’s way, WAY out of sight, I fully open my door and walk out.

The other June bugs cheer, “You did it, July!”

That’s my name, by the way. July.

Even Sara, the June bug who’s building scuba diving equipment (to breathe in) looks up at me.

I find the keys to everyone’s door and start unlocking them. When I opened half of the doors, the evil turtle comes in.

“You were trying to escape, but now I’m stopping you,” she says, with her hands on her hips.

“Or we can stop you from stopping us.” The other free June bugs and I say as we push the evil turtle into a room and lock it before she can do that to us.

Soon, everybody’s free and we fly back to Riverwater.

EPILOGUE: A WEEK LATER

Everyone knew Trixie Turtle escaped, so no turtles are allowed in Riverwater anymore. And everything has worked out perfectly since last week.

Sara finally just finished building the scuba equipment, and we can go underwater in Riverwater Pond (or any pond) for however long we what to, now

THE END

- Total nr. of readings: 1,157 Copyright © The author [2020] All Rights Reserved. This story may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the author except for personal use.