☛Young Writer's Academy||beginning-advanced||full☚

You looked at the objects in front of you, lying lifeless on the desk. These were the items you need to play the so-called “Hitori Kakurenbo,” which translated to Hide and Seek by Yourself. It was an old game the Japanese and Korean use to contact the dead. You wanted to laugh at the idea; how can the dead play hide and seek?

You turned your attention back to the itemsーa teddy bear, a pack of rice, a crimson thread, a clipping from your fingernail, a pencil, a spoonful of salt inside a small bowl, a cup of water, and a needle. Beside them lay your laptop, where you kept looking at to remember the procedures to play the game. So, rip open a hole in the teddy bear. You looked at the white stuffed toy to see the crevice in its stomach, where the stuffing was hidden. Check. Next, you replace the stuffing with rice. With a sigh, you spread open the hole, pulled out the stuffing, then stuffed rice in the once-hollow teddy bear. Check. Since you already read the next step, you took out the needle, then began to sew back the hole. Next, you have to tie the red thread around the stuffed toy, which you already did. You looked at the clock. 2:50 A.M. Well, time to hurry.

You walked over to your bathroom, where you filled the bathtub to the brim with water. Next, you walked around your house, trying to find a good place to hide. You decided you'd just hide in the closet. Then, you walked back to your desk and mixed the salt with water. You looked at the clock once again. 2:59 A.M. You figured you'd have to give the teddy bear a name, since that's what the instructions said. So you just named it Cuddles.

Then you picked up the teddy bear, then walked back to the bathroom, where you held it above the filled bathtub. At exactly 3:00, you closed your eyes and said “First tagger is Cuddles!” three times, then dropped it in the tub. Then you closed all the lights in your house, even your laptop. The TV you left on. You then grabbed your pencil, then counted to 10.

After doing so, you went over to the bathroom and said, “I found you, Cuddles!” Then you stabbed the stuffed toy with the pencil. You closed your eyes again and said three times, “Now Cuddles is it!”

You placed your pencil next to the doll, then ran to get your saltwater and to get to your hiding place. You went to your room, locked the door, then hid in the closet. You drank from the cup of saltwater, but didn't swallow it nor spit it out.

Silence rang in the house for a moment or two, but then you heard the static coming from the TV. How was that possible? You left the TV in a not-so-loud volume before you tagged Cuddles, and you shouldn't be able to hear the TV from way up here either. You heard the static for a long time, until a sudden knock came on your door.

You nearly jumped.

The knock repeated itself for 10 times, before fading away. You suddenly turned nervous. You didn't know this would work...! Suddenly, the TV turned off. You wanted to sigh with relief, but then remembered you shouldn't say a thing, nor make a sound; besides, the saltwater was still in your mouth.

Then the TV turned onーthis time with sound.

You mentally freaked out. What am I going to do, what am I going to do?! you thought, full panic mode. The TV was switching channels over and over. The channels seemed to say one word before switching to another channel, which said another word and so on. The TV seemed to be talking.

Your eyes widened in fear when you realized what it was saying:

“Where”
“are”
“you?”

Then the channel changed. You heard a girl laughing in a twisted way before it changed again.

“Are”
“you”
“here?”

You stolen heard a scratching on the door. You were scared out of your wits. The TV said something again.

“I”
“know”
“you're”
“there. . . .”

You wanted to cry. Another sentence came from the TV, but it wasn't one word per channel this time. It was a full sentence from one channel.

“COME OUT!”

It seemed to come from a drama show, but you weren't sure. It sounded like a woman screaming, and the thought of that made you want to end this quickly. Yet another sentence.

“I”
“guess”
“you're”
“not”
“here. . . .”

Then the TV turned off. You were so scared, you didn't want to move an inch. You took out your knife where you would slash the teddy bear to pieces as the instructions said, but it made a sudden clink against the glass of saltwater.

The TV turned on again, almost immediately.

“What”
“was”
“that”
“sound?”

The TV turned off. You clutched the knife in your hand, careful not to injure yourself with it and stayed still. You didn't move an inch, nor said a sound, but the TV turned on again and said one word enough to make you scream.

“HEY!”

With that, the TV didn't turn off and the static from before came again. And this time, with the static noise:

“I”
“know”
“you”
“are”
“there. . . .”

“I'll”
“find”
“you!”

You were very scared now, but you figured you're safe for now since it said it'll find you. So, knife in hand, saltwater in mouth, and remaining cup of saltwater in the other hand, you ran out the closet, then noticed the TV off when you came out. Before you hid in the closet, the TV was on. You shuddered.

You finally reached the bathroom door and hesitantly opened it, then turned on the light.

And the teddy bear was on the floor with the pencil you stabbed it with.

You swore you left the stuffed toy inside the bathtub, but apparently, the soaked toy looked as if it just clambered out of the tub. The pencil was thrown across the floor. . . .

You winced in fear, then, acting quickly, you spit out the saltwater on the stuffed toy, then poured the remaining saltwater on it. With fear in your voice, you said, “I win! I win! I win!” then ran out and turned on every lightbulb in your house, grabbing a lighter on your way. You ran back to the bathroom and grabbed the teddy bear, threw it outside into your yard, then lit the stuffed toy.

Remembering the notes about the game, you sprinkled salt in every corner of your house, then stared in fear at the burning stuffed toy in your front yard.

You then walked back inside, then looked at the clock. It was pointing at 3:10 A.M. Your mouth opened in bewilderment. All of that combined... in only 10 minutes?

You sighed, then went to your bedroom to sleep. You never wanted to do something like that. . . . ever.

---

About an hour after you went to sleep, the TV flickered to life, switching channels once again, forming a single sentence.

“I'll”
“find”
“you”
“next”
“time”

[hr]

{Welcome to the Young Writer's Academy!}
What would you like me to call you?: writer or elements is fine
May I have a writing sample?:
The ones we love ||Chapter One: Ssgt Jenna Halicker walked with her luggage through the airport with her family by her side. Her son Zachary holding her hand while Faith walked on her luggage side. Jenna sighed she had to leave her family to go to Iraq. She didn't mind going to Iraq the problem was leaving her family when her Son was six and her daughter was three. Trevor Halicker, Jenna's husband stood behind his family at this sad moment. "Mommy why are you leaving?" Faith asked in her cute innocent three year old voice. Faith took Jenna's hat and put it on her head. Trevor sighed "Mommy has to go to Iraq to help capture bad guys." He said as they stopped. Jenna nodded trying to hold back her tears. Her kids didn't get of dangerous the world was at that time and they shouldn't have been around in this tragic time. "I will come back in six months okay my dears." She said as she kneeled down so she was leveled with her tiny little ones. She kissed their foreheads in turn as she got back up. None of them had realized that they had gotten to the gate. A tall guy in a dark uniform then Jenna walked up to them with papers. "Ssgt Halicker." He said as they both saluted to each other. "I am Capt. Grunler. Here are your files on where you bunk, your workplace, and you resting schedules." He said handing her a green file, a maroon folder and a mustard yellow folder. Each folder labeled saying which was which. Jenna saluted to him as he lift. She tiwsted around putting the folders in her backpack. The lady a the gate etrance reached over and grabbed the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen the gates will be opening in a few minutes and will close in twenty minutes from now." She said setting the microphone. The first tear slid down Jenna's face but she quickly wiped it away. "Faith, Zachary, I have to go now be good kids for mommy and daddy. " she said as she embraced them one last time. Jenna stood up and embraced her husband. Her luggage in her hand and her backpack on her back. It was time for her to leave. She grabbed her tickets, showed the lady them and walked into the tunnel.

What level of writing do you think you are on?: 7/10
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