Creative Writing - Just Pumpkin

Just Pumpkins                                          

By Alice Barry

I am learning to entertain my audience.  

It was exactly one year ago, when one of my best friends ended up in hospital, for all of her bones were broken. I still remember it, and when I do recall that fearful night, my heart starts to beat like a drum, increasing in speed, thud, thud, thud.  Louder and louder, the sound of my heart echoing through body.  My blood forced to race around my veins like a racecar, turning at every bend of my body.  The Halloween Pumpkin Curse, they call it. Everyone knows that once a year as halloween eve arrives, someone, somebody, just one person, receives the gift of the curse, all starting with one pumpkin, the haunted pumpkin.

At first, I didn’t believe in that rubbish, no one ever thinks it will be them or someone they know. But when I saw what happened to my friend with my own eyes, “Scarlet”.  I felt the sudden shiver down my spine, well I believed it, I believed it now, Oh how I believed it all.

The horrific day all started when Scarlet had called me, she had a bright idea that she wanted to get another pumpkin.  I complained as we had already carved our pumpkin, no one carves pumpkins the day of Halloween.  “But I need another one, it came to me in a dream.  I must get one more pumpkin.”  I gave into her pleading and went to meet her on the way to select a pumpkin.The best pumpkins would all be gone, there would be nothing but the rotting ones.  However we turned and judged each pumpkin till we found the one that mirrored her idea in her dream.   Carrying her pumpkin we said our goodbyes as we parted ways to head to our houses.  As I arrived home it was time for me to prepare my costume for the night.  

It was about 6.00 o’clock when I called Scarlet  to let her know that I was ready for the  fun to begin, trick and treat time.  But no sooner had she picked up the phone and I called, “Hello.”  I heard an ear splitting shriek, “Ahhhhh!” The next noise was the phone dropping hitting the floor “Smash!” Racing to her place as fast as I could.  Arriving there, I searched the house, looking for her, it was empty!  My heart leaping from my chest, I could barely concentrate from my own heart pulsating through me, feeling as if it could explode.  I ran down to the back off the house, and there she was, screaming in terror. Wrapped around her, were big, thick vines coming from… THE PUMPKIN!! Wrapped around her as it squeezed the life from her limp body.   I ran into the house looking around to find something to release her.   A carving knife I spot on the bench as I gripped it into my hand and raced outside again.  Charging at the vines I started to slash and chop at the vines away from her body. Scarlet, Falling from its grips, dropping to the floor, to weak to speak. I quickly dialed 111, and just a few seconds later, I heard a screeching noise turn into the driveway. “Whee ooh, whee ooh!!”

As I watched her and the ambulance disappear into the misty night,  I thought to myself, how did this happen? Was the Pumpkin haunted? Was the dream responsible for all this? We will only know one thing for sure. From then on, I have never touched a pumpkin ever again, and I never will.