7/11/18 Dave Cousins www.davecousins.net

7/11/2018

IT STARTED like a million other Mondays. Sleepy. Late for school. A vague bad mood hovering. There was nothing to suggest that something was about to happen that would change my life forever.
   Then Mac leaned across my desk during registration. ‘Meet us by the bins at break,’ he said. ‘Got something to show you.’ The gleam in his eyes triggered a familiar shiver—one part excitement, one part dread.
   My stomach was jumping by the time I arrived at the back of the school kitchens two hours later. The others were already there—gathered around an old maroon Adidas kit bag, all scuffed up and covered in graffiti.
    ‘You dragged me here for that?’
Tash rolled her eyes. ‘Look inside,’ she said, grinning in a way that made me suspect I was being set-up.
   All eyes were on me, so I shrugged like this was no biggie, then crouched over the bag, my guts squirming like a sack of snakes.
Knowing Mac, there could be ANYTHING in here—a dead cat, stolen booze, a live rat perhaps . . .
   I pulled back the zip, bracing myself not to react.
   I’ll be honest—of all the possibilities scrolling through my mind, none of them prepared me for what was actually inside.
   I swore. ‘Is that . . .?’

7 Comments

Adrian Thompson

7/11/2018 09:32:16

Mac pulled the bag closed. “It’s like this,” he said,” My older brother Dave – you remember Dave? – well, he’s in the army, and he works at this dead secret place down south, and they have all sort of cool stuff passing through there, so when he saw this, he thought of me – and you…”
I opened the bag again. A shiny metal canister in the middle of a small pile of shirts and smelly football socks. On the side was stencilled ‘J20 USAF Linton’. I went hot, then cold, then hot again, and pulled the zip closed. “Where did this come from?” I asked. “I told you, my Brother got it, and passed it on – you can have it if you like”. Without saying anything else, I grabbed the bag, and pulled it into class with me, hiding it – as much as I could – under the desk. I was early, so I went over to the class computer, powered up the search, and, with a trembling hand, typed ‘J20 USAF Linton’ into the search bar. I clicked enter, and watched as a list of results came down the screen. USAF Linton was what I’d thought – a slightly run down USAF base about ten miles away, but J20… that was something I hadn’t expected - ‘A lightweight, air to ground, tactical nuclear device developed in the 1990s… The most powerful nuclear device of its size ever made…Banned by treaty in 2002…a perfect weapon for terrorists…”. Shaking, I shut down the computer. The most powerful nuclear device of its size ever made. And there was one in the bag under my desk…

Thomas & Stephen

Sebastian and Alex Woolmer Hill School

7/11/2018 10:28:21

My heart thumped in my chest, I looked around me and then to the bag. I tried to ignore it but my eyes kept getting drawn back to it, kept glancing, taking in what I had. I stuck the bag to my back clutching onto it as if it was a new toy. I was walking to assembly. There was sweat dripping down my arm, I couldn’t go to assembly with this on me, there were metal detectors all over my school because of the recent events. I skipped assembly running to the toilets planning to stay there for the whole of assembly. I got there and froze I felt like I could hear voices, chills running up my spine, I checked every cubicle and still the voices followed.
“It’s probably just paranoia”
That’s what I had to tell myself as I waited, waited for the bell to go. The voices grew in volume until they felt like screams hitting me in the head like a drum. I couldn’t handle it anymore; I walked outside stumbling and tripping over myself with every step. I heard shouting from the kids in assembly, I heard police yelling at people, dogs barking. I just realised what was happening. The school was being searched. This only happened once a year but this is the 3rd time. My brain was feeling like jelly and my legs crumpled underneath my weight. It felt like I was on the floor for hours but I was probably only there for a minute or two. I got up and heard more shouting getting closer and closer, my ears ringing and my nose bleeding. There was a kid no older than 12 but he was pointing a gun at three police officers. He was shouting, “Get away from me! I don’t want to hurt anyone”. I had to get rid of the nuclear weapon while they were distracted, suddenly pain spread through my body, I threw the bag into the farthest cubicle. I stopped, turned around, and then froze. There was a slow but steady ticking like droplets of water from a faucet, tick, tick, tick…

Charlie, Felix and Nayan The Beacon

7/11/2018 11:52:17

At least I thought it was the bathroom tap. But little did I know that the J20 USAF, A.K.A the world’s most powerful nuclear weapon was in my school. Suddenly, I blasted out of the toilets at full pace. I sprinted past the boy with the gun who was pointing it at the police, nervously holding the trigger at their heads. I turned around and my eyes met Mac’s sweaty face. “Have you still got the bomb?” he whispered.

“No I left it in the cubicle,” I mouthed.

“What are you mad?” he screamed. Suddenly, he said “Duck!” as he fired three shots, burying them into the policeman’s shoulders. Mac then glanced at me and said, “Get the bomb and meet me outside, I’m going to take the cop’s car.”
“No I’m calling the police you’re mad Mac you really are” I said.
I was shocked about what he was doing. “You know what I can escape on my without you” he said bitterly. “I can leave you to die in the hands of the world’s most powerful weapon”. He stared daggers at me before running outside, getting into the car and starting the engine…

Nikki Heath

7/11/2018 14:21:29

A wave of dread washed over me as I clambered into the car. I wanted to turn back … too late. The car door slammed in my face before I could say a word. Suddenly the car zoomed out of the school grounds so fast it made my head spin. Before we knew it we had whizzed past the school gates and skidded onto the main road, leaving a trail of inky black behind us. We rushed down the main road towards Mac’s house just round the corner. “I demand to know why there is a bomb in that bag!” I trembled waiting for his answer. Nothing. Before I knew it we were outside Mac’s house and my former best friend was pushing me out the car as if he was a school bully. Being dragged by the ears down the narrow garden path, Mac was ahead inserting a silver key into the door and twisted. The door opened automatically. Was it just the mid-summers breeze or was it - no. It couldn’t be. A ghost…

Sophie B, Molly R, & Hannah D, Werneth School

Rose, Alex, Sophia, Rosalind, Tharniya, Raeesa, Wirral Grammar School for Girls

7/11/2018 15:16:03

...The moment flashed back to me from years ago. Mac came into school one day; hiding his tears of sorrow and grief. He then revealed to me, it was the day his brother had left him; Dave had passed away.
That memory was so vivid and clear as if it was only yesterday. Why is reality telling me something different? I looked in my bag for the parcel Mac had entrusted me with, the soon to be weapon of mass destruction if everything went wrong. I looked at Mac.
“You told me Dave died.”
I looked at Mac for answers, his face drained of colour; I could see the anger burning inside of him.
“Mac,” Dave’s voice was a stuttering whisper, “I’m sorry for dragging you into this, but there was no other way. I had to get the J20 here.”
“Why?” Mac whispered. My heart reached out for Mac, the once-strong and robust personality that my best friend was known for, had streamed down his face with his tears.
“There’s no time to explain, we need to get the bomb –”
We heard footsteps behind us and turned around.
“Tash,” I cried, “What are you doing here?”
“Where’s the bomb?” she said, a steely, flatness coated her voice.
“Boys, get away from her.” Dave told us sternly.
“What?” Mac said with an incredulous tone.
“It’s her,” Dave cowered slowly, “She’s the one who wants the bomb.”
A psychotic grin spread across Tash’s face.
“She wants to destroy us all.”…

Sarah J. and Brooklynn W. Lee Junior High School

7/11/2018 16:43:31

“ Tash?” Mac said with sadness in his eyes.
All I could think was, why would Tash want the bomb? What reason did she have to need the bomb? Why would she need it?All these thoughts were surrounding my head. I couldn’t bring myself to ever think that she would want to kill us all. I couldn’t really do much at that moment so I decided to run with the bomb in the bag. I ran until I couldn’t run anymore I stopped when I came to this abandoned store and I hid. Not knowing that the others had ran after me. Tash was right behind me and she could almost grab me but I hurried and hid the bomb before she could get to me. I heard multiple voices by the store entrance I took a chance and ran through the back door which was filled with vines and plants. I don’t know what happened after that all I know was that I was running and running,then I wasn’t. I don’t know what happened, it just all went black. I think I passed out because when I woke up I was back in the abandoned store and I was tied up. Tash was running around searching the store I almost forgot what she was searching for but then I remembered the bomb. Honestly I can’t even remember what I did all I can think about is how bad my head is throbbing. All the sudden i hear Tash yell “I found it.” You can hear the excitement and psychoticness in her voice.

Kori C. & Annie H. Robert E. Lee Jr. High

7/11/2018 20:42:22

“What are you going to do?” I asked.
“Wouldn’t you like to know!” said Tash.
Then I heard it. A scream that could have broken all the windows in this abandoned place, if there were any. The screaming went on and on, it was obvious that whomever it was coming from, was in agony. The screaming finally stopped and was replaced by loud thumping. Someone was coming and they were dragging… something.
It was one of the guards that had tried to stop me before I lost consciousness, and he was carrying...
“MAC” I screamed “Is he hurt?”
“It does not matter because in five minutes we will all be dead” said Tash. “One of your military friends denoted it it over an hour ago. You can thank your friend for that. What was his name? Dave was it?”
The clock started ticking it was the most horrifying sound ever. In five minutes nothing that I have ever done would matter anymore. I had to do something. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Mac start to move, but I could not let the two know or else they might do something unimaginable to torture him, or me.
“Where is Dave?”
“He is dead. Finally.”
So I was alone, except for the unconscious body of Mac. Great so I have less than five minutes to stop a bomb and save Mac
Then I hear it. The bomb starts hissing. We have to get out of here, but I’m tied up and Mac is useless. In the distance I could hear boots stomping in the dirt. What was going on? Then a voice over a megaphone “Stand back, U.S Military” They bust down the doors and come in
“ Is Dave Williams here? We have a warrant and will be search-”
“No you will not! No one will be doing anything in just a few minutes. That Dave guy activated a bomb.” said Tash
“ J20? Is that it, right there?” he pointed to the bomb laying on the table, hissing and steaming.
“Why is she tyed up? Why is h- IS HE DEAD!?” said another military personell
“No he is not de-”
All of a sudden this light busted from the bomb. It is blinding. I know at this moment that my life is at an end.
...
A few hours later, maybe, I don’t have any concept of how much time has passed, I am in a hospital bed. I can not see anything- total darkness. At first I think that I’m dreaming, but then I hear the military personel.
He says his name is Michael. He is with a high level government operation that was following the bomb that blinded me, the one that Dave sent. Worst of all, Tash Hunt, the Tash that sat with me at lunch and has had countless sleepovers with, had caused this blindness. The guy, Michael, tells me that Tash is a national level criminal, who they have been searching for for months. I knew that my life was never going to be the same again.

7/11/18 Dave Cousins www.davecousins.net

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