Featured Submissions from Our Weekly Challenges (April 12-17)

Thank you to all of you who have submitted your amazing stories, comics, and photos to the Port Moody Public Library's weekly challenges. We hope you had fun!

Here are our featured winners for the week of April 12-18.

Writing Challenge:
- The Key by Eva
- The Mountain by Lindsay
Costume Challenge:
- Violet Beauregarde from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Molly
Comic Club:
- The Dogs in My Life by Lino

Writing challenge:

The Key by Eva

We pull into the parking lot of our new apartment on the east side of the city. The walls are cracked, splitting into the roof. At one point someone had tried to re-seal them, residue off the failed attempt still remaining on the wall. The building was big, each apartment having a balcony, which I thought was nice when my dad told me, but looking at the broken rails and chipped stone, I’m not sure it’s even stable. Dread fills my body at the thought of having to stay here. I step out of the car, taking a deep breath. Was I praying that once I let go, it would all go back to normal? That I would be back at my house with my parents, playing in the fields with the other kids? The thoughts dance in my mind but the dream was just that, a dream. As I release that breath I only feel colder in the clouded air. I put the hood of my jacket up, my hair coming out of the front. My dad hands me a box, the poorly placed tape sticking to my curly brown hair. I walk towards the door, nearly tripping in the crease of the broken concrete tiles laid unevenly across the dying lawn. As I make it to the door I hesitate to push it open, worried about what’s touched it. I sigh, with no other choice, I push it open with my side, the box still in my hands. I step into the building and immediately scrunch my nose in disgust, the dreadful smell almost causes me to hurl. I balance the box in one hand, using the other to pull my hoodie over my nose. My thoughts whirl and buzz in my head like birds uncertain of which way to migrate, but mine is uncertain of which way to flee. The carpet is stained, causing it to crunch under my feet as I begin to walk up the creaky stairs. Could this get any worse? I ask myself, pity gnawing at my heart. As I make it to the top floor, I see two men, standing at the end of the stairs, leaning against the wall. I hesitate to ask them to move, their shadows casting into the hallways, but resolve to the fact that I don’t have another choice.
“Excuse me?” I ask in a shallow voice, hands trembling, “Do you think I could get past you?”
They stop talking as they stare at me coldly, we look at each other for a couple more moments until I look away. The man grunts, shuffling to the side where he continues to speak with the other. I take a deep breath, just wanting to lie in bed, but I continue to walk. My feet dragging on the ground, I make it to my door. The numbers are rusted, Chipped paint stuck in the carpet from the cream door. I place the box down, but as I try to get up my hair is stuck to the box. I tug a little bit, the tape not letting go, I reside to pulling each strand out separately, which was proving to be just as hard. I tense, grunting as I pull. I can feel the stares of the men pierce me, a chill running down my spine. I work faster, until I can see them begin to walk towards me from the corner of my eye. My hands begin to shake, adrenaline pumping through my veins. Still coming towards me I grasp the chunk of stuck hair and pull, as hard as I can, still not letting go. Worry captures me, my heart beats faster. Finally the tape gives, but not surrendering my hair, it gets pulled out. Stunned at the fact that a large portion of my hair is stuck to the box, I stand still. But remembering what’s happening I quickly turn the handle to my apartment. Locked. Despair stabs me in the chest, my eyes becoming watered. I jingle the door a bit more, trying to break it free again, without any luck. The men have stopped, a couple metres away, silent. I get up frantically, facing them.
“Do you need a key?” they ask emotionless, their faces hidden my their hoods. I hesitate to respond, but I nod my head slowly, reaching my hand out. He gives the key to me, his skin cold. I grab it and put it in the door. Click. Relief showers over me as I push the door open. I look back outside to thank them but they’re already gone. I shrug, brushing it off, glad that they aren’t here anymore. The relief was short lived as I look inside the apartment, musty and worn. The walls were splashed with mismatched colours, the stone tiles on the ground uneven and scratched. I walk towards the back room, the one I’ll have to stay in, the size of a small office. I dread staying here. I look out the smeared window down to the car, my dad still unloading. I place the box on the ground and begin to wander around the apartment. The kitchen is small, a couple wooden cupboards sprouting from the ground. I open one, dusty, but otherwise clean. I stick my head in, looking around. I begin to pull my head out, but I realize there’s something at the end of the cupboard . I question myself, I must be seeing things. But as I look back I see it again. How strange… I think, astounded. I crawl inside the cupboard, my clothes turning gray from the dust brushing upon me. I make it to the end and notice there is a thin cut around the perimeter. A key lock is placed in the middle, I pull the key out of my pockets now in the palm of my hand. Curious as to what’s inside, I insert the key. Click. I pull it towards me the end coming out, sending me backwards, hitting my head on the top of the cupboard. My vision fades in and out, ringing pounding in my ears. I struggle to sit up again, but succeed as my vision is regained.
I crawl on my knees towards the gap in the wall. I just manage to squeeze in. The small cupboard opens up to a large room, filled with cardboard boxes. They are each labeled with a different place. I walk towards one the says Egypt written in thick black marker. I find a pair of scissors on the ground and I cut the tape holding the box together. I grasp the flaps, pulling them open. I look inside, shocked, as my mouth gapes open. I look again, seeing a large sand desert, spanning for miles. The sky as blue as a robins egg. Before I have time to think about this whimsical mystery I am brought up by a sudden gust of wind, causing me to fall into the box. My stomach feels woozy as I drop from the sky into the scorching hot sand. The ground burns my hands as I lie down, sweat immediately pouring over me. I quickly pull off my hoody, leaving me in my t-shirt. I see a couple building in the distance as I begin to walk. Still wearing my blue jeans my legs drudge through the sand, becoming more and more exhausted. I see the two men in the distance, dressed head to toe in black, unmistakable. I begin to rush to the civilization, nearly falling over with each frantic step. My vision fades and I feel my head become dissolved by the sand. Falling to the ground I struggle to get up, only to fall back into the ground. Before drawing my final breaths I see the men in black staring down at me.
I awaken in a familiar place, the cracked walls that I knew for such a little time seeming so familiar. The stench now seeming like home. My vision clears as I notice a key in my hand. Words that I hadn’t noticed before carved into it. Take the chance? I look down at my legs, I notice that I am dressed in black, and standing next to the other two men. Shocked I try to run away, but my feet won’t move, being stuck to the ground. I see my father walk up the stairs a box in his hands. I try so hard to hug him, to talk to him, but I have no control over my body. As I look at him and stick out my hand. Uncontrollably my lips begin to move. As my eyes fill with tears, the cursed words leave my mouth. The same ones that brought me to this very place.
“Do you need a key?”

The Mountain by Lindsay

A mountain of laundry,
Piled high on my floor.
The Everest of my bedroom,
An insurmountable chore.

Alas, the day came,
My sock drawer had run dry.
So, I dragged my feet over,
And let out a hearty sigh.

I bent down slowly,
With my arms open wide.
As I scooped up the mountain,
My heart beamed with pride.

But something caught my eye,
As I squeezed that mountain tight.
Something on the ground,
Just didn't look quite right.

The mountain crashed down hard,
Socks avalanched to the floor.
And as I leaned in closer,
I could see there was a door.

I just could not believe my eyes,
How did this get here?
I reached right down to open it,
Body trembling with fear.

The door squeaked open,
A plume of dust filled the room.
My heart pounded quickly,
With a heavy sense of doom.

The dust settled around me,
And as I looked straight down.
A staircase became visible,
All rickety and brown.

Against my better judgement,
I decided to descend.
One toe at a time,
My hairs all stood on end.

I walked down into darkness,
A musty odour in the air.
With each creaky step,
Almost far too much to bear.

When I finally hit the bottom,
My eyes shut with all their might.
I reached out all around me,
And slowly flicked on the light.

When I opened up my eyes,
What a nice surprise did loom.
For there I was standing,
Right in my laundry room!

Costume Contest

Violet Beauregarde from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Molly

Violet Beauregarde costume

Comic Club:

The Dogs in My Life by Lino

Comic called The Dogs in My Life

Are you ready for your challenge? Head over to our Program and Event Calendar and see what today's activity is. The weekly prompts for each activities will be posted on the day of the challenge.

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