Junior 3rd Prize Winning Story - 11th Reality

“11th Reality” by Gergo Kapus, British International School Budapest, Hungary, is the Third Prize winning story in the junior category of the first biannual Short Story Contest 2020.

11th Reality

Once upon time, there lived a guy called Prince Charming.

Oops! Wrong story, let me start again.

On a sunny July day, there was a house, but not just any house because, in that house lived Jacob, an 11 year old boy. He had an amazing imagination, but he had a dark side which was that he loved to lie.

His every word was just lies. His mum tried to convince him that he should not lie all the time.

It didn’t work.

After about the hundredth time his mother gave up convincing him.

But one day everything changed.

On July 15th (school day) Jacob was late as always.

He was in Mr.Alsonns class (he was the kindest teacher in the world) but he was still fed up with Jacob always being late. Somehow he always had a believable or unbelievable excuse, most of the times believable ones.

Nevertheless, at the end of the day he was walking home alone.

He was walking through the woods because that was a shortcut to his favourite restaurant.

He was prancing until he saw a quite unusual tree. It was shaped like a dinosaur sitting on another dinosaur’s head.

He touched it and then BAM, he disappeared like a snap...

When he stood up from the ground his mind was in turmoil, but he didn’t really care and he walked on. Everything was the same except from the fact that he noticed, his parents were speaking in another language.

When he heard them, he simply let out quite a loud scream and ran off to his room, shut the door and jumped into his bed.

Then he screamed into his pillow.

After he was done with the drama, he started to think. He didn’t have a simplest idea about the scenario. Until he got a flash of idea, he just remembered that he once lied that his parents speak another language because he wanted less homework. Jacob thought to himself and he now knew that all of his lies will come true. He took a big swallow and said: Game on...

Afterwards he tiptoed out of the house and sat on his bike and took off.

While he was on his bike he saw two woodchoppers and they pointed at him, he cleared his eyes out and they were still there. And now they were running towards him, which made him get more nervous and he nearly got a heart attack which would have been really bad, but luckily he didn’t. The woodchoppers were still running towards him and they were getting closer and closer to him. They looked really livid. He started to ride his bike faster, while he was thinking so hard that his brain started to hurt. But it was worth it because he remembered that he was once late and had lied that he got attached by woodchoppers.

He started to slow down on his bike and now the woodchoppers were gaining on him! They were just a hand away from reaching him.

He was so scared that he started to ride his bike as fast as lightning.

At last he lost them.

He was shaking in fear for a long time.

Jacob just remembered that the next lie that is going to come true is that he will get stolen by a plethora of black suit wearing people. Before being stolen by scary people he heard a deep voice like yodas and it said:

“If you don’t confess to everyone that you lied to them, then you will never get home and you might as well get trapped in a basement forever, it is your decision”, exclaimed the deep yoda voice.

“But if I confess I may get suspended from school or even worse, everyone will hate me” replied Jacob.

“Then prepare to have your lies come true!” shouted the deep yoda voice.

And then the voice disappeared. Then he saw a black van coming towards him. He started running, full capacity, full speed, but he still got kidnapped. And while he was in the black van he remembered that the deep voice said that his going to be in a basement. And in basements there are low ceiling, which meant that the air ventilation must be reachable and, he could climb out in it and he could be freed. When they arrived they blindfolded him so he won’t be able to see where he would go, but he already knew.

When he got in the jail he saw the air ventilation and he was right. So he climbed in it. It was a success. Then he did what he needed to do. He went to the school.

He told everyone that he had lied most of the things he said in the last 2 years. Everybody started to say mean things about Jacob but it didn’t bother him if it means that he gets to go home.

After he went out of the school he was saying lets go home, over and over again, it didn’t work. He was framed!

He went back to school and saw all of his lies standing in the corridor.

“We’re baaack…” they said in a spooky voice.

And they started to run towards him.

“Oh, COME ON!!” Jacob said in a whinny voice.

And he started to run as fast as he could. He ran until he saw a CLIFF!! Jacob had no other choice but to jump. He said, “Geronimo” and then he jumped...

He got teleported to the normal everyday world. He ran home and jumped into his parents’ arm

“I will never lie,” cried Jacob

“Wow, that was an impressive day at school.” said his dad in total confusion.

At school nobody liked him because he confessed that he had lied.

Nonetheless, he never lied again, or did he...