Deadline Day
Patrick Wailes | 2025
1 Month remains… I open my eyes and listen in the morning light. The ominous tick-tick-ticking of the clock My phone pings with the happy text chatter of my friends Asking me if I want to go out after school. But my project calls to me
2 Weeks remain… End of weeknight at the movies, great friends all around Lobby noises fill the air: popcorn popping, sodas fizzing But in one dark corner I notice A shadow that chills me to the core. I hurry into the theater, forcing the image from my mind. Soon, I forget as the movie fills the theater with laughter. But the movie’s image soon fades and across the screen Bleed the words: “DEADLINE.” 1 Week remains… As I’m lying in my bed I stare at the ceiling my eyelids become heavier the longer I try to stay awake. Somewhere far away I can hear the Tick-Tick-Ticking of a clock. I close my eyes and try to ignore it, but it eats away at me. I snap open my eyes and see a shadow on my ceiling At first I thought it was the figure at the theater, But I feel a cold hand place itself on my shoulder And feel the words “Did you forget?” force itself into my brain.
Its voice dripping with malice Echos in the back of my head: “Don’t forget about the deadline.
3 Weeks remain… Tossing the ball high into the chilly Autumn sky I cock my arm back, prepare to serve and… I feel a familiar wind blow across the court Raising goosebumps along my arms And I remember the same gust of wind, The same day the project had been assigned. And on this wind, a small voice whispers: “Don’t forget about the deadline.”
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