The Washington Whirl: Spring Edition

The Washington Whirl

May 2018
WJHS Writing Publication

The Washington Whirl

May 2018
WJHS Writing Publication

Conqueror

By Audrey Yoon

           I face the shore, the mountains at my back. The sun slips off the horizon as the cold waves break against my ankles. As the sky fades to the color of a nasty bruise, I turn around to see my best friend, Tori. Her parents gave her the name Anjaka because it meant pretty and decorated; what her parents expected her to be. I used to call her Tora, which means tigress, conqueror, and Goddess of Thunder. When her little brother Maximus, (Maximus means strength) or Max came around, he couldn’t pronounce Tora so we started calling her Tori. At the moment Tori sits on the sand, stuffing her belongings into a leather sack.
           “Tori, are you sure you want to do this?”
She looks at me with her signature look which asks Are you serious?
           “Just asking.” I say in my defense, raising my hands to my shoulders as if to ward off her attack.
           “I’m leaving, nothing is going to stop me, Makas.” I wrinkle my nose in disgust. She knows I hate it when she uses my real name.
“I hate this ‘paradise,’” her hands leave the sack long enough to make sarcastic air quotes. “Mum and Dad can say anything they want, bribe me however they want, but I’m leaving. Just so you know I’m going with or without you.”
           “I know.” I answer, Tori would cheat death to get off this island. I try to disguise the hurt in my voice. We’ve known each other since we were born and have been friends ever since. “Uh, Max is staying then.”
“Of course,” she says “I would never risk him for anything.”
“Then why is he coming.”
“What!” Tori whirled around and sure enough her little brother stumbles on his stout, little legs toward us. “Stall him, please Mak. I have to go, he can’t see me leave.” I see in her eyes that her plea is even more urgent than her words make it. I nod painfully, because I realize that she’s asking a lot more. Tori wants me to stay behind while she leaves her family, her home, and me. Tears threaten to spill over the edge but I wipe at my eyes so Max can’t see them. I hear him panting behind me although my eyes follow Tori as her silhouette sails into the night.
“Where’s Tori?” his innocent voice asks and I know I can’t break his heart and tell him that his sister is heading toward almost certain death...

WOULD YOU LIKE A COOKIE
By: Peter Sotir

People like to engage in all sorts of activities, especially ones they are good at. I learned quickly that cooking and baking homemade goods is one of my strengths. Within the last few years, we have created a business venture, PETER’S KITCHEN, to serve as an outlet for doing what I love the most, alongside my family and the people I enjoy to be with. With the help of my friend volunteers, PETER’S KITCHEN will be hosting a cookie sale on Saturday, May 19. We would like to see a large turnout of friends and their families come to my home (835 Parkside Road) starting at 10:30 until 11:30. We will be baking various kinds of cookies and treats for everyone’s taste buds to enjoy! Stop by, say hello, and support my kitchen!

Summer Coloring Page

The Sky, The Sea, and the Stars
Rachel Meikle

The sky the sea and the stars
Are beautiful all around you
Yet from my view through the bars
All I can see is what has blown

In the wind, there is the old
But if we forget the bold
We cannot embrace the change
Instead, we continue thinking it is strange.

But if we embrace the change
We cannot think it’s strange
Then instead of the neglect
I see the effect

Fiction

Detective Arnav
Chapter 1

-Aayush Mistry

It was a usual dark night. Every day at 4pm Tim would leave his job and head down the long alley between his house and work. Rats and who knows what would scamper the alley on normal sunny days, but today a slight rain had begun. It was the shortest passage that would likely not ruin his suit or papers.

Tim was a tall, lanky and skinny man who lived a normal life, a normal job, and had normal friends. Never had he made rivalries or got into any sort of trouble. He wished he could say the same about the company. The company had many rivals, and many opponents. Tim never wanted any important papers from the company in hand because of the many ambushes from rivals. They usually ended in broken bones and black eyes. At least, that’s the rumors his co-workers would spread. But when Tim was threatened by losing his well paying job, he took the white sheet thinking nothing much would happen to him. The opposite was true.

Things went from normal to dangerous when Tim stopped walking. Even though the rain almost covered it up the sound, light footsteps were heard from behind him. Tim was alerted. Escape plans racked through his head. What will I say? he thought. That I don't have the papers? No, that’s dumb, I’m holding them. What will I do? if the stalker had been stalking me for long, he would have known about the vault! Tim was out of choices. If he yelled for help, the attacker would attack viciously. He had no choice but to turn around and to face the attacker approaching him. The last thing he remembered was a flash of light red hair...

Moon
By: Audrey Hartmann

Shining in times of darkness
Throughout the windy skies
She glows

Beautiful as she is
pearly imperfections spark; although still
She twinkles

White as vanilla, she glistens through midnight grim
Wishful as a dandelion
She flies

Reflections of her gloss cast upon the water
Indifferent from the rest
She shines

The Cave
By: Cole Arl

Poetry

Darkness
Eerie, spine-chilling vibrations
everywhere I look
caved in
Nowhere to go
Water
spilling down the cracks
and creaks in the atramentous obsidian
Looking for the polished diamonds
The potential for success is immense
but the light ran out
The Dream is drained