Untitled Shot Story#1 (pt.1)

This is the first of 3 short stories that I recently wrote for my English class. This is a kinda sad story, and slightly disturbing(violence). This is your warning, reader discretion is advised:






It was early in the morning and Charlie stood on the cliffs that jutted out over the coast. He was tall and lanky with jet-black hair that hung limply over his eyes. He took a deep breath in and let out a sigh as he watched the sun crest over the horizon of the vast sea. All of his worries and troubles felt as though they were washing away in the waves that crashed along the coast. He would begin this day just like all of the others. He was completely unaware of the events to come.

Charlie was seventeen and in his last year of high school. He had been struggling with some of his courses the year before, but he had made significant improvements during the current year. Every morning he walked to the cliffs that stood by the side of the sea and took time for himself, collecting his thoughts and admiring the beauty of the sun rising over the ocean. The luminescent glow that the sun cast over the water always put him at ease.

It was now time to go to his bus stop. Taking one last good look at the rising sun, he picked up his backpack, slung it over his shoulder and made his way to the bus.

Charlie hated school. This was where people tormented him, making fun of every little thing they could find. He just ignored it all and acted like all of the cruel things they said didn’t really hurt him. Inside however, it was not the same. Every cruel word cut through his spirit like a dagger, bringing him down so low he felt worthless at times. He stood at his stop staring down at the ground, his hair hanging so that it covered his face.

“He emo boy, you cry yourself to sleep last night?” Laughed one of the other guys standing at the bus stop. Charlie did not respond, he just stood in place acting as though he had not heard anything. The other boy pushed him causing him to lose his balance. He fell over. Putting his hands out to stop his fall. Pain flowed through his hands as they made contact with the pavement.

With a low rumble and a screech the bus pulled up putting an end to a situation that was quickly going downhill.

“I’ll deal with you later emo boy!” jeered his tormentor, as he stepped into the bus that had now become Charlie’s safe haven.




Alex rose with a start as his alarm clock drilled the beginning of a new morning into his mind. He rolled over in his bed and brought his hand down like a hammer on the small clock with the numbers 7:45 glowing red in the darkness of the room.

Alex was an average 17-year-old boy. He was not very tall, or muscular. He didn’t have any physical features that set him apart from others. He had chestnut brown hair that was cut slightly above his eyes, and not very long in the back. At first sight he looked just like a run of the mill teenager.

“All right! I am up!” he sighed and pulled back the heavy comforter that he had become wrapped up in during the night. Rubbing his eyes with clenched fists he let out a loud yawn and stretched as he threw his legs over the side of his bed.

After he had gotten out of bed and quickly thrown some clothes on he headed downstairs to get something to eat before getting off to school. Slowly descending the stairs with an utterly tired look on his face he mustered up the energy to call out,

“Mornin’ mom” As he reached the bottom of the stairs and looked into the kitchen where his mom was buttering some toast.

“Good morning sweety” Alex’s mom responded cheerfully, smiling up at her son.

“You are going to be late for school if you don’t hurry honey” She said with a concerned look.

Alex looked up at the clock that hung above the entrance to the kitchen and nodded, having not realized how long it had taken him to get up and get dressed. He grabbed the piece of buttered toast that lay on the counter and hurriedly gobbled it down. Munching away at the toast, he picked up hi school back, walked over to his mom and gave her a hug. After saying goodbye to his mom he made his way out the door, and ran off to catch the school bus.



Patrick pulled the key out of the car’s ignition and looked over the school grounds where all of the students gathered in their cliques. He reached over to the passenger’s seat and picked up his course planner and various other books and teaching aids. Patrick had been teaching at this high school for a few years now and had just started to get an idea of how the students would congregate in their own groups. He had become familiar with the different identities each student projected as the assimilated into on of these various microcosms. It seemed to him that the divisions were menial, shallow and quite stereotypical. He would never say anything however; as he was just a teacher, and assumed that his word would fall upon deaf ears. This was the way school was, even when he was a kid. Why would it change now? These thoughts preoccupied him as he opened the car door and stepped out.



Alex and Charlie met everyday at the same place before the start of classes. When they got off their bus they would proceed to their little ‘hangout’, which was a small hallway that led to a janitor’s closet. It was out of the way of the hustle bustle of the main halls and common areas, so they liked it there.

“Hey you!” Alex beamed as he looked up to Charlie, who wore a saddened expression. Charlie stared at his feet, trying to speak but the words got caught in his throat. Charlie let out a small whimper as he felt a warm tear roll down his cheek and fall to the ground.

“Hey hun, what’s wrong?” Alex asked as he gently wiped away another tear that had begun to roll down Charlie’s cheek. Charlie leaned his head down to Alex’s shoulder and began to sob. Alex wrapped his arms around Charlie in a warm embrace and whispered into his ear.

“Don’t worry, it’s alright. I’m here for you”.

As they waited for the bell to ring that would signal the beginning of class, Charlie told Alex what had happed at the bus stop. This was not the first time such an incidence had happened, not by a long shot. Charlie had cried on Alex’s shoulder many times before this and Alex was always there for him. This was one of his few comforts in life.

As Charlie recalled the events of that morning Alex held Charlie’s hand and patted his head in a comforting way, it always helped to raise Charlie’s spirits when he was down.

Finally the bell tolled and students filed through the halls to their first classes like ants in an anthill. Charlie and Alex said their farewells and kissed goodbye as they too followed suit and headed off to their first classes.



Patrick surveyed the class sighing inwardly as he saw the glazed over, half asleep looks from all the students in his class, typical for first period.

“Well… From the looks of things everyone seems pretty tired hmm?” he questioned, to be met with the unintelligible groans from the students.

“I guess I will spare you a lesson for now then, and you can work on anything that you need to do”. He looked around at the surprised faces, soon followed by a sigh of relief. He chuckled and sat down at his desk. He pulled out a stack of papers from his bag and began marking them.

Thirty minutes passed and he managed to finish marking all of the tests from the week before. He looked up at the class and smiled, they had been silent this whole time… A teacher’s dream.

BANG! A loud noise echoed through the hallways of the school.

“That sounded like a gunshot” One of the students spoke up nervously. Patrick stood up from his seat

“I’m sure there’s noth— “ He was cut short by another loud bang followed by a scream. Patrick looked to the door, an expression of shock and horror written on his face. He saw students begin to run through the halls, pouring from their classrooms to escape what had caused the alarming noise. Everyone in the class began to panic, looking at one another fearfully. Without hesitation, human nature kicked in and everyone began to run for the doors. As Patrick’s terrified class ran out the door to join the mass of people running to the exits he fumbled around his desk for his attendance list.

Clutching the clipboard with the attendance sheets he began to move towards the door so that he could run to the exit and join his class. Periodic shots could be heard and sounded as though they were coming from the other end of the school. He looked into the hallway from the classroom doorway. It was empty. All of the students had evacuated.

It must be safe here, the shots don’t sound like they are around here he thought to himself. He could hear his heart pounding as he mustered the strength to make a dash for the exit. He left the classroom looking down the hallway at the exit doors. He began to run as fast as he could. He heard another bang, all the sounds stopped.



Pulling his bag off of his shoulder Alex took his seat and removed his binders. The teacher had written a note on the board telling the class to turn to page 80 in their textbooks and start working on the questions. The teacher must have been off getting a projector or something Alex though to himself as he began to work on his assignment.

Half an hour passed and the teacher had still not returned to the class. Alex shrugged and continued his work the, the teacher’s lectures were always pretty boring anyway.

BANG! The first shot rang out. Everyone jumped in shock and looked to the door wondering what was going on. The noise sounded as though it were very close. One of the students sitting in a desk close to the door slowly got out of her seat to survey the halls and see what was happening. Alex watched nervously as she stepped into the hallway. Seconds after she left the classroom another shot echoed, and in horror the class watched their peer fall to the ground.

Alex jumped from his seat, unsure of what to do. He heard a scream from the hallway, as more shots pierced the silence that had grown after the first percussion. It was obvious that the shooter was nearby the classroom. Another boy jumped up in an effort to close the door. As he reached his arm out, Alex saw as a bullet ripped through the boy’s hand. Blood flowed down his arm and fall to the floor. He screamed out in pain and fell to the floor clutching his wrist with his uninjured hand.

Alex felt his stomach drop and his heart began to race as he saw, through the door, the shadow of a person moving slowly toward the classroom.

All of the students hid under their desks in an effort to protect themselves from the bullets. Alex felt his face getting hot and tears started to form in his eyes, all he could think about was whether or no he would be able to see Charlie or his mom again. He could hear some of his other classmates weeping under their desks. He could hear footsteps approaching the classroom door, then nothing. Suddenly he heard a scream, followed by a barrage of loud shots.

Alex felt a searing pain rush through his shoulder and down his arm.“I’ve been shot”, he thought to himself as he fell face first to the floor. He felt warmth spreading from his shoulder across his chest and down his arm. He was bleeding badly. Thoughts rushed through his mind. “Am I going to die here? Will the shooting stop? Will I see Charlie again? My mom?”

The firing stopped and Alex listened as the footsteps he had heard enter the room finally started to leave. He breathed a sigh of relief as tears streamed down his face. His body was becoming numb, and he could feel himself slipping from consciousness. Eyelids falling like heavy weights he drifted out of consciousness.