theadonisscrolls - Tumblr blog

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

An Academic Report by Katherine G. on “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin

Within Kate Chopin’s “The Story of An Hour” the theme of womanhood is profound and with most writings that share this theme, they are filled with the prime characteristics of the cult of domesticity.

Throughout the short story, the author uses many techniques to tell “The Story of An Hour,” within Chopin’s story there are many ideas that readers can find and claims that are based upon “The Story of An Hour.” Kate Chopin also uses rhetorical devices to tell her short story. The thesis of the analysis would be that Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Story of An Hour,” is a good literacy rhetorical example of women’s literacy. In Chopin’s short story the overall claim can be apparent through observing key ideas.

“The Story of An Hour” short story’s claim that I think its exhibiting would be loving your kind spouse is the greatest thing any woman could ask for, but the private idea of freedom which is found to be a necessity for any living being can be the greatest love of all. I believe the author does encompass my claim by showing the main character, “Louise” morn her husband whom she thought was dead and then eventually find the freedom of him being gone. This newfound freedom Louise finds can be seen in the following quotes, “But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely.” And “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature.” Louise’s relief in her newfound freedom is very much seen throughout the two quotes. She still grieves her beloved husband's loss but being free of his will-bending power that constricted her's, gives her much joy.

Kate Chopin's use of rhetorical devices that convey the claim includes using syntax, connotation, and diction. The author’s use of syntax and diction helps the overall flow of how the story is told and the reader’s understanding of the overall claim and ideas the author is conveying. An example of this within the short story includes, “Men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature.” Chopin uses “creature” instead of any other possible words to further convey that even though we are “fellow-creatures” we believe we can impose our own ideas and will on other individuals, which overpowers their own beliefs.

In making the claim the author uses ideas primarily based upon the cult of domesticity. We see different aspects of the cult of domesticity, however, one of the primary aspects we see within the short story would be the physical symptoms of womanhood. These aspects can be found in the following quote. “There stood, facing the open window, a comfortable, roomy armchair. Into this, she sank, pressed down by a physical exhaustion that haunted her body and seemed to reach into her soul.” Physical symptoms of womanhood are depicted in the quote, Louise the main character is in the midst of grief believing that her husband is dead. Women in the middle to upper classes’ health were poor due to their lack of stimulation to their basic human functions. Women became weak and depended on their husband’s strength. Women are also being groomed since youth within these classes and not knowing any better further hurts women as a whole. These physical symptoms restricted and formed what women could or could not do.

In conclusion, Kate Chopin’s “The Story of An Hour” way of employing ethos, pathos, and logos are throughout the short story. An example of logos within the story includes, “It was he who had been in the newspaper office when intelligence of the railroad disaster was received, with Bentley Mallard’s name leading the list of “killed.” He had only taken the time to assure himself of its truth by a second telegram, and had hastened to forestall any less careful, less tender friend in bearing the sad message.” Readers can see logos within the above quote because we follow Richard’s dialogue. He learns the news of Bentley Mallard’s supposed death and he uses logical thinking by assuring himself of the news with a second telegraph and primarily focusing on how to break the news to the newfound widow of Bentley Mallard. We also see pathos within the quote due to Richard, the one who originally learned the news not letting his emotions disrupt any logical thinking. Learning of such loss can cause any human being pain in a way. Putting your feelings aside in such a situation is a reasonable thing to do. Lastly, ethos can be found in the following quote, “When the storm of grief had spent itself she went away to her room alone.” Kate Chopin uses ethos by using a metaphor with the word “grief” due to the news of her husband’s death hitting suddenly and eventually the storm calmed. She realized she could have freedom and independence.

#adonis scrolls works #writers #highschool writers #book review #academic essay #Kate chopin #the story of an hour #symbolism #authors #writerscommunity #book reviews

2 notes · View notes

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

Audrey Rose and Thomas - Stalking Jack the Ripper

Artist: @gabriella.bujdoso

361 notes · View notes

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

Badly Explained YA Books

The Lunar Chronicles: Cyborg Cinderella tries to save the emperor from marrying her evil aunt who lives on the moon

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Hyperactive kids are given way too much responsibility

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard: Dead kids are given way too much responsibility

The Raven Cycle: wdym we are going to fall in love while looking for dead welsh kings

The Mortal Instruments: “Oh no she’s my sister, oh no I love her, why why why”

Six of Crows: A master thief constantly fools everyone but most of all himself and his feelings

To Kill a Kingdom: Prince-killing siren + siren-killing prince = Trouble

The Selection: Please just choose Maxon, this is way too frustrating

Stalking Jack the Ripper: Stop exposing these two teenagers to serial killers

All for the Game: Gay college athletes somehow think sports is more important than trying to escape the Mafia

Truthwitch: Goddamit Merik, we’re under attack, stop staring at Safi for 5 minutes!

3K notes · View notes

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

carey mulligan as daisy buchanan in the great gatsby (2013)

188 notes · View notes

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

Did a doodle of Crocus and Moss 💕

5K notes · View notes

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

Corrupt Power, a short story by Katherine G. and others

Chapter One

The morning is overcast but calm, Sergei halfway to work looks out into the wilderness surrounding him. All the eyes can see are fast moving trees, different shades of green flashing by Sergei’s eyes.

Observing Sergei’s curiosity of my wonderful creation, I can only feel protective and scared. Humans repeatedly fail to have my trust. I've seen wars and disasters of all kinds directly and indirectly caused by humans. Sure, humans have a place on Earth, but of course they always abuse that position. Humans need to understand that there is a balance that is needed between nature and humankind. If this balance is disturbed, I can only imagine what else could happen.

Throughout the rest of the drive to the nuclear plant Sergei works at he continues to look around him and have scattered thoughts.

He finally arrives at the decomposing looking plant gates, digging for his identification card in the passenger seat while slowly approaching a displeased security guard. Not giving any hesitation the dull security guard hands the card back and Sergei pushes forward.

Page 1

Later, Sergei gets to work going through the plant making sure the machines and people are doing what they are supposed to do. As he is walking around, he notices some areas and pipes connected to one of the nuclear reactors are damaged. Finding this troubling he waves over the nearest worker and asks, “Do you know how long this has been in such inadequate condition?”

The worker responds confusingly “I’m not sure sir, I just noticed it recently.” Startled Sergei gives it another look and looks back at the worker. Sergei with a professionally displeased tone tells the worker, “This is a severe problem, why wouldn’t you report this?” The worker looking down replies, “Mr. Cozbi said that damage or any type of issue like this that indirectly connects to the main reactors is unnecessary to report and that it will be addressed at a later date.” Sergei, astonished by this information, knowing that even if something is indirectly damaged it can very well still cause issues directly to the source.

After some time, Sergei reports to his boss... Mr. Cozbi.

In almost a yelling tone Mr. Cozbi greets Sergei by saying, “Afternoon Sergei, what’s the update?” Sergei almost in a tense voice replies, “Well, you see sir I have just learned of some damage to pipes connected to the main reactor that need to be replaced.”

Slightly agitated, Cozbi looks at Sergei and replies, “Oh those, yes I already know about those. I guess go patch them up a bit, they’ll be okay.” Sergei thinks to himself “How could he not fix this if he has known about it for so long!”

Sergei turns where his back is to Cozbi and replies, “Sir, with no offense I don’t think you understand the severity of the damage. If these pipes continue in the condition they are in, they will soon damage some of the main machines connected directly to the reactor.” Before Sergei can say more, Cozbi interrupts him and says “You don’t think I can run this plant! I have been doing this longer than you have. Maybe if you had the experience I have you would understand my position.”

Page 2

From that day on something that both Sergei and I can both agree on is that Cozbi is a liar...

Sergei continues through the rest of his workday after being berated by his superior. He comes across areas, machines, pipes, and more damaged and in need of repair objects, but in fear of being scolded or even worse losing his job, he neglects the issues and continues managing his normal everyday tasks as if everything were fine.

After meeting with some of the plant workers as Sergei always does, he starts to pack up his things to head home. On the way-out Sergei sees shipment boxes being rolled in of the cheapest and lowest quality utility patches, and as you can guess the bare minimum to repair any of the vital areas damaged. Let's just say the cold war was not kind to the labor and factory industries in Ukraine.

Later, Sergei gets home and is greeted by the smell of food in to-go boxes and Svetlana, his daughter. Always waiting for him to get home from work either sitting reading a book, drawing, or doing homework from her day in school. Svetlana is always waiting at that calmingly familiar kitchen table always waiting for them. Smiling Sergei greets his young daughter with a great hug and they both sit down and eat dinner as they always do. The only thing that changes is the food, neighbors sometimes give the single father and his young daughter food, they go to the market every once and a while to cook something new, or they just heat up leftovers from making many of their dinners in bulk at the first of each month.

Sergei and Svetlana live a simple but humble life. She goes to school, he goes to work, and then they always meet at the kitchen table...

The next day per usual routine, Sergei always wakes up first and then wakes up his daughter Svetlana, both go on about their normal morning and leave to fulfill their obligations.

Arriving at work things are a bit chaotic in the nuclear plant, cheap patches all over, people running about, and a faint alarm going off. Sergei thinks aloud to himself and says, “What could all this chaos be, where is the alarm sounding from?” A rushed worker overhears Sergei and yells “A bunch of those pipes connected to that main reactor that has been giving us some trouble burst an hour ago.” Wide-eyed, Sergei rushes to the area to be greeted by the whole cleanup crew. Some of the crew members closest to the reactors are in protective suits, which can only exhibit how serious the damage truly is.

It takes hours for the cleanup to show progression. But there were some setbacks, fires began to blaze due to leaking gases catching fire and lighting up the nearby forest area...

Page 3

Chapter Two

That fire in the forest is one of the many examples of why humans don’t have my trust. All they do is destroy my creations over and over again, its almost like they don’t think my creations matter. They believe that they can destroy anything and everything in their path and I will same them. That I will create something else and everything will keep going.

Page 4

After the treacherous fire in the forest was extinguished Sergei along with the other workers were alerted by the lunch bell. While Sergei was eating his lunch Cozbi slowly started to walk over to him. He had an annoyed glare on his face, and he was staring straight at Sergei. When Cozbi reached where Sergei was eating, he started to announce to everyone that everything is going to be okay. “Everything that caused the fire had been fixed and there was nothing to worry about.” Everyone believed Cozbi except for Sergei. Sergei decided that it was best to leave the matter alone and not think about it until tomorrow.

When Sergei got home Svetlana was waiting for him. She had heard about the fire at and took it upon herself to make dinner for Sergei. She mostly used organics from the garden she is growing in the backyard. While Sergei and Lana were eating dinner they started to talk about how Sergei’s day was. Lana understood how risky her father's job was.

Lana is one of the only people I fully give my respect to. Although it's small she gives effort into helping me grow my creations.

When they were done eating dinner, Lana got up from the table to wash the dishes, but Sergei stopped her. “Will you sit down? I want to talk to you about what has been going on.” Lana agreed and sat back down at the table. She was concerned about what her father was going to say. “What’s going on father?” she asked.

” I wanted to tell you that I know how hard it is being here by yourself sometimes, and I know that a lot of the time you have to take care of yourself because I can't.”

“Father, I know that you wish you could be here for me, and that your work makes it hard for you to be home all the time.”

Before Sergei could say anything else to Lana she got up, kissed his forehead and went to wash the dishes. After dinner Sergei went and took a shower and fell asleep. He knew that the next day at work was going to be a difficult one.

Page 5

The next morning Sergei got up early so he could make breakfast for him and Lana before he left for work. He left for work and knew it was going to be a rough day. When he got to the security gates there was a normal silence as he gave his identification card to the security guard. As he drove towards the power plant, he realized that everyone was rushing to the building in a panic. He rolled down his windows and could hear alarms blaring. Sergei stepped on the gas and raced to the power plant. When he arrived, the alarms had stopped, and the panic was starting to turn into normal silence. He ran into the power plant to see what was happening just in time to see Cozbi reassuring everyone to go back to their stations and that everyone was safe.

Sergei couldn’t handle this madness anymore and decided to go up to Cozbi. “This is not safe for all of the workers Cozbi!” Sergei was angry but Cozbi had no reaction to the yelling. “We need to fix what is happening otherwise this is going to end worse than we thought.”

“We don’t need to do anything, because if we start doing things the town will start to worry and then panic will set in. We do not need to cause panic throughout the town.” Cozbi was staying calm but by the look in his eyes I could tell he knew something was wrong.

“Whatever is happening needs to be fixed. This could end badly and end up hurting or even killing people. Including us!”

Cozbi told Sergei that he needed to go home and not worry about what was going on. Sergei tried to argue but it didn’t work. He was sent home and told that everything was going to be okay at the power plant.

Page 6

The next day when Sergei returned to work, he was expecting to see the building up in flames or that people would be running away from the building in panic. To his surprise everything seemed normal. He walked into the power plant, and it was quiet, so he went and worked on some paperwork for a while.

A couple of hours later Sergei heard a loud crash and he knew something had gone terribly wrong. He ran out of his office and that a reactor was starting to not work correctly. At that moment he saw that Cozbi was leaving work to head home for the night. Sergei knew that someone needed to stay to make sure nothing happened and that everything was going to stay stable overnight. So, he decided that it was his job to stay the night.

Chapter Three

Page 7

Frankly, the one of the only things me and some humans can agree on is how corrupt businesspeople are, Cozbi being a prime example of that, but when it comes to humans, they will say all they want about people being corrupt but do nothing about it. No matter how much they say they hate corrupt powerful people they won't do anything about it, they think they can’t. They’re bystanders, shoulder shruggers, onlookers, none of them REALLY want to do anything about it. If they did, they would do something about it, but it seems like no one does.

Perhaps that’s why I've been so interested in Sergei out of everyone, he’s not a bystander, yet still an accident happened. Maybe If he did more I wouldn’t have so much work to do, maybe if he didn’t do anything at all things would have worked something out by themselves. Perhaps only fate could answer that question, maybe if fate, death, time was changed even the slightest in the moments passing my children wouldn’t have to have been harmed. I suppose this could all come back on me as well, humans are life and all.

Well, I suppose I can't be too hard on Sergi, after all, he’s going out of his way to try and fix this awful place.

Seemed to be always awoken by the sound of alarms, he somehow never can get used to it. As he walks around a bit, almost thoughtlessly, as he tries to recall what he did the prior night. He wipes sweat from the previous night's sleep off his forehead and almost slips on it still in a daze. Something he will also seem to never get used to no matter how much it seems to happen is Cozbi’s constant screaming at him.

“Sergei, now tell me what you were thinking last night?! Were you even thinking at all??” Sergei muffled out a formal apology, Cozbi would just call it an excuse though. Sergi could only hear muffled screaming as he got back to work though, nothing was sticking with him, one thing would go into one ear and come out the other. He would not have this ability to ignore Cozbi when he was wide awake, if he was a religious man, I'm sure he would pray for that ability.

Sometimes I wish I could ignore humans the way Sergei somehow ignores everything once he’s tired. Humans cause so much damage to my children though I can't just ignore that. Think of it as your child is being bullied by a friend or other family members child, you can’t just ignore that can you? Well, of course you can, humans seem to find a way to ignore everything.

Page 8

Everyone around him looked like zombies. Brainless workers going about their daily lives the exact same every day. Nothing changed except the damage on the reactor getting worse throughout the days and weeks.

“Yes sir,”.

“Ok sir,”.

” Right away sir,” They all sounded like they shared one mind. This power plant was a hive mind stemmed upon pure abuse of power. Sergei couldn’t tell if he was the only one aware of this or if all his coworkers knew too and just didn’t care.

Some could argue that bystanders are just as bad as the main people or person causing the problem

Sergei could barely see his coworkers as humans anymore, it's not like they acted like humans, no personality, they seemed to have no joy, only small conversations about the weather or about work between their lunch breaks. Not like Sergei remembers those conversations anyways, just a lot of awkward silence.

Humans have almost an infinite array of things to discuss yet they still choose to remain silent. Probably for the best. Honestly, If humans talked more I don’t even want to know what things they would cause.

Page 9

Time is a hard concept to grasp I will admit, especially to a sleep deprived overworked human.

Seconds felt like minutes, minutes felt like hours, hours like days, days like weeks. He couldn’t tell April 19th apart from April 25th. It all merged so perfectly. He stayed up late every night at the reactor trying to fix it or doing paperwork for Cozbi. He couldn’t even separate am from pm anymore.

In hindsight, I'm sure being around that reactor did numbers on his health as well as the lack of sleep. I can’t tell if he’s just that selfless or if he’s just stupid.

He’s very lucky he has Svetlana, she’s just a child yet she walks all the way to his office and brings him lunch whenever she has the chance, he’s as grateful as he can be for her as well, thankfully.

Sergei could barely keep himself awake. April 25th, 11:47 PM, although the time and date meant nothing to him anymore. Even if it did mean anything to him, he wouldn’t have cared. He spent countless hours dealing with Cozbi’s ignorance and neglect, timing was the last thing he wanted to worry about.

Paperwork was laid down on his desk in only what someone would call organized chaos. He had to stand to keep himself from falling asleep. He was at his giving point though and decided it was ok for him to sit down for a little bit, an obvious mistake.

Chapter Four

Page 10

April 26th, 1986

Awakened by the piercing sound of distant alarms, Sergei attempts to collect himself. The documents he was working on were sprawled on his desk and the floor disorderly. The plant feels desolate in the most ominous way; the usual order of things was no longer present.

I believe that in the future I could’ve grown to appreciate Sergei, so it’s a shame that we all know how this story ends. Of all the disasters caused by human negligence, this must be, in my opinion, one of the most disgusting. Something so incredibly preventable was the cause of so much destruction.

Those who lack empathy for the world they live in are the ones most likely to destroy it.

1:22:02 AM Sergei starts piling up the documents, and hastily shoving them onto his desk. He makes his way to the hallway where most of the noise is coming from, the usual human silence and indifference was absent. Instead, there was a panicked frenzy

“What's going on?”

And there it was, that familiar silence. Caused by the reluctance to accept their current situation. The reality, the very unfortunate reality was something no one wanted to accept. The silence that lasted an eternity was finally broken when one of the workers spoke.

Page 11

“The RBMK is on a positive feedback loop”

Those were the words, the dreaded ones that alluded to the coming disaster. Something unique about this human was his tendency to try and correct things, even to his detriment. Defying all his natural instincts telling him to evacuate, Sergei and a few others rush toward the central control panel to try and stop the overheating of the reactor.

1:23:07 AM

When Sergei arrived at the panel, he realized that the AZ-5 button had been pressed causing all the control rods to be inserted. That inadvertently led to the explosion. In that control room there was a sinking feeling, Sergei thought about a lot of things at that moment, his boss, his daughter, and of course his impending demise.

1:23:40

The end of Sergei’s story seems like a depressing one, most would call it a tragedy.

What I’m about to say may seem cold, but the biggest tragedy was the irreversible effect on the surrounding area , and the death of numerous endemic species.

One thing that will forever remain consistent through human history is their tendency to sabotage their own existence.

Page 12

#adonis scrolls works #writers #short fiction #short story #author #ukraine #soviet union #chernobyl #nuclear #nuclear disaster

1 note · View note

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

The Golden Nugget, An Essay By an Adonis Scrolls Writer

In the fourth grade, Mr. Helton and I ate lunch together every day. He created the facade of being uninterested in my insistent demand of speaking to him, but every day I would move my dwarven elementary school chair across from his. Sitting there eating his lunch he appeared a giant, settled in his aged and peeling syrup-colored leather chair like a throne before his desk. His posture was stiff and his linen shirt had not a single wrinkle or imperfection. I could hear the uneven click-clack of his keyboard and see the small gray graffiti carved into the edge of his desk by preceding students. It was ugly, with misshapen letters created by the restricted abilities of a nine-year-old.

Occasionally, he would play the piano, and it was often the only livelihood the class saw of him. The piano was old, so old in fact that I could only assume it was as ancient as Mr. Helton himself. You could see every grain of wood on the piano whose stain and polish had long since rotted away, similarly to how you could see every wrinkle on Mr. Helton’s sullen skin and make out the individual bone-white hairs on his head. White hair - not gray - white as if he had been born with it rather than developed it with age.

Throughout the year Mr. Helton began to talk to me. I would explain to him the disgust I held for one boy in my class, Preston, who had huge teeth and a horrifyingly wide smile which showed them off in great detail, the slightly yellow color, and the way that his bottom teeth crossed over each other like they had been at war earlier that day. In turn, he would tell me what the peace corps was, and the importance of railroads, things I listened to with great interest.

Eventually, he made it his personal mission to help me discover my passion. He followed a pattern in this pursuit. In November he may decide that my purpose was to be an architect, but by December he had been through the prospects of me becoming a historian, an author, and a soldier. At some point, he told me what the CIA stands for, and it became an obsession of mine for many years.

Mr. Helton struggled with his mission, but he did teach me why he fought so intently to uncover my interests. He often called bits of advice his “golden nuggets”, and on the back of my preserved essays and assignments from the fourth grade you will find various sentences similar to the following: “Golden Nugget: reading makes you smarter” or “Golden Nugget: taking notes is good for you”. To this day, I deliberate on the golden nugget that taught me so much.

I sat in front of him during lunch with a chess set laid out, my pudgy hands creating craters in the side of the cold, condensation-covered grape soda can. A chessboard was stretched out before me, and because of my meager height, I viewed the chessboard not from above, but from the side. The effect was dramatic for me, it morphed the chessboard into a daunting battlefield that stretched for miles and held only the prospect of defeat in its uniformed order. But the battlefield was not nearly as intimidating as my opponent. I did not understand, nor would I understand for many years the somber intensity of my teacher’s genius. I merely appreciated his acknowledgment of me as we played together.

I noted that he had a funny way of moving the chess pieces that made him look sophisticated to my immature mind. My eyes followed his hand as he held his piece between his thumb and forefinger, using his pinky to curl around the opposing pawn which he was taking, placing his piece in its place. This created a brisk, dismissive, and therefore insulting demise. I had hardly seen the brutalizing flash of an empty square before his piece stood glinting in the light, proud and stable like the prized trophy of an adoring child. And as if the game meant nothing to him at all, he dropped an invaluable piece of advice into the conversation.

“A golden nugget Samantha, a golden nugget,” his clouded, aged eyes sharpened into clear, purposeful ones and his ears wiggled upwards with his intense facial expression, “your career will be the thing you love most," he bobbed his head in agreement with himself “so when choosing a career, you have to pursue your passion.”

These words meant little to me at the time, but I now think of them when I feel the brittle emptiness that accompanies a lack of inspiration. I smell the sugary grape soda and feel the smooth, slender chess pieces under my fingertips as I remember that above all else, I must pursue my passions. Now that I am of age to start worrying about colleges and careers, I find myself appreciating the old man with white hair who taught kids to play chess and incited passion and curiosity. He was a teacher in some fashion his whole life, and I can only hope to love my job one day the way he loved his: with passion that made an old man look young again.

Unfortunately, Mr. Helton soon began his untimely decay, and I knew him for only one year before his death. I remember on the last day of school, three short months before his demise, he gave away all of his most prized belongings, as he was by nature a collector of many things. To Preston, a recorder, which I have faith spent years broken under the bed before Preston’s mother threw it away, to another girl in my class he gifted freshwater pearls, and to my friend Grant a strange little statue of a house. But addressed to me in this informal will was a chess set which I now display proudly on my bookcase. The chess set is laid out for a game that has not occurred in many years and continues to smell of dust so old the set might as well have been mummified at some point, but it still reminds me of the man who inspired children to pursue their passions.

#adonis scrolls works #story #essay #writing blog #writers

0 notes

theadonisscrolls · 2 years

Text

Tragedy in Catania a short story by Katherine G.

Page 1

I’m going to start off by saying this is not a dreadfullycheerful story. In fact, this story does not have a happy ending... This story, our story, the story of Charvel and Viola is a fulfilled yet unfulfilled life of two Italian high school students. Yes, you heard me high school is supposedly the greatest and worst years of any student’s life. How can high school be both, I do not know you tell me. Oh! I’m Charvel, it is great to meet you and I am glad someone is hearing our story. So... Catania, Italy with its ancient Sicilian port and Baroque-Rococo architecture, features elaborate ornate, pastel colors and curved-serpentine lines. These features include classic mythical themes that many find magnificent... I find them horridly unrealistic. The reality of life in Catania is definitely not mystically wonderful, at times it is a very dull, lonely, and sometimes scary place. Sure, the popular attractions are lovely but everyday civilian life for Viola and me is soulless. We are on the better end of society, living so close to each other and in decent houses. But our lives are not our own. On Sundays, our parents make us religiously go to Mass every Sunday whether we are sick or not. Practicing your religion is fine and all but it feels as if Viola and I are consumed by what society dictates as right and we must avoid anything that society thinks of as wrong.

Page 2

In our studies at our catholic high school, we learn that God is forgiving. If we are freed of our sins, then why should we still repeatedly have to answer society? If we are forgiven, then what more are we forced to endure? So many people, all of them! They all hide behind God and claim we have not been forgiven for our sins. In reality, have those accusers really been forgiven themselves? ... Now not all people are bad... just, the majority.

It is late August and almost the end of summer. Our junior year is around the corner. Viola and I have had one of the best summers of our lives. We have spent every second together and it has honestly been so freeing and carefree. We have no care about what others think, and it is amazing. We spent the summer sailing along the coast of Sicily and leaving our footprints all over the nearby coastal cities.

Today Viola and I are walking along the beach and just hanging out. Viola pauses and turns toward me. She inquisitively studies me and says - “What are you thinking about Charvel?” Hmm, what am I thinking of? ... I feel as if I’m thinking of several different things at once. I replied - “I’m thinking of... our future, life in general, I guess. Sometimes I wish we could just freely live our lives, just travel and have fun.” Viola sighed disappointingly and replied “I know but you and I both know our parents would never let us just do whatever we want. But we don’t have to

tell them everything we do...” She is right, we do not have to tell them everything we do. I looked at...

Page 3

her and smiled. - “Your right we don’t, we are almost eighteen and soon we will be driving, we should have the freedom we deserve.” She nodded her head and from that day, that eternal promise we made, we did not let our parents control us. They act like they dictate our actions because it is in our best interest. The truth is they are holding us back from our dreams. Parents should support their children and not ruin their lives.

After finishing our afternoon walk along the beach, we decide to head back to get ready for dinner that evening... The next day we prepare to start our first day of junior year on Tuesday. I am happily displeased to start school but at least I will have Viola. We both get our uniforms ready, our backpacks packed, and our lunches prepared. The last day of summer... I always miss summer as soon as it ends. Like the wind, summer blows away so quickly, oh how I wish those months would slow down.

It is now the first day of school. Viola stops me as we arrive at the entrance of the school... She smiles and says - “I got us something and I hope you’ll like it.” She then pulls out these two identical silver necklaces that have a charm that is a puzzle piece. Viola picks one up and asks - “Do you like them?” A huge smile of joy plasters itself on my face, I hug her the tightest I ever have before and reply - “I love them,

they’re beautiful!” I pick one up and clasp it around my neck, she smiles and does the same. Viola - “Oh, I almost forgot, the necklaces connect with the two puzzle pieces.” She takes her charm and links it to mine.

Page 4

“We have two pieces of the world that’s like a puzzle.” I said. She nods her head and smiles. We then started walking into the school to start our day. Our first classes of the day are different, so we part ways at the entrance. Throughout all my classes, we do the normal boring introduction and start our overly gaudy textbooks.

After four months into school Viola and I are adjusted to our classes and thank God we have two classes together. I do not know if I could go the entire day without Viola. Every day after school Viola and I go to the park to study or just simply talk.

One day Viola brings a girl who has sharp dark black hair, with bangs and hazel eyes that blend with the trees. Her eyes are subtle but prominent. With her a tall, lanky boy with dark features. They both seem rather uninviting. Who are these people? Why wouldn’t she tell me she was bringing company? I get up from sitting on a bench waiting for her to show, I walk over to her with a confused look. - “I don’t believe I have met your friends, Viola?” I asked. Viola smiles awkwardly replying - “Yes you haven’t met them, this is Daniella, and this is Enzo. Enzo, Daniella this is Charvel.”

Enzo - “Nice to meet you, Viola has told us so much about you.” I look over at Viola feeling hurt and confused as to why she had not introduced me to her friends. I asked -

“How long have you guys been friends with Viola?” Daniella replies - “Almost two months and it's lovely to meet you.” Two months, ... I have never heard a single word about these two. We meet every day at the park and share our everyday lives with each other. Am I not important in her life now?

Page 5

After an hour or so of meeting Viola’s new friends. It's soon time for dinner and we, well I must get back before then.  

I get home and go directly to my room; I simply do not want to have a chit chat with my parents even though they try. Hastily going into my room and shutting the door I launch myself onto my bed. I begin to think, did I do something wrong? Is she bored of me? I am overthinking the whole situation, but it is just out of Viola’s character not to let me in on new things in her life. I would never keep such a thing from her. I can understand chatting with whomever for a week or so before you introduce them to your best friend but two months!?!? I just do not get it. After a while of thinking, I finally started doing some studying before dinner.

Mami, Papa, and I all sit around the table like always talking about our day. - “Do you think Viola will always be my best friend?” I asked my parents. Mami - “Is there something going on between the two of you Charvel?” she asked. I looked at her in a solemn way and replied, “I don’t know Mami, she seems different nowadays.” The table became silent until my Papa said “Charvel if you feel as if somethings wrong between Viola and you then just talk to her about it.” That night I thought a lot about what my Papa said. I should just talk to her; communication is the key to any relationship.

The next day at school Viola and I are sitting in class. I think of how I want to bring up my worries and she looks over at me and asks “Is everything okay Charvel? You look like something is on your mind.” I feel as if she just read my mind. I replied “I’m fine but... I uh, I think we should talk after school, just the two of us.” Viola nods hesitantly in.

Page 6

We go through the day, class after class bored and ready for the school day to be over. I can only speak for myself; I’m curiously scared as to how my talk with Viola will go. I’m sure she is curious as to what our conversation will be. After school we meet at the park and sit down on a slightly weathered wooden bench in silence. We sit there for a moment, and she breaks the silence saying “What’s wrong Charvel? Is something bothering you?” I look down and take a small breath of nervousness. “What's going on with your new friends and keeping things from me? We used to share everything and now it feels like everything in your life is a secret.” In astonishment Viola takes half of the necklace she gave me and her half putting them together. She looks at me and says “We are always connected to each other. You are irreplaceable Charvel.” I pause for a moment and reply “If this is true then why have you been keeping things from me?” Adjusting on the bench Viola sighs.

Viola - “I wanted to see if Enzo and Daniella would be good friends before introducing you to them. I’m sorry Charvel, I really am, my intention was to never hurt you... I think once you get to know them you will like them as much as I do, they are really cool.” I feel that Viola is being sincere in her apology but I'm still skeptical of her new friends. We continue to talk about, well everything. She told me that her, Daniella, Enzo, and some other friends would be hanging out and that we should go.

Page 7

It’s getting close to the weekend, and I have been getting to know Viola’s new friends. They seem nice but the way they were so secretively introduced still makes me skeptical.

Even though Viola has apologized I am still hurt by her actions. Do I just forgive and forget. I don’t know if I can move on.

Throughout the rest of the week there is nothing out of the ordinary, just same old classes. Viola and I have made amends for the most part, but can you blame me for being hurt still? We hung out more with Daniella and Enzo.

Mami - “Charvel how is Viola doing? Have you guys made amends?” I nodded my head and said “Yes, Mami I think we have made amends, she apologized.” She smiled and walked away into the kitchen. Following Mami into our plain yet bold kitchen that has dull off-white walls and pops of yellow, blue, and green. I have many memories of Mami making pasta chî sàrdi and scaccia as a child. I wish we were still close like we used to be. When I was younger helping Mami in the kitchen was always my favorite time of the day. I remember everyday after school I would help her make dinner... Dinner now is Mami yelling at me in my room to come eat. I look around then kitchen and every time I look, I notice its always spotless even when she is cooking a family meal. Sitting at the kitchen table looking

out the open windows. The wind blowing, and the birds flapping their wings hastily navigating the wind. It's fascinating that birds can fight against the force of the wind. I wish I could face my issues with such natural might.

Page 8

It's the weekend thankfully. I have plans to just chill out and have a stress free weekend.

It's Friday, what a relief... I immediately go to my room and throw myself onto my bed. It feels as if I’m in the clouds. I open my eyes to be met with darkness outside my window. Oh my god! Did I fall asleep?!?! Mami and Papa must be quite angry because I missed dinner. I check the clock and it's nine o’clock at night. I must have been exhausted... I walk to the kitchen and all the lights in the house are mostly off. All the food was put up and the kitchen was clean.

After fixing something to eat and cleaning up after myself, I go back to my room. Closing the door and once more throwing myself onto my bed, I then hear my phone buzz... Its Viola, I wonder what wants? I answer the phone, “Charvel! Guess what...” Viola said robustly. “What happened? Is everything okay?” I asked.

Viola - “Everything is fine, I just want to tell you that we have been invited to hangout with Daniella, Enzo, and their friends.” Well this is interesting,... I wonder if their friends are as unapproachable as they are? “Really cool, where are we hanging out?” I asked. She happily replied “At Aldo’s house, tomorrow. I’ve met him once and he seemed pretty cool.” I guess I should trust her judgement?... If she thinks they're cool I guess they are cool. I replied tiredly “Oh okay

well that’s good, let me know what time we are hanging out. Goodnight Viola.” Viola - “Goodnight Charvel.”

Page 9

It's Saturday, besides having some homework I’m pretty much free for most of the day to do whatever I want. Mami is loudly shoveling and planting things in our little garden. Our garden is religiously kept by Mami, she acts as if her livelihood depends on that garden to be plentiful. Shuffling into the bright kitchen with the suns morning rays blasting through the windows. I squinting my tired eyes, I go to make some quick breakfast. Papa as always leaves his mug of coffee, half full of the counter. And like clock work Mami cleans it up.

Back in my room I close the door and sit on my bed. I hope hanging out with Enzo and Daniella’s friends this evening goes well. The last thing I need is more stress in my life.

After a few hours of homework and daily shores Mami and Papa assign me, I look at my phone and see Viola has texted, “We are meeting after dinner this evening, it may be a sleepover. Im sure if your parents will be okay with it, mine are.” She said with a smiley face at the end of her text. A sleepover?... Im sure Papa and Mami will let me go.

Mami - “Absolutely not. It sounds like a party to me, there is no telling what they are going to be doing there.” Frustratingly sighing I reply “But Mami, why would Viola associate herself with bad people? You know her she would never do that. Don’t you trust us?” Taking a few steps

closer, she puts her hand on my arm in a motherly way. She looks at me and says “Of course I trust you and Viola, but the ting is I don’t trust these other kids. You really don’t know them that well and it sounds like Viola doesn’t either.”

I understand slightly where she is coming from but Im almost an adult she needs to let me live my life. And of course I don’t know these friends, but this is a chance for me to get to know them. I look at her disappointed and say “I can get to know their friends this way though, and I will be with Viola. We will be okay, Enzo and Daniella seem nice. I think I will be okay.”

Mami - “My answer is still no, I’m sorry, Im doing this for your own good.” I nod and go to my room. Frustrated I call Viola to tell her I can’t go...

After a while of talking to her we come up with an idea,... I can sneak out. They would never expect me to do so. It will be easy.

It gets to be after dinner and I say my goodnights to my parents. Acting like I’m asleep, the lights off, eyes closed, and curled up in bed. They check on me like they always do... I wait a while for the coast to be clear, I’m already dressed and ready to go.

The window is the best option for my escape, so I climb out with an adrenaline rush of fright. In a car, Viola picks me up a block down from my house. “Look at you!” She says

excitingly. I smile and we begin our journey to the unknown.

Page 10

We arrive at a semi old house with music blasting. A party? Was Mami right?...

We walk in and there are tons of people. Enzo rushes up and wraps his arms around our shoulders. “Welcome to the party ladies!” He says robustly. I look at Viola nervously and she smiles slightly. Walking around with Enzo and Viola, he introduces us to all Daniella and his’ friends. They seem okay but I smell... Alcohol?!?! I whisper in Viola’s ear “Is that alcohol I smell?” She nods awkwardly and we are suddenly surrounded. A bunch of their friends are around us laughing, with cups of god knows what.

After a few hours of smelling alcohol and later cigarette smoke. We sit on a couch with a bunch of other people and play party games. Truth or dare, spin the bottle, you name it we are playing it. Later someone dares me to have seven minutes in heaven with some dude named Lorenzo. I felt so much pressure to do it that I caved. We went into the closet and I was honestly scared.

He tried to get close but I pushed him off. The smell of alcohol saturated him from head to toe.

Finally, it's over I rush out and find Viola, I feel safe now. I hated every minute of it.

As we are sitting there I nudge Viola but of course she isn’t paying attention. I really want to tell her how uncomfortable I am about the whole situation. We later go outside onto the patio. Soon as I step out there I am hit with the distinct smell of musky, burnt plastic, and plant scents. Drugs... Why am I here? I look towards Viola and whisper “Why are we here? We don’t do this stuff.” She sighs and replies “I know but some of Daniella and Enzo’s friends are nice, not all of them are like this.” I nod hesitantly and we all sit.

They pass around whatever they are smoking,... It gets passed to me and one of the girls sitting on a couch says forcefully “Don't be a sissy, we all know your the perfect little Catholic school girl and that your weak. I look at her in astonishment, why is this girl being so rude? I didn’t do anything to her... “Go ahead, sissy” she proceeded “But I don’t want to...” I said shyly. The girl rolls her eyes and says “Just do it already!” Everyone out on the patio starts making fun of me and Viola leans over and says “Hey if you do it, I’ll do it.” I look at her slightly shocked and then nod. Here I go... I take a breath of this horrible drug. I start to cough and pass it to Viola. She also does the same. The girl harassing me says snidely “Well you did it Catholic girl, it wasn’t so hard.” Why did I do that?!?! I didn’t want to do that.

After a few drinks I’m feeling a bit woozy. Dancing among everyone and Viola nowhere to be found, I start to feel as if I’m having an out of body experience. And suddenly, I

blackout. I wake up a few hours later on a couch with two other people laid on me.

Pushing them off I call out to Viola but there is no reply. I guess Im walking home then. I begin to go find my stuff and walk home. Sneaking back into my window I change my clothes and try and wash up. I still smell terrible though. Then I just crash into the hardest sleep of my life.

I wake up and its so bright. My whole room feels as if a whole spotlight is shining over it. I rollover and see my clock, its one o’clock in the afternoon. Oh my god, I can’t imagine how mad my parents are because of how late I have slept.

Page 11

Ever since that party Viola and I have been sneaking out every weekend to drink, smoke, and party. Ive learned to actually enjoy it somewhat.

One night from sneaking out I find Papa and Mami sitting on my bed waiting for me. In surprise I say “Mami! Papa! I can explain, I uh...” Mami said frustratingly “You what?... That’s what I thought, you don’t even have an excuse.” I look down sadly. Papa - “What on Earth are you thinking? Why would you do something like this?... Charvel what is that smell? Is that alcohol?”

“Yes Papa, it is... I’m sorry Mami.” I replied ashamedly.

After being lectured they ground me and I’m no longer allowed to see Viola. How could they do this its not all Viola’s fault. I made my own decisions. I text Viola angrily complaining, “How could they do this?!?!” I texted. A few minutes later she replies “I don’t know, nobody can stop us from seeing each other, we will find a way.”

For the next few weeks Viola and I are only able to see each other during class and in the halls. How did it come to this? I hate my parents, I hate them so much!

Its been a few months and we are still not able to see each other. Our phones have been taken away so now we can only see each other during school.

I begin to ponder on the idea of getting away. Just escaping all of it. Viola and I can just live our lives freely. No judgment or restrictions from society, our parents, nothing. I meet her at a picnic area at school and I tell Viola my ideas. She smiles brightly and says “Thats it! Thats our ticket to freedom, your a true genius Charvel.” I hug her like I will never see her again and smile to myself. All we need is a plan as to when, where, and how.

A few days later Viola and I meet in the same spot again and make a plan. We leave after school lets out, packing anything we need in our backpacks. We have some money from babysitting and other small jobs we have done. That money should cover any transportation costs. If we can just reach the city of Messina and then reach the region of Calabria we will be set. We can find a small house in the middle of nowhere but still close to a town. After that we can live our lives how we want.

Page 12

It's finally the day we set off on our journey. Our parents have no clue what we have planned. I plan to leave a note for my parents explaining that I will be happier on my own. We go to school as usual and then we meet at our spot after school.

“Are you sure you want to do this still Viola?” I asked. She nods and says “I’m ready, we finally get freedom.” We set off and don’t look back.

After traveling the whole day, half way by train and the other half walking we finally get to Messina. Apparently Daniella and Enzo have a friend who has an apartment that goes unused most of the time. So we make our way there. It’s uh definitely not a nice place that’s for sure but its a

roof over our head. We plan to stay at this apartment for about a week maybe two before heading to the region of Calabria. We save our money by going to homeless shelters and stealing food from vendors. Sometimes we pay but most of the time we don’t. I feel bad but we need to eat.

It's been a week and a half, we get ready to depart on our journey to upper Italy and maybe even make it to Rome soon. We find little jobs here and there saving money as we go. It’s turned out to be a stressful life but at least we are free.

From Messina we finally arrive in Vibo Valentia a providence within the region of Calabria. We both find a little job and buy a little apartment from some guy with cash. It’s not great but once again,...

It’s freedom...

The End

#short story #tumblr writers #writers #stories #adonis scrolls works

2 notes · View notes