Ah, Beachside Holiday Resort; the place to be. The luxurious beds, large baths, private saunas, a miniature water theme park, people to massage you and an enormous private beach is just the beginning. My two best friends (Rex and Roger) and I had won a weeks’ worth of stay in this magnificent hotel. And it was perfect, my birthday was tomorrow. I took in a deep breath as I thought of the multitude of activities – swimming with the dolphins, diving, snorkelling, whale watching, jet skiing, surfing and, fishing. Wow! Where was I going to start? But now was not a time to decide, it was already 9:30 p.m. and I was just too sleepy. I scrambled inside the soft blankets of the bed, caught a quick glance at the others, and closed my eyes.
…
I am walking on a street, everything is peaceful, and I see a man. I walk up to him and realise we are the only ones there. I want to ask him where everyone else is but I can’t seem to get the words out. In frustration I go to push him, but I just fall to the ground.
Suddenly, there is a loud commotion, people running towards me are shouting and screaming. I try to get up but I can’t move. I look in the distance and see a large round shape.
It’s moving fast and must be what is scaring the people. Now my heart is beating really fast. I can hear it. I put in all my energy to stand up. But I cannot move. The commotion is becoming louder. Help! I silently struggle in desperation. I can see the shape more clearly now. It’s a massive rubber chicken! My heartbeat is getting louder and louder. The massive duck is just metres away. My heart feels like there’s a massive drum playing in my ears. Boom! Boom! Boom!
…
I open my eyes. I am drenched in cold sweat; my hands are clammy. I look up at the shiny, white ceiling. Just another nightmare. But something is wrong. The commotion seems to be real.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Someone is knocking at our door. I glimpse at the digital alarm clock on the bedside table. 11:30 p.m. half an hour to my birthday, what could be wrong this time? Boom! Boom! Boom! I scramble out of the bed and hurry towards the door. I quickly look at the two other beds. They’re not there. I turn the handle.
“Quickly! Something is happening, nobody knows what it is but everyone is being evacuated out of the hotel!” It was Rex; he looked like he had just run a marathon. “What’s wrong? Tell me!” I asked in haste. “Not now, hurry up.” I ran towards my bag, snatched the first jeans I saw, and climbed into them.
We ran down the hallway, it was bustling with people, some trying to drag their bags, some pulling their children, some, even, just shouting for the fun of it. Somewhere in the far distance an alarm could be heard. The hallway was dark; the only light was the red flashing lights of the fire alarms on the ceiling. “Where’s Roger? Where were you guys?” I turned to look at Rex; he looked suddenly tired, and deep in thought.
“I’ll tell you later” he mumbled.
“No”, I stopped in my tracks. “I want to know now!”
“Keep moving!” Rex was suddenly angry. You never want to anger Rex. I carried on moving. We weaved between the people finally reaching the end of the corridor. Rex slammed the door of the emergency exit open, and began the long decent from the 25th floor. I ran in after him, the chemical odour of cement smacking me on the nose. The stairway was surprisingly empty. As the door closed behind, so did the sound of the loud commotion.
“Wait. Please.” I panted. My voice echoed in the silent stairway. Rex was already 1 floor down from me. Rex stopped, and leaned against the wall. I slowly came down the steps and gently sitting on the stair next to Rex. “Tell me what’s happening”. He took a deep breath.
“Fine. There was a concert tonight. Big Bees the band were to perform. So Roger and I had decided to go, but as soon as we got there we knew something was wrong. We waited, and waited and then a man walked on the stage. Something was in his hands, only we couldn’t see it clearly. Then it started, people started screaming and running. We turned to head back to our room but a man stopped us.
‘Run away. Run far away before it all starts. I have a boat, take it. Go to the Islands. You will find answers there. You maybe our only chance.’ We tried to question him further but he just walked away. Rogers in the boat, we have to get there.”
“Lets go”
After about 10 min of stairs we reached the beach. A large group had gathered around a stage in the middle. I glanced at my watch, 11:55, 5 minutes to my birthday. I slowed down, expecting to stop and join the crowd gathering. “What are you doing? Hurry up. We have no time.” We kept running, Rex pushing people to make way through the crowd.
“Where are we going? Into the sea?” I asked hysterically. “Precisely” Rex answered, but he changed directions towards the jetty. 3 min to my birthday. We sprinted on to the jetty. A small boat was waiting at the very end. Rex ran and jumped straight on it. 2 min to my birthday. I could not see clearly. The boat was closing in. 1 min to my birthday. Excitement built up in me. I ran straight forward and jumped for the boat, landing near to the edge. The boat rocked dangerously then straightened again. “Okay there Jack” I turned around to see the familiar voice.
“Hey there Roger, good to see you again.” I replied. Roger smiled “Happy Birthday buddy!” I looked at my watch, 12:01, one minute through my birthday. I sighed, and Roger started the engine and pulled the boat away from the jetty, leaving the hotel and its dangers far of in the distance.