The Time of your Life.


It was a warm and beautiful day in the neighborhood of ?????ville, and Elfec Pumpkoustin had just woken up from a long delightful slumber. In fact he not the only person in the small town of ?????ville that had a good night’s rest. The day before was the town’s annual festival of life. Each year, a traveling carnival comes to the town and brings such festivities as a Ferris wheel, a circus, and tons and tons of food. At the end of each festival, they town has a huge banquet were everyone is invited. At the end of the banquet, they host an award ceremony where everybody gets an award. There are the random award like best sweatshirt or worst haircut just so everybody gets an award. But in the end, the moment everyone waits for, they hand out the award for the best citizen. And every year, same person got the award, Nick Fine.
But this year was different. There was no miscellaneous awards, only the award for best citizen was handed out. Everybody else received these odd little watches. Some where old and some where new. Some were fancy and some were poor looking. The stranger thing was that year Nick Fine didn’t get his award. It was the new visitor to this small town, Elfec Pumpkoustin who won the legendary award, and he did not receive a watch at all. But the strangest thing was that the traveling carnival pulled out as the ceremony was going on without any word of notice or any noise at all.
These oddities didn’t dazzle the audience for too long. Everyone went back to their houses with newly wound watches and new memories of the festival of life. Elfec was most definitely the happiest man coming out of that carnival. He had finally felt like he was a somebody in this small town, and he hadn’t done anything yet besides show up for an award. What wonders could this town bring?
It was a warm and beautiful day in the neighborhood of ?????ville and Elfec was felling surprising not himself today. It had been eating at him all night why he got the award. At first he thought they were just being nice to their new visitor, but nobody had been welcoming him or even noticing him until last night. Why not Nick Fine? But like the people last night, Elfec didn’t let these oddities upset him too much. He went out to his to his department store at the end of town’s central road called Eind Blvd expecting to get some recognition on his way.
Elfec didn’t receive the warm hearted reception he expected as he walked or when he entered the store. So Elfec sat back in his seat behind the reception’s desk and counted down the hours till another days works was over.
After after a few minutes Elfec started to realize that the minute had not moved an inch since he had entered. This just antagonized him even more. He couldn’t even know when this boring torture was over because his store was too cheap to buy a good clock. At that time, Nick Fine entered the store. He was looking less then himself as well but not because of anger of the loss of his award, but for some-other intangible thing. “What is the time”, asked Elfec. Nick moved his hand over to the Elfec’s face. “Are you sure you wound this right last night” “I wound it to the the same time of all the other watches”muttered Nick. “Well then it’s 5:30p.m and time for me to go, you can go talk to Patrick for help”sighed Elfec. Elfec packs his things and is heading for the door when Nick interrupts,” The time is 12 o’clock, where did you get 5:30”. “What, the watch clearly says 4:30.” Elfec leans over the watch and with surprise the time reads 5:29. “What is wrong with this watch. It’s going backwards. Maybe you should get a new watch. “ You would like that wouldn’t you Elfec,”spat Nick, “First my award now my watch. Fine, go, make some excuse to run off see what I care. Where’s Patrick!” Nick runs off to the other side of the building. Elfec scratched his head and then asked a new customer what time it is. The same time of 12 o’clock was said. “ Hey, not that I don’t trust you or anything, but can I see your watch,” asked Elfec. She calmly handed him her watch. It read 0:56. Elfec starred at the watch for a few sec. until the woman pulled her hand away and walked away with confusion.
Some time went by and Elfec asked all he could ask to see their watch. The watches said 9:54, 2:30, 1:05, and 12:58, all of which were in the a.m. Finally he asked his boss what time it was. “It’s 5pm, why are you still here? We’re closing up.” Elfec ripped his watch off his wrist and looked at the time. The time read 53:59pm. Elfec slowly looked up and starred at his boss with shock. “Did you see all the other costumers who came in here today,” he asked. “There was no other customers today. It was completely empty today. Are you sure you are alright. Go home and don’t come in tomorrow. You need some sleep.” With panic in his eyes he ran home to get up from this never ending nightmare.
Before he could get home, he say a watch on the ground. Elfec slowly picked it up to look at the time. It read 0:00a.m.
Elfec slowly walked home finding more and more watches on the ground with all the same time. 0;00a.m. He suddenly turned around to find a man in his 60’s with a brief case looking as if he was going to a meeting. He was the man that gave out the award and the watches. Elfec pleaded with him to tell were he got those watches, but all he said was “ The same person every year, the carnival.” “But why was I the only one without a watch”, exclaimed Elfec. The man shrugged his shoulders and tried to walk away but Elfec grabbed his watch and through it on the ground. He repeatedly stopped on it till he believed the curse was lifted. After repeated blows, Elfec knelt down to look if he had succeeded. The time read 0;00a.m. He turned to find nobody was with him. The people were disappearing all around him and for the first time in his life, Elfec was scared. He was scared of the time he saw on the watches, because it showed only him the time the people of ?????ville have left to exist. He ran home.
It was a warm and beautiful night in the neighborhood of ?????ville, and Elfec Pumpkoustin had just woken up from a sleep filled with fear and dread. It was still dark outside and a sheet was billowing against his window. Outside was a like a ghost town with tumble weeds and no living movement at all. It appeared he had been asleep for several days for had grown a small beard.
As he slowly walked to get this shivering quivering writhing sheet, the wind grew less and less violent and just as he sheet began to fall, Elfec grabbed it. It read;
This year at the Festival of Life, we are doing things a bit differently. This year instead of multiple awards at the annual award ceremony, we are only giving out one prise to the best citizen. But don’t worry, everyone gets a new watch instead of a crummy old award. The prise for the best citizen will be the thing he most desires.
This next part was written in read ink.
That’s right, its you Elfec. Your the winner. And guess what you got. The chance to be somebody. You could have saved those peoples lives from there fate. But you ran away. Now their fate is your fate, but before you go always remember that The Festival of Life showed you the time of your life.
Elfec looked at the clock on his night stand. It read 0;00am.
It was a warm and beautiful day in the neighborhood of ?????ville, and Elfec Pumpkoustin never had the chance to enjoy it.