Reader Response Exp.

Karan Nair

Ms. Asuncion

English 9H 3

31 September 2015

Chances

“Stop!  Here, here, here!” Ben exclaimed as my Dad came to a halt at Jennifer’s house.  Ben and I stepped out of the car to arrive at her fourteenth birthday party.  We continued to wonder how we were invited to this but we were glad we were.  It was two weeks ago when Jennifer came up to our table at lunch and handed us invitations to her party. 

Now here we were, I made fun of Ben for having a pink gift wrapped in paper.  He ripped it off and threw it in the thorn bushes as we entered in the backyard.  The backyard was decorated with birthday streamers.  Activities like ladder ball, volleyball, basketball and even a karaoke machine had been set up everywhere. Besides that, a zip line had ran through the backyard from tree to tree. We entered to see a girl smiling at Ben and me.  It took me a minute before I figured out it was Sarah from our gym class.  She showed us around Jennifer’s house as we wished Jennifer happy birthday. 

Ben and I lost each other among the random people that had showed up.  Sarah was making awkward conversation with me as I waited around for one of my close friends to show up.  I stood there unsure of what to say when she questioned me.  “What’s up?” and “How are you doing?”  My friends showed up and I managed to get out of the conversation, uttering “Be right back.”  I wasn’t the most extroverted person around girls.

Hours passed and everyone was having a great time, music was blasting, people were running around and laughing and everyone enjoyed themselves.  Besides Sarah following me around the house, I could say I enjoyed myself.  As the party winded down, we all said our goodbyes and headed home.  I went to bed that night and looked up at the bright moon and just thought how the party was.  The next morning I got ready for school and walked towards the bus stop.

As I entered the bus, I felt like everyone was staring at me.  I chose a seat and I checked my clothes to see what I wore that was so odd and checked if there was food from breakfast that morning on my face.  The bus stopped at school and I slowly strutted into school getting more weird looks and disgusted faces.  It wasn’t until first block that I realized why everyone was looking at me.  Apparently Sarah had spread rumors about me and I guessed it wasn’t anything nice.  Talking to her the entire night before, I didn’t expect this.  I asked my friends what was going on during third period, and they just gave me weird looks.  My own friends had fallen for these rumors.  I went home that day and locked myself in my room.  My life was getting torn apart by the minute like paper. I closed my eyes and fell asleep.  The next day the strangest thing happened.

“Stop!  Here, here, here!” Ben exclaimed.  I was back in the car just like I was two days ago.  I looked out the window and saw a huge house.  It was Jennifer’s.  Speechless and confused, I stepped out of the car noticing Ben throwing pink wrapping paper in the bushes of the backyard.  I absent mindedly followed Ben when he asked me, “What’s wrong?’  I just shook my head and spotted Sarah.  She showed us around the Jennifer’s house while I just stared at her the entire time in outrage.  I had no clue what was going on but whatever it was, it was destined.  Events played out as if it were déjà vu and I just stared at everyone completely befuddled.  I avoided Sarah that whole night and found myself surrounded by a crowd as we all waited to ride the zip line.  It finally came my turn and I hoisted myself onto the handles.  I swung across the zip line while I noticed Sarah was in the way.  Before it was too late I slipped off and fell onto her.  Everyone laughed like a crowd of hyenas.  Sadly my mission of avoiding her ended. That night I went to bed where all the events played out again.  I got up in the morning, I went to school, except this time everyone laughed and pointed at both Sarah and I.  That night I went to bed and again woke up in a car.

    “Stop!  Here, here, here!” Ben exclaimed.  I had no idea what was going on but this time, I was going to make things right.  I stepped out of the car and threw Ben’s wrapping paper in the thorn bushes.  I basically gave a tour to Sarah and Ben and foreseeing all the events, catching every spill, every line, every single moment.  It was day ten that I had been stuck in this same sort of loop and I have tried everything to escape, yet this loop won’t let me.  I believe God wanted me to set things right. The outcome every time was me losing my friend at school; it was my job to find out why.  I had done everything in my way to avoid Sarah in my eighth loop but Ben had gotten the same struggle I did the day before.  However I devised a plan on loop nine.  I talked to Jennifer and asked her to set up the Karaoke machine in the backyard and to get a huge audience to come up.  I had waited long for this and soon enough I had the mic in my hands.  The party crowd being in silence, I used to microphone.

“Has Sarah run out of friends?  Or is she just looking for someone to spread rumors to?” I asked over mic and the crowd went wild as they all circled around her like a void.  She furiously made her way up to the stage feeling greatly embarrassed.  Face all red, she took the mic from my hands and threw it.  Everyone yelled at her from the audience and she walked off.  I hadn’t seen her for the rest of the night and for once, I felt like happy as I did on my first loop. 

I saw her at school that next day.  She found someone else to spread rumors about.  I laid at home that night afterschool, knowing that this was the night I fixed everything.  I was actually happy.  I stared at the moon with a grin on my face and slowly closed my eyes.