As It Is Written
The Beginning
When Annabelle walked into a room, everything brightened. People’s attitude always seemed an iota better than before. The lights seemed brighter, just because of one teenager’s presence. They loved her, without knowing a thing about her. No one knew why, and they didn’t stop to think about it as they followed her around like rock star groupies. They had only to think about it and the truth would unravel in an instant.
“Oh Annabelle, you’re so beautiful!”, “Oh Annabelle, you’re so good at that!” the other kids would say. She would only smile and move on. Crowds of minors would wait in the hall, outside her classroom, only to get a peek at her white blond hair. Whenever she would walk down the corridors of her high school, people would part like the red sea. She was so perfect; no one could go a second without mentioning her name.
“Oh did you hear about what Annabelle said about that movie?”, “Oh, did you hear what Annabelle did this weekend?” The talk of the town. The belle of the ball. That’s why no one expected what would happen when the new girl came to town.
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April 13, 1987 had started off as any other day. The sun shone through the windows of the little houses, the dew on the grass glistened like the sea after a storm. Birds sang their good morning tunes and coffee pots beeped in the silence. The people of Durham, New York felt their usual when they set off to work or play. The Monday morning grogginess weighed the kids down as they walked through the doors and into their first classes of the day. Annabelle sat in her usual seat and people scrambled to get to the chairs around her. Annabelle folded her hands on the desk as the teacher clambered in. His flustered eyes settled on Annabelle in the front row and a small smile crept across his lips.
“Okay class. Today we will be talking about religions of the past. Does anybody know any form of worship that has gone out of style?” He said above the whispering of the class. Only one hand went up.
“Yes, Annabelle.”
“A lot of people used to worship the Goddess Payda. The Babylonians would pay her tribute by sacrificing small children and commencing a village-wide orgy.” Annabelle replied, in her high, sweet voice. Some of the less intelligent kids at the edge of the room giggled at the mention of entire villages participating in group intercourse.
“Settle down. Yes, the Babylonians did worship in odd ways. But when Roman soldiers invaded the Temple of Payda, trashing everything, the people were forced to worship the Roman Gods. Any mention of their false god would result in a long and excruciating torture.” The teacher paced the front of the room as he spoke and stopped in front of Annabelle. “Not many people know of the ancient Babylonian culture, where did you find out about them?”
“Oh, I was just browsing the library and found a book on the ancient world. It’s a subject that greatly sparks my interest.” She replied. The teacher began to speak but was interrupted when the principal walked in with a teenage girl in tow. Her face was obscured by her long blonde hair and her head was down, looking down at the purple shoes on her feet.
“Oh Annabelle, you’re so beautiful!”, “Oh Annabelle, you’re so good at that!” the other kids would say. She would only smile and move on. Crowds of minors would wait in the hall, outside her classroom, only to get a peek at her white blond hair. Whenever she would walk down the corridors of her high school, people would part like the red sea. She was so perfect; no one could go a second without mentioning her name.
“Oh did you hear about what Annabelle said about that movie?”, “Oh, did you hear what Annabelle did this weekend?” The talk of the town. The belle of the ball. That’s why no one expected what would happen when the new girl came to town.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
April 13, 1987 had started off as any other day. The sun shone through the windows of the little houses, the dew on the grass glistened like the sea after a storm. Birds sang their good morning tunes and coffee pots beeped in the silence. The people of Durham, New York felt their usual when they set off to work or play. The Monday morning grogginess weighed the kids down as they walked through the doors and into their first classes of the day. Annabelle sat in her usual seat and people scrambled to get to the chairs around her. Annabelle folded her hands on the desk as the teacher clambered in. His flustered eyes settled on Annabelle in the front row and a small smile crept across his lips.
“Okay class. Today we will be talking about religions of the past. Does anybody know any form of worship that has gone out of style?” He said above the whispering of the class. Only one hand went up.
“Yes, Annabelle.”
“A lot of people used to worship the Goddess Payda. The Babylonians would pay her tribute by sacrificing small children and commencing a village-wide orgy.” Annabelle replied, in her high, sweet voice. Some of the less intelligent kids at the edge of the room giggled at the mention of entire villages participating in group intercourse.
“Settle down. Yes, the Babylonians did worship in odd ways. But when Roman soldiers invaded the Temple of Payda, trashing everything, the people were forced to worship the Roman Gods. Any mention of their false god would result in a long and excruciating torture.” The teacher paced the front of the room as he spoke and stopped in front of Annabelle. “Not many people know of the ancient Babylonian culture, where did you find out about them?”
“Oh, I was just browsing the library and found a book on the ancient world. It’s a subject that greatly sparks my interest.” She replied. The teacher began to speak but was interrupted when the principal walked in with a teenage girl in tow. Her face was obscured by her long blonde hair and her head was down, looking down at the purple shoes on her feet.
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This is a really, really short story. I had to write it for an English class and the teacher sucks and gave us a two thousand word limit, so I'm really sorry.