Creative Writing: Elian Dump It Out

The grey sky offered little light, Elian struggled to see in the dim evening as he cranked the water shaft. Brackish liquid trickled onto his hands. Scrubbing them together, he tried ridding them of all traces of the deep red stain. It clung stubbornly under his nails. Shivering in his thin shirt and wet hair, Elian moved the metal pail next to him under the stream and hurried with his task. The faster he got the night's water home, the better.

Giving the handle one last pump, he stood. He'd been there too long, anyone who saw him would be suspicious.

'I can't get caught again.' In his haste, he missed the fall of feet coming toward him.

The footsteps stopped behind him. Picking up his bucket and turning around, he ran smack into an armored chest. Oomph! He groaned. The …show more content…
And each time, Pete would point somewhere and say, "You missed a spot." He would make Elian dump it out and start over, taunting him the whole time. This went on for an hour.

Just when Elian thought he couldn't take it anymore; when he thought he would snap; when the stinging behind his eyes nearly blinded him; when he would have done anything to stop the insults being hurled at him, Pete grunted, "Go home, Dirt, before I write you up for failure to complete a task." He dismissed him, giving Elian one last shove on his way up the road. Opposite the way, Elian was to go.

For a long time, Elian didn't move.

When he did, the clouds had dissipated, and the moon shone through. It illuminated the water-filled potholes, casting an eerie light on the road.

Reaching up to wipe his face, he saw the red that still clung to the edges and undersides of his fingernails. 'At least Pete didn't notice that,' he thought, thankfully. Elian stooped, picked his bucket and started toward home.

The streets were all dark by the time he arrived at his front door. Elian opened it slowly, praying that it wouldn't creak.

It did.

He