Chapter 28

A Thousand Stolen Words

“I got an A+ on my Literature essay!” Olivia bragged.

“That’s fantastic Olivia!” Dad said, high-fiving Olivia.

“We’re so proud of you,” Mom added.

“Yeah, you did good,” Jimmy said, hiding in a corner.

I shrugged. Olivia probably cheated on that. Then, the realization hit me. Olivia couldn’t have possibly cheated. It was an essay! If she copied another student’s essay, the teacher would have caught her. So then how did she get the A? I was suspicious already.

“What was the essay on?” I asked.

“One thousand words on an event that changed your life.”

“Should I ask to see her essay?” I whispered to the Magic 8 Ball.

Yes definitely.

“Hey Olivia, can I see your essay?” I asked.

“I guess so,” Olivia said reluctantly, handing me a piece of paper. It read:

An Event That Changed My Life

By Olivia Prescott

The one event that defined the rest of my life happened on Sunday May 15, 2005 and it was the last night I got to spend with my grandfather, who I was very close with. He passed away at 4:29 the next morning. I didn’t know it at the time, but my grandfather, who I called Papa, was suffering from lymphoma. That night had a lasting effect on me in several ways, including helping me understand that everything is temporary, causing me to become more obsessive about certain things, and helping me develop new interests. I miss Papa a lot, but his death and the aftermath of it had a huge effect on me.

We were visiting Papa that day. Nana and Papa owned a rather large house across town and it was Papa’s birthday, so we wanted to stop by and wish him a happy birthday. It was my birthday too, so I got a balloon at the Chinese restaurant we went to. We wanted to bring food, and Chinese was Papa’s favorite. I clearly remember being told to be quiet when we got there, but I didn’t listen. As soon as we entered the house, I starting shouting. This awoke Papa, who then asked my sister to turn on The Playlist, which was a combination of classical, smooth jazz, classic rock, 80s music, pop-punk, alternative, and Michael Bublé Christmas songs. Papa had strange music taste, but I acquired my love for classic rock, especially The Beatles and Pink Floyd, and bands like Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco from him. After we turned on some music, Papa and I played a game of chess. At the time, I wasn’t very good and needed practice, so Papa easily got me into checkmate. Still, I had taken far more of his pieces in this game than I did in the previous game. Papa was proud of me too and acknowledged that I was improving. I clearly remember Papa saying "You know, it will be sad, sad day in the Wright household when you finally beat me at chess." That day never came. I never did beat Papa at chess, even though I tried over and over again. After we played chess, we ate delicious Chinese food and we passed out presents. My favorite present was Papa’s. He gave me a Magic 8 Ball and a bishop keychain. I played with the Magic 8 Ball for the rest of the night. Once all the presents were passed out, we returned home. It was late and my two siblings and I needed to go to bed. The last song that played was “Welcome To The Black Parade” by My Chemical Romance. I would only realize the irony of the song playing much later. It never occurred to me then that when I woke up the next morning, Papa might be gone.

The next morning, Mom broke the news. Papa had passed away. Mom started crying and we all leaned up against her so we could cry together. We were curled up like that for a long time. But I knew nobody missed Papa like I did. I bawled my eyes out and wouldn’t talk to anyone for days afterwards. I was sad and confused and didn’t know what to do. Around that time, I came to realize that nothing lasts forever. Everyone and everything I knew and loved would be gone someday, and I had to learn to accept it. Someday I would be gone too, so I needed to make the most of the time I had. This realization helped me stop grieving so much and to move on. I was still sad, but I started to live my life again.

One of my main obstacles in living my life to the fullest was my tendency to live in the past. I was very attached to Papa and it was hard to let go. A few days after Papa died, I lost the bishop keychain. I was furious. I liked to imagine Papa was up there in heaven looking down on me, and I was sure he would be mad. So I started using the Magic 8 Ball Papa gave me to make some of my decisions. The Magic 8 Ball became my obsession because it was my only way to communicate with Papa. Whenever the Magic 8 Ball gave me an answer, I felt like it was Papa giving me that answer. I connected with Papa in other ways, but the Magic 8 Ball was one of the biggest effects he had on me. To this day, I use it to make a lot of my decisions. It’s a pain sometimes, but it helps me connect to Papa. I’ve often considered getting rid of it, but it’s difficult to move on sometimes.

Another effect that night had on me was that it helped shape my interests. Ever since that night, I have loved some of the same music Papa did. For example, one of Papa’s favorite bands was The Beatles. I listened to all of their music and now they are my favorite band too. I even have large chunks of Papa’s playlist on my iPod. Chess is another interest that I have because of Papa. After Papa died, I joined a local chess club and improved my game a lot. Chess has since become one of my favorite games. I still enjoy a good game of chess, I also bought a new keychain, which is on my backpack, but it’s not the same.

In conclusion, the one event that changed my life was the night before my grandfather passed away. It changed me because it caused me to learn that nothing lasts forever, to use the Magic 8 Ball he gave me to make decisions, and to learn about some of the same things Papa liked. Although I had difficulties accepting it at first, Papa’s death had a huge impact on me.

The essay was mine. Olivia had cheated by stealing my essay from 7th grade, which I only got a B on because it was “too morbid.” Did Olivia even understand how much that essay meant to me? I ran into my room, closed the door, and ripped the paper in half. A copy, that was all this was. A thousand stolen words. A thousand of my stolen words. And I was going to get my revenge on the thief.

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A/N: How'd you like this chapter? Comment if you HATE Olivia now!

Just letting you know I won't be able to update for 2-3 weeks since I'm going to be out of town. :( 

Thank you especially to groovygoat and Beautiful_Special21. I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW MANY COMMENTS AND VOTES THIS STORY HAS!!!