Short story #1

I thought some off my english assignments deserved to be displayed.










Up and down the street is an air of celebration. The sun has just set and it is New Years Eve in the busy downtown core of Puerto Vallarta. Palm trees line the wide brick walk at the side of the one-way cobblestone main street. The brick walk overlooks a short sandy beach dotted with sharp rocks and strewn with beautiful sand sculptures of Santa Claus and mermaids. The trees are adorned with festive white Christmas lights twirled around the slender trunks. Cars, trucks, taxis, and even ATVs rush down the cobble road in large numbers, full of people and playing loud music. At street level there are people all over the sidewalks, tourists and Mexicans alike. There are small souvenir shops and tequila shops, crowded bars and big booming night clubs all the way up and down the bustling Malecon strip. In the main square a huge stage with strobe lights and big refrigerator sized amplifiers is set up, a band just arriving to start the festivities. One club is blasting Lady Gaga, another Usher and from a third club further down the street LMFAO is heard screaming “Shots! Shots! Shots!” There is the faint smell of frying pub food, tequila and stale beer, mixed with the musty smell of West Coast Mexico.

Adam and Julie surveyed the pandemonium as the street was shut off to vehicle traffic when the band started to play. They had lain by the pool for the past week at the hotel and had decided that it was time to get out and see Puerto Vallarta. They took a cab to the north end of the Malecon, with the plan to work their way down to the south end. They ended up stopping for drinks less than halfway down the strip in an empty bar that had quickly filled up after the sun set.

The bar itself was a pretty neat little place, with a bar at one end and tables on the balcony looking out onto the street and the ocean; a small dance floor in between. The bar was now busy with people ordering drinks and the dance floor filled with people, socializing, drinking and carrying on. The tables on the balcony were now full and there were people waiting to get a table. “Do you want to go down to see the band?” Julie questioned Adam, who was busily cracking ice cubes from his vodka-soda between his teeth and watching people jumping up and down to the loud Spanish rock music blaring from the stage. “Huh? What was that?” Adam asked, his mind finally coming back down to earth. “I asked if you wanted to go down to the street and walk around. And stop biting your ice! It’s annoying!” Julie repeated, wondering just what Adam had been thinking about in his zoned-out state. “Sorry, I was thinking!”

She was getting frustrated with Adam’s distanced behavior today, and wanted to get out and see the rest of the city. He had been like this all day, since the moment they got up. She was worried that he was having second thoughts about their relationship, that this trip wasn’t a getaway for the two of them as they had thought it would be; that it was just tearing them apart by spending so much time together.

“Julie? Julieeeeee, earth to Jules!” Julie came back from her thoughts as Adam waved his hand in front of her face, finally pulling her out of her little misery session. “What’s wrong? Is there something bothering you? I mean, besides my ice-biting skills.” Adam joked, in an attempt to cheer Julie up.

“We’re going for a walk.” Julie demanded, getting up from her chair, to make sure Adam would go and not order another drink. “I just said that.” Adam replied, confused; as he flagged the waiter for their bill. Adam paid the waiter and they went down the stairs into the bedlam of the streets. Adam hooked Julie’s arm in his, so they would not be separated in the crowds. His other hand went into his pocket and fiddled around for a minute. Julie noticed, and gave Adam a questioning look. “What? I’m just making sure my wallet is still there.” Adam defended himself, and then quickly asked “Hey, what time is it?””I don’t know, it can’t be long--“

Julie was cut off by a loud explosion outside a tequila shop across the road. Pieces of rock and shards of glass were flying everywhere. Adam pulled Julie down the stairs onto the beach and threw his body on top of Julie to protect her from the flying debris that was whipping over the retaining wall.

“Stay down!” he warned Julie, as the debris stopped flying. “No, let’s get out of here! Now!” Julie argued. “Okay, let’s go.” Adam said and started to stand up, when gunshots rang out from the street above. Terrified, Julie clung to Adam and pulled him down again. Another explosion went off, this time it was bigger and ground-shaking. Julie and Adam instinctively pressed themselves against the wall to avoid being hit by more lethal debris. The explosions continued, and Adam dug deep into his pocket while sheltering Julie with his other arm. He withdrew his arm from around Julie’s shoulders and took her left hand in his right and slid a sparkling white-gold ring with a large diamond implanted in it onto her index finger. Julie lifted her tearstained face to look up at Adam.

“I want you to know all I want is to spend the rest of my life with you. No matter how soon it ends, or how long it lasts.” He pulled her close and held on tight as the explosions continued.