There once was a girl named Rachelle. She was in the front ensemble for her marching band. She loved playing the mallet instruments, and her absolute favorite was the vibraphone.
One day during band camp, the band members were disturbed to hear tornado sirens while they were marching the field. "TORNADO!!!!" yelled the loud guy of the band. Everyone immediately took off towards the school building nearby, screaming crazily as the wind picked up. Trumpets flailed their arms, flutes squealed, and drumliners puffed as they ran awkwardly inside. Pit members abandoned the large instruments to save themselves and ran inside, holding triangles, cymbals, shakers, etc.
The count of the students began as they huddled in the innermost room of the building. Drum major Todd Belington called out everyone's name in alphabetical order, feeling relieved as each of the band members responded. However, not everyone had made it back...
"Rachelle Shlerple... Rachelle?" Talking stopped as people looked around.
"Where is she??" fretted one of Rachelle's closest friends, Kandice Estert. "I need to go out and find her!" Kandice heroically stood up and swung open the room's doors.
"I'm coming too!"
"And me!" Two of her other close friends, Emily and Erisha stood up next to Kandice. Nodding to each other, they all ran out the door.
What they found when they got to the outside door and looked out astounded them. Rachelle was trying to pull the vibraphone inside to save it! However, the wind kept pushing her from side to side, forcing her to make very slow progress in her expedition to the door. Erisha pushed on the door to open it, but the wind was blowing at it fiercely, keeping it shut. Kandice and Emily joined in, but it was impossible. Rachelle was still rather far away; she was just now making it to the sidewalk leading to the door.
The girls on the inside watched helplessly and grew frantic as a funnel cloud began to form in the sky. They started to heave themselves at the door, desperately trying to save their friend's life. When they finally realized that they could do no more, they began to scream at Rachelle at the top of their lungs, hoping she would hear them.
"Ditch the vibes!"
"Run for your life!"
"Come on! Run faster!"
Their yelling was lost in the wind, however, for all Rachelle could hear was the continual gusts roaring past her ears. She turned the corner of the sidewalk to see her friends at the door, jumping and waving like maniacs. Gripping her vibraphone with strong hands, Rachelle squeezed her eyes shut and ran with all her might. She faintly heard voices yelling at her through the gales..
Erisha, Kandice, and Emily suddenly stopped screaming as they stared at the sky in horror. Backing down the hallway slowly, they were caught between saving Rachelle and saving themselves. A tornado was lowering itself to the ground, right on the football field they'd been on only 15 minutes before. Kandice whimpered. Emily froze, eyes wide. Erisha gasped and held her breath.
Rachelle felt almost triumphant, as she was nearing the door. Her friends weren't jumping around anymore. Maybe that was a good thing. She smiled, but then the smile was torn off her face as her feet were carried away from beneath her. Clenching her jaw shut as tight as it could ever be, Rachelle held onto the vibes as her legs flailed towards the sky.
Emily, Erisha, and Kandice continued to back away in terror. Before they took off running, they saw what they feared: The vibraphone lifted up and was carried away into the tornado, taking Rachelle with it. The three girls wailed and ran as fast as they could back to the safe room. No other band kids were lost in the storm that day, luckily, and Rachelle was remembered forever.
THE END.
~Remica
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