Olivia and George came for dinner at Harold’s house bringing their pajamas and dinosaurs for the sleepover. After they ate, Grandpa joined them in Harold’s room, too. They first rearranged the room. Grandpa would sleep on the bed and the kids spread blankets and pillows on the floor. Then they played with their dinosaurs. Harold had his T-Rex. George played with his Velociraptor and Olivia brought her Stegosaurus. Grandpa sat on the floor and he had a small Army man.
“George, you are the bad guy and we are trying to capture you,” Olivia said.
“Why do I have to be the bad guy?” George asked.
“Because you have a raptor and they are the meanest,” Olivia explained.
“No they aren’t. T-Rex’s are the meanest,” George said back to Olivia.
“No, they aren’t,” Harold joined the discussion. “They are the king of dinosaurs and the king is always the good guy.”
“All right, all right,” Grandpa laughed at them. “I will be the bad guy and you have to find me. Turn around and I will hide my Army man and you three will have to work together to find me. Turn around now.”
The three children turned away from Grandpa who hid his Army man.
“Okay turn around and start looking,” Grandpa said.
“Roar,” said Harold growled. “Follow me, I am your King so follow me.”
“Lead on,” Olivia moved her stegosaurus to follow the tyrannosaurus rex.
George moved his velociraptor in another direction and growled back. “I think we should go this way.”
“George!” Harold raised his voice. “You are not playing right!”
“Now, now,” Grandpa interrupted from where he lay on his bed. “Let’s settle down and talk about getting along.”
The three children looked at him. Harold leaned against a wall near him and sighed.
“Are the three of you friends?” Harold’s grandpa asked them. They all nodded, yes.
“Good friends?” he asked. Again, the three children nodded, yes.
“Well, then, you need to show me,” he said and waited.
Harold crawled back to Olivia and George and said, “Sorry, guys. Let’s make a plan to find our enemy, G.I. Joe. He is hiding somewhere in our forest.”
“I think we could make more time if we split up to cover more ground,” George said.
“I think we should stay together so we can protect each other,” Harold said.
“I think we should hide and make a trap and have him try to find us,” Olivia said.
“Oooo!” George said. “I like Olivia’s idea.”
“Me, too,” Harold agreed.
“Now, that’s how friends play,” Grandpa smiled at the three of them.
They continued to play until Harold’s mom came in and told them it was time to go to bed. The three children spread out on the floor. George was under the window; Olivia was in the middle of the room and Harold was closest to the door. Grandpa covered each one with their own blanket and covered Harold last of all.
“Grandpa,” Harold said. “Thanks for playing with us.”
Grandpa looked down at his grandson and said, “You are very welcome, Harold.”
Grandpa turned off the light and closed the door, leaving it open just a crack and got into bed. Shortly afterward, the room was quiet with three sleeping children and one grandpa.
The next morning, Harold woke up first and he quietly left his bedroom. He tip-toed down the stairs and her went into the kitchen. The light coming in through the kitchen was different. It was kind of bright, but it wasn’t. He went to the cabinet below the sink, opened it, and took out a box of corn flakes and took it to the table. He then noticed how quiet it was in the house. There weren’t any sounds at all. He walked down the hallway toward the front door when a dark shadow crossed in front of the living room’s large picture window, and he froze in his tracks. Suddenly, a very loud roar shattered the silence of the house and he screamed. Harold turned around and raced back up the stairs to his parents’ room. He pushed the door open and it banged against the wall and he ran to their bed. He jumped up to wake them and…they were not there! Where did they go!
“Grandpa!” he yelled as he jumped off the bed and ran to his room. He pushed the bedroom door open only to find Olivia, George, and Grandpa still asleep in their beds.
“Guys!” Harold yelled from the top of his lungs and all three of them sat up and said, “What!”
“My parents are gone, and I heard a roar!”
“What?” Grandpa asked as he through off his blanket. He stood up in his bright blue pajamas and pushed on his slippers. He left the room in a hurry and Harold followed him. Olivia pulled on a bright pink robe over her pale green pajamas and her fluffy slippers. George pulled on his blue jeans and boots. Together, they raced to follow Harold and his Grandpa.
They find them in the kitchen where Grandpa was looking around and Harold was waiting near the kitchen table. They stopped by Harold and waited.
Grandpa turned, looked at them and said, “everything is fine. They must be getting eggs from the chickens. Harold get some shoes on then we will go outside and take a look around the house.”
Harold walked to the kitchen door where his boots stood waiting for him. He walked over to them and slipped them on.
“Okay,” Grandpa said. “Let’s get our coats on and go out the front door.”
The group turned and trudged down the hall toward the front door. All of their coats were hanging on hooks on the wall where Harold’s Mom hung them the night before. After they had pulled their coats over their pajamas, except for George who had put on his blue jeans, Harold opened the door.
As they walked out on the porch, they couldn’t see the barn or Olivia’s house or George’s house either because there were giant trees with giant leave all over the place.
“Wow,” George whispered.
“Where did those come from?” Olivia asked.
“Grandpa?” Harold asked.
“I don’t know,” Grandpa said as he shut the door.
When the door clicked shut, something weird happened. The four people tumbled to the ground and the porch and, the house it was attached to, disappeared. As they sat on the ground, they looked at each other.
“What happened?” Harold asked them.
“I don’t know,” Olivia answered him.
“I want to go home,” George said.
“Me, too!” Grandpa said.
All of a sudden, the ground began to shake and the huge tree around them began to sway. The four people jumped to their feet and huddled around each other.
“Get behind me!” Grandpa yelled and the children did as they were told.
The two huge trees in front of them were separated by, of all things, a tyrannosaurus rex! It stopped when it saw him and bent down for a closer look. The four people huddled closer together. The dinosaur raised his head and started to jump and down and clapped it little hands. The ground below them jumped up and down with each jump of the dinosaur.
Finally, the animal stopped and bent down toward them and this time it said, “Hello. I am so glad I found you guys!”
The four people were stunned with surprise as a T-Rex was talking.”
“You talk?” Harold asked the dinosaur.
“Of course I do, Harold” he replied and laughed aloud. And it was loud.
“You know me?” Harold asked.
“You are so funny, Harold. I know you and Olivia and George. I even know Grandpa, too!” the dinosaur answered Harold’s question.
“Who are you?” George asked bewildered.
“My name is T. R. – for Tyrannosaurus Rex,” T. R. answered George. “Steve will be so excited to see you guys and really surprised that I found you!”
“Who’s Steve?” Olivia asked.
To be continued…
My First Stories 