A short scary story

Scary Story: Matthew and the Christmas Bear

Matt guided his 'cruiser' bike through an easy turn on his way home. So far, it had been a pretty good day for ten-year-old Matthew. He had gotten an 85 on a science test he hadn't studied for, no one had teased him about his dribbling skills in gym class, and the crumbs from the cupcake from the class holiday party were still on his lips. He had candy left over from the party in his backpack and all of the artwork he had done over the past semester. Plus, his role in the class pageant for the school hadn't been too embarrassing, relatively speaking. He was looking forward to a nice, long homework-free afternoon playing video games or maybe riding bikes with his neighborhood friends. This is why I love winter holidays most of all, he thought: 'see you next year,' he thought in his mind, to all of the kids who called him a wimp and a dork at school.

Then he heard the barking. Mrs. Schwartz's Pekinese must be really mad about something, he thought -- what else is new? The mailman must be coming late. Then Mat saw the bear. The large, lumbering creature lurched across the green, carefully manicured lawns. Vaguely, Matt remembered hearing something about how members of the local bear population in the nearby woods had come looking in some people's garbage cans, searching for food before they hibernated for the winter. But he had never seen one himself. Some police cars were parked with flashing sirens nearby, and a large truck was there with the words 'Animal Control' on the side. The ranger lifted his stun gun, but missed. "Get out of the way, son," he said. "Didn't you hear there was a bear loose?" The street was deserted except for the bear, the ranger, the police cars, and Matthew on his bike. How could he have heard, when he was at school all day? Everyone else was still at work, or cowering at the window, watching the scene unfold like Mrs. Schwartz and her dog.

Another stun dart whizzed by the bear. "He's moving too fast," said the ranger. Heck, thought Matt, he's moving straight towards me. Calm, calm, he told himself. He stood still, trying to remember what they had told him in scouts about being attacked by a bear. He couldn't remember if he should run or not. Or go up a tree? He looked around him. All of the trees in the suburban community weren't scalable. They were carefully manicured ornamental evergreens or fragile birch trees that provided no protection.

He's heading right at me, thought Matt. Why? it's not like he's got cubs and I'm menacing them, thinking of the few reasons that bears attack humans. The only other reason is food.

The candy in my backpack, realized Matt. That's why. He considered dropping the backpack and running, in case the bear could smell the food, but then he had a better idea. Whomp! He threw a Reeces Peanut butter cup wrapped in red foil down on the ground. The bear, sniffing, moved towards the candy. Matt moved towards the ranger's big truck. Everyone stopped moving, except for the barking of the Peke, no one breathed. Carefully dismounting from his bike, backpack open, Matt threw a candy cane as he stood just at the edge of the ramp of the truck. Matt was poised between the truck and sidewalk, ready to make a break for it. Then he tossed a packet of gummi bears into the truck over his shoulder. If Matt went in the truck he would be cornered, but also -- soon would the bear. Should he go into the truck and throw down more candy, and try to lure the bear inside?

Matt didn't have to make that choice. As the bear chewed at the cellophane wrapper of the candy cane, the ranger raised his rifle and fired the stun dart. The bear moaned and began to lurch, and this time, Matt ran. He threw his leg over his bike and began to pedal, cursing his parents for not buying him a new one, with gears. If the bear had been at its full strength, it could have easily outrun and overpowered Matthew. However, soon it began to lurch and fall to the ground.