Active Threat

It started out like any other Friday. I got on the bus and got to school. The only thing different about that day was I was staying after school to get homework help. I went about my day....Until 2:40. We had a firedrill. It was your regular scheduled fire drill. We walked outside into the field. Students were pissed and annoyed but we thought nothing of it. We went back into the school to collect our stuff and I went to a different classroom to work on my homework.

Then 3:50 rolled around. We hear the ding of the loudspeaker. What tipped us off that something was wrong was our principals voice. You could tell he was upset. His voice was shaking and he was stumbling over his words. "Student....we have an active threat in the building." is what he said.

We all stood there. All 40 of us in that school. Then chaos. Someone told us to run. So I did. I was running off of adrenalin and instinct alone. At some point, someone grabbed my wrist and I grabbed onto someone from behind me. We were scared but our goal was to get everyone out. We had to live so that we can see our families, our siblings, our pets...our friends whom at the time we didn't even know if they were still alive. Students were tripping, students were crying and screaming. Me and 20 others ran down the hall, out the building, and ran across the highway without looking. I could faintly hear the car horns blaring.

We ran into a random neighborhood and were screaming for help. We didn't know what else to do. We didn't know who was home. Someone came out of the house and ushered us in. All 20 of us. I was calling my friends first, to make sure they got out ok. Only one person answered. They were at the middle school down the road. They were safe. They left their phones behind. They were ok. I was so glad. I then called my parents who got a notice not to come to the school. We were all crying. Later when we went home and had to leave our stuff at school, that was when the police started investigating.

A student made a call to 911 and told no one in the school that they saw 2 girls in the bathroom with a gun talking about shooting up the school. The police showed up fully armed, looking like they were ready to shoot anything that moved. But no announcement because the school didn't know. I heard in the hall, a teacher calling another teacher asking if something was going on. Police were yelling at us to "move" and to "run" and to "keep running" and to "get out of the school." We all cleared out in 3 minutes. Now when I return to this school, I always look back and think what might have been. I keep picturing students who I know and don't know laying on the floor, bleeding. As I walk these halls, I am always looking for the quickest exit.

Author's Note

This is a true story that happened at my high school last friday. It was kind of hard to write about, so that's why it seemed rushed. But I figured people should know. No shots were fired, no body was hurt, but it was still scary because at the time we thought we were going to die. I was on the top floor of the school in the far corning. I fell down the stairs trying to get out. Someone helped me up and kind of dragged me to go faster, which was when I blindly reached behind me to grab another student. Even though nothing happened, it gave all of us a new look on what could happen. The thing is, that was the second threat that week. There was a post on social media of a kid saying he was bringing a loaded gun to homecoming. I'm scared of going to that school. I can still hear everyone crying, some were huddled together in the corner of a strangers house silently praying for everyone to be ok. Some were calling home and updating their family.

Reviews

[Paul Bell]

When the country is on high alert over gun crime, the simplest words must be taken serious. I don't know how many times some idiot on a plane declares he has a bomb, just for a laugh mind you. The courts now jail them, but it still happens.

[Faust]

I hear you. Like even though they are just words and even if it's a "joke" we have to take these things seriously