The Terror of These Halls

A poem I wrote after a few tragic events, namely two deaths in my school, and the Stoneman Douglas shooting

The Terror of These Halls

Sneakered footsteps on the concrete echo from the walls.

The newest student does not know the terror of these halls.

No one can tell him what the upcoming days would hold.

No eerie shadow whispers, not a single event foretold.

Days filled with sun and free of cloud leave a mood serene.

Directors Rain and Thunder cue the actor for his next scene.

The brake falls but not the needle, squeak, squeal, scream.

Crushed crashed car, “Call 911! We need a medical team.”

The shadow grows, covering campus. Somberness awakes.

One number has been called in fate’s cruel sweepstakes.

Students learn of their missing member on a day brand new.

The newest of them has to ask a single question, “Who?”

Valentines in the next semester is the day for love and learning,

But one student arrives that day with darker passions burning.

“Florida is a state commonly known for reporting wilder stories

But the subject of tonight’s coverage is decidedly more gorey.“

The shadow spreads, silently stalking a set of fate-sealed students.

Really the only safe ones are the insouciant truants.

An angered mind pinpoints an alarm and sets its warning free,

And with this action so begins the loveless murder spree.

Bang. One. Bang. Two. Bang. Three. Bang. Four

Bang. Five. Bang. Six. Bang. Seven. Bang. More...

Seventeen victims total- eight women and nine men.

Glimpsing the story the newest student quietly responds,“Again?”

One more victim is in the sights of the shadow and the gun.

The darkest demon’s destination is the place where this has begun.

A lonely student holds his end , staring down the barrel.

Friends and family honor him by choosing red apparel.

Sneakered footsteps on the concrete echo from the walls.

The newest student does not know the terror of these halls .