Cleopatra Salam, “Robbed By Stitches”

ROBBED BY S T I TC H ES

Cleopatra Salam

Cops and robbers wasn’t a game any more. All eyes were on me being carried on the stretcher. With Dolphie in hand, I carried it through. All the way to the emergency room. About eight stitches to my name, and until this day, I will not play that game. A sunny day over summer break, we all came out to play. Here they all come: Jeremy and Xavier, the curly headed twins; Brian, their half brother; Palima, the sweet but feisty girl; and her younger siblings Justin, the broad football player, and Penelope, the sensitive one, then the one who ruined the game, Ali, the eldest one. That’s all I know. There were also two other girls who looked like me that lived in Jeremy’s building, but I don’t know them. “Wanna play cops and robbers?” my brother shouted. All the boys shook their heads. That’s all the opinions my brother needed. The boys always overruled the girls. They choose what we do. The first cop was my brother, the fastest of the group. “1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . . 4 . . . 5 . . . 6 . . . 7 . . . 8 . . . 9 . . . 10, HANDS UP!” my brother shouted. All of us were hiding behind cars across the whole block. There he goes, zooming after Justin. They kept going around the red SUV until Jeremy tried to run past them and got caught. He was escorted behind the gate in front of my house. My brother closed the gate and sped past me to get Xavier, Brian, and Justin. I got lucky until he made Justin a cop. They made Ali a cop and left all the girls for last. Justin caught me trying to hide in the “junkyard” a few doors down from his home. He made me run to the gate. I was so tired, but the wind felt good blowing past my face. Palima and Penelope were left. Ali was keeping a

close eye on us robbers. I got curious and stood on the ledge leaning against the gate. I still couldn’t see them. I felt a tug on my legs. I was still on the ledge but further down than I was before. I looked around and everyone was in shock, but the two random girls were laughing. I looked down and a part of the skin of my stomach was attached to the gate. “UNIQUE!” I screamed. Everyone else came rushing down the block. Screams and questions overwhelmed my head. My brother tried to pick me up but I stopped him because it hurt. I saw Ali running back home. I lifted myself off the gate and lay on the cement floor. My brother picked me up and could only carry me mid-stairway to our home. “MOM!” he continuously yelled. “What,” she said. “CLEO!” He ran back to me. My mom followed after. “What happened!” “We’ll explain that later.” “Can you walk?” she asked. I shook my head no. “Let me go get my stuff and call the ambulance.” “Unique…” I said. “Yes?” “Am I going to die?” “No.” He ran back outside. The babysitter ran out of the house to the stairs. “He went back outside.” Our babysitter ran to go get him. My mom comes out while on the phone with the police. I guess my brother briefly told her what happened. “Can I get Dolphie?” I asked. She went back inside to get him. Dolphie was my favorite stuffed animal at that time. If you can guess, he was a dolphin. A few minutes later the police and an ambulance come in. “Do you want me to carry you or put you on a stretcher?” a male

medical person asked. “The stretcher please.” With Dolphie in my hand, I was carried out on the stretcher. The police asked my mom if she wanted to press charges on Ali. “No, it was a mistake,” she said. On my way to the emergency room, I couldn’t feel anything. As I was laying on the hospital bed the doctor told me to not complain. “A kid younger than you is getting stitches in their head. You’ll be fine.” He made me mad. Those eight stitches were painful. I was holding Dolphie so tight. Although he apologized, I still haven’t forgiven Ali. When the game cops and robbers is mentioned, I will always think back to this day.

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