The Big Top Fail

Milo was zipped across the barn like a flying bullet. Milo yelped in pain. Peter ran over to him and put him in his backpack. He was ready for the big fight.

 

Three days earlier

It was a bright and sunny day.  Peter was in his room playing with Legos. He was building a tiger. Peter loved tigers. He craved anything that had to do with tigers. In fact, he wanted a real tiger as his own.

“Mom! Can we go to the zoo and see the tigers? I want to see if the baby tiger was born,”Peter said.

“We went yesterday!”she said.

“I know. I just want to see them again,”Peter exclaimed.

“Ok. We can go 1 more time,” she sighed.

Ten minutes later they were at the zoo. It smelled like popcorn and hotdogs. They walked to the tigers exhibit.  There were people in the exhibit kneeling by the tiger.  The tiger was lying on the floor.

“What are they doing to the tiger!” Peter screamed.

“Excuse me sir!” Peter’s mom said to one of the workers.

“Yes,” said the worker.

“Do you know what they are doing?” she asked.

“Oh yes.  The tiger is really sick,” he said.

“Oh that’s too bad,”Peter’s mom said.

A little baby tiger trotted in from the outside part of the exhibit.

“What is that baby tiger doing in the exhibit?” Peter asked.

“You didn’t hear!?”the worker questioned.

“No! We didn’t hear anything,”Peter’s mom said.

“The baby tiger was born!”he said.

Peter’s mouth dropped.

“So you are saying that the baby tiger was born, and now the mom is sick?”Peter asked.

“Ya.  She is really sick,”the worker said.

“Well, gotta go,”the worker said leaving.

When peter got home, he started playing with his stuffed animal tiger.  The tiger’s name was Joe. He had bright green eyes and one ear was shorter that the other.

“Joe, do you think the tiger at the zoo will die?”Peter asked.

“Peter time to eat supper!”Peter’s mother called to him.

“Coming mom!”Peter yelled back to his mom. Peter walked slowly down the stairs and into the dining room.

“Mom, do you think that the tiger will die?” Peter asked his mom.

“I don’t know, but I guess she could,” Peter’s mom said sighing.

“If the mom dies then the baby will not have a mom,”Peter said.

“We just have to hope she makes it,” Peter’s mom said. Peter sighed and walked slowly up to his room.

 

The next morning Peter woke up and walked downstairs to the table.  His mom was waiting at the table for him.

“What do you want for breakfast?”she asked.

“I’ll take an egg and chocolate milk,”Peter said. Peter’s mom walked over and got a egg out of the fridge.

“Peter?”Peter’s mom said.

“Yes,”Peter said.

Peter’s mom sighed.

“I need to tell you something… The tiger at the zoo passed away last night at 9,” she said.

Peter stopped eating.

“Why!?”Peter asked surprised.

“She had a disease and it turned out to be a really bad one,”Peter’s mom exclaimed.

“What kind of disease was it?” Peter asked sniffling.

“They don’t know yet,”Peter’s mom said.

“Ok I guess I should get ready for school,”Peter whined.

“Ya, you don’t want to be late,” Peter’s mom said calling after him.

Once Peter got home from school he asked his mom if he could go to the zoo. She said yes and they hopped in the car and drove off.

They parked their car in the parking lot and walked to the front gate to pay.

“Mom can we go see the baby tiger?”Peter asked.

“If it will cheer you up, then I guess so,”Peter’s mom said.

“Ok,”Peter said.

They started walking to the tiger exhibit.

Once they got there, everyone there was screaming and running in circles.

“What’s going on!?”Peter’s mom yelled.

“The baby tiger went missing!”a person yelled out of the crowd of spooked buffalo.

Peter saw a guy sneak around the corner with a large bag. Peter thought that he should run after him, but he didn’t. Instead he went over to the tiger exhibit to see if the baby tiger was really gone.  And sure enough he was. Peter walked over to his mother and said, “Can we go home?”

“Ya lets go home,”Peter’s mom motioned to the door.

Once they got home, it was 9:00 PM Peter ate supper and walked to his room.

“Good night mom,”Peter whispered.

“Good night,”Peter’s mom responded.

Once Peter heard the door click closed, he quickly hopped out of bed, opened his window, and got onto the closest tree possible.

“I will find the tiger. I will find the tiger,”Peter told himself over and over again. He crossed the street and took a left, then a right, then a left again until he got to the scary creaky gates of the zoo. He tugged at the gates… they were locked. But that didn’t stop him.  He climbed up the brick wall next to the gate and made it over the first time. He went over to the tiger exhibit and into the enclosure. There was a piece of paper laying in the middle of the enclosure. Peter walked slowly to the note. He picked it up, and read it.

It read:

Hello! My name is Zack. if you were wondering i did take the tiger. i have Milo with me and i will train him and he will be forced to go into the circus. i am at the top of the huge hill and in a small red barn.And whatever you do don’t i mean don’t call the police. Don’t tell anyone.

signed,

Zack

Peter was shocked. All he could think of was the note. Then he thought that if his mom would wake up and find out he wasn’t there she would be as mad as fire. Peter checked his watch and it was 6:30 am. Peter knew his mom would wake up at 7 and it took about 25 minutes to get home. He started to run as fast as he could to get home.

Peter ran through the front door of his apartment. His mom was standing right inside the door with her arms crossed.

“What were you doing!”she scolded.

“I..I..I was just taking the dog out,”Peter lied.

“Peter are you crazy! We don’t have a dog!”she yelled.

“Now go get ready for school or you’ll be late! Now go!”she motioned to his room.

“Fine!”Peter yelled. He was so mad he didn’t want to say anything else besides “fine”.

He stomped up to his room and slammed his door.

“Hi Joe!”Peter said. He had forgotten all about Joe.

“Joe what should I do?”Peter asked.

Then peter thought of Milo.

“Joe! I’m going to tell mom I’m going to walk to school, then I will go find Milo instead!”Peter explained.

Peter grabbed his backpack, put a blanket (just in case to spend the night), a flashlight (for when it gets dark out), a leash (for when he gets Milo), a first aid kit (just in case), a small buildable tent (for Milo if they spend the night somewhere), Joe (for Peter), a sack of turkey (to feed Milo), and five ham sandwiches (if he gets hungry) in the backpack.

Peter said goodbye to his mom and left for the big adventure.

Peter knew where the big hill was. All he had to do was get there. He started walking down the huge long gravel road. Peter thought to himself if he should turn back and go home. Then he thought of how much he loved tigers, how the tiger died, and what would happen to the baby tiger. This made him have confidence. He started running as fast as he could down the road with a smile on his face.

He stopped when he saw the big hill up ahead. He grabbed one of the sandwiches and scarfed it down.  It was starting to get dark out. Peter grabbed his flashlight and turned it to dim. Peter had a funny feeling every time he looked up at the tiny barn on the hill. Peter heard a small cry of terror. Peter was scared. He knew that his mom would have found out that he was gone by now. Peter started walking faster. He was now about 100 yards away from the terror coming from the barn. Peter felt worry filling up inside him.

As he reached the barn, he quickly slid through the crack in between the two barn doors.

“Milo!”Peter screamed at the top of his lungs.

“I can’t believe that I found you!”Peter said hugging Milo.

“Hey!”yelled a voice. “That’s my tiger!”

Peter quickly spun around to see a big tall bald man.

“Your, your, your, Zack!”Peter yelled trembling.

“Ya how’d ya know?”Zack said unexpected.

“Your note,”Peter said confused.

“Oh ya. Forgot bout’ that,”Zack said moving a stack of hay. “Why are you here anyway?”Zack glared at him.

“I was here to get Milo,”Peter said.

“Oh this guy?”Zack grabbed Milo with one hand and threw him to the other side of the barn. Milo screamed in pain.

“Leave him alone!”Peter screamed at Zack. “He’s not doing anything to you. Why are you being mean to him!?”

Peter went over to Milo, picked him up, and put him in his backpack. He zipped it closed. Peter jumped for the window above him. He caught hold of the window sill, pulled himself up, and threw his feet up on a pile of hay bales. That’s when he found a small opening in the hay bales. He quickly tried opening the window. It was locked Zack started reaching for Peter. Peter quickly unzipped his backpack and slipped Milo in the tiny opening of the hay bale. He frantically zipped up his backpack. Zack grabbed Peter and threw him down on the ground. Zack grabbed the back of Peter’s shirt and slowly lifted him into the air. Zack turned him around and slowly unzipped his backpack. “You really thought that you could get away with this?”Zack stated. Zack ripped the backpack open. “What where is he!?”Zack gasped. “You don’t need to know,”Peter grabbed his flashlight out of his bag and chucked it at the window. The window shattered into a million pieces. The glass stung Peter in the face as he grabbed his backpack and climbed up the hay bales. He grabbed Milo and jumped out the window. The second Peter’s feet touched the ground, he sprinted for the closest tree possible. Peter saw Zack running out of the barn. Zack did a 90* spin, the started running the complete opposite way the where Zack was.

Ten minutes later Zack had still not returned. Peter slowly went over to the barn. He crept into the barn and went over to the hay bale. Peter started arranging the hay bales into a square shaped house. Peter slid Milo into the tiny hole that went into the hay bale house. After Milo was in the house, Peter army crawled into the house. Peter took a hay bale that he had put in the house, and slid it in the place of the hole. Peter got out the tiny tent and set it up. He got out the turkey and ham sandwich. He put the turkey in the tiny tent and Milo chased after it. Milo ate the turkey in a blink of an eye. Peter grabbed a sandwich and snarfed it down. Peter heard voices in the distance. He quickly grabbed Milo and held his mouth shut. Peter went over to the most hidden corner. Then Peter realized a small hole in the barn just big enough to squeeze through. He first listened to what the people were saying.

“Ok now where is he?!”Said the voice.

“Um…Um… he’s gone. A kid took him.”

“I need him by 12:00AM tomorrow or you’re fired!”Peter was amazed from what he heard.

“Ok,”the other guy said. Peter could guess that he was crying.

Peter heard the barn door slam closed then a car drive away. There was still someone in the barn. Peter could sense it. The person started shoveling through the hay bales. Peter was in a tandrom. He grabbed Milo and started darting toward the hole in the barn.

“Hey wait! I was just trying to help! Don’t go!”Said a voice. Peter spun around to see a little boy probably 5 or 6 years old.

“Why are you here?”Peter asked.

“I want to help you,”said the kid.

“How old are you kid?”Peter asked him.

“My name is Corley not kid, and I am 5 and a half years old,”said Corley.

“Ok so how did you know that I was here?”Peter asked Corley.

“I heard the window break,”said Corley.

“Ok come on let’s get out of here,”Peter said.

Corley chased after Peter as he walked out the door.

They walked to the forest next to the barn and got settled under the tree. They got out two ham sandwiches and gobbled them up. Peter gave Milo some turkey and soon after that Milo was fast asleep.

“So you like tigers?”Corley asked.

“Ya, I love tigers. I try to go to the zoo at least once a week,”Peter over explained.

“Ya my dad works in the tiger exhibit at the zoo,”Corley explained to Peter.

“That’s cool,”Peter grinned.

“We can go to my house,”Corley said.

“No!”Peter blurted out. “I can’t get in trouble. I just want to return Milo, then I will be a hero, and no one will be mad at me,”Peter told Corley.

“Ok then you can just stay in my treehouse while I tell my parents that I didn’t find anything,”Corley said to peter. “Then I will just tell them that I want to eat extra. Is that ok with you?”Corley asked.

“Ok. Only if we leave straight in the morning,”Peter said.

“Ok let’s go then. Let’s hurry before my parents start to get worried,”Corley said walking toward his house. Peter picked up Milo, careful not to wake him, and put him in his backpack. Peter followed Corley as he started walking to his house.

Peter stopped at the edge of the tree.

“I will bring you some dinner,”Corley explained.

“Ok,”Peter agreed. Peter climbed up to the treehouse. The second he opened up the door his mouth dropped. He was amazed from what he saw. There was a TV, a kitchen, two bedrooms, a nacho machine, a popcorn machine, a couch, and a soda machine.

“This is amazing!”Peter screamed. He carefully pulled Milo out of his bag, he was still sleeping. He put him in one of the beds and pulled the blankets up on him. Peter went out into the “living room” and plopped on the couch. He switched on the TV and pulled the blankets up on him. He was half asleep when he heard a knock on the door. Peter opened the door to see Corley balancing a paper plate on his hand.

“Let me in! I’m going to drop your food!”

“Oh ya sorry,”Peter said stepping back. Corley went over and put the plate on the “kitchen” counter.

“Cool treehouse,”Peter told Corley.

“Ya it’s pretty cool,”Corley said.

“Well gotta go before my parents come up here. Need any thing?”Corley asked.

“No, I’m good. You don’t have any popcorn, do you?”Peter asked.

“Oh ya. It’s on the counter,”Corley said. Corey walked out the door and ran to his house. Peter went into the bedroom where Milo was sleeping. Milo was awake and he was looking at Peter.

“Do you want some popcorn Milo,”Peter asked. Milo jumped of the bed and ran into the living room. He jumped up on the couch and continued watching whatever Peter was watching. Peter went over to the popcorn machine and made a batch. He went over and laid down by Milo. Soon they were both fast asleep.

Peter woke up to pounding on the door.

“Let me in! Let me in! Let me in!”Corley screamed.

“Ok. Ok,”Peter opened the door and Corley came flying in.

“Sorry. We have to go now. I promised my parents that I would be back in thirty minutes, and it’s already been ten minutes!”Corley said. “Pack your bag now, we need to go!”Corley screamed.

Peter ran and grabbed his bag. He grabbed Milo on his way out. They climbed down the ladder and started running as fast as their legs would carry them. They ran into the tiger exhibit. Peter set Milo down in the exhibit.

“I’m going to miss you big guy,”Peter said giving Milo a hug.

“Hey want are you kids doing here!?”Peter turned around to see a man standing in the doorway of the exhibit.

“Oh hi dad! We were just petting the tiger,”Corley said.

“No!”Peter was now going to tell the truth. He would be grounded for months.

“That’s not true. I went to rescue the tiger, and when I was in a barn I met Corley,”Peter exclaimed.

“How do we know that you didn’t steal the tiger?”Corley’s dad asked.

“I promised I didn’t,”Peter said.

“I have a video!”Corley said running to his dad. “I couldn’t catch up to him,”Corley pushed play on the screen. The video showed Zack taking Milo out of a bag, and throwing him into the barn.

Corley’s dad’s mouth dropped.

“That guy has been stealing animals from our zoo for years! We have been looking for him forever! You have found the criminal! I have to go tell Boss!”Corley’s dad darted out the door. He came back with Boss.

“You’re coming with us,”Boss said.

Peter walked up to the barn and showed Boss. Boss called the police and soon they arrived. They arrested Zack and came to talk to Peter.

“Thank you for everything,”said the officer. You shall take the prize.

“What prize?”Peter asked.

“The million dollar prize!”said the officer.

“Are you messing with me?”Peter asked.

“No!”said the officer pulling a big check out of the back of his car. Peter could not say a word when the officer handed him the check.

“Thank you so much!”Peter screamed.

“And we have another surprise for you,”Corley’s dad handed Milo to him.

“He is now yours,”Corley’s dad said. Peter was so happy that he thought he would explode.

“Thank you so much,”Peter ran over to Corley’s dad and gave him the biggest hug in his whole life.

“Can I come stay in your treehouse tonight?”Corley asked Peter. Peter was on his new deck of his mansion stroking Milo’s head.

“Ya anytime!”