Welcome to the fourth week of the Spring Writing Challenge!
You all did so well with your stories last week! There were so many interesting and unique ways you interpreted the prompt. It’s now the fourth week, so it’s time to do it again! Will your story have an epic battle between good and evil? A long-lost evil brother? Whatever you decide, we can’t wait to see what you come up with.
So, without further ado, here’s your next prompt!
Week Four Prompt – The Theme Prompt
Write a story that’s about a
Bigfoot Reunion
Wait…what’s a theme prompt?
A theme prompt is a prompt that’s about a particular subject! It doesn’t matter where your story takes place, who’s in it, or what’s said. The only thing that matters is that your story must be about a Bigfoot Reunion.
Before you start writing, we have some important rules for you to follow.
Writing Rules
1. Please keep the content of the stories you post to a PG rating. Please avoid real curse words. Violence/fighting should be limited and purposeful. Please do not include any spice.
2. Your story must be 1,000 words or less, and must contain the prompt to be counted for the challenge. You’re not required to post it in order to “win” the challenge, but if you want it to count for your team, your story must be posted by Sunday at 11:59 PM ET, and you must include your team name.
Remember to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and post your story as an “answer” to this question, not a “comment”. 🙂 You’re all doing such a great job! I’m so proud of all the stories you’ve posted.
Happy Writing!
Team 1
We’re about an hour into our hunt for Bigfoot, and my cousin’s close to losing it.
“Why did I agree to this?” Jessica trudges a few feet behind me, soaked from her purple tee to her jean shorts to her brand new hiking boots. Her honey blonde hair, though as voluminous as ever, is cluttered with twigs and leaves. “I’ve fallen into a river, been chased by bees, nearly ran into a bear, and now we’re lost.”
“We’re not lost,” I assure her. “We’re only a few feet off the trail.”
“Remind me why I’m out here in the wilderness instead of at home working on my college capstone.”
“Because you need a break and I have a hunch.” We used to go on these trips all the time when we were kids. Unlike the rest of our family, she always indulged my fascination with the weird and mythical. It started out with looking for elves and fairies in my parents’ backyard, and in high school, we explored haunted towns and mystery spots. But ever since college, she’s lost her enthusiasm for it.
I get that college is important and all, and I’m aware that she was never quite as into it as I was. She came along on my investigations mostly for the snacks. The backpack slung over her shoulders is full of chips, trail mix, water bottles, lemonade, beef jerky, and even a package of Chips Ahoy. But she needs a distraction to keep her from obsessing over her GPA. No matter how much she complains about it, the fresh mountain air, smell of pines, and heat of the early summer sun will do her more good than a fuzzy laptop screen.
I actually haven’t told her that we’re looking for Bigfoot, though. I’m waiting until we’re far enough from the car so that she doesn’t turn around and drive off without me.
As we crest a hill, she huffs, “It’s another one of those urban legends, isn’t it?”
I suppose we’re far enough now. “Yes. Bigfoot.”
She stops. “Bigfoot?”
I can hear her temper fraying.
“I’m risking my college capstone on Bigfoot?”
“I’ve been researching it,” I explain. “There was one guy who saw him and said that ‘Bigfoot’ isn’t so much an individual name as it is a catchall term for creatures of similar legends. His theory is that they gather here in these woods once every twenty years. I don’t know how to explain it, but he seemed legit.”
Jessica stomps one of her boots. “I’m not flunking out of college so I can help you chase Bigfoot!”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes. “You will not flunk, and all that homework will make you go crazy.”
“You’re crazy!” she hisses.
Well, I can’t argue with that. “Come on. The sighting was farther up here somewhere.”
For a moment, she stalls. I know she’s thinking about returning to the car. But eventually, she sighs and follows. “Then I’m eating your package of Chips Ahoy.”
“Fair enough.” I get my phone and open the supernatural tracker app—I doubt it’s actually effective, but it doesn’t hurt to try. After I type in “Bigfoot,” a radar appears on the screen and begins searching.
For a little while, the app is silent, and it’s just us and the magnificent pines and snow-capped mountains in the distance. There’s so many plants out here—berries, brambles, thistles, young trees aspiring to grow as tall as the established pines and oaks.
“Uh-oh.”
I turn to see Jessica searching her pockets. “What?”
“My keys.” She swings her backpack around and starts digging inside. “Please don’t tell me I lost my keys. Do you have them?”
I check my cargo pants. “Nope.”
She runs her hands through her hair. “You don’t think I dropped them in the river, do you?”
A little dot appears on the edge of the radar, completely stealing my attention. “Jess, look at this.”
She turns tail and races to the bottom of the hill.
“Jess, wait!”
“Bigfoot can wait—my car keys cannot!”
To my disappointment, the dot disappears, so I hurry after her. We follow the trail back to the river. She wades in and starts searching. I join her. It’s cool and refreshing, but the keys are nowhere to be found.
Jessica digs her fingers into her hair. “Did I leave them in the car?”
Before I can reply, the dot reappears on the radar—much closer than last time. I analyze it and find that the dot is somewhere near the start of the trail. I dismiss the app as defective and pocket my phone. “Let’s head back. If the keys aren’t there, we’ll call my dad.”
Jessica nods, and we keep going. I don’t intend to check the app again, but after a while, my phone buzzes, so I do.
I blink. Now there’s another dot.
“What is that?” Jessica looks over my shoulder.
“My Bigfoot tracker app,” I tell her. “It’s saying there’s two of them.”
Jessica scoffs. “Must be broken.”
I don’t answer. The closer we get to the start, the more dots appear. Even after I refresh the app a few times, the dots remain.
As we near the end of the trail, the peace of nature is replaced with the revving of a motor. And otherworldly roaring. Jessica and I look at each other, then cautiously sneak up the path towards the parking lot. Now the noise is deafening. There’s a large boulder, which we climb and peer over.
Jessica’s jaw drops, and I follow her gaze with my phone’s camera.
There’s a whole group of hairy, ape-like creatures standing in a circle around the bright blue coupe. Smoke pours from the exhaust pipe as the driver—another Bigfoot with a wild smile—does donuts in the parking lot.
“Bigfoot stole my car,” Jessica whispers.
I know I’m supposed to be sympathetic, but I can’t stop grinning. “Told you it was legit.”
