Okay...so I haven't written anything real (not counting the friendship story) in ages! (urgh...13 days, but still) Anyways, this was a story I wrote for my History class and I figured I'd share it with you guys!

P.S. I LOOOOVE Glee now :D any other Gleeks out there? LOL

LOLOL enjoy the story :)

Dear "Journal"…because Diaries are for girls,

Last week had to be the scariest time of my life. I don't think I've ever seen something as frightening as a factory with child labors. It's times like that when I feel so lucky to have rich parents. I can't even imagine what it'd be like to have to go there every day and work. There were kids...small children being chained to machines and whipped for not working fast enough. It was so dark and dingy. The walls were practically peeling apart; with paint chips crackling off the brick surface and big clumps of mold filling every single nook and cranny.

Seriously; please don't tell anyone this…but I…I sort of felt like crying. At the same time, I was intrigued by the whole scene. Part of me wanted to go back and spy on the kids again. I was curious to see what would happen next…but the other half of me said: "Stay away! Don't go back!" So that's what I did. I stayed in my house and continued on with my normal life, although I really do wish I could make a difference and do something huge. I want to help at least one person...no, scratch that; I NEED to help someone who's in danger. It's my mission.

-Kendall

The loud and irritating sound of a busy village woke me up that morning. I must've forgotten to shut my window before I had fallen asleep. I threw my feet over my bed and stood up making my way to the door. Without hesitation I turned the brass doorknob and headed for the kitchen. The cold wooden floorboards made my feet feel as if they were in snow…I really should have considered putting on my socks before going downstairs. I then remembered how Mum was always nagging me about walking around barefoot. For a moment I wanted to run back upstairs and put something over my feet; but I decided against it.

Once I was in the kitchen I spotted my family sitting at the table, well…most of my family. Daddy hadn't been in his usual seat, so I figured that he was still sleeping. It was a Saturday, so he couldn't be at work. Katie, my younger sister, sat on Mum's lap so I joined them in the dining area. I was expecting her to greet me, but instead she wore a nervous expression on her face.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

Mum sighed, "Daddy's been called into work for the weekend, Kendall."

"Why?!" I instantly spat back.

"Cholera has been spreading around the village, sweetie…he's a doctor, he needs to help with stuff like this."

"But I don't want him to get sick, Mum!" I cried.

"He won't…just relax." Mum assured, but I found it hard to believe her.

I didn't want to be rude and burst into anger, so I grabbed my coat and ran towards the front door. A walk would clear my mind…hopefully it'd calm me at the same time as well. I pulled my shoes on and then began to trot down the street. My shoes sloshed in the rainy road's puddles, but I didn't mind. Nothing was going through my head…except for the fact that my father could possibly fall ill. That was all I could think about at the moment; that was until I saw something even more disturbing than the sight of child laborers. Right before my eyes, a young boy passed out and fell to the dirt sidewalk…

"Now's my chance…" The small brunette boy murmured to himself. Almost all the other workers had fallen asleep on their cots, along with the people who ran the factory. Nobody would see him…it was the perfect time to escape the torture that he had experienced for his entire life. It was now or never.

Before he could think about it any longer, he got up slowly and carefully. His whole body quivered with fear. He gulped and remembered how harshly he had been treated for doing something small, like dropping something; he couldn't even begin to imagine what'd happen if he got caught running away. The raven-haired boy took tiny careful steps watching his footing to make sure he wouldn't walk on any squeaky boards.

He had to bite his lip to prevent himself from panting. This certainly wasn't the time to have a panic attack, he had to be silent. The child looked over at the door that rested in front of him; he was so close to being free. The anxiety settled back in, so he tried to be positive. The worst thing that could happen would be getting caught, right? All they would do is bring him back, or at least he hoped that'd be the least they'd do. He couldn't find out though…he had to do this. There were too many things on his mind, so he simply dismissed all his fears and continued on.

Each and every step felt like one thousand as the boy tried to make his way to the door. He knew it was close, but for some reason, it felt a mile away. The small boy bit his lip nervously as he came to the huge structure. Placing his hand onto the knob, he tried to twist it, but it wouldn't budge.

"Come on." The kid said, "Please open."

The more he turned the object, the more he realized that it wouldn't budge. It had to be locked, then. He let out a sigh. Out of all the times, it's locked now. He dug around in his pockets for something, anything that could help him to unlock that door. Finally he felt a cold shape, so he picked it up and ran his finger over it, soon to discover it was a paperclip. Carefully, the brown-haired boy pulled the clip into a long line and shoved it into the key hole of the door. He moved it around, feeling worried that someone would catch him.

Click.

His eyes lit up as he reached out for the knob again and rotated it. He was free at last…

The tiny boy ran so fast that he was surprised to have not seen sparks coming from his boots. He couldn't stop running; if he did someone could get him. He had to go far away…so far that nobody, none of those evil people, could ever hurt him again. He didn't stop until he ended up in a tiny village. It had to be around 8AM, so the sun was bright and now shining high in the sky. The brunette looked around to get a glimpse of his surroundings and mere seconds after that, he crashed due to exhaustion.

"Oh my gosh!" I yelled, "Are you okay?" I then mentally slapped myself for asking…he just fainted! How could he possibly answer me after that?!

Instead, I kneeled down and nudged his shoulder lightly, "Uh…w-wake up?" I tried.

Still no response.

I tapped his body again hoping to make some more progress, but all I got was for him to blink his eyes open a little.

"Hello?" I asked.

He sat up and looked at me with terror in his eyes, "Please don't bring me back!" He called out, "Please! I beg of you!"

I furrowed my eyebrows with confusion, "Bring you where?"

He failed to respond, so I dismissed the question and stood back up.

"You don't look too good …" I noticed, "Why don't you come back home with me and I'll clean you up."

He nodded meekly and jumped to his feet with wobbly legs, following behind me as we walked to my house.

"MUM!" I yelled, "I'm home and I brought a friend!"

"Okay, Kendall…why don't you two go into you're room or something." She suggested, and I did as she said.

Logan yawned almost constantly and bags formed below his eyes. He looked exhausted; no…more than that, he looked half asleep at the moment. His little cocoa brown orbs struggled to stay open and I could tell from the way that he was slouching that his body was having a hard time staying awake as well. I sighed sympathetically at the poor thing…why was he so tired?

An idea hit me right in the face. He had to be a child laborer, he just had to be! Why else would be so fatigued and messy looking? He was also tiny and feeble. I instantly felt hatred for anyone who did this to the young boy; how could people be so heartless?

"Oww." Logan whimpered under his breath.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? Sick?" I felt a little bit like Mum at the moment.

He shook his head, "My arm hurts." He said in a small voice.

I tried to look past that, hoping it was just from a minor injury and not something bigger. Didn't people get muscle cramps when they had Cholera? No…nope; Logan couldn't have Cholera. Well…did he?

I chose to play it safe and call for Mum, just in case. She'd know how to take care of a sick person better than I could anyways. Once she was upstairs I felt a sigh of relief. Hopefully she could diagnose Logan properly.

"What's the matter, sweetie?" She questioned in a soft voice.

"I don't feel so good." Logan mumbled in a faint whisper.

Mum did exactly what she did whenever Katie or I complained about feeling ill. Her palm instantly connected with the little boy's forehead as she felt around for a fever.

"You feel warm, honey…I should take your temperature."

She opened the linen closet and grabbed a tiny green bag off the top shelf. The contents were all medical supplies, so she reached in for the thermometer and took it out after retrieving it. Logan opened up his mouth and let Mum put the tool in. We waited for 2 minutes and it felt like an eternity.

"What's his temperature?" I inquired.

"100.3" She said, "Not too serious…but you should get your rest anyways."

Logan nodded.

"Should we bring you back to your home, Logan?" She added.

Sadness filled his eyes, and I could have sworn that I saw a tear roll down his pale cheeks, "I-I…" He froze, "I don't have one."

Mum's eyes softened as she moved along and pushed the subject to the side. She didn't want the boy to feel uncomfortable.

"You shall stay here then." She grinned, "Kendall…will you fix up a bed for Logan, please?"

"Of course." I beamed; I was so happy that I finally could do something useful and help someone in need.

"I…don't wanna intrude or anything."

Mum chuckled, "You're not intruding, dear."

A small smile played on Logan's lips as he walked with me into our guest room. He lied down and I tucked him in, just like a good big brother should.

A pit feeling formed in Logan's gut as he tossed and turned in bed. He let out a little whimper before sitting up and wrapping his arms around his stomach. I dropped the book that I had been reading to the floor and turned to the raven-haired boy. He groaned in pain so I ran to his side and rubbed circles on his back. Minutes later, the poor thing was hunched over the side of the bed. I wanted to grab the trash bin, just in case he felt sick, but at the same time, I didn't want to worry him. Shortly after that, Logan coughed a few times, expelling the contents of his stomach all over the floor.

"I-I'm s-so sorry." He sniffled.

The poor child trembled violently before throwing up for the second time now. I told him to relax and went to get Mum.

I was lucky that Mum had read all of Daddy's doctor books. She instantly spotted that he had Cholera and went to the market to fetch some home remedies. I comforted Logan while she gave him lemon juice to kill off some of the bacterium and root bark to reduce nausea and vomiting. By the end of the night Logan's symptoms had settled down and he was finally able to get some sleep.

I felt really bad for waking him up…but I was curious as to if he was really a laborer or not.

"Logan?" I said.

"Yeah?" He turned over to face me.

"Where are you from?"

Logan sat up and sighed, "What do you mean?"

"Where were you running from when I found you?" I added.

Logan's eyes pooled with tears and his voice became shaky, "A…f-factory."

I sat next to him on the bed. Tears streamed down his face as he tried so hard to wipe away the tears. I pulled the tiny boy in for a hug and brushed his hair out from in front of his face.

"It's okay, Logie." I cooed.

He shook his head, "N-no it's not! I'm going to have to go back someday and it's only going to be worse. I already have to work 14 hours…now, since I ran away, it might be more! They're going to hurt me, Kendall." He paused and let more tears roll down his cheeks, "T-they hurt me." His voice was a faint whisper, "They've made me feel worthless and-and they took me a-away from my Mummy and Daddy." He was now sobbing and I felt my heart breaking along with the poor child's mature demeanor.

"I don't even know where they are now…I'm an orphan and-and I-I don't have a home. I-I'm going to be stuck at that f-factory for-forever. I-I'll never get an education, or become a doctor like I want to when I'm older." He couldn't even speak any longer. All that could be heard was the sound of sobs.

I held Logan close to me, "I won't ever let you go back there, Logan."

"H-how?! Where will I go if I don't go there?"

"You'll stay right here, where you belong." I explained, "My family can adopt you and you'll never have to go back to that scary place ever again."

Logan's voice was small and weak, "Y-you promise?"

"I promise and cross my heart, Logie Bear." I grinned as I placed a kiss to my new baby brother's forehead.

"T-thank you. T-thank you so so very much." He mumbled right before falling asleep in my arms.

Dear "Journal"…because Diaries are for girls,

I feel really proud of myself for taking Logan in like that. If I'm lucky enough to live in a nice clean house with a family who loves me, then he deserves that too. Once Daddy gets home, he'll be able to nurse Logan back to complete health, but until then…some TLC and lemon juice should be just fine :)

-Kendall

How was that? :)

xoxo

~EMiLY