~The Survivors of Minecraftia~
Chapter 1: Track is Cancelled

Bzz. Bzzz. Bzz. Bzzz. B-
Grace awoke to the sound of her alarm clock buzzing and shaking her small bedside table. 12:07o ¦ Not bad for the last month of summer break, and first day of track, Claire thought to herself. Io ll see if this is good enough.
She looked out her bedroom window and peered out at the grass swaying in the afternoon breeze, and then shifted her focus to the tall oak trees in her backyard. They were still as green as her favorite Hollister hoodie (which was good, considering that the hoodie was a rich green.) She yawned as she threw off the covers and stood up slowly. o Hm. Good nighto s sleep, but Io ve had better,o she said to no one in particular. o Time to get changed for track!o
Grace walked across the room to her walk-in closet, full of name-brand clothing and just regular clothes and shoes. She bent down to pick up her favorite running shoes, which were an old pair of Nikes she had for the past year or so. Then she leaped to the other side of the closet, and reached for her track teamo s uniform. She undressed out of her pajamas and quickly changed into the outfit, which was perfectly snug against her figure. Next, she grabbed for a fresh pair of crisp, white socks and shoved them onto her feet. Grace then finally put on her worn track shoes and smiled to herself.
o They still feel as good as new, but without the tightnesso ¦o she said, and walked into her bathroom, brushed her teeth, did her half blond, half black/brown hair, and washed her face. Ugh. Tim the pimple is still there, she thought to herself as she looked at the right side of her nose. Some makeup will have to do. Grace opened one of her drawers and applied makeup to her face.
She skipped down the stairs and waved to her two other brothers, both of them playing on their laptops. o Haveno t you guys had a little too much of Amnesia?o she teased Tommy and Sam as she reached to grab some Honey Nut Chex cereal. The boys, ages 10 and 12 just grinned and said, o Nope. We finished that game yesterday, and now weo re playing Minecraft,o said Sam. Tommy jumped out of his chair and exclaimed, o Ito s an awesome game! Io ll teach you how to play after track!o
Grace shook her head and said, o Like a 14 year old needs teaching of how to play video gameso ¦o The boys looked mournfully at her and she quickly replied, o Io m just messing around with you guys. Sure, after track you can teach meo she said with her infamous lopsided grin. Just then, her mom walked into the kitchen, wearing a black tank top and skinny jeans. o Ready to go to track, honey?o she asked Grace. o Yeah Mom, just one second. I just need to finish my bowl of cereal.o Graceo s mother then kissed the top of Sam and Tomo s heads. o Love you too Mom!o they both replied with a sweet grin.
Grace finished her cereal and dumped the bowl into the sink. o Mkay Mom, leto s go,o she said. o If Io m late one more time, the whole team has to do ten laps. Which we all know I dono t want to do!o
o Okay Gracie, leto s hurry up and go then. Get into the minivan while I get my purse.o
Grace jumped down the garage stairs and opened the door to the car. Just then, she slipped and fell on some water under the car, the only remnants of yesterdayo s storm. o OUCH!o she hollered as she went down and banged her head against the hard stone floor.
o What happened? Are you ok?o asked Sam as he ran to Grace.
o What do you think? I wono t be able to go to track today!o she moaned.
o Oh my gosh!o exclaimed Maria (their mom). o Honey, can you hear me? Is anything broken?o
o Urrgh. I dono t think anything is broken, but my left foot hurts like the devil. But Mom, what about track?o Grace interrogated her mother worriedly.
o Grace, honey, I dono t think youo ll be able to go todayo she said softly. o How about you stay home and relax?o
o Awww!o Grace whined. o I guess Io ll have too ¦o she drifted off. What am I gonna do? Sit around and do nothing? Waito ¦ I could ask them if they could-
o Teach me.o
o Huh?o
o Teach me how to play Minecraft. Io m not going to track, and you guys said it was fun. Right?o Grace asked as the boyso expressions turned from puzzled to excited. o Oh! Okay! Leto s go then!o exclaimed Tom. o Yeah! Youo re gonna love it!o said Sam as he grinned from ear to ear. They all walked inside, leaving Maria to clean up the water Grace had slipped on. o Childreno ¦ You never know what theyo re thinkingo she said to herself as she smiled.