The+Flamethrower

The Flamethrower By Leah Stewart “You want to see something cool?” Chris asked Steve. He didn’t need an answer though; he was already grabbing all of the supplies from his garage. “Okay…” Steve said. If he was anxious, he had reason to be; Chris’s parents both had jobs and wouldn’t be home until later. On top of that, Chris was known for making mischief; he had once pulled the fire alarm at school when he had a math test he wasn’t ready for. Steve watched as Chris assembled a lighter and //Raid,// an aerosol that kills wasps and hornets. Chris wasn’t using it to kill any bugs, though. He was using it because it was very flammable and shot out 20 feet. “Uh, Chris? What exactly are you doing with those?” Steve asked uncertainly. “This is going to be awesome!” Chris exclaimed. “What I’m going to do is light the lighter and then spray //Raid// onto it. We’re going to make a flamethrower!” “Chris, I’m just not sure that that’s safe. We could set something on fire, or something else really bad could happen, or…” Steve listed off in a nervous tone. “Aw, come on Steve! Don’t be such a killjoy. No one’s going to know about it,” Chris said. Then he did it: he pushed down on the button and for a second there it was: a flame thrower. The boys stared in awe. “That was AWESOME!” Chris shouted. “Wait…” he said as though he was thinking, “I’m going to make it so much cooler that the first flamethrower won’t even compare.” Chris ran to the shelves on the back wall and searched for a minute until he came out with a tennis ball. “Okay, Chris, that one was pretty cool but we’re lucky nothing went wrong. But what if this one does? What are you even doing with that tennis ball anyways?” Steve asked with the curiosity showing in his tone. “I am drenching this tennis ball in gasoline//.// When this baby gets the hit by the flame, it’s really going to burn,” Chris declared as he poured gasoline all over the tiny yellow-green ball. “Chris, I think that that’s a really bad idea. So many things could go wrong,” Steve said anxiously. “Oh, relax. The fire will only be as big as the tennis ball,” Chris said reassuringly as he assembled the last parts. “Okay, are you ready for the most mind-blowing moment of your life?” Chris asked. “No, please don’t,” Steve begged. But it was too late. Steve watched as Chris sprayed the //Raid// into the fire, which shot onto the ball. What happened next, no one expected, though Steve had worried about it. The little ball shot up in flames so big, the garage caught on fire. Steve and Chris ran out of it unharmed, but watched the fire burn the whole garage down into tiny little pieces. They could only imagine what trouble they would be in. Steve said, “I told you this was a bad idea.”