This work is protected by the Creative Commons BY-SA 4.0 License. You are free to share it anywhere you want, create your own variants with this content as a base, and even monetize it in any way you like. The only requirement is that you give attribution to Devon Kubacki, the owner of Streamer's Haven. This short story may be used as narrative content for whatever you like - Book reading on Twitch/YouTube or any other location.
Welcome to my short story about a boy and his hat. This is my first ever short story, so bear in mind that there is likely a lot that I need to learn about this process. I started this as a creative outlet and am very excited to work on it. I'm doing this for fun, but I wanted to share my work with you guys. Let's begin the story. - Devon Kubacki
It was early morning, and the sun was beginning to rise over the horizon's edge. The darkness gave way to light, and myriad colors brought the sea to life. In the distance, an island littered with shadows of palm trees and dense shrubbery that rested atop a small hill took on its green luster, marking itself for today's conquest. The sounds of waves gently breaking against the sandy beach echoed throughout the coastline. A sea bird cawed overhead, its eyes searching for its salty breakfast in the waters. Fishermen could be heard readying themselves for today's harvest at the docks, each step a loud thump as their feet strained from their burdens. The taste of salt in the air was palpable, accompanied by the pungent scent of fish.
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But none of that is important to the boy named Grayson. He had his sights set on the island, the subject of his desire. See, Grayson had been working on building a small raft with the help of his father for the last two months, and they had at last completed it last night. He had been working extra hard on the sail, coloring a jolly roger skull and crossbones in blue on the white sail, his favorite color. He had fun making the raft, but today was the big day. Today, he would set sail on the raft he made with his awesome dad, and they would dress as pirates! With his dad as his first mate and at the helm, Grayson had almost everything he needed. All that was left was to pack his boat with lots of yummy snacks, juice, and extra clothes. In case he got wet.
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Palm Island had always interested Grayson since his father told him a bedtime story about a pirate ship having buried his treasure there years ago. From what he said, a ship sailing with black sails and a very prominent jolly roger had anchored off the island coast one night when his father was a kid. He saw small boats get dropped to the water below and lit up with lanterns in the night from across the water. Those small boats went back and forth to the island, and his father suspected that they were dropping off their pirate booty, hiding them beneath the island's sands. Ever since, Grayson had been asking his father if they could build their own pirate ship, and take the booty for themselves on the island. He was pretty stubborn about saying no, but Grason was persistent.
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Eventually, his father relented, and said that once Grayson had finished school, they would build a raft together, and sail to the island together on a nice day. And today was that day, so Grayson donned his sea man's attire. He then wrapped an eye patch around his left eye and put out his finger for his pet parrot to land on. The bird flew off his perch to land on Grayson's Finger, taking the sunflower seed that was in his other hand that was used as a lure. The bird easily disposed of the shell and enjoyed the snack. "Come on, Roger! We have an adventure to go on!" Grayson exclaimed proudly to the parrot. "Adventure Awaits! Pirate's Booty! Squaaak!" Roger said in reply. They had been at this awhile.
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"Not so fast, Grayson," Father said, eyeing the parrot now perched on his sons shoulder. "Roger can't leave the house, cause he'll fly away! You don't want Roger to fly away, do you?" Grayson hadn't considered that. He certainly wouldn't be happy if Roger flew away. But he really wanted to go on the adventure like a real pirate, complete with a trusty parrot companion. "But..." Grayson began saying, "I can't be a real pirate if I don't have a parrot partner!" Father pursed his lips, then put on his thinking face, his finger to is chin, scratching the stuble of his beard. Soon, he had an "Aha!" moment, and snapped his fingers. "Did you know, not all pirates had parrots." He began saying.
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"They didn't?" Grayson asked, bewildered by this fact that apparently flew over the head of an eight-year-old boy. "They didn't indeed." He said, nodding his head. "But you know what all pirates have?" He asked inquisitively. Grayson thought for a long moment. It couldn't be a claw for a hand, or a peg leg. He had seen many pictures of pirates in his bedtime stories, and some had both hands and legs. So he thought harder, imagining many different pirates in his head. Some had beards, some had monkey pets, some had parrots. But all of them had something in common. "A Hat!" Grayson exclaimed happily. "All Pirates have a Pirate hat!"
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His father beamed a wide smile. "That's right, Grayson. And guess what?" He asked, as he turned around, and went into the other room. Grayson naturally followed him. "What? Do you have a hat for me?" Grayson asked, his wide eyes full of happiness and excitement. "Maybe..." His father said as he stopped by the closet. He opened it up, and rummaged through it a bit before he took out a straw hat with a blue band on it. "Yup, I guess I do have a hat. Well, had, I guess. It's yours now, Capt'n Grayson!" He set the straw hat on Grayson's head, and the boy couldn't contain his excitement any longer. He screamed, and hugged his dad tight.
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"Thank you Thank you Thank you" Grayson yelled, jumping in place as he lifted the hat off his head, running the brim through his hands. It wasn't like the pirate hats he imagined, but Grayson didn't care. He had a blue banded straw hat from his father, which was his favorite color! It will match his jolly roger perfectly! "Can we go to the island now?" Grayson asked excitedly, his smile turning his little cheeks rosy. "Yup! Let's go to that island and find that Treasure!" And they set off. While they couldn't find any treasure, the adventure they had will be with them for the rest of their lives. All thanks to the on-the-spot creativity from a loving parent.
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More to come soon!