There was once a town named Sydney and it was known for how beautiful the views were. It was the number one place for travelers to visit. There was a girl named Sydney and she thought it was cool how there was a town named Sydney, just like her name! So, she asked her parents if they could visit this so-called town named “Sydney.” Her parents agreed. So, her parents started researching where Sydney is.
So it turned out that they lived SUPER far away from Sydney. So, they had to go on a plane for a week just to get to Sydney. And just so you know, it was really hard to get plane tickets to go to Sydney. But, eventually, after a month, they got plane tickets to Sydney! They packed and packed for it because they would be in the town Sydney for TWO MONTHS.
A week later. Sydney says “OH YAY! WERE HERE!” But, for some reason, the town Sydney, that everybody claimed was beautiful because of the views, was just ordinary. So, her mom asked why her daughter, Sydney, kept claiming that it was beautiful and out of the ordinary. Sydney said “Well, I don’t really know what’s going on I mean, everyone on the internet was saying that Sydney was beautiful! They even traveled there and showed the camera!” The mother just sighs and takes them to the hotel and they go to sleep.
Huge bang. Everyone: “АНННН!” The daughter asked what that sound was and why everyone, but her and her family screamed. Her mother was also confused. So, they turned on the television so that they could check the news, what time it was, and what was going on. They realized it was 1:00 AM in the morning! But that didn’t really matter to them. They just wanted to know what was going on. So, they quickly checked the news, and it turns out it was a really heavy rain. But the thing is, that is really random. Because it never rains in Sydney. This was Sydney’s 2nd rain. And Sydney has been there for 200 years! And somehow this is only their 2nd rain!
The family’s hotel reported everyone had to evacuate. So, Sydney’s family went to the front desk and asked why. The hotel manager asked them if they had traveled there because they didn’t look like their fellow Sydney people. Sydney’s family told them they had traveled there. The manager told them to leave now. If they leave any other time they won’t make it back. They asked why. The manager didn’t want to tell them why. The only thing he said was that it’s a Sydney secret. The mom asked what a Sydney secret is. He couldn’t tell them why, though. But Sydney’s family didn’t listen to the manager. They told the manager they would, though. So, they pretended to leave but went back into the hotel through the back door, although they had listened a little bit, and because of that they locked their front door, and made sure to lock the door to their balcony.
They watched the news to see if they could find out what the Sydney secret was.
Two hours later. Even after 2 hours of looking at the news, they still didn’t find out what the Sydney secret was, although they looked on the news and many other channels, they still couldn’t find it out. So, they went with plan B and searched outside of their hotel and tv. 30 minutes later The mom asks a stranger “What is going on?” The stranger just whispers in the mom’s ear “Sydney’s secret. You know what I mean.” The mom was still confused about why everyone was talking about Sydney’s secret, but they just went back to their hotel because they knew everyone would say that. Sydney starts crying “WHAT IS A SYDNEY SECRET? YOU GUYS ARE SCARING ME!”
The dad asks why they couldn’t just go home. No one wanted to go home. Sydney wanted to stay because she thought after the rain, they could see the “normal” Sydney again and the beautiful views. The mom didn’t want to leave because she thought that it was her mission to find out what the supposed Sydney’s secret is.
But then, all the sudden, a traveler popped up and said, “Hey! You three! Are you guys travelers?” The mom and dad replied yes. The traveler says, “I heard your daughter, I am a traveler but I managed to figure out what the Sydney secret is!” The family asks what it is. The traveler replies “Once a hundred years pass, for a month there is acidic rain and if you walk outside while it’s the acidic rain month, you will not survive. And it’s January 29th, which means in two days the acidic rain will start. So, you might want to stock up on supplies.”
The dad asks why they can’t just leave now.
The traveler replies, “Well you might have time, but it depends on where you live.” The dad says “It took us a week to get here! But… the acidic rain can’t destroy airplanes, right?” The traveler replies “Oh gosh, yes it can. It can destroy anything but buildings. Specifically, buildings made out of bricks.” The dad gasps with relief hearing that because the family’s hotel is made of bricks. The traveler says “Oh, look at the time! I better get going. But here’s my number so you can contact me if you have any questions.” The family says bye. The mom says, “Okay guys that is crazy, but you heard what he said, we got to stock up on things because this thing is lasting for a month!” 2 hours later The mom says, “Alright we’re all stocked up!” Sydney starts crying again. Sydney says, “How did we somehow come to Sydney in the worst month ever?” The dad replies “I don’t know, Sydney. But it was your idea. You should’ve done some more research so that we know when to go!” Sydney starts crying even harder because of that.
The mom says “Stop fighting for once and let’s go!” They eventually get back to their hotel room and start eating some spaghetti. Everyone is silent because of the long day. Sydney tries to lighten up the mood by saying “This is all real, right?” Her mom laughs and says “I don’t know, Sydney. We’re all asking in our minds if that guy was lying to us or not. But we’ll just have to wait and see.” The dad’s phone starts ringing. The mom questions him “WHO is that? We don’t have any service here anyways!”
The dad replies “How am I supposed to know? But it could be something important.. so, I’m going to answer it!” The dad answers the phone. They can hear the traveler screaming and cutting off while also saying “YOU DON’T- YOU DON’T HAVE MUCH MORE TIME- THE ACIDIC RAIN IS STARTING A LITTLE TOO EARLY! TAPE EVERY CRACK IN YOUR HOTEL! I DON’T-I DON’T HAVE MUCH MORE TIME AND NEITHER DO YOU! IT’S MY TIME TO GO! I-I” The mom gasps, realizing what’s happening. She quickly gets some duct tape and tapes every crack in the hotel room with a little to no hope in whether they would survive or not. The dad opened the curtains and the rain looked… green? The dad told the mom to go to bed hoping that this was just a dream.
8 hours later. Everyone wakes up and looks out the window but, the window is… gone? Everyone screams in fear because the rain is flooding their room. Sydney says “THAT GUY LIED! HE SAID THE RAIN COULDN’T COME THROUGH!” The dad says “Yeah, the rain couldn’t come through bricks. but it can come through glass!” The mom yells “CAN WE PLEASE JUST FIND A WAY TO LEAVE?” The dad replies yes. But Sydney asks, “But how are we supposed to leave?” The dad suggests jumping on the couch onto the nightstand and to jump out of their door using that way. But then the mom says “But then wouldn’t it be flooding outside our room right now? Using the crack under the door?” The dad replies saying “No… can’t be… you duct taped the cracks, right?” The mother says “No, it can burn through anything but bricks. Our duct tape isn’t pure bricks.”
The dad starts jumping in the acidic rain so that he can quickly leave. The mom screams “WHAT ARE YOU THINKING YOU’RE GONNA-” The dad is already gone. Finished. Or in other words, dead. Sydney screams because she just watched her father disappear into the acidic rain. The mom faints. Sydney is left all alone, for now. Her mom only fainted; she could possibly still wake up. But Sydney is still left alone, and the acidic rain is filling up the room quickly. Sydney just used her dad’s idea by jumping onto the couch onto the nightstand and leaving the room. But she would have to face more obstacles even outside of their room because the acid probably burned through the tape under their door, But Sydney still risks it. And, thankfully, Sydney made it onto the nightstand. She slowly slides open the door, and realizes the acid is filling the hallway. She screams for an employee, but they all already left the town last month and will probably come back next month for their safety. Sydney tries her best to avoid the acidic rain by jumping onto the stairs because the acidic rain hasn’t flooded the 2nd floor yet. But then she hears a scream.
It’s her mom. Sydney says “Mom. is that you?” Her mom says “YES! Um, it’s me, mom!”
“Where are you? Sydney?” Sydney thinks that’s a little weird on how her mom’s talking. But she goes back for her mom, anyway. She sees a creature, instead of her mom. And it looks like the creature is feasting on her mom… Sydney screams while being in shock and fear. She wants to know what it is, but she doesn’t know how to figure it out. But she remembers that the traveler gave his number to her dad. She doesn’t necessarily know if he’s alive or not, though. And her dad left his phone on the hotel bed. But the creature was blocking the way. So, she tried searching in other rooms to see if there was a phone anywhere. And she was in luck, she found one! So, she searched and searched and then found out there was a plane made of brick material invented 3 days ago for escapes.
It was only going to be there for one more day, so she thought she had better get there but then she remembered the acidic rain. So, she searched more and more about it and found out the plane came to you! She applied for the plane to come to the hotel. The website said the plane would come tomorrow. She felt relieved. It was 6:34 PM so she got to bed in the room she was already in.
Six hours later Sydney woke up. She remembers that her plane is coming today! She’s excited, but… also remembers her parents are both gone. She starts crying. But she got a text message from the website that the plane is ready for her. A rescue team comes in wearing clothing made from brick material. They come to the second floor and carry her to the plane. They ask Sydney how old she is. Sydney replies “Me? I’m 12!” They ask her why she’s here and how she’s here. She explains to them.
A week later. “Okay! We’re back in your hometown!” Sydney says, “How would I take care of myself?” She asks. They take her to a foster home and she loves it!
12 years later. Sydney says “It’s my birthday! Let’s celebrate becoming me 24!” Sydney has a happily ever after. But not so much for her parents.
THE END
Eva
March 2026
Eva is a Kurdish-Iraqi-American speculative fiction writer currently pursuing her studies in elementary school.
Featured image by Eva’s father.
