The Pipes

Amanda screamed.  Paused and then screamed again. I could see her shadow jumping around the kitchen and wondered what it could be this time. Amanda was the youngest of my siblings and there was always something happening. Always something dramatic. Most of the time I didn’t mind her antics, but on days like today, I didn’t have the patience. As she continued to scream, I sighed and headed toward the kitchen to see what she was up in arms about today.  

As I got closer, I saw my older brother, Jeff, heading toward the kitchen as well. We both rolled our eyes at the fact our sister was acting out about something inconsequential. But as soon as we entered the kitchen and caught sight of what Amanda was screaming about, we both instantly realized that there was a real problem. A problem that could not be solved by any of us. 

“Amanda! Stop screaming! Slowly back up toward us and we will leave out the front door,” Jeff hissed at our sister. I had never seen him scared before, but knew this was his biggest fear. He had watched too many science fiction movies growing up and had always been scared of snakes. The fact that a huge snake was coming out of the pipes in the sink and heading straight for Amanda was something out of one of his worst nightmares. But if she didn’t stop screaming, there was nothing either of us could do to help.