Excited Ed!, short story by Mae Browner
Mae Browner is eight years old and lives in Greystones, County Wicklow, Ireland, with her Mum, Dad, two brothers, and Lucky, her Jack Russell terrier. She is in Miss Trihy’s third class in St. Kevin’s primary school with her friends, Sara and Aoife, and her hobbies are hip-hop dancing and reading Tom Gates and Big Nate books. Her favourite band is Chasing Abbey.
Hi, this is Ed. He’s just watching TV right now, but soon you’ll see him not watching TV! Ed’s parents aren’t home right now so his aunty is minding him. Ed doesn’t know why his aunty is minding him or where his parents are.
But secretly Ed’s aunty is minding him because his parents are going to be on the Lotto show, Winning Streak. Today’s Saturday so the big movie will be on but half way through they will show the people who are going to be on Winning Streak. It’s a surprise, so Ed’s aunty doesn’t want Ed to see this ad.
Finally, Ed gets fed up with just watching kid shows, so he decides to go outside. He plays on the slide and the swings and jumps on the trampoline, then he has to go in for dinner. Ed eats his dinner so fast that he is just in time for the big movie but the bad thing is, Ed’s tummy hurts.
“Oh no!” says his aunty.
Since Ed’s tummy hurts, his aunty lets him watch the big movie but what Ed’s aunty has forgot is that half way through, his parents will be on TV when the Lotto show turns on.
And when Ed sees his Mum and Dad on TV, a monster is released. “EEEKK, WHOO! I’m gonna be SO RICH. I’m GONNA BE SO RICH. I’M GONNA BE SO . . . !”
But Ed’s aunty interrupts him. “We-ell they may not win,” she says.
“Yeah. Yeah.” Ed jumps up and down. “They will. They will.” He flaps his hands. “You just, you just, you just don’t believe in Mummy and Daddy,” Ed shouts. “You just don’t believe that one of them is gonna spin the wheel of fortune and they are gonna win!”
“I do but, but, but . . .”
But, it turns out Ed is right. His Dad gets to spin the wheel. When Winning Streak is over, Ed’s aunty stares at the TV screen. She nods her head and looks at the score. “Your parents have won,” she tells Ed.
“YOO HOO,” he screams. “YES I KNEW IT. WHOO YEAH! OH MY GOD. NO WAY. YEAH WHOO!” says Excited Ed.
© Mae Browner