PART 2 , | NARRATIVE ESSAYS 1Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 1 ‘Time will tell. Write a story about how something can only be revealed over a period of time. Alistair, the valedictorian representing the graduating class of 2018, walked proudly up the stairs of the schoo! hall to begin his speech. “He really made it!” Mrs Lee whis Yes, he did” Mrs Tan replied as she clapped along with the 2,000-strong student body, with pride in her eyes. Smiling fondly, memories took her back to the first time she met Alistair three years ago; a far cry from who he is now. ‘Alistair barely made it into the school with his grades. He was in the bottom percentile with a record of breaking schoo! rules, Within just a week of attending lessons, he had stormed out of class mid-lesson, screamed at a teacher, dragged a poor classmate into the toilet to beat him up and missed a day of school without valid reason. At this rate, he would be suspended soon. “Come in’ Mrs Tan, the school principal, called when she heard a knack on her door, Mrs Lee entered the office with Alistair dragging his feet behind her. “What is it this time?” Mrs Tan sighed and put down her reading glasses. “Vandalism Mrs Lee spat, pushing Alistair forward before leaving the office. “Alistair. Do you know that vandalism is a crime in this country?” Mrs Tan spoke softly, her voice laced with venom as Alistair sat down in front of her. The student stubbornly remained silent. “Well. Do you know that your action will cause you to receive mandatory corporal punishment according to state laws?" Mrs Lee pressed, staring evenly at the student in front of her. “Idid it fora reason!” Alistair protested, throwing his hands up in the air in frustration, “I wanted to get back at a girl who betrayed her best friend! She should not have done what she did. She broke her promise” yered to her colleague, Mrs Tan, who was seated beside, Mrs Tan raised her eyebrows, “So you broke the school rules and state laws because of your friend's, in your opinion, ‘wrongdoing’””” Alistair nodded earnestly, “Friends do not lie” Mrs Tan smiled, I have just the job for you, but under certain condition: "You WHAT?" Mrs Lee exclaimed in shock and horror. "| made Alistair a prefect,’ Mrs Tan repeated patiently for the third time. “Why? He broke so many rules. He should be suspended!" Mr Loh, another teacher, cl ped in. “He broke numerous school rules, sure. However, he did them for a reason, and his reasons show that he has strong moral values. He has potential, lam sure. Give him time,’ Mrs Tan replied. *.,. Lastly want to thank Mrs Tan, from the bottom of my heart. | want to thank her for believing inme when no one did and for giving mea chance despite the stupid mistakes | committed when | first entered this school. Thank you, Mrs Tan, for giving me time and opportunities to develop into the person lam now,'backin the present, Alistair finished his graduation speech, Mrs Tan felt her eyes welling up as she nodded at Alistair when they made eye contact. She was right about this boy. When a teacher opens up new pathways for a student, and more importantly, gives him time to achieve his potential, the student will become the best version of himself. Just like Alistair. 43cambridge IGCSE Guide English asa First Language: 120 Model Compostion® Narrative Essay 2 ‘Locked Room: Write a story about a room in which you or/and someone else were trapped in. ‘Toska woke up in a room. It was more like an enclosed and cramped space. There was basic furniture in the room ~ a wooden table and chair, a wardrobe and a lamp. The room was dark. There were no windows and the walls were painted pitch-black. Despite her eyes adjusting to the dark, all Toska could see were the silhouettes of the furniture and the light-coloured floor. Fear began to creep into her body and spread to all four of her limbs. Memories of her childhood of being punished by being locked up in the cupboard in the basement by her parents flooded through her mind. She hated the dark. She abhorred I. twas suffocating. Bile began to rise UP hher throat. Frantically searching for an escape, she immediately felther Way ‘around the room despite her trembling legs. Her heart swelled with hope when her fingers ‘touched cool metal; it might be a Goorknob! When her eyes adjusted, she came face to face with a gigantic red door that towered ‘ver her Finally, she felt a wave of relief. Excited, she immediately grabbed the doorknob and twisted It firmly, expecting the door to open. It did not. After several futile attempts, she grew more and more distraught. She was trapped. She was locked in 2 mysterious room. “Help! Help me! Please open this door!” Screaming at the t9P of her lungs and with tears streaming non-stop down her cheeks, she pounded on the red door — her only escape from this dark helhole — with all her might. However, no one came fo seve hher. The door remained locked. “Toska eventually gave up after hours of pointless banging ‘and screaming made her voice hoarse: she slowly slid down onto her knees and fainted in fight, error and agony. There was silence. sisthe patient alright?" Nurse Lovelace whispered to her colleague Nurse Madison, with worry on her face. she has stabilised now. She was thrashing about and screaming in her sleep justnow; wehad torestrain her. No amount of effort made by the doctors could wake her up. We had to give her benzodiazepines; Nurse Madison replied while checking the patient's pulse. “Poorthing.|heard her shouting ‘Help me! just now. Noone herage should have gone’ through ‘that. What did her parents do to her?” Nurse Lovelace gently stroked the patient's wounded wrists jin sympathy. The patient, who was ying asstillas death on ahospital bed and attached to several machines, was Toska.Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 3 ‘The imposter. Write a story about how someone was deceived by another pretending to be someone else. “Okay, this is what we are going to do” Jacob said with a mischievous glint in his eyes, “When Mr Parker comes in, we are going to say Peter is Sean, and Sean is Peter” The whole class nodded in unison. Good idea, Mr Parker was our new physics teacher. The reason why we wanted to trick him was because he had a bad reputation in school - he was famously known for his strict marking of papers; it was so strict that many of our seniors, who took his class, failed. Furthermore, his anger-management issues were on a whole new level. However, the school authorities did nothing to stop him despite several complaints from students, Hence, we figured in a school that recognised honesty, truth and accuracy as values, deceiving him and getting him in trouble was what he deserved, “Class stand Mr Parker stomped into the room in his leather shoes and his belly jiggling. | could not help letting out a snort as we watched him attempting to fit himself into the teacher's chair. This was going to be interesting “| am going to take your attendance,” he announced, before squeezing himself into the walkway between rows of students. “Jacob’ “Here” “Sarah?” “Here” “Peter?” “Here! Sean grinned at him and half the class sniggered. “Chloe?” “Here” “Sean” “Present!” Peter hollered and all of us broke into laughter. Mr Parker nodded and checked off the students’ names on his name list one by one, “Class, | want to tell you that we take honesty, truth and accuracy very seriously in this school. | want to ee that no mistakes are made when handing in homework, no cheating, no copying, no lending of work for references is allowed. Teachers are expected to do the same,’ he added. Yes, exactly. Teachers, especially teachers, are not allowed to make mistakes such as identifying wrong students in this school. Have a good life, Mr Parker. Hence, throughout the semester that Mr Parker was with the class, Sean and Peter deceived him all the way. It was amazing that Mr Parker did not realise his big mistake, much to our amusement. When midterm results were released, all hell broke loose. “SEAN. You did not tell me you were Peter all along! PETER. Same goes for you!" Mr Parker screamed at the class, huffing and puffing with his blotchy face turning crimson with anger. immediately, he threw the two report books onto the floor and shouted, “This is your fault! Your fault! You made me lose my job!" The whole class was silent. But at that moment, | knew that we were so glad and proud of ourselves that we got rid of him. We never saw him in school agi 45Cambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 4 ‘The Lady in Scarlet Heels. Use this as the title of anarrative. va sauntered down the street in her flashing scarlet Louboutins, ignorant to the curious gazes of onlookers, Wearing a smart black suit and Gucci sunglasses, with long, dark and wavy hair cascading down her back, she looked like a runway model. Instead of appreciating her like most people in movies, her surroundings of a dirt-covered road, shabby run-down apartments nad begaats lining the streets were a huge contrast to her appearance. In other words, she stuck out like a sore thumb. Eva glided into one of the shady-looking stores in the neighborhood to find herself in an upbeat bar with rch executives and women lingering around i skin-tight dresses. She slid onto one ofthe bar stools, ordered a drink and focused her attention towards the man sitting next to her. “steven, what is it today?” Her voice, unlike the expected high-pitched and sultry tone most women her appearance would have, was low and hoarse, like a man's. +113 Kingstown Avenue, opposite The Fancl’ the man responded without a glance in her direction. Eva nodded, paid for her untouched drink and left the bar. ‘A huge grin was plastered on her face. Visiting the washroom, she quickly changed out of her suit, removed her makeup, her wig, her Louboutins, only to put on a simple school uniform. Looking at the mirror, he could not believe his skils His reflection showed a young man with a Small face, sandy blond-hair and a slim build. No one knew he was Eva, not even his boss, the ran who he went to only 2 few minutes prior. But that is the whole point, Determined to find his friend who suddenly disappeared a few months ago, he had taken on this dangerous expedition by himself. The address which his boss gave at the bar was the lst clue, Allhe needed to do was to reach there in time. “The residents of the neighborhood stared at the lady in scarlet heels in confusion. it was the second time she passed by them, wearing the same outfit, shoes and looking the same as the previous one who passed by them just a few minutes ago. What was she doing here again? AS if rie was on loop, she entered the same bar, sat down at the same seat, ordered the same drink and asked the same question to the same man. Steven, what is It today?” her voice, warm and sultry ike an older woman's, could melt any man's heart. However, not ths time; not when the boss was pissed and confused as to what had just occurred, “Who are you?” “1am Eva, your wife and partner-in-crime. Why?” Liar, Eva was just here a few minutes ago, asking the same question as you’ Eva sighed, excused herself to the washroom before things could get messy and stared at her reflection. She could not believe her best friend would do this for her sake, She was kidnapped, yes. By her bose that Is correct. She had been trying to escape, but in the process, she found that her Dect fiend was searching for her as well. Sighing, she quickly exited the area. Time tohead to 113 Kingstown Avenue.curious Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 5 Write a story about how you got lost in a big city you have never been to before. “Sumimasen, may | know how to get to Bic Camera?” It was my third attempt asking for directions in the span of ten minutes. | was lost in the streets of Tokyo at 9 p.m. as | desperately searched high and low for the building my friends were in. While | was extremely grateful that the Japanese were always willing to give directions, the inability to speak in a common language severely hindered my ability to comprehend them. Hence, | was stuckin this situation as I strained my ears and brain cells to rationalise the bits and pieces of English, mixed with Japanese and Sutters, of the officer at the train station. His directions only confused me more. Turning on Google Maps and frantically trying to find the directions the tiny arrow on my phone was pointing at, | speed-walked straight into a shady 2rea behind the station. To be honest, | was terrified beyond my wits, This was not my home country. This was a foreign place that I have never been to before in my entire life. This was not safe. Tilting my head down and focusing my eyes on my sneakers, | literally ran across the dark treet to the main one, From the comer of my eyes, | could see drunk businessmen loitering 2round scantily clad women in fishnet stockings. Iran. The main street of Akihabara was much better. They were brightly it, oud and full of people. 9 other words, safer. With a sigh of relief, glanced around at the hundreds of tall, humongous glass buildings surrounding me in search of Bic Camera. It was akin to finding a needle in a Faystack. It was almost impossible to find, After five minutes of looking around frantically, my eyes finally landed on a rather small building with the red, flashy words "BIC CAMERA’ shining rightly against the pitch-black night sky. Finally! This was an experience | would never forget. After all,| was alone in the shady streets of Tokyo 2t night. | was lost in a big city | have never been to before. | was eternally grateful that ofall the horrible things that could have happened to me, | managed to find my friends and make my way outlivecambridgs Narrative Essay 6 Representatives of the various student organisat middle for VIPs to hold meetings, of sceneries painted by famous at ‘ceiling hung an ornate chandelier representatives were wearing b serious event after all. apll right. Everyone is here; the meet Part Xi Chapter Il to ea to our attention in t expected time, and the existence and occurrence of Everyone in the room. & abstract concepts that had just be The President of the Student and attendance for compulsory lessons activities ‘ons could be heard across the room. As the sess absence were thrown in by the representatives Guys, guys’ Lee Min Suk, President o the air “the problem now is that Ifa students late, compulsory event? This is syould kick them out of class instead His input cat tevelation, Utters of terrible’ “I regret coming tott .en thrown at the! "gettle down, esteemed friends. Wehave come Part XI Chapter Il, the thir all students at the | University of Atlanta, itis for better never late, was final professor Humphrey Swinton rushed in Pantin silence. vAWell? Lee Min Suk was the first to speak, "T thir Relations with Faculty/Staff members” eIGCSE Gulde English asa First Language: “Better late than never Write a story W' th this cone of the university buildings. The interior WE magnificer ‘the floor was carpeted with an expensive fabric and pictures tists were hung on tl that sparkled at the tiniest movement. fo sui fe as a requirement for whoever was using I tod usiness suits and elegant dresse: ing shall commence; Frederic ‘student Union announced. "My secretary will be han’ fh one of you. We shall discuss two significay he past two weeks: the fact and quality of xcept for Frederic and his secretary, Union would like to discuss the i not the case for stricter prof that were we leaders doing’ could be heard around th ‘d.amendment shall be made. To ensure punctual med on the basis of better late than never. of even, including but not limited to the following ct g the meeting's decisions when the large wooden 120 Model Compositions hrase in mind. ions gathered in the posh meeting room ih here was a huge, oak table in the he rich Versailles-coloured walls. On the it the room's taste, ress appropriately as well. As 2 result, the to attend the meeting. It was a ‘Woodman, Presidentof the wing out a copy of the Student Constitution int issues that have come happening or arriving after the f the here and now!" frowned in confusion at the m. issues of student punctuality ‘and events’ the secretary added. A series of ae continued, examples of late coming and f the Sports Council interrupted by waving his arms in ill he be allowed to continue attending the fessors such as Professor Swinton a5 he ised an uproar as many were horrified By the is schoo”'this is about second chances? and room. Finally,a conclusion was reached: toafinal decision. Forthe Student Constitution lity and attendance of rreumstances...’FredericWoodman doors opened. g, two hours late for the meeting, ink we can relook Part XXvill Chapter V ‘studentPart 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 7 “A Strange Incident’ You were walking to school when you saw something that baffled you. It was a normal Tuesday moming during a normal week in my normal life. | was on my way to school with my heavy backpack flopping against my back with every step | took. As going to my primary school was only a ten-minute walk, | had a lot of time to linger around the neighbourhood, admiring the trees and greeting familiar faces. It was then when | encountered something strange; something that baffled me immensely in the very neighbourhood I grew up. in Usually, | take a shortcut across several apartment buildings before reaching the main road. The first floors of the apartment buildings were usually littered with potted plants, clothing racks and bicycles. However, the alleys were not so clean and pleasant to the eye; there were piles of used cardboard stained with questionable liquids, dirty clothing that dropped from apartments on higher floors and stray animals loitering around. Well, what caught my attention were the three statues situated at a corner of one of those alleys. At first glance, my eyes immediately overlooked them due to their dull, bluish-grey colour. | naturally walked past them without a second thought. However, the positioning of those statues weirded me out and forced me to take a closer look. By then, curiosity had gotten to me and | was tiptoeing over to those statues, wondering what they actually were. What I saw caused chills all over my body. They were human sculptures. In the middle was a woman and the other two were men. All three statues were wearing formal clothing and were seated on stones. Their smiles, showing rows of teeth, scared me out of my wits. Even worse, the paint that was losing its colour, hence fading into an ugly bluish-grain stain made the statues look as though they belonged in a horror movie. At my feet stood what seemed like an altar and given that melted wax was stuck on the surface, it was highly likely that someone had been praying to them. instinctively, | broke into a ‘un, away from that area. As lran, itfelt as though the statues’ eyes were following me throughout, | could remember the terror | felt that whole day in school. However, what then baffled me was that the statues disappeared on my way home from school at the end of the day as though they were never there in the first place.«cambridge IGCSE Guide English asa First Language: 120 Model Compossions Narrative Essay 8 Write a story titled “A Whole New Place’. Lucy was overwhelmed. Completely overwhelmed. It was only the first week of high school. Every day was crazy. Classes were held at different venues fof her school. It was common to get lost in her school which was like a mini town; trying to worm, her way out of crowds along the corridors, seniors calling out potential juniors to join thelr clubs and lastly, boys. Tons and tons of boys. Coming from an all-girl’ kindergarten, primary school and middle school, Lucy had not had a single interaction with the opposite gender, except for her father and brother. However, everyone knows they did not count. As such, the prospect of coming into contact with so many boys all at once was making her tremble with nervousnes ‘There were boys everywhere: more then half her class was made up of the opposite gender; Boys jumping out of random corners Inthe school for some reason; boys fooling around inthe corridors and more boys being overly friendly and talking to her. The following conversation (more like silence from Lucy's part) usually took place when boys approach Lucy, who stutters her way through and finally running away to avoid further embarrassment. "Hey, what's your name?" Aucy... sie! im Steven. tim in your physics class, Want to go grab a ite together before class starts?” sycum... um... Him so ssorry=" Lucy ran away, always leaving ‘the boy completely dumbfounded at the sudden turn of events. Besides the most terrifying group of the human species e\t known to poor Lucy, other aspects of school would take forever for Lucy to adjust to ‘well, For one, she was not used to Sttending lectures, especially with big groups of 2 few hundred students. Back in middle school, there were only tutorials with twenty students per class. Apart from that, there were compulsory ntwites she had to attend, such as clubs and meetings, that dragged till six in the evening. Back in middle school, she could go home by three everyday a5 timetables were fixed and extra activities were non-existent. Besides that, it had only been 3 week and she would be going for two patties over the weekends which she decided to ‘attend due to social pressure; her friends in nidalle school rarely had parties and if they did, missing out on ‘them was perfectly alright. Lucy sighed to herself for the twenty-fourth time ip the day. How was she going to survive high schoo! for the next three years? It was 2 whole new place that she could barely handle.Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 9 Write about the greatest mistake you have ever made. Throughout my schooling life, | have never made a mistake as big as this: my decision to join the debate society. Ifyou asked a random stranger on the road, most people would have a certain impression of debaters, They are probably fluent, persuasive, out-spoken, ambitious, have certain leadership abilities and have a level of charisma, These qualities are mostly true. However, despite having had zeto debating experience myself, with a rather simple mind and being relatively shy, | decided to give debating a try. Who knew that for two years of my life, I was going to be stuck with the most xic, backstabbing group of people | have ever met? Who knew that this decision | had made was the greatest mistake of my life? It all began when our debating society split up into two groups: the competing and non- competing members. The competing members consisted of the executive committee, with the vice-president and her cronies from the same class. Meanwhile, the non-competing members, those who mostly train for recreational reasons, were unhappy with the lack of debating exposure. Hell broke loose when rumours of a blacklist were going around. Basically, the teachers erseeing this society had asked the vice-president to come up with a list of names of whom they think were not participating actively in the society. This was so that the teachers could speak with them, understand their perspectives and create new activities for these students to engage 1 The teachers’ intentions were good; they genuinely wanted these students to be more active 1 the society. However, the vice-president wanted to kick these ‘inactive’ members out of the society instead. This made matters worse. The non-competing members were afraid of ending up with no club activities to join in school and were desperate to find someone who was willing to listen to their views. The president got hold of what was occurring in the society and immediately confronted the competing members. However, as these competing members carried a higher status in the debate society, they somehow pushed the blame to the president instead. | can still remember the horrible moment when the president was forced to apologise to the whole society for what she had done. *! apologise for causing extreme confusion and disarray mong the members of debate society. What | did was unforgivable and as such, | will step down as the president” To make matters worse, the moment the president stepped away, the vice-president stepped in to announce that she would act as president henceforth. | can still member the disbelief in everyone's faces as half the society stared at what had unravelled before their very eyes in horror. This was the greatest mistake | have ever made: joining the debate society. Being around the most terrible people on Earth is heart-breaking while knowing that I myself could and should nave done more. 51cambridge IG¢SE Guide English as aFiest Language: 120 Mode! compositions Narrative Essay 10 ‘Disappearance. Write a story about how someone you knew went missing. spon't goto the staircase beside the canteen’ my senior told us. “why?” saumour has it that someone always disappears when students use it? ‘The chills spread through me slowly as her words sank into mind. My friends and | were in the process of getting frightened out of our wits bs ‘our senior told us horror stories surrounding ve school. From the smiling portrait ofthe dead ballerina inthe gym room to the haunted toilet, the stories were as interesting as they were terrifying While we listened with utmost attention, the stories were quickly forgotten the second we left the room. However, little did we know, something horrible would happen to us the following day. "Girls, please take the staircase beside the canteen fo get to the indoor sports hall quickly for your physical education class? our form teacher instructed us, after she ended her English lesson yo minutes later than usual. All 29 of us scrambled to ‘change into our sports attire and quickly gathered by the corridor to head towards the location. “Hey, isnt that the creepy staircase our senior wamed us about yesterday?” I reminded my friend Emily as the class rushed towards it yeah, but there's nothing tobe scared about, is there? Itis ust horror story to scare us, that's all’ Emily rolled her eyes. Despite her nonchalant remark, | could not help Put feel the impending dread building up in me as we entered the dark realms of the staircase, Unlike the other staircases in school, which were in the open and hence, brightly lit this one was completely indoors with not aspeckoflight ‘nit Every step we took and every noise we made ‘could be heard crystal clear and echoed within the four walls ofthe compound. By the third floor Itwas pitch blackand | could not see what was infront of me. “Hey class, we are almost there! Just continue to limb; we will be able to reach the top floor soon’ the class chairman's voice flooded the are, Following her advice and trying to calm myself down, | took one agonising step after the “other and finally stepped into the sunlight. Eyes Squinting in the sudden glory of the afternoon sun. | realised we had reached the top floor. In front of us was the indoor sports hall. "right class 4A, quickly movel You are late!” Our sports teacher's voice boomed across the level. Immediately, all 29 of us broke into a run 50 ‘that the teacher could take down our grtendance. can remember her next words a5 clear a5 day up until now. ‘There is only 28 of you. Where Is Emily?” Ihave not seen her once thereafter.Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 11 ‘Your life flashes before your eyes’ Write a story with this phrase in mind. “Watch out!” My friend screamed at me when | stepped onto the zebra crossing without much thought. | heard his scream, turned my head the other direction and saw a car approaching me at top speed. It was going to hit me. I could not run away nor step back Lam going to die. There was a blinding brightness followed by being in this dark space for an infinite amount of time. Perhaps that was the state | was in — neither alive nor dead, waiting to wake up orto die, to go ‘on forever. In that short time before getting hit, was going through what most would call ‘life flashing before your eyes’ Indeed, images of my past, even those from my childhood which | had forgotten, came resurfacing up in my mind like a fresh coat of paint. | had turned one, celebrating my first birthday with my parents; | was three, waiting outside the hospital room as my father and. I waited to hear my brother's first cry; | was five, taking ballet lessons passionately. As | got older, the memories flashed by faster and faster, like a whirlwind that destroys everything in its path. While stuck in limbo, | heard sounds from the outside world: an ambulance’s sirens, some people shouting, some people sobbing; felt hands carrying me everywhere; | saw bright lights behind my eyelids. Was this what it felt like to die? To be present yet not present; to be conscious yet unconscious? Voices. Voices were heard in the distance, far away as if | was in a dream. My hand was constantly warm as though someone was always holding it, “Sarah! Sarah, wake up!" For the first time in a long time, | heard this voice loud and clear, forcing me awake, pulling me out of the dark matter and carrying me back to the real world, lopened my eyes.cambridge 1GCSE Gulde English asa FrstLanguage: 120 Model Compassion: Narrative Essay 12 Write about a time when you accidentally caused something of great inconvenience. what would you ike?" The Indian man barely cast a glance at 18“ he expertly flipped the prataiin the pan.Iwas ata prata shop near my workplace and given thatit was featuredin thelocal Prowspaper due to its fame, | decided to queue two hours £9 6 the renowned prata. However, what happened within the next five minutes was the most embarrassing incident of my life. Uh. uh... craned my neck to read the gigantic menu stuck the headboard above me, two plain, two egg, and two cups of milk tea please” | was drenched in buckets of nervous perspiration as | waited for my food to arrive. It was lunch hour, the queue was endlessly long and customers behind me were glaring daggers at ine with barely disguised faces of frustration and annoyance, iving them an apologetic smile, utomatically reached for the food tray placed on the counter i front of me. "Don't, DON'T! the Indian man’s scream startled me out of my usual daydream. | gave him @ look of confusion before another scream from the customer behind me was heard. Turning my head around out of curiosity to see the commotion, my ow dropped when | saw the spilled milk tea on the food tray | had just moved. Puddles of brown liquid were spreading across the entire counter and dripping onto the marble floor and the customer's shoes. ram 30 sorry"! apologised profusely as | scrambled to wipe the remnants of my lunch drink offthe counter onto the floor and the customers shoes. step aside, blur queen’ the Indian man indicated to men the opposite direction with a wave of his hond, Head hanging in shame and face as crimson as @ tomato, | smiled abashedly at the farious customer and the equally angry Indian man before ‘scurrying off to another corner; far away from the premises of the prata shop. {Up until now, | can stil recall the great inconvenience | had caused accidentally. While the indian man did make another cup of milk tea for me, never went that place again due to my embarrassment. What a day!Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 13 “The Dark Alley’ Use this as the title of a narrative. It was 2 a.m. in New York. Hurrying past rows and rows of deathly silent houses, apartments and closed shops, | rushed along the streets, fearing for my safety. New York was still surprisingly oud and bustling in the wee hours of the morning. However, as it was now an unusual hour, the streets tended to attract the wrong crowd. Desperately hoping that I would not catch some drunk mans attention, | continued to run. That was when | found myself in the middle of a dark alley. The place was terrifying, The lights were off, the streets were dark and damp, and not a single soul was around. Both sides of the alleyway were lined with rows of closed shops. | believe that if not for the time of the day and the silence, this street would have be teeming with life and laughter as many of the stores were dining places, cafes and bookstores. Terrified out of my wit, | stumbled across the walkway, hoping that | would get out of this hellhole safe and sound. What caught my attention then, was the soft lights emanating from a source in the distance. Upon closer inspection due to my curiosity, l found myself standing in front of a cute and cosy- looking cafe-bar that was still open. It was like entering into a magical place that was hidden to everyone else except me, The window featured an old-fashioned, hand-painted gold signage and soft, melodious piano music floated out of the store. Thoroughly drawn by the place's chic beauty, I stepped into the cafe-bar. People were sitting on bar stools sipping on wine or tea while enjoying a good book or chatting away with a friend, Hence, for the next four hours, | sat myself down in front of the bartender, had an excellent glass of wine and browsed through several beautifully curated travel books. It was the best and most peaceful four hours of my life. Little did know that the moment I left the place, that was the last of what | had seen of it. | can still remember my confusion when | tried to show my friends the place | had discovered the following day. It was as though the whole place did not exist; what stood in its place was a normal-looking shoe shop, instead. Despite not seeing the place ever again, | was secretly happy. was as though the cafe-bar was a secret memory that only belonged to me, and me alone. The alley in which the cafe-bar was located in, was back to being the dark, terrifying alley again.cambridge 1GCSE Guide English as 2 Fist Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 14 fe this as the title of a narrative. ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’. Use [needed much beloved rest and relaxation from my flat-out tiring week. | picked up my handphone and called my mother We chatted about all kinds of nonsensical things under the sun, but soon, Jayson had arrived Rome, twas time to go for lunch! My mum decided to join us fOr Tunch, As we walked jauntiy ehrough the clear pathways of green shrubs and neat bushes we ‘espied a clearingin frontof us. there 25 ‘acafe - Sun Ray cafe! ‘As we entered the cafe, wenoticed that twas a cafe for dogs —andafter petting 2 few of these majestic animals, we were transported into another realm ~ We felt totally calm. The dogs licked their chops as they ate their doggie food served to them. Dogs are indeed Man's best friend. twas a sunny day when We gambolled out. We headed to the NTUC to grab some groceries, smurnmy turned around and said, Its iike taking a breather, this walks so refreshing, you know?” ‘We replied, "Totally agree, mum hile smiling and laughing calrply. We were on cloud nine We found a second-hand bookstore and strolled in happily. Mummy Was Jooking at the self- help titles and browsing with ‘aplomb while Jayson and | were gazing at the comic books with vvide-eyed wonder. We found a couple Srbooks and went to pay uP eagerly caving the store, we decided enough 58 enough, we wanted to get a whole Vie\! of things jn our neighbourhood. We took a sirell down to the old bus interchange ‘and sat down, admiring the pretty buses.Narrative Essay 15 Write a story about a betrayal. Lucille glared at the photograph in pure hatred before tearing it into pieces furiously. Remnants of him were still eft around the house, their house. Rather, used to be. Despite the cident having happened half a year ago, Lucille could still remember it as clear as day. She can never forget what he did to her... Lucille admired herselfin the mirror. She was beautiful - her blonde hair shone in the sunlight that filtered into the room; her skin glowed and her makeup was perfect. Most importantly, her dress was a resplendent ivory shimmering with glitter. She resembled an angel falling from the heavens. With a confident smile, Lucille glided out of the dressing room and into the church. To Lucille, her soon-to-be husband was the most flawless human being in the world, He was handsome, gentle, kind and warm; he carried excellent moral values and was on good terms with her family. She could not believe her ears when the words Will you marry me?’ came out of his mouth as he got down on one knee in front of her many months ago. Now, she could hardly believe that he was standing in front of her, dressed in white, waiting for her at the altar. He was her Prince Charming. With her chest filled up with warm fuzziness and her palpitating heart brimming with love for him, Lucille smiled at him expectantly when the pastor asked, “Do you take her to be your lawfully wedded wife?” “1... he. 1am so sorry. cannot marry you. | have someone else I love,’ her soon-to-be husband stuttered, Awkwardly, he let go of her hand and stepped away from her. There was a grim look on his face as he walked away. Gasps of shock could be heard among the audience. Lucille’ jaw dropped. The pastor stood stumped; unsure of what to do next. There was silence. “W-what do you mean?" Lucille cried, lunging forward to reach for him and tripping over her heels instead, Getting back on her feet in desperation, she grabbed his shoulders and turned him 2r0und, tugging at her betrayer's white sleeves insistently, What did he mean? Why did he mean what he meant? Didn't he love her? To her utmost horror, her betrayer refused to meet her eyes and had the audacity to utter the following line - the very line that caused Lucille to collapse in despair and sent her into depression for several months, “She is with child.” 57+120 Model Compositions cambridge GCSE Guide English asa First Language: Narrative Essay 16 "To be or not to be, that is the questio dilemma between life and death. ni Writea story about a character having I Across from him was the grim reaper, 5 not donning any hoods he was dressed in a smart Erik sat at the table, waiting for his judgement call currently engrossed in his case files Interestingly, the grim reaper Was “orcarrying a scythe as described in vnythologies for centuries. Instead, business suit, looking as professional as ever vit seems like your aftermath is not my decision to makes the grim reaper turned to rik after scanning through the documents in his ‘hands. Erik raised his eyebrows In disbelief. Was the grim reaper slacking in his job? He assumed his responsibility was to coltect souls and send them to the afterlife. "To be or not t famous lines,"“Itseems your life wa: the impact ofthe jump. Are you sure YOu Wank proceed through thos grim reaper nodded towards the direction of a set of large, mahogany Shrough them and into the unknown when they die! ‘not sure. Like the famous Hamlet who uttered that very same prominent [ing 19 rarveif-On one hand, he abhorred the thought of returning back tee-the sole feason aso why he ended UP here in the Ferment When alive, he lost his family and mused, reciting Shakespeare's alive in the living world due to se doors?" With that, the doors. "Human souls go 1 be, that is the question’ the grim reaPe! 's hard. Currently, you are barely rik wa literature, Erik was at war with to the living world. He was suffering th first place was that he could no longer withstand the job; he had nothing. He was beyond the point of despair. On the other hand, the idea of death frightened him. tt terrorised him. Where Pid that set of mahogany doors lead to? What Is the u afterlife like? What if itis an experience Wore” ‘han life? IF ee decides to die, there was no wey pack. The afterlife isthe undiscovered country from which no traveller returns, afterall After much hesitation, Erk finally made his decision, “Ihave decided: Go ahead’ the grim reaper signed his papers and gave hima smile tl mind. rik stood up and walked to the set ofc hat seemed to read Erik's unky old lifts that sent him backto where he came from.Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 17 ‘A Blessing in Disguise’ Use this as the title of a narrative. | used to think my roommate was horrible. She did not clean up her space, left her things strewn all over the place and | was forced to listen to her midnight rants about random guys every single day. Not only that, but it was impossible to fall asleep when she would be on her phone shouting at someone at the wee hours of the morning, Waking up in the morning was not an easy feat either as she expects me to wake her up as well, and her interests just were not in line with mine, Iwas miserable. | escaped the torture cell of our shared room as much as | could despite half the space being mine. Every night, | dreaded entering my room as | knew she would be grooving to loud music, with her things alll over the place including my side of the room. I found 2 pair of her dirty socks hidden in my blankets and her used tissues lying around my study desk several times. | have almost applied for a dormitory change at the end of the semester. However, something happened between the two of us that made me realise she was in fact a blessing in disguise. | could remember the first time | broke up with my then long-term boyfriend. Perhaps it was due to the fact that we could no longer see each other as often as we liked due to us studying at different universities, The relationship fell through when | found him dating another girl from his university. | was devastated and depressed. | remembered walking into our dorm room, trying to hold back my tears. At first, ry roommate did not notice me as she was too preoccupied with a friend over the phone. However, when she did finally end her conversation and realised that | was unusually quiet, she suspected something was amiss with me. “Hey Sandra, are you okay?" she asked, giving me a concerned frown. Her tone of voice held hint of worry. “Yeah, | am completely fine,’ refusing to make eye contact with her. Exhausted from the emotional trauma | suffered earlier that day, | climbed into bed and stayed huddled up in my cosy blankets. “Are you sure? You are very quiet. You would usually shout at me to clear up my things, my soommate pressed on. “Lam fine okay?"| sat up, faced her and screamed at her, Leave me alone!” For some reason, tears started streaming down my cheeks uncontrollably. Immediately, my roommates leapt over ‘to my bed and put her arm around me. “You can talk about it if you want to,’ she encouraged, her voice having a surprisingly warm nd gentle tone. Right on cue, | burst into tears and started blubbering about my sad love life to her, To this day, | can never forget the comfort my roommate provided me with when no one else did, She was like a pillar of support to me (and still is); someone whom | could rely on. nterestingly enough, despite conflicting interests and different lifestyle habits that caused small Aghts frequently between us over trivial details, we grew to become the best of friends. She was indeed a blessing in disguise.cambridge 16¢SE Guide Englishas a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 18 Write a story about a confession. «Tell him!" Mandy's bestfriend, Sharon, told her over the phone, shat? 'm too shy to tell him in person, Mandy admitted. “Then text him!” “What if he doesn't like me?” “any boy who doesn't lke you doesn't Know what they are losing out on. Plus, you have nothing to lose, right?” ves | have, Mandy thought, have a ft to lose. For one, she would be extremely upset. She really liked David, He was like the other half of her: she had grown so attached to him. As time passed, she grew to lke his personality and traits. He ies warm, selfless, responsible and most importantly, he was her best friend. But Mandy was ‘afraid; afraid that if he did not see her the way she saw him, he would leave her. She valued thelr friendship too much and had kept to the eyent status quo for months now. However, she wanted to be more than friends. Iafter an hour or 50 of overthinking, Mandy finally gathered the courage to confess to David over WhatsApp. With fingers shaking, nerves acting up in her stomach and chills tingling up her spine, Mandy texted. David, have something to tell you. Yeah, what's up? {think like you. Not sure about you, bt Ifike you and Im just putting it out there.:) Silence. David did not respond. Mandy's mental state was in frenzy; all sorts of horrible thoughts were rushing through her head. Why was he not replying? Why was he taking so long? Did he like her? Maybe he did not like her in that way. This was all her fault! She should not have told him! Frantically, Mandy dialled Sharon’s number. “Sharon, he is not responding! Why? Why? What should | do?” Mandy blubbered, feeling her face growing hotter by the minute as panic and anxiety rushed through her. «Relax, Mandy! There are only two possiblities: either he likes you or he doesn't. Now, he is probably panicking too; probably ‘asking his friends as to how to reply you. Give him some time;” Sharon, her ever-rational, calm and collected friend reasoned out to her. “Okay, okay. He needs time," Mandy muttered, taking in deep breaths. *Yes, As itis now pretty late at night, do get a good night's sleep. Itis highly likely he will only reply you tomorrow morning, Sharon added on. “How am | supposed to get a good night's sleep after this?!" ‘The following morning, Mandy woke up to her phone’ alarm. She was right; she was left tossing and turning in her bed till three at night. She could not sleep ~ all she could think of was the potential end of her friendship with David. Mandy groaned into her pillow - she: did not want to check her phone. She did not want to know. David would have most definitely rejected her. ' After all, they were just best friends. Nothing more. Hands trembling, Mandy checked her phone for any new messages, specifically from David.What she saw sent her into shock, followed by severe heart palpitations and finally ended with uncontrollable tears. David's reply had come in at 4.21 am. wanted to tell you this long ago. (ike you too. :) Wanna go for a date, maybe tomorrow ifyou are free? Also sorry for the late reply; |was freaking out just now. not want jected her. om David, 6Cambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 19 ‘The True Self’ Write about how an event unveiled a person's true nature. They say that project work will make or break relationships with friends. This saying could not be truer. Clarise had always held her best friend with high regards. Her best friend, Marissa, was her trusted companion ~ she was with her throughout the ups and downs of life; encouraged her; kept her company and was basically by her side no matter what. Clarise had always thought they would remain best friends throughout their lives. However, an incident (or many incidents, to be exact) led her to think otherwise and ultimately broke their seven-year friendship. "Marissa, where are you? The meeting began 45 minutes ago,’ Clarise could not hide the annoyance brewing in her and her tone came out harsh. It was the third time Marissa had done this and now, everyone in their team was here except her. *So sorry, loverslept; lam coming!” Marissa screamed into the phonein panic. Clarise slammed the phone down onto the table in annoyance. “Marissa, were you not paying attention to what we said? You are supposed to do it like that, not like this! You've been doing it all wrong and now we have to spend extra time to fix this!” Clarise shouted into her best friend's face in anger. She could not help it - whatever Marissa did was a mess, She could not do anything right. What was wrong with her? Did she not know that this project has a heavy weightage in the subject? “Marissa, | can no longer handle it anymore” Clarise broke to her best friend the minute after they handed in their project. She had been a freeloader. Clarise could not have been more disappointed in her best friend, She had always thought that her good friend was 2 reliable and responsible person - but this project had revealed her best friend's true self. “Why?” Marissa asked her with puppy-dog eyes. Those no longer work on Clarise. You are like a different person. No matter how long we have been best friends, this does not affect my decision. My impression and understanding of you has been wrong all along; | cannot stand someone like you. Please do not speak to me ever again!" With a tone of finality and anger, Marissa walked away from her best friend of seven years. Itis indeed true. Being forced to work together with a person will really reveal their true nature. Until now, Marissa still wished they were not in the same group so that she could go back to the way they were. However, itis too late now.had done slammed elke that, to fix this!” Marissa did know that the minute been more sliable and ss does not gil cannot and anger, fue nature. back to the Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 20 Write a story about a misunderstanding arising between two people speaking different languages. Paul, a New Yorker visiting Japan, was super hyped about trying out an up-and-coming dessert, He remembered coming across it accidentally on his Instagram feed; a mystery photo ‘f the latest ice-cream flavour during the winter drizzled with some special sauce. He was not ‘2.2ctly sure why it appealed to him but the idea of corn with ice-cream (as advertised) made his ‘mouth water, It might be due to his association of corn and ice-cream with corn dog - his all-time “evourite all-American food. A deep-fried sausage on a stick coated in a thick layer of cornmeal Satter - corn dogs are blessings from Heaven. With much joy and expectations over the new flavour ofice-cream, Paul immediately set offto central Tokyo. The streets were bustling and full of people, flashing lights decorated the streets, ‘cosh restaurants were open, fashionable locals took a walk. Awed by the sense of ecstasy Tokyo ‘rought into him, Paul began his search for the ice-cream the moment he got off the taxi. ‘One ice-cream corn please!” Paul exclaimed, grinning and pointing at the limited edition, >euly-released flavour. Labelled “ice-cream corn’, the sign showed a normal-looking ice-cream srside a cone cup. The lady smiled at him as she passed him the ice-cream. Barely containing his excitement, Paul sok his first mouthful of the cold dessert and was immediately overcome by disappointment. ‘The ice-cream tasted like vanilla! It was not corn-flavoured, nor was the ice-cream coated in a ‘syer of cornflour. To be honest, he was getting suspicious of the ice-cream: it looked just like any sormal ice-cream sold on the streets. Now, it tasted like one, too. “Sorry, you must be mistaken. | had ordered ice-cream corn! Not vanilla ice-cream, Paul tried *> clarify his order to the lady who served him the dessert. “Hai, ice-cream cone,’ she nodded, pointing to the sign and his ice-cream, gesturing that she was right, Unable to let go of the matter, Paul showed pictures of what he expected on his ‘hone, to the lady. They were pictures of corn dog, except that he was expecting some sort of combination with ice-cream. “Ahh, ice-cream com? We dont sell it. Sorry we must have made a mistake! Ice-cream cone, ‘ try what he thought was a completely different food item, Paul walked away ashamed and dejected.120 Model Compositions Cambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: Narrative Essay 21 The Great Escape Linda toiled under the pile of work her boss had given her this morning, Itwas 1 p.m. she had not eaten lunch, She was on the verge of fainting from hunger, but stil she was unable to stop her work. Afterall,she knew more was coming her way, and ifshe did not complete her tasks hon she would have to work overtime into the wee hours ofthe morning again.To make maltees aoe erher company work culture was tox. Sure, the pay was high, yet there was no workife cote at all since she joined the company four months ago, she had worked overtime four days a week, and stil had to work from home as well. Every one of her colleagues compete with cnn another for bonuses; there was alot of backstabbing and blackmailing as a result. She was Glad that she was hardly the target, since she was known as"boss' victim’ among her colleagues. LINDAI*A gruff voice screamed from one of the rooms. Linda scrambled to her fet, pled file after file in her arms and scurried into the Director's office. vss hee is thelist have done up for you. barely looking at her boss inthe eye, Linda placed the files onto the table with shaking fingers and was about to skirt out when sWho said you can leave? Why are you so slow! Hurry up! Also, here Is something else to be done. Give it to me by tomorrow night” her boss slammed another thick stack of papers in front of her. Barely holding in tears from fatique and rage, Linda grabbed the stack and knew what she had to do. Quit. Before death gets to her. The next day, Linda was called into the Director’ office again. “Linda, why do you want to resign? You are doing so wel. | am paying you a Tot, and do You know that it is extremely irresponsible for you to leave just like that? When we have so many clients, right now?" her boss narrowed his eyes at her. Cowering from fear Linda mumbled, “II will finish my tasks before resign. Aras for my reason for resigning, | would really like a break right now...” However, Linda's desperation to resign from her company went unanswered, More tasks were given to her throughout the day; more clients came to her as well. At this ral, she would be arable to resign for the next few months. When Linda reached home at one in the morning, she realised she could no longer take it She needed to escape. Not just from her toxic compaby. tne ram the harsh reality as well.she looked around atthe designed interior of her house - the dail forniture, her Mercedes, her thousand-dollar handbag, all for what? She was rich, but she had no life, no fiends, no lover. All she had was work. Immediately, she opened her laptop ee ooked the earliest flight out of New York. To some place far away, some place completely different. Linda could not contain her excitement when her plane touched down the next day. The moment she stepped out into the cold, There was iterally not a soul insight except for her and a Yew passengers. The blue skies overhead was endless and the roling hills continued into the 2 tence Small houses could be seen here and there, and up ahead Linda could see sheep and cows grazing peacefully. Linda could not believe what she had done, She did not regret It st all. She hed made the great escape — out of her company, her city, her life, and into rural Canada his ste buPart 2 Narrative Essays. Narrative Essay 22 Lost in the Woods Ethan was lost in the woods, Literally. He was in the outskirts of Sweden, in a never-ending forest filled with snow. Surrounding him were trees and blankets of snow. Somehow, he lost his friend Thomas when they were out exploring. With no internet and no compass, Ethan could only pray that he finds his way. Back home in the bustling city of New York, Ethan was working his ass off. He barely took ‘any breaks and had no social life. While he was in a rather high-ranking position in his company due to his fast progression from sheer hard work in his twenties, Ethan realised that his drive and motivation had gone. At thirty-eight, Ethan was single, had two friends, a cat and a large apartment with a view of New York's skyline. While he had a lot of money, he barely spent it due toall his time being dedicated to work. Aweek ago, he realised he had an early midlife crisis. Work no longer drives him. He did not know what he wanted to do in life. He had spent the last twenty years alone, pursuing a career which he thought would bring him somewhere. It did bring him somewhere, but the destination no longer enticed him. With that, he called one of his two friends and the two of them decided to spend a week in Sweden. This is where he is now. Lost somewhere in the woods of Sweden and lost in his own life too, With a sigh, Ethan continued to trek forward through the thick snow. For some reason, he was not panicking at the possibility he may just die from starvation if no one finds him in this remote forest. Instead, his head was full of thoughts of what he should do when he goes back: Should he continue with work? Should he just drop his career, get married and start a family? Or should he just disappear from the face of the earth, move to another rural area in some country and live peacefully there? With each step, Ethan felt more and more lost, similar to his physical situation. That was when it hit him — Atthe same time, he heard something - “Ethan, where are you?” Thomas was shouting his name from somewhere not far away. “rm herell” Ethan quickened his steps towards the source of his friend's voice. Soon, he found his friend and was no longer lost in the woods. He had a newfound purpose, too - travelling. Non- stop. To all the countries in the world. Something he wanted to do when he was much younger but had no money to. And now, he has.Cambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 23 Narrative E ANight of Terror Be true to “Are you serious?!" “Follow “Yes... there were four police cars right outsides” Emma “O-outside? For what?" for society “{ do not know ... why don't you go take a look?" studies 50.4 ‘Andy and Brian immediately got up to leave their dormitory to see what all the commotion asTarresult was about. Apparently, according to their school's unofficial Reddit page and a few other clubs’ kindergart Telegram channels, there were currently a few police cars parked right outside their dormitory. iGassmnates Slightly frightened by the potential seriousness of the situation, Andy and Brian gathered a few ee of their just-as-curious-but-frightened neighbours and all five of them set off together. ‘What Right where the main road diverged into a small one that led to their school dormitory, there “To get were truly four police cars parked. Their red lights were flashing non-stop on the roofs of the jentrance vehicles and policemen were out and about questioning passers-by. To make matters worse, from her le uniformed soldiers were there too, their brownish-grey patterned uniform standing out in the Red Cross, night like a beacon. Andy and Brian were now scared beyond their wits. attain stral “Did you see that.” pha “V.yeah. They're from this specially trained unit in the police force to tackle more serious stuff” a “Oh man, what exactly is happening? Why our school? Isn't this campus supposed to be safe?” pursue wh “Guys” one of their neighbours raised his voice slightly as everyone turned to look at him, He “Actual was scrolling through the long chats of one ofhis club's Telegram groups. Voice slightly quavering, toget into he said “Apparently, there are rumours that someone was raped in Dorm 1 and another was arte murdered in Dorm 6" ‘and tuition Silence. predicted Back in the safety of their room, Andy and Brian were snacking as they sat around their table. “Not Et kits going to be alright...The police will handle the situation and everything will turn somethin. out fine” Brian tried to reason out, despite the rising fear. With that, “Let's just wait for our school to release some official statement,’ Andy tried to comfort his system ani friend, and himself. ‘She wa As the hours of the long night slowly ticked by, both boys dozed off and woke up to Andy's alarm clock screaming into their ears. Immediately, they checked for the latest updates on their phones and both let out huge sighs of relief when they saw their schoo!’ official statement. “We would like to assure the school community that the problems have been dealt with and there is no cause for concern about safety on campus”Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 24 Be true to yourself +Follow your dreams!" Society would tell you. Yetat the same time, they said, “No, not like that!” Emma was a student trapped in the pits of an education system churning out mindless drones sor society to make use of. From a young age, her parents had been telling her to do well in her studies so that she can go to a good university, get a good job and ultimately live a decent life. ‘As a result, her parents sent her for extra Mathematics and English classes besides attending Kindergarten, along with piano, ballet and art classes to give her an "edge" over her future classmates in Primary One. Throughout her schooling life, Emma knew only one goal: to attain a sovernment scholarship so that she will ive a decent life. “What is your dream?” her high school teacher asked her during a career consultation session. "To get a government scholarship” Emma replied. With one month left until university- eid entrance examinations, Emma was stressed out. She managed to craft an impressive portfolio fice om her leadership as President of her Co-curricular Activities, Volunteering Head Organiser for ithe ed Cross, and two-time winner of a global debate championship. Now, all she needed was to attain straight As for her upcoming examinations. However, she knew she was burnt out; she was at her wits end already. All along since the beginning of high school, she knew that she was not a ‘enjoying her life ~ she disliked the activities she was involved in and hated the pressure put upon is her by her parents and teachers. At this point in her life, she truly wanted to let it all go and just afe?" pursue whatever she wanted. nHe "Actually no,’ Emma interjected her teacher, “I do not want a government scholarship. | want ring, ‘to get into film school” ded Her teacher's jaw dropped, “Are you sure of your decision? It is difficult to make a living ‘and tuition fees are going to be expensive. What about your portfolio? Looking at it and your predicted grades, you will be the perfect candidate to be a government scholar” able. "Noy Emma repeated firmly with a tone of finalisation, “I want to get into film school. It is turn something | have always been interested in and wanted to do anyways. Ill manage somehow.” With that, she stood up, thanked her teacher and walked away ~ from her teacher, the school, the rt his system and societal expectations. She was finally being true to herself.—————————— Cambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 25 Narrativ Use a favourite quote from a movie and write a story wi Into the “Come in’ a voice from the inside drifted out. Sherlyn, a high school student preparing for her Elsa's university-entrance exams, cautiously pushed open the large wooden door and stepped into the compou room. The place was unexpectedly small but cosy, with sofas for people to lie on, fluffy cushions “Into and, in the middle of the room, a round table. She supposed that was where the session would Theu begin. through Near the entrance was where the counsellor sat. Her desk was huge and piled with papers and rushing files, She smiled at Sherlyn with kindly eyes. She seemed middle-aged; was tall and slim with a senses t pair of glasses perched on her nose, Her silvery hair was tied up in a long ponytail, unexpectedly ‘Att fashionable despite her age. She wore a long black dress that fell around her ankles with a pair of her life comfortable-looking loafers. Fr otisan “Sherlyn, | believe?” the counsellor waved at her to sit down at the table as she gathered her rand sor documents. ranking "Yes!" back he “Alright, | am Mrs Yee/’the counsellor sat down in front of Sherlyn, and the session began. unknov Sherlyn did not know how much time had passed. All she knew was the fact that she was friends currently sobbing uncontrollably and on her sixth piece of tissue as she tried to wipe her face dry. into the "don't know what to do. Does it get easier?" She could barely ask her question through her “Hil snot and tears, She shuddered at the thought of her seemingly bleak future - life is so difficult though now, with her recent break up with her boyfriend of two years, her exhausting club activities, her a'Lisa't academic grades and pressure from her parents. How bad can her future prospects get? How “Fol would she survive then? agrin. Nos" the counsellor replied gently, and added, "| just know that the more you know who you May are and what you want, the less you let things upset you.” Sherlyn dwelled on her words as she waited for her tears to dry. Surprisingly, the counsellor’s words made sense. However, she did not know how she should go about knowing herself more and her goals. "You can try by doing some reflection’ the counsellor explained when Sherlyn asked, “Normally, | would suggest this for students who have graduated, but you are ready, and it may really help you. What have you learnt from your experiences over the past few months? What kind of situation are you in right now? How do you feel about it? How do you want to change it? | think these questions can go quite a long way. Maybe you can take some time to think and we can return to them next session?” Sherlyn nodded. She was still unsure, upset and frustrated. However, those words from the counsellor hit home. Perhaps, this was a start.rher athe ions ould and itha edly ir of |her Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 26 Into the Unknown Elsa's words from ‘Frozen 2' reverberated in Christie's ears as she stepped into the school compound. “Into the unknown, into the unknown, into the unknown...” The university was huge - the grand gates that had opened up forher the moment she walked through, the towering stone walls surrounding her, and college students in various fashion styles rushing past her for lessons. She was overwhelmed by the commotion and by how much her five senses had to take in, at the same time, hopeful by the seemingly bright future that awaited her. At that point in time, Christie was stepping into the unknown. This was the next phase in her life - the transition from a teenager to an adult. She was all alone in a different country a ‘thousand miles away from home, with a small suitcase carrying nothing much but her clothes ‘and some study materials, in a higher education institution that topped the world university rankings. Christie heard all about how exciting and wild university life can be from her seniors back home, and she could hardly wait to experience it for herself. However, the fear of the unknown and being independent for the first time in her life, without her parents and childhood \ds around, scared her out of her wits too. With slightly trembling legs, she took another step into the school compound. “Hil Are you a freshman?" Someone waved at her suddenly, distracting Christie from her thoughts. Christie nodded. The ‘someone’ was a petite girl with thick braids and glasses wearing a'Lisa’ badge on her woo! long sleeve. She seemed really friendly. “Follow me, let me help you with your matriculation’ Lisa grabbed her suitcase and gave her a grin. Christie visibly relaxed and followed her. Maybe the unknown would not be so bad, after all.ES cambridge IGCSE Guide Englishas a First Language: 120 Model \compositions Narrative Essay 27 Narrat Write a story about what you did for the first time in your life. ‘Cour acare you sure?” Emma stared at him in shock. She wes not ready. She could not believe what Hat he just said to her a few moments ago. ‘think ‘yes! Join ust You have the talent and | don't care if you have never tried this before. with knew: enough practice, you will defintely get better over time’ Eugene, a senior from the club, sal encouraged her with a bright smile, shelt ‘Emma was hesitant. Before entering the school, she had set her sights here partly due to that this very club ~ swing dance, She had always ‘wanted to join some form of dance club due to Ja Fe interest in it, However, she had no background init whatsoever and did not have a dancer's truth physique’ ether. Hence, the school’s swing dance club, It looked inclusive by encouraging even issue beginners to join the club to dance to 19205 ja ‘music! What could be better? “after a second’ thought, Emma signed up, She could not believe her decision - her, dancing for the frst time in her life! As expected, he first eve sessions were a mess and tangle of limbs going in the wrong direction. She almost gave UP © she was unable to find the rhythm to the music, placing her legs in the wrong position vind cometimes annoying her partners. She looked to Eugene for help, which is more a mix of desperation and despair. to¢ “Eugene... I'm sorty, | don't think | can do this...” she trailed off, scratching her head with stro helplessness and unable to make eye contact with her senior due to shame. wit the you can decide to quit i you want to, However let me tell you something. What you have shown me during the past few sessions is that you 2°© diligent and hardworking. You may think you have not improved but you actually wid immensely. Tell you what, if you are still Keen | raul like you to perform during social night next month!” her senior beamed at her with pride. Emme’ jaw dropped tothe floor. Perform? She cameto ‘him believing that she was not cut out for dance yet instead, he asked her to perform! Intheend, Emma decided tostay on andwith multiple encouragement from Eugene, decided to perform on social night too. Toher disbelief that was the best decision made in her life. Exactly one month later, she was on stage in front of the whole school and dancing to 1920s jazz with her partner forthe first time inher life. That moment remained in her memory ever since then.Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 28 ‘Courage’ Write a story with this word in mind. Have you found that “Bitterness makes the heart grow fonder?" Well, | have, and personally think that a strong mind makes a strong heart, and this makes for a strong person. Jane once knew different person in Sally, but one day this changed for the better... sally blurted out the truth to Jane. “I never knew what you saw in him, until that day at the shelter..."She smiled endearingly at Thompson, their pet beagle. Sally told Jane that she thought that Jane’s husband was an abusive man, full of himself. Jane faltered in her response. She did not know whether to tell Sally the truth, and the whole truth, Pethaps that would take some courage. Jane’s husband had some anger management issues and would escalate it by shouting and screaming at her in the house. Jane knew that it ‘was troubling, but did not think at first how to approach until she read a noteworthy book in the Christian bookstore, written by Joyce Meyer. Sally had seen the blow-up happening before. At first, Sally chuckled a bit and thought it was quite a humorous situation, but over time, it seemed more and more desperate. Jane would then keep quiet, mull over it, take some notes and seek him out in a quiet space to go through an action plan together. One day, Sally noticed Jane and Benson, her husband, strolling out of the counselling centre for families, hand in hand, looking pleased and at peace with themselves, Sally asked them why they were so happy and peaceful and they just replied that they purposed their desires for wholeness through the counselling process.Cambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 29 The Future There is an Arabic saying about the future, What is coming is better than what is gone: Tobie= thought it could not be truer. He was currently in the next phase of his life after facing a quarter life crisis for the past few months. Back then, he was chained in a society that demanded so much from him but gave very little back, and Tobias was hanging on to wits end, That was not the he had wanted since young - working a nine-to-five job in a drab office wearing a boring suit ang tie. twas stable, sure, and with consistent effort he could slowly climb to the top of the corpor ladder and be the next CEO. However, he could not see himself living that life for the next decad= He wanted a change. He needed a change. ‘After much consideration with his family and girlfriend, the two of them decided to go to another city ~ New York. Being a free spirit ike him, his girlfriend was keen on the idea too. Now the two of them were amazed and overwhelmed by the intensity and realness of the city as they stood at an intersection in the middle of Times Square. It was nine at night but with the brigh= neon lights, flashing billboards and the yellow taxis honking away in the endless traffic, they could not tell night from day. It was so much to take in! They were looking for the apartment th: had rented ~ extremely expensive but this was New York - and were currently lost. ‘Against the backdrop of such a significant change, Tobias was uncertain of what the future would bring. He was living one day at a time and with each moment brought unexpecte memories. Still traversing the mysterious and confusing paths of this next phase of his life, b= did not know exactly what he intended to do in the next few years, and the many years followins that. However, this was a decision he had made, a decision that led him to his lifelong dream taking the big risk to live in the Big Apple. For him, this path he was on was still largely unknow= to him with infinite possibilities he has yet to discover. Yet, because the path he was on curren: was bright, it felt right. “Let's go"'he held his girlfriend's hand as the pedestrian light turned green. He took the next step into the future. nPart 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 30 A Dangerous Experience Lisa was overwhelmed. The flashing lights from the disco ball hanging overhead threw flashes of neon green, blue and purple lights on to the floor and walls. Techno music, with a bass rhythm so loud, hit her to the core. Throngs of sweaty bodies danced against one another on the dance floor. Lisa, awkward and truly wanting to leave the club any moment now, stood at the sidelines and watched the commotion. Her attention soon turned to the bar girls dancing on stage. “Ill go get a drink’ Lisa shouted to her friend over the deafening music. Without waiting for a reply, she walked over to the bar situated beside the dance floor. “Whiskey, on the rocks” After ordering, she leaned against the marble tabletop and admired the scenery before her. The bar-club was located on the tallest floor of the five-star international hotel. Its glass windows provided a spectacular view of the city at night which Lisa really appreciated, Soon, she was sipping on some alcohol and was in her own head space. “Hey, how are you doing?" A man with sandy-blond hair approached Lisa after five minutes. Lisa was shocked out of her zen mode. She barely glanced at the man, gave him a curt nod and inched her way to situate herself at the other end of the table. ‘The man followed and pressed on, "im Mark, and you are?’ Lisa looked the man up and down, and upon determining that he seemed harmless, replied, “'m Nicole.” Mark grinned when he finally received a response from her, "You're different from other girls here. You wear glasses. Pretty.” Lisa laughed. She was flattered since her spectacles were the only way for her to perfect her vision as her eyes were sensitive to contacts, and getting surgery was just too expensive. For her, she always thought wearing glasses would make her less than beautiful than those without. Thi time, someone finally complimented her on her appearance. "Want to dance?" Mark was about to reach for her elbow when Lisa's friend appeared out of nowhere, grabbed her and dragged her back to the dance floor where the rest of her friends ‘were. She looked furious. “Lisa. You DO NOT talk to random men in aclub. DO NOT ever do that again,‘her friend warned her, “Stay with me” she ordered. To be honest, Lisa was annoyed. Mark seemed harmless and she did notreveal anything about herself to him too. However, after about halfan hour of dancing and ‘trying to vibe to the deafening techno music, Lisa felt someone touch her waist and shoulders playfully. It was Mark. Hortified, she turned to her friend, "| need to go. Now." Fortunately, her friend saw the whole situation and nodded, taking her out of the club. Itwas a dangerous experience indeed. BCambridge IGCSE Guide English as a First Language: 120 Model Compositions Narrative Essay 31 Write a story about the end of a friends! or relationship. “Hey, do you want to catch a movie together next week?" Stella suddenly received a text from her ex-boyfriend after a few months of not texting. Stella was first shocked when she received his message. | thought we were over? Why does he want to meet up suddenly? Reluctant to do so but unable to refuse him (they shared a past together after all, and it was not in her personality to refuse any requests), she sent him a curt“Ok" She did not receive a reply from him for the next few days. “How about Little Women? | heard it is good her ex sent her another text five days later. Now, Stella was slightly annoyed and frustrated, She was not sure what to do. For one, she hated his slow replies which, to her, showed how low she was on his list of priorities. Another reason was that she took almost three months to break off the relationship and another three to truly get cover him. Now, he was texting her as if none of that ever happened. Her relationship with her ex was a tumultuous one. He was too different - ambitious, driven, structured and family-oriented, Whereas she was the polar opposite - free-spirited, spontaneous, disorganised and valued her independence. Yet, it was this difference that attracted her to him. It took two years for her to chase him and when they finally started going out, everything went ‘downhill. She realised she had fallen in love with her idea of him. They had numerous cold wars, tensions, and she hated herself when she was with him. The relationship felt forced. Itfelt wrong, After three months of hesitance, sleepless nights and silent crying, Stella finally broke it off. Now, she was in a mental agony. A part of her truly wanted to meet him and perhaps save whatever there was to be saved; yet another part of her no longer wanted to have anything to do with him anymore. It’ nearing the end of the decade, she thought, and he is a person of my ast. | should leave him. Once and for all. With trembling fingers, she typed a message back. Sent it, Blocked him and deleted his contact from her phone. A huge wave of relief and pride washed over her. She had finally managed to let him go. “Let's not meet. Goodbye” 7 Narrat Write side o “Sie, “wk curren “at's relucta the nin The legs se his shi the ror ‘Asuna love st “We repar wearin "Ye his att at two snort "Ye grinne charac This tir Itw could college but I themss, Part 2 Narrative Essays Narrative Essay 32 Write about a time when one or both of your parents showed you a different side of themselves. “sie, come watch!” my father shouted across the house from the living room. “What is it?” | raised my voice in annoyance, not wanting to be disturbed by anyone as | was currently engrossed in a good novel. “It's a really good drama that you will like,” he called. Sighing in defeat and dragging my reluctant self to the living room, | found my father engrossed in a romantic Japanese drama from the nineties. ‘The sight was surprising and amusing at the same time. There was my father, seated with his legs spread out on the floor, With a can of beer in one hand and his belly bulging from under his shirt, he was using a heart-shaped pillow as a headrest against the sofa while taken in by the romantic plot of the drama playing on the television. He was watching the Japanese drama, ‘Asunaro Hakusho; which featured five university students from the nineties in Japan and their love stories. “Wow, didn’t we watch this together almost thirty years ago?” my mother, who was currently preparing dinnerin the kitchen, came out to see what the commotion was all about, She was still ‘wearing her apron and had a huge tomato in one hand. “Yeah,' he replied to her and upon realising that | was in the living room as well, he directed his attention to me, “Jie, your mother used to dress like those girls on TV!” He pointed excitedly at two college students with quirky hairstyles, long woollen skirts and denim jackets. | held in a snort of laughter. “Yeah, and your dad used to wear that kind of glasses. They were so on trend,’ my mother grinned back as memories from her youth flooded back. Onscreen was a rather handsome character, who could have been more handsome if not for the huge aviators he was wearing This time, | could no longer hold in my amusement and chuckled. twas such a rare occurrence; my parents revealing to me bits and pieces of their youth, which | could only take glimpses of from old photographs. I did not enjoy the drama much (Didn't those college students need to study instead of wasting their time away figuring out love triangles?), but | did enjoy the time when my parents showed me their different and younger sides to themselves. a«cambridge IGCSE Guide English asa FrstLanguage: 120 Model Composiions Narrative Essay 33 Falling in love What does falling in love fee lke? Sandra had been searching foran answer to this question for a while. However, she has not yet experienced it, 30 she ‘did not know. To her surprise, tonight qurmed out to be the night she would finally experience it for herself ‘A few days before, Christopher asked her out for dinner She was quite close to him since he was a course mate in university, although not close ‘enough to reveal much about herself. ‘Thinking that itwas justa nice friendly dinner to catch up over the semester break, Sandra agreed. Christopher!” Sandra’s eyes lit up the moment she saw him at the train station they were y earlier, standing at the gantry in his usual black outfit. As she supposed to meet. He was slighth fad not seen him in over a month, she ran towards him ‘and gave him a hug out of excitement duct seeing a dear friend. To her surprise, he held his arms cout towards her, as ifhe already knew aes pe wanted to hug. They were then in ther own work, catching up with each other, having a.good dinner and sharing crazy laughter together ‘They soon headed towards the city river. twas the favourite spot to hang out at as they get to have some drinks and chill by the rivers edge while watching the city’s nightlife and swaying te mome good music playing at nearby restaurants, This time, Christopher brought along some 10 beers to try, Sandra watched him from the comer of her e¥®, observing his actions as he pened the glass bottles, his arm muscles rippling: Her eyes trailed from his upper body, to his pale throat, and finally to his face. He was paler ‘han her, but his features were defined with a harp nose and jaw. His eyelashes were long, brushing faintly against his spectacles with every blink of his eyes. Then, it hit her. What?” Christopher nervously laughed when he realised sandra had been ogling at him for the past five minutes. “Chris, you are actually good I them as she peered at him to get a better look at his face. Her sed a beat as she stared at him for another minute. looking’ she giggled, closing the proximity between the wo of heart suddenly grew warm and think I'm in love with you! Narrative E Almost “what? \ He continu! here? He w "Yes, we already loo there’ And It was t teachers a “Youwi "You area well in sch hug and On the figuringo Gameboy his heart goodbye flowers th home, thi “Broth “What “Mam “Wha word, he anyone He woul Italn almost ¢