You were walking past a fruit orchard with your friend. Both of you saw ripe mangoes hanging from the tree and decided to get some to eat.
It was a sunny day. There was no school so John and I had gone out to play. We played for a while and soon, we were exhausted and thirsty. We decided to walk home then.
At that time, we happened to walk past some fruit trees. I looked up and saw many ripe rambutans hanging from a tree. I suggested to John that we pluck some of the rambutans to eat and he agreed. I smacked my lips in delight as I thought of biting into the juicy flesh of the fruit.
Without hesitation, I volunteered to climb up the tree as I was more agile than John. In no time, I was up on the tree, sitting on a tree branch. I began plucking the rambutans and throwing them down to John.
All of a sudden, we froze in fear when we heard shouting and barking. John immediately took to his heels, leaving me all alone, up there in the tree. My heart was thumping wildly as I knew I was in trouble.
“Come down, you thief!” a man shouted. I peered down and saw two angry looking men with a dog at the foot of the tree. Beads of perspiration trickled down my cheeks and forehead as I thought about what I should do.
One of the men began using a long stick to prod at me. I tried to dodge and the next instance, I lost balance and fell! I landed on the ground with a sickening thud. For a moment, I was too shocked to move. All I could see was a ferocious dog barking at me and two angry men staring at me.
When I regained composure, I moved a little and sat up. I apologised to the two men and explained that I was only trying to quench my thirst. I broke down upon saying that. The two men must have felt sorry for me when they saw me cry. They let me off with a stern warning. I thanked them with profound gratitude and promised I would never do such a thing again.
With that, I picked myself up and ran off, heaving a sigh of relief. I ran in search of John and finally found him hiding behind a tree nearby. He apologised for being so cowardly and for leaving me in the lurch. I accepted his apologies and he offered to buy me a cool refreshing drink.
It was indeed a frightening experience but I had learnt my lesson. I would never steal again.
