Little Boy Gets Lost on School Trip, Mother Learns He Was Last Seen under Bridge with Gang – Story of the Day

During a school trip, Michael's teacher didn't see him get away and approach a street artist. So she left him accidentally and didn't notice until much later. Police were called and found Michael, but when they arrived at the scene, the kid shocked them.

"Everyone, back on the bus!" Mrs. Collins called to all her students. They were all fourth graders and were currently on a school trip from Baltimore to Washington D.C. They had seen historical places like the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial, but it was time to return to the hotel, where they would stay for the night and continue their visits the next day.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Collins didn't see that one of her students, Michael, got distracted by a local graffiti artist and pulled away from the group. The students departed for the hotel without Michael on the bus, and Mrs. Collins had no idea.

Meanwhile, the boy loved watching the artist paint.

Red and blue lights illuminated the whole area. The kid had been so caught up in his thoughts that he had not heard the deafening sirens from the police cars.

"How do you that?" Michael asked the artist. "Where did you learn?"

The artist turned to the boy, raising his eyebrows and shrugging his shoulders. "I learned from some friends, and I just get inspired by life," he said and smiled at Michael. "What's your name, kid?"

"I'm Michael. What about you?"

"Jerry. You want to try it?"

"YES!" the fourth grader almost yelled and grabbed the paint can. He painted a significant part of the wall with Jerry's guidance and smiled at the end of it. "This is awesome!"

"You have talent, kid." The artist nodded and looked around. "So, where did you come from? Where's your mom?"

"Oh, I'm on a school trip. My teacher is over there –" the boy turned around and suddenly realized that his classmates and teacher were gone. He stretched his neck and was shocked that the bus was gone too. "They're gone!"

Michael started to panic, but Jerry patted his shoulder, urging him to calm down. "Calm down, boy. Do you know where you live?"

"I'm from Baltimore. We're on a school trip. I have my home address," Michael said, taking a piece of paper from his shoe, which his mother had placed there in case something happened.

"Oh, do you know their phone number?" Jerry continued, looking at the address.

"No! Can we call the police?" the boy asked and was surprised when the artist shook his head immediately.

"No, kid. I'm part of a gang. We can't call the police," Jerry answered. "But come with me. I think one of my friends is going to Baltimore tomorrow. We'll take you back home then."

The kid twisted his head to look for his teacher and classmates again and sighed because they were truly gone. How could they leave me? he thought to himself. Finally, he followed the artist to an area below the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge, where Jerry's gang would gather.

***

Back at the hotel, Mrs. Collins was making sure everyone behaved during the dinner at the restaurant when one of the kids approached. "Mrs. Collins, where's Michael? He wasn't on the bus."

"What?" the teacher straightened in her chair, and her mouth dropped.

"I haven't seen Michael in a long time," the fourth-grade girl added, and finally, Mrs. Collins stood up. She went around the restaurant, asking everyone about Michael, but none of the kids had any idea. She rushed to the rooms and discovered that Michael was truly gone.

She had no other option except to call the boy's parents. Obviously, Michael's mother panicked. "We're getting in our car now! Please, find my boy!" she wailed through the phone.

After hanging up, Mrs. Collins called the police.

***

Jerry and Michael were still hanging out by the bridge by the time night had fallen. "I'll stay with you here, kid. Most of us don’t have homes, so this is the best we can do for now. But Hunky said we could take you home tomorrow."

Michael nodded. He sat down on the cold cement floor, hugging his knees. He had remained brave, but he was finally scared and lonely. Everyone there had been friendly to him, but he realized how stupid he was to stray from his group and talk to a stranger. His parents were right, and he promised never to do it again.

Suddenly, red and blue lights illuminated the whole area. The kid had been so caught up in his thoughts that he had not heard the deafening sirens from the police cars.

"Hands up in the air! I want to see hands up!" one of the officers yelled, and everyone around Michael raised their hands and walked towards the cars.

Jerry raised his eyebrows at Michael, gesturing for him to do the same, so the kid stood up, raised his hands, and followed. As he got closer, he saw that all the cops were pointing their weapons at the gang.

"Let the kid come to us!" one of the cops yelled, and Michael realized that they were there for him and probably thought the gang was holding him hostage.

His hands lowered. Instead of running towards them, where he knew he would be safe, Michael stood in front of the other gang members and spoke in his loudest voice possible.

"Please! I'm alright! Lower your arms! I'm not harmed! I'm ok!" he yelled, and the cops looked at him in confusion. "Please, believe me. I got lost from my group and everyone here kept me safe!"

After a tense silence, one of the officers lowered his weapon and decided to get closer to the kid. Michael explained everything better, telling the cop how he started painting with Jerry and noticed later that his classmates and teacher were gone.

Finally, the cop called off his colleagues and told Michael to get in the squad car. The fourth grader waved at Jerry and muttered "thank you" from afar. Jerry nodded, grinned, and returned his wave.

The gang members returned to the area under the bridge and all the police cars left. They drove Michael back to the hotel, where Mrs. Collins wrapped him in a huge hug.

A few minutes later, his parents arrived, and his mother wouldn't let him go. The teacher apologized to everyone for her carelessness, but Michael said it was his fault.

In the end, it didn't matter because everyone was safe and sound, but Michael's parents decided to take him home that night. His school trip was over.

During the car ride home, Michael told his parents everything that happened and how Jerry had been friendly to him.

"Ok, honey. But he's in a gang. And it's always best to stay away from those people for many reasons. You don't know their past, and you don't know everyone involved. Jerry might be a nice person, and I'm thankful he kept you safe, but I never want to hear about him again," his mother explained gently.

The kid nodded, but after a few minutes, he had an idea. "Mom, can you sign me up for art lessons back home?"

She turned around to look at him from the front seat. "Sure, honey. I can do that."

Michael smiled. He might never see Jerry again, and he knew his mother was right. But he could take some lessons. Jerry told him he was talented, and maybe he was right. Michael certainly wanted to see if he could also become an artist.

What can we learn from this story?

• Never judge a book by its cover. While Jerry and his friends were gang members, they took in Michael when he had nowhere to go. That's why the kid defended them during the police confrontation and eased the tension.
• School trips need more than one teacher to supervise all the kids. Unfortunately, one person is not enough to watch a whole group of kids, especially in a strange city. That's why it's always best to have more than one teacher and possibly a parent to chaperone.

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This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone's life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.