The thick smoke seeps in through the tiny crack in the building, as people push their way trying to escape the room. Plates and spoons clatter against the metal floor as the lunchroom is engulfed in smoke. The soft hum of the air filter is replaced by screams of terror and panic. Bodies slam up against each other.

The smoke chases them like a game. I keep my eyes on the blue jacket in front of me, my brother. He disappears into the crowd, and I hold my breath as the smoke rolls closer. With every inhale a new body drops to the floor, these accidents were happening more and more. I tuck my head and drop to the floor. As I glance behind me, I spot a blue jacket lying lifelessly on the floor just before it is swallowed by the dark unknown. Soon they came, white bodies that crinkled like plastic, the mask with the deep shhhhh of breathing. They fixed it. They kept the toxic gas outside, they kept us alive.

I lay in bed the next morning. Everything aches as a dry cough rocks my body. The sterile smell of the room becomes more sickening, as I watch the blinking light of the heart monitor shine at me from across my room. The continuous drip of the IV sitting next to the small bed places unknown fluids in my body. The smoke took my brother, with one breath, it took his life. Someone's mistake cost someone's life, it always does. I try to appreciate that I am here, unharmed in the recovery room. But the sadness about my brother and my parents is too much. I close my eyes.

A blurry replay of the day races through my head. The screams feel so real I try to cover my ears. I calm myself and relax, my eyes following the dark concrete wall over to the small rectangular window infront of me. I look out the clouded window, heavy with thick gray smoke covering a land laid with riggs and heavy-duty drilling machines. My eyes are drawn to a small wisp of smoke trailing from the window. I am about to press the red assistance button when the room goes dark as the air pump clicks off.

CBC Books asked students to give us a glimpse of the great Canadian novel of the year 2174. They wrote the first page of a book set 150 years in the future, with the protagonist facing an issue that's topical today and set the scene for how it's all playing out in a century and a half.

Two winning entries — one from the Grades 7 to 9 category and one from the Grades 10 to 12 category — will be chosen by middle-grade author Basil Sylvester.

They are the co-author of the middle-grade novel The Fabulous Zed Watson and the recently published second book in the series, Night of the Living Zed.

Both winners will receive a one-year subscription to OwlCrate, which sends fresh boxes of books to young readers across Canada on a monthly basis. In addition, each winners' school libraries will receive 50 free YA books.

Last year's winners were Christian A. Yiouroukis for his story Where the Maple Leaf Grows and Bee Lang for their story One Question.

The winner will be announced on CBC Books on June 12, 2024.