short stories

Autonomy – The Daily Post – 100 word fiction

Bright colours, morning to night. The lights are always on.

I’m alone here: I’ve been alone for as long as I can remember. I walk around freely but, with nothing new to see, I feel like I’m living in a fish bowl. But I’m not a fish. I look down at my red plaid pants, my shiny red shoes sticking out, and my neon pink shirt and I wonder, who the hell dressed me in this? Being alone, I am, by definition, autonomous in this land. Yet I have no control! I must inquire with the hand that draws me.

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The Daily Post prompt word of the day is Autonomy.

Island (Humorous Fiction) – Daily Post

They say no man is an island, yet here I stand, surrounded by the flood that has taken over my basement. My sump pump stopped working three days ago, and all the stuff my wife said we needed to keep has disappeared under the skunky water that’s now up to my waist. Oh wait! Is that a toaster I see floating over in the corner? If it is, it’s toast now. It ain’t no island like I am.

Yeah, my wife – sitting upstairs at the kitchen table, sobbing over all the junk she’s lost. I should never have encouraged her to go to all those garage sales in the first place. We’ll start fresh now though. No more bargains, no more…

“Yes, honey? No, I haven’t found the Royal Albert china yet!”

I’m sure it’ll be fine.

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The Daily Post today is Island. Check it out!

Time Bomb – 100 word story

Everyone loves him. Everyone feels safe in his presence. He is essential to our well-being. We flock to him as though he is our savior. Since the Armageddon, there are only a few hundred of us left. So how do I break it to the others?

I shouldn’t have been eavesdropping. In the dark, beneath the ruins of a church I heard him pray to the deity in whom we cease to believe. He pleaded and begged for guidance. What’s worse, he asked for forgiveness. I thought he was our God now.

We are doomed. Our savior is a lie.

Denial

How dare you change on me?

I was so in love with you, once upon a time. When we met in the rain that day–remember?–I left home without my umbrella and you offered me yours at the bus stop. You were too shy to stand close to me, so half of you got wet.

A month and a half later we were living together already. My mom said it was too soon but I was hooked. I couldn’t get enough of you. And I thought you couldn’t get enough of me…

How dare you change on me?

You started working late. That was about a year into our relationship. I actually felt sorry for you – all those nights you stayed at the shop, stocking shelves because the student quit. And the boss, he wasn’t well. Or at least that’s what you told me. But then I found out.

How dare you change?

You did change, right? You made love to me three times that first night. And just about every night until you were “too tired” from working late.

How dare you?

I remember that night like it was yesterday. I came to the shop to bring you a sandwich, but the place was locked up. I thought, of course it was, the shop was closed. So I went around back – that door was open. I went inside, expecting to find you stocking shelves. What I found made me sick.

How?

You and your boss, locked in a passionate kiss. What would his wife say? Did you know you were gay when we got together? Or did you change on me?

Captain’s Log – 24.06.16

O5:00 Awoke.
05:10 Prepared coffee.
05:30 At controls, coffee at hand.
07:35 Detected signs of The Infamous Mr. Cadavel, attempting to locate my whereabouts.
07:36 Altered course, with aid from Midshipman Fluffy.
11:55 Broke for lunch. Midshipman Fluffy in control.
13:00 Returned to find Midshipman Fluffy in trouble. Crisis averted. Solution: hairball.
15:06 Code Red: communication to the mothership down.
15:11 Communication reinstated. Must investigate cause.
15:12 Found frayed wire. Relegated Midshipman Fluffy to mess closet for timeout.
18:00 Break for supper. Left Midshipman Fluffy in charge of cleaning mess.
22:00 Hitting berth. Leaving Midshipman Fluffy at controls overnight.

Captain’s Log – 23.06.16

O5:00 Awoke.
05:30 At controls.
08:15 Awoke, again. Realized I’d missed morning coffee. Had Midshipman Fluffy bring coffee.
11:55 Broke for lunch, leaving Midshipman Fluffy at controls.
13:00 Returned to controls. Nothing out of the ordinary as yet today.
14:00 Pirate sighting at starboard. He’s close. Not sure how he snuck up on me so fast.
14:01 Relegated Midshipman Fluffy to cleaning head.
14:02 Got rid of pirate.
14:10 Read “Watchtower” in head.
18:00 Break for supper. Left Midshipman Fluffy in charge of cleaning mess.
22:00 Hitting berth. Leaving Midshipman Fluffy at controls overnight.

Coming Out – 100-word Story

The doctor said it’s natural. It was a difficult appointment, but I feel slightly better now. I suppose I’ll have to tell my family. I wonder how that will go…

Mom, Dad, are you sitting down? I have this thing growing inside me. The doctor said it will come out by itself… No, it’s not a tapeworm.

Mom? Dad? Have you ever seen the movie, Alien?

Wait? Why are you backing away from me? No! Don’t run! You’ll make it come out n– Ahhhh!!!

Yeah. Probably best to just tell them I’m pregnant and get it over and done with.

This is part of The Daily Post prompt – the word of the day is Natural.

#tuesdayuseitinasentence – Served

It was an ordinary morning. I got up, made my tea, prepared my honey on toast, and sat down with the newspaper to enjoy them. Breakfast is the meal that most reminds me of my wife, God rest her soul in Heaven. I haven’t a job to go to, since I retired two years ago, so my mornings are quiet.

Until a jarring knock on the door disturbed my routine. I opened it to find a middle-aged man in a grey suit standing outside with his hands behind his back.

“Mr. Davidson?” he asked without any attempt at salutation.

“Yes,” I replied.

“Mr. David Davidson?”

“Yes, that’s me.”

He produced from behind his back an envelope with my name on it and nothing else.

“You’ve been served,” he said, and without waiting for a response he turned and left.

I sit here now, with my tea growing cold, the day’s news forgotten along with my toast as I read for the third time the contents of the envelope. I am to be a witness for the prosecution of the young man who lost control of his car and ran down my dear wife as she stepped out to the curb to pick up the newspaper one snowy morning, a year ago today.

It seems I must adjust my morning routine once again.

This post is part of Tuesday Use It In A Sentence, brought to us by the lovely MLW. Click this link to find the prompt, and join in!

It’s a Bargain! – a 50-word story

I found the teapot I’ve been looking for for years! The spout is cracked, the flowers are faded, and the leaves are not quite the same shape as I remember. But I’m sure it’s the right one! I’ll put it in a place of honour, with the other two-thousand teapots.

#SoCS – Amber and Ash

I sit at the traffic light and watch the amber bulb blink on and off. My car is almost out of gas and I wonder how much longer the electricity will stay running. But does it matter? The slain lay behind me, their brains eaten. Now that I’ve finished off the last of the zombies, I have nothing left to eat. Nothing but ash. And zombie brains.

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This post is part of Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Click the following link and join in! https://lindaghill.com/2016/06/10/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-june-1116/