Time For A Short Story
What a great picture for a writing prompt! I like this picture because it can be almost anywhere in the country, or world, for that matter. The picture is the inspiration for this week's writing prompt. It's open for anyone and everyone. 500 word max, must post before next Wednesday, the story must be posted to the website found: HERE. And, you must incorporate these five words:
Zoo
Necklace
Tonic
Shelf
Turtle
So here's the story. Hope you like it.
The Phone Call
“Yo…it’s
me.”
“Hey—where
are you, man? We thought you’d be here ½ hour ago.”
“Yeah, so did I. The
car died again!”
“Again!
You’ve gotta get rid of that thing once and for all.”
“No funds, man!”
“Well,
where are you?”
“On Prewett Loop,
about a mile past Highway 1.”
“I’ll
send Smalls to pick you up—stay cool, we’ll get you.”
“Thanks.”
“So,
when you getting some new wheels? That turtle you drive needs to be permanently
retired.”
“Tru dat. So, how
long’s the party gonna last?”
“Jimmy
says he’ll keep it cranked all night.”
“Good. I didn’t want
to miss the whole thing. What’s everybody drinking?”
“The
usual, but some dude brought some home brew—tastes like hair tonic so I’d avoid
it.”
“Thanks for the
advice.”
“Man,
I wish you were here—this place is a zoo right now. The music they’re playing
is off the shelf!”
“Hey! I feel bad
enough about the car…don’t make it worse.”
“Then
I probably shouldn’t tell you that Natalie’s here, and she’s looking lonely.”
“Aw, man!”
“Sorry,
sorry…my bad. That was cold, I know.”
“Ah…so, did Natalie
come by herself?”
“I
think so, dude. What? You still got something for her?”
“Never stopped, man.
I just wish…wish things were different.”
“Why’d
you guys stop going out?”
“It’s complicated.”
“What
else you gonna do?”
“Good point.”
“So,
tell me man. What’s the deal with you two?”
“Things were going
pretty good. We were hanging out, like, every weekend. Then her brother died.”
“Her
brother died? You never told me that. Did we know him?”
“No, he was older—we
never knew him. He was in Afghanistan. Their Humvee hit a landmine. Four soldiers died.”
“Man,
that sucks.”
“Yeah, tell me about
it. After that things kinda changed.”
“How’d
things change?”
“I don’t know, and I
don’t think she even knew.”
“So
what’d you do?”
“I did a bunch of
stupid stuff. I tried to buy her things—spent a ton of money. I even bought her
a necklace.”
“A
necklace?”
“Yeah, and other
stuff, but…I don’t know…she just couldn’t get past it.”
“Well,
she’s still here, and pretty much by herself, as far as I can see.”
“Do me a favor.”
“What?”
“Go tell her that I’m
coming and not to leave. I really want to talk to her and see how she’s doing.”
“Alright.
I’ll do it, but you owe me, man.”
“You name it—whatever
you want.”
“How
‘bout a necklace?”
