Rats

 

Octoberville

At the crack of dawn, the rats would come out to play.

He knew they would try to shine.

But he wouldn't let them. Oh, no.

At the crack of dawn, the rats would start to talk.

He knew they'd give him up.

But he wouldn't let them. Oh, no.

There was only one way to stop this madness.

He drove to them.

At the crack of dawn, he knocked on their door.

They opened, saw him and tried to run.

It was messy and they never got to shine.

He almost felt for them, at the crack of dawn.

100 Word Stories

Canyon

 

Ravenlake

Canyon was a crow.

Canyon hated his name.

Canyon abhorred the guy who had named him.

Canyon never replied when the guy called him.

The guy's greenhouse was his pride.

So, Canyon started with pebbles and slowly upgraded to stones.

The day one of the windows shattered, Canyon cawed in triumph.

That's when he stopped being Canyon and became a Jerk.

Canyon didn't like Jerk either.

The guy fixed the window and sneered.

A convoluted plan ensued. Canyon's buddies would help.

Well, the guy didn't live long enough to enjoy his greenhouse.

It was a murder, by God, a murder!

100 Word Stories

Stand

 

Kronbelt

They said "You can become filthy rich being a travel blogger". He believed them. One day, a guy said "You're a wuss." He was no wuss. He was a King. "Off with his head!" He'd always wanted to say that. His kingdom. An old mattress, a dusty rug, a lamp. He could walk a few feet to the left and a few feet to the right. Thirty years, till the parole board decided he could leave. He did have some incense burning. It made him look normal. The severed head in his backpack was sloppy. Oh, well, stand still, Zen...!

100 Word Stories

Fog a Mirror

Time Remains

 

"I've never felt so grounded," he said.

She could see through him.

"Some girl I met online," he said.

A whole lot of bravado, a cigarette hanging from his lips.

That snapshot she took of him... The ridiculous hat, the feather, the flower. Was it a rose?

Hopeless. Empty.

She still remembered the album crammed with photos of himself, only himself. Page after page, after page.

When she asked why, he grinned and mumbled some vague explanation filled with an under-layer of self-doubt he desperately tried to hide.

Grounded in his desperation, wanting to be seen for what he wasn't.

100 Word Stories

Frozen in Time

Home

 

Is this what we're supposed to see?

Is this the real face of...

Now is the time to be honest.

However, no one wants to tell the truth.

Everyone is hiding behind fake compliments.

Is this what we're supposed to do?

Is this the real...

And that flower was so fragile. As fragile as they were, staring at it, wondering.

The two of them. Alone.

They were real. Yes, they were, together in that frozen pain of what was not, together as they had always been, mourning what could've happened but never did.

The two of them. Together. Always together.

100 Word Stories

Collection

Milk Wood

 

He knew that the collection of plates with flowers on them was worthless.

However, his wife thought they were her ticket into a world of traveling and luxury.

When she died unexpectedly, one of her daughters lit two candles next to the plates, mentally claiming them as hers.

"No one wants these plates, right?"

Everyone said they did want them.

That's when a family crisis started. Years of arguments ensued. Marriages. Grandchildren. Divorces.

And the damn plates were still there, sitting on the shelf.

Good thing he had hidden the gold.

Traveling was nice and luxury hotels were even better.

100 Word Stories

Satisfied

Milk Wood

 

Let the music play.

And smile.

They tell you about her.

You don't recognize her in their words. But you smile.

They talk about what they don't know, veiled words of criticism oozing through.

Smile. Always smile.

Because letting them know what you really think would show ungratefulness.

And you're not ungrateful.

Let the music play.

Words turn into this vague hum.

And you try to make sense of it all. But you don't want to, because you know all about her.

They are satisfied. They have now established themselves as better than you.

It's OK. It's OK...

You smile.

100 Word Stories

Forward, Oblique

 

Land of Glory

Forward, and they stretched their arms forward.

Oblique, and they stretched their arms kind of sideways but not quite.

Black hole, and they were confused.

Stakes, and they were even more confused.

One of them mimicked a vampire being stabbed. Everyone thought that was a good idea and did the same.

"The point of this class is to open your mind. Express yourselves."

That's when he said "I think I'm about to relapse and start killing people again. That stakes part triggered me a bit."

The class was canceled due to a stampede of students exiting and never coming back.

100 Word Stories

Intake

 

Land of Glory

They told him no one would force him to eat only fruit and he was fine with that. He would eat meat too. "Not here, you won't," they said, smiling that placid smile of veggie eaters. But he knew what to do. He'd eat their fruit and then he'd sneak out. He was only there because she forced him to go. "You need to lose weight." Well, not by eating a ton of fruit, he thought.

When they caught him at the local diner, eating a steak, they cried. "Poor animal." He was offended and replied "I'm not an animal!"

100 Word Stories

As Far as the Eye Can See

 

Pala

"As far as the eye can see, the blue ocean, a nothingness filled with promises of many tomorrows. A certainty of the soul. A timeless motion forward. Perhaps even..."

"What on earth are you talking about, man?!"

The raft drifted aimlessly.

"We're lost. We're going to die and you're blabbering crazy stuff."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes. You'll start seeing things soon."

"You mean... Like that dragon?"

"Yes, like that dragon... Good grief man, there are no dragons."

The dragon swallowed them whole and burped. Not tasty, not tasty at all. Skinny, dehydrated humans. Nope, never again. Heartburn was a killer.

100 Word Stories

Blinded

 

Wintersweet

Dusk set in. The black panther remained seated on his pedestal, his back to the water, watching the humans getting ready to wrap up their day. It was that time again. They didn't know. But that old witch had taught him well. She had showed him who to snatch and when. The next morning, they would wonder. How? Why? When? Who did this? As the morning approached, he'd go back to being a statue. A statue on his pedestal, the one they revered, the one they looked up to for protection. Dusk set in and he waited on his pedestal.

100 Word Stories

Shenanigans

 

Wonderland 2.0

The class went on a field trip to an Alice in Wonderland theme-park.

At some point, one of the kids yelled "Snake!". No one reacted. He was the official prankster.

When he yelled "Snake!" again, a girl saw a giant red-eyed snake coming out through the wall. She yelled "Snake!"

"It's fake," the kids laughed. "It's just to scare us."

The problem was that, when they left the theme-park, the teacher was missing and only half of the kids managed back.

"Where's everybody?!" Asked the parents.

"In the exhibition. Literally. The snake did it."

"How?!"

“We are all victims in-waiting.”

100 Word Stories

Cracked Goth

Amar En Meleth

 

The guy dressed in black, black eyeliner, black nail polish, black moon tattooed on his cheek.

"Metrics," he said.

I didn't understand what metrics had to do with the tattoo.

"Measures of quantitative assessment," he said.

I had questions.

The fireplace in the gazebo illuminated the cracked pavement.

"Beautiful," he said.

For a moment, I thought he meant me. I looked frantically in all directions, assessing my quantitative measures of evasion.

He meant the moon.

This wasn't going well, I had to admit.

Did he even notice I was there? Cracked pavement... Beautiful... More like a cracked brain, in black.

100 Word Stories

Block

Kronbelt

The signal is blocked. We can't get through. I'm leaving this note. There's food for five days. After that... I don't know. I'm in my bunker. Perhaps we won't need food for five days. I go out at night to get my share from the warehouse. They hand it over through a small window. I never talk to anyone. I tried waving hello, but no one waved back. Now, when I see someone else, I cross the street and walk away. By the way, if I don't make it, they're all in the Mayor's pool. And no, they're not swimming.

100 Word Stories

Together

 

Bridgetown

The string of lights reminded me of you.

It reminded me of those days we spent in the cinema parking lot, next to the industrial fan, barely able to hear each other.

The string of lights reminded me of you and me.

It reminded me of the shouted out tunes that were just laughter.

It reminded me of when our fingers touched by mistake and we didn't know what to do.

Did you say "I love you"?

The string of lights reminded me of us.

The cinema is now gone but I can still hear that silent I love you.

100 Word Stories

Range

 

Time Remains

I was setting up the new store display. Pillows and whatever... Plus the robot, of course. The boss loved the robot.

That's when a customer asked "What's the price range?"

How do I know?!

"We don't sell peace and quiet, sir."

He opened his mouth as if to say something. Then, he gave up.

Stupid customers.

"Anything else, sir?"

That's when he snatched the robot and ran!

The range on the tracker was huge. I didn't bother chasing him. The boss would find it.

I, however, had trouble finding a new job.

Peace and quiet... I wish someone sold that.

100 Word Stories

Unbalanced Darling

Wonderland 2.0

They made her wear a long checkered coat that matched the background.

"Color. Style. It's intentional, darling," said the director.

The multitude of patterns gave her a headache.

Then, they added a huge hat. "For balance," they said.

"This is very Alice-like," she muttered.

The director smiled a condescending smile.

"Ever directed a play, darling?"

"No."

"Well then... This stage. It's different! New!"

"What?! It's a ripoff from Burton's!"

"Out," shouted the director. "Out, now!"

OK, time to call Mr. B and let him know he was right. This copycat wouldn't be calling anyone else "darling" for a long time.

100 Word Stories

Scroll

 

Island of Lost Dreams

"The scroll, please"

Amidst the perplexing disarray of intentions (everyone darted in different directions), one of the monks tripped.

"So?"

They said the turmoil was such that no one fetched the scroll.

"Considering the monk's broken leg will stay broken for a while, someone, get the scroll."

Everyone hurried.

After a while...

"There are two scrolls, Father. Which one...?"

He took a deep breath. There are two, they said... Two scrolls, one broken leg. And he felt like strangling someone and shoving a scroll down someone's throat. Then, there would be only one.

Hell. That's where he was heading, Hell.

100 Word Stories

Host

 

Milk Wood

"A plate full of love," she said, looking at the heart-shaped biscuits and blinking her eyes slowly, like a cat.

He frowned.

She raised her voice to a higher pitch. "You don't think so?"

Careful, he thought. Never ever contradict a host holding a plate.

"Valentine?" She insisted. "Love and all that?"

He nodded. Pink little hearts...

"Fine, don't say anything. I'll toss them in the garbage."

He nodded.

That's when that plate flew in his direction.

The gash on his head wasn't the shape of a heart.

That love wasn't meant to happen. He just hated pink freaking biscuits.

100 Word Stories

Superhero

 

Milk Wood

Ding, ding, ding.

No one's home, not even the one you're looking for.

And who am I looking for, he thought. He didn't know.

Ding, ding, ding.

Why isn't anyone here? He didn't know.

And he thought he was special.

Ding, ding, ding.

The harder he hit that bell, the angrier he got.

He was the one, he was THE one.

Ding, DING.

Anyone? Someone?

When they finally caught up with him, he was at the counter, hitting that bell with hatred in his eyes.

"Back home with you, mister."

Ding...

Home? Superman never dresses in white. He hated home.

100 Word Stories