Categotry Archives: Fiction
Suzie’s House 263 : How Do You Vindicate It?
“Hey! Who put this here?” Ben gave the suitcase a kick for having tripped him. “Huh. A suitcase?” Gene squatted down next to it. There was something kind of familiar about this suitcase. It was black canvas, with wheels; the kind you put in the over head compartment of a plane. A little silver thing on the handle jingled when he moved it. There was even an airline tag attached. But the tag said Denver, not Madison. “Mooooom! Where’d this […]
Suzie’s House 262 : Novice to the Searing of the Flesh
“I’m so nervous.” Miranda stood in the kitchen with a spatula in her hand. It wasn’t like she’d never done this before, but the chances of messing up were high enough to make her sweat even in the middle of winter. “You’ll be fine.” Vin gave her arm a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll be with you the whole way.” “All right.” She swallowed hard. “Let’s do this.”
Suzie’s House 261 : Navigating the Rocky Shoals of Finance
Suzie ripped the check out of the checkbook and stuffed it in the envelope along with the tab from the bottom of the utility bill. She licked the envelope, glanced at the clock, then winced. The mail man would be coming any minute, and this bill was already overdue. Lately her finances had been as steady as a newborn fawn.
Ugly Undies
Galen is home now, but still not up to running the Fiction Friday 55 hub. Still, I’m in the mood. So here’s a super short one. . White, frayed, over-sized, every pair of underwear in her drawer turned her stomach. An important day, she couldn’t stand the thought of any of these bunching up under her nylons. So… she went without.
Suzie’s House 260 : Old Faithful
Drew followed an old couple from the parking lot/visitors center area to Old Faithful. One gray haired, the other probably balding under the brimmed hat, they looked a bit odd as they held hands and bumped into one another like a couple of green kids. Drew blinked a few times, but they didn’t seem to be any kind of hallucination. Maybe people in Wyoming were a little different. Then again, this place brought them in from all over the world.
Suzie’s House 259 : How to Kill Your Darlings
“This was bugging me all night,” Ben complained as he stepped into my house. “I don’t think I want to kill any darlings.” I giggled. “Let’s go sit in the kitchen before we talk about it.”
Looking Down from Above
“It’s all right, baby. She’s gone on to a better place. But she hasn’t left you behind. I’m sure she’s looking down on you from above.” The boy shivered. “Just when I thought she couldn’t spy on me anymore.” The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story in exactly 55 words. Flash Fiction 55 is hosted by the G-man, a host with the most.
Suzie’s House 258 : A Look at “I Am From”
Ben brought a poem of sorts over for me to critique. I actually have some university training in poetry, though it’s been long enough that I couldn’t tell my limerick from my canticle. All right, I’ll admit I’ve got my limericks down pat, but you know what I mean. It’s not my focus. Then again, neither are a teenage boy’s homework assignments.
Honeymoon
It was supposed to be beautiful. She wouldn’t let him touch her until they were married, because only when consecrated could their relationship be beautiful. He did all he could to make it right for her, but in the end, a simple ceremony can’t make a grunt sound like a song. The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story in exactly 55 words. Flash Fiction 55 is hosted by the G-man, a host with the […]
Suzie’s House 257 : When the Truth Broke Loose
“Would you quit being so pissy already?” “Ben?” Lisa and Tracy both looked at him like he’d just grown another head. Gene didn’t bother to look at him at all, just kept walking. Then again, he was well ahead of them on the sidewalk, so maybe he couldn’t hear. Or he just didn’t want to hear. “What? Don’t I have a right to get fed up with him? Weren’t both of you just complaining about him?”
Like a Fake Book on the Shelf
“What are you supposed to do with this,” asks Daughter. She holds up a jar of crystallized ginger. “Um… eat it,” Mom answered. “What? Just like this?” “Sure. Try some.” Mom pours out a handful. “Yum. But if you aren’t supposed to cook it first, why is it in the spice rack?” “Because I never found out what you’re really supposed to do with it.” Mom grinned. The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story […]
Suzie’s House 256 : Math Teachers vs Social Studies Teacher
“Ron,” Mr. Foster, the math teacher, nodded as they passed in the hall right after third period. “Chris,” Mr. Gordon replied. He didn’t notice at first that Mr. Foster had something more to say to him. “A word, if I may.” Mr. Foster held a hand up, stopping him without actually touching. “It’s about Tracy Martin. I believe you have her in second period?”
55 – “I Am From Poem” by Ben
Ben’s English teacher assigned a series of writing assignments to the class. This is Ben’s first effort. In this one, he was supposed to write a poem that begins “I am from” (For those who don’t know, Ben is a fictional character in the Suzie’s House series.) I am from a dad who tried to kill somebody and ended up in jail and a mom who is more interested in adopting my best friend than in making my birthday cake. […]
Suzie’s House 255 : Math vs Social Studies
“How come Gene’s all scary-moody again?” Tracy sat in the Math classroom, but had her Social Studies book open. Lisa had never seen her act so studious. Tracy paused to wave her pencil in the air. “I mean, just because he’s got his nose all bent doesn’t mean he has to growl at me.” “Um… Tracy? Math is going to start soon. Are you sure you should be working on that?”
Cab Driver
I don’t remember his name. He gave me a ride from the Romance Writers of America convention to the airport. He barely spoke English, having haled from Shri Lanka, but insisted on filling the silence with as many of my words as he could. To get them, he had to talk too, and so we argued the nature of love, devotion, and Romance. The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story in exactly 55 words. […]
