Flash Fiction: Mama’s chronicles

It was ingrained in me from a very young age, that until the moment when I will step into my husband’s house, I was bounded by my mother’s rules. But,
I had just turned ten, and fuelled with the burst of pre-teen rebellion, I dared to turn a deaf ear to her various warnings of “no one better touch my coal burner before I get back”.

I dared. I decided to use it in my room. I lit the match, threw it into the burner filled with about a dozen coals (I didn’t know how to use it) and almost set my room on fire. 
Mama returned back home as I was fervently trying to clean up my mess.

Safe to say, I learnt that day, though mama’s hands looked like wrinkled skin over flesh, they were in fact made of steel. I felt the steel that day.

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Word count: 148 words. This story is in response to Flash Fiction for aspiring writers photo prompt challenge hosted by Priceless Joy. Thank you for this week’s picture @ENISA

The thing about addiction-

The sun sprayed gloriously upon my skin, the mockingbirds sang the tune of my soul, natures forces whispered to me and I felt renewed, rejuvenated…. That, is not how it happened. I wish I could say that was it, but it wasn’t it.

It took a tragedy to pull me out of my darkness. A tragedy so great, I expected it to plunge me further into darkness’ clutches. I didn’t just wake up and decide to take hold of life; I woke up, and Life happened to me… That woke me up!

The sun did shine gloriously that morning, the hummingbirds sang, and nature’s forces were aligned in their greatest- but one person didn’t.

How it started, I can’t even remember. And before we could figure out our lives, the drugs had taken control of us. But that’s the thing about addiction, you don’t realise it is a problem until It has it’s cold arms, wrapped tightly around you in an unrelenting grip.

She didn’t wake up. I watched her lying there, with too many tubes, looking the most peaceful I’ve ever seen her, the doctor’s words amplified in my head; not a single visitor, not another friend present… I knew, unless I changed something, sooner rather than later, It would be me lying there.

I wish I could say, I simply woke up and decided to change my life. It took a tragedy, to pull me out of my darkness.

 

Flash Fiction: Super powers?

Mama mama… he came, screaming into the room. My heart skipped a beat, I thought something horrible had happened. Since our house got broken in, every call of excitement sent a shiver down my spine.

“Grandpa has super powers!” He kept repeating, jumping up and down with a huge smile spread across his face.
“I saw a light coming out of grandpa’s hand“, he remarked excitedly when he saw me.
“Aw Honey“, I smiled, “that is not possible”.

For a moment, his face was a mask of horror and I though, ah, I have broken my son’s heart. It was only for moment though because, he smiled again saying, “but Ma, you always say through God, all things are possible”.

I laughed, knowing that was something I could not refute that.

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word count: 131. This story is in response to Flash Fiction for aspiring writers photo prompt challenge. Thank you for this week’s photo @Goroyboy

Flash Fiction: Back to work

D.I Lucy and D.S Fenworthy arrived at the crime scene. This was Lucy’s first case after a much needed holiday and from the little information she had gotten from her boss, it was not going to be an easy one.

Her brows furrowed and her footsteps became brisk; with Fenworthy, jogging a bit to catch up with her.
“You know boss”, he uttered amidst breaths, “I should be the one grouchy considering you got a holiday and I didn’t”.
He was right and she knew it.

She apologised, “Its just, this is one of the hardest type of cases. The water would have tampered with most of the evidences”.

“Leaving us with little to make a solid case”, Fenworthy concluded.

“Exactly“.

They walked the remainder of the pathway in silence, each absorbed in their own thought. A scene which would normally have been picturesque would now be remembered for the grisly murder carried out there. Lucy sighed, wondering how much longer she could do this, before something had to give.

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word count: 170. This is story is in response to Flash Fiction For Aspiring Writers photo prompt challenge. Thank you very much for this week’s picture @J S Brand.

Somewhere in Africa

Somewhere in Africa,
A dark skinned child
Lay on clay soil, laughing away
The earth’s worries.
His mother, braiding cornrows
On his sister’s 4C hair,
Discussing the business
Of the neighbour’s daughter,
Who is conveniently
Absent from their midst.

A man, assembles his
Remote tools into a barrow:
Hoe, spade, cutlass.
The ridges are made,
Seeds sown,
He stares at his empty land,
Nothing’s growing.
The sun is out,
The cloud’s at bay,
A prayer escapes from his lips,
Lord, please let there be rain.

They have food for their stomachs
Only for a meal,
A day.

A man steps upon clay soil,
To the sound of a child’s laughter:
Water glistens upon his skin,
His stomach churns;
But two hands are outstretched
Towards him.
He smiles:
Picking up the laughing reason
Why everything is all worth it.

The above image is courtesy of British Ecological Society

Flash Fiction: The ingenious idea

We were tasked with writing a 2000 word essay on any topic of our choice relating to history, and I had the perfect topic- Dinosaurs: Myth or reality.

It was a no brainer really. There’s a newly opened dinosaur museum only a few blocks from my home, so I wouldn’t have to walk much or spend transport fare. Plus, rumor has it that the museum guide is a “talker”, and I figured he would be more than willing to offer up information for my paper. It was only a few days to the submission deadline, this had to work.

I slung my backpack and headed for the museum. I got to the main gate, cleared and casually strolled into the museum hall only to find a bunch of youngsters who looked like my classmates.

“You lot are a bunch of lazies!” I yelled into the laughing group. Apparently I wasn’t the only one with the “lazy ingenious” idea after all.

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word count: 157 words. This story is in response to Flash Fiction for aspiring writers photo prompt challenge hosted by Priceless Joy. Thank you for this week’s picture @Yinglan

Flash Fiction: Wife, Cat and Baby

Karim shifted the handbrake into park mode and dialled his wife’s number.
“Hun, sorry I didn’t call you back in time, I was just…”

“What’s that sitting on your lap”, she interrupted.

He glanced down and said, “Ohh its the neighbour’s cat. Mrs Graham requested me to drop her off at the Vet’s”.

“Ohh really”, his wife exclaimed “and when did you start doing favours for each other?”

He didn’t have time to respond before she threw another question
“And why is the cat sitting on your lap?”

The next thing Karim knew, his wife was bawling through the video call.
“First its her cat, next thing, it’d be her daughter. I know she’s been eyeing you”, she continued.

Karim didn’t know what to do, so he said, “I’m sorry love”, whilst mentally calculating how many weeks were left before his wife would be due to give birth.

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Word count:144. The above story is in response to FFFAW hosted by priceless Joy. Thank you for this week’s picture @ENISA 

 

Flash Fiction: Siblings Day Out

Sheila felt a slight tug at her sleeves, which she purposely ignored. She was on babysitting duty which meant, taking her four siblings out, ranging between the ages of 4 and ten, for no pay whatsoever. Ohh, the drawbacks of being the older child.

The tug pulling reached an uncomfortable point, and considering “the stare” also didn’t dissuade the sleeve puller, Sheila bent down and whispered a fierce “what?“
Dawn whispered back, “can we sneak it home please?”

Sheila looked through the glass in front of her. Each one housed a crocodile, a chameleon, a porcupine and the best of all, something which looked like a really huge praying mantis residing on purple coloured limestones.

Sheila glared at Dawn, “you mean the purple stones right?”
Dawn smiled a little too sweetly, “But of course sis. What did you think I meant. The Mantis?”

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Word count:142. The above story is in reaponse to Flash Fiction for aspiring writers photo prompt challenge hosted bu Priceless Joy. Thank you very much for this week’s picture @Any1mark66

Flash Fiction: The View

D.S Fenworthy found a spot to watch the magnificent display happening right in front of his eyes. He laid on his back, with his head resting atop his intertwined fingers; unbothered by the sand grains gaining entry into his clothe.

The display lasted only a few minutes, but those minutes were everything. The sun transformed into a ginormous golden beauty from a speck; and in the process, created an undertone of subtle colours, evoking a feeling words could not describe.
For some reason, D.S Fenworthy felt at peace.

He searched in his pocket for the piece of paper his partner D.I Lucy had left for him and read it again.
“We all have those days…. Thank me later.”
That was all it said, and then this location and time was scribbled beneath.

He smiled and crumpled up the paper, thinking, despite what the other coppers said, D.I Lucy was one heck of a partner and boss.

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word count: 158. The above story is in reaponse to Flash fiction for aspiring writers photo prompt challenge. Each week we are provided with a picture and are to write a 75-175 word story. Thank you for this week’s photo: @Footy and Foodie

 

Flash Fiction: Evil Genius

Randy was the new kid in class, so he didn’t get to see Bradshaw hills with us during last term’s excursion. For this term’s, we had formulated a plan to trick him. Bradshaw hills was unique for its cave markings. The class as a whole decided to pretend we couldn’t see the markings on the cave, to make Randy think he’s going nuts when he points at them.

It was funny when we planned it. What began as a joke ended up with Randy screaming his head off and throwing a tantrum to the teacher, declaring that he was losing it. It resulted in his parents being called to take him home and “we” all scared and getting a week of punishment.

That night, I got a call from Randy, thanking me for getting him 2 days off school to rest. Turns out, he had been to Bradshaw hills before and knew of its markings. He only played along because he could use it to his advantage.

Oh the little evil genius.

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Word count:171. The above story is jn response to Flash Fiction for aspiring writers photo prompt challenge. Thank you @Any1Mark66 for this week’s picture.