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Flash Fiction Prompt For Friday, March 4, 2016
Use the phrase "It looks like snow, but it's actually..." and fill in the blank with your word. It doesn't have to be the beginning, but it does have to appear. When posting, remember to include your name and your Twitter handle.
See ya back here on Sunday night for the winner!
3 comments:
Name: Randi Perrin
Twitter: @randiperrin
“Jenkins, get in here.”
I hated when the sergeant addressed me like that. It had been five years, and two years in he started using my first name, so I thought that meant I fit in. Clearly I was mistaken.
I followed the sound of his voice through the condemned house that smelled of death and decay until I ended up in a room that was dimly lit by the setting sun. The sergeant was crouched down next to something that was covered by a paint-splattered drop cloth, which was odd considering the walls didn’t look like they’d ever been acquainted with a paint brush. Just like in the movies, he used his pen to push the cloth out of the way and the fresh stench of death knocked him back and he stumbled a few feet. I held my hand over my mouth to cover the laughter that I couldn’t swallow, but it also worked well to block the offensive scent that filled the room. The look he shot me warned that any word I uttered could be the last mistake I ever made.
He walked around the room, poking holes in the walls and moving dusty books that lined a rickety bookshelf. He shook his head and mumbled to himself.
Determined to be useful, I left the room, grateful to no longer look into the hollow eyes of the skull my boss unearthed.
A rustling sound from upstairs caught my attention, and my hand immediately went to my hip to draw my weapon. Hiding behind the 9mm, I made my way up the stairs, my heart thumping harder with each step I took.
I made my way through the rooms, but found nothing out of the ordinary. I returned downstairs to find the sergeant bent over the body, his hand over his nose and mouth. The look on his face told me not to speak, lest suffer his wrath, and that was the last damn thing I wanted to do.
Instead, I re-holstered my weapon, and paced the floor, my hand still on the piece—just in case.
The sergeant stood up and kicked the cloth back over the body. His shoulders were tense, and his brow was furrowed, and this was the last thing he wanted to deal with, I was sure.
Rustle, rustle
There was that noise again. This time I could tell it was right above my head, and I pulled my gun out and fired straight up into the second floor.
The ceiling splintered, cracked, and fell in. The sergeant and I moved just in time to save ourselves from the dead rat that came tumbling down—followed by a mountain of white powder.
It looked like snow, but it was actually cocaine. A lot of cocaine.
The sergeant smiled. “You’re not so worthless after all, Danny. That’s what we were actually after.” He motioned to the rubble. “The homicide over there was just an added bonus.”
Name: Xavier Flint
Seth was sure that Natalie was the kind of girl that made men do stupid things. He was well aware of how reckless he was. What they were doing now seemed completely crazy. Still, he thought, a chance to spend time with a girl like this was worth it.
Seeing Natalie smile was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. A close second was the view that they were enjoying through the shuttle viewport.
“Thanks for bringing me out here,” Natalie said, her eyes gazing out the window. From where they were they could lay back in their seats and look up at the vast blue and swirling white that surrounded the planet.
“Is that…” Seth stopped himself, not wanting to sound ignorant.
She looked at him with her smile came again. “What,” she asked?
“The white,” Seth said, “is that what snow is?”
She let out small chuckle and shook her head. “It looks like snow but it’s actually just the clouds.”
He felt foolish. She reached out and touched his arm, sending his heart into a frenzy. He looked at her and she pointed up. “There is where all the snow is,” she said. “It’s called the South Pole. It’s completely frozen. The north is where a man named Santa lives.”
Seth gave her a confused but curious look. “How do you know that?”
“You’ve never been curious about Earth,” she asked?
Seth shook his head. “I never saw the need for it. That’s not where I’m from; it’s not home.”
The look she gave him almost showed disappointment. “It’s history,” she said.
“I can’t even imagine what it was like to live down there,” Seth remarked as he resumed his gaze. “I can’t really believe that people still live there.”
Natalie nodded thoughtfully. “It used to be so much more beautiful. More green. That’s why we left and decided to make our home out here. Still, I wonder what it would be like to have real ground under my feet.”
“I hope you weren’t planning on me dropping you off,” Seth said. For a moment he felt worried that she might actually ask him to make a landing.
Instead, she laughed, placing her hand playfully on his shoulder.
“No,” she said. “I might be curious but you’re right, it’s not home. I just…I just wanted to see it once before…”
Now it was Seth’s turn to be curious. “Before what,” he asked?
She looked over at him, silently working through a thought. Finally she asked, “Can you keep a secret?”
He nodded.
“I shouldn’t say anything,” Natalie continued, “but this has been a good date so far.”
She pulled out a pad and punched in her code. The screen lit up and she held it up to show an image of another planet.
“We finally found it,” she said proudly. “This is going to be our new home.”
Name: Kathleen S. Allen
Twitter: @kathleea
It looks like snow but it's actually ashes of my cremated lover. I scattered her ashes onto the field of grass where we made our vows. The wildflowers are in bloom again. I make a crown of purple flowers—her favorite—and tie them with the red ribbon from our handfasting and wear them in her honor.
Now I walk among her essence and dream about what could have been...about what we had...about what we shared. And I weep.
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