Posted by: DIYwriting | September 30, 2022

Monsters

Just after I died, I sat up.  I hadn’t expected my plan to go so well, but everyone had been convinced I was dead.  I knew I had precious little time to make it out of the house before everyone came back to do my final funeral preparations.  I knew my parents were especially suspicious and had always believed in the supernatural.  Ghosts were real and monsters actually lived under the bed.  I knew they would believe in the divine and the underworld and would have the most trouble with my supposed death and disappearance. 

But I had to go.  Had to make my break.  I knew the only way I was going to make a clean break from the life my parents planned was to completely disappear out of their lives.  If they believed I was dead, they would not look for me.  I half believed they would spread the lies that the monsters had taken me.  In all my twenty-three years, I had never figured out why they were so intent and steadfast in their belief that monsters were real.  That ghosts were real. 

But now I knew it was my only chance to get out and live. I just hoped they wouldn’t get it into their minds to check my credit cards and such. Though I worried the police might, but I would deal with that later. I just had to convince them I couldn’t go home and that dying was the only way to get away from my overprotective parents. As I tiptoed out of the room, I grabbed the bag I had hidden and walked straight out the back door. As I hurried toward the forest, I heard a scream from inside the house. I knew my mother had found my empty bed and hoped my plan would work. Little did I know, the real monsters were waiting for my return to the forest. To my former life. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 29, 2022

The Raging Storm

The storm was coming and I knew there was no way to avoid it.  I knew I should have left, but I couldn’t convince myself to leave my house.  If it was destroyed, I would accompany it.  All my worldly memories and possessions were tied up in this three bedroom house and I knew I wouldn’t survive a change.  A move.  Living inside four new walls was unbearable.  I had just gotten used to my new place and knew we would either be okay or we would both perish. Either way we would be together. 

I sat on the floor in the middle of my living room and closed my eyes.  I listened to the storm raging all around me and tried to calm my pounding heart. In reality, I really enjoyed storms. As long as the storm was mild and it was just wind and rain. Tornadoes, hurricanes, and earthquakes terrified me. I liked to be in control and natural disasters couldn’t be controlled. I could only remind myself I could only control my reactions. My agoraphobia happened when my mother disappeared. I had ideas she disappeared because she didn’t want to deal with me anymore, but the police quickly squashed that idea when they came sniffing around asking me if I had anything to do with her being missing. 

I still had flares of panic of maybe it was my fault she was gone, but I did find myself enjoying the peace and quiet. There was no one to nag on me about staying home and not having enough friends. There was no one to sigh every time I woke up at my normal seven AM instead of sleeping until almost noon. As the storm continued to rage all around me, I tried to make peace with my decision to stay. I did love the house more than many would consider to be normal, but I also knew the storm had the possibility of unearthing my mother’s body from the backyard. And no one could know she was there and why. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 28, 2022

Deserted

I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and tried to determine what time it was before I looked at the clock. The light was not quite bright enough to light up the entire room, but bright enough for me to know I needed to get up. If I wanted to get any kind of breakfast, I had to almost sneak some food before anyone else got out of bed. My mom was obsessed with looks and body image and insisted everyone only eat fruit and egg whites for breakfast. I was on the lucky side I loved eggs, but my brother couldn’t stomach eggs no matter how they were cooked. I was naturally an early riser so I tried to sneak extra food into my backpack to take to school so Kevin could have something more than a few bites of bananas. 

I pulled my slippers from underneath my bed and quietly made my way downstairs. Because of my early morning ramblings for food, I knew exactly where all the squeaky floorboards were and how to avoid them. I hadn’t noticed anything different until I got to the bottom of the stairs. I froze with one foot still in the air when I noticed all the furniture was missing. Every single piece. Even the curtains had been taken down. Had we somehow been robbed in the middle of the night without anyone in the family hearing a single sound? I quickly headed to the kitchen and found every drawer empty and the fridge was completely bare. Was I living in a nightmare? I pinched myself to make sure I was awake and wasn’t entirely surprised when it hurt. 

I turned from the kitchen and ran up the stairs and noticed everything I hadn’t in the early morning light. All the pictures were missing from the wall and the rugs had vanished. What was happening? Where were our belongings? Was my family safe? I paused at my parents’ bedroom door, nervous as to what I was going to find. I slowly opened the door and found, not entirely to my surprise, the entire room was deserted. I ran to my brother’s room, only to find him gone as well. I almost smiled as the sun brightened the room to a warm glow. I had finally gotten my wish. To live on my own without the interference of my mother. But was it worth the price of losing my brother?  

I felt the sinking feeling in my stomach that I may never see Max again and headed to my room with determination. I would find my brother, bring him back and we could live happily ever after, eating anything but eggs for breakfast. It would take a while for me to realize the dollhouse I was living in. The dollhouse where everything changed, but stayed exactly the same. Day after day, I woke up to a new morning without my family, never knowing I would never see them again. I never knew and would never know how my mother understood so much about the power of hallucinogens.  

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 27, 2022

Relationships

My heart felt hollow the minute he left.  Then it immediately filled again with all the plans I had not been able to fulfill while Mitch was still around.  He had held me back so much and so often, I had almost forgotten I had my own voice.  My own ideas.  I knew the first thing I wanted to do was to paint the entire interior of the house.  I wanted the walls to be bright and cheerful whereas Mitch had wanted everything to be tan and neutral, including the furniture, sheets, bedspread, dishes.  Everything. 

The first night I was alone in my own house, I sat down on the couch with a glass of wine and savored the silence.  Mitch had never left before so I was pretty sure he was gone for good.  But just in case, I had plans to get all the locks changed so he could not barge in unannounced.  The more I had thought about our relationship, the more I knew it had been doomed from the beginning.  I think I knew it had been, but liked the comfort of having someone around most of the time.  That was until last Thursday when Mitch took matters into his own hands.  Matters dealing with my dog, Virginia.   

Virginia was my first and at the moment, only baby, and Mitch couldn’t get over the fact I didn’t want to spend every waking second catering to his needs.  I had other friends, family and Virginia to spend time with.  Last Thursday he had left Virginia outside all day in the heat without any water and when I took her to the vet when I got home from work to get everything checked out, he had only laughed.  As if almost killing my dog was a normal thing to do.  Little did I know, Mitch had made other plans of being able to get back at me for changing the locks on him.  When I was almost fired for a rumor he started, I knew exactly what truth would get him fired. And that way, I would have a clear ladder to the top of the company while he watched me take his position and become the first female CEO. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 26, 2022

Devastation

Every school year, I counted down the days to the beginning of summer break. I was the only time I never had any rules and only a few responsibilities. I was naturally an early riser and every summer day I was up before the summer sun. There were too many places to explore on the farm and I didn’t have enough time during the school year with the homework and chores imposed by my parents. With the long summer days, I could finish my chores before day break and then I could spend the rest of the day outdoors. 

I knew my parents would want me to have a ‘respectable’ career like a doctor or a lawyer, but I only knew I needed a life in the outdoors. Outside and with my own rules and responsibilities. I didn’t want to have to abide by anyone else’s rules and regulations. I knew what I wanted to do with my life, I just needed a plan of how to get there. I had to work out a plan to convince my parents I wasn’t meant to be inside, but suspected they already knew what I wanted and needed. My father just nodded when I left the house just after breakfast with a packed lunch and enough water to last the day.  

The only thing that changed my plans was the fire the devastated the land. The land I grew up on and loved my entire life was burned almost beyond recognition. And I knew it was my mother. My mother who never went outside unless she had too. I knew this was her way of trying to keep me at home. With her. But in reality, it pushed me even farther away. The day I left home and never went back was the day my mother was devastated. If she had only understood, she would never have ended up in jail. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 25, 2022

The Metal Mask

I watched in horror as the man’s mask started shining in the sunlight. I still had no idea what he was doing or where he was going, I was just praying I would not be hurt. That my friends won’t be hurt. I knew I had to stand my ground, mainly because I didn’t think my legs would work. I also couldn’t get a good look at his eyes, but I couldn’t tell if they were focused on me or not. I didn’t want to draw attention to myself in case he wasn’t really seeing me. 

As he slowly turned to his left, I began to retreat to my car. His awkward way of walking – or maybe he was stumbling – covered the noise I made getting back to my car. I slowly slid into the driver’s seat as I watched the man weave down the middle of the street. I pulled my phone out of my purse and tried to unlock my phone but it became increasingly difficult as my hands continued to shake. By the time I looked back up to the street to check on how far away the man had gotten, he had disappeared. Where had he turned? Had he gotten into a car? Had someone picked him up? I hadn’t heard any cars approaching, but then again, my heart had been in my throat and the pounding had reached my ears. 

I started my car and headed in the direction the man had stumbled. I had my phone tuned to 911 and was prepared to call as soon as I found him again. I needed someone else to see the man in the shining mask. The man who couldn’t walk straight at ten in the morning. But before I found him, I found myself floating. Floating toward the sun, the moon and the stars. I had no control, but found myself transfixed on where I was going instead of wondering why I was floating. It was a dream and I never wanted it to end. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 24, 2022

On the Run

PHOTO PROMPT © Alicia Jamtaas 

The only time I have ever felt free in my life was when I could fit my belongings into my garage.  It was not until then that I felt like I could do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.  If I wanted to go on a vacation, my bags were technically already packed and ready to go.  Having spent many years on the run, I had finally perfected my plan.  I just needed to make sure Hollis never caught up.  If he did, my life of crime and punishment would be over.  I knew I shouldn’t have married a cop. 

More Friday Fictioneers stories can be found here.

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 24, 2022

The Underworld

When the fingers gripped my arm in the darkness, I screamed. I knew Harvey had told me to be quiet, but the fingers were so cold. So thin. So… I don’t know. I screamed until Harvey’s hand clamped over my mouth. 

“What is it this time? Have you forgotten we are being hunted?” He whispered into my ear. I felt the icy fingers loosen as they trailed down my arm. I frantically looked for whoever or whatever it was, but couldn’t see anything in my blind panic.  

“Someone is here with us,” I whispered back when he finally let me go.  

“That’s because -” he started. Even in the darkness I knew he was rolling his eyes. 

“No. That is the reason I screamed. Someone grabbed onto my arm.”  

As Harvey sighed and I felt him move away, I knew he didn’t believe me. The forest was haunted. I hadn’t wanted to come in the first place, but he had convinced me something horrible was going to happen if we stayed in the house. I knew something horrible was going to happen in the forest. As he walked farther ahead with the flashlight, I made my decision. 

I started backpedaling quietly back to the house. If he didn’t believe in the beings haunting the forest, I wasn’t going to try and explain them anymore. He was going to have to find out for himself. Little did I know, as I was trying to relax in the warm comforts of our house, he would be joining them in the underworld. And that I would be next. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 23, 2022

Bones

I knew the bones had not been there yesterday, but where had they come from? And were they human? They seemed to be too small to be human, but I wasn’t sure. Should I call the police just in case? I stood at the edge of the forest and stared at the bones on the ground. Maybe they had been there yesterday or for weeks and had just been brought to the light of day by the massive downpour we had had the night before. 

Even if I didn’t call the police about the newly surfaced bones, I knew somebody else would. This was a well-used hike into the woods and people came and went at all hours of the day. I knew I was on the edge of getting in trouble with the police because of the wreck I had caused the week before so I finally made up my mind to continue on with my hike without making any sort of phone call. Growing up, my father had made me so paranoid about getting in trouble, now I couldn’t face any kind of consequence. I knew the illegal lane change the week before had been the cause of the crash between the other two cars, but I hadn’t stopped. The shame still followed me like a hawk, but as no one was injured, it was beginning to fade. 

Just like I knew someone else would find the bones and call the police. I knew I couldn’t look a police officer in the eye and tell them what I had been doing when Virginia had gone missing. I knew there was a good chance this was Virginia because these were her favorite trees, her favorite forest and definitely her favorite hiking path. But, again, I had lied to the police about her disappearance and I knew they wouldn’t let me get away with another story. So I kept on hiking, knowing my life would never be normal again. But when had I ever had a normal life to begin with? I looked at the sky and started humming along with the birdsong, knowing I would never return. 

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Posted by: DIYwriting | September 22, 2022

Ransacked

As soon as I scratched Graham’s face out of the photograph, I felt better.  Then it quickly turned to anxiety.  What would my sister think if she found out what I had done to her favorite photo?  I quickly took the photo and the frame and tiptoed back to my room.  If she found out what I had done, I would be through.  I was already walking a thin line with my family and destroying Sara’s favorite photo of Graham would tip the scales. 

If anyone had listened to me in the first place, I wouldn’t be in this situation. I packed the photo into my purse and headed out to my car. Maybe I could get rid of the evidence before anyone noticed. But part of me wondered if I should also maybe look like a break-in. If someone maybe had ransacked Sara’s room, I would be off the hook. Luckily, I knew just the person who could ransack the room for practically nothing. The only problem was to get him to come over before Sara got home. the wheels started spinning about how I could delay Sara’s arrival until after Miller came by. I knew Miller only wanted to impress me and I knew he would do anything I asked. He had been infatuated with me since we were thirteen and had refused to listen to anything I had to say on the subject. So if he wouldn’t listen about the fact I had no feelings for him, was it wrong to use him? Maybe, but now was not the time to start thinking about all my sins. 

Little did I know, Miller’s infatuation had turned from me to Sara. While he had agreed to ransack her room while I asked her to meet me for a happy hour, by the time we returned, Miller was still sitting on her perfectly made bed in her perfectly clean room. Holding the photo where I had scratched out Graham’s face. To my favor, Sara was having none of it and screamed at Miller for ruining her favorite photo. I smiled at Miller over Sara’s shoulder, certain that I had finally won.  

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