Posts Tagged ‘Voice’
May
Sirens
by thegooddoctor in Uncategorized
He’d risen early this morning to plan the house his wife had dreamed of, but the hilltop’s stark beauty had rooted him to the spot.
His tea got cold.
It suddenly seemed a travesty to spoil the land’s personality.
Don’t seek to dominate, Mother Nature whispered, explore me as you would a lover.
He felt his pulse race at the imagery. There were enticing little copses in his eye line.
He wondered if Elaine was up for–
“GRAHAM!” Her voice scattered the erotic thoughts.
He sighed and slouched towards the mobile home.
“Coming.”
He reflected on the nature of sirens.
From Guest Contributor Perry McDaid
Mar
China
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
A friend asked, “Alyssa, do you think you’ll travel next year?” From deep within, without previous forethought, I knew. “Yes, I’m going to China!” I positively proclaimed. A week later I confided in a mentor at a local fair about my revelation but that I felt some doubt. We entered an exhibit room. Two handmade Chinese dresses stood at the entrance. Intrigued, I inspected them. The seamstresses had sewn their names on the insides of the collars. The first said “Alyssa” and the second said “Faith”. I heard a voice say, “Alyssa have faith.” Months later I traveled to China.
From Guest Contributor Alyssa Welch-Minaker
Alyssa is an online MFA writing student at Lindenwood University. She lives in North Africa where she reads excessively and plays with words. Visit her blog at alyssaminaker.wordpress.com
Jan
The Dog And I
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
The dog and I had a disagreement over where my hands belonged. She had a name, but I’d reached the point where I rarely used it anymore.
“Why can’t you learn to be more independent?” I asked, trying desperately not to raise my voice.
“Why can’t you just put your stupid hands on me?” the dog asked with her eyes and whimpers.
It seemed we were at an impasse. I just wanted to read my book after a long day at work, and the dog just wanted to be loved after a long day of solitude. First world problems indeed.
From Guest Contributor Dan Slaten
Dec
Let It Snow
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
The endless snow was really starting to get to him. With every slippery step, he cursed silently through the scarf wrapped around his mouth.
He saw a woman with an oversized hat and coat moving toward him through the snow. She looked up at him with snowflakes on her face and gave him a large smile.
“Let it snow, let it snow,” She said in a singsong voice while walking past him. He stared at her in complete surprise.
Her singing continued as he watched her plod away. He shook his head in disbelief but could not help but smile.
From Guest Contributor Zane Castillo
Oct
It’s Not What It Seems
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Mike, feverish, tossed in bed. Head aching and muscles tense, he dreamed of the beach, the hot sun beating on his face, when a voice awakened him.
“Babe, how are you feeling,” asked his wife Liz.
“My body feels like a truck hit it.”
“You heard what the doctor said. You have the flu. Rest, Tylenol and fluids is what he prescribed.”
“Yeah, well, the flu stinks and I feel like it’s more than the flu.”
“Stop being so dramatic. I’ll make you some homemade chicken soup. That should help.”
Mike laid back, closed his eyes, and never dreamed again.
From Guest Contributor Lisa M. Scuderi-Burkimsher
Aug
Better Off
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Crash.
Pain.
Nothing.
Light.
Nicole wakes up in what feels like a cocoon. Everything is soft, including her focus.
A familiar voice cascades in. Nicole turns. A stranger is smiling at her. She recognizes nothing about him but the voice coming from his mouth.
“The doctors say you’ll be okay. You just need rest.”
Nicole tries moving, but no response. She fears paralysis, until she notices the restraints. She looks back at the stranger.
“You really gave us a fright.”
She remembers. Not everything, not who this person is or the accident, but she remembers enough.
Better she were dead.
Aug
He Will Think I Don’t Love Him Anymore
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Seven-year-old Ava Mendez fidgets with Mimi’s cellphone in her lap.
Abruptly it rings. She smacks the green button. A recording informs her it’s a free call from her daddy, being recorded.
Press one to accept. Hastily she slams her little finger onto the keypad.
Horror grips her sullen face as tears flow uncontrollably, realizing she pressed the number two in haste.
Nothing but dial tone. She wails for her Mimi. “I have to talk to my daddy,” she cries.
Daddy, in a holding cell waiting for deportation, has not forgotten nor heard her angelic voice in three days and nights.
From Guest Contributor Yknow
Jun
Happier Times
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Lindsey searched the attic for old family photos. Her dad had just passed away from Alzheimer’s and she wanted to make a collage for the funeral. Through dust and cobwebs she came across the box. She found the photo of her and her dad when she was five-years-old. The Ferris wheel was scary to her young eyes.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be with you to hold your hand.” She heard her dad’s voice.
She pressed the picture close to her chest. Then she placed the picture in the pile of memories she’d cherish from happier times before his disease took him.
From Guest Contributor Lisa M. Scuderi-Burkimsher
Jun
Tableau
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
The protracted screaming was unnerving. I thought a rat had been caught by one of the local dogs allowed loose around the estate. It was Creggan in the nineties, where all sorts of mixed breeds roamed freely.
I pushed aside the lace curtain and gaped.
Pinning a dunnock to the ground with its talons, a sparrowhawk majestically scanned for potential interruption, its ribbed breast an exotic cuirass.
I caught its eye, heart strained in macabre tug-of-war between awe and horror at the continuing shrieks.
The raptor blinked like its distant ancestor, stooped, and ripped the voice from the little hedge-sparrow.
From Guest Contributor Perry McDaid
Apr
Taking The Leap
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Andrea says.
I look over at my best friend, then down at the water below us. I swallow nervously before replying.
“It can’t be that bad. After all, Alex has done this at least twenty times.” I wince at how shaky my voice sounds.
“Yes, well, Alex is Alex. Remember the time he stayed underwater for two minutes because Tim offered him a frappe?”
We laugh, breaking the tension.
I take a deep breath. It’s time. “Alright, together. Breath, crouch, and jump.”
We clasp hands. I see the doubt and jump off the cliff.
From Guest Contributor Neroli Ladner