A Short Story : A Story?

I have to make a plan. Where is he? I don’t know my way around the house. Is he in his kitchen? Or still asleep? I press my ear to the door. I listen to see if I can hear him in the kitchen. I don’t. Maybe he is still asleep, or he could be waiting out in the hallway ready to kill me. I can’t risk it.

I walk faster and faster, until I’m standing at the alley’s opening. I turn my head to scan the faces of the people walking along the sidewalk, as I search for Alec. But after fifteen minutes, I’m forced to acknowledge the very real chance, that he could have left.

He left the office and went straight to the bedroom. He was going to see if there was anything that he could change into, but he immediately just collapsed on the bed.

Snow was a blanket upon Atlas’ austere domain, almost blindingly glistening against the waning sun. The chilling breeze bit at cheeks and battered noses until they were tinged pink. Children wandered the streets with deftly-crafted snowballs and prepared for a winter’s war while adults huddled cozily inside by the crackling fire. The bitter, arctic season was upon them.

His feet sunk deep into the fresh snow as he picked his way down the sidewalk, hood up, watching the crystal flakes drift past and fall onto a silent street. It was dark enough for his vision to be blocked, 5:30 at night. Malaki was out without parental permission, but he didn’t care. He was sixteen, he could make his own decisions. He was out “studying” with a few friends, if studying means partying that is. His parents should’ve been in bed when he got home but just in case Maliki would sneak in through his window. He crawled in his window, the room pitch black. He went to turn his light out but his mom had beat him there. She flicked his lights on and crossed her arms. Her husband shook his head.

My legs won’t stop jittering in the passenger footwell of Jacob’s ute. I’m so nervous. I haven’t been back to the city since I left for Hope over three years ago. It has been easier to ignore the life I left behind when it was over a six hour drive away. But now here I am, sitting next to man too handsome and kind for his own good, heading straight back into that lion’s den. It’s not that I didn’t have a great life there. I did. However it’s a completely different life to what I want and what I live now. And I haven’t been away long enough to forget how bitchy and snobby my old friends can be. To be really honest, I’m not sure what I’m more nervous about, facing my past or my past meeting Jacob. Jacob squeezes my thigh, interrupting my thoughts, “Hey over there, you alright?” He asks.

As I look out my window, all I see is a deep, dark void. Then my eyes adjust. Sparkling lights slowly appear out of the blank. I look to my left, and see a brown marble, the size of my fingernail. I look back inside the ship. Machines buzz, buttons click, the engine hums. The symphony of sounds slowly faded into faint white noise.

The smell of antiseptic filled my nostril as I gripped my coffee tightly. Swinging my bag over my shoulders, I watched as the other nurses and doctors walked into rooms checking on patients. The sound of familiar beeping rang through the air, as I strolled past the front desk into the hospital break room. I opened the doors and heard the voice of my coworker.

Moving around on the bench as if trying to get comfortable before she spoke, Marlene said, “What I’m going to say will probably make you laugh. Please don’t.”

As I take a breath, the warm May air filled my lungs. The golden wheat fields surrounding my wooden farmhouse glistened as the Oklahoma sun hit it. I watch as Mama brings some bread to Papa, her own mother, and I. The umbrellas covering the four of our heads were doing all we could ever ask for, to keep us relaxed and from thinking about all of the drama and rumors that can quickly spread around our little town, because there has been a problem with that lately. We all sat outside quietly and just watched the sky for any birds. At only 9 a.m., it was a bit cloudy and the sky seemed a little darker than usual but it still felt almost the same but not quite. I decided to break the awkward silence by saying something.

“Those are your salivary ducts going crazy,” he said. “You’ve never eaten before, Phillip. Never. Your jaw muscles are locked up and you’re producing an overabundance of saliva as a result of tasting sugar for the first time.”

The sky had been darkened by thick gray clouds. The brown wooden fences that bordered colorful houses all seemed as if their color had faded away. Small drops of water slipped gracefully off of the delicate leaves to the ground. The whole scene had a certain elegance to it, however mysterious the thin veil of fog made the familiar setting appear.

What if everything changes? What if he disowns me? The thoughts poured over me as I laid in my bed. I pushed my blankets off me. The air conditioning kicked on as I laid there, my body still as a board. The cool air from the vent brushed against me, sending a feeling of ease rush through my body. My mind was still numb at what I just did. I’ve been postponing this moment for years, yet I finally found the courage follow through with it.

.Zane looks at me and says, “Hey Alex, let’s go do something different.”i look back at him ‘’ok like what’’ zane said ‘’I don't know what do you think we should do’’ I look at him with a puzzled look and say ‘’maybe we could go get some friends’’ he looked at me then we looked at each other then he said ‘’sounds fine to me’’ we called some people we knew like, Dan and Jeremiah.

“Hurry! It’s this way,” The young woman called back to her two companions as they raced up the barren landscape, a dark red, stiff foliage layering over the white soil beneath their feet. “Just over this ridge!”