IAIN KELLY

THE NEW LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER

The light glowed out of the fog as it turned.

He knocked the door.

An old man answered. ‘I was expecting Donnie.’

‘He quit.’

He led him inside. ‘You need a tour?’

‘I’ll figure it out.’

‘Fair enough. See you in a month.’

The solitude enveloped him. Bliss. Lockdown had shown him the path to true happiness.

Not at first, when she was there, every second of every day.

But once she’d gone, he’d finally understood. He was a solitudinarian at heart.

And no one would look for him here.


Written for the Weekend Writing Prompt, hosted byย SammiScribbles. This weekโ€™s prompt was:ย Solitudinarian. Click on the link to read more stories by other writers.

If youโ€™re interested in finding out more about my โ€˜State Trilogyโ€™ novels, I blogged about them all month through April as part of the A-Z Challenge, and you can find all the posts so far HERE.


28 responses to “THE NEW LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER”

  1. Sadje Avatar

    Thatโ€™s true.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      Thanks Sadje

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Sadje Avatar

        Youโ€™re welcome ๐Ÿ˜‰

        Liked by 1 person

  2. Na'ama Yehuda Avatar

    He best stay there, me say … ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      At least until it all blows over!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Na'ama Yehuda Avatar

        Yep! There’s that! I must say I am partial to lighthouses. One features pretty prominently in my book “Emilia.” ๐Ÿ™‚

        Liked by 1 person

  3. magickmermaid Avatar

    Did she go of her own accord or did he do away with her? ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      That is the question! ๐Ÿ™‚

      Liked by 1 person

  4. pensitivity101 Avatar

    methinks he dun ‘er in too.
    Good take Iain.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      He is certainly acting suspiciously!

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Yamini Ali MacLean Avatar

    Hari OM
    So much untold…!!!

    I identify as a solitudinarian. Then again, am always happy when found! YAM xx

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      It has a nice ring to it ๐Ÿ™‚

      Like

  6. Susan Joy Clark Avatar

    Very nice. ๐Ÿ™‚ It definitely works with the theme. I remember commenting on another work of your flash fiction in the past that I didn’t think I could write something so short. You told me I should try it. Well, maybe I might. I still haven’t tried flash fiction, but I’ve been busy with a few short stories and poems lately.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      Thanks Susan. There are always plenty of prompts around to give it a go. A very useful exercise ๐Ÿ™‚

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Susan Joy Clark Avatar

        Thank you. I’ve been looking into that. I see there are a bunch of challenges out there for flash fiction and poetry, etc. Really, really short fiction is a new thing to me, but then again, I recently wrote a haiku on a whim, and that is, I guess, the “flash fiction” of poetry. ๐Ÿ™‚

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Becky Ross Michael Avatar
    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      Thank you Becky ๐Ÿ™‚

      Liked by 1 person

  8. joyroses13 Avatar

    Hmmm….guess he definitely found tbe right spot!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      He would say perfect I imagine!

      Like

      1. joyroses13 Avatar

        ๐Ÿ˜Š

        Liked by 1 person

  9. rochellewisoff Avatar

    Dear Iain,

    Lighthouse keeper is the perfect job for recluse. ๐Ÿ˜‰ Well done.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      Thanks Rochelle

      Like

  10. Keith's Ramblings Avatar

    That last line poses a question! Intriguing.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      Quite a troubling one too!

      Liked by 1 person

  11. Eugenia Parrish Author Avatar

    I think you got it. And now I have a new word to describe myself (instead of hermit) when people tell me I must be lonely and try to “fix me up” with their nephew, cousin, uncle, etc.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Iain Kelly Avatar

      Sounds much better than hermit too ๐Ÿ™‚

      Like

  12. saree Avatar

    Lovely place

    Like

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