Category: Friday Fictioneers
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SURROGATES
Black and white images from the past. Not hers, someone else’s. The smiling portrait of a young woman, an elderly couple in front of their house, a grandfather, a brother and sister. A family, a historical document of a happy life. $1 for the basket. The seller had no idea who the people in the…
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THE UNIVERSAL
Twilight feel, artificial light, woozy head. Almost home, such a nice night. Drinks, laughs, good times. Shared smiles with him again, dancing, brief contact. Should’ve made that move? A cloud of a missed opportunity. Park bench, take a seat, lie down. Staring up at the stars, the whole universe out there. Nothing to do in…
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THE WAIT
They wait. Rain starts to fall, umbrellas unfurl. The leaves overhead are golden-brown, autumnal. It seems appropriate. The mood is patient. They’ve waited this long, what’s another hour or two? Most are elderly. The young can’t stand around like this, they have to keep moving, keep hustling, to get through the day. A shuffle forward,…
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50/50
Todd cursed himself. He inched out further. The frame and glass creaked. He froze. He peered down, trying to make out the room below. It definitely wasn’t Lacey’s bedroom. She had told him the skylight on the left. Only now did he realise he didn’t know if that was left as he faced the house,…
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THE CONTRACT
Sitting in the cafe with a view of the Houses of Parliament, he double-checked the decoded message. A simple cipher using ‘The Ambassadors’ by Henry James – the numbers referred to the pages of the book, the first letter of the third line on each page combined to give the location. He had it right.…
Iain Kelly 