Category: Friday Fictioneers
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FESTIVE CHEER
The first freeze of the winter brought patches of treacherous ice. Archie watched the school children sliding joyfully along. Behind him, Agnes hummed Christmas songs as she hung baubles on the tree. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, tra-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la.’ Archie imagined what he would do with the large icicle hanging from the tree in…
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SURVIVING THE APOCALYPSE
On the wall hung the cracked television they couldn’t watch because there was no electricity. The kitchen had an old cooker and refrigerator but without power they were merely metal cupboards. And now this. ‘What do you think? Our new bathroom suite.’ ‘Where did you get them from?’ ‘Found them. Minor defects but perfectly intact.…
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DICTATOR
He felt old. He felt tired. Forty years leading his people, the Father of the Nation. Now they wanted rid of him. How could they be so ungrateful? He freed them from oppression. Didn’t they remember? Resign, they cried. Perhaps he should. Father Time was catching up with him. The clock ticked relentlessly. No. There was…
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THE PROPERTY DEVELOPER
The cannons sprayed water through the night sky onto the roof of the blazing building. A crowd of nearby residents gathered to watch. The old theatre, dwarfed by surrounding modern apartments, had lain empty for several years. It was preserved and protected for reasons of architectural heritage. Remarkably, the surrounding buildings were untouched by the…
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THE LAST SHOP
Herbert let the final customer out, a lady all the way from Missouri who bought a purple coat. He closed the store for the last time. He had expected more ceremony. Only one journalist had come to bear witness. Since Ancient Greece there had been shops – physical places with goods to sell. 5th Avenue,…
Iain Kelly 