The challenge is to write a mini masterpiece, and I’ve accepted. Today’s post is a short story inspired by the words of a song. Which song? Well, I’m not going to tell you. I’m going to write a story about it, sprinkle clues throughout, and see if you can guess. Ready… set… go!
“I can help you get there, but you know there’s a cost. There’s always a cost…” Ben says with his back to me.
“Of course I know that, and I’ll pay it. Whatever it takes. I’m so tired. I’m tired of missing him. Tired of “knowing looks.” Tired of people saying I just need to forgive myself and move on. Of thinking I see him in a crowd and then remembering again he’s gone… Did you know I still feel him with me? The other day I was alone in the house and a cold breeze ran down my arm. No windows were open, and I swear I felt him touch my arm like he used to before he’d hold my hand. I was so sure it was him. I was certain…” my voice trails off as I look over at what Ben’s doing. “Hey, what are you stirring over there?”
“It’s for you. It’ll help you get there, to see him again.” Ben turns to me still stirring a hot cup of something. “Are you sure you want to do this?” he says raising an eyebrow. “You only get a minute. One minute. That’s all anyone gets. And the cost is steep.”
“I said I’d pay it, and I mean it. But what is the cost? You keep talking about it but have never told me what it actually is.”
“That’s because it’s different for everyone. Some don’t come back from the other side, some come back… different. Honestly I’m not sure which is worse.” Ben sits in the chair across from me and sets the cup down on the little table. “I can’t tell you because I don’t know what your price is going to be. That’s not up to me.”
“Who sets the price? How will I know when to pay it?” I ask as I lift the cup from the table.
“I don’t know who sets it. God? The Devil? Whoever it is that grants us this peek into the other side one minute at a time.” Ben shrugs his shoulders and then leans forward. “And you’ll know when. Once you cross over you have no choice, the fee will be taken from you.”
I sniff the steaming cup of madness and magic and reflexively pull back. “What the hell is this? It smells rotted and greasy.”
Ben leans back and places his hands on the arms of the chair. “Trust me. You don’t want to know. Just take a drink. It won’t take long.” He reaches over and flicks on an old record player. Funny, I didn’t think anyone used those anymore. It begins to hum and makes a shushing sound as he places the needle on the edge of the old vinyl.
I take a sip of “tea” and instantly almost throw it up. My earlier assessment of rot and grease were not wrong. Gagging and choking I manage to swallow. “Ugh. That’s awful!” I set the cup back down on the table and lie back on the couch closing my eyes. The sounds of a waltz wash over me as I lie there, excited and anxious about what comes next. “I’m ready.” I say as a white fog starts to fill in my head.
“Alright. Let the fog grow in your mind, that’s how you get there. Once you open your eyes your minute will start. When your minute is almost up you’ll hear a chime. I’ve been told there’s about 10 seconds from the chime until you leave. So listen for the chime.”
I try to open my eyes.
Ok. Embrace the fog.
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When I open my eyes I see him across the small wooded grove. His back’s to me and he doesn’t know I’m there.
Time has started. Listen for the chime.
“Nolan!” I shout. He turns and squints at me through the trees. Recognizing me he smiles and waves. “Nolan!” I call out again, more desperate this time. Tears slide down my cheeks as I run toward him. We meet in a natural depression in the earth, as if The Universe has directed us to be in this exact spot. All the sadness and loneliness in me disappear as his arms wrap around my neck. Holding him to me I put my head in the side of his neck and breathe him in. Nolan’s chest ripples as he laughs.
Oh God I’ve missed that sound.
We stand like that for a couple of breaths before I’m overcome with emotion and drop to my knees. The breeze rustles around us and the Aspens sound like water as the breeze flows between and around the heart-shaped leaves.
“Oh Nolan. I’ve missed you so much. I don’t have long. Please, let me just look at you.” I pull back from him and take his face in my hands. His eyes are the same electric blue I looked into for 6 years. “I always thought we’d have more time. There’s so much I wanted to say to you.” I’m crying and the words come out thick. Nolan’s hands are still around my neck and find the same piece of hair he used to twirl. “I love you so much. So so so much…”
Somewhere in the trees the sound of a chime gently drifts down to us. “Oh no! Not yet! It hasn’t been a full minute yet!” I look up at the sky pleading to whoever can hear me, and then back to Nolan, trying to memorize his face. “I have to go now, but stay here. Wait for me. I’ll be back, I promise!”
Nolan tilts his head and looks at me quizzically, his brow furrows as he realizes what I just said. “Mommy? Mommy! Don’t go!”
The world goes white and pain instantly pierces my chest. I gasp and grab at the pain. Looking down I see a scarlet circle appear over my heart and the burning sensation increases. The pain rips down my chest, tearing through the very center of me splitting me in half. The agony consumes me, but my screams are not loud enough to cover the sound of ripping.
Everything goes white again and I’m thankful for the relief as the pain subsides into an aching line. When I open my eyes I’m on the same shabby couch I was when I left, Ben still sitting in the chair across from me.
“Well?” He asks. “Was it worth it?”
Ok, that’s it. My Writing Day Mini Materpiece! Did you like it? Did you love it? Do you know what song it is?
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