Broken Jar

For Friday Fictioneers 100-Word Challenge: 10 July 2020

Photo Credit: A. Noni Mouse

 
Billy was playing ball inside the house when he accidentally hit the ceramic jar on top of the fridge. It fell breaking into several pieces.

“Oh-uh!” Maya exclaimed.

Billy didn’t panic. He glued them back together again while his little sister was watching.

“Don’t be a tattletale,” he told Maya as if she could understand what it meant.

Dinner came and went. There was no mention of the broken jar. Billy felt relieved.

But not for long.

After putting Maya to bed, Mom sneaked into Billy while he was watching TV.

“Billy, is there something you want to tell me?”

Big Mistake

For Friday Fictioneers 100-Word Challenge: 3 July 2020

Photo Credit: Na’ama Yehudah

 
From the moment he laid eyes on her, Roberto knew she was the one. Or so he thought.

Mercedes was gorgeous with a body to match.

For somebody on the rebound after being dumped by his long-time girlfriend, she was heaven-sent. He became the envy of his friends when he drove her around town.

But then he found out that Mercedes was high maintenance and had an unpredictable temper.

It came to pass that Roberto had seen enough red lights and decided to break the relationship.

He took Mercedes back to the car dealer and exchanged her for another model.

Schadenfreude

For Friday Fictioneers 100-Word Challenge: 26 June 2020

Photo Credit: Todd Foltz

 
I was riding my new bike to school when somebody threw an egg at me.

It was Derek who I’d later learn was the school bully.

“What are you gonna do about it?” he smirked as his buddies laughed.

I just ignored him, acted as if it wasn’t a big deal, and went to class.

Derek ruled the roost until he challenged my cousin Sam to a fight one day. Unbeknownst to him, Sam, who had recently transferred to our school, was an expert in martial arts.

It was schadenfreude I felt watching Derek get the whacking he truly deserved.

Better Luck Next Time

For Friday Fictioneers 100-Word Challenge: 19 June 2020

Photo Credit: Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

 
It was a hot summer day. Homer would rather go to the beach and watch bikini girls strut their stuff. But all beaches were closed due to coronavirus.

And so here he was, trying to earn extra money by cleaning windows on a high-rise apartment building.

What appeared to be a boring job suddenly became interesting when Homer saw a woman in a bathrobe about to take a shower.

Instead of being embarrassed when she noticed him looking through the window, she just smiled and waved at him and then closed the curtains.

“D’oh!“ Homer sighed. “Better luck next time.”

The Nuances of Sadness

For Friday Fictioneers 100-Word Challenge: 12 June 2020

Photo Credit: Ronda Del Boccio

 
While watching hot air balloons soar above, Fatma could feel once again the sadness swelling deep inside.

They reminded her of Ahmet who flew and left the nest a week ago.

For her eldest son, the excitement of pursuing his dream far from home must have deadened the pain, but for his family nothing could ease the emptiness of his chair at the dinner table or the bed in his bedroom.

When it was time to finally say goodbye, everybody put up a calm front and no tears were shed. They would come later in torrents after he was gone.

* * *

Note: The setting for this story is Cappadocia, Turkey that I visited in the past. It’s a beautiful place known for unusual rock formations, houses and old churches carved out of rocks, and hot air-ballooning. Unfortunately, there’s not enough economic incentive for the young to stay. They leave for better opportunities elsewhere.

Location: Cappadocia, Turkey