Short stories – Michelle Reads & Writes

Story Sunday!

Posted on September 8, 2019June 23, 2021 by Michelle

Untitled – Chapter 2 page 3

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It had been a long day. After lunch and Andra’s outburst, Eric had a difficult time concentrating during his internship at the news station. He had been given menial tasks, running reports, making coffee, but still his brain kept wandering, and he kept making mistakes. At the end of his shift, his boss had told him to get some sleep and fix it tomorrow or else he may be looking for a new internship.

He sighed and rested his head against the headrest in his car. The light was on in Andra’s living room, and he had been debating for ten minutes whether or not to go up and knock. She hadn’t tried to contact him since storming out of the restaurant, and Eric hadn’t either. In the three years that they had been together, Eric had learned that when Andra was mad, it was best to give her some space.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. “You may as well come in,” the text read. He slipped the phone back in his pocket and grabbed his bag. The door to Andra’s house opened, and she appeared with Moses by her side.

“I’m sorry,” he said when he got to the door.

She lifted her eyebrows. “As you should be,” she said then smiled and moved out of the way so he could enter the house. He stepped in, set his bag down, and turned to her as she closed the door.

“Really, I am. We are all under a lot of stress. Neither of us were in particularly good moods today, and I wasn’t exactly the supportive boyfriend you needed.” He reached for her hand and drew her into a hug. She rested her head against his chest, and he instantly felt himself relax. After a few seconds, Moses had enough of being neglected and nudged his way between the two of them.

Andra laughed and scratched his head, “I guess he’s trying to tell us something. Have you had dinner?”

“No, actually, I brought some over. It’s in the bag. Probably needs to be warmed up.” He went over to the bag to start unpacking the chicken parmesan. Moses stood watch waiting for the moment something spilled into his reach.

Andra helped him get the dinner going. The two worked together, and all of the tension from earlier in the day seemed to dissipate. “I’ve been doing some thinking today,” Andra said as they sat down to eat. Moses sat beside Andra and placed his big speckled head on the table.

Eric set his glass down and looked up at his girlfriend. She was beautiful, passionate, and everything he wanted in a woman. “I think it’s time for us to talk about where this relationship is going.”

Stories, Story Sunday

Story Sunday!

Posted on August 25, 2019June 23, 2021 by Michelle

Sorry it’s been almost a month since I updated the story! School starting has really taken up a lot of my time.

Untitled – Chapter 2, Page 2

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The soldier couldn’t find his words. He stared at the woman in front of him. Her dark hair was pulled back out of her face, her eyes were still bright, but she looked older, tired. She stared back, and there was no readable expression on her face. No one else in the room moved or spoke for what felt like an eternity. The soldier and the woman continued to stare at each other until the door opened and both directed their attention to the entraint.

“Is there a problem?” the person speaking was older, female, and followed by two large guards. She walked across the room to the woman who had identified the soldier as Eric.

“I need to be excused from this questioning.” The older woman nodded and the younger made her way out.

Finally the soldier found his voice, “Andra, wait!” She hesitated a moment at the sound of her name, but didn’t look back before she walked out and shut the door behind her. The older woman straightened her jacket and picked up the clipboard left by Andra.

“So, it looks as though you know each other.” Eric didn’t reply. He let his head hang down. How many years had it been since he looked at those eyes? Three? No, definitely longer than that. It was before the re-election of Peters, so four years. Four years since he had seen the love of his life. Four years since he told her that he couldn’t follow her anymore. He still remembered the pain in her eyes; he remembered her simply walking away. She didn’t fight him, didn’t try to convince him that she was right; she just walked away.

“You willingly surrendered to our officers. That will bode well for you here, since your life would definitely had been taken had the State gotten to you before we did.

“But before I get to know you, let me tell you a small part of what we are doing here. Then you can make your decision as to whether or not you would like to join us. Our main goal is to eliminate President Peters, although we know this simple act will not immediately remedy all Peters has done, it will be a start. At this moment, we have supporters in every area of the government, military, secret service, and the State media outlets. We currently have millions of people supporting our cause. Many of whom are willing to die to make sure our plan comes to fruition. In fact, Andra has been one of the most vital supporters to our cause. She is my 2nd in command.

“So, Eric, your loyalties obviously are not so strong to the State, or else you would not have sat. My question is, can whatever loyalty you had toward the State be completely quenched so that you can join us, or will you walk out the door?”

Eric watched the woman, “You would let me just walk.”

“Yes.”

“That doesn’t make sense. You capture me to just let me go?”

“Eric, we are not the State. We do not kill people who do not take our side. But I can assure you that if you walk out the door, your fellow soldiers will do to you what you fear.”

“So I don’t have a choice,” he was getting frustrated. He was sick of having to pick a side, sick of playing a game just to keep his life.

“It’s America, Eric. You are always free to choose,” another of Peter’s favorite lines to use when dictating another decree.

Eric laughed out of frustration, “Fine, fine. I’ll stay, on one condition.”

The older woman raised her eyebrows, “By all means, what?”

“I will report directly to Andra, no one else.”

She half smiled, “Are you sure about that, Eric? She is quite the drill sergeant.”

“Yes, no one but Andra.”

“Done.” The two guards who had remained still the entire time went to Eric, helped him stand, and guided him to the door behind the older woman, “This way then.”

Next Page

Stories

Untitled – page 1

Posted on June 24, 2019June 23, 2021 by Michelle

So, I like to write stories. I’ve yet to finish one in adulthood. I had plenty of spiral notebooks filled with stories when I was in junior high/high school. I would write when I was supposed to be taking notes for class. Shhhh, don’t tell my daughter or students. They should pay attention. I just always felt like my mind was full, and I had to get it all down. I haven’t written much since getting married and having kids, but I started to last summer. I don’t have much, but I figured I should start sharing and maybe it would encourage me to keep it up. All that said, enjoy the first page.

The silent soldier continued his patrol around the city center. Snow was falling, but it was still too warm to stick to the roads. The grass and the tree branches were beginning to accumulate the white powder. It was a stark contrast to the dark night. Few street lights remained in the area, but it didn’t matter to the soldier, equipped with his standard night vision glasses. The commanders’ glasses had extra features, most still a mystery to the general public.

He turned the corner at Main, looked left and right and continued north. It had been nearly a year since protesters tried to enter the Capitol. Nearly a year since 8000 unarmed, peaceful protesters were slaughtered on the steps of the Capitol. Of course, the news reports stated a different story. Capitol Thwarts Ambush by Thousands of Armed Terrorists. This sparked the gun-ban that was quickly passed and made into law. Soldiers slowly started replacing the police force who refused to confiscate the citizens’ guns. Within six months of the new law, the Capitol announced that they had acquired over 95% of the citizens’ gun and declared anyone found with a firearm would be considered a terrorist and shot on sight. After that declaration “Safe Drop Zones” were added throughout the major cities for people to turn in their weapons without penalty. That’s how it was portrayed to the general public; however, each person who dropped at a safe zone was questioned in great detail and then released to return home. Within a week, a garrison would arrive in that person’s neighborhood and begin constant patrols.

Another turn down North Street. Sometimes the quiet was welcoming, but tonight, something felt off. Maybe it was the first snow of winter, but the soldier couldn’t shake that it was something more.

A strong gust made the snow whirl around, looking much grander than it actually was. A single sheet of paper swirled up in the snow. At first the soldier ignored it, but as he neared where the sheet had landed, he noticed the bright red symbol of the Capitol, but something seemed off.

He bent slowly, never really looking down, the way he was trained, and grabbed the paper. As he rose, his suspicions about the evening were confirmed. He collapsed, his face landing in the grass. A bright red stained the snow and the soldier took his last breath, the single sheet of paper slipped from his lifeless hand just as another gust of wind blew and directed the paper to the stairs of the Capitol.