January Writing Prompts # 3
January is quietly ending and so my January Writing Prompts...Sadly, I will have to admit that I am not 100% sure to finish the challenge...Well, I suppose you will have to come back to check on the challenge.
Here is the new story, All Gone.
As usual, story, settings and characters are all mines. Do not claim my words to be ours.
Feel free to reblog, but make sure that the readers come to my blog to say hello and leave comments.
Enjoy the reading,
Reading Freak
All Gone
"The little girl tried to run faster, but the tables and chairs were on her way. Some people were still eating and others were babbling happily as they waited for the rest of their dinner. She kept on running like a mad kitten and her breathing was hard.
No matter how fast she was running, it just seemed impossible for her to reach the table where the couple sat happily chatting and gazing at each other. She tried to call them or let them know that she was trying to reach them, but they did not pay attention to her. Nobody seemed to hear or see her anyway.
Her legs felt heavy and she was so tired of running. Her voice was coarse and her cheeks were dirty with her tears. Why did they not notice her? Was she dreaming all this?
Suddenly her feet tripped and she crashed hard on the ground. Her knees and hands were burning and she curled up in a heap. The lights went out and she knew with full certainty that when she would raise her head they would all be gone. She would be left alone in a room with no end. The place where she topples now would be the only lighted area and the music of the many murmured conversations would be silent. A scream rose in her throat and reverberated through the endless room.
Dana woke up, still screaming, and crashed down on the ground. Her hands and knees were hurting, again. Her long curly hair was wet with transpiration and her pyjamas stuck to her skin. Her blanket was all tangled in her legs and had somehow softened her fall on the ground.
With a moan, she checked the time on her mobile phone and the still rationally working part of her brain noticed that, once again, the nightmare woke her up at the same moment, like every night for the past few days. She sighed at what she read, 3.30 a.m., still the middle of the night in Oslo, but the end of her night that was for sure.
She had tried on the previous nights to find a way to get back into the arms of Morpheus, but the god had not granted her wish.
The pain quickly gave way to anger, and she moaned as she realised that her bad dream would lead to another bad day. She turned her head to the small black cat on her bed. Nix looked down on her with his perplexed green eyes.
- No, Nyx. It is not yet time to play or get your morning food, she told the cat.
Surrendered, she put the blanket back on the bed and walked to the bathroom, silently hoping that a good and warm shower would help. Winter in Norway was hard and although the heating was on high, she now shivered in her wet pyjamas.
As she entered the cabin, the hot water cascading down her spine felt like heaven. She tried to focus on her nightmare, now that the details were still clear in her mind. It was like a horror movie script, repeating itself every night, no matter how tired she was or how certain she was that her night's sleep would be smooth.
Once again, she considered the different aspects of her nightmare. Did she know this restaurant? Did she even know the duo the little girl was trying to run to? She felt sure she did not. Another thing was the fact that she was sure she was not the little girl of her dream. That girl had blonde hair and hers was a shiny black. Pushing away those thoughts, she focused on herself. Her hands and knees were still a bit sore, which was easy to explain since she has been falling out of her bed for 6 nights in a row.
Slowly, Dana stepped out of the shower and put on her pink bathrobe. She liked to wear it directly after a shower with nothing else on her skin. She stopped in front of the mirror and noticed that the dark circles under her eyes were unavoidable and she wondered absently if she had enough concealer left. A deep sigh escaped her lips. Maybe she could sleep some more, but she knew for a fact that it would not work.
- Why is this happening to me? , she asked the face in the mirror.
She had so many things to do for her last few weeks here in Oslo. She had some interviews to realise to finish her research here at the University of Oslo. Her doctoral thesis was on the right path and her presence for the whole semester in Norway was a chance for her academic future. Everything from her first year at Columbia University had been successful. She had the best grades and a good chance of getting a job at the History Department after her thesis defence. All these years of hard work, sleepless nights and researches finally induce something positive. She was looking at a future in a field that she loved and which was her entire life.
Yet, if she was honest, she only had 2 friends, one was a black cat and the other a lawyer. Mr Yaylor was responsible for her grandmother's legacy and he had made sure that she was cared for through the years. Of course, she had met fellow students and researchers. She had been invited to restaurants and nights-out, but she never really found her match. And if she was to tell the entire truth, she never understood the necessity of having friends. Her motto was "alone is safer".
Closing the door of the bathroom, she made her way towards the kitchen, turning the lights on as she navigated through her room. Good coffee and some toasts and she would be ready to finish her last chapter, the conclusion of her thesis and the most dreadful part of the job.
The coffee in her favourite mug smelled good and, from the corner of her eyes, she saw Nyx approaching his bowl. The cat looked up to her with eyes full of hope and sat with elegance next to his bowl. Dana smiled, bowed and poured some of his favourite snacks into the empty bowl.
- Little brat! You know I cannot resist you.
As she stood up, she turned her head towards her desk and noticed that her laptop was open. She stopped in her track and frowned. She had closed her session last night so why was it now open.
She briskly walked to the desk and gazed bewildered at the screen. She clicked on the mouse and the screen lighted up. Full of apprehension, her heartbeat quickening dangerously, she read the message box and felt herself sinking to the ground.
All gone. The entire file was gone like the rest of the content of her computer. Nothing was left except this single message box. Would she click yes or no?"
Here is the new story, All Gone.
As usual, story, settings and characters are all mines. Do not claim my words to be ours.
Feel free to reblog, but make sure that the readers come to my blog to say hello and leave comments.
Enjoy the reading,
Reading Freak
All Gone
"The little girl tried to run faster, but the tables and chairs were on her way. Some people were still eating and others were babbling happily as they waited for the rest of their dinner. She kept on running like a mad kitten and her breathing was hard.
No matter how fast she was running, it just seemed impossible for her to reach the table where the couple sat happily chatting and gazing at each other. She tried to call them or let them know that she was trying to reach them, but they did not pay attention to her. Nobody seemed to hear or see her anyway.
Her legs felt heavy and she was so tired of running. Her voice was coarse and her cheeks were dirty with her tears. Why did they not notice her? Was she dreaming all this?
Suddenly her feet tripped and she crashed hard on the ground. Her knees and hands were burning and she curled up in a heap. The lights went out and she knew with full certainty that when she would raise her head they would all be gone. She would be left alone in a room with no end. The place where she topples now would be the only lighted area and the music of the many murmured conversations would be silent. A scream rose in her throat and reverberated through the endless room.
Dana woke up, still screaming, and crashed down on the ground. Her hands and knees were hurting, again. Her long curly hair was wet with transpiration and her pyjamas stuck to her skin. Her blanket was all tangled in her legs and had somehow softened her fall on the ground.
With a moan, she checked the time on her mobile phone and the still rationally working part of her brain noticed that, once again, the nightmare woke her up at the same moment, like every night for the past few days. She sighed at what she read, 3.30 a.m., still the middle of the night in Oslo, but the end of her night that was for sure.
She had tried on the previous nights to find a way to get back into the arms of Morpheus, but the god had not granted her wish.
The pain quickly gave way to anger, and she moaned as she realised that her bad dream would lead to another bad day. She turned her head to the small black cat on her bed. Nix looked down on her with his perplexed green eyes.
- No, Nyx. It is not yet time to play or get your morning food, she told the cat.
Surrendered, she put the blanket back on the bed and walked to the bathroom, silently hoping that a good and warm shower would help. Winter in Norway was hard and although the heating was on high, she now shivered in her wet pyjamas.
As she entered the cabin, the hot water cascading down her spine felt like heaven. She tried to focus on her nightmare, now that the details were still clear in her mind. It was like a horror movie script, repeating itself every night, no matter how tired she was or how certain she was that her night's sleep would be smooth.
Once again, she considered the different aspects of her nightmare. Did she know this restaurant? Did she even know the duo the little girl was trying to run to? She felt sure she did not. Another thing was the fact that she was sure she was not the little girl of her dream. That girl had blonde hair and hers was a shiny black. Pushing away those thoughts, she focused on herself. Her hands and knees were still a bit sore, which was easy to explain since she has been falling out of her bed for 6 nights in a row.
Slowly, Dana stepped out of the shower and put on her pink bathrobe. She liked to wear it directly after a shower with nothing else on her skin. She stopped in front of the mirror and noticed that the dark circles under her eyes were unavoidable and she wondered absently if she had enough concealer left. A deep sigh escaped her lips. Maybe she could sleep some more, but she knew for a fact that it would not work.
- Why is this happening to me? , she asked the face in the mirror.
She had so many things to do for her last few weeks here in Oslo. She had some interviews to realise to finish her research here at the University of Oslo. Her doctoral thesis was on the right path and her presence for the whole semester in Norway was a chance for her academic future. Everything from her first year at Columbia University had been successful. She had the best grades and a good chance of getting a job at the History Department after her thesis defence. All these years of hard work, sleepless nights and researches finally induce something positive. She was looking at a future in a field that she loved and which was her entire life.
Yet, if she was honest, she only had 2 friends, one was a black cat and the other a lawyer. Mr Yaylor was responsible for her grandmother's legacy and he had made sure that she was cared for through the years. Of course, she had met fellow students and researchers. She had been invited to restaurants and nights-out, but she never really found her match. And if she was to tell the entire truth, she never understood the necessity of having friends. Her motto was "alone is safer".
Closing the door of the bathroom, she made her way towards the kitchen, turning the lights on as she navigated through her room. Good coffee and some toasts and she would be ready to finish her last chapter, the conclusion of her thesis and the most dreadful part of the job.
The coffee in her favourite mug smelled good and, from the corner of her eyes, she saw Nyx approaching his bowl. The cat looked up to her with eyes full of hope and sat with elegance next to his bowl. Dana smiled, bowed and poured some of his favourite snacks into the empty bowl.
- Little brat! You know I cannot resist you.
As she stood up, she turned her head towards her desk and noticed that her laptop was open. She stopped in her track and frowned. She had closed her session last night so why was it now open.
She briskly walked to the desk and gazed bewildered at the screen. She clicked on the mouse and the screen lighted up. Full of apprehension, her heartbeat quickening dangerously, she read the message box and felt herself sinking to the ground.
All gone. The entire file was gone like the rest of the content of her computer. Nothing was left except this single message box. Would she click yes or no?"
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