Chapter 1:
It wasn't the first time Albert Finnley had seen death. He had seen it many times before on the television. In his video games. On his computer. But this was the real thing. Right in front of his very own eyes.
Albert's mind was anticipating this moment and quickly sprung into action. Look away Albert, you need not see this.
Trapped in a trance, Albert Finnley stared at the cold, lifeless body before him. His brain told him to run back home. Back to his family, his friends, back to the warmth. His body would not allow such actions. He no longer had a family, his friends had left him, and the cold was taking over.
Frozen.
Alone.
In a panic and desperate to break Albert's gaze, his mind threw everything it had in its arsenal at Albert. Memories and experiences that it had not been able to fully categorize flashed before Albert's eyes, there were a few things that even his mind was surprised to see floating around.
A slow dripping faucet over a large pool of water. A boy with a kite that begins to plummet. A room full of broken glass and a dark, syrupy liquid. A white cat with black paws on top of a fence. A vision of his father's hand and a broken bottle.
Finally the voice of Albert's mother pierced the back of his mind. Her voice echos, but somehow vibrates louder and faster. "What did you do Albert Finnley? Is this your mess!?" She yells in quick, manic overtones. "Well, you'd better clean it up before your father gets home!"
Albert snapped into action, grabbing the body from under the arms and began to drag it.
Chapter 2:
Albert Finnley watched the soft rain pitter-patter against the window as he sipped his coffee. He was feeling hazy and his morning coffee always fixed this up. He racked his brain, trying to remember what had happened the previous two nights. He had remembered hearing his mother's cries. Yes Albert, you did hear your mother's cries. But that couldn't be so, his mother had left him not ten years ago... He took another sip. There was a cat; he had remembered seeing a cat on a fence. Yes, that's right. Was there really though? Albert gazed out the window of his small cottage villa and tried to clear his head with the sight of the unpredictable rain. His mind would not slow down; firing neuron after neuron, his body collapsed.
Deep in a coma, Albert Finnley's primal instincts no longer an issue, his mind began to fill in the blanks. Every passing moment his brain used to program Albert's memories, alter the truth from reality. Like an author finishing an epic novel, his subconscious sighed a great sigh of relief when it had finally finished.
Epilogue:
Albert never did find out why there were so many bodies in his basement. There had to be an explanation, but he could not find a reason as to how they got there. He remembered walking back upstairs and trying to steady his balance as he tried to find a rational solution. He remembered hearing a knock at the front door and seeing a man with a dark blue uniform before...
This wasn't the first time Albert Finnley had seen death. A police officer's mangled corpse lie not two feet in front of him as he stared at it, unable to move.
This is good. And a great way to practice. I think you should try doing more stories that tie back to the begining or twist in a clever way (like this one). I've found that to be the most difficult for me (there is no process to developing a genius plot). You can obviously write well, so now train yourself to think up situations that can wrap up neatly. If the audience finishes and they are satisfied with the journey that's one thing, but to give them the perfect unexpected ending is the most difficult.
ReplyDeleteBut you can do it.
Thanks for the encouraging words my friend. I was hoping to write stories that were a little more quirky than this one, but this is what came up.
ReplyDeleteYes, tying things back proves difficult at times, but I do enjoy a good twist (not too much though!). I'll try to keep that in mind while writing, it's very good advice. Have you taken a lot of creative writing classes?