Short Tale Contest

Lennart

Lennart

TNPer

TNP-Europeia Short Tale Contest
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This is pretty simple: you write a tale under 500 words in a post, ok, I won't go crazy for a couple words above that limit, but remember it's a short tale contest after all, and it doesn't mean you have to write hundreds of words if you just don't feel like it, a very short story may be even better. And a poll will be appended to vote for your favourite one on the last two days (from 20th October on). The winner will have a badge, that's for sure. here it is:

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So I encourage everyone to write in this thread, remember: a post>> a tale. I don't care if you're just asking any doubt, xD
 
I remember that it was December 12th, a Thursday, when it happened. My daughter and I were gathered around the TV set in the living room watching whatever Christmas movie she wanted to watch at the time. A fire was burning hot in the fireplace, wood freshly stacked in the corner in anticipation of the wood burning down.

“Mom?” I asked.

“Yes, Melissa?”

“I’m going to the kitchen. Would you like anything?” She shook her head no. I turned to my daughter. “Sarah, would you?”

“Umm, hot chocolate!” She said it in a way only children could, excited about something they have every day. At four years old, everything she said was filled with that same wonder. I smiled and went to the kitchen to prepare her hot chocolate.

In the living room, I heard my daughter get up off the floor and get on the couch. I could tell, because the thing was old. The springs creaked as she sat down, presumably next to her grandmother.

“Nana! Have you ever seen this movie before? Nana? You aren’t watching it!” I smiled, expecting some sort of reply that was kind hearted yet reassuring. I thought it was odd when she didn’t respond but sometimes my mother had a way of answering with a smile that needed no explanation.

I mixed the hot chocolate mix with some warm milk and stirred it before carrying it into the living room. My daughter sat on the couch, poking at her grandmother. Before I could reprimand her, she spoke.

“Mommy. I think Nana is sleeping.” Only she wasn’t sleeping, I could tell. The steady rise and fall of her chest was nonexistent. The deep snoring that usually accompanied her sleeping while sitting wasn’t there. Perhaps the most telling sign was her mouth hanging open and a steady trickle of blood coming from her ears.

I dropped the hot chocolate and ran to my child, pulling her away from her grandmother. Grabbing my cell phone, I called 911 and hysterically explained what was going on. Then I dialed my husband and my two sisters. In all this time, I forgot to wake my father who was sleeping upstairs. He woke to the sound of sirens and came running down the stairs.

“What’s going on, Mel?” I couldn’t speak back. I just grabbed him and cried. He knew just looking at my mother, his wife, what had happened. We held each other tight while the Paramedics pronounced my mother dead at 9:53 pm on Thursday, December 12th.
 
Sorry. :(

It's actually just the beginning of a much larger work I'm writing that has nothing to do with anything I've just written here, but as a stand alone piece, it works well.
 
bfffff sad but outstanding. I may be a little bit senstive with the matter, but it made an impression on me anyway.

I like your style, SD. I hope I can make a decent translation of a story of my own and share it like you did.
 
Ok, here's mine, I hope the translation is good enough xD
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Daniel never felt preference for abandoned places like that before, but something beyond the walls seemed to be calling his name. Not a voice... Not yet. More like a feeling, like warm hands pulling him inside. He spent two days harming the bricks with a rusty shove, and when part of the wall fell down, the warm sensation invaded his soul again as he walked over the rubble.

Stone pillars flanked a road of worn-out cobbles and a beautiful bronze Angel stood on a fountain.
?Art Deco?Daniel recognised the style, the details on decorations. He was fascinated to be the first person to appreciate them in<<thirty years?>>, he thought. <<Maybe more>>. He even had the strange feeling that he had walked down that road before. That place made him feel good, but there was something missing. <<Laura>>. He smiled while cleaning the dust from an old bench. <<A perfect place to make out... She's gonna love it>>.

But she didn't at all. Next day, they were hug-walking because of the cold, even fear, more than any kind of passion. When they reached the Angel, its face covered with black tears seemed everything but welcoming.
?Why did you bring me here, Dan? I think it's forbidden.
<<This isn't how I recall this place to be... At all>>, Daniel shook his head as if to wake up.
>>Are you listening to me, Dan? It's not safe anyway, a girl died here...
?I know that story?Daniel interrupted?... There's nothing dangerous 'round here?<<So we're not gonna make out, after all>>, he realized.
?I'm no liar?her face combined panic with anger. Her big, brown eyes rolled and she let a sigh out, then shut her lips firmly and turned away.
?I'm not saying you're a liar... But, come on, that's a ghost story!?Daniel laughed?. You're extremely gullible, Laura!...?An idea crossed his mind an he began looking for a recording app in his cell phone?, what if I record here for a while? Huh? Could I get one of those dead voices?

He held his phone up, threatening to push the “record” button, he just wanted her to react, but she stayed silent instead. He didn't touch anything, but the screen lit anyway and the timer started counting. Wind began to blow. Even tears froze on Laura's horrorized face. The app stopped suddenly after fifteen seconds, registering a wave chart looking like that of a human voice. Then a desperate scream was heard. It was a heartbreaking sound coming out of the phone: those fifteen seconds were playing in an endless loop:
?SHE... IS... NOT... WELCOME...?the phone hit the floor as they run away.

Next day, Daniel was back to recover his phone. He still couldn't believe what happened and couldn't afford a new one. Everything was different now. The sun was shining, birds singing... The Angel's face was bright and even seemed to smile.
?Do you hate women??Daniel asked around?Do you like me?

In front of him, still on the floor, his phone vibrated wildly.
 
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