She scrutinises herself in the mirror. Has she done well enough smoothing away her flaws?
The thought of what this evening promises warms her from her scalp to the deepest, most secret part of her belly. It drowns any guilt she feels about Martin, who thinks she's going to a movie night with her girlfriends.
Robb is handsome enough, with his grey eyes and lean physique. But what she likes best about him is how he makes her feel. Not just desire, but desired.
Martin's already snoring in front of the TV. Glasses askew, mouth open, belt unbuckled. Denise hurries out, impatient to be away from this dull cage.
Robb has no finesse. No movie, no dinner. Just clumsy lines, and clumsier fumbling, parked in a quiet street. Denise suffers a flash of awareness with her expensive knickers hooked on one ankle: is this really worth it? The life and trust we built together, for a cheap tumble?
Voices outside freeze her insides. "Shhh!" she hisses, poking him in the ribs.
He frowns a question. She points at the window, mouthing, "There's someone out there!"
Robb wipes the steam on the glass and peers out.
"Please, Robb, they can't see us..."
There's raised voices for a moment, a gunshot, and Robb goes slack and white. She shoves at him, scrambles up to get a look herself. Slaps a hand over her mouth, eyes popping.
The boy on the ground hardly looks older than her eldest son.
They agree, driving back, they can't go to the police. It'll raise questions, they'll be found out.
Before she leaves the car, Denise takes a deep breath, clasping her handbag tight.
"We can't do this," she says. "You know that."
His steely eyes are cold in the silence. He looks away.
"We were the only witnesses to a murder," he says at last. "The killer might never face justice. I've been thinking, maybe I should do the right thing. Go to the police."
Eyes wet and knuckles threatening to break through her skin, she says nothing.
"Same time next week, then."
She gives him a curt nod, her voice failing her, and flees back into the safety of her cage.
++++++++++++
Word count (excluding note): 366
Submitted on 18th February at 9:05
Quick Author's Note
Pay no attention to the writer behind the curtain: Banged this out (not even sorry) in one go yesterday, and I was so happy with it I put it next in my post queue.
A Year of Stories: I'm writing a story every day this year. This one makes a 49 day streak. It feels like an auspicious number! You can find all of them in my Index post, which I do my best to update once or twice a week at least. It's also pinned to the top of my profile.
If you'd like to read another, here's my recommendation: this one just got Top Story yesterday.
If you're joining me on this "story every day" madne adventure, please leave a link to yours in the comments! Whether you're on a creative bent like me, or if you have your own self-imposed criteria, I'd love to see what you come up with for today.
Thank you
As always, thank you so much for reading! I do my best to reciprocate all reads. Please do leave a comment and I'll pop over and read one of your as soon as! If you enjoyed this story, the best compliment you can give me is to share it, or read another 😁
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$#*£ Resilience
I was going to relax this evening. Tune out, hunker down, look after myself. I need it. I am exhausted. Thoroughly used up. And it's only Wednesday. Not even half way through the week. A week that in the UK, is Mental Health Awareness week. I don't know who decides these things, who gets to co-opt a day, a week, a month, and declare it a thing about a thing. But I do know a lot about mental health. I know a lot about mental health AND I know a lot about working for the UK's National Health Service. And so it was with interest that I clicked play on the below video, earlier today. By the time I finished, I was in tears.
By Hannah Moorea day ago in Psyche
Comments (20)
Stepping out of the cage into a prison of the mind is no solution, so double misery inflicted upon oneself...why not just flee the cage to peace and quiet somewhere. I will never understand the human mind, out of the frying pan and all that.
You do a great job of building up to the action, and showing small details about the three characters in a short space of time. “She gives him a curt nod, her voice failing her, and flees back into the safety of her cage.” is an excellent ending, especially with the repetition but contrast of cage. I read it as Robb blackmailing her at the end, which makes a bad night even more awful. Compelling writing 👏
Desperate Housewives of Sticky Wicket. Tune in next week for a remarkably similar & tawdry episode. (Yeah, even this diversion from her caged life is just another cage in which she's entrapped herself.)
Really the main villain is Robb. He knows she's married. He also keeps quiet at her insistence. Funny though, she's caged by Martin and now Robbis caged by her.
I genuinely feel bad for that kid the most, and Martin to a lesser extent. I enjoy the metaphor of her life being viewed as a cage. Yet, for most people a calm life is a happy life. I, in no way, feel sorry for Robb and sure as heck not for Denise. If she wants to feel sometimes that means she's going to have to put in the effort to overtly explain to Martin and provide Martin with effort on her side how she wants to make him feel and be felt. She's monkey branching so badly that she's bound to fall, and soon.
I actually really feel for this character - just wanting a bit of excitement and to feel like 'herself' again and then she witnesses a murder and gets blackmailed into having to see Robb. Damn. This is so good.
What an arsehole. I'm not sure who the worst arsehole is, but it's mostly Robb. This is great. Sometimes the stuff that flows out quickly and you don't overthink, is magic. This story leaves an open road of possibilities.
Two wrongs doesn't make a right!!! Fantastic microfiction!!!♥️♥️💕
Which cage is worse?
Ouch, this was heavier than anticipated.
Caught in a web and the more she struggles to be free the more tangled she becomes. Nice intrigue and Pacing.
This story gave chills, especially the blackmailian twist at the end! Great storytelling, LC. The image of the husband snoring with his glasses askew and belt unbuckled is a hoot. Wait a minute … that sounds a lot like me! Ouch!
Another great story keeping within your limitations for the project
You did a great job on this!
Well done on another fine microscopic piece of fiction...love all the questions, all the dilemmas.
Looks liked she's even more screwed than she was hoping.
I lovely how you were able to pack action into a short story without making it feel forced. Great read!
Oh my gosh. I wasn't expecting that! Very good!!! ❤️
Love this! Great work! My kind of story!
So the D in Extra D does indeed stand for dick! Hahahahahaha! Cheating idiots! I hope they somehow get framed for that murder!