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Never
For The Vocal Unspoken Challenge
The Prompt
Convey a deep conversation between two individuals without uttering a single word aloud.
Never
The radio was playing but it was on so low that they couldn't hear the song that was playing. Maybe it was worth listening to, maybe not. Then it finished and the DJ said a few words over the intro to the next song.
They said nothing but looked at each other accusingly. They couldn't find the words they felt that they had to say.
They didn't want to be the first to speak in case they made things worse.
They both knew what had brought them to this, they had listened to a trusted friend.
The trusted friend had told them how concerned they were for each of them, and did not want to hurt them, but fed them the lie, which they took and believed, slept on and it festered in their mind, and know it was breakfast time and they were frightened.
Looking at each other questions flooded their minds.
"Why did they do it?"
"Did they really say that about me?"
"What will people think of me?"
"I need to know, but if I ask they will go absolutely mad and say I don't trust them, but they don't trust me do they? If they did they would say something I am sure"
The quiet continued in the grey kitchen. Outside grey cloud dropped grey rain onto the grey window, tapping it like a malevolent sharp-nailed destructive imp.
How long would this go on?
They would have to go to work, but both were thinking about where they could go after work, they could not come back here ever again, not even to pick up their things.
They both knew this was stupid, but neither would make the move that was needed.
Separately they made toast and coffee then returned to their seats and stared. The sound of the kettle boiling, the spoon in the coffee cup, and the toast jumping out of the toaster were the only sounds.
The clock on the wall said there were five minutes left before they would leave.
There were five minutes left to save this relationship from the lie that was destroying it, but they needed one of them to open their moves and say something, but they both remained silent.
"Just Fvcking Say Something, Apologise, I will forgive you. Please apologize I don't want to lose you but I am so scared to say anything, I am scared of what you will say"
That was the thought in both their heads, but they would not let it out as words to save them.
Silence
And More Silence
The Five Minutes Were Up
This was why they would walk out of there and never see each other again. They believed the lie of the trusted friend and did not question it. They were too proud or scared to open their mouths and say the words that would have saved their relationship.
They trusted the lie and the trusted friend succeeded in destroying the relationship.
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Comments (5)
How many times does this happen? Usually it seems to be that the slanders only told to one & not the other. At least that's what I've experienced over the past 64 years. To slander each to the other is too easily discovered & discarded. But if you can get one to believe the worst of the other, especially when you can make it such that any defense offered makes it seem a confirmation of the accusation, then all the other can do is wait & hope they figure it out for themselves. Virtually every appointment to a church that I have received has had someone who attempts to do this, if not to me then to someone else with me. When my wife & I were first dating, a mutual friend tried to do it to me, telling her how awful I was & the terrible things I did. Gosh, it's hard not to offer up a defense & put the other person in a position where they have to decide who's being false (it's not always an intentional lie; often it's simply a perception the other person honestly holds). But if the third person knows the other two they want split well enough, what you have written is all too often what happens. Well done, Mike.
This was soooooo sad! I would kill their friend!
ugh...and so it goes. Expertly told, great job, Mike
This is sad! Never trust anybody 🏮
Oh my. This is so well done but so sad. People are just so silly sometimes. I really loved the repetition of gey-very cool! 🤍