Z is for Zebra

“What is it?” she asked.

                “I don’t know.  It looks like a zebra,” her brother replied.

                “Do zebras bite?”

                “Don’t be stupid!”

                “I’m not a zebra expert!” she exclaimed.

                Henry and Taylor approached the creature standing in their backyard.  It was in the middle of the vegetable garden, chewing on the tomato plants. 

                Henry approached the zebra and petted it.  It didn’t seem to notice.

                “He’s friendly.”

                A truck pulled into the driveway.  A man got out.

                “That’s my zebra.”

                Henry looked at his fur coat.  It was spotted.

                “I’m sorry.  This zebra is ours.  He has been for years.”

Y is for Yawn

W is for watermelon

            Fooling around in his laboratory, Roland Spaush was quite delighted to discover it was easy to change the genome of the common, everyday watermelon.  Whereas it once only came in red or pink, he found he could now grow them in exciting colors such as electric purple, lime green, and bright blue.  It was a marketing sensation.  Parents and children alike loved them for their uniqueness.

            Roland Spaush became extremely wealthy.  Not from his watermelon discovery, but from stock in toothpaste companies.  Colorful watermelons were fun to eat, but it was incredibly hard to remove their colors from your teeth.

X is for Xavier

            Xavier knew he was different from the other kids.  He could run faster and solved math problems quicker.  His teachers called it “natural ability,” but to Xavier, it was more.

            He asked his father about it.  “Dad, why am I so different?”

            His father grumbled while holding the newspaper with two hands.  “Ask your mother!  I wasn’t the one swimming in toxic waste when I was pregnant!  I wasn’t the one planting a garden in the radiation zone!”  With his third hand, he reached for his beer.

            Xavier decided he was going to try harder to fit in at school.

Y is for Yawn

            Elizabeth was so tired. 

            Everything blurred together into one, giant mass.  She tried to stay up for as long as she could, but her mouth slowly formed into a yawn, and then two.  Her head gently fell into the pillow.  Elizabeth watched the tender light float around the room.  She would only close her eyes for a moment…

            When Elizabeth woke up, she was gone.  She knew she would sneak out as soon as she fell asleep.

            Under her pillow, Elizabeth found a five dollar bill.  She was disappointed.  She would have rather had the tooth fairy as a friend. 

X is for Xavier

See it here

W is for Watermelon

See it Here

V is for Volcano

                They found it on the playground in September.  Students stood in awe. Their basketballs rolled away, forgotten.  Nobody had ever seen anything like this. 

                It started as a mound in the sand box.  A trickle of a red flowed from the top.  It was bubbly hot.  The students dared each other to touch.  The ones who did also got a mid-afternoon trip to the nurse’s office. 

                It grew bigger.  It was the size of a doghouse.  Then, a car.  Soon the hill had grown to the size of a garage. 

                By June, a volcano stood where a school once was.

U is for Universe

Dear everybody who thought I had burned out and stopped writing flash fiction:

            Never!  Due to the Easter weekend, my family and I went away.  I assumed we had internet at the place we were going.  Ha!  We all know what happens when you assume.  So I have not been able to post in quite a few days.  We got home late last night and I fell into bed exhausted.  I was right back at the studio this AM (you know, the job that pays the bills until my writing career takes off) and came home at noon to a rejection letter.  After having a lunch of Easter dinner leftovers, I fell back into my bed for a nap.  I feel normal now.  This post should make up for the last few days.  I hope you all had a great Easter, or, Easter-ma-Christmas, as I started calling it this year due to the giant baskets my children were lucky enough to get from Mr. Bunny himself. 

So, here they are:

S is for Starlight

            Trent watched the bottle. 

The old woman at the magic shop said this was the best healing potion money could buy.  It just needed to be activated by starlight.  He smiled as the clear liquid turned to bright gold.  Little flecks danced around inside the bottle.

            It was ready.  Trent carefully picked up his guinea pig, Amaryllis.  The tiny creature felt stiff in his hand, not at all like the little ball of warm fur it usually was.  Her eyes were closed.

            Trent poured the golden liquid down the creature’s throat.  He watched the guinea pig.

            Amaryllis opened her eyes.  

T is for Tortoise

            Thomas waited patiently.  The moment her key turned in the lock, he jumped up. 

            “Surprise!”  He kissed her. 

            “Happy anniversary, baby,” she said.  “I’m so sorry I had to work.”

            “You’re home now.  Let’s do gifts.”

            Thomas led his girlfriend into the living room.  An aquarium sat on the floor.    

            She gasped.  “It’s a tortoise!”

            “This tortoise will live as long as our love will last, which, according to the pet shop, will be about another hundred years.  And that’s not all I have for you.”  He dropped to one knee and pulled out a ring.

            “Will you marry me?”

And today’s story is brought to you by the letter U:

U is for Universe

            “I have to discover the right one.”

            “You wouldn’t do this.”

            Arnold shrugged.  “I am.”

            Holly slammed the ship’s controls.  “You would kill yourself to be married to me?”

            “It’s just one version of myself.  There are thousands of mes out there.  I’ve got to find the one married to you, kill him and take his place.”

            “We didn’t invent the Alternate Universe Traveling System for this!”

            “The biggest mistake I made was not asking you to marry me.  I’m going to fix that mistake by finding the reality where I did ask you.”

            The door to the spaceship closed.

T is for Tortoise

See it here

S is for Starlight

See it here

R is for Rainbow

                The instructor looked out at his students.  “Everything you learned is wrong.  There is no longer any reason to lie to you.  In art school, you are here to learn the truth.”

                The students sat in quiet awe.   

                “There is no such thing as a color wheel.  The rainbow as you know it is a lie.  I need to show you something.”

                The instructor turned off the lights.  “Here is what colors really exist.”

                A few of the students fainted in their seats.  The instructor didn’t worry.   New students always reacted that way when they first saw all the colors.   

Q is for Quesadilla

               “Is dinner ready?  Mom will be here in fifteen minutes.”

                “I know your Mother is coming tonight.  They’re almost ready.”

“Dad, why do you always make Quesadillas on the nights Mom comes and gets me?”

                “I do?  I don’t know, Robert.  Coincidence, I guess.  Remember, Mom needs to drop you off semi-early tonight.  It’s a school night.”

                “I know!”  Robert left the kitchen.

                Dad continued to fry the Quesadillas in the pan.  The reason he always made them on the nights Audrey came was simple.  They were having that for dinner the night she left him and their baby son.

P is for Princess

               “When the time comes, she will marry the distinguished Prince Pangari the IV.  They will rule over the kingdom together.  The reign will be a righteous and noble one.”

                Prince Pangari looked at her across the stage.  For a moment, he broke his stiff and formal demeanor to wiggle his eyebrows at her.

                 Why did every prince her father chose for her have huge, hairy eyebrows?  Alyse smiled at her intended.  It didn’t hurt to flirt. Besides, her father would just break this marriage contract, like he did every other one.  Alyse was confidant she would rule her country—alone. 

O is for Owl

              “Here at the Pacific Lake Owl Sanctuary we have several hundred different types of owls.  Our owls come from all over the country, even from around the world!  Aren’t they beautiful?”

                Tommy held on to his mother’s hand tightly.  “How come you have so many different colored owls here?  I see green ones, and red ones, and even orange ones!”

                His mother smiled.  “The tour guide just told us they come from all over the world.  It’s just the beauty of nature.”

                Or, thought the tour guide, it’s Andy and me in the vet’s office, coloring the birds with sharpies.

N is for Nothing

            As she was stirring the spaghetti sauce, she heard a loud bang that shook the cupboard doors. 

“Aaron, what are you doing down there?”

             “Nothing!” He called to his mother from the basement.

              Aaron kicked his machine one more time.  He wished he could get that horribly loud clunking noise to go away.  It was going to bring his mother down here one day when he wasn’t home.  And he really didn’t want that.

                Clunk!

                “Aaron!!!”

                “Nothing, Mom, Sorry!” 

                He could see the headlines now.  Fifteen year old counterfeits money beyond detection—goes to jail because of his loud machine. 

M is for MONSTER!!!!

             “It’s in the closet.  I swear Mommy! He’s going to come out when I’m sleeping and eat my toes.”

                Marybeth had pulled the quilt way up, over her nose.  Two little brown eyes looked over the edge of the blanket.   

                “There is nothing in the closet, Marybeth!  Go to sleep!”

                Marybeth’s mother shut the door behind her.  It was silly how afraid her daughter was.  Didn’t she know anything?  There weren’t any monsters in the closet.  The only monsters in the house were down in the cellar.  And Marybeth’s mother had put a large bolt and chain on that door.

L is for Lollipop

Everyone loved Mr. Sardo’s candy shop.  The best candies there were the lollipops.  He made all flavors and colors.  Children would spend their entire allowance on the lollipops.  Teachers would give them out as prizes.  Every Christmas stocking and Easter basket contained these famous candies.  Mr. Sardo was the wealthiest man in town and had his delicious candies to thank. 

At night, alone in bed, Mr. Sardo was nervous.  He was running out of his secret ingredient.  Pretty soon, he would have to move again.  He hoped, this time, the townspeople wouldn’t riot and destroy their village when he left.

K is for Kiss

“This about the time we would get back together.”

Kaitlin smiled.  “Yeah, I guess you’re right.  About every two years, huh?”

Collin nodded.  “But that’s over with.  I’m so glad you’ve found Ethan.  He’s an awesome guy.”

“He is.  Guess what?  He found a job!  When he’s finished with school, we’re moving.”

“That’s awesome. Well, here’s your stop.” 

“Thanks for the ride.  See ya soon.”

Collin watched as Kaitlin ran to her apartment.  Ethan opened the door for her.  They both waved goodbye.

Collin waved back as he watched Ethan give the only girl he had ever loved a kiss.

J is for Justified

               “Why shouldn’t we sentence you to death for the murder you committed?”

                Jordan hung his head.  “Please have mercy on me.  I didn’t have a choice.”

                “How do you think your victim felt?”

                Jordan stared at the floor.  “I am guilty, but I did it to save my child.”

                “And did it work?”

                “Yes.  The blood was the key ingredient.  I was able to make the cure. ”

                “The life of a child is barely worth the life of a unicorn.  Take him away.   Six months in the dungeon.”

                Jordan wept tears of gratitude.  They gave him a light sentence.

I is for Illness

      When Kristen got sick, she felt more annoyed then anything. Her nose got red and her joints ached. She wasn’t alone, everyone was coming down with it.

      Kristen was shocked when the schools closed. Then emergency warnings were issued. People were to stay inside. Stores closed up, government shut down, and streets were empty. Kristen thought people were over reacting to the situation.

      Five days after it started something odd happened. The aches and pains disappeared. Her legs grew longer and stronger. Her vision became incredible. Her intelligence rose. She wasn’t sick anymore.

     One day later, they came for her.

H is for Hero's Heart

He was a hero and fought bravely in the war.  When the darkness came and his time ended, he died knowing he gave his life for freedom.  Heaven was waiting.  The only regret he had was not being able to live a lifetime with his beloved.  He hoped she would remember him.

His beloved had nothing left of her soldier.  She walked this earth alone.  Until one day, a package came, sent long before his sacrifice.  Inside it, he had sent her a necklace.  A gold heart hung from a chain.  A note read, You will always have my heart.

G is for Gullible

“I love you more than anything, more than my eternal life.  I have waited centuries for you.”

Elizabeth kissed her immortal lover.  “How could you ever want me?  What do I have to offer that you haven’t found in 600 years?”

“There is something different about you.  I can’t explain it.  You are special.”  With his arm around her, he led her to the bedroom.

After he was done drinking her blood, he wiped his mouth and leaned back against the bed.  With all those trashy teen vampire romances being published, it was easier than ever to get a good meal. 

F is for Frog

Matthew held the frog by its leg.   It struggled to get free. 

“Come on,” he ordered, “Just stomp on it.”

Jason whispered, “I don’t want to kill the frog.”

“Don’t be a chicken!  Just put your foot down!  You want to be a man don’t you?”

“Yeah, but…”

“Do it!”

A giant tear rolled down Jason’s face.  Giving Matthew a final glance, he turned and ran away. 

“Baby!” Matthew called after him.  Frustrated, he picked the frog up and threw it against a tree.  It landed with a sad thump on the forest floor.

That night in bed, Matthew cried. 

(I feel like I have to add the following statement: This is a work of fiction.  No animals were harmed in the making of this story. I do not condone abuse of animals.  However, the literary merits of childhood bullies make for good fiction.)

E is for Eternity

They looked across the desk at each other, barely making eye contact.

“Well,” their matcher commented, “good luck, and I hope you two have an excellent life.”  With those words of encouragement, a marriage certificate, and a $50 dollar gift certificate to the best restaurant in town, they left. 

On the street, their union felt forced.  They held hands like middle school students do.

He looked at her.  “I would have never picked someone like you to marry.”

She giggled.  “Me either.  You’re not my type.”

He laughed too and that was the start of a 52 year marriage.

D is for Duet

“The director of the next play I’m auditioning for is in the audience tonight.  If he likes me, I could be moving to New York.”

Josh’s co-star smiled at him.  “Good luck,” she commented.

They took to the stage and did their song.

When the curtain closed Josh turned to her with rage in his eyes.  “How could you?  You sang off key the entire time!  You ruined any chance I had for my next role!”

“That’s not my problem.”

She stormed past him and ran into the waiting arms of her boyfriend, who also happened to be Josh’s understudy.

C is for Cat

“You’ve been selected for a difficult task.  You are to guard the princess.”

“I don’t know if I can do this.  I’ve never done guard work for royalty before.”

“Of course you can.”

The two men walked through the door.  A woman holding a cat greeted them.

“We’re taking the princess and her pet to the planet Newbar.  ”

The young guard reached out for the cat.  “I will be responsible for the pet.”

The woman looked horrified.  “That’s the pet!”  She pointed to a shaggy dog in the corner.  “This,” she said, holding up the cat, “is the princess.”

B is for Benjamin's Book

“Benjamin, time for bed!”

             “I just want to finish this chapter.”

Benjamin closed the book he found in the back of the library and set it on the floor.  It was so different from the candy colored books his mother bought.  This book was interesting.  It had stories of knights and evil kings, all fighting mighty battles.  The words put him in the action.

“Benjamin, I told you, it’s time for bed.”

His mom stopped talking.  Her son was fast asleep.  But for the life of her, she wondered where he had received the giant, bleeding cut on his arm.

A is for Apple

The old woman set it on the table.  Teetering for a moment, the red orb shined in the light.    

                “For a small price,” the woman said, “all your problems disappear. No more meddlesome princesses getting what rightfully is yours.”

                It would be wonderful to have my problems solved by an apple, Alyson thought, but she pushed it away.

                “No, thanks.  I’m sure I can win the prince with my personality.”  She walked away.

                The old woman shoved the apple back into her sack.  All the self-confidence taught to today’s girls might just put her out of the poison apple business. 

For my A to Z blogging challenge, I have decided to do short shorts.  They might be any genre, but they will all be 100 words or less.  Here's to 26 new stories to add to my collected works!