noise
nurse
cockroach
pride
brooch
For the full rules of the Blog Hop head on over to The World of My Imagination, where you'll also find plenty of other excellent shorts inspired by these prompts.
Drawn to Peace
Brenda opened her eyes and allowed them
to adjust to the dark. She eased
her head from the pillow and glanced over to the door, the reassuring
light still creeping through the gap at the bottom. Resting her head
back again she was just about to close her eyes when a noise
drifted in to her room. It was fairly muffled to begin with as it
seeped in around the edges between door and frame, but with a soft
click the door was opened. It was as though the sound itself had
pushed it open, and now it filled the room around her.
She
was wide awake now, trembling a little waiting for someone to walk
through. She wondered if it were the nurse
on her rounds. But nobody came, and the music played on. She
realised now what it was, not just noise but music.
Slowly she climbed
out of bed, reaching for her cardigan draped over the chair. Pulling
it close around her she edged towards the light in the corridor. She
was concentrating hard on what may be outside, and jumped out of her
own skin when she caught a flash in front of her. Steadying herself
against the wall she realised her brooch had caught the light
in the mirror. Inwardly she cursed herself for being so silly.
She made it out
into the corridor and shuffled along in her slippers, passing
familiar doors of the other residents as she went. She seemed to be
the only one that heard the haunting music. It was drawing her
towards itself now, she was caught in some kind of trance she
couldn't free herself from.
She headed down
the stairs under its spell, helpless to stop herself and not knowing
where it was taking her. It drew her around the corner at the bottom
of the stairs and she realised it was taking her to the recreation
room. As she entered she could now see where the music was coming
from. In the corner, standing on its own behind a large purple sofa
was a large music box. It had been there for as long as she could
remember, its once bright colours now fading with each passing year.
She had never known so much as a peep to come from it, but now it
played in all its glory, haunting the empty room with it accordian
and drumbeats.
With her attention
on the music she didn't notice the figure enter the room, one so
familiar to her she knew it even in this dim light. Peter, her
husband of fifty years, stood before her smiling. He was a shadow of
his former self, skin almost peeling from his face, a cockroach
crawling from inside his shirt.
He gazed at her
with pride and then she knew. She knew it was her time to go,
to finally be at peace with her husband.
Word count: 485
Oh what a good story!! I love how you used the picture. It's dreamy and haunting at the same time!
ReplyDeleteThank you SO much for joining!! Make sure you submit your link!
Hi Nicole, Thanks for liking the story; it's always a boost to know people are enjoying things I write.
ReplyDeleteI've tried submitting my link on your blog but I can't find the option to, not like the last time.
Cheers, Heather
Hey heather! It's at the bottom, the inlinkz button ad you click that to submit your link!
ReplyDeleteThis is very peaceful for the content. Except for the cockroach part, but that's not your fault. I hate cockroaches. *shudder*
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I have a blogging award for you on my site. :)
http://chasingrevery.blogspot.com/2012/07/a-blogging-award.html
You had me drawn into the story and I just knew something was going to happen. But when you said she was drawn to the music and then she started walking I shouted no! Don't go! It was a great clip!
ReplyDelete