#fridayflash 47: A Sticky Note Life

A modern epistolary tale... Does it work? Let me know what you think!

-----
My parents divorced when I was little. I hardly ever saw my dad while I was growing up, but it was okay because Mom did everything she could to play both roles, and her brother stepped in to help out from time to time. And we managed, in the way families do. The summer I turned 16, in those pre-cell phone days, our schedules often conflicted as I began leading my own life. As a result, my mother and I conversed almost entirely in sticky notes:

It was the last note she ever left.

#fridayflash #46: Freedom Fantasy

This one's for Anna and Paula :)

----



As I watched the clouds drift away to be replaced by a stunningly blue sky, I couldn't help but wish I were outside. "The grass is always greener," my mother's sing-song voice chimed in my head. But in this case the grass WAS greener. Literally. And the sky blue. And I was inside a big cement room with a small window that let me see a sliver of what I was missing. I put my hand to the window longingly. But no matter how hard I wished, I couldn't transport myself to the other side.

I watched through my window as a child, oblivious to my suffering, played outside -- savoring the last weeks of summer. A bird flew towards me, but veered off at the last second -- clearly repelled by the evil radiating from my prison.

A man looked in. I was all excited, thinking he would see me. Human contact! I smiled, and lifted a hand in half a wave. But he ran a hand through his hair and barred his teeth -- checking the mirrored glass for any remains of lunch. I could've told him he looked fine, but he'd never hear me.

My eyes drifted shut as the stuffy air began to affect my consciousness. I shook my head to force myself awake. I couldn't afford to sleep.

People entered and left my building. None came to my cell. I was abandoned. Forgotten. And outside my window, life went on without me.

I wondered where those outside were going as I dreamed impossible dreams of freedom.

Time stood still. One leaf fluttered off a nearby tree, drifting on the breeze. The kind of breeze my sealed window would never allow in.

And then, finally, my dreams came true. With the big hand on the twelve, and the little hand on the five, I was free to escape the office.

#FridayFlash 45: Facebook Friends

Yeah new "Truly Intelligent People"! I'm so excited :) Welcome!

Today's story is a work of fiction. Any resembulance to actual peoples or occurances is purely coincidence. >;-P

Anybody have any Facebook Friends experiences to share?

------
Facebook Friends

She saw him on Facebook. The boy she'd once loved. She did a double-check when his name appeared as a "people you might know" suggestion. Might know indeed. Facebook -- the ultimate highschool reunion. And as she looked at his photo, she realized he'd gotten old. And she didn't want to click because, well, what if he took one look at her photo and thought the same thing? And then she felt foolish because why should it matter? She hadn't even seen him in fifteen years. She was an adult. A successful one at that. Or so it seemed on the outside. On the inside she was still a kid trying to decide what she wanted to do with her life.

She hit refresh and his picture went away -- but the memories stayed. The night of her 18th birthday. Their cave, lit by dozens of candles. The sound of the ocean in the background. She was excited. Intoxicated on love and life as much as the wine she'd had earlier. It was the last night of her childhood and he'd done everything he could to make it special. And special it was. That night and the weeks following it seemed as though time stood still for them. Surely it would last forever.

But as for so many, forever was just a momentary blip in time. Soon enough they were at different schools on different sides of the country. And life went on.

When they met again the next summer, he had changed. He'd grown up. Become a man. While in her heart, she remained the girl who'd loved a boy. Although were she honest, she could see that time had changed her in his eyes too. And so they drifted. Friends with benefits. Then just friends. Then not even that.

She heard, at one point, that he'd gotten married. And had convinced herself she was happy for him. And wondered, when she married, if he ever thought of her. And life went on.

She got caught up on all the news: Carol was doing laundry, Jason's team had won the football game, Marissa was avoiding reality. And when she'd wasted half an hour learning absolutely nothing of interest she gave in and searched his name. "Send friend request." How pathetic was it to request somebody's friendship? But she clicked the button.

She spent a few minutes updating her profile. Not because he might be looking, but because it was time. Relationship: "It's complicated." No it's not, she thought bitterly to herself. Her husband cheated on her with his gorgeous blond secretary. She was living a very bad cliche. Nothing complicated about it. And she felt closure as she changed it to "Single". Facebook was much cheaper than therapy.

Deciding she'd had enough of the past, she shut down the machine and went out for the evening. But when she got home she broke her self-imposed rule and signed into Facebook for the second time that day to check for updates. "Friend request accepted."

And life went on.