Day 347 Writing Short Stories

Foil

Oh, I don’t know what to do with this word. Always the first prompts are doable as they are just a word, but not today. I draw empty.

Train

The cart was empty, so she could choose her own seat once on the train. She was always the last to arrive, ending up sitting next to some loud-speaking commuter or a messy one. This time, she had been able to get out of work just a few minutes earlier without the need to rush to the train.

She chose the one next to the window and closed her eyes to wait for the train to fill and take off. She must have dozed off, as the next thing she noticed was that the train was moving.

She looked out the window at the strange landscape. The rooftops felt alien. So did the trees, and how the light played with shadows. She glanced around the cart and found it empty.

She frowned. The train was usually packed full. This was the prime-time train.

Again, she glanced outside, watching the strange landscape. It was turning darker and odder, more twisted, as if it existed not in the world she knew, as if it were a mockery of it.

“Tickets, please,” came a grave voice.

She glanced at the cart door and saw a man in a skeleton uniform. Her gaze fell upon the empty seats, and they weren’t empty anymore. She saw hollowed cheeks, ghostly hair, skeleton-like bodies.

Her heart began racing as she realized the approaching conductor’s uniform wasn’t a uniform. He was a skeleton with a conductor’s hat.

“Ticket, please,” the skeleton said to her.

She reached for her phone, fumbling with her purse. The skeleton just stared at her, its heavy sighs hissing out between its toothy mouth.

“I don’t have it,” she let out a wail, not finding her phone or anything in her purse. Her hand looked skeleton-like as she drew it from the purse.

Opera

A visiting opera company becomes notorious after an actor dies onstage. The death is not natural. I skipped this one. I’m pressed for time.

The prompts are from the book A Year of Creative Writing Prompts.

There are no insights today—just the need to rush to work. See you tomorrow!

Thank you for reading ❤ Have a wonderfully weird day!