Bob Gillen

Healing through story

Author: Bob Gillen (Page 3 of 28)

shortfiction24 – a broken leg, a broken heart

March 13, 2024 / / 0 Comments

Sister Grace has prepared her class for this moment for the past year. Their First Communion. The Gospel reading of the Good Shepherd. An old man turns it all upside down.

Enjoy the story.

And see more of my stories on my blog.

A Broken Leg, A Broken Heart

Bob Gillen

Sister Grace radiated with joy on this April Saturday morning. She beamed looking at her second-grade class lined up at the rear of the church. First Communion day for the children at St. Maurice School. The girls looked like little angels in their white dresses and gauzy veils. The boys – well, maybe not angels so much as fish out of water. Uncomfortable in navy blue suits, ties to match, hair slicked and combed.

From above them, in the choir loft, voices chanted the glory of the moment. Sister Grace nodded to the altar servers, who began the procession down the aisle. From the pews parents and relatives craned to get pictures of the children. Sister Grace had chosen the time for the ceremony with great care. Mid morning. As the children walked down to their pews in the front, the sun burst through the stained glass window behind the altar, spraying the aisle with color. Reds, blues, yellows, golds dappled the white dresses of the girls as they passed. A breathtaking display.

Sister Grace simply bubbled with pride as the children took their places. They would now know the joy she feels being close to her Lord.

Bringing up the rear of the procession came Father Francis. A shock of white hair, bushy white eyebrows, hands gnarled with age, a network of creases webbed on his face. He reached the altar, greeted the children and their families, and began the ceremony. Several well-rehearsed children read selected passages from the Bible. 

Father Francis climbed the steps to the pulpit for the Gospel reading. The story of the Good Shepherd. A favorite of Christians everywhere. Sister Grace had learned a week ago that  Father Francis would be performing the ceremony today. She had sent him a note explaining what she had taught the children about the Good Shepherd. How he persisted out of love to search for and retrieve the lost sheep. How he had cradled it in his arms and returned it to the safety of the flock. How he reflected the love Jesus has for the lost, for all of us. Her first note had been typed, but she thought better of that and sent a penned note instead. More personal, she felt.

Father Francis finished the Gospel reading and directed all to sit. He smiled at the children, welcomed their families once again, and opened his sermon. The raspy lilt of an Irish brogue hung on his words. 

“I want to welcome all of you to this wonderful occasion.” He gestured to the children in front of him. “These beautiful spirits will, in just a few moments, join with our Savior in a most wonderful way as they are united with Jesus himself. A spiritual union, a source of nourishment, that begins today and will continue with them for the rest of their lives.”

Father Francis directed his next comments to the children. “I know you are familiar with the story of the Good Shepherd. How he searched diligently until he found the lost sheep. But do you know what the Good Shepherd did when he brought that sheep back to the herd?”

There was a dramatic pause. Father Francis stared down at the children. A few of them shook their heads, no. 

He pointed at them. “Let me tell you. There is a lesson here for you…indeed for all of us. Straying from the flock brings with it a consequence, an accountability.”

Sister Grace felt coldness blooming inside her.

Father Francis spread his arms wide. “When the shepherd reunited the stray sheep with the flock,” he made a snapping gesture with both hands, “he broke one of its legs to prevent it from wandering away again.”

The children’s eyes popped wide open. There were audible groans from many of the parents and relatives.

“Yes, the lost sheep needed to be disciplined for wandering away, for its sinful behavior. And limping about, it now stood out among the other sheep as a sign of what happens when you stray from the flock. From the community.”

Sister Grace felt tears running down her face. One of the boys sitting in front of her turned and said to her, “Is that true?”

She patted his shoulder.

Father Francis concluded, “Let us not grow weary of being united in the fold of Jesus.”

Sister Grace’s tears continued to flow as the ceremony continued. She told herself, I think I am allowed a crude thought. One whole year’s worth of teaching, now gone down the toilet. All because of a couple of words from this clueless old man.

At the altar Father Francis intoned, “Let all God’s people say Amen.”

***

shortfiction24 – hot wings, hot words

February 28, 2024 / / 0 Comments

Trust is everything. Brian’s lack of trust (read, stupidity) threatens to destroy his relationship with Erin.

This story started as a prompt almost a year ago. It has evolved a long way from my first draft. Please enjoy the story. I hope you like the characters.

Hot Wings, Hot Words

Bob Gillen

Brian tossed his phone face up on the bar table. “Shit! She’s still not picking up.”

Coming up on midnight on a Monday. Brian slid off his stool. “Who wants to go in on a double order of Nashville wings?” He pointed at Dina and Scott as they sipped their beers.

“I’m in, my man,” Scott said, hoisting his longneck.

“Not me,” Dina said. “Morning will come too soon. I need to leave in a few.”

Brian stepped away to put his order in with the bartender.

Dina turned to Scott. “He’s getting desperate, isn’t he?”

Scott nodded. “He wants her to be the one.”

Brian returned to the table. “Food’s up in a few.” He glanced at his phone. “I don’t get it. Erin isn’t answering my texts. Nothing. She said she’d be here tonight.”

A long moment of silence. 

‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ came up on the bar’s blues sound track.

A server set a plate of Nashville wings, a bowl of white sauce and a stack of napkins on the table.

“Pure heaven,” Scott said, grabbing three wings. “Hot wings, hot company.”

Dina grimaced.

Brian glanced again at his phone. A frown creased his face. “Is she dumping me?”

Dina said, “Brian, come on. Maybe Erin got caught up in a family emergency.”

“Huh?”

“Stop looking at your phone. She’ll answer when she can.”

Scott motioned to Dina. “Try the wings.”

Dina rubbed a finger on a crispy wing, touched it to her lips. She shook her head. “Too hot for me.”

“More for me,” Scott said with a smile. He began piling bones on a napkin.

Brian stared at his phone.

“We have plans to go to Venice tomorrow. Walk the beach. Get some tacos.”

He took one bite of a wing, smearing sauce on his face. Carrying the wing, he got up, strode to the front door. He stepped outside, looked up and down the sidewalk.

“Man, I’ve never seen him so manic,” Scott said. “Someone has to talk him down.”

“Leave me out of this,” Dina said. 

Brian came back to the table, still holding the wing. “This sucks. Where is she that she won’t answer me?” He took a long pull on his beer with his free hand. 

The bar’s sound system thumped out ‘I Heard It Through the Grapevine.’

“Love this song,” Scott said as he wiped grease off his fingers. “Got an awesome bottom to it.”

“Dude, you’re a bottom feeder,” Dina said.

“Proud of it,” Scott replied, taking a swig of his beer.

Brian’s phone chirped. He dropped the half-eaten wing on the table and wiped his hand on his jeans as he snatched up the phone. 

“Yeah?”

Brian listened for a moment. “Thanks, buddy.”

He set the phone down.

“That was Josh. He’s walking home past the new club over on Melrose.”

Brian stood, shoved the plate of wings aside. 

“He spotted Erin coming out of there with a tall guy in a dark suit. He said she’s all dressed up.”

B. B. King’s ‘The Thrill Is Gone’ came up on the sound system.

“She lied to me,” Brian said. He flipped a middle finger at the phone. “She lied. She said she’d be here tonight.”

Scott and Dina exchanged worried glances.

“Enough with her bullshit,” Brian said.

He pounded out a text message on his phone, hit Send.

Dina put her hand on Brian’s arm. “What did you just do?”

“I told her off.” He slammed his phone down on the table.

“Not a good move, Bri,” she said.

Brian slammed his hand on the tabletop. “She lied.”

Dina raised her eyes to the bar’s door. Squinted. “I think I need to go.”

She slipped off her stool. Took a last gulp of her beer.

Scott continued chewing the wings, adding to the pile of bones in front of him. Dina caught his eye, directed his glance to the door.

His eyes popped wide. He jumped up, fisted two more wings, and followed Dina to the door. “See ya, buddy.”

“Where are you guys going?”

They were gone.

Brian sagged, grabbed for a wing, dropped it on the floor.

He stooped to pick  up the stray wing. A pair of white sneakers spattered with red moved in front of the wing, blocking Brian’s grip. He looked up.

Erin glowered down at Brian. She stepped up next to him, waving her phone in his face. “I just got your text!”

“Wait, I thought you were clubbing with some guy.” He stood quickly, bumping his shoulder on the table’s edge.

“Where did you hear that?”

“Josh saw you.”

She pointed to his phone. “You took the word of your drunken buddy over mine?”

“He said he saw you.”

“Whoever he saw, it wasn’t me.”

Brian’s shoulders sagged with relief.  “Oh.” He attempted a smile. “I guess you can ignore my text, then. Sorry.”

“Sorry? Ignore your lack of trust?”

Panic flashed in his eyes. He combed his fingers through his hair. “Where’ve you been all night?”

 “I got called in to the ER. They had five gunshot victims and they needed more trauma nurses.”

“Oh.”

“I didn’t have time to text you. It was a nightmare. We lost two. The other three will probably wish they didn’t make it.” A single tear inched down her cheek. “After what I saw tonight, I hoped for a warm hug.”

Brian looked over toward the bar.

“Can I get you a beer?”

Her head shook. “Are you serious?”

Brian shrugged. Reached for a wing. Dropped it back on the plate.

Erin shoved her phone in her jeans pocket. “You expect me to sit here and drink with you?”

Brian nodded weakly. His eyes could not meet hers.

She lifted one foot. “Did you not see the blood on my sneakers? I spent the last six hours piecing people back together. I am damn good at it. The ER docs and the trauma surgeons trust me. The patients trust me…But you? Zero trust.”

A quiet fury flamed in her eyes. She gritted her teeth to hold back tears.

“You…after a year of seeing each other…you don’t trust me.”

Brian’s cheeks burned red.

Erin pointed to her chin. “Take a good look. This is the last time you’ll see my face. Asshole.”

She turned to walk out. Stopped and pivoted.

“Wait. This is my bar. I introduced you to this place. I want you to leave.”

She waved to the bartender. “Joe, vodka rocks…please.”

Brian stood motionless. 

“I’m serious, Brian. Move your ass.” She waved her thumb towards the door.

She pulled over a stool. “And leave the wings.”

***

shortfiction24 – peter’s heavenly holiday

February 14, 2024 / / 0 Comments

Peter enjoys a brief break from his gatekeeper duties. But long lines of souls pile up at the gates.

I enjoyed an exercise of “what if” speculation for this story. I hope you enjoy it as well.

Peter’s Heavenly Holiday

Bob Gillen

It’s a known fact that St. Peter guards the gates of Heaven. Well, perhaps guard isn’t the right word. More like monitors or oversees. No one is ever turned away.

What is little known is Peter has a crew that helps him admit souls to Heaven. On a normal day Peter can handle the admissions well enough. But normal days are relatively rare these days. The earth’s population has grown exponentially, and the world continually suffers with death-dealing events.

Peter’s crew are individual souls who are earning their way into full joy and eternal bliss. Despite common belief, there is no Purgatory or Hell. The afterlife is only Heaven. But within Heaven there are levels of bliss. Most souls need to atone for something to earn higher levels of joy.

Peter has been at the gates for two thousand years, in earthly time. Ever since shortly after Jesus told him he was the rock on which Jesus’s church would be set. While there’s no measurement for time in the spirit world, Peter would tell you he’s been on the job for a long time. He doesn’t remember who had the job before him. Not important, anyway.

So, here’s Peter, standing at the gates 24/7. For two thousand years. Even spirits get tired. Peter’s second in command, Calvin, is earning his way to full bliss in Heaven. Calvin approached Peter.

“We got advanced notice. There’s going to be a massive earthquake tomorrow on earth. Many thousands of souls will be lining up at the gates. All at once.”

Peter groaned. “It never stops, does it?”

“Billions of people down there. Earth’s population keeps growing.”

“I’m tired,” Peter said.

“Want a break? I can take over while it’s quiet.”

Peter nodded. “See you in a few.”

Peter smiled, moved off.

He wandered through sections of Heaven. First he passed the many souls enjoying full eternal bliss. Everyone entering Heaven got to see these souls first. Kind of a teaser. This is what you will enjoy when you have grown into it, earned a path to it.

Farther, deeper, into the folds of Heaven, he came upon the area reserved for those who have a long way to go before experiencing full joy. This was Heaven’s back forty. A dark aura pervaded. In earthly terms one would experience dark purple clouds, even an occasional flash of lightning. An area Peter took no joy in visiting. Hitler’s spirit resided here. So did the spirits of the clergy who had abused children. In one small corner were the spirits of several deceased American politicians, people who had boldly displayed willful ignorance in their years allegedly serving their constituents.

Peter moved on quickly. He found himself in a part of Heaven he wished he could spend all his time in. He enjoyed music. There wasn’t much one could call music when he was working on earth so many years ago. He had seen many musicians pass through the gates in his time as gatekeeper. He marveled at what they could do with instruments and voice. Here, too, were the spirits of children. School children. Children murdered by shooters in their own classrooms.

Peter smiled. Freddy Mercury, Janis Joplin, Loretta Lynn and Charlie Watts entertained this group of children. Actually, referring to them as children was a point of discussion. Was there any age distinction in Heaven? Were all spirits the same level of spirit regardless of their ages on earth? 

Peter has had this discussion with Calvin many times. With no definitive answer. Peter believed all souls would be equal when the last of times occurred.

The four musicians Peter knew well. They were in various stages of their own personal transitions into full joy. They provided joy for the children’s spirits until their parents and friends passed and joined them in Heaven. Peter lingered for a time, watching the musician spirits bring joy to the younger souls.

Peter had recently yearned to go back to earth for a visit, to attend a Springsteen concert. “Hungry Heart” was a favorite. But Peter had no time for that kind of activity.

He crossed to the section where well-known authors tended to gather. Hemingway, Sontag, Steinbeck, Seuss, Bradbury, Silverstein. Here, too, the creative process amazed him. Making scenes come to life with words. Many children’s souls lingered here, as the authors told stories of adventure and drama.

“Peter!”

The voice of Calvin.

“It’s time. Incoming.”

Peter sighed. Back to the gates.

There would be a day, he knew not when, when life on earth came to an end. Then no more souls would cross through the gates. His duties would be done. For the moment, however, souls kept coming.

Peter glanced at the children. Sighed. “I’ll be right back, Calvin.” 

***

#shortfiction24 – slow to change

February 1, 2024 / / 0 Comments

A year ago I introduced Moneen to the Milo story series. This will mark the sixth story. The earlier stories appear on my blog www.bobgillen.net. The standup comic and the dummy have spent eight months together on the road and are ready for a winter hiatus. And a lifestyle change?

Slow To Change

Bob Gillen

I gazed out the windshield of the pickup from my booster seat as Moneen parked the truck in the near-empty beach parking lot.

“I’ve never been to a beach,” I said.

“Never?”

“Nope. Maurice was strictly an urban guy. Hated the outdoors.”

Moneen turned off the engine.

“It’s going to be chilly out there.”

“I don’t feel the cold much. I’ll be okay.”

I watched Moneen zip up her puffy blue coat and pull a beanie on her head. The middle of December on Cape Cod. Cold but above freezing.

“Moneen?”

“Yeah, Milo.”

“I don’t think I ever said a proper thank you for rescuing me from that awful club.”

 “No need.”

“No, I need to say it. I was buried in the bottom of that closet for so long, I thought I’d never be free again.”

“And here you are, ready to walk the beach for the first time.” She yanked on a pair of leather gloves.

I felt excited to see the beach and the ocean. Moneen slipped out of the truck and came around to pick me up from the seat. She locked the truck and we started for the beach.

There were a few cars in the parking lot. I didn’t see anyone around. Just as well. It must have looked odd for a woman to be carrying a ventriloquist’s dummy to the beach. In the winter. But if the two of us were anything, it was odd. 

A straight and a queer, I like to say. A straight dummy and a lesbian standup comic. We had been touring LGBTQ clubs in the northeastern US for the last eight months or so. Ever since she found me – entirely by accident – in the bottom of a clothes closet in a club green room. Moneen adopted me and included me in her act. Not too much. I have to admit, I am still getting used to the situation. I don’t do change very well. But she’s a pretty good ventriloquist.

For years I toured with my ventriloquist Maurice until his sudden death on stage one fateful night. Maurice was my friend, my constant companion. And now here I am touring with Moneen.

“The beach is at the end of this path,” Moneen said. She shrugged a scarf tighter around her neck with one hand, holding me with the other.

We followed a sandy path over a rise in the dunes. I smelled a smell I had never experienced before. A mix of grass, sand, salt. To the side of the path dune grasses rustled gently in the breeze off the ocean. As we topped the rise the panaroma of beach and ocean opened before us. The waves coming in off the ocean slapped softly against the beach’s edge. They slapped and slipped away. Slapped and slipped.

This is seriously cool, I thought. 

Moneen took us down near the water’s edge. The tide was out and there were hundreds of ripples in the wet sand. It looked like the inside of a corrugated box.

Moneen stopped, reached down and slipped off her sandals.

“I may regret this,” she said, “but I need to feel sand between my toes.” 

“What does that feel like?” I asked.

She knelt down in the damp sand, lowered me so my hand could touch the sand. 

It felt grainy, damp. Not smooth, like the makeup Maurice used to wear on stage. Not powdery, like talcum. More like a handful of sugar or salt.

Moneen moved my hand through the sand, digging down and pulling out a handful that ran between my fingers.

If my rigid face could crack a smile, now would be the moment.

I saw birds skittering across the sand at the water’s edge. They weren’t pigeons…the only bird I had seen before today.

“The clouds are beautiful,” Moneen said. She pointed to a horizon filled with low hanging purple clouds.

We walked along the water’s edge for a while. Farther down the beach I saw two figures. Maybe a woman and a child. The child was wearing yellow boots and a puffy pink coat. The birds scattered as they walked along, then reassembled behind them.

“They look like they’re having fun,” I said.

Moneen nodded.

“Are you enjoying this?” she asked me.

“Oh yes.”

“There’ll be more of this in Florida, when we get there in a few days.”

“No more gigs?”

“No more gigs, Milo. Not for a while. Today is the start of my winter break. I have friends in Florida. I crash with them every winter. There’s a softball league I play with. I’m the shortstop. Pretty good at it, too.”

“There’s more beach there?”

“Miles and miles of beach. Warm too. You’ll like it.”

“What will I do?”

“What do you mean?”

“No gigs?”

“No gigs. I always promise myself a few months off the road. Time to refuel. Write new material. Sleep.”

“So I just lay around?”

“Well…you can help me write new material. Look for the humor in life.”

“Sounds kinda boring.”

“Boring is good, Milo. I need it to refresh myself.”

The woman and child ahead of us had turned around and were walking back towards us. The child, a girl, pointed at us, said something to her mom.

They approached us. 

“Is that a dummy?” the girl asked Moneen.

“Yup. His name is Milo.”

Moneen slipped her hand inside my controls.

“Hi,” she had me say. “Are you enjoying the beach?”

The girl beamed, looked to her mother. “He’s talking to me!”

“Answer him,” her mom said.

“I love the beach. Look.” She reached into her pocket. “I found this today.”

She held out a piece of blue sand glass. 

“Blue is pretty rare,” Moneen said.

The mom said, “Thank you for talking to us. We need to go. She has a hot chocolate waiting for her at our favorite diner.”

The girl waved as they walked off.

“Cute kid,” I said.

Moneen nodded.

I sensed sadness in her face.

“Are you okay?”

Moneen was silent for a bit as we walked on.

“Milo, I may be finished with gigs and standup.”

“Finished? Why? What do you mean?”

I saw a few tears run down Moneen’s cheek. I don’t recall ever seeing her cry.

She held up her free hand. “Give me a few minutes.”

We walked along the beach for a while. Moved away from the water’s edge, up where the sand was drier. 

After a bit Moneen turned and we headed back to the parking lot. 

At the truck Moneen used an old towel to wipe the sand off her feet. She put her sandals back on. “My ankles and soles are killing me,” she said. “That rippled sand is a killer to walk on.”

She set me on my booster seat, came around and fired up the engine. She cranked up the heat.

“I think my standup days are done.”

She stared out the windshield as the sun began to set. 

“I never told you this, Milo.” I saw her pull a tissue out of her pocket. 

“I’m tired.” She leaned forward on the steering wheel. “Finding you…working with you…it’s been great. You got me through this past year.”

Moneen sat back, stared up at the roof of the cab. “Working with you has made me think, I want a child. I want a partner. Someone to love. Like the mother and daughter we just met on the beach.”

“You can love me,” I said. I was feeling a touch of panic. Will I be left alone?

“I do love you. And you will always have a place in my heart. But I need a human love too.”

Moneen began to sob. I never saw this. I didn’t know what to do. After all, she was my voice.

“What I started to say a minute ago, I never told you I once had a partner. Chrissy. She and I were together for five years. In our third year we adopted a baby. Actually a toddler. He was a year and a half when we got him.”

Moneen wiped her face with a tissue.

“His name was Roddy. Our baby. God, he was beautiful. But my partner and I split up two years later. I was on the road a lot, and she resented my being gone so much. Anyway, she got custody of Roddy. I haven’t seen him since. They moved out to California, to the Bay area. I get a card and a picture every Christmas.”

I watched her cry and cry. What should I do? I can’t hug her unless she moves me.

“When I get to Florida there should be a card waiting for me.”

Moneen reached over, lifted me off the seat, and hugged me. Hugged me hard. No one had ever done that to me. It felt good. Warm. Like I was more than a wooden dummy. 

Moneen laughed. She set me back in the seat. 

“I was just thinking of that joke I used in our last gig. It was a real groaner, wasn’t it?”

I had to agree. 

“Any of you into art history?” she had asked the audience. “Do you know the painter Toulouse Lautrec?” Most of the audience nodded.

“Do you know how he got his name? No? Let me tell you.

“When Lautrec was a young teenager he was going through a growth spurt. His mother took him to a tailor. The tailor handed him a pair of pants, sent him to the changing room. Lautrec came back a few minutes later. ‘Put your arms at your side,’ the tailor said. The pants fell down around his ankles. The tailor said, ‘What’s the matter, Lautrec? Pants too loose?’”

Moneen laughed again. “I’m getting stale.”

She pulled out of the parking lot.

“I think we have to find a laundromat, buddy. Get cleaned up. Florida is a long drive.”

I looked down at my navy pants and striped shirt. “Maybe I should get a new outfit.”

“Really? Wow. Time to shed the French sailor boy look?”

“I told you I’m slow to change.”

Moneen shrugged. “Yeah, buddy, so am I.”

She reached over and patted my knee. “What do you say we do this together?”

Deal,” I said. “A straight and a queer, looking for change.”

***

shortfiction24 – shattered by a bullet

January 17, 2024 / / 0 Comments

Paige Ryker struggles to recover after a school shooting shattered her life.

For 2024 I will be posting a new short story here every other Wednesday. If you would prefer to receive my weekly newsletter by email, you can sign up here. The newsletter will feature these stories as well as serialized stories from earlier blog posts.

Shattered by a Bullet

Bob Gillen

On the first day of school after summer break, Paige Ryker sat at her favorite school cafeteria table. Her friends Meghan and Kim were not there. 

Paige knew they wouldn’t be. 

They were dead. 

Several girls, fellow juniors, waded through the lunchroom chaos to join Paige.

“The freshmen get stupider every year,” Mara said. “I was almost wearing someone’s mac and cheese.”

“Hey, Paige,” another girl called out. “How was your summer?”

Before she could answer, Joshua Nobles slammed his backpack down and squeezed in next to Paige.

“Mind if I join you?” He didn’t wait for an answer.

“How’s your shoulder doing?” He pointed to the navy blue sling over her left shoulder, a sling that matched her navy top.  He reached into his backpack to extract a cold grilled cheese sandwich. 

Paige shrugged.

Silence fell over the table. 

Last April a shooter had burst into Paige’s classroom. The shooter had murdered Paige’s two closest friends, Meghan and Kim, and wounded four others, including Paige herself. The shooting had left Paige lying in a pool of blood, her left shoulder shattered by a bullet. She spent two months in the hospital dealing with multiple surgeries, then all summer in rehab and physical therapy. She still did not have full range of motion in the shoulder.

Joshua repeated, “How’s the shoulder?”

“Better, thanks.” She shrugged again. “But I won’t be playing volleyball this year. So much for a college sports scholarship.”

“Yeah, that sucks.”

Paige looked around the table. “I miss my friends. They should be sitting here.” She brushed away a tear. 

Joshua said, “Have you seen the memorial garden they planted during the summer?”

“No.” Paige picked at a bag of chips. Joshua leaned over and snagged a handful from her bag.

Their school had closed down after the April shooting, and moved all the students to home schooling for the rest of the semester. Then they tore down the classroom where the shooting occurred. It was located at the end of a wing. The shooting had been confined to one classroom, thanks to a fast-acting off-duty police officer who happened to be in the building. The school board replaced the classroom with an outdoor memorial garden.

“I hear they’re planning a service for later this week.”

“I don’t think I can handle it.”

“The other kids who were wounded transferred to other schools,” Mara said. “You’re the only one who came back.”

Paige waved her right hand at the room. “That explains why everyone is staring at me today.”

“Yeah… I guess you remind them of what happened last year.”

Mara’s statement sucked the air out of the room for a long moment. 

Paige hung her head. 

“Sorry, Paige. My bad.” 

“It’s okay. When I get rid of this friggin’ sling, I can fade into the background.”

Lunch period ended and Paige headed with Joshua to their English class. Passing students stared at her sling. 

In the English class Mrs. Chen welcomed them back to the new school year. She avoided mentioning last semester’s shooting. After highlighting what they would cover for the semester, she then directed them to write a five-paragraph essay on their summer experiences. “Keep it casual,” she said. “This is merely a warmup. You know, get your minds working.”

Paige pulled a notebook out of her backpack. She stared at the blank page. 

Mrs. Chen stepped up next to Paige, put her hand on Paige’s shoulder. “Write whatever you can.”

Paige nodded. Her hand began to move. 

Ten minutes into the writing exercise Paige felt tears running down her cheeks. Mrs. Chen grabbed a tissue from her desk and walked it over to Paige. 

Paige shoved her notebook aside. Is this what the school year is going to be? Crying every day? Having nightmares every night? Sitting on the sidelines at the volleyball games? Watching for Meghan and Kim in class, at lunch? Looking for their texts on my phone?

Paige had saved Kim’s last text on her phone. She had been sending it in the middle of their American History class. This is so boring. Why…And then the gunshots. The screams. The the darkness. 

Mrs. Chen called the class to order. “I hope that got your creative juices flowing. Would anyone like to share what they wrote?”

Silence. 

Paige’s hand stabbed the air.

Mrs. Chen hesitated, scanned the room. No one else volunteered. 

“Okay, Paige. Do you want to come up to the front of the room?”

“Okay, I guess.”

Mrs. Chen stepped to the side, motioned for Paige to stand in front of the teacher’s desk.

Paige held up her notebook. “I warn you, there’s mature language.”

Mrs. Chen said, “I think we can deal with that.”

Paige cleared her throat, eyes down on her page.

My summer was a disaster. I spent most of it going to rehab for my shoulder. I missed sports camp. I could not take driver’s ed training I don’t know when I’ll be able to get my license. My dad bought me a car last spring so we could start lessons. A Toyota Prius. Not exactly my choice, but at least it had wheels and a motor. It’s been sitting in our driveway for six months. 

Paige paused, took a few deep breathes, continued reading.

I am so pissed off. Seriously. Her voice pitched higher. The asshole who shot me ruined my life my two best friends are dead my shoulder is shattered. The doctors say I will get maybe 90% usage back after a few more months. Probably never 100%. I can’t play volleyball this year that ruins my chance of getting a sports scholarship. I had been voted MVP last year. I had a chance at a scholarship. Instead I spent the summer going to physical therapy. I have a scar on my shoulder that looks like pink nail polish spread over the skin of a cantaloupe. I can’t wear a strapless dress. Ever. Every morning my mother has to help me finish getting dressed. That’s not too embarrassing!

Tears ran down Paige’s face. She tucked the notebook under her left arm so she could wipe them aside. Mrs. Chen handed her another tissue. 

Today everyone stared at me when I walked through the halls. Yeah, it’s me Paige. One of the survivors. I should be glad…I’m not. Not happy at all. Why me? Why am I here, and Meghan and Kim are gone? Why do I have nightmare memories of seeing their bodies on the classroom floor before I passed out? Hearing the crash of the gun and the screams of the students. I didn’t know they were dead until I woke up in the hospital three days later.

Paige choked on her tears. Hiccuped. The room was silent except for her sobbing. Several students wiped their eyes. 

This whole situation sucks really sucks. I feel like a shriveled tree with no roots. I have no ties. No friends. No sports. No driver’s license. Yeah, I know I survived. I have my family. My mom and dad have been great. My brother is a huge help. But I had plans. Meghan and Kim were going to carpool with me this year.

The asshole who shot all of us is dead. I’m  glad. I would shoot him myself if I had the chance. Okay, this is the fifth paragraph. That was my summer. Ruined because some demented wacko felt like shooting up our school. 

Paige sniffled as Mrs. Chen handed her more tissues.  Paige looked at Mrs. Chen. “Sorry about the language.”

Mrs. Chen smiled. “Thank you for having the courage to read your story.”

Paige shrugged. “The survivors never get to tell their stories.”

***

shortfiction24 – small-town betty

November 16, 2023 / / 0 Comments

The local shortline railroad that ran through Betty’s town made a sharp curve within inches of her house. For over sixty years, Betty lived with this oddity. Even with offers to relocate her home, Betty refused to leave.

Enjoy the story.

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Small-town Betty

Bob Gillen

Betty Thorndyke has lived in her quaint, gingerbread-edged home for over sixty years. Her husband Charley, gone nine years, had built the house as soon as Betty accepted his proposal. Charley worked at Jaxon Industries, the local factory at the west end of their town. He loved the work, and thrived on having no land to cultivate, not even a lawn to cut or a shrub to trim. When Charley was not working, he was on the front porch with a can of beer in his hand.

Main Street in their little town spanned a mile-long stretch extending from Jaxon Industries at the town’s west end to Charley and Betty’s home, the last house on the east end. A short-line railroad served the factory and half a dozen other factories in the area.

Unlike many other rural main streets, this one had every shop occupied. Occupied and thriving. A hardware store, two grocery stores, a barber and a hair stylist, a diner. A strong local economy, thanks to the town’s factory, Jaxon Industries, which employed a number of residents from the town and the surrounding county. 

Every morning, Monday through Friday, a diesel locomotive pushed two empty box cars down the track in the middle of Main Street to the factory’s loading dock. The engine then coupled to one or two box cars loaded with Jaxon product to ship out. The engine pulled the cars back up Main Street, turned north around Betty’s house, and headed for the other factories. Twenty miles up the line the engine set out the loaded cars to be picked up by a mainline railroad.

The rail curve from Main Street around Betty’s home was sharp, the trains passing within a foot of the house. Any stranger to the town stood in amazement watching the train navigate the curve.

Betty and her husband Charley had lived in the house since they were married sixty years ago. The railroad track was there first. Charley bought the property because it was so cheap. Who would want a house so close to a railroad track? For Charley and his new bride it was not an issue. The train passed only in the morning, only Monday to Friday, only moving at slow speeds. 

Now long retired from her earlier career as a nurse, with Charley gone nine years ago, Betty sat on her front porch and waved to Benny the engineer each time he passed. Benny drove a re-built SW1200 diesel belonging to Forward Rail, the shortline servicing the area. It was a small diesel by railroad standards, but a monster when passing within a foot of someone’s front porch. The diesel’s shorter wheelbase and minimum turning radius made it an ideal choice for the town and the curve around Betty’s house. 

In the summer months, with schools closed, Forward Rail had two men, one on each side, walk Main Street with the train to keep the local kids from climbing on the box cars. That, after one boy slipped and lost a foot under the train.

David Bauer, CEO of Jaxon Industries, was a decent employer. He paid his people well enough, considering he was the only game in town. But Bauer was a business owner interested in making profits. And additional profits were proving elusive. Bauer’s business had grown strong enough that he could ship more product. And in turn he could offer more jobs for the town. But that would require larger, longer box cars. And those cars would not tolerate the sharp curve around Betty’s house. Not without tearing the corner off her building. Bauer had first approached Betty three years ago. He offered to pay to relocate her house fifty feet back from the railroad track. The cost would be incurred equally by his company and by Forward Rail.

Betty refused the offer. The house was precious to her. The view of the countryside south of her front porch was magnificent. And having to move to a motel during her home’s relocation was in no way attractive to her.

Bauer came back with his offer yearly. 

Betty’s answer was always the same. 

No.

The cost of moving the rail track away from Betty’s house would not be exorbitant, Bauer knew, but the down time would be prohibitive. Product had to move out daily.

Last year someone had proposed using trucks to move the product out to the mainline railroad. Bauer considered it. But he would have to build more loading docks. And the town would have to tolerate trucks moving up and down Main Street. Not to mention cutting seriously into Forward Rail’s business.

 Both Bauer and the head of Forward Rail had also approached the town’s mayor several times to pursue eminent domain for Betty’s house. The mayor always backed down. Too harsh a solution, he said.

What the mayor did not say, not out loud – the town could not afford to offend Betty. For over thirty years, with her nursing background, Betty had run a free clinic for new mothers out of the church meeting room. Every Monday and Thursday morning she sat in the clinic, offering help and advice to the new and older mothers of the town. Rashes, scrapes and bruises, coughs, fevers – Betty got the moms through it all. Anything more serious, of course, had to be referred to the county hospital. After all, Betty was a nurse but no doctor. 

So Forward Rail added an extra boxcar when needed to accommodate added product shipments. Not ideal, but workable. An impasse, but not a nasty one. All the factory workers and railway people still greeted Betty in a friendly fashion on the street and in the market.

Each Christmas Betty’s two sons and their families showed up to celebrate the holiday. The grandkids were fascinated by the huge train passing within inches of grandma’s house. They loved waving to Benny the engineer. Betty kept a jar of pennies in the house, and her two sons showed the children how to place the pennies on the rail before the train passed. The huge train wheels flattened the pennies, which delighted the kids.

Betty lost her Charley almost nine years ago. A tragic disappearance. Charley left home one evening to go fishing and never returned. He was never found. After seven years the courts declared Charley dead and Betty collected five thousand dollars on his life insurance policy.

Charley’s disappearance and assumed death had upset the town. There was a large turnout at his church service. More casseroles than Betty could eat in her lifetime. And Betty had soldiered on. Every morning, on all but the bitterest winter days, Betty sat on her front porch. Her failing eyesight would not allow her to create the beautiful quilts she once made. Now it was mostly knitting. Easier on the eyes.

Nine years ago, Charley and Betty had driven to a hospital two counties over. Looking for anonymity. Within two days Charley got his diagnosis. Terminal cancer. Less than a year to live.

Back home, Charley had spent all his free time for the following weeks digging a four-foot deep grave in their basement. The basement was windowless, dark, dank, not much more than a tornado shelter.

After he completed his task, he and Betty made plans. When he began to have trouble functioning, when the pain grew intolerable, they would initiate his last days. Betty acquired a strong sedative and a lethal injection.

Charley ordered a body bag online. On his final day, he gathered his fishing gear and set out one evening to spend the night fishing. He left his gear at the river’s edge and quietly sneaked back home in the middle of the night. He and Betty descended to the basement. Charley pulled the body bag over himself, leaving enough room for Betty to do what she had to do. 

They kissed, held hands. After a while Charley simply nodded. Betty applied the sedative, waited for Charley to doze. Then she administered the lethal dose. She slipped the syringe into the body bag, zipped it up, and rolled Charley’s body into the grave. She spent an hour shoveling dirt back into the hole. She smoothed it over as best she could, dragged a sheet of plywood over the loose dirt, and laid an old rug over the plywood. She stomped down on the rug to flatten the soil.

A tear rolled down her cheek as she mounted the stairs.

A day later Betty reported Charley missing.

Now, nine years later, Betty will never move from her home. And her Charley.

***

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