Short Stories – Page 2 – Hugh's Views & News

Pizza #flashfiction

Published on April 8, 2020April 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts30 Comments

April 2, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that includes pizza. It can be an original pizza pie (or slice) or something pizza-like. Go where the prompt leads!

If you’d like to read the story so far, click on ‘The Newlyweds‘ on the menu bar at the top of my blog.

“I know what you did, Clarice,” giggled the face looking down at Mike. “You tampered with the pizza, didn’t you?” As alarm bells rang in his head, pains raced across Mike’s chest and down his arms.

***

As the woman turned around slowly to reveal her face, Sophie’s heartbeat increased. Horrified, she watched as the book in the woman’s hand turned into a slice of pizza.

“Now, I’m in control,” screamed the woman.

***

Two floors above, Doug became more and more terrified at the way Clarice looked at him.

“Sophie? The one who poisoned the pizza you ate?” she asked.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Who’s In Control? #flashfiction

Published on March 30, 2020April 11, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts24 Comments

March 26, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story in which a character takes charge. Who is this character, and what situation calls for their action? It can be playful or serious, fantastical, or realistic. Go where the prompt leads!

“A gun? Who’s got a gun?” murmured Doug, as he tried to take control of his body which felt like a block of concrete. “And where’s Sophie?”

***

Two floors below, Sophie’s eyes moved from the twitching nose of the rabbit to the back of the mysterious woman’s head. “You’re not as in control as you think you are, Sophie,” giggled the woman.

***

Forced to close his eyes, to protect them from the paint dust, the tapping noise Mike heard suddenly stopped. Opening his eyes slowly, he was stunned to see the face of a woman looking down at him.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Twitching #flashfiction

Published on March 24, 2020March 30, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts30 Comments

March 19, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about a rabbit on the roof. Or many rabbits. Why are they there? Explain the unexpected, go into any genre. Go where the prompt leads!

As Sophie walked towards the figure of the woman, she noticed the front cover of the book in the woman’s hand. A rabbit on a roof. But was she dreaming, or was the rabbit’s nose twitching?

***

As Mike looked up at the ceiling of his room, the tapping noise he heard sounded like a rabbit he’d once seen hopping along a newly tiled roof. Particles of paint dust falling from the ceiling forced his eyes to twitch uncontrollably.

***

Two floors above, Doug’s eyes twitched on Clarice’s face. “Run rabbit, run. Doug, did you know there’s a gun?” she asked.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Tapping #flashfiction

Published on March 16, 2020March 24, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts27 Comments

March 12, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that includes tapping. You can play with the sound, make it an action, or create something unexpected. Tap a story and go where the prompt leads!

Doug watched as Clarice tapped her long fingernails onto the cover of a hardback book she carried. He could tell she grew impatient with him while waiting for his response.

***

Two floors below, Mike froze to the spot. He’d not heard the name Clarice mentioned for years. The faint sound of tapping broke his concentration.

***

While Sophie wondered who Clarice was, a tapping noise behind her forced her to spin around. Her eyes met the rear view of a woman who tapped her fingers on a book while standing over the body of a man Sophie thought she recognised.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Voices #flashfiction

Published on March 10, 2020March 16, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts27 Comments

March 5, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about Clarice. She can be any Clarice real, historical, or imagined. What story does she have for you to tell? Go where she may lead!

Having decided to follow the cat, Sophie came to a grinding halt when the cat stopped and turned around to face her. “Clarice isn’t who you think she is,” echoed a voice in Sophie’s head. But who was Clarice?

***

Turing the handle of his hotel room door, Mike let out another almighty sneeze. “Clarice, are you in there?” came a voice from the other side of the door.

***

Two floors above, Doug’s eyes flickered before suddenly opening. The familiar face of a woman peered down at him. “Hello, Doug. I’m Clarice. How can I help you?” asked the woman.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

The Road To Where? #flashfiction

Published on March 2, 2020March 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts34 Comments

February 27, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that includes the open road. Where will the trip lead? Who is going, and why? Follow the open road wherever it may lead!

Thank goodness nobody else was in the room, thought Mike. Putting the gun away, the sound of meowing from the other side of his hotel room door startled him. He hesitated before moving towards it.

***

Having decided to follow the meowing cat, Sophie was shocked by what she saw as she turned the corner of the hotel corridor. In front of her, an open road with a cat running towards the horizon. Should she follow it?

***

Two floors above, Doug’s dream continued. Rainbow, the cat, reappeared, only this time somebody was following the feline. “Don’t follow,” he murmured.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Rainbow #flashfiction

Published on February 24, 2020March 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts26 Comments

February 20, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about a library cat named Rainbow who escapes. Use this situation to write what happens next. Where does this situation take place, and who else might be involved? Go where the prompt leads!

Doug watched as the dog sat next to the stranger, turned into a cat named Rainbow. Holding a library book in its mouth, Rainbow jumped out of the picture and disappeared.

***

Two floors below, Sophie decided it was time to find out the answer. The ‘ping’ of the elevator doors opening stopped her from knocking on Mike’s door. She watched in disbelief as a cat exited the lift.

***

Aiming the revolver at the door of his hotel room, Mike made the sound of a gunshot before sneezing loudly. Only cats made him sneeze. Hotels didn’t have cats, did they?

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Torn #flashfiction

Published on February 18, 2020March 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts24 Comments

February 13, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that includes a sugar report. Use its original meaning of a letter from a sweetheart to a soldier, or invent a new use for it. Go where the prompt leads!

The first words that entered Mike’s head when looking at the picture were ‘I love you.’ He wished he’d kept the sugar letter he’d received while on duty in Iraq.

***

Torn by love and lust, Sophie suddenly remembered the reply she’d got from a sugar letter she’d sent. Had he meant what he had said? Was now the right time to find out?

***

Two floors above, Doug dreamt about a tall stranger dressed in military uniform stood in a field of daisies, and who held an unopened letter towards him. ‘Not everything is as it seems,’ whispered the stranger.

Click here to read the first part of this story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

The Picture #flashfiction

Published on February 10, 2020March 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts36 Comments

February 6, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story to the theme “a dog in the daisies.” It can be any dog, real or imagined. Push into the setting and as always, go where the prompt leads!

Sophie’s face wasn’t the last thing Doug saw as his eyes finally closed. Having fallen to the floor, it was the picture hanging on the wall, of a dog sitting in a daisy field, that was his final vision. It spoke to him.

***

Two floors below, after removing the revolver from his trouser pocket, Mike’s eyes became transfixed on the same picture of a dog sitting in a field of daisies. It spoke to him.

***

Outside Mike’s room, Sophie hesitated before knocking on the door. Was she doing the right thing? Shouldn’t she go back and check on Doug?

Click here to read the first part of the story and follow the links back to this part.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

Turning Point #flashfiction

Published on February 3, 2020March 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts29 Comments

January 30, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about a postal carrier in an extreme situation. Even if you base your story on a true one, focus on the core trait of this postal carrier. Go where the prompt leads!

Putting his right hand into the trouser pocket of his postal carrier uniform, Mike felt the outline of the handle of the revolver. He knew his jealousy was forcing an extreme situation to develop.

***

Two floors above, Sophie wished she could wish herself back to the postal depot where she and Mike worked, so she could escape the extreme situation Doug was putting her in.

***

Just before deciding now was the right time to smother Sophie’s face with the pillow; he was holding, Doug’s vision became a little blurry. Why had Sophie put them both in this extreme situation?

Click here to read the first part of the story and follow the links back to this part.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

15:30 to Midnight #flashfiction

Published on January 25, 2020March 14, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts56 Comments

January 23, 2019, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about a park bench. Use this gif to choose a timeframe and write the story behind that particular scene. Use the time as your title. Go where the prompt leads!

Sophie wished that right now she still had the knife she had used to inscribe their names on the park bench where she and Doug had first met.

***

Doug’s mind wandered back to their first date. It was a bunch of flowers he had held in his hands at 15:30 that day. Now, here he was holding an oversized bed pillow in front of Sophie. He wondered if their names were still inscribed on the park bench.

***

Two floors below, Mike thought about the park bench where he and Sophie had first made love at the stroke of midnight.

Click here to read the first part of the story and follow the links back to this part.

Click here to read the next part of the story.

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

Click here to join other writers participating in the challenge.

It’s Not Fair #flashfiction

Published on January 20, 2020March 19, 2020 by Hugh W. Roberts14 Comments

January 16, 2019, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a protest story. It can be about a protest, or you can investigate the word and expand the idea. Who is protesting, where, and why? Go where the prompt leads!

“It’s not fair,” protested Mike, as he paced up and down his hotel room. “One of them should have been here by now.”

He hated the thought of the newlyweds sleeping together.

***

Two floors above, while holding an oversized pillow in his hands, Doug angrily protested to his new wife that she had probably cheated on him. “It’s not fair; how can you have wanted to sleep with somebody else and not me?”

***

“It’s not fair,” Sophie quietly protested to herself, while looking somewhat worryingly at her husband. “That spiked drink I gave you should have worked by now.”

Written in response to the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.