"…his stories are always sharp and compact and interesting." ——Angel Martinez "(One of) the hottest authors in the independent horror scene…" —-Hellbound Books
“You’re kidding!” Jasper Wheeler said gawking at the old heap parked in the garage. “Old Man Kingston left you that?”
“Yeah!” Eddie Shooter said. “Isn’t it great?”
“Maybe about 1956 it would’ve been great, but now…” Jasper’s voice trailed off. He stared at the ancient garage, really a carport on the side of the old garage separate from Eddie’s parent’s house on the edge of town. The house had been rebuilt and refurbished, the garage just shored up. The carport looked like a lean-to.
The car wasn’t in much better shape. Rust seemed to be its best feature. Seats covered by towels, worn interior, dashboard looked okay at least.
“How’d you get this here anyway?” Jasper asked.
“Drove it,” Eddie said. “Well, kind of. Towed it last night but the engine works enough that it kinda helped to get the car right in here. It was Old Man Kingston’s son’s big project.”
Jasper nodded. Kingston’s son had died before either of the twenty somethings had been born.
“He rebuilt some of it, I know that,” Eddie said. “And he was working on the engine. I have a box of parts, and…” Eddie waved a roll of paper in the air. “…plans he wrote out!”
“It’s why his Dad never got rid of the car,” Jasper said.”
“Yeah.” Eddie said. “Look, I figure it’ll take a few months to actually get this in working order again. The wheels and all are okay…”
“Amazingly enough.” Jasper said.
“Look, when I get it running again, I want you to be my first official passenger. After the inspection and the licensing that is.” Eddie took Jasper’s hand and looked into his eyes. “There’s a big question I want to ask you. But not now.”
Eddie grinned. This was like the night they’d first kissed four years ago when they were both going to school and working and grabbing every moment together. He was sure what his answer was going to be.
Remember, it’s never too late to write a story of your own, post it in the comments and join in the fun! We’ll be back with more draws on Monday, August 5th, 2024
(And for the record, “Teepee” is a Dakota and Lakota that is also spelled “Tipi” or “Tepee.”)
Every week we post six lines from a work of ours, a work-in-progress or published or a recommendation of someone else’s work with at least one LGBT character. Posted at Rainbow Snippets here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/963484217054974
“Have you borrowed a horse or two for some purpose?” Tarlos asked. It was not too unusual during planting season for farmers to loan out a horse to help a neighbor pull a plow but this was not planting season. “I counted eight, and I thought we had only six. I know I have only started doing this and I am away all day at school but…”
“Eight horses?” Taroc asked, staring at his son and setting the scroll down. “You’re sure you counted eight?”
We follow Taroc and his son in the dark to the horse barn to count the horses for snippet two…
Taroc paused at the barn door, putting a finger to his lips indicating quiet. He cautiously opened the barn door and entered, Tarlos right behind him as Taroc pulled out his light sphere and looked around.
“Six,” he said. “There are six.” He turned the light sphere off.
“Father, I was sure that I…” Tarlos said. But his father was not listening.
“Zavid and Zannic,” Taroc breathed to the open air. He turned around to face his son, his own face showing awe. “You have seen a rare and wondrous thing tonight. Come back to the house.”
One last snippet to wrap things up…
Seated in the living room, small cups of broth at the ready Taroc explained.
“You know the legend of Zavid and Zannic?” Taroc began.
“The patrons of slaves and horses?” Tarlos said. “Everybody does. It’s just a bedtime story from the ancient days, isn’t it?”
“More than that,” Taroc said. “Zavid and Zannic were slaves who cared for their master’s horses. They loved each other but their masters were going to separate them. The Horse Lords took pity on the two young men and transformed them into horses who would always run free together.
“To Warm Their Fellows In The Night” was posted as my eighth (!!!) anniversary story for the near-weekly flash fictions and it was a lot of fun to write! Maybe longer than six lines apiece, but since when does that stop me?
Next week, something I picked up on my recent travels. Till then, take care! —-jeff
I stood and stared out the window at the small garden with the trickling stone fountain in the middle like a birdbath.
“You’re not seriously telling me you think you’ve got the Fountain of Youth out there are you?” I said.
“That’s what the Realtor said,” Giles said. “It all belonged to the couple who used to live here.”
“Okay, but why would somebody who has the Fountain of Youth in their backyard sell it?” I asked. “Don’t tell me it’s because they were going to retire? I mean, why retire if you can stay young?”
“Stay young and stay in the workforce forever,” Giles said. “You hit on it. They didn’t want to do that. Besides, they were way past retirement age.”
“How way past?” I asked.
“Well, he was born in the 1890s and she, well…” Giles said. “I didn’t ask.”
“Have you used that thing?” I asked pointing at the fountain.
“No, and I don’t think I’m going to.” Giles said. “Too many drawbacks.”
“Drawbacks?” I said. “Like what?”
“Well, if you aren’t rich you’ll have to work to pay several centuries worth of bills to say nothing of taxes.”
“You’d have the Fountain of Youth.” I said. “You could charge people to drink from it. Even at a couple of bucks a glass, this could…”
“We try to keep this low-key,” Giles said. “Too many people find out about this, the neighborhood would be overrun by a mob. All kinds of things could happen.”
“Does this thing cure disease?” I asked.
“Not really,” Giles said. “Just keeps you young. Which is a nice benefit.”
“Have you tried it?” I asked.
“Not really,” he said. “Just a sip.”
I stared out the window at the fountain.
“What do you have available in a nice condo?” I asked.
The sun beat down on Route 66 ½ and the reddish side of the mountain beside the road.
In the huge cone-shaped structure with the worn sign reading “Teepeee Motel; We’ll Keep Your Wig Warm,” Conrad Malcolm leered evilly.
“Yes, my dear!” he sneered. “As you cannot pay the rent, this property is now mine!”
“You foul fiend!” Sweet June said, clutching the skirt of her print dress. “It’s all I have!”
“Nonetheless, you need to be off the property by sunset!” Malcolm said.
“But where will I go?” Sweet June asked plaintively. “What will I do?”
“Frankly my dear, I couldn’t care less!” Malcolm said cruelly, indicating the teepee flap with a flourish of his hand. “So, if you don’t mind?”
“Hold on you merciless malcontent!” boomed a heroic voice from outside.
“That’s what I’ll rename this place; The Malcolm-Tent!” Malcolm said.
Suddenly a muscular, square-jawed, tanned young man in Native American garb burst through the tent flap and landed on the ground.
“I took the slippery slide to get here faster,” he said. “I am Melvin Feather-Bonnet and I have the money!” the young man said fishing through his pockets.
“Along with a great deal of cultural appropriation,” Malcolm said.
“And now that I…that I…Oh, hell!” Melvin said. “Ward! I don’t have the money!”
“Cut!” Ward, the Director said. “Okay, where’s the prop man? We’re makin’ an infomercial here! Time doesn’t stand still!”
Melvin shrugged and Malcolm and June grinned at each other. This was a heck of a way to spend their honeymoon but that was showbiz!
As the cameraman gave them a thumbs up and they heard Ward grumbling about the prop man being off on a bathroom break, June and Malcolm leaned in to kiss each other, convinced they could hear tinkly old-time piano music rising to a triumphant crescendo mixed with audience applause.
The End
AUTHOR’S NOTE: The draws for the July 2024 Flash Fiction Draw Challenge were for a Melodrama, set in a teepee involving a slippery slide. As should be obvious, this one was inspired by one two many Dudley Do-Right cartoons as well as the spoof melodramas theater groups used to put on when I was a kid! And, no, I wasn’t able to work any “torpor” into the story but it sounded too good not to use! —-jeff
First, here’s the prompts for the July 2024 Flash Fiction Draw Challenge. Then my usual long-winded explanation:
A Melodrama
Involving A SlipperySlide
Set at A Giant Teepee
Now, on to the details.
Hi! I’m Mike Mayak, I also write as Jeff Baker and I’m the current moderator for the monthly Flash Fiction Draw Challenge, which was started by ‘Nathan Burgoine a few years ago and carried on by Cait Gordon and Jeffrey Ricker. It’s a monthly writing challenge mainly for stress-free fun that anyone can play.
Here’s how it works: the first Monday of every month I draw three cards; a heart, a diamond and a club. These correspond to a list naming a genre, a setting and an object that must appear in the story. Participants write up a flash fiction story, 1,000 words or less, post it to their website and link it here in the comments. I’ll post the results (including, hopefully, one of my own!)
As I’m no good making videos I did the drawing offstage. So, the results were the Queen of Hearts (a Melodrama), the Ten of Diamonds (A Giant Teepee) and the Ace of Clubs (A Slippery Slide.) So we will write a Melodrama, set in a Giant Teepee, involving A Slippery Slide.
We’ll have the results here in this same space around Monday July 15, 2024.
So, get to writing and I’ll post the results next week! And I’m putting the 2024 Flash Draw sheet at the end of this message, again! (* indicates those have been used.)
Thanks for playing, and I’ll see you in a couple of weeks!
And have fun!
——mike
Flash Draw Sheet for 2024 (“*” indicates prompt has been used.)
Every week we post six lines from a story or ours, a work in progress or a recommendation of a work of someone else’s, that has LGBT characters. Posted at Rainbow Snippets here; https://www.facebook.com/groups/963484217054974
To return to my snippeting, I’m following up on the story I posted on my blog in May to celebrate my eighth anniversary (!!!) of posting weekly flash fiction stories. It referenced “Wild Horses,” one of the earlier stories, from 2017, https://authorjeffbaker.com/2017/02/19/monday-flash-fics-february-20-2017-wild-horses/ one that a lot of people liked.
Here’s a bit from “Wild Horses.”
Their love was forbidden.
Zavid and Zannic were both pledged to serve their own Masters, but they were able to be together when their Masters met to race their horses. Zavid and Zannic were able to grab a few moments together in the stables or in the paddock. And the horses, who know more than men think they do, took pity on them, for they knew that Zannic’s Master was planning to move out of the country, and that Zannic and Zavid would never see each other again.
And the Harras called upon the Horse Lords who transformed the two lovers into horses.
One of the first LGBT stories I posted, and one of the first of my World Of Three Moons stories. Back when my flash stories were a lot shorter! Zavid and Zannic would get referenced again over the years.
The Eagle spoke to Tony as he was washing the cars in the used car lot that Summer morning. It was the week of the Fourth of July and Tony’s boss was hoping for a big crowd over the holiday weekend.
Tony was just hoping to get off work early enough so he could set off fireworks.
The Eagle was a big balloon; covered in stars and stripes, staring out onto Fifth Street with a fierce glare. Shaped, of course, like an Eagle.
“Anthony Aquilla,” came the voice as Tony was spraying down a red Mazda.
“Yeah?” Tony said as he fumbled for his smartphone in his cargo pants pocket.
“Up here, Anthony Aquilla,” the voice said.
Tony looked up. The blow-up eagle had turned its head slightly and was glaring down at Tony with dark, painted eyes.
“You can do better than this, Anthony Aquilla,” the Eagle said. “Your people did not intend for you to wash cars forever.”
“Uh, if you think I’m like, Native American, I’m not,” Tony said. “I’m Spanish on my dad’s side. Spain Spanish.”
“So?” the Eagle said. Tony never imagined an Eagle saying “So?” like that, with a raised, painted eyebrow.
“And I don’t intend to wash cars forever,” Tony said. “This is just to pay for gas and stuff. I’m going to college.”
“You need to leave here and find your place in the world,” the Eagle said.
“Yeah, I have an uncle who’s always saying that,” Tony said with a shrug. “But not without a job I’m not. Or with a better car than I have now.”
“The Sun will still rise and set,” the Eagle said. “Then one day it will rise and set on a world that does not have you in it.”
Tony stood and stared for a minute. He dropped the hose.
He walked up to the office and clocked out.
As he was driving off in his car he thought to himself about the places he wanted to go…
It was late Sunday afternoon in Millington and the streets looked deserted when Hal and Denny, looking like High School kids walked up to the old stone canopy in front of the ancient drugstore. It had always reminded Denny of pictures he had seen of cathedrals in Europe, the times he and his Grandmother had stood under it beside the framed glass doors that led into the old drugstore with it’s old cardboard CLOSED sign displayed in the window. His Grandmother had talked about the days when you could buy magazines there and they even had a sit-down lunch counter where you could get things like sodas (“Not those awful canned things you buy now,” she had said) and something called an Egg Cream which sounded wonderful and mysterious like it came from an egg-shaped cow.
Denny had learned there had been sit-ins at the store but that had been decades before he had been born.
But that wasn’t what they were there for.
Hal checked the picture they’d found that he’d saved to his smartphone; a dull, roundish object. Dark on one end, light on the other. The photo had been taken at the British Museum before the stone had disappeared sometime during World War One.
“It’s here. It’s got to be,” Hal said. They were amateurs but they had done their scrying. They had a precious shred of the velvet the Amalfi Stone had been cushioned on in 1917.
“But where?” Denny asked. They were standing under the canopy, the orange light from the setting sun tinting everything.
“Hey, look up!” Hal said. “Remember what they said about the original owner decorating with crushed glass from old medicine bottles?”
They looked up. On the ceiling of the stone canopy they could see shards and chunks of colored glass embedded in the grey concrete. Curved corners of curved bottles. And one curved, roundish chunk that blended in perfectly with the glass.
“There.” Denny said. “Right there.”
“I see it.” Hal said. “Think it’s dark enough yet?”
“Let’s wait just a bit,” Denny said, impulsively kissing Hal.
“Think we’ll look suspicious?” Hal asked.
“Two guys kissing on a deserted street in small-town Kansas?” Denny said grinning. “Probably! But we aren’t stealing, we’re just going to use the thing.”
Only one car had passed by and the Sun had set when Hal nodded and the two of them keyed up the video they had both saved to their smartphones. They held them up to where the ancient jewel was among the glass, bathing it with recorded light from the Midsummer Full Moon.
Nothing. The light had glinted on the glass and the hidden jewel.
The two young men sighed and put their phones back up in their pockets.
“Hey, look!” Hal said, pointing up.
There had been no reason to point, there was only one place either of them would look.
Above them, the Amalfi stone was glittering in the light, but there was no real light; the underside of the canopy was in shadow. It began to glow, a glow that started white but then blurred into all the colors of the rainbow.
They remembered what they had found in the old book: The Amalfi Stone would work for those whose heart’s desire lay in secret.
Hal grabbed Denny and pulled him close as a rainbow of shimmering light shone down on them and they realized that infinite possibilities were now theirs; to go anywhere, to be anything, to have anything.
Denny shoved Hal away and jumped out of the light.
“What the hell did you do that for?” Hal said picking himself off the ground.
“I realized, I saw…” Denny said. “Maybe the stone did it or maybe I always knew.”
Denny grabbed Hal’s shoulders and grinned.
“Don’t you realize?” Denny said. “Infinite possibilities? We’ve got that right here. Wherever we are. As long as we have each other.”
The two of them walked away into their ordinary, extraordinary future.
authorjeffbaker 