Albino eyes: Week 19 Fox Tales contest entry
This is my first entry for the ongoing #foxtales contest run by @vermillionfox. It was interesting to write a story in one paragraph. I love the challenge of micro fiction, and write quite a few 50-word short stories.
This one is a very different type of story from what I usually write, and I haven't quite decided whether it belongs in a fantasy or horror genre. I suppose I would have to write more to find out! :-)
Albino eyes
(Image credit: @vermillionfox)
Christa’s mother had always dealt with the opinions of others. Years ago, when she pushed baby Christa in her stroller, people stopped and stared, and then turned away quickly. Some actually ran, as if Christa was some kind of demon baby. It had always been like that. “She’s my little ghost child,” Christa’s mother would say with a light laugh, in that moment before people looked up at her in terror and fled. The doctor had said it was a very rare disorder, and that Christa was otherwise a normal, healthy little girl. Sadly, the number of friends Sharon could truly count on after Christa was born had diminished. It didn’t help that Christa was the product of a one night stand -- with a man Sharon met in a bar and knew she would never see again -- and she was left to raise Christa alone. She would never forget the night everything changed. When Christa turned 12, they got her contact lenses that gave her the appearance of having almost normal dark pupils. To celebrate, they went out to dinner at a charming little restaurant in Little Italy with white checked tablecloths and candles in wine bottle holders. The aromas of lasagna and sausage wafted through the air. Christa was especially alert that night, as if she had picked up on something strange in the atmosphere. At first Sharon just thought it was the fact that they rarely went out. But then their waiter came to the table and she recognized him at once. As she stared at the father of her child, not knowing what to say, he reached up and removed his contact lenses, revealing albino eyes. Then Christa did the same. Then he reached out and they clasped hands, and as Sharon screamed and tried to stop them, Christa and her father ran for the door and out into the night.
Thanks for reading! I appreciate all comments (well... you know... except for spam), and of course upvote love!
I wasn't expecting that happy ending. I need to study your stuff to see how I can make my writing so sharp.
Thank you for the nice compliment. I’m glad you interpreted it as a happy ending!
Nice story, wish it didnt end there
Thank you! I take that as a compliment, and assume you would have like a longer story. 😊
Goodness ... to be abandoned by a child you had cared for so long. A gripped tale, Jayna:)
Yes, it's a bit harsh. I'm glad it was just something I made up! :-) Thanks so much for reading!!
p.s. I'm commenting but only upvoting in a limited fashion at the moment because of a user error that caused my SP to drop below the required level to control my upvote percentage. As a result, all of my upvotes are at 100% (including upvotes on all comments) until I can fix it.
No worries, Jayna. Hope it clears up ... you might want to try busy.org. They give a slider at all SP
Thank you, @prydefoltz! You are the second person to tell me this. Evidently I'm "special," however, because I only see a thumbs up on busy. (It's so fun admitting one's ignorance on social media!)
Should be when you click on it ... the slider will appear just like here. I really hope this clears up for you soon.
Well, as you now know, I figured it out and wrote a post about how to fix it! Thanks so much!
Hello @jayna, thank you for sharing this creative work! If you're interested, take a look at our magazine @creativecrypto. We are all about art on the blockchain, and learning from creatives like you. Swing by and say hello!
It looks neato. Thank you!