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justnerdy15 · 2 months

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Flash Fiction Friday (2.23.24)

wc: 873 prompt: @flashfictionfridayofficial hour of denial notes: a little dystopian action tonight. stand-alone idea, not a part of any current wips.

“I didn’t do it.”

The words don’t even feel like words anymore, just spoken air, a droning exhale of breath as that single sentence tumbles out of her mouth once again. She’s cold; the air conditioning blasts cool air into what should be a summer-warm room given the blinding sunlight streaming in through the large windows and it ruffles the stiff fabric of her shirt, making her want to itch the irritated skin beneath.

“You were the only one who had access to the holding rooms last night, Proctor,” Dr. Sims says, leaning forward to brace her elbows against the dark cherry wood of her desk. “If not you, then who?”

Something teases the edge of Proctor’s mind, a slight pressure, and she refrains from looking to the corner of the room where Sims’s Secretary sits, silent and watchful.

Procter turns her attention to the terribly gaudy office and speaks. “I don’t know, Doctor. But I did not do it.”

For a woman so small in stature, Dr. Sims rather likes surrounding herself in luxurious furniture. The large executive desk, the looming chair that goes at least six inches above the Doctor’s head, the plush Persian rug beneath their feet, even the oversized velvet armchair where the Secretary sits, all of it rich and dark. Antique, even.

Which makes it so god-awful against the sterile white walls.

Dr. Sims laughs, but it’s dry and unamused, revealing pristine teeth in a smile that felt more like a snarl.

Proctor folds her hands together and squeezes until her fingers go white.

“So are you suggesting that they, what, just got lucky and escaped?”

Pressure builds in her temple. She tries to find a pattern in the whorls of the desk.

“Of course not, Doctor. But perhaps Security is not as. . .secure, as we like to think it is.”

The Doctor cocks her head to the side, grey eyes narrowing as she stares down Proctor. “You blame Security.”

“That is not what I said,” Proctor says with a shake of her head, glasses slipping just a bit down the bridge of her nose. “Security is only human and even the best make their errors. I am simply saying that the scope of their duties may have exceeded the parameters of their ability. ”

Something shifts from the corner of her eye and Proctor can’t help the way her spine stiffens in response, nails cutting half-crescent moons into her skin.

“Perhaps you should remember your own scope, Proctor, before commenting on things above your station,” the Secretary admonishes her, his presence sharpening in her mind, making her lips twitch with a suppressed wince.

The Doctor hums, settling back into her chair. “That’s enough, Secretary. Proctor made an error. As she has so humbly reminded us that we all do.” Pale lips curl into a smile that makes Proctor’s heart drop into her stomach. “Do you believe that I have made a mistake?”

Proctor swallows, throat tight, as the sharp pains in her head turn to a heavy press, all pretenses gone. The Secretary doesn’t care if she knows.

Or maybe he wants her to.

She licks her lips. “No, Doctor,” she says, letting her head tip downwards in deference. “I would not believe you to be the kind that makes mistakes.”

"That's what I thought," Dr. Sims responds, her smile widening. The intensity of her gaze lessens slightly, but it's still enough to make Proctor feel like a specimen under a microscope.

“It doesn’t really matter, does it?” the Doctor asks, looking out the window. “They’ll be found and the traitor will be caught. It is simply a matter of time, isn’t that right Proctor?”

“I have no doubt in your success, Doctor.”

The Secretary leans back, relaxing in his chair. The pressure on Proctor's mind lessens, but doesn't disappear completely. He's still there, watching her, waiting for her to make a mistake.

"That will be all, Proctor," Dr. Sims says dismissively, waving a hand towards the door. Proctor takes this as her cue to leave, standing up from her chair and nodding politely towards the Doctor.

“Ma’am,” she says, eyes flicking up to meet only shiny blonde hair. Proctor turns on her heel and just as she goes to touch the handle, the Doctor speaks again.

“Proctor,” Dr. Sims says, stopping Proctor in her tracks.

She turns back around to those cold grey eyes staring at her. “Yes, Doctor?”

“Glory is only found in the known.”

She thinks about the way the light streams into the room and ignore the way her stomach revolts at vow.

“And chaos in all else,” Proctor replies, keeping her eyes on the Doctor. “If you need anything else, ma’am —”

“We know where to find you,” the Secretary says, cutting her off. “Send the next Proctor in on your way out.”

She refuses to look at him. “Of course.” Proctor tips her head and leaves, his presence slipping out her mind as soon as she closes the door.

Proctor shoves her shaking hands into her pockets and sends the next fool in, a lamb to the slaughter.

#original fiction #flashfictionfridayofficial #prompt fill #writeblr #my writing

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justnerdy15 · 2 months

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Red hot actionable news: the website StopKOSA.com will send a letter from you about this godawful bill to your legislators. Zero effort. You literally just give them your e and mailing address.

You can see the text they’re going to use, and it’s editable, so you have the option (and it’s much easier than writing from scratch) to add a few words up front or tinker and paraphrase if you like, but you very much don’t have to. They will also offer you your legislators’ phone numbers — WITH handy talking points notes — for optional follow-up after the letter is taken care of.

(Hat tip to Julia Serano for alerting me to it. She has more to say about the potential of this bill to effectively eradicate LGBTQ+ content from the internet. If you thought FOSTA/SESTA was bad…)

—

KOSA is a censorship bill that won’t make kids safe. Instead, it'll put all internet users at risk, especially LGBTQ+ youth. If you believe in a free and open internet, tell your lawmakers to reject #KOSA! https://stopkosa.com/

#v easy to do #even the phone calling #if you don't like the idea of actually talking to someone #consider calling after business hours and leave a voicemail

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justnerdy15 · 2 months

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what are y’all’s tarot birth cards?

mine are the tower and the chariot

#i am also death and the emperor #wtf #tarot #but what does it mean exactly

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justnerdy15 · 2 months

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No Context Line Tag

(oof sorry for the late reply) thanks for the tag @forthesanityofstorytellers!

Tagging: Open tag!

From Heiress of the Night

Evangeline laughs, catching up to him, and nudges Anthony with her elbow. “Marriage mart?” she asks with a grin. “I’m sorry, but this isn’t Regency England. I’m not going to go promenade with some gentleman on the waterfront.” “I don’t know -- nothing says a blossoming romance like the stench of the Hudson river.” Anthony glances over at her. “But you still didn’t answer my question.”

#no context tag #tag game #wip: heiress of the night #ohohoh bbg you have no idea #not like you two are walking together in the park or anything #no siree

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justnerdy15 · 2 months

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I don't think people truly understand the gravity of Rafah being bombed.

There is nowhere left to go.

The lowest cost is $5,000 USD to flee to Egypt. There has been people paying over $10,000 USD.

That is the only option

Pay or die.

Rafah was the only place in Palestine promised not to be bombed. That promise is broken.

1.5 million people have nowhere to go!

Reminder, if possible, please donate to the PCRF, ANERA, Islamic Relief, Palestine Red Crescent Society, Medical Aid for Palestinians, Defense for Children International - Palestine, Doctors Without Borders, and all other trusted organizations.

#world news #current events #palestine

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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Hi! Just wanna raise some awareness here because South America is on fucking fire and I need to see more people talking about this.

Source: RSOE EDIS x

Im just going to talk about the ones i'm closest to, but if you know about these fires, feel free to add in the reblogs!

Chile

In Chile there's (up to Feb 5) 160 wild fires, of which 40 are still trying to be controlled by authorities. The president, Gabriel Boric, has declared State of Emergency in the whole country, and theres a Red Alert Code in most part of the country.

Isla de Chiloé, Southern Chile (900 km away from Santiago de Chile)

This is a (recently controlled) fire that lasted a week, but many neighborhoods were burnt to the ground.

The whole South is in red alert for constant sudden fires that spread quickly due to the lack of rain and the elevated temperatues in the zone. Just today, two fires had to be controlled in the main land next to this island, and more are being reported in the Los Lagos region. This is added to the "controlled" intentional fires that farmers make to clean their fields of old crops along the Central-South parts of the country, mostly surrunding the main route, Ruta 5, that connects the whole country, thus making it hard to see and breathe because of the smoke. (flashnews, most of them get out of control quickly.)

Valparaiso/Viña del Mar, Central Chile (100 km away from Santiago de Chile)

A fire that started on Friday 2nd and grew exponentially because of the wind and the dry, hot climate. More than 100 people are dead, with 70 unrecognized bodies and other 400 that have dissapeared. At least 30000 people that have lost everything to the fire.

There's massive evacuations from this and the neighboring city, Viña Del Mar.

This is said to be the second most deadly fire in the century, surpased by Australia in 2009.

45000+ hectares that include land and neighborhoods have been burnt down.

I could go on about this one, so more info here and here

Argentina

Parque Los Alerces (Esquel), Chubut

The fire strarted on the 25th January, and the climate has made it hard to contain. 3000 hectares of native forest have been burnt to teh ground. It is now growing in the direction of the nearest city, Esquel. Theres been evacuations between yesterday and today (4 and 5th Febuary)

Parque Nahuel Huapi (Bariloche), Río Negro

The reason why im writing this. The city woke up today covered in smoke after a wildfire developed yesterday during the night. The reason? A fireplace that was not turned off in a place where people cannot disembark and can only be reached via boats.

As of now, there's not much information about the fire but hopefully the firefighters will be able to contain it before it reaches Tronador Mountain, where an ancient glaciar is.

...which leads me to the other point i wanted to talk about.

Firefighters

They volunteer to do this job.

In Argentina and Chile, firefighting is not rewarded with a salary, and most of the times they dont even have full firehouses to stay in. These people are at their houses, ready to jump into action and run to the station the second the alarm goes off.

They are neighbors, people that risk their lives and run into danger willingly, just because they want to help the community.

I felt the need to give a shout-out to these people and say:

Don't be a fucking dick, don't start fires in the woods unless it's an approved place, and if you do, TURN IT OFF.

Pour abundant water on it, and do not stop when you don't see any more flames.

Keep pouring water until the ashes don't burn/feel like room temperature in your hand if you put it 10 cm away from it, and even then, pour some more just to be sure.

No heat and no smoke mean a safely extinguished fire.

#current events #south america #wild fires

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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There's one charity that I haven't seen shared here personally, and that's Care for Gaza.

They're shared a lot on twitter as a reputable on-the-ground relief source. You can donate to their gofundme to help their efforts here.

#current events #world news #mutual aid

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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if you ever get the sudden urge to redo your bookshelves, don't do it. that's the devil talking to you.

#i have a lot more books than i remember #and not enough shelf space for them #and now my back hurts #three days to figure out that my rickety ass shelves won't work #nerdy speaks

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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You might have recently heard about or seen the video of Israel blowing up a university in Gaza. It's also been reported that before Israel blew it up, it stole thousands of rare artifacts from the university's museum. Israel also reportedly stole a statue of the Canaanite goddess Anat from the Pasha's Palace Museum in Gaza after it destroyed it. This is not the first time and will not be the last. Israel's destruction of Palestinian heritage and history is well-documented and part of a systematic process to erase Palestinian connection to the land.

#current events #world news

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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Rashida Tlaib has set up a petition to send to the White House to recognize and stop the ethnic cleansing and forced displacement happening in Gaza. If you’re a US citizen please sign. I have no illusions that this will change policy, but the public outcry against their actions must continue. We will not be distracted or discouraged from continuing to object to these humans rights violations.

#world news #current events

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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how you can help palestine

*i regularly update this post with any new info i find so please always reblog the original post*

Donations

donations currently reaching gaza:

help buy e-sims for people in gaza (PLEASE HELP CONNECT GAZANS TO THE WORLD. if you would like to stay updated, please follow @/Mirna_elhelbawi on twitter)

donate to get food packages to gaza - care for gaza

support palestinians: buy a keffiyeh from the last and only factory in palestine - hirbawi

donate to ahmed (@/90-ghost on tumblr) (he is born, raised and based in gaza. please help him reach his goal of $25K to get his family to safety across the rafah border into egypt. as of right now… it’s 5K per person to evacuate gaza)

secondary donations:

palestine children's relief fund

palestine red crescent society

save palestine - islamic relief canada

send medical supplies to gaza - palestinian american medical association

click to donate - arab.org

donate for the recovery of hisham awartani - gofundme

one of the three palestinian students shot by a racist in vermont for wearing kufiyas and speaking arabic. hisham’s injuries have left him paralysed from below the chest.

help bring down israel's weapon trade - palaction

NOTE: journalists based in gaza are saying a demand for ceasefire is the priority as not all donations are reaching gazans (focus on the donations that are directly reaching gaza). so please contact your local MPs every single day demanding as such. palestine need a permanent ceasefire.

Petitions

petition to investigate war crimes committed by israeli military

demand ceasefire - amnesty.org

open call for immediate ceasefire

american government call for immediate ceasefire

american government to stop funding israeli military

ceasefire and increase humanitarian assistance - oxfam au

petition to get canva to address their pro-israel stance

invoke the genocide convention to call for ceasefire in gaza - world beyond war

location specific petitions

gaza call for ceasefire - oxfam (UK)

end israeli occupation - parliament uk (UK)

email your MP - medical aid for palestine (UK)

protect gaza civilians - islamic relief (UK)

stop fuelling genocide - action network (USA)

@ biden: call for ceasefire now - move on (USA)

ceasefirenow.com - jewishvoiceofpeace (USA)

call congress and demand a ceasefire - uscpr (USA - they provide a script of what you should say, so don't worry about it)

note: you can call everyday. they tally the number of calls per issue. so more calls = higher chance for them to take action. p.s. you mainly go to voicemail so don’t worry about phone call anxiety. fight through it just this once please.

australia call on israel to stop attacking palestinians - apan (AUS)

immediate ceasefire and increase in humanitarian aid in gaza - actionaid (AUS)

email your MPs - stand with palestine (AUS)

sign to send letter to MP for ceasefire - nccm (CANADA)

ceasefire now! - ijv (CANADA)

ceasefire and allow aid to enter gaza - oxfam (CANADA)

call on your local mayor and council to demand ceasefire - LeadNow (CANADA)

cessez-le-feu et un couloir humanitaire - le mouvement (FRANCE)

écrivez aux député-es et sénateurs-trices - association france palestine solidarité (FRANCE)

write to your député - assemblée nationale (FRANCE)

skydda civilbefolkningen i gaza! - mittskifte (SWEDEN)

singaporeans call for immediate ceasefire (SIN)

contact your elected reps and demand a ceasefire (GERMANY)

write to the EU demanding a ceasefire (EUROPE)

template of letters you can send (EU)

guide on how to contact your MPs in EU

p.s. if the template is outdated, just use it as a guide and add a few sentences here and there that reflect the current situation. i can’t find any recent templates so :/ at least this is something

multiple actions you can take to help palestine - plant een olifbloom (NETHERLANDS)

includes: links for donations, emails to MP, emails to media, links to petitions and demonstrations

den haag, maak nú werk van vrede in israël/Palestina - the right forum (NETHERLANDS)

māori call for palestine - ourActionStation (NZ)

special visa for palestinians in gaza with family in NZ - NZ parliament/pāremata aotearoa (NZ)

deem israeli actions as war crimes - NZ parliament/pāremata aotearoa (NZ)

basta ao genocídio em Gaza! - awaaz (BRAZIL)

globo e grande mídia, parem de desumanizar civis palestinos - the intercept (BRAZIL)

Campaigns

friends of al-aqsa

❥ UK-specific

urge your MP to speak up for palestine

hands off al-aqsa

stop administrative detention

petition for UK to stop arming israel

❥ International

boycott puma — email them to end their partnership with israel

boycott coca-cola

palestine action

join the resistance

islamic relief canada

urge your MP to rally for ceasefire

decolonise palestine

poster campaign to raise awareness on the war crimes being committed against palestinians | (very very important please share + read the sources provided)

text/call campaign for people living in USA

text CEASEFIRE @ 51905 to call for a ceasefire

text RESIST @ 50409 to send a letter to your representatives to pass HR3103–a bill that prohibits tax dollars from going to israel

download 5Calls app to contact members of your congress | (more info)

fax campaign for people in the USA

go on this website to send 5 free faxes per day

here’s a link to a pre-written fax copy you can download to send (the first link on the linktree)

here’s a video that explains how to fax your senator (it’s very easy and all you need is a valid email address)

BDS movement

get involved in boycotting companies associated with israel

please let me know if you have any more links. i will add them in. and please reblog the original post!!

UPCOMING PROTESTS

PALESTINIAN LITERATURE READING LIST

#current events #world events #mutual aid

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

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iterum sol oritur (daily writing 1.20.24)

prompt: @isabellebissonrouthier The sun hasn't risen in seven years. Why are people terrified that sunrise has finally returned? wc: 2200 (more under the cut) a/n: thanks for the inspo @isabellebissonrouthier! this really tickled my brain into actually writing for once. content warning: cursing, child death (off page)

The hubris of humanity is unmatched. The gall to deny nature its function, to manipulate the stars in the sky, to exert their control over forces that have existed before humans were even specks in the dirt is a level of egotism that has never been seen before and, god willing, will never be seen again.

***

“What do you mean you can’t come today?” a woman demands, clutching her phone with a white-knuckled grip as she paces a pristine kitchen, her voice shrill and hair-raising. “I need this done. Do you understand me?”

A muffled response.

“I don’t care about a list! Or that you’re busy,” she snaps, lip curling to reveal sharp canine teeth. “I’ll pay triple the rate for you to come out now. Fuck, I’ll install it myself if I have to, just give me the fucking supplies.”

A younger woman watches from the couch, glancing between her irate mother and the giant panes of windows that reveal a starless sky, and sighs. It’s embarrassing to watch as her mother argues, anger undercut by the creeping desperation that pricks Eliana’s ears, going back and forth with some kid on the other end.

He probably isn’t being paid enough to deal with the end of the world.

Well, for some at least.

“You know what? Get me your manager. I want to speak with whoever’s in charge,” her mother says. Oh boy.

Eliana rolls her eyes, pushing herself off of the couch, and makes her way upstairs.

She reaches a pale green door, drawings pinned to the wood in layers and layers of printer paper, and knocks.

“Hey, Luke?” Eliana calls out, hand resting on the door knob. “Can I come in?” She leans in, trying to hear something, and tries again. “Luke?”

The light taps of small feet. A sniffle or two. The knob creaks as it turns underneath her still hand.

The door cracks open just enough for wide brown eyes to look up at her, red-rimmed and watery. “What?”

Eliana offers a small smile. “Can I come in? We can draw for a little bit?”

He sniffs, nose snotty and thick, but he nods and lets her in. He clambers back to his bed, comforter and sheets twisted around into a little nest, and fumbles around until he’s comfortable, pulling a drawing board into his lap.

She follows suit, careful to avoid the soft toys scattered around the floor, and perches on the edge of his bed, picking up a sketchbook from the ground. Eliana flips past pages of crudely drawn mouths, sharp and bloody, and glowing eyes in the dark before coming to a blank page. She takes a pencil from his little pile.

“How you doing, bud?” Eliana asks, using the side of the lead to start shading the corner of the paper. Glancing out the corner of her eye, she sees Luke drag a red crayon down his paper in heavy stripes.

He shrugs.

She brings her pencil further down. “You know you can tell me anything right? I —”

“Momma’s gonna die, isn’t she?” Luke asks, not looking up. “When the sun comes back?”

Well, shit. Eliana takes a sharp breath, pressing a bit harder on the pencil, marks darkening with every swipe. She can’t lie. Not to him.

“Maybe,” she admits, looking at her paper. “She doesn’t want to.”

“But why?” A loaded question. Not that he knows that.

She bites at her lip, wincing at the metallic tang, and tries to figure out where she should begin.

“You know how there’s a lot of special adults around us? Adults like mom?” she asks him, watching blonde curls bounce up and down. “Do you know why they’re special?”

“They don’t grow up,” he answers matter-of-factly. “They drink special juice and they don’t grow up.”

Eliana can’t help the face she makes, a begrudging grimace, because he isn’t exactly wrong.

“Yeah,” she says, nearly done with her page. “That’s pretty much it. And what else is special about them?”

He sniffs again, rubbing his sleeve across his nose. “They made the sun go away.” Luke looks at her. “Why?”

Because they’re selfish assholes. “It hurts them,” Eliana answers, meeting his gaze. “And they thought it would be better for everyone if it just went away.”

“How?”

A noise, a weak excuse for a laugh, escapes her. “I don’t know.”

“What was the sun like?”

Eliana looks down at her paper, filled to the brim with dark gray, and thinks of all the pictures Luke has drawn. How there’s never a bright blue sky with a yellow circle and white fluffy clouds. How he’s lived his entire life in the dark.

“It’s warm,” she says, “Even in winter, it’s always a little warmer in the light. And it’s bright. So bright you can see for miles. Sometimes when it hit the windows just right, there would be rainbows on the walls, on the floors. Even the sky was different colors. Pink and purple and orange and blue all mixed together.”

“That doesn’t sound bad,” Luke says.

Eliana chokes out a laugh. “It —” she cuts herself off and scrubs at her eyes “— It was nice.”

Luke looks away from her, returning to his drawing with another crayon. “So, why did momma become special?”

Eliana huffs. Because dad died and she couldn’t cope. Because she was afraid to leave them too. Because she wanted some sense of control of the chaos they spiraled into. Because she was weak and let those fuckers whisper poison in her ear. Because she never thought through the consequences of her actions.

“I don’t know.”

“How many grown ups are special?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why’s the sun coming back?”

“I don’t know, Luke.”

“You don’t know a lot of things, Eli,” her brother says causing her to roll her eyes.

She pokes him in his foot. “Well, excuse me, mister,” she replies, “I don’t think anyone knows.”

When the reports came, of how the endless blackness was lightening, distant stars once again puncturing empty skies, it sent the world into chaos.

How could this be happening? Why is it happening? They had promised never-ending night, never-ending life for those who accepted the Bargain, in return for servitude.

And hadn’t the people kept their end of the deal? Supplied them, worshiped them, feared them? Why have they turned their back on their chosen devotees?

Eliana remembers catching her mother later that night crying — or, well, trying to — begging to empty air that she would be saved. Now, instead of bartering with would-be gods, she’s wasting hours arguing over useless solutions in one last desperate attempt to delay the inevitable.

“What’s going to happen to us?” Luke asks.

She purses her lips together, a sudden burning in her eyes, and swallows against the knot in her throat. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, Luke.”

Her phone vibrates in her back pocket. She doesn’t bother to look at the screen. “Hey, I’ll be back in a second, bud,” Eliana says, clearing her throat as she gets up from the bed. “Won’t be long.”

Ducking out into the hallway, making sure the door closes behind her, Eliana slips out the phone and answers it.

“Hello?” she says, trying to sound a little normal.

“Have you heard?” a voice asks, low and dark. Eliana looks at the screen.

“Heard what, Clara?”

There’s a bitter laugh and a pit grows in Eliana’s stomach. “The Watersons. Fuck, Eliana, they killed their kids. Cops just found them.”

“What?” Eliana looks back at Luke’s door and takes a few steps down the hallway.

“Benny, Lucy, and Willa. They’re all gone. Word is that Chris and Donna put something in their food. They —” some rustling, the slam of a car door “— They fuckin’ drained them, Eliana.”

She blinks, stomach turning, and tries to make sense of it. “Why? I mean, Jesus Christ, what the hell?”

Clara scoffs on the other end. “All this shit with the sun. They didn’t want to leave their kids behind —” sarcasm drips with every word “— and they’re dead anyways so. Why the fuck not I guess.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. I just talked to them a couple days ago. They said they were going to send the kids to an uncle or something up in St. Louis.” They were sad, sure, but they seemed to have reached a level of acceptance. Even told her they were going to be with their families when the time came.

“Guess they changed their mind,” Clara says.

Eliana leans back against the wall, rubbing at her forehead with one hand, listening to quiet breathing.

“Fuck,” she says.

A hum. “There’s going to be more before this is all over,” Clara states. “As the clock starts counting down. When it finally sinks in.”

“Christ. What’s DPD going to do?”

“Fuck, what can they do? Half of them are turned and the other half are getting ready for the shit storm that is going to follow. Besides, it’s not like anyone is going to admit that they plan on killing their families. It’ll be busy for us to, you know, clean up and everything.”

Eliana looks at the floor and imagines her mother pacing underneath, probably still on the phone. Anxiety settles in her chest, heart beating just a tad faster. She takes a deep breath.

“Clara —”

“Eliana —”

Her mouth shuts with a click. She swallows. “Go ahead.”

Clara sighs. “Come to my place. You and Luke. Please? Until this passes?”

Shaking her head, Eliana replies, “You mean until my mom dies.”

“Technically she’s already dead.”

Eliana grits her teeth together. “Try that again,” she bites out.

“I’m sorry, Eliana. I — I’m sorry, okay? I just want you and Luke safe.”

The words tumble out of her mouth before she can stop herself. “We are safe.”

Her mother is a lot of things, but she — She isn’t that.

She’s not. She would never hurt them.

“Barely,” Clara retorts. “How’s she been acting? Erratic? Angry? Aggressive?”

“Christ, Clara, she’s trying figure out a way not to die. I think a little emotional volatileness is understandable.”

“Sure, but she has a habit of taking things too far. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.”

“Of course I haven’t,” Eliana snaps, reaching up to run a hand through her hair. She wants to pull it out. “What the hell is your problem, Clara?”

“No, Eliana. What is your problem? Jesus, it feels like you’re sticking your head in the goddamn sand. You aren’t safe there and you fucking know it,” Clara bursts out, voice raising enough for Eliana to hold the phone away from her.

Eliana clenches her jaw, teeth aching under the pressure, and smothers the desire to pitch her phone down the hallway. “I don’t need a lecture from you. You have no idea what it’s like —” The words catch in her throat, her mind catching up with her mouth, and shame slams into her like a freight train. God. She didn’t mean —

It’s just —

This is her mother —

But Clara had mothers too.

Dammit.

Eliana closes her eyes, squeezes them shut until the stars reappear behind her eyelids.

Clara breathes out heavily.

“Yeah, well, there’s a reason for that.”

Silence falls between them. She can still hear her mother downstairs, angry and demanding, and the quiet humming from Luke in his room. Her heart thunders in her ears. She wonders how many people can hear it.

“I’m sorry.”

“I think we’re going in circles,” Clara says dryly.

“Yeah, I guess we are.”

Moments pass before Clara speaks again. “Listen, I just want you safe. And I think the best place for you and Luke to be is with me, but clearly, I can’t force you to do anything. So, if you want to stay there, fine — just don’t forget you can always come to me okay? I’m just a call away.”

“I know, Clara,” Eliana quietly replies, scuffing her foot against the wood floor. “And I’m sure there’s something else you want to say, so. Just say it.”

Another sigh. “Your mom made her bed, Eliana. She knew the risks when she took the Bargain. Whatever happens happens. It’s not your fault either way.”

“Maybe she’ll make it,” she offers, not believing her own words for a second, “She’s trying to get ahold of that special glass treatment. Maybe it’ll work.”

“Maybe. For your sake, I hope so.” There’s ruffling, the rumble of the car engine as it turns over. “I gotta go. We have to get hazmat gear for clean-up. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Course. Be safe.”

#srblg

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justnerdy15 · 3 months

Text

iterum sol oritur (daily writing 1.20.24)

***

A muffled response.

He probably isn’t being paid enough to deal with the end of the world.

Well, for some at least.

“You know what? Get me your manager. I want to speak with whoever’s in charge,” her mother says. Oh boy.

Eliana rolls her eyes, pushing herself off of the couch, and makes her way upstairs.

She reaches a pale green door, drawings pinned to the wood in layers and layers of printer paper, and knocks.

“Hey, Luke?” Eliana calls out, hand resting on the door knob. “Can I come in?” She leans in, trying to hear something, and tries again. “Luke?”

The light taps of small feet. A sniffle or two. The knob creaks as it turns underneath her still hand.

The door cracks open just enough for wide brown eyes to look up at her, red-rimmed and watery. “What?”

Eliana offers a small smile. “Can I come in? We can draw for a little bit?”

He shrugs.

She brings her pencil further down. “You know you can tell me anything right? I —”

“Momma’s gonna die, isn’t she?” Luke asks, not looking up. “When the sun comes back?”

Well, shit. Eliana takes a sharp breath, pressing a bit harder on the pencil, marks darkening with every swipe. She can’t lie. Not to him.

“Maybe,” she admits, looking at her paper. “She doesn’t want to.”

“But why?” A loaded question. Not that he knows that.

She bites at her lip, wincing at the metallic tang, and tries to figure out where she should begin.

“You know how there’s a lot of special adults around us? Adults like mom?” she asks him, watching blonde curls bounce up and down. “Do you know why they’re special?”

“They don’t grow up,” he answers matter-of-factly. “They drink special juice and they don’t grow up.”

Eliana can’t help the face she makes, a begrudging grimace, because he isn’t exactly wrong.

“Yeah,” she says, nearly done with her page. “That’s pretty much it. And what else is special about them?”

He sniffs again, rubbing his sleeve across his nose. “They made the sun go away.” Luke looks at her. “Why?”

Because they’re selfish assholes. “It hurts them,” Eliana answers, meeting his gaze. “And they thought it would be better for everyone if it just went away.”

“How?”

A noise, a weak excuse for a laugh, escapes her. “I don’t know.”

“What was the sun like?”

“That doesn’t sound bad,” Luke says.

Eliana chokes out a laugh. “It —” she cuts herself off and scrubs at her eyes “— It was nice.”

Luke looks away from her, returning to his drawing with another crayon. “So, why did momma become special?”

“I don’t know.”

“How many grown ups are special?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why’s the sun coming back?”

“I don’t know, Luke.”

“You don’t know a lot of things, Eli,” her brother says causing her to roll her eyes.

She pokes him in his foot. “Well, excuse me, mister,” she replies, “I don’t think anyone knows.”

When the reports came, of how the endless blackness was lightening, distant stars once again puncturing empty skies, it sent the world into chaos.

How could this be happening? Why is it happening? They had promised never-ending night, never-ending life for those who accepted the Bargain, in return for servitude.

And hadn’t the people kept their end of the deal? Supplied them, worshiped them, feared them? Why have they turned their back on their chosen devotees?

“What’s going to happen to us?” Luke asks.

She purses her lips together, a sudden burning in her eyes, and swallows against the knot in her throat. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, Luke.”

Ducking out into the hallway, making sure the door closes behind her, Eliana slips out the phone and answers it.

“Hello?” she says, trying to sound a little normal.

“Have you heard?” a voice asks, low and dark. Eliana looks at the screen.

“Heard what, Clara?”

There’s a bitter laugh and a pit grows in Eliana’s stomach. “The Watersons. Fuck, Eliana, they killed their kids. Cops just found them.”

“What?” Eliana looks back at Luke’s door and takes a few steps down the hallway.

She blinks, stomach turning, and tries to make sense of it. “Why? I mean, Jesus Christ, what the hell?”

“Guess they changed their mind,” Clara says.

Eliana leans back against the wall, rubbing at her forehead with one hand, listening to quiet breathing.

“Fuck,” she says.

A hum. “There’s going to be more before this is all over,” Clara states. “As the clock starts counting down. When it finally sinks in.”

“Christ. What’s DPD going to do?”

Eliana looks at the floor and imagines her mother pacing underneath, probably still on the phone. Anxiety settles in her chest, heart beating just a tad faster. She takes a deep breath.

“Clara —”

“Eliana —”

Her mouth shuts with a click. She swallows. “Go ahead.”

Clara sighs. “Come to my place. You and Luke. Please? Until this passes?”

Shaking her head, Eliana replies, “You mean until my mom dies.”

“Technically she’s already dead.”

Eliana grits her teeth together. “Try that again,” she bites out.

“I’m sorry, Eliana. I — I’m sorry, okay? I just want you and Luke safe.”

The words tumble out of her mouth before she can stop herself. “We are safe.”

Her mother is a lot of things, but she — She isn’t that.

She’s not. She would never hurt them.

“Barely,” Clara retorts. “How’s she been acting? Erratic? Angry? Aggressive?”

“Christ, Clara, she’s trying figure out a way not to die. I think a little emotional volatileness is understandable.”

“Sure, but she has a habit of taking things too far. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.”

“Of course I haven’t,” Eliana snaps, reaching up to run a hand through her hair. She wants to pull it out. “What the hell is your problem, Clara?”

It’s just —

This is her mother —

But Clara had mothers too.

Dammit.

Eliana closes her eyes, squeezes them shut until the stars reappear behind her eyelids.

Clara breathes out heavily.

“Yeah, well, there’s a reason for that.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I think we’re going in circles,” Clara says dryly.

“Yeah, I guess we are.”

“I know, Clara,” Eliana quietly replies, scuffing her foot against the wood floor. “And I’m sure there’s something else you want to say, so. Just say it.”

Another sigh. “Your mom made her bed, Eliana. She knew the risks when she took the Bargain. Whatever happens happens. It’s not your fault either way.”

“Maybe she’ll make it,” she offers, not believing her own words for a second, “She’s trying to get ahold of that special glass treatment. Maybe it’ll work.”

“Maybe. For your sake, I hope so.” There’s ruffling, the rumble of the car engine as it turns over. “I gotta go. We have to get hazmat gear for clean-up. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Course. Be safe.”

#writerblr #writeblr #writing prompt #prompt fill #original fiction #my writing

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