Bastet
Vile Stove-Toucher
This was something I posted on another forum last year...someone posted a picture of a bridge (unfortunately I can't post the picture...just imagine a large bridge surrounded by fog), and challenged everyone to write a short story. Here's mine...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She was cold. The wind was strong up there on the bridge, buffeting her slight body; only her arm linked around the cable kept her from falling. To jump or not to jump, that was the question... She could hear the waves crashing against the pylons many metres below. They sounded angry, desperate; were they trying to tell her something? Yes...no...yes...no... The petals from the daisy in her hand were one by one snatched away by the wind as she plucked them, their fate as unknown as her own. Yes...no...yes...no...yes? The nude flower stem fell from her lifeless hand, barely hitting the ground before invisible fingers threw it over the edge towards the darkness below. She watched its progress with a numb heart, barely flinching as it hit the murky surface. Shivering slightly, she scanned the water, once again evaluating her chosen position; of equal distance from either end of the bridge, where the water was deepest. Peering through the fog, she could see no sign of life. No water traffic, no road traffic, just the cold light of dawn. Yes...yes...yes...the word played over like a mantra in her head, strengthening her resolve. Unlinking her arm and holding the cable with one hand, she leaned forward...it was such a long way down, could she do it? Yes...yes...yes... The heart she thought frozen began to beat wildly in her breast. Like a bird in a cage, fluttering to break free...yes...yes...yes! Taking a deep breath, she let go of the cable, moving her feet to the very edge as she raised her arms above her head; a strong gust of wind lifting her as she dived from the bridge. Smiling at first, she couldn't help but scream as the flying sensation changed to falling; exhilaration to fear as she plummeted like a stone. The impact was like a thousand knives, but the shock of the icy water engulfing her was worse. It sucked her under, wet hands pulling on her clothes, dragging them over her head. A sudden panic hit her as the river seemed to hold her under. No...no...no!! Struggling against the clothes binding her, she held her breath; her lungs on fire as she tried to find the surface. Seconds felt like aeons; her body felt like lead...
As she was giving up hope, the bungee cord snapped back, ripping her free. A wild yell escaped her as she hung upside down, bouncing, laughing, crying. A face peered down from above, a faint shout of "Well?!" floating down to her. With a squeal of excitement she replied, "Well...pull me up, I want to do it again!!"
(c) MEM 15/02/2003
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She was cold. The wind was strong up there on the bridge, buffeting her slight body; only her arm linked around the cable kept her from falling. To jump or not to jump, that was the question... She could hear the waves crashing against the pylons many metres below. They sounded angry, desperate; were they trying to tell her something? Yes...no...yes...no... The petals from the daisy in her hand were one by one snatched away by the wind as she plucked them, their fate as unknown as her own. Yes...no...yes...no...yes? The nude flower stem fell from her lifeless hand, barely hitting the ground before invisible fingers threw it over the edge towards the darkness below. She watched its progress with a numb heart, barely flinching as it hit the murky surface. Shivering slightly, she scanned the water, once again evaluating her chosen position; of equal distance from either end of the bridge, where the water was deepest. Peering through the fog, she could see no sign of life. No water traffic, no road traffic, just the cold light of dawn. Yes...yes...yes...the word played over like a mantra in her head, strengthening her resolve. Unlinking her arm and holding the cable with one hand, she leaned forward...it was such a long way down, could she do it? Yes...yes...yes... The heart she thought frozen began to beat wildly in her breast. Like a bird in a cage, fluttering to break free...yes...yes...yes! Taking a deep breath, she let go of the cable, moving her feet to the very edge as she raised her arms above her head; a strong gust of wind lifting her as she dived from the bridge. Smiling at first, she couldn't help but scream as the flying sensation changed to falling; exhilaration to fear as she plummeted like a stone. The impact was like a thousand knives, but the shock of the icy water engulfing her was worse. It sucked her under, wet hands pulling on her clothes, dragging them over her head. A sudden panic hit her as the river seemed to hold her under. No...no...no!! Struggling against the clothes binding her, she held her breath; her lungs on fire as she tried to find the surface. Seconds felt like aeons; her body felt like lead...
As she was giving up hope, the bungee cord snapped back, ripping her free. A wild yell escaped her as she hung upside down, bouncing, laughing, crying. A face peered down from above, a faint shout of "Well?!" floating down to her. With a squeal of excitement she replied, "Well...pull me up, I want to do it again!!"
(c) MEM 15/02/2003
