First Campaigner Challenge

Rachael Harrie , the amazing leader of the Third Platform-Building Campaign, has offered her first challenge to the 480 participants in her Campaign this year. Here are the details:

Write a short story/flash fiction story in 200 words or less, excluding the title. It can be in any format, including a poem. Begin the story with the words, “The door swung open” These four words will be included in the word count.

If you want to give yourself an added challenge (optional), use the same beginning words and end with the words: "the door swung shut." (also included in the word count).

For those who want an even greater challenge, make your story 200 words EXACTLY!

Flash fiction is a fairly new concept for me, but here it goes. My piece is 200 words on the nose (minus the title).

Party Regrets

The door swung open, the toilet swirled to a stop, and Miranda stepped out of the stall into the fluorescently lit tile of the girls’ bathroom. The last of the voices had dissipated. A Marlboro haze loomed over the mirrors, a half-stubbed cigarette still burning in the sink. The final bell rang. She knew she’d be late. Didn’t care.

Miranda stared at her pale face in the mirror. She turned on the water and let it trickle into the palms of her hands, dipping her face toward the sink to swallow the vestiges of what happened, to remove any nuances of what he did to her; what she allowed him to do to her. Miranda was sure everyone could see it spelled out on her face. So she doused her cheeks with wetness to remove all traces of last night.

Purged—all evidence of what happened rinsed down the drain—Miranda eyed the cigarette butt still smoldering in the sink beside her own. She had heard nicotine calmed the nerves. Miranda reached for it, but someone entered. She withdrew, smiled a pretend smile, and scrambled toward the hallway. No one could know. She knew that as the door swung shut.

If you like the story and feel generous, click here. Scroll down to # 283 on the list and hit "like".

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