Lila

Lila

December 19, 2017 Off By Lisa

“You never loved me?” It was more realization than question.

“You’re nothin’,” Lila spat through her cigarette smoke. “Like your father,” she muttered and took another drag, her too-red lipstick leaving its stain on the butt.

He hated her. Hated her cheap clothes and frowsy hair, her bra straps sticking out of blouses forever unbuttoned and sliding off her shoulders. Mothers should be different than this, he knew.

“Nobody’s ever gonna love you that way, Sugar.” The mocking term of endearment stung. “That trash happens only in stories.”

But that doesn’t mean I can’t write my own, Jack thought.

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Written in response to the December 14 Flash Fiction Challenge at Carrot Ranch Communications.

In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story using the phrase “only in…” It can be used to tell a story about a profession, a place or situation. Go were the prompt leads you.

CategoryWords
TagsCarrot Ranch fiction flash fiction writing

About The Author

Lisa A. Listwa is a self-employed writer with experience in education, publishing, and the martial arts. Believing there was more to life than punching someone else’s time clock and inspired by the words of Henry David Thoreau, she traded her life as a high school educator for a life as a writer and hasn’t looked back. She is mother to one glorious handful of a daughter, wife to the nicest guy on the planet, and reluctant but devoted owner of three Rotten Cats. You can find her adventures and thoughts on living life deliberately here on the blog.

2 Comments

  • Charli Mills says:
    December 21, 2017 at 12:32 am

    What I like about your flash is how I feel like I came upon the conversation, it says so much about what life has been like for Jack. And his resiliency. I think I “stumbled” you, too and if I did it was my first time!

    • Lisa says:
      December 21, 2017 at 8:58 am

      Cool. I love that reaction, Charli.
      Stumbling…yay for you! I tried StumbleUpon and gave up. Too much social media hurts my head. I may go back. We’ll see.

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