You get a writing prompt on Friday night at 11:59 PM EDT. You have 48 hours to write a short story of less than 1,000 words. You are given a genre, setting and object that must be included. The first round has two stories, this is the first. The top five writers in each of the 25 groups moves to the second round.
My prompt: Fantasy, in a tree house, with a pumpkin.
My entry:
"The White Cup"
The rainwater was sloshing over the side of the gutter above
the back door. Rachel and Samuel inched
the heavy slider open, trying not to make a sound.
“OK, you go first and untie the rope ladder. I’ll hold the cup and follow you up since I’m
a stronger climber.”
“You are NOT a stronger climber but we don’t have time to
argue. See you up there.” Rachel bolted out into the rain towards the
corner of the yard where an old wind-beaten tree house was perched between
three stern oaks.
Samuel followed, plodding up the ladder, steadying himself warily
on the wet rungs. He paused for a second
as he always did to run his finger along the long white scar that marked the
larger of the two trees. Lightning
struck this tree many years ago and wrenched the bark from it, crown to
base. When he reached the top he handed
the paper cup to his sister, freeing his second hand for the hoisting maneuver
required to gain entry to the fort, pulling himself under a driftwood sign
reading “The Delight.”
The Delight was a rough-hewn, single room structure, with
its worn and wrinkled floorboards positioned fifteen feet above the
ground. The walls were painted plywood
which stopped halfway up, giving way to large openings that served as windows. This being a beach town, the fort was adorned
with the prizes of generations of sea-going children. There were beach glass mosaics and huge clam
shells. Shark tooth necklaces were
dangling from an old hurricane lantern, itself dangling precariously from the
rafters. Two large horseshoe crab
carapaces hung from rusty nails. The
centerpiece of the Delight is a giant ship’s wheel fastened to one wall below
the window. Half the wheel rose above
the window, and half fell below. It was
a gift to the twins for their ninth birthday.
Samuel joined Rachel in the center of the room, away from
the rain splattering off the sills of the windows. They sat cross-legged with their plunder between
them. It was a white paper cup with a
green and black image of a siren emblazoned on the side.
“What if Mom finds out?” asked Samuel loudly, straining to
be heard over the din of the rain pelting the roof.
“Don’t chicken out on me now Sam. We’ve come this far. We have to know. Besides, she’s not gonna find out.”
“I’m not sure Rach.”
“Oh god, I’ll go first.”
Rachel took the cup and pulled the lid off. She lifted the cup to her face and took a
sniff. She recoiled. “Ugh, this smells like burnt toast.” She pinched her nose and started to
drink. Grimacing, Rachel pulled another
big swig and handed the cup to Samuel. She
took a glance over Samuel’s shoulder, towards the house. The rain was really picking up now.
“I can’t do it.”
“It’s not that bad.
Really. Just do it. I already drank half. I’m still alive.”
“It smells like a pumpkin fart.” Samuel closed his eyes and drank. And kept drinking. He slammed the empty cup down in defiance and
looked at his sister. Her mouth was
agape.
“I know. I am
awesome.”
Rachel stared past him and, without closing her mouth,
slowly raised her arm and pointed.
Samuel turned around and almost jumped out of his skin. The rain was coming down in sheets. In the distance, beyond the house, a massive
tidal wave was rapidly approaching.
Rachel moved to the window and looked out. “Oh.
My. God.”
Samuel rose to his feet and got his sea-legs beneath
him. He felt a surge of energy coursing
through his body and started barking orders.
“Batten the hatches! Take down
the topsail! We gotta abandon ship!”
Rachel had madness in her eyes. She grabbed the two horseshoe helmets off the
wall and handed one to Samuel. “Take
this brother. We are going to ride this
bad boy out.” She handed him one of the
shark teeth necklaces. “For luck.”
“Are you nuts? Look
at that monster! This old lady can’t
handle it. We’re going to higher ground.” Samuel climbed out one of the windows and
clambered up to the roof. He was
reaching for a branch on the lightning oak when he heard his sister’s
voice. “Sam, where’s the heart of this beast? I have to turn into the swell to have a
chance!” She was behind the ship’s
wheel.
“Rachel! Get up here
now! The Delight wasn’t made for
this. Don’t be stupid!”
Rachel focused in the distance, hands steady on the
wheel. Salt water licked the hem of her
skirt as the ship heaved and rocked in the waves. “I’m not leaving my ship!”
Samuel froze. He
couldn’t leave Rachel behind. Lying on
his stomach Samuel slid his way out onto the figurehead sticking out from the
gable end of the Delight’s roof. He was
riding on a sculpture of a nude siren with long flowing hair and a star-shaped
crown. He yelled down to Rachel. “Starboard!”
Rachel turned the giant wooden wheel and the Delight
dutifully turned to the right. Water was
up to her waist now and the wind shifted the rain into her face. Rachel almost
couldn’t hold the wheel.
“Steady!” Samuel screamed as the big one approached. “Hold her steady!” He could feel the Delight begin to yaw. “Steady!”
The big wave was taller than the Delight. It was just about to overtake the ship when
Samuel felt Rachel’s hand on his ankle. He reached back and pulled her up onto
the figurehead alongside him just as the surge smashed the ship’s keel into
kindling. They held their breath and
clung to the siren as chaos raged around them.
“Sam! Rachel! You guys up there?”
Rachel and Samuel were lying alongside each other, hands
intertwined, clutching the white cup. Samuel crawled to the door and peered down at
his mother on the ground below the tree house.
“What’s up mom?”
“Have you seen my pumpkin spice latte?”
