Story: Take your Pick
Written for: brigits_flame, July 2011, week 1
Prompt: Bad advice
Words: 693
Rating: PG-13
Author's note: Since I have an exam tomorrow, I unfortunately didn't have the time to write the story I originally had in mind. This turned out longer than I had planned as well....
Take your Pick
I get up from my desk as the phone rings, but I can already hear Jenny answering.
“Hello? Um, yeah, sure I can talk for a few minutes.”
A long silence follows, only occasionally interrupted by an increasingly bored sounding “yeah”.
Having my suspicions of who is calling, I make my way over to the living room to see if Jenny needs saving. Jenny has moved away from the muted television set and is gazing out of the window, her back turned to the door.
“Look, why don’t you just ask him if he’s seeing somebody else?”
A pause. “Hmm, yes, I see.”
I notice that the plants look a bit dry and take the watering can from its corner. Jenny is still standing at the window, now absent-mindedly fiddling with her brown hair.
She startles slightly and turns around as I begin watering the plants, but smiles when she sees it’s me. I raise my eyebrow in question and an eye roll confirms my guess, even before Jenny mouths “Ann. Boy trouble.”
Just as silently, my mouth forms the word “dinner?”. I briefly wonder if Jenny will understand, but I needn’t have worried. Frequent practice has perfected our lip reading skills. Jenny shakes her head, her ears obviously not yet in danger of falling off.
Another roll of the eye as I continue supplying the plants with water. “No, I wouldn’t do that. Your only indication that he’s cheating on you is that ‘strange feeling’ you have. And I’m not sure you can afford hiring a private detective before finding a job.”
There is another pause, but this time only a brief one before Jenny’s voice turns slightly indignant. “No, it’s not a good idea, no matter how sexy the detective is!”
I shake my head disbelievingly, wondering once again where Ann keeps her sense of reality. Jenny, once again too nice to tell Ann to grow up and solve her self-made problems on her own, doesn’t say anything else while I finish watering the plants. Since there is no use in watching her listen to Ann’s monologues, I decide that instead of using it as a fake excuse, I might as well really start making dinner.
By the time I return from the kitchen where steaming chili con carne is waiting on the table, Jenny is sitting on the couch. The tidy stacks of newspapers indicate she has finally tackled the task of sorting through the last couple of weeks’ newspapers, something we had both been avoiding. Although her face is turned the other way, her slumped shoulders show that she has had enough.
I am about to call Jenny to dinner a bit more loudly than necessary, when she suddenly gets up. “Yeah, that’s a great idea,” her voice is dripping with sarcasm. “Just have an affair with the detective. While you’re at it, you should probably make sure you are caught, just so the cheating bastard you still call your boyfriend realizes you are better off without him.”
I grin as there is another pause and more vicious eye rolling from Jenny.
“Oh, you’re welcome for the advice. Sure, anytime!”
With a sigh, Jenny presses a button on the phone and puts it down.
I sling an arm around Jenny’s shoulders, give her a kiss and whisper to her ear. “You, my dear, are completely evil.”
Jenny is immediately apologetic. “That was horrible, wasn’t it? But she was asking for it and it’s not my fault that she completely fails to understand sarcasm, is it?” A slightly panicky tone creeps into her voice. “Oh crap, I just destroyed their relationship! I should call Ann and tell her not to….”
I pull her hand away from the telephone. “You will do no such thing. You do realize that Ann just calls because she wants you to say that whatever crazy idea she has is not as horrible as she knows it is?”
Jenny chews her bottom lip and nods. “I know, but still….”
“She was asking for it. Stop worrying and come to dinner instead. I made your favorite chili. And besides, I kind of like it when you’re evil....”
Prompt: Bad advice
Words: 693
Rating: PG-13
Author's note: Since I have an exam tomorrow, I unfortunately didn't have the time to write the story I originally had in mind. This turned out longer than I had planned as well....
Take your Pick
I get up from my desk as the phone rings, but I can already hear Jenny answering.
“Hello? Um, yeah, sure I can talk for a few minutes.”
A long silence follows, only occasionally interrupted by an increasingly bored sounding “yeah”.
Having my suspicions of who is calling, I make my way over to the living room to see if Jenny needs saving. Jenny has moved away from the muted television set and is gazing out of the window, her back turned to the door.
“Look, why don’t you just ask him if he’s seeing somebody else?”
A pause. “Hmm, yes, I see.”
I notice that the plants look a bit dry and take the watering can from its corner. Jenny is still standing at the window, now absent-mindedly fiddling with her brown hair.
She startles slightly and turns around as I begin watering the plants, but smiles when she sees it’s me. I raise my eyebrow in question and an eye roll confirms my guess, even before Jenny mouths “Ann. Boy trouble.”
Just as silently, my mouth forms the word “dinner?”. I briefly wonder if Jenny will understand, but I needn’t have worried. Frequent practice has perfected our lip reading skills. Jenny shakes her head, her ears obviously not yet in danger of falling off.
Another roll of the eye as I continue supplying the plants with water. “No, I wouldn’t do that. Your only indication that he’s cheating on you is that ‘strange feeling’ you have. And I’m not sure you can afford hiring a private detective before finding a job.”
There is another pause, but this time only a brief one before Jenny’s voice turns slightly indignant. “No, it’s not a good idea, no matter how sexy the detective is!”
I shake my head disbelievingly, wondering once again where Ann keeps her sense of reality. Jenny, once again too nice to tell Ann to grow up and solve her self-made problems on her own, doesn’t say anything else while I finish watering the plants. Since there is no use in watching her listen to Ann’s monologues, I decide that instead of using it as a fake excuse, I might as well really start making dinner.
By the time I return from the kitchen where steaming chili con carne is waiting on the table, Jenny is sitting on the couch. The tidy stacks of newspapers indicate she has finally tackled the task of sorting through the last couple of weeks’ newspapers, something we had both been avoiding. Although her face is turned the other way, her slumped shoulders show that she has had enough.
I am about to call Jenny to dinner a bit more loudly than necessary, when she suddenly gets up. “Yeah, that’s a great idea,” her voice is dripping with sarcasm. “Just have an affair with the detective. While you’re at it, you should probably make sure you are caught, just so the cheating bastard you still call your boyfriend realizes you are better off without him.”
I grin as there is another pause and more vicious eye rolling from Jenny.
“Oh, you’re welcome for the advice. Sure, anytime!”
With a sigh, Jenny presses a button on the phone and puts it down.
I sling an arm around Jenny’s shoulders, give her a kiss and whisper to her ear. “You, my dear, are completely evil.”
Jenny is immediately apologetic. “That was horrible, wasn’t it? But she was asking for it and it’s not my fault that she completely fails to understand sarcasm, is it?” A slightly panicky tone creeps into her voice. “Oh crap, I just destroyed their relationship! I should call Ann and tell her not to….”
I pull her hand away from the telephone. “You will do no such thing. You do realize that Ann just calls because she wants you to say that whatever crazy idea she has is not as horrible as she knows it is?”
Jenny chews her bottom lip and nods. “I know, but still….”
“She was asking for it. Stop worrying and come to dinner instead. I made your favorite chili. And besides, I kind of like it when you’re evil....”