Welcome back to the Weird, the Wild, & the Wicked for the Month of Love Themed Challenge. It's Thursday today, so what should you be doing? Writing #FlashFiction, that's what, and writing it to the theme of Male/Male interactions today. This doesn't necessarily mean sex or romance, but the main characters must be male. Welcome to Week 109 of #ThursThreads, the challenge that ties tales together. Need the usual rules? Read on.
Here's how it works:
- The prompt is a line from the previous week's winning tale.
- The prompt can appear ANYWHERE in your story and is included in your word count.
Rules to the Game:
- This is a Flash Fiction challenge, which means your story must be a minimum of 100 words, maximum of 250.
- Incorporate the prompt anywhere into your story (included in your word count).
- Post your story in the comments section of this post
- Include your word count (or be excluded from judging)
- Include your Twitter handle or email (so we know how to find you)
- The challenge is open 7 AM to 7 PM Pacific Time
- The winner will be announced on Friday, depending on how early the judge gets up.
How it benefits you:
- You get a nifty cool badge to display on your blog or site (because we're all about promotion - you know you are!)
- You get instant recognition of your writing prowess on this blog!
- Your writing colleagues shall announce and proclaim your greatness on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus
Our Judge for Week 109:
A founding author of Lazy Day Publishing, and LGBT romance author, Liz Borino.
And now your #ThursThreads Challenge, tying tales together.
“Trust me.”
All stories written herein are the property (both intellectual and physical) of the authors. Now, away with you, Flash Fiction Fanatics, and show us your #ThursThreads. Good luck.
And just because we love them, here is a Judge's Badge for our lovely and talented judges this month.
ReplyDelete~~~~~
I dreamed I was sitting on a floor beside a bed.
A beautiful, young man was sleeping, his hair splashed out on the pillow like a late summer cornfield in bloom.
He was suddenly thrashing, waving his arms in his sleep, so I spoke my almost silent words to him—
You are safe. You are home. I am here
—and he sighed.
My finger to his nose.
A deep shudder went through his body as he stilled. Turned over. Slept soundly again.
My heart overflows with love for this fragile, strong little person in his bed.
He can trust me.
~~~~~
Word count: 100 on the nose
Twitter handle: @AnnaLund2011
My eyes opened to darkness. I felt disconnected and scared. Where was I? I kicked out my feet to touch something hard. I swam in something gooey and yet I could breathe. I kicked out again, flailing with my arms as well. That is when I heard the voice, “Trust me, you won’t be in there much longer. Relax.” The voice said other words too, but I fell asleep before I heard them all. Each day that voice soothed me. Months later I awoke feeling frightened. The walls were contracting in, pushing at me. I cried out I pushed against the walls trying to keep them from imploding in to no avail. I was pushed this way and that way. I heard the voice comforting someone who made sounds. Then I heard him say, “It won’t be long now.”
ReplyDeleteWhat did he mean? I was about to find out. I felt a push and then a whoosh as I was propelled down along tunnel. My eyes opened to brightness and soft hands touching me. It was cold and I shivered then cried out. Someone cleaned the goo off my body and then wrapped me in a blanket. Then I was handed to someone else who cradled me tight and counted my toes and fingers, and then I felt another pick me up.
“Hello, Greg I’m your daddy, welcome to the world,” he said.
I was at safe the voice was Daddy and he had me in his arms.
248 words
@SweetSheil
“Daddy!”
ReplyDeleteI closed the stock market application. Julio would stamp if not allowed to play, but I had seven monthly payments left on the replacement phone. The last, cracked by Julio’s over-enthusiastic pressing of buttons, had gone the way of his potty training chair. In approximately the same condition. Julio handed me a bedraggled maple leaf, pushing my fingers closed. I dropped the smeared mess and took out my handkerchief.
“We’re late,” I said over his protests. “Time to get you home before Shelli arrives.” Our baby-sitter had sworn to rush over. If I didn’t submit my report in exactly thirty-seven minutes, both Shelli and I would lose our jobs.
Julio wriggled out of my grasp. “For you,” he insisted, rescuing his treasure and forcing it into my grasp.
“Get in now!” I yanked him toward the stroller. Instead of obeying, my civil disobedient son fished the crumpled leaf from the ground and held it out to me. Before I could launch into a tirade against dawdling, Julio lifted his chin.
“Trust me,” he said, echoing the phrase I had taught him since birth. Trust me, there’s no monster under your bed. Trust me, Shelli will read you bedtime stories just like Daddy.
I glanced at my Rolex. Thirty-four minutes before my deadline, I opened my hand. Julio gave the multi-colored, tattered leaf as if crowning me king.
“Happy birthday, Daddy,” he said, and at last I understood. I sat him on my shoulders, hugging his legs to my chest.
Word count: 250
@AnastasiaVitsky
Daren groaned into his hands. He should have known better, but when it came to Kenny his brain had a tendency to short circuit.
ReplyDelete"Trust me," his boyfriend had whispered outside his apartment last night. "I'll be there at seven."
He didn't have to look at his watch to know it was now closer to eight. The warmth of an early summer evening enveloped him, as did the loud voices and laughter from the crowd enjoying the carnival's delights. Music from the Ferris wheel drifted down to him, tearing his heart. Kenny and he had shared their first kiss exactly a year ago when the wheel had reached its zenith.
Tears stung his eyes. Kenny had been acting strangely this last week, alternately passionate then cool. He just hadn't thought he'd ever be this cruel.
He jumped when someone sat beside him. "Hey. Sorry I'm late. Had to work over. Daren?"
"I didn't think you were coming," he confessed in a small voice.
Kenny gently pulled his hands from his face, looking excited and scared. "Ride with me. I have something to ask you." Kenny tugged him to his feet and led him to the Ferris wheel. They climbed silently on board and Kenny took a small box out of his pocket. Daren gasped when Kenny opened it, a ring glittering on its cushion.
"Be mine?" Kenny begged him.
"Yes," Daren choked out and kissed him, his heart soaring while the Ferris wheel lifted them into the sky.
Word count: 248
@diannehartsock
“Aren’t you one of Lewran’s get?”
ReplyDelete“I was.” Torlew met the old man’s gaze as the conversation in the inn’s common room ceased.
“Good for you, son,” he said, raising his glass to him. “At least one of his offspring is man enough to stand up to him and not be bought.” He held Torlew’s gaze for a moment. “No one here is a fan of your father’s, boy. If anyone comes looking for you, we haven’t seen you.”
“Thank you, but no one is going to come looking for me. I’m no longer welcome in his home.”
Torlew’s voice choked slightly as the realization hit him and he made no objection as his friends herded him up the stairs. Caristen took the key from him as he fumbled with it and Wellhym drew him into his arms, soothing him.
Kordelm pulled the mattresses from the two beds to the floor and soon the four of them were wrapped in each other’s arms.
“Wel?” Torlew whispered. “I want…”
But Wellhym’s lips were on his, already anticipating what he wanted, what he needed, and Torlew clung to him, slowly relaxing into the kiss.
“Sleep,” Wellhym murmured. “Trust me,” he added to forestall a protest. “I know what you want, Tor, and I want it too. But I also know what you need.”
221 words
un.named.novel@gmail.com
Chayse snarled as he threw himself out of the car and stomped up to Master Kindle’s Reiki Garden. Despite the late hour, the Master kept the Garden open for any visitors in need of succor and sanctuary. The Morukai shaman had helped Chayse detox from the last succubus attack and Chayse hoped he’d be able to help with Chayse’s connection to Aislynn now.
ReplyDelete“Be welcome, Officer Wolffe. It has been many months since you visited. Are you well?” The man’s voice could soothe a rabid wolverine into complacency. His deep brown gaze scanned Chayse from head to toe.
“No. I need your help, Master Kindle.”
“Yes, I see. You’re energy is…intriguing.” The Morukai tapped the corner of his mouth, a small smile curling his lips. “Please, have a seat in the serenity garden until I call for you.”
“But—”
“Trust me, Officer Wolffe. It is as much for your benefit as mine.”
Chayse’s fury, fear, and impatience surged and Master Kindle’s expression became stoic. Before Chayse could protest, the man held up his hand.
“These are the conditions that must be met before I can help you. Take them or leave them.”
Chayse knew that tone of voice and swallowed his protest. The master wouldn’t be moved until he’d calmed down. He removed his shoes and socks, and strode across the sandy floor to one of the meditation pillows, his fists in tight balls.
“Focus on this candle. When it goes out, you may see me.”
247 ineligible #WIP500 words
@SiobhanMuir
Hard-Pressed
ReplyDeleteThey say it doesn’t come easy, but the moment I saw him, I knew. Stopped on the side of the freeway, a flash of denim and fur, he beckoned toward a stray dog.
Traffic screeched by, and all I could think was “crazy idiot is going to get himself killed and that little dog, too.”
My heart tripped. I should help. I threw on the blinker and took the next exit, circling to the right until I reached the entrance and merged back on.
I muttered, “Dude, what the hell are you doing? Leave it alone. You’re going to be late for work.”
Ignoring myself, which isn’t easy to do, turned on the hazards, and pulled up about 20 feet behind them. I’ve read divers are attracted to people on the side of the road. They tend to look, and veer.
Cloyingly thick fumes of exhaust clung to my mouth.
“Come here boy. Come here.” The guy in tight faded jeans bent down. As he whistled, I thought, “Hello! What an ass.”
The dog looked like a Scottie mix – small and black, with one ear up, and the other folded. He shivered, embodying a stance both frozen and on the verge of bolting.
Bleep. BLEEP. A horn blasted, sending the pup darting in my direction.
“Hey there. It’s all right. You can trust me.”
As I scooped him up, the wiggling ball of energy greeted me with wet kisses.
Mr. Dog-saver smiled. “You’ve got quite the touch, there.”
248
Louisa Bacio
https://twitter.com/Louisabacio
Oh, I really liked this!
DeleteAfter three hours the only question was whether to strangle Jeff with my hands or my cock. He talked nonstop. When I couldn’t take it anymore I pulled off the highway
ReplyDelete“We there yet?”
I growled at him—heard it’s intimidating—but he just grinned. He purred when I reached for him. Until I grabbed his thumbs, slipped another tie around his wrists, and zipped it tight.
“Hey!”
“It’s for your own good. Sit here and be quiet.”
He didn’t even try to free his hands. I tossed a jacket over his arms to hide the tie. Unlikely anyone would notice but I wasn’t looking to make any more new friends. On the drive I’d seriously questioned my sanity and hadn’t heard a reasonable answer yet. Sure, I’d thought about getting out, but seriously—how was this going to end? Bloody, that’s how.
He stopped right inside the door so I had to run into him to get through it. “What did you say?”
“Nothing.”
“Can we lose this now?” He held up his arms. The grin was gone but as I considered him, standing there all in black with his expensive haircut and long eyelashes, it crept back. “Trust me.”
“Be glad I don’t gag you. I don’t—”
“There’s an idea. Michael.” He grabbed the front of my shirt in both fists and walked me backward. “Fill up my mouth for a while.”
My back hit the wall and I was a goner. Damned prick, overpowered again.
249
@CharleyDescote
I will never get this right, Kya thought to himself. I'm not gifted in magic despite what Roan says.
ReplyDelete"You are more gifted than you know, Kya. You only need to have faith in yourself."
The Mage smiled and turned to go, black silk robe flowing behind him. Kya's jaw dropped. How did Roan know what he was thinking?
The young man sank back down to the grass, his back against the old elm tree in the Academy gardens. Roan was only a couple years older, yet he was almost a father figure to him. Kya did not want to let him down.
"Kya just wants to please you, Roan," the senior Mage whispered. "He's not serious about magic."
"That's not it at all, Jorr. The boy has a gift. He must be made to see that. He's indispensable to our cause."
Kya listened to the other two from behind the elm and wondered what they meant.
Nobody had ever spoken to him of a 'cause'.
Cate Derham
@cate_derham
166 words
[Correction:]
DeleteI omitted the prompt. The third paragraph from end should read...
"That's not it at all, Jorr. Trust me..."
Nighttime Stroll
ReplyDelete“Trust me.”
I’d heard that one over and over again, and every time I’d fallen for it and every time I’d been sorry. I couldn’t help it though. I was a sucker for a pretty boy with a bad haircut and tight leather pants. I sighed and straightened my tie.
“Why should I?” My voice came out shakier than I meant for it too. He grinned at me, a lock of ebony hair falling over one piercing blue eye.
“Cause I said so.”
I wondered again how old he was. It was hard to tell. His smooth pale skin was unlined but he moved with a grace that came from years of practice. With another sigh, I nodded and let him take my hand, leading me down the street. The sounds of the club receded in the distance and there were more shadows than streetlights the farther we got. I was just getting ready to say I was going back, when he pulled me into the deepest patch of shadow yet, and his cool lips found mine.
I gasped, a soft moan escaping me as he kissed me deeply, then I felt his mouth slide further down to my throat. He was holding me tightly to his trim body.
“Your heart is pounding so hard Paul…” he murmured. “So wonderful.”
I realized that I’d never told him my name and then the sharpness of fangs pierced my jugular.
240 {including title}
@Angelique_Rider
“Trust me.” Ferre gave Aethen a crooked grin before he went back to spinning the large globe on the axis, the colorful continents sliding under the man’s fingers.
ReplyDelete“That’s the problem. I’m not sure if I should or not. You are picking an early time for a successor, my Prince.” The dark man gave a small bow.
“It’s never too early to be prepared. I haven’t really found anyone who might be able to take over though.”
“Perhaps they aren’t born yet. Time does move far differently on your home plane.”
Ferre made a face before sitting back in the chair, propping a food up on the desk. He angled the chair so that he was staring out into the twilight sky. “Has anyone picked from another plane?”
Aethen’s brow furrowed as he stepped in. “No. The few times someone did try the consequences were…disastrous. Why the hurry when you still have a century or two of your prime before talk of stepping down.”
Ferre gave his steward a crooked grin. “You ever have a bad dream that might come true?”
Aethen grimaced, exposing the sharp triangular teeth. “No, Prince.”
The other man rubbed his face before resting a hand on the desk. “I had one last night. It seemed a little too real for my licking.”
“A dream can be just that, a dream.”
“It could, but it might not be. Look at it as me taking care of my lose ends, eh?”
“If that is your decision, Prince.”
250 words
@solimond
“No,” I said, dragging my hands through my hair. “You know I hate to fly. Why would you choose a vacation that required airplane travel?”
ReplyDelete“Trust me.” Devin pressed in close and wrapped a lean arm around my shoulders. He whispered near my ear, “Just think of it. You. Me. Sun. Sand. Sex on the beach...and I don’t mean the cocktail.” He chuckled, the sound seductively wicked. “I take that back. There most definitely will be cock and tail involved.”
My laugh turned into a groan as he traced the shell of my ear with his talented tongue. We had only been dating for a few months, but he knew exactly how to undo me.
I vowed to stay strong despite my growing arousal. “I won’t get on a plane.”
“You won’t have to, Jake. I booked a cruise to the Bahamas.” He brushed the hair from my eyes as I turned to face him.
“A cruise?”
“A gay one. All inclusive, with multiple stops to island beaches waiting for us to go wild.” He waggled his honey blonde eyebrows.
“The ship leaves from Miami - only a few hour drive for us.”
“You’re amazing,” I took his face in my hands and sighed. Why hadn’t I trusted him? He had never let me down yet.
“I would never make you do anything you didn’t want to, Jake.” He smiled, his blue eyes sparkling.
“I love you,” I said, before the moment passed, watching his eyes blink back tears.
249 Words
Hunter Frost
@HunterFrostMM
Pacing, I waited for my husband to answer his phone. As soon as he picked up, I started yelling.
ReplyDelete“What the hell is wrong with you?!” He was out in California and his ex's fiancé had called me with news. He'd caught the two having sex and I was livid. "Are you fucking your ex?”
“Excuse me?” Jimmy roared. “Why do you think that? Forgive me saying, but I’m a married man! Brian's about to be married! Why the hell would Bri and I be—“
“Why the hell are you calling him Bri?"
“Well, I—"
"Mike called and said he caught you two goin' at it.”
“Well Mike's a fuckin' liar.”
I sighed. “Why would he lie to me?”
The seconds it took him to answer about killed me.
"You asked for a separation. You want a divorce. I'm not cheating, but if I were, we're separated, you can't do much about it."
"A six month separation doesn't mean you can start seeing other people.”
“Doesn't it? You were so happy when I agreed to it I figured you had someone else already."
Shaking my head, I stamped down a scream. "No, Jimmy, I don't. If you're going to cheat on me, we might as well forget it."
He scoffed. "I'm not fucking my ex, no matter what his fiancé says."
He hung up on me. He was lying, but how was I going to prove it? Thinking, I dialed Mike. Maybe he could tell me more.
@Aightball
249 words (from a WIP)
#ThursThreads is now CLOSED. Thanks to everyone who wrote this week and I hope to see you next week. :)
ReplyDelete