Below is an excerpt from chapter 2 of my upcoming short stories book...Still haven't picked a name for the main character(he's still called "DUDE" but I hope you enjoy! -Juan
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offeeville was a small shore town and like most
towns that are near the ocean, there was a lighthouse. DUDE figured that it was his last opportunity
to catch up on his book before the afternoon began to darken and then be forced
to go home.
“But people will probably be at the beach.” –he
thought as he was walking up the street.
“If only I could read here, it would seem the only
place without people is the street!”
“Wait, that’s it! There must be a bench here
somewhere!” and there it was, a nice small bench just waiting for DUDE to sit
and begin to read his book. Once again,
he immersed himself in the novel and forgot he was sitting in a bench.
It had begun to rain. The huge drops rattled
the tin roof with a loud, unrhythmic noise. It was not yet three in the
afternoon, but the storm had blackened the sky.
<Drip>
The drop had broken his concentration. What’s worse, not only did it interrupt his
reading but it actually looked like it was about to rain.
“Really universe, you are just going to rain on my
day, really? This is just what I needed, et
tu brute?!” –he said as he looked at the sky while leaning forward to cover
his book from the impending rain. Looking into the horizon he saw lightning, followed
by the sound of thunder.
“Not today, please not today…I didn’t even bring an
umbrella!”
<Plop>
His shoe was now starting to get wet with the
raindrops. However, DUDE was still complaining about the rain and not noticing
his surroundings.
<Drip, drop, drip, plop>
“It will only be a little drizzle, I know it will.
There was no forecast for rain today so it will only be a little drizzle, it
will be over soon enough.”
The rain poured down heavily.
Eyes
closed, he arched back and yelled: “WHY DO YOU HATE ME UNIVERSE!!!!”
Now we have all heard the expression “swearing like
a sailor” but with the amount of swearing that DUDE did for that half hour of
rain, he could very well host a seminar for sailors to take notes on new ways
of swearing that they would never have imagined in their wildest dreams!
All
of a sudden, he no longer felt the drops of rain falling on him. Yet, it got
darker and he could still hear the rain drops fall.
“You’re welcome.”
Were the words that came from the voice of a woman, a woman he knew;
Kathy.
He opened his eyes (this whole time he had been
swearing with his eyes closed) and looked at Kathy. She seemed happy to see him
and she was actually holding an umbrella over both of them with a smile that
could make any mans day.
“What do you want Kathy?”
“Sheesh! Can’t you a least be a little happy and
thankful that I am here?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Well, weren't you yelling about how you didn't have
an umbrella and that the universe hated you, blah, blah, blah?”
“Yeah, so what’s your point?”
“SO MEAN! Thanks to me, you won’t be getting sick! Aren't you happy about that?”
“Well yeah but I was actually worried about my book
getting wet and—I”
“Are you serious right now? Okay, let me get this straight, you were mad at
the universe, THE UNIVERSE! Not because you were getting wet, no, but because
your books might get wet?!
A word to the wise, never piss off a woman that just
came to help you out. It never will end well for you.
“Wait! Where are you going DUDE?”
“Home, where else would I be going?”
“Can I come?”
“No.”
Of
course, regardless of what he responded, Kathy was still going to follow him.
She always did. Sometimes people don’t realize what they have out in front of
them and DUDE was no exception to this. DUDE may be excellent at interpreting
works of literature and complex formulas, but he was an amateur at best when it
came to interpreting the woman that loved him; A real shame.
