Short Stories by Lane

A LIVING HELL

“Do you know what day this is”, she demanded. A raised eyebrow was his reply. Jennifer stomped away with a huff of air. Not again, he thought. Slumped in the wheelchair, greasy hair in his eyes, he felt like a prisoner in this cold place. Unable to escape, Andrew listened to his beloved replay one despicable day after another. Her mind was gone. That cursed accident had done this to them and he was to blame. Was this hell? Did he actually die in the accident? His breath caught and a sob escaped from lips that tasted of warm, salty water.

Lane

WORTH THE EFFORT

Well that was worth the effort, I thought. The dark enveloped me and I chose my steps carefully on the rubble strewn pathway. I inhaled deeply of the fresh, salty air and released my breath along with the tension. Will they ever figure it out? I laughed quietly, thinking of my ingenious creation. Probably not.

Lane

SANDCASTLE

I was strolling along the beach when I first saw him. My name is Kathy, and my life was a disaster. I was on the beach that night alone, which I didn’t normally do. I hated life. In the past week I had lost my husband to another woman, lost my job, and worst of all I had just turned 30. The air was cool, but not cold, as the summer breeze off the ocean blew my hair. Waves crashed as they churned and then flowed to lap against my feet. Life was so hard sometimes and I was feeling like it just wasn’t worth it.

As I bounced pieces of my life around in my head and sighed in disgust, I saw him ahead of me. He was a shadowy figure building a castle out of sand. He looked up as I approached and then said “hello”.

I stopped to look at the piece of art he was creating and responded honestly “that is really beautiful, you are very talented”. Now that I was close to him I could see that he was young, maybe early 20’s. His eyes were blue and filled with warmth. He had light brown hair that was shaggy and hung over his face as he bent back down to mold more of the damp sand.

“Where are you heading?” he asked in a soft and whispery voice.

“Nowhere, just walking” I said.

He looked up and searched my face. “Can I walk with you? I don’t see many people and would enjoy the company”.

I was hesitant to agree since I didn’t know him and it was getting dark, but something about this soft spoken man led me to be more reckless than usual. There was an innocent radiance about him that instilled trust. “Sure”, I agreed. He rose from the sand, his castle was complete and I was again awestruck by how magnificent it was.

We walked in silence for a bit. I listened to the peaceful sound of the waves landing on the shore and felt the foamy water covering my feet. Stopping to take in the beauty surrounding us, he turned to me and asked, “why are you out here tonight all alone?”

“I hate my life” I responded shaking my head and frowning.

He looked out at the ocean again and said “life is worth more than you can imagine.” His tone was wistful, and I assumed that he was also having a rough time of it these days.

“Do you come here often to build sandcastles?” I asked.

“Not really” he said and smiled at me.

Something about his smile was hauntingly familiar and tugged at my memory. “My name is Kathy” I said.

“Michael” he responded.

We stopped and looked out at the ocean. “You know Kathy; you have to take everything you can get out of life. Go for it and live as if there is no tomorrow.” He paused and added, “things will get better”.

Listening to his soft voice was surprisingly calming and inspiring. “I know, well at least they can’t get worse” I conceded.

He smiled a sad smile and said, “Kathy it has been nice visiting with you, but I have to go now. Have a great life.” Michael walked off into the distance, where the dark night swallowed him.

I started to shiver and realized it had gotten colder. The breeze moving my hair had become stronger. I’d better head back I told myself. As I retraced my steps, I came to the place where the sandcastle was and again saw how detailed he had made it. He was most likely a local artist or one that was passing through. I reached my home and went inside to warm up and get ready for sleep. Tomorrow was another day after all, and I had job hunting to do.

In the morning, as I sat at the nearby café drinking my coffee, I saw the local paper on the empty table beside me. I decided to glance through it and then check out the job ads. Maybe I’d find something worthwhile. As I paged through, I stopped and stared down at a familiar face. It was the man I had met on the beach last night.

“No, this can’t be right” I said out loud. It was in the obituary section. My eyes turned to the caption below it, and I gasped in surprise. It read ‘1 year anniversary of the untimely death of Michael Daniel Collins, who died at the age of 24 in a car accident. Michael was a gentle soul and a rising star. He is sorely missed by the art community and everyone who knew him. We love you Michael.’

I was frozen on the spot. That was where I had remembered his face from. How could this be the same man I saw last night, if he’d died a year ago? I decided to go back to the beach and see if his sandcastle was still there.

I marched quickly to the beach access and took my shoes off when I reached the sand. As I walked along the beach, soft claylike sand squished between my toes and the rays of sun warmed my skin. I noted the surroundings and decided I was at the spot where I had first seen him. Some of the sandcastle’s remains were there, but most had been washed away by the tide. I glanced up at the house situated off the beach and directly in front of me. For some reason I couldn’t explain, I was drawn to walk over to the door and ring the bell.

A woman older than me answered. “Hello. May I help you?” Her voice was soft and friendly, her blue eyes open and warm.

“I’m not sure. I saw the obituary for Michael in the paper.”

“Oh, were you a friend of his?” she asked.

“I just knew him briefly, but he touched my life and I will never forget him” I said. Tears were filling my eyes.

She looked at me with a knowing gaze and said, “would you like to come in for a while”. I nodded and followed her in.

********

This is how I met Anna, Michael’s mother, and she became my mentor and life saver. We are such good friends and I love her to pieces. My life has done a complete turnaround, and I am now married and have a child of my own. I will always remember Michael as he walked away from me on that beach.