“This isn’t going to end well, is it.”
He glanced in the rearview mirror. “That a question, little lady?”
“Not really,” she sighed. They’d just passed the exit to Jimmy’s Ice Cream, where he’d promised to bring her. Why the hell had she hitchhiked? Whatever happened now would be her own damn fault. Idiot. Her dead cell phone may soon have some company.
“Well,” he cleared his throat. “This ain’t no fun.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well, join the club.”
“You ain’t scared?”
“Eh.”
He slid a gun from his waistband. “Now?”
“Cool. Can I see that?”
“Er…sure.”
Okay, folks. This is my first ever choose-your-own-adventure flash. What happens next?
Flash Fiction Challenge over at Carrot Ranch
February 27, prompt: Open Road – In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story that includes the open road. Where will the trip lead?
Lemon Shark Reef 
Looks like a fun start.
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There were numerous ideas flying around with this one so just left it up to you all. Thoughts?
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“It’s a friggin’ toy. That might work at the liquor store, but not here.” She slid her hand down to her boot, then pulled out a .25 ACP. “This one’s real. Just pull over up ahead. Slide on out and leave the engine running.”
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Excellent! I wonder where she’s going (and if she’s going to leave him on the ground or under it). 😉
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She palmed the slim revolver, casually opened the cylinder. Only five chambers, all full.
“.22 magnum; loud.”
He looked at her, one eyebrow raised. “Yeah. Loud.”
She spun the chamber then clicked it shut. “No hammer; double action; good for carrying. Accurate enough at close range.”
Now both his eyebrows were raised. She laughed. “You ain’t scared are you?” She didn’t give him time to answer. “They say all roads lead home. Turn around. Take me home.”
The house sat alone on a wooded lane. “Good, they’re both here. Come meet my parents. They’ll just die to meet you.”
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Well done, my friend. Flipped that one right around. And added parents to the mix. All in 99 words, I believe. Color me impressed!
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Thanks. He was creepy in your flash but she creepier in that bored phone toting eye rolling teenage way so that’s where it went. (The parents get shot with his gun, he gets shot with their gun and it all looks like a random act of violence and self defense as she places the guns in their owners’ hands.)
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I’ve an entirely new appreciation for the way your mind works, lady. 😉
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Well – this is unexpected. If Jimmy’s Ice Cream had chocolate/peanut butter flavor, I’d probably put the gun to his head and make him turn back. If I really felt my life was in danger, but with him giving her the gun, I’m kind of doubtful, I’d force him to drive me to the nearest police station.
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It does, in fact, have chocolate/peanut butter so… Off we go to Jimmy’s? (You can even get chocolate chips and/or peanut butter chips and/or Reese’s peanut butter cups as toppings. Definitely worth the trip.) 🍫🍦
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Buckeyes are my preference, but Reese’s will do I suppose. *sigh*
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Sometimes we must make sacrifices. Like, maybe, we sacrifice the guy in exchange for some Buckeyes. (Also, what are Buckeyes?)
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Buckeyes are peanut balls dipped in chocolate. A slice of heaven.
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I will take your word for it. They do sound delicious. So, when I visit, you will be getting some of those to go with the red wine I’ll be bringing, right?
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I like where you went with this. A lesson for some.
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It is that. Any thoughts on where it’s going from here? 😉
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I hope that she’s able to get away from him. Maybe I’m reading too much into this. I just hope that she ends up safe.
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Then she ends up safe. 🙂 Maybe a shape-shifting coyote attacks him at a stoplight and she gets away.
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🙂
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She flips off the safety, checks the magazine and finds the clip empty. “You’re outta luck,” she says, “No silver bullets.” The clouds thin and reveal that tonight the moon is full.
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Nice one! 🐺🌕
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Arooooo!
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Pingback: Stories From the Open Road « Carrot Ranch Literary Community
The pink plastic had a heft to it that spoke of more than water inside. She aimed it at the driver’s head and pulled the trigger.
Jelly. Raspberry.
OK, she had to admit that now it was at least a little fun. Not as fun as two scoops of Jimmy’s chocolate peanutbutter with buckeyes. But fun nonetheless.
The only truly un-fun part now was how crowded this back seat was—and that the sweat of the other ten passengers smelled oddly of cotton candy.
How had she not noticed when she’d gotten in that it was a clown car?
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Okay, I did not see that one coming. Now I’m more creeped out by the clowns than either one of these two. 🤡 Gah! (And decidedly not as fun as ice cream with chocolate-coated peanut butter on top.)
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Most people know me for my non-fiction. But I absolutely love writing fiction, and in particular little blurbs like this where there are rules and format within creativity. (BTW… 99 words!)
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I missed that it was 99 words. So it is. Nice!
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