I was walking down my street one evening, and an elderly couple who were obviously from out of town asked for directions. They were driving a white Toyota Corolla rental car.
"You are on Main Street right now. You have to turn left, and go down Maple Street to Pearl Avenue. From there you just keep going straight, and you will find The Source."
They thanked me, and went on their way. I idly wondered why a couple of elderly tourists would want to visit a small new age shop in the suburbs. How did they even know about it, for that matter?
I went home, and forgot the strange incident temporarily. The next day, I went for my usual walk. The same white Corolla was parked in the driveway of a house which had a large for rent sign staked out on the lawn.
Curious, I walked up to the door and knocked. The same lady answered the door.
"Welcome to the neighborhood!" I said, giving my brightest smile.
"Why thank you, young man. Aren't you the same one who so kindly helped us yesterday?" She asked, smiling.
"Yes, ma'am. Did you get what you needed?"
"I believe so, young man. I believe so! Won't you come in for some homemade cookies?" She asked, smiling even more.
For some reason, alarm bells went off. I took a step back off of the porch, and fumbled an excuse about having to be somewhere.
She nodded. "Maybe another time? I really appreciate the help you gave us yesterday."
"Of course. Thank you very much for your kindness." I said, regaining my composure. I felt rather foolish, but decided to trust my instincts and not take her up on the offer.
I didn't knock on the door again, but the older couple seemed to be settling in. I would see one or both out gardening now and then, and I would wave and say hello as I would walk by.
One bright and sunny day about a week later, they were trimming the hedge by the sidewalk. Mr. Harris, as his name turned out to be, was taking a break. He took a rather large coin out of his pocket and began tossing it high into the air, expertly catching it as it shot towards the ground. He seemed to be whispering something as he did so.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Harris had their backs turned, and didn't know I was there. Just before I was about to greet them, and comment on his skill, I tripped. My shoelace had come undone.
"There! Toss it now! It's time to go home!" Hissed Mrs. Harris.
"I don't like this." Grumbled her partner.
"We talked about it, we don't have a choice." She said angrily.
"I just can't do it." Said Mr. Harris, as a middle aged lady in a bright blue pantsuit strolled by, admiring the nice garden which had seemed to sprout overnight.
"Well I can!" She said, snatching the coin which he was nervously tossing in an erratic manner. She then began doing the same high tosses and whispering that Mr. Harris had done before.
I ducked behind a bush. A jogger went by at a good speed, before I could even think about stopping him. Mrs. Harris tossed the coin on to the sidewalk directly in front of the jogger. The trees, jogger, and everything else began to swirl. There was a bright light. The jogger disappeared, and Mrs. Harris clapped her hands in glee.
She then retrieved the coin, and placed it directly in the middle of the driveway. Mr. Harris, looking defeated, followed his wife into the garage. The white Corolla emerged, with both of them in it. When it rolled over the coin, there was more of the mysterious light and swirling, and the car and its occupants disappeared just like the jogger.
I waited a few minutes, stunned. Then I carefully approached the coin, first throwing stones towards it. When I was within a few feet, I poked it with a stick. Nothing happened. I picked it up, and examined it. It was old, and had strange writing on it.
I put the odd coin in my pocket, and went home. I tried to convince myself that it was just another day on Main Street... But I had a feeling that nothing would ever be the same again...
Image used with permission. Full credit goes to https://noise.cash/u/photography who originally posted it here https://noise.cash/post/lrw499nm
#fiction #writing #inkwellprompt #theinkwell
This is a 100% power up post!
Part Two
Part Three
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https://peakd.com/hive-161155/@wrestlingdesires/the-trouble-with-being-curious-a-double-prompt-freewrite
https://peakd.com/hive-170798/@wrestlingdesires/where-am-i-the-ink-well-prompt-22-fireworks
https://peakd.com/hive-150329/@wrestlingdesires/what-to-do-too-many-choices-pob-wotw-eureka
https://peakd.com/hive-150329/@wrestlingdesires/pressure
https://peakd.com/hive-150329/@wrestlingdesires/the-power-of-light-and-sound
https://peakd.com/hive-150329/@wrestlingdesires/a-one-way-trip-to-paradise
https://peakd.com/@wrestlingdesires/a-new-companion-a-standalone-part-of-the-coin-series
Really, didn't expect that Mr & Mrs. Harris would have a dark side.
Hope they don't reemerge from the young man's pocket,😁😁 that will be horrifying.
Nice short story, kept me on the edge.
Great comment. Thanks for engaging with this author.
Thank you - I hope to keep improving by the way, especially in one of my favorite genres [science fiction] :)
Gripping, suspenseful, and full of wonder. Excellent story!
Thank you for engaging with your fellow author!
Thanks so much for the kind words :) I hope my next one will be equally gripping :) !!!!
Hey dude. Thanks for the kind words on Ultimate Wrestling. Any chance you might want to join our roster with a character?
Definitely, I just need to clean out my discord server list.. Any chance of doing something similar on my forum?
Sounds good man. Our Disocrd channel is https://discord.gg/UmPUYgg6
As for doing something similar on your forum. Which forum do you mean?
wrestlingdesires.com - sorry, I thought my profile said it :) We are a friendly group :)
What did you have in mind?
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STOPI like the slow pace and then the quick acceleration towards the end. Really had me going, specially with the imageries!
Thank you :) I'm really happy that my work is so well received here. I'm definitely a fan of The Ink Well :) !!!
You have written a wonderful story. The seed of suspicion is planted early: why would an elderly couple want to visit a New Age store? Nice coin trick, also :)
You write with a light touch and keep the narrative flowing smoothly. This is an entertaining interpretation of the prompt.
Thank you for posting this story in the Ink Well community. Please be sure to read the work of other writers in the community and share comments with them. We are urging everyone who posts in The Ink Well to take this step, going forward, to ensure our community members are supporting one another. (We also have this in The Ink Well community rules on our home page and in our weekly writing prompts.) Thank you!
Thank you, I am honored that you like my work :) It's so refreshing to have feedback and interaction :) Do you by any chance know of a community that allows series and also has a good level of engagement? I have one that is mostly set in the Amazon, but after a few episodes readership fizzled out. So it's on hold until I can find a good home for it.
Yes, we needed that seed of suspicion, to build some suspense :) .... Thanks again for the feedback and kind words :)
Well done. I was amused. Although there is a bit of horror here, it felt more like Mary Poppins. Poor jogger :)
We do have the feeling at the end though that perhaps the narrator should not put that coin in his pocket.
Thank you, I enjoyed writing it :) ... I was sort of thinking about making it comedy horror, but that seemed like overkill. It came out better this way?
Oh my gosh. Where did the people go? I love how normal Main Street is the setting for such a bizarre sci-di tale. What a fun read! Thanks for writing for the prompt!
What a captivating, sci-fi story! I love it. Mr & Mrs Harris are a weird couple though. 😄 New age store? Odd coin and whisperings? I have some questions like why was Mr. Harris reluctant to do the whispering thing?
I think the couple are both from another world and sometimes come into this world to pick unsuspecting people from normal streets like Main street and take them to their world.
The narration is smooth. Nicely written. Well done! 🙂
Maybe you will find out more about Mr. and Mrs. Harris next week, who knows :) ...
I'm not glad you had fun reading it :)
Hehehhehee!!!! Oh my goodness...as soon as she asked if wanted cookies, my stomach clenched! Lol
So the coin requires some kind of sacrifice..hmmmm?? Something.
But now he's got it in his pocket! He doesn't know what he needs to whisper and doesn't know what it does!!!
So.... Hmmm I wonder how it will reveal itself to him???
And I wonder if there will.be more? Hahahahhahahaha
Let's see where the prompt takes us! I have a few ideas of where this could go, but no definite plans yet!
I want to say this was sort of scary but the creativity in your story is incredible. I loved it.
Thanks so much :) I have a different story coming today, not science fiction, but hopefully exciting!
I enjoyed reading this! I'm so curious to learn more about the Harris's. Of course I'm curious to learn about what the coin exactly does (where are they going?!) but I'm also intrigued by their relationship. I think my favorite part of this story is the subtle conflict between Mr. and Mrs. Harris.
Your pacing and description was spot on imo. You've painted a clear & interesting picture but kept the story moving. Hope I get to read more about this mysterious couple!
You will definitely learn more this week :) I am just waiting for the next prompt!!1!
Do I want to know what that coin does?
I was left intrigued by the powers of the lords with such a well constructed narrative. As soon as I read the protagonist part I knew there was something wrong. That urged me to read to the end.
Hopefully we will find out more this week! But for now just use your imagination :)
Congratulations! This story has been chosen to be highlighted in The Ink Well's weekly magazine for quality work and receiving an upvote from Curie, as well as for supporting the writers in the community with your feedback. Keep writing!
Thanks for the great comment :)
They certainly can't be normal, can they :) ??? And YES, it did turn into something - a portal!!!