I wrote a 150-word story for a flash fiction contest by Mslexia Magazine and then discovered that the deadline is tomorrow. And no, they do not accept email submissions. All submissions are to be sent by post with SAEs.
In my defence, I discovered the magazine today itself.
Anyway, the theme was “harness” and I’ll let my esteemed 17 followers to be the judge.
***
Breathless, Paul felt the walls of the tiny train toilet of the great Indian railways cave in on him. Damn India, damn its hot gassy curries, and damn Emily for insisting on this trek. His stomach was going to explode. And yet, he couldn’t fucking shit.
It is one thing to talk of journeying through India on trains in the candlelit warmth of a Chelsea restaurant. It is another to find yourself precariously squatting on a toilet pot in a thundering train trying hard not to rock over. But Emily couldn’t understand what was the big deal. She bloody loved India!
Paul took a deep breath harnessing the last dregs of strength inside him and started contracting his intestines with all his might. He must keep pushing. He must.
A tiny joke-of-a-turd plopped on to the metal below.
Paul accepted that he and Emily would never make it.
7 comments:
I am beginning to think it was good that you missed the deadline...just kiddin :)
Giggle... yes my husband Sid thinks the same.
i'm scatological enough to like it. especially the punch line - the act of shitting unsuccessfully, becomes symbolic of the immiment end of their relationship. but there's one discrepancy. in train loos, the bowl is a funnel that opens onto the tracks. so most types of shit will simply fall through.
Maybe, being a foreigner he was sitting the other way round? Anyway, glad you like it.
Love it!
What's an interstine, though?
To Ghanshyam: Yikes. I knew I should pay more attention to spell check. Thanks for pointing it out.
funny and then again.. not
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