Blog Hop entry - Out of the Dark

First time trying my hand at Flash Fiction.  This is my entry in the Blog Hop competition put together by Lillie McFerrin, Angie Richmond, Angela Goff and Daniel Swensen.  More details here: http://surlymuse.com/blog-hop-contest/

Here is the main idea:  Write a piece of flash fiction, poem, or song (300 words or less) using the photo below as inspiration.

Bobbie twisted herself around so the roller skates wouldn’t make marks on her forehead.  Shifting her weight onto her right side, lifting her arms over a pile of old photo albums, she was able to make room for her full length between the winter boots and the back of the spare room closet. She squished her face in concentration and started, silently like she had practiced with her sister, “Now I lay me down to sleep...”

“Girl - get yourself out here!” Uncle Elias cursed to himself, then started up the stairs, wooden steps groaning and cracking under his girth.  He tripped as the carpet slid on the landing and slammed his fist on the railing, “Goddam it!”


Bobbie lay completely still. “I pray the Lord my soul to keep...” Her pounding heart seemed to echo in the cramped space, threatening to give away her location, but she didn’t know how to make that stop.

Biting her lip, trying not to cry, it was then she remembered the light in the closet. One quick pull on the cord and her uncle would see where she was hiding. She wriggled out of her spot, stood on her tiptoes between the boxes and tennis rackets, and tried to unscrew the bulb.  Although the cord touched the floor, her short fingers couldn’t stretch high enough to reach the fixture.

“You little witch, you better get yourself in front of me – NOW! You know what happens when you hide. It just makes it worse for you, doesn’t it?”

In the dark, Bobbie gripped the cord, deciding she had a choice after all.  “If I shall die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” 

The closet doors swung open, falling off their hinges.  And in the light, Elias began to scream.

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Thank you for reading my story.  I hope you will also read the other submissions!