The Wedding

Sometimes a bright sunny morning just has more to it then those wonders. You get a feeling that something great  could happen, and that certainly seemed to be the case this morning. Only two days ago the call came through. Fr Macken couldn’t sleep, his days were all jittery and he tried to avoid telling anyone why he was so excited. Now the morning had come and he stood at the front door of the church, slowly swaying from side to side, not trying to be too obvious. He struggled so hard to try and conceal a smile and watched down the hill of the village as he saw them gradually make there way up the street.

Come Back

“Wow that looks so strange,” said Mike as he looked down at the glass table and the image that broadcast like a television.

He tapped the sides of the table and a big grin stretched across his face.

“Amazing, and that’s really happening right now?”

Mike sensed the tall figure nodding slowly in the dark over his shoulder. He didn’t need to look around to know.

As he stared at the table he saw a door open to the left in the image and a young woman enter slowly. She held the door a moment and then moved towards the side of the bed. The door automatically closed behind her.

“That’s my daughter in law,” Mike said, his smile slowly disappearing.

The figure nodded again.

“Looks like she’s crying, can’t I hear?”

“Not yet,” the figure whispered.

Mike watched as she reached to the edge of the bed and touched the sheets. There were cables and tubes flowing over the edge of the bed, some rising to machines or receptacles beside or above the bed.

“I don’t feel anything, but I can see all the stuff connected to me, how’s that?”

“Because you’re here,” came the reply.

Mike frowned and nodded from side to side.

He’s Not Him – Part 1

Five Months Ago:-

Blip……..blip……..blip, slowly, steady,

Beep Beep,

Blip……..blip……..blip, slowly, steady,

Beep Beep,

“Jess!!!”

She shook suddenly and half jumped from her chair.

“Are you ok?” asked Kate.

“I heard the horn again, just before it happened, he hit it hard, twice!” she kept shaking.

“I know” said Kate as she gently rubbed her shoulder.

Blip……..blip……..blip, the sound kept going, steady, slowly, that was good, mostly.

Jess looked towards the bed.

Tim’s face looked normal now, the bruising had passed, apart from one small bandage his head was clear, he just looked like he was sleeping. Sometimes she felt angry as she just wanted him to wake up. But it had been four weeks, and while he was looking well and seemed clear of danger, they were telling her not to expect too much.

She didn’t, well , yes, she did. Because with Tim, it had always been unexpected. The way they met, how their lives changed, the good fortune that came their way, there was no explaining, but it was wonderful and she held on to that as she watched him sleep.

Ten Months Ago:-

“My name is Tim, and I’m an idiot! Yeah!”

The Publisher

There was a certain annoying buzz to that phone that kept nagging him. It was the same phone he always had, replacements and modernisation wasn’t exactly an easy achievment here. But this buzz annoyed him the most, cause he knew what it really meant. He glanced out the window. Not a bad view, even on a rainy day.

“Raymond,” came the frustrated whisper as the door had been opened slightly.

“He’s here. I’ve been calling you!”

Raymond turned toward the door.

“Okay, okay, I’ll see him now, I was just sorting a few things out.”

“Well you better sort him out quick, he’s worrying the others!”

Tam closed the door slowly and somewhat sympathetically.

He looked down at his desk, desk? In front of him was what someone considered a masterpiece, and someone else, a joke. He had worked in this business for three years now and while there had been awkward and uncomfortable moments, this had all the hallmarks of topping everything.

The phone started buzzing again. It was traditional that an author should always be ‘buzzed’ through and that had to be done right.

He reached over and slowly picked the phone up.

“Yes Tam, tell me that your son Toby managed to beat that fat bully cretin that keeps belly flopping in the pool on purpose, or some other brilliant and engaging whip about how Mike’s boss is too good-looking to be that, and sure there shouldn’t be women bosses anyway.”

“Em, not quite, I have Mr Crane here to see you,”

“Great! I was looking forward to him calling in.”

“I’ll send him straight through,” chirped Tam.

“Tam, just one thing, you didn’t do that retro speaker phone answer thing, did you?”

“Why yes Mr Raymond, I relish the opportunity to be made a fool in public. Thank you.”

He slowly placed the phone back on the receiver and waited. Damn, he thought, I’ll need her after this.

Cross The Bridge

Karl heard the voice in his head again, so clear, so slow;

“I guarantee the bridge will not collapse, the wood will hold, the ropes will be strong, but I cannot guarantee you will not fall off, only you control that”

He looked at the long bridge, studying the wooden slats and gently holding the thick rough brown ropes. It swayed slightly, yet he could feel no wind. From where he stood the bridge stretched out ahead, rising at some steep angle, the destination at least four-foot above him.

He knew he was nearly there, after the bridge there was not much further and he would be able to finally stop running. But he was tired, his strength and energy had started to fail him, he had already fallen three times just while running and he constantly felt someone was close behind him.

Behind him, he had been standing here for several minutes, they could be upon him, he had to take that first step, he had to. Slowly he looked outside the framed path of the bridge and saw the fall below, a hundred feet or more, the waves hitting the rocks below made no sound.

He gripped the ropes tight, pulled himself forward and stepped onto the bridge. It started to swing gently. He took a deep breath, pulled again and dragged his reluctant legs slowly further out onto the creaking wood.