Fiction - Fantasy
3 min
My favorites
The boy who trespassed my story
Nasrajan Jalin
I am sitting near the window, with blinds half open. The sun is about to set. My room is filled with bright orange twilight. The gentle breeze from the Pacific ocean is rustling my paper stack. I am almost finishing a story - the story of Alice and Maggy.
I wrote the end of story - "It was a bright sunny morning. Birds happily chirped. Squirrels ran around wagging their tails. The green pastures around Alice were enticingly bright in contrast with the Fall colors. The lake beyond that, shimmered.
Alice lay down in her hammock enjoying the serenity. Soon Maggy would come by and they would drink tea together. After all the hardships they faced in their life, they lived happily ever after."
I re-read what I wrote and was satisfied. I was about to put the papers away, when I noticed a little boy running towards Alice in the story. This is the first time a new character appeared after the story ended. He can't be there.
Looking at the boy, I felt a faint familiarity somewhere. He was wearing a long, shabby cloak. It must have been white once. He ran across the green pastures, towards Alice. She was taken aback.
"Who are you? I haven't seen you around here" Alice approached him cautiously.
"I am Ameer. I am new here. I was living happily with my mother. Then the war started there. My mother asked me to run away, I ran. I think I ran farther than I should". He looked around bewildered.
War? Alice squinted her eyes and tried to look beyond the pastures. She couldn't see anything.
How can she? She can't see anything beyond the green pastures and the lake in my story. I watched Alice and Ameer intently, wondering what would happen.
Alice gave a cup of tea to Ameer. "Here, drink this. You look so tired from running".
Ameer drank the tea in one gulp. "I am sorry. I didn't mean to trespass. My mother has told me never to intrude anywhere". Tears rolled down his cheek.
"She is still trapped in the war zone. When I looked back while running, shells were exploding around her. Dust and smoke masked her from me", he said.
"Don't cry. She will be safe.", Alice hugged Ameer. She closed her eyes and then looked up at the sky.
She was actually looking at me. "Now, now, please don't give that pleading look, Alice. There are limits to what I can do as a writer". I whispered quietly, even though she couldn't hear me.
I searched through the books on my table and found Ameer's story - the Twilight Sky written by Robert Mane. It is my favorite book. The sad part is, I know the story well. I know where, and in what state, Ameer's mother is now. I know that Ameer will soon be sitting next to her and crying. With mixed emotions, I turned to the page before that scene.
I read the lines again. I read the shells falling around Ameer's mother. I read her asking Ameer to run. If I turn to the next page, he will come back. He will see her covered in blood. No, I am not going to turn to that page. For a moment, I considered Alice asking Ameer to stay with her. Then, I looked at his tears. He will never stop missing his mom. With trembling fingers, I tore off the next page from his story.
I looked over to my story. I saw a drizzle on the green pastures. I didn't write it. It's as if the story was listening to the outside world.
I wrote lines that would change Ameer's mom's destiny. Before the shells hit, she took refuge in a nearby bunker. She stayed there until quiet. I inserted the paper in place of the torn off page. I hoped the author would forgive me.
I looked at my story again. The sun was still shining brightly. The drizzle through the sunshine looked divine. A huge rainbow emerged above the lake. Alice and Ameer were standing mesmerized. It was as if nature gave them signs.
"Go, Ameer. Go find your mom. I am sensing a miracle has happened". Alice told Ameer.
Ameer ran back across the pastures.
He must have run until he found his mom in the bunker. He must have hugged her tight. He must have cried and laughed at the same time. I didn't look.
I turned back to my story.
Alice is in her hammock with a smile on her face. Soon, Maggie will reach there. They will drink tea together. They will live happily ever after.
I kept the story away. Outside my window, the sun has set. The gentle breeze transformed to a strong, cold gust.
I went to bed. In my sleep, I saw Alice and Maggie having fun. I saw Ameer sitting on the rainbow above the lake, smiling and waving at them. It's been a splendid day. I slept peacefully, hoping to wake up to a magnificent dawn.
This work was an entry to the San Jose Public Library's Fall into Fiction 2022 short story contest.
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