Welcome back to the home of #ThursThreads for Week 703. Year Lucky 13! The last year of the cycle, the Moon Year. To those who keep coming back, I’m delighted to see you again!
Today is Thursday and that means it’s time to start flashing on #ThursThreads, the challenge that ties tales together. Want to keep up each week? Check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Discord and the Group on MeWe.
Need the rules? Read on.
Here’s how it works:
- The prompt is a line from the previous week’s winning tale.
- The prompt can appear ANYWHERE in your story and is included in your word count.
- The prompt must be used as is. It can be split, but no intervening words can be inserted or tenses changed.
Rules to the Game:
- This is a Flash Fiction challenge, which means your story must be a minimum of 100 words, maximum of 250.
- The story must be new writing, not a snippet from something published elsewhere with the prompt added.
- Incorporate the prompt anywhere into your story (included in your word count).
- Post your story in the comments section of this post
- Include your word count in the post (or be excluded from judging)
- Include your social media handle or email in the post (so we easily notify you)
- The challenge is open 7 AM to 8 PM Mountain Time US.
- The winner will be announced on Friday, depending on how early the judge gets up.
How it benefits you:
- You get a nifty cool badge to display on your blog or site (because we’re all about promotion – you know you are!)
- You get instant recognition of your writing prowess on this blog!
- Your writing colleagues shall announce and proclaim your greatness on Bluesky, MeWe, Discord, and Mastodon, etc.
Our Judge for Week 703:
Desk Jockey by Day, Writer by Night, Pecking her way through life, M.L. Gammella.
And now your #ThursThreads Challenge, tying tales together.
The Prompt:
“Do you know something I don’t?”
All stories written herein are the property (both intellectual and physical) of the authors. Comments do not represent the views of the host and the host reserves the right to remove any content. Now, away with you, Flash Fiction Fanatics, and show us your #ThursThreads in the Moon Year. Good luck!
The Anniversary
“Wow. Fifty years. That’s impressive, Charlie.”
I nod my head. Harry is easily fascinated by marital fortitude. And not a little suspicious of mine. He’s marched to the alter, which he often refers to as the anchor, four times. Muriel, his fourth spouse, hit the road just last year. He’s still smarting.
“How do you do it, Charlie? I mean, one woman, five decades. How many hours is that?”
Interestingly, I looked that up two days earlier.
“Four hundred and thirty-eight thousand, two hundred and ninety-one,” I reply, smiling a bit, for Harry didn’t exactly expect an answer.
“Really. That’s a lot of hours. And way more minutes I suppose.”
“Harry,” I say, “It’s all the same time. Minutes , hours, years. Life isn’t always rosy but it’s been a blessing having a trusted travelling companion down the years.”
He puts on his hang dog look. I’ve seen it before each and every time one of his marriages fizzled out. I’ve never been convinced that he actually is seeking domestic longevity. His track record speaks to that.
“I don’t know, man. One person. Must get dull. Do you know something I don’t? Something that spices the whole thing up?”
He’s asking for my secret, if that’s what it is.
“Look, I just pay attention. Take it as easy as I can. Enjoy the closeness. The quiet. The planning. You either embrace all of that or you don’t.”
Harry just shakes his head.
He’s heard it before.
Often.
249 Words
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