Week 731 of #ThursThreads was a success, a remarkable feat for 14 solid years. Thank you to everyone who writes each week. You are why we’re still doing this. I’m truly grateful for all y’all!
If you’ve just found us, welcome to the crew! May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to M.L. Gammella for judging this week. Follow Siobhan Muir on Bluesky or check out the #ThursThreads group on Discord to keep up with news, etc.
Entries:
- Bill Engleson
- Silver James
- Louisa Bacio
- Siobhan Muir
- Mark A. Morris
- Mark Ethridge
- David A. Ludwig
Honorable Mention
Bill Engleson | Website
M.L. says: Ah, yes, I think we can all relate to our favorite places being taken over by corporations. From farms to restaurants to grocery stores, even bookstores. Independent proprietors are becoming more and more rare, being pushed out by the big competitors. I feel for Mona, who can’t bring herself to lower the quality of her food at her diner after her favorite supplier sold out. One more mom & pop gone. At least the narrator was able to get his socks fixed.
Winner Announcement
Week 731 Winner
M.L. says: For me, the best flashes are the ones that hook me and make me want to read more. This offering by Louisa Bacio has done both. A stormy framework of a hurricane battering the coast while the two characters discuss their escape options. Are they trapped by the storm or by something else? Complications from prior time-travel jumps? What happened in those cases? What happened in 1984? So many questions I have. What battle did they accidentally travel away from?
The storm raged outside the floor-to-ceiling windows of the living room. Rain pelted the glass. Predictions had the offshore hurricane pummeling the coast over the next few days as it made its way from Mexico to Southern California. A weather system this big hadn’t hit the area in more than seventy-five years.
With the King Tides and warming waters of El Niño, this atmospheric river might be enough to destroy their beach-front homes.
Stefan tunneled his hands through his hair, leaving parts of it sticking up everywhere. When he looked up, he met Julia’s gaze. “We can’t time travel again – not now.”
“Not ever again,” she corrected. “We are not doing this ever again. The repercussions are too high.”
“It’s not like we meant to. In the midst of a battle, we didn’t purposely go back to 1984 in the middle of Hollywood. Doesn’t she understand that?”
Julia laughed at the audacity of the idea. “Well, as we learned, they had some pretty awesome music that year.”
“We can go to an ’80s fest for the music. I don’t know how we’re going to undo all the harm we inadvertently created.”
Thunder rumbled so loud it felt like the beginning of an earthquake. Julia counted off in her head, waiting … a bolt of lightning crisscrossed the sky.
The lights flickered and went off. They plunged into complete darkness until the hum of the back-up generator kicked on and soft glowing lights illuminated the room.
“Here we go.”
~~~~~~~
Congratulations Fourteen Time Winner Louisa and Honorable Mention Bill! Don’t forget to claim your badge and display it with pride. You certainly earned it!
Pass on the great news on Discord, Bluesky, Mastodon, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂
