A short story

Keith's Ramblings

For Six Sentence Stories where the given word is Island.

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lanterosy.regular

 

Our parents didn’t know, we daren’t tell them but doing foolish things is part of growing up, isn’t it?

A fast-flowing river ran past our village with a little island downstream, and often Verity and I would hold hands, leap into the water and battle with the current to swim to it. 

She made us a little flag which we planted in the middle thereby claiming it for ourselves, and on balmy summer afternoons we’d lay on our backs, hand in hand in a herbose clearing and hear nothing but the rushing water and birdsong. 

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I didn’t want to do it that day, the river was a tumbling torrent but I allowed her to persuade me;  come on she said, the last thing she ever said.

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Several years later I returned and the flag was still there, but my eyes were drawn to something in a tree fluttering in the breeze, and I realised it was a shirt, one of Verity’s shirts. 

I plucked it from the branch, pressed it to my face and it smelled sweetly of herbs, the herbs on which we used to lay; I’ve not been back again.

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Thanks to GirlieOnTheEdge for hosting.

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31 thoughts on “A short story”

  2. UP Sep 16, 2021 / 14:01

    touching…i’m reminded of the risks we took as children … bravery ? foolishness? Not all ends well.

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  6. Chris Hall Sep 16, 2021 / 15:51

    A tragic tale, but well told, Keith. I could just picture that little island.

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  8. Frank Hubeny Sep 16, 2021 / 20:35

    I can only imagine what happened to her. I like the remembrance at the end of finding her shirt.

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  12. The Atomic Mage Sep 17, 2021 / 12:53

    Really sad tale, so well written. I remember we did some foolish and downright dangerous things as kids, but luckily we survived.

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  14. Doug Jacquier Sep 18, 2021 / 20:53

    Beautifully written, Keith. Transported us to another time and place effortlessly. I still get the shivers over the number of times that I did similar things of immense stupidity in my youth.

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