So I did without a little sleep here and there. The extra hours were great for productivity—those hours after the wee one went to bed and before the sun came in to bid me do the Devil’s work at Big Name Corporation. Driving was the hardest part. Icy cold a/c spewing from the vents in December, shaking my head back and forth to rattle out the snooze spiderwebs. Acid metal in July. Windows all the way down as I yanked my aching, splintering bones through another bitch of a day.
I figured it out. How to not sleep. The best thing ever, because I could just keep working. Burning my candle at both ends ’til what I had left was a puddle of flaming wax searing the skin from my hands. It was a breakthrough. Everyone left me be when they realized I’d discovered that magical secret. They were obviously jealous of me.
It wasn’t until the men from the bank came to collect the things from my house that I fully understood the permanence of what I’d done.
Photo credit: wintersixfour from morguefile.com
19 comments:
How many times have I longed for the ability to forego sleep, to skip over all that time wasted in unproductive unconsciousness. And then I think of the price I'd have to pay...
... which you presented in such a deliciously creepy manner.
I love these short short stories that send chills up your spine the whole read. You picked an excellent subject as well.
That last line was a bit creepy! But perfect.
Nice one, as always. ;)
awesome story :) just enough to make me want to read more!
So much intensity stuffed into so few words. Amazing as per usual.
I thought I had a brilliant idea until I read this.
Good one! The picture is the perfect accompaniment with the ending.
A Faustian tale of wishful thinking methinks. Another win for sleep the eternal foe
Oh that's great, in such a few words, I wish I could do that!
Nice and chilling... Brrrrr!
This is fantastic - packs a lot of punch. So glad you're writing these again. :-)
A perfect bedtime story!
Oh, so creepy... I don't want to evaluate her epiphany too much.
Carrie, you're brilliant. Remarkable imagery.
Adam B @revhappiness
And where is the wee one? The picture sells this even more.
Creepy at its best, Carrie.
So short but oh so effective - great rhythm, very poetic.
Creepy....amazing how so little, can convey so much :-)
Alannah
Love this Carrie... Such an intriguing idea. I, too, welcome your return to Friday flashes. ;)
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