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The Casket of Fictional Delights

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Life Line

by Lauren Bell

Flash Fiction Bittersweet, Nostalgic

The sun is too hot today, the world too bright. I shield my eyes as I check the washing, feeling the cotton-thin clothes flapping, multi-coloured sails in the wind. They make a heavy slap slap slap sound as I inspect every garment hanging there.
I walk through socks and underwear, past t-shirts and towels to dresses and trousers. Here, they billow hot air balloons.  The skirts fanning out like bright umbrellas and the trouser legs like maniac arms grasping for anything that might be within reach.
I step back and lose my footing. My ankle buckles beneath me, origami collapsing in on itself, the scream dying in my throat.
I look straight up into the sun, and for a moment, I am completely blinded, dazzled by the fluorescent polka dots spotting my sight. The sun casts a blonde halo over me and my garden, bathing us in platinum light. I close my eyes and remember the beginning, where everything started.
I look at the endless stretch of washing, marvelling at how fast they have grown, sprouting like sunflowers. It seemed only yesterday when they could fit easily into my opened palms. And now they’re as big, if not, bigger than me.  I am dwarfed by their shadows.
But here, right now, I am glowing, studying lives on the line, thinking about their milk white limbs elsewhere.  Wrapped around another, their laughter tickling someone else’s ears.  I smile, quietly shedding a tear, because this is all I have left of them. I have to share them, knowing in another hour or so, they’ll be gone and I’ll be left on my own again.
But I’ll always have their washing because that’s what mums are for.

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About Lauren Bell

Lauren lives in Birmingham, loves rainbows and is often drunk on inspiration. Her work has been published by Word Bohemia, Synaesthesia Magazine, Bare Fiction, Inkapture, Visual Verse, Short Story Sunday and Storgy Magazine where she is a contributing writer.

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Starting in June and through to the end of September  The Casket of Fictional Delights presents more Susan Tate adventures.  Enjoy following a year in the life of Susan Tate the quirky librarian who lives in Canterbury with her cat Charles Dickens written by Joanna Sterling, read by Menna Bonsels and illustrated by Michael N Green.

There are many other short stories and flash fictions available to read and listen to in our Stories and Podcast sections.

Joanna & The Casket of Fictional Delights Team

 

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  • Its July in the life #SusanTate the quirky #librarian who lives in #Canterbury with her #cat ‍⬛#CharlesDickens - Derek has a surprise for Susan's #birthday You can #read or #listen to the story read by @MennaBonsels #free https://t.co/YudZOQtdto https://t.co/oyMBRICsQ4, 10 hours ago
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Text & stories © Joanna Sterling 2022
Stories © various authors
Editing by Joanna Sterling & Alyson Faye
Audio by Menna Bonsels
Brooch photography by Mark Colliton
Other photography by Rosie Marks
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