Wednesday write-in, only on Friday :)

http://sjohart.wordpress.com/2013/02/27/wednesday-write-in-28/

That’s a neat idea! I’ve decided to write a story too, with these five words: farewell, pocketful, thief, maroon, feeding.

And I promised not to read SJ O’Hart’s post until I’m finished with my story – not to steal anything, consciously or unconsciously :)

Here it is:

“That thing is a nasty thief”, Lilly thought, and her thoughts were rather dark. She couldn’t believe her own eyes but she had to – for the fourth morning in a row, her breakfast was gone before she could even taste it. She left the terrace only for a moment, to bring a spoon and a jar of honey. When she was back, her muesli was gone. Once again. She didn’t even have the time to put it in a bowl. It was a brand new packet promising “Incredible taste”, “Even more fruit!” and “Your very own energy boost”. She was really looking forward to eating it. And she was hungry. The first time her food disappeared she was confused. The second time  she was scared. The third time she saw a big maroon tail disappearing in the direction of the forest. She had trouble believing one little squirrel was clever enough (and strong enough) to steal a whole pack of muesli but obviously the beast possessed superpowers.

Lilly did everything she could to scare the squirrel away. Nothing worked. Loud music seemed to attract it even more. Actually, the animal seemed to enjoy hard rock much more than Lilly who preferred Bach and Mozart. The repellents bought in the nearby supermarket were not bothering the squirrel. Not at all. Nor did that goddamn creature care for the caged traps stuffed with nuts of all sorts. Lilly was slowly giving up hope. The absurdity of the situation was driving her crazy. Recent break-up with her boyfriend certainly did not help her feel cheerful too. Jack said he needed “some space” and “some time”, and that “it was not really a good-bye”. Of course it wasn’t a good-bye. It was a farewell, and he knew it just as well as she did, only he was too much of a coward to tell her the truth. And she was so sure that she had finally found her happy ending. But it turned out to be an unhappy beginning – of her life as a single girl.  She had never lived alone, not since her early twenties. She was no longer used to silence and solitude. Each time she prepared a meal only for herself she felt like crying. And then one day someone joined her solitary lunch. Lilly didn’t notice it at first. But then she saw a shadow out the corner of her eye. It was a squirrel sitting on the further end of the table and looking at her. It was impossible to misunderstand that look. It clearly said : “Food! You are eating FOOD! GIMME GIMME GIMME”. The squirrel looked so comic, standing on its hind legs with her front paws pressed together that Lilly couldn’t help chuckling. “Okay, okay, I’m getting your point”, she said to the squirrel, “but if you want me to do some feeding, you should promise me there will be no more stealing. Have we got a deal?”. The squirrel did not reply. Well, it is universally know that silence means consent. “What’s your name, little girl? You are a girl, aren’t you? No boy would eat that “get yourself into shape muesli, right? How do you like Nancy? Would you like to be Nancy? No protests? Nancy it is, then”. Nancy didn’t seem to mind her new name and graciously accepted some hazelnuts from Lilly’s hands.

Since that day Nancy and Lilly have become the best of friends. It certainly helped that Lilly always had a pocketful of nuts ready for her furry companion. They went on long walks in the forest together and shared a bowl of muesli each morning. One evening, when Lilly curled up in her bed with the newest thriller her phone started ringing. Wonder of wonders, it was her ex-boyfriend, telling her he missed her and suggesting to go out  because “surely you must be feeling lonely, living so far from civilization and all on your own”.  She sighed. “Sorry, I’m not really interested, and besides, why would I be lonely when I have Nancy?”. “Who is Nancy?” Jack was obviously taken aback. “Nancy is my friend. We talk a lot. Well, I talk and she listens. Lately she even learnt to watch TV, can you imagine that?” Lilly sounded really proud of that achievement. “Learnt to watch TV?” Jack, on the hand, was not impressed but rather appalled. “Where did that Nancy of yours live before, in a prehistoric cave??”  “No, she lived in a forest. She still does, actually. But she comes to see me each day. She likes to jump around in my yard and hide the nuts in the craziest places!” Lilly smiled to herself, remembering how she found another nut in the flowerpot this morning. But Jack did not smile. He kindly advised her to visit a good psychiatrist and hung up. Jack was very, very much afraid of mad people.

Lilly just shrugged her shoulders and went on reading the book.

And she did get her happy ending eventually. She and Nancy became local celebrities, and a journalist came to interview her. He fell in love with Lilly (madly, truly, deeply and all of it at first sight) and they lived happily ever after. So did Nancy – she was never short of nuts and she even got her own Facebook page with thousands of fans from all over the world.