Chuck didn't give us a prompt this week... actually it was overdue the due date... thus the name of my flash fiction this week. Enjoy.
She ran along the streets with the sheaf
of paper in her hands. It was becoming
late – almost too late; but she had finished her work and had printed it out
and was on her way to handing it in.
If she didn’t make it on time, there was
going to be dire consequences. Michelle
wasn’t sure what those were, but from what she heard from others, when past
students handed in their assignments late, they were never heard from again.
So, she had to make sure she got this in
before the doors of his office were locked against the dying day of the
beginning of the weekend.
Michelle watched with a knotted stomach as
the corner store closed its doors for the day, as did the fruit shop next
door. She rushed past them as the people
went about their business of rolling down the large, steel grates against the
darkening skies and the street lights flickered on.
She didn’t have far to go, now.
Just around the corner and along the pathway
to the building on campus and then she’d be inside the place – first door on
the right. She climbed the short flight
of stairs, pushed opened the large glass door (which nearly didn’t give for
her) and then turned to the immediate right and …
…his door was closed!
Tears filled her eyes, “No. Not now.” Looking down, she unfolded the
assignment. She had put so much work
into this thing and she wasn’t going to let him just fail her… no, she
wasn't. Michelle raised her fist and
knocked on the door. The sound of her
three knocks echoed down the empty hallway and she stood there for what seemed
like an eternity before the locks turned and the door opened just enough for a
small face to appear: “Hello, there.” She
said to the tiny, older woman who had answered the door, “I’m here to see, The
Professor.”
“The due date had come and gone, Michelle.” The
woman said, “You are too late.” She turned and closed the door.
“No!” Michelle shouted dropping her
assignment on the floor and punched the door in time with what she was saying
next, “I’m not too late… the sun is still setting, you old bitch! You get your
arse out here and take my assignment!”
The door opened slowly – wider this time –
and older woman stared at her, “Well, aren’t you the little shit.”
Michelle didn’t really care what the woman called
her, “Yes, I am. Now, you take my
assignment, because I’m not too late. I
arrived just as the sun vanished below the buildings.” She picked up the papers
and shoved them into the woman’s hands, “I’m not leaving until you take them
for The Professor.”
She looked down at the folded
assignment. The woman really shouldn’t
have taken this off her, but she did, “Wait here. Take a seat and just wait.” She closed the
door and turned toward the fireplace, “I told you she wouldn’t leave.”
He sat forward from the large winged chair,
puffing on his pipe, and looked around at her, “Give me her assignment.” She
handed it to him and he ran his right hand over the front page, nodding, “Well-written…
she put a huge amount of work into this – as usual.” He half-turned, “Let her
in.”
The woman opened the door and looked at
Michelle, “He wishes to see you.”
“Oh?” she stood and walked through the
doorway and into the room where The Professor was sitting by the fire with her
assignment in his hand.
“Michelle Sanders, please take a seat.” He said
gesturing to the other large winged chair across from him, “Coffee, hot chocolate
or tea?”
“Um… hot chocolate please.” She sat down
across from him, “You’re not mad at me?”
“No.
I’m happy with your work – as usual – and how you dealt with Delta,
there. Most people get discouraged at
her ways, but you don’t.” he smiled, “And I’d like to offer you an opportunity.”
Delta placed the hot chocolate on the side
table by Michelle’s chair, “Thank you, Delta.
What kind of opportunity?”
He removed his glasses and looked at her, “I’m
looking for a researcher and you have the guts and determination and
intelligence to be mine.” He smiled, “However, I’m visually impaired and need
somebody who will also stay here with me and be my eyes and ears for me… my
carer. Delta isn’t young anymore; and so
you will be filling big feet.”
“Can I think about this?”
“Of course.” He smiled, “Please drink your
hot chocolate… Delta makes a killer one. I love it.”
After downing the most beautiful hot
chocolate she’d ever tasted, Michelle headed home. She walked to her place to find there were
police cars outside her place and her family had been worried sick about her.
Molly, her neighbour, spotted her coming
home, “There she is!” and came running up to her, “Michelle! Where have you been?”
“I met up with The Professor to hand in my
assignment. It was overdue. He offered me a job.” She shook her head, “Why
are the police here?”
“Oh, Michelle, he got to you like he did the
others.” Her mother burst into tears.
Her father comforted her as all he could do was stare.
“Molly, what’s going on?” Michelle asked, “I’ve
only been gone a few hours.”
The middle-aged woman shook her head as she
produced a mirror from her handbag: “Michelle,
you’ve been gone longer than that… much longer.”
Michelle looked into the mirror and found
the face staring back was one of a very old woman… and not just any old woman –
the face staring back at her was Delta’s face!
She wondered exactly what was in that hot chocolate, and if handing in
her assignment was really all that worthwhile.
