Writing Resources from Fifteen Minutes of Fiction

Time Flies

Duncan waited until that evening to present the ring to his beloved artist. He would have taken her to an elegant, romantic restaurant, except he knew how much she loved that quasi-Italian diner. He would have proposed in the park, but the weather was getting far too cold for romantic walks in the park; even Becca, stubborn as she could be, had moved her work into her studio, and no longer frequented the brown and deserted park. He would have waited until spring, except, he simply couldn't.

When he showed her the ring, there in the diner, Becca let out an uncharacteristic squeal of delight, loud enough that the other patrons turned to stare, and then clapped and cheered as he slid the ring onto her finger. For the first time in his life Duncan loved being the center of attention. He reveled in the moment, and delighted in the pink flush to Becca's cheeks and the wet glistening of her eyes.

The days that followed went by so swiftly Duncan hardly knew where they went. In his years of walking among humans, he had heard many times the phrase "time flies," but his life as Kindle never allowed him to experience that strange phenomenon. One day he sat for an hour in front of a clock, counting off the seconds, too see if they really were passing by at the same rate they passed the day before. His experiment resolved nothing in his mind, and time continued to fly.

Becca wanted to meet Duncan's family and friends, but Duncan had already prepared his lie: he was an orphan, and a rolling stone (he was pleased with himself that he remembered that old phrase "A rolling stone gathers no moss," and correctly applied it to his situation). Becca accepted the lie with unhesitating trust, and assured him that her family and friends would welcome him in as their own, and he would never have to roll away again.

Becca's friends were shocked to hear that their painter friend went from single and unattached to engaged in less than a week. While some would take that as an excuse to distrust and dislike the unknown fiance, Becca's friends simply smiled indulgently and reminded themselves, "She's an artist," as though that explained everything. Of course, Duncan had to meet each of those indulgent friends, and the number of faces and names he had to learn and memorize was dizzying.

But he loved every moment of it.

Duncan was surprised to discover that Becca's imagination was already filled to overflowing with ideas for how and when and where they would get married, how the church would be decorated, what their (very nontraditional) vows would be like, where the reception would be held and what food would be served. It occurred to Duncan that Becca had been waiting all her life for this moment. Was it even possible, unbelievable as it might seem, that he, formerly an Emissary of the Pierides, was the fulfillment of all her dreams? The idea was both frightening and magnificent. And Duncan loved that, too.

There was one troubling thought that haunted him in the quiet moments that were not filled with the newness and busyness of human life. The week he had been promised by the Muses was now over.

More writing by this author

Blogs on This Site