annikchase

[annikchase]

Opportunities over the Horizon

A quick piece for @flashfictionfridayofficial!

Word Count: 381

Dark enveloped her room the morning she made her move. The musing had been in her mind for a while, a jotted list in her notebook, a quick line in her search bar quickly deleted, but being foolhardy, she had never allowed the idea to take full form. It instead floated about her headspace, a nebulous form that glimmered with hope but stayed hidden in shadow in a way that only dreams never acted on were doomed to remain. 

That was until that night.

She kept her notifications muted much of the time, it never helped her focus being yanked out of her work by a buzzing desk, and it didn’t help her sleep much either when something blipped with the same desire for attention as an alarm clock just when she had slipped into a good night’s rest, and so her phone remained quiet, facedown in its case on her nightstand. Nothing buzzed, blipped, lit up, or otherwise asked for her attention. Still, lying awake, she decided to reach over and open her email. Glaringly bright against her face glowed the message she had never expected to see. A new opportunity, one that with a simple reply “yes” (though, granted, put more eloquently than that), would transform her life from its current point onward. 

Her breath caught as if even allowing her breathing to quicken to allow for the adrenaline in her veins would be admitting the hope she had for what could happen in her life now. All the nebulous maybes not allowed to take shape that could now afford to escape the recesses of her mind and escape into the light, branching into a billion potential futures. As long as she agreed to take the chance that had been put in front of her. 

There really wasn’t a reason not to accept, but it was a big jump from her arbitrary day-to-day life, which caused hesitation. The pause that is only natural before jumping without knowing something or someone would catch you at the bottom, and so she layed there in the dark, thinking, working up the courage to do what she knew she wanted, needed to do. 

She hit send. The sun glowed bright, finally peaking over the horizon. Today is going to be a good day.

[annikchase]

Morning Glories

Summary: When the time comes to complete her assignment infiltrating a small crime operation, Thabia hesitates to turn them in for a robbery she has just witnessed them commit in favor of a happier ending for everyone involved.

Word Count: 557

Missed the deadline for @flashfictionfridayofficial but hey still posting because why not.

They said it would be painless. Thabia's throat tightened, but she swallowed it back and lifted her chain at the ramshackle group around her. Mick stood a few feet to her left, no more than two yards, his big hazel eyes unblinking and trained on her. Arizona and Esme, still in updos that made them stand out in the dingey parking lot compared to Thabia and Mick's insulating black coats, flicked their attention between her and Mick, who stepped backward, holding the solid wooden box they had just acquired close to his chest.

Thabia raised her hand and dialed.

Why couldn't she make the phone call? Her hand shook above the button, and she knew Arizona saw her hesitation.

"Oh, is that all we are, criminals?" Esme sneered. Her bold voice echoed off the concrete, making Mick wince.

Arizona put a hand on Esme's shoulder. "Don't worry, Ez, she's not going to get us caught, are you, Thabia? You have come to like us."

The tension visibly dissipated from Mick's body, and Thabia pocketed her phone to a nod from Arizona and a huff from Esme.

"This isn't how it was supposed to go," Thabia murmured, voice soft. "Come over here, Mick. You too Ez, Arizona."

Mick tucked the box under one arm and dove in for a hug, burying his small, ruffly head in her side. Arizona came in next, wrapping one arm around Thabia's shoulders in a side hug, followed by Ez.

"For the record, I never thought you'd report us."

This made Mick snicker. "I totally did."

Thabia took the box, opening its lid to reveal the neat stacks of cash inside, below the polaroid Mick had taken as they ran from the scene of the crime, giddy smiles donning all of their faces. She picked up the picture.

"They said it would be like any other assignment, that it would be painless to turn you all in. I didn't expect you three to grow on me so much.

"I did warn you we are like a fungus." Esme smiled.

"Nah, like morning glories." Mick corrected. "Those are impossible to get rid of."

"Yeah, Ez, like morning glories." Arizona poked Ez's arm before turning toward Thabia. "I think I have an idea for how this can be painless for everyone involved."

By the next week, it was as if Ez and Arizona's scheming had come to an end in the eyes of the authorities, and that the ghostlike lockpick they worked with had vanished without a trace. The wooden box had been returned along with what appeared to be all of the money, save for a few stacks, but charges had been dropped as it was the box the owner cared most about. It had been carved by her sister decades prior. The missing money had been used to buy a small fixer-upper home on the edge of town, where Mick excitedly planted morning glories all around the yard.

It was going to be painful weeding the flower bed for the rest of eternity, but this moment, watching him sow seeds into the earth while Ez and Arizona argued over which recipe was best to cook with the ingredients in the pantry? It certainly wasn't what Thabia was used to, but it was just as painless as Arizona had assured her it would be.