Kitchen Window – Friday Fictioneers

Friday Fictioneers is hosted by the wonderful Rochelle, the undisputed master of what I call Sound Bite Fiction.
She sets the weekly challenge, and the standard.
This week, happily, I know what the photo shows me.
Even a mere man can recognise a kitchen window.
The idea, as always, is to write a story of around 100 words based on the picture, below.

Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Kitchen Window

I love the view from this window.
I can see my flowers, and my beautifully tended lawn.
And my husband under the oak tree.
That vile, unhappy man.
Life with him has been a nightmare for so long.
But he promised over a week ago that he would never hurt me again.
And this time he has kept his promise.
It seems he really meant what he said.
So I can just enjoy the garden in springtime.
At least until the flies get too thick.
Then I suppose I will have to do something useful.
Like cut down his body.

This entry was posted in Sound Bite Fiction and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

74 Responses to Kitchen Window – Friday Fictioneers

  1. Nice macabre tale CE, the old man got just what he deserved!

    Like

  2. Great twist at the end, C.E. Here I thought he was peacefully sitting under the tree. It sounds like he beat on her a bit too much.and she’s gone over the mental edge. Well done. 🙂 — Suzanne

    Like

  3. I felt this coming, but your strong story telling still had me caught off guard. Very compelling, CE!

    Like

  4. Yes indeed, prize winning roses next season!

    Like

  5. Amy Reese says:

    Got me again in the end,CE! Here I thought he might be picnicking under the oak. Haha. This is great.

    Like

  6. Gee, I wish I had a view from my kitchen window that lovely! Lucky lady, funny story.

    Like

  7. Margaret says:

    Peace at last. I’m happy for her. Great set up and an ending with oomph.

    Like

  8. ansumani says:

    I paused to wonder what that man was doing under the oak tree . Looks like he was doing nothing at all – useless man 🙂 Good riddance.

    The pace of the story was perfect.

    Like

  9. rgayer55 says:

    Not too soon. Maggot have to eat too. Just make sure he’s downwind from the house.

    Like

  10. subroto says:

    Yikes! Looks like he is going to be fertilizer soon.

    Like

  11. plaridel says:

    she made sure he kept his promise. good one.

    Like

  12. liz young says:

    Too many wives would be happy with the same view – well written.

    Like

  13. Jan Brown says:

    You created the perfect mood for your protagonist to tell her cold, dark story. Quite effective use of first person narration!

    Like

  14. draliman says:

    Heh heh. He’ll be good fertiliser!

    Like

  15. MythRider says:

    Well, she took care of that problem and fertilized the garden.

    Like

  16. The Voice says:

    LOL… very nice. I hoped you’d end it that way and you didn’t disappoint. Well done.

    Like

  17. Dale says:

    Love the tone of this, Sir! I like the twist (was expecting him to be seated, strapped, gagged, etc…!)

    Like

  18. It’s very good. I like it. I was surprised.
    Tracey

    Like

  19. Oh, what the hell.
    Leave it up.

    😉 Randy

    Like

  20. Danny James says:

    Yikes! The ending caught me by surprise.

    DJ

    Like

  21. mandibelle16 says:

    Oh my. He hung himself, poor sad man. I think it was his wife. She doesn’t seem like a happy or a nice women.

    Like

  22. paulmclem says:

    Was worried this was going to be another FF “body buried under the flowerbed” job, but it wasn’t….which was good. Enjoyed this one.

    Like

  23. bykimberlylynne says:

    I didn’t see that coming – nice twist…in the wind.

    Like

  24. siobhan1967 says:

    oh this is fab!! loved it all the way through then laughed out loud at the last line – very clever, jolly well done.

    Like

  25. What an image. I shuddered and then laughed!

    Like

  26. Bloggeuse says:

    Excellent stuff – agree with other posters: her matter-of-fact tone belies the horror of what she’s done, and perhaps what she’s been through. Great twist.

    Like

  27. Tartan gothic, for sure. This puts a dampener on things. And what a sad life they must have had.

    Like

  28. Yikes and double yikes.
    I was enjoying the steady comforting pace and then Bam! Loved the twist.

    Like

  29. Wow life has hardened her to love that view.

    Like

  30. Dear CE,

    I love her straight forward, matter of fact tone. At the expense of being accused of being a ghoul, I laughed out loud at the end. Well done.

    Shalom

    Rochelle

    Like

  31. Sandra says:

    Well at least he’s performing a last useful service, keeping the flies away from the house. So gruesome it was almost delicious. Well done as ever CE.

    Like

  32. C – You are back writing grim, and i like it. The coldness of her reaction is really well created, and the concerns of the flies. I like how you slowly slipped us the truth… Despite his bad sides I do not feel a lot of sympathies for the woman (first person works really well here).

    Like

  33. emmylgant says:

    Gruesome…
    And yet quite entertaining once I swatted a few flies.
    I like the sing-song tone of the narrator’s POV…It fits the foggy scenery quite well.
    .

    Like

  34. That’s a grim view to be looking out on. Great story.

    Like

  35. Miles Rost says:

    Yikes…

    Well done to catch the true feeling of things…

    Like

Leave your Sound Bite here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.