Flash Fiction~ just for fun "The Great Eskype"

Hi, my name is Charity Parkerson. I'm the author of several novels but I really enjoy entering contest.  Back in February I entered a contest with The Mistress of the Darkpath and this was my flash fiction entry:

                                     "The Great Eskype" 

It was a running joke between my friends that I hate Skype.  After all, my only real experience with it was when some creepy guy from twitter asked if he could see my tweets.  I swear, that was his exact words. However, a few months later, while once again on Twitter, I ran across this Avi that I couldn’t look away from.  His hair was dark and his eyes a vibrant blue. To say the least, I was mesmerized.  His post was in my newsfeed therefore I had to be following him, but I couldn’t remember ever doing so.  Nonetheless, his picture was smoking-hot and his tweet made me laugh, so I hit the re-tweet button before moving along.  Well, let’s be honest, I hung around a moment longer drooling for a second, and then moved along. To my surprise, he responded.  I was giddy, as after a few back and forth responses, we moved our to chat to DM, making our comments a little more personal than I normally would’ve been comfortable with, but I couldn’t remember ever encountering such a handsome and witty man.  These tiny 140 character chats went on for weeks, until the subject of Skype arose again.  I was reluctant at first, but I didn’t want to lose my chance at finally getting to meet this dream man face to face.  The first chat went smoothly and my confidence built.  The only problem was that he lived so far away I couldn’t imagine a time when I would get to enjoy his company in person, but he was magnetic and I couldn’t let the connection go. Unfortunately, the closer it came time for Valentine’s Day the more depressed I became over the matter.  I found myself watching the bottom right hand side of my computer screen like a woman possessed, waiting for the moment that his name would appear online, and I dreamed of the sound his voice when I drifted off to sleep each night, but I was no closer to having the “real” man, only this online image that I couldn’t hold on to.  Disheartened, I finally broached the subject with Matt.   “I miss you.”

His deep chuckle sounded through the microphone. “We’ve been chatting for hours.  How could you miss me?”

“I can’t explain it,” I answered, sounding defensive even to myself.  “I just miss you.” I sighed, unable to continue this game.  “It is only the fact that Valentine’s Day is tomorrow, and I wish that I could be with you.” 

I held my breath, unable to believe that I said the words aloud, but as usual, he either misunderstood or pretended to. “I will call you tomorrow at the usual time, I promise.”

I almost groaned, in my aggravation.  “I want to spend it with you, not cuddled up with my computer, but cuddled up with you!” My voice rose with each word, but once the gate opened I was unable to stop the flood of emotion.  He looked away in silence, and I could see that he was considering my words.  A small smile touched his lips briefly, and my shoulders nearly sagged in relief that he didn’t appear to be angry. “I want to be with you too,” he admitted. “But, I can’t pull it off tomorrow.  There is a blizzard going on up here and the airport has shut down.  Perhaps, in a couple of weeks, I’ll be able to make the trip, but I’ll never be able to pull it off by tomorrow, and plus I have to work tomorrow. “

I wasn’t surprised by the answer, but I couldn’t help the disappointment that I felt.  It must have shown because Matt quickly rallied. “How about this, what if we make tonight our Valentine’s?  We’ll pretend that we are together and this is our first real date.”

“Hmmm, a date?  I like the sound of that.  What should we do first?” I asked, attempting to sound seductive, as I rode the high of him mentioning a trip to visit. Matt leaned closer to his camera, and I did the same, eating up the sight of him with my eyes.

“First, you should take your shoes off and get comfortable.”

“My shoes?” I asked, thinking that I liked the sound of where this was going, but feeling cautious just the same.

“Yep, the shoes.  I want them…off.” 

I giggled like a schoolgirl at his playful tone, and did as he asked without delay.  “What about you? If we are making ourselves comfortable then you should slip out of your shoes, as well.”

“Done,” he answered immediately.  I watched in fascination as he stood, and tossed his shoes across the room, before reseating himself in front of the computer.  “I think you should unbutton your blouse. It looks stifling.”

I paused, a bit uncomfortable with this request but turnabout is fair play, and I really wanted his shirt off. 

I glanced down at my hands as I reached for the top button.  I wasn’t normally this brave, and I couldn’t look him in the eye as I took this first step.  A childish giggle carried over the airwaves and my hands froze at the sound.  I looked up slowly, fearing that I already knew what I would find.  Next to Matt stood a miniature copy of him, but luckily the child spoke only to him and ignored my presence.

“Mom says get off the computer, ‘cause the pizza will be here any minute, and we need money to pay for it.”

“Okay son. Let Daddy say goodbye to his friend and I’ll be there in a second.” Matt switched his attention away from his son, and back to me.  “Sorry babe, we’ll have to pick this back up later.  My wife needs me.”

If you enjoyed my story then please stop by and check out some of my work www.charityparkerson.com

copyright 2012~Charity Parkerson

BOO!

Thirty-one years of wild requests, screwy questions, bizarre behavior and outrageous demands have left me with a permanent twitch and an uncontrollable craving for chocolate. Don’t get me wrong. Working as a 9-1-1 dispatcher can be very rewarding. BUT - some days I felt like the whole world was nuts and Halloween brings out all the freaks.

Instead of passing out candy to the little fairies and ghouls I got to deal with reality and reality sucks. Take this call for example:

“I need to find Grandma’s haunted house,” a drunken idiot said. Digging for my supply of Tylenol, I responded, “Sir, 9-1-1 is for life threatening emergencies. We don’t give directions.” The drunken fool cried, “You’re 9-1-1 you know everything.” Wonder where he got that idea? “Sir, I have no idea where your Grandmother’s haunted house is.” He sputtered in surprise, “You don’t? But… But I’m late for the party!” The guy was really starting to annoy the hell out of me, “Why don’t you pull over and I’ll have a nice officer come and help.” Yeah, right to jail, you moron, driving while intoxicated is against the law. “Okay, thanks.” “My pleasure and have a great Halloween.”

Downing a handful of Tylenol, I answered another call and could hear people screaming blue bloody murder. “9-1-1 emergency, what is your emergency? Hello?”
An out-of-breath woman cried, “We need the cops. My three brothers are fighting over the candy corn.” Not quite sure I had heard her correctly, I repeated, “They’re fighting over candy?” There was a loud crash and the woman shrieked, “Omigod! They just knocked the wicked witch out the window, please hurry.” I quickly typed the information in. “Ma’am does any of your brothers have a weapon?” The woman shouted, “What kind of stupid question is that?” One I need answered, sweetie. “Ma’am, I need to know if any of your brothers are armed with a weapon.” She huffed, “Just get someone out here before Rex gets his chain saw started.” “Chain saw? Hello?” The line was dead. The moral to this story is; the family that fights together gets to go to jail together.

Some citizens of our fair cities have absolutely no idea of what an officer can or cannot do. They aren’t plumbers, electricians, alligator wrestlers (don’t ask) or allowed to shoot your neighbor’s noisy Darth Vader carousel. Give your poor overworked 9-1-1 dispatchers a break and don’t call unless you have a real emergency. And no, we won’t haul away your sixty pound carved pumpkin or help you take down your decorations. Anyone have any chocolate?


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