The old steel pocket watch was scuffed and scratched, but she loved it. It reminded her of days when she and her love would sit at the cool edge of the slow moving Oneleaf River, their heads leaned together as they giggled and tried to count the minnows. He had given her his grandfather’s watch on a day just like that. Now the watch was a comfort to her on days like this. Days when they barely spoke, the animosity so tangible she could reach up and snatch it out of the air. Now she sat alone in her office, laughter but an echo in her minds eye, while the desk lamp cast a shaded light over the watch as she turned it in her fingers. She felt nostalgic while she indulged in the metallic rattle and click of the watch cover as she carefully popped it open. Immediately her heart pulled at the sight of the watch’s face, and she snapped the lid closed again. Then a knock came at the door, and her heart jolted her ribcage as it somersaulted in her chest.
“What?” She snapped. “Time to talk.” Came his voice from the other side. They hadn’t spoken since this morning when they’d argued over something insignificant while the kettle was left to scream in the background. “Fine. Come in.” She said, resigned. He came in briskly, his lips tight and his gaze pointed enough to jab her in the chest. As he stood in front of the closed door, arms crossed tight, his eyes fell to the watch. “Mike called again.” He said as he stared at the reflection of light on the marked metal. “Great. Did he leave a message?” “No idea.” He said indifferently. “Well, it’s not hard to take a message!” She spat. “I didn’t feel like taking your lovers messages in my own home.” He shrugged as if it was inconsequential and pushed his wavy brown hair from his forehead. “He is not my lover. I don’t know how many more times I can tell you that.” She squeezed the watch in her thin fingers. “Every other night you’re with him until 10 o’clock, midnight. It’s indecent. You could so easily end it, then we could both be happy.” “That’s really easy for you to say. I need a friend. I’m the one who’s alone.” “What are you going on about?” “All you do is work.” “Oh, get off it, you know I need to work.” He waved his hand in the air dismissively. She could feel her face getting hot. Her fingers began to shake as she clutched the watch desperately. “By the way, I’ve been meaning to mention, I want my watch back.” Her eyes began to sting. “You gave this to me as a gift. It’s mine now. You can’t have it back. Sorry.” Her lip trembled. His jaw was set as firm as ever and his normally blue eyes looked a steely grey. “What’s the matter? You need it to keep track of your dates with Mike, I suppose.” He leaned against the door and raised an eyebrow. She wanted to smack the smirk off his mouth. “I need it to remind me...” She smeared the gathering tears away from her blonde lashes. Her focus darted down to the watch. “Remind you…?” “Remind me of the days when you actually gave a shit.” Her fingers had turned white and dark purple-red where they clung to the watch. “So I’m an asshole because you’re a cheating—…” He stopped abruptly. Her attention snapped back to his face. “Come on, no point in holding back now.” She glared straight into his eyes, unwavering in her contempt of his feigned respect. “Never mind.” “You know…I wouldn’t need Mike’s friendship if you payed more attention to me, instead of your dead end job. How many years have you been kissing ass, hoping for a raise?” “Maybe I wouldn’t need to absorb myself in work if you didn’t spend every day bitching, eating, and crying. Get some self respect. It’s not attractive behavior.” She stopped and stared at him for a long time. Her whole body trembled and her eyelids were heavily weighted with realizations brought about by cruel words. She felt like she might drown. “Oh.” She said. She stood up and crossed the room. He tightened the cross of his arms and leaned away from her as she approached. With each step she took toward him, she turned the watch over in her fingers, trying to memorize the feeling of having it in her hand. The weight of the metal, the clink of the latch release, the smell of dirt and old steel, the pattern of marks that tracked history all over the surface of time. “Here.” She said as she handed him the watch. He took it silently and then moved away from the door as she pushed past him into the hallway. She disappeared into the bedroom. He flipped the cover open and looked down at the watch. His triumphant smirk dissipated as he saw a crack in the face. The pocket watch had stopped ticking, the arms were silent and still. It no longer kept time.
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What?Short works of creative fiction. When?
July 2018
Where?
All
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