Water is a Wine Sandwich (2 min)
Life is peanut butter and jelly on rye on a plate of glass. Thimbles full of oak resin and cantaloupes filled with mice. Find the key, find the lock, find the way out. Hanging in baskets and in broom cupboards. Hangers are people and water is a wine sandwich. He is our savior, the sandwich maker.
A Thief Breaks into a House, but Then Encounters the Owner of the House with a Gun – 4 lines of dialogue that determine who lives and dies (1 min)
“Mister ClownFace, I would put that down and walk away.”
“You’re the one with the shotgun, Girlie.”
“Yes. I. am.”
“What if I do-“
Second attempt at above prompt:
“Hey Mister, watcha doin’?”
“Holy shit Junior, put down the gun!”
“We play cowboys ‘n injuns. You the injun.”
“Oh, God, no!”
Second attempt fleshed out later with more time:
“Hey Mister, watcha doin’?”
Jeremy sighed heavily and turned to the source of the voice with a huge, forced grin on his face.
“Oh hey Little Man! I’m just picking up a few things for your folks, what are you doing out of bed this late-“
Jeremy’s grin faltered as he saw the pistol in the little boy’s hand. It was matte black and stood out in stark relief against his baby blue, dinosaur pajamas. Solid and weighing down the toddler’s wrist at an awkward angle, Jeremy knew in an instant that it was real.
“Where did you get that?”
The boy looked momentarily confused, his sleep crusted eyes finally following Jeremy’s gaze down to the weapon in his own hand. He lifted the gun so that the muzzle was pointing in Jeremy’s direction though the gun was on its side.
“Daddy keeps it in the night drawer in his bed room in case he hears noises at night. I heard noises but Daddy was asleep, so I got it for the noises.” The little boy smiled ear to ear but then his face turned serious. “Mommy doesn’t like it,” he whispered loudly. “’Brett, for God sakes at least keep it unloaded!’” the toddler mimicked in a falsetto voice. “’What good is an unloaded gun Martha?’” he finished trying to make his voice sound deep and manly.
Jeremy swallowed hard, his epiglottis catching painfully as panic bubbled up from his chest. The silver, the laptop, and the cell phone in his pack all but forgotten, Jeremy’s eyes were drawn to the open window in the den to his left.
“Well, you can go put it back now. I’ll wait here and…and then maybe we can play a game or something when you come back?”
The boy’s grin returned but there was something cold about it that made Jeremy’s knees go weak.
“We can play now. I wanna play cowboys and injuns. You’re the injun.
“No, Kid, I-“
“Bang!”