Welcome to the Short Story segment of WriteUp Cafe. Every month we would give a new theme based on which interested writers are invited to send in their entries. The theme could either be a small paragraph consisiting of 2 to 5 lines, a few unrelated words, a scenario or a simple picture. Read More
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Theme of the month for Sep 2009

NB. The theme for Sep 2009 is extended till end of Oct 2009.

A beach is the location, self doubt is the theme. A picture frame is an object that plays a part in the story.

Complete the story in not more than 2000 words.
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A pinch in the dark

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I rubbed my feet repeatedly against the mass of sand, which much more felt like millions of busy ants on my skin, in an attempt to ascertain my existence. Waking up from a bad dream when I was younger, I would pinch myself to make sure that the pitch darkness of my room was a reality, and that it wasn’t a daunting sequel to nightmares where ghouls would come out of the abyss and continue to choke the air out of me as my bi-nightly visitors usual did.

I am alone on this secluded beach, where I can see the waves and the gold of the sand, but I cannot hear a thing! No. That would be lying. I am alone, aside from the girl in the frame, and all I hear are my thoughts, which circle me stroking my hair as a mother would. My mother is dead. When she died, I pinched myself, and I felt tremendous pain. So, I knew that it was real, and that she was gone, and that I was stuck, stuck with his penis inside me every other night. See, he alternated with the ghouls; the nights when they would give me a break, he would come and do the haunting in their place. Sometimes, he would fall asleep inside me, and I would feel his spilt milk filling me up as if I were a bowl of Fruit Loops. No, actually it felt more like glue. You know the kind you get when you’re in primary school? Also equipped with a pair of safety-scissors, you craft something beautiful out of colorful paper so your parents could ouh and ah over it. Yeah, that kind of glue. I was glazed by my father’s glue, and he would call me by my mother’s name.

The girl in the frame is gorgeous. Red hair that flows down to her back, ocean blue eyes reminiscent of flying saucers; her lips are a natural red, plump like a berry ready to be plucked. She looks so much like me, down to the scar on her left collarbone. But, how can she be me? She looks so sure. I’m not sure about anything anymore. I can’t even hear the ocean, but it’s moving; I can’t even feel the air on my naked breasts.

The glass frame is in pieces! I took the picture out and threw it in the ocean; they’re both part of the same unreality. Jagged edges across my wrists, I see blood, but feel no pain. I feel no pain!

7 comments:

Wow! It's fantastic. :)
You should be very proud


I like the way you've narrated the whole thing but the story is seriously disturbing.
Well-written though :)


You know, I imagined something like this might come up? Ya, you've expressed yourself but it is a bit disturbing- I agree..but how else..hmm? do you get it off your chest? I mean, on a level one could read.. say an incident in the news in graphic detail..
shudder and understand it's just news..so, I just want to say my heart goes out-


Thanks for the comments, and for taking the time to read. With my short stories, I often want to bring to light a particular issue that most people ignore. Among other issues, this story is about a girl who is suffering of a form of psychosis. These people are often marginalised; at least in a Montreal context, we see some of them on the street begging for money. But rarely do people think, these people are suffering from something that they have no control over similar to someone suffering from cancer or another physical disease, with of course, emotional repurcussions.

"A pinch in the dark" is fiction, but incest and rape happen, and it's happened to people in my vicinity. So yes, granted, it is disturbing, but such is reality.

Kilauea Poetry, what do you mean it's just news? News happen to real people.


"A Pinch in the Dark" brilliant! Absolutely a well written piece. The reflection is neatly done to keep up with the pace of the story. Never a dull word read.

The reality of the story is sad as this does occur all too often in society. However, I would never describe another's pain as disturbing. Maybe the person causing the pain can be described as disturbing.

Well done! Salute.


beautiful story....very tight and well written


Lovely .... I have no word for this ....
This is sad but so damn true... We overlook such things all the time,eventually encouraging the maniacs involved..
they should be hanged publicly ...


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