Congratulations !
You have been awarded points.
Thank you for !
- Story Listed as: Fiction For Adults
- Theme: Science Fiction
- Subject: Horror / Scary
- Published: 07/04/2015
Winter Playground (Chapter one.)
Born 1989, M, from Sydney, AustraliaWinter Playground
Chapter one
Jack woke sweating. It had been another bumpy sleep, full of horrid thoughts. Memories he was trying to forget, but knew he can’t. The smell had followed him into the woken world, a charcoal stench lingering, reminding Jack that he could not hide from himself.
Naomi lay fast asleep, nestled on the other side of the soft hotel bed. Grateful that his abrupt transition back into the real world hadn’t woken her, Jack stood up and adorned his Levi’s and green camo jacket. The dark man staring back at him looked tired, run down… angry. Jack forced a smile. Illuminated by the soft light of the tv, his dark reflection in the tall hotel mirror appeared sinister.
It will be alright.
Jack was happy.
Tired, on edge, but happy.
Nightmares had this effect. What he had dreamt, he didn’t find it strange that his emotions were running high. Jack just needed air. A couple late night drinks would fix things. Closing the hotel door, Jack headed through the hallway, in the elevator and to the bright, yet very country hotel bar.
It was late, or considering how you perceive time, you may say it was early. His Tissot watch read 1.03am. Lucky for Jack, the bar at the Southern Western stayed open till 3am every Saturday.
Jack found he was alone, except for the bartender, a slender, blonde girl no older than twenty; the place was empty and echoed with the soft ramblings of a country music player’s broken heart.
“Hi Jack.” She said happily, “You’re back.”
Jack took a seat at the bar. “Yes, needed a beer”
“You and me both. Where’s Naomi?”
“Asleep.”
“Oh.” She replied, smiling a polite smile.
Jack knew of what that “Oh” meant. A guy, walking into a bar at one in the morning is not the picture of the well-adjusted middle age man. He was embarrassed to be that guy, but sleeping was no longer possible. Like Naomi, his dreams haunted him, leaving him in an occasional insomniac limbo. If Naomi had woken up and wanted a drink after dreaming of that scumbag of an ex-husband Darren, Jack wouldn’t have stopped her. She wouldn’t though. She’d want a hug and a shower. Still, it was no use dragging Naomi into his problems.
There wasn’t a problem.
It was a poor sleep.
“Yeah, I was restless. Those bloody snow machines outside kept waking me. Naomi could sleep through an atom bomb.” Jack laughed, “Can I get a Bud Light please?”
She nodded, smiling sweetly. “Sure thing.”
The perspiring glass touched Jack’s fingers as it rested on the napkin. “We starting a tab?”
“Yeah.” Jack replied.
The dreams came once a blue moon. Still, when they did, he couldn’t deny he turned into a wreck for a few hours. That was it. Once every couple of months he would need space, get over it and continue his life with Naomi. In fact, because it happened in the early hours of the morning, it hardly effected things. Naomi slept, he went for a walk and life continued.
Taking large gulps of beer he relaxed and over time drowned out the unpleasantness. He loved life mostly. Yeah, sometimes in the past had sent him mad, clawing for a bottle of bourbon every second he could, leaving him a drunken mess. But long gone were those days. Naomi had changed Jack. He felt he had become a happier, nicer and a more carefree person. He no longer needed booze to cope with day to day life.
This night was different.
It wasn’t a coping mechanism, just a reward.
Jack could have run a shower, watched tv, or to avoid waking Naomi headed out for a brisk walk. But, no longer having a dependency on alcohol, he gave himself a break. It was a holiday for goodness sake.
“So what ya doing today Jack?” said the old, burly hotel Manager, pulling up a stool and motioning for a beer for each of them.
“Naomi and I will ski at Lake McGuinness.”
Glasses filled, the blonde bartender walked to the register at the end of the bar, opened it and counted. “You’re not closing up Katie?” asked the Manager.
“Of course not Bill, just counting these tills so I’m not here for ever after close.”
“That’s my Girl.” He replied laughing, his round, jovial face wobbling with each chuckle. “Lake McGuinness eh? I haven’t skied there for a couple years.”
“You don’t say?”
“Yeah, done my knee in getting off that darn North lift. I am more of a cross country skier now. It’s a nice hill though. Should be a fun day. Lots of snowfall lately.”
“Hope so.”
“So why did you come here. Winderton isn’t a huge tourist hotspot. It’s picturesque, but small and freezing as a nun’s nipple.” He paused taking a large swig of beer and exhaling, ahhh, “why not a commercial ski hill? This country has enough of them.”
Jack laughed. “We came this way because Naomi has family close. It made sense to hire a car and stop by a town that had a ski hill.”
“That makes sense. Plus the strippers here won’t charge you like Montreal or BC.” He chuckled again and gulped the rest of his beer. “I’m joking Jack.” He said noticing the look of surprise on Jack’s face. “I’m going to head home. Katie, get Jack another beer and put whatever he has on my tab. See ya Jack, have a good one eh.”
He smiled and tapped jacks shoulder before leaving.
“Thanks.”
Jack heard Mr Whinston’s engine revving. People in the sticks always had character. He smiled and soaked in the atmosphere. Leaving the hustle and bustle of a major city was refreshing.
Naomi stretched her arm across the dishevelled blanket searching for Jack. Not awake, but perceptive, a spark of panic jabbed her in the stomach as her fingers examined the empty bed sheets. It was alarming waking up by herself. She felt safe in his arms.
Jack crept into the bed as soft as he could.
The room although dark, was still visible against the tv light. Jack and Naomi both were believers of sleeping with the television on, so it never bothered either of them that the room would not be immersed into total darkness. Who wants to be in total darkness? Far from drunk, but not sober Jack fell asleep again with surprising ease and slept well. Naomi was wide awake the second he had slammed on the mattress. Why he had left and the fact he smelt of beer was okay. They were on vacation and he deserved a break. It had been so long since the old Jack would drink a bottle to bury his sorrow and return home stumbling. Naomi was proud of Jack, a man’s man, for letting her help him defeat his alcoholism. Truth be told, she was proud of herself for this.
She had tried with Darren. She really had.
Great deal of good that done…
What an absolute arsehole he became….
Outside the hotel room a truck was parking. He stared at the flickering light emitted on the curtains. Time moved slowly yet he couldn’t deny how old he felt. His beard, grey and shaggy matched his dull and greasy hair. It took a toll on him. Yet what choice did he have?
The sun rose against the mountains creating amber in the skyline. Naomi sat by the window taking pictures on her phone.
“More sunrise photo’s eh?”
“You know me babe. If there’s a sunrise, there’s a photo.” She replied smiling.
Jack returned the smile and wiped at the lenses of his reading glasses with a tissue “What’s the temperature outside today?”
“Minus twelve.” Naomi answered taking the glasses out of his hand and getting micorfibre cloth from her purse. “You will scratch your lenses.”
“I know… minus twelve eh? Not too bad…” He replied, rubbing at his chiselled jaw.
“Wind chill up to minus twenty-six though.”
Jack frowned. “Well, guess I’ll by freezing my testicles off then?”
Naomi laughed. “Jack, if you can withstand my mother’s icy remarks over Friday night dinner, I’m sure your testicles will live to see another day.”
Jack chuckled. “I hope you’re right.”
“I’m a girl. I’m always right.”
“Touche…”
“I’m going to have a shower…”
As Naomi undressed the scars on her stomach stuck out to Jack as they always did. Anger, hatred, what bastard would do that? The thought drifted from his mind he once more admired the figure of his naked wife standing in front of him. Naomi was a skinny girl, bony you could say. Still the contours of her body were still so feminine and appealing to Jack. Naomi didn’t have the square look ladies often got when they were so light. Her curves were there even if she couldn’t see it. She was a lady and had a ladies figure, but didn’t get fat as her friends had. On the later side of her thirties she never met the period in a girl’s life when you say, screw it, I will eat a whole pavlova. It wasn’t her. If she got fat, she’d be a wreck. But slender she saw bones. Self-conscious, Naomi often wore clothes that didn’t draw attention to her figure. Naomi was not a fan of her body, but it was her prominent cheekbones she hated most. She thought they made her horsey. Jack told her she looked a young Sarah Jessica Parker which he said as a compliment. Naomi thought otherwise and became ever more self-aware of her unique bone structure.
She is crazy, Jack knew. But crazy in a way that increased her cuteness. He tried his luck at dating a year before he met Naomi Jack found girls who knew they were pretty to be self-centred, vain, dumb and annoying. What matters if Naomi is self-conscious. He needs to tell her she is beautiful. And he did. Her body was perfection and the imperfections she spent hours in the morning hiding, kept him in awe every day they spent together.
Jack joined Naomi in the shower and felt lucky again.
Winter Playground (Chapter one.)(Michael Dartnell)
Winter Playground
Chapter one
Jack woke sweating. It had been another bumpy sleep, full of horrid thoughts. Memories he was trying to forget, but knew he can’t. The smell had followed him into the woken world, a charcoal stench lingering, reminding Jack that he could not hide from himself.
Naomi lay fast asleep, nestled on the other side of the soft hotel bed. Grateful that his abrupt transition back into the real world hadn’t woken her, Jack stood up and adorned his Levi’s and green camo jacket. The dark man staring back at him looked tired, run down… angry. Jack forced a smile. Illuminated by the soft light of the tv, his dark reflection in the tall hotel mirror appeared sinister.
It will be alright.
Jack was happy.
Tired, on edge, but happy.
Nightmares had this effect. What he had dreamt, he didn’t find it strange that his emotions were running high. Jack just needed air. A couple late night drinks would fix things. Closing the hotel door, Jack headed through the hallway, in the elevator and to the bright, yet very country hotel bar.
It was late, or considering how you perceive time, you may say it was early. His Tissot watch read 1.03am. Lucky for Jack, the bar at the Southern Western stayed open till 3am every Saturday.
Jack found he was alone, except for the bartender, a slender, blonde girl no older than twenty; the place was empty and echoed with the soft ramblings of a country music player’s broken heart.
“Hi Jack.” She said happily, “You’re back.”
Jack took a seat at the bar. “Yes, needed a beer”
“You and me both. Where’s Naomi?”
“Asleep.”
“Oh.” She replied, smiling a polite smile.
Jack knew of what that “Oh” meant. A guy, walking into a bar at one in the morning is not the picture of the well-adjusted middle age man. He was embarrassed to be that guy, but sleeping was no longer possible. Like Naomi, his dreams haunted him, leaving him in an occasional insomniac limbo. If Naomi had woken up and wanted a drink after dreaming of that scumbag of an ex-husband Darren, Jack wouldn’t have stopped her. She wouldn’t though. She’d want a hug and a shower. Still, it was no use dragging Naomi into his problems.
There wasn’t a problem.
It was a poor sleep.
“Yeah, I was restless. Those bloody snow machines outside kept waking me. Naomi could sleep through an atom bomb.” Jack laughed, “Can I get a Bud Light please?”
She nodded, smiling sweetly. “Sure thing.”
The perspiring glass touched Jack’s fingers as it rested on the napkin. “We starting a tab?”
“Yeah.” Jack replied.
The dreams came once a blue moon. Still, when they did, he couldn’t deny he turned into a wreck for a few hours. That was it. Once every couple of months he would need space, get over it and continue his life with Naomi. In fact, because it happened in the early hours of the morning, it hardly effected things. Naomi slept, he went for a walk and life continued.
Taking large gulps of beer he relaxed and over time drowned out the unpleasantness. He loved life mostly. Yeah, sometimes in the past had sent him mad, clawing for a bottle of bourbon every second he could, leaving him a drunken mess. But long gone were those days. Naomi had changed Jack. He felt he had become a happier, nicer and a more carefree person. He no longer needed booze to cope with day to day life.
This night was different.
It wasn’t a coping mechanism, just a reward.
Jack could have run a shower, watched tv, or to avoid waking Naomi headed out for a brisk walk. But, no longer having a dependency on alcohol, he gave himself a break. It was a holiday for goodness sake.
“So what ya doing today Jack?” said the old, burly hotel Manager, pulling up a stool and motioning for a beer for each of them.
“Naomi and I will ski at Lake McGuinness.”
Glasses filled, the blonde bartender walked to the register at the end of the bar, opened it and counted. “You’re not closing up Katie?” asked the Manager.
“Of course not Bill, just counting these tills so I’m not here for ever after close.”
“That’s my Girl.” He replied laughing, his round, jovial face wobbling with each chuckle. “Lake McGuinness eh? I haven’t skied there for a couple years.”
“You don’t say?”
“Yeah, done my knee in getting off that darn North lift. I am more of a cross country skier now. It’s a nice hill though. Should be a fun day. Lots of snowfall lately.”
“Hope so.”
“So why did you come here. Winderton isn’t a huge tourist hotspot. It’s picturesque, but small and freezing as a nun’s nipple.” He paused taking a large swig of beer and exhaling, ahhh, “why not a commercial ski hill? This country has enough of them.”
Jack laughed. “We came this way because Naomi has family close. It made sense to hire a car and stop by a town that had a ski hill.”
“That makes sense. Plus the strippers here won’t charge you like Montreal or BC.” He chuckled again and gulped the rest of his beer. “I’m joking Jack.” He said noticing the look of surprise on Jack’s face. “I’m going to head home. Katie, get Jack another beer and put whatever he has on my tab. See ya Jack, have a good one eh.”
He smiled and tapped jacks shoulder before leaving.
“Thanks.”
Jack heard Mr Whinston’s engine revving. People in the sticks always had character. He smiled and soaked in the atmosphere. Leaving the hustle and bustle of a major city was refreshing.
Naomi stretched her arm across the dishevelled blanket searching for Jack. Not awake, but perceptive, a spark of panic jabbed her in the stomach as her fingers examined the empty bed sheets. It was alarming waking up by herself. She felt safe in his arms.
Jack crept into the bed as soft as he could.
The room although dark, was still visible against the tv light. Jack and Naomi both were believers of sleeping with the television on, so it never bothered either of them that the room would not be immersed into total darkness. Who wants to be in total darkness? Far from drunk, but not sober Jack fell asleep again with surprising ease and slept well. Naomi was wide awake the second he had slammed on the mattress. Why he had left and the fact he smelt of beer was okay. They were on vacation and he deserved a break. It had been so long since the old Jack would drink a bottle to bury his sorrow and return home stumbling. Naomi was proud of Jack, a man’s man, for letting her help him defeat his alcoholism. Truth be told, she was proud of herself for this.
She had tried with Darren. She really had.
Great deal of good that done…
What an absolute arsehole he became….
Outside the hotel room a truck was parking. He stared at the flickering light emitted on the curtains. Time moved slowly yet he couldn’t deny how old he felt. His beard, grey and shaggy matched his dull and greasy hair. It took a toll on him. Yet what choice did he have?
The sun rose against the mountains creating amber in the skyline. Naomi sat by the window taking pictures on her phone.
“More sunrise photo’s eh?”
“You know me babe. If there’s a sunrise, there’s a photo.” She replied smiling.
Jack returned the smile and wiped at the lenses of his reading glasses with a tissue “What’s the temperature outside today?”
“Minus twelve.” Naomi answered taking the glasses out of his hand and getting micorfibre cloth from her purse. “You will scratch your lenses.”
“I know… minus twelve eh? Not too bad…” He replied, rubbing at his chiselled jaw.
“Wind chill up to minus twenty-six though.”
Jack frowned. “Well, guess I’ll by freezing my testicles off then?”
Naomi laughed. “Jack, if you can withstand my mother’s icy remarks over Friday night dinner, I’m sure your testicles will live to see another day.”
Jack chuckled. “I hope you’re right.”
“I’m a girl. I’m always right.”
“Touche…”
“I’m going to have a shower…”
As Naomi undressed the scars on her stomach stuck out to Jack as they always did. Anger, hatred, what bastard would do that? The thought drifted from his mind he once more admired the figure of his naked wife standing in front of him. Naomi was a skinny girl, bony you could say. Still the contours of her body were still so feminine and appealing to Jack. Naomi didn’t have the square look ladies often got when they were so light. Her curves were there even if she couldn’t see it. She was a lady and had a ladies figure, but didn’t get fat as her friends had. On the later side of her thirties she never met the period in a girl’s life when you say, screw it, I will eat a whole pavlova. It wasn’t her. If she got fat, she’d be a wreck. But slender she saw bones. Self-conscious, Naomi often wore clothes that didn’t draw attention to her figure. Naomi was not a fan of her body, but it was her prominent cheekbones she hated most. She thought they made her horsey. Jack told her she looked a young Sarah Jessica Parker which he said as a compliment. Naomi thought otherwise and became ever more self-aware of her unique bone structure.
She is crazy, Jack knew. But crazy in a way that increased her cuteness. He tried his luck at dating a year before he met Naomi Jack found girls who knew they were pretty to be self-centred, vain, dumb and annoying. What matters if Naomi is self-conscious. He needs to tell her she is beautiful. And he did. Her body was perfection and the imperfections she spent hours in the morning hiding, kept him in awe every day they spent together.
Jack joined Naomi in the shower and felt lucky again.
- Share this story on
- 8
COMMENTS (0)