| Here
are two more short-short stories from
English writer Jay Mandal Jay Mandal is from
Southern England. After grammar school, he joined a City bank and
worked in Europe. He’s written eighty short stories, fifty of which
have been published, and two novels. ‘Slubberdegullion’ and ‘A
Different Kind of Love’ are collections of short works, while ‘The
Dandelion Clock’ is a novel. Speakout magazine have published at least
one Mandal story in each issue, and his short stories have been
featured in popular publications such as Passport and Lookout.
Jay’s latest collection, The Loss of Innocence, is available from BeWrite Books and from the usual outlets |
| Flight by Jay Mandal Word Count 196 He remembered hearing about the fight or flight response when he was at school, and thinking neither was much use to him. The same was true now. The man with the tattoos was twice his size, so fighting was out of the question. Flight would have been a better option, even though he was no Lynford Christie, but the other man was blocking his way. “Excuse me,” Marc said. The man just stared back at him. Eye contact. Too much could be seen as a challenge. Marc looked away. “You’re out late,” the man said at last. “Yes.” “Been somewhere nice?” “A club.” “Which one?” the man shot back. “The Orchid.” A gay club. The other man smiled. “I thought so. Shouldn’t walk back on your own. Anything could happen. You could be mugged, beaten up …” He looked speculatively at Marc. “Or worse, a pretty boy like you. D’you live far?” Marc’s mouth went dry. He shook his head. “Let’s go, then.” In silence, Marc led the way through the deserted streets. “You don’t remember me, do you?” His captor smiled. “I’m the bouncer at The Orchid. Come on, then, let’s get you home safely.” The End |
| Advent by Jay Mandal Word Count 200 A candle, Joe thought, before remembering that the only ones he’d got were those stubby, scented ones. Of course, there were the Advent candles, but even he drew the line somewhere. A carrot, then? He could just see himself in Accident & Emergency with a carrot stuck up his -. His friends would never let him forget it. He looked around and saw his new toothbrush. It was red, so he wouldn’t get it muddled up with his old one. That would have to do. ******************************************************** Twenty minutes later, the doorbell rang. “Hi,” said Robert. “Hi. I thought you couldn’t make it tonight?” “My sister said it’d be OK as long as I was back to see the kids open their presents tomorrow morning.” He gave Joe a peck on the cheek and came in. ******************************************************** Later, in bed, Joe pleaded tiredness. “Tomorrow?” “Tomorrow,” Joe agreed. ******************************************************** Robert was up first the next day. “I’ve had a shower,” he said, coming back into the bedroom. “And I brushed my teeth. I hope you don’t mind.” “Which toothbrush did you use,” Joe said carefully. “Oh, don’t worry. I didn’t use the one in the tooth mug. I used the other one. The red one.” |
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