For this unit we practiced creating stories around pictures shown in class. After some practice we were told to find a picture and base a three page story off of it.
My picture is of a Flag Marshal at Laguna Seca Raceway, taken during ALMS weekend. Surprisingly he looked just like Santa Clause. It then occurred to me "what does Santa do in the off season?". My story then lead to what it is now. A man who believes he is Santa Clause, he lives with his sister and spends most of his day making toys out of things he finds in his house. Then at night he breaks into peoples houses and leaves his creations from earlier that day, in the persons house. The Story ends with my character being arrested. Hope you enjoy.
Christmas All The Time
“Nic, I’m home” her voice rang through out the house. Silence. “Hey…where are you? I come baring Kung pow chicken?”, still nothing.
As she looked for him she couldn’t help but think of how she had gotten into this position in the first place. She remembered it clearly; she was seven when she moved in with the Klauses. Her parents now with a fully-grown son had noticed a void after he had moved out. So what do you do when you are lonely?
She paused on the stairway as the house made that ridiculous creaking sound which was something a kin to nails on a chalkboard. Speaking aloud to answer her own question “ Apparently, you adopt”. Rolling her eyes she went back to her nostalgic daydream.
As a child she was happy. Her newfound parents loved her and she had a brother who had well surpassed his teen years. Someone who had gone through not just one, but two, midlife crises. Could you even have that many? Well, if anyone could it would be him, at 42 you can do pretty much anything and blame it on your advancing years to that hole in the ground made just for you.
“Where is he?” she muttered to herself as she reached the attic. She pushed the door open with a sigh of relief. “Nic there’s Chinese for dinner, comme’on before it gets cold”
“Okay, but can I finish first Scarlet?” Nic looked at her with pleading eyes.
She took a moment to consider this “Uh, sure. Just eat something later, k?”
He nodded in agreement, eyes going back to the work that was in front of him. He was excited, working day in day out wanting every detail to be perfect. Working as a flag marshal during the day and inventing by night, it made him feel like a superhero with a hidden identity. He had a purpose in this world; bringing joy to others was a passion.
As he packed his duffle bag full of his creations he couldn’t help but smile to himself. “I’m gonna make someone happy, I’m gonna make someone happy” he chanted as he danced around the room. The clock read 11:34 pm; he would be leaving at 12:00 on the dot.
He sat down watching the clock, all there was left to do was wait. He hummed out of boredom ”dum de, dum dum..dum”. Wait wait wait wait; 11:58; wait wait wait; 11:59; wait wa… “All right its time to get on a moving” he said grabbing the duffle and heading for the door. The door shut as the clock struck 12:00.
Heading out into the dark street, he knew where he was going. He knew what he was doing.
“Scarlet will be so proud, and then we will be friends with the neighbor people again” he sprinted towards the house diagonal from their own, the one with the willow tree. Right to the window that was always opened at 6 pm and closed around 10 am due to the lack of air conditioning in these hot summer months.
He knew how this went, throw in the duffle bag first, then right leg first over the windowsill, now the left. He was in.
“I know I will leave the gifts under the Bonsai tree, just like last time”. He dropped the duffle. Crash. The sound echoed through the house. Unzipping the duffle he pulled out the gifts one by one. “Scarlet will be so proud” he said softly to himself, placing the gifts gently under the tree.
“HEY, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE AGAIN?” A tall man yelled, running down the stairs.
“I was…uh, just…all it is, is….” Nic said, nervous now, panicking. Where was Scarlet when he needed her?
The mans voice had lowered again, speaking with a death glare in his eyes, “The police are on their way, and my wife is going to get your sister. There was a hard nock on the door. The man started walking towards the door, turning once to say, “Stay put”.
When Scarlet reached the house diagonal from her own she first noticed the myriad of cop cars parked under the expansive willow tree. And Nic handcuffed inside one. The neighbors were talking to the police, using exaggerated hand gestures. God they were nutty people.
She looked up at the cool night sky and remembered how they got here. She felt bad about what she had done years ago. Right after their parents had died Nic was being extra clingy and talking about what he wanted from Santa Clause that year at Christmas. She just snapped, and told him the truth. Since then Nic has believed that he is Santa, since there was none he figured that he could fill the empty void and be some one important, or at least that’s what his therapist said. It was a sweet gesture…except for the breaking into people’s houses part.
Lost in her own thoughts she whispered, “ I don’t know what to do any more”. And with that, she took a deep breath in, looking up into the midnight sky.
