Short Short Fiction

I had to come up with a short story UNDER 500 words. This was pretty difficult since I usually go over the word requirement by 500 words. The story had to have brevity and leave the reader with some sort of question. It also had to bring about some sort of emotional response in regards to the question. Let me know your thoughts.


Life Change

Nathaniel sat on his bed with his head held in shame in his hands. Sleeping had been impossible all night, and most of the morning he had been sick to his stomach with anticipation for what he had to do. Nathaniel raised his head and looked around the room. There were baseball trophies and medals proudly displayed on the wall along with several toys from his childhood that hadn’t been played with for years. His parents were adamant that he hold on to the “treasures” as a reminder of all of the great times in his life. As he looked at them, they served as a painful reminder that those days were over. He made his choice and he knew the only way he could go through with the next step in his life was telling his parents.

His whole life had been encompassed with following the teachings of the church and in pleasing his parents, but Nathaniel had made a decision that he felt he couldn’t turn back on. It was the only way to be the man he was meant to be. He hoped his parents and Heavenly Father could understand.

Nathaniel walked down the stairs to the living room, stopping on each step to look at the photographs that hung on the walls. From his first baby photo to his school pictures for each year, every step was a different milestone in his life. When he reached the last step, the photo was the current year’s school photograph. He no longer recognized the boy in the pictures.

Nathaniel walked into the living room where his parents were sitting quietly. His dad sat in his recliner holding his Bible in one hand and his notebook in the other, working on his sermon for Sunday, while Nathaniel’s mom sat solving her crossword puzzle from the day’s newspaper. A painting of Christ, which Nathaniel had always cherished, hung on the wall behind Nathaniel’s father. Christ’s eyes were painted in a way that seemed that they were always watching the viewer regardless of where they stood. Nathaniel usually felt at peace with Christ looking over him, but for the first time, Christ seemed to be looking away, leaving Nathaniel with a feeling of confirmation of the mistake he made in his life.

Nathaniel swallowed the giant lump in his throat and took a deep breath as he approached his parents. “Mom. Dad.”

They looked up at him and their smile brought memories of the pictures that hung along the stairwell, leaving Nathaniel dreaming he could go back to any of those memories. He hated the thought of their disapproval, but he had no choice. Not anymore. “I’m sorry, but we need to talk.”