Flash Fiction by Kaci Rigney
Slouching on the couch, stress burns and blurs your vision as you focus on a familiar sound. Laughter echoes in the hall.
Scratching outside the door, like your favorite dog, they call to you, “Let us in.”
You love them and hate them at the same time. You want to; the desire is there—the excitement, the thrill calls. But you know the guilt, the anguish, the self-loathing that results. Do something else. Get your mind off the whispered enticements.
“It’s just what you need.”
“It’ll feel good.”
“Come on, who could it hurt?”
Before you know it, you’re at the door and staring at the dingy white paint, listening, wavering. Turning, you sit with your back against it—the pull strong.
“Should I?”
“Yessss!” The excitement palpable.
“No,” a compassionate voice says.
You look at the doorknob, waffling.
“Come on, let us in. We know what you crave.”
You feel consumed with desire. You get up and put your hand on the knob.
“Yes, yes.”
A whisper. You hear your name. Then, the kind voice says, “Read it.”
“No, don’t read it! You want to play!” urgently, they call out. “Don’t listen to him. You need us.”
You walk to the table and pick up the book. You know where to find it—near the beginning.
“Did he really say that? Come with us,” they say in alluring tones.
You open it to the beginning and turn the first page and the second, then look at the door.
“Please read it,” he says again.
You stare at the door, book in hand. The struggle is great. You look down at the book—the words stare you in the face.
“…sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
Text © Kaci Rigney
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