Fiction · Short Stories

Some Day…

Little stabs of jealousy struck Cody as he stood at the corner and watched Josh and Sam cycle their latest acquisition around the neighbourhood park with such glee,

He envied how they always got the latest and best toys and momentarily, he felt sad and angry that poverty kept his mama from buying any of such things for him. He was tired of their scrounging for food, for hand-me-downs and their broken television.

From past experience, he knew not to ask them if he could join them because they would only laugh and make fun of him. Last time when they were flying a kite and he came closer to watch, Sam made fun of his ill-fitting clothes and oversized trainers and he had walked away red in the face and ashamed.

He really wanted to fit in and he was tired of feeling out of place, but what could a ten-year old do? Maybe if his dad hadn’t died, they wouldn’t be so poor with his mother juggling several jobs. He hoped mama was right in saying that things would get better some day.

© Jacqueline

Thank you, Dorothy, for the photo prompt and PJ for hosting.

 

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Fiction · Short Stories

Hurting – Fiction in Five Sentences

Image result for images of a sad child and a dog

Tears ran down the bridge of Jane’s little nose and fell on Captain.

Huddled near her best friend she tried to drown out their screaming voices.

She never liked it when they fought and they seemed to do it more and more.

Dad would storm out and disappear for days and mum would go round the bend all teary and mad.

She wished she was back at her gran’s house.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Fiction · Short Stories

The Other Dream…

As the pile of freshly felled tree trunks grew, so did Theo’s stress grow. The cycle just never seemed to stop. He truly didn’t mind the work, not in the least, but it also didn’t hold much of his interest.

Though he found the art of turning the logs into different purposes satisfying, at the same time, he felt a deep dissatisfaction with his life. After high-school graduation, he had wanted to proceed to college and pursue his dreams of becoming a Civil Engineer, but that thought had simply upset his dad.

His great-grandpa down to his dad were woodcutters and he was expected to be satisfied carrying on with the family business of logging. It’s been three years since graduation, he wanted to bring up the conversation of going back to college again, but the time never seemed right – there were bank loans to repay and dad’s health had taken a poor turn.

With each passing day, the displeasure simply weighed him down. He knew that he was called to be more than a lumberjack which was what life currently offered him.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

In response to the FFAW photo prompt above. Thank you, Loretta, for the photo and Priceless Joy for this enchanting platform

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Fiction · Short Stories

Sting Operation

Amanda chose the darker corner of the restaurant as her spot to sit and make her observations without appearing incongruous.

Multiple aromas from steaming bowls of rice, seafood, soy sauce and the medley of food made her stomach grumble, but she was reluctant to indulge because she had to keep focused. Maybe just a well-selected platter of prawns and vegetables would suffice, she thought.

The sunny outer appearance of the popular Won Ton Chinese restaurant belied the recent seamy story making the rounds.

Rumour is that beneath the facade of the restaurant lay an underbelly of human trafficking, prostitution, and drug rings.

As an undercover cop, being part of a sting operation took months of careful and diligent planning.

Most times, it involved a lot of danger, learning the smattering bits of a language or two, but she wouldn’t have it any different.

She enjoyed the excitement that her job brought.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

InLinkz

Thank you, Gina, for this week’s photo and my lady P.J. for hosting us.

Fiction · Short Stories

Intrusion…

Something was wrong, but Cybil’s mind felt as if a fine-tooth comb had scraped over it.

This was her fifth night on Koala Island, attending the annual conference on human science.

From the onset, something felt out of place with the serene surroundings. Her room always yet felt as if some presence shared the space with her.

She had searched the drawers to satisfy her thoughts that nothing was hiding in there, yet the discomfort stuck.

Now she was beginning to forget what she was saying in the midst of a sentence. It had been totally mortifying to forget her name during an introduction. Thankfully, the program would end in two days.

Sinking into the soft mattress and staring up at the orb-like shaped ceiling with pupils, her focused gaze saw pin dots of lens rotating.

Rising for closer inspection, the orb opened noiselessly and two funny looking humanoids appeared with lightning speed before she could squeak.

Mesmerized, all she felt before sinking into inky oblivion was the touch of a cold object at the base of her neck.

InLinkz

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Thank you, Nonnaci,  for the photo and Priceless Joy for hosting this charming platform where we unleash our stories:-)


Below is my first just published Poetry Book “Out of the silent breath” which is available on Amazon and Smashwords.

When you buy my book, you support me in an invaluable manner.

‘A Richly Layered and Passionate Read.’ Jan Cliff

Out of the silent breath

Fiction · Friday Fiction in Five Sentences · Short Stories

The wanting…Friday fiction in five sentences.

She was just tired of being rejected and tired of feeling hungry. No one wanted to employ a disturbed woman, no job lasted long enough.

She was tired of living and feeling like a slob and simply wanted to feel good and look good like everyone else.

The handout that she received was barely anything to get by, that the thought of living and walking the streets began to look appealing, but she needed the right clothes to attract customers.

Stepping into the changing stall, she layered up on several items of the boutiques clothing and headed for the exit.

The shrill beep of the alarm sent the security scurrying forward as they matched her into a room for further investigation.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha


Below is my first just published Poetry Book “Out of the silent breath” which is available on Amazon and Smashwords.

When you buy my book, you support me in an invaluable manner.

 

She is amazing at describing love and life in her poems. She creates such beautiful images with her words. Truly, she is a talented writer and I’m so excited to have her poetry book and to continue reading through it.

 

Out of the silent breath

Creative Writing · Fiction · Short Stories · Writer's Quote Wednesday

To become a fledgling…Writers quote Wednesday writing challenge.

“The phoenix must burn to emerge.” Janet Fitch

Masters body sat in the big black armchair frozen in time, but his thoughts were still razor sharp. He sat in his comatose state, waiting for the rebirth from his ancient self into a fledgling of a boy.

The pains that he had cruelly inflicted on others ripped through his veins with piercing intensity, that each drop of rebirth serum snarled at him, yelling in anger as it slowly trickled through veins that were on fire.

He was combusting from the heat that engulfed his being, but the voice of ‘She’ ignored his mindful pleas to be set free unchanged.

Her ethereal blue eyes held him calmly in place even as her thoughts loudly reverberated in his mind.

“You must be patient she said. For you can’t achieve that which you seek until you shed your ancient skin of cynicism and look with eyes reborn through the depths of your soul.”

The story above is in response to this week’s WQWWC’s prompt ‘rebirth.’ A word that I find interesting and personally inspiring.

It’s a word that tells me different things. It tells me that I have to let go of some old vision and allow my inner eye’s to be renewed with new sight.

It tells me that sometimes out of my own ashes, I can rise to find myself over and over again as long as I believe, for as long as I am breathing.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha


Below is my first just published Poetry Book “Out of the silent breath” which is available on Amazon and Smashwords.

When you buy my book, you support me in an invaluable manner.

From the very first poem, “Dreams,” this book captivates with passionate and perceptive words. Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha captures a broad expanse of the human experience in this book of richly layered poems.

Out of the silent breath

Fiction · Short Stories

Haunted!…

His wife’s cool hands on his shoulders halted Sanders from further destruction as he took another swing at the sculpture with his club.

He couldn’t count the number of times the sculpture taunted him, taking on fiendish proportions in a nightmare until he smashed it to pieces and then made a new one from scratch, once again resembling his tomboyish, young sister with her sweet looking face.

No matter what everyone said, no matter that his mother never openly expressed her blame, he held himself responsible.

What if he always wondered?

What if he had accompanied her to the cinema that fateful night many years ago as their mother had suggested?

Would she be alive now? Would that have deterred the monster who kidnapped her, that by the time her body was found, she was desecrated in ways beyond words?

Sanders was perpetually haunted by these thoughts and it was worse that the monster was still out there.

Unknown and roaming free.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

InLinkz

Thank you, Phylor,  for the photo and Priceless Joy for hosting this charming platform where we unleash our stories:-)


Below is my first just published Poetry Book “Out of the silent breath” which is available on Amazon and Smashwords.

When you buy my book, you support me in an invaluable manner.

 

She is amazing at describing love and life in her poems. She creates such beautiful images with her words. Truly, she is a talented writer and I’m so excited to have her poetry book and to continue reading through it.

Out of the silent breath

Fiction · Friday Fiction in Five Sentences · Short Stories

A little too late…Friday fiction in five sentences.

He was so mad he couldn’t wait to teach both of them a lesson or twenty.

Furiously he swerved round the bend and simultaneously picked up his phone and took a second look at the incriminating picture.

In split seconds, he failed to see the puppy, the boy, and the mother…

Slammed brakes, screeching tires, a dogs yelp, the mixed cries of boy and mother as they watch their beloved Sandy struggle…

…The angry haze lifted from Tony’s eyes.


Below is my first just published Poetry Book “Out of the silent breath” which is available on Amazon and Smashwords.

When you buy my book, you support me in an invaluable manner.

 

She is amazing at describing love and life in her poems. She creates such beautiful images with her words. Truly, she is a talented writer and I’m so excited to have her poetry book and to continue reading through it.

Out of the silent breath