Lynn's Story: Suspense

Dearest Lynn,

I don’t know how else to tell you this so I will just come straight out and say it. I don’t want to be with you anymore. I found someone else. She makes my pulse race and my knees weak. I still love you – I always will. I value our friendship more than you could ever know. I will keep in touch.

Stanley

Lynn couldn’t believe her eyes. Was this seriously a breakup letter from a man she wasn’t ever really with?! Okay, the honesty was admirable however unnecessary. Lynn scooped up the letter and started folding it into an origami crane. She figured she may as well make good use of the paper. Green living appeared be a trend that wasn’t going away soon. Paper crane in one hand and socks in the other, Lynn headed to the bathroom to get ready for work. While she primped and preened in front of the mirror she thought more and more about Stanley. At first she was angry – how dare Stan assume she even cared enough to need an explanation? And it was a lame explanation at that. Lynn deserved so much more. But did she really? At that moment Lynn realized she really truly didn’t care. Of course her ego was a smidge bruised but it wasn’t anything she couldn’t get beyond. She hadn’t really invested much into the “relationship” and she definitely hadn’t expected anything to come from it.

Lynn blotted her lipstick and grabbed her handbag on the way out the apartment door. As she was walking to her car Lynn realized she was still carrying Stan’s paper crane. She smiled a little and said out loud to the crane “well I suppose the least I can do is take you to work with me and send you through the shredder. Would you like that?” This only made Lynn smile more as she realized how crazy she must sound. It had become habit lately to talk to her self and find amusement in the little things. Lynn climbed into her Nissan, pulled the car door shut, tossed the paper crane onto the seat beside her, and jammed the key into the ignition. As Lynn drove to work she made a mental grocery list –bread, soda, cat food…

“You are so calm”



What the hell was that? Lynn slammed on her breaks, pulled the Nissan to the side of the road and looked in the backseat. Nobody was there, so who had said those words?

“You showed him its easy come, easy go”

Lynn couldn’t believe it. She had finally lost her last bit of sense. Lynn caught movement to her side and noticed the paper crane was slowly turning on the passenger seat to face her. Its lavender wings lifted up into a pointy pose and the creases deepened to make the once beautiful creation look sharp. Lynn was scared but she put her hand on the seat in front of the crane so it could climb on.

“Stanley?” she asked it. The voice came again “Yes” it hissed in a whisper. Lynn couldn’t believe she was talking to the crane when she said “What about Stanley? It’s not a big deal. I didn’t love him. Of course it was easy come, easy go.” At those words the paper crane lifted up into the air and circled Lynn’s head bellowing “No, but he left you – like all the others! He took you for granted and he left you. He had to be punished. He needed to know it isn’t so easy. You showed him Lynn, you showed him!”

Lynn didn’t like the direction this conversation was taking. She’d gone from talking to herself to talking to a paper crane that was feeding her homicidal bullshit. ‘Poor Stanley’, Lynn repeated over and over again in her head. Yet she didn’t understand those words because Stanley was as far from a pity as anyone she’d ever met. Stanley, her sweet Stanley was in bed at the apartment sleeping soun – oh dear God. It all flooded back to Lynn.

Lynn had caught Stanley leaving the letter on the dining room table this morning. He had stood silently while she read it - she wouldn’t move away from the apartment door to let him leave. They had fought and she had cried. Her heart was broken, her life over with each word she had read. How else did he expect her to react? Of course she was defeated – she’d given so much of her life and time to Stanley. He knew she would freak, that’s why he had been trying to sneak out in the wee hours of the morning. She had known then and there that she couldn’t let Stan go. He had made her promises and she intended to make him keep those promises.

Lynn pushed the gas pedal of the Nissan to the floor and sped back to the apartment. Oh Stanley oh Stanley oh Stanley. Please let the memories be bad dreams. Please tell me the crane is wrong. Please be alright. What did I do, what did I do?

Lynn pulled into her usual parking spot and slammed the car into park. She jumped out of the car and ran off without even closing the car door. Lynn could hear the paper crane laughing, cackling at her from the passenger seat. Up the stairs and down the hall Lynn fumbled with her key in the apartment door. She froze as she crossed the threshold. The apartment looked the same as when she left but now the air felt thick. Lynn couldn’t breathe as she headed into the bedroom where she prayed she would find Stanley. She found him. On the bed. Not moving. Lynn leaned over the bed to get a closer look, to see if Stan was breathing. She hovered a few seconds unable to see in the dark. Suddenly Stanley rolled over and gave a little start “Lynn! That’s the third time this month that I’ve woken up to find you standing over me like this. What’s the deal!? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” Lynn exhaled and about fainted at the sight and sound of Stanley alive and well. Then Lynn thought back – had she done this before? Stanley said third time, what does that mean? Lynn kissed Stan on the head, said she was sorry and ran out the door to her Nissan. She was in complete confusion the entire ride to work. Had she imagined the whole morning? What about the letter from Stanley? She had seen it! Oh – and heard it too. Lynn pulled into work and started digging through the car looking for the lavender paper crane. She couldn’t find it anywhere. If only she could find the stupid crane she could prove to herself that at least part of the morning was real. Lynn needed the proof. But the paper crane was nowhere to be seen.

End Note: I’ve been watching way too many scary movies lately where the man is the nutcase (I am THE biggest horror/suspense fan). It got me thinking about all the movies where the female is the one off her rocker – like Fatal Attraction, Basic Instinct and Single White Female. This is my story of the crazy girlfriend. I’d wanted to try pure fiction for some time and what better opportunity to do it than the 30/30 challenge?!