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101 Word Short Stories

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Found and Lost

July 4, 2022 6 Comments

By Elizabeth Barton

A form in my periphery draws my eyes from the flight board, and I see…myself? An exact replica.

Impossible.

But in my core, I know it isn’t.

If she’s seen me, she doesn’t show it. She walks briskly, towing her suitcase. On a mission.

I need to follow her, but I’m stunned, motionless.

I’m jostled sideways as some phone-absorbed guy plows into me. “Sorry,” I say—pure reflex.

Glowering at me, he presses forward.

In those precious seconds, she vanished. Frantically, I scan the infinite branches of the concourse for the missing part of me barely realized, now gone again.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Derek says

    July 4, 2022 at 10:11 am

    I liked this story and the possibilities which it hinted at.

    Also if some lout in the pub spills your pint, the reflex is to say “sorry” so I know what you mean.

    Reply
  2. Valli Henry-Boldini says

    July 5, 2022 at 12:09 pm

    Interesting read which left me wondering where she went… could be a longer story…kudos…

    Reply
  3. Barry O'Farrell says

    July 5, 2022 at 8:20 pm

    I like this a lot. It feels like an experience.

    Reply
  4. Pamela says

    July 6, 2022 at 1:43 pm

    Reminds me a bit of Millicent Barnes, the main character in Rod Serling’s Mirror Image episode of Twilight Zone.
    Bravo! I enjoyed both.

    Reply
  5. Caroline says

    July 6, 2022 at 3:24 pm

    Intriguing story – really enjoyed it, especially ‘the infinite branches of the concourse.’

    Reply
  6. John Kirby says

    July 11, 2022 at 10:59 am

    Never happened to me.
    I’m amazed that you are able to switch genres so easily. And always you keep me absorbed.
    Well done!

    Reply

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