jankyfluffy Janky Fluffy

Grieving Kelvin goes to his sister's wedding, as prompted by his grandmother's last gift. The secret papers left in her honey cakes tell the future. Will they lead Kelvin to a treasure more important than the inheritance she left behind?


Conto Impróprio para crianças menores de 13 anos.

#romance #magical-realism #shortstory #wedding #fortune #fortunes #beachwedding #crime #cake #magic #fortunetelling #lonely #revenge #beach #grandma
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Tides of Fortune

I don't use italics in any of my stories. Some dyslexic readers have a difficult time seeing and reading them.

Janky Fluffy


The Beach:

"Jerks who throw puppies into the ocean are the worst kind of scum," Kelvin said.

Faint whimpering that no one else on the beach seemed to hear bothered him. He walked under a velvet rope that divided the wedding party from the rest of the beach.

Kelvin ran past swimmers and snatched the bag out of the water. Nothing was inside but garbage. Not even useful, recyclable trash.

Broken shells cracked under his shoes. He dove under the rope and stood among dozens of wedding guests.

Kelvin tossed it into a silver trash bin and sat down as the icy waves crashed into his pant legs. He was the only guest not dressed for the beach.

His father turned on the silk lanterns as the clouds overhead darkened.

"Maybe I'm hearing things." Kelvin wished he hadn't left his apartment, but he promised his sister due to a fortune cake.

He read the note and stuffed it back into his pocket. Miracles happen for those who show up.

Grandma baked them. He never knew how she hid the notes inside. As a child, they seemed like tiny miracles.

A miracle would have been a date to his sister's wedding. A miracle would've been his grandmother hugging him.

He stood under the lanterns and waited.

No miracle, nothing, but another whimper.

Grandmother left him her cottage, vehicles, cute knick-knacks, baking tools, and little notes. The money was left to a woman he met once, named Lucy. He didn't want anything; he only wanted his grandma.

She volunteered with Lucy at the animal shelter on opposite days from him.

"Are you listening to me?" Uncle Mark approached him, kicking sand. Mark's soft eyes always looked directly into Kelvin’s own.

"I didn't see you. I thought I was the only guest wearing a suit." Kelvin collided with a cooler filled with steaks, but he stopped it from toppling.

"Some of us know how to dress." Mark smiled. He was a great uncle, but only seven years older than Kelvin.

"Kelvin, if you want to sell the house, It's not worth much, but I'm willing to pay above the market price. I just want something to remember her by, even if it's just her cookbook or a dishrag."

"I can sell it on my own, but I'm waiting until June to move in."

"I understand, but what about her old truck? It still runs, right? I'll pay for it," Uncle Mark said.

"I'll give you the Golden Viper. I don't need it. But keep your money."

"Thank you. I'll take anything, but we want her recipes. Could you share them with the family?" Mark asked.

"No, I plan to memorialize Grandma by reopening her food truck, and I haven't found the recipes. She didn't keep them in the house." He located the keys and tossed them at his uncle. "The car is parked outside my apartment."

His uncle left.

Kelvin read the fortune from his pocket. And it changed. Kindness will save you.

His grandmother gave him fourteen tins of fortune cakes the week before she died. He stuffed them in the freezer and only ate one when he felt sad. He was sad often and planned to eat three cakes after the wedding.

Broken whimpering echoed in his head. "Grandma loved puppies. Maybe that is why I'm hearing crying noises."

He walked over to the food table, toasted the bride, and looked up at the cliff above.

The jagged edges were partially concealed by the darkening clouds.

The cliff’s entrance was closed off by police tape to prevent drunk daredevils from jumping and shattering every bone in their bodies.

Heavy-looking clouds grew even darker, and the father of the groom lit the lanterns. Fire rose from them.

Kelvin tossed his cup into the recycling bin. 'I wish it would rain,' he thought.

He wished everything washed away, the beach, his pain, everything.

The bride wore a swimsuit. Her veil and open silk jacket moved in the increasing breeze. "It wasn't supposed to storm."

"We've been unlucky as of late," he whispered.

She stretched her arms out. "Dad said you weren't coming because of work."

"No, I set my own hours. Sold four houses this week," Kelvin's voice trembled. 'The only joy I have is my work,' he thought. A small cry burst through his lips.

She hugged him. "Grandma was supposed to be here."

Kelvin nodded.

The whimpering grew louder.

"Sasha, do you hear a puppy?" Kelvin spotted a treasure trunk. "I need to check on the trunk. High tide is coming in."

Sasha laughed. "It's just a prop for the wedding. Uncle Mark says paper notes represent bad luck, and they'll be taken out to sea. They're to honor Grandma." She tried to push him away, playfully.

"That is going to pollute the water. A single bottle, I can understand." Kelvin stared at the trash bobbing in the foamy water.

"No, it's biodegradable," Bradley said from behind. "You should write a note." He tossed Kelvin a pen and card.

Kelvin walked out to the trunk. His hand fumbled for the gold hinges, but he couldn't open the latch. "Is this supposed to be locked?"

"Of course not." Bradley paused.

The whimpering grew louder.

"Someone help me. There is a dog inside." He broke the latch open with his foot.

The music stopped, and guests hushed their voices.

The puppy leaped out of the trunk as Kelvin glanced down.

The girl—no, not a girl. A woman in her late twenties. Breathing but barely, hands bound and wrists bleeding from wear, she struggled. Water and droplets of blood stained a damp yellow dress. Beads and strands of brown hair broke off as Kelvin tried to remove her.

He screamed for help.

The puppy seemed okay and trotted to the mother of the groom.

The victim's face looked almost familiar, kind, and broken, but Kelvin couldn't quite remember her.

Bradley appeared frantic. "Who was the last person near the trunk besides your brother?" He asked Sasha.

"My great uncle, of course. He swapped trunks fifteen minutes ago, and he told me something was wrong with it. He's gone. Did he think she'd be taken out to the sea?" Sasha stopped speaking.

Bradley spoke. "It's Lucy Hall! He tried to kill her."

"My uncle would never do that," Kelvin and Sasha's father said. "He's a sweet boy."

Moments later, the resort's doctor arrived.

He talked to the lifeguard, and Kelvin accidentally overheard. "Miss Hall could've suffocated long before high tide."

Hard rain broke through the clouds as Kelvin received a text. "Hey, it's your landlord. There was an accident. A drunk crashed into your Golden Viper. If you were home, you would have died." Kelvin tucked his note away. It changed. Go visit Lucy in the Hospital. I'm sure she wants to thank her hero. Kindness is a gift you give yourself.

"Maybe today is full of miracles," Kelvin said to himself.

*

Mark: Parking Lot:

Mark's plane ticket to France was stuffed in his pocket with his worthless cake fortune. He would need to take the Golden Viper to the airport. It was lucky that his great-nephew gave it to him. The loser just handed him his escape. Mark hadn't planned to leave Lucy to the waves, but the grassy cliffs were blocked off.

They wouldn't catch him in time, even if they did trace him to Lucy's murder. He didn't care if they found her. He'd be out of the country with the money. “It is my money,” he said out loud.

He entered the parking lot and stared at the twisted gold-colored car as cops placed handcuffs around the drunk man's wrists.

A police officer approached him. "We're looking for a man. He meets your description."

Mark located his fortune, and after reading it, he tossed it on the asphalt. I warned you that I'd get you back for killing me. I told you about kindness and greed, but no one saw your real face. You were golden and a beautiful monster. I made sure Lucy lived.

'No, they couldn't have found Lucy. She had to be dead. She couldn't testify against me,' he thought.

Mark's fortune morphed and changed again until the ink faded into nothingness. He was the favorite, the golden one.

Kelvin and Lucy were just weirdos who enjoyed hanging out with a withered old woman. Everything belonged to him.

*

The Hospital: Two Weeks Later:

Flowers decorated the white room.

Kelvin gave one of his grandmother's cakes to her, and she smiled back at him, thankful for the miracle that had brought her to life and light.

"I feel like a celebrity with all these visits," Lucy said.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"I still feel like a moron. My broken bones will heal. He lied, saying that he started a pet charity. But I canceled the check because your grandma's last fortune told me to. I bet Sasha is angry about ruining her wedding."

"She is happy you are alive." Kelvin smiled at her. "Let's eat the cake."

They read the fortune inside. I love you, always.

It changed once more.

"What does it say?" Lucy sat up.

"It's her greatest treasure, her recipe." Kelvin smiled, and he wrote it down, just in case the magic faded. The recipe morphed into another and another.

10 de Agosto de 2024 às 03:37 0 Denunciar Insira Seguir história
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Janky Fluffy Janky Fluffy is a pen name for a nerdy and wonky author. She is a wife, mother, writer, and an abstract artist. Profile art by OM

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