This is my entry for the #constrainedwriting contest #12.
Rules: Use “Little did he/she know” somewhere in the story. Upvote the post. Minimum of 250 words.
Hope you enjoy! Critiques are always welcomed!
The Day That Changed Her Life
She sits with her cheeks resting on her palms. Her palms are sweating and they slide easily against her face. She has not yet grasped the disposition of where she is. The room, a constraint from the outside world. Grey concrete walls and metal bars are all that separates her from the others. Her room has a simple cot, a sink, and a toilet. She is forced to wear a jumpsuit the color of Knockout Orange, which is perfect considering how she ended up here.
It is only her first day within these walls. Her first meal is a meager sandwich, an apple, and a bottle of water.
She worries about the others. She has always heard prison was rough, but she isn't a tough girl. She had acted in self defense, so she thought.
For a short time during the afternoon, her cell door opens and she is able to walk the hall or walk the yard. She needs the fresh air so she chooses the yard. As she walks outside, she places her hand to her forehead to shield the glare from the sun. It is a lovely 78 degrees outside. The breeze is light on her face.
Looking around, she notices a girl sitting at a table in the only shady spot available. This girl is visibly pregnant and from the looks of it, she is due any day. She decides to walk over to the pregnant girl to talk to her.
“Hi. I'm Lisa,” she says to the pregnant girl.
“Hi. I saw them bring you in this morning. How long are you here for?”
“As of right now twenty five years, but my lawyer is working on an appeal.”
“Oh. I'm Sarah by the way. You can sit down if you want,” she says.
“So when are you due?” asks Lisa.
“Two weeks, but they think he’ll come sooner than that.” She rubs her stomach and then looks at Lisa, “How did you end up in here?”
“Well, I was in an abusive relationship. He beat me more times than I care to admit. He always got away with it, but that's because I hid it from everyone. One day, he came home drunk from a night out with his friends. He started cussing me for no reason and before I could get a word in, he punched me in the stomach and I fell to the floor. Shortly after that, he passed out from being drunk. I took the .38 out of my purse that I had purchased earlier that day and I shot him as he slept.”
They both sit silent for a minute. Lisa is contemplating the events from the day it all happened. Sarah is contemplating what she would have done if it had been her in that situation. Lisa looks up, squinting from the glare of the sun as she looks around the yard at the others.
That's when she notices a woman starting to approach from her left side. Following directly behind her are two more women. The first one has long brown hair, but it is in a bun on top of her head. The other two have short hair cuts. The sleeves are ripped from their jumpsuits and the white flesh of their arms look bleached in the sunlight.
“Hey!” the first one says directing her tone towards Lisa. “Why are you cutting me a look? You better apologize to me, otherwise you're gonna get what's coming to ya.”
“I wasn't cutting you a look,” Lisa says looking at the ground now.
“What did you just say to me?” the first one asks.
Lisa notices the two that were following behind, are now closing in around her. She now sits in their shadows as their stomachs inch closer to her face. The first one raises her fist and strikes.
Lisa sits straight up on the couch. Panic ensues as she looks around the living room regaining her bearings. Her breathing is quick and sweat drips down her back, gathering on the cushion underneath her. She puts her hand to her mouth and lets out a short, light laugh.
“It was only a nightmare,” she says to herself as she catches her breath.
She extends her arm for her purse on the coffee table. She reaches inside and pulls out the .38 tucked away in a side pocket. She places the loaded gun back in the purse and zips it up snug.
In walks Sam, her boyfriend. From the looks of his stumbling, he is drunk again.
Little does she know, in a short amount of time, her nightmare will be her reality.