The rules are deliciously simple. Sign up below, and on July 15th, post an original piece of flash fiction, 250 words or less along this theme (and, FYI, “independence day” can mean anything you’d like it to mean–don’t feel you have to be restricted to the July 4th holiday!):
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I snap my suitcase shut. It’s a classy vintage number—maybe I should have thought about how much space it’d take up in my dorm room when I saw it at the thrift shop, but I couldn’t help myself. It was so pretty.
I couldn’t be more excited about getting out of this town. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not a bad town. It’s just suffocatingly small. And the only person who made living here worth it left three years ago. Not that Kyle Landry ever really saw me that way, anyhow. I got into a good college on the coast and other than holidays, I’ll never have to look back.
A knock comes at the door and my mom pokes her head in. “Just about ready? It’s a long drive, you know.”
An unexpected tear pricks my eyes, but it’s gone in a second. It’s just because Mom is trying so hard to be strong. If she was really so nonchalant, I would be too.
“Yeah, I know. I’ll be there in a sec.”
Most of the car is packed. Pillows, comforter, a box of books and another of knickknacks I didn’t think I could live without. The truth is, I’m not taking too much. This is little girl stuff, a lot of it. Time for something new. A whole new life, far away from here. Then again, my best friend Sheila is coming with me, so that takes up some space.
I lug my suitcase downstairs, and there’s a knock at the front door. Has to be Sheila.
I flick my messy strands of hair out of my face and throw the door open—and Kyle Landry is standing there, his eyes lighting up until he sees my suitcase. My suitcase drops. So does my heart.
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Lisa Asanuma 
Great job! Now I have to know why Kyle has showed up! Is he just back in town visiting his grandmother and needing to borrow some sugar? Or has he kept his love for her a secret all these years?
Thanks Lacie! This was fun to write… I don’t really know the answers to any of those questions. Wonder if they’ll come to me… 🙂
I wonder what will happen, it’s a very great story, good job Lisa
Thank you!
Well, that changes things a bit! I wonder how she’ll handle leaving now. Good theme for independence.
The Write Soil
Thanks Dawn! I wonder that, too… 😉
How does she walk out the door now? Good grief. Talk about dropping the bomb. Your character description is great.
Oh, thank you, Cathy! 🙂
I love this! I love how she’s so set to go, so ready, and the dropping of the suitcase is totally what kept her here so long to begin with. Symbolic! 🙂 And of course, I see Kyle as RosKyle in my head. Ha ha
Hee. He wasn’t RosKyle in my head, but I did think of him. 🙂 I love that you said that about the suitcase… I didn’t really think about that consciously, but you’re totally right!
P.S. I LOVE that picture. So very Gossip Girl.
Isn’t it awesome?!
Ooooooooo, I likey! Makes me want to know what happens next. 🙂
Thanks so much, Karen!
Ugh. I want to know what happens next!
Thanks Donna! 🙂 I do too, kinda. haha
I love this! I love how you were able to infuse so much voice into this short piece. Great work, Lisa!
Thanks so much, Ali! For the comment and the challenge! I really enjoyed it. 🙂
Great job. The irony is so well done, and I really loved the character and her voice.
Thanks Jenn!
Oh no – don’t leave me hanging. Love the picture above – you give us a good idea of who she is by what she’s packing and what she’s leaving behind. Love the line – Sheila is coming with me, and she takes up space too. Not sure why I like it. It’s probably meant to just let us know that her friend is coming, but it struck me as funny.
Reminds me of when I first left home for college.
Thanks so much, Mary! I actually love that line. Because bringing a friend with you really kind of is a lot of baggage… but not necessarily bad!
Loved this scene, especially the awesome twist at the end. I really liked the line “And the only person who made living here worth it left three years ago” – says so much in just half a sentence.
Thanks so much, Stacy! 🙂
Great scene! you did a super job of introducing a lot of people in a short space of time, so I really had no idea what was going to happen. And the voice here was fab.
Thanks so much Ishta! I’m really pleased people liked the voice so much.
Hey, thanks for posting my Sparkfest icon on your site! I recently changed my URL without realizing this would affect the icons. I feel pretty stupid about that, but would appreciate it if you could update to the new icon. (The old one isn’t broken, but has my old URL displayed in the image.)
Sorry for the inconvenience and a big THANKS to your patience as I figure this all out 😀
The new code is posted in my sidebar. (Blogger won’t let me send HTML over comments.)
Oh don’t worry about it, I’ll change it, thanks for letting me know!