Just Like This

Story prompt ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** :

Thanks mate. Have one yerself – there’s plenty in the esky. Aah, that’s good. Nothin like a cold tinnie with yer mates eh?

Yeah, like I was sayin, Pete an me an Geoff, we wuz all at Geoff’s place last weekend. Talkin, ya know. Just talkin an havin a few beers. I told em about how much fun me and the missus and kids had the week before, down at the beach, fishin an stuff. I’d forgotten about Pete’s missus. She walked out on him a coupla months ago ya know, an he’s still real lousy about it. Sez she won’t let him have the kids or nuthin.

Yeah mate, pull up a chair. Plenty uv room.

Anyway, Pete started tellin us about how his kid won a prize at school, an he didn’t know about it fer weeks. Then the little girl, the youngest, she got sick an wuz in hospital an his wife didn’t even tell him. He found out from his Mum – and she’d heard it from a neighbour. Was he goin on at the old slag! Not even telling him his own kid wuz crook in the hospital!

Pete’s missus’s shacked up with another fella too – his mate he was ‘til then. Known each other since they wuz at school. Went fishin an shootin together an everythin. He was Pete’s best man when he got married an all.

Got a light mate? Left me lighter at home. Thanks.

Now where wuz I? Oh yeah. Pete wuz goin on about his missus not lettin him see the kids an that. Geoff wuz jes sittin there, quiet like, ya know, not sayin much, but yer could tell he wuz thinking. Thinks a lot about things, Geoff does. Then he starts philosophizin. Ever heard Geoff philosophizin? Real deep he gets sometimes.

Makes a man wonder, sez Geoff. Makes a man wonder if he should ever get married. Here, we got youse two fellas. One of ya’s like a pig in clover, goin fishin and that with his wife an kids, happy as Larry an aint life grand. An at the other end of the scale there’s Pete, on a real downer cause his missus is off with his best mate, an not lettin him see the kids.

Then Geoff sez, howdya know where things’re gunna end up, eh? Ya both got married, right? Ya both thought ya wuz the bee’s knees. Life’s great, gettin married’s the best thing, an you’ll always be happy.

Me an Pete wuz looking at Geoff, an we wuz thinking about what he wuz sayin. How DO ya know how thing’s are gunna turn out?

Pull me another tinnie outa the esky will ya mate? Ta.

Well, Geoff sez, how does a man decide if it’s all gunna work out eh? Seems like the lucka the draw. Ya can’t tell by lookin. Pete and his missus were made fer each other everyone said. An you, he sez to me, shotgun weddin wasn’t it? Now, which one wouldya pick?

Anyway, Pete’s sittin there, looking kinda sick an sorry fer himself, an Geoff, he sez, how dya know which girl’s gunna be a good un and which one aint? It’s like a lottery, eh?

Pete pipes up then. Yeah, it’s the luck of the draw all right, an I got the lousy cards.

Then he goes into Geoff’s workroom next door.

Whatcha doin in there Pete, I asks. Gonna get a chisel and slit yer wrists? An I laugh ya know? Pete’s down, but he’d never do anythin silly like that.

Pete comes back in the room. Nah, he says, an he’s got Geoff’s pistol. Geoff used ta keep it in a drawer with his other tools. Pete’s got that pistol an he’s pointin it at his head.

Shit, mate. Get me another beer willya? Thanks, you’re a pal. Gawd it wuz hairy, ya know. Pete’s pointin the gun at his head an I wuz just about shittin meself.

Don’t be silly mate, sez Geoff. Don’t muck around with guns. That’s stupid. It’s not loaded anyway. I don’t keep it loaded. Give it here mate.

He reaches over to Pete, who’s still got the gun to his head. I can see his finger’s white. I can still see it clear. Shit!

I’m okay. Don’t fuss. It wuz just so unexpected, ya know? One minute we’re talking an the next Pete’s got this gun pointin at his head. Just like this. I just sat there, frozen. Couldn’t move.

Geoff’s reachin over to Pete, gentle-like.

Come on, mate, he sez. Gimme the gun. Don’t muck around.

The gun’s not loaded, Pete sez. What’s the problem? An he takes it away from his head an waves it around.

Give it here Pete. Geoff’s real quiet like. Just give it here an I’ll put it away.

I’m looking at the gun. All the time I’m looking at the gun, an it’s wavin all over the place, an I can see Pete’s finger’s still white, like he’s pullin on the trigger ya know? An Geoff’s trying to get him to put it down or give it to him and he’s not listenin.

Then there’s a bang. Not a big bang. More like a crack, like somethin droppin on the floor but not bouncin, ya know? An Geoff’s fallin. Just droppin to the floor. An Pete’s eyes are big and his mouth’s open. An I’m goin shit shit shit. An I look at Geoff lyin on the floor an there’s a hole in his head, right here ya know, an his eyes are wide an starin, an Pete’s sayin, over an over, he said it wasn’t loaded, he said it wasn’t loaded.

I’m all right mate. Gimme a smoke willya? I gotta go to court tomorra an tell em what happened. Howbout another beer? I got somethin in me eye. Can’t see the bloody esky.


Word count 980

Written for

ID: 1101926   (Rated: ASR) A Picture Is Worth A 1000 Words Contest  Write a story in 1000 words or less to a given picture prompt. [Hiatus!] by iKïyå§ama