encoded notions

Hiccup

The door opened and sunshine flowed in. There was a pleasant aroma in the air. Gloria never entered a room without first bringing joy over the threshold. She was always welcome anywhere she went.

Which is why Julie couldn’t turn her away.

“Oh, you’re still here. Is Harold keeping you?” inquired Gloria, in an elegant singsongy voice.

“In a way, yes he his. We’re still quite busy.”

“Well, there’s just something quick I need to ask him about tomorrow evening, it won’t take but two moments of your time, dear.”

“But…” Julie tried, and failed to stall her.

“It’s okay. Where might I find him?”

Julie hesitated. If she finds out what I’ve done to him, I won’t be able to clock her over the head with my stick because she’s just too nice. For the same reason, I can’t lie to her. She swallowed hard, “He’s in the basement.”

“Oh,” Gloria said, sounding surprised.

They walked together to the basement door, and Julie let Gloria go first, just in case she changed her mind about the stick.

---

Harold heard the steps creak. Now was the moment. He concentrated on a single point in space, making a bond with it. He engaged it in a dialogue, convincing it to form the image he had in his head right now, coaxing it to do what he asked of it. The point in question was a particular spot on the stairs.

It complied.

And then something happened that he did not intend. A mistake. A hiccup in spacetime. The last time he caused a hiccup like this, was in Bern, Switzerland in the early 1900s. He was toying with a young boy in much the same way as Julie(The boy’s name was Eldwin Bauer. The tale of what happened to him that night, instead of being visited by aliens is rather uninteresting and it involves cantaloupes and one very unfortunate raccoon.) and he had convinced some extraterrestrials to land in his back yard. The only problem was that when the hiccup occurred, they landed in a young patent clerk’s backyard instead. Al—the clerk—and the aliens had a rather long chat, and then the clerk went on to become very famous because of the hiccup. Harold did not like making mistakes.

And this one was much, much worse.

Gloria was about halfway down the steps, with Julie close on her heels. Bob was in the corner. Harold was concentrating on the screwdriver that Bob had placed on the staircase. As soon as he saw a pair of legs appear in the stairwell, he forced a footfall to coincide with the location of the foreign object.

They were not Julie’s legs. Harold only took notice after it was too late.

Gloria began to fall. Julie’s mouth dropped. Bob was oblivious to what was about to take place. Harold tried to correct it, unsuccessfully.

Gloria toppled down the steps and lie unmoving at the foot of them. Julie carefully ran down to her. She was still breathing. She beckoned for Julie to come closer, then she spoke something softly into Julie’s ear. It was too soft for Julie to comprehend. Sadly, those were Gloria’s last words. When she finished the final syllable, she did not draw another breath. Mother Nature died, and it was all Father Time’s fault. Harold cried aloud.

Suddenly the room felt very cold. A voice spoke from the direction of the chill, “I suppose this is not what you had planned?”

Julie shook her head at Death. Harold didn’t even look up from his sullen mass of tears and pain. Death sighed, “I am not pleased with this turn of events. Consider our agreement invalidated for now, Julie. I have to consider the repercussions of today before considering taking Time’s job.”

With that, he touched Gloria on the shoulder and she faded away. With a nod to both Julie and Harold, Death vanished as well.

Julie, now also in tears, remained sitting on the floor, looking at the spot that Gloria haid lain only a few moments ago. Harold continued to weep. And Bob sat staring at the air that Death just vacated. His eyes were open so wide that it almost seemed like he didn’t have eyelids anymore. He was stammering, and pointing, and making funny gestures with his hands. He stood up, tried to say something, and then ran up the steps screaming at the top of his lungs.

I guess his plans for the day didn’t involve meeting Death face-to-hood.