Monstre De Cirque
London, 1884
His lungs rasped inside the tiny room. He sat with his reflection, by candlelight and wrote her:
"Could I create myself anew, I'd not fail in pleasing you."
The pen - wilting in his shovel like hand - gave way and snapped and stained his thoughts across the page.
"Darn you!"
He swung through the mirror and watched himself shatter.
The door opened: "Merrick! You're up!"
Agonisingly he rose to the stage, his head suffocating his skeleton. The spotlight seeped beneath the curtain and terror struck his heart.
The curtain vanished to the sound of his silence and gasp of the crowd.
About the Creator
Dean F. Hardy
Writer from Dublin, Ireland.
*All work here is owned by Dean F. Hardy*
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Comments (16)
Sad story - I read it as if he is a freak in a freak show, and I felt bad for him.
The first word. The first word is all I need to enter into a world of speech & ideas, of presence & emotion, of whatever it is that is real & means something. If only I had that word. Where did I lay it?
Mm this reads like a play on the idea of “performance anxiety” between the sheets, to me. But I’ve read three times in speculation, and can find other inklings as well… I’ve discovered that I like the unexplained, in microfiction. I’ve been trying to toe the same lines of mystery with my own, as a novice to it. Loved that this made me think.
mmhmm
This is so artistically crafted. Beautifully done
Wonderfully written. Great job Dean.
So many thoughts running through my head right now. Wow..
Dean, this is poetry. What an environment you craft. My favorite image was the pen 'wilting'... I've never thought of that word to describe that action, but I know *exactly* the 'thing' you're talking about... the thing that pens do when the words just aren't coming. You're such a rockstar, brother. Keep up the amazing work you skilled, talented rascal.
Oh 😥. This is tragic. I can feel the banked fury and humiliation. Well done!
I can't decide if he is apologizing to the audience or somebody else. I like hangers like that. Thank you for this one Dean.
Wow. Absolutely fantastic.
Wow. What a fabulous picture you painted
Stunning! Really powerful piece. Well done!
Shit… this one got to me 🥺
Excellent writing ❤️💯😉
Oh, that last line. What a life to have lived. This made me so sad for him. Excellent piece :) Well done on that one!