The Shackleton Scotch Flash Challenge: Gun-Nut

This is my entry in Chuck Wendig's flash fiction prompt inspired by the recent discovery of Shackleton's Scotch over at his Terrible Minds blog. The rules are simple, 1,000 words or less, any genre, has to be able to be tied back in a vague manner to the scotch discovery. Never one to shy away from a flash fiction prompt, here's my entry into the challenge! I wanted to do something darker than I've done before and a little psychedelic since I don't really push myself when I write to explore new styles. I didn't really mean for it to get so dark, and will simply say that I'm an optimistic guy. This isn't where my head is at all. It's simply a writing exercise! This might suck, but you never know how much you suck and how you can improve without sucking in the first place. Last disclaimer: even for flash fiction it sits nice and short at 320 words.


Gun-Nut

Feed me.


"What?"


Feed me Michael.


"Feed you what? I'd be lucky to find a can of cat food in this apartment."

Michael, feed me. I'm so hungry.

Lift your head. Set it down. Pulsing, beating, throbbing. The four o'clock sunlight invades through the blinds. Open your eyes. What are you going to do today? She's always hungry. Feed her.

Yes, feed me Michael, listen to the voice in your head.

"You're the voice in my head."

No, I'm the revolver on your kitchen counter.

"What?"

He wants you to listen. He wants you to feed me.


She's breathing and you lay there ignoring your purpose. Your purpose is her life. Give her life. Speak louder. Make yourself heard. Shout.


"I don't have anything to feed you! There's no one left out there!"


You're out there, Michael.


"Oh God."


She means you're there to help. Don't be dramatic.


"I'll do anything. You know what I've done for you. Just tell me."


You're being selfish. You're not sharing. Share with her. Giver her life. Give her the bottle that ended the world. 


"The world's not over. Not yet."


Feed me, please.

Your world is over. Your life is over. You popped the cap. You drank it. It was syrup and smelled like death. You drank it. Feed her and then she can feed you. After all this time, you know you need her.

"I'm hungry..."

Me too.

Then we agree. Stand up. Balance yourself. Blink the spots out of your eyes. Grab the bottle from the counter. Let the syrup flow down her throat. Down the hatch. Into the the barrel.

Ooooooooooh.

"It's almost gone. I didn't realize how long it's been since you ate."

Hug her. Caress her. Grip her.

"I'm so hungry..."

Kiss her.

"Thank you."

Bang.