Welcome to the Fifteen Minute Novel. Each morning I spend fifteen minutes writing on a singular story line. Each morning starts with the last line of the previous day. The goal is to get a (very) rough draft out of the simple story idea and to avoid letting the story idea languish in limbo forever, actually writing it out. This is the third year I have done this writing experiment and each year I learn just a little bit about myself and the way I write as well as creating a framework for the story. But without further ado…
Day 114: When the morning came, she would be ready.
When the morning came, she would be ready. Once she had everything ready for the next day, Gwen found herself at a bit of a loss. At home it seemed there was always something for her to do. Something calling her attention. With school, night classes and a part time job she hadn’t even had time for track anymore and had to give it up.
All of her hours were more or less accounted for. Here there was time to fill. The apartment seemed to loom around her vast and empty. At home she could call someone. Even if Lisa and Tobey were occupied elsewhere, she did have other friends she could call if free time came around. The called Jennifer for movies and went with Elle for ice cream or just went down to the local restaurant where most of the high school hung out and joined a group she knew if Lisa and Toby weren’t around.
“And they weren’t around when I had much free time this past year,” she said. Gwen shook her head. “That should have been a clue.” She rolled her eyes.
The word clue sparked thoughts of her game and she decided that she would spend her free time playing her games instead of thinking about the clues she missed in real life.
‘After all I have already spent time with the one person I actually know in town.’ As Gwen pulled up her game and got ready to play she wondered if this was what Michael went through every summer. Let alone in a place that didn’t feel quite like home with no one around that he knew. Gwen shook her head.
‘I’ll meet people in classes and when I go out to the events with my grandparents.’ She told herself. She thought about the morning running group. She hadn’t really found anyone she wanted to spend time with there. ‘But they are all older and I’m not really involved in anything else with them,’ she told herself. ‘It will be different in classes,’ Gwen shrugged. ‘And even if it isn’t then I will have something to do, class, homework, that sort of thing.’
Deciding not to worry about it, Gwen turned to her game and concentrated on finding all of the hidden objects and clues so she could advance in her mystery. When she heard her grandparents come home she ended the game and went to join them in the living room to help set up for dinner. After dinner, she helped clean up and returned to the room. She thought about checking in on the socials to see if there were any more additions or questions, but decided she didn’t want to bother. She played her game before bed and went to sleep wondering what the morning would bring.
Gwen woken the next morning feeling excited and slightly nervous. It was an anticipatory feeling she hadn’t had in quite some time. She got out of bed and went through her morning routine. The routine now ended in her putting on her running clothes and going through her preliminary stretches before heading down to meet Alan in the lobby.
Everything was normal and after a wave to the night guard, Gwen and Alan headed towards the park. Everyone was friendly and Gwen decided that was fine. She felt better about it today than she did the day before. ‘Maybe it is because I spent time with Michael,’ she thought as they went through their group stretches and began to run. This morning in addition to running for marathon training, Gwen actually felt like she was running towards something.
Ten til Midnight 