Annie James

“An Uncommon Autumn Morning at Céleste's Café” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #63

The sun is still creeping over the horizon, but life in the coffee shop on Third St. is in full swing. Muted black, brown and tan decor, dark brown and tan slate floor tiles, display a splashy pattern designed to mask spills. Black rugs in front of the door and register. Interesting prints on the walls, of people drinking coffee, serene forest scenes, many of them having small plaques underneath with a blurb about the local artists who painted the scene. Inside are people in business suits chatting across tiny round tables, or sitting al...

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“Proof of Life” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #55

The door closed with a faint click. The morning sun streamed through the window, softly filtered through gauzy pink curtains. The room was decorated with pastel peach, pink, and white furniture. The walls and carpet were a light peach color. The leader raised his head and waited for the footsteps to recede down the hall, then silence. His sharp ears told him that the group had the solitude needed to conduct their meeting. He dragged his chair under the window and jumped on top of it, where the others could see him. They lined up on ...

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“Seekers Cabin” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #37

"The last item in your mother's will is a peculiar one. She left you the cabin on Lake Aurora.""Cabin--What cabin?" Tiriah leaned forward and tilted her head to the side as she asked this. "My mother never owned a cabin." The attorney cleared his throat and shuffled through the papers in front of him. He pulled one out of the stack and handed it to her. "This is the deed to the property. It has been in your family for several generations--I'm surprised you never knew about it."Tiriah raised her eyebrows as she skimmed the deed.The attor...

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“Outlaw Homecoming” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #27

At the ticket booth the clerk asks "What is your name, sir?" "Jim Rawlings." I don't tell him my full name which in America  is well known, decorating several wanted posters, along with my face. The clerk just writes it, showing no sign of recognition. I step out of the train ticket office into the sunshine outdoors. On the bench outside are several other people waiting for the train. I discreetly size them up from under the shade of my bowler hat  picking up clues to their identity that most people wouldn't notice but my...

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“A very stressful 24 Hours” by Annie James

I pulled into Mom's driveway at around 7 for our weekly dinner. When I walkedin the house she commented "Stevie, you look exhausted, I have been keeping dinner warm for an hour. Did that boss of yours keep you late again?" I just nodded my head and put my parka on the coat rack and stamp the snow off my shoes, pulling them off and leaving them on the boot tray by the front door. She knows how difficult my boss, Teagan Walsh, is to get along with. I have only been his assistant for six months but it has seemed like six years. I thought a...

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“A Snapshot in Time” by Annie James

Molly sat on the attic floor covered in dust and insulation. She had been sorting through boxes all afternoon as she and Dan looked for things to get rid of in the upcoming annual neighborhood yard sale. With relief Molly looked around and saw that there was only one box left to sort through. It was pushed back into the corner. Molly stood up and stretched, her joints creaking and protest after sitting for so long. She ducked her head popped open the flaps of the box. It was a small box, inside was a wedding invitation, a bridal bouquet, and...

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“Snapshots of the Past” by Annie James

Amber watched the couple at the next table out of the corner of her eye. They looked young, older than Amber's fifteen years--college kids probably. The girl had long red hair and green eyes. Amber usually thought red heads were ugly, but this girl was pretty. She didn't have freckles and her eyes tilted up slightly at the corners, giving her an exotic look. Amber's parents were quietly arguing again, like always. Amber felt a knife twist in her gut. Their divorce seemed inevitable. Amber tuned them out  and shifted a little closer...

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“Camera Ready” by Annie James

Dan grabbed the camera off the table."Well I just found out why the photographer is late...he got food poisoning. Molly raised her eyebrows. "I'm going to step in and take some pictures." Molly frowned, not liking the idea of sitting by herself at a wedding where she didn't know anyone. Dan paused when he saw her expression. "I'm sorry about this...I don't want to leave them hanging. You should have seen how upset Missy was when she thought there would be no pictures today." He glanced over toward where the bride and groom were waiting. Moll...

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“Not So Picture Perfect” by Annie James

It was a perfect day for a wedding. It was mid June and the weather was mild and sunny. "Something is wrong." The bride whispered frantically to the wedding planner. "Has he called... or anything?!""I don't know what's going on..I'm sorry. I have worked with this photographer for years, he's never…""Just find him! Please! I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude... it's just..it will ruin everything if we don't have a photographer." The bride looks close to tears. The wedding planner walks briskly down the ramp from the yacht to the hotel, ne...

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“Santa Doesn't Live Here Anymore” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #11

Everyone has a special place that defined their childhood--a place of many happy memories.Anyone who grew up in Rochester NY from the 60's to the 90's knows about Midtown Plaza. It was the first indoor mall in the U.S. Many children growing up in Rochester have been to Midtown at Christmas time to Santa on Magic Mountain and ride the Monorail--a miniature train that was suspended from a track that circled the second floor of the mall. The mall had an open layout. Most of the restaurants were on the second floor. There weren't many and it did...

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“Winterborn” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #9

The wind whistled through the many cracks in the walls of the flimsy cabin, bringing a chill that the fire in the hearth could not keep out. Grandfather knelt down and pulled a scrapbook from the box he kept under his cot. He sat on the cot with his back to the wall and held the scrapbook in his withered blue veined hands. The cabin door opened, flooding the single room with frigid air. His grandson Alaric walked in with a load of freshly chopped wood in his arms and kicked the door shut behind him. "Put those down and drag the chair over, I...

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