20 comments

Romance

Running through the ten-story office building's glass doors, Mandy pulled her cellphone from her purse to check the time. 

“Crap,” she muttered. 

She had less than five minutes until the meeting started, which left her with two choices.

Take the stairs as usual, but at a sprint, and arrive a sweaty mess. She could swallow her claustrophobia and get into the tiny, rickety elevator.

Easy choice, right? More like no choice. She couldn’t be late again.

Her hand shook slightly as she pressed the elevator button. When the door opened, she took a deep breath and stepped inside. 

Sixty-seconds. That was all this ride from hell would take. Sixty-seconds. 

She repeated the mantra over and over. At this rate, she’d still arrive a sweaty mess, but stinking of fear instead of exercise. 

Which is wor—

Her heart stopped at the same time the box of death halted. 

“Are you kidding me,” she whispered-choked, pulling out her phone and dialing her friend and colleague, Theo. 

He picked up on the first ring.

“I see you’re running late again, but lucky for you the power goes out with the same frequency as your tardiness,” he teased cheerfully. “Ah, the joys of working in an old building with shoddy wiring.”

“No. No, it isn’t good,” she replied, too distraught to care that her voice trembled. “I’m in the elevator.” 

“Wait. Why? I thought you hated small spaces and always took the stairs?”

“I was late to the last meeting. I couldn’t risk it so soon,” She croaked, leaning on the wall before sliding to the dirty floor. 

He called to someone in the office, asking how long until the power was back on. After a moment, he said to her, “The electrician says it will take twenty minutes, max.”

She shook her head, unable to speak. It might as well be twenty years. 

“Mandy,” Theo called, worried threaded in his voice. “Are you still there?”

“This is stupid, I know. A dumb, irrational fear, but,” She ran a hand through her once perfect hair, “I swear, the walls are closing in on me.” 

“Shut your eyes,” Theo demanded. 

Her soft-spoken friend never commanded. That, and his gorgeous smile were the two things she adored about him the most. However, today she appreciated the unexpected distraction and complied. 

“Okay, did it. Now what?” 

“Where is the one place you’ve always wanted to go?” 

She answered without hesitation. “Iceland.” 

“Really,” he laughed, the timber soothing. “Your dream vacation is a block of ice?”

“Only about ten percent of the country is covered in ice, and the average temperature is quite pleasant,” she said through a smile. 

“Well, I stand corrected, Ms. National Geographic,” he chuckled. “What is the first thing you’d visit or do?” 

“Go hiking at Snæfellsjökull National Park or Hornstrandir Nature Reserve. No. Wait. I’d swim in the Blue Lagoon.”

“Tell me about the Lagoon as if you are there. I want all the details. Using all your senses.”

“Okay.” She thought about it, diving into her imagination and traveling daydreams. “The waters are hot, but the cool outside air makes it pleasant. The color of the water is a stunning, vibrant turquoise.” 

He cut in. “Like that necklace you always wear?” 

Her hand slid absently to the pendant nestled between her breasts. “You noticed?” 

“Yes. It is pretty, and is nearly the same color as your eyes.” 

It surprised her that he noticed minor details about her. She liked it. A lot. 

However, before she could ponder the meaning behind his words, he asked another question. 

“What got you interested in this tiny country?” 

“Well, there was this band I began to listen to a few years back. I thought they were from the US but learned that wasn’t true.”

She told Theo about her favorite group and how their music and history led to her falling for their country. She found herself laughing at his silly questions, lost in his soothing voice, far from Detroit and her office’s tiny elevator. 

That last thought slammed into her. She gasped, opening her eyes, taking in the chrome and glass of her prison. 

“Mandy,” Theo called, sounding far away, wrapped in fog. “Did you open your eyes and leave Iceland?”

She nodded, managing to speak over her racing heart. “Yup.” 

“Close them, and listen to me.”

“I can’t.”

“Yes you can, and you will do it. Now,” he demanded.

Like before, something in his voice made her listen. “Fine. Bossy-pants,” she muttered, convinced his tricks wouldn’t work again. 

“Okay,” he began, “Money is not an option, but now you have to return to the US, where would you go?” 

“Um.” She tried to think, but the heavy press of panic on her chest made it difficult.

“Can’t decide? Then let me guess.” After a few ticks of silence, he said, “Oregon.”

All the video and pictures from her trip there two years ago bloomed beneath her lids, managing to calm her a little. “How did you know? I’ve been there, and I’m saving to go again.” 

“I’ve also been too. I went with my family as a teenager. I recognized the pictures on your computer. The background is of Multnomah Falls. Your screensaver is a photo of Crater Lake. Plus,” She could clearly picture the teasing tilt of his smile. “You’re always going on and on about hiking. I figured my beautiful colleague was a granola-tree hugger and had either visited Oregon or was planning on it.”

“Hey!” She laughed. “Wait. Beautiful…” 

He cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah. I wasn’t supposed to say that part out loud.” 

So, her attraction wasn’t one-sided. Interesting. 

From the old building's belly, there was a groan. Then the lights flickered twice before staying one. The elevator shook before returning to its gentle glide to the sixth floor. 

Mandy whooped, as Theo called, “Electricity is on!”

She opened her eyes and stood. Still holding her phone to her ear, she waited for the door to open. 

Less than thirty seconds later they did, and Theo was waiting on the other side. 

The man who gave her courage when she’d lost all hers to fears and phobias.

Now that she had it back, she dropped her cell inside her purse and took the four steps to him. Gently holding on to the side of his face, she stood on her tip-toes and kissed him.  

September 05, 2020 21:40

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20 comments

Zea Bowman
20:34 Sep 14, 2020

Great story! I Ioved the descriptions and the way you used the prompt to create this story. I'm glad I read it. Keep up the good work!

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DK Marie
16:07 Sep 16, 2020

Thank you!

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Keerththan 😀
18:00 Sep 13, 2020

Wonderful take on the prompt. Glad I read this. Amazing story and welcome to Reedsy community. Keep writing. Can't wait for your next.. Would you mind reading my new story? Thanks.

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DK Marie
16:44 Sep 14, 2020

Thanks! Yes, I'll check it out!

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Katina Foster
16:59 Sep 12, 2020

I like this take on the prompt! Having a small obsession with Iceland myself, I especially enjoyed mind-travelling with your character there. This didn't go as expected, which was a pleasant surprise. Instead of focusing on the terror, we get a glimpse of a developing relationship with no physical interaction until the very end. There were a couple of typos, but nothing major. Short and sweet and enjoyable- keep up the great work! (I'm going to have that Aerosmith song stuck in my head all day now. 🤣)

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DK Marie
16:52 Sep 14, 2020

Thanks so much for reading! The band she is referring to in this piece is Kaleo. Since you love Iceland, I highly recommend checking out their videos (plus their music really is fantastic). Thank your for letting me know about the typos. I'll re-read this before posting it on my website. LOL. Same happened to me when the title popped into my mind.

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Philip Clayberg
21:31 Sep 16, 2020

Don't forget what the female elevator operator said just before the beginning of the song, "Next floor: women's lingerie. Oh! Mr. Tyler. Going ... down?" And his reaction, "Heh heh heh. Ooo." (I might not have it exact, but it's been a long time since I've heard the song.)

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DK Marie
16:48 Sep 18, 2020

It's funny, it has been years since I've listened to that song, but I do remember that part. It really is a brilliant innuendo, and lead into the song.

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Philip Clayberg
22:01 Sep 18, 2020

I haven't heard the song or seen the video for it in over 25 years, I think (the album came out in 1991, I think). But Steven Tyler likes to use euphemisms and innuendo a lot in his song. Like in "Walk This Way", for instance. The song (and the album it's on) came out when I was 8 years old, so I think I was a little too innocent for what he was saying with it. I had to wait until I was a little older before I thought, "Oh! So *that's* what he meant by the line 'Take a drink of my glass' " and other lyrics. And not just with Aerosmith ...

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Danielle Ancona
01:37 Sep 10, 2020

This is a fun a sweet story. She actually does get herself through the ride, talking to her love. She is stronger than she thinks. Love this.

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DK Marie
16:52 Sep 14, 2020

Thank you!

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James Offenha
21:45 Sep 16, 2020

I liked this story. I liked her claustrophobia and how it affected her in the elevator and why she took the elevator. I also liked the visualizations. Near the end there’s a typo of “before staying one” should be “on”. Good work.

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DK Marie
16:50 Sep 18, 2020

Thank you! I'm delighted you liked to story. Also, thank you for letting me know about the typo. I wish I could fix it here, but I did on the original document.

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Philip Clayberg
21:36 Sep 16, 2020

I also liked the story. You made the conversation between Mandy and Theo interesting. For keeping her from freaking out, he definitely deserved the kiss she gave him. I tried something similar in the first draft of my short story, "Blackout", but decided that escaping from the elevator and climbing up to safety was more interesting than a conversation between two elevator riders until the power came back on. So I rewrote most of my story. Now I wonder if I should've just kept my first draft after all.

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DK Marie
16:52 Sep 18, 2020

Thank you! I'm thrilled you like the story. I'm sure both versions of your story are great. I'm going to hop over now and read the one you ended up submitting.

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Philip Clayberg
21:39 Sep 18, 2020

You're very welcome. I hope you'll enjoy it. I'm a lifelong bookworm (well, at least since 4th grade, maybe earlier) and since I can't afford to buy even used books right now, I don't pass up the chance to read stories for free. Especially when they're enjoyable to read. I used to have something like 25 or so bookshelves' worth of books. And that doesn't count the piles of books I had on the floor (which were sometimes as tall as I am, and I'm 6 feet tall). But sadly, a few years ago, I had to more than trim down my book collection. ...

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John Maygrove
00:22 Sep 12, 2020

What a lovely story. Very well done!

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DK Marie
16:52 Sep 14, 2020

Thank you!

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Rowena Tisdale
00:00 Sep 06, 2020

You tell such a sweet love story, D! I love this one, and have a sudden desire to visit Iceland.

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DK Marie
16:53 Sep 14, 2020

Thanks! lol. I need to write a story that takes place in Iceland, just so I have another reason for wanting to visit.

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