Exploring Creative Writing #02
Sharing the first page of "Mink"
Today I’m sharing the first page of a short story (novel???) I’m writing. I’d love to know what you think! xx
She hadn’t expected him to sleep without sheets. His mattress was a mottled yellow, and a torn quilt and single stained pillow made up the entirety of his bedding. There was a makeshift nightstand—a peeling and chipped milk crate—piled high with empty bottles of Jose Cuervo, months-old issues of The New American, and water-warped receipts.
She lit a cigarette and padded barefoot to the bathroom. The dust of the hardwood floor accumulated at her heels. Sitting on the edge of the toilet, she stared at the towel rack. There was a navy hand towel, crusted with residual toothpaste and smelling faintly of damp. She ashed her cigarette on the floor; crossed her legs. She would need to find something else to sop up the mess.
She could see the blood from where she sat. Prematurely, her back ached in anticipation of the scrubbing, the lifting, the dragging, the disposing. She’d always heard that women should be good at this—they were used to scrubbing blood from sheets; soaking soiled underwear; disguising metallic stink. What she hadn’t considered was blood’s sovereignty—it moved of its own accord. Even now, it was seeping into things. Congealing around his ears; dancing toward his shoulders; making a home between the cracks of the floor.
She realized, suddenly, that she should have closed his eyes. Now, his body was barely warm to the touch and she was sure she’d read somewhere that rigor mortis sets more quickly than expected. She imagined pinching one of his eyelids between her fingers, prying it downward, digging through his pockets for change to anchor it closed. She thought of someone, one day, doing the same to her own body.
Katrina took another drag of the cigarette, then flushed it down the toilet. Time was running out.
Thank you for reading. Your presence is a grounding force. xx
What is Exploring Self?
Exploring Self is the documentation of my journey toward self-fulfillment. The posts I publish here on Wednesdays range from personal stories of healing to creative writing to expansion on random thoughts, usually with the aim of better understanding myself and the world. I’m especially interested in how our lives are shaped by outside influences — societal expectations, who others think we are, and often, who we think we “should” be. What does it mean to unravel our lives from “should’ve,” “could’ve,” and “would’ve”? Join me as I explore my self & find out.