“The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded…”
This is the sentence that must be completed. Now, where should the story go? Is the story sinister? Or is the story a chance meeting? Love at first sight? Or is the story of two people passing by each other?
Let’s have Tilly and Percy as our subjects. The stories could go like this:
A:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded, making the smooth Monday rain go pitter patter in the dreary London fog. Tilly runs up, arms full of books and papers for a missed lecture. Percy comes along with his head in his phone, not paying attention to his surroundings. They run into each other. Tilly’s books and papers fly everywhere. Percy gets down and helps. Their hands meet at a lone book in between the two of them. They look up. It’s love at first sight. Just like the movies. Tilly smiles. Percy’s heart flutters. They exchange numbers and papers, promising to meet for coffee later. They do. This feeling of love doesn’t change, and they graduate university, get married, have jobs, and have kids. They live happily ever after with each other, fulfilling their life dreams and goals. Eventually, after a long life, Tilly and Percy die together, surrounded by loved ones. This is the happy ending.
B:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded. Blood splattered the ground as Percy ran as fast as he could, away from his assailant. His assailant is Tilly, who laughs maniacally as she twirls a knife between her fingers. Percy is bleeding. Tilly had slashed him on the arm previously. It is late out. There is no one awake, and trying to knock on a door will simply mean death for Percy. So the only thing Percy can really do is run. Just like how most people in this era run away from their problems. Eventually, Percy will get tired and trip, and Tilly will eventually kill him, because no one can run away from their problems for that long.
Unless you want a happy ending, in which case you should really just stop reading and refer back to A again, because both A and B are pretty unrealistic in the end.
C:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded, reflecting the sun. It is a bright and sunny May in London. Tilly had just been accepted to her dream university. She is absolutely bouncing for joy, on her way to see her friends to celebrate her big win. She stops at a bus stop, where Percy is already there, waiting for the bus. Percy has just finished his interview for a job he really wants. Tilly and Percy talk. They get along, and share many laughs. They get on the bus together. Tilly is getting off a stop before. Neither Percy nor Tilly think of asking each other for their number. Percy and Tilly part ways, and never see each other ever again. Or not. Again, if you like happy endings that are usually unrealistic, refer back to A.
D:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded, but no one could notice, since everyone was too caught up in their own thoughts and wonderings to even notice how the walkways look. Tilly and Percy are another two people in the crowd, heads too caught up in the what-ifs and scheduling and the hustle-bustle of everyday life. They miss each other, shoulders brushing against each other in the bustling New York City. Except in New York, the stones are not smooth nor rounded. Tilly and Percy never look in each other’s directions. That’s how life usually goes. People are always interested in their own comings and goings, and never about what’s outside, or near/around you. Humans. Always so conceited.
This is the sentence that must be completed. Now, where should the story go? Is the story sinister? Or is the story a chance meeting? Love at first sight? Or is the story of two people passing by each other?
Let’s have Tilly and Percy as our subjects. The stories could go like this:
A:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded, making the smooth Monday rain go pitter patter in the dreary London fog. Tilly runs up, arms full of books and papers for a missed lecture. Percy comes along with his head in his phone, not paying attention to his surroundings. They run into each other. Tilly’s books and papers fly everywhere. Percy gets down and helps. Their hands meet at a lone book in between the two of them. They look up. It’s love at first sight. Just like the movies. Tilly smiles. Percy’s heart flutters. They exchange numbers and papers, promising to meet for coffee later. They do. This feeling of love doesn’t change, and they graduate university, get married, have jobs, and have kids. They live happily ever after with each other, fulfilling their life dreams and goals. Eventually, after a long life, Tilly and Percy die together, surrounded by loved ones. This is the happy ending.
B:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded. Blood splattered the ground as Percy ran as fast as he could, away from his assailant. His assailant is Tilly, who laughs maniacally as she twirls a knife between her fingers. Percy is bleeding. Tilly had slashed him on the arm previously. It is late out. There is no one awake, and trying to knock on a door will simply mean death for Percy. So the only thing Percy can really do is run. Just like how most people in this era run away from their problems. Eventually, Percy will get tired and trip, and Tilly will eventually kill him, because no one can run away from their problems for that long.
Unless you want a happy ending, in which case you should really just stop reading and refer back to A again, because both A and B are pretty unrealistic in the end.
C:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded, reflecting the sun. It is a bright and sunny May in London. Tilly had just been accepted to her dream university. She is absolutely bouncing for joy, on her way to see her friends to celebrate her big win. She stops at a bus stop, where Percy is already there, waiting for the bus. Percy has just finished his interview for a job he really wants. Tilly and Percy talk. They get along, and share many laughs. They get on the bus together. Tilly is getting off a stop before. Neither Percy nor Tilly think of asking each other for their number. Percy and Tilly part ways, and never see each other ever again. Or not. Again, if you like happy endings that are usually unrealistic, refer back to A.
D:
The stones on the walkway were smooth and rounded, but no one could notice, since everyone was too caught up in their own thoughts and wonderings to even notice how the walkways look. Tilly and Percy are another two people in the crowd, heads too caught up in the what-ifs and scheduling and the hustle-bustle of everyday life. They miss each other, shoulders brushing against each other in the bustling New York City. Except in New York, the stones are not smooth nor rounded. Tilly and Percy never look in each other’s directions. That’s how life usually goes. People are always interested in their own comings and goings, and never about what’s outside, or near/around you. Humans. Always so conceited.
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