Apparently, freedom and finding a place of his own and away from the family after he graduated high school was not in the cards for Andrew; he wasn’t able to land a high-enough paying job to rent a single apartment or even a room in a elderly widow’s basement, he had no friends to go in together on housing because he had no friends, nor did he have funds for school.
He was stuck living with Eloise, the terrible twins Chuckie and Ducks, and his mother, who was having financial difficulties of her own.
The only saving grace was that, as the only male in their house, he didn’t have to share a bedroom; he cherished his small attic room, three and a half stories up, with the lockable door, the deadbolt he’d installed, and the hardwood board he dropped across the brackets on either side of the door every night, as an additional measure for privacy…and safety.
In the early days, before Stepdad and the twins, he and Eloise had been inseparable, best friends finishing each others’ sentences, sharing snacks, and having the other’s back when trouble came knocking, and then running, as the two sent any and all malicious miscreants on their way.
His real father had been a quiet man, a folkloric historian and environmentalist, with a warm and quirky sense of humor, and the family had been a happy, harmonious home, before the man’s sudden disappearance the week before Eloise’s fifth birthday.
© Liz Husebye Hartmann (2022)
The challenge? Write a story in 6 sentences, no more & no less, and if you’d like, share your creation or just visit and comment on others’ ideas, with GirlieOnTheEdge, Denise. The prompt is “BOARD”, and here’s where you join the party: Six Sentence Stories
Valley of the Trolls 
Cometely captivated by the suspense Liz. Can’t wait for the next installment…
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Coming this weekend…
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Now another mysterious disappearance… hmmm.
My mind is putting the pieces of this jigsaw together, Liz, but I don’t think they’re all from the same puzzle! Maybe there’s more than one…
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You may be right!
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The ‘real father’ got a brief mention earlier on, but now it seems he’s more involved. You’ve left me wondering what happened a week before Eloise’sfifth birthday!
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Mission accomplished.
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Oh wow, this is too good to miss…when I get a free afternoon I’ll be back to catch up 🙂
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Thanks for coming by. Glad you enjoyed!
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My pleasure 🙂
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“His real father had been a quiet man, a folkloric historian and environmentalist”
It’s a clue! I just know it 😉
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Smart GirlieOnTheEdge! It’s one of many, only I don’t know how this is all going to end up…yet!
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He’s stuck, but i hope not for long.
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Stay tuned…
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The odds seem stacked against Andrew, but why? You build up tension so well and leave us wondering. There are mysteries to be solved.
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Another example of sibling rivalry in a stew of toxic relationships? Dun dun DUNN!
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tone and mood set much?
lol
loved the details, it achieves the magic we all hope for in our stories, just enough description of a place or a time to trigger a part of our minds, “I know a place like that!”
awaiting the next installment
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Coming soon to a screen near you (weekend)! 🙂
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Having read past episodes, poor Andrew’s right to lock and bolt his door… I’m still wondering who will be the next victim, Liz!
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And of what?!
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😱
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I had to refresh last week’s 6 to remember what was going on. It seems one can’t get away from family.
I tried after after graduating from college but was still tied to the purse strings. 😦
My two kids tried and I was more than glad to snip the strings. 😉
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I hear you. We are both subject to, and a product of, the culture of the prevailing generation.
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I love the idea of the small attic room and can picture that in my mind. I do wonder where father has disappeared too 🤔😊
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Stay tuned…!
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Definitely! 🙂
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💜
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Why do I suspect that bad things are about to cometh?
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Something wicked this way comes? We should be so lucky….😉
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Ah, yes, that was the phrase that was eluding me. 🙂
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Nice description of Andrew: “he had no friends to go in together on housing because he had no friends” Very ominous locking himself in the attic to retain privacy.
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We go where we can…
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