This was written for dVerse where we were asked to write a flash fiction piece using the phrase “When far away an interrupted cry ” from Robert Frost’s poem  acquainted with the night .

It’s been a very long time since I’ve written for dVerse and I’m excited to be back. If you’d like to join in, please click on the link.

Setback (144 words)

The time arrived to withdraw from all that was holding me here. I’d tried to be the good child, remain with my aging parents, surrender expectations so theirs could be met, and allow my siblings the opportunity to conquer life.

But in this night, when far away an interrupted cry seized my imagination as little did these days, I knew my days of subjugating wants, desires, while my siblings squandered theirs, were over.

I packed my duffle, haunted the midnight road gleaming silver in the drizzle, and strode to the harbor where I’d board the ship to America. In the realms of my imagination, I dubbed myself explorer of the wild American west. I would write about and examine the life of gallant adventurers.

“Travelling by yourself?”

I nodded.

“Sorry, Miss, we cannot take responsibility for young women such as yourself aboard the ship.”

end

Sascha Darlington