© the reclining gentleman
It was dusk, quickly darkening. L.A. Woman belted out with me singing along unrestrainedly until I became aware of the car following me. I didn’t know how long they’d been on my tail. I slowed and they flashed their lights. The road was deserted. Why didn’t they overtake? A knot of fear settled in my stomach inching into my throat. They were blowing their horn at me now and shaking their fists. I sped up. They followed. Too fast. Stop and ring the police. They stopped too. Two men alighted. A scream rose from my bowels.
“Your boot’s open Miss.”
In case boot is not the common term I believe trunk is used in some places.
Rochelle hosts Friday Fictioneers each week. All are welcome to join in and write a 100 word flash, then add their link via the blue frog found on her site. Otherwise use the blue frog to see other people’s responses to the photo prompt which this week is courtesy of the reclining gentleman.
About Irene Waters 19 Writer Memoirist
I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
The perennial dilemma – ‘am I just over-reacting?’ And then … nicely captured. I hope the word ‘boot’ is recognised in some factions. 😉
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Thank Sandra. you were right that boot is not a word that all recognise so I have added trunk in an explanatory note in the piece. I am reading a book “Little Paris Bookshop” where the protagonist is travelling the French river and canal system in his barge. It has given me a bit more of a view into what you are maybe experiencing.
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Maybe “boot’s”?
Made me giggle.
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You are quite right. Will change now. Glad to give you a giggle
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Funny story – I’ve felt that feeling before!
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Glad to be able to smile about it.
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Dear Irene,
I’m gong to guess that ‘boot’ is British speak for trunk? Love the build of tension and the punchline. You had me me going.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Yes boot is trunk. Glad you enjoyed it Rochelle.
Cheers Irene
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I never mind a bit of education. 😉 It didn’t detract from the story.
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Thank you Rochelle.
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I understood boot. catchy piece. I know the feeling. We hear so many stories of things that can happen to a lone woman in a car on a highway, I would also have my stomach in a knot. The relief is palpable.
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Fuzzy Panda,
Glad you felt the tension and the relief.
Cheers Irene
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I’ve been there myself! My two cents on boot is while I wasn’t familiar with the term, the context was enough for me
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I think it is a situation many of us can relate to. Glad the context got you past the boot term.
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Oh indeed.. how often kindness is misunderstood for threat
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Yes Björn we see too much on the news and TV shows that our panic buttons are easily pressed.
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I really liked the tension in this. (But I think you need boot’s, not boots)
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You are right Claire and I have now corrected it. Thanks. Glad you felt the tension.
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Such tension! And then relief! Nicely done.
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Thank you Caerlynn.
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It is true, we tend to overreact these days. Full of tension and nice relief at the end.
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Thank you. Big sigh of relief being had. Yes we hear too many stories ans see too many films.
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Great suspenseful story! I didn’t know that “boot” meant trunk. Loved the twist at the end.
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Thanks Priceless Joy. Boot came from the days of carriages where the coachman used to sit on a box (called boot) because he stored his boots in it.
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Nice one, Irene.
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Thank you
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I’ve been there, too. On both sides. DH fusses that I too often try to chase others down to let them know of broken tail-lights and open gas hatches. Glad this one had a happy ending.
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Your husband sounds like mine who says I should mind my own business. I know I’d be glad to be told but possibly not in the manner that happened in the flash. I could have a heart attack first.
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Beautifully told. You create tension so easily.I didn’t realize it was a woman, though, until the last line.
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Thank you Emilio. Glad you felt the tension. I don’t think it really mattered what sex although I guess I probably assumed female as a woman would be more likely to be easily scared.
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Luverly, Irene ! – great fun. You managed to combine your natural talent for weirdness with something silly ! 😀
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Thank you l think. That is perhaps the nicest compliment you have ever given me. 🙂
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[grin] Oh what a horrible old fart I am !
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Not at all. Loves ya M-R.
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Great, Irene. Happened to me – I had a cup of coffee on top of the car!
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LOL I can just see that coffee. Surely it wouldn’t be long before it was off flying with no need to notify you and if it wasn’t it would be too cold to drink. 🙂
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Great use of humor to break the tension!
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Thanks Charli. Glad you felt the tension.
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Love that your twist was funny!
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Thanks Dale. Glad you got a smile.
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Have been chased by cars on the freeway, never a good thing, very frightening. Well done!
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Thanks Yolanda. Yes it can be frightening and even if they have good intention they could scare the other driver into making fatal flaws.
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i can relate to this story. i had a somewhat similar experience before. 🙂
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You would know how it felt then. 🙂
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What a happy ending! Loved it!
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Glad you loved it and the happy ending.
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She was right to be nervous. All sorts of weird things happen on the road. Great buildup and a lovely ending – I’m glad it was just a good Samaritan. Wish there were more of them around.
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Thanks Margaret. Yes sadly it is true that too much has happened not to be a bit wary. Glad the build up worked for you.
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I’d have kept driving – you can never be too careful!
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I don’t know what I would have done. 🙂
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Well done.
Years ago, way before cell phones, I was traveling down the freeway with a car full of kids, each of my two sons having brought a guest. Another car started tailing me way too close. Feeling intimidated, I got off the freeway and found a place to pull over – an empty lot as it turned out. The other driver followed me. I was terrified – how could I protect 4 kids from a madman? He got out and yelled at me, “Don’t you know your brake lights aren’t working?” I didn’t know, but got them fixed soon as I got home safely. And have never forgotten that feeling of intense fear.
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Sharon that would have been terrifying. There should be some way that those trying to be good samaritans can alert their victim that they have good intention. Fly a white flag or something.
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Good tension here.
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Thanks Tracey.
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As I read this, I could feel her many emotions. I was fearful along with her.
I was happy they were trying to be helpful. Good ending to a tensing story.
Loved it …
Isadora 😎
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Thanks Isadora. Glad you were along for the ride. Nicer to share that tension and the relief at the end. 🙂
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And as I read aling, I too had a knot in my stomach. But unfortunately nothing untoward occured and heaved a sigh of relief.
http://ideasolsi65.blogspot.in/2015/09/road-to-freedom.html?m=1
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Glad the knot became present and left you happily relieved.
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Good story. Plays with our assumptions.
Had the same experience with two lads following me a bit close for comfort – only wanted to tell me to close my open backpack.
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Yes it creates a lot of anxiety when that type of thing happens. Probably 99% are good samaritans but we fixate on the 1% and get the terrors as a result.
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Good build of tension and a humorous ending. I was expecting a bad ending.
I am American, we use trunk. My husband who is not British, but from Cyprus a former British Colony always says boot, or the greek word which I don’t remember off the top of my head, and I have to correct him. Yet, I love learning new words, phrases and terms.
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Blogging it is worth knowing all the different possibilities because this is probably the closest most of us will get to world wide distribution of our work and it helps if there isn’t confusion for the reader. I hadn’t thought of it at first but I will be aware for next time I want to use the term.
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There are actually still some friendly people out there. I would have been very scared, too, and I don’t think I would have stopped. Great build-up, fun relief.
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Glad the tension worked. Thanks
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love the play of tension and relief in this…sometimes i like to call this Earth a Paradise….
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Glad it worked you into a tense state and then gave you that welcome relief. Yes indeed Earth can be Paradise.
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You do a good job of building the tension here. Nice work.
KT
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Thanks KT. Glad the tension building worked for you.
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Thanks for clarifying the meaning of boot. What an odd name for a trunk 😉
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It comes from the coaches and the box the coachman used to sit on which held among other things his boots. I’m assuming that trunk probably comes from the chests that people took on sea voyages. As most Americans travelled by sea that was probably a more common piece of equipment than the box of carriages. Just guessing.
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Boot! I’m going to start calling my trunk that now. Whew, Irene! For a second there, I was pretty worried. Your mind can be a powerful force in the darkness. I love your take.
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Thanks Amy. The differences in language are interesting considering we both come from the same mother tongue. The Americanism I found strange was that you call car accidents car wrecks. We had an American nurse who on handover said “He was in a wreck.” None of us could work out why it mattered because to us a wreck is a car that is in poor shape.
Glad you were taken along in the darkeness with the tension. Cheers Irene
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Nicely done – tension building, then a happy ending. 🙂
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Thanks Norah. I prefer the happy endings although I can’t always make them happen.
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That statement sounds as true in life as in fiction!
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Nice ending. You had me on edge. Great tension. I could hear that scream.
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Thanks Ula. Sheer terror lends itself to those kinds of screams or silence.
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It’s trunk where I come from and boot where my sister lives but wherever your from it was a good vignette and example of how we never expect the hopeful outcome and always try to guard against the evil outcome.
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I’m from Australia. You are right the good is the last thing we think of. A sad indictment of our society.
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What a great ending!
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Great buildup of tension. I can see this happenning in real life. Nicely done story.
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From the comments I think it happens a lot in real life. Thank you.
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Nicely done. Such a superb buildup of tension and then the comic twist in the end.
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Thanks Subruto. Glad it brought a smile.
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I was hoping this was headed in that direction! Nice build up, Irene.
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Thank you Dawn.
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Good story, Irene. That would be scary on a dark night. Great twist at the end. I recognized boot from the English movies I’ve seen. I also hear some of the British English here in India as the British had an influence on the English spoken here. Well done. 🙂 — Suzanne
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Thanks Suzanne. Yes I imagine India’s British is like ours,quite British.
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