Writing for Fun
July 2021
The Locket - Lynn Gale
Something caught his eye as he strolled along the beach on that glorious September morning. A glint of sunlight nestled amongst the brown and grey pebbles.
Investigating further, he picked up the object and wiped away the crusty damp sand to reveal a small gold locket.
‘Looks ancient,’ he mused, carefully prising it open to reveal a pair of well-preserved black and white photographs inside. A man and woman facing each other with hostile, almost murderous expressions on their faces.
'Hilarious,' he laughed, 'why would anyone use such unflattering images?'
Against his better judgement, he decided not to hand the locket into the lost property at the Police Station.
'I'll take it home for Clara. This will make an unusual engagement gift for her.
'This is lovely,' she smiled as he placed it around her neck that evening, 'and we are so cute.'
He watched her and felt blessed. He had spent hours finding the right photographs to replace the others in the heart-shaped locket.
Life was great; he possessed all that he wanted: an attractive, kind fiancee, a three bedroomed house and a new job at a prestigious company.
It was hard to pinpoint when everything began to fall apart. Things began to change gradually. He broke her favourite cup, which turned her into a screaming harpy, unlike the normally mild-mannered girl he adored.
She burned his best shirt as they rushed to get to a surprise party on time, resulting in another blazing row.
Then a neighbour knocked to tell him his beloved cat Tabitha had been run down by a reversing lorry in their quiet cul-de-sac.
When he was called into Mrs Mayfield's office on the twelfth floor of Cootes and Crawley Investments, he wasn't too concerned. He felt confident in his abilities and was popular amongst his colleagues. 'I am sorry,' she began. Then informed him that due to cutbacks, his position was no longer viable.
As he sat staring out the window in a daze, he never heard her explain the reasoning behind his dismissal. Escorted from the plush glass-fronted building with a cardboard box containing the contents of his desk, he tripped over and smashed his ‘employee of the month’ award.
After sitting around in his underwear for the next two weeks watching daytime soaps, Clara said she was leaving; enough is enough, no long-drawn-out goodbyes, just the clack-clack of her heels across the hallway floor and the slamming of the door.
He found her keys along with the locket on the hallway table.
On a cold December morning, he stood by the shore and reflected on the rapid changes in his life. Taking the locket out of his pocket to take another look at his lost love, he could not believe his eyes. The charming photographs that so impressed Clara now displayed twisted angry expressions of hatred.
Snapping the locket shut, he clenched it tightly in his fist.
Breathing hard, he flung the locket far out into the choppy grey sea.