I didn't want one post to be super long, so here is the second story I was talking about! =)
Enjoy!
Inner Tube
A man slips into a swimming pool
unnoticed and moves towards a woman floating on an inner tube in the deep end.
They were the only two in the pool and this was finally his chance. He had been
watching her for weeks now and he was obsessed with her. So obsessed that he
knew he had to kill her. His balcony overlooked the pool and every night she
was there, sitting on her inner tube, a cigarette dangling from her hand, the ashes
falling into the cool water. She was beautiful, no doubt, but that wasn’t what
he noticed about her. He noticed her because she didn’t notice him. Every night
he watched her, his own cigarette the only light on his balcony and she never
saw him. She was oblivious to every thing around her, her main focus the water.
He stopped swimming and just stared. He had never been this close to her before
and he could smell her cigarette. He savored in that smell, realizing that they
smoked the same brand. Maybe they could be friends. He shook his head
violently, getting the thought out. No one was ever his friend. No one ever liked
him and no one ever would, just like his dad had told him so many times when he
was young.
The young girl suddenly gasps and
he comes back from his thoughts about his childhood and sees that she finally
actually notices him; he had taken too long. “Oh… hello… I didn’t know anyone else enjoyed the pool as
much as I did.” Her voice came out just like he thought it would, low and
sultry. The kind of voice anyone would want to talk to.
“Oh… well maybe not as much as you,
but I like a dip every now and then.” He smiles at her and she seems to cringe away
from it. His smile falters. He had smiled too big and scared her. He had to be
careful if he was still going to get his chance tonight.
“Well… it’s good to meet a neighbor
finally. I have been here for a couple of weeks now and haven’t really met
anyone yet. Work keeps me so busy that I normally…” She rattles on, sounding
nervous. He realizes that he is still smiling. He loses the smile and continues
to nod, though his thoughts are on how he is going to kill her and not what she
is saying. He always wondered why people rambled when they were nervous. Maybe
they thought to annoy the other person into leaving them alone. His thoughts
went back to his dad. He knew his dad would be proud of him for this one. His
dad was always proud when he brought a girl home, but this one… this one was
beautiful. They were usually plain girls that no one noticed, just like no one
noticed him, but now he was going to get a beauty. His dad told him he would
never get a beautiful girl. This will show him. He came back to the present
abruptly; she gave him a strange look and was starting to swim away. His smile
must have returned.
“I… uh… I am just going to stay in
the deep end over there. I won’t bother you with my talk anymore. Have a nice
night.” That was her polite but hasty way in saying goodbye to him. He stayed
where he was and watched her float away, the smoke creating a design in the
sky. He swam in the opposite direction, making his way to the shallow end and
keeping his distance, making her think she was safe. He knew they could never
be friends. Someone like her would never be friends with someone like him. He
turned around to watch her again but jumps when he sees she is gone. Even her
inner tube is gone, no longer floating in the deep end. He hadn’t even heard
her get out of the pool. He looks around but doesn’t see her anywhere, he
doesn’t\’t even see the light from her cigarette. “Well… there goes my chance.
I will have to wait for another night.” Since he was already there, he decides
he may as well enjoy some time in the spa.
He steps into the spa, immediately
enjoying the hot water. He submerges his whole body, the water covering
everything up to his chin. The jets are on full blast and he forgets everything
else around him. His mind starts to wander; back to the first girl he brought
home to his dad. His dad had been so proud that he had wanted to continue the
family business. “Look dad! My first girl!” He had found her wondering the
street, lost, and he had offered to help. At that time, he had been able to
better hide his smile and she had not suspected anything. He had brought her
back to his house, offering his phone so she could call a cab. As she was on
the phone, he had picked up the first tool he could find, a screwdriver. When
she had turned around to ask him for his address, he had stabbed her in the
eye. The red that came pouring out of her eye was gorgeous. So gorgeous that he
had dreamed about it and knew he could never stop.
His reverie is so deep and the jets
so loud that he doesn’t hear her walk up behind him. His focus is on his
thoughts and the smile is back on his face. The smile remains even as the cold
rubber of the deflated inner tube is placed around his neck. The smile remains
as she slowly tightens the inner tube around his neck and starts to squeeze.
The smile remains as the life slowly leaves him. He doesn’t even struggle and
his last thought is, “Dad is going to be so disappointed.”
She keeps the inner tube tight for
a long time, making sure it’s over.
“When you want to kill someone, you
should really do it before they notice you.” She says to him out loud, her face
in a grimace as she notices the smile on his face. “God you are creepy… but
handsome… mom is going to be so proud of me when I bring you home…”
