1.14 The prank caller
It is a pleasant evening as I sit down with my young sister,
After a tiring day, we are about to spend some quality family time together.
I pull out a book and watch her face light up, she loves me reading to her,
Sitting there, I take in the radiant joy shining off her sweet face, it warms me.
As the pages turn, we get further engrossed, deeper and deeper in the story-
RING, RING! There goes the phone.
I sigh and place the book down, my sister smiles sweetly to me as I go to answer,
On the end of the phone is silence... odd, I think, then return to read again.
I try not to let my thoughts stray, but can no longer focus on the book,
My sister fidgets nervously and I begin to stumble over the words on the page.
Once again, we are back to the book, enjoying our time together-
RING, RING! There goes the phone.
Sighing, the book is lowered again, sister's sweet smile is gone, replaced by a frown,
I leave once more to answer, "You are popular today brother" calls her soft voice,
On the end of the phone is silence... strange, I hang up-
RING, RING! I answer. Nothing. A sweat breaks out. I hang up-
RING, RING! I answer. Nothing. What is going on? I am getting scared. I hang up-
RING- I answer straight away... 'they' hang up-
RING, RING! I jump... frightened, sweat trickling down my brow-
RING, RING! I answer. Nothing. I hang up, and wait... nothing... silence.
I return once more to read again to my sister.
Upon my return a curious look rest beneath her furrowed forehead, "who is it brother?"
"No one sis... shall we carry on-"
RING, RING! There goes the phone.
It feels as though I cannot breathe... fear... fear of the unknown.
I run to the phone and switch it off in a hurry, heart pounding, breathing hard.
Looking at the dead phone, I stand, standing, waiting for it to impossibly ring once more.
I find my feet and return to my sister who is by now very concerned,
She asks me all kinds of questions, but I do not hear her.
I gather the book, close it, and return it to the shelf,
In a sort of semi-trance, I walk to where the phone is, I sit in the corner,
In the cold corner, hugging myself for warmth, I sit staring at the dead phone.
My pleasant evening ruined, ruined by a phone,
My sister's pleasant evening, ruined by my reactions to the silence on the phone,
Our evening ruined, ruined by a prank caller.
***
Jamie Scott Watkinson-Harvey
After a tiring day, we are about to spend some quality family time together.
I pull out a book and watch her face light up, she loves me reading to her,
Sitting there, I take in the radiant joy shining off her sweet face, it warms me.
As the pages turn, we get further engrossed, deeper and deeper in the story-
RING, RING! There goes the phone.
I sigh and place the book down, my sister smiles sweetly to me as I go to answer,
On the end of the phone is silence... odd, I think, then return to read again.
I try not to let my thoughts stray, but can no longer focus on the book,
My sister fidgets nervously and I begin to stumble over the words on the page.
Once again, we are back to the book, enjoying our time together-
RING, RING! There goes the phone.
Sighing, the book is lowered again, sister's sweet smile is gone, replaced by a frown,
I leave once more to answer, "You are popular today brother" calls her soft voice,
On the end of the phone is silence... strange, I hang up-
RING, RING! I answer. Nothing. A sweat breaks out. I hang up-
RING, RING! I answer. Nothing. What is going on? I am getting scared. I hang up-
RING- I answer straight away... 'they' hang up-
RING, RING! I jump... frightened, sweat trickling down my brow-
RING, RING! I answer. Nothing. I hang up, and wait... nothing... silence.
I return once more to read again to my sister.
Upon my return a curious look rest beneath her furrowed forehead, "who is it brother?"
"No one sis... shall we carry on-"
RING, RING! There goes the phone.
It feels as though I cannot breathe... fear... fear of the unknown.
I run to the phone and switch it off in a hurry, heart pounding, breathing hard.
Looking at the dead phone, I stand, standing, waiting for it to impossibly ring once more.
I find my feet and return to my sister who is by now very concerned,
She asks me all kinds of questions, but I do not hear her.
I gather the book, close it, and return it to the shelf,
In a sort of semi-trance, I walk to where the phone is, I sit in the corner,
In the cold corner, hugging myself for warmth, I sit staring at the dead phone.
My pleasant evening ruined, ruined by a phone,
My sister's pleasant evening, ruined by my reactions to the silence on the phone,
Our evening ruined, ruined by a prank caller.
***
Jamie Scott Watkinson-Harvey