Martha.

Martha

Martha was a strange boy. When I knew him, he was just turning thirteen. He wasn't very tall, nor was he short. Martha wasn't very strong, but he was fast. Boy was he fast.
It was probably the years of running from the cops that gave him that speed. Maybe the need to hide easily made him shorter than he should be.
As mentioned before, Martha was a strange boy. He loved to grab at other boys, giggle, and other weird things. I didn't even think he was gay at the time, but now I do, and you will, too (If you don't already), by the end of this prolouge/story/epilouge.

One day a young boy named Kyle Loughlin walked into fourth period english. That is when I met him. He didn't seem creepy at all. I actually thought he was normal.
As the year progressed, not much changed. I did learn a few things about him, though. He's a neat-freak, he's overly protective, and he loves to read.
Around mid-March 2008, during the New York State Mathematics Assessment, I became bored. I decided to write instead of work. Being a pyschopath, I just threw random ideas onto the paper. This was the beginning of the story Le Random. This was the story that made me and Kyle friends.
<Friends? Angatar? Blasphemy!>
At the end of May, me and Kyle were seated together in the back of the room. Again, I became bored and started to write in Le Random. He saw me writing in it and asked if I could lend it to him so he could read it (He couldn't possibly read all fourty-one pages in ten minutes). That was what made us friends.
<Friends? Angatar? Blasphemy!>
I didn't see Kyle much after that. We had finals and summer break was approaching fast, and I was going away for two months. I changed over that time, and when we were placed in the same lunch period, we were completely different- or atleast I was.

In lunch we became friends again, and everything was fine. It was all good, until that terrible, terrible day. January 16th, 2009. The day Kyle changed his name to Martha.
As I said before, no one really knows how it all happened. In my memory, it went down like this:
"Hey, Kyle," I said.
"Hello," Kyle replied.
"Well, I had this idea..." My voice began to trail off as I realized what I was about to ask.
"Well...?"
In a softer voice than usual, I said, "Well, I had this idea that you could change your name..."
He looked at me funny for a second, then said, "Depends... What names?"
I looked at him in disbelief. He was going along with it!
"I was thinking Flash Gordon or Martha Sped."
"Martha Sped," he replied without hesitation.
That's how it started, or atleast how it did in my memory.

I called him this for several years. Each time I saw him he got weirder and weirder. First, he responds to "Martha". Then, he begins to talk creepy. Next he starts giggling at his own pain, then he begins creepy stories. Where our stories starts again, he is touching boys.
As soon as Martha could work, he worked. First babysitting (poor children), then he worked at McDonalds, then at a bar.
I kept asking him what he needed all the money for, but all he would say is, "You'll see..."
And see I did.
You want to guess what he bought? An apartment? No! A hot-rod? No! Paintings? No!
He bought a van and spray paint.
I asked him what he was going to do with those. He told me I would see, again! I thought it was for a prank as it was near Halloween, but I was wrong there, too.
He bought the van and spray paint to write "Free Candy!" on the side of the van. He told me he was going to drive it around the neighborhood. I stopped him right there.
The next day, I saw Martha driving his van around. I didn't go outside for weeks after that. I'm afraid of Martha now.

Weeks go by, and Martha still makes his rounds. On the radio kidnapping reports skyrocket, and I still haven't gone outside.
One day, Martha pulls up to the front of my house and gets out. I am ready for this, I have prepared every day. I have everything I need I believe, but I went over it again.
Shotgun? Check!
Knife? Check!
Shells? Negative!
No ranged weapons? I'm dead! Martha will easily beat me in hand-to-hand combat.
I also have no where to run. I am trapped, like a fish in a barrel.
I began to pray... Pray for anything to save me... And my prayer was answered!
Another van pulls up to my house. The man in the drivers seat yells out, "Hey, young man, I got free candy in the back of my van! Hop in!"
Martha replies while turning to face the newcomer, "Why don't you get into my van?"
"No, no! My van is much, much better!" said the man.
"Does your van have duct tape and a matress?" said Martha.
"No..."
"Well then I'm comin' in!" Martha said not being able to hide his joy.
He opened the door, jumped in, and the van drove off.
I didn't see Martha for thirty years, until after he sent me the letter.

The letter came on a day when I was working at home. I heard a knock on the front door, so I went to open it. I saw through the window that no one was there.
I opened the front door and found a letter. I picked up the letter and examined it to see who it was from.
Martha.
I opened the letter quickly to see if I could find a clue as to when he was coming. The letter looked like this:

Dear Nick,

I love you. My husband, Bruno, the one from the van loves you, too. We found out where to live because we (me and Bruno) have started a stalker-for-hire business. Good luck with life! We are watching!

Love,
Martha Sped

p.s. All seven of our pedophile children love you.

That was a week ago.
Since then, I have barely moved. He knows where I am. He's coming to get me. Right now, it's 11:53 am, September 17, 2043.
It's my birthday... Oh no! He's coming today! He's going to give me one of his 'presents'!
What was that? Glass shattering... Shuffling feet at the door... Clawing...
I have no where to run. I'm going to die.
I'm sorry for everything I've done wrong.
Dom, I'm sorry no one loves you.
Steven, you deserved it.
Filepeá, I'm sorry Martha rejected you.
Ryan, I'm sorry for writing that story in your yearbook (How gay do your parents think you are?).
Well, as these are going to be my last known words...
FOR FRODO!

I went through that with an increasing sense of intrigue, apprehension and... well more apprehension. Guess it was well founded

Quite reminds me of Ian Banks.

I loved the way you built it up gradually, but I'm not really a fan of the 'attacks' I'm afraid. Seemed to eliminate some of the mystery. But yeah, very immersion and creepy.

There's a typo in the fifth line 'short than he he should be'. Maybe look at the character maturing with age. But I'm pretty much just clutching at straws here.

That's all there is right now, so don't expect much more. It'll probably be three parts:
-My point of view
-Martha's point of view
-Children's point of view

I'm sorry for the typos. I'm leaving in like, 2 hours, so I needed to do it very quickly.

I'll Martha's p.o.v. in a week, then the child's p.o.v.

Also, I wonder if I should get this published or something...

Oh I thought, and quite liked this as the only P.O.V. But let's see where it goes.

As for publishing, apart from the internet it's really difficult to get an unknown's short stories published (in the mainstream if I catch your drift -especially for money). A very good direction to head is for local magazines, local papers and that kind of thing. Websites are also a good place to look.

Competitions are great too, but make sure you're in the right category or it's just a waste of money.

I have no idea about America, but here 'Writers' and Artists' Yearbook' is a very useful read. Perhaps I'll read up more in the short stories section and have something more useful to say then.

Also: you have aspirations! I like it!

It's not like I'm going to be saying the same exact story from Martha's view... I was think of filling in the thirty year gap with those.

Also, for money? You can imagine someone buying that? Lol?

Well... I'm only thinking in terms of your aspirations. I always apply it to my own stuff regardless how I'll feel about it in a few months and assumed you do the same. Besides, it's more about how somebody has qualified your work as worth paying for than the actual money itself.

And that right there is the main reason I'd like to be published, paid or not. Even though I already wrote free for the local paper for a while. It was ok.

Plus I said 'especially for money'. It was even put in as an afterthought.

.... Ang I expect the ban hammer to be at your door when LP arrives to this thread. Only because hes been in a angry mood... and hes not sure how deep this will get with the children and martha parts. Anyways the story was good ill read on if it doesnt get to sick.

I hope that wasnt sickness for the point of being sick. It's much better from a serious slant - hence why i'm not 100% at the end.

Also, as the character of martha is so... lets say weirdly motivated. I'm not sure giving her a narrative at all is the best action. Unless you take the Wide Sargasso Sea approach and totally rationalise their madness.

Isnt Martha a guy?

Angatar wrote:Martha was a strange boy,

I liked how it looked like it was a true story and then just meandered off into "wtf" territory

BBJynne wrote:I liked how it looked like it was a true story and then just meandered off into "wtf" territory

lol FOR FRODO!

Actually, until the part about Martha going around in van and kidnapping children, it is a real story.

And yes, Martha is a guy. Martha is not supposed to be crazy, only perverted. In the chatbox, you guys pervceive me as a pervert. In real life, I am you, and Martha is me. That's how I see it.

I don't think you're a pervert

Angatar wrote:Actually, until the part about Martha going around in van and kidnapping children, it is a real story.

And yes, Martha is a guy. Martha is not supposed to be crazy, only perverted. In the chatbox, you guys pervceive me as a pervert. In real life, I am you, and Martha is me. That's how I see it.

So were martha? and no your not that perverted

....