Flash Fiction and Rationale

Flash Fiction

Lavender and Jade had lost their parents in a car crash; the same crash had killed Kai's parents. They were forced onto the streets after only one missed payment of rent. That night, Lavender dreamed of when her parents were still alive, days she deeply missed. A gentle nudge awakened Lavender; she had become a light sleeper during her time on the street. Kai was standing above her.

"It's time to get up, earn some money;" he said softly, "Jade could use a proper meal."

Lavender glanced over at her sister, while sleeping she looked incredibly fragile, solely skin and bones. Lavender nodded, and walked over to Jade.

"Wake up Jade, you and Kai are going to search for a cheap meal today, okay?" Lavender whispered.

"Mmm... Food sounds good..." Jade replied.

Jade followed Kai off to find a meal. Lavender remained on the street, trying to earn as much as she could. Late in the evening, Kai returned. Alone.

 Lavender became anxious. "Where is Jade?!" She cried out.

"She... she ran into the street this afternoon,” Kai said, “She saw free hot-dogs and..." He trailed off, not knowing what else to say, knowing nothing would help.

Tears streamed down Lavender’s face as she imagined her sister’s broken body lying in the street. Already Lavender had trouble remembering what her sister looked like. The image she conceived was distorted, no longer having any resemblance of Jade. She tried desperately to remember how things had been before this event, and even more desperately to remember how things had been before the accident that had ripped her life apart. Lavender turned to look at Kai; her eyes, usually clear and calm like the surface of a pond, now resembled the savage waves of the seas during a storm. With this final glance, Lavender turned and ran. She never looked back.

Rationale:

My piece of flash fiction is essentially a snapshot of the lives of three teens who have lost their parents and end up on the street. The trust they achieve through their similar situation is eventually the group’s downfall. Lavender is heartbroken when Kai fails to save Jade, and leaves as she can no longer bring herself to trust him. Jade’s death at the end of the flash fiction is meant to show how trust can have negative impacts on a person’s life when said trust is broken. This relates to my first quote, “Trust, years to earn, seconds to break” (Unknown), as the trust shown in this piece of fiction was forged solely due to the circumstances that Lavender, Jade and Kai shared; it took years to perfect but a single moment for the trust to be completely shattered.