A friend of mine was watching the first Harry Potter for the first time in a while, and commented that she loved how Hagrid kept saying “I shouldn’t have told you that.” I’ve always loved that line myself, and wished they’d kept with his little catch-phrase through the series better than they did.
Anyway, she prompted all of her writerly friends to write something with that line, then post it in a group thread. So I did. And seriously? I got, what is to me, a massive compliment. If it were raining right now, I’d be out there doing my happy dance in it. The compliment, by none other than windr0se over at A Novel Approach, had this to say:
“great timing and backstory in one of the best ways I have ever seen.”
But anyways, now it’s got me thinking… A writing prompt. Weekly or bi-weekly, I haven’t yet figured it out, but I will, and I’ll let you know what I decide on. For now, it’ll be as inspired, until I figure out the details. Which will probably be before the next prompt.
My Challenge To You: Come up with a short piece of fiction with the line, “I shouldn’t have told you that.” You can post it to your own page and put the link in the comments below if you choose, or if it’s 200 words or under, you can just post it right into the comments! Happy writing everyone!
So without further ado, the following is my contribution to the prompt. (It could probably use a little more editing, but as is, this was a rough draft)
The clacking of metal on metal as the cart clicked up the incline had Mary gnawing on her bottom lip. The line of carts was about to crest the top of the first big drop.
Her scream caught in the back of her throat, making it impossible to breathe. Her nails dug into Luke’s arm, on the verge of drawing blood. Wind howled past her ears, blending with the rushing sound inside her head. The rollercoaster corkscrewed upside down a couple of times before launching them into a loop-de-loop.
The scream tore free. Just a few more hills to slow them down, and the carts came to a stop. Luke climbed out, helping her up onto the exit platform. Her knees trembled, and with an arm around her shoulders to keep her steady, he walked down the steps with her.
Together, they walked out beyond the rest of the carnival goers, toward the parking area.
“Okay, when you said you didn’t like rollercoasters, I didn’t realize it meant you were terrified of them,” Luke commented as they walked.
“Pride had me refusing to admit that.” Mary refused to look at him, embarrassed by her reaction to a simple ride.
“Look, I’m sorry for making you hold up your end of the deal. But,” he stopped, just next to his truck, turning her to face him. “You did say if we went out dancing, you’d go on a rollercoaster with me.”
Mary held a finger up, swallowed, then bent over, expelling the contents of her formerly happy stomach. When she straightened, she was surprised when he lifted the bottom of his shirt up and wiped her mouth with it.
“I shouldn’t have said that. And I totally get it if you never want to see me again.” Mary looked down at the dirt, kicking at it with the toe of her boot to cover the puddle between them.
“A fear of rollercoasters isn’t enough for me.”
“I puked on your boots.”
“No worse than anything I’ve stepped in at the ranch.” Luke smiled, then brought his lips down on hers.
Mary backed away in surprise, slapping a hand over her mouth. There was no way it could be a pleasant kiss now. Not with the taste of vomit still fresh in her mouth.
“Tell you what. Next time we go dancing, we’ll do something less terrifying. Like skydiving.”
Luke’s teasing smile wasn’t enough to keep her stomach from lurching, and she backed up a few paces, just to be safe.
“No. No extreme sports.”
Luke laughed. “Says the girl who does trick riding at horse shows across the country.”
“I shouldn’t have told you that either. Can you please take me home now?”