The Frank Toner Creative Writing Award

No Time for Regrets 

Marie smiled as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. Smart outfit, beige heels and pristine jewellery. She was bound to get the job. She needed that information from Mr. Grey. Marie glanced at her appearance once more and dashed out of the house. 

She arrived at the multi-storey apartment just on time. 

‘I’m here for the new job’, she said solemnly. Marie had done this before. No one would guess what she was doing. The receptionist directed her towards an office in the back. Marie knocked on the door with a worn sign reading ‘Mr.Grey ’. The woman couldn’t help but scowl at his name.

‘Come in !‘, a chirpy voice replied. A man with his feet placed on the desk smiled at her. His glasses were perched on top of his curly, greasy hair. The man's garish shirt was open as if it was in the middle of Summer. Marie didn’t smile back but instead tried to analyse the cluttered room. 

‘Nice, isn’t it?’, Mr.Grey said sitting up. 

‘Yes’, Marie muttered, unaware of what he was saying.‘I’m here for the job’.

‘Oh’, he laughed, ’I’ll get the applications. Be back in two seconds’. As soon as the man left the room, Marie jumped to his seat. She swiftly started searching for data throughout the desktop until she found it. Marie smirked, it was nearly too easy. Mr.Grey was going to be in so much trouble.

Marie had just finished downloading the information onto a USB when she heard footsteps approaching the door. She quickly got up and erased any trace of her being there.

‘I have them’, grinned Mr.Grey triumphantly as he returned into the small room. ‘I’m so happy you’re here’, he said handing over the forms. ‘No one else has applied. I suppose it’s considering... you know’.

‘You’re financial situation’, Marie blurted out.

‘Well, yes’, Mr.Grey said quietly. His weathered face looked sad and dejected all of sudden. Marie felt a twinge of guilt. He didn’t know what he had done to her.

‘Well I’m here’, she spoke with a small smile.

‘You are’, Mr.Grey said, his face brightening.’ We’re having a job interview, right now’.

As soon as Marie arrived home, she lay down on the couch. She immediately took out her notebook and pen and began scribbling down everything about her day. The interview was very quick and easy-going. Just what you would expect. As she wrote about Mr.Grey, everything came back to her including the reason she needed that information.

‘One good invention, that’s all he had’, Marie thought aloud. ‘That should’ve been me, I should own a huge brand, I..’, she raged, tears trickling down her face. Suddenly, the doorbell rang interrupting Marie’s frustration. She wiped her eyes and collected herself. Marie opened the door to see the woman who put her up to this.

‘Did you get the stuff?’, the woman said instantly.

‘Yes, Mrs.T’, Marie answered,’I found the file’.

‘Good job. Where is it ?’, Mrs.T said expectantly, her arms crossed.

‘I’ll get it’, Marie replied and rushed into her living room to retrieve the USB. She reached to grab the device when something stopped her. It was as if this was perfectly fine, stealing information and not to mind money. She’d never done something this devious before. For the first time, Marie regretted doing this. What if she could go back to before; working on a new idea, pursuing her dreams? Surely she didn’t need to do things this way. A shout from the hallway interrupted Marie’s train of thought. She sighed,picked up the USB and walked out to the door. Mrs.T had her hands on her hips and was tapping her foot impatiently.

‘Whatever took you so long?’

‘ I was thinking...is this necessary? Five thousand euro is a lot!’, Marie said urgently.’It’s a struggling business, nothing like it was’.

Mrs. T looked menacingly at Marie.‘This was your idea, remember?. You wanted a business like this and ten years ago Mr.Grey created a fad, just like the one you’d been working on. Why not take away what is yours? It’s not fair on you.’

Marie’s head was spinning. This is your only chance to get revenge, she thought. Her thoughts drifted to Mr.Grey. The person she had only met a few hours ago but had crushed her dreams of becoming a success. Then she thought of his tiny, cluttered office in his obviously struggling company. Was it really worth it?

Marie looked up at Mrs.T’s glaring face. In the blink of an eye, Marie threw the USB on the ground and stomped on it with her heel.

‘Life’s not fair’, Marie said, her heart racing.

‘Are you crazy?’, Mrs.T yelled. Marie just smiled and slammed the door in the woman’s disbelieving face.

A Summer to Remember in Blue Ridge……..Kate Henry

I was sitting impatiently in class waiting for that final bell, the last bell before the summer .I was so excited but yet nervous.I really don’t know why.I just figured it was because it was my first summer having responsibilities, a job, an actual job.Babysitting. Not just helping my parents with housework which was what I would do for money. My parents were always strict.They never let me do much growing up, even when I was younger .I remember when going to the park they always kept such a close eye on me, never would they let me out of their sight. I was never allowed to walk home from school even though we lived 15 minutes away . I would walk with my best friend Ellie, who both my parents and I have known my whole life.I just presumed they were overprotective and honestly I was okay with that .I respected my Parents, but this Summer was different .I was free I was earning money for myself which was something I wanted all year.My friends thought it was weird that I wanted a job and that it wouldn’t make summer as fun as it could but for some reason a job is what I thought would make my summer fun. It would make me feel grown up, responsible and show my parents I’m trustworthy.

Elena Clarke was a 16 year old girl .She was a freshman in High School.She lived with her Mother Miranda and her father Jonathon. They were from a small town in Georgia called Blue Ridge with a population of no more than 1,500 citizens. It was a happy town, full of joy where everyone knew everyone. It was a safe place to live and raise a family.

I woke up early that morning.It was June 7th 2020, the first day of summer and the first day of my new job.I drew back the curtains, opened the window, looked out and took a deep breath.I didn’t know what to expect .I was looking forward to it more than most things I do, but I just figured it was because it was something I decided for myself, not something my parents organised or my friends were forcing me to do.it was something I wanted, something that was finally my choice. I had a good feeling about it.

The family that I was babysitting for were new to town, something I did mention to my parents.They were not too keen because nobody knew who they were.My parents always needed to know, they probably nearly had a character profile on everyone who has ever lived in this town. But it was too late now .I had committed. I had to do it.My parents couldn’t turn around and say no at this point .They just had to let me. My Mom dropped me off at this beautiful white wooden house. It had a soft pink cherry blossom tree on the left side of the front garden , a garden with perfectly cut grass. The cherry tree leaves fell so delicately off the tree falling onto the grass it was like out of a movie. This house was perfect. I stepped out of the car and closed the door behind me.My Mom rolled down the window and said nervously, “I love you”. And before I could even wave back she drove off. I walked up to the door fidgeting with my fingers. I rang the doorbell and stepped back.

The door opened and standing there was a beautiful tall slim woman with blonde wavy hair.She was wearing a white floral swing dress with a pair of silver sandal heels.She had a perfect smile, one that would light up a room. It was almost familiar. ”Hi I’m Rose you must be Elena” .She took my hand and shook it, her smile slowly faded and she started to stare. I could see the pain in her eyes but I didn’t question her. She quickly let go of my hand and ran down the steps of her porch, “I’m sorry” she said flustered, “I’m running late, instructions are on the counter in the kitchen. The kids are inside I shouldn’t be later than 10 pm”. As she jumped into her car, she frantically dialled a number and drove off. Strangely I took no notice and stepped inside. I walked through their hall. it was a bright room filled with family photos and pictures of her children. I continued down the corridor into the kitchen, it was a beautiful marble kitchen looking out to their backyard.

On the counter was a note which read “kids must be in bed by 9:30 except for Emma .She can stay up until I’m home,...phone numbers you may need are taped to the fridge, no chocolate after 5 !! They get hyper, if you need anything ask Emma she will let you know, make yourself at home xx Rose.” I looked up from the note and standing in front of me were four beautiful children, Emma who was 12, she had long blonde hair, golden brown eyes, like a pool of honey. They were so similar to my eyes nearly identical. Then there was Harry, Harry was 8, he had light brown hair and eyes like the ocean, they were unforgettable. After Harry was two twin girls Ava and Abigail .They were 6 and looked a lot like Emma. How could I tell them apart I thought to myself.Then I noticed Ava had blue eyes, and Abigail had eyes exactly like Emma, Exactly like me.

The day went quick.It was a bright summer's day. We played games outside all morning. The children really enjoyed it. They were having fun. I was having fun.At around 1 o’clock we made lunch.We made homemade pizza and made such a mess. After we all ate I put on a movie, “The Parent Trap”.It was a movie I used to watch a lot when I was younger. They all seemed to love it. “We watch this movie all the time, our Mom loves it, she says it reminds her of something”, Emma said. Then sat back down to watch the movie. I went back to the kitchen to clean up the mess.

Time passed quickly,.Before I knew it, it was 9:30 and Harry, Ava and Abigail went to bed. I sat on the couch next to Emma and started talking to her. “So why did your family move here” I asked curiously, Emma responded, “my parents have always loved this town.We used to live here but moved when I was one,which I never understood. My parents used to talk about how this was such a safe place to have a family. And then we just moved” Then she added, “but now we’re back”.

Time passed and before I knew it was 10 pm and Rose was back. She walked into the kitchen where Emma and I were.We were laughing and messing, I turned to Rose who was just quietly watching the two of us. I was about to say something and then my phone beeped. “My Mom is outside, I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight”.

When I got home I went straight upstairs, I started to think about everything that happened that day, the stares, they smile, the eyes, the movie, everything. It all seemed so weird and I needed to know more.

The next morning was the same as the morning before. I got up and went to the Lockwoods .I played with the children, made them food, put them to bed but Emma wasn’t there today so it was just me all alone downstairs. I decided to have a look around. I knew it was wrong.I knew I shouldn’t but I had to.There was something just not right .I needed to know what was actually going on. I didn’t find much really just old family photos, wedding pictures, photos from holidays, until I was looking through a photo album and a photo fell out. I picked it up, on the back of it in Rose’s writing was September 6th 2003, “my birthday” I thought to myself. I was so confused and I knew I should stop digging, but I couldn’t,.I couldn’t stop ,I needed to know. I flipped over the picture to the front, it was a photo of a baby, it looked like me, was it me ? It couldn’t be there is no way that is even remotely possible. I continued to look for more photos or anything that could prove it was or wasn’t me. I came across another photo album. It was very dusty and obviously wasn’t looked at in a while. I opened the first page and it was the same baby in all the photos that was in the first picture I found. I frantically continued to look through the book. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I didn’t know what to think, “it was me it had to be”.In each page in the book the baby got one year older, but then it stopped on page 5,.Rose didn’t record anymore about this girl’s life after she was 5 years old. Did she die, what happened to her,.I knew she couldn’t have died because she was me. I was so sure of it.It was just the first thing that came to my head.

I heard Rose's car pull up, I quickly shoved everything back into the cabinet and closed the door just in time. I could hear the front door opening.I ran into the kitchen and sat on the couch on my phone pretending I was there the whole time. “Elena hey, did everything go okay today” she said while smiling at me. “Y-yes” I stuttered. “Elena sweetie are you okay, you look very pale, did something happen”? I quickly snapped out of it. She couldn’t know what I found. Not yet, I needed to be sure, “oh no Mrs Lockwood I’m okay just tired”, I said. “I better head, my mother is outside, I’ll see you tomorrow morning” I added. I smiled at her and promptly walked out.

I could feel my breathing getting heavier, I could hear my heart pounding. I hated this feeling.It had been a long day. I just wanted to go home. I sat into the car and as usual it was a quiet car ride home. When I got home I went into the kitchen for a glass of water and my Mom went up to bed. As soon as I heard her bedroom door close I went into the utility and opened the long press. I took out photo albums and started looking through them. I noticed that there were no photos of me as a baby, no dates,nothing.They all started in 2007, the photos, the dates. There was nothing of me as a baby. It all started to add up, but still I was so confused I needed answers .I needed to know. I started to get tired so I put everything back headed upstairs.I walked into my bedroom and on my bed was my Mom ,or not my Mom, or whoever she was. I looked away from her. I couldn’t look at her, I just stared at the photo on the wall of her and I in our kitchen on the first day of kindergarten,.My eyes started to water and I couldn’t hold it in. “Who are you” I said in a deep voice. “I’m your mother” she replied. I could hear the hurt in her voice, but I was so angry with her .“Get out” I said in a shaky voice, “El-“ before she could even finish her sentence I turned and shouted at her “I said get out Miranda”. She gasped and walked slowly out my door and just stood outside it. I ran to the door and slammed it, I slowly slid down the door and just sat there. There were no tears, nothing I was too hurt to cry.

After an hour of sitting there thinking I decided to try to get some sleep,.There were thoughts, questions spinning through my head.I couldn’t sleep. After hours of just laying there I drifted to sleep. I woke up the next morning hoping it was a bad dream and nothing that happened the day before was real. I got into the car next to my Mom, she started to drive.“Let me explain” she said.There was fear in her voice. At that moment I knew it wasn’t a dream. This was my reality. “Okay” I said quietly, so quietly it was nearly a whisper. “Your father and I tried so hard to have a baby and we just couldn’t. It was always my dream to have a baby and we just couldn’t, One day we were walking through the park and there was a pram on wickery bridge, w-“ I interrupted, “so you took it? You stole me” ?By the way she looked at me I presumed I was right.I had been kidnapped. I went so pale I felt sick.I couldn’t say anything. I opened the car door and got out.I walked up to the Lockwoods door, tears in my eyes and knocked . Rose opened it and her smile quickly faded, “Elena”? I burst into tears barely able to get the words out, “I t-think I’m your d-daughter”. Rose stared at me, she went pale.Then she just started crying.She grabbed me and hugged me tight. I hugged her back. I then turned around to see if my Mom's car was still there but it was gone. She was gone, Rose rang the police station and they started a search for Miranda and Jonathon. Meanwhile Rose and I had a cup of herbal tea and talked. “Who is my father”. I asked with some hesitation. I felt like it was the wrong question. Rose took a deep breath before saying “you’re father's name was Andy. He died shortly after you were, she hesitated, she was reluctant to say the truth, “kidnapped” I added, “Right, he was sick it was a rare sickness that ran in his family”, a tear ran down Rose‘s face but she quickly wiped it away.

I felt upset hearing that my father was dead, I don’t know why I didn’t know the man. As far as I knew Jonathon was my father. But this news hurt, it hurt that I could have had a chance to know him and have some memory of him but Miranda and Jonathon took that away from me. There were so many emotions going through me, anger, rage, confusion but most of all I was upset.I had been lied to my entire life, loved people I shouldn’t have, people that had lied to me every single day. As the day went on Rose and I talked more and more, talked about my life, my school life, friends, everything, and she told me about hers and my siblings life. I felt happy, safe but most of all relieved. I was finally home to my real family.

The police never found Miranda and Jonathan.They must have fled the place, but something tells me that they won’t ever come back to this town, since this town is small and everyone knows everyone, word travels fast. Blue Ridge was now a happy and safe place to live.