39. Scenario: A friend has been staying with you since his relationship break-up. He has overstayed his welcome but you don’t want to ask him to leave. Think of an imaginative scheme to make him decide to go.
40. Title: Messages in a Bottle
“Dude get up.”
“Nrgghh.”
“I said, get up, man.”
“Go away.”
“It’s been three months. It’s time to get out of that funk.”
“I need… more… time.”
“Fine then. I’ve got something for you. Here.” I shove a red bottle towards him.
“Urg. What’s this?”
“A present. You’re supposed to drink it up.”
He reaches for the bottle, knocking down the lamp, a picture frame, and, well, almost everything on top of the coffee table next to the sofa he was sleeping in. “Sorry, man.”
I sight. “It’s alright. I’ll fix it up later.”
He glugs the red potion down. The thing seems to be burning down a trail of fire down his throat.
“Man, that was strong.” He looks more awake now. “What was that?”
“Something I got from the old man down the street.”
“That weird, crazy dude? Wow, he’s got good stuff.”
“Err, yeah. Do you feel any different?”
“I feel — young and free! Like I can do anything. Like I can take on any challenge?”
“Like you can move out of this house?”
“Like I can move out of this house! Wait, what?”
“Dude, I need you to move out. This isn’t helping either of us anymore. I mean, sure, the first few days it was okay. But when your stay eventually became months, I’ve got to say… well, there’s no easy way to put it. I can’t have you stay here anymore.”
“Well, uh, why didn’t you just say so in the first place? You could have just told me.”
“I tried, man. I tried.”
“Well, that bottle got me feeling great. Where are my stuff? I should start packing. Hey, man, thanks for letting me stay over.”
“It’s, uh, not a problem. But next time… let’s hope there wouldn’t be a next time.”
He shuffles away and gives me a languid wave. “So long, Lucas.”
“So long, SP. You take care.”
“You, too. You, too.”
*Author’s note: Any guess what the red potion could be? And what SP stands for? Speculations are welcome. :D
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