The Bookkeeper

Tuesday Tales
100-word flash fiction challenge

The Photo: left

The Secret Word: Conjugal

My Entry: The Bookkeeper

The rising sun lit his desk chair, dust motes mocking him.

"Shit," he muttered, knowing he had to sit down and get to work.

He sighed as he opened the ledger, his nemesis, gathering piles of receipts and bits of paper, beginning the entries. If he concentrated, he could finish in time to meet her for dinner. The thought of her made him smile.

Hours later, his adding machine whirred as he totaled the columns, debits and credits dancing in conjugal bliss.

"Double shit," he muttered when he examined the tape.

The ledger, like his life, was out of balance.

100 words

Honorable Mention:  Best Use of the Word “Conjugal:”   Dee -  @dee_768

Praise: Love it! This one was an easy pick for Honorable Mention, and very nearly took the cake. I especially enjoyed the image conveyed by “debits and credits dancing in conjugal bliss.” Mmm, yeah, all those pluses and minuses moving together…ahem. Pardon me.

Criticism: In the end, I felt that some of the “telling” in this story might have been better as “showing,” which is why it comes in second.


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