Pacing her apartment, she waits for him to call. She stares at the phone, perched innocently on a side table. Wills it to ring. She strides to the window, grips the ledge, her fingers tightening as she views the busy street below. Couples laughing, children running, a solitary man consulting his watch. She turns away. Why doesn’t he phone? Damn him! Puts on her coat, grabs her keys. One last lingering look at the unforgiving phone.
waiting no longer
she slams the door behind her:
the phone starts to ring.
~~~~~~~~
Image credit: Tylor Heery @ Unsplash
The image shows a rotary dial pink telephone, and next to it are cards showing the answering machine messages on different cards. “Leave us a message” , “After the tone” and “Thank you”
Written in response to Sadje‘s What Do You See #129 photo prompt
luna's on line 
great take, chris! Well done my friend ❤
LikeLiked by 5 people
Thanks very much, Carol! My stomach’s churning, waiting for that call.😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Finally he calls!
LikeLiked by 5 people
Hope he leaves a message!
LikeLiked by 1 person
But who called? 🙂 This phone has no caller id.
LikeLiked by 5 people
Let’s hope it’s the one she’s been waiting for!
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ain’t that the truth!
We seem these days to have gone fron one extreme to the other. In my day if you were walking down the street talking (apparently) to yourself people would have been phoning the men in white coats!
LikeLiked by 3 people
True that 😂😂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Very true, Chris!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on NEW BLOG HERE >> https:/BOOKS.ESLARN-NET.DE.
LikeLiked by 4 people
Thanks so much for sharing, Michael!😊
LikeLike
Great twist ending, Chris! The short punchy lines ramp up the suspense 🙂
LikeLiked by 4 people
Thanks, Tom. Having to wait in for a call… ancient history!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Beautiful and highly meaningful. Highest voltage on the face of a pinhead.. xx Michael
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks, Michael. I’m pleased it worked!☎️😊
LikeLike
I’d have left too 😀. Loved it Chris
LikeLiked by 3 people
Quite right too, Deb!😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Loved your take Chris. I think we all have been in this situation at one time or another. Thanks for joining in my friend
LikeLiked by 3 people
Thanks, Sadje! Thinking myself back into that situation made me quite uncomfortable. Weird! 🙄😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
You have awesome imagination Chris
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙏
LikeLiked by 1 person
😃
LikeLiked by 1 person
[…] Been here? — luna’s on line […]
LikeLiked by 4 people
Nice take.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Thanks, Indira!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Most welcome, dear.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Isn’t that always the way!
LikeLiked by 1 person
So it was! Worse still before we had those fancy ‘answering contraptions’.😉😅
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah, telephone technology through the years has robbed fiction writers of so many good plot complications featuring missed phone calls. 😦
LikeLiked by 1 person
Very true, Liz. In fact, the convenience of the cell phone was one of the reasons that I set my first novel at a point before they were in widespread use. Laura did spend some time waiting for phone calls!
LikeLiked by 1 person
For the most part, I’m sticking with the days before cell phones in my fiction as well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍
LikeLiked by 1 person
She was too excited that her patience was thin and he finally gets a chance to ring her. Hope they got to talking
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m sure they caught up eventually. Let’s make this one a happy ending.😊💖
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yay! We’ll cut them some slack 😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
😉💖😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nooo! But a hearty YES that she decided to no longer wait about for him.
Excellent writing, Chris! Full of remembered anticipation, torment, and annoyance. 🤩
LikeLiked by 2 people
Ah, you can tell it’s from personal experience! 😉😅 Thanks, Susan.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think we’ve all been there. 😄
LikeLiked by 1 person
😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lol! Figures he’d call as soon as she leaves the house!😩
LikeLiked by 2 people
Always the way!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s perfect, Chris. I remember this feeling very well! 😅
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Jeff! Yes, a memory many of us carry with us.
LikeLike
That’s the way it goes sometimes 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
So it does, Zelda 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
💖
LikeLiked by 1 person
HI Chris, I suppose this is Murphy’s Law. It is always best not to sit around waiting for the phone to ring. You may remember my fun little poem about this in Open a new door called Youthful Infatuation. I enjoyed that poem, it still makes me laugh.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh yes, you captured that anguish perfectly, Robbie! Gosh, I wouldn’t want to go back to that period of my life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Chris. You have inspired me to do a comparative post with a war poem and a modern war poem. I will share them tomorrow.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll look forward to that, Robbie.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aww shucks! Love the build up of tension and the suspenseful end!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Punam. I’m sure they’ll get together eventually!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope so too! You are welcome.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great build up, Chris.
Wonder what she missed because of that impatience that most of us struggle with.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I guess we’ll never know for sure, Natasha!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh no. I knew that was going to happen, Chris. Just her luck, or lack of. Happens all the time. Great haibun.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, how difficult it was, back in the day… Thanks, Diana!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ugh, yes. Everything was edged with desperation as if the world was going to end. Lol.
LikeLiked by 1 person
😔😆
LikeLiked by 1 person
Of course it does! That’s why we-all have mobile phones now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
One thing to be thankful for!
LikeLiked by 1 person
At least we aren’t tied to our phones anymore, Chris. Glued to them now, maybe, but not tied! 🤣
It’s a horrible wait, that waiting for a phone call; and when it comes, you have to answer as though you haven’t been waiting for it all along! 🥴😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Acting casual and slightly surprised!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Coolly does it! Is coolly a word? It looks funny! 🤔🙄🤣
LikeLiked by 1 person
It looks like a word to me, Tom. If it isn’t it should be!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nicely done, that’s the problem with expectation.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, you’re right, Rory!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Excellent haibun. Palpable.🤍
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks very much, Jude!
LikeLike
Wonderful, I so want to hear that call now
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks, Gary 🙂
LikeLike
That’s good
LikeLike
Thought the clipped sentences worked really well with your protagonist’s feeling of impatience. Wonderfully drawn scene, very ‘Sliding Doors’ thought provoking.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks very much, Matthew! Gosh, ‘Sliding Doors’ there’s a blast from the past. Good film.
Hope your foot’s better 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Definitely a retro film now!
LikeLiked by 1 person
[…] Chris Hall; Been there? […]
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’ve definitely been that girl waiting by the phone. I enjoyed this very much!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Pleased to hear that EM!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Chris – I really feel her frustration in this piece! well done!
❤
David
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks very much, David. 😊
LikeLike
Doesn’t it always seem to go that way? Very clever writing, Chris! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Such is life! Thanks very much, Cheryl.😊
LikeLiked by 1 person