StoryTree
you are here

The Eleven O'Clock Sparrow

mysteryEveryone
6 contributors · 4 paragraphs deep

"The sparrow," I said. It sounded stupid out loud. He smiled like I'd told a joke. "Oh. You're the watch guy. Been coming here nine years." How did he know that? "Never missed once," he said. "Until today."

The old guy stood up. "It always came at 11:00. For nine years. On the day your sister..." He trailed off. "How do you know about my sister?" "Everyone knows, Elias. The whole city watched. They're all waiting to see what you'll do. If you'll do it again."

↔ version 1 of 2 of this paragraph — hover its sides to flip. The card below is what happens next.

What happens next?

1 ways forward
Vote share across the top 1 branches
A possible continuation

I ran from the old guy. I didn't care anymore. I ran to the fountain and screamed her name into the water. It echoed back: "Elias. Elias. Elias." Not her voice. Mine. Over and over. When I opened my eyes, the sparrow was there. Right on the third spoke. At 11:40. And it was dying.

AO
Amara Okafor
6 votes · future 1 of 1