Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Entry #113

The Co-Conspirator
by Susan Clarke


Hatred. Pure and Simple. Nothing else could describe Jonathan’s feeling towards Otis. Everyday as he patrolled the mall, he could feel Otis watching him; mocking him, laughing at him. Left to him, there would be no Otis. He could not understand why people did not feel the same way and blamed their adoration on their lazy habits.

His walkie-talkie crackled to life, “Come in Jonathan, there is a shoplifter making his way to the south exit from the Comet store. Suspect is about Five feet Eight inches tall and is wearing a green hooded parka with light blue jeans and...

Jonathan cursed under his breath as he dashed between shoppers, heading towards the south exit. He caught sight of the shoplifter at the precise moment the shoplifter saw him and changed direction. He was now headed for the Princes Road exit. Jonathan gave chase and saw him heading in Otis’s direction.

The man in the hood got on the escalator and raced up. Once at the top, he turned back to Jonathan and gave him the one finger salute before disappearing out of the doors and blending in with the crowd on Princes Road.

Frustrated, Jonathan looked at the treacherous escalator with its Otis sign pasted at the top and kicked it in anger. Otis had conspired against him once again. He felt the escalator’s mocking gaze follow him as he marched off to face his supervisor and knew that this time he was definitely going to get the sack.

20 comments:

laughingwolf said...

poor old otis, just doing his job! :O lol

Esther Avila said...

Ahhh...Otis the escalator. Giving the escalator a persona.
Good job.

AM-C said...

It wasn't until the end that I found out that "Otis" was not a rival person. Lol. Loved it.:)

Lena said...

aww.. cool how you made the escalator as much a part of it as Jonathan is. Great idea! :)

Sameera Ansari said...

Lol,poor Otis!Poor Jonathan as well.

Good one :)

K.Lawson Gilbert said...

I thought this was really creative - using Otis as a character. Entertaining story and very well told!

jaz said...

Very clever!

BernardL said...

Very enjoyable

Aine said...

Oh what fun! I guessed "who" Otis was at the start. And smiled as the story unfolded. I imagine there's truth in this-- such frustration for law enforcement!

Nice one!
:)

Anonymous said...

Well written slice of life with a difference. Enjoyed.

Anonymous said...

Nice twist and sliced just right.
John McAuley

Margaret said...

I kept thinking Who's Otis??

Poor Jonathan, outdone by an escalator.

Great twist...

Anonymous said...

Really great story with a brilliant twist. Well done!

Sisi said...

LOL! Funny. . . very funny.

I like the Man vs Machine, The Creator vs The Created theme you had going. I also like that it made me think of the age old question. . . Are things what they are or what we make of them?

Nice!!

Catherine Vibert said...

I love it when I'm smiling at the end. Great read.

bluesugarpoet said...

I sympathize with poor Jonathan the mall cop - I know someone who is "escalator-phobic"! How clever to make "Otis" his nemesis. Great story! - jana

Sarah Hina said...

Really imaginative interpretation, Susan! The title fits perfectly.

I enjoyed the unraveling here. Showing Otis in action, aiding and abetting once more. ;) Sometimes, objects, particularly despised objects, do develop their own character.

Great job!

Anil Sawan said...

lol, m sure he is gona hate otis more nw :)

Surendran said...

lol... this is really good..i never imagined OTIS getting life and a character.. 250 words could do enough magic i suppose :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for being a wonderful part of the contest!