Up From the Ashes

Today Pegman took us to London. Thanks, Karen and Josh for another wonderful place to spark our imaginations to create a 150-word story.

“Jordy, it’s true. As a child, I used that very box to phone your mum.”

“That’s dry, Grandpa. No one in their right mind would shut himself inside a greenhouse to chat someone up.”

“Look here, smart mouth, we all did. Nothing else for it. No cell phone, no wiffy.”

“Wi-Fi, old fool, Wi-Fi.” 

“It says Telephone right above the door.”

“Hype.” The young man’s cell phone bleeps. His attention refocuses.

“Maybe, maybe not.” The old man checks the clock tower. 4:20 p.m. He refocuses on the green tentacles behind the phone booth. “Jordy, give it a go. Step inside.”

“Not happening.”

“Please.”

“Reh-teh-teh.”

The young man jerks open the door. Steps inside. Tentacles wrap, wrap, wrap around the booth; squeeze. An enormous squeal of metal pierces the air. Glass shatters. The phone booth disappears in a puff of reddish-green smoke.

Smiling, the old man turns on a heel.

• * * *

Dry– dull, boring, unfunny. A bad joke might be described as “dry”.

Hype – Over the top

Reh teh teh – Etc, etc