Short Story Spotlight: [REDACTED]

I came first in my group in Round 1 of the NYC Midnight 250-word Microfiction Challenge for 2023-2024! I was nervous about the format I chose, but I guess it all worked out.

Word limit: 250

Genre: Drama

Action: Gluing something

Word: meaning

The action and the word MUST be included in the story. Otherwise, it was pretty much up to me. Here are some of my favorite comments from the judges:

The story is very absurd which also makes it enjoyable.

I also liked the story's wicked humor as well as the unexpected way it's presented. Very creative!  

As always, they also provided tips for improving the story in the future, which I have carefully recorded.

Without further ado, here is the story for your reading pleasure.

[REDACTED]

POLICE REPORT

Case: 867498

Officer: G. Jameson

Date: 12/8/2023

At 11:53AM a 911 call was received from the offices of Educure indicating the presence of a trespasser. The caller, Ms. Greta Harrison (CEO), indicated that former employee, Ms. Kayla Montgomery, had been seen vandalizing company property.

Under questioning at her home, Montgomery admitted to the following:

·       Being on Educure property at the stated time.

·       Screaming, “What is the meaning of this, you absolute [REDACTED]?” and “You [REDACTED] idiots! I am the only one here with all this [REDACTED] glue. All I wanted was a [REDACTED] pencil to do my [REDACTED] job!” during a recorded Zoom call in which she was fired at 10:30AM.

·       Starting a fire on Harrison’s desk with a stack of requisition forms.

·       Gluing together the pages of every client file in Harrison’s office.

·       Squirting glue into the crevices of every computer on the premises.

The events were witnessed by Harrison’s secretary, Ms. Delilah Kingsley. Montgomery stated that company policies, such as having to work in-person; being understaffed; having to fill out lengthy forms to request stationery that are never approved; and lack of oversight in the purchasing department as mitigating factors. She repeatedly mentioned the company’s inability to provide pencils while erroneously ordered glue shipments arrive daily.

According to Harrison, Montgomery was fired this morning for “working too slowly” amidst accusations of “sniffing all that glue” and “making unreasonable stationery demands.”

At 3:02PM, Montgomery was arrested. She is awaiting the arrival of a lawyer.