PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
Gerry watched her through binoculars. He’d never met her, nor knew her name. She fascinated him as she moved from room to room of the building across the river. She always looked so happy.
When she appeared on the balcony he hid behind the curtain, but not before he watched the smile drop off her face. Had she seen him?
What felt like an eternity later she went back inside. He lifted the binoculars just in time to see her through the middle window, slipping a noose around her neck.
“No,” he screamed just as she stepped off the chair.
—
Written for Friday Fictioneers.
Click here to read stories from the other Fictioneers.
Adam Ickes 
March 16th, 2016 at 6:23 AM
Dear Adam,
Powerful story.
Shalom,
Rochelle
March 18th, 2016 at 8:14 PM
Thanks, Rochelle.
March 16th, 2016 at 6:35 AM
I felt his frustration and fear.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:16 PM
Glad to hear that, Dawn.
March 16th, 2016 at 7:19 AM
To imagine that he would think himself to be blamed afterwards… stalker of admirer… there is a thin line (or a river) between.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:16 PM
I think the question running through is mind now is whether or not he should tell someone and admit to watching her or let someone else find her.
March 16th, 2016 at 8:24 AM
Powerful. You can feel how helpless he is to intervene, and to lose what he admired without ever knowing her.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:17 PM
Thanks.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:13 AM
Didn’t see this one coming at all. I like your take on the prompt…. I looked at the balcony across the river and the fluttering curtain in the foreground too.
Good story.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:18 PM
Honestly, I didn’t see it coming either until I had almost finished the story. Then, boom, there it was. Glad you liked it.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:32 AM
Gruesome! I can’t even imagine witnessing something like this. Good story, well written.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:18 PM
Thanks, Tiffany. Good to see you around.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:41 AM
Such a thing to witness, especially given his fondness for her. Now I’m wondering if she knew he was watching. Well done, Adam.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:19 PM
I don’t think she had any idea he was watching. I think she was just tired of pretending to be happy all the time.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:49 AM
Faithful to your style, you always manage to deliver powerful stuff.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:20 PM
Thanks. That means a lot.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:51 AM
Oh no!
This ended so differently than I expected.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:21 PM
My writing usually goes dark pretty quickly. The happy endings are the ones that surprise me.
March 16th, 2016 at 10:07 AM
Tragic tale! You and I could have saved her.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:23 PM
You’re right. We could have…probably…maybe…okay maybe not.
March 16th, 2016 at 11:20 AM
That was unexpected Adam! Great job.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:23 PM
Thank you.
March 16th, 2016 at 1:01 PM
Oh no! And nothing he could do to help.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:23 PM
It’s a terrible feeling wanting to help but knowing you can’t do anything.
March 16th, 2016 at 1:19 PM
A powerful story of darkness descending on two life’s.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:25 PM
Thanks, Mike. Darkness has a way of spreading. In the end it’ll touch more than two lives. Her family and friends, and maybe even his, will be impacted as well.
March 16th, 2016 at 1:59 PM
The tragedy of being too far away to help.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:25 PM
It’s a terrible thing.
March 16th, 2016 at 4:38 PM
Well written, with more questions than answers.
I like it.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:26 PM
Thanks, Ceayr.
March 16th, 2016 at 8:54 PM
Yowza! What a well-written story!
March 18th, 2016 at 8:26 PM
Many thanks for the compliment, Dale.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:04 PM
Oooh . . . good one, Adam. I did not see that coming.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:27 PM
Neither did he. If he did he probably wouldn’t have hid from her.
March 16th, 2016 at 9:24 PM
I was afraid she was about to jump off the balcony, then you put a noose around her neck. Well done.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:28 PM
She did that on her own. I can’t be held accountable. 🙂
March 17th, 2016 at 1:32 AM
That would be difficult to watch. Nicely written Adam.
Tracey
March 18th, 2016 at 8:28 PM
Difficult indeed. Thanks, Tracey.
March 17th, 2016 at 4:10 AM
Urk! Trademark Ickes shock ending. Very sad.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:29 PM
I wasn’t aware I held a trademark on that. Time to call on the lawyers anytime I see another shock ending. I’m going to be rich! Rich I tell you!
March 20th, 2016 at 7:10 AM
I’d better watch myself…
March 17th, 2016 at 6:13 AM
How terrible that would be. When I got off the school bus once I saw a man sitting in his car in the turn-around across from our road. He had an odd look on his face. Later it said in the newspaper a man had committed suicide at that spot. His body was found in his car. I’ve never forgotten it. — Suzanne
March 18th, 2016 at 8:31 PM
Yikes. That seems like it would be a difficult thing to process. Could be the decent start of a good book if you ever feel like writing it.
March 17th, 2016 at 6:49 AM
How horrible but great twist. We both saw very near the same thing in the picture. How cool!
March 18th, 2016 at 8:32 PM
Thanks. Weird how we both saw similar incidents.
March 17th, 2016 at 8:12 AM
What a shockingly dark ending. Powerful writing.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:32 PM
Thanks!
March 18th, 2016 at 5:23 PM
i guess she saw him and that led her to commit suicide.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:33 PM
I don’t think she saw him at all. I think she was just tired of playing the part of someone who was always happy when she was anything but. She just couldn’t take off the mask until the very end.
March 18th, 2016 at 8:25 PM
That was a brutal twist of an ending. Talk about things to haunt you. Nicely done.
-David
March 18th, 2016 at 8:34 PM
Thanks, David. Glad you enjoyed it.
March 19th, 2016 at 4:21 AM
You did what I did, and saw the window as a voyeur’s position and the river as a barrier. But yours is much more chilling. A real Rear Window
March 19th, 2016 at 3:58 PM
Wow! Caught me off guard there, Adam. But, should I have expected any less? Shades of Rear Window. Why not?
March 19th, 2016 at 4:44 PM
Wow, Adam! Great story. What will he do? Can he swim across the river and break in to save her? Maybe it’s not too late. I like how you framed the story in the window of the picture.
March 20th, 2016 at 11:15 AM
Excellent point: individuals may not know their worth to another. If he had gone over, just once, to say hello…maybe she would have upped her self-worth.
March 22nd, 2016 at 8:28 AM
I was expecting a ghost story…. but you fooled me. Love it! Great ending, even if it is morbid.
March 27th, 2016 at 10:09 AM
Apparently, “happiness” was not what he was seeing at all! Well done!
March 28th, 2016 at 4:42 PM
He was only seeing the façade that she was secretly crumbling behind.
March 31st, 2016 at 8:49 PM
One of my favorites.