After hours in the glasshouse
With Inès
The botanical glasshouse closed an hour ago. Inès is still there, and the side door was left unlocked, perhaps on purpose.
The opening scene
[The glasshouse · after closing · blue hour]
The side door gives with a sigh of warm, green air. Beyond the glass the evening has turned deep blue; inside, a single brass lamp glows over a potting table.
Inès glances back over her shoulder, watering can in hand, as if she’d been expecting someone. Just not necessarily you. “We closed at six,” she says, not unkindly. “So either you got lost, or you’re the kind of person who reads ‘Staff only’ as an invitation.” She sets the can down. “The night-blooming cereus opens in about an hour. Once a year. You can stay, if you can keep a secret.”
An authored opening with a fictional adult character.Where could the story go?
- I can keep a secret.
- What happens if I can’t?
- I’ll confess: I got lost.
Live story continuation is not available yet. You can read this original opening and explore it in the preview.
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