top of page
Search
Writer's pictureKali Kuzma

Random 'Sentence' Generator Short Story Challenge Part 2: Sorry, Your Time is Up


As many of you know Random Generator Short Stories are one of my favorites here on Kali Kuzma Author and Storyteller. So much so, I decided to go ahead and see what sentences, phrases, and words I would be using for the remaining year.


Let me just say, I was pleased with the outcome for the months ahead. I felt so inspired each time I would see what the random generator spewed out on the page.


Going into this month, I knew I had a great sentence and figured a story would come to me easily. Instead, I blanked.


I asked myself why does this keep happening to me?


Just like lasts months Random 'Word' Generator Story: A Prayer in the Forest, I was having a hard time formulating a concept for this month's story.


So I did what any normal person would do and took my own advice. Get inspired.


I changed my location from the dinning room to the bedroom where I was able to relax and bounce ideas around in my head. Within 10 to 15 minutes I had written the plot on a sticky note.


So fingers crossed I do that sticky note some justice.


Random Sentence: She advised him to come back at once.

 

Sorry, Your Time is Up


 

Chapter 1


He tossed the rustling bag over the edge of the boat. Milo heard the splash and quickly leaned over to see if he could spot it. In the dark waters, it bobbed. Milo held his breath as he waited for his 19th victim to sink to the ocean floor. Slowly, but surely, it submerged.


Tonight he had almost been caught. The dock security guard who always gave a quick nod of acknowledgement stopped Milo before he could load the remains onto The Departed. The security guard noted the more frequent late night stops with questioning eyes. According to Milo, the wife had been giving him some grief of all sorts meaning sleepovers in the boat where going to be more common hence the bags of clothes he often brings along.


The dock guard nodded again in approval, eyes still questioning, and meandered his way down the dock. Milo hurried and shoved the remains on board before he came back.


Milo knew his lie wasn't going to hold. He was getting sloppy. His mind wandered to Number 15. He had been on a perfect streak before her. Never sloppy always perfect in execution.


But then she got away. Slipped through the cracks of his fingers. Things hadn't been the same since. Where once he was confident in his craft he now hesitated at every move.


Milo needed to clear his mind.

 

Chapter 2


"What's on your mind my friend?" Milo's pal took a sip of his beer ending with a loud tsk of approval before looking at him.


Before speaking, Milo chugged his drink hoping it would help. "Number 15 has gotten in my head." He pointed his finger to his temple twisting it in annoyance. "Everywhere I go, anything I do, I think of her. How she ruined everything for me! How could she do such a thing?" He pounded the bar top. Milo glanced around to see if anyone had noticed but nobody seemed to have batted an eye.


Milo leaned toward Heath whispering, "I was going to become something great you know. I have the skills and potential! I could have gone down in history books. My plan was working but no, she ruined it all. Instead, I'm getting sloppy and it's all because of her!"


Milo sat back. Why was he letting her get to him?


His friend nodded while picking at his teeth. "I know what you need."


"What!" Milo exclaimed in annoyance. Heath was never one for great advice, except when it came to murder. How would he help him with this?


"I have someone. She's actually pretty great."


"Who?" questioned Milo curious where this conversation was leading.


"My therapist."

 

Chapter 3


"Mr. Hodge, please come in," she stood in the doorway gesturing into what he assumed was her office.


Milo had been in the waiting room for some time questioning his decision in coming. Standing, he glanced at the exit. Now was the time to leave if any.


Instead, he proceeded forward.


"Please have a seat, Mr. Hodge," he heard the door lock behind him as he took in his surroundings. Her office was nothing like Milo imagined. There wasn't a reclining chair or doctorate diplomas framed against the stale white walls. In lieu, aroma of coffee filled the air from the candles scattered about the room with a few large velvet chairs arranged to hold conversation. The lighting was dimmed and he instantly felt relaxed.


"Thank you for coming, Mr. Hodge. I'm Dr. Kate," the therapist shook his hand.


"You can call me Milo. Mr. Hodge is my father."


"Noted. Well, Milo is this your first time seeking therapy?" She jumped right in.


He nodded his head slowly looking towards the door shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "Ummmm, I can say anything in here, right?" Milo looked to her for confirmation.


Dr. Kate glanced at the door understanding his concern. "That's correct. Based on state law and psychotherapy practice anything you say here is completely confidential. The only time I can contact someone is if I believe you may do bodily harm to yourself. To further ensure confidentiality, I have had this room sound proofed meaning no one can hear anything we discuss. There are two doors, the one you came in, which I lock during each session to keep those who may be impatient to wait their turn in the lobby, and then the exit door behind me in which you will use when you leave."


Milo let it sink in for a minute, "Don't you need a notepad or something to write down what I say?" He pointed toward her empty lap.


"I like to feel this is more of a conversation instead of a session. I found a notepad seems to put a barrier, even though small, between the person and myself. I want everyone to feel as comfortable as possible while also showing I'm fully engaged in what each patient is communicating. After each session, I'll jot down a few notes summarizing the overall theme of the hour."


He nodded his head in approval. "To answer your first question, yes, this is my first time seeking therapy."


"That's amazing to hear. Most people don't have the courage to take the first step and I'm happy you have made the choice. Let's start from the beginning shall we?"


Over the next hour, Milo felt more free then he had in years. He began speaking about his abusive father who spent every dime the family had on alcohol. Before he could get to detailed about the torture his father inflicted upon him as a small child a loud ding sounded from an alarm in the corner.


"Sorry, your time is up," Dr. Kate stood pressing a button on the alarm. "This was a great first session."


Dr. Kate pulled out a card from a drawer filling in times and dates. She advised him to come back at once, "I think two sessions a week should be a great starting point. After a few weeks, we can discuss lowering it to one or making it more depending on how the sessions go."


She handed him the card guiding him to the exit door. "See you in a few days."

 

Chapter 4


"Dr. Kate, it's fancy seeing you here," Milo gestured toward the chips and dip.


She jumped toward the sound of his voice, "Hello, Milo. Sorry for my response. You took me by surprise. I don't often run into my patients outside of work." She paused a second taking him in. "I guess you get to see a little bit into my life." She laughed grabbing some sour cream and onion chips,.


"Ah, yes, sour cream and onion must mean you had some trauma in your life at some point because everyone clearly knows salt and vinegar is where it's at," Milo laughed at his joke.


"Well actually..." She started in but quickly stopped with a grin on her face seeing the surprised look in his eyes. "I'm just kidding. There is no correlation between chip preference versus your emotional well being."


"Oh, wow, you almost had me there! Well, I just came to grab some of these," he leaned over plucking a bag off the store shelf. "Heading to see a friend. It was nice running into you here. See you tomorrow, right?"


"You too. And yes, tomorrow at 3pm. Don't be late."


"Never!" He called and waved while making his way to the front. Fancy seeing her here indeed.

 

Chapter 5


"Hey man," Heath handed Milo a beer. "So how did it go?"


"How did what go?" Milo questioned opening the bag of chips and plopping it between the two of them.


"Don't act like you didn't go. Therapy, dude," his friend looked him up and down. "There's a smile on your face which means you either went to therapy or you found Number 20."


"I ran into Dr. Kate today while on the way here actually," Milo avoided the question. "Apparently, she likes sour cream and onion flavored chips."


"I knew there was something off about her. Clearly salt and vinegar is the best," Heath crunched down on one. Still chewing he went on, "It's great because I can tell her everything and she can't say anything to anybody. You know, I told her about my Number 5 and she didn't even flinch! I flinch sometimes thinking about what I did to that poor girl." He chuckled.


"What made you even think of going to her?" Milo asked surprised his friend wasn't in jail after telling Dr. Kate about Number 5. Even someone like him who loves to torture people in his spare time felt sorry for the girl.


"There was another guy who used to claim territory in this part of town. He had the same thing happen where one of his girls escaped making him go on a killing spree to prove he was the best of the best. Instead, he came close to getting caught which made him switch directions. He sought out therapy and supposedly changed his life. Last I talked to him, Dr. Kate suggested he move to another town to leave his past behind. Haven't seen him since. There's a rumor he is The Reaper 2.0 sweeping New York right now."


"Man, that guy's a legend. I've been following him since '03. I can't believe you never told me you knew him."


"Well, it never came up. But after he mentioned Dr. Kate I thought I would give it a go since it seemed to do him some good. I've had a few sessions with her over the last year and they seem to help clear my head." Heath chomped down on another chip.


"Well it better do me some good. If it's as great as you make it sound Number 20 should be a breeze."


"There's the Milo I know!" Heath cheerfully patted him on the shoulder.

 

Chapter 6


"It sounds to me you were in love with her. Do you think you let Number 15 go on purpose?" Dr. Kate questioned crossing her legs and squinting toward Milo to see his reaction.


"What?! Of course, not! That isn't part of the game I play, Dr. Kate."


"You said it yourself you stalked her for more than a year and a half. Almost six times longer than any other victim. Why do you think that is?"


"I don't know."


"Well, surely you felt something for her. Why else would you wait so long before abducting her?"


"I, I... I don't feel love. I don't have that connection to people."


"What did you feel then compared to the other victims? How did you feel when you finally took her for yourself?"


"I felt... I felt..." he gave in, "a strong pull towards her. Stronger than any other person. A thrill of happiness I only get before the kill. It's not love though. I haven't loved since I was a child."


He shifted in his seat.


"I can feel sadness and anger though. Those are actually my two best friends, anger and sadness because I had nothing else as a child. No happiness, or hope, or joy. But when I would watch her my friends would disappear and I would only focus on her. They only reappeared when I finally decided to take her for myself. I hated it. Apparently, I wasn't allowed to be anything but mad or sad or angry. She did that to me. Made me feel something more but not love.... I hate her for it. She messed everything up.


"So did you let her escape on purpose?" Dr. Kate asked again.


Milo sat in silence.


Before he could answer the ding went off.


"Sorry, but your time is up."


 

Chapter 7


Milo hadn't heard from his friend in a few weeks. He wondered if Heath finally got picked up. His pal was good at what he did, nearly perfect in execution, but Heath was cocky and would brag at times. Milo knew if Heath were caught it was because someone ratted him out.


Milo entered the coffee shop and ordered his usual black coffee. He barely tipped the rim to his lips when he spotted her in the corner. Dr. Kate.


He sat towards the opposite side of the shop and observed. She was head deep in her laptop occasionally hitting the enter bar in frustration. Suddenly, she stood up and headed in his direction. Before he could pretend to look inconspicuous their eyes locked.


He gave a partial wave while she continued to stare him down.


"We have to stop meeting like this Milo," she joked. "Someone might think they are begin stalked." Her eyes narrowed.


"What are the odds?! No stalking here just some Sunday morning coffee, I promise," he held up his cup. "Looks like you were having some troubles over there?"


"Yeah, my stupid computer is old and likes to freeze up every once and awhile. I'll eventually get a new one."


"Until then, good luck with that," Milo gave a half smile.


"Thank you! Well, I hope your assignment I sent home with you the other day is coming along. I'll see you on Tuesday," she placed her hand on his shoulder.


"Yes, see you Tuesday!" Milo toasted his coffee again as she slowly dropped her hand and walked past him to order another coffee.

 

Chapter 7


Milo held the assignment in his hand. He couldn't dare to let it go. Inside the pages laid out every victim he had ever killed. How he felt, why he chose them, his reaction after the fact, and anything else he could think of relating to the matter. If anyone got their hands on this besides Dr. Kate or himself, his life would be over.


He gripped on tight hoping Dr. Kate could read more into his thought process and work through Number 15. Their last session had been tense but he felt like it needed to happen to get over the sloppy slump. He needed to feel like himself again.


The door to the office opened and Dr. Kate walked out with a large smile on her face. She seemed happy to see him.


"Come on in, Milo. Today we are going to role play so don't be alarmed," Dr. Kate mentioned as he stepped into the room.


Inside, the office had been transformed. No longer were the lights dimmed but almost blinding causing him to squint. The aroma from the candles was almost nonexistent and instead taken over by the smell of bleach. The velvet chairs were gone replaced with a plastic tarp covering the floor.


Milo heard Dr. Kate lock the door behind him. She slowly stepped over to the alarm and with her finger hit the button.


Ding!


Dr. Kate turned around a large knife twisting in hand her hand.


"Sorry, your time is up."


Milo should have known. Heath always gave the worse advice.

 

Final Thoughts


I love this story so much! I hope you do too! I really tried to connect everything together which I think I did in the last few sentences. Whose side are you on?


Let me know in the comments below how you would've used the random generated sentence in a story. If you are interested in other Random Generator Short Stories please check out the ones down below.







18 views0 comments

Comments


bottom of page