Friday Fictioneers – Anxiety

~ neilmacdon
PHOTO PROMPT © Brenda Cox

I wake with a start. The dream fades. But not totally. I still remember its terror, the loss of an anchor for my identity.

I wake from sleep and am myself again. But how do I know I am myself? Sure, I can remember who I was yesterday; blowing out the candles on my fifth birthday cake; the wedding ceremony with Irene. But memory is not the reality. Maybe I was only born now, this instant, equipped with all the memories to make it seem I have lived before.

I will ask Irene. But she’s asleep. If I wake her, will she be the same Irene?

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Friday fictioneers is a weekly challenge set by Rochelle Wisoff Fields to write a 100-word story in response to a photo prompt. You can find other stories here

43 thoughts on “Friday Fictioneers – Anxiety”

  8. First of all, what a fabulous take on the prompt. It’s the perfect image to illustrate your story, and your story is a perfect account of the emotions that the prompt evokes.
    I like the way you repeat “I wake,” to start both first and second paragraphs. The repetition gives me a feeling that it was a struggle to wake.
    And I like the way you juxtapose blowing out the candles on your fifth birthday cake with your wedding ceremony.
    It’s haunting and disturbing.
    Kudos!

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