There’s a song, an old and now-unfashionable ditty. But, hearing it again, the memories flood him like a drain backing-up. All those days and all those secrets! Secrets he has never shared. The skylight’s great eye glares down. And he stares at her across the ballroom, his eyes full of love and despair.
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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
Neil MacDonald Author 
It’s amazing the memories that are attached to songs. Better than a photo album.
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Memories are often better without the pictures
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A penny for the secrets behind those eyes.
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He’s not telling. He’s never telling
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Music has its own powerful magic, just like this story.
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Thanks so much, Michael. That’s a lovely compliment
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Dear Neil,
You’ve packed a lot of story and intrigue into very few words.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks so much. Rochelle
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Of course, As Time Goes By played in my mind as I read… No matter how dark it is for him today, they’ll always have Paris…
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A nice resonance
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And then they take the unfinished story forward.
Part-2 has a happy ending 🙂
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I don’t think he’ll ever be able to tell her
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An interesting metaphor, ‘the memories flood him like a drain backing-up’, conveying the idea of memories that are no longer wholesome. There’s unlikely to be a good outcome from this (now dead) relationship.
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I imagined them as a (reasonably) happily married couple
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Poor guy! Songs can certainly stir memories, especially in a place that already has atmosphere.
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Some songs transport me back decades
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Well told, Neil. Music and emotions, two things I wish never to be without.
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Thanks so much, Bill
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Songs generate feelings so much more than they generate images of the past. You captured that.
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Thanks so much, Sandra
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Memories like a drain backing up. What an image. I hope one day he can tell her how he feels. Another good one, Neil
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Thanks so much, Anne. I don’t think he’ll tell her. I don’t think he’ll tell anyone
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Music does have great power where memory’s concerned and you captured it, Neil.
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Thanks so much, Jilly
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Some songs can take you back instantly – in my case, to my long-ago teens!
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Yes, they can
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I do realise now that ‘love’ is the saddest word in the dictionary. It promises so much but delivers equal portions of pain and despair.
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Maybe it’s because “love” isn’t really a thing in itself but a composite of many other things
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The human complex, indeed.
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I love the phrase, “the memories flood him like a drain backing-up.” – a force of nature, hard to stop.
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Thanks so much
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The song *and* the lost love in the same room, doing a double whammy on the poor guy. Good story in just a few words.
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I had imagined her to be his wife, but your reading works perfectly too
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Ah!
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Wow. The old song, the secrets – which I imagine are guilty ones, the glaring eye – atmosphere plus. So much is unsaid but still communicated. Terrific.
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Thanks so much, Margaret
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I wonder what’s he going to do. Maybe it’s too late. Too many secrets.
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Way too late. He can never tell
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Somebody once said that music is moonlight in the gloomy night of life.
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A tad misanthropic perhaps, but still true
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i feel the pain and the longing. sounds like unrequited love.
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Could be, could well be. But that wasn’t my intention
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It’s amazing how our senses will set in motion memories and emotion. Well said. You packed a lot into this little story.
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Thanks so much
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memories never spare you, hope they move on
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The trick is to rewrite the memories
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So nicely written, memories are so important
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Thanks so much
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Aahhhh … so many songs, so many memories.
The songs with unhappy memories can be haunting.
Sad to see he’s feeling such despair. Short but to the
point this week, Neil. Good written …
Have a wonderful weekend.
Isadora 😎
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Thanks so much, Isadora
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Music can certainly trigger powerful memories. Great descriptions here, Neil
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Thanks so much, Laurie
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Songs has power to rekindle the memory. Nicely done Neil
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Thanks so much, Vartika
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Nice one
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Thank you
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