Story A Day 11: "Sullied Hat" / Action Scene

Lenka was seething. Teeth clenched, eyes bloodshot and bulging, taking deep, heaving breaths. Her hands were balled into tight fists, her fingernails digging into the palms of her hands, the pain unnoticed in the rush of adrenaline.

Toby looked up at her, wide-eyed and panicked. He looked down at the floor, where the hat lay, his dirty footprint clearly visible in the center. It had been a rash action. He hadn’t thought it through.

Time slowed down. He raised his eyes again. Lenka’s face was closer, now. Her arm was raised. She was going to hit him with one of those tight fists of hers. Her knuckles looked sharp.

Fortunately, he was quick on his feet. He leaned back to dodge her swing, lost his balance and landed on his back with a thud. Before she could bear down on him again, he pulled himself up and darted away.

His escape only further infuriated her. She took off after him, stumbling in her high heels for a moment before regaining her balance. He got a short lead on her, enough to put him out of reach. Growling, she kicked off the shoes and continued in her stockings.

Toby dashed out the front door and started for the street, jerking to the side at the last minute and making a trip around the back of the house. Lenka was close behind him, and he didn’t dare to hesitate. He reached for his skateboard as he passed by, nearly missing it but managing to get a grip on the rough surface. He whipped it around in front of him as he came back to the front of the house, tossed it down on the sidewalk in front of him, and chuckled to himself as he built up speed on the slight downhill incline. She’d never catch him now.

He heard a shriek and finally looked around. She had stepped on a particularly pointy rock in her bare feet. She could handle the pain of those awful shoes of hers, but not a tiny stone. Toby let out a hearty laugh as he turned back around, just in time to see the rapid approach of the telephone pole before he blacked out.