A collection of short stories

Millie

Millie paced up and down the hallway, biting her nails, and smoking her cigarette, she seemed to be waiting on someone. It's getting late, why isn't Jimmy back yet? It's been nearly two hours. Millie had been repeating herself for the last six months since her husband Jimmy had passed away, she still couldn't accept it, every day she would question why Jimmy never came home. Suddenly, there was a loud thunder at her front door, Millie raced to go unlock it; she knew it wouldn't be Jimmy but she wished it was. When her thin long fingers had turned the knob, she realised that her neighbour Joel who she disliked for no particular reason was standing there in a white shirt and blue jeans.

''Hello Mills, I was wondering if you needed some help with your mental health state, you need to accept Jimmy has gone and smoking ten cigarettes a day isn't good for your ideal health,'' Joel said loudly.

Joel had a very loud voice, he was just one of those people. Millie's eyes squinted, she sighed in disbelief. She hated being called Mills. Joel had a crush on Millie but she wasn't aware of it.

''Come on Mills, you need help! Let ya old pal Joel help ya,'' Joel said again.

''Not today Joel, some other time,'' Millie replied sighing as Joel left.

Two weeks passed, Millie wasn't doing any better; she picked up her box of cigarettes and grabbed her thirtieth one in the last two weeks; she lit it with the silver lighter standing up right on the benchtop in the kitchen. Joel knocked at Millie's door for the thirtieth time in the last two weeks, she was actually about to crack the shits at Joel, Millie stomped over to the front door and heaved it open. Joel stood there wearing a huge grin on his face showing his pearly whites.

''I want you to stop coming by here Joel, I appreciate your offers but I'm fine right where I am, you need to stop coming I'm doing fine, really,'' Millie shouted but in the nicest way possible.

Since Joel was also a very sensitive man, he took people's yelling at him the wrong way and got emotional. Millie knew of this but she didn't care, she would scream her head off at him if she could.

''I'm sorry Mills, I'll be leaving now but I see you're still smoking those darn cigarettes. Are you sure you don't need help?'' Joel asked.

Millie hesitated to speak, Joel strolled down the path to his own house. Millie caught up to him.

''Wait Joel!'' she yelped. Her voice lost through the loud howling of the wind. ''It's Millie, not Mills.''

Joel didn't reply, he didn't hear her voice over the loud wind. Millie headed back inside, she shut the door, slamming it. Millie just wanted everything to go back to the way it used to be, when she was with Jimmy everything was perfect, they were happy together but now Millie's alone in a darkened house with nothing but packs of stupid cigarettes to keep her company. It wasn't for another hour but Millie heated up one of those ready meals you got from Woolworths or Coles for her dinner, she was pretty hungry so she scooped bits into her mouth and lit another cigarette while she ate.

When Millie had finally finished her dinner, she continued smoking her cigarettes and fell asleep on the couch. Suddenly, she was awoken to the phone ringing, she sighed, and she leaned over and grabbed the phone.

''Hello?'' Millie asked.

''Hey Mills, are you able to come over?'' came Joel's loud voice through the phone.

Millie nearly felt her eardrums burst due to his loud voice. ''Joel, it's the middle of the night; I'm trying to sleep, what is it you want?''

''Just come over, bring a bottle of champagne and your cigarettes,'' Joel said.

Millie hung up the phone, what could Joel possibly want from her at this hour? She did what he asked though, she grabbed a bottle of spare champagne from the kitchen cabinet and her cigarettes from the coffee table where she left them. She slipped on some slippers and walked down to Joel's house.