Epic Short Stories

Ada's Marvelous Toyshop

Unedited version of my Short Story for this years ACSI writing contest. By "Unedited" I mean that the version I submit is going to have to be about 1000 words shorter... so the story line will be quite a bit different. But I like this version better so here it is! It is edited for grammar and spelling etc.

Unborn rain hung high in the clouds, casting dark shadows across a grey sky. Puddles, strung along the road like beads on a string, twisted its reflection into a muddy mural of gloomy colors. Sierra watched the glistening wet scenery streak past, and her lonely grey eyes looked back at her in the minivans thick window. Her little hands fiddled listlessly with a small plastic toy, but the toy brought her no happiness on this day of sulking skies.

 “Mommy?”

 Tiffany Fabel pursed her lips and sighed. Her hands clenched and unclenched the steering wheel as she drove down the rural roads, searching for a small town that didn’t seem to exist. Straw blonde hair was piled on top of her head, save for a few curls that fell unassumingly at the side of her pretty face. She did not respond to her daughters appeal.

 “Mommy? Mommy, are we there yet?” Sierra asked softly for what must have been the fifteenth time.

 “No.” Tiffany clenched her teeth, reminded of why she usually didn’t bring Sierra to work with her. Her regular daycare was under construction, and she hadn’t had a choice. “I mean, yes!” The town suddenly materialized in the mist as the minivan crested a hill.

“Yay!” Sierra leaned forwards to get a better look as the rolling fields and hillocks were replaced by quaint downtown buildings and businesses. Despite the damp spring weather, people lined the streets smiling, talking, and shopping. The friendly atmosphere enchanted the six year old in the back seat of the minivan.

Tiffany pulled down a quiet side street and parked in front of a shabby looking shop. Scratched red paint in the window read Ada’s Marvelous Toyshop. It sat between an empty building and an equally shabby nail salon, underneath what looked like an empty apartment. This was Tiffany’s destination. The moment she let Sierra out, the little girl sprang from the car and ran to the display window, splashing through puddles as she went.

“Sierra!” Her mother admonished.

Sierra wasn’t listening. She pressed her nose to the glass, eyes round with wonder, and peered into the shop. Toys of every shape and size lined the walls inside. On the display shelf sat wooden trains on red velvet, delicate dolls in wicker chairs, and dozens of other enticing trinkets.

“Look, Mommy. Isn’t it wonderful?”

Inside, a grey old man watched as the woman with straw colored hair pulled the pretty little child away and scolded her, probably for running through the water and getting her shoes wet. The child frowned at her mother indignantly and returned her eyes to the Toyshop window. The man braced himself as the woman came in, dragging the girl along, and a long-silent bell tinkled cheerfully to announce their arrival.

“Hello, Mr. Mullin I presume?” The woman stood very straight and pursed her lips as she took in the dusty displays of old toys. The little girl’s eyes were round as saucers, and she twisted all around, trying to see everything at once. Her mother held tightly to her hand.

“Call me Clarence,” Mr. Mullin replied gruffly. Clarence had been running Ada’s Marvelous Toyshop for years, more years than anyone in the little town cared to count. His wife, Ada, and he had founded it a few years after their marriage. Most of the toys he made himself. Once it had been a fine establishment, but ever since Ada’s death several years before, business had dropped. The shop had slowly fallen into ruin, as its caretaker fell into ruin of a different kind. Clarence wasn’t surprised when Tiffany strode up to the counter without looking around and said,