The Drabble Challenge

PATTY WONDER'S INITIATION

THE PROMPT ;;
❛ At a garage sale, your character buys an antique urn that might look nice decorating a bookcase. But when your character arrives home, your character realises that there are someone's ashes in it...

GENRE ;;
Satire

AUTHOR ;;
catchumylife

TRIGGER WARNINGS ;;
Lots of dark humor

+

The city of Watson was perfect.

Patty Wonder had made sure of it before she had moved here, for she was an educated woman, independent, qualified to shift through facts and fiction. After weeks of meticulous research,  Patty had decided that the city had an impeccable record. The location of this small suburb was convenient — away from hoots and honks of the city, yet close enough to drive there if she wanted. The crime rates were the lowest she had ever seen.

Sure, the school rankings were a little low, but everything has its flaws, so Patty didn't think too much of it. There wasn't much to think about, anyway.

Besides, as a bonus, the entire neighborhood was visually exemplary. There were no plastic bags or candy bar wrappers littering the floor, and if there were, she observed, someone always picked it up. The front yards of every house had their own unique designs, ranging from minimalism to retro. Patty admired them from a distance.

Her favorite front yard was right across the street. It had a miniature Suzhou-inspired garden, the wood etched with bold Chinese characters meaning something along the lines of chickens and jelly beans, which she admitted confused her, but she didn't think much of it. If the house owners wanted these characters to be seen in public, she was certain that they at least knew what the Chinese characters meant.

Regardless, Patty was inspired by her neighbors. Her patch of grass and singular rose bush a few feet away from her barren front porch were not enough to give a lasting impression. So, after she unpacked her most important boxes, such as her favorite stationery and her trusty bookshelf, where she placed her cute miscellaneous items she bought by impulse in the past (books always made her shelves too dusty), she decided to search for decorations for sale. One sale that particularly caught her attention was a garage sale down the street, a perfect opportunity for her to greet her neighbors while finding some beautiful decorations.

The blue theme of the garage sale location could be seen a mile away. Patty, not forgetting to wave at all the residents who she passed, headed up the blue ombre cobblestone pathway. The well-trimmed indigos, violets, and white rose bushes brushed her tingling skin. A sweet fragrance surrounded the house, thus Patty was convinced she was welcomed. She liked the aura, and she wanted her house to maintain the same environment.

"Hi! Hello!" a voice called behind her, "I'm Stacey Hass. Are you new to this neighborhood?"

Patty whirled her head to greet a slim lady. She appeared young, her face free of wrinkles and her curled brunette hair rolling over her shoulders, though the bony and veiny hand she extended towards Patty said otherwise. Nevertheless, Patty accepted the lady's hand.

"Patty Wonder. And yes, I am. Your front yard is lovely. Looks like you've spent a lot of time on it." Patty complimented, which elicited a giggle from the lady.

"No, no! I've barely spent any time working in my garden and my garden is just terrible. I am so unknowledgeable about these kinds of things."

"I think you're mistaken, Stacey. Your garden is wonderful."