Immortal

Joao Coimbra
2 min readNov 7, 2022

I came in after a long walk, feeling as I usually do after an extended stay outside — refreshed but tired, I plopped on the sofa and let out a deep sigh. It occurred to me that I still had my boots on and had left muddy footprints on the sea foam carpet. Specs of wet earth up my trouser leg left an imprint on the bristly throw. Bending down to unlace my boot I felt a slight pinch in my side. It was a thistle.

I remember stepping out of the way of a fellow walker, with a Jack Russell but still she brushed up against my shoulder on the narrow path. As I reached for this thistle I felt a prick on my finger, instinctively putting the finger in my mouth. With the thorn still stuck on the pad of my index finger, I fetched some tweezers to pull it out. Just as quickly as the thorn came out, the hole from which it came instantly closed.

I dropped the tweezers, not even noticing the clink they made on the bathroom sink, spinning like a coin in the drain until the vibration ceased to silence.

My mind began to spin, was I seeing things? I kept thumbing over my finger where a gash, or scar should be and nothing. No sign of any scrape. Suddenly the bell rang, once, twice, three times. I stood still in the doorway, frozen — wondering who exactly it could be. Heart pounding. I checked the peep hole. My heart dropped. Of course it was Emma and Harry, back from the playgroup. I opened the door and my son crawled towards me, grabbing my leg, his face now half covered in wet earth, giggling as he always does. As I wiped the muck from his face I noticed a glimmer in his eye, something that wasn’t there before the swirls of green turned to auburn and shifted with flecks of violet. Something had changed in him.

Originally written on 19th January 2021 as part of a daily writing prompt exercise:

One person is immortal at any time. This power is passed through physical contact, no matter how brief.

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Joao Coimbra
Joao Coimbra

Written by Joao Coimbra

A Portuguese Canadian writer that sets his hat down in Leeds, UK. Author of Good and Empty (2024) ig: @joaowrites

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