Member-only story
SHORT STORY
She Returned with a Note and a Story He Couldn’t Ignore
First Line Fiction Weekly Prompt #39
He found the note taped to the inside of his shoe, exactly where she said it would be.
As he sat on the edge of his bed, one sock on, the other foot bare, holding the worn sneaker in his hand, he frowned. The note was folded twice, neatly, and the handwriting was unmistakably hers — slanted slightly to the left, bold where it counted. Just like her.
“Don’t trust anyone. Not even me. Meet me where the pigeons land at noon.”
That was it? No name, no signature. But then she never signed her notes.
Outside, the morning sun already felt like noon — hot, burning. Mumbai was loud, chaotic, and alive, even at 9 am. Karan tucked the note into his wallet and laced up his shoes.
He hadn’t seen Anamika in nearly four years. He recalled the day she’d kissed him goodbye at CST station, tears threatening to escape her eyes. “I’ll be back in a week,” she’d said. She never came back. Never even called. Just vanished. He told himself he’d moved on, but every time he saw someone with long hair and that confident stride, his breath caught in his throat. And now, out of the blue, a message. Hidden like a secret.
