Here's a little Halloween flash fiction treat for you. I'm not a writer by any stretch of the imagination, but this story idea just got stuck in my head and had to get out. Even if my writing is atrocious I hope you enjoy it and that it creeps you out just a little...
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It’s all in perfecting the rictus. You have to get the timing just right to capture that sublime sense of terror. The light fading away as hope departs, the grimace of agonised jaw, mouth agape with a final scream as the resin sets. A perpetual scream that nobody will ever hear, but which will resonate to the very core of those who will bear witness. Primal fear made manifest.
Shrill screams echo from the candy-crazed kids weaving their way past the judges as they scribble notes on their scoring sheets. He hates kids. At least they are keeping their distance, sticky paws and all. Once a year. Halloween night. His time to shine. He’ll tolerate the mongrels just this once.
The certificate arrives in the mail a week later. With shaky fingers he peels open the envelope and slides it out. The gold embossed lettering pleases him greatly - Briar County Award for Best Halloween Decoration: Exceptional Realism. A sticky note is stuck to the back - ‘Don’t know how you do it every year. Congratulations!’. Another year, another accolade. Just as it should be.
Crafting the perfect Halloween decoration is an art form. He is a master of his craft. Nobody can do what he does. Nobody compares.
It was time to go hunt for the perfect specimen for next year. True perfection takes so much time...
