DJ Paterson

www.djpaterson.co.uk

Welcome to my web pages

Two versions of this story exist - the first was written as a single page (approx 300 words) and the second (which is here) I decided to expand it a little and see if I could change the focus and outcome of the story, without changing the original text too much. See which one you prefer.

Of all things, it was the red brick that stuck in her mind. Eve sighed and glanced out of the window, the office hum slowly melting as her thoughts returned to the previous week.

Her amble along the wide, leafy avenue had ended outside the smart suburban house, all bright red brick and green ivy. Her measured pace slowed as she crunched up the gravel driveway to the anonymous front door. Eve reached for the doorbell, but instead her hand diverted to a brass plaque announcing “Amaranthus”, carefully tracing its letters, before progressing to the smooth brickwork. She pulled her hand away and examined her fingers, half expecting to see them stained red - but they remained the same pallid hue.  Taking a breath, she pushed the bell, and was surprised by the chime – more ice-cream van than upmarket suburbia. It created the only smile of the day.

“Hello?” enquired a middle-aged lady.

“Eve. Eve Jones.”

“Come in,” said the lady, with a natural warmth that wasn’t lost on the visitor.

“On your own?”

Eve nodded and followed the lady into a cosy lounge, where two couples were already sitting on well-worn sofas. She dropped into an armchair and grabbed a magazine – the perfect excuse to avoid eye-contact.

The half-hour wait seemed longer, but Eve was soon led up the stairs to a room on the first floor, this one more business-like than the lounge. She sat across from a silver-haired man, and was drawn to the red brick framed window, reflected in his John Lennon glasses.  

 “Hello Eve. My name is Dr Johnstone, and I will be performing the procedure today. Before that happens though, one of our abortion counsellors will speak to you.”

Eve nodded, numbly.