So I have officially finished my NaNoWriMo novel!!! It's about me, mainly. I just recently went through an emotional experience with one of my guy friends who was well, a friend with benefits. We'll just keep at that. I fell for him and, needless to say, I was brokenhearted over the whole thing. So what did I do? I wrote a story about it. It's been such great closure for me that I no longer have any bad feelings toward this person and all I want to do is send the story to him. Well, if I was being honest all I really want is for the two of us to be friends again. Writing this story for a month, I've come to feel like I've spent the whole month with him so I've started missing him again.
Anyway, for those of you who are still unclear with what NaNoWriMo is go to this website and check it out. The name of the event is short for National Novel Writing Month and it was started in 1999 by Chris Baty and it's become huge. Every year millions all over participate and write 50,000 words in 30 days! Very awesome!
So I promised Brandi that I'd share some of the story when I was finished, which I will do in a second, but first you should know a little about the story. First off, it's in my point of view, Shannon is the ex, and we switch bodies in the story. This is an excerpt from the part of the story when we first switch bodies. The chapter is titled "We're Not In Kansas Anymore":
When I opened my eyes I felt terrible. My head was pounding and my vision was slightly blurred. It was rare that I still felt this hungover even after a long night of drinking.
I remembered falling asleep in Shannon ’s bed the night before, but had only agreed to after he promised to sleep on the sofa in his room. Apparently, he hadn’t stuck to the sleeping arrangements because there was someone next to me. I looked over at my side and did a double take.
I was lying next to me! My own body!
“What the hell?!” I attempted to jump up out of bed and failed spectacularly. My own body woke up and looked down at me on the floor. And then my eyes got huge.
“Shannon ?” I guessed, having looked down to find I was somehow inhabiting his body. His naked body. Not a good sign.
“Emily?” he said, but with my voice.
I stood up with some difficulty. I wasn’t used to my legs being so long.
This was definitely not good.
“What did we…” I started to ask and stopped myself. I already knew. It was beside the point. We obviously had more important things to worry about.
I searched the floor for clothes and put on the first thing I found: a pair of boxers. I looked at myself expectantly.
He actually looked down again at my naked body as though he was considering not putting anything on and then shrugged. I had to help him find my clothes. They were tangled in the sheets on the bed.
I was beginning to have a panic attack.
He made a move toward the door once he was dressed, but I stood with my back against it, not allowing him to get out. Ok, not letting my own body out of the room. I wasn’t letting him out of my sight.
“How. Did. This. Happen?!” My voice was not my own. That would take some getting used to.
Ugh! What was I thinking? I didn’t want to get used to this!
“Why are you asking me?” my own voice asked me back. “I didn’t do it!”
It was too weird watching my own face stay completely calm while I was freaking out. Regardless of the fact I could never actually see my own face when I felt this way, I knew I never looked that calm. I could actually see his face through my own. How odd.
“Well, I didn’t do it either!” I said unnecessarily.
“Calm down,” my own voice told me. “It’s freaking me out. I’ve never seen myself look so freaked out before.”
I almost laughed. Almost. “I was just thinking the exact opposite.”
We looked at each other for a second and then we both burst out laughing.
“Oh, I could have some serious fun with this,” he said, still half laughing.
That sobered me up. “Oh, no. You are not having fun with this, Shannon !”
“What?!” He was still smiling. “I didn’t mean it in a bad way. You could have fun with it too,” he said as he very suggestively nudged his own penis with the back of my hand.
“Oh. My. God!” was all I could muster with the shock of the sensation that small touch had given me. “You better not be having fun with mine!” I said through my teeth (well, through his teeth, which sounded so much more threatening coming from his voice than I knew it ever would have from my own) as I gestured at my own body.
He nearly laughed again. “I wasn’t suggesting that. And besides, you know I don’t swing that way.”
“Ok. This is too weird,” I said, putting my head in my hands.
Wow. I had never realized how big Shannon ’s hands were; or how tall he was, for that matter. It felt weird looking down at myself.
“No shit,” he agreed, sitting down on his bed. “You don’t think I’m freaking out hearing your voice when I speak?”
“Oh, so you got the short end of the stick on this one?” I teased sounding slightly hysterical. “If you haven’t noticed, I’m having the same issue over here.”
“I think it’s a bit weirder for me to see you in my own face.”
“Trust me. It’s just as weird from where I’m standing. Let’s just figure out how this happened so we can reverse it. I’d really like to have my body back.”
“Yeah, well, I have no idea who we’re going to figure that one out, but in the meantime, I’m just going to enjoy watching you try to be me at work.”
I don’t think I’d seen my face look that happy in months.
“Oh, no, no, no,” I said, trying my best not to panic again. “I’ll just be calling in sick today.”
“Oh, come on! It could be fun!” he said, still smiling.
“Fun! I’ve never waited on a table in my life! I’d get you fired!”
I seemed to be rather enjoying myself.
“You want me to get you fired?!” I asked, incredulously.
“It would be fun wouldn’t it?!”
“No, I don’t think it would,” I said, suddenly making up my mind. “No, actually I won’t be getting you fired. And you,” I poked one of Shannon ’s long fingers into my own shoulder, “are going to make sure I don’t get you fired.” I took him by the arm and pulled my body out of Shannon ’s room.
“Ow,” he said as we walked through the door. I looked over at him to see him rubbing the spot I had poked. “That kinda hurt.”
I burst out laughing, which definitely sounded bizarre. I’d never heard Shannon laugh like that before.
Apparently, Zac hadn’t either.
“Wow, was that you Shannon?” he asked, his head poking out of his door.
“Yes,” I responded, still laughing not just at Shannon , but at how absurd my laugh sounded. “Emily is just really funny,” I answered the unasked question on Zac’s face.
He just laughed and shut the door as we walked past him down the stairs.
“Now you know how it feels,” I whispered rather smugly.
“I didn’t think you’d be OK with hurting your own body,” he said, smiling now. “That one’s gonna leave a mark.”
“Ha. Funny.”
P.S.
Please keep in mind this has not been published yet, but I would appreciate it if this excerpt was treated as though it already was published and not copied elsewhere without my permission.
2 comments:
Amanda, this is great! I'm really curious to find out the plot of the whole story now. What do you plan to do with your story at this point? Are you going to keep working on it, perhaps try and publish??
yes, I would love to get it published! right now I'm editing and I have to do some research as to where to send it to get it published. I've heard that takes a lot of time, so we'll see :)
Good luck with finals!
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