“Oh my gawd, did you see what she posted? #CrayCray.”
“I was #shook, girl! But seriously, I heard she broke down in front of his house… over a piece of sandwich. A freaking piece of sandwich.”
“Talk about dramatic. She has always been a #dramaqueen.”
“What’s #new? She loves the attention.”
“Oh my gawd, did you know what happened on #Tuesday?”
“Why, what happened? What did I miss? #FOMO.”
“Our class got cancelled and no one told us about it. So we waited for a full 30 minutes before we left. #Seriously.”
“You guys just… left? Like… for real? That’s super #thuglife.”
“Yea, we strolled out like a #boss. But oh my gawd, what a waste of 30 minutes. 30 minutes of my life that I will never, ever get back!”
“I feel you, girl. Just the other day, I had to wait 5 minutes for the bus. #Unbelievable! Ain’t nobody got time for that!”
“Wait, don’t you have a car? How dare you take the bus! #Scandalous.”
“I had to get it repaired. Something about the engine or the brakes, god only knows. #FirstWorldProblems.”
“Oh, hold on. My mother is at the door. #Ughhh she’s asking about dinner.”
The hall erupted in a deafening applause. Its audience rose to their feet, cheering in delight at the seemingly impressive dialogue between two plainly dressed actors. Praises of brilliance—‘bravo’, ‘such ingenuity’, and ‘oh, how captivating’—filled the air. And even after the lights dimmed and the stage emptied, everyone wanted to know—what did it all mean?
“It’s art,” many insisted. “An artistic exchange between two beautiful souls. Couldn’t you feel it? Those colourful words spoke to my soul. ”
“It’s the future,” others concluded. “In the future, that is how people will speak. The writer has predicted a world full of expression.”
“It’s reality,” some suggested—though not a popular opinion. “Who we are as people, and the reflection of our inner insecurities.”
Alas, it didn’t matter what it all meant. In fact, there wasn’t any meaning to it—there was no story, no real character development, and nothing philosophical between the lines. If one dared say, it wasn’t a real performance either. The actors on the stage, reciting their lines in dramatic Shakespearean manner, were not telling a story. The ones who truly performed… were the audience. Ah, how strange—it seems that some did uncover the meaning behind it all.
“It’s reality,” they said with an excited grin. “A beautiful slice of life.”
12 Genre Months © 2020 by Jeyna Grace. All rights reserved.
(Click HERE for the list of stories in this writing challenge.)
Jeyna Grace 