Charles the Bold Signs His Name
Charles the Bold is holding a pen. Charles the Bold has a song stuck in his head. His Portuguese mother has her hand on his shoulder. His mother taught him about love. His father taught him about loyalty. Charles is in love with an older woman. Charles is in love with a teenager. The woman Charles loves has green eyes in winter and grey eyes in summer. It is October. Charles has ordered all the fridge and freezer doors to remain open. Their bulbs have burnt out. Charles the Bold breathes oxygen through his toes. Charles the Bold signs his name.
Charles the Bold is holding his only daughter. Charles the Bold is the world's youngest widower. Charles' daughter has green eyes, she will speak only Spanish. His daughter looks up at him just like Charles did with his father. Charles feels like an orphan; the only orphan in the world. There is no term for an orphan widower with a daughter who has green eyes. Charles the Bold puts down his daughter. Charles the Bold picks up a pen. Charles the Bold signs his name.
Charles the Bold is holding his only daughter. Charles the Bold is the world's youngest widower. Charles' daughter has green eyes, she will speak only Spanish. His daughter looks up at him just like Charles did with his father. Charles feels like an orphan; the only orphan in the world. There is no term for an orphan widower with a daughter who has green eyes. Charles the Bold puts down his daughter. Charles the Bold picks up a pen. Charles the Bold signs his name.
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Author's Note
1468- Treaty of Peronne
Other stories by Jason Lee Norman
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Interesting.
But does Charles the Bold actually have a fridge or freezer?
It's possible?
Of course the choice for repetition was a good one here, Jason. And in each instance in which you give us that refrain of "Charles the Bold is this or that or does this that, etc" never falls flat. With each new detail there is more learned of Charles the Bold. and "the only orphan in the world" is about the most lonesome six words I've read in a long time. Great stuff.
"Charles feels like an orphan; the only orphan in the world. There is no term for an orphan widower with a daughter who has green eyes."
While it's a bit sad, yes, it's tragic-comic and introduces some melodramatic self-pitying notes too which is a wonderful combo with the little mincing half-measures of these sentences which move the action, uh, almost nowhere, but rather, freezes the action so we can all stop and feel sorry for this character whose name is, ironically "Charles the Bold." (And his name was also Charles the Terrible if Wikipedia is not letting me down. Wow I actually had to think/research on this Saturday.)
Fun story, Jason. You pack a lot in a small space! -- Q *