Okay, the title is something, I know.
I have this thing I do when I'm out of writing ideas. I take the Merriam Webster's word of the day and write something with it. (Merriam Webster is a dictionary). Sometimes, I just input the word in the story. Other times, I build a story around it. And that is exactly what I did here. I'll leave it for you to decide which.
The word is collimate.
The story is a bit dark and sensitive. It's only two hundred words, so don't panic. I hope it finds you well.
Do tell what me what you make of it in the end.
I .. 2 .. 3 .. 4
The child counted quietly. He had been on it for almost three hours – counting over and over. He had to get it right. He needed to. Collimating the pointed sticks were easy. He had carefully selected them himself, and sharpened them to perfection. They would serve the purpose.
He waited.
Some days, the woman ignored him like he never existed. Other days, he got the whip. He stopped being scared of the whip long ago, but he was tired of it. And there were yet on days she gave him something different. He had learned to close his eyes whenever she removed first his clothes, then hers, and made him do things to her body with his mouth and fingers.
He understood everything. He was becoming adventurous. He liked to think that. Even now, it brought a tiny smile on his lips. He would sneak into her study and read the big books. It took him a while to make meanings out of them, but he did. One of them said that whoever does what the woman did to him deserved to die. He shrugged. His sticks were readout
He continued to count.
The story is a bit dark and sensitive. It's only two hundred words, so don't panic. I hope it finds you well.