AAFM - The Fatal Noodle by Jennifer

The Fatal Noodle

It bears me great pain to retell this story, a story weaved within the turning point of my life. The ensuing trauma dates back several years, back to a time when my naivety triumphed the complexity of my circumstances ...

To many, the supermarket aisle boasts of its magnificence in its splendid array of food items. Multicoloured packaging lines the shelves with a plethora of products to overwhelm the reluctant consumer.

It was one of those stormy winter nights, the horror echoing in the emptiness of my kitchen cabinet. Braving the gale-like winds, I had ventured the perilous one hundred metres down my suburban street in the heart of the dark, arriving at the asian food market as the clock strikes midnight.

The dark eyed cashier eyes me up and down, as if doubting my sanity at such an unearthly hour, then returns to his preoccupation with the change upon his counter. I scan my eyes hastily across the aisle signs ...

Vegetables ... glutinous rice and flour ... haw flakes and kids snacks ...

AHA! The captivating words Instant Noodles draw me toward aisle 4, my senseless feet drifting towards the imagined scent of chicken and seafood and beef flavourings and preservatives which bestills such immense olfactory pleasure within me that the emotion transcends beyond the written word. The correctly placed capital letters of the two heavenly words spell out IN ... a fatal twist in an attempt to draw me closer into their clandestine corner of the shop.

Upon stepping into the aisle the vivid combinations of colours sing a familiar post-dinner-snack song ... and paralyse me for a moment too long. I immediately head towards the conspicuous hole on the shelf where a cheap bargain has cleared its contents. The location is strikingly familiar ...

The lousily scribbled "Chicken flavoured Kimyu Cup Noodle 10% discount" bestills horror within every hair follicle in my body - the vacuum in the shelf stares at me menacingly, a fatal symbol of hunger throughout the night. This was my flavour. My brand. My cup noodles.

But out of the corner of my eye I spot a soft green ... an all too familiar smell but tinged with  ... with ...

A dark figure emerges beside the green cup discarded carelessly on top of another brand section. Terrified, I watch aghast as the dark figure turns his head, raises his arm ...

A split second is all that is required as I sprint to the other side of the aisle, whisking the green cup into my trained palms in a primitive possessive instinct and landing battle stanced at my original position. I had won the fight, cup in hand with the empty shelf teasing the intruder as he turns away, surrendering to me.

Slamming down my silvery coins which glimmered with victory onto the counter at the front of the supermarket, I boasted of my triumph over the cashier's monotonous "One dollar fifty."

Even the wind whips around me in a celebratory manner as I jog home, my well deserved prize of the night in hand. It was a trophy, a hard-earned token which would accompany me through what would otherwise be a cold, lonely night.

I throw the kettle onto the boil, stripping the plastic packaging off the cup noodle package as I wet my lips, anticipating the enticing gustatory pleasure inside the little cup.

Suddenly the floor opens underneath me, the whirring of the kettle a lethal attack on my burning ears.

In small letters, above the all too familiar CHICKEN FLAVOUR, sat the devastating word CHILLI!!!

Author's Note: 600 words. Sleepy. This was deleted: In a primitive possessive instinct I snatch the green cup noodle from the man's hand, determined not to have used the last five minutes of intense dilemma to no avail.

edit: although not really obvious, I got influenced by Edgar Allen Poe's short stories when I wrote this. I really love his dramatic endings, and I remembered afterwards that it was from his short story The Black Cat where I got inspired with how to start my creative. I actually really enjoyed writing this creative, and actually stayed up in an attempt to finish it off (hence why I was dead today at school). I felt like I could actually just keep typing and I had the 'flow' ...

Originally the persona was going to go to extreme extents in picking the correct cup noodle - they would check the expiry date, immaculate packaging, shaking each cup to see which one had the most 'intact' noodles ... etc but that never happened. It just came out this way haha!

And also, you can probably tell esp. comparing my creatives with Alicia's and Selina's that I'm not really good with description. I tend to prefer movement, and this is what I get deducted marks for at school as well!! I'm too shallow :P