She tried to grasp what he was saying but the words circled her head like cartoon birds, chirping incessantly. She had lost track of how many times the conversation revolved around him and she continued to sip her wine. She glanced casually around the restaurant looking for anything else to bring into the conversation but his words kept tumbling over themselves and boxing her ears with their abrasive nature. She ordered another glass of wine. He hadn’t even noticed and kept rambling.
His words slowly began to mutate. She wasn’t sure if he was having trouble speaking or if the wine had dulled her senses to the point of not being able to distinguish syllables. Regardless of the reason, she welcomed the new dulcet nature of his speech pattern and ordered another glass of wine.
The room seemed different somehow – like a special effect in a movie where only the centre of her vision was in focus and her peripheral was shrouded in shadows. She thought she had heard him actually ask if she was okay but she could not form the words to respond. He was suddenly beside her, placing his hand under her elbow and easing her out of the chair. She wasn’t sure why but she felt compelled to oblige and stood beside him. The world spun.
The last two things she would remember were the waitress giving her a smug look thinking that she drank too much and the feel of the cold metal barrel of the pistol burrowing into her rib cage.
***
Written for the Trifecta Challenge – And now, the weekly prompt.
GRASP (verb)
1: to take or seize eagerly
- Your response must be between 33 and 333 words.
- You must use the 3rd definition of the given word in your post.
- The word itself needs to be included in your response.
- You may not use a variation of the word; it needs to be exactly as stated above.
- Only one entry per writer.
- If your post doesn’t meet our requirements, please leave your link in the comments section, not in the linkz.
- Trifecta is open to everyone. Please join us.
– See more at: http://www.trifectawritingchallenge.com/#sthash.w0RpD3hA.dpuf
polysyllabic profundities 
Yikes – sinister. I love how it started off as an almost banal bad date, and turned into something much darker at the end.
Thank you. I have a pretty warped imagination.
Chilling! Great use of words, rich and lush prose – but his words kept tumbling over themselves and boxing her ears with their abrasive nature. Nice work!
Thank you so much. I really appreciate that!
I like the twist at the end…I guess no matter what happens there won’t be a second date.
Haha – I hope not!! 🙂
Yikes! I just saw a news article about glasses that have built in sensors to tell whether someone has slipped drugs into the drink. This technology comes a bit too late for our friend here. Thanks for linking up. Don’t forget to come back and vote.
I’ve already been reading through….it’s a tough choice!
That’s scary. I’m really glad I don’t drink now!
I didn’t see the dark turn coming. Good job!
Thanks very much.
Whoa that was…wow really well written! And the twist at the end – so unexpected. Great job!
Thanks very much!!