Concept is simple. Set a timer for 10 minutes and write based on the following prompt.
Five girls on a path
Of all the paths in all the towns in all the countries, my feet track forward on the one I least desire. A hard ball of anxiety forms in my throat, no amount of swallowing able to flush it away.
Today is your day. Today is your day. I chant to myself. Yet, the words ring hollow and desperate in the void between my ears. How many days have I walked this path after school? How many times have I skipped over the cracks to save my poor mother’s back? How many squirrels have I counted scurrying across the smooth asphalt or off in the trees stockpiling nuts for winter?
In a blink, I reach the barrier.
“Hello, Mr. Hutchins,” my student says, her thin arms crossed in front of her chest, a sly grin on her young face.
I gulp, the nerves dislodging from my throat and blossoming into a crowded jungle of jitters in my stomach.
“Hello, girls,” I return to the five of them, my voice squeaking through like a timid mouse.
“Got our lunch money?” The one on the far right says, flicking the words with disgust at me.
I wince. I’d been saving up for a new cartoon bow tie.