As I said, no stories for November. I’m still working on my novel Brewed Awakenings and haven’t had time to bust out a short story, so instead, you get an excerpt from the novel I’m working on.

The novel is about Eric and Naomi, two best friends and recent college grads trying to figure out why people keep literally disappearing after drinking Eric’s coffee. It wears its Nightvale and A Series of Unfortunate Events inspirations on its sleeves. Without further ado, here is the beginning of chapter 4.

“You need sleep.”

Eric finished his story and was taken aback by Naomi’s statement. Did she not understand how serious this was? The answer is no, she did not understand how serious it was. How could she? The answer is through careful attention and detail was how. She could have looked into Eric’s eyes and trusted her best friend. And she eventually would, but at that moment, she did not because she could not.

And Eric on the other hand could not understand why Naomi didn’t believe him because he did in fact need sleep. You see, there are many symptoms to sleep deprivation, and we have all suffered from it. Everyone is aware of the yawning, the fatigue, and the growing desire to collect cursed relics into a vault to “protect the world from their dark magics.” But few people remember that it makes people forgetful, because they are also sleep deprived. They also forget that it makes people moody and irritable.

Just to be clear, I do have my own vault of cursed objects that I have gather from the far corners of the world I have traveled. I mean Indiana and Michigan. I haven’t traveled very far. But it’s not because I’ve not been getting enough sleep. You’re just like my mother. She keeps saying I don’t get enough rest, citing the bags under my eyes and the growing collection of grimoires and haunted dolls. Mostly the haunted dolls.

“Like, you need sleep real bad”

Eric turned around to hide his frustration and to get a set of cups ready for the next wave of customers. In his head he wanted to just ask her “Why won’t you believe me?” So he did.

“Why won’t you believe me?” he said as he turned around.

“I believe you.” Eric and Naomi were caught off guard by this new voice, a new character in the novel and their lives. 

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