CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE:
FIRST PICK A BEGINNING BELOW
Would You Colon Dot Dot Dot
By Nicholas Matus
“Really, how you can have the gall to say that the opening night wasn’t a smashing success,” Benigna exclaims. “Can you blame him? Seriously, meta-genitalia?” Miles butts in. “You, my friend,” Benigna hisses in Miles’s direction, “stay out of it. You didn’t even attend the show.” “He does have a point,” Keegan answers with a wide grin, leaning over to slap Miles’ outstretched hand, “although, the whole meta-genitalia bit turned out to be the best part of the show.” “Think what you will. You’re just saying all these mean things to get me riled up. And Keegan, act all macho now but I caught you crying during the scene with the coiffeuse listening to the tape in the snow.” Benigna turns to Nausicaa and continues, “don’t listen to them, my dear. I thought the show was splendid and you were breathtaking, as always. And you looked stunning in the jute dress.”
During the conversation you keep wondering why you are sitting at a table with a group of people you don’t know. To distract yourself from the conversation you take a look around the eatery you are at. It is a mixture of a fancy Art Deco-ish bistro and a factory canteen, which offers patrons the choice between self-service or being waited on. Benigna raises her champagne coupe and announces, “here’s to a successful opening night and a great performance by our dearest Nausicaa. My friends, let me take this opportunity to say how overjoyed it makes me to see all of you after such a long time and that…”
If you decide to use a trip to the toilet as an excuse to escape more superficial chitchat, go to # 3. If you can endure more inane banter, go to # 4.
Would You Colon Dot Dot Dot
By Nicholas Matus
The subway is still stuck in the station. A paper cup, you can’t remember buying, rests in your hands. The coffee it contains will probably have gone cold by now. The only other passengers are two men, who loudly debate some uninteresting topic. You wonder whether to leave the train and walk or to stay on the subway in hope of the technical problems being resolved soon, but since you have no particular place to go you decide to stay put for the moment. Eventually, the voice of a woman announces: “We are sorry to inform you that operation of this train will not be resuming shortly as the motorman of this train has decided to pursue his dream of writing and operating surtitles for a Moscowian travelling theatre company. Their next production is a modern interpretation of Chekhov’s complete works, which starts showing in the local sewage system next Spring. Anyone interested in interning can apply to…” You watch the two men, still heatedly discussing the uninteresting topic, get up and leave the train. While you consider following suit you suddenly notice that one of the men has left a book on the train.
If you want to ignore the book and disembark, go to # 5. If you want to read the book while you keep waiting, go to # 6.
