Sunday Serial: 240 x 70, 35. Plastic in the Sea by Gill James, a drink without a plastic straw

 Introduction

This collection is a collection of seventy stories, each 280 words. They were inspired by the first picture seen on my Twitter feed on a given day.

35. Plastic in the Sea

 It was a strange thing. Like nothing they'd seen before, yet it seemed familiar. It had arms or maybe they were tentacles. They waved around anyway in a mad dance. It was oddly bright like the sun.

The little fish gathered round each day to stare. They didn't go too close. It was bigger than them. It might attack. But it might be food. Best wait and see. And still it danced and waved and waved and danced.

It was battered against the rocks and attacked by bigger fish. Bits flaked off. It started to fade. Perhaps it was dying. Small pieces floated through the water, hardly sinking, but certainly moving towards them.

One brave fish swallowed a lump. Then another and another. More fish came. It didn't taste of much bit it filled a hole in some hungry bellies. Fewer and fewer fish came over the next few days. Maybe it just wasn't so interesting any more.

A dark shadow passed across the water.  The little fish dived away. They didn't want to be eaten. Wasn't it too shallow for him here, anyway?

Now there was nothing but the big dark mammal and the strange faded orange creature.  There was a terrible gnawing in its belly. It didn't feel right. Maybe if he could eat he would feel better. He saw th strange shape and snapped his mouth round it.

It was almost impossible to swallow. It seemed to fight with him but eventually he got it down.

But he felt heavy inside and longed for sleep. He surfaced and dragged himself on to the shore.

"Plastic in his belly, no doubt," said the human who examined the corpse.                 

About the author

Gill James is published by The Red Telephone, Butterfly and Chapeltown.  

She edits CafeLit and writes for the online community news magazine: Talking About My Generation.

She teaches Creative Writing and has an MA in Writing for Children and PhD in Creative and Critical Writing.    

http://www.gilljameswriter.com  

https://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B001KMQRKE

https://twitter.com/GillJames 

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