‘Managing a Difficult Situation with Grace’ by Leslie Wibberley

Grace Under Pressure

In ‘Managing a Difficult Situation with Grace’, Leslie Wibberley reminds us that cleaning up messes is part of the human condition, made easier by the love of a good dog.

This story was an honourable mention in the 2024 Bumblebee Flash Fiction Contest. Stir up a batch of heartache, with this excerpt from Issue 43, Summer 2024.

Managing a Difficult Situation With Grace

by Leslie Wibberley

Grace rolls over, each one of her seventy-nine years making itself known in a noisy chorus of snaps and pops. Sunlight streams through the open window and dapples the floorboards. John hated to sleep with the window open, but Grace loves the whispery breezes that carry the sweet scent of roses. The delicate perfume usually prompts a smile. 

But not today. 

Today, she wants to scream at the unfairness of life. At fifty-five years of marriage being tossed aside like an empty Ziploc bag. 

She sits up, feet dangling over the edge of the bed. Coffee. She needs coffee. Black and bitter, like her heart. She slides forward and stands, her right foot landing smack-dab in a pool of tepid urine.

Her face twists in disgust. “Randall!” This is the third mess the elderly spaniel has made this week. 

Rage erupts, blazing through her like a wildfire as she hops to the bathroom. Grabbing a towel, she scrubs her foot so hard her skin tingles. “Pathetic. Can’t even control your own bladder. No wonder John doesn’t want you in his fancy new life.”

She flings the towel away and stomps down the hallway in search of the dog. When she finds him, she’s going to smoosh his face into this latest mess. Teach him a lesson.

“Randall!” she calls again. She checks every room on the top floor. He doesn’t usually go downstairs before her in the mornings. Where the hell is he? 

The pulse thudding at Grace’s temples reminds her that, despite the new meds, her blood pressure is still too high. She forces air in through her nose and out through pursed lips for a count of four. Square breathing, designed to reduce stress and anxiety.

Doesn’t do a damned thing.

Find out what happens next, in Issue 43, Summer 2024!

And for you chance to appear in Pulp Literature — and win $300! — enter the Raven Short Story Contest, now open!

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Leslie Wibberley lives in a suburb of Vancouver, Canada, with her amazing family and an overly enthusiastic cocker spaniel. Her work is published in multiple literary journals and anthologies, including the Bram Stoker-nominated Not All Monsters, and the Aurora-nominated Prairie Witch. Her stories have placed first in the Writer’s Digest Annual Writing Competition and Popular Fiction Awards. She is represented by Naomi Davis of Bookends Literary. Leslie’s work has  appeared in Pulp Literature twice before: ‘Stonecold’ (winner of Creative Ink’s Flash Fiction Contest) in Issue 21 and ‘Attempted Murder’ in Issue 32. Visit her at lesliewibberley.com.