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To Miss Abigail Suzanne Parker

The First Letter

a short message from a series of letters by livy taillon

this is a letter i wrote. obviously, i was not the narrator here—but i thought up the idea to write a series of letters from a stalker to their victim (who is a stranger) that will continue to escalate over time. there will be four more letters and one news article to finish off the story. well, here it is, i guess! please remember that i am not a stalker myself and that abby is not a real person.

To Miss Abigail Suzanne Parker

I saw you today, wearing that Pretty Blue Skirt again. You’ve worn it a few times in the past Month. I’ve seen you window-shopping, through the glass of those little boutiques. Are you looking for a skirt like your Pretty Blue One? If you are, I know where to get one. I have a lot of money. I could buy you Pretty skirts in All Colors. I know you’d like that.

Miss Abigail, My Abby, I wish you’d respond to my calls. I have called you many times since you first caught my eye five weeks ago, but you never answer, even when you’re home, and you’re not doing anything important, you’re just watching Television and playing with your Dog. That DOG gets more attention than I do. But nevermind, My Abby. If you just respond to this letter with one of your own, we can all be very happy, even your Dog.

I know you’ve seen me. You looked me in the eyes just last Tuesday, when we were eating at the Proud Mary Cafe, and you noticed me sitting all the way on the other side of the room. I saw those Pretty Blue Eyes, just like your Pretty Blue Skirt, and we looked at each other. Do you want to be Lovers? Your eyes told me so, My Abby…There’s no Hiding from Love.

I’ve noticed your love for hiking and nature. I also enjoy spending time in the fresh air. Do you like Roses? I think you might prefer wildflowers…You always pick the perfect bouquets…And you always include those little white flowers, the Lilies of the Valley. They are Beautiful, just like you. Maybe I will make you a Perfect Bouquet with all the Lilies I can find, once Spring comes around again.

Maybe, when you respond, you should tell me where we can meet. I think we will be very happy together, My Abby.

Forever Yours,

Raymond.

hope you liked it, please give any/all feedback you like!

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A Study in Sonder

a short story by livy taillon

please give me feedback and stuff id love to hear (read?) it

small warning for the tiniest mention of blood

ok here it is

Hal Avalos loves people-watching. He relishes going on drives around his city of Philadelphia, observing the intricacies of city life like he’s done for the past 48 years—ever since he could drive. He prefers to walk, but at his age, he is limited, which is a shame. It’s easier to hear conversations and see the details of a face while walking.

Hal finds something interesting in nearly every interaction he watches, which separates him from other people. Just last Saturday on a brunch outing with his friends from Bingo club, he shared a story that made his eyes well up with tears:

He was driving to the park when he stopped at an intersection. He saw a woman walking across the street accidentally drop her wallet, only noticing this once she was on the other side. A car stopped just before running it over and the driver got out, grabbed the wallet, and handed it to the woman. As the car drove away, the woman smiled and waved with genuine gratitude.

After he was finished telling his story, however, his friends sat in silence and stared at him. Jerry, a large man in his early 70s, gave a loud cough.

“So, what is everyone getting to eat? I can’t decide between the sausage and the hashbrowns myself,” said Jerry. Hal was confused at first. Why was no one acknowledging his story? Why were they all staring like he was some demented nutcase? The conversation started up again, and Hal realized they truly thought he was crazy. They thought the events he’d witnessed were ordinary and mundane. He thought this was incredibly dismissive and shallow of them. He also felt a small pang of pity for them that they can’t see others in the way he does; they ignore the interesting people and things all around them. Most people, Hal discovered, have never experienced sonder. Sonder is the realization that everyone, including strangers passing in the street, have lives as complex and intricate as one’s own. Hal himself never realized this; he’s always known it. He was born with intense fascination that extended all the way to passersby.

An extension of his people-watching, Hal enjoys filming people. He films interactions between lovers, friends, families, strangers, and even enemies. Occasionally, when he doesn’t feel like going out to people-watch, he watches his films instead. When he considers a film too good not to share, he creates a new Youtube account with a name that isn’t his and posts the video. He does this because he knows the conventional wisdom says filming strangers without their knowledge is weird and creepy, but documenting one wholesome moment isn’t. A few of his videos have gone viral, but on account of his commitment to staying anonymous, Hal never benefits from it. Despite the lack of profit he gains from it, Hal considers his photography and filmography a very fine art. He considers himself similar to a wildlife photographer filming and documenting animals’ daily lives. Wildlife photographers, however, never interact with their subjects. Whether it is to hurt or help them, those people only watch.

Hal has a different philosophy.

Anna Keens, a 32-year-old woman from Center City, appears in three different videos across the internet. In one of them, posted by William Myers (an account with no other posts and no profile picture) on Facebook, she is seen having a heated dispute with Dante Fox, her ex-boyfriend. In the video, he threatens her and reveals a handgun on his hip. The video ends before Anna’s reaction to this, which worries everyone who sees it. In fact, everyone is too worried about what happens next to wonder about the person behind the camera.

The video of Anna Keens was posted three days after she was reported missing by her sister. During those three days, Anna’s disappearance was beginning to gain traction on social media. The masses were suspicious of Dante Fox, and after the video was posted, they believed their suspicions were right. The police further confirmed speculations when they gained a warrant to search Fox’s apartment. There, they found three of Anna’s teeth, Anna’s blood on a shirt and pair of sneakers, a handgun (the one seen in the video), and a clump of Anna’s red hair along with a bit of scalp in Fox’s trash.

“Dante Fox is a sick man who kept trophies of his heinous crime,” said the chief of police to the press.

Fox pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. He received a life sentence with no possibility of parole.

Hal sighed in relief when he read the news. Normally, people like Anna went overlooked, but Hal supposed Anna was slightly different from the rest of them. She was young, pretty, and had her whole life ahead of her; which made her murder more enraging. Hal doesn’t really see things this way. To him, all of them are equal.

Hal has filmed many others. Sometimes, their faces show up on the Missing In Philly Facebook group he’s a member of. Others show up on the news, on telephone poles, or even (twice) on billboards. But all of them star in videos of Hal’s—some private, many public. Nobody ever considers it strange how many missing and murdered people can be seen on the internet, made famous by accounts that aren’t their own. To Hal, this shows the general public’s thoughtlessness and lack of critical thinking, but he is glad for their disregard. After all, Hal doesn’t want to be caught. He wants people to keep thinking he’s just an old man in retirement, sitting peacefully on a park bench in Philly, listening to the children playing, watching the birds, and engaging in a little harmless people-watching.

ok so that was my story. hoped you liked it and please leave a comment or something! i may or may not continue sharing my writing here depending on how this does

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the attitude i aspire to achieve in writing

“I’m not interested in competing with anyone. I hope we all make it.”

— Unknown

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marty: i can’t stop cheating on my wife bruh

rust subplot: