Writing Prompt: Every adult in the United States is given 5 million dollars to do with as they please

As I sat behind my desk, shredding each and every one of my letters without opening them, someone knocked on the door. Startled, I quickly opened a letter and took up a pen, to make it look like I was busy. "Come in," I shouted.

My secretary - a tall, slim, lady walked into my office, closing the door behind her. "Good evening, Mr. Trump," she said courteously. "I presume you've heard the news?"

I had absolutely no idea what she was talking about, but my head span with bizarre ideas. Is Barrack dead? Is the white house under attack? Did a muslim enter the country? "W-what's the news," I asked somewhat nervously.

"President Obama is giving every adult in the United States five million dollars to do with as they please," the lady said. "If I may ask, how did you not know of this?"

Before hearing the news, my net worth was 4 billion dollars. Now it's 4 billion 5 million dollars. Then I recalled what my dad had told me when I asked him for a small loan of a million dollars back when I was white. "Little Trump," he had said. "You're going to be a very successful republican, that's why I'm granting you a million dollars to get you started. No need to pay me back until you exceed 4 billion dollars." I had asked him how much I would need to pay me back, and he said, "All of it."

I was a stupid lad, I thought I would never have 4 billion dollars so I signed the contract and took the money. Now, I have over 4 billion dollars, and I have a legal obligation to give every cent to my father. I put down my pen and shoved the letter in the shredder, stood up, and walked to the window with tears in my eyes.

"That'll be all," I sighed. My secretary nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her.

Shortly after, came another knock at the door. But before I could say "come in," the door burst open and Barrack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Martin O'Malley, and Bernie Sanders came running into the room. "Nah-nah-ne-nah-nah," they chanted, laughing and hugging one another. "You're poor!" They all shouted in unison.

I dropped to my knees as they surrounded me, chanting "you're poor," and laughing.

Crop Circles

“I’m going to water the crops,” Larry shouted across the house to his wife as he approached the door.

“Alright,” Melissa shouted back. “Don’t take too long, the movie starts soon.”

Titanic, Larry thought. The same movie we watch every day. Isn’t she bored of it by now? Shaking his head in disbelief, Larry opened the door and stepped out onto the patio. Larry’s family had owned this farm for generations: his great-grandfather passed it down to his grandfather, his grandfather to his father, and finally his father to him. Perhaps, Larry would wonder. Perhaps even my great-great-grandfather owned this farm.

With his hosepipe in hand, Larry approached the cornfield. Until he caught sight of something. Leaking between the threads of maize was a bright, heavily concentrated neon light, shooting out in all directions like a thousand lasers. Larry dropped the hose to the soggy ground beneath him, splattering mud all over his brown jumpsuit. A low-volume, low-pitch humming could be heard beyond the intertwining crops.

With his mouth wide open, eyes fixed on the light beyond, Larry proceeded into the ominous field. In his carelessness he trampled on most of the corn that stood in his path; not looking back, not blinking, he continued to delve deeper. The sound grew louder and the light shone brighter.

Then he saw it. The glossy silver object that looked like a huge upside down platter stood mercilessly before him. The upper ring rotated slowly around it, producing a short-lived high pitch swoosh as it completed each rotation. All Larry could do was stand in awe. After being struck by sudden realization, Larry couldn’t help but notice a bright green figure- no. Two, three bright figures moving among the crops.

As he gathered the courage to tell them to get away from his crops, he felt a hand grab his shoulder. Startled, Larry spun around and tilted his head back as far as it would go to see the person’s face. Except, it wasn’t a person.

“Good evening, human,” the creature spoke with a calm, soft voice. “Oh, don’t look so scared.” It chuckled. “We’ll finish up and then we’ll be on our way.”

Finally, Larry replied. “W-what are you d-d-doing?” He shook his head violently when he realized how much of a fool he sounded. Clearing his throat, he continued. “Why are you vandalizing my crops?”

The creature released a hearty laugh. “You haven’t heard of us, have you, human?”

“N-no. I h-haven’t.”

“We’re the geometry people,” its voice was much more serious this time. “Our job is to make crop circles on every farm in the universe.”

“Why?”

The creature kneeled before Larry, drawing them both level. He then leaned over and spoke quietly into his ear, “Because we’re the geometry people.”

Before Larry could conjure up a reply, the aliens gathered into their ship and the oversized platter flew off into the atmosphere, leaving behind a neon trail that slowly vanished into the night sky.

The Basement Below

Leon rolled over to his side to check the clock on his bedside cabinet. 2:24 am. Another sleepless night, he thought. And I have school tomorrow. Frustrated, he chucked one of his pillows on the floor and buried his face deep in the other pillow.

After a few minutes, Leon launched himself to his feet to open the window and let in some fresh air. Four paces took him from his bed to the middle of the room, when a sound so loud, so soul-piercing, so... demonic, came leaking in from the gap around his door frame.

Leon was frozen into such a heart-pounding mess that he could not move. Standing in the middle of the room, in the utter darkness, all he could make out was the dim light coming from around his curtain frame and the light from his alarm clock. Then, a second noise poured into the room, this time much louder, and much more disturbing.

Have you ever been so annoyed that you instantly forget you’re afraid? Leon certainly was, that’s what lack of sleep can do to you. Taking large, certain, strides to the other side of the room, he flipped the light switch and placed his hand over the door knob. Before proceeding, he glanced around the room to reassure himself there was nothing behind him. Then, he begun turning the knob.

The instant he caught sight of the dark corridor, he ran to the light switch near the staircase and flipped that also, taking another glance about the corridor. He peered down the stairs, each one darker and further from him than the other. For the third time, the excruciatingly formidable noise sent shivers down Leon’s spine, reminding him of his fear. It definitely came from the basement, but he knew he couldn’t give up now. He had to find the source of this sound.

Taking each step one by one, he started to descend the staircase, the light ahead of him becoming dimmer and dimmer. Finally, he reached the floor. Tracing his hands around the wall, he searched for the next light switch, but he could not find it in the overwhelming darkness. Again, the sound could be heard from the basement underneath him, and this time it was closer and louder. He felt vulnerable. As he prepared himself to run up the stairs and back to bed, his hand caught the light switch and he flicked it.

Behind him was the door that would lead to the basement. He could hear the heavy, irregular beat of his heart in his ears. The blood vessels in his head thickened with each beat. Then, with his hand on the door knob, he turned it, opened the door, and peered down the steps. As he began descending the stairs to the basement, two large figures flew past him, over his shoulders, feathers scraping his cheeks on their way. Barn owls, Leon thought, as he opened the door to let them out.