Scattered Perspectives
Rebecca Ladd
Austin Macauley Publishers
Scattered Perspectives
About the Author
Dedication
Copyright Information ©
Acknowledgement
A Man and His Robin
I Like My Coffee How I Like Everything, Depending on My Mood
Midnight Lies
About the Author
Rebecca Ladd started her writing journey when she started a personal blog to manage the anxiety issues she was facing at the time until she eventually moved on to writing short stories. She has always had a passion for reading which encouraged her to try writing herself. Rebecca currently lives with her twin sister and their two cats in Essex.
Dedication
I would like to thank my sister for inspiring me to write my first short story following her success in writing a novella.
I would also like to thank a friend of mine called Ruben who inspired the man and his robin.
Copyright Information ©
Rebecca Ladd 2024
The right of Rebecca Ladd to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.
Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.
ISBN 9781035823352 (Paperback)
ISBN 9781035823369 (ePub e-book)
www.austinmacauley.com
First Published 2024
Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd®
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Canary Wharf
London
E14 5AA
Acknowledgement
The Austin Macauley teams
A Man and His Robin
Chapter 1
It was a cold, autumn morning, there was morning dew on the grass, leaves falling from the trees and covering the ground in shades of orange and red. A man was slowly waking up from his delightful slumber, he rubbed his eyes, felt a sudden rush of feeling cold so pulled his blanket up over his head to protect himself. He was not yet used to this change in weather, and found himself daydreaming about warmer days.
He was an early riser so he missed waking up to the sun rays sneaking into his bedroom and painting his room with playful shadows. The longer days where he could do the things he enjoyed until late in the evening such as drinking wine or reading a paperback or two. Sometimes he would drink several glasses and end up dancing around the garden to his favourite music like nobody was watching. He also loved nature and was surrounded by it, he could sit in the garden for hours just watching, existing.
If he would allow himself, he could stay under his covers for the entire morning and daydream about summer and the joy it brings him but alas, we all have to leave bed eventually. Time to make some coffee.
It was a very icy morning, so the cold would follow him through every room in the house. The man scurried over to his wardrobe and pulled out his fluffy, warm dressing gown and slid into his equally fluffy and warm slippers before he left his bedroom and made his way to the kitchen.
He lived alone so there would be no possible way for the coffee to already be made up for him. He boiled the kettle, grabbed his favourite mug from the kitchen cupboard and spooned some instant coffee into it. He made sure to add the sugar and only allow the kettle to just about hit boiling point before he switched it off. If you weren’t already aware, if you allow the kettle to reach full boil, your beautiful instant coffee would become burnt. No one enjoys burnt coffee now do they, the man muttered to himself. After a quick stir, he added milk and his morning coffee was ready.
He wasn’t much of a breakfast person; he much preferred a coffee or two to get the day going. This was for two reasons, one, he wasn’t always hungry this early in the morning and two he was lazy and not much of a cook. He made his way into the living room, usually he would make his way to the garden on a warmer day to drink his morning coffee but today he just couldn’t stand the cold. Even though he couldn’t sit in the garden, he could see it from the living room which helped. It wasn’t quite the same but it was almost enough.
The garden was truly beautiful, he was very lucky he could call it his own. Just behind his garden was a forest and because of this there were always plenty of woodland creatures finding their way into his garden and sharing it with him. He loved all animals, but had a love for birds in particular. He believed this was because of the freedom they are seen to have; they can fly anywhere. Not to mention the views they are able to have of the world. He couldn’t help but be in absolute awe of them and wished, if he were to be reincarnated, to be a bird.
It appeared to be a quiet morning this morning, not many animals about. This did seem strange to the man, seeing as he was used to the company. The man had been sitting for a while at this point and decided it was time for his next coffee. As he pulled himself up off the sofa, he sought one more glance outside and saw something. He not only saw something, but heard it too. He decided to take a detour and venture outside into the garden before heading to the kitchen to investigate.
He followed the noise, and he landed on his bird bath, where a lone robin was sitting. Being a lover of birds, the man had hoped to see as many birds as possible putting it to good use while he watched. It was eerily quiet that morning and the grass still felt damp under his feet, he really should have changed into proper shoes before going into the garden. He made sure to walk as slowly as he could towards the little robin so as to not scare him away. The closer he got, the robin suddenly registered he was close by and just looked at him. At this point, he would have expected the robin to fly away, or perhaps bring more distance between them. The robin did neither. It was at that moment the man knew, this was not just a robin, it was a new friend.
Chapter 2
The man wasn’t quite sure how to approach his new friend, the confidence in this robin was impressive but this made the man feel a little uncertain. The robin still did not look away, and this simply ushered him to move closer. There was a chair nearby, the man decided perhaps he would sit down beside the robin and see what would happen. As the man moved past the robin and found himself sitting down, he was now behind the robin, out of his direct view. The robin turned around to face the man and they stayed like this, for a short while.
It was the robin who broke the comfortable silence they were now sitting in when it chirped at the man. This threw the man a little, it was unexpected and he did not know how to respond. He thought to himself, what would I say to a robin. How could we possibly have some form of conversation without being able to truly understand each other. But as quickly as this thought entered his mind, doubt also crept in. When humans have pets, they communicate with each other and build a relationship somehow. Why should it be any different with this wild robin?
The man decided to say good morning to the robin and with that the robin chirped again. This made the man giggle but then continue with the conversation. One would think it was a very one-sided conversation but the robin did acknowledge the man for a short while and this made him feel less alone than he did when he woke up this morning.
The man chooses to live alone but he doesn’t believe he is lonely. He has family and friends who live close enough to visit him every so often but faraway enough for him to feel as if he has his own space and independence. He has never been married or had any children but still has time, if he chooses that path in his future.
