Sharon’s note: Another 200 word challenge, where the subject was two people meeting who share a phobia. Warning: A real-life spider hostage situation that the author has witnessed.
“Don’t let the–”
I looked up from my phone to the sickly pale man pressed against the bathroom wall. The door clicked behind me and the guy groaned. That didn’t bode well. I gave him a weak smile. “Did I just trap us in here?”
He laughed, high and nervous. “That depends, are you afraid of spiders?”
. . . I spun around and yelped. My back hit the wall before I’d even realized I’d moved. The door handle was speckled with little white globes, half of which had split, spewing forth an army of tiny black dots. Dozens, maybe hundreds, of baby spiders.
I stayed frozen for a solid ten seconds before turning to my fellow spider hostage and holding out my hand. “My name’s John. What’s yours?”
He took it hesitantly. “Lance.”
“Well, Lance, here’s the plan. We’re going to stay here, as far from those little bastards as we can. When someone opens the door, we’re going to pretend like we were just in here talking. I’ll take the chance and see if I can stop it from closing, but I’m going to need you to follow close. Don’t worry buddy, I’m going to get us out of this.”
Gray Matters: The Works of Sharon and James Gray 