STORY STARTER
You wake as a character in an old novel. Whilst you work out how to get back to the modern day, you must remain inconspicuous.
Don't worry if you haven't read any old novels; try to think about how the times were different to now, and how you would try to fit in.
The Tell Tale Heart
I woke to the sound of ticking. Not digital. A pocket watch. My hands were ink-stained, trembling. The room smelled of oil lamps and something metallic.
Low candlelight flickered over wooden floorboards—warped, uneven. I sat up in a stiff-backed chair. Across the room, an old man lay asleep, his cloudy eye wide open.
No phone. No lights. Just dread curling in my gut.
I recognized this place. The beating heart, the guilt, the madness. The Tell-Tale Heart.
I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t run. I had to act like I belonged or risk getting buried beneath those floorboards too.
So, I straightened my vest, smiled at the sleeping man, and whispered:
“Sleep well, sir. I’ll be… keeping watch tonight.”
