Greeting the Neighbor1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBxYR4EuisC
Charlie started the car, putting it in reverse as her blind spot recognition beeped. Rear incoming traffic. Gasping, she put the car in brake and clutched her hand over her heart. That was a close one. It certainly would have been a collision had there not been the beeping coming from the rear backup camera. She edged out of her driveway carefully and smoothed out her long, blonde hair. She had been through several treatments to get it this smooth and silky. She smiled at reflection in the rear view mirror. Damn. Her hair really did look good today. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtELwXK0zaf
Now on the street, Charlie passed by an elderly couple. Her neighbors. They were friendly enough and they had a beautiful golden retriever with long, flowing golden hair. Much like her own. She liked that the Petersons were friendly to her as well. It was like a breath of fresh air, talking to the both of them. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuNbPb7NJWD
She put the window down. "Hey, Mr. Peterson." Charlie smiled. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYdLqTeXRHR
He blinked. "What do you want? Haven't you bothered us enough?" 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfAaB34SMGN
"Come on, can't I just engage in a bit of friendly conversation?" 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKqQdEDZT5g
Mr. Peterson took off his Fedora hat, showing a little thinning out. His salt and pepper hair was beginning to gray a little more. "What are you doing, Charlie?" he asked, sighing.1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHSh3C29tA1
"I was just going to work," she said. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDQlv1pK7I
"Work? Since when?" he asked. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBMaLZfK0dP
"Since yesterday. Got myself a new job." She swelled her chest, puffing it up. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ286XSCiSK6
"Okay, Charlie. If you have something really relevant to say, then you should be going on now. All right? You're holding up traffic." 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKJOos6V1MB
She then heard the series of honks, noticing a few cars behind her. Angry shouts. She waved her hand and put the car back in drive. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeEm9hymwq2
"Bye, Mr. Peterson! Have a nice day, sir. And bye bye Soph." She waved to the dog.1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaKdVU6JNGc
The dog was trying to get in Charlie's car. Sad eyes. Whimpering. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd0wPTWEuPj
"Come on, Soph." He tugged at the leash. "She doesn't want to pet you right now. And for the love of all things good, stop calling me Mr. Peterson." He scoffed and walked away quickly.1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡknewJR9El4
"Fine then, asshole," she said once the window was up. "Be that way. Some neighbors I have." 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8bOx06eaj
Charlie began to drive out of the neighborhood. The idyllic homes. The perfect couples. Families. All of this behind her. She looked out of the rear mirror and saw the flash of Soph in the distance. Mr. Peterson running after her. It was for the best. All for the best. 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSv5434wrfk
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"So. Miss Peterson," the lawyer said as his wire-rimmed glasses fell down to the tip of his nose. "Why is it that you want to change your name legally?" 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz33SwVb4Tl
Charlie sighed. "Because I want to. Is there a problem?" 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtMAJ209Ltt
"Well," he said. "These things are complicated. You're under 18. And you're not legally emancipated from your parents, so you can't change your name unless your father agrees to it. It doesn't sound like he does."1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPZlB0nC7T8
She pursed her lips. "Mr. Peterson is not my father." 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7wra64U8hm
The lawyer nodded. "But your dad agreed to a paternity test to prove his point. You are 99.9% related to him. So yes, he is your father." 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVLyRD24Tm
Why didn't anyone understand that she was not his daughter? How long would it take to prove this?1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs7Q3KFUnrO
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This was so difficult to pull of. Like you have no idea. I probably failed at this one like I always fail at this one. The point of this exercise is to create an unreliable third person narrator. So, yeah, Charlie is constantly lying to the reader, leaving them to believe the lies at first, but we find out at the end that the neighbor is actually Charlie's dad. I don't know if anything will ever come of this exercise, but it was definitely a stretch for me. I really did enjoy writing an unreliable third person POV, it was just super hard to do. I hope you enjoyed this one! 1105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRmy2cF8zDQ
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