Short Story Collection

The Convention

"Oh dear, oh dear, I hope I'm not too late"

A young man stood outside the gate of a convention centre. He brushed his auburn bangs out of his eyes as he squinted at his watch.

"Hey, you!"

The man whirled around, coming face to face with a panting woman. She slowly straightened up and dusted her cloak. The man continued to stare at her. She was breathtaking. Her chestnut brown eyes creased with smile lines, her lips a naturally pale shade of pink. She wore a blue blouse with a knee-length black skirt with a grey cloak and black flat shoes. Her raven black hair reaching her shoulders and plated in a neat french braid

The woman cleared her throat. "Are you, by chance, Oliver Green?"

The man, now identified as Oliver Green, snapped out of his daze. "Y-yes I am. And who might a fine lady such as yourself be?" he asked with a grin, his attempt at flirting having no effect.

"Stacy Marrow" she smiled politely "Comic and Graphic Novel Journalist for the Puffin Book Catalogue."

Oliver's mouth fell open. That was one of the most famous book catalogues on the east side of London. "Are you going to interview me?" he asked in disbelief. Stacy chuckled "Yes Mr Green, you and two more writers at the convention."

Suddenly the gates of the building opened. It turned out he wasn't late after all. "Shall we go Mr Green?" "Y-yes, of course."

~~~~~

Once they entered the building Oliver had to stop to admire everything. Stacy smiled as she watched the man walk around taking in every little detail. "I suppose I will see you later Mr Green. Goodbye." and with that, she walked off.

Oliver barely heard her walk off as he was occupied with staring at the warble walls. The convention centre had always been dedicated to literature and reading so it was no surprise when he saw numerous images from iconic pieces of art all over the walls. He knew most of them but others weren't familiar.

His breath almost stopped as he imagined the prospect of his novel being featured among the samples on the walls. He had grown up in a less than ideal environment. His mother had tried her best and he was grateful for it but sometimes it got too hard to deal with. He began to write and to draw to escape from reality, always caught up in his own head because he wasn't ready to face the real world.

In the end, it worked out for him, he studied literature and drawing and ended up working in a small comic company, which specialized in newspaper comic strips. Eventually, he left, deciding to create his own graphic novel and lo and behold it was a success. He sold over five thousand copies in two years and was invited to speak about his work at an upcoming book convention at the Louise Convention Center.

He smiled a little to himself. Taking a deep breath, he moved down the hall in the direction of the Comic and Graphic Novel room.

~~~~~

"Thanks, Mr Green!!"

Oliver smiled at the child he had just signed a book for. It had been a few hours since he had arrived and the convention centre was extremely lively and packed. That wasn't really beneficial for his anxiety, but he persevered.

The child grinned back running back to their mother. Oliver looked around himself, it truly was a wonderful sight to see so many people happy and excited over literature and he was also quite happy to see most of them were teens and pre-teens.

But then again it was a comic convention. He shrugged to himself. Soon he got bored with people watching and decided to draw, so he pulled out a notepad (he always kept one on his person) and doodled on its pages.

"Mr Green!" He looked up and spotted Stacy walking closer to his booth. He stashed away his notepad and subconsciously sat up straight, trying to make himself presentable.

"Hello Ms Marrow!" he greeted "I assume you're here for my interview?". "Yes I am" she confirmed sitting down.

"First of all tell me a bit about yourself Mr Green" she inquired, retrieving a recorder seemingly out of nowhere.

"Well, I was born..."

~~~~~

After the interview, he bid the journalist goodbye, but not before getting her number. For professional reasons of course.

Oliver signed some more books, socialized with his fellow writers and even discussed with some fans as well.

He sighed, slouching in his seat. He didn't have to speak about his book for a few hours so he was bored again. He debated going to a nearby cafe to relax and draw and maybe read, but knowing him he would lose track of time very quickly.

Suddenly he saw a flash in the corner of his eye. A strangely dressed man had entered a storage closet and seemed to be tinkering with lights as several different flashes passed under the door. With his interest spiked, Oliver watched the door intently and a few minutes later the same man walked out with dust on his face and his hair frizzy.

Before he knew it, Oliver was on his feet. He had no idea what was happening or what he was doing but something told him to follow that man.

And follow him he did, he found himself squeezing through the crowd to reach the door at the other end of the room.

By the time he reached, the strange man had disappeared. Looking over his shoulder to see if anyone spotted him, he opened the closet door and walked right in.

Then everything went black.

~~~~~

A/N: So what do you think? I think this one deserves a part two, don't you? Anyway, I hope you liked it. I am quite happy with this one as well. I will try and post another one as soon as possible. Don't forget to comment and vote.

Hope you enjoyed it.

See you later!