Fiction | Humor | Stationary

Ink, Wood, and Steel—The Epic Drama of My Desk’s Inhabitants

The hilarious lives of stationery superstars

The tiny universe — housing my pens, pencils, scissors and sundry items — is located on my cluttered desk where chaos runs rampant.

These inanimate objects believe they’re stars on an unspoken stage that happens behind my back every day.

Mr. Pen, a posh fountain pen, is also a Shakespearean actor. He’s too convinced of his own greatness to pay attention in physics class. His classic black exterior hides a ballerina soul, twirling every movement like feathers on the wind.

Welcome the Pencil, the eternal optimist, always shouting, “I’m not a rubber, but I erase negativity!”

Scissors, the sharp-tongued critic, is always splitting through the line. It’s a mini-drama, and I’ve got a front-row seat.

“Creativity, let me loose!” In the morning, when I reach for my tools, they’re all worked up themselves. Mr. Pen is usually busy dictating Shakespearean soliloquies to whomever will stop; Pencil is generally scribbling deep and meaningful quotes into the notepad.

Scissors, in a tone of condescension, curtails any sort of give-and-take, saying that they really should be modern comedy. Amidst this general hullabaloo is a paper clip playing therapist, holding everything together and quietly observing daily melodrama.

Tensions run high as Mr. Pen accuses Pencil of having a superiority complex and says that just because he is wooden doesn’t make him a better writer. Pencil retaliates, pointing out that Mr. Pen is too inked up to see the eraser side of life.

Scissors referee warns them that if there is no agreement, they will be no longer his friends. The paper clip is trying to act as mediator and offers some solution. So; it’s soap opera in stationary form.

At noon, with the bustle quieting down, they come together in mutual contempt for the well-groomed post-it note family living next door, always in each other’s company flaunting their perfect rectangular lives.

You can almost hear everybody roll their eyes in unison.

Over the course of the day they swap tales of their own lives, from drawing on paper to penning heartfelt letters. In the end, they’re just trying to feel special in their own way, always honing their edge.

As I close my laptop with the setting sun, I can’t help but be amazed by the parallel lives of my tablemates, who may be stationary but are always in motion. It’s a comedy even Netflix would envy. 👍😅

This story is written in response to the lovely invitation from Liberty Forrest, Author. For more information please refer to the following post.

Also please read these amazing writers. They are quite good. A shoutout to TzeLin, Seda, and Bernie!