Castling (flash fiction, 300 words)

[Kyriakos]

Castling

If I am to keep up, mistakes known to lead to serious problems should be avoided. Last night I missed an appointment with an influential businessman who may well have agreed to sign a contract there and then – while now he seems unwilling to even return my calls. We were to meet at ten thirty, and I had already left my apartment one hour before that – yet I never made it past the gate of my building. I do recall how I stayed next to the wall until it was a quarter to ten, way too late for me to make it even if I was already running to the bus station, and consequently returned to my house, sighing while reflecting on what went wrong.

I distinctly remember that prior to leaving the apartment I went to the kitchen and opened the top drawer to observe the white pawns placed there on a striped napkin. It seemed to me that their position was conforming to the known rule, but it didn’t take me very long to understand my error when I returned, following my failure to leave the building.

It is a simple enough mistake to make… Castling always happens if the three pawns aren’t positioned exactly as they should. Of course I was being ambitious, and in an attempt to negate a lesser obstacle happened to resurrect a major one from the past. Besides, it didn’t matter if that other obstacle would have been dealt with, given that one only materializes when I am inside the bus, while this time I never made it to the street…

Castling must always be prevented. Due to hastiness I allowed once more a full wall to form around the building, and it does seem my prospective client walled up as well..

[Swaeft]

A pretty neat piece, though I am beset with confusion for I cannot for the life of me figure out what caused the man to stop outside his house. Any hints?

[Kyriakos]

Thanks
It wasn't clear, certainly (not exactly my best piece). But the idea is that (for some bizarre reason) each time he doesn't place the chess pieces "correctly" the result is that he sees a continuous wall outside, so cannot leave. Castling is done to protect the king, but it can limit the king's moves as well

[Alwyn]

That's a creative idea for a tale, the connection between how he plays the chess game and what he sees in real life.

[Kyriakos]

Thanks, glad you liked it

[Swaeft]

I read your reply some time back but forgot to respond - apologies! Thanks for the explanation, it's something I wouldn't have thought of on my own, so I appreciate it.