Keep Undercover

KThis is my fifth April A-to-Z Challenge. The past couple of years, I’ve written 100-word flash fiction each day. This year I’m doing the same, only with a twist: each day’s story will be inspired by the title of a Paul McCartney song. So let’s continue the fun with…

KEEP UNDER COVER

The line was long, but Georgina Wilson didn’t mind. It would be worth the wait.

At eighteen Georgina still had narrow hips and a flat chest, which made her stand out among her curvaceous friends, as they were often quick to remind her. But she would show them.

She had dressed for the occasion, even visited the hairdresser.

Her turn came.

“Name?”

“George Wilson, sir.”

“Age?”

“Eighteen.”

The officer frowned. “Eighteen and voice not changed?”

“It happens, sir.”

“Very good,” said the officer. “Ready to take it to the Hun?”

“Yes sir!”

“Get your kit, George. We head out tomorrow.”

Check back tomorrow for “L”…

“Keep Under Cover” is a song from Paul’s 1983 album, “Pipes of Peace.”

cds

Colin D. Smith, writer of blogs and fiction of various sizes.

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32 Responses

  1. cynthiamc1 says:

    I’ve learned a lot about Paul McCartney’s songs. Never heard of most of these. Well done!

  2. I was hooked from the first sentence. Unfortunately I don’t know what a Hun is and thus miss the twist. I have to ask. What is the Hun?

    • cds says:

      That’s really gratifying, that you were hooked even though the twist missed you. “The Hun” was a popular term used by the Brits during World War I as a reference to the German army. It was probably meant as a disparaging reference to the old Germanic “barbarian” tribe that ravaged Europe in the fourth and fifth centuries. Thanks, Angie! 🙂

  3. Really loved this. I must confess at the end when the officer told Georgina to fetch a kit, I sort of envisioned her being picked for a football team like Man U or Liverpool (as it is inspired by Paul McCartney). When I was 18, I had delusions of being the first girl to play in the English Premiere League. Which is better than volunteering to get shot at, yes? Great story once more.

    • cds says:

      Thank you, Elise. This was another story that was hard to squeeze into 100 words. A number of my more-than-100-word drafts were a little more explicit on the military twist, so I had to find a way of evoking World War I in a couple of words. “Officer” and “take it to the Hun” was the best I could come up with.

      As I understand it, while there was a minimum age for recruitment, it was not uncommon for boys under 18 to sign up with few questions asked. That served as background as to why the officer would turn a blind eye to this recruit’s apparent youthfulness. It was also somewhat inspired by Scott Westerfeld’s LEVIATHAN series, which stars a young female posing as male so she can serve in the British air force during an alternate universe steampunk version of World War I. It’s an excellent series. 🙂

      • I am adding Leviathan to my TBR list. I love stories like that. Thanks, Colin.

        • cds says:

          You won’t regret it, Elise. It’s a three-part series, and one of the few series I’ve read where each book was excellent. The world is wonderfully realized (and illustrated!), with engaging characters, and a compelling plot. What more could you ask for? 🙂

  4. I wonder how long Georgina’s ruse would have lasted. Great twist.

    • cds says:

      It would have been hard to keep under cover for long, that’s for sure. She must have really wanted to join up. Thanks, Silver Fox!

  5. Me says:

    I was going to ask about “the Hun”, but I figured I’d google it first and it turns out that wasn’t a good idea lol. Thanks for explaining it in the comments! I get it now 🙂

  6. Celia Reaves says:

    I got “the Hun” right away, which is probably a sign of my advanced age. Good luck, Georgina. You’ll need it.

  7. That was interesting. Maybe she’ll come back a hero.

    ~Ninja Minion Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
    Story Dam
    Patricia Lynne, Indie Author

  8. It’s happened many a time in history and I admire the courage of these women. Could have used a tenth of that as I grew up. Great flash!

  9. Let’s hope she comes back a hero. And if not, let’s just hope she comes back. One thing that’s particularly fun about these is since you know there’s a good chance a twist is coming, you look ahead to what it might be. So ultimately, at least in my mind as a reader, at the end there’s sometimes a twist on the twist because I had a different twist I was expecting. This one delivered exquisitely on that. Nice job.

    • cds says:

      So the twist was that the twist was not the twist you expected? Cool! Thanks, John. And next time you see Chubby Checker, say hi! Clearly we have much in common. 😉

  10. I knew exactly what she was up to, because I just finished a story about someone trying to enlist in WWI. Not quite the same plot twist, though.

    • cds says:

      Yay! You got the reference, though, so that’s cool. Novel? Short story? If it’s published, be sure to let us know. 🙂

  11. julieweathers2014 says:

    Ah, I love this. I’ve run across these stories so many times in the CW research. Women enlisting as men for various reasons. Men disguising themselves as women for covert operations. It’s fascinating how many times women could successfully pull off the ruse until they were wounded, hospitalized, or killed.

    Good job, Colin!!

    • cds says:

      Thanks, Julie! In the brief research I did for this story (more like fact-checking than real research), it amazed me that officers would turn a blind eye to underage recruits. Knowing what we know now about WWI, it’s horrendous to think they would let children fight. That’s why the officer in the story only questions Georgina’s age, not her gender. And even then, he lets her pass.

  12. To fit all that into just 100 words?! Well done!!!

    • cds says:

      It wasn’t easy, to tell the truth, Kai. This one took a lot of editing, and very careful word choice. Thanks! 🙂

  13. ddeepa says:

    I had to read your description of Hun in one of the above comments to understand the tale better, but it was every bit worth it!

    Cheers,
    Deepa
    Deepa’s Kaleidoscope

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