The Chosen One

In today's story, The Chosen One, Ted and Mary do a little shopping

Today's prompt was inspired by Buffy the Vampire Slayer. If you have a suggestion for a writing prompt, please let us know! 

More about Susan Quilty

Susan Quilty mainly writes novels, including two standalone novels and her YA series: The Psychic Traveler Society.  Susan's short stories for Freely Written are created during quick writing breaks and shared as a way to let go of perfection and encourage writing for fun.

Website:  SusanQuilty.com
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Transcript

Below is the transcript for Season 1, Episode 168 of Freely Written, a podcast by author Susan Quilty:

Welcome to Freely Written, where a simple prompt leads to a little unplanned fiction.  

[Light piano music]

Hi, friends! I’m Susan Quilty, and today’s prompt is The Chosen One.

As a longtime Buffy fan, I—like many—am disappointed that Sarah Michelle Gellar’s new Buffy series was not picked up. On the flip side, I’m thrilled that it’s spawned a surge in both rewatches and new watches for first-time viewers. Especially when they post their viewing reactions on the socials. Priceless!

If you want to support Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I highly recommend a rewatch or first watch. Give it time for the first season to hit its groove. I promise it’s fantastic storytelling once it gets going. 

While Buffy was the chosen one in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, she’s not the only chosen one in fiction. The chosen one trope refers to a protagonist who is special in some way, chosen through prophecy or other means to fulfill their destiny. I play with the idea of a chosen one in my Psychic Traveler Society trilogy. (Which, by the way, is a complete trilogy if you’re looking to dive into something new!)

With Buffy on my mind, I decided to go with The Chosen One as a prompt. If you’re new here, Freely Written stories are sparked by a prompt. Here’s how that works: I sit down with a word or phrase and write whatever comes to mind, with no planning and very little editing. Then, I record the story and share it with you. 

Here’s what came up today:

The Chosen One

The overhead lights came on with a buzz and a flash. First one section, then the next, until the whole store was well-lit and ready for action. The music came on next. The genre rotating based on which manager had the early shift. Today, it was Doris: radio edits of 90s hip hop. The middle-aged morning shoppers would smile at that, shaking their heads—or their hips—as they pushed carts down the aisles. 

A few customers were waiting outside, ready to enter as soon as the doors were unlocked. Some would wait in their cars, not wanting to seem too eager. One or two would approach the doors as the minutes ticked closer to the posted opening hour. They were ready to get in and out. Beat the crowd. Despite it being hours before the store would become busy. 

These were the same shoppers who would complain that the deli, fish, and meat counters were still being stocked or that there weren’t any cashiers staffed, leaving them stuck with self-checkout. 

The early hours of the store had a distinct feel, similar but different than the late-night vibe. In the store’s last hours, you never knew who would show up. First responders finally off shift. College kids grabbing supplies for ice cream sundaes or a midnight taco bar. Bleary-eyed parents shopping in their pajamas with babies strapped to their chests.

When the store first opened, it was people stopping in before work or after an early run. There were moms with young kids. A few retirees. There was an energy of wakefulness. Of people perking up and getting on with their day. 

In the cereal aisle, boxes of Cheerios waited, the yellow boxes lined up in dependable rows. They were a staple. They would always be stocked. Always be wanted by toddlers and healthy eaters with simple tastes. They didn’t need any added flash and flavor. The yellow box of oaty goodness was enough. 

Yet, there was growing competition from other cereals and from their own Cheerios cousins. 

The Cheerios section gradually took over more space. The yellow boxes had long sat beside the Honey Nut, Apple Cinnamon, Frosted, and Multi-Grain varieties. Lately, the shelves were crowded with newcomers: the Fruity, Confetti, or Chocolate Cheerios; the many flavors of Oat Crunch Cheerios; and the limited editions, like Frosted Banana or Pumpkin Spice. 

There were days when every yellow box stayed on the shelf. Shoppers scanned the aisle, sometimes reaching for old reliable before pausing, their eyes caught on a new flavor. They’d turn, consider, then go for the shiny new choice. 

“Hey, honey, did you see this one?” Ted lifted a box of Frosted Banana Cheerios off the shelf, and Mary made a face. 

“Ugh, banana,” she muttered, reaching past him for her box of the OG Cheerios. 

“Okay, fine, not banana,” Ted agreed, returning the box to the shelf. “But, come on, there’s so much more than the same old same old.” 

He gestured toward the display while Mary hesitated. She held her original Cheerios in two hands. It was a large box. Not the huge family-sized box, but the large size that would just fit on their pantry shelf. She was glad it was regular round Cheerios today, not the occasional special ones with heart-shaped pieces mixed in. The hearts were fun in theory, but they tended to break apart, leaving stick-like pieces instead of a nice, simple bowl of rings. 

“Mmm, Cinnamon Oat Crunch Cheerios?” Ted suggested, floating his hand along the shelf like a game show assistant. “Or Oats ‘N Honey?”

Mary wrinkled her nose and began to move her large yellow box closer to the shopping cart. 

“Okay, wait!” Ted stopped her, turning toward a higher shelf. “How about something more old school. Frosted Cheerios? Apple Cinnamon?”

Mary shook her head. 

“You can get whatever cereal your heart desires,” she told him magnanimously. “You buy your favorite; I’ll buy mine.” 

She was about to put her box in the cart when Ted groaned. 

“I know, I know,” he conceded. “We don’t have to eat the same cereal. But… come on. Don’t you ever want a change? You’ve been eating the same old Cheerios for years now.”

Mary pursed her lips and scanned the rows of Cheerios, then stepped back to sweep her eyes across the long cereal aisle. They were the only shoppers there, though a stocker was shelving cereal boxes about four feet away. 

“The same old Cheerios?” she repeated with a mocking grin. “You mean, my favorite Cheerios? The reliable Cheerios? The heart-healthy Cheerios that I can dress up however I want every day? With blueberries and oat milk one day or sliced strawberries and yogurt the next? The Cheerios I eat dry with chocolate chips when I want a sweet snack?”

Mary lifted the yellow box in one hand and gestured toward it with the other, aware of the amused employee watching in the background. 

“This is not the same old Cheerios. This cereal is the chosen one. The cereal that outranks all other cereals. The classic that has made my heart happy since I sat in a highchair and gummed them with tiny toddler teeth. The throughline of my life in an otherwise changing world. Eat what you like, but don’t mess with the foundation of my food pyramid. Thank you!” 

Mary took a bow as the employee stood up to applaud. Ted laughed and turned to the stocker with a shrug. 

“The lady knows what she likes.”

“Yes, sir,” the employee replied with a nod before adding, “And they’re on sale this week.” 

“Ha!” Mary scoffed, noticing the blue buy one get one free tag on the shelf. “I think I’ll take two.”

She lifted another box and put them both in the cart with a flourish. 

“Hey, wait!” Ted peered at the tag. “It says you can mix flavors. You get yours, and I’ll get mine for free.”

“Too late,” Mary called pleasantly as she pushed the cart down the aisle. “I have chosen. You can pick two of your own and meet me in the canned goods.”  

Ted laughed and turned back to the shelf’s brightly colored boxes. 

“Damn,” he muttered. “Too many choices.” 

And he heard the stocker chuckle in the background. 

The End

Thanks for listening. Yeah, that was a weird one. Maybe I’m hungry? To be clear, Cheerios is not a sponsor. I just like my good old, reliable, yellow-boxed Cheerios. I didn’t know I was going to write about cereal when I started. A grocery store just seemed like a good place to be making choices and finding a “chosen one,” and this is how it turned out. 

If you liked today’s story, please share it—and other Freely Written stories—with your friends. Adding a review wherever you listen to podcasts would be super helpful, too. Beyond these quick little stories, I would love for you to check out my novels and other books. Learn more on my website, SusanQuilty.com or search for “Susan Quilty” wherever you buy books. My first novel, The Insistence of Memory, is now available as an audiobook, too!

Until next time, try a little free writing of your own. Let go of any planning and see where your imagination takes you. 

[Light piano music]