Wow. That’s really powerful. I wonder if your narrator would have chosen the family over their creativity, if they had been allowed to choose.

Very poignant, the progression from budding scholar to… I don’t know what, is quite the slap in the face. Very, very well done.
Thanks for entering!

What was in those pills!

I like to think that whatever was in the pills doesn’t exist outside the story! I’m probably wrong, sadly.

Thanks for the kind comments.

lisaG – that may depend on the family! I’d be delighted if someone could write a happy sequel actually. Although I think that really would be a challenge…

Holy hell. This is genuinely moving. Applause all round sir.

I dig this. A lot. Like with a shovel and a sore back.

The journal style works really well to convey the loss of the protagonist’s faculties. You can see immediately what the pills are for with the December 26th entry. I know the character limit gets in the way sometimes, but I’d love to see a bit more from the 25th, the day he has to take the pills.

maybe it’s one of those Matrix-type blue pills

John Perkins – I don’t know if it’d be a prequel or a sequel, but it’d be cool to see someone else’s take on what happens on the 25th. Thanks for the comment.

Ooh, it took me two reads, but then I got it. The “Madness” challenge has yielded some bleak fruit. Good fruit, though. I often think the journal-style story can be a crutch, but it obviously makes the story in this case. Good work.

“Flowers for Algernon” much?

I think it would be better if you could show more of his loss of creativity, not just the loss of intelligence.