Terminal Fenestration

I’ve entered a creative writing contest. The contest requires entrants to use the bolded sentence below in a short story of 300 words or less. The most creative story wins. Wish me luck!

In Germworld exists a saying, as common to the gentry of Germworld as the common cold is among humans in the wintertime. “Laxity,” germs say, “leads to uvular ignorance.”

While most humans spend little time contemplating the small, fleshy appendage that hangs in the back of their mouth, for germs, constant awareness of the uvula is a life or death matter. Germs who make their way into a human’s mouth mostly live the good life. However, when germs get a little too comfortable and perhaps party a little too hard, humans are prone to sneeze. When sneezing occurs, humans blast germs out of their mouths at mind-boggling speeds, sometimes as fast as hundreds of kilometers per hour. Germs’ only hope for sparing themselves from impending doom under these circumstances is to grab hold of the human’s uvula and hold on for dear life.

Gus, an octogenarian germ, concocted many a common cold. In his old age, regrettably, he became cocky and refused to listen to anyone. One day, Junior Germ, his great-grandson, aptly perceived that a sneeze was imminent. “Gramp-Gramp,” Junior Germ called out, “grab the uvula! Do it now, before it’s too late!”

“Stop!” he shouted. “I don’t know where it is, and even if I did...” Bang! He was dead. Gus was senselessly smashed to smithereens on a school bus window.

This short story comes with morals for old and young alike. First, don’t be like Gus. Even those who are older can learn from those who are younger. Second, please cover your mouth when you sneeze. No one wants to see Gus on the school bus window – that’s just gross.