MDA1800 - Written Assignment 01

This is the story I have written for my first assignment, which was inspired by the idea of the 'snake' character in The Fall of Man, who tempts another character (in this instance, the protagonist, Dean) to give into a desire and/or commit an action they shouldn't.

I have moved idea into a contemporary setting which I believe I, and many members of my target audience (which due to the premise of the story would be young adults, probably students,) would be able to relate to, as it is based around the idea of a student with work to do, being tempted to drink by his friend. I myself and I am sure many other people in my situation have been in this situation, so I believe that the feelings I tried to portray through my writing are easy for students to relate to.

Interestingly, in my story the snake character is not a villain as you'd expect, but a friend of the protagonist. Basically, they are a good character, but as their desires (wanting Dean to come out and drink) conflict with the desires of the protagonist (wanting to stay in and work while being tempted to go out and drink), it makes her the antagonist of the story.

The clock ticked deafeningly, monotonously; endlessly, as time lurched forwards, with the amount of words on the screen remaining painfully low. How long had Dean been writing this essay now? One hour? Even longer? Yet no matter how long he stared at the screen, his thought just didn’t materialise. He could hear voices upstairs; more students like him, but were they sitting here slaving away over an essay? Of course not! Judging by their voices they were all well on the way to having a good night. Half a bottle of vodka glinted in the corner of his eye, reflecting the dim lamplight. ‘If only,’ he thought; a couple of drinks and he’d be well on the way to having a good night and enjoying himself with everyone else; not having to sit here withering away at a screen.

                Dean’s ringtone shocked him out of his little daydream, and praising a distraction he didn’t create himself, he answered. “Party on 3^rd floor mate!” said Rochelle, one of his flatmates, “Then we’re off to Eden Bar. Pound drinks tonight! Can’t go wrong with that!”
“I can’t, I’m so sorry,” replied Dean, horrified with himself for turning down pound drinks on a Saturday night. “I have an assignment to do, and if I don’t get it done now I never will.”
“Did you hear what I said?” she demanded, in mock anger, “pound drinks!”
“I know, I know, I just don’t feel up to it, I mean, I’ve been a-“
“I expect you to be up here in half an hour or I’m coming to get you. You know you want to come out!”
“I do, but –“
“Well come on then, you know you want to… you have to… you need to!” she teased in a jokingly alluring manner.
“No, I can’t, and that’s my fi-“ the phone was dead.

                So there he sat… watching the screen, time once again dragging by as slow as ever, the bottle still glinting in the light, almost winking, as alluring as the idea of those pound drinks… No, thought Dean, you can’t go out tonight, you have to get this work done. ‘But work doesn’t mean you can’t have a drink’, said one strikingly familiar voice in his head, ‘one drink won’t hurt will it, it might even help get those ideas flowing… you know you want to have one at least, just to ease the stress of the work if anything.’

                ‘One won’t hurt, you’re right’, Dean decided. Walking across the room, he grabbed the bottle and mixed himself a well-deserved drink. After finishing it a bit quicker than he normally would have done, (to get back to his work, of course,) he felt that while it was enjoyable, the one drink really wasn’t that substantial. ‘That’s good’, said one part of his conscience. ‘You still feel fine so can get back to work.’ ‘Or’, interjected the other voice, ‘if it didn’t have any effect you could always have another as well… I mean, where’s the harm in one more mate?’ It wasn’t like he was drinking to get drunk or anything… now he thought about it his mouth was rather dry, and the drink he was mixing the vodka with was very refreshing, so as long as he didn’t mix too much in it will be ok! It’s just one small drink after all, something to refresh himself with. One more after that couldn’t hurt too right? So that once he’s finished his assignment he’ll be in a good place to relax for the night…

                ‘Speaking of the assignment’, thought Dean, ‘I think it’s about time I have a break. I wouldn’t want to overload myself after all. I might go upstairs; see what’s happening on the third floor…’