The Girl with the Magic Camera

WRITING PROMPT: If the title of the story is "The girl with a magical camera", what is the story about? Who is the girl? Where does the camera come from? Write your story.

~o~o~o~

Part One

In secret. It has always been in secret. In public, but always in secret.  

It was a mid-summer afternoon when Deeta Steiner first found the camera. The sun was high up, towering and shining brightly. The clouds were white and fluffy like floating cotton balls dotting the bright blue sky. She just came home from her part time job at a local pub. She was in a foul mood, kicking every pebble she sees on the path. The pub owner had yelled at her for spilling some lager and breaking two glasses on the floor. It wasn't her fault, a rowdy university student knocked her off balance causing the drinks to slip off her tray. She tried to catch it but was a couple of inches short. It made a loud noise but not louder than her name being called by her boss and being told off in front of everyone inside the pub.

She stopped and threw the apron that hung on her shoulder. "What a prat! Could've happen to anyone! It's as if I'm the only person in the world to have dropped a glass!" she yelled, kicking another pebble. It flew to a shrub and made a clang.

"Now what?" she said, walking to the shrub. She poked the shrub using her trainers and hit something hard. She peered and found a galvanized bucket with a chest inside. Taped on the top of the chest was a folded piece of paper. Deeta took the bucket out of the shrub. With full care, she untaped the piece of paper. The handwriting was neutral, it was hard to tell whether it was written by a man or a woman. It simply read,

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or touched - they must be felt with and sometimes, the heart sees what is invisible to the eye."

"I give you the chance to find happiness and share it with others. Enjoy."

She looked at the chest again. The note had covered a small engraving that says, "Open it." She looked around if someone left the bucket there for safekeeping and planned to come back for it later. She wanted to know what was inside, but stopped herself.  'It's not right.' she thought. She folded the piece of paper and taped it back to chest. She returned the bucket and went on her way. Evening came but she has not forgotten the bucket and the small chest. Her mind kept wondering and picturing what that small chest contained. 

"What's the matter with you?" her brother asked over dinner. He caught her staring blankly while she absentmindedly fiddled her peas with her fork.

"Nothing. I'm just not that hungry." she replied.

"Leave your food alone then. It's not polite to play with it. Your mother cooked that food with love." His father scolded.

Deea resisted rolling her eyes. "Dad, I'm not five anymore."

"Stop it you two, we're at the dinner table.' Her mom said, passing the bread rolls to her son.

"Right." Her dad agreed. "So how was work today, Deeta?"

"Oh brilliant!" She replied through gritted teeth. "Can't wait to be a full time employee and worked at the pub for the rest of my life."

Her brother smirked. "What'd you do this time?"

"It wasn't my fault. Some guy from uni knocked me off balance and made me dropped the glasses I was carrying."

"Did the owner see you get knocked over?" His brother asked again.
"I got told off, what'd you think? He probably thinks I broke those glasses on purpose to try and stage a mutiny."
"What a prat." Her brother said, shaking his head in disgust.
"That's what I thought." she agreed. Mrs Steiner eyed her daughter but Deeta was fast on her feet, "But I didn't say it out loud." she quickly said before her mother could say anything. "On hindsight, maybe I should've. Only messing, mom."
"I sure hope so. Let's finish dinner so I can catch my show on the telly."
But even after dinner, Deeta couldn't keep her mind off the small chest. As she laid on her bed and drilled holes staring at the ceiling, she wondered what was inside the chest. Who owned it and why did they leave it there were the thoughts swimming in her mind. By the time she fell asleep, she had decided to return tomorrow and satisfy the curiosity that won her over that night.

Disclaimer:

All photo credits go to respective owners.