Marcy giggled as a sweet elixir of spice drifted past her.  A most unusual odor, she thought as she looked at the serious faces of the executives sitting around the board table.  Her department’s report just didn’t seem important any more.  She sprang up and inexplicably blurted, “Hi everyone.  Let’s get happy!”

That night, the main headliner in the local news was:

City Unsure why the Sewer Smells. 

Authorities are trying to locate the source of a mysterious odor emanating from drains in several businesses downtown. Its unusual effects…

Marcy giggled.  Her meeting hadn’t been the only one derailed.

I love reading the flash fiction posted on Charli Mills’ Carrot Ranch site.  This week’s prompt was such a fun one; I thought I’d give it a try.   I found an old headline “City Unsure why the Sewer Smells” on the web.  The actual story was about a foul odor that affected a few of the downtown businesses.  The headline became the inspiration for my flash fiction story.

This story is in response to Carrot Ranch Flash Fiction Challenge of July 29, 2015 prompt:  In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story that is ripped from the headlines. Look at local, regional or global news. You can link to an article if you choose to. Put your own fictional twist on it to make it unique to your story-telling.