The Fine Art of Negotiation – FFftPP#9

What follows is a piece inspired by the prompt over at Flash Fiction for the Purposeful Practitioner. The key elements were the photo below, the opening sentence/phrase and no more than 200 words. 

http://publicdomainarchive.com/public-domain-images-vintage-kids-toys-books-fisherprice/

The Fine Art of Negotiation – 145 words

Nothing is ever as easy as it looks, I thought, watching my son Sam’s face turn red and then a shiny plum almost the color of an eggplant.

“You…can’t…throw…away…my…barn!” he cried between heaving sobs.

I started by commiserating: “Sweetheart, I understand how hard it is to say goodbye to an old toy.”

I appealed to his mature almost-six-year-old self: “Honey, you’re too grown up to play with that barn.”

I attempted reason: “Little one, just think of the room you’ll have for other toys you play with more.”

Eventually, I resorted to bargaining: “Baby, if we throw away the barn, I’ll buy you a new toy.”

Sam hugged the barn. He sniffled. He looked up at me with betrayal in his eyes.

“Okay, fine. Keep the barn,” I said, sneaking a broken firetruck into the trash bag.