Jo Jo the Spare Part

Urged on by Wizzy, I have written a short story based on a sentence in a previous blog. Here goes and please do let me know what you think:


Jo Jo sat twiddling the thumbs he did not have, rolling back and forth waiting for something to happen. Scythe was purring softly in his sleep, well oiled and loved, dreaming of daisy slicing and frog chasing.

Bored and lonely Jo Jo silently looked around the old shed. Every other screw, nut and bolt was happily tucked up in their own little red bed, content to while the days away playing together until their big moment came. Tired they all slept nestled together like a big magnetic lump of warm love.

Jo Jo turned to his only friend Matt Black, a shadow of his former self, Matt was slowly chocking on his own fumes, his lid of life left ajar, he was all but a dried out paint can with only sad and mournful stories to tell poor Jo Jo.Their only similarity - they were both unwanted, forgotten and unloved. Jo Jo looked sadly out of the shed window at the bright white moon and all those twinkly white stars and made a wish.

The next morning everyone was up and jostling about, it was a Saturday and they knew it wouldn't be long until Dad came in to potter about. Dad was a giant, a big friendly giant, who loved nothing better than tinkering about on projects in his shed. Increasingly Little Tommy would come and help and the two of them would see how much mess and muck they could cover themselves in. Whatever challenge they set themselves, be it big or small, they always achieved it no matter how difficult, messy or fiddly.

On days like this Jo Jo would hop down from his shelf for a closer look and stare in awe and slight jealousy at all the new uses Dad and Little Tommy would find for the nuts, screws and bolts. They had made go-karts, dumper trucks and robots, all out of random bits from the shed, all with other nuts and bolts and screws, but never with Jo Jo.

Once transformed into new creations the nuts, bolts and screws would sing aloud in a happy chorus their wonderful adventures. Jo Jo would listen and repeat his wish quiety hoping it might be heard and come true.

After watching the door close after another long days tinkering Jo Jo made a decision, tomorrow he would be transformed!

Sure enough after breakfast dad and Little Tommy came back to the shed with new plans, their biggest plan ever! Jo Jo was desperate to take part and he was determined no tot fail.

Dad always needed nuts so Jo Jo jumped over to the nut bed and tried his best to blend in. He has heard them playing and remembered a few names but they all looked the same; he didn't know who was Natty, Nick or Nathan, so he just said Hi. All the nuts stopped and turned to look at this new intruder. The Elder Nut hopped forward"What business do you have in Nutsbed young Jo Jo?". Jo Jo was startled, he hadn't expected them to know his name. "I..I..Just wanted to play" Jo Jo stammered. Elder Nut sighed and lightly nudged Jo Jo, " We all have our place young Jo Jo; and we all have our time. You do not belong her in Nutsbed, if your time came and Dad needed you he would not be able to find you. You must return to your shelf and await your destiny". Jo Jo hung his little head for he knew Elder Nut was wise and spoke the truth, "But what if Dads forgotten about me" Jo Jo whimpered. Elder Nut was silent, he had seen Jo Jo sat alone on the shelf for many years. "Maybe you could gently remind Dad, but you must be careful not to get in the way or cause trouble...you don't want to end up in the black hole". Hearing this a look of pure terror crossed Jo Jo's face. "Nobody ever comes back from the black hole" the nuts sang in uniform terror.

Jo Jo was scared, very scared indeed, but he had to be transformed, he didn't want to live his whole life on the shelf. Plucking up all his courage, he scurried past the bolts and screws. "Be careful Jo Jo" they sang. Jo Jo smiled meekly trying his best to show confidence. He worked his way through the maze of paint cans, tools and gardening gear, then stopped. He was at a cliff edge, well a shelf edge to be exact, and he could go no further. Below him a huge drop some hundred centimeters fell before him. The floor a cloudy mix of dirt and sawdust. "Oh no, I'm stuck, dad won't ever find me here" cried Jo Jo.

Scythe had been watching Jo Jo's journey intently, watched him hop, jump, dive and roll his way past glue pools, mouse traps, and evil magnets, all of which could easily have trapped poor Jo Jo. "Jo Jo my friend, grab my cord". Again Jo Jo looked up startled by the kind words. Scythe magically released his petrol cord and with a quick jerk lassoed it over to Jo Jo. Jo Jo jumped and just about caught the cord. "Hold on tight Jo Jo" shouted Scythe.   Jo Jo held on as tight he could but still he screamed at the speed Scythes cord snapped back. "Arghhh!!!". Jo Jo opened one eye and saw the shed floor flash before him. he whizzed past Shirley Spider, bounced over the sawdust mountains and landed with a bump on Scythes handle. "YAY!!" the nuts, bolts and screws cheered.

The work desk was tantalisingly close. Dad and Little Timmy were so engrossed in their work they hadn't noticed the adventure unfolding around them. All Jo Jo had to do was slide down Scythes back, hop across the floor and climb the saw cord and he would reach his goal. Dad and Little Timmy would have to spot him!

But then a new fear set in. "What if they don't need me? What if they put me back on the shelf...or worse the black hole?"? Jo Jo was on the verge of tears, he had achieved so much, risked so much, but now he faced his biggest test. Jo Jo wanted so desperately to be needed, loved even. It scared him more than anything that he was just some 'spare part' and would never amount to anything.

Scythe purred softly "Jo Jo, you have been braver than you realise, and achieved more than you ever would have thought possible. You will realise your potential, its worth the extra chance". Jo Jo looked down to Scythe and then up to his shelf. It looked so far away! He really had come such a long way!.

"I can do this, I know I can!" roared Jo Jo as he sped down Scythes back at what seemed like 100 miles an hour. The nuts, bolts and screws were all jumping up and down excitedly and more than once Dad looked up in puzzlement at the strange metal tinkling he thought he heard.

"Dad" said Little Tommy, "I just can't find the right thing to make this work".  Jo Jo scanned the blue prints from the safety of his hiding place. 'Robodog' he read, Whats a 'Robodog'?
"You don't need his nose to light up" said Dad. "But how will I know if he is happy" said Little Tommy.

By this stage every little thing in the shed was jiggling about in a state of pure excitement, but nobody could see little Jo Jo. Gingerly little Jo Jo rolled out of his hiding place and gently brushed Little Tommy's hand.

"Oh wow dad, he's perfect!" yelled Little Tommy in delight. All the nuts, bolts, screws and other shed critters watched on tenterhooks as dad and Little Tommy tinkered away, then gasped in awe at Jo Jo's transformation.

Shining bright for all to see, Jo Jo the little red bulb was as happy as could be as Robodog's little red nose.

His wish had come true.

The End