“Where are we going?” Ora asked. Raj detected a hint of curiosity in her voice alongside another, stronger tone, one that said, I think I know the answer to this question, but I’m not certain enough to say it out loud. “You’ll see,” Raj said. He knew she had to have guessed. They had not … Continue reading In the Glade
Category: Fiction
Into Goodness
It began with simple mistakes: Andy couldn’t find his keys one day, or he missed an appointment he had scheduled because he forgot to write it down, or he came home from the grocery store with completely different stuff from what Mel had asked him to retrieve. Then it got worse. Andy couldn’t remember … Continue reading Into Goodness
Dear Deirdre
Dear Deirdre — I’m writing to you because I’m confused. I guess you already know that. People don’t write you when they have it all sorted, do they? Sorry. I’ve never written anything like this. I think that I might be a bad person. I told someone I love them and I don’t know if … Continue reading Dear Deirdre
Image
In the first week of seventh grade, Tobin Rahn called me fat, and his friends endorsed him with their laughter. I remember the hurt and betrayal I felt. We had been in school together since kindergarten. I thought of him as my friend. I went to his birthday parties, and he went to mine. We … Continue reading Image
Mystery Woman
Her hair caught his attention first. It bloomed from her head like a cloud of smoke, gleaming even in the poor lighting of the bar. He had never seen anything like it. Bright white, yet in a way that glimmered as it caught the light, as though stars hid somewhere within its curls. When she … Continue reading Mystery Woman
He Said to Her
The first time, he said to her, “It won’t happen again.” He promised, and she believed him, and he believed himself. Because what reason did he have to lie? He loved her. He wanted her in his life. He respected her. He hadn’t done it on purpose. He hadn’t planned to do it, or set … Continue reading He Said to Her
Trapped, Part 1
How many times had Bastian come to this room? Did it number in the tens, or the hundreds? He didn’t know the answer. Perhaps it did not matter. It seemed, sometimes, that his memories of his life before this time were fading away, replaced by the vivid yet monotonous existence that now encompassed him. He … Continue reading Trapped, Part 1
An Awkward Date
“So, ah, what do you do? For a living?” Tim seemed nervous about even this basic question. Valerie, who had been looking around the room, pretending to be distracted by something she had seen, turned back to him. “I’m an adult film star.” In the inch before it would have reached the dinner table, Tim … Continue reading An Awkward Date
Pyrophile
Nina's fear of fire became something much worse.
She Believed
He told her she couldn’t do it, so she didn’t. He told her she wasn’t smart enough, and she wasn’t. He told her she wasn’t pretty enough, and she wasn’t. He told her she wasn’t talented enough, wasn’t strong enough, wasn’t friendly enough, wasn’t, wasn’t, wasn’t. And she wasn’t. He told her, you’re nothing without … Continue reading She Believed
Daydreams 