As a kid, it took everything I had not to paint the inside of my family’s car with a wave of vomit. My carsickness was the bane of our long road trips. We tried dozens of tricks to minimize the Jackson Pollocks I created on our car windows. Books, movies,
I Made Him Up For Company on Long Car Rides, Now He Follows Me Everywhere Read More »
In the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, where rugged ridges jutted upward like the ancient, weathered spines of slumbering giants, and the valleys plunged into deep shadows that clung stubbornly to the earth, the forest guarded its mysteries with a quiet, unyielding vigilance. The people who called those mountains home,
I’ve been awake for eighteen days. That’s not hyperbole or any form of exaggeration. I’ve genuinely gone all this time without any sleep or rest. Not even a wink. And the craziest part is that I don’t feel like I need it. I don’t know how I’m still alive. These
There’s Something In The Coffee… Read More »
It’s captivating to believe in monsters and the horrors of the unknown, the things that go bump in the night. It’s an escape from reality, from the actual terrors that lurk in the woods. Rumors designed to widen your eyes and make you glance over your shoulder. Honestly, I wish
Vultures (The Well) Read More »
“I’m so thirsty” The words echoed around in my head. I stood staring at the water tumbling from the tap. I’d been standing for what felt like hours, just watching it, going over and over the events of a few nights ago. I’d only seen that homeless man twice, but
I’m a postgraduate student studying archaeology at a prestigious university in the UK (not going to disclose my identity or the name of my school, so don’t ask). Over a week ago, I was part of a group tasked with examining a dig site in Northern England: a low-lying forested
I Found the Corpse of a Time Traveler Read More »
I’ve always been a people pleaser. Even as a kid, I’ve always had the hardest time asserting myself or saying no. As long as the other person’s content, I could deal with some uncomfortable feelings. It probably has something to do with daddy issues. At least that’s what all my
My Boyfriend is Taking Pieces of me While I Sleep Read More »
Hello there, I managed to scrounge up a pile of power banks left behind by previous passengers. In total, these could last me a combined 47 hours worth of laptop battery perhaps more if I used them sparingly. I will try to be quick, so the spent battery is not
We boarded a Ferry, Please Help Us Read More »
The Forensic Video Analysis contract was completely standard but for two things Rayna had never seen before: A redaction where the company’s title usually went, and a personal note from a boss she had only met over video call a handful of times. Tell me if they’re like what the
Involuntary Overtime Read More »
I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life. As of 11 this morning, I am officially a homeowner. Leaving my lawyer’s office (I have a lawyer, how cool is that?), I’m tempted to shout: “Watch out, independent woman coming through!” There’s an extra hop in my step as I
“I’m going blind,” I told my wife when we moved to our new gothic-style home in Griswold on a breezy day in early April. It was a wedding gift from my estranged father —a beautiful two-story structure with pointed arches, board-and-batten siding, large stained-glass windows, and a steep-pitched roof that
The Jewett City Vampires Read More »
“C’mon, Jeremy! Hurry up!” I could hear Marcus whine from the other side of the bathroom door. I simply rolled my eyes, and continued to comb my hair to perfection, and apply my cologne. I opened the door and peered down at my seven year old brother, as an expression
I used to draw spirals in the margins of my notebooks when I was a kid. I don’t know why. They made me feel calm, like if I just kept the line turning, nothing bad could happen. Sometimes I’d go through an entire page without lifting my pen just loops
The following are journal excerpts taken from four in-resident counselors working a summer camp in coastal Georgia (c.2012). All entries are transcribed wholly and completely unfiltered. * James – 7/1/2012 This is a log of repeated occurrences from Tortoise Cabin (location—across the estuary from counselor quarters). Desc. For many, many
Returning from the Amazon was one of the most exhausting and exhilarating experiences of my life. That trip to South America had been the perfect escape from my suffocating routine as a rising attorney in the United States. After years of hard work, I’d secured a solid position at Marston
Hi guys. My name is Violet, I’m twenty-three, and I’m scared. I don’t understand what’s happening to me, and I really hope somebody can help. It was Friday afternoon. I came back to my apartment after work to find all of my boyfriend’s stuff gone, save a folded slip of
My One Night Stand Left Something Inside Me Read More »
Mother said I’d regret it, staying away for so long. She was right, of course. I’d been avoiding him like a suspicious blemish, convincing myself that he simply did not exist. Meanwhile, my father wilted into some grotesque knot of wet flesh in the basement of my childhood house. Not
It was during the spring break of my second year at college that I got a phone call from my uncle Andrew, asking me if I’d be willing to spend a few days over at his house. My grandfather had been sick for a long, tough while, and it’d apparently
Grandpa’s secret lived in the basement Read More »
Every flashlight in Moreau Bay scoured the forest for my missing wife, Jemma. All except his. His light pointed to the open water and lit a path to his strange little island about a kilometer from the coast. Two weeks passed with no signs of her and all I thought
I Went Undercover to a Body Farm Read More »
When I first moved out on my own, my mom handed me a small, weathered recipe book. Its cover was cracked and faded, the pages yellowed with age. She held it out to me with both hands, her expression soft and serious. “Take care of this,” she said, her voice
It was an hour before Edgar’s alarm was set to go off when a series of rapid thumps on the roof jolted him awake. He shot up from the small, hard bed, eyes shooting around the old trailer home as the bombardment continued, like the contents of a butcher’s shop
Are You Ready to Board? Read More »
A MAN’S HOME is his castle. That’s what they say. Do you know what a castle is? A fortress that’s supposed to be impenetrable. It’s my job to penetrate them. Yeah, I’m a burglar. I challenge you to judge me on that fact alone. How many of you have ever
My parents died in a car crash on their way home from dropping me off my freshman year at Stanford. I never got the chance to call and tell them I was all settled in. They lay bleeding out in the street, while I was decorating my room in crimson.
The Things We Do for Family Read More »
May 27th, 2030. 10:30 Am-10:35 Am.The hum of the fluorescent lights, the smell of antiseptic, and the squeaking of chairs as men in white lab coats roll around the porcelain floors created an image in Abigail’s mind of sickness. This was not what she expected when she and her husband,
Are You Expecting? Read More »
