Ever since I was a child, I always had a crippling fear of doctors. You may wonder why; these individuals were here only to heal us, mend us. Ignoring slight hiccups in medical practice, everything they did was beneficial. And yet, I could not even be in the same room […]
POP-POP-POP-POP! It was only 9:45 PM and the local kids were already setting off cherry bombs. Lydia expected such, but even so, it startled her to the point of spilling the tea she held in her hand. The hot liquid burned the inside of her thigh, and she cursed under
The New Year Burning Read More »
It was all over the papers, though no one really knew how the events unfolded. On the surface, it looked like the perfect Thanksgiving. The turkey was cooked to golden perfection. Steam still rose from the freshly baked dinner rolls and the house was filled with the scent of cinnamon
A Blackstone Family Thanksgiving Read More »
Note: This pasta contains gore. If this bothers you, please do not proceed. The moonlight bathes Paris in a silver, calming hue; a breath of serenity amidst the turmoil of revolution. The city is asleep, deep in its midnight slumber. Only a lonely shadow moves in the stillness of the
“You’re making a mistake.” “I’m sorry you feel that way, Mr. Monahan. Our decision has been made.” “But…” “There’s nothing more to be said. Your final check will be in the mail tomorrow. Molly and I thank you for your services.” –click– Jack Monahan sat behind the desk in the
The first thing I always remember is the heat. Even when I could see nothing, hear nothing, even when my brain was trying bury itself in the comfy, dark recesses of unconsciousness, my body was slowly being cooked sunny side down. I couldn’t open my eyes, but I didn’t want
There are so many things that I wish could be buried in the deepest parts of my mind. There are things that I pray could be locked away forever. The truth though is that once something like that happens, there really is no way to get away from it. I
I moved to London in 2011. The reason for my move to London is very simple, but holds a legend so shocking that I’m not even sure of its truth: only its impact. Up until three years ago, I lived in the town of Wickford, Essex. For those of you
Content warning: this pasta contains some gore. He was born with a caul. That was all we knew, and that was all we needed to know. It was a hideous deformity, an extra layer of skin that covered at birth his face at birth and marked him for what he
The long road home seemed to go on and on. The road continued to stretch in front of the vehicle endlessly. The light that shone through the branches of the tall, green trees danced across the window in random patterns, and every once and a while, obnoxiously shining in your
Paul pulled the envelope out of his leather attaché case and settled into an uncomfortable chair behind a large writing desk. Late afternoon sun filtered in through the bay window but couldn’t defeat the dankness of the old house, nor the dreariness of his mood. Luckily, he had had the
Melinda hated driving at night. She did her best to avoid it. Short trips to the store if she just realized she ran out of tampons or had nothing for dinner after getting home; that sort of thing happened now and then. But she did her best not to go
The House that Death Forgot Read More »
I woke up that Saturday morning to an unexpected breeze, cool and pleasant, against my cheek. I kept a fan on myself while I slept during the warmer seasons, but the fan was packed deep in my closet during the heart of winter. I wiped my eyes and looked towards
I’ve always found it particularly difficult to start a story. It’s easy to end one, but ever since grade school when my teachers would make me write a short story, I could never make a good start. I suppose I’ll start by saying this is a story. A story about
Not All Secrets Are Taken To The Grave Read More »
I have no idea how much longer I’ll be able to do this. If I can no longer continue my aimless escape from simply running out of money, I could at least count my blessings. It’s too difficult for me to say in confidence why the visions I’ve been having
Detention. Joel hated detention. Detention and Mr. Briars. And his classmates. Detention, Mr. Briars and his classmates. And school in general. Pretty much anything and anyone associated with school he hated. Not that he showed it though – he was pretty good at playing the game in company and to
You ever have a song pop into your head that you just didn’t want to hear? Whatever song you’re thinking of, mine’s worse: it’s Katie’s song. Katie. Yeah, I knew her. The parts of my life where our paths cross flash before my eyes: Katie eyeballing me in class; Katie
1. I’m looking at myself in the mirror, not really realizing how bad I look. My skin looks extremely pale and I got dark bags under my eyes. What on earth happened to me? I’ve been leaning forward, clenching my hands around the sink. I don’t really know how long
The Revolving Door Read More »
When I was young my grandmother used to tell me stories of her youth. When I was about the age of fourteen, she told me about her and my grandfather’s time in a Polish city by the name of Bedzin. She described Bedzin as a quaint city; it had been
I sat on the bus, on my way to school. Listening to music, and paying little to no attention to the other students. At one of the stops my mind snapped back to reality. I looked towards the small house. Tommy’s house, I thought. A hand slipped through the drapes
The first thing I remember of my arrival in Ahtunowhiho, the small Native American village in the northern reaches of Minnesota, was the smell. The familiar aroma of soaked dirt permeated the air and was instantly noticeable as soon as the doors of the cramped, twelve-seater plane were opened. The
The Silence of the North Woods Read More »
The neighborhood always was a tight-knit community. The gatehouse kept out all the wrong people, and the rotation of retiree guards provided a second filter for the riff-raff. Most homes went for over half a million, but a few sold in the quarter-mil range. All of those, they were in
No Body, No Crime: A Cheery Holiday Tale Read More »
Endless. Dark. That was the road in front of me, stretching out farther than the eye could see in this inky blackness. Not a star in the sky tonight, and the moon seemed to be hiding from view as well. That was okay because I actually preferred the dark stretch-
Jake shouldn’t be outside tonight. Let alone walk through the woods by himself. But he’s just gonna drop by his friend’s house real quick to pick up his phone, which he forgot there a few days ago. How much harm can that really do? A damp, blue tinted fog silently
