STRANGERS • by Michael Ogah
There’s a strange man who waves by the window. I wave back even though I don’t know who he is. He smiles at me and walks on, his shoulders slouched, the briefcase in his hand swinging back and forth like… Continue Reading
Stories
THE GAMBLER’S GRIMOIRE • by LR Li
I was blessed to cross paths with Magus Bender a few decades ago. We sat in the lounge with four others. His fingers trembled as he showed his cards. Looking at the stooped magus and his gilded monocle, I felt… Continue Reading
I SEE YOU EVERY DAY • by Thea Roslin
Notes 4/12Patient had three sips of Ginger Ale and 3oz bone broth. Tried to eat powdered donut but couldn’t chew. An alert sounds on my phone and the update shows in real time. Your birthday was just last… Continue Reading
FRAGRANT FLOWERS • by Liz deBeer
“Just a minute!” I holler, wincing as I push my hands on my bed to leverage myself up. When the doorbell rings again, I repeat: “Just a minute!” Apparently, whomever it is can’t hear me, because knock, knock, knocking commences.… Continue Reading
COMMUNITY POST: ROOSTER • by Lynn Kozlowski
LTK: Did anybody lose a rooster? He was smack in the middle of our half-acre backyard at daybreak yesterday, crowing again and again in the classic manner. We are not early risers. From the web, he could be a Rhode… Continue Reading
LIFE OF MEL • by Wanying Zhang
My phone buzzed at 3:42 am, jolting me awake. The police. They had found Mel’s lifeless body splayed across the pavement; limbs contorted against the unforgiving concrete. I was the last person she called. My ears rang, and my pulse… Continue Reading
MESSAGE BY SEA • by Marty Brogan
The magnified moon, which had chased a reluctant, still radiant sun over its horizon only hours earlier, blanketed the tranquil sea. And with Autumn picking up the scent, their summer was about to set. “I’m not sure this is as… Continue Reading
A QUIET AFTERNOON • by Ashley Akers
Madison didn’t sit in her usual spot by the window. She didn’t say anything to Sophia about the video she’d sent her of Charli vomiting in the girl’s bathroom. Elijah didn’t announce his late entry to class with raised hands… Continue Reading
GIRL MEETS BOY • by Ya Lan Chang
Michaelmas. After strolling along the River Cam through the tranquil college garden, she turns into the medieval Second Court, and someone collides with her. “Oh, sorry!” She recognises the voice. He gave a welcome speech at her freshers’ tea, wearing… Continue Reading
DINNER FOR TWO • by Travis Cohen
I found her in the kitchen nook in the morning. She was sitting on one of the wicker and leatherette stools that had come from my grandparents’ furniture store. It was a familiar enough sight but felt unfamiliar now. There… Continue Reading