When Zeynep was just a tiny thing, wobbling around like a just-born calf, she liked all the seasons in equal measure — the cherry blossoms, the dense summer canopies, leaf piles, the conifers strung in lights. The world was surprising… Continue Reading
Tom hardly noticed the old man. Nothing was unusual about someone sitting by the side of the bike path and enjoying the bright sunshine of the late spring day. But the man raised his head and called out, “Is this… Continue Reading
“It’s time to be young again.” Tyrone masked his nervousness with a laugh. “Are you sure we’ll remember each other?” Candice asked again. “How could I forget the love of my life?” Tyrone replied, as he did every time. A… Continue Reading
Your great-grandson Justin is coming over. You pull out the secret candy stash, hidden from your daughter who worries after your diabetes. Your hands creak and crack as you shuffle cards onto the spotless oak table Jack bought you. The… Continue Reading
At 6:42 a.m. she steps barefoot onto the bathroom scale. In two months, she gained five pounds. She presses a fist to her mouth and pretends not to cry. Underneath the sink she keeps her special pills for this type… Continue Reading
The room is dimly lit. The woman who just impressed you by gulping her Budweiser in one of those craft-brew bars is now asking if you have children. Before this, she’d liked the way you won the game of pool… Continue Reading
There’s a hum of wasps in the air as we run past the picnic area with its cracking benches and scrappy bark to the outdoor gym. The equipment is glossy and painted in calming colours, silver and grasshopper green. I… Continue Reading
He saw her reflection in the chipped mirror on the wall. She was standing, gazing out the window, her back stiff with anger. They had driven for an hour, through deeper and deeper stone-cold silence and unforgiving mutual accusations, the… Continue Reading
Chip started out as a little bump riding Tom’s right shoulder blade. No fair, he’d whisper, Mom always buys Sally’s favorite ice cream. And, Jerry’s only popular cuz he’s got a pool. And, Prom’s for losers. Chip grew as Tom… Continue Reading
We’re screaming down the highway in a VW bug and I’m sitting in the back seat, my ass burning. Will driving. Martin shotgun. Me doomed. “Um, guys, I think there’s something wrong back here,” I stammer. “What’s up, dummy?” Will,… Continue Reading