THE DROPLIFTER • by Christopher Owen
Rose was a droplifter. I must admit until I met her, I’d never heard the term. She introduced me to it when we were on our first date at Starbucks. We’d met on a dating site, and after we’d had… Continue Reading
dating
THE FAITHFUL RISE • by Kent Steinberg
The Ferris wheel compartment was painted like a popcorn machine, and it was about the size of one, too. Only a sliver of space separated Keldon from Anne, but his shoulder still pressed uncomfortably into the side. As they ascended… Continue Reading
A SOLID SUNRISE • by Brendon Arnold
Even in the dead of night, my eyes do not falter from the nightstand beside of my bed, where my phone lies dormant. Checking it only confirms that it’s still 1:17 A.M. My mind shuns away any hope of sleep.… Continue Reading
SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT • by John Weagly
On the tour boat Funliner, eighty-seven children screamed. “I wish they wouldn’t do that,” Captain Charles said. “The screams echo under the bridges,” Jimmy, the deckhand, answered. “They like the echo.” “It’s annoying. It puts me on edge.” “Plus, they… Continue Reading
NOAH’S ARK FILLED ONLY WITH TURTLES • by James Cato
I went home with a researcher, a testudinologist. A Turtle Man, he called himself. I met him at a club, where he resembled the creature he collected obsessively: time-saddened and stationary. I needed a boyfriend, and something about his sloped… Continue Reading
CAN’T BE MEAN • by Samantha Savello
“Mm. Morning.” Cass opens her eyes slightly, smiling at me as I tousle her hair. “Morning,” she croaks. “Ugh. Morning voice, sorry.” She rolls to her side, grabbing a glass of water from a stack of plastic storage containers that… Continue Reading
SOFT BOYFRIEND $7.99 • by Phyllis Reilly
Every morning, I turn on my laptop and check my emails. Very few of them are personal, mostly junk mail. I don’t bother opening them… just go down the list and delete them. But today one of them caught my… Continue Reading
ALL ABOUT ASSES • by K. Alan Leitch
Really, life is all about our asses. We feed them, and fatten them, then try to slim them down again. We hire Swedes to massage them and lawyers to save them, and we act like them at work so we… Continue Reading
A SOLID FIVE • by Brendon Arnold
I stop myself before reaching the door. What the hell am I doing? I’ve never done anything like this before. This is stupid. Reluctantly, I pull open the door to enter the restaurant. What if she doesn’t like me? What… Continue Reading
BLOCKBUSTER • by Tom Meek
They were on their way to buy wine and cheese and pick out a movie at the video store. It was his first time meeting her parents and he wanted to impress them even though she had said they were… Continue Reading