Katie’s fingers shook as she opened the chocolate box and offered the selection to Phil. It’d been a while since she’d used this test, reserved only for third dates. The final compatibility check. After a string of bad hook-ups, her… Continue Reading
It was approaching midnight as Marsha, an ER nurse, piloted the Toyota sedan along the winding country road. Today’s rain had left the air misty, with steam rising from the warm road. The temperature was falling. Marsha just wanted to… Continue Reading
A boy and a girl. You know where this is going, right? Well, first, the boy. In truth, he is not a boy at all but a man who has just entered his fortieth year, that sudden precipice of middle… Continue Reading
We wander to the end of the beach, away from the sprawling sunbathers, and sit down on my fraying blue and white striped beach blanket. The turquoise and lilac Cornish sea rolls up the pale fluffy sand, flattening and darkening… Continue Reading
In the bath last night, he said, “Can I tell you something? Not to freak you out.” I was lying on top of him, sloshing around, so I nodded onto his chest. “I was thinking earlier that the idea of… Continue Reading
In a few minutes, a guy who looks like a younger version of me is going to ask you out. He’s right over there, shooting pool with his friends, and he’s about to remark that he likes your crooked smile.… Continue Reading
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
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
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
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