Melvin Fernsby buried his hands in his overcoat as he approached the one-room unit at the end of the cramped hallway. The thin carpet tried in vain to swallow noise from neighboring apartments: televisions squawking baseball games, infants crying, people… Continue Reading
Orange light beamed across my eyes through a gap in the vertical blinds where my cat had yanked out one of the vinyl strips weeks or months earlier. I was coaxed awake in the otherwise dark room by the familiar… Continue Reading
Innocent? Ha! If actions speak louder than words, she was loud and proud. Finally! Her children teased her about being a pushover, but not this time. This time she’d gotten it right. She was sure of it. Well, she’d been… Continue Reading
When I was young my brother left for the war. He died several months after in action. He was a hero by all standards. Incredibly jealous was I, but I was born wrong and would forever be denied. A year… Continue Reading
I solemnly, sincerely, and truthfully affirm and declare that I will bear true allegiance to the Federal Republic… I will use my best endeavour for the preservation of peace and apprehension of offenders against the peace. I told you that… Continue Reading
I’m half-dressed and half in the bottle when the Federales pound on the door, shouting for my roommate, Angel Rios. You think you know a person, I think to myself, but then I think I don’t really know why they’ve… Continue Reading
He rapped out a rhythm on the wrong side of an interview table and pushed back the uncomfortable plastic chair to allow room for his paunch. He shivered. The room was not freezing, but they had confiscated his coat due… Continue Reading
This blanket would be unmemorable except you recognize this as your favorite pattern and remember where, still new to knitting needles, you used to drop stitches and clumsily fix them up. Your fingertips know this sturdy, not-soft yarn without touching… Continue Reading
Face down on the street, hands locked behind my head, I lay still while Plainville’s Finest held a gun on me and Second-Best rifled through my pockets. Where had I gone wrong? My client had announced he chose me based… Continue Reading
My car was ugly. Angular, pitted gray, it could barely fly. If it weren’t for Tomiko, I’d feel ashamed picking up my boyfriend Chuanli. He climbed in the passenger seat and kissed my ear as my car’s hologram of Tomiko… Continue Reading