by Amy Southard Jodi looked at the clock on the nightstand and saw that it was 11:11 PM. She laid in the magnificent king-sized four poster bed waiting for her husband Mark to join her. Neither of them had stayed in a place so fancy before, not because they couldn’t…
by Christopher Hines It was a crisp October evening. The sun had just begun to set on the horizon and the sky was a mix of vibrant red and boorish gray. What leaves remained on the trees and lined the park had turned shades of oranges and yellows with some browns….
by Adina Edelman I smell death. The stench isn’t unbearable; more like the lingering odor of a tuna sandwich left out too long. But it brings up a heavy feeling inside me, a sickening anticipation for what is to come. I stroll down the locker-lined hallway, my boots making no…
by Jessica Bailey The knock came at the most inopportune time. Cassie paused. The whir of her mixer ploughing through the ingredients for a velvet cake was difficult to hear over. The rain pouring buckets outside certainly didn’t help. But then her buzzer sounded, and she hurriedly turned off the…
by Steven J. Gray The opportunity arrived and they couldn’t turn it down. Seb had been eyeing the house he grew up in for years. It was on the market once before, well before he was in any position to be considering a home purchase. That didn’t stop him from…
by Aaron S. Gallagher “I’m sorry to bother you,” he said, “but you have very kind eyes.” That’s a new one, she thought. “Oh?” “Yes. I wanted to tell you that. Would you like to have a coffee with me?” He had an affable smile, tousled short brown hair, and…
by Sue Ellen Snape She has blood on hands, blood down her bodice, the stench of blood up her nose. The hem of her skirt is drenched a dark sticky red. She’s not one to shrink from the sight of blood, oh no. Lopping the head off a chicken comes…
by Michael Horton “What scares you most?” She is hugging her knees with both arms, her head slung back so far it looks like it should hurt. After thinking and looking at her for any hint, he says, “Dying.” “No,” she says and waves one arm like she is erasing…
by Nicholas McGirr I was 12 when I started working for Mrs. Sesser. I remember this distinctly because it was the summer before my 8th grade year. That was 2 years ago. I’m a sophomore in high school now and I’m about to attend Mrs. Sesser’s funeral. That summer was…
by Rudy Ravindra While taking a short cut through a lush wooded park to the swimming pool, Rahul glimpses, through haze of the morning fog, a divine damsel in a diaphanous dress, swaying gently on a swing. Her thick tangled hair is pulled back with a white scarf, except for…