By Nina Dorman Dark wisps of hair escaped my braid as I tightened my grip on the thick, slippery vines that wound around the ancient tree. Black, slimy moss-covered its shadowy branches, a death sentence to anyone foolish enough to try and climb its treacherous limbs to break free from…
By David Blome “Thomas, come here.” “What, Daddy?” “You’re gonna stay with Aunt Maureen and Uncle Frank for a little while. “Is Mommy sick again?” “Yes.” “How long am I staying this time?” “Just during the week until she gets better. I’ll pick you up on Friday. Now go get…
By Thomas Weedman The last drag. You hold hot smoke in your lungs, flick the cigarette aside. It somersaults into the snowbank, and the butt-end comes up singed yellow, blurred as the sun in the marbled clouds. You exhale, trying for a halo of rings but suck at it. A…
by V.J. Hamilton Life would be so much easier if I were a cartoon character. My clothes would always look freshly pressed. Nice and flat, except for a squinchy line or two where I bend my knees and elbows. And my hair. It would stay the same, unless I’m electrocuted…
by Tammy Ayers A gunshot, followed immediately by screaming and arguing in the alley, woke Krystal up in the middle of the night. It wasn’t the first time this had happened, but her heart beat as hard as it did the first time she heard it. She sat up, clutching…
by Derek Reimers It was dark and pouring. Jeffrey increased the speed of the wiper blades to keep up with the rain, but they continued to lose ground. In the passenger seat Jeffrey’s father, Arthur, his sweater dimly lit by the by the LED lights of the center console, sat…
by Ben Jackson “Love in the Cheap Seats” placed first in Southern New Hampshire University’s 2019 Fall Fiction Contest. On the last day of October, Al Fine sat with his wife in the shadow of the Budweiser sign. He had first purchased these tickets, high in the bleachers of Fenway…
by E. M. Francisco “The Thing in My Closet” placed second in Southern New Hampshire University’s 2019 Fall Fiction Contest. It’s like this every night. First, I open my closet to get my pajamas. I ignore the inhuman corpse hanging from the bar in between my shirts, despite the fact…
by Destiny Rinder “The Houses on the Sea” placed third in Southern New Hampshire University’s 2019 Fall Fiction Contest. “Where’s your mother, Mia?” “She went to the houses on the sea.” * * * Greyson Beach hasn’t changed much over the last ten years. Fiery red crabs still scurry across the large,…
by Clover Autrey “Forgotten Promise” placed fourth in Southern New Hampshire University’s 2019 Fall Fiction Contest. A grandfather should not outlive his grandchild. Hans squeezed the tiny stuffed lamb, no larger than his age-spotted hand, and brought it to his lips. Nadine’s scent of strawberry shampoo lingered in the plush…