NISSA HARLOW: Not Everyone Likes Cookies
Death didn’t want him. So he came back and lived under the porch. Mostly, he’s quiet. I leave out food sometimes, but he never eats it. The best part is how he drives away the solicitors and...
View ArticleKEN ZANG: First Funeral
He never saw a corpse before. Grandpa lay in the casket, but it didn’t look like him. Was Grandpa still a ‘he’? An ‘it’? The expression seemed wrong. The real Grandpa would never make that face. The...
View ArticleKEVIN HOPSON: The Villain
Being a superhero isn’t easy, especially for a working mother. But moments like this make it worthwhile. I grasp the mask, revealing the villain’s face. My eyes bulge. “Jake?” I croak. “Sorry, Mom.”...
View ArticleJENNIFER BUSCH: A Breathtaking Conviction
A brilliantly chaotic demonstration executed fearlessly. Goodness, how inspirational! Just. Keep. Learning. My natural openness pleads quietly – research! Shocking, that ululation, vibration within,...
View ArticleTRACY ROYCE: Overdue
X-P8 gazed skyward, tapping her hoof in a rapid sequence familiar to X-P12: “When do you think they’ll return? We’ve already gathered all the data we need. And I just hate this. It’s humiliating.”...
View ArticleCHERYL SNELL: Samaritans
Two sisters decide to adopt an old woman. They find one selling roses on the corner. She is entangled in blue weather, crying in the rain. We’ve come to rescue you, the girls say, pulling her into...
View ArticleTREVOR HAST: Better to Have Loved
On a cold November morning, while pecking at the frozen corn on the ground, I accidentally went for the same kernel as he did. Startled, we soon locked eyes. The way the dew glistened on his snood was...
View ArticleAMANDA A GIBSON: After the Service
Lorraine bit into another buttery popover, the honey-lemon glaze making her swoon. Heavenly—worth the two-hour service. The daughter drew close; panic constricted Lorraine’s throat. She prepared to...
View ArticleJOHN H. DROMEY: The Way It Wasn’t
Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be. Misremembered incidents from way back when, some of which—through frequent retellings—have been hyperbolically embellished beyond all reliable recognition for anyone...
View ArticleJOANNA NORLAND: How I Prepared My Daughter For Harvard
My Mother’s Day card read: IloveyousooooomuchmummyyourthebestbestbestandyoumakemehappeesloveloveloveexraloveBeeee! I smiled, then frowned and got to work. I drilled my daughter daily on word spacing...
View ArticleRACHEL HAPANOWICZ: Some Good Advice
Last December our oldest daughter stormed in from her shift at the family market. The tips were horrible, she stomped, unraveling her scarf. Here’s a tip for you, her father said from the living room,...
View ArticleJOHN HOLMES: Punctuation Sale
I was disappointed, discouraged and sad to miss out on last weeks Black Friday Bonanza at the Oxford Comma shop. However, my brothers friends mother said theres a closing down sale at Berts Apostrophe...
View ArticleABBIE DOLL: Up On Our Housetop
Just wasn’t Christmas ‘til Auntie Arlene got up on the roof—tangled in lights, hollering “Silent Night” in sweet, festive irony. Figured herself the neighborhood tree topper, I guess. All December...
View ArticleJOHANNES SPRINGENSEISS: Foggy
The weatherman called it zero visibility. Enticed, I stepped out the front lawn. Affirmative, no visibility; I couldn’t see my hands. Then, eerie feeling, I found myself. Yes, for the first time in my...
View ArticleLEE NICHOLAS: A Sweet Heist
“Right then,” said Lieutenant Nougat of Chocolatetown Police. “Can you describe the robbers?” “Y-yes,” faltered Mrs Rum-Truffle, the bank manager. “They were big and b-blocky, very tough, dense, and...
View ArticleJOHN HOLMES: Cyber Attack
The nline niversal Dictinary: Cyber Attack pdate. Fllwing the cyber attack in which all r vwels were taken hstage, we are pleased t annnce that we have sccessflly managed t liberate three f the...
View ArticleETHAN CHEN: Humans…
The open branch reveals a creature speedy as a sailfish, cunning as a crow, and furtive as a flea. My legs must chase it, my teeth must chomp it. When it springs down, I will finally end this mystic...
View ArticleJOHN M CARLSON: Stay Perfect
Midnight. The new year was now here! Angie sipped Champagne. So far, 2025 felt perfect! And somehow it felt like it would stay perfect. Of course, she knew that sooner or later something would go...
View ArticleSETH PILEVSKY: Foresight
“Thank you, ChatGPT. That was helpful.” “I’m glad that I was able to help, Susie!” My friends laughed at me for always being polite to ChatGPT. It’s stupid to waste niceties on an AI, they’d say. But...
View ArticleNISSA HARLOW: They Never Learn
Making out in the dark woods never ends well. But kids still do it. I watch them. Sometimes they’re nervous. I like the nervous ones best. They’re easiest to scare. Sometimes they laugh and say, “What...
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