As another gust of wind blows, I imagine them locked in a passionate embrace. I bite my lip so hard it bleeds. I run my tongue over my lips. The bitter taste of regret and envy continues to swirl inside my mouth.… more
Author Archives: Ben Drevlow
Legionary
FICTION by Andy BodingerIf nothing else, you must respect the classical hustle; the Roman legionaries signed twenty-five-year contracts, sacrificed their youth and delayed marriage to be muscle. After being discharged they received a parcel of land, found wives, and retired. This is how men (and, fuck it!, some women) should be: youth isn’t a dalliance—it’s meant for raw, myopic exertion.… more
Stand Close
FLASH FICTION by Marshall BoodAll that winter my apartment was a rocking boat. I decided to slip notes underneath the doors of my disputing neighbours. I let them all know, anonymously, whose sides I was on. My choices were random, but I felt like taking some sort of an action.… more
Cooking Iftar
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Ilari PassI thought I was moving in exponentials. Things blurred or bent in me, like a dance between chaos and order. No. We all move a notch on this sprocket, the specifics of which I will never be able to shake.… more
The Force of Objects in Summer
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Tetman CallisTwice I have heard young women scream when they have seen someone they love torn open or crushed and bleeding and dying in front of them. There is no other scream like it.… more
Prisoner of War
FLASH NONFICTION by Travis TurnerA writer for the hometown newspaper wanted to tell my grandfather’s story and tried to coax it out for years. “It wouldn’t be fair to the men that I served with that didn’t make it back, so ain’t nothing I can tell you.” He had lived through hell and revisiting it with a reporter for some article on personal glory was something he didn’t intend on doing.… more
Two Stories
FLASH FICTION by Tara Van De MarkWhile we agree to support our burgeoning activists, for a bit, we’re mindful they’ll soon get cranky from a glucose drop without a freshly picked and blanched mint and kale smoothie, that naps are needed for brain development, and of course sunset yoga is crucial to maintaining circadian rhythm.… more
The Private Investigator Balances the Scales
FLASH FICTION by Jack B. BedellThe investigator was torn whether or not to note subject was dressed only in a large men’s t-shirt and had visible bruising on face and neck, but figured the video would speak for itself upon review.… more
The Fray
FLASH FICTION by Scott SolomonYou neither dare nor care to leave your fetal position to crawl to the commode. When you soil yourself, they come, hold their noses, and hose. “You’ve hit bottom,” they say. “Without a chance to explore your options, you’re lucky you ended up here.”… more
Things Boys Do
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Raymond BeaucheminThey hammer nails into their fingers tear themselves with saws and do everything left-handed which is why their father calls them maudit gaucher but when was being left-handed a bad thing and their mom and aunt say they were smacked by the nuns to learn to write with the right hand and they should count themselves lucky nuns don’t do that now… more
