He twirls me around and then lifts me on the kitchen counter and starts singing loudly in his broken English. I shush him but he doesn’t stop. He dances in circles while the pan catches on fire and the smoke of burnt chicken fills up my nostrils.… more
Tag Archives: family
Minding Dominic
FICTION by Charlie KondekI am quite in love with Veronica. I don’t mean the child in front of me, you pervert, I mean I’m in love with the idea of a Veronica, of a holy connectedness that could exist between people and the divine source of it, of all the human experience in microcosm.… 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
A Mouthful of Cherry Pie
FLASH FICTION by Kayleigh KittWhen they arrived, it was more like a scene from Halloween as opposed to Christmas. The broken reindeer looked forlorn on the lawn, almost as melancholy as the faerie lights, half dangling from the gutter. However, the abject look on Dan’s face as he opened the door quickly turned to relief. The whispers of, “It’s bad, really bad.” … more
Flash Fiction
FICTION by Kristi FergusonI started following Cindy because I wanted to see what bad things happened to her.… more
Taking the Auspices
FICTION by Michael Patrick BradyThat night, I dreamt about the cowbird again. It perched on the tip of my nose and laid its eggs in my mouth as I lay paralyzed across a long, flat rock. “You’ll get it someday,” my grandmother said, trying to quell my tears. “You’ll learn.”… more
Little Rambo’s Fang
FICTION by Brodie LoweHis parents called him Little Rambo because he liked watching Stallone manhandle the bad guys on an old VHS tape. He rewound the tape over and over until he copied Rambo’s posture the right way and shot his own little arrow through the air into mimosa trees lining their property. He ran through the woods and jumped over fallen pine, charging after imaginary enemies, calling out and telling them that he was coming for them.… more
Gentle Cozy Universe-Spinning Whispers
FICTION by Kate GehanEdward cannot find rest without Nya X since his mother died and he watches her on YouTube precisely because he is not turned on when she dresses like a Russian nurse.… more
Momma’s Broom
FICTION by CL BledsoeWhen Shug found out Vandale had already enlisted, he’d walked into town to sign up, himself. He’d almost made it, even though he was lying about his age, but Judge Foreman caught him.… more
