Category: Fiction
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End of season liquidation sale
Catalina Florina FlorescuJersey City, New Jersey, USA I saw before me a nightmare where bodies lay in a heap. Fixed like statues, their immobility belied their carnal appearance. I asked a nurse, why are these people piled like garbage? The nurse replied that it was a still from a homemade video. When these patients were…
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Hunger
Brian D. MoseleyRochester, Minnesota, United States Lunchtime began like any other. Attempting to ward off the cold with little shivers, most of the second graders huddled under Mrs. Gerhardt’s umbrella. I remained on the outside, inviting the rain to soak my hair, bulky jacket, and baggy jeans. As we neared the cafeteria, I peeled off…
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The peach tree
Roy SmytheTemple, Texas, United States In the hot Texas summer of my 77th year, my skin turned a little yella’, and I lost some weight. Doc Butler, who I’d been seein’ for ‘bout 30 years now, told me to go to the “cancer center” in the city. I didn’t want to go, but hell, he…
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Dear doctor
Melanie ChengMelbourne, Australia It was her mother’s doing. After all, it was her mother who taught her how to read. Not just in the literal sense—with Little Golden Books a good year before she started school—but in the broader sense of the word, through the sharing of musty, broken-backed treasures. Entire summer holidays could be…
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Better than booze
Ruth DemingWillow Grove, Pennsylvania, United States The following is a work of fiction. “Mom, Laura’s invited me to sleep over? Can I go?” “Sure, Lisa. Just make sure you’ve done your homework.” “I finished it.” Laura Kennedy was my best friend since childhood. We lived next door to one another in the wealthy community of…
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One for science: nothing more, nothing less
Erin DuraldePalo Alto, California, USA On an ordinary day, just a routine checkup, Ruth’s left breast spoke up for the first time. Under the stiff press of the mammography machine, after 83 years of content silence, it cleared its throat and announced that today was the first day of its starring role in the drama…
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The flutter of an aching heart
Hugh SilkMassachusetts, Worcester, USA “Hi, Kate. Good to see you. How are you?” “I’m nervous, doc, so please tell me everything right away.” Her eyes were focused intensely on mine. It was clear my small talk and pleasantries were unwanted, even before I shut the exam room door. “Let me start by telling you that…
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Our father who art on Earth, still
Peter SullivanRochester, New York, United States She didn’t like the way he just stood there, staring. First it was at the sink, looking out the window, holding a just-lathered dish midair with the water running. Then later in the evening he’d sat in the LazyBoy, which faced the living room TV. From time to time,…
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Five minutes to midnight
Dean GianakosVirginia, United States Five minutes early for his appointment, I met Dr. Ivan Minski at the weigh station. He was dressed in a sharp, blue suit and narrow tie. White hair graced his head, eyebrows, and even his ears, though his stooped shoulders prevented me from getting a good look at his face. Introducing…