She apologized for being cranky, said she’d been up half the night repairing her heart, patching with duct tape and popsicle sticks, said she’d get me the back rent soon as she could find work, asked me to take her boyfriend’s name off the mailbox. Ex-boyfriend, she stressed and smiled.

Bob Thurber is the author of six books. Regarded as a master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in Esquire and other magazines, been anthologized 60 times, received a long list of awards, and been utilized in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts. Visit his website at BobThurber.net.