The story of the week for October 10 to 14 is…
Other Things by Perry McDaid
This story oozes creativity and world-building, qualities I’m always delighted to come across.
ANNE ANTHONY: High-Tech
“There’s a bug.” The new project manager steps into Charlie’s cube. She smells fresh, like she showers.
“Impossible.” He knows she can’t read Java so he points to his screen. “Show me.”
“Good Lord, never mind.” She removes her ruby high heel and smashes the cockroach crawling across his desktop.
Anne Anthony once worked as a systems project manager, but she never wore heels. She writes fiction and hand-carries bugs to safety.
HILLARY NICHOLS: Denial
They say I know you,
But truly, I don’t.
We have a deep connection?
A long history together?
I can’t believe it. I won’t.
You are hideous. A monster!
There is nothing before me that I wish to embrace.
Be gone, deceitful reflection, and take your disgusting lies with you!
October seems to bring about that icy trickle of fear that maybe we are who we think we are, after all.
MANDIE HINES: Chance Meeting
Their eyes met. His breath caught in his throat and he realized from this moment on, his life would be devoted to her. Every future breath would be breathed for her. She would redeem him.
He’d plan their next meeting. But first things first: he needed to kill his wife.
Mandie Hines writes psychological thrillers, horror, and flash fiction in the shadows of the Rocky Mountains. She’s driven to create pieces of fiction that capture moments of human vulnerability. Find more at mandiehines.com.
MARY STEER: Dorothy Parker’s Dinner Party
Carrie won’t have dairy. Jonah won’t touch meat. The Quarringtons are vegan.
What do they all eat?
No gluten, no fructose, no nuts of any kind, no eggs and no bananas—I think I’ve lost my mind.
Dinner parties are such a drain—I’ll emulate Hannibal and just serve brain.
Mary Steer often wonders why no one ever comes to her house for dinner. More of her work may be found at her peanut-free website.
PERRY McDAID: Other Things
Andile could trace his family back to an eighteenth century shaman, but he was sure this was a first. Torso and abdomen were insectile; gonads mammalian in defiance of bio-mechanical laws. But the brain…? It phased in and out. His scalpel hovered…
The attackers were advancing to claim their dead.
Irish writer Perry McDaid lives in Derry under the brooding brows of Donegal hills which he occasionally hikes in search of druidic inspiration.
ASHTON MORRIS: The Tenebris Ignis
My stomach flipped with each dip of the gargantuan vessel. I stood at the bow of the black ship, letting the howling wind crawl through my short hair.
I watched my kingdom drift farther away and that’s when I intensely regretted my promise to the captain of the Tenebris Ignis.
Ashton Morris has been writing a book called The Kingdom of Magic for a year and a half now. She plays the piano and trombone.
NIGEL DEEP: Jumper
I steeled my nerves as I stood on the edge of the cliff. As soon as I jumped there was no going back; there would be no stopping until I hit the ground.
Suddenly I took the leap.
After a few terrifying seconds, I felt the wind catch my parachute.
Nigel Deep is a junior in high school. He lives on a farm and enjoys working on cars. He would like to be an orthopedic surgeon when he grows up.
TATE HANCOCK: Good Friend
Teary-eyed and with flowers in hand, the boy inches toward the grave with his mother. The grave is familiar; they both visit it daily.
The boy breaks down and falls to his knees. Crying, he says, “He was so good. We had so many memories… He was a good goldfish.”
Tate Hancock is a junior at Orion High School in Illinois. He lives with his mother, father, older brother, and younger brother. He wrote this 50-word story for his English III Honors class.
KELLY JACOBSEN: Rest
The corridors were dark. It felt like his lungs would burst out of his chest, but he couldn’t stop running.
He couldn’t stop now, not after everything, not with everything ahead of him.
He couldn’t stop, not even for the sword pointed at him. Still, it felt good to rest.
Kelly Jacobson is a student at Orion High School. Her favorite subject is English and she hopes to someday publish a book or two.