Tag Archives: the end

JOHN SINGH: Showtime

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

Dwindling light shimmers, bounces, dances through the golden-hued auditorium. Take your seat! Trillions of photons shriek with joy — and are extinguished. Towering curtains glide open, revealing the giant screen. From overhead, a brilliant light beam pierces the darkness one last time. Enjoy the show! Tomorrow, the cinema closes forever. Streaming.

John Singh has had a long career in publicity and communications for the entertainment industry. Lately, he has turned his attention to other pursuits, like writing fiction. It seems tolerated, sometimes even appreciated, by his husband Jeff and their dog Walter. Some of his work can be found at www.jswrites.com.

MICHAEL FAGAN: The Last Days of the Humanoids

Adventure, Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

She stared at the comet: a watercolour of greens and violets. The desert air smelled of rain and conifers.

A black swan, disorientated, descended beside her. It is already too late for us, but you still have a chance.

Yet they waited together, sharing the same air, the same fate.

Michael Anthony Fagan is a Scottish fiction writer, filmmaker, and educator. He is a high school English and Media teacher with Masters degrees in both Creative Writing and Screenwriting.

MAXIMILLIAN LAYLAND: Still Being

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , , ,

I don’t mind the meteor.
I do not mind
The ethereal veil finally broken.
Just once.
And every worry ever uttered,
Put to rest.
All assured.
And the dawn no longer assured…
Dawn. No longer. Assured.

I lie here, Today, the last,
with all questions answered,
forever and always,
Done.

Maximillian studies at UF, writes less than he’d like to, and is trying to fix this.

TIM COX: Last Minute

Adventure, Submissions, ,

We held hands and kissed each other for far too long, until time was mostly gone. The room was bright despite night’s descent.

We laid face down on the wooden floor, reached under the bed, and rubbed their chins, cat by cat.

It was the very end. Their eyes glowed.

Tim Cox lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Karen, and their four cats. See more at instagram.com/timcox.

GORDON LYSEN: All Aboard

Artistic, Submissions, ,

They cried when he passed. I didn’t see the point of it. He was where we all are going. So many trains, so many tracks, all heading to the same station. There is no conductor to punch our tickets or announce the stop. We travel alone and can’t get off.

Gordon Lysen resides at Sugar Point on Lake Manitoba. Retired from police work after some 27 years, Gordon co-authored the novel “A Deadly Blend of Souls” with his wife, Lisa. Writing and painting are Gordon’s relaxation methods when retirement becomes too stressful.

JENNIFER L FREED: Aunt Peg

Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , ,

If she had known,
she might have answered her telephone,
let the dog out one more time,
refilled his bowl.
She would’ve worn a newer nightgown.

As it was,
she was just so
tired, so bone-heavy
tired.

She turned on the television,
crawled beneath her comforter, took
Tomorrow
for granted.

Jennifer L. Freed writes mostly poetry, and occasionally some micro fiction. Other work can be seen at jfreed.weebly.com.

KYLE CORTRIGHT: Below

Adventure, Submissions, , ,

From his chair, he watches the cellar door. His hands folded patiently along his lap, each knuckle stiff and cold. Eyes glazed over, witless.

The door hasn’t opened for three days. Only the smell has made the ascent. Fetid bloat, sweet with decay. Ripening, ever since he died down there.

Kyle Cortright is from eastern Pennsylvania. He is a pretty rad dude.

GUY PRESTON: One Job From Retirement

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

There is one woman left in the world, and I love her.

I watch from afar, fearful of what might happen should we touch.

Sometimes she cries, yearns for me. I’m too selfish to offer my hand.

My arm aches from the scythe, but it weighs less than my heart.

Guy takes inspiration from love, life and the drunk strangers he meets on his way home. This is his third fifty word story.

MAXWELL PARK: Finally Spent

Adventure, Submissions, , ,

His knees hit the sand, and he collapsed face down. Exhausted. Finally spent.

He knew as clearly as anything that if he closed his eyes, he would never open them again.

But he was tired.
So very tired.
More tired than he had ever been before.

He closed his eyes.

Maxwell Park wrote this story.

COREY NILES: Be Okay

Adventure, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

“Mommy, why you crying?” He interlocks his warm little fingers with mine and squeezes tightly.

I look out the window. It is overtaking the horizon, blocking out the setting sun.

“Because I love you so much.”

“Are we gonna be alright?”

I squeeze back.

“Everything is going to be okay.”

Corey Niles had a 500-word flash fiction published in the fall issue of Eye Contact.