"This is dumb," said Tom, after a bulky silence. "I'm going." Anne rose in protest. "What?" said Tom. "It's just...I called jinx," said Anne. She wound back her left mitt and thumped him violently on the arm. "Rules are rules." Tom sank back to his seat, nursing the welt. This was a girl with principles, he thought. … Continue reading Jinx
Category: Short Stuff
Jenny decided to make a break for the airport on her lunch break. Her limbs tingled. She'd never been so impulsive! 'One ticket, please,' she trilled at the nearest desk attendant. 'To anywhere.' 'May I see your passport?' the attendant asked. Jenny's face went hot and her body cold. She palmed her forehead a few … Continue reading Wanderlust
Stephanie shot Michael, who crumpled to the earth. They’d only been going out a week. Laughing maniacally, she turned the gun on the others and picked off a dozen more as they scattered in panic. Bodies lay strewn, contorted and still. Some twitched. A bell rang to signal the end of lunch and the carnage. … Continue reading Carnage
Alan decided to buy up the rights to all the famous, unattributed quotes he could think of. Some idioms too. When he overheard them in use at parties he'd lean in, smiling, and proffer, "Ah, that's one of mine." The consensus among Alan's friends was that he should really be making better use of his lottery winnings, starting with … Continue reading Anonymous
Harold rushed to the pet shop, sweating. He'd killed his son's favourite fish by accident. His eyes darted frantically, scanning each tank in the shop, but none were a convincing match. When his son arrived home from school, Harold called him into the living room, sat him down, and murdered him. His wife put the … Continue reading Fish
THOUGH Sam Gibson was not broadly disliked, he did suffer from the kind of missteps readily seized upon by ten-year-olds for ridicule. He invariably showed up in school uniform on mufti days and was not nearly covert enough about allowing his mother to kiss him goodbye outside the school gates. The greatest detractor from his … Continue reading A Grand Gesture
As a young adjective growing up, his was a youth beset by doubt. Neither bullied nor one at whom cruelty was consciously aimed, the source of his distress was more existential in nature. Often marginalised, taught that adjectives were clunky, unnecessary things, serving only to intrude on the action. The adjective was forced to sit … Continue reading The Adjective
Silas glanced anxiously towards the counter where the fate of his chai latte lay with trainee barista, Darron. Flushed with coffee grounds and apologies, Darron wrestled the argent beast as it clacked and hissed in protest. Silas sighed and continued reading his Penguin classic.
THERE was nothing particularly remarkable about Paul Fielding. In truth, he’d always suspected as much. From arbitrary details like his height or appearance, to the way he often stumbled over sentences not previously rehearsed in his head – his proficiency in most things was little more than average. This was despite the lofty tags bestowed … Continue reading Looking the Part
