Wallflower Observations

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“We were the wallflowers. The weeds. The throwaways.”

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…again I was left standing alone against the wall while the pretty ones all around me were chosen and floated off as though they were helium balloons on streamers which never touched the ground. The girls’ giggles when the handsome boys’ hands caught theirs and led them off lingered in the air on either side…

By Carmen Baca

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Her Eyes Were Open

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…served three years on a ten to fifteen stretch for armed robbery when the Governor of Ohio decided, for monetary reasons, to pardon a big group of nonviolent offenders. Somehow my shyster lawyer got me on the list and I have no idea how he convinced them that I was non-violent. Suddenly I was a free bird; back out in the civilian world with no parole and no…

By Benjamin Fine

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Discovery

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…film crew hacked and pushed on through the jungle. At their head Sir Ralph Gordon, intrepid explorer and sailor. He had been declaring for years that he would one day discover the Enryb, a tribe that had often been spoken of, but nobody had ever seen. Sir Ralph checked the readings on his compass and also his mobile satellite navigation devised. He nodded to the…

By Chris Platt

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Auld Lang Syne

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A woman faces a terrible tragedy on Christmas Eve but within two hours she makes a decision that not only changes her life but thousands more.

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…when Peter left work a few minutes early. Although he knew for days about the coming winter storm, it had completely slipped his mind when he rushed out the house late that morning. Having failed to wear a heavier…

By Michael Fright

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The Guardian of Time

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…truck at Rosser’s Crossing was on its way to Houston, Texas filled with groceries. Eighty thousand pounds of vehicle and canned vegetables on old Kentucky 79 neared Annie’s Grocery Mart and gas station. 

The young man beside the blue mustang was singing as he replaced the nozzle in the old-fashioned gas pump and twisted the cap securely before flipping the tank lid closed. He sang louder and swayed as he…

By Elaine Marie Carnegie

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Nail Biter

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In trying to solve the case of a missing teenage girl, the police stumble upon a decades old mystery guarded by a creature made of smoke.

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…narrow peninsula known as Kill Devil's Lair, was a forgotten stretch of rural countryside surrounded by a body of fresh water known as Hutton's Bay. Relatively untouched by civilization and rumored to be haunted by a legendary creature known as the Dim Vrag, it was a place you were wise to stay far away…

By Michael Fright

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Creation 160

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…stared at the lines on the blank sheet of paper. He twiddled his biro pen in nervous fingers. Starting a new writing project was always nerve-wracking. He had some ideas but which of these ideas would be best for his next work? His first novel had been published and quite well received. Martin had even appeared on local television discussing his debut novel. He had followed that with a tour of book shops around the…

By Chris Platt

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After Life

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…smiling man in a white suit opened his arms. He had grey hair and a bright warmth in his blue-green eyes. He reminded Adam of a Hollywood actor whose name he couldn't recall. Adam looked around. He was standing in what appeared to be the foyer of a top-end hotel. A grand staircase swept majestically up to the floors beyond. Classical music carried gently on the…

By Chris Platt

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Shine On

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…soon as the juke-box kicked in I froze, the glass of beer halfway to my lips. I recognised the tune immediately. It was them. They were his favourite band. I smiled and raised my glass. Pink Floyd. I thought of him. Of Chris. When I first met him I knew little of the prog-rock band apart from the prism on one of their album covers. Chris introduced me to the story and the music of the band he called…

 By Chris Platt

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