The wooden box, despite its considerable weight, was empty. It hadn't always been but it surely was now. There was also a thick layer of dust on top of it that you could write your name in if you had nothing

“Excuse me, miss.” The security guard with the stern expression stepped right in front of Jessica, blocking her from the exit that had been so, so very close. “Is something wrong, sir?” She pitched her

The bread was salty. The croissants were salty. Even the cookies and cakes were salty. The customers were sympathetic at first. But even the most loyal among them had a limit to how many jilted baker's

She was mad at him. It was his own fault and he accepted it. He had been distracted when she asked him how she looked in the dress. Barely heard her at all. And his brain, useless lump that it was, had

Kerry was floating in the clouds, pulled by some invisible force towards a theater stage in the sky. The velvet curtains parted to reveal none other than… “Jidris Melmoa?” she gasped. “That's right,” he

He roamed the streets with a map of his lost kingdom wailing at passersby that he was not crazy at all. That in years gone by they would have bowed as he passed. Sadly, those polite enough to look saw

Mr Cat was a warrior through and through. His speed, agility and spectacular night vision were highly regarded throughout Kitchenlandia. Even so, he was no match for Mr Flea and his fearsome steed, Mr

She stomped angrily toward him with the garment in her hand. “Guess what? I know all about that tramp! Tell her she shouldn't leave her dirty cheap underwear in our room if she doesn't want you to end

“Show her!” Pleaded the elder son. “Noooo!” whined the younger. At the kitchen sink their mother stopped washing dishes for a moment, closed her eyes and ran through several scenarios in her head. Had

There were fake job posts for positions that weren't really empty. Posts for companies that didn't exist. Posts that took 8 rounds of interviews to tell you no. Carla wondered why she subjected herself

The trick to lying well was to find the truth in your own deception and let that feeling of certainty smooth over all of those nasty guilty feelings that might threaten your resolve. That was Bobby's

Once upon a time on this very planet, there was a wise and just Emperor named Valorus...

A hummingbird sneezed causing a leaf to fall a millimetre to the left, covering a seed that had intended to grow into a tall tree. Many years later, a shy young man and woman with no place to shelter shared

I'm not sure how long I've been in this bowl. Remembering is hard for me. All the things I've lived and imagined swirl around in my mind and it can be difficult to parse out what has happened and what

Deep in his chest, underneath all of those muscles beat the heart of a coward. Russell hid it well but he knew the truth. It didn't matter though. As a bouncer, his job was to stand outside the club looking

This was a bad idea. Everyone knew it was impossible to make money as an author these days unless you really got into social media. And she hated social media! How the hell was she going to take a 9000

The box said SHREDDED WHEAT. Probably because the marketing department wouldn't agree to calling it HAY FOR HUMANS. That would have been accurate though. Whether frosted, drizzled with honey or packed

Thea's first roommate had snored like a chainsaw. Punctuated by the sounds of a chainsaw taking a ride on a freight train. It was awful, happened for at least 6 hours every night and absolutely impossible