• The Beach

    *Write about the beach: your favorite memory of a trip, what you love, what you hate. Would you live on the coast if you could, or is it better just for a visit?* A couple of years ago, my sister and I took a vacation to South Padre Island. It was a thirteen-hour drive and…

  • When the Rains Came Part 4

    A phone was ringing from far away. A shrill persistent cry. Why wasn’t anyone answering? People were trying to sleep here. Annie rolled over, surfacing out of the depths of sleep. And then she realized the ringing wasn’t as far away as she’d thought as her cell phone vibrated off the nightstand. “Ugh,” eyes only…

  • When the Rains Came Part 3

    (part 1 and part 2) “Hey, new kid!” Marcus yelled across the hall as the new student tried to squeeze through the crowd. He looked around, eyes wide as though expecting something bad. “Yeah, you! Come here,” Ethan motioned him over to their group. “Hi,” he said once he’d reached them. “I’m Kevin.” “I’m Marcus,…

  • When the Rains Came Part 2

    *Part 1 available if you missed it* Drew folded the newspaper over to read the last of the article, shaking his head. “But that doesn’t explain the people that weren’t missing until the next day.” He’d heard the frantic calls on his police scanner. People that had been safe during the storm had gone out…

  • Five Seconds of Shame

       We swarmed to the abandoned house that night, climbing in and out of the cars. It was too cold to stand outside, even with the fire going. It was our little hangout, tucked far off the road and surrounded by trees. The couches and fire pit were trash, but we used them like new.…

  • When the Rains Came part 1

    “ And then the rains came. They came down from the hills and up from the sound. And it rained a sickness. And it rained a fear. And it rained an odor. And it rained a murder… Soaking. Spreading. Penetrating. And it rained an omen. And it rained a poison.” – Tom Robbins Annie was…

  • Ghosts

    I crept down the staircase as the voices faded into the kitchen. A deep unfamiliar voice mingled with hers. She’d brought another man over. I listened hard, trying to determine if it was the same one from a few nights ago. Probably not. I knew well enough that she wanted the company, not the commitment.…

  • Smart Pets

    Trying to make her smile again. The way he used to.

  • The Children pt. 3

    Adam observed everyone’s reactions to Jen’s words. Mrs. Johnson looked relieved but the others were glancing at each other uneasily. Jen came back over to her seat and sat on the edge with her hands grasping her knees. “Okay, Jen, how about you red us your statement.” Adam picked up her sheet off the floor…

  • The Children pt. 2

    “The woman’s howl of anguish. I’ll never forget it. It cut through me like a knife.”