Every time you make a choice it creates a different reality, another you. 100 miles out of Tennessee and 20 miles from a friendly face I have to think what would have happened if I shucked instead of jived. Every headlight that I saw I ducked down wondering if this was the one to lay … Read more
The Color of Lifeline The sun blazed its merciless fire, an unforgiving force of destruction. The grasslands, once abundant and rolling, shrank into ghostly remnants of their former selves. Changing into gray brittle and lifeless. Trees stood paralyzed, their leaves curled, whispering no songs life as usual. Only the dry crackle of despair. Rivers have … Read more
Eugénie never liked quiet. Not the kind that came after a funeral, or the kind that slipped into the room when everyone else went to bed. But this quiet—the kind that waited for her to speak first—was the worst of all. She sat on the edge of her granddaughter’s dorm bed, purse folded neatly on … Read more
This story contains themes or mentions of substance abuse. “I got the thing a ma jig?” Derrick Sampson blurted out, reaching over the seat of the car. He was seventeen, a clean-cut, short-haired boy from the South Side trying to escape any way he could. “How the hell did you get one of those? Legally?” … Read more
“Hi, my name is Richard, but everyone calls me Ricky—I’m six and a half.” “Hi Ricky! I’m Jimmy. I’m six, too.” “I’m six and a half! I’ll be seven in September.” “My mom says I’ll be six and a half next month.” “Hey, we’re practically the same age.” ”That means we’ll be in the same … Read more